by KJ Dahlen
“I think we better move quickly before we end up being burned out or gunned down.” Ajax sighed. “I’ll speak to Wynette and see if she recorded anything that happened in those woods eight years ago. We’ll have to go from there.”
They all returned to the clubhouse leaving Moon and Stinger in place as guards.
Ajax sought out Wynette.
Fireball went down the hall to the Infirmary to check on Karly. He found her huddled in the far corner of the room. She sat on the floor, her arms wrapped around her knees with her body shaking. Tears were running down her face.
He knelt beside her and gathered her in his arms. “Hush now woman, it’s okay. You’re still all right,” he whispered in her ear.
Karly laid her head on his chest and allowed his heartbeat to calm her fears. “You have no idea. I’d rather die than face those men again.” Shaking her head, she amended her statement, “Or maybe I should say I will die if they get their hands on me again. Hell, I barely survived the first time, the next time I won’t be so lucky. And they won’t even have to dispose of my body. Carlson told me they would just let the gators have me for dessert. He said they’d done it before and will do it again, anytime they need to.”
Fireball frowned. “What did you just say?”
She peeked up at him. “Carlson told me on more than one occasion, they’d left a body or two for the gators to get rid of. He called it the circle of life.”
Fireball was silent for a few minutes then and asked, “I need you to think carefully, did he say where they would leave the bodies?”
Karley thought for a bit then answered, “He said the place where the murder happened that they nailed Wynette for was one of their drop offs. I think he said they had at least three of them.”
He tapped her leg. “Come on, we need to talk to Ajax and the others.” He grabbed her hand and pulled her up. “We might finally get somewhere with this.”
He took Karly out to the main room.
Ajax sat at a table with Wynette. Joel and several of the brothers were sitting there as well.
Looking at Ajax, Fireball announced, “Karly just said something I found interesting.”
Ajax looked at the two of them. “What was that?”
“She said Carlson told her that if they had to come looking for her, they wouldn’t even have to dispose of her body if they ever caught her again. All they would have to do is leave it for the gators. Said it was the circle of life or some bullshit. He told her the place they left Mad Dog’s body was only one of their disposal places. Do you know what that means?”
“He’s done this before and will do it again,” Ajax told the room. He turned his head to stare at Joel. “Have there been many people in this town that simply just disappeared?”
Joel thought for a moment then slowly nodded his head. “There might be. I can think of at least two anyway. They’ve both have gone missing within the last five years.”
“Is there anything they might have had in common?” Jackman wanted to know.
Joel rubbed his earlobe. “Well now, that you mention it, they might have been outspoken about being ripped off by Justice Zetran. People around here just thought they left town in the middle of the night to avoid trouble, but I never thought about it before. I have a feeling I’ve been wrong about that old bastard for a while now. I mean I knew him my whole life, at least...I thought I did.”
“Can you show us on a map exactly where Mad Dog died that day?” Ajax looked down at Wynette.
She went pale but she finally nodded. “I think so.”
“If she can’t I can,” Jackman volunteered. “I remember the way there. I’ve even been there a time or two since to remember your brother.”
Ajax nodded at him then looked back at Karly. “Did Carlson mention any of the other places where they disposed of bodies?”
Karly shook her head. “He only mentioned that one unparticular. He said he could nail both of us if he put my body there. He said they would be watching the place and if Wynette came back, they would be able to nail her for the crime.” She shivered. “He almost made it sound like a joke. He called it tying up loose ends.” She turned her body into Fireball’s and he held her tight.
“I might know of at least one of the other sites they use,” Wynette whispered, as she looked almost as white as a sheet now.
Ajax and everyone else stared at her. Ajax seemed concerned about how pale she’d become. “Are you okay?” he asked her softly.
Wynette turned her head to look at him. “I’ve been walking those woods all my life. They were the one place I thought I was safe, you know? I mean there was never anyone out there with me. There were a few times when I heard another voice but that was okay. I knew where and how to hide to keep from being seen so the few times it happened, I wasn’t worried. I knew the plants and animals I would find there. I knew where the gators gathered and where they won’t go. I learned from experience how to read tracks. I had weapons all over those woods in case I needed them. They weren’t guns or anything, a kid couldn’t handle, but I did fashion a bow as I could get arrows and I would hide them. I built myself a fort out there and I would spend entire days at times when I knew my parents weren’t going to be home...” Her voice trailed off toward the end.
Joel watched her carefully, then he noted when she began to tremble.
Ajax noticed it as well. He hauled her over into his lap. “Just calm, it will be all right.”
She turned her head and shook it. “I don’t think it will be. Those woods hold some pretty terrible secrets.”
Ajax froze for a moment then asked, “What kind of secrets?”
“Your brother wasn’t the only one to die out there,” she whispered.
A heavy silence followed her statement.
Chapter Six
“What does that mean exactly?” Joel frowned as he stared at her.
Wynette looked over at him. “Do you remember a girl named Jolene Whitmore, Papaw? You used to be friends with her grandfather.”
Joel nodded as his face took on a troubled look. “I do remember her. She ran away when you were about fifteen.”
Wynette shook her head as tears ran down her face. “She didn’t run.” Turning her head toward Ajax’s chest, she sobbed for a moment then wiped her eyes and finally told her long held secret, “She’d been seeing someone in secret for a few months. She was in love with him but he didn’t love her back. He only used her.”
“How do you know that?” Racer asked.
Wynette looked up at him. “Because that morning when I saw them...I hid in the glades. He was screaming his hatred at her. He told her in no uncertain terms that he only used her body and then laughed at her expressions of love for him. Saying she was too young for him and he would never even be seen in public with her for a reason. She was nothing more than a piece of ass to him. Then she told him she was carrying his baby. That she would go to his grandfather with the news and see what he had to say.”
Joel’s brows rose at this news.
Wynette closed her eyes and shuddered. “I don’t think I will ever forget the look in his eyes that day. It was pure evil. He reached for her throat and he wouldn’t let go. She clawed and tried to scream but he wouldn’t let her go. He kept telling her she wouldn’t be telling his grandfather any of her lies. All he would have to do was deny it and his grandpa would believe him. He always did. He’d get her family run out of town and that he’d done it before.” Wynette was breathing heavily as she paused. “When she was no longer fighting him, he finally let her go. She crumbled to his feet like a piece of trash and he kicked her three times. When she didn’t move, he dragged her to the edge of the swamp and threw half of her body into the water. He turned around and just left her there.” Wynette went silent as she lowered her head.
Ajax just held her to him and smoothed her hair with his hand.
Finally, Joel asked her, “What happened after this, baby girl?”
She raised her head and swiped a
t the tears on her cheeks. “I waited a while it took me some time as I couldn’t stop crying. I knew this girl in school. I couldn’t believe what I just saw. Then I got up and went to where he just threw her away. I checked to make sure she was dead and she was. Her eyes were staring up when I turned her over.” Wynette shivered and rubbed her arms. “But then I knew I couldn’t just leave her there. I might never be able to tell anyone what I’d just seen but I could at least do what I could for her.” She shook her head. “I couldn’t let the gators get her. No one deserved that.”
“What did you do with her?” Ajax asked her in a soft tone.
“I found a small cave and I took her there. I buried her in the ground the best I could, piling her final place with stones I found. And I kept my mouth shut. I-I was very afraid of him. Afraid of what they might do to my family if I talked. I’ve never told anyone about that day but I stayed out of the woods for almost a year after that.”
“Who was she seeing?” Joel wanted to know.
Wynette stared at him with tears in her eyes. “Liam Zetran. I’ll never forget the look on his face that day.” Her eyes widened as she remembered something else she’d seen that day. “Oh, God! When he was telling her off, telling her she wasn’t anything more than a piece of ass to him, she hit out at him. She had something in her hand and whatever it was, it laid his face wide open. I remember him screaming as he struck out at her. He was holding his face and screaming at her then he grabbed her throat and wouldn’t let go.” She shivered. “There was so much blood. It covered his face, his clothes, and her neck when he grabbed her.”
When no one said anything, Karly broke the silence, “Well, would explain the scar on his face wouldn’t it?”
Wynette turned and frowned at her. “What scar? You keep telling me about how I mentioned a scar. I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
Karly nodded. “You saw that scar again, the night Mad Dog was killed. You described it in detail. You said, she laid him open good, from temple to jaw. You said you hoped it hurt. You also said she should have cut his throat instead of his face.”
Wynette looked stunned as she began to tremble. “I said all that?”
Karly nodded. “You also said he deserved it and that you wish she would have stabbed his black heart. That he was the one who should have died that day, not her.”
“Boss, there was a man at the gate today that had a scar on his face, a scar just like the one the girls just described,” Moon claimed.
“I know.” Ajax nodded.
“What are you going to do Prez?” Fireball needed to know.
“Can I make a suggestion?” Randall asked.
Ajax looked over at him and nodded.
“I would suggest you gather your evidence carefully and quietly. Go through the police, obviously not the local law but you’ve got the attention of a good state cop. He can guide you on the laws and he can gather what the police would need for this to be legal in a straight court of law. Don’t just go and dig up the body without a credible witness.”
“We’re an MC, we don’t usually bring the law into our fights,” Ajax told him.
“You won’t be an MC very much longer if you don’t,” Randall pointed out. “I know and understand what you’re saying here but if you don’t do this, the proper way the Zetran family will wipe you out and they’ll rule here. They will have gotten away with murder literally on more than one occasion. And everyone who lives here will see just how much power they have. Do you want that to happen?”
“It’s not only the murders boss,” Moon spoke up. “It’s the drugs too. Whatever they’re making out there, they are distributing to places nearby and who knows where they’re ending up. Your dad hated the drug scene, he didn’t want it for his club. He always said he might not have been the best man he could be, but he never went down that road and he never would.”
Ajax gave him a look. ““I know all of that, Moon. He told me the same thing when I got to be president that I’d better not either or he would come back and haunt me and this club.” Then he looked around the room. “Is this what you all want? You want to work with the badges to clear this mess up?”
“I don’t see that we have a choice,” Jackman grumbled. “We either play good with them or we don’t get to play at all. And I for one like what we got here. This is our home and I’m not willing to give that up.”
More of the men agreed with him.
Ajax nodded. “Then let’s get this game started. The sooner we begin the sooner this is over.” He looked over at Randall. “We need you to stay and be on our side. Can you do that?”
Randall grinned. “I would be remiss in my duties as the club attorney if I left now. Besides, I want to see the look on Justice Zetran’s face when his empire crumbles into the dust.”
Ajax wondered what was behind that statement, as Randall seemed to be too onboard with this. He shook his head and made the call to bring Stephans back to the compound.
It was after dark when Officer Stephans and three other men came to the front gate.
Ajax hustled them all into the clubhouse.
Once there, Stephans introduced the other three men to the club, “Gentlemen, this is Jonas Rikman, DEA, Pat Jones, US Marshals, and Jerry Ryker US Attorney’s office.” He turned to Ajax and Fireball. “I can finally tell you this...Your town has been on our radar for some time now. When you mentioned Leo Holder, I knew I had to call them in on this.”
Jonas nodded. “The DEA has been looking for him for about ten years now. He disappeared from his compound in New York after the death of his brother Jerrod, a little over eleven years ago and we haven’t been able to find him since then.”
“We know he’s been here for at least eight years.” Ajax shrugged. “My brother recognized him back then and that’s why he was murdered.”
“How did his brother Jerrod die in New York, if I might ask?” Fireball asked as he frowned.
Jonas snorted shaking his head. “He succumbed to an overdose. The police didn’t find any trace of the drug that killed him but we found more than enough similarities to the drug, Ebony Resign to know they were one and the same drug. The later version was the safer one but they were the same, just proportioned differently.”
Wynette stepped forward and asked, “What is the ingredient that was different in the final mix? Was it plant based?”
Jonas narrowed his eyes at her question. “How did you know that?”
“Because about nine years ago,” Wynette explained. “I ran across the biggest bed of flowers that aren’t common to this area of the nation. But it was hidden from anyone seeing it. The flowerbeds were huge and under the cover of portable green houses, so they could be moved in a hurry if they had to be.” She paused then added, “I also saw one greenhouse filled with night shade.”
Jonas looked over at the US Marshall, Pat Jones. Then he looked back at Wynette and the men. “Night shade is one of the ingredients of the drug we’re looking at Leo Holder for designing. We think he started designing it in New York but had to move his base of operations when his brother died.” He looked over at Ajax. “Can you or your woman show us where these greenhouses are, so we can verify that they even exist?”
Ajax shrugged. “She’ll have to show you as I have no clue where they are and it’s been eight years since she’s been around this area, so they may not be where she saw them once upon a time.”
“Where has she been?” Jerry Ryker wanted to know.
The room went quiet as no one spoke.
Chapter Seven
“In prison for a murder she didn’t commit,” Fireball finally answered his question as he stared the man in the eyes.
Wynette let out a gasp as she stared at Fireball in wonder. He’d stated this like he finally believed in her claim. Then she looked around, they all seemed to look as if they believed she was entirely innocent. Now, she remembered when she first saw some of these men when she’d stepped out of the prison gates. They swore at her and c
alled her names. She gazed around at the ones who had been there the day she was set free.
She looked each one in the eyes.
Each man gazed back then lowered their heads as if to honor her or to apologize.
She placed her hand over her mouth, shocked by this change. Then she shot her gaze over to Ajax.
Ajax crossed his arms over his chest and gave her a nod.
The lawmen in the room all watched while looking confused at the sudden shift in the room.
“Who was she in prison for killing?” Pat asked.
“Our brother, Mad Dog.” Moon snarled. “Only now, we know who the real killer is, don’t we boys?”
Everyone grumbled in agreement.
“Is the killer any relation to Justice Zetran?” Jerry wanted to know.
“It’s his grandson, Liam,” Wynette finally spoke.
“Is Justice involved in this at all?” Jerry stared at her.
“Yeah, he’s aware of every move they make,” Fireball replied without hesitation. “He was at a warehouse watching a prison guard from Huntsville beat the crap out of a woman the guard had just walked out of the prison. He and a local man, the Sheriff of our town beat the hell out of my woman to get information on Wynette. They were cellmates in the prison for two years.”
“I see,” Jerry remarked.
“No, you really don’t,” Karly spoke up. “When they didn’t find me dead, like they thought I would be, they came here looking for me. Ajax and Fireball made the Sheriff get a warrant but the stupid man didn’t word it right. He had a search warrant for the property but not the buildings and he had to walk away without searching anything. If and when he comes back, he won’t need a warrant because he’ll bring enough power with him and he’ll just force his way in here. If he does that, no one will survive.” She stared at him. “He knows it and so do these men. It will literally be a fight for the right to survive.”
Stephans nodded. “Yeah, it’s gonna go down just that way. He was pissed when I was here earlier but the men with him were not happy either. Those men are the types to burn a place down to the ground. I got the feeling that maybe the Sheriff knew he’d fucked things up as far as they were concerned.”