Noah stared at me and then placed his finger on his lips. I nodded and he reached in, plucking me out of the room. “Stay down,” he murmured next to my ear. “I called Creed. He’ll meet you at the house.” I nodded, shoving the backpack up my shoulders and he nodded to it. “There’s nothing inside that’ll indicate you were here?”
I shook my head and he pushed me forward. “Go.”
I went, my feet moving swiftly as I traversed the familiar path. I was gasping when I got to the house, skirting around the outside until I got to the kennels. Maisy lifted her head, tail wagging when she saw me.
“Hey, sweetie,” I cooed, collapsing next to her. “Miss me?” Her tongue darted out, licking my cheek.
I twisted the backpack off, unzipping it to make sure the gun was still inside. I let out a sigh of relief at the sight of it, and then checked for my wallet. I flipped it open, seeing my own face staring up at me, my name and date of birth damning proof. I dropped my head against the wall as Maisy snuggled next to me.
“That was close,” I told her and she let out a soft woof. The rumble of a motorcycle had me lifting my head. “Creed got here fast,” I mumbled, rising to my feet. Maisy let out a growl, stopping me.
I dropped back down as I realized that wasn’t Creed’s bike. In fact, I didn’t recognize it at all. I heard Nina come to the door and the man go inside. I crept out of the kennel wanting to get a closer look at the bike and Maisy’s teeth snagged my shirt. I tugged on it, patting her head as I said, “Girl, I need to find out who that is.”
She continued to resist until I finally said with a huff, “Fine, come with me.” She stood up, wagging her tail and we inched around the house, keeping out of sight of any of the windows. I still didn’t recognize the bike after a closer look so I snapped a picture, planning to show Creed.
“Well, what do we have here?” I spun around as Maisy let out a low growl. The man stood there, tucking his shirt in, and I had the sudden feeling that I should lie.
“I came to see Crew,” I giggled, tucking my phone in my back pocket quickly and then reaching over to pat his bike. “But then I saw your bike and had to take a closer look.”
“You want to go for a ride, pretty girl?”
I tapped my lip, like I was considering his creepy ass offer, but then shook my head. “I shouldn’t. Crew said he’d meet me here.”
“He’s on his way?” The man suddenly seemed less inclined to stick around as I nodded and I filed away the fact that he thought Crew would recognize him. He gave me a smile I’m sure he thought was charming, but just came off as disturbing. “I’ve got to be going, sweetheart.” I nodded, blinking, as I tried to resemble the empty headed little girl he seemed to think I was.
Maisy continued her low growls and I backed up as he got on his bike. He roared off without a backwards glance, leaning as he took the corner too fast. “What the hell is going on?” I muttered to Maisy as the hackles on her back finally relaxed. The entire situation felt off to me and the sound of another bike made me tense, but this time Maisy wagged her tail and I was relieved to see Creed coming from the direction of the club.
“Hey,” he called, rolling the bike to a stop. “I thought you’d be in the kennels.”
“I was,” I replied, “But some guy showed up that I didn’t recognize. He went inside with Nina, but didn’t stay long.” Creed looked uncomfortable and I arched an eyebrow. “She get a lot of male visitors?”
“Probably,” he admitted. “Crew doesn’t talk about it and I’ve told her she needs to do it when he’s not around, but I wouldn’t be surprised if a random dude was knocking on her door.”
“Maisy didn’t like him,” I mused, reaching for my phone. “I took a picture of his bike because I didn’t recognize it and he caught me out here. Offered me a ride on his bike,” I added, rolling my eyes. “Definitely gave off creep vibes.”
“I’ll have a talk with Nina,” Creed growled, swinging his leg over the bike. “That shit stops now. If you’re going to be around here, I don’t want you exposed to her friends,” he muttered as he strode toward me, leaning down to give Maisy a scratch behind the ears. “I definitely trust Maisy’s judgement more than Nina’s.”
“Here,” I showed him the picture I’d taken and he stilled, his face going blank. “You know this bike,” I declared and he nodded.
“Yeah, I do, but what I want to know is why Monty came here.”
“Monty? Isn’t the guy you did the runs for? The one having a problem with the Aces?”
“Exact same,” he replied, striding to the door as I rushed to follow. “Let’s see why he was visiting Nina.” He didn’t bother to knock, twisting the knob, and when he found it was locked, he pulled out a key. When the key didn’t work, he shook his head, cursing under his breath as motioned for me to step back. He lifted his foot and with one powerful kick, busted the door down.
He stomped inside, calling for Nina as Maisy and I stayed behind him. I glanced around, seeing plates and cups laying everywhere and my nose wrinkled at the smell of mildew. “What the hell?” Creed cursed under his breath, taking the squalor in. “Crew knows better.” He went straight to a door at the end of the hall, shoving it open without bothering to knock.
“Fucking hell,” he breathed and I peeked over his shoulder, seeing Nina sprawled on the bed, something on the bed next to her.
“What is that?” I questioned, hovering behind him as I tried to not breathe too deeply. The room smelled of sex and I almost gagged at the implication.
“Meth,” he said shortly, striding to the bed and jerking her head up. “Nina, where did you get the drugs?”
She stared at him blindly, blinking owlishly, “Crew?”
His eyes narrowed, “Yeah, Mom. Where did you get the drugs?” He asked again as he played along.
“I’m sorry,” she babbled, waving her arm limply. “I tried not to, but I need it.” She whimpered pathetically. “Monty understands.”
“Monty gave them to you,” Creed answered, his voice dangerously quiet.
“Just one last time. I swear.”
He dropped her head, motioning for me to go ahead, which I did gladly. “I think I just found a motive,” he muttered as we went out the door.
“Creed.”
At his name, he cocked his head, disappointment flashing over his face. He pulled the busted door closed behind him before answering, “Crew.”
“I should have told you,” he acknowledged as Creed stared him down. “I know I should have, but she promised.”
“Addicts make a lot of promises,” Creed told him and Crew’s face fell as he nodded. “They rarely keep them. Ask Cord.”
Crew stumbled back like Creed had just punched him in the stomach and I stepped forward. “Jailbait,” Crew acknowledged my presence.
“Did you know who was giving Nina the drugs?” Creed asked and I could see the hope in his eyes. He didn’t want to find out Crew had been complacent in Deacon’s death.
“No, no, no,” Crew denied, shaking his head hard. “I swear. I asked her but she never would tell me. I thought she was getting them from work,” he admitted, hunching his shoulders.
“If you thought that why didn’t you come to me?” Creed asked harshly, disappointment ringing in his voice.
“I know how Johnny is about drugs,” Crew said. “I thought I could handle it.”
“She stole two grand from the club,” Creed stated and Crew paled. “I covered it, but she told me it was gambling. For fuck’s sake, Crew, you should have come to me. We could have gotten her help.”
“What are you going to do to her?” Crew whispered, keeping his gaze on the ground. Creed shook his head, sighing.
“What do you want me to do, Crew?” He finally asked. “We know what’ll happen if I tell Johnny. She stole from the club and she’s a user. Not only that, she admitted she got the drugs from Monty.”
Crew’s head came up at that as he echoed, “Monty?”
“Yeah, Jailbait saw him her
e. Got a picture of his bike. When I confronted Nina she admitted he gave her the drugs.” Creed made air quotes as he added, “For the last time.”
“But Monty, he’s a brother club. He knows how Johnny feels about drugs,” Crew muttered. “He asked us for help to keep the Aces out of his territory.”
“Or maybe he was just putting us in their crosshairs,” Creed mentioned. “A good way to start pumping drugs into a new territory would be to distract us with a war.”
“Deacon,” Crew choked out and Creed nodded.
“I don’t have proof, but either way, Monty was selling drugs in Rebel territory. He’s gonna have to pay for that.”
“Which means you have to tell Johnny,” Crew replied, lifting his head as he met Creed’s eyes.
“Okay, can you explain to me what Johnny will do to Nina and why he’s so opposed to drugs? Other than the fact that drugs are bad?”
“She’ll be persona non grata. No one in the club will speak to her or even acknowledge her. They won’t give her a job or a place to live. Basically, she’ll be run out of town. If Crew wants to be part of the club, he’ll have to turn his back on her,” Creed answered, his gaze never leaving Crew’s. “To answer you about why Johnny is so opposed to drugs, Ashley died of an overdose.”
“Oh,” I answered, a lot of things starting to make sense now. “So we don’t want to tell Johnny.”
Crew’s gaze flickered to mine in surprise right as Creed said, “No, we don’t.”
“You don’t?” Crew asked and Creed closed his eyes briefly.
“No, Crew. She’s your mom. She may be a shitty mom, but she’s still yours. I don’t want to run her out of town.”
“But Monty, if he killed Deacon,” Crew couldn’t finish and I saw the guilt he felt, doubled now that he realized Deacon’s death was nothing more than a dangerous catalyst.
“Either way, he needs to pay,” Creed ground out. “It’s just how we do it without alerting Johnny to Nina.”
My gaze strayed back to the kennel and the gun hiding in my backpack. “Does it matter what crime he’s accused of?”
Creed glanced over at me, shaking his head. “I don’t care so long as he’s punished.”
“This isn’t an instance of where you want to personally punish him, right?” I verified and he smiled faintly.
“No, Jailbait, I don’t have to personally kill everyone who threatens someone I love,” he chided, then his head tilted, “Although, him asking to take you on a ride could change that.”
“Let’s forget about that on the larger scale of crimes here,” I stated, waving off his grumbling. “So Monty committed crimes we can’t pin on him, but we have a gun that if found on him would implicate him in two separate murders.”
Creed crossed his arms over his chest, a single eyebrow lifting in approval. “I like the way you think, Jailbait. It’s cunning and terrifying.”
“Why, thank you,” I answered with a smile as Crew’s gaze bounced between us. “We just need to plant the gun on Monty and then make sure it gets found.”
“That’s easy,” Creed replied, waving his hand. “We invite him to Deacon’s funeral and he’ll be forced to come out of obligation to the club. We slip the gun in his bag and then have Noah pull him over for a routine traffic stop.”
“What if he has an alibi?” Crew mentioned hesitantly. “You know his guys will cover for him.”
“Yeah, but we can also put something from one of the scenes at Monty’s club,” Creed suggested, glancing at me for approval. I nodded, impressed. “A jacket from a dead man, perhaps?”
“What about Mom?” Crew burst out, struggling to maintain control. “What happens to her?”
“She needs help, Crew.” Creed gripped his brother’s shoulder, towing him forward. “We’ll get her into rehab. Somewhere far away and make up a story to tell Johnny. We’ll take care of it…together.” Crew nodded and Creed pulled him into a hug. “We’re family and family doesn’t abandon each other.”
Crew nodded again, his eyes wide open as he hugged his brother back and I wondered if he was thinking the same thing I was – if family didn’t abandon each other, then where the hell was Cord?
Chapter Thirteen
Creed
I stood slightly apart from the crowd, my hands loose in front of me as they lowered Deacon into the ground. Jailbait stood by Norah, almost unrecognizable after Candy had gotten through with her. We hadn’t wanted to take a chance on the Chief showing up and recognizing her.
I wasn’t sure I liked the new look, but I had to admit she looked good as a redhead. Candy had said it’d work best with her pale eyebrows and skin. I hadn’t protested since it was just another step toward keeping Jailbait safe.
Crew came up next to me, nodding infinitesimally. I glanced toward the tree line where Noah waited to follow Monty when he left. We’d told him the plan, trusting him to keep our secret from Johnny. He’d agreed, still upset about the Chief showing up at the club without telling him. An arrest in two open murder cases with ironclad evidence would go a long way toward the Chief trusting him.
“She’s gone?” Crew murmured under his breath and I nodded. Clutch had taken Nina to a rehab facility a couple of states away that morning. We’d agreed it was best if he took her, knowing he could be trusted with the knowledge of Nina’s addiction. So far the only ones who knew Nina had a problem were Crew, Clutch, and Jailbait and we planned to keep it that way. The less who knew the better.
“Probably a good thing Clutch went,” he continued, glancing at where Ronnie stood next to Mary and Hank. She was holding Kara and long sleeves hid her arms from view. She’d surprised us when she’d showed up at the church and I had to agree it was probably for the best if Clutch didn’t see her anytime soon. I still wasn’t sure what to do with that problem. Telling Hank would only destroy him especially if Ronnie did to him what she’d done to Clutch.
“You think this will work?”
“Yeah, otherwise it’s Plan B,” I answered almost inaudibly and Crew’s gaze jerked to mine in surprise.
“Plan B?”
I smiled as my fingers formed the shape of a gun and I mouthed, “Bang, bang.”
“Would anyone like to say a few words?” The reverend asked, glancing at the large crowd of leather clad men and women.
“I would,” I spoke up, walking to where Deacon rested. “Deacon was more than a friend, more than a riding buddy, he was a brother and his death hits all of us. We all know how fragile life can be, but Deacon’s life was stolen from him. He’ll never have an opportunity to hold his child, to kiss his wife, to give us that big booming laugh of his again. He was brutally beaten to death because of the color of his skin. Because someone thought his life wasn’t as important. They were wrong. He was a better man than me, I admit that freely, and I hope I can be a better man for having known him. But I also won’t let his death go unpunished. Deacon, I promise to honor your life and avenge your death.”
Whoops met my final words and my eyes lifted to meet Jailbait’s and as she smiled at me, I swore to myself to see her smile every day I was with her. My gaze strayed to Johnny and he gave me a tightlipped nod. He’d agreed not to go after the Aces, not without proof, and I planned to use that time to find evidence of what Monty had been up to.
I searched the crowd, looking for Monty, finally spotting him as he strode away. My tongue curved around my teeth as he disappeared, the rumble of his bike starting a minute later, and my gaze flickered to the trees where Noah had disappeared as well.
“Refreshments will be served at the clubhouse,” Johnny announced and the crowd started to disburse. I headed for Jailbait and Norah, but Crew beat me there. He held out his arm to Norah and she took it gingerly. We were worried about her but Crew had made it his personal mission to keep her focused on her baby.
“She okay?” I asked as I reached Jailbait. She switched her gaze from Norah to me as she shook her head.
“She makes me fear what I will become if anything
ever happens to you,” she answered simply, taking my arm as we walked toward the line of bikes parked on the street. “Is Monty taken care of?”
“He is,” I answered with a nod. “Clutch left this morning.” I slipped the ID Noah had given me before the service into her hand. “This is for you.”
She glanced down at swiftly, a chuckle escaping her. “Angel?”
“It seemed appropriate,” I replied with a shrug. “Crew agreed.”
“You’re moving in with him now that Nina is gone?” She questioned as we came to the pickup truck. I’d decided not to take the bike today since she wore a dress.
“We are moving in with him,” I stated and she gave me a surprised look. “There are three bedrooms,” I reminded her. “And I don’t mind if Maisy sleeps in the house.”
“In the bed,” she corrected and I smiled.
“In the bed. Because you will be sleeping in a separate bed from me,” I told her.
“You’re really sticking to the age thing, aren’t you?”
“You’re worth the wait, Jailbait.”
“Cute,” she muttered as I opened her door. “Real cute.”
The parking lot was full when we got to the club, people spilling outside as a few smoked and others just came to pay their respects. We weaved between them, and I nodded to several people.
The bar gleamed, the windows had been replaced in record time as Johnny called in a few favors, and food was scattered on tables as people mingled. Norah sat in the corner, Crew hovering next to her as people came up and said a few words, many slipping an envelope in her hand as they moved away. She’d be taken care of, I knew. The club always provided for their own and I’d make sure her and the little one had a roof over their heads.
“It’s a huge turnout,” Jailbait murmured, glancing around at the crowd. “I’m so glad Norah has the support of the club.”
Jailbait (Southern Rebels MC Book 1) Page 22