It feels good to be back at Souls. I haven’t been here in weeks, and it almost feels like coming home. The good memories start to flood me, which is a nice change from the bad shit I normally think of. I sit down and Zane goes into the back to talk to his club. It’s quiet when the strip club isn’t open. The stage is empty, the tables and chairs are scattered throughout, making it clear the guys stayed to enjoy themselves last night. That never happened at Club Kingsley. When the club was closed, the crew was there but no one else. There were no parties like there are here. Souls is like a warm embracing hug. It’s big, but with the warm colors and dark lighting it feels comfortable. The tables are meant for socializing, the large stage is seen no matter where you are standing, and the bar is inviting. That’s something I should’ve focused more on at Club Kingsley. The bar was nice, but it wasn’t like this one. The large cream colored granite bar top, big enough to accommodate stools, the heavy wood base, and the glass shelves that hang on the huge mirror behind the bar, make it another great space to hang out and socialize. It’s definitely a strip club that appeals to a man, which is exactly what you want.
“Now what?” Ivy asks, snapping me out of my thoughts.
“Now we wait to see what they say.”
She shakes her head and rests it in her hands, letting out a loud groan. “What if they say nothing? We just wait until it happens again? I don’t understand this.”
“Sweetie, it’s not for us to understand. They need to find out who’s leaving the notes. It’s like the cops doing something, they need to collect evidence and follow leads. Sometimes it comes to a dead end. Sometimes it brings them to a suspect, but they need to prove it without a doubt. It’s not easy and it takes time,” I explain.
“But in the meantime, we’re all in danger?” she asks.
I smile and shake her head. “No, I’m in danger, not you. Whoever this is, wants me to pay for sleeping with the enemy.”
“You have no idea who it might be?”
“No, but it’s gotta be a Vegas King. They want blood for me embarrassing them the way I have. It’s not something that normally happens. You can’t go from one club to another. You are devoted to your club until the end. I’ve broken all the rules, too many times.” I blow out a breath and jump up. “Oh shit,” I whisper.
“What?” Ivy yells.
“Finn, go get Zane,” I yell.
“Harper? Are you alright?”
I turn to Ivy and nod. “Yeah, but I think I know who it is.”
Zane rushes out and grabs my arms. “What’s wrong?” Panic is clear in his face.
“It’s my dad,” I say.
“What?” Zane and Ivy both say.
I pull away from Zane and start pacing. “It all makes sense. The notes are all about the club and me being with you. My mom’s pictures. He’s trying to get me to break.” I spin around and face Zane. “He must be back.”
“Babe, it’s a good thought, but it seems kinda reckless for him to do it,” he says, running his hand through his hair.
“Maybe, but fuck, I have this feeling he’s back. I haven’t received a note in a long time and suddenly one appears. Think about it,” I mumble.
“Finn, entertain Ivy,” Zane yells. He grabs my hand and begins walking. “Come on.”
We get to the back and I realize he’s taking me to his club. “No, Z. I don’t belong around that table. You don’t need me in there,” I say, pulling back.
“Yes, I do. Please, trust me,” he says.
Reluctantly, I allow him to bring me in. Immediately, I regret it when Brooks’ cold gray eyes hit me.
“What the fuck, Z?” he hisses.
I try to pull away, but he tightens his hold on my hand. “We wanted her here anyway,” Zane throws back.
No one says anything as they stare each other down. It’s fucking tense in here, making me want to leave that much more. I’m scared to even move my eyes at this point. Something is going on here with these two. It’s more tense than normal. The comforting hug I felt like I was getting a minute ago, is replaced by the feeling of being choked. The darkness of this room is more than just the lack of light, it's whatever the hell is going on between them. It’s not good.
“Z is right,” Enzo says. “We wanted to talk to you about something, Harper.”
I straighten myself and my hold on Zane’s hand tightens on his own accord. “Okay.” I glance down at the long wood table, noticing all eyes on me. Around this table they are different men. They are serious, focused, and ruthless. It’s intimidating as hell.
“First, I speak for everyone at this table when I say how thankful we are that you are doing so well. You gave us all a scare and we’re relieved you are healing so well,” Enzo continues.
“Thank you,” I whisper.
“Listen, before we go on. The note on Harper’s car, she thinks her dad is involved. Which could mean, he’s finally back,” Zane cuts in.
There’s a lot of talking going on at once and I’m overwhelmed with it all. “Okay, enough. This could be even better than we hoped,” Brooks begins. He motions for us to sit and I sink into the big leather chair after Zane does. “Without going into details, we were hoping that you’d be willing to put your house on the market. We thought it might bring your dad out from hiding. But, if he’s here already, it might be even faster.”
I don’t fucking like being put on the spot like this. All eyes are on me and what the hell am I going to do, say no? It wouldn’t matter, they’d put a sign on my house and tell me to shut up about it. I’m sure the only reason they didn’t is because Zane told them I had to be alright with it. In an effort to keep the peace, I quickly agree.
“Sure, I can do that.”
“Excellent. We have a realtor all ready for you to talk to. We’ll get the ball rolling immediately,” Brooks says, resting his muscular arms on the table. “Now, if you’ll excuse us, we have business to take care of.”
I don’t wait around for anything else, but I hear yelling as soon as the heavy wooden door is closed. Completely unnecessary for me to be in there. I know Zane is trying to prove to me I belong, but this is a little too much. I don’t need to be at that table.
The idea of putting my house on the market has my stomach in knots. It means my father will surely come around because his name is on the house, too. He’ll be notified, if he hasn’t already. I knew the calm lately was too good to be true.
“Everything alright,” Ivy asks as soon as I walk back.
“Honestly, I have no idea,” I say, sitting down.
Finn walks over and squats down next to me. “What do you need?”
“Peace, Finn, I need fucking peace.”
“Will a shot help in the meantime?” His green eyes are almost sad looking at me.
I nod and he gets up. Zane has been giving him such a hard time, but he doesn’t deserve it. It wasn’t just him I was able to get past, Zane and Kace slept through it, too. I know Finn feels the guilt of it and I’ve told Z that. He’s not as easily convinced that Finn feels guilty. Seeing him rush me a shot right now, makes me want to talk to Zane again.
“Thanks, Finn.”
He gives both Ivy and me a shot and we toss it back. She lights a cigarette and I close my eyes. “Seriously, Harper, I know you can’t tell me much, but are you alright?”
I open my eyes and look at her. “No, I’m not alright. I am just getting back to myself and my past is still knocking me down. When the fuck is my happily ever after gonna come?”
She smiles as she takes a drag of her cigarette. “Do you really believe in that?”
“I don’t know. Do you?”
She lifts her shoulders. “I’ve never seen anyone get one, but I want to believe it happens. If you and Zane can get one, maybe I stand half a chance.”
“Yeah, I want to believe but it’s hard when shit is always burning down around me.”
Peace and happily ever after. Two things I’d love to have but seem to always be out of reach. It makes
me wonder if either truly do exist.
9
Zane
I’ve been watching Harper sleep for hours now. When she told me she found the picture, the smile on her face was everything. But, when I saw all the pictures she hung up in the living room, it got to me. It means a lot that she was thinking of me as much as I was thinking of her. I’m too restless to sleep, so I kiss her temple and go out into the living room. Kace is awake and I look around for Ivy.
“She’s asleep in the guest room,” Kace says.
I nod and sit down. “Why are you up?”
“I don’t fucking know, brother,” he says, scrubbing his face.
“You don’t know, or you don’t wanna talk about it?” I ask.
He rests his muscular arms behind his head and grins. “Don’t wanna talk about it. Why the fuck are you awake?”
“Too much shit on my mind,” I say, lighting a joint. “We need to find out where the fuck these notes are coming from. I don’t think it’s Kingsley, but we still need to figure out why he had his crew attack our innocents. Why the hell hasn’t Brooks been on top of that shit?”
He grabs the joint I pass him, taking a hit. “I don’t fucking know. Maybe you should bring it up tomorrow.”
Everything I bring up is shot down lately. Brooks seems to be spending less and less time at Souls and it has me curious. Shit just isn’t fitting together. He says he wants Kingsley dead, but isn’t actively trying to do anything to find him. He doesn’t seem to care about the notes and he’s all but forgotten about the Vegas Kings tying up our innocents. The more I think about it all, the more pissed off I get.
“Where’s your head at?” Kace asks, breaking my thoughts.
“I feel like we’re missing something. There is something going on with Brooks,” I say.
He sits forward, his forearms resting on his thighs. “What do you mean?” I tell him everything I was just thinking, and he rubs the back of his neck.
“I need to talk to him,” I say.
“Maybe he just doesn’t give a shit because it’s not his ass on the line. I mean, think about it. If it was him that Kingsley wanted dead, or Gloria getting threats or someone in his family tied up, he’d be out for blood.” He sits forward as his eyebrows dip low.
“What?”
“You’ve become a liability. What if he is out for blood, but it’s yours,” he says.
I laugh and stand up. “Holy shit. That actually makes sense. He wouldn’t tell anyone, but maybe it’s time we start finding out what the fuck is really going on.”
Fury is burning its way to the surface and I know I will never get any sleep now. I want to get to Souls and find out what the hell is going on. If Brooks wants me dead, there’s something deeper going on. Something that he doesn’t want me to know. Being a liability as Kace said, gives Brooks good reason to convince himself it’s about that.
“We need to be at Souls before everyone else,” I say.
“Finn is here, we can head there now,” he suggests.
“No, I won’t leave him here with Harper.”
He shakes his head and pins me with his dark brown eyes. “You need to let that shit go. If we want to talk to the club, everyone needs to be there. Let him prove himself to you, Z.”
I know he’s right, but I still can’t let go of my anger. No matter how misplaced it is.
“I can’t, brother. I don’t trust him to keep her safe.”
He sighs and stands up. “You can’t expect people to respect you, if you can’t trust them.”
“Shit,” I mumble, standing up. I grab his shirt and glare at him. “If anything happens to her while I’m gone, I will kill him.”
He pushes my hand off and straightens his shirt. “Fine.”
I look in on Harper, finding her still sound asleep. After I gather my keys and wallet, I open the door and motion for Finn to come inside. He rushes in, wide awake.
“What’s up, Z?”
“Against my better judgement, I’m going to leave you in charge.” He goes to interrupt, but I hold up my hand. “If anything happens to Harper. If so much as a hair on her head is harmed, I will kill you with my own hands. This isn’t a threat, Finn, it’s a goddamn promise,” I hiss.
He nods and crosses his arms. “You have my word. I will not let anything happen to her.”
I slap his back and walk out the door with Kace.
It only takes a few minutes until we are pulling into the empty parking lot of Souls. Once inside, I flip on the lights and look around. This place is everything to me. The idea that there are secrets or lies going on with the club, makes my skin burn. I need answers and I refuse to leave until Brooks gives them to me.
“I don’t want to go behind Brooks’ back. I’m going to confront him in front of everyone. This club doesn’t have secrets,” I tell Kace.
He pours us each a shot and we toss them back. “Agreed.”
His eyes aren’t even focused on me. He’s staring past me, thinking. I’d like to think it’s about this situation, but I know damn well it’s not. Ivy’s got him twisted, I know the feeling well.
“Just talk about it,” I say, sitting down at one of the tables.
He pulls out a chair and twists it around so he can straddle it. His arms rest on the back of it as he shrugs. “What do you want me to say?”
I laugh, leaning forward. “I know what it’s like to be twisted up about a chick. I’m just saying, maybe I can help.”
“Harper knew this life, it’s not the same,” he sighs.
“Ivy’s been great so far. Everything that happened with Harper, she was right there,” I say, lifting my eyebrow.
“It’s not that,” he says, with a huff.
I lean back in my chair, resting my arms behind my head. “I’m losing my patience here, brother. What’s the problem?”
He pulls on his lip ring, studying me. “She’s so good, so innocent. I don’t wanna be the reason she becomes damaged or corrupted. She’ll want a relationship, because normal chicks do, but after Rachel, I have nothing to give anyone. My trust is gone,” he admits.
I’m not sure I can get what he’s going through completely. Harper always knew this life and unfortunately was not innocent. Ivy is a sweet and sassy girl. I think she’d be really good for Kace. She is the opposite of anyone he’s ever been interested in. He normally goes for tall, leggy, blondes. Ivy is a short brunette. Don’t get me wrong, she’s definitely beautiful. Her brown eyes are soft, her skin is ivory and I’m pretty sure untouched by any tattoos. She’s got an amazing body, curves in all the right places. Kace just needs to work through his trust and commitment issues.
“That’s bullshit. Stop thinking of yourself as not worthy. I know Rachel messed you up, but don’t let that stupid bitch dictate your happiness now. If you want to be with Ivy, stop being a pussy, man up, and talk to her,” I say, smiling. “I’m definitely not a relationship expert. I’m still terrified everything with Harper is going to blow up, but I know I’m happier when I’m with her. If Ivy makes you happy, let the rest fall into place. It's not like you’re starting a war.”
We both laugh. “Let’s get this shit taken care of before I start worrying about that.”
He’s a fucking idiot, but I’ll let him do it his way. Although, I do like the idea of his full attention being on this situation.
“What the fuck are you two doing here already?” Porter asks, walking in.
“We need to have a meeting,” I say.
He looks between us and pulls up a chair. “What’s going on?”
I slap his shoulder and grin. “We’ve got a lot of club business to discuss. Why are you here so early?”
“Came in to do the books and payroll. Brooks is up my ass to get it done, so I figured I’d do it now.”
Brooks seems to be up everyone’s ass about something. It infuriates me because I’m not just a member of this club, I’m his fucking nephew. We’ve been at each other throats for a while, long before Harper came back into
the picture. I just can’t figure out what started it all.
“How’s Harper?” Porter asks, lighting a cigarette.
“She's good,” I say, with a smile. “Physically anyway. All this shit is weighing on her mentally.”
He sighs, shaking his head. “That girl deserves peace.”
“You said it, brother.”
We talk a bit longer, but he eventually gets up to start working on payroll.
“I texted Riley, told him to stop for some food. I’m fucking starving,” Kace says.
“I’m pleased to see everyone here so early,” Brooks states. He turns his hardened gaze on me. “Someone want to tell me what the fuck is going on?” He crosses his muscular tattooed arms, keeping his ice gray eyes on me.
I finish off my smoke and smash it out, smoke circling around us. “I wanted to talk to you, but this is club business. I would never do that without the entire club here,” I start. He rubs his chin and motions for me to continue. “I don’t understand what’s going on with you. You’re the president of this club, but you aren’t acting like it.”
“Watch it,” he growls, fisting his hands.
I lick my lips and grin. “Why aren’t we actively looking for Kingsley? Why do you dismiss the threatening notes to Harper? And why the fuck have you all but forgotten that the Vegas Kings attacking our innocents? What the hell is going on?”
The deafening silence in the room, has me on edge. I’m not sure if it’s because they are stunned at my questions or if they are just as intrigued as I am. I’m fucking hoping it’s the latter of the two.
His eyes are wide, and he cocks an eyebrow. His jaw is ticking, as he runs his hand through his brown hair that is showing signs of his age with a bit of gray on the sides. Sometimes when I look at him, when he’s not looking like he wants to kill me, I see my father. They share so many of the same features, from the strong jaw, gray eyes, and wide shoulders. He even has the Shattered Souls tattoo on his upper arm, just like my father had. But the anger vibrating off of him, was not something I ever saw from my father. “We do things when the time is right, Z. We aren’t going to look like goddamn fools with no plan. We are waiting for Kingsley to show his face, the notes are a dead end, and when we get Kingsley, we’ll get answers to why his crew attacked our innocents. Stop fucking questioning my leadership. You have no idea what it’s like to sit in this seat,” he hisses.
Redemption (Shattered Souls MC Book 2) Page 6
