Tinker's Dilemma: Devil's Henchmen MC Next Generation, Book One

by Samantha McCoy

  Keily nodded. “Yeah.”

  She watched as Tinker’s eyes flickered to Emily, then back to hers.

  “What are you doing here?” she asked. “And how did you find me?”

  She’d been so careful. She hadn’t touched her bank account since that first day when she withdrew everything, except thirteen dollars, out of it. She cut up her credit cards. And she even got documents with a different name.

  “Friends in high places…” Tinker shrugged. “Or low.”

  She watched him look back down at Emily. When he took a step toward her daughter, Keily did too. A part of her was terrified of what he might do. She wasn’t necessarily scared of Tinker. She knew he would never hurt her or Emily, but the anger in his gaze caused her to be a bit more protective.

  He noticed her movement and raised a brow. “Do you think I would hurt her?”

  “What’s going on here?” Shondra asked.

  The wounded look that passed over his face made her feel like shit. “No,” she finally said. “I don’t think that. But you still didn’t answer my question. Why are you here?”

  “To bring you home.”

  “I am home,” she told him.

  “Um, do I need to call the police?” Shondra asked.

  “No,” they both answered.

  Tinker turned to look at Shondra and extended his hand. “Tinker,” he introduced himself.

  “Shondra,” she replied, shaking his hand.

  “Keily and I are…” He looked at her for the answer.

  “Friends,” she finished for him.

  “Yeah.” Tinker’s pursed his lips. “Friends.”

  “I mean… we fucked once.” Keily shrugged. “Then he turned into a closed-mouth prick. So, I left because nobody needs that type of negativity in their life.”

  Shondra giggled.

  Tinker didn’t look amused. “Are you done?”

  “Probably not,” Shondra replied. “This girl has a mouth on her.”

  “Trust me, I know.” Tinker winked.

  Keily face heated, but she rolled her eyes. “What do you want, Tinker?” she asked again. “And no, I’m not leaving with you. I’m not going back to Briar Prairie.”

  All humor vanished from his face, and Keily felt a moment of fear, which only increased as he said, “The club has reason to believe that Williams knows where you’re at, and he’s coming for you.”

  “Who’s Williams?” Shondra asked. “And girl, your name is Keily?”

  “How?” Keily asked, ignoring Shondra’s questions. “I’ve been extremely careful. There’s no way he could have found me unless you led him here.”

  “Negative,” Tinker replied. “He probably found you the same way Sledge did.”

  “How?” she yelled.

  “What’s going on?” Shondra asked, even louder.

  Keily felt horrible. Because of her, Shondra was probably now in danger too and the woman didn’t even know it.

  Keily was about to explain when Emily chose that moment to start fussing. She moved to pick her up, but Tinker reached the child first. She watched, holding her breath, as he lifted Emily into his arms and pressed her gently to his chest. He leaned down and whispered something in her ear, and immediately Emily stopped whining.

  “What did you say to her?” she asked.

  “The same thing I used to tell her when she was smaller,” he answered.

  “Are you Sarah’s dad?” Shondra asked, thinking she may have finally discovered something about Keily’s past.

  “Sarah?” Tinker asked.

  Shondra looked at him as if he’d lost his mind. She pointed at Emily. “The baby?...”

  “You mean Emily?” Tinker questioned. Then he turned to Keily. “You renamed her Sarah? Eww!”

  “Wait… What? That’s not her real name?” Shondra looked between them. “Okay, someone needs to tell me what in the hell is going on.”

  “It’s complicated,” Keily replied.

  “You don’t say?” she replied sarcastically. “So, you aren’t Sarah… Emily’s dad?” Shondra asked Tinker.

  “No,” he replied. “Unfortunately.”

  “What? That’s so sweet…” Shondra looked at Tinker with hearts in her eyes. “So, you wish you were?”

  Keily shook her head.

  She wasn’t going to read into Tinker’s words. She’d learned a long time ago that once she thought she had a read on him, he would flip on her, and then she would feel like an idiot. So, instead of giving the comment any thought, she turned to Shondra and decided it was time to bite the bullet. Her friend needed to know the truth.

  “Come on.” She grabbed Shondra’s hand and pulled her over to a kitchen chair. “We need to talk.”

  “Oy!” Shondra made a face. “This makes me feel like there is a breakup coming… A ‘no, it’s me, not you’ speech.”

  “Oh, hush.” Keily chuckled. “And just listen. Okay?”

  “Okay…”

  Keily spent the next half-hour explaining everything to Shondra. She told her the truth about her past. About Patrick. His ugly deeds and arrest. She told her about leaving it all behind and trying to create a better life for herself and Emily. She explained Williams, even though she didn’t understand why he was after her because she didn’t even know him. And she even told her about Tinker and the Devil’s Henchmen. By the time Keily was finished, she felt spent; and it was obvious that Shondra was shocked.

  “Holy shit!” Shondra stood and began to pace. “This is like something out of a James Bond 007 movie! And this guy is coming here? To find you?” She looked from Keily to Tinker. “He’s coming to find her. To kill her?”

  Tinker nodded.

  “Then why are you still here?” Shondra demanded. “Go!”

  “I… I can’t…” Keily admitted.

  She didn’t want to say it out loud, but she was tired of running and had nowhere else to go. Plus, she wouldn’t leave her friend.

  “What do you mean you can’t?” Shondra asked. “This man is here for you! To protect you.” She turned toward Tinker. “Which is totally romantic, by the way. Just saying.” Turning back to Keily she continued, “Let him. Trust him to keep you and Emily safe.”

  Keily looked at Tinker, who was staring at her. Then she looked back at Shondra. “I can’t leave without you.”

  “Me?”

  “What if he comes here and finds you?”

  Shondra walked over to the hall closet and opened the door. A second later, she pulled out two 9mm handguns. “Then I hope he can dodge some bullets.”

  “Shondra!” Keily shouted. “Where in the hell did you get those?”

  “Please!” Shondra rolled her eyes. “You aren’t the only one in this room with secrets, baby.”

  Keily didn’t know what to say.

  “She’s right though, Shondra,” Tinker finally spoke. “When Williams gets here, you won’t be safe either.”

  “I’ll be fine,” she told him.

  “No, you won’t.” He shook his head. “This man is the FBI. He won’t be alone. And he will kill if it means saving his ass.”

  “So, what do you propose?” she asked.

  “Come with us,” Tinker replied, not missing a beat.

  Shondra was about to speak when something outside caught her eye. Keily watched her move over to the window and peek out without moving the curtain.

  “Williams a bald dude, black-rimmed glasses?” she asked.

  “Yeah,” Tinker answered.

  “Welp. He’s here.”

  “Fuck!” Tinker walked over to Keily and handed her Emily. “Stay behind me. Got it?”

  Fear clawed up her throat making it difficult to speak. So, she nodded.

  “Is there a back way out of here?” he asked, already pulling a gun from somewhere under his shirt.

  “Down the hall,” Shondra said, pointing the way.

  “Okay. Let’s go.”

  “Y’all go.” She waved. “I’ll stand ground, right here.”
/>   Frantically, Keily shook her head. Thankfully, Tinker felt the same way.

  “Not happening,” he told her. “Plus, if you’re any good with those things, I’ll probably need your help.”

  She watched as Shondra debated for a split second. Keily was about to beg her friend to come with them when a knock on the door made her clamp a hand over her mouth.

  “Shit,” Shondra whispered. “Come on.”

  Relief flooded through her.

  Together, the three of them rushed through the house and quietly out the back door. They ran into the alley that would lead them back to the street. Shondra led the way, guns hidden under her arms, as Tinker trailed behind with his single handgun tucked into his armpit.

  “Where are we going?” she asked in a whisper.

  They didn’t have anything. No car. No money. All of Emily’s stuff was back in the house.

  “Left,” Tinker barked.

  Shondra stopped to look around the corner. “Two agents standing in the front yard,” she whispered.

  Tinker poked his head around the corner to get a look. “They aren’t paying attention. Let’s move.”

  “Fucking amateurs,” Shondra muttered.

  Feeling it was clear, Tinker motioned for everyone to move. With him leading the way and Shondra protecting them from the rear, they quickly moved down the street, further away from the house. Tinker stopped next to a black cargo van and knocked three times on the side door. When it opened from the inside, Keily jumped.

  Seconds later, Joker’s face poked out and smiled at her. “Miss me, sweetheart?”

  “Don’t have time for this,” Tinker said, annoyed. “Williams is here.

  “Fuck.” All playfulness left Joker immediately. “Get in,” he said, jumping out to take guard duty as they loaded up.

  Once Shondra was in, Joker followed and closed the door. “Go!”

  Keily turned to look out the front windshield and smiled a bit at the sight of Kailyn, Tinker’s sister. “Hiya, sis!” Kailyn said, smiling back at her. “Good to see you.”

  Keily hadn’t spent any time with the other girls, except for the day she’d moved into her house, but she truly liked Kailyn, and it was nice to see a friendly face, even if they were in a deadly game of cat and mouse.

  “Hey,” Keily replied. “Good to see you, too.”

  “Is it?” she asked, a look of genuine concern.

  “It definitely will be if you’d stop yacking and just drive,” Tinker interrupted.

  “Dude, whatever!” Kailyn fired back. “I can outdrive you any day. Hence why I’m in this seat and you’re not. So be a good boy, and zip it.”

  “Are you always such a ray of sunshine?” Shondra asked Tinker.

  “Yes!” Everyone but Tinker replied.

  “Fuck y’all,” Tinker grumbled.

  “Damn… No wonder Keily took off.” She shook her head sadly. “I’d have left your ass, too.”

  “Can we just stop with the ‘Bash Tinker’ day?” he shouted. Clearly, Shondra’s comment had struck a chord. “Please!”

  “In all fairness,” Kailyn chimed in. “My brother gets too involved in the job. Honor and duty before all else. That’s Tinker’s code. And when a pretty little girl comes along and makes him want to toss that code out the window…” Kailyn shrugged as she let the sentence trail off.

  Is that what happened?

  She eyed Tinker but he wouldn’t look at her – which told her everything she needed to know… Gawd! She was an idiot.

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  Tinker

  Fucking hell!

  The worse mistake he ever made was bringing those two bungholes along with him. He knew he should have asked Ink or Sparo. Hell, even Doc would have been better than listening to Joker and Kailyn go back and forth.

  “Just shut up and drive, Kailyn,” he said between clenched teeth.

  “I am!” she replied. “Sheesh. Grumpy much?”

  Tinker groaned. He should have just insisted on coming alone.

  “Take a run by the house,” Shondra said.

  “What?” Tinker asked. “No.”

  “Yes,” she countered. “I need to see what we’re dealing with.”

  “Why?”

  “Because I asked nicely,” she replied, not nice at all.

  The van took a sharp turn to the right and Tinker said, “This is a bad idea.”

  “They won’t even notice us,” Kailyn argued.

  “I don’t like it.”

  “Well, too late now,” she said.

  With no windows on the sides of the cargo van, there was no way for Williams to see inside, but that didn’t stop the pit that formed in Tinker’s gut. But apparently, he was outnumbered, and his opinion didn’t matter. Which only pissed him off more. This was how people got killed – branching off from the plan and no real leadership. Which is why he preferred to work alone.

  As they passed by Keily’s house, he held his breath. Williams stood in the front yard, barking orders as other agents scurried around like ants. As the van passed, Tinker’s breath froze in his lungs when Williams’ head swiveled their direction and locked on his.

  “Fuck!” Tinker cursed. “Go!”

  He watched as Williams shouted and then suddenly everyone was taking off toward their SUVs.

  “What happened?” Keily asked, her eyes rounded in fear.

  “He fucking saw us!” Tinker roared. “Just like I fucking knew he would.” He said the last part while staring directly at Shondra.

  The other woman had the decency to remain quiet.

  Tinker looked in the side mirror of the van to see that Williams and the others weren’t far behind them, lights flashing.

  Fuck!

  “We have to get out of here…” he said. “Before the locals decide to join the chase.”

  “I’m trying,” Kailyn said, sharply taking the next right turn.

  In the back, Keily screamed. Tinker’s head jerked around to see her slide across the floor of the van, gripping a wiggling Emily in her arms.

  “Try fucking harder!” he told Kailyn. To Keily he said, “Fold the seat down and buckle up!”

  Suddenly, a gunshot went off and hit the rear of the van.

  “Shit!” Kailyn shouted, taking another sharp turn, barely avoiding an on-coming truck.

  “I swear to God, Kailyn,” Tinker yelled. “If you get us killed…”

  “I won’t!” she yelled back. “Just shut up and let me concentrate.”

  The last-minute turning maneuver had slowed Williams down, but not for long. Tinker knew he would be on them again soon. If they didn’t find a place to hide, the entire city would converge on them.

  “We have to get out of the city,” Joker yelled.

  “Thank you, Mr. Obvious!” Kailyn said sarcastically. “Let me get right on that.” She yanked the wheel and gassed it around another turn.

  Another bullet tinged off the back of the van.

  Tinker looked in the mirror to see they were still on them, this time even closer. “Faster, Kailyn!” he encouraged. “He is about to eat the ass end of the van.”

  “Where can I go…” Kailyn said, talking more to herself than anyone else. Tinker watched as her eyes moved from side to side, looking for a way out.

  “Turn left here,” Shondra called.

  Kailyn didn’t think twice and jerked the wheel. Tinker slapped a hand against the roof to keep himself in place.

  He turned to see that Keily and Emily were still safe in the seat, but the fear on Keily’s face tore at him. He understood it because he was feeling it, too. Wondering if this was the end of the line for them, for all of them. If so, then he’d failed. He had promised to keep her and her daughter safe – and Tinker had failed miserably.

  No! he told himself. Not like this. Not on my goddamn watch.

  He had to get them out of this. He had to figure out a way to keep them both safe, and alive.

  “Turn right,” Shondra shouted.

  And
the van jerked.

  “An alley?” Tinker asked. “Are you kidding me?” What the fuck…

  “Just wait and see,” Shondra replied.

  “This is how every bad car chase ends,” Joker chimed in.

  “Shut up!” Kailyn and Shondra told him, in unison.

  “Up ahead.” Shondra pointed. “The dumpster. Turn beside it.”

  “We can’t hide a van behind a dumpster,” Joker stated, pointing out the obvious.

  “Just turn,” Shondra repeated, ignoring him.

  In the back, Emily's cries grew louder. Cause she’s over the bullshit, too, Tinker thought to himself. He wanted to hold her, soothe her, but now wasn’t the time. It was too dangerous.

  Kailyn jerked the wheel and turned down a one-way alley that looked as if it led into the side of a brick building. But then Shondra pointed toward a garage door, and said, “Turn in there.”

  “What is it?” Tinker asked.

  “A friend owns it.”

  That didn’t answer his question, but it was too late for him to say anything because Kailyn was blindly following Shondra’s instructions.

  They tore into the garage and people began to scatter, leaping out of their way, screaming.

  “What the fuck!” Tinker yelled.

  “Oh, shit!” Joker cringed.

  “Oh, my hell!” Kailyn freaked out.

  “Just keep going!” Shondra shouted. “Out the other door.”

  Kailyn cut the wheel as the van burst out of the garage and back onto the street. Tinker’s heart was pounding against his breast bone. He turned back to glare at Shondra. “Have you lost your fucking mind?” he yelled at her. “You could have gotten someone killed!”

  “We got away, though.” She shrugged. “Didn’t we?”

  Tinker shook his head. He needed to get Keily and Emily away from that woman. He didn’t know who Shondra was, but she would get them killed.

  “Stop the van.” He had a half-ass plan but knew Keily wouldn’t like it.

  “What?” Kailyn asked.

  “Stop the fucking van!” Tinker shouted. “We need to split up.”

  “What?” Joker asked. “Not happening.”

  Tinker turned to look at him. “They’re looking for this van,” he explained. “Williams saw me. And he knows if I’m here, so is Keily. If we split up, a smaller group is harder to see. Kailyn and you need to get home, now.”