by Ana Stone
“I don’t know, Zeke. I wish I did.”
He blew out his breath and laid his head back on the seat. “I’m so tired of all this.”
“Just stick to the plan and you’ll soon be free of it.” Roxy didn’t know if that was true or not at this point but she couldn’t think of another course of action at the moment.
“You sure?” he opened his eyes to look at her.
“I’m counting on it.” That was not a lie. It was all she had to bank on at the moment. But as soon as this mess was squared away she was going to get some in depth answers about the process and figure out if their memories had been tampered with in ways they were not being made aware.
He nodded and fell silent, staring out of the window. Roxy waited five minutes for him to speak. When he did, his voice sounded so tired her heart softened. “And then what?” he asked.
“I don’t know, Zeke.” Again, that was not a lie. She didn’t know where any of them would go from there.
He looked at her for a moment she saw the man she’d fallen for. Then something hard and cold settled in his eyes. “I guess then you and West take off.”
“I don’t know.” She could be honest with that. She had no clue what was going to happen with her and West.
“Yeah, right.” His voice was as hard as the set of his jaw. “Take me back to my bike.”
“Zeke, if I had answers—“
“I said take me back. Or, hell, forget it, I’ll walk.”
“Zeke, wait!” She grabbed for him but he shrugged her off and got out of the car. Roxy sat there, watching him walk away and finally started the car and pulled off, passing him on her way.
He never looked her way. She looked up at the rearview mirror and emotion tugged at her. He looked so forlorn and lost. She wanted to stop, to take him in her arms and comfort him, promise him that it would all work out.
The problem was, at this point she didn’t know if it would. All she could do was hope.
*****
Zeke got out of the truck and looked around. Aside from two port security guards, there didn’t seem to be anyone else around but him, Reese, Chopper, Razr and Rice. Reese had insisted that Zeke and Rice be there to collect the drugs.
Zeke looked around once more. Nothing. And yet, something made the back of his neck tingle.
Reese led the way, stopping at the berth for the Lisa Marie where the two port security guards waited. One of the guards addressed Reese. “Below deck in the galley, one large plastic container. You have as long as it takes for us to have a smoke.”
Reese nodded and when the guards walked away, he turned to look at Zeke. “You and Rice, get the stash and put it in the truck.”
Zeke didn’t argue. He was ready to get this done and over with. He gesture for Rice to accompany him and climbed aboard the boat.
It didn’t take long to find the container. Fifty pounds of crystal meth in a big plastic container with straps securing the lid. He hefted it up and as he did he heard the rapport of a gun. “Shit!”
He handed the container to Rice. “Stay behind me and if I say down, hit the dirt.”
Rice nodded and fell in behind Zeke as Zeke started up for the main deck. Gunfire continued and he feared what he would find. The moment he was on deck he could see Reese and Chopper behind the pickup truck, firing over the hood.
He followed the direction they were shooting and saw a man lying on the ground three berths down. Gunfire was coming from the deck of the boat in the berth but he could not see more than that.
“Stay here,” he directed Rice.
As he climbed off the boat, he spotted Razr, crouched at the bow.
“Can’t tell how many,” Razr said.
Zeke nodded. “Get their attention.”
“You got it.”
Razr started firing and within moments, gunfire slammed into the hull of the boat. Zeke cut a look in Reese’s direction and could see him and Chopper crouched down behind the truck.
Zeke worked his way closer to the boat where the gunfire was coming from, hoping Reese didn’t shoot him in the back. He was past one boat and headed for the second when someone grabbed him from behind.
His first reaction was defensive and he went for an elbow strike. “Christ, Zeke, it’s me.”
Zeke recognized West’s voice and broke free. West hunkered down in the shadows and Zeke did the same. “What the fuck are you doing?” Zeke asked. Obviously, West was part of the collective “feds” who would be surveilling the MC getting the drugs.
“Surveillance.”
“Looks like more than that.”
West didn’t respond to the comment. “You need to get your people out of here now. We’ve got a man down and I can’t stop the port security guys from calling the police.”
“Why the fuck are your guys shooting?”
“One of them was spotted and your guys opened up.” West replied.
“Then why are you letting us go?”
“It’s my job.” West repeated. “And yours.”
A flash ripped through Zeke’s mind. Him and West. Hunched down behind something. A rooftop? Gunfire from the roof across the street.
“Go!” West’s voice obliterated the vision.
“We’re gonna talk.” Zeke said.
“Hold you fire!” West yelled and stood to show himself. “Hold your fire!
West looked at Zeke. “Go.”
Zeke started back the way he had come. The gunfire ceased and the silence seemed loud. When he reached the Lisa Marie, he called out to Rice. “Rice? Come on.”
Rice stayed in a crouch across the deck, lugging the container of meth. Zeke met him and took the container then called to Razr. “Razr. Come on. Time to roll.”
Razr hurried to him and all three of them ran to the truck. Zeke put the drugs into the bed of the truck and climbed in with the container. By that time Reese and Chopper were already in the truck, with Chopper behind the wheel.
Razr got into the cab with them, leaving Rice no option but to sit in the back with Zeke. They made the turn onto highway 70 ten seconds before two police cars screamed down the road from the opposite direction and turned onto the Port Terminal road.
Zeke leaned back and closed his eyes. Why had West let them go after one of his men was shot? Did Maybelle have that level of clout? It didn’t make any sense. And what the hell was that vision that had flashed through his mind? He didn’t remember any Delta missions where he and West had been trapped by gunfire on a roof.
“You think they’ll be coming for us?” Rice asked.
Zeke opened his eyes and looked into the worried eyes of his friend. “I wish to hell I knew.”
“I hate this shit.” Rice said. “I wish to god I’d never been patched.”
“Join the club, brother.” Zeke commented. If all went according to plan, then maybe they could both take off the patch and be free of the MC.
Roxy stayed where she was, camped out on the deck of a nearby boat, watching. She’d gotten there while West’s team was setting up and managed to secure a lookout position. She witnessed Reese opening fire on West’s man. From the looks of things, he wasn’t going to be getting back up.
She could tell West was pissed by his stance. Within moments of Zeke and the MC leaving, two cars pulled out to tail them. West and three others stayed behind.
Roxy watched as the police arrived and West showed his identification and talked with them. Before long an ambulance arrived and the body of the dead agent was loaded up and taken away. The three men with West got into a dark sedan and left, leaving West alone. He stood there for a long time, just looking out at the water.
Roxy left her hiding place and walked up behind him.
“I should’ve known you wouldn’t sit it out.” He commented without looking at her.
“You know me.” She replied.
“Yeah, I do.” He finally looked at her. “You were here for him.”
“I was here to keep an eye on what was going down.”
She met his eyes. “Maybe I was here protecting you.”
West smiled but the smile did not reach his eyes. “That could be.”
“Could? When have I not had your back?”
He nodded. “Okay, I stand corrected.”
She almost let it go, but like West, the one thing she hated above all was lies. “And him. I was here for both of you.”
He turned as if to walk away, but she took hold of his arm and stopped him. “West, don’t walk away. You asked for honesty and I’m being honest. I was worried. I saw him earlier today and he said something that concerned me.”
“What?”
“He said he didn’t feel like he was really himself. That nothing felt right.”
She saw the reaction on West’s face and knew she had hit on something so she pressed. “I know that feeling. I have it. All the memories that have resurfaced – some of them feel like—like mine. They have emotional content. Others are just—flavorless for lack of a better word. No emotions, no part of me invested in them.”
“And your point?”
“My point is what if the procedure did more than we think?”
“You know that’s not—“
“Possible?” She cut in. “Really? Think about it. They were able to erase our memories of who we really were. I don’t know about you, but I’ve spent the last … hell I don’t even know how long it’s really been. A month, a year? How the hell do I know what’s a real memory and what’s a plant? All I know for certain is that I’ve been searching. In my mind it’s been a year. A year of always being on the move, looking for – something, I didn’t know what.
“I had this feeling. It was always with me, always driving me to keep moving. I didn’t know why and couldn’t explain where it led me, but in the end it led me here. First to Zeke and then to you. I think, and this is just a theory – that somewhere in my subconscious, I knew where you would be and that was guiding me.”
West studied her for a long time then dropped his eyes to look down, twisting his hat in his hands. “I don’t know what to say. I didn’t have that. As far as I knew, after you and Zeke were shot, I went on a binge, woke up and went back to the job.”
“And did you expect to find me in Harmony?”
The look of surprise on his face told her more than words. “Yes.” He finally answered. “I was told you’d show up.”
“How could anyone have known?” She asked.
He shook his head. “I don’t know.”
“That’s the problem,” she pointed out. “We don’t know. Not everything.”
“Maybe.” He put his hat back on his head. “What do you suggest?”
“I suggest we get this thing put to bed then we go to Mother and demand some damn answers.”
“Demand?”
“That’s what I said.”
This time his smile did reach his eyes. “You’re the fiercest woman I’ve ever known.”
“Oh?” She asked, returning his smile. “And does fierce do it for you, stud?”
He grabbed her hand and pulled her close. “Come home with me and find out.”
“I thought you’d never ask.”
“I take it you have a ride?”
“Yep. Meet you at your place in half an hour?”
“I’ll be waiting.”
Roxy laughed. “Fat chance in that government issue you’re driving.”
“Want to make a little wager on that hot stuff?”
“Name it?”
“Loser is the sub.”
Something hot fluttered in her belly. “You’re going down.”
He pulled her to him and breathed against her lips, “I fully intend to.”
Then his lips claimed hers and for the length of that kiss she was able to forget about plots and schemes, worries and confusion and even Zeke. For that moment it was just they two.
*****
Zeke got out of the truck and stood there for a moment, looking around. He hadn’t gotten any sleep since the MC took possession of the drugs. They had met with their contact in the Mexican Mafia and turned over the drugs for shipment. Thanks to the drugs being taken on their watch, it cost them fifty thousand, but Reese cut a deal to sell the Mexicans guns at a discount so the MC could get all their money and be able to make the gun buy.
After that, the MC met back at the clubhouse to go over the plans for the next day and to celebrate getting out of a jam. Zeke had not much wanted to take part in the party, but he needed Reese to believe that he was on board so he’d stuck around.
Now he wished he had not. He hadn’t drank that much, but he had ended up in bed with two of the girls who hung around the clubhouse. He wasn’t sure why he felt guilty about that. It wasn’t like he and Roxy were a couple, and he didn’t have anyone else in his life so it wasn’t like he was cheating.
Then why did he feel like he was?
His attention was diverted when five of the MC members pulled up behind the truck on their bikes. Zeke checked the time. They were on time, so where was their supplier?
As if in answer to that question, two men approached from behind one of the storage containers. Zeke didn’t recognize them, but obviously Reese did. He walked to meet them and the three of them talked for nearly five minutes before Reese looked over and gestured for his guys.
Zeke accompanied the rest of the guys and followed Reese and his contacts through the maze of containers. Finally they stopped at one and unlocked the metal door. One man entered while the other took a position beside the door.
Reese stepped inside, followed closely by Razr and Chopper. Zeke remained outside, as did Harley, Six Pack and Rice. Zeke stood where he could see what was going on inside the container. Six large wooden crates were opened. Reese and Chopper inspected the weapons and then Reese paid the supplier.
After the man thumbed through the envelope of money Reese had given him, he called out to his man outside. “Have them bring the truck.”
Harley was already turning away before anyone else could respond. “On it.”
Zeke waited and after a few moments, Reese, Chopper and Razr stepped outside. Reese lit a cigarette and leaned back against the container, one leg bent and his foot propped against it. No one spoke. When the truck appeared, Reese tossed his smoke aside and straightened. “Let’s get it loaded up, boys.”
Harley turned the truck and backed it up almost to the opening of the container. He headed for the container door, jabbing Six Pack on the way. “Come on, bro. Let’s do it.”
Chopper and Razr were already inside, lifting one of the crates. As they started for the door, Six Pack and Harley lifted another crate and followed.
Rice jumped up in the bed of the truck and started shoving aside tarps that would be used to cover the crates. The suppliers stood off to one side, watching as Zeke watched them and Reese watched the men loading.
Just as Chopper and Razr set the first crate on the bed of the truck and went to slide it toward Rice, Zeke caught movement in his peripheral vision. He only allowed his eyes to move in the direction of the movement. One man, three containers down, ducked out of sight, but not before Zeke saw that the man was armed.
He stepped over beside the truck and spoke softly to Rice. “Get down. Now.”
“Huh? Rice straightened in the act of pulling the crate into position to look at Zeke. “What?”
His action alerted Reese. A split second later one of the suppliers cursed and pulled his weapon.
That’s all it took to let Zeke know that the shit was about to hit the fan. “Down!” He barked at Rice. At almost the same moment a man’s voice to their right called out. “No one move. Federal agents!”
That was like throwing gas on a fire. Reese was the fir
st to draw his weapon and fire. Razr and Chopper followed suit. The suppliers took off, firing behind them as they ran.
From that point on, the next minute was a blur. Men shouting and gunfire, bullets pinging off the metal containers and slamming into the truck. Zeke fired at the feet of the agent three containers down then off to his left at two more trying to work their way around and come in from behind. He had his hands full trying to stop the advance of the agents without actually shooting one.
While he was occupied, the agents on the other side closed in. He heard West’s voice from behind and to the right of the pickup. “No one needs to die today. Drop your weapons.”
Zeke cut a look over his shoulder. Sure enough, there was West, his Glock pointed right at Reese’s head. West reached out and took Reese’s weapon and three men emerged from behind containers and started to advance on the truck.
“Drop ‘em.” Reese ordered his men. The members of the MC started dropping their weapons when Rice stood up in the bed of the truck with a tie-down strap in his hand.
“Drop your weapon!” The voice came from behind Zeke. He turned at the same moment Rice did, who was clearly confused as to who the man was yelling at.
The agent aimed up on Rice. “Drop it”
Zeke had been all set to put down his weapon, but he saw the agent’s hand tighten on the gun. Rice was a sitting duck. He didn’t take time to think, he just fired.
The bullet caught the agent in the upper right thigh and took him down. Two other agents fired on him. He dove, rolled and returned fire. Both agents went down.
“Down!” Zeke yelled at Rice then cast his weapon aside and immediately put his hands behind his head and went to his knees on the pavement.
Within moments he was grabbed, none too gently. His arms were forced down behind his back and zip restraints tightened around them. “On your feet.” An agent yanked on him then shoved him forward.
Zeke looked in Reese’s direction and to his surprise, Reese was smiling. Had Zeke scored points with Reese in what had happened? Made him believe that Zeke stood with him?