Chaos: A Reapers MC Boxset

by Elizabeth Knox

  “Is something the matter?” I can hear the worry in Kade’s voice, probably looking at me, thinking I’m a looney staring at this piece of paper inside an open envelope.

  “Uh, I don’t think so. I’m just afraid if it says no.”

  “There’s nothing to be afraid of. If it says no, then we’ll deal with it, but if it says yes, then we’ll deal with that. What’s the worst that can happen?”

  “I don’t know who my father is and I have major daddy issues for the rest of my life.” I move my eyes from the envelope and stare up into his eyes as I speak, and I can see the way he’s trying to fight laughter.

  I shake my head and pull the paper free from the envelope, open it, and read over the scientific terminology. It explains how the test works and how the DNA markers will determine if two people are actually related. As I read further, it shows me a diagram of two different options, if DNA markers match and the two people are related or if DNA markers don’t match and they aren’t related. It explains that my DNA results will be on the following page and I turn the page over slowly reading through the material. I look at the diagram and see things matching up like in the previous page’s diagram and then skim my eyes down to the bottom where my percentage guarantee is.

  I hand the paper over to Kade while the shock of what I just read sinks in. “Holy shit, Dad was right,” he mutters, a huge smile crossing his face. “You’re Machk’s daughter.”

  I should be relieved, however, I’m not. The only thing I’m feeling right now is overwhelmed like something is sitting on top of my chest making it harder for me to breathe. It’s a relief to know Grizzly isn’t my father, but at the same time, now I have to learn about an entirely different family. I’ve overheard that Machk has a wife and adopted a couple of kids, plus there is Austin, who is my full-blood brother, who my Mom and Machk adopted out when they were very young.

  “Alright you two, here we are.” Joseph sets down a long silver tray with six miniature cake things displayed on top. I can see different types of filling and each cake is a different color. “We have carrot cake with a semi-sweet buttercream, a lemon cake with a fruit filling, wedding cake with a raspberry almond filling, chocolate with a mousse filling, red velvet with the standard cream cheese filling, and a chocolate chip cookie dough with a whipped cream filling.” As Joseph continues to speak, I see something on the wedding cake, sitting right on top of the almond filling that’s in a beautiful rose on the top. It sparkles and I have to look a little closer to really make out what it is.

  “Oh my god. Stop. Is that real?!” I shriek, looking at Kade like he’s lost his damn mind. He branded me, but we’ve never talked about marriage.

  “As real as the cake in front of you, babe.” At Kade’s words, Joseph slowly backs away while smiling with a shit eating grin on his face.

  “Whoa. I’m in shock. Holy crap,” I stutter out, staring at the ring. This isn’t a small diamond, or at least it isn’t small in my eyes. It has to be a couple of carats big, otherwise, it wouldn’t be sparkling this much. I wouldn’t have noticed it. Oh my lord!

  Kade picks the ring up off the icing and slides out of his side of the booth, dropping down on one knee before my eyes. “You might not have realized this but I’ve been planning for this moment since the first time we met. I knew that I wanted you in my life for the long term, not something short and minuscule. It’s why I want you to be my girl, my ol’ lady, my ride or die, but I don’t only want that. I want you to be my wife. I’m just hoping that you’ll do me the honor of agreeing.”

  Tears fill my eyes as I look at the hopeless romantic kneeling before me. He’s something straight out of a Hallmark movie right now, and I’d never thought I’d see the day where this would happen.

  I stare at him, ring in hand, thinking about how lucky I am to have found someone who treats me with such dignity and grace. As a child, my mother always called me her princess, but now is when I really feel like one.

  “Uh . . . Ivy? Are you gonna keep makin’ me stroke out right now or are you gonna say something?”

  “Oh! Yes, yes, yes. I want to marry you!” I stumble out, smacking my lips down on his and wrapping my arms around his neck, holding onto him for dear life.

  This is what happiness is about and I can honestly say this is the best damn birthday I’ve ever had.

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Trust what you feel, not what you hear

  ~ Fb/ The Idealist

  Kade

  Yesterday was a whirlwind of trying to keep my shit together until I got her to that damn bakery and finally being able to propose. Relieved can’t even describe how I felt when she accepted. I was so worried that she might have her senses come to her and say no.

  Thanksgiving is coming up in two days, but we’ve all decided to have it today, bypassing some of the craziness at the grocery store but also hoping that we can bring everyone together. Dad is still having a rough time of it, and while I’m not uncompassionate for the world of pain he’s enduring, I also think he needs to move forward and put on a brave face. It’s probably easy for me to think that though. If the roles were reversed and Zane died and then Ivy on the same day, I might be worse than he is right now. I’m not really sure.

  We all made sure to pile into Dad’s house, going to the closest bulk store and got everything we could need from paper plates, napkins, cups, a whole bunch of food and drinks. We lost everything in the fire and don’t have much besides what’s at our house, Tex’s, and Blackjack’s.

  I tried to talk to Dad about our rebuilding plans this morning but he was still insisting on staying upstairs in his bed.

  “Are we going to include him in on this conversation?” Zane asks, taking a seat beside me in the sunroom. It’s a bit chilly in here, but the space heater does a good job of keeping it manageable.

  “If you think you can bring him down here from his bed, by all means, let’s include him.” I try not to have any attitude filter into my tone, but it’s kinda hard.

  Zane gives me a stern look, one that tells me how badly he wants to tell me to shut the fuck up. “Alright, it’s your way then. An insurance claim has been filed and for some reason, we had a million dollar policy in case something like this happened. It’s enough to build the club back up to be better than it was before and leave a lot extra untouched.”

  “Damn, I never thought Dad would prepare this much,” I confess, looking out the window to where our club used to be.

  Zane shrugs. “He’s never been an imbecile, but I can’t say I wasn’t surprised to see the type of policy we had. Dad made me his medical power of attorney a year back and Doc wrote a letter to the insurance company to let them know he’s medically unfit to make decisions right now. Depression and all.”

  “Makes sense, I was about to ask how the hell you were getting information.”

  “I made a call to Doc, she came up here to look at ‘em and agreed with me. He can’t make decisions until he gets over this depression and wrote the letter. She faxed it into the insurance company and that was that. The money will probably take another couple of weeks to get here, and based on the amount, we’ll be lucky to have it clear by Christmas. I called the manager at the bank to see what type of hold would be placed on it, and she told me it could be up to ten business days.”

  I nod, knowing that there would be a process to all of this. “Okay, so what’s the plan then?”

  “I’ve thought about a few options and we’re going to add more onto the clubhouse. We’ll make it two levels, making the second floor strictly bedrooms. The square footage will still be the same downstairs and I’ve already spoken with a couple of construction workers who want the contract. We can have ten bedrooms upstairs with ensuite bathrooms, plus the same layout we had downstairs for a little over four hundred. That leaves us with a good amount left over for a rainy day, but I’m thinking we should put a few houses up here on the hill. Nothing too fancy, but maybe two or three three bedroom homes.”

  “Who
would the homes be for?”

  “I’d get one, and the VP of the club would get another. The other two would be up here for members as their families grow, kinda just sitting around and they could buy them off us when the time comes. This way they’re close to the club, but not too close.”

  “Yeah, it makes sense,” I agree with him, thinking it’s a good way to spend the money we’ll be getting in. “Plus, it’s better to get the ball rolling instead of sitting around. Everyone is going to be pretty cramped for a while. How’d Sydney do last night?”

  “She was fine. I think she’s still processing all the changes, but she’ll be just fine.”

  I ask the question that I’ve been thinking since Dad went down this dark path, and it’s been eating away at me. “Have you talked to him about the future of the club? I mean you becoming Prez. It’s always been his plan, but with him in the current state of mind that he’s in . . . everyone needs a leader and they’re looking to you.”

  “I wasn’t prepared to take the gavel for a couple more years, but I’d be dumb to think that all this shit hasn’t sped up his timeline. You know about the deal that was struck when we were kids, how I’d have to marry one of the Raider’s MC daughters. To be honest, I’m not ready for that shit yet. A couple of years is more on the track that I’m lookin’ at before settling down and getting married if you ask me.”

  “If anything in life is constant, it’s the fact that shit changes all the time. You’d best accept that your arranged marriage is probably going to be happening a lot sooner than you anticipated, brother,” I gently remind him.

  When we were sixteen, Zane was told about the agreement that was made. How Dad made a deal with the old Raiders Prez in order to unify the clubs as family. It wasn’t Dad’s idea, but the Raiders. The Raiders are from Los Angeles and are the longest reigning club in California. We need them for many reasons in addition to being an ally and strengthening numbers.

  “Yeah, well, I’ll face that bridge whenever I come to it. In the meantime, I’m going to take a couple of the guys upstairs and see whatever it is that Dad wants us to do. If we’re lucky, he’ll name an interim Prez until he’s got his shit together.”

  “Shit, you’re trying to outsmart the old bastard. Aren’t you?” I ask, knowing exactly what my brother is doing. He doesn’t have to marry one of the Raiders girls until he has the gavel permanently.

  “Yeah, but do me a favor and don’t let that slip. I’ll see you a bit later, maybe even before dinner.” Zane smacks me on the back and exits the sunroom. Meanwhile, I stare out the window and realize that the life I’ve lived here is about to change so much.

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  “There’s no need to be perfect to inspire others. Let people get inspired by how you deal with your imperfections.”

  ~ Thisislovelifequotes.com

  Ivy

  When discovering what in my heart I already thought I knew, I didn’t go straight to Machk and speak to him like I thought I would. I’m not really sure why, but part of me feels weird for doing that. Kade and I still plan on leaving soon so what’s the point in trying to rush some sort of relationship with Machk, Austin, or his new wife and my other brother and sisters? I will get to know them but what I refuse to do is rush something that should be forged over time.

  Today, we’re having Thanksgiving and I noticed Kade disappeared with Zane a bit ago in the sunroom. Machk is standing out on the front porch smoking whatever that is in his pipe. To me, it smells like a mixture of weed and some other stuff, but I’ve never asked him. I grab my coat off the rack and slide on my new pair of boots that Kade and I bought yesterday while we were in town, heading out the door to stand beside him.

  “Congratulations,” he says, looking down at my engagement ring.

  “Thank you,” I say, looking out across the snow-covered landscape, with soot-covered wood where the clubhouse used to be.

  “You think too loud.”

  I squint my eyes, not sure I heard him correctly. “Excuse me?”

  Machk turns toward me and gives me a soft smile. “You think far too loud. You’re like your mother in that sense, thinking meticulously about something before you do it. So, just do it. Tell me what you’re thinking.”

  Instead of saying anything right away, I pull the folded up test results from the back of my jeans and hand them over to him. He opens it and I see his eyes scanning over the material. “Fist had a DNA test done between the two of us. Kade gave me the results yesterday and I’ve already read over them.”

  Machk hands the paper back to me and I sense a different feeling coming from him. It’s not shock, but more like guilt. “I didn’t want to admit it to myself but I think I’ve known this for years. Ever since I ran into your mother and saw she was pregnant. I had a gut feeling and knew something wasn’t as it should be. She didn’t tell me the baby was mine and I didn’t ask. Now, looking back on that day, I regret not asking her. If I would’ve things might have been different for you growing up. That is the shame I will have to live with for the rest of my days. I’m sorry that I didn’t ask questions when I should’ve.”

  I grab his hand, trying to offer some semblance of comfort. “What I had to deal with isn’t your fault. You didn’t know about me and I’m sure Mom had her reasons for not telling you. Neither of us will know what those were, though.”

  “She was probably afraid of my reaction. When I found out about Austin, I wasn’t exactly thrilled by the idea that we were bringing a child into the world, especially considering the two of us weren’t prepared for it.” I listen to the way his voice shifts when he talks about Austin and can feel the regret.

  “You wish you didn’t adopt him out, don’t you?”

  He nods once, taking a draw from his pipe. “Yes, very much. I can’t change the past. Back then, I wasn’t so in tune with the great spirit or what path he was leading me on. Now, I understand my past mistakes and see the world for what it is. I think I was supposed to make the choice I did, as was your mother. I believe you and Austin will have a different type of bond than your other siblings. You both grew up in different households, by different people and because of this, I think you two will understand one another in an entirely different light.”

  I haven’t met Austin yet but I don’t think he’s wrong. I see everything about what Machk is saying and understand how our distance over the years could actually cause us to have a closer bond as siblings. “Yeah, you’re right. I don’t know how difficult it will be to have a bond with him when Kade and I are still planning on moving to Las Vegas.”

  “You’re moving to Vegas?” Machk asks, seeming caught off guard by it.

  “Yeah, we had talked about it before. Kade doesn’t want to be VP and he thinks that by us moving to Vegas, it’ll be a great opportunity for both of us to start over. I can’t really disagree with him either. I think it’s what we both need, a new place with some new faces.”

  “Ah, well, when do you leave?”

  “We had a discussion this morning about leaving next week,” I say, giving him a half smile. I’m trying to make light of the situation but I don’t think that I can. We just found out about one another and we have so much time to make up for. I doubt I’ll be calling him Daddy but I want to have a good relationship with him.

  “Oh. I didn’t realize it was so soon.”

  I nod my head, confirming. “Yeah, it’s going to take us a few days to even get down to Vegas, and now we have to go buy things and set up the trailer.”

  “Before you go, I’d love the opportunity to introduce you to my wife and the children we’ve adopted together. Maybe it can be like your last trip before you leave for Vegas.”

  “I would really like that,” I say, not able to hold back my smile.

  “Really like what?” Kade asks just as a gust of wind blows strongly. I didn’t even hear the door to the house open or close, but I was really focused on the conversation I’ve been having with my biological father.

 
I turn to face him. “Machk just offered for us to come over and have dinner with him before we leave for Vegas, so I can meet my other siblings.”

  Kade isn’t a very smiley type of man, but he smiles right now. I think he’s just so happy that even through all of this shit, we’re finding the light at the end of this tunnel. I don’t know why I feel like this but I have a gut feeling telling me that things are going up from here. “Awesome. It’ll be out of the way, but we’ll definitely make the trip.”

  “What kinda trip are you going on?” Raven asks and I jump about a foot into the air and almost piss myself. Turning around, I see this professional eavesdropper has the window open behind us.

  “I’m going to meet my brothers and sisters before we go to Vegas next week,” I state firmly. “And we need to talk about whether or not you’re coming since you haven’t made up your damn mind. Frank too. He said he wanted to drive down with Kade and I next week and start this new life.” I think this is the perfect opportunity for Frank to be the man he is. Las Vegas is very accepting of the LGBTQ community and he won’t have to hide in the closet any longer. As his friend, I want him to be open and see how others show their support. A small town in Montana isn’t going to show this man the love and support that he deserves.

  “I’m still thinking about it,” Raven groans, avoiding eye contact with me.

  “What is there to think about? You have the hots for Hawk and he’s in Vegas. I highly doubt you’re gonna see anything with him unless he decides to move back up here.”