Sax

by Tory Richards

  We all laughed at that. Annabelle had been through a lot, and I was pleased to see that she was happy and had found someone. Years ago she'd been attacked and left for dead. It had taken months of healing, and more months of therapy, before she’d gradually returned to her old self again. I knew that there were still triggers for her, and nightmares that kept her from forgetting entirely, but she wasn't letting it cripple her or keep her from living.

  Danny was a good fit for her. He wasn't a member of the club, but he did jobs for them and he helped his sister, Jolene, run Illuminations, a lighting fixtures business next to the MC's construction office. He’d once been a pool hustler, but he’d gotten himself into big trouble owing the wrong people money, and after the debts had been paid, LD had nipped that behavior in the bud. Jolene had told me all about it. She also credited Danny's change for the better to Annabelle's influence.

  I felt a little hand against my lower leg and glanced down to see Ava clinging to my pants. Smiling, I held my hands down to her. "Take mommy's hands, honey." I pulled her to her feet, laughing as her little legs wobbled back and forth. She squealed with joy, staring up at me with drool dribbling down her chin. I let her take a few steps before picking her up. She wouldn't be walking for a while.

  I wondered if she was hungry.

  "She might be hungry," Lulu said, as if reading my mind.

  I laughed. "I was just thinking the same thing." I glanced around, and it suddenly occurred to me that I had no place to go to feed Ava in private, because I was unsure of where I would be staying during this lockdown. Bobbie and Demon would be using their apartment upstairs, and Sax would be staying in his room. I supposed that I would probably be staying with the other wives and children in the back room where the cots would be set up. Maybe I could find a private spot in the kitchen to feed her.

  "You're staying in Sax's room," Bobbie said, guessing my dilemma.

  That came as a surprise to me. "But..."

  She shrugged. "It's what he wants, honey. A prospect has already set up a crib in there for you."

  I still hesitated. Where would Sax be staying? With Goldie? I didn't see her or any of the other club girls, except for Lulu. Demon would have told them to stay scarce while the old ladies and their children were around. Good. I didn't want to see any triumphant looks in their eyes that would lead me to conclude that they were fucking Sax. The club sluts could be devious and mean bitches. Tamara, who was gone now, thank God, had been the worst.

  "Why don't we all go up to my apartment until it's time to start dinner? We'll have more privacy to talk, and Holly can feed Ava and put her down if she needs to."

  "I think Izzy's ready for a nap, too."

  "Do you have wine?" Annie joked, getting a raised brow and a smirk from Bobbie in response that clearly said that she thought Annie was crazy for asking because Bobbie always had wine. Annie laughed. "Doesn't hurt to ask. Some of us are going to need something stronger than baby's milk while we're waiting."

  "Ew!" JoJo said with disgust, while everyone else laughed at Annie's comment.

  We turned toward the stairs and followed Bobbie to her and Demon's room. I sank down into a chair and prepared to feed Ava. She settled against me easily and latched on to a nipple instinctively to drink, her little hand curled against my breast. As I gazed down at her, love made my heart swell to overflowing. I ran my hand over her hair, smiling, and thinking that it was time to wean her off of breast milk.

  "She looks so content."

  I smiled up at Raven. "Aren't most babies when they're eating? Are you planning on breast feeding?"

  "Definitely."

  "Okay, which ones of you bitches wants wine? Or should I say, can drink wine?" Bobbie was in her miniscule kitchen, pulling out glasses. Two bottles of wine already sat on the counter.

  "None for me," Raven sighed.

  "Or me." Not while I was still breast feeding.

  "Okay, I've got orange juice for you two."

  Annie was helping Bobbie in the kitchen. She'd pulled out a block of cheese and was slicing some off for us to snack on. Ellie was sitting on one side of the bed where she'd laid Izzy down, rubbing her tummy as the toddler fought sleep. JoJo was on the other side with Samuel, keeping him occupied with some toys. Raven sat with her legs curled beneath her on the sofa opposite me. She was positively glowing, as most expectant mothers did.

  I looked back down at Ava. She was still sucking away, but her eyes were closed. Sometimes I wondered how I’d got so lucky to have a perfect little girl. The only thing that would have made it more perfect was if Sax were her father. Sometimes I thought I saw little glimpses of him in her, but I knew that it was just wishful thinking.

  I needed to make that appointment.

  Once Ava was done I scooted to the floor and lay her in the chair to finish her nap, and then I took out my phone, did some research, and ordered a home DNA test kit.

  It seemed almost too easy.

  Four cheek swabs for each participant.

  Results within a week.

  Chapter 15

  Sax

  Thanks to Oz, it hadn't taken us long to zone in on the warehouse that was being used for the meeting between the Knights and Toledo. He'd discovered that the Knights had purchased one of the buildings under a bogus company name a month ago. The sale and purchase agreement had been signed by someone named Agnes Prachett, who was supposedly using the warehouse as a supply house for wholesale cosmetics and shit. A little digging had revealed that Agnes Prachett was Stretch's aunt. Dumb fuck. Stretch had probably thought that since they had different last names, no connection would be made.

  There was only one road into the industrial park, and it ran the full length of the park and divided it into two sections. Two of the buildings near the entrance were occupied, if the maintained landscaping was any indication. There were also several vehicles in the parking lot, probably the after-hours cleaning crew. Railroad tracks ran along the length of one side at the back where the buildings had been used as warehouses back in the day. Most were empty now, except for one that was being used for heavy duty truck repairs. The huge bay doors were closed, but I guessed that inside they were housing semis, dump trucks, and possibly some heavy duty farm equipment, anything too big for a regular garage to handle.

  The meeting was set up for nine, but we got there early. We didn't want to alert any of the Knights that we were in the area. The warehouse right next door to Sketch's was the perfect place to hide our bikes. We jimmied a door to get inside and arranged them in front of the bay door, ready for when we'd need to take off. Spider was staying behind to guard the bikes and to make sure that the bay door was up when we were ready to make our escape.

  Confrontations between MCs were usually quick and brutal. When shit got messy you could count on chaos and death and neither side wanted to get caught by the cops.

  Unsure of what to expect when we got to Stretch's warehouse, we’d sent Cole, Bull, and Trip's enforcer, Bigfoot (BF), over to scan the area, while the rest of us waited, double checking our weapons. Most of us had more than one gun on us, as well as a knife or two. I knew that LD would be carrying his favorite weapon of choice, at least when it came to one-on-one fighting. He was quick and efficient with a well-aimed slash of his knife.

  We didn't know how many Knights we would be facing, but the goal was to take Stretch out and hopefully some of his top officers. The reality was that most meetings only included a few members on each side. If that was the case for today’s meeting, getting our hands on Stretch or any of his blood brothers would work out in our favor in the long-run. We needed to show the Knights what happened to assholes that fucked with us.

  The back door opened, and the three enforcers stomped in, their expressions serious. Bigfoot had gotten his name due to his freakishly big feet. The man wore a size sixteen boot. He was as tall as LD, six-foot-seven, and built like Bull, big all over. Bigfoot was an old friend, and he and Murphy were blood brothers, same mother but different fathe
rs.

  LD was the first to speak when they reached us. "Any trouble getting in?"

  Cole shook his head, but it was Bull who answered. "Found a way in through the fucking roof," he smirked. "Left the side door ajar."

  "What's it look like over there?" Trip asked.

  Cole snorted. "Like a fucking warehouse filled with beauty products and shit."

  "They went all out to make it look legit," BF added with a smirk that you could barely see through his bushy blonde beard. "Opened up a few boxes to see what was inside."

  "And?" his president asked.

  BF shrugged. "The ones I checked had product in them. Don't mean they all did."

  Demon was standing with his legs parted and his arms crossed over his massive chest. He nodded, listening. "That all? Just a bunch of boxes?"

  "Fuck, no," Bull responded. "They got an office set up over there—desk, computer, phone. Even tossed a few invoices and shit over the top to make it look like someone sits there working."

  "Anything else?" LD growled, his stance similar to Demon’s and Trip’s. The three presidents stood like imposing sentries, their expressions set in severe lines that revealed that they were taking shit seriously and were out for blood. Fuck, we all were. There we were, fourteen brothers all standing by, waiting to go to war, eager to fight for our MCs and what was ours.

  Cole ran his hands through his hair and released a long breath. "There's fucking cameras everywhere."

  "The fuck?" Demon snarled. Even with a patch over one eye, he managed to make a frown work.

  BF nodded. "They went all out to try and make the place look legit. Chances are they're duds."

  "We don't know that for sure," Trip said, shaking his head.

  "They are," LD said with gruff conviction. “No way would either side want a deal like this to go down while it's being recorded."

  I had to agree. Most likely the cameras were set up as another ruse to give the impression that there was genuine business taking place there. Chances were that most of those fucking boxes were empty, too.

  "Unless they're fucking stupid."

  No one responded to Snake's comment.

  "So we're going to take a chance?" Trip's brows rose high with disbelief.

  It grew quiet. Was he looking for a way out, or was he just paranoid about the cameras? He didn't strike me as a coward.

  "No worries." Loco stepped forward. His Mohawk was the color of the rainbow, which sometimes gave people the wrong idea about his sexual identity. Even as scary as he looked, he'd been hit on a couple of times by men. It was funny as shit to watch. "We'll kill them once the shooting begins."

  "Problem solved," I smirked.

  "There's plenty of places to hide," Bull spoke up. "Plenty of stacked boxes—"

  I didn't let him finish. "Boxes won't stop fucking bullets."

  Several brothers muttered under their breath in agreement. Bull's look told me that he'd already considered that. We didn't want any casualties, unless those casualties were the Knights.

  "There's also salon furniture, those big ass chairs they use for pedicures, and other furniture scattered around," Bull continued.

  I snorted at his use of the word "pedicure."

  "They got two vans parked by the bay doors." Cole smirked. "White, could be the ones that were used during the drive-bys the other night, but they have logos on them now—Prachett's Cosmetic and Beauty Supplies."

  "Someone must be funding them," Chewy muttered as if to himself.

  "That's a discussion for another day."

  Demon was getting antsy, and I couldn't blame him. It was getting close to the time for us to move on to the other warehouse and get into position. I wanted this shit to be over with, too, but at the same time I could feel the anticipation running through my blood. It had been a while since I'd been involved in any club drama, since I’d tasted the high of a good fight.

  "Okay, listen up!" Demon began, then waited for the men to gather in close. "It's time. Don't know how many Knights we'll be facing. Doesn't matter. Stretch and any of his brothers are our targets. We take out as many as we can. Need to show these assholes what happens when they mess with us. Send them a message."

  "What about Toledo?" Colton asked.

  "Don't worry about that weasel. His men will get him out of there once the shooting starts," LD snarled.

  "When we get over there, find a place to hole up until the time is right. Want to hear what's going down before we make our move. Once the shooting starts, we need to finish up quickly and then get the fuck out of here."

  Demon didn't need to remind us about the few vehicles we’d seen when we’d driven into Copeland. With civilians around, one call to the cops was all it would take for things to blow up, and we sure as shit didn't need any witnesses.

  "Lucky, Singer, and Randy will stay outside," Trip began, drawing everyone's attention. "With the exception of Toledo and his men, no one escapes."

  His three brothers nodded their understanding.

  "It's fucking dark out there, Brothers," one of Trip's men half-joked. "Make sure you shoot the right fuckers."

  Sniggers followed in response to his quip.

  Demon growled. "Let's go!"

  We fell in step behind Demon, LD, and Trip and ran to the other warehouse. The bay doors faced the railroad tracks, and the side door that had been left ajar was at the back of the building on the other side. We moved with stealth and purpose once inside the warehouse, seeking out places to lay in wait like an army of fucking ants. I spied a wide steel beam, grabbed a stack of boxes, and moved them in front of it for cover.

  I heard the door click when someone closed it behind the last brother. There were no windows in the warehouse. When the lights were flicked off, it was pitch black. The sudden silence was eerie. I pulled out my phone and checked the time. It was ten minutes till nine. Almost immediately the sound of bikes could be heard approaching the building. I made sure my phone was on silent and waited.

  It was hard to judge how many Knights there were from the sound of their bikes alone. There had to be at least one vehicle that Toledo and his men would have come in. I could hear talking through the bay doors, but couldn't make out the words. The side door we'd come in through was opened, and someone flipped on the lights. I peeked around the box in front of me and saw someone wearing a Knights’ cut push a button that raised one of the bay doors, and then a black van drove into the warehouse. I ducked back out of sight before I was seen.

  Directly across from me were LD and Loco. I pulled my weapon, and they did the same. We heard the sound of the vehicle being turned off, and then doors were opened. The bay door rolled down again.

  "Let's make this exchange fast," I heard Stretch say. He sounded nervous. "I have somewhere else to be."

  Yeah, he was probably planning on hitting another one of our businesses. I had one eye on what was going on as I watched from behind my box.

  "Nice setup you have here."

  Toledo was as round as he was tall, dressed in an expensive suit that seemed inappropriate for an arms dealer. There was nothing that appeared to be tough or threatening about him, from his leather loafers to his shiny bald head, but he knew his weapons. I heard the light tapping of his shoes on the concrete floor as he walked around, puffing on a fat Cuban cigar. I tensed, ready to act if he discovered one of us, but he didn't venture any further than the center of the room. Two armed men guarded him closely.

  Stretch's brother, Hank, was there, but I didn't see any of their other brothers. "Did you bring everything we ordered?"

  "Everything, and some surprises," Toledo joked. "You have the thirty grand?"

  Fuck! That was no drop in the bucket. Looked like we were going to be leaving with plenty of loot. Where the fuck did the Knights get that kind of money?

  Toledo stepped forward to open the sliding doors.

  "We don't like fucking surprises," Stretch snarled. His hand reached behind him and rested on the handle of the gun tucked into his
pants, ready to pull it if he needed to.

  "You'll like this," Toledo laughed. "Since you're in the business of selling flesh."

  That was news to me. I didn't like where this was going, and from the looks that were exchanged between my brothers, I could see that they didn’t either. LD and Loco were watching things unfold as closely as I was.

  Toledo nodded at one of his men, which prompted him to move toward the open van door. Next thing I knew, he was pulling a woman out. A girl, really, she couldn't have been older than thirteen, and she was wearing jeans and a t-shirt. A second woman, who was nearly naked, was pulled out roughly behind the girl, and both were made to stand against the van.

  They were terrified, visibly shaking, their faces streaked with tears, but there was also glaring anger in the older woman's eyes. Duct tape covered their mouths, and their hands were tied in front of them. They looked like they'd been roughed up, the older woman more so. She had bruises and a black eye. Both had brown hair and brown eyes, their features similar. Fuck, were they mother and daughter?

  Shit. I wondered how this was going to play out now that there were civilians present.

  "Nice surprise," one of Stretch's boys grated in a vulgar tone. He grabbed the front of his pants. "I'll take the young one."

  He was ignored. I would make sure to shoot his fucking dick off if I got the chance. The way he was eye-balling the kid turned my stomach.

  "Thought you could get rid of them for me," Toledo grinned. "No charge, and you keep what you get for them."

  "Who the fuck are they?"

  "My sister-in-law and her kid." Stretch's gaze whipped back in Toledo's direction in surprise. "She's been causing trouble for me since her sister—my wife—disappeared."

  That explained a lot, such as why the older woman wasn't putting up more of a fight. They must have threatened to hurt her kid, and I was willing to bet that Toledo had helped his wife ‘disappear’.

  "We'll take them off your hands," Hank offered, his tone cold.

  I shot a glance at LD, wondering when the fuck Demon was going to make his move.