by M. T. Ossler
Their daughter is beautiful with her white-blonde hair on her head. She has bright green eyes like Blaze. She’s the most precious thing I’ve ever seen or held.
At five pounds and two ounces, she’s tinier than Beast and Bella’s boys were and shorter too, at seventeen inches.
Our little family is in the room with them. King, Chains, Colt, Gears, Beast, Gator, Shadow, Throttle, Sam, Bella, Jules, Jess, and me. Our little family inside our big one that just keeps getting bigger. Knuckles took Cindy, Gigi, and boys home with the prospects a while ago to get some rest.
“Well, this little princess is gonna be so treasured. All the boys in her life are gonna watch her like a hawk. Who needs a chastity belt when you have brothers to protect you and your virtue?” I giggle, and Blaze, Beast and Ace grunt.
“Please, don’t remind me,” Blaze says and takes his little angel from my arms. He sits on the bed next to Brook and places the baby in her arms.
Jess places me under his arm, I wrap my arms around his waist and lean my head on his shoulder.
“Between my boys and baby blue, she won’t be able to step out of the house without one of them knowing and following her. Ace and I will have our boys trained, the same way Bells’ brothers and I were at a young age to watch over the girls,” Beast says relaxing Blaze a bit.
Those guys were so protective of their sister when I first came around. Once they learned I was gay, they eased up. That’s when they taught me how to fight, wielding a knife, and shoot a gun. They figured I would be with them all the time, they should train me to protect them. It paid off in more ways than one. Yeah, protect them, but it also helped with the anger I carried inside me. The shame my parents made me feel because being gay wasn’t normal, it was the devil’s work.
“You guys were always around us, even when I hid out in the ballroom. I hated my brothers watching me, but I always loved having Gio around. I would sneakily ask the guys if he was coming over. The days he was, I would make it a point to be alone in my favorite place, hoping he would find me. On the days he did, I would make him dance with me just to have him close,” Bells says as her husband takes her in his arms. I know all those stories about those days and how much they mean to her.
“Best days of my life, before I left. I’d make excuses to get away from the guys. I would watch you for hours and hope that I would have you in my arms for just one dance,” Beast says kissing his wife’s lips passionately.
“You were pathetic, man. We all knew what you were up to. Rom and I followed you a few times. I just always thought you wanted to make sure she was safe from all the lingering threats out there for her. Never realized how much you two cared for each other back then,” King says sadly. He’s excepted his sister and best friends love, for the most part, he just wishes he could change the past for them. Take away all the heartache his sister had to endure to get her love back.
“Oh, they more than cared for one another for years. That kind of love doesn’t come around that much and at that age. It’s the same kind of love Dusty and Gigi share. Old souls connecting as one for life. Wouldn’t it be could if one of the twins was Angel’s soulmate,” Jules says, and all the guys grumble this time.
Ace removes his arms from around Jules, ending the conversation. He walks over to the bed next to his sister. It’s finally time for him to hold is tiny niece in his big arms.
“Stop hoggin’ my niece. Hand her over,” Ace says.
“Three little princes and one little princess. I’d say she gonna be one spoiled little angel,” Jess says, and I have an idea hits me.
“We should get the boys little prince crowns and Angel a princess one. They will look so cute together. When baby blue gets here, we’ll have to have them all wear them and get a picture,” I announce, and Jules looks over at Ace with a twinkle in her eye.
Jules walks closer to Ace as Brook hands over the baby, slowly not to startle the little angel. Ace takes her in his big arms, cradling her to his chest. Brook looks back and forth between the baby and Blaze and Ace.
“Angel, this is your...” Brookie says with the dilemma written all over her face and looks at Ace to answer.
“Hi, Angel, you are as beautiful as your mommy. I’m your Uncle Hunter,” he whispers to her and then places a kiss on her forehead.
Jules takes out her phone and starts snapping more photos of them.
“She has your green eyes, brother. Hopefully, they stay. They fit her perfectly,” Ace says looking over at Blaze, who has a look of pride gleaming from him.
I look over at Brook leaning into Blaze, and her eyes start to droop. She’s exhausted and needs rest. She’s been up for the last twenty-four hours and had a grueling birth. Her little body needs to recoup.
As if hearing my thoughts, Jess voices them. “We’re gonna head out. I have to stop at the shop, and your girls need to sleep. Call us if you need anything,” Jess says to Blaze, and we say our goodbyes.
The gang follows us out, except for Jules, Ace, Sam and, Gator. We all go our separate ways. When we enter the hallway, I notice quite a few of our brothers standing guard. There are some in the hall outside Brook’s room and some in the waiting room area.
Jess ushers me out of the hospital fast, distracting me from asking any questions. We make it to his bike and mount it. We came on his bike to be quicker to get here. I just like being on the back of his bike, pressed close and holding him.
We get to the shop, say ‘hi’ to the guys, and walk straight to his office. His thoughts are running rampant it in his head. I could tell from how stiff he was on the bike that something is bothering him, and he’s starting to worry me. Gator must have given him bad news when they spoke earlier. Something’s up; he’s too quiet and his face is giving anything away. I need him to talk to me.
He locks the door behind me, and I spin around. “What’s going on, sweets?” I ask, cutting through the bullshit.
He struts past me, grabbing my hand on the way, then sits in his chair and pulls me to his lap. I want to kiss him cause he looks so handsome, but I know if I do, we won’t stop, and it will be longer for me to get my answers.
“Gator pulled me to the side while you were with Jules earlier. He’ll be calling Church this evening. Only a handful of us will get the text for this one. A package was delivered to the Clubhouse this mornin’ while we were all at the hospital. It was addressed to Gator and Ace, from the Halos and Alejandro,” he says and takes a deep breath. I can see the worry in his eyes, and I know this has to do with the girls and the kids.
I wait for him to continue, while my mind races with all different scenarios on how this can play out.
“He gonna implement a quiet lockdown and have Shadow and Cowboy up security around the Compound. He wants to keep everything as normal as possible for the girls.
“Babe, things are gonna get bad, the worst we have ever seen around here, and all the ol’ ladies and kids are in danger, that includes Sam and Cindy.” He stops there, closes his eyes, and rubs the back of his neck. He knows more and is not saying it. I need to know what was in that package.
“Sweets, what was in the package?” I ask in a soft tone. He leans his head on my chest, and I take him in my arms.
“Umm... has Jules told you anything about Ace’s mom?” Ace’s mom, what the fuck did she do? Hasn’t she caused enough trouble for her kids?
“All I know is that she was a club girl for the Halos for years. Now that she’s older, she’s their house mama, which is different from what Aunt Cindy does for us. I also know she was a shit mom that never took care of her kids, and when Brook was born, Ace became responsible for her. That’s about it.”
“That about sums the bitch up. The box contained a video of Ace’s mom. It showed some of the Halo and Hernandez men beating and gang fuckin’ her. It was brutal to watch, Gator and Throttle said. It also showed Alejandro cutting off her hand, which was in the box. Throttle checked the tape out, and it’s authentic. There was a message for the guys. They’re
coming for all our women and children when we least suspect it. They want to weaken us so when our guard is down, that’s when they’ll strike. Our women will get the same treatment Ace’s mom received, and all the kids will be sold.
“Ces, this is one war I’m not sure we’ll make it out of. I know Gator’s worried, I'm worried too, and I know when the guys find out they will be too. Bella, Cindy, Jules, and Brook live and work here, so that helps. Sam lives here but is at the hospital a lot. Gator’s gonna try and talk her into quitting and become the Club’s doctor full time. This way no one will have to leave the Compound and go to the hospital. He’ll have Benny build a clinic or something. Cassie and Bull and Iceman and Rosie have home’s outside the Compound. Gator’s hoping to talk them into moving their families here. Gigi is gonna have to be homeschooled again. I don’t know how we’re gonna accomplish all this and not alarm the girls.” He sounds exhausted. This is weighing heavily on his shoulders.
How are we gonna keep the women and children safe? We have Ricco on our side, but his men are all the way in Chicago and New York. The Dragons will have our backs, but what if those assholes go after their women and children next? Fuck, Jess is right; this is one war we may not make it out of. Unless...
Chapter 16
Ryder
Ihate this shit. I hate having my hands tied. Most of fuckin’ all, I hate the look on my guy’s face. He’s out for blood, he wants to murder every last one of those shitheads. He wants his girls to be happy after all the shit they have been through already. He wants their kids to grow up and be the next generation of Dragons, and I want all that too, but how? How do we fight a war we can’t see coming? How do we fight a war that could last for years?
Fuck, fuck, fuck what did any of them do to deserve this?
I know this all started because of that greedy bastard, Antonio, wanting Bella for himself and to take over as head of the Italian Mafia in New York. He set off this whole fuckin’ domino effect and got our Club involved.
“Jess, we need to cut their balls off before they come after our women and children. We need to exhaust all our resources and find them first. We get Alejandro, we win this shit for good with the Cartel. Maybe after that, Ace can talk to his friend Ryan, the Halos’ Prez, and resolve things with them. If not, they wouldn’t be as bad to fight. Ricco owns Chicago and has the power there to push them out if it comes down to it,” he says, and his wheels continue to turn. I can see the look in his eyes changing to the look he gets in the shed. His body is quivering on my lap. He’s serious, and he’s out for fuckin’ blood.
“Babe,” I say calmly. “We can’t do that.” As good as it sounds, how would we? How are we gonna find Alejandro first?
“Yes, we can, Jess. Look hear me out. Throttle, Shadow, and Beast are excellent with computers, they can track him down. We have the other Clubs with computer guys, and Ricco has resources we have access too. Use them, used them all until we exhaust our options or get his sorry ass. We have the power behind us to take them all out before they take us. We can’t just sit here with our dicks in our hands and not fight with all our strengths. We need to do this for all those women they have hurt and prevent anymore by their hands.” He sounds so sure that this plan will work.
He runs his hand on the side of my face and leans into my ear. “Sweets, please. You and my girls and their babies are my world. I can’t lose any of you to those despicable men,” he says with desperation, then kisses my neck.
For him, I will do anything. Maybe with a few tweaks, it could. I believe in him and will stand by him. My guy is smart and doesn’t always think with just his heart when it comes to family. He knows how to departmentalized shit, which is not an easy feat in our world with loved ones.
“Okay, babe, I’ll call Gator and stress the importance of this. It’s an excellent plan to bring to the table, and I’ll stand beside you in Church.” I do just that and Gator agrees it’s a good angle and will bring it up at Church.
The guys agree with Ces, and they are all eager to get started right away.
After many long hours into the late night, we have a solid plan. Iceman and Bull will be moving their families into an apartment and build houses on the other side of the Compound once theirs are sold.
Gator is implementing Sundays as family day for cookouts, to keep everyone in house and close. Once a month, we’ll have the other Clubs join us and have Church to gather information. It’s a perfect plan to keep the girls off our trail.
For the next month and a half, we gather all the intel we can. Between our Club and the Mafia, we have been taking out Cartel men left and right. We’re getting closer to Alejandro, I can feel it. One of Ricco’s guys found out that he’s in Illinois in one of the Halos’ safe houses. We haven’t pinpointed exactly which one, but we will. We’ve been doing all this while keeping the girls in the dark about everything.
We’re in the middle of our monthly Church with all the patched members. It’s Thursday night, and the girls are cooking while we argue over our findings. Banging erupts at the door, and we almost miss it over the loud voices. When Gunner opens it, the guys shut up, and we see Bella standing there.
“Jules is in labor. Her water just broke. We have to get her to the hospital, now. Sam called Dr. Metcalf to let her know we’re on our way. We have to leave now; her contractions are four minutes apart,” Bella heaves out, panicking. Ace jumps up and runs out to his girl, and we all follow.
Beast takes Bella and the boys with Cindy in their cage. Blaze gets Brook and Angel settled in his. Ces and I mount my bike along with the guys, and we follow the cages to the hospital.
Jules and Ace’s little boy come into the world a couple of hours later. Jules went all natural, no drugs. My brother, Ace, just about lost his shit from seeing her in that much pain, and not being able to stop it. We heard both of them screaming in the lobby for twenty minutes until she delivered. That girl impressed the shit out of all of us.
When we were able to go meet our newest member, I couldn’t get over how much he looks like Ace.
“It’s a mini Ace. What is our little prince’s name?” Ces asks standing next to me as I hold baby blue in my arms.
Jules looks over at Ace with a tired smile on her face. He’s smiling bigger than he ever has.
“Baby blue’s name is Zander. Our boy’s name is Zander,” he says, kissing Jules on the lips as he sits on the bed next to her. I watch them gaze into each other’s eyes, then I have to look away, feeling I’m intruding on their intimate moment.
“He is adorable, isn’t he?” I whisper to Ces as he runs his fingers up and down the sides of the sleeping baby’s face. I see the desire to hold him in his eyes, so I hand him off to my Ces next. He kisses me on the side of my mouth and cradles the baby in his arms.
“Oh, Jess, I can’t wait to have one, one day, but for now, the three princes and the little princess are enough. We got to end this first, though,” he says in my ear. I nod and kiss his forehead.
He passes the baby off, and everyone gets their time with Zander. After an hour or so we all head home for the night.
We keep the hospital highly guarded for the next couple of days until they are released.
Baby Zander has been home for a few weeks now. He is such a wonderful baby that sleeps most of the time and just gets up to eat every few hours. My Ces is with her, Bella, Gigi, and the boys most days. They still have their online store and supplier to keep up with for their business.
We still leave once a month on our runs. Luckily, Gator allows Ces and me to ride together. Since the runs involve the delivery of illegal guns, and the Club is trying to step away from that, we’ve done less. The guys are looking into buying a few restaurants in the area for the Club. A couple of wing joints and a burger hut. We already own a few strip malls, and they do very well. The many strip clubs and bars the Club owns is where the majority of our money comes from. Skull, Gunner, Rock, and Bones run them for us.
Every Thursday night we still gather
at the Clubhouse for dinner. The girls love cooking for all of us in the new kitchen. It’s great to do these things as a family and hang out in the media room with all the kids. Our family has grown, and we have more loved ones to protect.
Ces and I talked about having a family and adopting. We’re putting those plans on hold for now. As much as my guy wants a baby, he sees it’s not the right time. Doesn’t mean every time, he holds one of the babies, and I see the wanting in his eyes, it doesn’t hurt me. I’m not getting any younger here, and I want this with him too. Maybe when things are resolved with the Cartel and the Halos, we’ll revisit that discussion then.
For now, we’re doing what we can, following every lead and collecting all the intel we get. We’re gonna get that slimy bastard soon, I promise you. They are not coming to our house again and bombing us. We’ll be going to where that fuckface is holding up. Ricco’s men will probably get their hands on him first. We’ll have to take a trip to Chicago to end this once and for all.
The holidays are fast approaching, and I can’t wait to spend our first as a married couple. Having all the kids and shopping for them is so much fun. I haven’t seen my Ces this excited about anything. Those kids are never gonna want for anything and will have too much. Ces and I talked to Gator about fencing off an area just for the kids. Their own personal playground with a princess side for Angel and a fort for the boys. We ordered a playhouse and playset with swings and a slide.
Not only are the kids gonna have fun there, we will too. Ces designed it and ordered everything. it should be done by Christmas, and I can’t wait to see everyone’s faces.
It’s all about the women and children around here. Happy women make for a happy home ,and they all give us one. My guy makes the best home for me, though. For now, we’ll watch over and protect them from all the shit Antonio brought to our door. So, with my guy and my brothers by my side, we will concentrate on conquering this war, and end it for good, for our family.