by KJ Dahlen
Those first few weeks had been touch and go for him. He hadn’t been aware of any of it though as the doctor kept him knocked out long enough to see if he would live or die. When he recovered enough to be moved, they took him to a private clinic for more recovery. Finally, three months after the shooting, he had recovered enough to wake up from his medical induced sleep.
As Priest told him the next few months weren’t easy, but they had been necessary. Taking it slow and easy, he endured three separate surgeries to transform his face.
While he recovered from that, he’d seen a plastic surgeon about reconstructing his looks. He would still be who he always was but with a new face, he could become whoever he wanted to be. Priest had told him he would have to give up his past and work on becoming a new person and he had. When he finally walked out of that damn clinic, Bane Jessin was nothing more than a memory. He’d walked out as Theo Orlan Franks. Priest had built him a new life, providing a new background and legal records to prove who he was.
But with everything he’d done, he was still a work in progress. He could have ignored the rumors he’d heard, ignored the threat that was coming and just let the chips fall where they may, but then Cricket had done something that made no sense to him.
She had buried what she thought was his body. He had to wonder why after all he’d put her through, why she would do that. He hadn’t expected that. He figured no one would step up and claim what was supposed to be his remains. But she had and she had buried him on the grounds of the compound.
Not only that but she hadn’t wanted to take what he left for her. She hadn’t ripped his home apart, selling his most prized possessions. She had only taken her father’s blades back. The members of the MC had taken a few possessions, but they had left most of his things behind. Priest had bought his house and kept it in a trust for him. He’d been glad of that. That house had been the one thing he had left of his old life. That house held secrets and when he was able, he went to retrieve those secrets.
She had taken a good chunk of his money but again, she hadn’t taken it all, only what she could carry. She had shared her fortune not only with Dusty but with the entire MC. He hadn’t understood her actions but he was beginning to.
He looked over at Sarah. She was about 5 years older than Cricket and life had been hard for her. She shared bits and pieces of her life but she still had some secrets. Over the last twelve months, he’d grown close to her. He’d offered her the same choice given to him. A life do over. She’d been the one he woke up to that first day after the doctors brought him out of the coma.
Her touch was one he found he could tolerate. He’d never been able to stand being touched. He thought he found that with Grace but not even her touch calmed the beast inside him. But when Sarah touched him the beast calmed. He’d never had that before. The longer he was around her the more he needed her touch. They weren’t lovers. They were friends. He hadn’t been ready all this time. He was still working on being a new man.
Over the last year, he had learned some about her but not everything. Her secrets she held deep inside her. Often, the nights he couldn’t sleep they would sit up and talk, bits and pieces of their reflective pasts without revealing too much. He hadn’t pushed her to divulge her secrets yet but he knew one day he would.
He was learning to trust again and that was something he’d never had before. Everyone in his life except for maybe his grandfather had betrayed him at some point but he didn’t think Sarah would. She didn’t know his secrets either. He found her presence comforting and was beginning to lean on her, to need her right beside him every day.
She told him Priest had contacted her to nurse him back to health. When he asked how she knew the man call Priest, all she would tell him was that she’d been in a bad place and he came to rescue her. They remained friends, although she didn’t really know that much about him. When he called her to do him this favor, she came without hesitation.
When he asked her to accompany him here, she’d hesitated. Finally, she had admitted she didn’t feel comfortable being here. It was too close to her past. A past she had yet to share with him. Theo told her he would protect her and she told him he’d better.
He decided to let a little bit of his past come out. He wanted to trust her with the truth about him. “Did you notice that woman with the stroller that just walked past us?” he asked.
Sarah nodded. “What about her?”
“She’s my niece and she is the wife of a member of the local MC. I came here to warn the leader of that MC that trouble is coming his way. You see, seventeen years ago he killed a man that needed killing. Now the old president’s brother and dad are finally out of prison and they are looking for Deke and seem to want to set right the wrong they feel was done to their kin. They want revenge for their brother and son and they don’t care who they have to take out to get to Deke. I have a feeling this goes beyond Deke and that they want to wipe out the entire MC and just step into their lives here. They figure the Club belongs to them as deke killed the president years ago. Any threat to the MC is a possible threat to her and my grandson. I cannot and will not allow that.”
“And what do you think you can do about it?” Sarah asked softly. “You can’t stop them from coming.”
“No I can’t. But I can warn Deke and his boys that they’re coming. At least I can give them that much.”
“Why? Why would you do that?”
Theo thought about her question for a long time before he answered, “Not so long ago, I was a different man. We’ve talked a little about this over the year we’ve been together. The life I led was not one I care to even think about today but back then, my niece was willing to give her all for these men. I was back then, the kind of man that only took and took. She showed me another way altogether and I’m trying to be a better man.”
“But honey, you can’t go back. You can’t always fix what you once broke.” Sarah sighed. “Life doesn’t work that way. You can regret things you’ve done in the past but you can’t take back what you did.”
Theo nodded. “I know. But she put her life on the line for them and she didn’t have to do that. They didn’t ask her to do that but she did anyway. They proved they were worthy of her sacrifice. She stood her ground and now it’s my turn to prove I am worthy of what she did for them. What she did for me.” He shrugged, “Maybe I just need to prove to myself that I have changed, that I can be worthy of her trust.”
Sarah studied him for a moment then nodded. “Ok. I can understand that. So how are you going to approach this...them?”
Theo shrugged. “That’s what I’m not sure of. They won’t know the new me. I have to figure out a way to make contact with them without them remembering the man I once was. That man is gone and he has to stay gone. I can’t go back to what I once was. This will be my test.”
Just then, another man walked up to their table and sat down. He frowned at Theo and glared at Sarah pulling his sunglasses high on his head. “What the fuck are you doing here?”
Theo stared back. “I’m here to warn the MC about a man named Oscar Buckley.”
“You shouldn’t be here, it’s too soon. Buckley isn’t your concern or at least he shouldn’t be,” the Priest stated. “Why did you really come here?”
“That is a long story and I don’t really want to sit here out in the open and explain it all to you.” He had been picking up the feeling he was being watched. He casually looked around and caught the sight of an older man staring at their table.
Theo immediately knew he belonged to an MC. Maybe not any more but he had at one point. He looked casually over at Priest and said, “We’re being watched and I don’t like it.”
Priest didn’t look around but nodded. “Ok, let go somewhere we can talk. Where is this man?”
“To your left, three tables away.” Theo reached for his wallet to leave money for his and Sarah’s coffee. He pulled out more than enough cash and dropped it on the table.
Sarah got to h
er feet and Priest stood up. Before he stepped away, he glanced over to the table Theo told him about and he clocked the man sitting there. He was staring at Theo, so Priest got a good look at him.
He saw the same thing Theo saw. The man was older and a past member of an MC.
He didn’t make eye contact. Before they moved away, he covered his eyes with mirrored sunglasses and tapped his left bow.
They walked the two blocks to a hotel and went inside. They didn’t hurry but instead walked casually so the two blocks took several minutes to traverse.
Priest led the way and they went up to the second floor to his room. Unlocking the door, he ushered Theo and Sarah inside. He turned and looked across the hall to the door opposite his own. It opened and a man appeared. The other man stepped out and handed him a piece of paper. The door closed again and Priest went inside his own room.
He took off the sunglasses and looked over at Theo. “Ok, what’s going on and why did you come here? This was your past and I told you, you had to make a clean break with everything and everyone from your past in order to have a new life. You shouldn’t be here.”
“I came here to warn Deke about Oscar and Matty Buckley. They both just got out of prison in Maine and are looking for the man who killed Oscar’s son, Dennis.”
“Who killed him and why would Deke be interested in this news?”
“I’ve been running background checks on these guys. My niece Cricket and grandson Dusty live here and I want them to be safe. I found out seventeen years ago when Deke and his friends Gator and Reva came here and decided to stay, the President of the Satan’s Spawn MC was a real bastard. His real name was Dennis Buckley, his road name was Bear and he gave the MC a bad name in this town.”
Priest shrugged. “So what business is that here and now?”
“Deke shot and killed the man after he raped and stabbed a kid he took hostage. Then Deke took over the MC.”
Priest shook his head. “Old man, you need to dig a little deeper. Deke didn’t shoot Bear. Oh, he beat hell out of him but he didn’t kill him. Not to say he wouldn’t have but someone else pulled the trigger. His own VP, a man known as Breaker shot Bear before Bear could throw a knife at Deke’s back.”
Theo crossed his arms over his chest and glared at the other man. “I don’t think Oscar and Matty will care who pulled the trigger. According to rumor, they left Maine three days ago. They both made comments they were coming after the man who took the MC away from Bear.”
Priest nodded. “I’ve been monitoring them too. I knew about this as well,” he admitted. “They are hell bent for leather and taking no prisoners either. In fact, they aren’t even trying to hide what they’re doing. They want everyone in the biker world to know exactly what they’re doing and why.”
Theo looked at Sarah and frowned. “What exactly are they doing?”
“They are gathering all the old members of the MC, the ones that left when Deke took over, or rather the ones who are still alive. It has been a while, as you know. My contacts tell me they are raising hell along the way. They are building their own army of MC wannabe’s. They want enough power behind them to take the MC back from Deke.”
“How the hell are they going to do that?” Theo asked.
“They plan on walking over Deke’s dead body right into the power positions. Anyone who doesn’t like it will die right along with him. And that includes women and kids.”
“Fucking hell...” Theo whispered.
Priest handed over the paper that his man across the hall had given him.
“What’s this?” Theo asked as he took the paper.
“The man at the table in the café. His name is Kyle Ruppert, known as Breaker in the MC world.”
“How the hell did you get this so fast? We just left the café?” Theo was stunned.
Priest smiled. “My man James. He’s very fast and usually, right on the mark. We’ve been digging into the old MC, so we can identify the players. We’ve been looking into this since Oscar and Matty got out of prison. I was hearing the rumors while they were still inside.” Priest sobered. “My question is what is Breaker doing here after all this time?”
“Maybe he heard the same rumors we did.” Theo shrugged. “Why don’t we find out?”
“Already ahead of you.” Priest nodded. “James is bringing him to us.”
Just then, a knock came at the door.
Priest walked over and looked through the peephole then quickly opened the door.
James ushered in a man sporting a few bruises and a split lip.
Breaker glared back at the man who pushed him into the room. “What the fuck do you people want with me? I ain’t doing anything wrong.”
“We only want answers old man,” Priest told him. “We aren’t going to hurt you.”
Breaker squinted as he judged if they were telling the truth or not. After a moment or so, he finally nodded. “What do you want to know?”
“Well for one, why did you leave the Satan’s Spawn MC?” Theo asked.
Breaker shrugged as if it were no big deal. “I got too old. There comes a time in every man’s life when whether he wants it or not, he simply gets to old. I was older than most of the guys in the MC when Deke took over. Finally, it was time. Deke and I left on good terms.”
“Why are you here right now?” Theo demanded.
Breaker gazed at him for a minute then said, “I don’t know who you are but that’s between me and the MC.”
“My name is Theo Franks and my niece and grandson are part of the MC. I’m here to look out for them.”
Breaker looked over at Sarah. “And her? Is she your woman?”
Theo glanced over at Sarah and nodded. “I guess you could say that.”
Sarah’s eyes grew wide as she stared back at him. They had been together for almost a year now but only as friends. They hadn’t taken that last step between friends to lovers yet.
“How much do you know about Bear’s family?” Priest asked breaking the silence in the room.
Breaker snorted. “I know his old man is finally out of prison, both the old man and his younger son. I also know both of them are coming here with plans to take the MC back.” Shaking his head he said, “One of my buddies did time with Oscar and Oscar liked to run off a bit in the mouth. He was looking for his own guys while still inside. My friend told me he was there the day Oscar got out. He said there were four guys waiting for him outside the walls. He told me those guys were hard core badasses and most MC’s wouldn’t have them. At least not the ones he knew. Said they looked like Sons of Anarchy on steroids.”
“And that is why you came back here isn’t it?” Priest asked.
Breaker turned his head to glare at the other man. “Oscar and Matty Buckley are nothing but bad news. Bear was tough but Oscar is ten times worse. He went to jail thirty years ago on a murder charge and left his two boys on their own. The MC looked out for them as best they could but Bear just got wilder and wilder as he grew up. He was uncontrollable then and he got what he deserved in the end. It took Deke to show us that.”
“What did the old man go to jail for?” Theo asked.
“He shot his wife when he caught her in bed with his best friend. When the truth came out in court it seems his wife didn’t want the other man, he forced himself on her and she was trying to get away when Oscar came in.” Breaker told them. “He got twenty years for that murder. The DA called it second degree murder with special circumstances, but old Oscar couldn’t keep his nose clean inside the joint, he got extra years for a shanking inside. The guy wasn’t dead just left in a wheelchair for the rest of his life.”
“And the brother?”
Breaker shrugged. “He served ten years for armed robbery and attempted murder. Following in daddy’s footsteps all the way. Those two are very bad news and the men they’re riding with are as bad if not worse than they are.”
“How many men has Oscar picked up along the way?” Priest questioned.
“I’ve hear
d about a dozen or so.” Breaker looked them both in the eyes.
“Deke can handle that many.” Priest nodded.
Breaker shook his head. “I don’t think you understand something here. These men don’t give a shit about the law, they don’t care about who they have to kill to get what they want either. From the rumors I’ve heard, they are working their way from Maine in no particular hurry and they are taking no prisoners. Right now, they’re building a rep for themselves and it isn’t a good one. They’re looking forward to the blood bath they hope to have once they get here. So far, they have four deaths to their belts and they plan on wiping the Sin’s Bastards off the fuckin map. They will kill every man, woman and kid in that MC. Then take over the compound and businesses Deke and his boys have set up.” He turned to Theo. “That will include your niece and grandson. They’ve had scouts come and go and the scouts have told them that Deke’s got several business’ going and he’s making good money. They plan on making even more by bringing the drug trade back to this area. And that’s something Deke didn’t want. He brought back a safe environment to not only the MC but this entire town. He looks out for the town’s people here too and they have come to realize that, realize and appreciate it. If the MC falls under Oscar’s rule, they won’t have another safe day.”
Theo’s fingers turned to fists. “They won’t get the chance. I won’t let them anywhere near Cricket and Dusty.”
Breaker shrugged. “They could be here in hours or days. War is coming to Troy and no one can stop it.”
“Watch me,” Theo vowed.
Chapter Two
An hour later Breaker was gone. Theo, Priest and Sarah were alone again. He’d told him all he knew about Oscar, Matty and Bear. Now the three of them needed to make plans.
Priest called Deke to set up a meeting. As much as Theo wanted to be present, he knew he couldn’t be. He couldn’t let himself be dragged back into his old life. That wasn’t what he wanted. His do over would have been for nothing if anyone in the MC knew he was still alive. He just couldn’t take the risk of anyone recognizing him. He might not look like the man he once was but his mannerisms were still the same and he couldn’t risk it.