As soon as we got back the boys took off on their bikes. Before they left Bruce and I had a few quiet moments.
“Please don’t make me a widow,” I said cursing myself as it left my mouth.
“I’m too ornery to die, don’t you know that by now,” Bruce said as he took me in his arms. We hadn’t held each other like this for years. Why did I wait until something major happened that could possibly take him away from me? For now I was happy he wasn’t spurning my affection.
“We’ve been through this before,” Bruce said as he pulled away from me but still holding onto my arms.
“I know, but we were younger then,” I answered. He bent over and kissed my forehead. Nope, that wasn’t going to do it. I reached up and pulled his head down and gave him a soft kiss on the lips. He didn’t resist.
I walked him to the parking lot where the rest of the women gathered to say goodbye to their men. As he rode off Bruce blew me a kiss, something he always use to do when we were younger. You better come back to me you big bear I thought.
After they rode out of sight, we walked back into the clubhouse. After a few hours some of the women wanted to go over and clean the hardware store. I didn’t know if it was a good idea, but figured some of us needed a break from the kids. Three of the old ladies, plus me, Nat and Merci headed over. I wasn’t about to let Nat do anything, but she wanted to help so I gave her a broom. I knew there would be blood so I got the mop and bucket out of the storage area and told Nat to stay in the back until I got it cleaned up.
“I’m not staying in the back Lila. I might be pregnant, but I can handle it,” she remarked. Nat was sweet but she had sass as well.
“Okay dear, but just so you know, it won’t be pretty.”
The other ladies worked up front sweeping up the glass shards while Nat and Merci hung close to me.
“They think its Callie don’t they?” Nat asked. Merci wiped sprayed blood from the back wall with a large sponge.
“Yes they do, but I’m not so sure,” I said as I pushed the mop through the dried blood on the floor.
“Why is that Lila?” Merci asked.
“This just doesn’t feel like something Callie would set up,” I answered.
“I agree,” Nat replied. “Callie has her own set of tricks and this just doesn’t jive with her. Plus we haven’t had any trouble with her since Eli spoke to her two months ago.”
“But Cig said she was seeing somebody in that Hellions club. That she had them do it,” Merci said as she rinsed her sponge in the bucket of water.
“I can’t see a club getting involved in an old lady’s vendetta. Even these Hellions. I know they go off half cocked sometimes; at least that’s their reputation. But this is crazy shit.”
At that moment all of our phones chirped. It was our men checking in.
“What’s going on?” I asked immediately. I heard the other girls asking the exact same question.
“It’s done. We’re heading back,” Bruce answered.
“What does that mean?” I asked.
“We’re pretty sure they had nothing to do with it. In fact they seemed genuinely concerned that they might be the next target. So we’re back to square one. I’ll tell you more when I get there.”
We said our goodbyes and I continued with the cleanup. After the girls got off their phones they walked over to me.
“I’m glad that’s over with,” Nat said as she picked up the broom. “I would like to get through the rest of this pregnancy without any more of these meetings amongst clubs.”
“Yeah but we still don’t know who did this,” Merci replied.
“Do you think it’s possible the boys are too close to this? That they aren’t thinking clearly,” I said. “I mean we’re all affected by Frito’s death, but the guys more than us. You girls weren’t around when this club dealt in guns, but there were a lot of deaths and most came from rival clubs. But we’re not dealing in anything heavy anymore, nothing to warrant this type of retaliation.”
“So what do you think is going on?” Nat asked.
“Listen, back in the day when the SOD was running guns, this sort of thing happened all the time. Either there’d be a shoot out, running guys off the road, shooting up houses.”
“Good Lord, how did you stay sane?” Merci asked shaking her head.
“It was difficult, especially with a young child. But I knew the life I was getting into and as hard as it may be to imagine, you kind of get used to it.”
“I don’t think I could ever get use to that,” Merci replied.
“Here’s the thing--this whole shoot up of the store took me back to the way it use to be. When Bruce said something about Callie being behind it….well it just didn’t ring true. Sure it seemed like something another club might do, but Callie getting a club member worked up enough to do this. I’m not buying it. Someone wants it to look like club retaliation.”
“But why?” Asked Nat as she rubbed her hand over her blossoming tummy.
“To deflect attention,” I answered. There, I said it. It was out there now.
“From whom?” Merci asked slowly.
I looked at the floor and then straight at the girls.
“This has to remain right here with the three of us. Do I have your word?” I asked.
“Yes,” they both answered.
“I think it’s a member of the club.”
“What!” Merci gasped. “You can’t be serious.”
“Oh, I’m serious,” I said. “And if we want to protect our men, we’ll have to work together.”
*****
When the boys got back, Bruce explained that Callie wasn’t even in the picture and never was. While she tried to hook up with several of the Hellions club members, they gave her the brush off as well. Bruce also explained that the Hellions weren’t as bad as their reputation would have people believe, but they liked the status and weren’t about to change it. However, they had no beef with the SOD and would rather keep in good standing than to have the club as enemies for no reason. Made sense to me. The Hellions said they would keep their ears open and let Elijah know of any new info they run across. So what the hell was going on?
I had my suspicions, but I wasn’t ready to fill Bruce in yet. There was no way he’d even consider the thought of one of the members turning. That was blasphemy. I didn’t want to either, but I wasn’t going to turn a blind eye.
The next day I met with Nat and Merci while the boys worked on the hardware store and Elijah met with the insurance people. I wanted to meet away from the clubhouse so we met at the cupcake and coffee shop down the street. It was Nat’s choice and she was craving a red velvet cupcake with cream cheese frosting. Merci and I drank our coffee as we watched Nat devour the cupcake.
“You two don’t know what you’re missing,” Nat said as she took a bite.
“Don’t worry. I’m ordering half a dozen to take home before we leave,” I said. Can’t bypass a good cupcake.
“Well I guess everyone was filled in last night on the meet with the Hellions,” Merci stated. “Sounds like that’s a dead end.”
“It doesn’t surprise me,” I said taking a sip of my coffee.
“Do you still think it’s somebody in the club?” Nat asked as she patted a napkin against her lips.
“Honey, I don’t know. I don’t want to think it was someone in the club, but it’s just a feeling I get.” I knew those feelings all too well, like the one I had when Gabe died. This was different however. The cold emotion that ran through my veins when Gabriel died was like a light extinguishing from within me. In this case a flame was growing. My instincts pointed to an inside job, but how would we figure it out?
“Girls, I want you to keep your ears open okay? Don’t ask any strange questions, we don’t want to get anyone suspicious, but if you hear anything that seems out of the ordinary, we need to share it with one another.”
“What would you consider strange?” Merci asked as she added more cream to her coffee.
We adjourned our little meeting and headed back to the clubhouse. Our first surprise awaited us there. Callie in all her glory sat at the bar. Normally she wouldn’t be let in, but the boys were at the hardware store with no one watching the clubhouse.
“Callie, what the hell are you doing here?” I asked putting myself between her and Nat.
“I’m not here to cause trouble,” Callie said turning around on her bar stool. “Although I’ve heard the SOD is trying to cause me some.”
“Honey, you’ve got a reputation so don’t be all hostile when it comes back to bite you in the ass.” I wasn’t in the mood for her shenanigans today.
“I’m here to pay my respects. I heard about Frito,” Callie said as she looked at the floor. Was that tears in her eyes? Surely an icy bitch like her didn’t know how to cry. But I was wrong as she wiped a tear racing down her cheek.
“The funeral is tomorrow,” Merci said. “After the police are finished with the autopsy.”
“Who could do this to Frito?” Callie cried. “He was so sweet.”
I’d never seen Callie like this in my life. Good Lord, maybe there was a beating heart in there instead of one made of stone. Nat walked over to a table and sat down.
“Callie, we’re not sure if Frito’s murder was intentional or not. He may have been in the wrong place at the wrong time. Normally no one is at the hardware store after hours. And no one knew he’d be doing inventory so late. Hell, it could have been kids who stole some guns and wanted to see what its like to shoot up a business,” I said, not really believing that.
“I don’t think that’s what happened,” Callie said blowing her nose with a tissue.
“Do you know something we don’t?” I asked as Merci and I joined Nat at the table.
“Maybe,” Callie said. I admit I was intrigued. I didn’t trust Callie as far as I could throw her lame ass, but if she had a bit of info I was all ears.
“Come here and sit with us Callie,” I said. “But before you do, apologize to Nat for all the atrocious things you’ve said and done.” Callie knew I meant business and I would toss her out on her rear if she didn’t make nice with Nat.
“I’m sorry,” Callie said as she looked at the floor like some 5 year old.
“You’re sorry for what?” Hell I felt like I was talking to a 5 year old.
“I’m sorry for all the shit I did to you and Eli,” Callie replied. It was good as it was going to get.
“I accept your apology,” Nat answered. And she did because that was Nat.
“Okay, come sit,” I said. Callie lumbered off the bar stool and sat between me and Merci.
“So what do you know that we don’t,” I asked not expecting to hear anything new. But boy howdy, was I wrong.
“Frito and I had become close friends before I was banished from the club,” Callie explained. “We’d still meet up sometimes on the sly. He didn’t want the club to know since he knew how Eli felt about me.”
“Go on,” I said, wondering why Frito would go against club rules. Maybe he saw a side to Callie that we didn’t. Of course it was difficult when she kept pulling crap.
“Two weeks ago I met with Frito. He wasn’t himself, really down. That’s not him, or at least it hasn’t been since well after…well after Gabe died.”
I knew what she meant. Frito went through a bad time after Gabe died. They’d been friends and he took it hard when the accident occurred. But he pulled himself out of it and became the old Frito we all loved after about a year.
I shifted in my chair and asked, “Did you find out what was wrong?”
“No, but whatever was hounding him also had him scared,” Callie answered as she twirled a lock of her hair nervously.
“What do you mean he was scared? I didn’t notice anything,” Merci said.
“He didn’t act like that around you all,” Callie answered. “He put on his happy Frito face and played along.”
I could tell Merci was having a difficult time believing her.
“It doesn’t make sense Callie,” I said. “He could always come to the club if there was any trouble. The club would protect him.” My intuition kicked into high gear. Hadn’t this been what I was saying all along, that it was an inside job. My gut grinded.
“Not if he was scared by someone in the club,” Callie answered.
There it was. Someone besides me had finally said it out loud. Merci and Nat looked at me.
“Do you have any clue who it was or what it was about?” I asked, getting more uncomfortable by the minute. Sure I’d had my suspicions, but now that they may have more merit combined with Callie’s information, I was increasingly ill at ease.
“He said he found out something he wished he hadn’t. Now that he had this information he wasn’t sure what to do with it. He said it was info the club should know, but if he spilled, he’d betray a friend,” Callie explained.
“Club always comes first before outsiders,” I said, the flesh on my skin prickling.
“Yeah, I know,” Callie agreed. “So if it was someone in the club….”
At that moment Elijah, Bruce and a few other club members walked into the clubhouse looking for some cold beers. As soon as Elijah spotted Callie he stopped in his tracks.
“What the fuck are you doing here?” He yelled as he approached the table.
“Calm down Elijah,” I said. “If your wife can sit at a table with Callie then you can handle it as well.”
“What is going on?” Elijah asked clearly puzzled.
Bruce walked up behind him while the other members walked off in search of liquid refreshment.
“Just having a little girl talk,” I said.
“Yes it’s fine Eli,” Nat agreed. “We’re getting along quite well and besides, Callie apologized.”
Elijah scowled at Callie not believing she’d changed her stripes. “I still don’t trust you.”
“That’s fine,” Callie said. “The feeling is mutual.”
“Listen, we’ve had a nice conversation until you guys came in. We’re being civil so you can be too,” I said looking directly at Elijah. “Callie wants to come to the funeral services for Frito.”
Callie looked at me. She hadn’t asked, but if she and Frito had been such good friends I know she’d like to be there.
“Is that alright with you Nat?”
“Sure, of course.” Nat answered.
I looked at Elijah. “Any problems.”
“Not if Nat doesn’t have any,” he said.
“Okay, it’s settled.”
Bruce gave me one of those “do you know what you’re doing looks” as he and Elijah walked off. I’m not sure I did, but having Callie at the funeral might bring out some unusual behavior. I told Callie the time for the services and that we would have a dinner at the clubhouse after. I wanted her there for both. She said she would come. After she left I talked to the girls.
“Now, I know it isn’t an appropriate time to play private eye at a funeral for a friend, but if we want to know who did this to Frito, it may be our best chance.”
“I agree,” Merci said. “But what exactly do we look for?
“I want you to look for any odd behavior around Callie,” I said as I put on my coat to leave.
“That may be hard,” Nat said rising from her chair. “You just saw Eli’s reaction. That pretty much sums up how everyone may react to seeing her there.”
“At first it will,” I said as I stood by the door. “But by the time we get back to the clubhouse for the dinner everyone should be use to her being around. Except for whoever may think she knows something. That person may seem uncomfortable the entire time.”
“How would anyone guess she knows something?” Merci asked.
“I’m playing it by ear girls. Let’s just say I have a feeling,” I said walking out the door.
&nbs
p;
Desolation: Betrayed: Motorcycle Romance (Sons of Desolation Motorcycle Club Mystery Series Book 2) Page 2