Joker: Great Wolves M.C. - Ohio Chapter

by Blue, Jayne

  “You ever try anything like that again I’ll end you. You got it? You got a problem with how shit’s progressing, you bring it to me.”

  “You don’t deliver,” Twomey said.

  “Timing,” my father said. “It’s all about the timing, motherfucker. Now take your sorry ass and get the hell out of Lincolnshire. I’ll call you when there’s news. Don’t ever come here again.”

  He gave Twomey a shove. Twomey straightened his jacket and smoothed his hair.

  “You better make sure she understands,” Twomey said. “I’m beginning to think the two of you have been playing me.”

  “Get out,” my father said. He was sweating. His chest heaved. I was starting to think he might be on the verge of a heart attack. Though I’d never seen him in action before tonight, I knew that Special Agent Gavin Kimball hadn’t had to disarm a suspect in probably more than a decade. I would be impressed, if I didn’t want to murder him.

  “We’ll talk next week,” my father said. “Not before. Now get the hell out.”

  “Give me my piece,” Twomey said.

  My father laughed at him. “Cost of doing business, asshole. Now go.”

  Twomey spit on the ground at my father’s feet. But he left.

  My knees went weak as my front door shut. I sank back to the couch.

  My father whipped around and came to me. “You okay? Honey?”

  “Don’t touch me,” I said, jerking away from him. “What. Was. That?”

  He tore a hand through his hair. “God, I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”

  I didn’t know where to start.

  “My phone,” I said, deciding on a place. “You tapped my phone. My house?”

  He flicked on the floor lamp against the wall. The light hurt my eyes. My father paced.

  “This wasn’t supposed to involve you. I swear to God.”

  “Not supposed to …”

  He put a finger to his lips. He jerked his head toward the back door.

  Oh God. Of course we were still being listened to. By whom?

  As much as I hated to do it, I followed my father outside.

  “There’s a lot you can’t know,” he said. “Things I’ve done. Promises I had to make. I brought down some of the worst criminals in the country, honey. There’s no clean way to do that.”

  “Twomey,” I said. “He had a bird tattoo. He’s one of the Devil’s Hawks, M.C. He said you owe him. How much?”

  “It’s not about the money,” he said. “I wish it were. I can’t tell you everything.”

  “I’m in this now!” I whispered. “You put me in it. Are you going to deny being the one who bugged my phone. And in there? Who’s been listening? The Hawks? Dad, do you have any idea what ... are there cameras too?”

  “No,” he was quick to admit. “No. Just bugs. I swear to God. I checked myself.”

  Now I really was going to be sick. I covered my mouth with my hand and retched.

  He put a hand on my arm. “Listen to me. I knew there’d be nothing. Or probably nothing. But they wanted an in with the G.W.M.C.”

  “So you gave these men me?” I said.

  “It was either that or they’d try to kill you,” he said.

  I couldn’t believe what I was hearing.

  “Start from the beginning,” I said. “What’s going on?”

  He sighed. “Fifteen years ago, I was deep undercover with a different club. The Iron Renegades, M.C. They were bad, Tara. Illegal guns. The heroin trade. Human trafficking. The worst of the worst. And they’re gone now. Obliterated. Because of me.”

  “They helped you,” I said. “The Devil’s Hawks?”

  He nodded. “My literal deal with the devil. Yeah. They helped me get the evidence I needed against the I.R.M.C.”

  “In exchange for what?”

  “The Hawks aren’t choir boys. They’ve got their hands in some dirty shit. But it was the lesser of two evils. Now they’ve come to collect. They want a foothold in Lincolnshire. They’ve been trying to get it for years. They’ve put some things in play. Then word got out my own daughter was dating a Wolf. So they came to me.”

  “Jesus, Dad. The G.W.M.C. isn’t involved in anything illegal anymore.”

  “That’s between the Wolves and the Hawks. It’s not my problem anymore. Let them fight each other to the death. I don’t care. It was supposed to be painless. You were never supposed to know. They just wanted some personal info about members of the club. If you hadn’t given your damn phone to them, you never would have been the wiser. They were getting ready to pull out anyway. They said they had more than enough.”

  “Planted evidence,” I said. “And they got to Joker’s ex. You son of a bitch, Dad. They’re trying to take Joker’s son away from him. He’s a good man. He’s done nothing wrong.”

  “Like I said, not our problem. We walk away clean.”

  Dark rage came over me. How could he stand there and act like any of this was okay?

  “Look,” he said. “I don’t know what the hell the Hawks want to do to the G.W.M.C. I don’t care. I’m paying back a debt. That’s all. And I’m keeping you safe in the process. I’m sorry if it caused trouble between you and your boyfriend. But it’s better you know now what club life is like. You’ll get hurt by that guy someday. They can call themselves legit, but that doesn’t mean their world can’t destroy you. And it would. I’m keeping you safe from that.”

  I lunged at him. I pounded my fists against his chest. “It’s not for you to decide! You’re the one ruining lives.”

  Then I had no fight left in me. I just wanted to curl into a ball and die. The man standing before me had no soul. I could see in his face he had no earthly idea that he’d done anything wrong.

  “What now?” I said. “Your man Twomey didn’t sound satisfied. He thinks I’m on your side. He acted like he thinks I was in on all of this.”

  “That’s exactly what he thinks,” my father said.

  “It’s over,” I said. “You overplayed your hand. The club figured out who you are. Most of them think I was actively trying to help you. That I knew about the tracer and bugs on my phone. They’ve ordered Joker not to have anything else to do with me.”

  “Shit,” he said. My father started pacing again. “Maybe that’s for the best. Unless ...”

  His eyes went wild. I was sincerely worried my father was losing his mind.

  “I need you to leave,” I said, keeping my voice even.

  He came to me, gripping me by the shoulders. “You don’t have to give them anything. They just need to think you’re cooperating. Just for a little bit longer. Then it’s over. We’re both free. I swear.”

  “You want me to act like some kind of club whore for you? Do you hear what you’re saying? The answer is no. You’ve ruined my life too many times. I’m not helping you. And I’m not helping the Devil’s Hawks.”

  He let me go. It was his turn to look nauseous.

  “I know. I know. I shouldn’t have asked. I’ll think of another way. It’ll be okay.”

  I didn’t know if he was trying to convince himself or me. Either way, I wanted no part of it. In that moment, I didn’t care if I never saw my father again.

  I left him there. Stewing. Pacing. I closed the door on him and tried to figure out how I could fix the shambles of my life.

  I started with a phone call. “Laney?” I asked when she answered. “I need a place to stay.”

  Chapter Nineteen

  Joker

  “Cheer up, Joker, this is good news for a change.”

  Bailey peered up at me. He wore his hair slicked back and his best suit. I waited in the courthouse hallway. He’d just come from Judge Carniff’s courtroom.

  “Yeah,” I said. “Great news. This was bullshit from the beginning.”

  “Motion granted,” Bailey said. “The judge agreed the cops lacked probable cause to search your vehicle. No lawful search, no dope. The prosecution can’t make their burden of proof. This was a total victory, Joker. I expect th
e charges to be formally dropped by the end of the day. You’re off the hook. Your girlfriend really came through for you. If it weren’t for her affidavit, this could have gone another way.”

  Girlfriend. The word speared through me. I hadn’t seen or talked to Tara in days. I hadn’t yet found better arrangements for Toby so I kept him at Tiny Tots. One of the probies had done pick-up and drop-off.

  Clean break. That’s what I’d told her. God, there was nothing clean about it.

  “Yeah,” I said. “Tara’s something special.”

  “You should tell her,” Bailey said. “Hold on to that one. Not often you get someone willing to stick their neck out for you like that. Buy that girl a fancy dinner. Or a diamond. Something, my friend. Don’t let her get away.”

  “What about Christy’s custody motion?” I asked. “What happened in there? It’s great I don’t have to deal with those trumped-up charges. But does that mean she can’t use the arrest against me in the custody hearing?”

  Bailey’s expression turned dour. It was all the answer I needed. “My partner’s handling that family law matter. But no. She’ll bring it up. That doesn’t mean it’ll stick. But ... you may need to prepare yourself. Christy’s likely to at least get some visitation if she asks for it. It really depends on how far she’s willing to push it.”

  “It depends on how much someone else is willing to pay her to push it,” I said. “I’m pretty sure the price tag is pretty high.”

  Bailey put a hand on my arm. “Hang in there. It’ll get better. I mean, it has to, right?”

  I shrugged him off. I supposed it was a dick move. I just couldn’t deal anymore. I wanted to be alone. I wanted to ride. And above all of it, I wanted to see Tara and tell her I hadn’t meant a damn word I said.

  I only managed to do one out of three. I cut out of the courthouse and took the long way back to the Den. The wind felt good on my face. It was getting cold. In another week or two, we’d be ankle-deep in snow.

  I slowed to a crawl as I pulled into the parking lot. There was a car in front of the entrance I didn’t recognize.

  Instinct fueled me and my fingers played at the holster of my Nine as I parked the bike and dismounted.

  She got out. Long, dark hair. Eyes burning through me. She came at me with a purpose and jabbed a finger in my chest.

  “You have any idea what you’ve done?”

  I put my hands up. It took me a second to register where I knew her from.

  Laney. This was Laney. Tara’s friend who worked at Tiny Tots. I checked my watch. Toby should already be back by now. I was meeting Amy and the kids over at her and Colt’s place after I checked in here.

  “Listen …”

  “No,” she said. “You listen. Tara was in love with you. Like, hard love. You broke her heart. For what?”

  I took a breath. “I can’t talk about this with you.”

  “You better talk about it with someone. I thought you were different. So did Tara. She doesn’t let her guard down for that many people. With good reason. And I ... God. I was such an idiot. I pushed her at you. Did you even know that? The minute I saw you looking at her, it was obvious you were into her. So what’s changed? How could you just throw her over?”

  “It’s not like that,” I said. “There are things going on. You should talk to Tara.”

  “I did. And she won’t. She’s a wreck. She’s not sleeping. She’s barely eating. And I know she went to bat for you in court.”

  “She told the truth,” I said. “And I’m grateful.”

  “She’s going to lose her job over it,” Laney said.

  Dread bled through me. “What are you talking about?”

  “Miss Linda never liked you. She’s old school and thinks you’re a bad influence on Tara. She’s been in Lincolnshire long enough to remember how it was under the former leadership, you know? Only I was ... and Tara was ... naive enough to think you really were different.”

  “What do you mean she could lose her job over her affidavit?” I asked.

  “Linda wants to fire her because she was with you when you got busted by the cops,” Laney said. “She thinks it sets a bad example and we all signed morals clauses when we got hired at Tiny Tots.”

  I shook my head. “The case was just thrown out. There’s nothing to fire her over.”

  “It doesn’t matter,” Laney said. “Linda’s a hardass. So, congratulations. You’ve managed to ruin Tara’s life as well as her heart.”

  I ran a hand over my face. “I’ll fix it. I don’t know how, but I’ll fix it.”

  “You better hurry,” Laney said. “I overheard Linda telling her business manager she’s giving Tara her notice by the end of the week.”

  “Does she know?” I asked. “Tara?”

  “Why don’t you call her and ask her?” Laney said. “She’s barely talking to me. She’s barely talking to anyone.”

  It killed me. Gutted me. I couldn’t tell Laney that I had no good way of even reaching out to Tara if I wanted to. God, did I want to. But until we had a handle on who was bankrolling Chief Davis and her father, it wasn’t safe for me to talk to her on the phone. And if I saw her face to face, I knew I wasn’t strong enough to push her away again.

  “Laney,” I said. “Be a good friend to her. Just ... be with her. Make sure she’s okay. Tell her …”

  “Tell her what?” Laney asked, fuming.

  It was a good question. One I had no answer for.

  “Do you love her?” Laney asked.

  I went still.

  “Tell me the truth,” she said. “Was Tara wrong to get serious with you? Were you playing her this whole time?”

  I curled my fists at my side. “No,” I said.

  Laney’s face fell. She looked on the verge of tears.

  “Then don’t be another asshole in her life she has to get over,” Laney said.

  She got back in her car and drove away. She kicked up dust that swirled around my feet.

  My heart. My club. I’d already lost one. To save the other, I had to be the asshole Laney had just accused me of being. Though I didn’t know how, I knew I had to find a way to make it so Tara didn’t lose anything else because of me.

  Chapter Twenty

  Tara

  I couldn’t have heard what I thought I just heard. I sat in Miss Linda’s office in a chair built for five-year-olds. A cartoon character alphabet covered her walls. I was staring at a giant purple letter “J” as it sat poised on a jar of purple jam.

  “I’m sorry,” I said. “Can you say that again?”

  “It’s best if we part ways, Tara,” she said. She stared at me over the top of her reading glasses. She could be sweetness and light to the kids. Right now, she was scary and deadly serious.

  “You’re firing me because you didn’t like who I dated?” I said, still trying to wrap my head around it.

  “Your associations matter, Miss Kimball,” she said. “I’ve had more than one parent in my office this past month expressing concern about your trustworthiness.”

  “My trustworthiness. Linda, I’ve worked for you for almost six years. I’ve been here longer than anyone else you have currently working. My record is stellar. You have no cause to be worried about my trustworthiness. Neither do any of the parents.”

  “Nevertheless,” she said. “They are.”

  “Joker Smith isn’t a criminal.”

  “He’s around a criminal element enough. Your judgment is clouded on this, Tara. I’m doing you a favor. Take some time. Take some stock.”

  Anger replaced the shock running through me. “You’re not my mother,” I said. “And you don’t have the right to tell me how to live my personal life.”

  “I do when it affects your ability to do the job I hired you for. And it has, Tara. Believe me.”

  “What about Toby?” I asked. “Are you planning to kick him out because you don’t like his dad?”

  She folded her hands in front of her. “I won’t have to. I’ve had an email from
Mr. Smith that he’ll be transferring him to another facility at the end of the month. I told him there are no prorated monthly refunds.”

  “How kind of you,” I spat. I couldn’t do this. I couldn’t look at her another second. More than anything, I wanted to storm out and slam the door.

  Only I couldn’t. She could say what she wanted about my trustworthiness or character. I had a roomful of kids expecting me. I had no intention of making them pay for Linda’s short-sightedness.

  “You can turn in your key at the end of the day,” she said.

  My God. She was throwing me out that quickly?

  I tried to keep my breathing steady and a smile on my face as I walked down the hall toward my classroom.

  Laney was covering for me. She sat reading Dr. Seuss. Her smile faltered as she saw me walk back in. Just that one look from her, and I could tell she already knew exactly what Linda had wanted to see me about.

  Shit.

  I waited until she finished reading, then called the kids over to the craft table. They were making cornucopias today out of construction paper.

  Toby shot me a toothless grin as he walked by.

  “Toby!” I said. “What happened to your front teeth?”

  He only smiled wider.

  “Lotht em latht night,” he said. “Tooth fairy left me twenty bukth!”

  “Wow,” I laughed, my heart breaking. “That’s some haul.”

  “Dad thaid it’th early. Meanth I’m gonna be exthra tough when I get bigger.”

  “I should say so,” I said. “Remind me later in the day and we’ll put you up on the tooth wall.”

  We kept a chart where the kids who lost teeth could add a sticker. The kids loved the extra attention.

  As soon as I got them all situated with the art project, I took a step back. Laney came beside me.

  “You okay?” she asked.

  “She sacked me,” I said. “I have to leave at the end of the day.”

  “What? I thought Joker was …”

  “You thought Joker was what?” I asked.