by J. C. Allen
“Some of the guys are still surprised that I’m here.”
I turned to him and watched his lips curl around the beer top. He swung my legs over his, gripping my thigh to hold them there.
“Are you glad to be back?” I asked him.
A look passed over him. It was difficult to read if the question was a positive and good one for him.
“Yeah…” he said, trailing off. “But I wish I had done it earlier. Maybe when my dad was still here. Jaxson and I were supposed to be president and vice president… but he took over since I said I didn’t want to do it.”
“So do you want to be VP?” I said.
I sipped my beer, but I was too full to finish it. I set it down and scooted closer to him.
“I don’t know, I mean… I’ve got a lot going on with the company and I feel like it isn’t my place, sometimes. To just insert myself.”
“But it’s your club, too. Your dad’s.”
Simon, though, didn’t seem convinced.
“Yeah but I wasn’t there for him while he was alive.”
He shrugged like it meant nothing, but I knew that it did.
“That doesn’t matter, Simon. You can’t change the past. If there is anything I’ve learned… you can only move forward.”
I held his face in my hand, my palm grazing the three-day shadow he had grown accustomed to. He seemed to melt his stress away when I did that, letting out a gentle sigh and kissing my palm.
“You’re amazing, Ella.”
I smiled back at him as he told me more about the club and the execs, many of whom I never knew before. Admittedly, when he got to his brothers, I had a real nervousness about the whole topic, especially because they could have easily become targets with our relationship.
But Simon told me that he had told them all about my dad and the reason I left in the first place and about them being in danger too. He sounded a little too comfortable doing so, as if now that everyone knew, they’d be safe. Even Jaxson didn’t seem concerned.
“We already know what you’re going to say. But we’re a club, we take care of shit like this together. You need protection and we’re all here for you.”
I smile at Jaxson as Simon grasped my hand. I couldn’t shake the feeling that everyone was just being too flippant and loose about the whole situation.
“Thank you, but you’re wrong.”
Jaxson stared at me in cold silence. Even Simon’s grip weakened a bit. But I couldn’t drive home the point hard enough.
“I do not need protection. When my father finds us, I’m the only one he isn’t going to kill.”
13
Simon
Every time I walked in the club these days, I got a distinct feeling that I couldn’t place.
I just… had a feeling about that I didn’t know what to do with. Whether it was betrayal or guilt, I just couldn’t say for sure. But it was nothing like that with Ella and Michael though.
With them, it just felt right. They were my real family now, and he was my kid. I got to get to know him more and more every day, and it felt like a privilege to be able to get to know him the way Ella did. I still wished I saw the first time he walked, or his first word, or anything from then until now. The pictures and videos could only do so much.
Better late than never, though.
I sighed and pressed the thought from my mind as we moved through the club. It felt good having Ella on my arm. I got looks from the guys, but one nod from me told them to back off. I knew Ella could hold her own against the women who have been eying her and me, but I didn’t want there to be any doubt about it.
I engaged her in conversation then about the club and how I didn’t feel at home there, but I had to say, she was remarkable in how calm and peaceful she made me feel. What I expressed was sincere and real in terms of how I felt, but even though it was a stressful subject, she just put me at ease.
She’s done something no one else ever has. Made me feel like I deserve to be here.
She’s even better than my brothers.
At one point, it got awkward when she tried to warn all of the Kinsmen brothers about her father, but what she didn’t know—or didn’t seem to care to accept—was that we were prepared. We hadn’t done much illegal shit before, but if it came down to it, we knew how to fight dirty. We feared no one, and I reassured her as much.
Granted, there was only so much reassurance we could give Ella—and I suppose since it was her father, she was especially worried—but it seemed to be enough, because shortly after, she began showing them pictures of Michael. My brothers all agreed that he looked just like me, which was more reassuring and sweet than I wanted to admit.
But there was only so long the festivities could go on, and even bikers got tired at some point.
“Well, I promised Isabelle I’d be home at a reasonable time,” Jaxson said, shaking our hands to say goodbye. I move in, and—
BOOM!
I jumped off the chair, shielding Ella even though I didn’t know what from. She clutched my shoulder and tried to move around me. It sounded like a fucking explosion had gone off right outside.
“Beast, what is it?!?” Jaxson shouted when he saw him coming from out behind the back rooms.
“Something caught fire in the back, I don’t know what.”
Jaxson moved to go back there, but I stopped him. We didn’t need a hero tonight.
“Hey, you don’t know what’s back there. It could be a grease fire or a cut gas line.”
I gripped his arm, but it did little good. When Jaxson wanted to be a hero, there was no stopping him.
“Get everyone out. Matthew. Clear it out!”
I hardened my jaw but couldn’t do anything but watch him run to the back. I turned back at Ella and took her hand.
“It will be fine,” I said reassuringly.
It didn’t work very well.
“No it won’t, I knew it.”
Her bottom lip trembled as her eyes glistened. I gave her a sad look, but there was no calming her. As the crowd started to dissipate from the shouting, I knew that we should head out too. But—
Jaxson can’t be alone.
“I have to go back there. You go out and wait for me.”
“Simon—”
“No, this is my club. Now go, Rosella. I’ll meet you out side.”
Despite her resistance, I nudged her towards the door. After a few seconds and a kiss, she finally went.
I turned back to the direction of smoke billowing out. After I walked into the back room, Jaxson came up behind me with a fire extinguisher, but I knew it wouldn’t work. I had seen plenty of fires start out like this and ruin houses.
He sprayed until it ran out. We both coughed until we were out of breath. The heat was becoming consuming and allowing no escape.
“We have to trap it in here!”
I yanked us both out and found something to keep the door shut and the fire from spreading.
“Wait.”
Jaxson came back around me, despite my protests. At least I could hear sirens in the distance. Help was on the way.
He came back out with our family portrait and the original cut logo. If there was anything to save, that was it. Then I shut the door for good and could literally hear the smoke billow up into the door, crackling the old wood.
“Did everyone get out?” he asked.
I coughed again at the same time he does.
“I think so.”
“They better be.”
He wiped at his brow as we made our way back through the main doors. The dining area was all empty, as were the bar and billiards sections. We walked out to meet the rest of the club members.
I still couldn’t see all that clearly, so it was no surprise that I jumped back when a body slammed into mine. I was about to fight until I recognized the softness and the calming scent that came with it.
Except, well, it wasn’t very calm.
“You idiot,” Ella said.
I chuckled and he
ld her close. I tried to act calm in the hopes that it would make her calm.
“I’m fine baby, I told you I would be.”
I pulled her back to look at me. I cupped her face, wiping her tears with my thumbs. It wasn’t doing much good.
“This was him.”
“Are you sure? It looked like an accident, something spilled on the computer wires and sparks got caught in the carpet.”
She was shaking her head before I even made it through.
“No, that’s exactly how it should look. Untraceable.”
I suppose it could be. But…
“Ella—”
Firemen had started coming out. I saw two cops and knew someone would have to make a statement. I looked off to find Jaxson talking to Isabelle, who must have came when she heard about the fire.
“No, Simon! Listen to me! He already had someone in the club, infiltrating here, tonight. It’s already too late.”
She gripped my lapel hard, and I realized it would doe no good for me to argue with her. If it was anyone other than her father, maybe, but it was, so…
What was annoying was that I didn’t see anything or anyone out of the ordinary tonight; neither of us did. It only add to the frustration factor associated with everything.
I took her hands and nodded at her, pulling her closer to me.
“Okay, I understand. It will all be fine, let’s just get home and talk about this. It won’t be safe to meet at the club anymore.”
I kissed her forehead, calming her down a little. I knew she was afraid, and it made me sick to my stomach. Perhaps it would have been easier to stay away and give her father what he wanted, but that would have left us running for the rest of our lives.
We had to confront him, and I had to start taking him seriously. He had just tried to burn down the club tonight. My club. With all our people in it.
I found Jaxson, telling him we needed to meet at Mom’s house and fast. Who knew who else might be watching us or was already on our tail?
“I’ll meet you at my Mom’s house,” I said to Ella. “Ride with Jaxson, he’s faster.”
Ella shook as she nodded in agreement. Jaxson was the only one I could trust to keep her safe right now. and I might have realized it before her—us together on a bike wasn’t a good idea right now.
“Okay, I understand.”
I leaned down and kissed her. Jaxson noded at me, and they all rode off in the direction of Mom’s house. I took one last look at the club before I went on my own way. My lungs were still extremely irritated, but the whip of the open air made me feel better, even on my bike.
Right now, though, I just needed the time to think about Ella and how I might be able to keep her safe. But like she said, she is the only one that is.
Her dad would destroy everyone but her.
I got half a mile from the house, right in the residential area, when I heard an engine come up behind me. At first, I didn’t think anything of it and kept going off the turn.
Then it got way too close for comfort.
A sick feeling fell down my spine as I tightened up on the bike, going faster.
I was being followed.
Out of safety, I sure as hell didn’t go to Mom’s house. I took an extra turn and ran down a long empty road I wasn’t even familiar with. It was a dark, long stretch of road with no street lights and no signs. The car behind me got closer. I glanced at my dash mirrors to see that it was a truck, an eight-seater probably. There were, not surprisingly, no tags for me and nothing else to memorize about the vehicle.
And then, because I was going way too fast, I hit a hard pot hole. I lost control of the bike, swerving on the road. I cursed and knew I had to go down on my own before it got any worse.
Taking drastic measures, I took a sharp right turn and ran straight into the ditch. I jumped off the bike first as it slid farther down a shoulder that looked like it led to a dark patch of forest. Unfortunately, it was not as cool as it might have sounded—in fact, it hurt like fuck.
My entire body ached; something even felt broken. The truck, though, was gone.
I hope it’s just because they thought I was dead.
My mouth felt like a dry ball of cotton that tasted like metal. I felt like I had been tossed on a dirt road.
But what I heard was so beautiful.
“Simon, Simon? He’s waking up.”
It was Ella’s voice. Her soft hand was in mine. I squeezed her gently as I opened my eyes. The room was bleak and cold, but Mom was here with the rest of my brothers.
“Hey—” I said before I coughed.
Ella handed me water. I tried to ignore the look my Mom gave her.
“How long has it been?”
I tried to sit up, but pain shot up my back and side.
“Lay down, sweetie,” Mom said while in her scrubs.
“An hour or so, not long,” Ella said. Thank God. “You were pretty knocked out though. They did some scans and you have three cracked ribs, thankfully no head injury.”
“You must have tucked and rolled.” Zeke said with a snort, coming up to the edge of the bed.
Even he looked shaken up. I could tell Mom has been crying. It was sweet, but it also made me feel a tad uncomfortable. I’m still alive, after all.
“I’m fine, don’t worry about me.”
I drank more water and already felt ninety percent better. But then, just like that, it was back to business.
“Someone wants to see you, if you’re up for it.”
I nodded at Ella, and she left. And in walked Jaxson.
Jaxson filled me in on the stuff with the club while my mother just seemed overly stressed out about things. It wasn’t surprising to hear that there wasn’t a lot of new information since I had only been out an hour, but it was still frustrating to know that there just wasn’t a lot of known quantities.
For now, though, I was just concerned with making sure my mother didn’t lose her mind watching over me.
“Mom, I’m okay,” I said to assure her.
She gripped my hand and kissed it. Even though I hurt like hell all over, I wasn’t going to tell her that. Our club business talk was pretty brief before I saw something even better.
Ella came back with a smiling Michael. I don’t think anything could make that kid look upset.
“Hey kid,” I said, sitting up and grinning, ignoring how my body screamed in response
“Hi Dad, you okay?”
He walked up gingerly, swallowed up in his jeans rolled up at the ends and his orange hoodie. He looked very worried, like he’d never seen anything like this. I suppose that was a credit to Ella for keeping him shielded from the worst of it.
“I’ve had better days, but I’m okay.”
“Who are these people?” he said, looking up at my brothers.
I tried to think of something to say, but Zeke beatt me to it.
“We’re you uncles and this is your grandma.”
Well, that wasn’t quite how I wanted to break it to him. Hopefully, he’s…
Michael didn’t even look surprised though. Or, if he was, he did a marvelous job not showing it. He grinned again.
“Okay. Nice to meet you.”
Mom laughed, but I knew she was holding back tears. I looked at Ella, and I promised her with just a single look that I would never let anything come between us.
Not even her father.
I requested everyone give me some privacy after they had hovered around me for long enough. Mom left with Ella first, who brought Michael along with her. He seemed comfortable enough, which was pretty damn impressive for having your real uncle drop a bombshell like that.
My brothers left as well but were in and out as I rested. Jaxson had to clear some things up at the club. As more information trickled in, we learned that the damage wasn’t that bad, but someone had still tried to burn the place down. If Beast weren’t back there like he usually was on club nights, we wouldn’t have known there was a fire until it was too late. Electrical
fires didn’t give off a warning smell like gas fires do; they just burned and burned until it was too late.
When he returned for a visit, Michael was a nice distraction, even with his plethora of questions.
“What’s it like to have brothers?”he said, giving me an inquisitive look from the foot of the bed where he sits.
I sat up and tried not to wince. Every breath hurt my ribs. Hell, every movement hurt my ribs.
“Crowded.” I said. From the looks of him, that wasn’t a good enough answer. “It’s nice. Like I always have a friend to count on.”
He nodded with a sigh.
“That’s nice. To have someone to count on.”
Well, that’s rough. According to Ella, even when he was in school, he didn’t have many friends. He would go to all the parties and such if his classmates had them, because he had to, but he never brought anyone home or went to their house. Her dad wouldn’t have allowed it, and she didn’t want him telling him that himself, since her dad had no idea how to speak to children.
Her childhood wasn’t much better, either. It was the kind of place I was glad to have gotten them out of.
I wished I could tell him he would have siblings one day too, but that I just didn’t know, and I didn’t want this family making any more promises.
“Were you scared? When you got in the accident.”
“I wasn’t. And you shouldn’t be scared either. Everything will be fine.”
It was a bit of an oversimplification of an answer—there were moments when alarms in my head were going off pretty loudly—but I did truly believe everything would be fine, one way or another.
Just then, the door opened. It was Ella. Michael greeted her with his cheery voice as she came over to both of us. She kissed his cheek and then mine, but when she looked at me, I saw something missing in her eyes.
“You feel okay?”
“Yeah.”
“Sit with us, Mommy.”
Michael had already started playing with the remote and such, looking for cartoons to watch probably.
“I will, just let me talk to daddy first, okay?”
Ella smiled at him, helping him down from the bed. He left SpongeBob playing when he went out into the hall. I heard Jaxson greet him before the door clicked shut.
