by Nicola Jane
“Yeah. He went with his mommy,” says Malia as she runs a brush through her doll’s hair. The funny feeling in my stomach ramps up a little.
“What do you mean?” I ask. “Went where?”
She shrugs and continues to play with the doll. Anna senses my unease and she places her hand over Malia’s, stilling her. “Sweety, where did Ziggy go?” she asks.
“I think he went for breakfast,” she says. We both visibly relax, and I smile. “Ziggy didn’t want to go. She carried him and she said he would like the park because in the café they do ice cream.”
I groan and my heart threatens to beat out of my chest at the possibility that Michelle took Ziggy for a walk outside of the clubhouse. “Don’t panic. Maybe someone went with them,” says Anna calmly.
“No,” says Malia. “Ziggy’s mommy told me not to tell you, but I don’t like to tell lies.”
I rush out of the room and take the stairs two at a time. Leia and my mom spin around alarmed when I burst into the kitchen. “Michelle . . . where’s Michelle?” I’m desperate for them to tell me she’s here somewhere, but they both stare at me blank. “She’s got Ziggy,” I add, and Mom drops the bowl she was washing up into the basin. She dries her hands and follows me through the club, both of us shouting Ziggy’s name.
I pull out my cell and call Michelle, but of course, it goes straight to the answer message. I curse and retry. Cree and Tiny are out in the yard. “You saw Michelle and Ziggy?” I ask. Cree shakes his head.
Tiny nods. “Yeah, she was around the back with him playing ball earlier when I was out guarding the gates. He was a little upset, if I’m honest, but she was really trying to make him happy.” I don’t listen to any more. Instead, I run around to the back of the club. Ziggy’s ball lays on the grass, but they’re nowhere to be seen. I call her cell over and over. When it finally rings on her end, I want to cry with relief. “Hello?” she answers.
“Get him back here now,” I yell. “How dare you take him.”
“Christ, Riggs, calm the fuck down,” she hisses. “He’s fine. We’re just having an ice cream. You need to relax.”
“The club is on lockdown for a fucking reason,” I grit out. Mom touches my arm, a silent warning for me to calm down. I take a deep breath. “Where are you? I’ll come and get you both.”
“We’re at the park. Literally around the corner. We’ll head back. Yah know, I discussed this with your little girlfriend yesterday and she seemed fine with me taking Ziggy out.” She disconnects the call.
Anna runs out into the yard just as I pull the cell away from my ear. “Are they okay?” she asks.
“Did you tell her she could take Ziggy?” I ask, moving towards her.
Anna shakes her head. “She mentioned it and I agreed with her that she should spend time with him. I never said that she could.”
“Who do you think you are? You come along and think you can just take over and change the rules. You’ve been here two fuckin’ minutes and you’re making decisions about my kid?”
“No, I just—”
I’m filled with rage. Ziggy is my son and if she knew the shit that Michelle had put us through . . . “You had no right to get involved. We fucked. That doesn’t mean you can involve yourself in shit between me and my ex. Ziggy is my responsibility. Concentrate on screwing your own kid up and leave mine alone.”
Hurt fills Anna’s face. “I didn’t tell her she could take Ziggy out. I agreed she should spend time and get to know him. I told her to talk to you.” Tears fall down her cheeks and she swipes at them angrily. “I would never get involved in your parenting decisions. Interesting that you say now we’re just fucking. Is that all it’s been?”
“Now’s not the time to talk about us!” I growl.
“Oh, don’t worry, I know you hate to talk. I think you’ve made yourself perfectly clear. All the picnics, the lazing around in the sun, the movie nights, all of those things this last week have meant nothing because we’re just fucking, right?!” She turns and runs back inside.
I run my hands over my head. “Fuck,” I groan. My heart aches and I can’t shake the feeling of panic I feel over Ziggy being outside of the club.
“Jesus, Finn,” Mom mutters. “Do you think about the words before they come out of your mouth, or do you just blurt out that bullshit on the spot? You’re just like your dad,” she adds, then follows Anna inside.
I crouch down by the grass and hold my head in my hands. I was so terrified that something had happened to Ziggy that all that crap came rolling outta my mouth. Cree pats me on the shoulder. “Talk to her. Explain.” He sighs.
I shake my head. “Yah know what, Cree, I don’t think it’ll work between us. I love her. How mad is that? I haven’t known her long enough for that. We need to get this done with Reggie. Since those girls came into our lives, we’ve been fucking up all over the place. We’ve waited too long as it is because I’ve had my head full of her. Let’s call church in an hour and put a plan together.”
“Okay, but sort shit with Anna, Pres. I was wrong about her. Seeing you guys together these last few days, I’ve never seen you so happy.”
“I thought you didn’t talk about this sorta crap?” I mutter.
“Sometimes things need to be said. She’s a good woman and you need her. Make it right.” He goes inside. I’ll make it right with Anna later. I have to get Ziggy back here first.
I pace by the gates. It’s been six minutes since my call with Michelle and Ziggy still isn’t back. I decide to walk to the park. Maybe Ziggy wanted to finish his ice cream there and it really is just around the corner.
When I arrive, I stand by the railings that surround the park. It’s busy with families enjoying the warm weather. I pull out my cell and call her again. It rings out. I call Mom to see if we’ve somehow missed each other and she’s back there, but she isn’t. I’ll make sure she’s never alone with Ziggy again after this stunt.
I jump the railings and make my way to the ice cream shack. There’s no sign of them and the teenager behind the counter is no use, telling me he’s seen a hundred moms with kids already today. I decide that maybe she took the long walk home, so I make my way back to the club. When I find that she still hasn’t arrived there, I call her again. This time, a man answers, and I grip the cell tightly. If she’s gone to buy drugs, I’ll kill her myself.
“Where’s Michelle?” I growl.
“I wanted your sister first,” says the voice on the other end of the cell. “A virgin was worth the nights I had men sat outside your club waiting. But a crack whore and her brat will have to do.”
My blood runs cold. Bile lingers in my throat. I’m holding the cell so tight, it threatens to crumble in my hand. “Reggie,” I spit out.
“Hello again, Riggs. How’s my wife?”
“You’ve no idea what you’ve done,” I hiss.
“Oh, I have a very clear idea of what I’m doing. You thought you could take my wife and daughter, so now I have your girl and your son. Hurts, doesn’t it?”
“What the fuck do you want?” I growl.
“You know what I want. I told you what would happen if she didn’t return to me. One by one, I’ll take everyone and everything she loves.”
“This can’t just be about them. What’s so special that you’d hurt a child to get them back?” I growl.
“You’re right. I want so much more. But we’ll get to that after I have Anna and Malia back.”
“I’m not returning fuck all until I have Ziggy home. You think I’m gonna return them and then listen to your demands?”
Reggie laughs. It’s cold and cruel. “You don’t have a choice, biker boy. At exactly noon, I’m gonna fuck your wife, and then every hour after that, I’ll have my men fuck her. Nothing will be off-limits, and my men have very . . . interesting tastes. I should also point out that your son doesn’t like the dark. He’s making such a fuss down there. The quicker you get my wife home and agree to what I want, the quicker he’ll see daylight again.”
The call disconnects and a noise escapes me. It’s something between a scream and a wail. Ziggy hates being in the dark since living with Michelle and the thought of him crying for me tears me apart.
I lean over by the club gate and empty the contents of my stomach. It splatters over my boots. For the first time since my dad died, a tear rolls down my face. Chains spots me and rushes over. “Pres?” he asks.
“Get the brothers together,” I mutter. I spit on the ground and then scrub my hands over my face. “And every goddamn weapon we own. I’ve got a war to win.”
Chapter Fifteen
Anna
I stuff my belongings into my bags. “Just think about it. He was mad and he shouldn’t have said what he did, but he didn’t mean it. When it comes to Ziggy, he goes crazy protective,” explains Frankie.
“I know. I get why he was mad. I would be too if he did that with Malia. We’ve had a great few days, Frankie.” I pause, trying to stop the tears from falling again. “I really like him, and he just threw everything in my face. I was the one who kept my distance and he convinced me we were worth the risk. I’ve watched him with Malia this week and it’s given me hope. Hope that we could be happy, all of us as a family.”
“Baby girl, you can be.” Frankie sighs, taking my hand. “You two were made for each other. I’ve never seen him smile so much. And it’s not just me— everyone’s saying the same thing. He loves you and I know you love him even if you don’t see it yet. Please, stay. Talk to him.”
“I promise I told Michelle to ask Riggs. I said it wasn’t up to me. I could kick myself now. I was so fucking nice to her.”
Frankie gives a look of disdain. “She’s a nasty piece of work. I never liked her. She was sniffing around Finn like a hungry shark. Mothers know when their boys find trouble, and trust me, she had trouble written all over her. Finn will tell you a love story of how they fell in love after she got pregnant and how they tried to make it work, but I remember the arguments. She would wind him up by flirting with anything with a dick. If she could get attention, then she would play up for it. She’d twist situations and manipulate everyone. I caught her grinding up on Finn’s dad once.” Frankie shakes her head. “I should have kicked her ass then.”
“I get the impression she really hurt him.”
“The morning she left with Ziggy will be burnt into my brain forever. My boy was devastated. The distress stayed on his face for a solid year until he found them, and he never stopped looking. He brought Ziggy home and the poor kid was all bones. His skin was almost translucent because she was so high that she didn’t bother to take him outside. Yah know, Ziggy still wets the bed because he’s suffering from the trauma. I’ll never forgive her for what she put my boys through.”
I gently place my hand over hers and smile warmly. “They’re lucky to have you, Frankie.”
“That’s why I know he’ll be heartbroken when he realizes you’ve left. At least wait until he’s calmed down so you can talk.”
Leia bursts in. “Mom, something happened to Ziggy,” she pants. “The guys are in church, but Riggs wouldn’t say what happened. He had that look on his face.” Tears fill her eyes. “Like last time when Ziggy went missing.”
“Michelle isn’t back?” asks Frankie, and Leia shakes her head.
I follow them downstairs with my heart pounding hard in my chest. Frankie knocks on the door to church, but nobody bothers to answer. “I’m gonna go in,” says Frankie.
Leia’s eyes widen. “He’ll go mental,” she warns. “You know what he’s like about rules.”
Frankie shrugs and pushes the door open. “Fuck the rules.” Twenty or so bikers fall silent and all eyes turn to us. In the centre of the large table are piles of guns, all different sizes. “Where’s Ziggy?” asks Frankie.
The look on Riggs’ face tells me something is very wrong. “Get out,” he almost whispers.
“Finn—” begins Frankie.
“I said get the fuck out!” he yells, and we all jump with fright. Cree steps in front of us and carefully ushers us out of the room.
“I need to know, Cree,” begs Frankie. “Is Ziggy okay?”
“We don’t know. Reggie has them,” he says. His eyes fall to me. “Now, go. We have plans to make.”
I’m shaking as I step outside of the club. I pull out my cell and dial Reggie’s number.
“Princess,” he croons.
“What have you done?” I whisper. “This has nothing to do with them.”
“It has everything to do with them. You made it their problem when you crossed onto their side of the tracks. You realize that you’ve unsettled years of peace between the Kings and my organization?”
“Please let them go, Reg,” I beg. “I’m sorry, okay. I’ll do whatever you want. Just let them go.”
“You should have done what I wanted in the first place and then this war wouldn’t have started.” He sighs. “I’ll send a driver to get you and Malia. Be ready in ten minutes.”
He disconnects the call and I take a few deep breaths. I have to do this for Ziggy.
I go back inside the club, avoiding Frankie and Leia. Eva finds me in my bedroom, packing the rest of my stuff. “Can you get Malia ready for me?” I ask.
“What’s going on? Frankie just told me Reggie’s got Ziggy?”
“He’ll let him go if I go home,” I say, and she gasps. “Please get Malia for me.”
“He’ll hurt you, Anna.”
“And if I don’t go back, he might hurt Michelle, or worse, Ziggy. He won’t stop until I go back. I don’t have a choice. Get Malia and don’t tell anyone I’ve gone.”
“Are you sure about this?” she mutters.
“Yes. I’ll be fine. I survived this long, didn’t I?” I smile. “And you have to stay here with your mom. No one’s safe just yet and I don’t want anything bad to happen to you two.”
Eva nods her head sadly. It isn’t like we haven’t been here a hundred times before. I hug her and kiss her cheek. “Quick, get Malia.”
Once I have everything packed, I head downstairs and go out the back door. There’s never anybody out there, and with all the guys currently in church, it means we can leave without being spotted. I take Malia by the hand and head for the gates. There’s a large black car with tinted windows waiting, and a man I recognize as one of Reggie’s men gets out. He opens the door and we get inside. I strap Malia into the seat. “Why do you look sad, mommy?” she asks, touching my face.
“I’m not sad,” I lie.
“Is it because you like it at the club?”
“Maybe,” I say. “As long as I’m with you, I don’t mind where we are. You make me happy.” I smile and she returns it.
We get to Reggie’s house and he’s outside waiting for me. I step from the car, leaving Malia in her seat. “Where’s Ziggy and Michelle?” I ask.
Reggie smirks. “Come inside, Princess. We’ll talk.” He glances around. The street isn’t busy, but he has a lot of rich neighbours. He doesn’t like to look like a fool in front of people.
“Not until they get in this car, so I know they’re safe.” I sound much braver than I feel. Reggie smiles stiffly and stuffs his hands in his pockets. He casually comes down the steps towards me. When he gets close enough, he leans in towards my ear.
“You don’t make the rules, Anna. Get inside, now.” I feel around behind me and hold onto the door handle of the car. I shake my head and Reggie’s jaw goes rigid. He glances around again and then grips the top of my arm tightly. I try to hold onto the door handle, but it’s no use. He wrenches me away and drags me up the steps. “Darrell, get Malia out the car,” he shouts over his shoulder.
“Let them go,” I cry, tripping up one of the steps and hitting my shin hard. Reggie pulls me to my feet and up the last few steps. He gets me through the door and throws me to the floor, and I scramble away from him as he looms over me.
“Get up,” he hisses. “Before Malia comes in.” I push myself to stand, but I stay pressed against the wal
l. Darrell carries Malia inside and she immediately reaches for Reggie. She smiles and kisses his cheek, and when her eyes find me, she frowns. I often wondered before I left him if she could sense the danger in the air. “Juliette,” he shouts. Malia’s nanny comes rushing in. She sees Malia and squeals with delight. I never agreed to Malia having Juliette around. Not only because I was pretty certain that she was fucking Reggie, but also because I wanted to look after my own child. “Please take Malia to her room until I tell you it’s okay to come out,” he says. She nods and takes Malia by the hand and leads her away.
My cell rings and Reggie holds out his hand for it. I pass it to him and he grins when he checks the caller ID. He answers as he takes my hand and pulls me towards his office.
“Riggs. Twice in one day. How privileged.” He presses the speaker button and Riggs’ curse words fill the silence. “If I could just stop you there,” says Reggie calmly. “Anna came of her own free will.” He closes his office door, locking it. He places the cell on his desk and smiles. “Anna called me to tell me she was ready to come home. Did you upset her?”
“You’d better not have hurt Michelle,” Riggs yells. His concern for Michelle over me burns my heart. I give my head a shake. How dare I be jealous of his feelings towards her when she’s the mother of his child.
Reggie checks his watch and laughs. “Of course, it’s past noon. I didn’t get a chance to follow out my threat because my wife came home, and now I have her, well, I guess I won’t need to.”
“Put Anna on,” yells Riggs.
“Let me check she wants to speak with you first,” says Reggie, and then he flicks his hand, indicating for me to talk.
“I’m here,” I mutter.
“What the hell were you thinking? I was sorting it!” yells Riggs.
“I’m sorry,” I begin to cry. Today has been so emotional that it catches up with me hard and I can’t stop the tears as they flow. “I was trying to help.”