by KJ Dahlen
Rigger nodded and went out into the hall to bang on the doors.
Gunner spun around and walked out of the room. He went down to Boone’s door and pounded on it loud enough to wake the dead.
When Boone answered the door, he stared sleepily at his prez. “What is it boss?” he asked grumbling.
“Dana snuck out and look at what’s on my fucking phone.” Gunner growled as he shoved the phone in Boone’s face.
Winona appeared behind Boone and gasped at the photo she saw on her dad’s phone. “Oh, my god... what happened?”
“I’m not sure yet but your crazy sister jumped the fence and is out there somewhere alone without backup.” Gunner felt like he was gonna lose it at any minute. “Shit! I need to let Cobra know he’s down a man.”
“Oh, that’s not going to go over well,” Boone replied.
“He’ll want to be here when we find him. Can’t blame him for that,” Gunner said as he hit speed dial. He glanced over at Boone and muttered, “Get dressed, we need all hands on deck.” He walked toward the main while room flipping on lights. Texting on his cell, he informed Cobra as the men began to wake up.
Boone joined him with Winona a few minutes later with his phone in his hand. “She sent it to me too, boss.”
“Didn’t she think we would need an address to go with it?” Gunner growled.
Boone shrugged. “That girl doesn’t think, she just leaps.”
Rigger had joined them with his laptop and was busy searching for something. He looked up at Gunner. “Boss, she’s got her sneakers on. We can track her and see where she’s going.”
Gunner and Boone went over to where Rigger was sitting and they watched the little red dot on his screen. “At least there’s that,” Gunner grumbled.
Boone nodded, as he looked surprised. “Well maybe, she was thinking after all?”
Gunner studied the dot. “I’m wondering how Jett got taken and Cobra didn’t know it? They haven’t come back from Moss Bluff yet. What the fuck is happening out there?”
Rigger just shook his head.
Winona went to the kitchen and found her mother there making coffee.
DeeDee looked worried. Staring at Winona, she asked, “Why would she do something like this?”
Winona went over to her mom and wrapped her arm around the older woman’s shoulder. “I don’t know, she has never showed good sense but this isn’t a good thing.”
“Did you see what all the fuss is about?” DeeDee asked her.
Winona nodded. “Someone has Jett tied up and they’ve beaten him badly. There’s nothing else there, not even a message, just a picture of Jett. He’s hanging from a hook in the ceiling. He looked to be in a warehouse of some kind.”
DeeDee gasped and covered her mouth with her hand. “And Dana just left the compound? What does she hope to do, rescue him by herself?”
Winona shrugged. “I don’t know but she put herself, Jett, and this club in danger by leaving here tonight.”
“Oh, my god,” DeeDee trembled. “Why would she do something like this?”
Winona sighed and looked at her mother. “Didn’t you do the same thing to dad when you left here to keep him safe? Do you think your daughter would do anything less for her man?”
DeeDee shook her head while looking confused. “You think she loves him?”
Winona nodded. “Only love would give her the courage enough to break the rules like this. To even put herself in danger for someone else. She’s too selfish to do it for just anyone or anything other than that.”
“You could be right about that,” DeeDee whispered after she thought about it for a moment. “Maybe there’s some hope for her yet.” She looked hopeful as she got out the trays to put all the coffee mugs on.
Winona didn’t feel convinced of this part. “Let’s just pray the guys can find her alive to see if there is any hope at all for her,” Winona said as she finished gathering cups and stuff for the coffee her mom had made.
Chapter Eight
Gunner’s heart pounded in his chest as he placed the call to Cobra. This was absolutely the last phone call like this he wanted to make but he had to tell him, as much as he knew anyway. Without knowing the whole story, he didn’t really have that much information to give him.
“What the fuck are you calling me for at this hour?” Cobra snarled when he answered.
“Just wanted you to know you’re a man down,” Gunner told him.
There was silence on Cobra’s end of the call then he asked, “What the fuck, are you sure?”
“I’m sending you all we know.” Gunner forwarded the picture Dana had sent him and Boone.
“WHAT THE FUCK?” Cobra snarled after a few minutes.
“We’re on lockdown due to a threat to my club. Both my girls got a text threatening their lives and the club. Dana was waiting for Jett to come back after everyone else had gone to bed. I get woke up at four this morning with my IT guy telling me that Dana went over the fence. I grabbed my phone to give her hell, only to find that picture.”
“Holy shit,” Cobra swore. “We know she contacted Jett last night with that threat and he fucking took off for Jasper around seven. He should have been there around ten.”
“Well, he never made it,” Gunner affirmed. “We haven’t figured out where he is yet, but I think Dana knows where he’s being held. Foolish girl took off to get to him.”
“Damn Gunner, no offense man but is she fucking stupid?” Cobra retorted. “He won’t be alone and if the man who did this to him is still there, she’s gonna be in a helluva lot of trouble.”
“We’re tracking her and as soon as we get an idea of her direction or when she gets there, we’ll go get them both. I just called to let you know he’s MIA and appears to be in a bad a way.”
“We’re on our way,” Cobra replied. “I’ll leave two men behind to pick up the fire reports we need, but the rest of us are on our way back. We’ll be there in a couple of hours. Keep me informed and especially, the location.”
“Be careful out there. We don’t know who this mother fucker is or what he wants and until we do... we’re expecting anything.”
“Find him, get him back, man. Then you and I will find this fucker together and we’ll make him pay for what he did. I’ll be there in two hours.” Cobra hung up the call.
Gunner ended the call and slid the phone into his pocket. Looking over at Boone and catching his eye, he shook his head.
DeeDee and Winona came out of the kitchen with hot coffee and sandwiches. Everyone was up and mostly watching Rigger’s laptop, monitoring Dana’s progress.
DeeDee wandered over and got a look at the picture sent to Dana. She frowned then gasped. Looking over at Gunner, she had tears in her eyes.
Gunner came over to her and reached out to pull her into his arms. “What is it?”
She held out a trembling hand to point at the picture on one of Rigger’s monitors. “Is that where Jett is being held?” she whispered.
“As far as we know...why?” Gunner asked with a frown.
”I know where that is.”
Gunner’s gaze rose to catch Boone’s eyes. When he looked down, he asked, “Where?”
“This is the old warehouse down by the slaughter house. When we were young, this was the place we used to party at. It wasn’t as run down as it is today but look...” She pointed at a fading sign against the back wall, a sign of a Brahma bull.
Gunner shook his head. “I should have known that myself. Damn, I can’t believe I missed that.” He looked up at the others. “I know where he’s being held. Let’s get there before Dana gets herself into even more trouble.”
“How many men do you want to go boss?” Boone asked.
“No more than four. The rest stay here on alert in case this is a ruse.” He looked around at his men. “I want two people on the roof and Rigger will watch the cameras until we get back. Nobody gets in and nobody but the five of us leaves.”
Four men got to their feet along wit
h Gunner, leaving Boone behind to watch over the club.
They took two trucks rather than their bikes. They would have needed one truck anyway for Jett. Hopefully, they wouldn’t need the second truck for Dana, but they had it anyway.
Gunner drove the lead truck, as he knew where they were going. When they got close to the river, he saw someone dart into the shadows. He stomped on the brakes and put the vehicle in park. Opening the door, he called out softly, “Dana, get your ass back here.”
A few moments later, Dana slowly came out of the shadows.
“What the everlovin’ fuck are you doing girl?” Gunner snarled.
“I had to try and save him daddy.”
“Why didn’t you come to me, baby girl?”
Dana stared at her father and said, “I wasn’t so sure you would help me or not.”
“About something like this, damn sure I would help girl, you should have known that.” Gunner shook his head. “This is club business and you should have woken us up. Fuck, come on and get in the truck so we can get Jett.”
Dana got in the backseat.
Gunner drove closer to the warehouse in question. They stopped a ways away, so their trucks wouldn’t be heard. Then they all moved in closer on foot.
Gunner motioned for the men to surround the building. He grasped Dana’s hand in his and together, they went inside. He wasn't letting her out of his sight in case this was a trap just to grab her. He looked at her and motioned with his finger over his lips as they made their way through the dim light.
When they stepped out into the vastness of the main room, they found Jett still unconscious while hanging from the ceiling.
Gunner quickly turned and wrapped his hand over Dana’s mouth to stop her from calling out.
Staying in the shadows, they made their way closer. Gunner hauled his daughter down beside him as he gazed around at the empty warehouse. When nothing moved, he slowly got to his feet and quietly stepped out of the shadows.
Then he heard a metallic click as someone in the shadows primed a gun.
Gunner froze, knowing he was exposed to an enemy. “Who the hell are you and why have you taken one of my men hostage?” he called out.
Dana was still in the shadows and she seemed to know better than to make herself known.
“Which of those bastards of Savaged Souls are you?” A gruff voice called out, echoing in the empty building. He coughed to clear his throat. “Which one of the bastards are you?” His voice sounded scratchy and hoarse.
“They call me Gunner, now who the hell are you?” Gunner growled.
An older man moved into the moonlight beams of the warehouse. He had long snowy hair and a beard that came down to touch his chest. He was holding a Smith and Wesson in his hand, aimed at Gunner’s chest.
“Who the fuck are you?” Gunner demanded for the third time.
“I’m the man that’s gonna take your life, take your woman and daughters too. Maybe I’ll carry them off to the woods and make them bleed for the wild pigs to enjoy. Blood for blood. You took my kid’s life. So, I’m going to take your whole fucking family.”
“I have no fucking clue what you’re talking about.” Gunner shook his head.
“You did that to my son!” the old man screamed except his voice was all but gone now, so it barely came out as a whisper. He seemed so full of rage that his hands were shaking. “Then I’m going to hunt down a man I’ve been looking for, for eighteen years. Him, I’m going to skin alive. Yeah, skin that bastard alive and listen to his screams and see if they match the screams I’ve been carrying around in my head for the last twenty years as I watched him destroy my MC.”
“You’re talking about Endo, aren’t you?” Gunner asked.
“What the hell? What do you think you know about it?” the old man snarled.
“I know you killed his father and he was an innocent man. I know you killed his older brother for no reason too.” Gunner glared at him.
“Oh, I had reason to kill that bastard,” he grumbled. “I had damn good reason to do what I did.”
“Oh, yeah?” Gunner nodded. “How did he hurt you that you would order his death, a gruesome death I might add?”
“He fucking betrayed my club.”
“I heard he was innocent, that someone else brought in the FBI.” Gunner shared what he knew.
“Mann was fuckin packing up to leave the club. Once you’re a Disciple, you belong for life. There is no way out except for death. He was talking to some of the other guys as well. They never came forward but I knew there were at least two more guys looking to leave. I couldn’t let that happen. It would undermine my position as President if I did nothing.”
Gunner frowned as he stared at the other man. “I thought you were dead a long time ago?”
“I damn near was dead. That little fucker cut my belly open then he cut my fucking throat. But I was able to crawl away and I lived. It took me a year to recover and I had to hide for a long time before I could get a fix on where the little bastard was.” He began to pace. “Then I came here and found my son. Blacky ran away from me years ago but I finally found him. Watched over him for the last five years and he never knew I was there.”
“Then you knew all along what he was doing?” Gunner asked.
The other man shrugged. “Moving skin? Yeah I knew, it didn’t make no nevermind what he did for a living.”
Gunner growled and his hands fisted but he didn’t move.
“What?” The older man scoffed. “You hunt people down for a living. And they pay you big money for it too. What’s wrong with what my kid was doing?”
“At least what I do is legal. Selling people for profit isn’t and it’s cruel as all fuck as if you didn’t know.”
Just then, something flashed from one of the windows.
The old man managed to dodge out of the way as the retort of a gunshot echoed in the vast warehouse.
Gunner ducked as a bullet was fired in his direction. Then all he could hear was footsteps running in several directions at once.
A couple more shots were heard and then nothing.
Slowly, Gunner’s men joined him.
Gypsy looked over at him and shook his head. “Gone.”
“He got away boss,” Tramper added.
Gunner let out a breath as he nodded and looked around for his daughter.
Dana came out of the shadows crying.
“Are you okay?” he asked her.
Dana sniffled as she stared at Jett beyond her dad and the men. “Can we cut Jett down now?”
Gunner nodded. “Keep an eye out men. Let’s make sure that fucker doesn’t get in our way.” He went over to Gypsy help get Jett down. He reached up and cut the zip ties that held him.
Dana had tears in her eyes as she watched her dad release Jett.
As they lowered him, Jett groaned out. But they didn’t stay too long to check him out. Three men lifted him up and carried him out of the warehouse.
Dana laid her head on his shoulder, all the way out to the truck. She let go long enough to crawl into the backseat then held him on her lap after they got him in.
Jett groaned as he tried to come to, but he fell back into unconsciousness just as quickly.
Gunner drove the truck back as swiftly as he could.
The sun was just peeking over the eastern horizon when they got back to the compound.
When they pulled up, more men poured out of the clubhouse and helped carry Jett into the club. They took him to Patriot’s infirmary and he began his work.
DeeDee put her arm around Dana’s shoulder as they watched Patriot work on Jett. “Are you okay honey?” DeeDee asked.
Dana glanced at her mom and nodded. “Yeah, I’m okay.”
Gunner motioned for everyone to move to the main room.
Dana shook her head as she refused to leave the infirmary.
Once they were all in the main room, Gunner ran his hands over the back of his head and looked at his men. “Well, we know some of what
happened. We have to talk to Jett when he wakes up but we know who the man that took him is.” He looked over at DeeDee. “I think he's your uncle, the previous President of the Disciples.”
DeeDee sat down on a chair hard as her face went white. “But how is that possible? He died years ago.”
“Apparently not,” Gunner surmised. “He told us that much. He said he survived the attack on him and crawled away. That it took him a year to heal and then he started looking for Endo.”
“What does he want?” Boone asked.
Gunner looked over at his VP. “Blood for blood. He thinks I ordered Blacky killed.”
“But you didn’t,” Boone protested.
Gunner shook his head. “I don’t think that matters to him. He found nothing wrong with Blacky selling people into the sex trade.”
“What did he look like?” DeeDee asked.
Gunner shrugged. “He was an older man with long white hair and a long white beard. He had a crazy look in his eye.”
“His eye?” she questioned.
“Yeah, he wore a patch over one eye.”
Boone felt Winona trembling beside him. He turned to her with concern on his face. “Baby, what is it? Are you all right?”
“No, I don’t think I am,” she whispered. “I just remembered something. A man fitting that description was watching the shop off and on over the last six months. He would just sit on his bike out front and stare at me when I was working. It didn’t bother me at first, but after a while, it started freaking me out. He made absolutely no secret of the fact he was watching me and I didn’t know why.”
DeeDee moved over to her daughter and wrapped her arms around Winona’s shoulder. “I remember you telling me about him.” Looking over at Gunner, she told him, “He was a tall man with snow white hair. He hid his face with a white beard and he always wore dark glasses but what made him stand out was the eye patch he always wore. One time he was standing close enough to the front door that when he took off his sunglasses, I noticed the eye patch was red and decorated with a black skull. I remember it because it gave me the shivers just looking at it.” She shuddered.