BoyScout (The Rebels MC)

by Avery Abbott

  After a night of tumultuous sleep, I barely heard the alarm. I had slept on the couch too afraid to be in my room alone, figuring I’d hear someone if they tried to break in. I couldn’t get the face of the guy who hit me. out of my head. And if I lived to one hundred, I would never be able to forget Scout’s words and the sadness in his eyes before he walked out, crushing anything left of my spirit.

  Chapter 24

  BOYSCOUT

  Slider walked in the shop, beckoning me with a chin lift to follow him. Kick watched the exchange, but to his credit said nothing as I handed off the wrench to keep fixing the Camaro.

  “What’s up?”

  Slider dropped a file on the desk. “Fucking dude acts like Mother Theresa Sunday through Thursday, but my contact, Riggs, finally pulled up some info that was interesting.”

  He flipped the manila folder open. I peered down to see two photos of women, beautiful women. “What is this?”

  “Both filed sexual assault charges against Charlie. Both disappeared soon after, permanently. Never found their bodies.”

  “Fuck,” I mumbled, staring down and taking in their faces.

  “I had him tailed last night.”

  “By who?”

  “A few brothers in L.A. that still help out time to time.” He sat, kicked up his feet onto the table. “He spent five fucking grand on one chick at this club called Lux. Viper waited until he split and talked to the chick. He’s a new client there, but she says she also goes to a place called Nirvana, which he frequented. She gave Viper another name of a girl he used to watch.”

  “So, we go find this girl and see what she has to say.”

  “Yeah. Looks like we’re going on a road trip.”

  “Why are you doing all this for me and not telling Smoke?”

  He sighed, scratching his chin. “I feel like every girl I can help is something good I’m doing. Something I couldn’t do for Becky. And, I saw something at the club the other night I’d never seen from you before.”

  “What?”

  “You care for that girl more than you’ve admitted. Man, she clung to you like a fucking shaking monkey and you sat there and calmed her down with a few touches, a few words. Kick and I couldn’t believe the way she reacted to you.”

  I chose to ignore his Dr. Phil analogy. “Smoke’s gonna get suspicious if we split with no reason.”

  “I’ll take care of it, Scout. Smoke would want us to protect her if he knew who she was. Fuck, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde would be dead already. We do this. We get her out of harm’s way and then you tell him, bro.”

  I simply nodded, trying to take in all the new information and my soon-to-be betrayal of the only girl I’d ever fallen for. I left her in the hands of Kick, who promised me he’d watch over her. It killed me leaving her alone and hurt even more to watch her on the monitor toss and turn on the couch, but I had a choice to make, so I chose it. I was going to protect and love her from a distance.

  Slider and I pulled into the Los Angeles chapter of The Rebels just before sunset. I had a hard time leaving Shaw alone, so I made sure Fiona kept her in her sights. And, once Kick finished working on a rebuild of the ’69 Camaro he was heading to L&L to keep an eye on her, and then carting her ass home on the back of his bike, which sucked knowing he’d feel those legs wrapped around him, but her safety was more important than my jealousy.

  The club was nicer than ours on the outside, with a bonfire going, picnic tables all filled with members, some obvious Old Ladies and some beautiful hangers. A prospect closed the gate once we entered, and all eyes fell on us as we rode in, lining our bikes next to theirs.

  Viper and Boone were the first to stand and greet us. “Welcome to L.A., boys.” He pulled Slider into a quick hug and then a firm pat on the back before turning to me, doing the same. “Brother.”

  “How’s it going, Viper?”

  These guys had been down over the years crashing at our clubhouse while doing some business south of the border, so we had all come to know one another.

  “Good. Got what you need. We can head out after midnight. Security guard splits then.”

  “You got the key?” Slider inquired.

  “Sure do. We got a girl who works in that building who likes to party. She got a spare key made and gave me all the info to turn the cameras off. So, yeah, we’re good to go.”

  We followed them inside to their bar and grabbed a beer. Since Slider and I didn’t like to ride and drink, we kept it at only a few while we made small talk about how their club was managing and how much they wanted, if not needed, us to jump back in and swim with the sharks.

  I was on smoke number two by the time the security guard locked up and left for the night. Five of us had come. Me, Slider, Viper, Boone, and Brownie, he was their go-to guy when it came to disarming alarms and equipment.

  Viper lifted a hand, motioning for us to move. We filed behind him one by one, until Brownie split off, heading inside with us waiting on his signal. Ten minutes later, Viper’s phone dinged.

  “Coast is clear.”

  “What floor?” I asked.

  “Third.” Boone told me.

  We took the stairs while Brownie stood guard in the lobby in case something went wrong. Once upstairs, I switched on a small flashlight and went room from room, until we came to the last office with a nameplate that read Charles Conley. The door was unlocked.

  “I’ll check the desk. Slide, check those filing cabinets.”

  Viper and Boone both went to opposite watch posts. Boone took the door, Viper the window, peering down to the street.

  I rummaged through three drawers, coming up empty when I noticed a small keyhole underneath his work files in the bottom drawer. Flicking through his files, I ripped off two paperclips, straightened them, slipped them in the hole and messed around until the lock spun, springing it open. Inside was an accordion file.

  “I think I found something.”

  Slider came over just as I pulled out photo after photo of beautiful women, some clothed, some naked and spread eagled, tied up. I opened another folder labeled L&L to find numerous pictures of Shaw. Her in a café eating, her lying on the beach, even some of her dancing, which pissed me off. We have a strict no camera, no cell policy. “Fucking, Howie,” I mumbled.

  I grabbed another folder labeled Nirvana, and this time a CD fell out with more photos. All raunchy, fetish bullshit. “Jesus Christ.”

  “What?” Slider looked at me.

  I handed the picture over.

  “Is she dead?”

  “Yeah, looks that way, doesn’t it?”

  “Give me that CD.”

  I handed it to him.

  Slider booted up the computer on the desk and slipped in the CD. Viper came over just as an image flickered and then came in clear. We watched him fuck woman after woman, every single one in some room all in leather, even the walls. Women chained, or tied, ball gagged, nipples clamped as he fucked them.

  “I’m into some kinky ass shit, but this dude is playing at a way different level.” Slider joked.

  “Wait, what was that?” Viper jumped in, pointing to the screen. “Someone else is there,” he answered his own question.

  “A threesome,” I concurred, seeing another set of hands, long red nails, gripping a woman’s shoulders, holding her down. We continued watching his self-made porn, watching his large hands firmly grip her slim, feminine neck, her face full of desire as the red-nailed faceless woman stuck one of her fingers in her mouth and instructed her to suck it, and then that desire was replaced with fear as he pummeled into her, legs and arms flailing underneath him as his hands tightened around her neck.

  “Fuck me,” Slider muttered, saying what we all felt as we watched this woman go from orgasm to blue. It was like one of the car crashes on the side of the road—you couldn’t help but look— as another video of a woman in a different room, this time it looked like a basement. Her legs and arms were tied to a bed-frame, a woman sucking her clit as he ramrodded his
dick in her mouth, spurting his come all over her face. She looked happy, excited as they switched spots. The woman, who we could now see was straddling her pussy over the girl’s mouth, facing Charles. He watched for several minutes, jerking his limp dick back to life and then slid inside of her, his hands going right for her throat at a nod from the other woman when her hands aided in the murder.

  “Motherfucker, he’s killing this girl, too.”

  “We should go.” Viper tapped my shoulder. “Take it all.”

  So, I did.

  Once back at their clubhouse, Slider lit a fat ass joint and handed it off once we were alone. “Thanks.”

  I took a long pull before handing it back to him, needing to forget what I saw, even though I knew none of us ever would.

  “You know we got to tell Smokey about her right?” he asked, taking the joint.

  “Yep.”

  We sat back and started feeling good as we took toke after toke. The THC had taken root, causing the reality of we just saw to dissipate and allowed the glorious high to take hold, escaping reality, even if just for a little while.

  We trailed him for two days, even took our cuts off to not draw attention, following him inside of Lux. We stayed back in the rear, and watched as he was led to a private room off to the side.

  I made my way over, seeing the bouncer who escorted him come out. I held out a fifty. “Who did he ask for?”

  He eyed the money for a second then took it. “Candy. She’s his favorite. He paid for an hour.”

  “He come in here much?”

  He shrugged. “Here and there. Spends a shit load of money when he comes, though.”

  “Thanks.”

  Four sets of eager eyes fell on me when I returned. “Well?”

  “Candy, one hour.”

  It was eleven by the time he left. And all four of us understood why he chose her out of all the rest. She was stunning. Not Shaw stunning, but hot. Shaw was more in your face, couldn’t look away from her kind of beauty. This chick, although hair teased and make-up plastering her face, you knew beneath it all, there was an angel.

  “I heard you were asking for me?” She eyed us as she approached the table. Her gaze landed on Viper, eyes going wide, then quickly recovered and those blues landed on me. I didn’t blame her. He was a big dude and intimidating as hell if you didn’t know him.

  “Yeah, sweetheart, we were.” Slider pulled out a stool. She was all dolled up and still in her garters, heels and red lace nightie. She smiled and sat.

  “I don’t know what I can do for you all, but I can try.”

  “That guy you danced for earlier, Charles Conley, he do anything to you?”

  Her eyes rolled at the mention of his name. “The guy is a creep. Freaks me out, the stuff he asks me to do.”

  “But, you do it?” I asked.

  “Yeah, I do. He pays well and I have tuition coming due in the fall. He gets you hooked on the money. He likes to pick out new girls and treat them to nice things they can’t afford.”

  “What kind of shit?”

  She looked to Slider. “He’s got some weird fetish about tying me up and having his way with me. He likes spanking, dominatrix shit. Says his country club wife is a dead fish in the bedroom, so comes here to get his needs filled.”

  “Ever try to asphyxiate you while doing the deed?”

  Her eyebrows shot up. “No, why?”

  “Just wondering, Darling.” Viper interjected, coming to stand next to her. “Ever hear of anyone he’s done that with?”

  “No, but he used to come in for my friend Amy, but she split and took a job in West Hollywood. A place called Little Darlings. He became her Sugar Daddy. She was young like me, impressionable. She was twenty-two. After four months of him coming and going she started pulling away. She finally spilled her guts when I forced her to have drinks with me. I got her drunk so she’d spill.”

  “She still there?”

  “No. She never showed up for work. She was supposed to meet up with him for some weekend getaway and was freaking out about it saying he was getting weird and bringing some lady in the bedroom with them.”

  “Did she go?”

  “I don’t know,” she answered, her voice strained.

  “Do you think he murdered her?” I swallowed, picturing Shaw bound and gagged, fighting for her life.

  “We reported her missing, but it never amounted to anything. No body. No crime. His wife was his alibi, claimed they were inseparable all weekend.”

  “Why would she cover for him?” I asked nobody specifically.

  “Why do you think?”

  “Money,” I guessed.

  “My bet’s on the two kids, the goldendoodle, and the six thousand square foot Calabasas home.” She paused, looking at our faces. “Wait, should I be worried?”

  “Don’t think so, Doll. But, if comes back, say no,” I told her, patting her hand. I pulled out a Benjamin and gave it to her. “Thanks for the info.” She slipped the money into her G-string and walked off toward a table of men calling for her.

  “We got to tell Smokey. We should involve the club at this point. This could be bad. We need to protect Shaw and these fucking chicks, man.”

  “Yeah, I know.”

  We left to head back home.

  Chapter 25

  SHAW

  I hadn’t heard from Scout in days. I texted him. I called him, but he never picked up and never responded to my messages. Fiona had come by each day, bringing me lunch and later in the evening coming over and watching a show with me. I had taken a few days off from work, unable to shake what had happened to me, petrified it would occur again. And not knowing where Scout had been made me believe he wouldn’t come to my rescue if needed. So, I stayed put.

  It had been almost five days of crying, five days of worrying that I lost the guy I loved because of my fear of being crushed by him. My fear of running away or because he was connected to my dad, and a huge piece of me knew I wouldn’t be able to avoid meeting Mitch if I stayed with him.

  I spent another hour crying and pacing in my living room trying to decide what to do. I had paid two month’s rent and still had a decent amount saved, and if I added Charlie’s money I could go anywhere and get the hell out of Dodge. It was just past nine in the evening when I packed a suitcase and rolled it into the main area.

  Yanking out my cell, I decided to give Scout another try. If he answered, I’d unpack. If he didn’t, I keep my plan to get in my car and head to Santa Barbara and wait for Charles, since I needed his cash to move far away.

  I need to see you, please! It’s important.

  At eleven, I gave up. I’d pulled up a map on my phone when there was a knock at my door. This was better than a text; I could tell him in person how I felt, so I rolled my bag back in my room to hide it from his eyes and ran back, flinging the door open with a smile.

  To find Kick.

  “Oh, hi.”

  “Hey,” he strolled in like he owned the place his eyes glancing all around. “I thought I’d come by and see if you wanted to grab a drink?”

  “Now?”

  He shrugged. His gaze landed on my mother’s urn by the door, then trudged forward as if he were looking for something.

  “Can I help you?”

  He stalked toward my room with me following closely behind. He peered in then turned back and bumped into me.

  “Can I ask what you want?”

  “You planning on going somewhere?”

  “No, why?”

  His hand reached in my room and out rolled my bag. “What’s with the packed bag and the urn?”

  “How did you…” I looked around for a camera but came up blank.

  “Scout says you’re a runner and asked me to check up on you.”

  I crossed my arms. “Funny. Scout’s been radio silent with me.”

  “Doesn’t mean he doesn’t care. He’s away on business.”

  “Pfft, could’ve fooled me. Please leave and tell Scout not to care an
ymore. I’m done. As in so done.”

  My cell rang. “What?” I snapped, glaring at him.

  “Hey, it’s me, Jody. I know it’s late but I can’t work the rest of my shift tonight, could you please cover for me? Family emergency.” Anyone else I would’ve said no, but I couldn’t say no to her. She had been too nice to me since I got to L&L, so I put my fears aside.

  I closed my eyes, sighing. “Yeah, I’ll come in now.” I hung up.

  I walked over, yanking the door wide open. “I got to get to work, so you got to go.”

  “I thought you were taking a break? Scout doesn’t want you on a pole anymore.”

  “Break’s over, I guess, and he can’t tell me what to do. In case you haven’t noticed, I’m my own person and I don’t need Mr. Bossy in my business anymore.”

  “Weird, since you clung to him like your life depended on him a week ago.”

  As if?

  “Get out,” I screamed at the top of my lungs. Fiona flew out of her place and saw us.

  Kick looked to her door. “You watch her, Fi.” And then left.

  I was so furious I was even mean to Fi by slamming the door in her face and locking it while I got ready.

  It had been just past one in the morning when Joe ushered me to a room. It shook me up until he told me it was Charles, paid for fifteen minutes, no dancing, just talking.

  I was wearing this colorful tight see-through dress with skimpy nude thongs and a triangle matching top underneath. He smiled when I entered, his gaze raking up and down my body. “You look beautiful tonight.”

  “Thank you.”

  He patted the seat next to him. “I’m sorry I haven’t been in lately, but I needed to talk to you and I was down here on business, so I figured I’d kill two birds with one stone.”

  “Sure. How’s your mother?”

  He picked up my hand. “That’s why I’m here. She’s not doing well. She’s resting comfortably at her house. I hired a private nurse.”

  “I’m sorry to hear that.”

  “I was hoping we could move the date up for you to meet her to this Saturday instead of next. I’m afraid she’s running out of time.”