by Ana Night
“What? No. That can’t be. No one here would do that,” Bones said.
“Someone did,” Gabe said. “They told the Henchmen about the gun stash a few months ago and then about Sean.”
Bones frowned at Gabe, then lifted his gaze to Joker.
“Are you sure they didn’t find out some other way?” Bones asked Joker.
Joker nodded and said, “We are. ‘Cause we set a trap.”
Finally, it seemed like it dawned on Bones how serious it really was. He went pale and sat back in his hair, a distant look in his eyes.
“You think it’s Juno, Scar, or me, don’t you? No. No way. Juno’s like my best friend. I would know.”
“So you think it’s Scar?” Gabe asked.
“No.” Bones shook his head. “Not a chance.”
“See, the thing is, Bones,” Joker started and pushed away from the wall to put his hands on the back of Gabe’s chair. “It can only be one of you three because you’re the only ones who were told about the location the Henchmen raided this morning.”
Bones’ mouth fell open and he blinked wide eyes up at Joker.
“Who’s your contact? Why haven’t you burned Ares yet? What’s your endgame here?”
“It’s not me,” Bones said through his teeth.
“If it’s not any of you, then how would you explain the Henchmen getting that information?” Gabe asked.
Bones opened his mouth, then closed it again. He dropped his head into his hands, mumbling something Joker couldn’t hear.
Bones looked up and said, “I don’t know.”
“Who did you tell?” Joker asked.
Bones went even paler if that was even possible.
“Fuck. No. Nonono.”
“What? Talk to me, Bones,” Gabe said.
Bones looked devastated as he ran his fingers through his hair. Joker gave him time, recognizing how hard this was for Bones. Whoever he’d told had to be very close to him, otherwise, Joker couldn’t imagine Bones sharing that important information with them.
“I told her about the stash. But that was a long time ago. I didn’t think…” Bones shook his head, pain clear in his eyes. “She asked about Sean. Well, not Sean in particular, but he’s the one I knew about. We were both here the night you moved Sean. I just told her. Fuck. I’m an idiot.”
“While I do tend to agree with that. I need to know who,” Joker said.
“Maya,” Bones said in a low voice.
“What?” Gabe sputtered.
Joker could hear the disbelief in Gabe’s voice, but it made sense. Maya was a prospect. She had access to the club and apparently information through Bones. But she’d never been on a run for the club. She hadn’t been with them either time they’d gone after the Henchmen so she couldn’t have warned them, which was why they’d never known they were coming. She also didn’t know about Ares.
“Fuck,” Bones yelled. “I’m her fucking sponsor, too. I brought her into the club. This is all on me.”
“She’s the one who decided to fuck us over. Not you. Stay here,” Joker said to Bones.
Bones nodded and dropped his head into his hands. Gabe pushed back his chair and stood, walking with Joker out of the room. Joker headed towards King’s office.
“I can’t believe it,” Gabe said.
“I know it hurts, but you have to keep your chin up. Stay strong.”
Gabe nodded, drawing in a deep breath. When they reached King’s office, Joker knocked on the door. It was King who opened it. Joker stepped back and said, “I need a word.”
King nodded and turned to say something to Rooster before he stepped out, closing the door after himself.
“What have you got?” King asked.
“Bones thinks it’s Maya. They’re fucking around and he’s shitty at pillow talk. He said he’s told her about the stash and Sean,” Joker said.
“Unfortunately, it makes sense.” King turned his gaze on Gabe and then back on Joker. “I want you two to tail her. I’ll tell Auggie to do whatever it is he does.”
“Bones is in the church room,” Gabe said and handed King Bones’ phone and gun.
They went back to the clubhouse where Joker grabbed a pair of car keys.
“Do you know where she’s supposed to be right now or do we need to ask Bones?” Joker asked Gabe.
Gabe shook his head and said, “She’s supposed to be at work.”
“Good. Let’s go, then.”
Gabe
They were on the second floor in the Gallery by the harbor. Gabe was leaning against a banister, his back turned to Maya so Joker could watch her over his shoulder. It didn’t feel right to spy on her, but there was a pretty big chance that she was a traitor, so he didn’t care.
“Auggie’s hacking her phone company to get her call record and text transcripts but he says it’ll take time,” Joker said, looking down at his phone.
“There’s gotta be an easier way to do it,” Gabe said.
Joker arched a brow at him. “Maybe if we had a warrant. You see any of those hanging around?”
“Fuck off,” Gabe said with an eye-roll.
He glanced over his shoulder. Maya was window shopping in front of some expensive-looking clothes store. They’d been following her for over an hour. She hadn’t been at work and her boss had told them she’d called in sick. Then they’d gone to her apartment and they were lucky enough to get there just as she was leaving. She’d done some grocery shopping before heading to the shopping mall.
“That’s quite an expensive purse she’s got. I certainly haven’t seen it before,” Gabe said.
“Maybe she doesn’t bring it to the club,” Joker suggested but he sounded like he didn’t believe his own words.
Gabe shook his head. “I’ve been with her outside of the club plenty of times. I’ve been at her place, too. She’s got all her purses on display. She’s got a lot of them, but I don’t remember that one.”
“You remember all her purses?”
Gabe felt a smile tug at his lips. “Maybe.”
He glanced back at Maya, an idea forming in his head.
“Stay here,” Gabe said and walked off before Joker could object. He pulled out his phone and turned it off. He walked right up to Maya, plastering on a smile when she noticed him.
“Maya,” he said.
“Gabe. Hi.”
“Please tell me you have your phone on you,” he said and gave her his best version of puppy eyes. “Mine just died in the middle of a call from my dad. It sounded important. You mind if I borrow yours? I’ll just be a minute.”
He showed her the black screen of his phone, just to give his story some merit.
“Uh, sure,” Maya said. She dug her phone out of her purse and gave it to him.
“Thank you. I’ll just find somewhere quieter to call him. Don’t go anywhere.”
He walked a bit away and made sure she couldn’t see him from where she was standing. He threw a last glance her way and went through her latest calls. There was only one number that wasn’t in her contacts. She’d called it the day before and as he scrolled further down, he found she’d also called it the day before Sean had asked for a meeting. He checked her messages but there weren’t any from that number.
He turned on his own phone and hurried to send the number to Auggie. He put his own phone into his back pocket and called his father from Maya’s phone. King picked up almost immediately.
“What?”
“Pops,” Gabe said. “Just bear with me. I’ll call you back from my own phone in a minute.”
He hung up before King could say anything. He had to leave some kind of evidence of the call. He just hoped Maya wouldn’t look closely enough to see that it’d only lasted a few seconds.
He walked back to Maya and handed her the phone.
“Thank you,” he said.
“Anytime, Gabe. What’s going on? Something wrong?”
Gabe hesitated for a second, considering his options on what to tell her. He leaned clos
er, lowering his voice.
“The Henchmen almost got Sean this morning. He barely escaped before they arrived.”
Maya’s eyes went wide. “Are you serious? What the hell?”
“I know, right?” Gabe shook his head. “Anyway. I’ve gotta go. Pops wants me back at the clubhouse.”
“Of course,” Maya said.
Gabe gave her shoulder a squeeze before hurrying off towards Joker. He glanced over his shoulder to see Maya walk in the opposite direction, her phone against her ear. When he reached Joker, the furious look on his face made him cringe. He held up his hands.
“Before you blow a gasket, please hear me out,” Gabe said.
“You’d better talk quickly,” Joker said through clenched teeth.
Gabe nodded. “I just got a number from her phone and I told her King just called to say Sean barely escaped the Henchmen. That way, they hopefully won’t suspect that they were set up or that she was burned.”
Joker cocked his head to the side, his eyes narrowing on Gabe, making him shift nervously while he tapped his fingers against his thigh.
“You’re kinda brilliant. You took a stupid risk, but you were smart about it.”
Gabe stared at Joker, stammering out, “You’re not mad?”
“Oh, I’m mad, and you’re gonna have to make it up to me. Later,” Joker said with a wicked smile. “But, right now, we should get that number to Auggie.”
“I already did. Though, now I have to call my dad back,” Gabe said and pulled a face.
Joker let out a chuckle. “Good luck with that.”
Chapter Eleven
Joker
HE WAS sitting in King’s office, watching King walk back and forth. Gabe was standing behind Joker, resting his hands on Joker’s chair. When Gabe had told King what they’d learned, he’d ordered them back to the clubhouse. When they arrived, it was to find King and Auggie waiting for them in King’s office. The number Gabe had gotten was from a burner phone but Auggie had sent it to Ares who’d immediately confirmed that it belonged to Ronin. They were still trying to figure out what their next move was. Or rather, King was trying to decide what to do and how much he was willing to put his people through.
“King?” Joker asked, getting the man’s attention. “Talk to me.”
King let out a heavy sigh. “Fucking hell, Joker. This is some fucked up shit, is what it is.”
Joker couldn’t agree more, and he told King as much. King pulled out his desk chair and sat down, putting his elbows on the tabletop and resting his head in his hands. He sat like that for a while and they let him be, knowing King needed to think.
King let his hands fall down and straightened in his seat. “We only have two options here. We either throw Maya out on her ass or we use her. Thanks to Gabe, she and the Henchmen, hopefully, think they were close to getting Sean this morning,” King said and turned his gaze on Gabe. “It sounds strange to say, but I’m glad Joker decided to involve you in this. It’s rather comforting.”
“Thank you, Pops.”
Joker leaned forward. “I say we use her.”
King met Joker’s gaze and said, “You realize, if we do that, then we all have to pretend not to know she’s a fucking traitor. Including Bones.”
“That’s what’s making you hesitate, isn’t it?” Joker asked King.
King nodded. “I don’t want to put that on him. It’s bad enough that his girl has been using him, and then we’re asking him to pretend everything is fine?”
“Why don’t we ask Bones what he wants to do?” Gabe suggested.
“Let’s go ask him. He’s still here, right?”
When King nodded, Joker stood. He motioned for Gabe to follow and, together, they walked out of King’s office and across the courtyard to the clubhouse. They found Bones at the bar with Scar and Juno. Neither of them had left after they were finished getting questioned. He was sure they were all still very much affected by the information they’d gotten.
“Bones,” Joker said as they neared. “A moment?”
Joker led the way up the stairs and into one of the rooms. Gabe walked in last and closed the door after himself. Joker turned to face Bones, but Bones cut him off before he could say anything.
“It’s her, isn’t it?” Bones asked.
Joker nodded and said, “It is.”
“All right. What’s the plan, then?”
Joker shared a quick glance with Gabe before answering.
“We can use her, but that would mean you’d have to pretend not to know what she is,” Joker said.
Bones didn’t look surprised. He’d probably considered something along those lines himself. He had a determined look on his face as he nodded. “Let’s do it.”
“You sure?” Gabe asked Bones.
“Hell, yeah, I’m sure. The bitch’s been playing me. It’s only fair I get to fuck her over, too.”
“All right. Go see King, then,” Joker said.
Bones nodded and took off towards the door. Joker watched him for a moment before turning his attention on Gabe.
“Why don’t we head home? I don’t like leaving Sean alone for this long,” Joker said.
Gabe’s face lit up with a bright smile, making Joker frown at him curiously.
“Sure,” Gabe said.
“Please tell me you don’t actually want to see Sean.”
Gabe shook his head and took a step closer, putting himself mere inches from Joker. He grabbed a hold of Joker’s vest and tilted his head back to meet Joker’s gaze.
“You said home,” Gabe said and pushed up on his toes to kiss Joker.
It was a quick brush of their lips, then Gabe pulled back. Joker blinked at him, his brain still not having caught up with the meaning of Gabe’s words.
Gabe stepped around him to open the door.
“You coming?”
Joker turned, finding Gabe standing in the doorway with a brow raised at him. Joker cleared his throat and nodded. He followed Gabe out of the room. He hadn’t even realized he’d said home. He meant it, though. The place wouldn’t be home without Gabe.
Gabe
Joker unlocked their front door, holding it so Gabe could walk in first. Gabe pulled his cut off and hung it on the coat rack, then he sat down on the small bench in the hallway to take his boots off. He followed Joker into the living room, fully expecting Sean to be there, but he couldn’t see him anywhere.
“Sean?” Gabe called out.
There was no answer. No sign of Sean. But on further inspection, they found a note under a mug on the coffee table. Joker lifted the mug to grab the note.
“What does it say?” Gabe asked.
Joker cleared his throat, then read aloud, “Joker. Gabe. Thank you for the hospitality and the entertainment. I really enjoyed the latter. But it’s time I get my shit together. I’ve got a business to run, after all. Don’t worry, once I’ve got everything set up, I’ll be in contact. I’ll miss watching your… make-out sessions. Sean.”
“I’m not sure if I should be worried or elated,” Gabe said.
Joker snorted, then said, “Elated. Definitely elated.”
Gabe rolled his eyes and couldn’t hold back his laughter. Joker narrowed his eyes at him and walked up to him. There was something devious about his smile.
“We’ve got the apartment to ourselves now,” Joker said.
Gabe glanced around quickly, then met Joker’s gaze. “We do.”
He’d barely spoken before Joker was on him, bringing their lips together in a deep and desperate kiss. Gabe pushed his fingers into Joker’s hair, holding on tightly as Joker walked him backwards. His back hit a wall, forcing a gasp from his lips. Joker grabbed Gabe’s ass with both hands and thrust his hips, rubbing his erection against Gabe’s. Heat surged through Gabe, racing south.
Gabe reached for Joker’s shirt, shoving it up so he could get his hands on Joker’s skin. He ran his fingers across Joker’s lower back, muscles contracting under his fingertips.
Joker pull
ed back, his voice breathy as he said, “I need you. Now.”
Gabe whimpered. Fuck. He pushed Joker back a step and grabbed his hand to pull him towards the bedroom. He stopped by the edge of the bed and turned around. He reached for Joker’s belt, opening and then tugging it free. Joker watched him with heated eyes. He held Joker’s gaze as he pushed Joker’s pants down to his ankles. Joker stepped out of them and reached for the hem of Gabe’s shirt. He raised his arms to let Joker pull it over his head. Next to go was his pants. When they were both naked, Gabe got onto the bed. He laid down facing Joker and took his hard cock in hand. Joker’s eyes got darker with lust, but he didn’t move, he just stood there and watched Gabe for a while. Gabe bit down on his lip as he stroked himself. He put his feet on the bed and spread his legs to give Joker a better view.
Joker watched him for a bit, his gaze heated, and his lips parted. Gabe moaned Joker’s name as he thrust into his fist, making Joker curse him.
Joker went to his closet and when he returned, he was holding a pair of leather handcuffs. Gabe ran his eyes over them, his pulse speeding up. He let go of his cock, moving his hands to his sides and grabbing the sheet. Joker crawled onto the bed, getting between Gabe’s legs. He put the cuffs down on the bed and ran his fingers along Gabe’s jaw, making him look up at Joker.
“You okay with that?” Joker asked.
Gabe nodded, swallowing hard. Joker grinned and leaned down to press a kiss to Gabe’s lips. Gabe’s eyes fell shut and he groaned into Joker’s mouth.
“I wanna try something,” Joker said in a low, husky voice, his lips right next to Gabe’s ear. He pulled Gabe’s earlobe between his teeth.
“What’s that?” Gabe asked in a breathy voice.
He felt Joker move back.
“I want you inside me,” Joker said.
Gabe’s eyes snapped open and he stared up at Joker. Gabe cleared his throat before saying, “I haven’t…”
“I know,” Joker said and rubbed his thumb across Gabe’s bottom lip. “It’s been a while for me.”
“Okay,” Gabe said.
He laid back, his eyes on Joker as he leaned over Gabe to grab his arms and pull them above his head. A thrill went through him when Joker wrapped the cuff around one of his wrists and buckled it. Joker wrapped the chain around a post in the iron headboard and put the other cuff around Gabe’s wrist. The cuffs felt strange but not uncomfortable. He tugged on them to see how much leeway he had. It was more than he’d thought.