by Jamie Begley
“Tell Nickel he’s dead. He shouldn’t haven’t waited so long to call me.”
“He called me immediately. He had trouble figuring out the coffee pot, or she wouldn’t have such a big lead.”
Picking the envelope up, he tore it open, taking the letter out. “Got to go. I’ll call when I find which direction she’s going. Any idea?”
“No. I thought this might be coming. She’s been squirreling cash away, so nothing’s off the table. Don’t think it’ll be Treepoint or Queen City. If her stalker followed her to Nashville, she won’t take the chance she’ll lead him there.”
“I agree. Ginny couldn’t have taken off at a worse time with us not knowing which direction she’s headed. We have our hands full increasing the production of the supplies you and Arin said we should, while maintaining our normal orders. Find her quick. If she goes underground, we won’t have a chance in hell of finding her before hell breaks loose. Call me when you come up with a lead. I can spare a couple of brothers if you need them.”
Knowing Viper and all the brothers had their hands full, Ginny taking off just added to his over-filled load. Reaper could feel the strain coming from the other side of the phone, making him feel like shit that Ginny had successfully managed to slip away on his watch.
Disconnecting the call, Reaper started reading her letter as he strode out of the bedroom and the apartment, going to the other apartment Viper rented.
Gavin,
I’m sorry I had to leave this way. If I had any other choice, I wouldn’t have. I knew you wouldn’t let me leave without telling Viper. A guilty conscience is a hard thing to live with, and his has had to live with me long enough.
I should never have accepted his help in the first place. I let Shade talk me into accepting The Last Riders’ protection, and I went along with it because I didn’t want anyone I cared about getting hurt because of me. If I stay, that’s exactly what I’d be doing. I can’t let you be hurt. You’ve been hurt enough in this lifetime without me bringing more pain to your door.
I love you, Gavin. Leaving wasn’t an easy decision for me to make, so I’m asking Viper and you to respect my decision. I mailed a letter to him, which he should get tomorrow, explaining why I decided to leave. I left out my feelings for you. You can disclose that part if you want. I didn’t want any blame mistakenly placed on you. You can’t help my feelings for you, and they are there despite your refusal to admit your own. If the shoe was on the other foot, I don’t know if I could, either.
Don’t think I’m leaving for good. You’ll see me again, after I’ve found out who is stalking me and stop him. Please tell Viper not to worry about me. I’ve been on my own since I was twelve years old, and I’m pretty good at taking care of myself. The only part I regret is leaving you.
Go home, Gavin, where you want to be. Just do me one favor; try not to fall in love with someone else. You really are meant for me.
Love,
Ginny
Opening the door of the apartment, Reaper found the key he was looking for on the counter in a plastic tray. There were two sets; one was for the rental car, and the other was for a spare motorcycle that Rider kept there when he was on Ginny’s detail. The brother was going to have a hissy fit when he found out Reaper had taken it. However, he needed the speed and the maneuvering that a car couldn’t provide.
Locking the door behind him, he was in the elevator in less than six minutes after getting Shade’s call. Shoving Ginny’s letter into his jacket pocket, he rushed to find Rider’s motorcycle.
Starting the bike, he pulled up Google maps on his phone, trying to decide which direction she would go. There were so many ways out of Nashville that he would have an easier time throwing a fucking dart at a map.
About to call Nickel and ask if the surveillance tape showed which direction she had gone, a thought struck him. Ginny was big on saying good-byes. She had written a note to both Nickel and him and was mailing one to Viper. She also told the two kids at the pizza store last night that she wouldn’t be seeing them again.
Sending a quick text to Kaden, Reaper put his phone and the letter in his pocket and gunned out of the parking garage. He was going to take a chance on Ginny’s next move. If he was wrong, there wouldn’t be any catching up with her.
Going so fast, he was surprised he wasn’t pulled over. It took him ten minutes to get to where he was going versus the almost twenty minutes it would have taken him to ride to the nightclub. Finding a spot to park was aggravating, and he didn’t have the time, so he parked between two cars. The owners were going to be pissed off when they returned and saw he hadn’t left them any room to move their cars. Uncaringly, he got off the bike to go into the restaurant he swore never to go in again.
Marty was behind the grill and there were several customers standing at the cash register.
Reaper went around them to stand at the counter. “Has Ginny been in here?”
“Today?” Opening a brown paper bag, he started putting burgers inside.
Placing his hands on the counter, Reaper prepared to jump over the counter if the asswipe kept playing games. “Yes, today.”
“She left about ten minutes ago.”
Reaper lifted his hand just to smack it down in frustration. “Fuck.”
“She give you boys the slip?”
“Which direction did she go?”
Marty lifted the fry basket to dump the fries inside the bag. “Took off toward the interstate.”
Nodding, Reaper headed toward the door.
“Wait!”
The customers moved when Marty waved them away.
“Take this.” Marty held the bag over the cash register for him to grab. “You’re going to get hungry before you catch her.”
Giving him a dirty look, Reaper ignored the offering, reaching for the doorknob instead.
“If you underestimate Ginny, you’re never going to find her. She wasn’t driving the same car she usually pulls up in.”
“What was she driving?”
“A black four-door Taurus. I’m guessing it’s a 2015 or ’16 model. I took down the license plate. It’s on the bag.”
Leaning forward, Reaper took the bag from him. “Thanks.”
“Didn’t do it for you. Did it for her. I don’t want anything happening to that girl. She’s my best customer. She came by to give me a good-bye card. Bought me a week’s getaway in the Dominion Republic.” Marty shook his jowly head. “Like I have the time to take a vacation.”
Ginny meant more to him than any customer. The asswipe cared about Ginny, and she cared about him, too, or she wouldn’t have come to tell him good-bye and give him something so Marty would remember her.
“Do yourself a big favor and sell your business as fast as you can. Take a break from the restaurant and put a hold on the Dominion Republic for a few months.”
“Any reason why I would want to sell?”
“I’m just returning the favor.” Reaper left with the bag, leaving the asswipe to stare after him.
On his bike, he called Shade with the license number and the direction she was headed. Then, putting the burgers in the saddlebags, he took off toward the interstates.
He chose the westbound ramp, since the southbound interstate would send her toward Florida. Though she’d find it easier to hide with all the tourists, something had him going west. He told Shade to call Nickel to take the eastbound interstate. That only left northbound, which would have put Ginny coming too close to Kentucky, the exact place she’d lead her stalker away from. Once on the interstate, he started looking for black cars
His deductions were based on wild guesses. Guesses that, if he was wrong, Ginny would no longer be the responsibility of the club or him. If she achieved her goal and successfully managed to slip away, Ginny could be out of his hair forever, or at least the time it took her to feel safe enough to return to Treepoint.
A shiny black hood caught his eye.
Speeding up, he rode the line between a semi and a red
pickup, risking his neck to gain speed on the black car, hell-bent on catching her.
Then all he had to do was let her go.
He had a little something to give her to help her remember him.
Chapter Twenty
Getting in line behind a father with two young children wasn’t the best decision she had ever made. Ginny pretended to be patiently waiting for her turn in line while all she was doing was blasting herself. It would be quicker to get back in her car and go through the drive-thru. She had come into the fast food restaurant to use the restroom and grab something quick to eat and drink. She hadn’t planned on getting behind a five-year-old who couldn’t make up her mind on whether she wanted nuggets or a hamburger.
She should have waited until she was ready to stop for the night. Her rumbling stomach had disagreed, though, reminding her of why she was in line in the first place.
Finally able to give her order, Ginny then took the paper cup from the employee to fill up at the self-serve drinking fountain.
Putting the lid on the top when she was finished, Ginny poked a straw through the lid to take a sip when she heard her number called out.
The sip went down the wrong way when she saw Gavin standing in line to place an order. She started choking and felt a dozen pair of eyes on her as she tried to clear her throat.
“Are you okay?” the woman behind the counter asked, holding out her order.
“Yes.” Nodding, Ginny took her order, not knowing what to do next.
The employees behind the counter gave her curious looks when she didn’t move away. She couldn’t with her eyes locked with Gavin’s.
“Go sit down, Ginny.”
Trembling, Ginny found an empty booth and sat. Staring at the bag, she didn’t lift her eyes even when she felt the table shake as Gavin slid into the other side of the booth.
“Eat.”
Ginny licked her dry lips. “I need ketchup.” She made a move to slide out of the booth.
Two packets of ketchup were plonked down in front of her.
“Do you need salt?”
“No,” she mumbled.
Opening her bag, she took out her nuggets and fries, not knowing what to do next. She didn’t remember seeing a window in the bathroom. Maybe he would have to go—
“Don’t even think about it,” he advised her.
She had never believed she could be afraid of Gavin, but she kind of was now by the cold way he was talking to her.
“I’m not hungry anymore.”
“You should eat. I’m not planning on stopping until we need gas.”
“I’m not going with you.” Ginny finally lifted her eyes to meet his.
Gavin took out his food and started eating.
Ginny eyed the humongous sandwich he bought. “That burger took two cows to make.”
“There’s another one in the bag. I haven’t eaten in two days.”
Ginny guiltily picked up a chicken nugget. “How did you find me?”
“Wasn’t easy. Do you know how many fucking people drive the same type of car you bought?”
He went on before she could respond.
“A shit ton. I wouldn’t have been able to catch you if you hadn’t been pulled over for speeding last night.”
“It was a speed trap,” she said without remorse. It was easier to play the blame game instead of admitting outright to herself that her foot had been a tad heavy on the gas pedal. “I was tired, or I wouldn’t have signed the ticket.”
“We won’t go into how fucking tired I am, or how sore my ass is.”
Ginny winced at the thought. She knew how sore hers was, and she had a comfortable seat.
“Are you mad at me?”
Gavin moved on to his other burger. “Let’s put it this way …” Gavin placed his burger on the table before lowering his voice. “Be glad that I don’t believe we’re soul mates, or you’d be driving to Treepoint with an ass as sore as mine.”
Ginny frowned. “That’s not possible. The car I bought is very comfortab— Oh.” Ginny flushed when it dawned on her what Gavin was intimidating. Then anger came to her aid, easing the embarrassing thought of being bent over Gavin’s knee. “You and whose army?” she snapped. Her appetite lost, she began bagging up her leftover food.
“I don’t need an army when one hand of mine will do the job.”
“Are you for real?” Folding her hands on the table, Ginny leaned forward, clearly pronouncing every word coming out of her mouth. “Let me tell you something, Mr. I-Better-Get-A-Grip. I’ve only been spanked once in my life, and that was by my brother. You ever try to spank me, I’ll … I’ll …” Ginny trailed off, trying to come up with a threat scary enough to make him think twice about spanking her.
“You’ll what?” he mocked, starting to eat his burger again.
“I’ll … I’ll set a glass of milk out to spoil with something you touched, and then everything you eat will taste sour.”
“I’m scared,” he scoffed.
“You better be. I did it once when I was mad at Jodi, and it took a year for it to wear off.”
“I’ve got news for you, I don’t believe in your cock and bull superstitions.”
Ginny broke a small packet of salt and threw it over her shoulder for good luck. “You better,” she warned.
Gavin rolled his eyes at her, clearly not taking her beliefs seriously.
Ginny shrugged. “Then try to spank me and find out.”
Gavin stuffed the remainder of his burger in his mouth, then bagged his trash. “Maybe after I have a nap. You can drive for a couple hours.”
“I am not going with you,” she hissed. “Don’t make me call the police on you.” Taking out her cell phone, she wiggled it in front of his face. “I won’t want to, but I will.”
Gavin shrugged. “Go ahead. You’ll be arrested if you do.”
Ginny frowned. “Why would I be arrested?”
“The car you’re driving was reported stolen.”
The satisfied smirk he gave her lifted some of the heaviness she’d been feeling her in chest since she left Nashville.
“I didn’t steal the car I’m driving. I bought it.”
“The Utah State Police has it listed as hot. You can spend the next few days driving to Treepoint with me or spend the next two days in jail until Viper can get here to clear you.”
“Or …,” Ginny said, giving him a better alternative, “I can call Viper, and we can handle this over the phone. Then we both can go on our merry ways.”
“Viper doesn’t want to discuss your situation over the phone.”
“The situation I’m in is no longer any concern of Viper’s.” Ginny firmly refused to budge from the course she had set for herself. “Gavin, you know I’m right. Cutting myself off from everyone I know is the best way to deal with who is stalking me.”
“No, I don’t. I think it will make it easier for him to get to you. Who would be there to protect you?”
“Other than 911?” Ginny gave him a wry smile, then stopped when he glowered at her. “I can take care of myself—”
“Since you were twelve?”
“My foster parents took me so they’d get nominated for more town committees.”
“Were they abusive to you?”
Gavin’s sharp question had Ginny jumping in her seat.
“No, I can’t say they were abusive. I really can’t explain what it was like. They didn’t do anything I could report as abuse. They were just cold, and when I lived with them, I was cold all the time. When I was finally able to leave, it was like walking out to the middle of summer. I promised myself that I would never be cold again. Since Shade told me I had a stalker, I feel like I need a coat every minute of the day and night. I want to be warm again, Gavin. I can’t be in Treepoint or Queen City, and it isn’t fair of me to continue letting The Last Riders buffer me from the cold. I can do this on my own. All you have to do is let me walk out that door.”
“I’m not going to lie to Viper.”
“You’re getting in the car with me, and we’re driving back to Treepoint.”
“No, I’m not.”
“Believe it or not, the world doesn’t revolve around you. Viper has a business to run, with some shit about to go down. He has a more important agenda he needs to exert his efforts on rather than running after you.”
Ginny stiffened in her seat as Gavin’s already serious expression became inflexible.
“I don’t think the world revolves around me.”
“Then fucking act and like it! You took off without us knowing where you were going. The WHO issued a public alert overseas for a viral outbreak. How in the fuck were we supposed to know if you had flown out of the country? Can we agree his efforts are more important at the factory right now than trying to convince you to come home?
The outbreak is making everyone sick, and it doesn’t give a fuck if hospitals and medical facilities have their ducks in a row. People are going to die, Ginny. You’ll be safer in Treepoint than wherever you were going. Different states will be at different risk levels. Do you really want to be stuck in bumfuck Egypt if you get sick, or find someone you care about is and you’re hundreds of miles away? Fuck, someone here could be infected. Do you want it on your conscience if Viper comes here and then gets sick? Just because there hasn’t been a confirmed case in the US, doesn’t mean shit. I learned that in the military. They’ll blow roses up your ass until they can’t keep the stink down anymore. Which is why I told Kaden get the fuck out of Tennessee early.”
“You talked to Kaden about this outbreak, but you didn’t say anything to me?” Wounded by his lack of sharing the same information, she had to remind herself she was in a crowded restaurant and yelling at him would be unladylike.
“There hasn’t been any reported cases in the U.S. yet, so I was erring on the side of caution where Kaden and the band are concerned. As for discussing the outbreak with you, if you had stuck to the fucking plan we’d already be back in Kentucky where we’ve been getting the Club prepared since December.”