by KJ Dahlen
“And how exactly did you get away?” Deke asked.
“I stayed where I was until long after everyone left. I was in shock and couldn’t move.” Her hand went to her side and she held it there for a moment, as if in reembrace of something that happened a long time ago.
“What happened then?” Hawk wanted to know.
“Jenner left with the girls and Brody pocketed a large amount of cash. Then he left the warehouse and one of his boys cleaned the blood off the floor, then I was alone for a long time. Just before dawn, I went home. I couldn’t tell anyone what I saw. The next morning, Brody acted surprised when the two girls didn’t show up and he had his kids searching all over town for the two girls. He knew all along they weren’t there anymore and why.” Shayna was crying now as she told this horrible story. “It was a couple days later he was reading the paper and announced to everyone that the police found Susy’s and Robin’s bodies floating in the river Basin not far from the ocean outlet.”
She looked up at Bowie. “Jenner raped and killed those two girls then he threw them away like garage. They didn’t deserve that.” She hiccupped with her tears.
“Was Brody upset when he found out?” Hawk asked.
Shayna shook her head. “Not in the least. It was as if he knew what would happen to them already. He’s such a hateful, cold man.”
“Fuck a duck,” Sam swore. Running his fingers through his hair he asked, “Do you have any proof of any of this? Some kind of evidence that could prove your claim?”
Shayna hesitated then shook her head. She felt bad for lying but she had no choice. If word ever got back to Brody or any of his associates that she had anything to tie him to Susy and Robin, he wouldn’t stop hunting her down. She’d be running for the rest of her life. How could she trust that they would protect her?
She got up and walked out the front door. The men were talking in low tones, but she didn’t care what they said. This was all too much for her. She had nowhere to go, nowhere to hide. Stepping out, she was bathed in sunlight so bright she squinted in its light. She strolled along the fence line, trying to figure out what she should do now and she wasn’t paying attention when someone reached through the fence line and grabbed her by the back of her head. Her head was wrenched backward and pulled tight to the fence and a voice she thought she’d never hear again growled in her ear, “You little bitch, I’m gonna kill you.” Her uncle snarled. “You broke the first and most important rule and now I’m going to enjoy watching you die. But first, I’m going to break you. I’m going to kill your stupid brother and then I’m coming after you. I want you to know he is dead. You can’t run and you can’t hide because I will find you.”
Then she was loose and as she stumbled away, she turned to search for him but he was gone. The only thing she had to even know he’d been here was a sore head where he’d pulled out a clump of her hair. Then she heard his words echoing in her head. Twice now, she had seen her uncle, as he threatened her and next time, he would kill her and Danny.
She turned and ran for the clubhouse. She needed to get to the hospital and Danny.
Bursting through the doors, she rushed over to Bowie. She tried to tug him to his feet babbling and crying the whole time. “Come on we have to go!”
Bowie frowned. “What’s your hurry?”
“We have to get to Danny. Sean is out of jail and he just told me he was gonna kill me but he’d get Danny first.” She pulled on his arm to get him to move. The man was so huge and heavy. Dammit!
“Honey, your uncle is in jail, he won’t be going anywhere.” Deke tried to tell her.
Shayna turned to look at him in tears. “No, he’s out and he told me he was going after Danny then he was coming for me.”
Bowie growled and everyone in the room paused to stare at him. Bowie got to his feet and gently brushed the hair off her neck. He saw the hair that had been ripped out of her skull and the line of blood running down the back of her neck. “Who the fuck did this to you?” he gritted his teeth.
“I told you already! Sean caught me over by the fence. He grabbed me by the hair. He’s really pissed. We have to go to Danny. Please...”
Deke got on the phone and while he was making his call, the men got to their feet and got ready to move out. He snapped the phone shut. “She’s right. Sean got out hours after he was booked. He’s out on the streets.”
“What about the two boys, are they out too?” Sam asked.
Deke shook his head. “No, he didn’t bail them out, didn’t even ask about them.”
Shayna scoffed. “He wouldn’t. They fucked up and got caught. How did he get out?”
“Something about being arrested under a false name or some bullshit like that,” Deke told her. “When he could prove his real name, they had to let him go.”
“That’s his failsafe,” Shayna admitted. Turning to Bowie she asked, “Can we go now? I need to be with Danny. Hopefully before Sean gets there.”
Bowie grabbed her hand and rushed her toward the door. Moments later, the roar of bike engines broke the silence and they pulled out into traffic. Racing down the road, they broke the ETA of getting to the hospital.
When they arrived, Shayna ran into the building and rushed to the third floor. She didn’t wait for the elevator but instead raced up the staircase.
Bowie stayed with her every step of the way.
When they reached his room, the door was open and Shayna halted before she could step inside. But when she did, she didn’t see any sign of struggle or her brother. The room was empty.
She sagged to her knees and looked around the room. Her eyes were dazed and she didn’t know what was going on.
Bowie gathered her up in his arms and moved them over to the chair.
“Where is he?” Shayna whispered.
“I don’t know sweetheart, but the brothers will find him.”
“If Sean has hurt him I’ll kill the bastard with my bare hands!” she vowed.
Just then, a nurse walked into the room and was startled by her words. “Excuse me? What are you doing in here?” the nurse asked.
Shayna jumped to her feet. “Where is my brother?” she demanded. “Where’s Danny?”
The nurse smiled. “Your brother was in considerable pain this morning so his doctor ordered an MRI. He should be back anytime now. That’s why I’m here, to get his room ready.”
“Has anyone been here to visit him?” Bowie asked.
The nurse nodded. “His uncle stopped by a little while ago but Danny wasn’t here so he said he’d stop back later.”
Shayna began to tremble at her words, her body swayed as her knees gave way.
Bowie grabbed her before she could fall again. He could see the terror in her eyes. Deke and the others crowded the doorway just then and Bowie turned to look at them. “Danny is having an MRI but Sean was here earlier.”
Deke turned and told his brothers to spread out and cover the hospital. He told his dad to find Danny and stay with him. When everyone split up to do what they could, Deke came into the room and moved over to stand beside Shayna and Bowie. He looked at her and assured her, “We’ll find and protect Danny. We won’t let anything happen to him.”
Shayna laid her head on Bowie’s shoulder. Tears leaked out of the corner of her eyes and she stared at nothing for a moment. Then she made up her mind about something and turned to Deke. Reaching down, she took off her shoe and holding it upside down, she flicked her heel off. It hit the floor and flew across to land over by the wall. She took out a flash drive and handed it to Deke.
Deke took it and looked at her for a moment. “What is this?”
Shayna nodded at the drive. “That’s your proof against Brody and Sean. I lied earlier. I have everything hidden but I took photos of what I had and put the pictures on that drive. I didn’t really have a chance to look at it very well but one night I searched Brody’s office and just snapped pictures of what was there. I took one of his record books that night and got the hell out. Brody wou
ld have killed me if he caught me and that was days before he kicked us out.” She shrugged. “I don’t know if he ever missed that book or not and I really don’t care.”
“Why did you lie about this?” Deke wanted to know.
Nodding at the drive she said, “That drive is worth my life. Mine and Danny’s. As long as no one knew I had it, I was safe. I didn’t have to look over my shoulder every day for the rest of my life. Trust doesn’t come easily for me. Once it did a very long time ago. I lost that when I lost my parents. Axel made sure of that and Sean has only showed me that fact every day since. This was my insurance against them but Sean doesn’t care anymore. He’ll kill me and Danny anyway, so this is my last chance. If Sean does get to me and Danny I want someone out there to know why. To know exactly what kind of monster he really is. What kind of bastard Brody really is. The world would be a better place without them in it. I can’t do that but maybe you guys can.”
“He’ll have to get through me to get his hands on you or your brother,” Bowie vowed.
“He’ll have to get through all of us and that’s an impossible situation,” Deke assured her.
Shayna sniffled as she sighed. “Maybe you can. But I have to face the fact that I might not make it through the next few days. At least justice can be served for the poor kids he did this to. I-I had planned to get it to authorities as soon as I could get Danny somewhere safe. Now you guys have it.” Tears rolled down her cheeks. “If he does get me....Please take care of Danny?”
Bowie tugged her close and held her trembling body in his arms. “You will be here and so will Danny.”
Chapter Ten
Sean walked down the hall toward the Radiology department. This early in the day there was no one around. He’d spoken to Danny’s nurse this morning and she told him where he was. He didn’t have a whole lot of time and the longer this took the madder he was getting. He knew he had to get in and get the hell out without getting caught again.
He’d used his last ditch effort to get himself out of jail this morning and he knew once Shayna knew he was out, she would rush to her brother’s side. She thought she could protect him.
Sean snorted. Like she could protect her helpless brother against him? Sean was gonna make an example of Danny. She would learn a hard lesson, but he didn’t really give a damn. He’d warned her time and time again and this time, he wouldn’t just be threatening her. This time, he would follow through, then he would track her down and take her out. She couldn’t stay with those fucking bikers twenty four seven.
He got to the correct door and taking a deep breath, he pushed the door opened and stepped inside. Moments later, a thud was heard and then after a few minutes more.... Sean was pushing a wheel chair out the door. Danny was tied and gagged but he also had a gun in his ribs. He couldn’t say anything. Tears streamed down his eyes as Sean pushed him to the nearest exit.
Wheeling him out the door, he grabbed the boy, forced him into the stolen car, and got behind the wheel. He pealed out of the lot and took off. Danny was tipped over and laying in the seat sobbing.
When Sean turned out of the driveway, he glanced back at Danny and snarled, “Shut the fuck up! This is your sister’s fault. All she had to do was follow orders and she couldn’t or wouldn’t do her job. This is on her not me.”
As he hit the main road, he heard the bikes roaring in the parking lot and Sean got a smile on his face. A pure evil smile, knowing he got away with his kidnapping. He figured he was in the clear. She would never find him now.
~* * * *~
Sam came back to Danny’s room with a hard heart. He’d gotten down to the MRI room and only found the technician lying on the floor. There was a sign of a struggle but no Danny.
He made contact with Deke and motioned toward the hall. When Deke joined him, he whispered what he found into his ear.
Deke swore and ran his fingers through his hair. “Fuck!” He swore low. Glancing back at the room Shayna and Bowie were waiting in, he exhaled and stared at his dad. “We have to tell them.”
Sam nodded. “I know. We failed her big time didn’t we?”
“You don’t know the half of it dad. She trusted us and we let her down. This is gonna break her.”
“I’ll get everyone we know looking for Sean. We’ll find him and then we’ll find her brother.”
Deke glared at his dad. “Question is will Danny still be alive when we find him.”
Sam stared at him. “You really think Sean will kill the boy?”
Deke nodded slowly. “Yeah, I do. He’s got nothing left to lose now and he’d do it just because he has to make a point now. He hates them and he won’t hesitate to kill both of them.”
His dad shook his head and reached for his phone. “We’ll get started right away.” Just then, his phone rang startling both him and Deke. He answered the call and his frown cleared as he began to grin. When he ended the call, he looked over at his son. “We got a line on Sean. Amos had one of his men watching the parking lot. His guy saw Sean and Danny come out. We got the make and model of his vehicle. The guys are out looking for it already.”
Deke tipped his head back and sighed. “At least, we’re on it already. Maybe that will help but I doubt it. She’s still gonna be pissed about us losing him to begin with.” Shaking his head, “She told us Sean would do this and we didn’t believe her.”
Sam laid his hand on his son’s shoulder. “We know better now.”
Deke held up the flash drive she’d trusted him with. “She gave up her ace in the hole, all she had left to give.”
“What’s on that?” Sam asked.
“Everything she had on Brody and Sean. This is only part of what Brody has going on and if we turn this over to the badges, she’ll have to prove what this is in court. If she loses Danny because of this bastard, she’ll be running for the rest of her life.”
“Don’t you think she knows that boy?” Sam reasoned quietly. “She’s smarter than she looks. If she trusted you with that, she’s trusting this group with more than just her life.”
Deke nodded. “I know but now I have to tell her that her brother is missing and in the hands of her uncle.” He turned on his heel and walked back into Danny’s room.
Sam came in behind him and watched as the scene played out. It wasn’t going to be pleasant.
“Honey,” Deke began and he shook his head when he heard Bowie growl at the endearment. “Shayna, I swear I had no idea this was going to happen...”
Shayna grabbed hold of Bowie’s arms when her legs got weak and she slumped. “He’s gone isn’t—he?” she guessed in a broken whisper. “Sean got him, didn’t he?”
Deke nodded slowly. “We just missed him. He took him from the radiology room. But we have a line on him. One of Amos’s men saw Sean haul him out. We got the make and model of the car he was driving and we got people on the street looking for him. We’ll find him.”
She groaned and turned her face into Bowie’s chest. His arms wrapped around her as he held her up. “I’m gonna lose him aren’t I?” she whispered to Bowie’s chest.
“Not if we can help it,” Deke vowed.
Shayna wrapped her arms around Bowie’s chest and sobbed for a while.
The sound broke Bowie’s heart but he never let her go.
Finally, she stopped and lifted her head. “Can we go home now?”
Bowie nodded and leaned down to kiss her forehead. “Yeah, we can go home now.”
Deke cleared his throat. “You’d probably be better off at the club where there are people around. They can watch out for Sean. You know, in case he comes back for you.”
She turned her head and stared at him.
Deke could read the defeat in her eyes.
Instead of saying anything, she just nodded.
Bowie led her out of the room.
Sam and Deke just followed them out and watched until they rounded the corner.
“We have to get her brother back before that bastard hurts him.” Sam growled.
“Yeah, we do,” Deke said quietly. Turning to his dad he said, “Touch base with Amos and find out if we know where Sean took Danny.”
“Where will you be?”
“I’m going back to the clubhouse to find out what’s on this drive. If Iceman and Hawk can use any of this info, I’ll pass it along to them. They need closure too for Snake.”
His dad nodded. “I got the vibe there was more going on that she chose not to share this morning.”
“Yeah, I got that.” Deke shook his head. “Maybe after we look at this, we’ll know which questions we need to ask. She’s probably not going to answer or volunteer info unless we ask for it.”
Sam scoffed. “Would you in her place?”
“She might be more inclined if we got her brother back for her,” Deke reminded his dad.
Sam groaned and reached for his phone, while Deke walked away.
~* * * *~
Twenty minutes later, Deke entered the clubhouse and immediately, found Zipper. Handing over the flash drive he watched as Zipper fired it up.
One by one, more of the brothers including Iceman and Hawk gathered around him.
Zipper printed page after page of the information they found on the drive.
The pages were passed around from brother to brother. Hawk and Iceman growled as two pages were passed between them. It was the report about the meeting with Jenner. Jenner apparently paid four grand for the two girls.
Snake got a small note at the bottom of the report. “Took out a small threat to client. Motherfucking biker who stuck his nose in where it didn’t belong.”
Then there was another small note at the bottom of the report. “Went to find the bullet after everyone else was done but couldn’t find it. Did find a small amount of blood where it shouldn’t have been though.”
Hawk looked up at Iceman and he was looking back.
