Brothers in Arms (The Kings of Mayhem MC Book 2)

by Penny Dee

  Brothers in Arms

  Kings of Mayhem MC Series Book 2

  Penny Dee

  Copyright 2019 Penny Dee

  All Rights Reserved

  This book is a work of fiction. Any references to real events, real people, and real places are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination and any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, organizations or places is entirely coincidental.

  All rights are reserved. This book is intended for the purchaser of this e-book ONLY. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping, or by any information storage retrieval system, without the express written permission of the author. All songs, song titles, and lyrics contained in this book are the property of the respective songwriters and copyright holders.

  Disclaimer: The material in this book contains graphic language and sexual content and is intended for mature audiences, ages 18 and older.

  Editing by Elaine at Allusion Graphics

  Proofreading by Stephanie Burdett

  Book design by Swish Design & Editing

  Cover design by Marisa at Cover Me Darling

  Cover Image Copyright 2019

  All Rights Reserved

  Someone is going to pay.

  But who?

  CADE

  They took someone from me.

  And I’m going to make them pay.

  In blood.

  But before I can do that, I have to make sure my girl is safe.

  And I will do whatever I have to, even break my own heart, to make sure she survives.

  Because she is my queen.

  My everything.

  INDY

  He’s changed.

  His grief is overwhelming and I can feel the gap widening between us.

  Someone is coming after the Kings of Mayhem MC.

  And we are trapped as they play out their evil scheme.

  Because under the cover of darkness, they are coming for each of us, one by one, to play out their own twisted vendetta.

  And no one is safe.

  This book contains profanity, explicit sex, and violence. It also contains two people destined for one another and how they keep it together when everything else around them is falling apart.

  To Bam Bam.

  The Calley Family

  Hutch Calley (deceased) married Sybil Stone

  Griffin Calley

  Garrett Calley (deceased)

  Griffin Calley married Peggy Russell

  Isaac Calley

  Abby Calley

  Garrett Calley married Veronica Western

  Chance Calley

  Cade Calley

  Caleb Calley

  Chastity Calley

  The Parrish Family

  Jude Parrish married Connie Walker

  Jackson Parrish

  Samuel Parrish (deceased)

  Jackie Parrish married Lady Winter

  Bolt Parrish

  Indigo Parrish

  The Western Family

  Michael ‘Bull’ Western

  Veronica ‘Ronnie’ Western

  Kings of Mayhem MC

  Bull (President)

  Jackie (VP)

  Cade

  Caleb

  Isaac

  Grunt (SIA)

  Davey

  Tex

  Vader

  Joker

  Cool Hand

  Elias

  Griffin

  Jacob

  Matlock

  Maverick

  Tully

  Irish

  Nitro

  Hawke

  Freebird

  Ari

  Picasso

  Caveman

  Chance (on tour)

  Reuben (honorary member)

  Employees of the Kings

  Red (Chef, clubhouse housekeeper)

  Mrs Stephens (Bookkeeper, administration)

  Blurb

  Dedication

  Path of Family

  Original Chapter

  Table of Contents

  Prologue

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Chapter Thirty

  Chapter Thirty-One

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  Chapter Thirty-Three

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  Chapter Thirty-Five

  Chapter Thirty-Six

  Chapter Thirty-Seven

  Chapter Thirty-Eight

  Chapter Thirty-Nine

  Chapter Forty

  Chapter Forty-One

  Chapter Forty-Two

  Chapter Forty-Three

  Chapter Forty-Four

  Chapter Forty-Five

  Chapter Forty-Six

  Chapter Forty-Seven

  Chapter Forty-Eight

  Epilogue

  Connect With Me Online

  About the Author

  CADE

  Kneeling in your loved one’s blood and having them die in your arms changes you.

  I know it changed me.

  When Isaac died, my heart hardened.

  My anger was palpable.

  As I watched them remove his lifeless body from the pool of his blood, I vowed revenge. Fury thundered through my veins. Life changed in a heartbeat, and every part of my being could feel it. Rage tore through me, spiraling into every nerve and fiber, every muscle, every tendon, every shard of my shattered heart. Pain ripped at my guts and opened me up. But it was nothing, nothing, like my need for retribution.

  Bull and Caleb showed up. God knows who called them.

  Despite Indy’s protests, I sent her home in the safety of a police cruiser while I followed Buckman and the ambulance to the county morgue. I didn’t know why, but I needed answers, and for some reason, I felt they were with Isaac’s body.

  Isaac’s body.

  My chest caved in under the weight of my grief.

  “You can’t be here,” Buckman said as I bounded the steps of the county morgue.

  “Try stopping me.”

  He pressed a hand into my chest to stop me from going inside. His old brown eyes sought out mine. “Don’t make me arrest you, son.”

  I expelled a deep breath of air. “Isaac is in there…”

  “I know.” Buckman stepped in front of the doorway. “And you need to let us do our job, Cade. Let Zachariah take care of him.”

  Zachariah Sumstad was the county medical examiner.

  I sucked in a deep breath and looked away. My grief was dizzying. My head spun. I wanted to rip someone’s head off to somehow release the growing agony inside of me. I wanted to find out who did this to Isaac and choke the hell out of them and watch the life drain from their eyes. />
  I inhaled deeply, the muscles in my jaw clenching. “You find out who did this. And you let me know.” My voice was low, dangerous, and dripping with a barely controlled rage.

  Buckman nodded. “As is protocol.”

  I leaned in. “No. I want this guy.”

  “I can’t do that, Cade.”

  “Then I’ll just make sure it happens. You won’t be able to protect him.”

  Buckman put a hand on my shoulder. “One step at a time, son.”

  I turned and stormed down the steps to my bike. Then, gunning the engine, roared off into the morning.

  I was going to find out who killed Isaac.

  CADE

  You can see the moment when someone realizes their life is never going to be the same. It’s almost as if you can see the cogs working behind their eyes as they try to make sense of what they’ve just heard. What does this mean for me? How will life be from this moment on? When I pulled up to Cherry and Isaac’s little house just out of town, Buckman was already knocking on her door.

  I roared up the driveway and came to a quick halt.

  Cherry answered the door and took one look at Buckman, with his hat against his chest, as he said the words that would change her life forever.

  Isaac was dead.

  I ran across the lawn toward her. I saw her frown. Saw her shake her head as if to say, no, you’re wrong. Saw her knees go weak and the dazed look on her face as she fell against the door.

  I climbed the porch steps two at a time, brushed past Buckman and wrapped my arms around her.

  “It’s not true,” she said desperately. “Tell him, Cade. Tell him he’s wrong.”

  I held her tightly against my chest. “I’m so sorry, Cherry.”

  She pushed me away. “Not you, too. Why are you both saying this? He’s alive.”

  She fled to the kitchen and picked up her cell phone from the countertop, her fingers shaking as she dialed Isaac’s number.

  “He was picking up pie for me,” she said desperately, ending the call when nobody answered, then quickly redialing. Somewhere in the blurry depths of my mind I could see Isaac’s phone ringing unanswered in the county morgue, covered in his blood. “He’s coming home to fix the water pump. I’m making him chili for dinner.” Her whole body trembled and tears flowed down her cheeks as her thoughts frantically bounced all over the place. Her body already knew he was gone but there was still a tiny shred in her mind that refused to believe it. “He likes the way I make his chili. I use the peppers from the garden.”

  I crossed the room and gently took the phone from her, then pulled her into my arms again. There was no need for words. Her mind let go of the last scrap of hope and the terrible acceptance sank in. She weakened against me and slowly collapsed to the floor.

  “Her sister Ashlee lives three doors down,” I said to Buckman. “You better go get her.”

  When Buckman left, I guided Cherry to her feet and led her over to the couch.

  “What happened?” She sobbed, reaching up to play with the crown pendant around her neck. Her hands were shaking.

  “He was shot.”

  “Shot?” She looked at me in disbelief. “By who?”

  “I don’t know.”

  She stood up. “Who would want to shoot Isaac? It doesn’t make any sense. Why would anyone want him dead?”

  “I will find out,” I said. My chest filled with pain when I thought about him lying on the road, coughing up mouthfuls of dark blood. And then that horrifying moment when the second bullet hit him between the eyes. I could still hear it echoing throughout the valley. “And when I do, I am going to make them pay.”

  “Mommy?” Came the little voice behind us. We both looked around to see Braxton standing in the doorway, rubbing his eyes and looking confused. He was in his Spiderman pajamas and looked so little. So vulnerable. A silent growl rolled through me. Braxton would grow up without his father. He would never get to share the bond of father and son, or share the milestones of his life. He would never learn from the man who’d loved him so fiercely. Who had cried when he was born and had proudly inked himself with his son’s name within hours of his birth. Isaac was always a tough guy. Big and brawn. But when it came to his son, he was as soft as butter.

  “Oh, baby,” Cherry went to him and scooped him up. She held him close to her, unable to hold her tears back.

  “What’s wrong, Mommy? Why are you crying?”

  My throat closed with a cold ache as rage and heartache fused in every cell of my body. Cherry sat down with her son on her lap and I watched her struggle with her words. My fingers itched with anger at my sides and I had to curl them into a fist to stop. I would find who did this and I was going to make them bleed until their heart stopped beating.

  “It’s Daddy. . .” Cherry stammered. Tears spilled down her cheeks and her chin quivered.

  Braxton started to cry. “What’s wrong with Daddy? Why are you crying?”

  Cherry summoned her inner strength. “Do you remember when Fetch got sick and we had to take him to the doggy doctor?”

  Braxton nodded and his big blue eyes brimmed with more tears.

  “And remember how we couldn’t bring him home because God needed him back in heaven?”

  Again, Braxton nodded, but this time his lip curled and his chin quivered.

  “Well, baby, God needed Daddy back. And this morning—” Her pain cut her off, and she inhaled deeply to calm herself, and then slowly exhaled. She knew the next few words out of her mouth would be something her son would always remember. She knew her husband’s death was going to leave a lasting scar on her little boy’s heart, and I could see her wrestle with finding the right words. “This morning, God came and took Daddy back because He needed him up in heaven.”

  Braxton’s eyes widened. “You mean Daddy’s gone?”

  Cherry struggled to keep her composure as she nodded. And I watched in silent agony as little Braxton’s face crumpled and his tears fell down his chubby cheeks.

  “But I don’t want Daddy to go to heaven,” he cried. “I don’t want Daddy to be gone. I want him here with me.”

  “I know, Mommy doesn’t want him to be gone either, but, baby, we don’t get a choice.”

  Braxton’s grief turned to sudden anger. He frowned and thrust his hands down. “No! I don’t want him to go.” He wriggled off Cherry’s lap and threw himself onto the ground and pounded his fist into the carpet. “I don’t want him to go. I don’t want him to go.”

  I knelt down so I was eye level with him. But it was a struggle to get my first words out. “Hey, little man, I know you don’t like this. None of us do. But, buddy, you need to be strong for your mom, okay? You’re the man of the house now. Mommy is going to need your help. Especially when your little brother or sister comes along.”

  The mention of his sibling eased some of the anger from his sad face. His tear-drenched eyes lit up for a moment.

  “I will help her. I will.” He straightened. “I’m the big brother.”

  I smiled, but it was hard as fuck to get my face muscles to work.

  “That’s my boy.” I ruffled his hair and fist bumped him. “You gotta stay strong for your mama.”

  He stood up onto his little feet and went to his mom, climbing up and throwing his arms around her neck.

  Cherry held him to her as another sob wracked her body. “It’s going to be okay, baby.”

  “I will help you, Mommy. I will. I promise.”

  The front door opened and Ashlee ran in. Still dressed in her pajamas and robe, she went straight to her sister and nephew, and threw her arms around them, holding them tight as she sobbed.

  Buckman hung back in the doorway.

  “Cherry’s family is on their way down from Tennessee,” he said. He played with his hat in his hands. “Son, I’m going to need you to come down to the station to give a statement.”

  I nodded. “I’ll meet you down there.”

  After he left, I sat with Cherry and Ashlee, but I
needed to get out of there. The grief was closing in on me and I felt a restlessness to do something. When I was sure Cherry was calm, I said goodbye, and feeling hollow, walked into the early morning sunlight and climbed on my bike.

  Isaac was dead.

  But it wasn’t because God needed him back.

  He was dead because someone had murdered him.

  And I was going to find out who it was and send them to their grave.

  INDY

  I had the police deputy drop me at my mom’s. She was waiting on the little porch out front, and as soon as I climbed the steps, we threw our arms around one another. As we parted, she put her hands on either side of my face. “Are you okay?”

  I nodded but my chin trembled and my eyes welled with tears.

  “It happened so fast . . .” My words trailed off, caught in my tight throat.

  “And Cade? Is he okay?” I remembered the look of agony on Cade’s face as they loaded Isaac’s body into the ambulance. I shook my head. “He’s devastated.”

  “Bull rang Ronnie and told her what happened.”

  A lot of phones would ring this morning with the news. By now, the entire club and their families would know.

  “Abby . . .” I whispered, suddenly aware she would have heard. Alarmed, I looked at my mom. “I have to go to her.”

  “I can drive you,” she said.

  I raced, frantically listing the things in my head that I needed in order to get out the door. Keys. Handbag. Phone.

  Dammit, where was my phone?

  “Indy,” my mom said calmly.

  But I ignored her. I had to find my phone. I checked in the kitchen, the dining room, the—

  “Indy!” My mom’s voice stopped me. I looked across at her, frantic because I couldn’t find my phone and I had to get to Abby’s quickly.

  “What?”

  She gestured to my clothes. “Don’t you think you should change your clothes first?”

  I looked down at my shirt. It was covered in blood spatter.

  Isaac’s blood.

  I stared at it, my hands shaking as I pulled at the stained fabric and held it out in front of me. That’s when I noticed the dried blood on my hands and up my arms.