“Right!? I wanted to fill you in on all of this because I don’t know what the hell’s happened to our club. But it’s not what you remember.”
We finally hopped onto the highway and headed for Santa Cruz. “Tell me everything.”
He pulled up next to me. “Well, Chops is President now, and he’s pushing us to get into shit I don’t agree with. We went from modding cars and helping with sales transport to running guns, man.”
I paused. “Guns? Seriously? After the stink Hyde kicked up seven years back when Chops even suggested it?”
“Yep. Want to know the juiciest part of all this?”
I looked over at him. “Spit it out, Porter.”
He clicked his tongue. “I caught wind a few weeks ago that Chops has been cherry-picking guys from the club to run drugs on the side. Only reason I know this is because I overheard a conversation in the back rooms I shouldn’t have heard.”
My mind raced back to the night of the bust. I thought about the drugs that had been in the trunk of the car, and the drugs that Porter says they found in Hyde’s house.
Did Chops know about any of this?
Was this Chops’ plan all along?
Fuck, I’ve been upset with the wrong man all these goddamn years.
“Why the hell didn’t you tell me this sooner?” I growled.
Porter chuckled in my ear. “What? You want me to strut my shit into a prison, start talking about illegal shit, and just walk right on out?”
I sighed. “Good point.”
“I kept you as updated as I could with the letters and shit. But all of this nonsense got to be too much for me. I’m sorry, man.”
I shook my head. “No apology necessary. I get it.”
“Do you—do you think Chops set up Hyde?”
I chewed on the inside of my cheek as the wind wrapped around my body. “I just can’t bring myself to think something like that. I mean the word of mouth is there, sure. But there’s no hard evidence. Chops and Hyde were best friends ever since childhood. It takes a lot to break that bond.”
“Like more money and more power.”
I swallowed hard, desperate to change the subject. “Have you heard from Raven at all since this shit took place?”
“Nah, and I can’t say I blame her.”
“Have you been checking on her? Making sure she’s got what she needs?”
He snickered. “From afar, sure. But the one time I knocked on her door, all she did was slap me across the cheek. She’s got a pretty decent back-hand, too.”
I chuckled. “Sounds about right.”
“However, I’ve been going and keeping tabs on her at work and her place once or twice a week. She seems to be doing all right. Works full-time at the daycare now. Renovated her townhouse a couple of years back.”
I nodded. “Good, good. Let’s make sure she stays okay and out of this bullshit until we can drill down to the meat of it.”
“Come again?”
I took the exit we needed and set my sights for the clubhouse. “You and I are gonna figure out what really happened that night. We’re going to avenge Hyde’s and Gage’s deaths, figure out where the fuck these drugs have come from, and get the club back in working order.”
He barked with laughter. “Here fucking here to that, brother.”
Four
Raven
“Home, sweet home,” I said with a sigh.
I tossed my purse into the hooks I hung recently on the wall and closed the door behind me. Thunder boomed and lightning pierced the sky, illuminating my dark townhome as if it were daylight outside. The townhouse rattled with the thunderous applause of the summer storm that had seemingly come out of nowhere, and as I shook off my umbrella I set my sights on dinner.
Because I had a pot roast slow-cooking on the counter.
After hanging up my umbrella as well, I padded into the kitchen. I took the top off the slow-cooker and took a massive whiff of the luscious smells pouring from the inside of that hot-ass pot. My stomach rumbled with a need for food and I got a small pot of rice bubbling on the stove. Then, I made my way upstairs to change into my comfy pajamas.
Before finding myself staring at the mail I had slapped onto the kitchen table.
Yet another letter from Brooks stared up at me and I reached for it. With trembling fingers, I ripped it open, curious to see what it had to say. Yet again, this one was pretty short. A one-page letter as opposed to the small books he sometimes wrote me.
This letter had something curious in it, though.
This letter had news that steeled my gut.
Dearest Raven,
I had my parole hearing today and, believe it or not, they granted me my freedom. I don’t know what my lawyer did or how he got the recommendation from the warden in the first place, but I’m coming home in two days’ time. They release me Friday morning, and I know this is asking a lot of you, but I’d really like to see you.
Think about it and get back to me. The halfway house I’m going to be in is just outside of town. 4315 Levington Street, if I’m not mistaken. “Hangman Halfway House” is the name.
Brooks
I slowly placed the letter down, but that didn’t stop me from re-reading it. My eyes scanned the sentences over and over, trying to process what he had just said.
“Friday morning?” I whispered to myself.
That meant he’d been out of prison all damn day.
I raced to the window and peeked outside my backyard. Lightning flashed and I canvassed the woods, wondering if he was out there. I wasn’t an idiot. I knew the club had someone checking up on me every now and again. I didn’t see him every time, but sometimes I caught his presence lingering when it didn’t need to be.
Porter, of all people, keeping tabs on me like I was the club’s property.
I didn’t know how to feel about the letter. I didn’t want to be dragged back into that kind of life. I wanted nothing to do with the club that got Gage killed. But I had to admit that there was a small, very faint part of me that wanted to see Brooks. Whether I wanted to slap him again or hug him, that remained to be seen.
I did know this, though:
When I saw him again—and I would see him again—he’d get an earful of exactly what I thought about him.
Good, bad, and indifferent.
Five
Brooks
Pulling up to the clubhouse felt oddly like coming home. Granted, the place didn’t feel right without Hyde’s brightly-colored bike parked out in front of it. But life had to go on. As much as I looked up to Hyde and as much as I loved my best friend, Gage, I needed to start looking toward the future now that I was out of prison.
And being accepting of whatever the club had done in my absence.
“He’s here! Guys! Look!”
A voice I didn’t recognize came emanated from the porch before a lean-looking man-child stepped outside. He had dark brown hair and baby blue eyes, the kind of eyes that any girl might swoon over. I already didn't like him, mostly because I had no idea who the fuck he was.
Especially since he was heralding my welcome home.
“Oh, dude. I’ve been waiting to meet you,” the stranger said as he stepped off the porch. “Chops told me not to bother you while you were away because it might be too much, but it’s an honor to meet you now.”
I propped my bike up and threw my leg over before he shook my hand fervently.
“And you are?” I asked.
Porter’s voice sounded behind me. “That’s Finn, our newest prospect. Took him on about a year ago.”
I nodded slowly. “Ah.”
Finn smiled, and his teeth practically gleamed in the sunlight. “It’s great to meet you, Brooks. I’ve heard so many stories.”
I pulled my hand away and wiped off the sweat. God damn, how sweaty could a boy’s hand get?
“Thanks. I think,” I said.
Porter slapped my back. “Give him a chance. I know you used to be in control of new prospects and
who to let in, but he comes highly recommended by yours truly.”
Finn smiled brightly. “Yep! Porter directed me here and I’ve been willfully stuck ever since.”
My eyes fell down his body. “I suppose that means you’ve got some balls, then. Porter doesn’t associate with wimps.”
Finn snorted. “Oh, the stories I could tell you. Like the time I killed my stepdad! Well, I mean, not killed. Not technically.”
I leaned back and whispered, “Is this kid a psychopath?”
Porter whispered back, “Abusive dad that used to beat up on him and mom.”
I licked my lips and leaned forward. “Well, good to have you.”
Tanner hopped down the steps. “All right, Finn, let’s not crowd the man now that he’s just gotten back home. I’m sure he’ll want a mug of my coffee right off the bat anyway. Oh, and don’t think I didn’t hear you taking credit for me, Porter. You know good and well you would’ve never met Finn had it not been for me.”
I chuckled as I packed my helmet away. “Get over here, you damned barista.”
I hugged Tanner and clapped him on the back before the rest of the guys filed out. One by one, they came out to greet me with smiles, hugs, and little tidbits of information I needed to know. Cole, our resident veteran of the military and combat medic extraordinaire, made a beeline for me as I walked up the steps to the front door. I picked him up and swung him around, causing him to growl as I set him back on his feet.
“You know I hate that shit,” he murmured.
I cupped his cheek. “Cheer up, sweetheart. Daddy’s home and everything’s going to be okay.”
Then, the hardened voice of the man that was now our president sounded. And I didn’t like what he had to say one bit.
“You gonna get in here or are you gonna keep drawing attention to yourself outside?” Chops asked.
I gave Archer, our treasurer, a quick pat on the back with a promise behind my eyes to talk later. Archer and I had always worked hand in hand closely on extracurriculars for the club, and I wanted to pick his brain about a few things. But with the way Chops eyed me, I needed to keep my attention on him for now.
So, I walked up to him and shook his hand.
Chops smirked. “Welcome home, Brooks.”
I nodded. “Good to be home. And nice to see that our V.P. stepped up to the plate when necessary.”
He snickered. “Wouldn’t have had it any other way. This club is my life and when Hyde passed away, I knew he would’ve wanted me stepping up to lead everyone through our trying times.”
“Right, right. So, uh, what do I need to be filled in on?”
Chops dropped my hand and shrugged. “We’re actually about to hold an informal church meeting. Figured you’d wanna join.”
I blinked. “Informal church meeting? The fuck’s that?”
Chops grinned. “It’s a new thing I’m doing. Every week we have a formal and an informal, meeting. The formal is for business, the informal is for pleasure, so to speak.”
“So, you guys get together, sling back beers, and bitch about your problems like women?”
Chops snickered. “More like, we get together, throw back a few beers, then go create more women problems at the clubs.”
Archer walked up beside me. “Yeah. Chops has started taking us out on the club’s dime for a night of fun every week.”
Chops nodded. “It helps boost morale, especially when we’re working stressful runs and all that.”
I narrowed my eyes. “On the club’s dime? Since when did the club start holding back money from its men?”
Chops’ grin faded from his face. “Since I took over as president and decided that things needed to be a little more even-keel around here.”
What else did you change, you son of a bitch? “Well, I can’t wait to figure out what else there is that I need to re-learn.”
Finn jumped into the fray. “We do more than just the chop shop now, too! We’ve opened up a mechanic shop down the road that I work in. That’s how we get some of our cars sometimes. It allows us to pull in money and clock people with the nicer—”
Tanner elbowed the big mouth in his ribcage and that didn’t sit well with me.
“A mechanic shop?” I asked with a quirked eyebrow.
Chops chuckled, gripping my shoulder. “Come in and settle down. I can brief you on all of the changes that affect you once you feel a little more steady on your feet.”
“Or you can fill me in on everything that has changed since I’m still the Sergeant at Arms.”
Chops blinked. “Well…”
I shrugged his hand off. “I wasn’t informed that my position was being taken away from me, so as far as I’m concerned, I’m still the Enforcer around here. And if you don’t like it? We can take a vote right now on it.”
Porter chuckled as he patted me on the back. “What he means to say is—”
Chops held up his hand, silencing Porter. “I know what he’s saying.” I stared the man down as he cocked his head. “And Brooks is right.”
I blinked. “Damned right, I’m right.”
Chops smiled, and I knew it was forced because it sure as hell didn’t reach his eyes. “Let’s welcome our Enforcer back, shall we!?”
He started clapping and the rest of the guys started clapping around me, like some kind of weird-ass cult from another dimension. I felt like I had stepped into the Twilight Zone, and I didn’t like it one bit.
So, I backtracked toward the door.
“Hey! Where the hell you goin’!?” Cole called out.
“For a ride to clear my head!” I yelled back.
I leapt off the porch and made quick work of getting back onto my bike. I didn’t even bother with my helmet as I kicked the stand up and cranked up my engine. The guys gathered on the porch to watch me leave, and I saw the confusion in their faces.
Except for Chops.
He didn’t look confused one bit.
I let the wind guide me wherever the hell it wanted me, and when I found myself pulling into Raven’s townhome compound, I swallowed hard. I hadn’t been to this place in well over five years. I used to come visit her and Gage all the time back when they were still together… and Gage was still alive. The place hadn’t changed one bit, and I found that refreshing. Still the same old massive palm trees growing alongside dilapidated oak trees that couldn’t survive in this kind of humid, salty weather.
I parked my bike in the shadows and watched her front door as sweat dribbled down my back.
Just go knock. What can it hurt?
She might not want to see you. It might hurt her more to see you.
She misses you. You know deep down she always wanted you.
But she was with Gage. That makes her off limits.
The man’s dead!
The man still needs to be respected!
My own mind fought with itself, the devil and the angel at odds. I listened as they bickered in the back of my mind, quickly becoming overwhelmed with it all. I shook my head to silence them before a sound caught my ear. I looked around for the source of the creaking wood I heard off in the distance, but then it hit me.
A door was opening somewhere.
As my eyes gravitated back to Raven’s door, I watched her step out onto her front porch. Clad in a beautiful light blue summer’s dress with pale yellow flats on, she watered a bunch of rainbow-colored tulips she had growing in a small garden just outside of her porch railing. Her dirty blonde hair blew effortlessly in the soft summer breeze and even from a distance I saw the sun twinkling in her emerald green eyes. Her porcelain skin looked a bit burnt from the hot summer sun, and I wanted nothing more than to rub aloe lotion across her irritated skin and tell her that she hadn’t changed one bit.
She was still just as beautiful as the first day I laid eyes on her.
Why didn’t I make the first move?
She moved with a grace uncommon for this world. I heard her giggling softly at something and the sound alone was enough to se
ize my heart. She had me—body, mind, and soul—but the guilt that slowly ate away at my conscience was what forced me to look away.
By the time I had enough sense to look back up, she was heading back inside. Her long legs carried her across the threshold before she fluffed her wavy hair over her shoulders, then disappeared into the light of her home. A home she once shared with my late best friend. Bile crept up the back of my throat and I swallowed it down. I felt the walls caving in around me again and I knew I had to get the hell out of there.
One day, I’d seen Raven face to face again.
But now wasn’t the right time for any sort of reunion like that.
Six
Raven
As I watered my tulips and fresh herbs that I grew in a small plot just beyond my porch, I felt like I was being watched. A shiver crept down my spine as the cool summer wind kicked up, and I figured I was getting sick. Possibly a cold, or maybe chilled by the breeze. But when I stood up from my watering and turned into the wind to enjoy its caressing of my face, I saw him.
For the first time in five years, I laid eyes on Brooks.
My breath caught in my lungs. My voice muted itself. I tried clearing my throat of its knot, but it only made things worse. I had to grip my watering can with great effort to keep it from crashing down, because I knew the second I made a sound, his eyes would come back to mine.
And then he’d walk over.
Go inside. I have to go inside.
I quickly finished my watering and stepped back up onto the porch. I quickly made my way inside, thankful that Brooks hadn’t approached me. I pressed my back against the door and set my empty watering can on a small table I kept by the door to toss little things onto.
But when I heard his bike crank up, I peeked back out the door.
“Oh my gosh,” I said breathlessly.
I didn’t get a chance to see his eyes, but I saw everything else. The way his muscles tugged at his faded leather jacket. The way his chestnut brown hair was swept off to one side. The fade he kept intricately tailored up the sides as well as the back.
Brooks (Dirty Misfits MC #1) Page 3
