“Good plan, but…ah…” Boone cocked his head. “Excuse me, but who are you and what have you done with the cutthroat Rhett we know, who would never let Bernie walk?”
“Don’t blame me, blame your sister’s influence.” Rhett spun on his heel and headed for the door.
“Where are you going?” Asher called.
Rhett swung the door open. “To learn all I can about these fuckers before I hunt them down.”
Chapter 14
The next morning, while sitting in her father’s old Ford truck as he drove, Kinsley took her phone out of her purse and texted Rhett: I’ve got a midwife appointment this morning. Sorry, I forgot to tell you before you left. Don’t worry about coming to this one, but if you want to next time, it’s at 197 Cherry Hill Lane. She hit Send and shoved her phone back into the purse on her lap. The plan this morning had been to meet up with her staff and go over closing the bar until all this got resolved, only she’d suddenly remembered about the appointment. The fact that she’d forgotten only told her that maybe she wasn’t dealing with all of this well; maybe she was feeling a bit more lost than what she’d thought.
“Ready?” Dad asked after he’d parked the truck at the curb.
“Ready.” She noted the tight lines around Dad’s eyes. “Okay, what gives? Something is definitely wrong. Out with it.”
“It’s nothing you need to worry about.”
Kinsley frowned, releasing the door handle. “Dad. What is it?”
Dad sighed and turned to face her. “The boys went to bring in Josh?”
“And?”
“He’s gone,” Dad explained.
“Gone where?”
“He drained his bank account and left,” Dad said solemnly. “First, to even think that Bernie’s family could have any hand in this, to now knowing that Josh is on the run. It’s just…”
Dad had updated her on all the gritty details about Josh’s involvement earlier this morning. “Terrible,” she offered.
Dad nodded. “Very terrible.” He blew out a long, deep breath then opened the door. “All right, kid, let’s go see about some good news.”
Kinsley let go of every other thought too. She couldn’t control this situation, and she had enough on her plate; she didn’t need to add worrying about Bernie and his family to it. When this was all over, she’d go and talk to the poor man. He had to feel terrible, and she truly liked him. Josh, on the other hand. Well, she hoped the guys got those cold cuffs on him sooner rather than later.
She hurried out to greet the blisteringly cold day with dark, gloomy skies hovering overhead. She didn’t remember Rhett leaving last night after she’d obviously fallen asleep, but neither he nor Boone was at the lake house when she’d woken up. It wasn’t until just before Kinsley was in the shower that she remembered her midwife appointment this morning.
Dad followed her up the steps of the old two-story stone house that had been converted into an office space a few years back. The town had marked the house as a historic site, and the property was dripping with old charm. She yanked the door handle hard, then shut it quickly after she and her dad hurried through. God, it wasn’t even December yet and the winter was already cruel. She didn’t want to think about how January would be.
She unzipped her boots, leaving them at the front door, and hung up her coat, as did her father. She led the way into the waiting room on the left, likely once a living room when the Phillips family, the original owners, built the house. The seats in the waiting room were all empty as Dad took the one next to the lit gas fireplace.
“Hi, Sally, how’s things?” Kinsley asked, approaching the receptionist. Sally had gone to Whitby Falls High School like Kinsley, but she was two years ahead of her. Every Stoney Creek teenager was shipped off to Whitby Falls. The town simply didn’t have enough teenagers for its own high school.
“Same old, same old.” Sally smiled, sitting behind her desk, twirling her blond hair around her finger. “Samantha’s pregnant again.”
Samantha had been in Kinsley’s grade. “What’s this, her third child now?”
Sally nodded. “She’ll have her hands full for sure.”
Kinsley was still coming to terms with having just one child. She didn’t know how any woman handled three. “Is Sam still loving it out there in Texas?”
Sally’s mouth twitched. “I sent her a picture of the weather today and she told me she’s never coming back.”
Kinsley laughed. “I can’t blame her there one bit.”
“Me neither,” Sally said, gesturing back to the waiting room. “Go on and take a seat. Maria will be right out.”
“Thanks.” Kinsley grabbed a mint from the tin on the counter and unwrapped it, tossing it into her mouth and stuffing the plastic wrapper into her purse.
Before she could even sit down, her attractive middle-aged midwife, Maria, stepped into the room, reading through a file folder in her hands. “Kinsley, hi.” When Maria looked up from the file, her warm dark brown eyes weren’t on Kinsley; they were fixated on her father, who suddenly rose and offered his hand.
“Hank Knight,” her father said with his low gravelly voice. “You must be new to town.”
Maria blushed and shook his hand, then tucked her shoulder-length brown hair behind her ear. “Yes, I’ve only lived here now about a month or so. It’s nice to meet you, Hank.”
Her father smiled at Maria. All bright. Cheery, even. “I hope the town’s been kind to you,” he said.
“Very kind,” Maria said softly. “Thank you.”
Kinsley glanced between them repeatedly. She’d only known her dad to date twice after her mom had left. One was a teacher from Kinsley’s elementary school, and another was a woman who’d once owned a coffee shop in town. Both women eventually moved away, one after her father stopped seeing her, and the other before. Maybe this would be the third time she’d see him get some happiness in his life.
Kinsley smiled at them both, but gently intervened since she did have things to do today. “I won’t be long, Dad,” she told her father, who was still making eyes at Maria. And Maria was making them right back.
The front door suddenly flew open and snow whirled through it before Rhett appeared in the doorway. He shut the door quickly, stomped his feet, and shook the snow out of his hair. “Sorry, I couldn’t get here sooner,” he said, stepping out of his boots. “The roads are terrible.”
Kinsley’s heart squeezed and then turned to mush. He came…“Considering I just told you about the appointment, you got here really fast. Thanks for coming.”
Sally’s eyebrows rose as Rhett approached, obvious surprise washing over her face that Rhett had shown up to the appointment. And there was something in that surprise that bothered Kinsley. Like, really bothered her. She wished everyone saw Rhett the way she saw him. The good there.
Her stomach filled with butterflies when Rhett stopped beside her to kiss her cheek before addressing Maria. “I’m the father,” Rhett told her, offering his hand.
Maria blinked then finally looked away from Dad. “I’m the midwife,” she said with a laugh before shaking Rhett’s hand. “Come on, let’s take a look and see how things are going.”
As Maria strode away, with Rhett right behind her, Kinsley leaned into her father and said quietly, “Might want to wipe your mouth, old man. You’re drooling.”
Dad snorted and gestured her forward with a flick of his chin. “Better not keep her waiting, kid.”
Kinsley laughed, noticing him wiping his mouth as he returned to his seat.
She quickly headed for the door. When she reached Rhett, he said, “Dare I ask?”
“I think Dad just met a possible new romance.” She passed him and entered the hallway.
Rhett sidled up to her. “The midwife?” At Kinsley’s nod, he smiled. “Good for him.”
Kinsley returned the smile and nudged her shoulder into his. “I’ve got no doubt you want everyone to forget, but”—she grabbed his hand and stopped him to place a butte
rfly kiss on his mouth—“Happy Birthday.”
Rhett shifted on his feet. “Thank you.”
He sounded as tense as he looked, and Kinsley laughed as she continued on down the hallway. Rhett had always hated his birthday. He hated any fuss being made over him. But when Kinsley woke up this morning, she knew she’d make a fuss. This year, she had the right to. Just later.
She entered the examination room, and in minutes, she was up on the table, her pants pulled down past her hips, and her top lifted to just below her bra. Maria began measuring Kinsley’s belly, making notes and asking questions.
Rhett stayed off to the side, and out of the way, until Maria asked him, “Would you like to hear the heartbeat?”
He glanced at Kinsley. She nodded. “I’ve heard it. You should too.”
“Then absolutely yes,” Rhett said. He stepped up to the table, placing his hand on Kinsley’s ankle. “Please do.”
While Maria took out the Doppler, Kinsley caught the excitement on Rhett’s face. An expression she couldn’t remember ever seeing on him. Truth was, in all her teenage dreams she’d imagined moments just like this with him, only they also involved walking down the aisle to him, and other wild dreams belonging to a young girl. A small part of her still couldn’t believe she was having his child. But the stronger part of her felt like this was exactly where they were meant to be.
“All right,” Maria said, adding some gel to Kinsley’s belly before turning the Doppler on. “Let’s take a listen.” She moved it along the gel twice and then settled it lower on Kinsley’s belly. Seconds clicked by…and then, there it was…thump…thump…thump. A steady, strong beat that made Kinsley smile.
Maria said, “Aw, baby wanted to let its daddy hear too.”
Kinsley took in what Maria said, but the world faded away to Rhett. His head tilted toward the monitor, and he listened carefully, his eyes on her belly. “That’s the heartbeat there?” he asked roughly.
“Yeah,” Kinsley barely managed. “That’s our baby.”
Her breath caught when he slowly reached out and placed both hands on her belly. And when he lifted his gaze to hers, she couldn’t hold back the tears at the raw happiness there. “You’re happy?” she asked.
“Yes, Kinsley,” he murmured. “I’ve never been as happy as I am right now.”
* * *
Six hours. Three hundred and sixty minutes. That’s all Rhett had to get through before he could end this day. He’d brought donuts to the station for everyone this morning, the one requirement they had at the station for a birthday. He’d endured listening to everyone wish him a Happy Birthday all day. Soon, it would be over. He’d shut his office door the moment he got inside, where most days he left it slightly opened. He’d spent the better part of the day after the midwife appointment learning all he could about the Wild Dogs, but his mind kept drifting to that soft sound. His child…Something changed in him at that sound, something he couldn’t quite put a finger on.
The ringing of his cell phone snapped him out of his thoughts. He saw it was his mom calling on the screen. “Hi, Mom,” he said after he’d raised the phone to his ear.
“Happy Birthday to you. Happy Birthday to you. Happy Birthday, my dear Rhett. Happy Birthday to you.”
“Thank you,” he said for the hundredth time today.
“How has your birthday been so far?” Mom asked, her voice a sweet comfort. “Anything exciting going on?”
That was the biggest understatement of the year. He’d been putting this off, but now, after today, he didn’t want to anymore. “Listen, is Dad there too?”
“Of course, he’s watching the game.”
Dad loved sports. If he wasn’t working, he was sitting in his recliner, with a bag of chips and a beer, watching whatever game was on. “Could you put me on speaker for a sec?”
Mom paused. “Sure. Is everything okay?”
“Everything’s great.”
“Derek, mute that,” Mom said. Some shuffling came across the phone line before she added, “Okay, you’re on speaker.”
Rhett didn’t know the right way of sharing this news to lessen the shock, so he simply laid it all out there. “Kinsley and I have been seeing each other and she’s pregnant.”
The longest pause of his life filled the phone line.
His father spoke first. “The baby is yours?”
“It is.”
“Okay, wait. Hold on,” his mother said. “Are we talking about Boone’s sister, Kinsley?”
“That’s the one,” Rhett said.
Another long pause. Rhett didn’t try to fill it. But then his mother surprised him.
“Oh, my goodness, we’re going to be grandparents!” Her squeal nearly deafened Rhett. He leaned the phone away as she screamed words Rhett couldn’t understand.
“Madeline,” his father said calmly.
“I can’t help it, Derek,” she exclaimed. “Rhett, this is so very exciting. I never thought you’d have children.”
He and she both. “It was a surprise, but a good one.” And he was beginning to realize just how good after this morning.
“Are you two serious?” his father asked.
A valid question since Rhett had never mentioned Kinsley at any of the times his mother had asked if he was dating. “More serious than I’ve been with anyone.” Which was the stone-cold truth. He’d never slept with a woman more than once, but Kinsley…yeah, this was different. “We’re…figuring how all this is going to work.”
“Sounds like a good way forward,” Dad said.
“Can I call her?” Mom asked.
That request was not unexpected. She knew Kinsley very well. They’d all grown up around each other. “Are you going to harass her, obsess over this, or in any way drive her nuts?”
“Rhett West, of course I won’t,” his mother rebuked him.
“Then I’m sure she’d love to hear from you.”
“Okay, well, let me call her then. Bye, honey. We’re so excited for you. Love you, and Happy Birthday.”
The phone line went dead. Rhett laughed and shook his head. His mother was a force, much like Kinsley. Truth was, she wanted details. Details she knew Rhett wouldn’t have. He placed his cell back on his desk and sighed. That went better than he thought it would. Rhett smiled at the joy in his mother’s voice. He didn’t know this kind of life. One he began wanting to hold on to.
A knock on his door erased his smile. Asher opened the door and said, “You can’t hide in here until your birthday is over.”
“Watch me,” Rhett countered.
Asher gave a dry laugh then dropped down into the client chair. “I hate to do this on your birthday, but I don’t have good news.”
“It’s fine.” Rhett waved him on. “Out with it.”
Asher’s expression turned grave. “The Wild Dogs are terrorizing towns up and down the East Coast.”
Rhett nodded, having found those same conclusions himself when he scoured the Internet and reached out to other police forces throughout day. “Let me guess, similar incidents are happening elsewhere?”
“Yes. The gang is taking over night clubs, strip bars, and everything in between, and the outcomes are not good.”
“Meaning?”
“Fires. Murders. Intimidation. Whenever they acquire a property, another similar property suddenly goes out of business. Either by fire, or because the owners walk away. These bikers make the Red Dragons look like a bunch of preschoolers.”
“Any arrests ever made?”
“When there are arrests, someone steps up and claims the crime, but the person who does is typically either a first-time offender or has crimes as a juvenile that get overlooked during prosecution.”
“This is not what we want.” Rhett scrubbed at his face, almost wishing they were dealing with King. At least they knew how King worked. Rhett had no idea who he was up against, and he didn’t like it, not with Kinsley involved. “Kinsley told me last night that she’s closing the bar until we get this squared a
way. That should give us time to get this solved without placing her in further danger.”
Asher inclined his head. “That’s really for the best. The game has changed now. These aren’t some punks. These bikers use lethal force to ensure their competition is taken out.”
Rhett leaned back against his chair, stretching. “Did you get any good leads on them?”
“That’s the part that’s concerning,” Asher said, rubbing the back of his neck. “They’re clever, clean, and smart. They don’t leave evidence. Police reports all point to them, but there’s just not enough evidence to ever indict them.”
“Terrific,” Rhett grumbled. “We’ve got bikers that are outsmarting cops up and down the East Coast, and we’ve got no ammo to stop them. That’s what you’re telling me?”
Asher frowned. “Right now, that’s what I’m telling you. We’ve got Bernie’s word about the bikers, but that’s not going to hold anyone. Bernie isn’t the most credible of witnesses now, considering he kept this information from us. How about on your end?”
“The rookies are still making calls to identify the perp with the tattoo,” Rhett explained. “Nothing’s come from that yet. I’m not seeing a headquarters for the Wild Dogs, though it looks like they hail from New York City. I’ve got a call with the NYPD, and I’m sure I’ll have more to go on after that.”
“When’s the call?”
“Tomorrow. The lead in the gang unit was away sick today. He’ll be back in the morning. We’ve got a call scheduled for nine.”
“Good,” Asher said.
A cop walked by the door, eating one of the donuts Rhett had brought in today. “I spent the last couple hours scouring the Internet,” he said, turning his focus back on Asher. “From what I read, the leader of the Wild Dogs is Rocco Martinez. He’s as smart as King, but far more dangerous. Any charge that comes his way never sticks. His estimated net worth is a few hundred mill, and he owns properties all along the coast.”
Ruthless Bastard Page 17