Reparation

by Kristin Harte

  That comment stole all the air from my lungs. “You didn’t think I’d make you happy?”

  “I didn’t think you’d do anything with me. After my dad died, after the accident, I never expected…” She sighed, rubbing her face against my chest. Hiding. “You were a surprise to me, that’s all I meant.”

  But it wasn’t, and we both knew it. She hadn’t expected to be happy because her stepbrother had made her life miserable and threatened her at every turn. He’d treated her like an object, like something he owned. Something he could abuse without consequences. And deep down, I knew she still worried he’d come back for her. I did too—which was why I never left her alone. If she wasn’t with me, one of my men was with her. I kept her safe.

  But danger lurked, and there were things I couldn’t control or see coming. A thought that had been building inside of me since the motorcycle club her stepbrother was part of had burned her trailer to the ground. They’d started a war with Justice, bringing a battle straight to my door, and I was going to have to finish it. Especially if I wanted to keep them as far away from Shye as possible, which I did. I wanted to make sure the men of the Soul Suckers never ever even crossed paths with her again.

  And then? When I finally made sure there was nothing hanging over Shye’s head that scared her? When I cleared the path for her to have the happiest life possible without fear? I’d marry her. I wanted to already, craved it like nothing else, no matter how little time we’d actually been together. I’d wanted her for three years before she had even given me a chance. I wasn’t about to waste more time waiting. But first, I needed to eradicate the threat to her.

  Which meant I needed to break the connection between Shye and the Soul Suckers.

  Chapter Three

  In the morning, the thoughts lingering in my head weren’t good ones. They weren’t memories of a fun night out with my girl or the feel of her lips wrapped around me. I didn’t wake up to bask in the residual happy vibes that had surrounded me the night before. No joy lingered, no sense of being sated mattered. My thoughts that morning had gone full dark.

  They were deadly.

  Murderous, even.

  Shye hadn’t slept well after she’d woken me up. In fact, she’d seemed to have nightmares for the rest of the night, whimpering in her sleep until I squeezed her tight and whispered into her ear to remind her that I was with her. That nothing would take her away from me. She’d settle for a little while, falling back into a restless sleep until the cycle started all over again.

  I was exhausted, but even more than that, I was pissed. My girl deserved to rest calmly. She deserved the peace of knowing she was taken care of, that there was nothing out to get her. No demons waiting to snatch her away from the life she loved. She deserved to feel safe, and the fact that she didn’t rested solely on my shoulders. Which meant I had a job to do. One I’d spent months preparing for at that point. I’d been studying hard, but the final exam was coming. And soon.

  I followed Shye to The Baker’s Cottage, the restaurant where she worked as a waitress a few days a week. Not that she needed to—I’d promised to provide anything and everything she needed. But Shye liked pulling her own weight, and I respected that. I’d refused to let her keep working out at the county line truck stop, though. I couldn’t keep an eye on her there, so I’d made sure Katie—a local girl who’d recently moved home from Denver—had everything she’d needed to open a restaurant in town. Then I’d convinced her Shye would be the perfect waitress for her new business. My girl was a hard worker—I’d already seen that. She was also kind and pretty, the perfect person to serve grumpy old loggers coming down off the mountains every night. And those men all worked for me—I didn’t have to worry about wandering hands or propositions.

  Thankfully, the women got along and were even developing a friendship. I considered that a huge win. Justice got a restaurant, Shye got a job, and my team got a convenient cluster of women and one child who needed protection all in the same area—Katie, my Shye, Mercy, who owned the hardware store in town, and her young son. And with the relationship blooming between Katie and my brother’s best friend, Gage—a former Navy SEAL with an attitude almost as wide as his shoulders—I knew those women would be protected well. Especially when I couldn’t be there…like today.

  Gage was sitting at the bar in the restaurant when I walked in with Shye. No Rex, though. His ever-present canine companion was such a regular sight that it struck me as unusual not to see him at his master’s side.

  That fact put me right on edge. “What’s up, man?”

  Gage gave me a head nod but didn’t rise to his feet, didn’t say a word either. He simply sat and looked ready to spit nails. It didn’t take long to figure out why.

  A man walked out of the restroom—one I didn’t recognize in the slightest. One whose stiff jeans, dark collared shirt, and thick, black glasses made him appear slightly…out of place. Like a costume. Clark Kent in place of Superman or some shit.

  “You must be Alder Kennard,” the stranger said, beelining toward me. “Zane Grogan. I’m the undersheriff to Sheriff Baker, though, I guess I’m sort of acting sheriff right now, what with him being missing and all.” His smile reminded me of Bishop’s when he was getting ready to bust your balls—like a rattlesnake prepared to strike. Fortunately, I’d been dealing with my brother and his antics for most of my life. I knew how to handle the undersheriff. But first, I needed to make sure my girl was out of the way.

  I patted Shye on the ass and leaned down to give her a quick kiss on the cheek, keeping my body between hers and the interloper’s. “Go on back, honey. I’ll pick you up later.”

  “Have a good day. Come see me at lunch if you can.”

  “Promise.” I shot Gage a look, which brought him off his stool. He ambled closer, directing Shye into the kitchen. Whispering to her and making her smile. Shye hurried across the restaurant with Gage, scurrying past the undersheriff, looking small and almost scared as he followed her with his eyes. Unacceptable—him looking and her being scared.

  “Like what you see there, Grogan?”

  Zane turned his ice-blue gaze back my way, the look on his face shrewd. Calculating. “I do, actually. Nice place Justice has in this Baker’s Cottage. Can’t say I’ve ever had the occasion to come out here before, so I had no idea what to expect when Mark—sorry, Sheriff Baker—told me his niece had opened a restaurant here. It’s more than I thought it would be.”

  Yeah. Baker’s niece owned the restaurant. She’d also helped kill her uncle after he’d tried and failed to kidnap her for the Soul Suckers. I had a hunch Gage—who was back at the bar looking like a boulder waiting to crush whatever was in its path—had actually pulled the trigger. Not that it would matter if Undersheriff Grogan started digging too deep. I didn’t want either of them going down for that sort of crime.

  “Something I can do for you, Sheriff?”

  “Undersheriff, still. At least, until Baker’s body is found.”

  “I didn’t know the investigation into his disappearance had been upgraded to a homicide.”

  “It hasn’t. Not yet, at least.” He grinned, showing way too many teeth. Not a rattlesnake about to strike. More like someone trying way too hard to seem friendly. “But Mark was a good man—solid and sure. I can’t imagine any other reason why he’d suddenly disappear unless there was foul play involved.”

  I could imagine plenty of reasons, most of them because good, solid, and sure were the least accurate words to describe Mark Baker that had ever been spoken. “I see. So, what brings you to Justice?”

  “Just driving through, really. I’d been hoping to see Mark’s niece—maybe talk to her about her uncle—but your bearded guard dog over there claims she’s not around.”

  No way was Katie not in the back, likely with Rex at her side, which meant Gage was running interference. Smart man. “Looks like you’ll have to schedule your conversation for another day. Sorry you wasted your trip.”

  “Not a waste.
” He grabbed a bag from the counter—one of Katie’s bagged lunches—and a to-go cup of coffee. “Your friend supplied me with this takeout, and I got to meet you.”

  Something about that sounded more ominous than the words themselves seemed. “Some reason you were looking for me?”

  “Not really. Just wondering what’s been going on around here lately. I’ve heard a few rumors.”

  “What sorts of rumors?”

  He shrugged as if this was some sort of casual conversation. “Things about the town being dangerous. About some missing men. Good men. Like the sheriff.”

  Good? The only men missing were riders in the Soul Suckers motorcycle club who’d come to take Shye from me. And the ones who’d tried to kidnap my brother’s girl, Anabeth. And a few who’d attacked Katie on orders of her uncle. Not so good in my opinion. “Can’t tell you anything about missing men. That Soul Suckers motorcycle gang has been around a lot, though—maybe you should be looking at them.”

  His slow smile might as well have been a threat crossing his face. “Oh, I’ve looked at them already. Had a nice long conversation with a man named Pistol. He had a lot of stories to tell me about you and your girl. Her name’s Shye, right?”

  If Gage hadn’t jumped in to press his hand against my chest, I likely would have ended up in jail for murdering the county undersheriff right then and there.

  “Alder.” Gage physically pushed me back. “Don’t do it.”

  My attention wasn’t on him, though. “You bring that name into this town again, and it won’t matter who’s around—I’ll drop you where you stand.”

  Grogan didn’t look surprised by my anger. “Is that a threat, Alder Kennard?”

  “It’s a fucking promise.” I shoved Gage off me and headed for the kitchen, needing to make sure my girl was okay, to know that motherfucker Pistol hadn’t somehow gotten past me. Suddenly wishing I could take Shye home with me and pack our stuff. I’d never run from a goddamned thing in my life, but I’d never had so much to lose either. If it were just me, I’d fight to the death. But having Shye by my side? That changed everything. I wanted to keep her safe, and safe might mean not in Justice.

  “Hang on,” Grogan hollered, holding up his hands. “I just wanted to talk to you, Kennard.”

  “Yeah, well, talk is cheap.” I stopped at the door to the kitchen, making sure to hold the fucker’s gaze as I said, “Get out of my town, Undersheriff Grogan.”

  “You’re not the law around here.”

  I laughed. Loud and long. I practically fucking guffawed my way back across the restaurant. “You know, I heard that from Sheriff Baker just a few months ago. Those exact same words.” My laughter stopped. “He was wrong then, and you’re wrong now. I’m the only law in this fucking town.”

  Grogan didn’t back down. “I want to talk to you about the Soul Suckers.”

  “Unless that talk includes details of how you’re arresting those murdering motherfuckers, I’ve got nothing to say.”

  His lips went thin, his eyes hard. “I can’t arrest them. Not without some sort of case to give the DA.”

  “Like I said…” I held out my arms and backed away. “Have a safe drive out of town, Undersheriff Grogan. Next time, call before you cross into Justice. We’re awfully busy over here.”

  Before I could disappear into the back, Zane fucking Grogan tried one last time. “Mark Baker was a friend of mine, you know.”

  “You should be more careful who you call friend, because I can guarantee you this—that man would have sold you out in a heartbeat. Just like he sold out everyone else around him.”

  And with that, I slammed through the swinging door into the kitchen, leaving the undersheriff with Gage.

  Shye stood waiting for me. “Are you okay?”

  I didn’t answer, just picked her up and carried her to the back hallway where I could be alone with her. Where I could break even if for only a second without anyone else seeing it.

  “Alder, baby. You’re scaring me.”

  Just one more thing to add to my pile of how I’d failed her. I stopped, leaning her against a wall and sliding my hands down her legs. Caging her against the concrete wall with my body as I tried to catch my breath. “I don’t mean to.”

  “I know.” She tugged on my hair, making me grumble. She knew how much I loved it when she did that. “What happened?”

  “Nothing, honey.”

  “Alder.” My name was a rebuke on her lips. One I couldn’t fully ignore.

  “Nothing happened. Yet.”

  She gave me a hard, worried look. “I don’t know if I like that yet.”

  If she knew what was involved in that yet, she definitely wouldn’t. “It’ll be fine, okay? I promise.”

  She stared me down, so very beautiful and fragile. Blessing me with her smile and her caring eyes and her body wrapped around mine. She was everything I could have asked God for back before wars and battle and the nastiness of life made it hard for me to believe he existed. Shye made me believe again—her goodness, her trust. Her simple faith that she put in me without question. The woman loved me, no doubt in my mind about that. Loved me in a way I would never deserve. But I’d sure as hell try.

  “I love you, Shye,” I whispered, unable to hold back.

  Her smile grew, lighting up the whole damn hallway. “I know you do.”

  “I don’t think you know how much.”

  “I do, Alder. I really do.”

  Words I so wanted to hear, just in a different place. Or hell, in this place. If she said them to me with a preacher beside us, we could do the deed wherever she wanted. So long as at the end of it, she was mine in big capital letters. Legal-like.

  I was the law in Justice, but not for this. Not for county records and paperwork. For her, I wanted official. I wanted everything.

  I wanted her tied to me forever. But to get that, I needed to knock a few things out of our way first.

  Chapter Four

  It took me almost an hour to be able to leave Shye with Gage and Katie. Took me thirty minutes to get to the mill as I backtracked and looped through the streets of Justice to make sure the undersheriff wasn’t lying in wait somewhere. Thankfully, I’d had the good presence of mind to text Deacon the second I’d left the restaurant. No flowery words or wishes of good morning. Just a simple get your ass to the mill.

  He’d understand the message.

  It took Deacon a lot less time to get there than I would have expected seeing as how it was still early morning and he tended to be a night owl. So little time, in fact, that he was waiting for me in my office when I finally rolled in.

  “I’m surprised you’re awake already.”

  He shot me a look that said he wasn’t in the mood to joke and pushed a cup of coffee across my desk. “Some jackass texted me a message to get my ass here right as I was going to sleep, but seeing as how my ass is attached to the rest of me, you get the whole package.”

  I dropped into my seat behind the desk and grabbed the coffee. I had a thermos full that Shye had made for me this morning, but I was not a man to turn down a cup. “Thanks.”

  “You’re welcome, jackass.” He took a sip of his coffee, watching me over the rim of his cup with those almost unnervingly green eyes. I knew what he was waiting for—an explanation for why I’d dragged him down here. He could complain all he wanted, but he was my best friend. I knew he’d show up if I asked…or demanded, as it were. I also knew there was no one else I wanted by my side as I took care of what I needed to. Knew the man as a soldier and a friend. Knew he’d make sure we did what we needed to on any mission—no questions asked—and got out clean. Which was why I’d called him instead of one of my brothers.

  “It’s time.”

  He barely responded to my statement, just a slight head nod before pulling the coffee cup away from his face. “You got a plan?”

  “I think so.”

  That earned me a reaction. A single eyebrow raise that looked like a question mark on his face. “You
think, or you know?”

  I gave that the time it deserved, let all the data Gage had dug up for us on Pistol’s life play through my mind, let the information we’d acquired from a biker named Parris fill in the gaps. Allowed all the pieces of the puzzle time to slide into place in my mind and create a solid picture. One I could use to maneuver right into Pistol’s life.

  “I know,” I said, leaning forward. “I’ve spent enough time looking over details and learning shit I never wanted to think about. Some things may be on the fly, but the base of my plan is solid. We can take care of the problem.”

  “You’re sure it won’t come back on Shye somehow?”

  I loved that he was thinking about my girl, and that proved he had my best interests at heart. Because if there was any blowback Shye’s way, I’d never get over it. “I’ll make sure it doesn’t.”

  That question mark eyebrow dropped back into place, and Deacon took another sip of his coffee before saying, “Then I’m in. When do we move out?”

  “Tonight.”

  We spent the next few hours going over the intel we’d acquired on Pistol. Deacon reviewed my base plan, expanding it, taking into account certain bits of information I’d seen as inconsequential but he saw as important. When we were finished, we’d managed to blow through an entire pot of coffee, a box of cookies from the wife of one of my employees, three pens, and a marker that ended up being thrown at the wall during a particularly stressful discussion about post-mission cleanup. But in the end, we had a clear and concise plan of attack. One that would likely take a few days to carry out.

  Which meant I needed to leave town for a bit. And Shye.

  I trudged home at the end of the day, dreading the conversation I needed to have with Shye. Knowing she’d tell me it was fine—that she’d be okay without me for a few days. Also knowing she’d be lying.

  “Alder,” she said as soon as I came through the front door, turning away from the stove and hurrying toward me. But my girl was smart and real damn observant, especially when it came to me. That smile fell the closer she came. “What’s wrong?”