by Amy Cecil
“How did he know you were Ace’s son?” I asked.
“I don’t know. He said he just knew. I never really gave him time to explain. However, one of the last things he said to me before he died was that I stole his life. That thought obviously fueled how he felt and what he did.”
“Oh God, that’s so sad.” I stopped talking and took in everything Caden had just told me. It was so hard to believe that Brianne and me getting taken and Caden killing his own brother all resulted because a man was jealous. Because a man wanted a different life than the life that he had been dealt. It made me think about all the horrible things that happen to people every day for the same reason. It was just so sad that people could be driven to such drastic extremes by jealousy.
“Caden? Are you ok with all of this?” I was worried for him. It was a lot of baggage for him to deal with, not to mention that he would have to face the fact that he murdered his own brother. Can a man survive that kind of guilt? I asked myself. Only time would tell.
He squeezed me tighter to him and said, “Babe, I’m not the kind of guy to get consumed by guilt. I’ve told you before that I’ve killed many. I’m not proud of it, but if I were in those situations again they would all result in the same outcome. I did what I had to do.”
Chapter 24
Caden
Finally, everything is going my way. Today we meet with the Satans and finalize the details of the tradeoff. Today, if all goes as planned, Brianne will be safe. Today, I will make my formal proposal to the most amazing woman I know. Today, she will say yes.
After I left the house I headed straight to Kandi’s to meet up with Hawk and Rebel. The meeting with the Satans was at 10 am and I wanted to go over a few things with the boys before we met up with the Satans at the Waterford Hotel.
I was in the back office at Kandi’s when Hawk and Rebel walked in. “Hey, Ice. Are we ready for this?” Hawk asked.
“I sure as hell am,” I replied. “This is a big day in Knights history. Do you boys feel it?” I asked. They both looked at me as if I’d lost my mind. I continued, “We are moving out of guns, boys! This is huge!”
“Oh yeah, that,” Rebel said. I got the impression that he wasn’t fully behind this move.
“You have a problem with this, Reb?” I asked.
“Naw, man. I’m good with it,” he replied.
“So what in the hell is your problem?” I didn’t understand his indifference and it was pissing me off. I didn’t want a fucking cheerleader. Hell, I’d never get that from Reb anyway. But shit, I wanted some enthusiasm.
“Shit, Ice. I’m sorry, man. I’m all in, I really am. I just got a lot of other shit on my mind today.”
“Well, get your head on, brother. We have a big deal going down today and I don’t want anything to go south. You got me?”
“Yes, sir.”
I then added, “And if this shit has anything to do with my sister, I don’t want to hear about it.” I’d given him my consent to date Ari, and I’d been glad to see her so happy for the last couple of days. But I was not about to become a relationship counselor for them. Their relationship was their business and I wanted no part of it.
“I hear ya,” he replied.
“We need to be in Waterford in about an hour. I wanted us to meet here a little early ‘cause there are a couple of things I want to go over before we do this.” They both nodded in agreement. “If everything that Gypsy and I agreed upon the other day goes according to plan, they will have Brianne with them. I’m not sure what kind of condition she will be in, but I want you to get her to a hospital as soon as the meet is over. If everything that we have learned is true, she is going to need to detox. Hell, we will probably have to send her to rehab, too.”
“Do you think they are still drugging her after all this time?” Hawk asked.
“I do. At this point, she is hooked. They may not be drugging her to keep her quiet anymore, but now they are drugging her to feed her addiction.” I waited and then added, “I wouldn’t be surprised if she has been sexually abused, too—especially by Skid. That guy is an animal when it comes to women.”
“That poor girl,” Hawk said, shaking his head. I nodded silently. I didn’t know Brianne personally, but I sure as hell knew that whatever shape we found her in was going to break Emma’s heart. I didn’t want Emma to see her right away, which is why I hadn’t said anything to her about the possibility of getting Brianne back today. Once she’d been in the hospital for a couple of days and was getting on the mend, I would take Emma to see her.
“Anything else?” Rebel asked.
I thought for a moment and then shook my head. “Nope, I think we are all good here. Let’s go get this shit done.”
We left Kandi’s and went straight to the hotel. We had about ten minutes to spare, so we grabbed a table and ordered a beer.
A few minutes later, Gypsy and Skid walked in with a tall, thin brunette in tow. Brianne. Fuck, what did they do to her? She had two black eyes, looked like she hadn’t eaten in weeks, and was as high as a kite. Skid seated Brianne at another table and told her to stay. She didn’t say a word, just nodded. They came over to our table and sat down.
“Is that Brianne?” I asked Gypsy. He nodded. “What the fuck did you do to her?” I asked.
“Look, Ice, you didn’t specify what condition she needed to be returned to you in, just that she needed to be alive. I told Skid to go easy on her, but obviously my VP has a different idea on what the term easy means.” He glanced over to Skid, clearly not happy with him. It was equally clear that Skid couldn’t care less that his president was pissed at him. If he were my VP, I would have beaten the shit out of him. Thank God my brothers weren’t like that.
We ironed out all the details of the tradeoff, bearing in mind all that we had agreed upon before. When we were done, Gypsy got up from the table. “Ice, it’s been a pleasure doing business with you. I guess, for now, this makes us partners with the Knights.” He turned to Skid and said, “Say your goodbyes to Brianne. You won’t be seeing her again.”
Skid replied, “Fuck that shit, she was just a temporary plaything anyway. I don’t need to say anything to her.”
What a fucking asshole. One of these days, I’m going to meet up with him in a dark alley and only one of us will walk away. I really hated that guy.
Gypsy replied, “Very well then. Let’s go.” They turned to leave and walked out of the bar. Brianne didn’t even notice their departure. She just sat at her table, staring off into space.
I walked over to her, knelt down beside her, and said, “Brianne, my name is Ice. I am a good friend of Emma’s.” She didn’t say a word. She just gave me a blank stare. This was not going to be easy. I asked, “Brianne? Do you understand what I am saying to you?” Still nothing.
I turned to Rebel and said, “Take her to the hospital. I don’t think she will give you any problems. She is so fucking out of it, I don’t think she has a clue what is happening around her.”
“You got it, boss,” Rebel replied. He walked over to her and reached for her hand. She gave it willingly and they walked out of the bar together.
“What the fuck, Ice!” Hawk said. “Do you think she can even be fixed?”
“Hell, Hawk, I have no fucking idea. But for now, not a word to Emma. I don’t want her to know that we have Brianne. I don’t want Emma to see her like this. Let’s get her to a hospital and see what a doc has to say first.” Hawk nodded in agreement.
Chapter 25
Emma
Well, like a good little girl, I’d gone to the doctor. The news was shocking—no, it was fabulous. Or was it? Caden was going to freak out. My head was spinning from the news and I could not think straight. One minute I was happy and the next, I was terrified. How in the hell was I going to explain this to him?
I was upstairs getting some laundry together when Caden got home. I could hear him talking to Honey and Ari downstairs and I wanted to go down and greet him too, but I was scared. If he saw me,
he would see it all over my face and I wouldn’t get the opportunity to tell him in private. I needed to wait. I needed to stay where I was and wait for him to come to me.
Just then, I could hear him coming up the steps. Oh, shit. How in the hell am I going to tell him? He walked into the bedroom as I turned away from him toward the closest.
“Hey, babe. What’cha doing up here?” he asked.
Not looking at him, I replied, “Just getting some laundry together. Do you need to have anything washed?” I asked.
“Everything I need washed is in the hamper, babe. I can do the laundry if you want.”
Still not making eye contact with him I replied, “I got it, but thanks.”
“Emma?”
“Yeah?” I replied, still not looking at him.
“Emma? What’s wrong, babe?”
“Nothing,” I said.
“Emma, you have not looked at me since I walked into this room. What’s going on?” he asked. I could hear the worry in his voice, but I just didn’t know how to tell him. He then added, “What did the doctor say?”
“She said I should get a dog,” I replied, finally looking up at him as the tears started to well up in my eyes. I walked over to the bed and sat down. I tried so hard to hold back the tears, but I just couldn’t. I was a raging mess of emotions and I had no control over any of them.
He looked worried … or maybe just confused. “A dog?” he asked.
Pulling myself together, I replied, “Yeah, a dog. A great big one, I think.”
He walked over to me and sat next to me on the bed. He grabbed my hand and said, “Let me make sure I’ve got this right. You went to the doctor today because you have been sick now for three days, right?”
“Yes.”
“Ok, I’m with you on that. Now, perhaps we can clarify the next part. The doctor didn’t say what was wrong with you, she just said that should get a dog, and not just any dog, a big one. Right?”
“Yeah, that about sums it up.”
He sat there for a couple of minutes just letting it all sink in and then he said, “And what is the dog supposed to do for you? Well, besides giving you a pet, I guess.”
“The dog isn’t for me. It’s for the little one.”
“The little one?” he asked.
“Yeah, the little one. I was worried about having the little one grow up in your world and she suggested that we get a dog. It seems like the perfect solution and I think we should get one right away.” I knew I was being vague, but I was just having such a hard time saying the words. Shit, I was having a hard time believing it myself.
“Emma, babe, I’m sorry. But you’ve lost me, sweetie. Do you think you could be less cryptic and fill me in on what’s going on?”
“Ok, you are right. Just answer me this. Can we get a dog?”
“Yes, baby, whatever you want. Now what is this all about?”
“I’m pregnant.” There. It was said, and it dropped to the floor like a lead weight. Cade was quiet, so quiet that he was scaring me. I looked up to make sure he was ok and there were tears in his eyes. Relief washed over me. He wanted this child. He wanted me. That was all I needed to know.
Finally he spoke. “Really? Are you really pregnant? Are you really going to have my kid?” he asked.
The tears were flowing freely now and I nodded. Caden scooped me up in his arms and swung me around. He was so happy. Suddenly, he stopped spinning and put me down. “Oh, babe, I’m so sorry. Are you ok? I didn’t hurt you or the baby, did I?”
I laughed. “No, Cade, I’ve never felt better. Your son and I are fine.”
“Son? Is it a boy?” he asked encouragingly.
Silly man, like I could really know this early. “I don’t know what it is, but it feels like a boy,” I replied. I then added, “Would you be ok if it ended up being a girl?”
“Oh baby, it doesn’t matter to me if it’s a girl or a boy. All I care about is that you and our child are healthy. You are amazing and I love you so very much.”
He hugged me again and when he released me I asked, “So can we start looking for a good rescue?”
“What?”
“A rescue, you know, so we can get our dog.”
He laughed. “Yeah, baby, we can. Let’s go downstairs and share our good news.”
I grabbed his arm. “No! Wait. I don’t want to tell anyone yet. I’m only five weeks along. Can we wait until I’m at least twelve weeks, please?”
“Oh. Sure, baby. I didn’t think about that. Of course we can,” he replied.
“Oh, and one more thing.”
“Whatever you want, babe.”
“Are you gonna make an honest woman of me?” I asked as I held up my naked left hand.
“You bet, baby—as long as you are ready for the ride of your life.”
I smiled and walked over to him. “I’ve never been more ready for anything in my entire life.”
Chapter 26
Caden
Holy fuck! I’m gonna be a dad. I was still trying to wrap my head around Emma’s news. Don’t get me wrong, I was thrilled, but I was also scared as fuck!
Emma and I went downstairs. Ari and Honey were in the kitchen preparing dinner and Rebel was on the phone. Not paying much attention to him at first, Emma and I shared our news with the girls.
“OMG!” Ari squealed. “I’m gonna be an aunt!” She ran over to Emma and hugged her tightly then stepped back. “Are you really pregnant?” She asked as if she just couldn’t wrap her head around it.
Emma laughed, “Yes, Ari, I’m really pregnant and yes, you are gonna be an aunt.”
She ran over to me and jumped up and down. I really had not expected such excitement from my kid sister, but it was really touching to see her this way. “My big brother is gonna be a daddy! I’m so excited!” she sang to some odd melody that I swear she just made up in her head.
Honey gave Emma a hug to congratulate her and I swear I could see a tear in her eye. I hoped that she was happy for us. She and Emma had been getting along really well from what I could see. Then I remembered the abortion she’d had not long after she came to us. I hadn’t thought about that … I should have been more considerate of her feelings. For a brief moment I felt like an ass, but then I saw her smiling and realized that her tears were most likely mixed feelings. She walked over to me and said awkwardly, “You’re gonna make one hell of a dad, Ice.”
“Ya think?” I asked, trying to lighten the conversation a bit.
“Hell yeah, I sure do,” she said confidently. Her confidence made me smile.
“Thanks, Honey, that means a lot.” I waited until the awkwardness of our conversation subsided a bit, then added, “Well, this could not have come at a better time. We are all whole, we’ve finally made peace with the Satans, and things should be calming down now significantly.”
Before anything else was said, we heard Rebel yell, “What the fuck! What do you mean you don’t know where they are?” I quickly turned toward him and watched him curiously. He was pacing frantically in the living room. I had no idea who he was talking to, but he was obviously agitated.
“Find them! I’ll get there as soon as I can!” He hit end on his conversation and looked at me with total despair in his eyes. “Ice, man, I need you. We have to go to Belfast.”
– The End –
Stay tuned for the next installment in the Knights of Silence MC series, Celtic Dragon.
ICE ON FIRE Playlist
Skid Row – In A Darkened Room
Foreigner – Cold as Ice
Bon Jovi – Blaze of Glory
Bon Jovi – Prayer ‘94
Bon Jovi – Always
Bon Jovi – Roller Coaster
Needtobreathe – Brother
AlterBridge – Wonderful Life
Aerosmith – Don’t Wanna Miss A Thing
Lynyrd Skynyrd – A Simple Man
Goo Goo Dolls – So Alive
Molly Hatchet – Flirtin with Disaster
Rainbow �
�� Stone Cold
Gregg Allman – I’m No Angel
AC/DC – Highway to Hell
Neil Young – My My Hey Hey
Lonestar – I’m Already There
Pat Benatar – Fire and Ice
Alter Bridge – Breathe Again
Acknowledgements
First of all, I would like to thank my friends and family. Without their support, I never would’ve had the courage and the vision to bring to life Caden and Emma’s story.
I would like to thank Red Horn, may you rest in peace. It was an honor knowing you. You gave me a true glimpse inside the MC world and really helped me establish the heart of this story.
I would like to thank my husband Kevin. You’ve never doubted me or my abilities. All that I am - you let me be. I would be totally lost without your comments, ideas, suggestions and edits. And, I promise you, I will write that pirate book!
I would like to thank the residents of the towns of Waterford and Edinboro, Pennsylvania. Your hospitality while I was visiting and doing my research went above and beyond what I ever expected.
Also, I’d like to thank Hannah Hall. Your comments and suggestions during all the writing stages of this book truly helped shape the outcome. It makes my writing so much easier to have someone to share my thoughts and ideas.
I would also like to thank Alicia Freeman and Michelle Cates. Your PR abilities are amazing and I couldn’t ask for two better personal assistants. You ladies are a pleasure to work with and I could not be more grateful for all that you do for me.
And finally, I would like to thank Ellie and Carl Augsburger of Creative Digital Studios for their insightful ideas, creative cover designs, marketing materials, promotional trailer and comprehensive editing. I am blessed to have such a talented creative design and editing team. You both are top notch!