by KJ Dahlen
Shayna made herself a packet of oatmeal for breakfast. Smothering it in brown sugar and butter, she ate it standing. Looking over at the crew Sean had working for him, she had to shake her head. These were just kids. Between the age of ten and fifteen.
Benjy was the oldest next to her. She was twenty-two, Benjy was fifteen, Orrin was fourteen. Then there was Arthur and Lindsay who were thirteen and Danny at twelve, but he couldn’t get out there and steal for Sean, so Sean considered him worthless. Margret was also twelve and the youngest was Ponch at eleven.
This was Sean’s crew. Kids he’d picked up living off the streets. Kids that had no one who gave a damn about them. Ones who had slipped through the cracks and landed so deep in the mud that even Sean looked good to them. He had taught them all to steal and not get caught, although he did have one who got caught, Sonny. Sonny was fifteen when he was caught four years ago.
Sonny had been Sean’s golden boy until that day. Shayna had warned him not to get too cocky but nothing had phased the boy. They had been in Rochester, New York at the time. Sean figured big enough city, plenty of places to hide in plain sight. Only that didn’t happen. Because it wasn’t the cops who discovered them, it had been the mob. Sonny had ripped off one of their businesses and they didn’t take that very well.
Sonny hit a cash checking place in mid-town. He thought he’d gotten away with it too. For two days, he bragged about the score then in the middle of the third night, Sean got company. Sonny had been followed home and these guys weren’t in a fun mood.
Sonny had brought home twenty-four thousand dollars earlier that week but when the mob guys left, Sean was beaten and bloody and forty thousand dollars out of pocket. Worse than that, the mob guys took Sonny with them. Sean packed them all up and moved them out of Rochester before the mob guys could get to their car.
No one said a word about Sonny after that. It was like he was dead to them. But it taught the kids a lesson. Sean didn’t care and wouldn’t stick up for any of them. You get caught and you’re on your own. Sean’s crew was growing distant and had been since the Sonny thing popped up. When he let Sonny go without even a struggle of any kind, they knew they could no longer trust him. But Sean didn’t see this. He was too into himself and what he needed.
Grabbing what she needed for Danny, she made her way back to his bedroom. When she opened the door, she found Sean in there staring down at Danny.
He turned to her with a look of almost hatred in his eyes before he blanked it out. “What’s wrong with him now?” Sean sneered.
“He had a fever last night but it broke about an hour ago,” Shayna told him emotionlessly. “He needs food and rest today.”
Sean waved her concern away. “He’ll be fine then. I need you to go back to that fucking shop and find a way to get inside and scope things out. You only have two days to set it up. I want to be out of this fucking town by the end of the week and I’m not leaving without the money from that job.”
Shayna stared at her uncle. “You do know that shop is under the local MC don’t you? I told you that already and the guys that own it aren’t exactly the forgiving kind.”
Sean shrugged unconcerned. “Like I fucking care. What’s an MC gonna do to me? I’m sending Benjy, Orrin and Arthur out today to get some guns. We need protection around here and on the road.”
Shayna froze at her uncle’s words. Staring at him she said, “You’ve never used guns before. Why now?”
Sean reached out and slapped her. “I don’t need to tell you my business, you little bitch. You just need to do what I tell you to do and never mind how I handle the rest of it. This is my family, my crew, not yours!”
Shayna covered the slap mark with her hand but didn’t say anything.
Sean pushed her out of his way when he left.
Danny opened his eyes when he heard the door slam shut. He looked at her face.
She knew half the skin on her left side was red, but neither of them said anything. There was really nothing to say.
When she sat down on the edge of his bed, Danny reached out and laid his hand over hers. “I hate that man. How can he be our uncle? He’s such a bastard.”
Shayna motioned for him to be quiet and began spooning the oatmeal into his mouth.
At first taste, Danny wrinkled up his nose. He really didn’t like oatmeal but it was all they had.
“So, what happened yesterday that caused the fever?” she asked him quietly.
Danny shrugged. “I don’t think I’ve been drinking enough water lately. Then I was so weak, I couldn’t get out of bed on my own and of course, he wouldn’t help me so I laid here all day.” He had a few more bites and then asked, “So what’s he got you doing now?”
Shayna really didn’t want to tell him. She didn’t want her brother to have to worry about her. Looking into his eyes she finally said, “He wants to rob a hot rod shop. He thinks they’ll have a lot of cash in the safe and tons of high end tools he can fence.”
Danny stared at her for a moment then asked, “What’s wrong then? Why don’t you want to do this?”
Shayna shrugged. Then she looked at him. She couldn’t hide her concerns from him. “The shop is in association with the local MC. I’ve heard enough about them to know they won’t just let this happen. They will come after us and you know Sean, he’ll make sure he’s the first one out and if you aren’t there he won’t care, he’ll leave you behind to face the consequences.”
“Yeah,” Danny snorted. “He’s like that. The rat.” He turned his head away for a moment then looked back at his sister. “Then don’t do it. If you don’t want this life anymore and I know you don’t, just walk away. He can’t hold you here anymore.”
Shayna reached out and cupped her brother’s jaw. “You know I can’t do that. I can’t leave you in his care. I won’t leave you behind, no matter what. I won’t do that to you.”
“Maybe it would be better if you did,” Danny whispered.
“Don’t you ever say that again!” She scolded. “You’re my brother and I’ll never leave you behind. I love you, kiddo.”
“I love you too, but you shouldn’t have to give up your life for me,” Danny whispered.
“You let me worry about that. When Karma comes to bitch slap Sean, I want a front row seat.”
Danny scoffed. “You think you’ll ever see that happen?”
Shayna thought about the mountain of a man she’d run into yesterday. Oh yeah, it would happen. When he took what wasn’t his to take, she didn’t think that man would just let it go. She shivered slightly. That man had taken her breath away and he hadn’t even touched her. The look in those beautiful eyes. It had startled the breath from her lungs. She couldn’t figure out why. Maybe because she had never seen a man like him. A real man. Strong...he also looked honest. He was probably hardworking and took care of his family too. She let out a sigh. She would never have a guy like that. So why even think about it?
“Shayna,” Sean bellowed.
Shayna shook her head. Unloading her pockets, she left her brother with enough snacks and water to last him until she got back. Leaning over him, she kissed his forehead. “Take care of yourself today.”
“Hey,” Danny called out to her. “Can you lock the door on your way out and keep the key? I really don’t want to deal with Sean today if I don’t have to.”
Shayna nodded. “You know that won’t stop him if he really wants in here, don’t you?”
Danny nodded. “Yeah, but maybe he won’t want to that bad.”
Shayna hesitated then asked, “You want me to send Beast in here to watch over you? He found me yesterday. I can bring him home with me.”
Danny shook his head. He was afraid of Sean but he was a little more afraid of what Sean would do to Beast if he were here. “Not if Sean is getting guns in the house. You know he hates that animal. He will shoot him.”
Shayna scoffed. “I’d bet on Beast getting to him before Sean could shoot him.”
Danny’s eyes twi
nkled but still shook his head. “Best not, Beast is all you got.”
Shayna leaned toward him forehead to forehead. “We got each other, bro. You keep yourself safe today. I’ll be back later ok?” She took a step away then asked, “You got the pager right?”
Her brother nodded. “Yeah, he hasn’t found it yet.”
“You know what to do if things get bad then right?” Shayna asked. “You dial 911 and send me a text. I’ll come home right away.”
Danny wanted to beg her to stay but he didn’t. He knew she had to go. “I’ll get up in a little while.” He assured her as she left the room. He heard the lock tumblers turn and he finally felt safe, even if it only lasted a little while. He was safe.
Shayna went to the living room where she faced her uncle. “You bellowed?”
Sean glared at her. “Don’t tempt me girl. You need to get in that shop and case it out. As soon as we get the guns, we’re going in and taking what we want. I want to be in and out of there in two more days. Then we’re getting the hell out of this damn town.”
Shayna frowned. “But why? We haven’t been here that long.”
“I don’t fucking have to tell you shit!” Sean screamed as he got up. Raising his hand, he stared at her for a moment then dropped his hand. “Just do your dammed job.”
Shayna stepped closer and spoke low, “I’ll do what I have to do but nothing better happen to Danny. You may have the upper hand right now but if anything happens to that kid, I’ll rain hell down on you and you won’t be able to run far enough or fast enough to get away.”
Sean scoffed as he sneered. “We’ll see bitch, we’ll see. Get the hell out of here.”
Shayna left the house. She turned and looked up to the windows of Danny’s room. He wasn’t in the window looking back at her and Shayna missed that. He was too weak to even get there now. With a heavy heart, she turned and made her way to her car and drove back to the area near the shop. She had a bad feeling about this job. A real bad feeling.
Chapter Three
Shayna parked her car two blocks away and walked through the woods to get to the place where she’d been the day before. Beast was already there waiting for her. Together, they both watched the open door of the shop. Today, there were more people there, milling around, working on the cars inside or just talking to the Morgan brothers.
An hour later, just as the shop thinned out a little bit and she thought she could approach she heard the sound that sent a rush through her. It was the sound of several motorcycles coming down the road. She stepped further back into the shadows and took note of the four men that dismounted their rides.
They were all four big men, two were older one looked enough like the Morgan brothers that he could’ve been another brother. The other older man had salt and pepper hair but was clean shaven. There was also a beast of a man, well over six foot seven inches tall and huge.
She had one hand on Beast and was kneeling in the dirt when Beast began to growl. The dog got to his feet and turned to face whatever the danger was from behind her. Shayna got up slowly and turned to face the man from yesterday. Her breath was trapped in her chest and her heart pounded like mad.
He was standing behind her and with his arms crossed over his chest and he looked formidable. Keeping his eyes on her, he nodded slowly. “I’m not here to hurt you,” he stated quietly. “But I think we need to talk.”
Shayna shrugged. “So talk.”
“Let’s go inside the shop. Some people have questions they’d like answers to.” He nodded behind her.
“Before we go anywhere, what exactly do you think I’m doing here?” Shayna shrugged. “Yesterday, I merely used your restroom and spoke to your mechanic. What’s the harm in that?”
He smiled. “Not a thing, if that’s all you did.” He cocked his head at her. “I think there’s more to it than just that, like why did you come back here today?”
“Maybe I’m just out for a walk... did you ever think about that?” she challenged him.
He nodded. “I might have if he hadn’t stayed behind watching the place for you.” He motioned toward the dog beside her.
Shayna’s eyebrow rose. “Is that a fact?” She turned toward the dog beside her and smiled. “I really can’t control him you know. He doesn’t belong to me.”
The man looked doubtful. “Does he know that?”
Shayna shrugged. “He comes and goes on his own.” She glanced over her shoulder at the shop and found a line of men looking back at her. She almost flinched. This was a bit scary. She snapped her head back and stared at the man in front of her. “What’s going on here?” she whispered, backing away a step or two. “I’m not doing anything but standing here.”
Beast stayed where he was and took on a defensive position. He saw the line of men moving toward her and he chose to face them rather than the one man behind her.
Something flashed in her peripheral vision. She turned her head and saw Benjy standing there. Shayna caught her breath and watched as Benjy stepped back in the shadows. She’d seen the look in his eyes and the smirk on his face. For some reason, Benjy hated her and she knew exactly what he would do next. Her heart hurt when she realized what just happened.
Benjy would run back to Sean and tell him she’d been caught. God only knew what Sean would do to Danny now. She turned back to the man in front of her. “What did you just do?” she whispered. “What the fuck did you just do?” she screamed. She turned to run back to her car but the man grabbed her before she could make it there.
~* * * *~
Bowie heard Beast’s growl but still stepped forward and grabbed her around the waist. He held her tight as the others rushed to join them. Bones grabbed the dog by the back of his neck and held on while Mountain and Bryon wrestled the dog away from her and Bowie.
Mountain managed to get a grip on him and he watched as Bryon slipped his belt off and put it around the dog’s throat as a leash. When he had a grip on the dog, Mountain did the same thing and together, they kept the dog stranded between them.
“Stop.” Bowie yelled at her. “I’m not going to hurt you.”
She struggled and screamed at him, “Let me go, you don’t know what you’ve done! I have to go home. I haven’t done anything here. You have no right to detain me.”
Bowie struggled to hold her. “Hold still you little hellcat.”
“No, I have to go home. You don’t understand, I have to go.”
“You aren’t going anywhere until we get some answers.” Bowie growled.
She slumped in his arms. “You don’t know understand,” she whispered brokenly. She turned in his arms. “You bastard!” She growled and raised her fist to strike him. She caught him on the jaw.
Before she could strike again, Bowie twirled her around and began walking her to the shop. “We don’t want to hurt you but you aren’t giving us much choice here.”
“I haven’t done anything to you. Just let me go and you’ll never see me again. I promise!” she wailed as she struggled to get free. Bucking and twisting, she fought him every step of the way.
“You see we can’t do that. We need to know what’s going on here, and why you seem to be casing our shop.” Bowie carried her over the threshold of the shop and released her.
The rest of the men formed a barrier across the doorway.
She began to panic, eyes going everywhere she could think of for any way to escape the situation. Looking desperate, she was huffing and gasping. She turned to Bowie, “Look mister, I really can’t stay here to answer your questions. I have to go!”
“My name is Bowie Morgan, This is Deke and Bones. You need to answer some questions before we let you go.”
“But you don’t get it,” she whispered. Wrapping her arms around her waist, she looked pale suddenly. “I have to protect Danny. He’s all I got left in this world. I just can’t lose him too....” Her words trailed off. Her eyes looked haunted as she rocked back and forth.
Bowie turned to frown at his brothers the
n turned back to her. “Are you ok?”
~* * * *~
Shayna shook her head. No, she wasn’t okay! She felt her world crumbling around her. The walls were closing in on her with the realization that after all this time... she’d finally been caught. Not even that seemed to bother her as much as the thought of what her brother might be going through right now.
Deke and Sam stepped closer and Shayna backed away. Bowie still stood closer than she liked but now, she didn’t like this at all. All the men in the room so were much bigger than she was, and she knew if they wanted to, they could really hurt her. Her eyes searched the room again and again for a way out but the only way out was through the big double doors they were guarding.
Her stomach knotted and her eyes found Bowie. She wanted to scream at him for help, then the guy they called Bones took another step closer and she panicked. She backed away keeping her eyes firmly fixed on him. “Please don’t come any closer. P-please don’t hurt me.”
Bones stopped and searched her face. He glanced quickly over at Deke and then at Bowie before turning back to her. “I’m not going to hurt you,” he told her calmly.
Shayna took another step back and slammed into a tool chest with her hip. She hit it hard enough to push it away from its position and tip it over. The clatter of tools hitting the floor all around her sent her into a nightmare of epic proportions. One of the wrenches flew off the top of the chest hitting her in the back. Shayna screamed in pain as another wrench smaller in size came down on the back of her shoulder blades.
She fell to her knees and her arms covered her head as she screamed in panic. The men stood there stunned as she curled up into a fetal position and zoned out.
Bowie rushed to her side but Deke reached out and held him for a moment. “Wait, don’t rush her too fast. Approach her slowly.”
“What the hell for?” Bowie growled not taking his eyes off the girl.
“She’s in full panic mode. You rush her before she’s ready and you’ll lose her to her own demons.” Deke nodded at her.