“I’m coming, sugar.” As she was getting dressed to meet her friend and the girls’ OB/GYN, Dr. Jordan Will, Kendall had called and begged her to meet her at the club while it was practically deserted.
Intrigued and worried about the mischief Kendall might be getting into, Roxy agreed. She’d found Kendall near the pool tables, where she opened a bag revealing a clock.
“This is just like the one in Brooks’ office,” she’d whispered. “The one I’m sure is bugged.”
Shit. Roxy had somehow forgotten about that. Between her date with Knox, the ass beating she’d given to Charlotte, and everything else, it just slipped her mind.
“Brooks and Knox are at some meeting,” Kendall had explained. “Either you or me can switch clocks while the other serves as a lookout.”
“Kendall, why didn’t you just tell Johnnie?”
“Because he’ll blame Brooks and then kill him.”
That was true and that was the only reason Roxy had agreed to the scheme.
Now, Kendall was unlocking the attorney’s office and opening the door so slowly Roxy gritted her teeth, expecting someone to catch them at any moment.
“I’ll be the lookout, sugar. You switch the clocks.”
“Okay,” Kendall whispered.
The subterfuge increased Roxy’s heartrate and made her palms sweat. Her head, too, with that hot ass wig on.
“I’ll be quick.”
Kendall flipped on the light and honed in on a pretty clock that sat on a bookshelf. All Roxy saw was a clock face with ordinary hands, but technology had advanced so much, a camera could be hidden and no one would ever detect it. The child worked quick, snatching the clock on the shelf and throwing it in the shopping bag before pulling out the other one and replacing it.
Her task complete, Kendall hurried to turn off the light and re-lock the door. Gripping her bag in one hand and, giggling, she led Roxy back down the hallway.
“I did it!” she said right before they reached the main room.
“Kendall, baby, you do know if there’s a camera in there, Knox will know it’s no longer in place.”
“Fuck him. It isn’t as if he can ask about it. The clock in the office looks exactly like the one in this bag.”
“Are you going to take it apart and see if your suspicions were right?”
“No, I intend to roll over it until it’s smashed to smithereens. If I was wrong, then I was wrong. If I was right, then I did what I needed to do and I didn’t endanger Brooks.” She turned to Roxy. “I know you’re helping Outlaw, but please don’t tell him about the clock.”
“You’re not getting me to fuck over that man like you got Ophelia to do,” Roxy snapped. “This is something Outlaw needs to know.”
“Roxy, I’m begging you. Brooks will die. Please. I swear I won’t ask anything else of you. Please. He’s like a father to me. Please,” she sniffled again, her lower lip trembling.
Roxy pulled her into her arms and Kendall bent to lean her head on her shoulder. She patted Kendall’s back. “This is what I’ll do, sugar. Find out if there’s a camera in there. If there isn’t, this will be our secret. If there is, we alert Brooks about what’s happened and then tell Outlaw. That’s the most you’ll get from me.”
Kendall straightened and wiped her eyes. “Okay.”
“I’ll be waiting for your call.”
“Okay. I’ll let you know.”
“Now, I have to get going. Me and Jordan are going to this really nice restaurant for lunch.”
“Have fun,” Kendall called as Roxy started off.
“I intend to,” she responded. “It’s going to be a much needed girl talk and relaxation.”
“You need that.”
“I do,” Roxy agreed.
“Be careful.”
“Don’t worry about me. Not much can go wrong at the upscale place I’m going to.”
I destroyed the clock without searching inside of it for the camera.
“How are you feeling?” Dr. Jordan Will’s question intersected with Kendall’s text message.
Annoyed at Kendall’s words, Roxy considered Jordan as they sat in J’s for lunch, the same restaurant Knox had taken her to on their first date. She really liked the atmosphere and thought it would be a good place to meet her friend. In the two days since she’d had a moment of weakness and called her son, she was in a much better frame of mind. It disappointed her that Duke hadn’t called her back, but it didn’t surprise her. “I’m making it,” she answered, thinking about Kendall’s text again. If Roxy didn’t have evidence to bring to Outlaw, she wouldn’t open her mouth. “I could ask you the same thing. How are you? When are you due again?”
One table over, a diner’s fork clattered against his plate. It was startling, but didn’t warrant the jumpiness of her friend.
Jordan looked around.
Pretending she didn’t notice the action, Roxy sipped her lemon water. She tried to have lunch with her new friend at least once a week. Now that Bailey was home, she had more time than she knew what to do with.
“I’m going to be the keynote speaker at a physician’s conference the first week in December,” Jordan said after a moment of glancing everywhere.
Roxy was sure she even peeped at the ceiling.
“I want you to come,” Jordan said in a shaky voice. “We can do a little Christmas shopping afterwards.”
“Girl, conferences are the most boring motherfuckers around. Do I have to?”
Seeming to regain her composure, Jordan grinned and cut the lettuce in her Caesar’s salad. She nodded. “I’m afraid so. I want you there. Your observations will make me laugh.”
“Or get us thrown the fuck out,” Roxy giggled, pleased at Jordan’s chuckle that abruptly stopped when her phone started ringing.
Jordan stared at it as if it was a snake that would strike her dead. This definitely wasn’t the well-put-together, no-nonsense woman Roxy knew.
Unable to help herself, Roxy craned her neck and saw the name Sulley. “Isn’t that the baby daddy?”
Once more, Jordan looked around, panic entering her eyes.
“Okay, Jordan, sugar. Talk to me. What the fuck is going on with this motherfucker?” Roxy nodded to her purse. “Do I need to cut that motherfucker’s hand off? Chop his dick up? Or carve his tongue out?”
Instead of her outraged amusement, Jordan set her fork aside, placed her elbow on the table and hung her head in her hand. “He won’t leave me alone. I have a restraining order against him.” She raised fearful eyes to Roxy. “Now, he’s threatening to kill me.” She leaned forward and lowered her voice. “He’s a dangerous man. Your knife will be no match for his gun. The one he pointed at me last night when he broke into my house. I called the cops but he disappeared before they arrived. He says he knows where I’m at.”
“He’s lying—”
“No, he’s described both of our outfits. He’s here.”
“Well, imagine meeting you here.”
After Jordan’s frightened speech, the sound of Knox’s voice made Roxy jump as much as it did the doctor.
“Fuck, asshole!” Roxy snapped, placing her hands on her chest, startled to see another man standing next to him. “You scared us.” She grabbed her lemon water and drank deeply.
Knox studied her carefully. “Is everything okay, Roxanne?”
She must’ve looked like a crazy fool, swiveling her head and her body, checking out motherfuckers. She’d only seen ratchet ass Sulley once, but she’d know that beady-eyed bastard anywhere.
Knox stepped closer to her and touched her chin, lifting it up to meet his gaze. “Look at me, sweetheart. What’s wrong?”
She drew in a deep breath. If she freaked out, Jordan would. “Knox, I need you and your friend to sit with us and pretend you’re here for us.”
“Okay,” he agreed without an argument, calling a waiter over.
“Yes, Mr. Harrington, sir?”
“Please, bring two chairs to the table, Milton, and add
the ladies’ tab to my bill.”
Before Roxy could tell him that wasn’t necessary, Knox introduced himself to Jordan then indicated the handsome black man, who looked on with extreme amusement. “This is Cameron Baptiste. I call him Cookie.”
Laughter bubbled up and Roxy choked. She and Jordan exchanged glances before they went into hysterics. Seeing Jordan’s release of tension and fear indebted Roxy to Knox.
“What’s funny, you two?” Knox asked as the waiter added the chairs and Knox and Cookie sat.
“Cookie,” Roxy and Jordan chorused.
“Call me Cam,” Cameron said, holding out his hand to Jordan and smiling.
She nodded. “I’m Jordan.”
“Doctor Jordan Will,” Roxy said succinctly. “What do you do?”
“Roxy!” Jordan cried, aghast.
“Sorry, girl. You had one trifling ass motherfucker. I’m not letting you get another one.”
On cue, Jordan’s phone started ringing again, and the small bit of happiness she’d managed evaporated.
Popping up from her seat, Roxy stomped to Jordan’s side and snatched her phone. Seeing Sulley’s name raised her blood pressure and she swiped her finger across the screen.
“Listen up, asshole. If you know what’s good for you, you’ll back the fuck off. Jordan called the cops. I’m going to call the bikers. Keep it the fuck up. Pointing a gun at a pregnant woman’s head. What the fuck is wrong with you, you dry-tipped dick motherfucker?”
Two things came to her at once. The threat she’d made in front of Knox and the fact that she’d blared those words in a now-silent restaurant.
Cam’s shoulders shook with his laughter but Knox seemed as if he wanted the floor to open up and swallow him.
“Who the fuck are you?” the voice on the other end said, pulling Roxy back to the conversation.
“Your worst nightmare. Now, I have a roomful of people in this restaurant, hearing me call you out. If Jordan ends up dead, they’ll know it was you, Sulley. You Monster’s Inc. motherfucker.”
“Good God,” Cam guffawed, picking up the napkin and wiping his eyes.
“You’re as dead as that bitch,” Sulley said before disconnecting the call.
Silent, Roxy sat the phone down and returned to her seat.
“Well, what did he say?” someone called from one of the tables.
Jordan slid down in her seat.
Roxy cleared her throat. If she repeated the words, it would only stress Jordan out more.
“He threatened you, didn’t he?” she asked, seeming to know her ex well.
“Don’t worry about it, sugar. I can handle myself.”
“Who is this?” Knox asked with real concern “I know a few cops. I can—”
“Cops aren’t going to help,” Jordan told them. “I’ve already called. I have a restraining order. It hasn’t helped. I need to learn to shoot a gun to protect myself. Or, just have Mr. Caldwell take care of it for me.”
Fuck! Roxy laughed nervously. She hadn’t told Jordan about the operation because generally they didn’t discuss club business. “You know a Mr. Caldwell, too, girl?”
Jordan snapped her brows together. “Uh…”
Roxy wanted to send her friend a signal to shut the fuck up, but Knox and Cam were both listening intently. It made her wonder who the fuck Cam was.
A partner? His contact to report to?
“What a coincidence that you two know two different men by the name Caldwell,” Knox said.
“Yeah…” Roxy started.
“It’s quite a small world,” Jordan told him, sharp enough to pick up on the situation.
“Indeed,” Cam told her, studying her with interest.
“Thank you both for sitting here with us,” Jordan stated, “but I have to go back to my office. I have appointments.”
“I hate to see such a beautiful woman in so much distress, and I can’t stand a bully,” Cam started. “My schedule is clear for the rest of the day. Why don’t I follow you back to your office?”
“Because you could be a worse motherfucker than motherfucking Sulley,” Roxy snapped.
“Knox will vouch for me.”
“Yes, Roxy, relax. Cameron is an excellent shot. He knows how to fight. Your friend can have no better protection.”
Jordan shook her head. “Thank you, but no. I have to get through today. Tomorrow, I intend to get a gun to protect myself. I can’t live with this fear.”
“I think you’ve hurt Cam’s feelings,” Knox said. “His ugly mug just got uglier.”
“Oh stop,” Jordan admonished. “He isn’t ugly at all.”
“My God, the woman needs glasses,” Knox quipped.
“Seriously, Sulley is a dangerous man. I’ll manage until tomorrow.”
Knox shrugged. “If you say so.”
Finishing his sandwich, Christopher threw away the wrapper in a nearby trash can, finished his soda, and then tossed it too, before leaning against his bike and watching the restaurant where Roxy and Doc Will ate.
She’d mentioned their lunch date in passing this morning, and Christopher knew if the motherfucker Megan spoke about was harassing Doc Will, chances were high he’d use this opportunity to fuck with her. That gave Christopher the perfect opportunity to grab him and fuck him up. Unfortunately, he couldn’t bring him to the meat shack. Not with Knox lurking.
Knox. Motherfucker just happened to be at the same fucking restaurant as Roxy and Doc Will. Christopher doubted it was a coincidence. But he’d seen him walk in with another motherfucker. That would make his job doubly hard, if, in fact, Viola had been right about Doc Will’s man. Former man. No. Formerly alive man. Fuck. Soon-to-be-formerly alive man.
Better.
Christopher snickered. He was just so fucking bored. Recon had never been his fucking thing. He had so many other things to fucking do, but this was a priority…
Knox and the other motherfucker guided Roxy and Doc Will out. Shit could get bad. Christopher hoped Knox carried heat. If not…he’d have a fucking choice to make if Doc Will’s motherfucker showed up with Knox still around. The motherfucker who was a fucking badge undercover as a legal assistant. Motherfuck! That meant Knox probably wasn’t packing a weapon right now. Doing so would lead to all types of questions if someone at the club saw his gun.
The quartet walked to Bailey’s Escalade…fuck, Roxy really needed some wheels. Borrowing her daughter’s was fine but she was an independent bitch. She’d want her own shit. Maybe, for Christmas…that reminded him he needed to sit down and write out shit he might want. Every year, his girl expected a fucking list from him. He didn’t need or want shit. He’d have to make up some shit.
Doc Will, Knox and the other motherfucker watched Roxy drive off, then doc pointed toward the parking garage. Knox and Other Motherfucker started off with her.
Christopher had the most fucked up feeling that shit was about to go down in that fucking garage. Where Knox definitely was and motherfucking surveillance cameras might be. That meant, Christopher had to hope Doc Will would leave safely or he had to follow her, Knox, and Other Motherfucker to step in if shit went sideways.
Well, fuck.
Although Knox would’ve preferred to follow Roxy, she’d insisted both him and Cam accompany her friend to her car. Unfortunately, he’d given up his gun when he’d turned in his badge. He’d seen it as part of his job, not of his everyday life.
If something happened, he could only hope this Sulley person would be close enough for either Knox or Cam to disarm him.
“This is me,” she said, reaching a Mercedes sedan. Just as she opened her door, gunfire shattered her windshield.
She screamed as Cam pulled her behind him and guided her to the ground, trying to keep her pregnancy in consideration.
“Don’t move, pretty boy,” a man aiming a .357 at Knox’s head, called out before he could take cover. “Hand Jordan to me and you live.”
Knox raised his hands in the air, his mind searching for a way out of t
his where they all survived. No, make that him, Cam, and Roxy’s friend. He didn’t give a damn about the other man.
“I’m afraid I can’t do that,” Knox started in a reasonable tone.
Another shot blew out her tire.
Fear slid into Knox. He wasn’t ready to die.
“Now, motherfucker, I’m counting to three. That bitch is carrying my baby. If you don’t hand her over, you’re dead.”
“Sulley, don’t do this,” Jordan cried, lifting herself up, her hands raised. “I’ll come with you if you let them go.”
Sulley grinned, the smile so evil a chill went through Knox. She had to know she was signing her death warrant if she left with him.
“Sulley—” Knox started. “I’ll pay you whatever you want to walk away and forget about her.”
That maniacal smile deepened. “She offered me money, too. I’m not interested. I want her.”
“Sorry, motherfucker, you ain’t takin’ her,” Outlaw Caldwell said, walking in from the stairwell behind Sulley and aiming his nine. The same nine that had been jammed in Knox’s mouth.
Except this time Knox was never so glad to see that gun.
“I’ma give you one fuckin’ chance, Sulley. Put that motherfuckin’ gun down now or…” He hesitated and glanced at Knox.
“Or what, motherfucker?” Sulley asked, spinning to face Outlaw.
Meeting Knox’s gaze before returning his attention to Sulley, Outlaw fired in rapid successions, each hitting Sulley in the head. He stared at Knox again before turning and disappearing through the same stairwell he’d come from, the barrel of his gun still smoking.
It took Knox a moment to realize he was safe. That Outlaw had just saved their lives.
It took him another moment to realize, for only today, the man had been a hero, instead of a criminal.
Chapter Thirteen
The moment Jordan called and explained the afternoon’s events to Roxy, she’d been beside herself. If Outlaw hadn’t been there, not only would her friend have died, but Knox and his friend.
Sitting in Meggie’s kitchen as the girl cooked, Roxy couldn’t believe what Outlaw had done…Yes, she could believe it. He was just that type of man. Maybe, his timing was hard to comprehend.
Death Dwellers Motorcycle Club:: Fifteen Bad Boy Biker Books Page 383