Kings of Mayhem (The Kings of Mayhem Book 1)

by Penny Dee

  My smile faded. “He’s got two broken legs, some pretty serious maxillofacial trauma and a hole in his neck, but he’s going to be okay.”

  “Maxio-what?” Isaac asked, looking confused.

  Sometimes I forgot medical terminology was basically a second language. It was easier to put it in layman’s terms to explain it. “His face looks like he’s been beaten with a baseball bat.”

  “Damn,” Isaac shook his head.

  “Do we know what happened?” Ronnie asked.

  “I have no idea.” I gestured toward Michelle who was leaving one of the ER cubicles farther down the corridor. She was patched up but still looking shaken and dazed. “You might want to ask her.”

  Caleb and Isaac both turned to look.

  “I’m on it,” Isaac said, before walking off toward the bruised and shaken blonde girl.

  Ronnie turned to Caleb. “Where’s your brother?”

  “He had to head over to Head Quarters.”

  Displeasure bit into Ronnie’s face, and she folded her arms across her impressive rack. “What’s up at the pussy playground now?”

  “Tito.”

  Ronnie looked even more unimpressed. “What’s that little pervert upset about?”

  I didn’t know what Head Quarters was but I could hazard a guess.

  While Caleb spoke to Ronnie, I pulled my handbag over my shoulder and turned to my mom. “Are you heading home?”

  I explained how I had to ride in with the ambulance and that Sheriff Buckman was going to arrange for my car to be dropped off at her place.

  “I have to head over to Sticky Fingers first.”

  Sticky Fingers was my mom’s cake shop. She was a talented cake designer, well known across three counties for her elaborate wedding and celebration cakes.

  “We can drop you on the way,” she suggested.

  I shook my head. Her cake shop was in the other direction.

  “I’ll get a cab into town,” I said. “The airline lost my bag so I need to pick up a change of clothes.”

  Isaac jogged up the hallway to rejoin us, his face serious. He looked at Caleb. “Think we need to call a meeting. Looks like we may have a problem,” he said.

  “What sort of problem?” Ronnie asked.

  Isaac’s brow furrowed. “Michelle just told me someone deliberately ran them off the road.” Caleb and Isaac exchanged a look.

  “Payback?” Caleb suggested.

  “Don’t know,” Isaac looked concerned. “But we need to find out. Let’s get to the clubhouse and speak to Bull.”

  Bull was Ronnie’s brother, and from what I could make out, the current president of the Kings.

  “I’ll call Cade.” Isaac turned to me and winked. “It was really good to see you.”

  Caleb agreed. “Welcome home, Indy.”

  I smiled. “Thanks.”

  After they left, I turned to my mom. “I’ll see you at home?”

  My mom hugged me again and we held each other for the longest moment.

  “It’s good to have you home, baby girl.”

  Riding the elevator down to the ground floor, I tried to push it all to the back of my mind. Five minutes back in Destiny and there was already drama. I didn’t know what the possible payback was about and I couldn’t help but wonder what bullshit was going on.

  Then I remembered this wasn’t my world anymore and I really didn’t want to know.

  INDY

  Now

  Because I needed to buy clothes, I took a cab to Main Street. The only clothing shop in town was a department store called McGovern’s. It was Destiny’s version of Walmart and smelled like a stale old movie theatre. In twelve years it hadn’t changed.

  I wandered around the drab store feeling out of place and trying not to breathe in the stale air. Lifeless elevator music scratched and crackled through the old speakers in the ceiling, while flustered mothers pushed their carts around trying to shop and drink their extra large Starbucks while their children hollered and whined at their feet. Toward the back of the store, right beside women’s underwear, someone had vomited all over the floor.

  Thirty minutes later, I had a few pairs of underwear, a change of bras, a pair of black pants, and two blouses.

  And probably scabies.

  I was about to pay for my items when I heard a voice behind me.

  “Indigo? Indigo Parrish?”

  I closed my eyes and swore under my breath. I was hoping to avoid anyone while I was here, and I knew that voice.

  I sucked in a deep breath and turned around.

  “Hi, Mallory,” I said brightly.

  Mallory Massey. One of my best friends in high school.

  “Oh my Lord, it really is you!” she said with a huge grin. Her lips were still painted the bright red she wore in school and her hair still tumbled around her face in thick waves. But she looked older. Frayed around the edges. She was also heavily pregnant.

  She pulled me in for a big hug, the bracelets on her arms jangling and her big baby belly pushing into me as she hugged me tight.

  “It’s so good to see you. I didn’t think I’d ever lay my eyes on you again. Aren’t you some fancy doctor in the city now?”

  “I’m a trauma doctor at SeaTac Medical.”

  Mallory looked blank.

  “In Seattle.”

  “Wow. That must be exciting.” She popped her gum.

  I nodded toward her big belly. “Congratulations,” I said.

  Once upon a time, Mallory and I could talk for hours, but that was a long time ago. Now it was just awkward. Life had definitely taken us down different paths.

  “Thanks. This is baby number five.” She rubbed the bulge through her dress. “This one’s a girl, finally! I have four boys at home, can you imagine?”

  I couldn’t.

  “But me and Brody really wanted a girl this time.”

  “Brody? As in Brody Meyers?”

  She grinned. “Nabbed myself the quarterback.”

  I nodded. “And five kids, that’s . . . awesome.”

  “Oh, baby number one and three ain’t his,” she said with a wave of her hand. “Lloyd Peterson got me pregnant just after graduation. You remember, Lloyd?”

  I did. He tried kissing me in fourth grade so I had kicked him in the shins and pushed him over.

  “Lloyd didn’t stick around. He met some fancy girl in college. Then Brody started hanging around and that led to baby number two. But you know, we were young and he left for a bit, so I started dating this guy from outta town and he gave me boy number three.” She laughed again. “Then Brody came knocking on my door again, wanting to give things another go. My fourth boy came along nine months later. He’s only a year old now, can you believe that? And, well, my man just can’t keep his hands off me, and look where we are today.” She rubbed her belly again.

  I smiled. Mallory seemed happy. Content. It was actually really refreshing.

  “Boy, you look like you’ve been playing in the mud,” she said, noticing the mud and blood on my clothes. “Is that blood?”

  “I came across an accident on the way into town,” I explained.

  “Was anybody hurt?”

  “Well, yeah . . . that’s where the blood came from.”

  Her eyes went as round as saucers. “What happened?”

  I waved it off, not wanting to rehash the story. “A motorcycle accident on the road into town. They’re okay.”

  Mallory looked impressed. “I bet your life is real exciting. Being a doctor in the city and all.”

  “I do okay.”

  “You must come for dinner before you leave. We have a real nice double-wide at the park.”

  “That sounds, you know . . . awesome. But I’m only here really briefly for my father’s funeral and then I’ll be leaving.” I handed my credit card over to the cashier. “But thanks for the offer.”

  Mallory’s face fell, but she gave me a self-conscious smile. “Okay, then. Well, it was real nice seeing you again. Sorry about your
daddy.”

  When she wheeled her cart away, I felt bad for brushing her off. I was keen to get home, get cleaned up, and brace myself for when Cade and I finally came face to face. But Mallory deserved better than a shitty brush off.

  “Hey Mallory,” I called out. She swung back to look at me. “Is that The Last Stop Holiday Park?”

  She looked a little surprised. “Yeah. Van number six.”

  I nodded. “Would it be okay if I dropped by before I left town?”

  She smiled brightly. “I’d really like that.”

  I smiled too. “Yeah, so would I.”

  And I really meant it.

  INDY

  Now

  The house looked the same. Even after twelve years, it looked exactly the same. White timber. Dark navy shutters. Slate roof. Little porch.

  I paid the cab driver and climbed out, but stood on the curb well after he drove away because being back was a giant mind fuck. I looked around me and clutched the strap of my handbag like it was the only thing standing between me and the horrible memories of my past. Mom’s Mercedes was in the driveway. On the next driveway over was Ronnie’s Mustang. They were home.

  “Baby girl!” I looked up. My mom stood in the open doorway. “Did you find some clothes?”

  I held up my McGovern’s bag and she pulled a face. “I haven’t been there for years. Can’t stand the place. Smells like stale popcorn.” She smiled across at me. “Well, come on, let’s get you inside. Ronnie and I are getting dinner sorted. We thought it would be nice for all of us to have dinner together, but I can fix you something to eat now if you’re hungry.”

  I hadn’t eaten since breakfast but shook my head. My stomach was in knots. Dinner for all of us more than likely meant dinner with Cade, and I wasn’t sure I was ready for that. It had already been a long day.

  “Come on, let’s at least get you a glass of wine.”

  I closed the door behind me and followed her into the family room. For a moment I paused, letting the weirdness fill me and the goosebumps prickle along my skin. The smell. The feelings. They were all still here.

  I followed Mom into the large kitchen off to the right. It was huge and open planned, with gleaming, granite countertops, and stark white cabinets. I glanced over at the fridge with photos and menus stuck to the front with magnets I had made in craft class when I was twelve. A strange, tingling sensation curled around the base of my spine and began its ascent up my back. Life had changed when I was twelve.

  Ronnie pulled a bottle of wine from the rack beside the refrigerator and poured three glasses. She handed me one. “Here, you look like you could use it.”

  I accepted it gratefully. Wine was a good idea. Lots of it.

  “The airline rang,” I said to my mom. “They found my bag. It will be here Tuesday.”

  “In time for the funeral,” she said. “If it doesn’t get here by then, we can go into Humphrey to get you something.”

  The knock at the front door made me almost jump out of my skin. We turned all our heads and watched a fiery redhead walk in. Immediately, the energy in the room lit up like a night sky on the Fourth of July.

  “Grandma Calley,” I whispered in disbelief.

  “Yeah, she’s still alive,” Ronnie muttered beside me.

  Sybil Calley shot her daughter-in-law a warning look as she approached. But her face softened when she reached me, and her wise old eyes twinkled as she pressed her palms to either side of my face.

  “Beautiful Indigo Blue,” she said, using my first and second name. “It is good to see you, my girl.”

  “It’s good to see you, too, Grandma Sybil.”

  She kissed me on both sides of my cheek. Growing up, I always thought she was the most interesting person in the world.

  “I’m sorry about your daddy,” she said with a sharp nod.

  “Thank you. I appreciate that.”

  “I don’t expect this visit to pass without you and I getting together for a one-on-one catch-up, you hear?”

  “Of course.”

  She patted my cheek. “Such a beautiful girl.”

  Her eyes shifted to my mom and then back to me. They were wise and knowing, and they glittered as if she was aware of things I couldn’t possibly fathom. I smiled uncertainly. Sometimes I had the feeling that Sybil Calley knew about things before they happened.

  She took my hand. “Come on, let’s get dinner started. I’m famished.”

  Cade, Isaac, and Caleb were going to be late. Apparently, Caveman being ping-ponged off the road initiated some kind of urgent meeting at the clubhouse. So Ronnie, Sybil, Mom, and I caught up over wine, homemade lasagna, and salad. They told me about Chastity, the youngest of the Calley children, who was away at college in California, and Ronnie showed me a photo of her on her phone.

  Being a Calley, she was strikingly beautiful, with raven black hair and bright blue eyes. I didn’t doubt she was probably enjoying the freedom of being away from the over-protective eye of the club and her older brothers.

  I remembered how smothering it had felt being an MC kid. Always watched. Always protected. Every move scrutinized by someone. Apparently, Chastity was dating someone but refused to bring him home to meet the family because she knew how her older brothers would be, and she wasn’t sure if it was serious enough to subject anyone to that.

  “Do Cade and Caleb still live at home?” I asked before I could stop myself. I glared at the almost-empty glass of wine in my hand, blaming it for making me ask the question. I didn’t need to know anything about Cade and what he did.

  “They both split their time between the clubhouse and home,” Ronnie replied. She leaned over and refilled my wine glass, then settled back in her chair. “Home is for family. Clubhouse is for other interests.”

  Meaning, Ronnie didn’t allow the boys to bring their hook-ups home.

  “They’ve expanded the clubhouse now, so most members have a room there,” Mom explained.

  I hated the clubhouse. A few weeks before the West Destiny High School shooting, Garrett Calley had asked me to meet him there, under the guise of discussing his graduation present to Cade. Naïvely, I had gone to meet him.

  My relationship with Garrett Calley had deteriorated the moment Cade told him he was following me to college. Garrett didn’t like it. Not one little bit. He didn’t want his son moving away. He wanted him to stay in Destiny and join him in the MC. He’d already lost one son, Chance, to the Navy SEALs, and wasn’t about to let his second-born son leave.

  When I arrived at the clubhouse I had knocked on the door to his office and walked in, not thinking. Garrett was at his desk, his head dropped back against the leather headrest of his chair, while his hands were tangled in the blonde hair of the MC groupie giving him a blowjob.

  Hearing me walk in, Garrett had simply looked at me, grinned, and then come.

  Repulsed, I had run out of there, determined more than ever to leave club life behind me.

  A week later, I had walked in on his son fucking someone who wasn’t me.

  Less than a year after that, Garrett Calley was dead.

  I stood up and started to clear the table. I hated this fucking place.

  As I packed the dishwasher, I heard the rumble of approaching motorcycles and I straightened. Instantly, my stomach knotted into a big ball. Any minute Cade would walk through the door and I would come face to face with my past.

  I wasn’t ready. I reached for my glass and drained it, accidentally banging it down on the bench. When the front door opened, I jumped and knocked it over.

  “Oh, shit!” I said, quickly picking it up. It was broken.

  “It’s okay,” Mom said, taking the broken glass from me and nodding toward the front door. She had a small smile on her face. “I think someone is here to see you.”

  I swung around and there he was.

  After twelve years.

  Cade.

  My stomach knotted.

  He was taller than I remembered. Like, mountain man tall. A
nd his hair was shorter than when he was a teenager, but still as dark. Tattoos covered both of his arms, which looked strong and muscular and his broad chest strained against the fabric of his plain black T-shirt. Everything about him screamed big. His lip ring was gone and he no longer had the face of a boy. It was all man. He was all man. I could almost smell the testosterone radiating off him.

  Blue eyes zeroed in on me as he closed the distance between us, and for the first time in twelve years, put his arms around me.

  “Indy.” His voice was deep and manly, and his breath was warm and sweet on my throat. I was immediately engulfed in the intoxicating scent of him and accepted his warmth as he held me against him. He was big and strong, and I could feel his power in his embrace, which was all too familiar.

  Wanting to put some distance between us, I stepped back. “Hi, Cade.”

  I forced a smile, unsure of what to do. I had given up on this day ever happening because I’d never intended to return to Destiny. But it had been an unrealistic intention, because my father’s partying and hard lifestyle was always going to take him out sooner rather than later. I was always going to have to come back here to bury him.

  “I’m so sorry about Jackie,” he said gently. “We all loved your old man.”

  I nodded at him, fully aware of how awkward this was. He gave me a gentle squeeze on my arm before leaving me to greet his mom and grandmother.

  Behind him, Isaac and Caleb barreled into the room. They said hi to me, then stopped to greet their mom and grandmother with a kiss, before sitting down at the dinner table and digging into large helpings of lasagna.

  “Everything okay?” Ronnie asked, referring to Caveman and why he was run off the road.

  “All good,” Caleb reassured his mom with a wink, like it was no big deal. “Cade and a couple of the guys are going to meet with the Knights tomorrow.”

  The Knights—or The Knights of Hell MC—had been a rival club since anyone could remember.

  I turned away and picked up my overnight bag. I didn’t need to get involved.

  “I’m going to my room,” I said to my mom. “I need to freshen up.”