by Blair Grey
“Why?” He eyed me as he drummed his thick fingers on the table. “Is your heart soft? If it is, then you might not be Iron Cobra material.”
I happened to know that most of the men in the MC had soft hearts – at least tiny bits of their hearts were soft. “I’m not a pussy, Lyle. I just think that woman has been through enough, is all.”
“What about her?” He looked up at the ceiling. “This place could use a deep cleaning. There’re spider webs everywhere up there.”
I didn’t care about the state of the ceiling at the moment. “I don’t know what you mean.”
“I’m saying that she might want to get in on the action. He hurt her. She might want to see bad come to him. I know I would.” He laughed. “But if some man tried to rape me, he’d be dead before his cock came anywhere near me.”
I didn’t want to get into that with him. “I can’t tell a DEA agent that I’m out to kill one of her fellow agents. Even if she does hate him and whishes him harm.”
“You don’t have to tell her everything.” He raised one finger into the air as a bright idea hit him. “You beat this guy up over her, didn’t you?”
“Yes. But she doesn’t know that. She didn’t see a thing. I made sure she was out of sight before I did a thing to him.” And I wasn’t about to go bragging to the woman about what I’d done. She was a cop of sorts after all. “Spending the night in jail over assault isn’t my idea of a good time, Lyle.”
“Watch it, kid,” he growled. “That smart mouth ain’t a thing I’ll take from anyone.”
“Sorry.” I would have to watch my mouth around the Neanderthal, it seemed. “But I can’t tell her what I did to him.”
“Why can’t you?” He nodded. “Think about it. You find her somewhere. You go up to her. You tell her what you saw. You don’t say that you know a damn thing about either of them. You just saw him yelling at her or whatever the hell he was doing. And you let her know that you didn’t like him doing that. You offer her your help.”
“Wait.” I sort of understood what he was getting at. “Maybe I can make it out like I’m helping her to make him leave her alone and in the end, when I take him out, it’s all been for her.” I liked it. Only a little. But I did like it.
“Plus, you might get a little action from her for your valiant efforts.” He thought he’d found a bright side. “I’m sure you could use a little action, kid.”
“Taking sexual favors from a woman who has been at the shit end of that stick isn’t a thing I’m going for. But I could tell her that I could pretend to be her boyfriend to make Dean leave her alone or something like that.” I was sure that I could do that. I wasn’t sure she’d go for it though.
But then again, she could’ve taken the man down herself right there in that parking lot. She was also a trained agent. She had to know how to fight.
Maybe she’s too scared to scream for help.
Man, I knew that feeling.
It’s like you’re lost in a crowd. You don’t want to appear weak or afraid. You don’t want to scream and alert everyone around you to your insecurity and weakness.
You’ll stay lost in that crowd until someone finds you. And you will never let them know how afraid you really were. Because that would mean you can’t make it on your own in this life.
“I’ll find her.” She needed my help. “I’ll help her the best I can.” I had my own issues. I had no idea how much I could help anyone else.
“You’ve got that soft heart. Why not use it to help the girl out?” He laughed, deep throaty sounding, but there wasn’t anything menacing about it.
Lyle was a big old teddy bear. At least, I thought he might be.
I could help Nicole Johansson out and do what I had to do too. “So, I’ve got to learn how to become a stalker to track her down. Got any ideas on how to do that?”
“Why not go back to the place you saw her at and ask about her?” he came up with. “Hell, if you both were there, it might be that you guys live near each other. That would be weird, huh?”
“Yeah. So, what would I say about who I am?” Was I to pretend to be someone else?
“You’re a fucking computer nerd, kid. What’s to hide?” He laughed again and this time it was a little offensive.
“I am prospecting the Iron Cobras. I’m sort of a badass motherfucker.” Even I had to laugh at that. “Okay, okay. But seriously, should I say who I really am?”
“Why not?” he asked with a grin. “You’re Garrett Robertson, computer tech who likes to ride Harleys. And in your spare time, you help out damsels in distress. And you’ve stumbled upon her. Let her know that her Prince Charming has arrived and he’s carrying heat.”
“Sounds easy enough.” I picked up his empty beer mug to fill it up before I left. “You’ve been very helpful. I’m still unsure of how I’ll actually pull this off. But thanks to you, I am moving forward instead of being at a standstill.”
“Forward is always better than stationary.” When I put the fresh beer in front of him, he nodded. “You’re a good kid. You’ve got this. I have faith in your abilities. But you need to be sure that you really want this. You need to understand fully that once you’re an Iron Cobra, you will always be one. Until the day you die.”
“Being part of this organization is what I want. Until the day I die.” I’d never wanted anything more in my whole life. “You guys are remarkable men. It would make me proud to call you my brothers.”
“Good.” He took a drink of his beer. “Now, go start stalking that broad. Don’t let that sorry motherfucker hurt her again.”
“I will do my best not to let that happen to her again. I’m not sure if she’s one for sure, but she sure as hell looks like an angel.” Crossing my fingers, I walked toward the door. “I’m hoping she’s not a raving bitch.” Glancing up at the ceiling, I saw the mess of spiderwebs he’d mentioned earlier. “Wow, that is a lot of webs. Don’t worry. I’ll have them cleaned before tonight. You’ll see.”
“I doubt you’ll be able to pull that off, kid.” He shook his head as he looked up at the ceiling.
“Don’t underestimate me, Lyle.” Walking out to my bike, I put my helmet on then took my gloves out of my pocket. There was still blood on them from Dean’s face.
Wiping that off with a rag I pulled out of my back pocket, I went to toss it into the trashcan by the door to the bar. The last thing I needed was to get caught with that man’s blood on my hands.
So, how am I supposed to tell a fellow agent of his that I’m the man who beat Dean Strong up?
Even if she hated the man, she was an agent of the DEA. I had no idea how strict she was about the law. I felt like I hadn’t accomplished a thing as I drove away.
Forgetting about using Johansson, I focused on trying to find out what sort of case Strong was in Baltimore for in the first place. I could easily call in a fake tip and take him out that way.
If I couldn’t find anyone to give me information on why he was here, then I could find out where he lived and go that route. A man like that surely had so many enemies that someday, someone would kill him eventually.
The woman he’d done wrong might get her belly full of him having the nerve to even speak to her after doing what he did, and she might kill him.
I know I would if I were in her shoes. And they were on the same team. Friendly fire wasn’t some old wife’s tale meant to scare children. It was real and it happened more times than the news reported.
But if Nicole Johansson took Dean Strong out, then I would have to get patched another way.
No. It had to be me that did it. And with him being such an extreme asshole, I was probably going to have to fight to be first in line to kill the fucker.
Going into stalker mode, I went to Rudy’s to see if Greta was on shift. Her little blue Nissan wasn’t in the usual spot. But a tan car was there. One that looked a lot like the one I’d seen Johansson get into.
Slowing down, I wanted to see who got into the car. When a man with a beard
came out and got into it, I felt like I was the worst stalker on the planet.
How am I going to do this?
Needing to clear my mind, I began driving around. The air was as fresh as the Baltimore air can get. The sun was shining down on what had turned out to be a nice day. and I was taking it all in.
No reason to let every minute be consumed by work.
Slowing down as I drove by a city park, I spotted a tan Toyota in one of the parking spaces. As I scanned the park, I saw a woman with a blonde ponytail, wearing a pale pink t-shirt and jeans, sitting on top of a picnic table.
Nicole Johansson.
And then I saw her get up, put her hands on her hips and shake her head as that stupid motherfucker, Dean Strong, approached her.
Put your foot down, girl. Don’t let him keep doing this to you.
Chapter Eight
Nicki
The cop I was working with on the case had told me that a certain park was the hangout for a couple of minor league biker gangs. When she gave me the report that gave the stats on the drugs that were in the trunk, I knew we weren’t looking for high profile dealers.
We were looking for probable gamers with a penchant for cheap motorcycles – all they could afford on the money made off simple drug sales.
Marijuana and prescription drugs weren’t exactly big money makers. And a park was a great place to make transactions as everyone carried backpacks.
I’d taken a seat on top of a picnic table, looking at my cell phone as I pretended not to watch everyone around me. A girl with pigtails, wearing a short plaid skirt met an older man with Velcro shoes. The two walked away, hand in hand, to a grey van with no windows.
A match made in Heaven?
Some people’s sexual behaviors stupefied me. Even as I thought that I felt a pang of embarrassment. How Dean Strong made me feel embarrassed and immature for not liking him didn’t make sense to me at all.
I wasn’t a virgin when he’d raped me. I’d had a couple of boyfriends. But neither of them had been serious. I had other issues that had me keeping to myself.
No one ever understood me. At least not after I had to move and change schools. The authorities had thought it best at that time. No one knew why my parents had become victims of a gang with strong ties to the drug world. But the cops thought I was in danger.
Moving me from one coast to the other, my name was changed, and I was put into a foster home at the tender age of fifteen. And that was that. I never got another word about the case on my parents. Not one, single word.
“And you’re here because why?” Dean’s asshole tone took my attention away from my phone.
“Why are you here? That’s the real question.” I had no reason to tell him about my case.
He took a seat right next to me, which had me scooting over. “I saw you leaving the station and wanted to know what you were up to.”
“You know what?” I found it hard to believe that he was in Baltimore on his own case and had time to follow my ass. “What are you in this particular city for? Huh?” I had to know. Because, if he was here just to follow me, he was about to have loads of trouble.
“The Iron Cobras,” he said as if that was all he could be there for. “I’ve told you this.”
“As far as I know, there’s no case on them.” He was full of shit.
“Not yet.” He pulled his sunglasses down only a bit to scan the people in the park. His black eyes had only gotten worse as the day had worn on. “There’s just a bunch of weirdos here. Nerds. Freaks. Perverts. What the fuck are you dealing with here, Johansson?”
“Obviously, it’s none of your business.” If he had no case in Baltimore, then he was doing nothing more than imposing himself on me. “Explain to me how you got sent here. If there is no case.”
“I’ve got a vacation. If you must know. And whenever I get time to myself, I use it to find dirt on MC gangs. Remember how I told you that I want to clean up the East Coast?” I couldn’t see his eyes rolling, but I swear that I could hear them doing it. “The Iron Cobras are into much deeper shit than what you’re dealing with here. If you’d help me, we could both get a huge bust. Do you even know what that would mean for your career?”
“I know what my case is right now. And I know that I have to solve it and not chase after pipedreams the way you are.” Exasperation filled me. “You’re on vacation, so go do whatever you want to. I’ve got a case to solve.”
“If you are part of solving a case of the magnitude that I’m looking at, it would mean a huge raise for you. Plus, you would get better gigs. Better cars. Better places to live. Better credit cards with unlimited spending limits. And it’s all on the DEA.”
“Sounds like you’re trying to plant evidence to make a case where there is nothing to make one. Because, if there was enough evidence to make a case, one would’ve been made.” He made me sick. He wasn’t in this to fight crime. He was in it for the money and the free shit he could get out of it.
“You know what?” He got up and began walking away from me, which made me so happy that rainbows felt as if they were flying out my ass at the moment. “You’ll see. You will see, little girl. You’re just a little girl. But one day you will grow up.”
I was so sick of him saying things like that. But I kept my mouth shut. He was leaving and that’s what I wanted. “I hate you, Dean Strong,” I said underneath my breath.
“Hi,” came a man’s deep voice from behind me.
“Fuck!” I screamed as I twisted around to find the same man I’d seen at Giovanni’s earlier. “Oh. Sorry. Hi.”
Coming around in front of me, he didn’t have on the black leather jacket he’d been wearing earlier. He had on a nice blue button-down shirt, some grey slacks, and matching loafers. His hands stuffed into his pockets, he pulled the right one out to offer it to me. “Garrett Robertson.”
Shaking his hand, I gave him my name, “Nicki Johansson. Can I help you with something?”
“No.” He looked at the empty spot next to me. “Can I take a seat and talk to you for a bit?”
“Sure.” My tummy swam with butterflies. And I felt that I had to tell him that I’d seen him before, “Before this gets too far, I want to be honest with you.”
“Cool.” He took a seat and smiled at me.
That smile made it hard for me to think for a moment. But then I found my brain. “I saw you this morning at Giovanni’s. I saw you pull up on a Harley. I was sitting by the window. You got something called a lobster tail. Joanna called you Mr. Robertson.”
“Cool. This makes this easier. I’ve seen you too,” he said as he looked at Dean pulling away in his car. “With that guy.”
“Where?” I had to ask.
“Rudy’s.” His lips formed a thin line. “I saw that you two were arguing. And I just saw that again. I’m not trying to interfere in a romance, but I have this feeling that you don’t want him bothering you.”
It was pretty obvious that my angel was sitting right there next to me. I wasn’t going to ask him if he was the one who’d kicked Dean’s ass the night before in Rudy’s parking lot. But he’d seen us both there.
No one else but Greta and the one person who she’d said drove a Honda motorcycle had been there. Greta obviously had covered for the man who’d beaten Dean up. But who wouldn’t have done that for such a hot guy like Garrett Robertson?
It was as if Heaven had opened up and given me something after so much had been taken from me. And I wasn’t going to look this gift-horse in the mouth. “He’s a bad man.”
“Dean Strong, right?” he asked.
Nodding, I had no idea how he knew that. “Yeah.” There was no need to ask him questions. He was a gift from above and I needed to go with it. “I don’t know why, but he wants me. Sexually speaking.”
“Well, I can see why he would want you. You’re a beautiful woman. But the thing about attraction is that it has to go both ways. So, are you attracted to him?”
A shiver ran through me. “I’m re
volted by him. I always have been. I’m a DEA agent and they put me under him from day one. He was my mentor. At first, I thought he was playing with me. He would touch me in inappropriate ways and at first, I said nothing. I did nothing. But then he went further and further until I told him to stop.”
“Did he stop then?” he asked as his blue eyes searched mine.
“No. He kept going. And I’d made the grave mistake of telling him to stop when we were alone and so far away from anyone else.” Looking down, I gripped my hands together. I had no idea why I was saying all these things I had never said to anyone but my supervisor when I’d reported Dean.
Without touching me, he whispered, “It’s not okay - what he did to you. As long as you know that, then that’s all that really matters.”
“Do you really think so?” I had no idea why I’d told this stranger so much. Even if he was really an angel sent to me, I still had no idea what I was doing.
“I know so.” Taking a deep breath, he asked, “Would you like protection from that man?”
Red flags went up immediately. “I’m not about to pay you to protect me from anyone.”
“I wouldn’t ask you to.” He laughed and the sound made me feel good. “I know how it feels. I know how a person can be so strong in so many ways and so weak in one. So, I will ask you again, Miss Johansson. Would you like protection from that man?”
“I’m a fucking DEA agent. I shouldn’t need protection from anyone. Not even him.” It pissed me off that I couldn’t take care of myself where Dean Strong was concerned. “But God help me, Mr. Robertson, I can’t seem to hold my own with that man. I’ve been trained in hand to hand combat. I’ve taken down more males than you can imagine in my three years as an agent. Females are hard too. The scratching, biting, name-calling. And I’ve taken them down as well. But I can’t seem to do the same with him. He’s like my kryptonite.”
“I can help you.” He tilted his head to one side. With the sun overhead, it created a halo. “I will make sure Dean Strong never hurts you again.”
“How?” I had to know how he would protect me from that man. “He’s not going to stand down to you. If you think he won’t fight, you’re wrong.”