by Wilder, L.
“Yeah, but as dark as it is, shouldn’t we see something?”
“Maybe. It could be that they were shooting from an angle where we just can’t see the flash. Or it could be, these guys were just the cleanup crew hired to clean up the mess. There’s no way to know. All the evidence was burned up in the fire.”
When I turned my attention back to the computer screen, I noticed one of the figures had returned to the parking lot. I wasn’t sure it was the same guy as before until I saw a line of sparks erupt from his side. I watched as he struck the flint several times, casting a spray of sparks at his side with each strike, and then, he did something that made my stomach tighten. He took the lighter, twirled it in his hand, and shoved it in his back pocket. Without realizing it, I mumbled, “Nervous habit.”
“What was that?” Myles asked.
“Oh, nothing. I was just thinking out loud.” Before he could ask what I meant, I turned my attention to McKnight. “I hate to ask, but would you mind showing me the full video one last time?”
His eyebrows furrowed as he asked, “Why? You think you see something? Cause I’ve watched this damn thing a hundred times, and I’ve never seen anything that could help me identify these guys.”
“No. It’s not that at all. I just wanted to see it one more time,” I lied.
“I get it. I thought if I kept watching it, I’d catch some mistake they made or some tell they’d given, but there’s just nothing there.”
I gave him a half-smile as I assured him, “I’m sure you’re right, but I’d really like to go over it again.”
When he turned to rewind the footage, I reached for my purse and discreetly placed it in my lap. Hoping to make my own copy of the surveillance video, I carefully position my phone where it couldn’t be seen and pressed record. I was thankful that the detective was too busy watching the screen to notice what I was up to. As soon as it was over, I quickly tucked my phone back into my purse, and McKnight seemed completely unaware of what I’d done as he turned to me and said, “See … there’s just nothing there.”
“Yeah. You were right. “I knew I was pushing it, but I had to ask, “Is there anything else that you can share with us?”
He shook his head as he answered, “Sorry, but that’s all I got. If anything comes up, I’ll be sure to let you know.”
“That would be great.”
I stood up, and as we turned to leave, McKnight said, “Wait. I forgot to mention something. You know that the FBI has been investigating Rodrigo’s brother for some mass murder back in Mexico.”
“Yeah, I read all about it. They actually have the proof they need to put him away, but now they can’t find him.”
“Well, there’s a chance his brother’s murder brought him out of hiding. I haven’t seen him, and neither have any of my guys, but there’s a buzz on the street that he’s been in town.”
“Seriously?”
“Yeah. I’m guessing he came here looking for who killed his brother but didn’t find what he was looking for. From what I’ve heard, he got frustrated and decided to head your way.”
“To Memphis?”
“I don’t know if any of it is true. I’m just telling you what I’ve heard. I’ll let you know if anything else comes up.”
“That would be great.” On our way out, I told him, “Thanks again for all your help.”
Once we were back on the road, I took out my phone and checked my email. I was pleased to see that McKnight had already sent me a copy of the surveillance video. I was tempted to watch it again but decided against it. I didn’t want to take the chance on Myles asking me questions that I wasn’t prepared to answer; besides, there was no way for me to know for certain if it was Jackson I’d seen on that footage. While I sat there lost in my thoughts, Myles started rambling on and on about how much progress we were making. Even though I appreciated his enthusiasm, I just wanted a moment to think, so I simply responded with nods and short answers. I needed to figure out my next move. The more I thought about it, I realized the time had finally come for me to pay another visit to the Satan’s Fury clubhouse. I had to put an end to my doubts and find out, once and for all, if the father of my son was the man I always thought he was or if he was a cold-blooded murderer.
CHAPTER 7
Riggs
When bad things happen, they tend to come in threes. Sometimes they slowly trickle in, taking several days or even weeks to rear their ugly heads, but sometimes, those bad things can slam you, making you almost relieved when the third one finally appears—at least then you’d know a reprieve was soon to follow. It was a phenomenon I’d become accustomed to, especially where my brothers were concerned, so when Jason showed up at the clubhouse, ranting about a reporter who’d showed up at his door, I had no doubt that it was just the beginning.
I was in my office when I heard Blaze call out to me, “Yo, Riggs. Gus needs you in his office.”
“Coming!” I shouted as I stood up and met him in the hall. “Something up?”
“Something’s going on with Jason.”
“Alex’s friend?”
“Yeah. He’s pretty shaken up about something.”
When we stepped into Gus’s office, we found Gus at his desk with Shadow and Jason sitting across from him. As soon as I got a good look at Jason, I saw that Blaze was right. For whatever reason, he looked pretty rattled. His knee was bouncing ninety to nothing, and he was nervously popping his knuckles as his eyes skirted around the room. Gus noticed our arrival then looked over to Jason and said, “Now, why don’t you just start from the beginning so we can figure this thing out.”
“These two reporters came by my apartment this morning.”
I glanced over at the clock and when I saw it was after four, I asked, “This morning?”
“Yeah. It was around eight or something.”
“Then, why the hell did you wait so long to come tell us about it?” I scolded.
“I wanted to make sure they weren’t following me or something. I went to grab lunch and then to the shop for a few hours, and after I convinced myself that no one was tailing me, I headed over here.”
While I doubted it was necessary, I appreciated the fact that he was trying to be careful. “What did these reporters want?”
“They wanted to know about Rodrigo Navarro. They were asking me all these questions, and—”
“What kind of questions?” I interrupted.
“I don’t know. I kind of blanked as soon as I heard his name.”
“Try and think, son. It’s important,” Gus pushed.
“Um … They wanted to know if I’d seen him. When I said, I hadn’t, she said she had a source who’d seen him at my apartment.” His voice was trembling as he continued, “I’ve got no idea who their source could be. All my neighbors are old and barely get around. I don’t see how they’d know that some cartel boss was in my fucking apartment.”
I couldn’t blame him for being concerned, especially since Navarro had actually been in his apartment. At the time, Jason had no idea who Rodrigo Navarro was, much less that the cartel boss was actually his best friend’s father. That all changed the night Navarro showed up at his apartment and held him captive. Navarro knew if he threatened Jason’s life, his daughter would come and try to rescue him. He thought if he could lure Alejandra there, then he could kidnap her and force her to return home. Unfortunately for him, she was Shadow’s girl, which meant she was under club protection. There was no way in hell we were going to let him take her without a fight. While things didn’t play out the way any of us had expected, Navarro was killed, leaving us to deal with the aftermath. Jason learned a great deal about the club that day, things most outsiders were never privy to, but it simply couldn’t be prevented. We had to dispose of the bodies and any evidence that could tie any of us to his murder. Even though we knew Jason had been marked by what he’d seen, the brothers and I trusted him to keep his mouth shut. I just prayed his nervous behavior hadn’t made the reporters suspicious. Regard
less, the fact that they’d showed up at his apartment was a red flag, and we would have to find a way to deal with it. “What else did they say?”
“She said there were some questions surrounding Navarro’s death, and they were looking for information on who might’ve been involved in his murder.” He looked back over to Gus as he asked, “Do you think they know what really happened?”
“No, Jason. Otherwise, it wouldn’t be a couple of reporters knocking at your door.” Jason’s eyes widened in horror when Gus continued, “It would be the fucking cops.”
“The cops!”
“Easy, son. You have nothing to worry about. We made sure of that,” he assured him. “What can you tell me about these two reporters?”
“Not much. Just that they said they worked for the Memphis Metro.”
“Did they show you any identification?”
“No, sir.”
“Then, how the hell do you even know if they’re real reporters?” Gus complained. “What about a name? Did they give you that?”
“Yes, sir. The chick said her name was Reece something.” He thought for a minute before saying, “Yeah. It was … Um … Reece Winters. I’m not sure about the guy that was with her. Myles something or another.”
Everything around me stilled as the name Reece Winters echoed over and over in my mind. I couldn’t wrap my head around the idea that Reece was a reporter. The last I’d heard, she’d gone to Vanderbilt to get her law degree, and I couldn’t figure out how she’d ended up working for the newspaper. It didn’t make any fucking sense. Thinking I must’ve misunderstood, I turned to Jason and asked, “Did you say Reece Winters?”
“Yeah, I think that’s right.”
“Damn,” I muttered under my breath.
“Look into it, Riggs, and let me know if you find anything on this girl.”
“You got it, Prez.”
He turned his attention back to Jason and said, “If they turn up at your place again, I want to know about it.”
“Yes, sir.” Jason stood as he said, “I know you guys are good at what you do. I’m sorry if I came across as skeptical. It’s just … I wasn’t expecting reporters to show up at my door. I thought this thing with Navarro was done.”
“It’s done, but keep your head low and don’t talk to anyone about this,” Gus ordered.
“I won’t. You have my word.” He walked over to the door and before he walked out, he looked over to Shadow and said, “I’m guessing you won’t be mentioning this to Alex.”
“No, and neither should you. Just like Gus said … don’t talk to anyone about this.”
“Got it.”
When he walked out the door, I turned to Gus. “I’m going to check out this Reece Winters chick. If I find anything, I’ll let you know.”
“Good. And do a check on Josue’s location.”
“I did this morning, and he was still in Little Rock. I’ll let you know if he’s on the move.”
Gus nodded as I turned and headed out of his office. My mind was reeling as I made it back to my room. I had no idea why Reece was at Jason’s apartment, but I was determined to find out. Once I was back in my room, I went straight over to my desk and turned on my computer. It didn’t take a great deal of expertise to do a basic search on the name Reece Winters, especially since it wasn’t a common name. Just as I expected, as soon as I typed in her name, several pages of information popped up. When I saw the Memphis Metro, I clicked on it, and sure enough, her picture appeared on the screen. I read her work bio and discovered that she’d been working there for almost two years, which meant she only lasted six months at Vanderbilt. I knew Memphis was a big city; hell, there were a million or so people living in it. I just couldn’t believe that she’d been in town for two years, and until the other night, I hadn’t laid eyes on her once.
I leaned back in my seat as I thought back to the night she talked about going to Vanderbilt to get her law degree. It was clear that becoming a lawyer meant something to her, which made me think that it had to have taken something big to make her walk away. I couldn’t imagine what it could’ve been. She seemed like the kind of woman who wouldn’t let anything stand in the way of what she wanted. Hoping to find something that would help me figure it out, I turned my attention back to my computer and started sorting through the different articles she’d written over the past two years. Most of them were pretty mundane, covering things from new traffic lights to people running for office, but she had a distinct writing style—a style I liked, even when I was reading about some fucking pet show the girl scouts put together for the elderly. After I read through several more articles, I decided to dig a little deeper. I wanted to know why she’d left Vanderbilt, so I started there. I’d just pulled up their data base when there was a knock at my door. Before I could answer, Blaze shouted, “Hey, brother. There’s someone here to see you.”
As I opened it, I asked, “Who is it?”
“Why don’t you go see for yourself?” I didn’t miss the mischief in his eyes as he added, “They’re waiting in the bar for ya.”
I could tell by the expression on his face that something was up. “Blaze, quit fucking around. Who’s here?”
“Like I said, they’re in the bar for ya.”
With that, he turned and headed down the hall. Hoping he’d give me something, I shouted, “Blaze!”
He didn’t respond, leaving me beyond aggravated. My mind was set on finding out everything I could about Reece, and I wasn’t in the mood to be interrupted. I stormed down the hall, but the minute my foot hit the doorway, I stopped cold. I felt the air rush from my lungs the second I spotted her. She was sitting at one of the back tables fiddling with her phone, completely oblivious that I’d walked into the bar, which gave me a moment to just stand there and soak her in. She was just wearing a pair of dark-colored jeans with a white, V-neck t-shirt, but she looked absolutely stunning—just like she did when we met. As I stood there staring at her, my mind drifted back to that weekend, and my entire body throbbed with need as I thought about her mouth on mine. It was a memory that was burned into my mind, and it took every ounce of strength not to go over to that table and kiss her right there on the spot. I longed to relive that moment, but it would have to wait. I’d actually have to speak to her first. So, I forced myself to pull it together and started towards her.
A smile crossed her face as she said, “Hi, Jackson. I’m not sure if you remember me. I’m—”
“Don’t. I remember you quite well, Reece.” The thought that she’d think I wouldn’t remember her baffled me. Hell, since the time we’d met, there wasn’t a day when she hadn’t crossed my mind at some point or another. As I sat down next to her, I smiled and said, “It’s good to see you again.”
“It’s good to see you too.”
“It’s been a while.”
She glanced around the room as she replied, “Yeah, I guess it has.”
“Would you like a beer or something?”
“Sure. A beer would be great.”
I got up, and as I grabbed us both a drink, I found myself wondering why she’d come to see me. While I liked to think that she simply wanted to reconnect, I doubted that was what brought her to the clubhouse on a Monday night. Considering the timing, I couldn’t help but think it had something to do with Jason. While the thought concerned me, Reece couldn’t know that I suspected anything. Better yet, I wasn’t gonna let on that I knew anything about her or what she’d been up to over the past two years, so I tried to act casual as I walked back over to the table and sat down. Handing her a beer, I said, “The last time we spoke, you were heading off to Vanderbilt.”
“Yeah, well … Things didn’t exactly turn out the way I’d planned.”
“Oh, really? How so?”
“Let’s just say, life got complicated, and I had to drop out.”
“I hate to hear that. I know becoming a lawyer was important to you.”
“It was, but things have a way of working out.” She took a lon
g sip from her beer before she continued, “I got a job at the Memphis Metro, and it’s actually going pretty good.”
“So, you’re a journalist or something now?”
“I am. I never really saw myself as a writer, but it turns out that I’m not so bad it,” she scoffed.
A light blush crossed her face when I said, “That doesn’t surprise me.”
“Well, I think you might be the only one. My parents weren’t exactly thrilled that I left law school, especially my dad, but I’m good with how things turned out.”
“No disrespect towards your father, but if you’re happy, that’s all that matters.”
“Maybe. I just wish he could see it that way.” Reece leaned forward as her eyes quickly skirted over me, and when they finally locked on mine, there was that same spark of hunger I’d seen the night we hooked up. It was then that I realized I hadn’t lost my chance with her. I could feel it. I knew in my gut that the connection we shared was just as strong now as it was a few years ago, but when she quickly turned and looked away from me, it seemed as if she was conflicted. Eventually, her eyes found their way back to me, and she slightly smiled before she asked, “What about you? You still working on computers or whatever it is you do?”
“Yeah, I guess you could say that.”
“Something tells me there’s more to the story, but I won’t push.” She teased. “And you’re obviously still a member of Satan’s Fury. Is that going well for you?”
“Couldn’t be better.”
“Good. Glad to hear that.” She bit her bottom lip as she continued, “I guess you’re wondering why I came here tonight.”
“I’ll admit, the thought did cross my mind.”
“Well, I … um … I wanted to talk to you about something.” And just like that, Reece’s entire demeanor changed. She shifted in her seat, and her breath quickened as she fiddled with the strap of her purse. It was clear that she was nervous, but I didn’t realize just how nervous until she stood up and said, “Actually, it’s nothing. I’m sorry for bothering you.”