Arranging for their meeting to take place here had been a good idea and not wearing their kuttes had been another good idea. No one gave them a second glance.
“Why did you want to see me? And why here? I told Hawk we’ll give you some more time to settle the shit with your bitch. So what do you want?” Dagger said as he watched his nephew.
“I have some questions and we’re meeting here because there’s less chance of us being seen together. And just so we’re clear, the bitch is nothing of mine. She’s a job, that’s all.” Ice did another sweep of the indoor area. They were still clear.
Dagger nodded but kept his eyes on the boy.
“Ask. Can’t promise I’ll answer.”
“Do you know of any connection between Emma Coetzee and Sparrow? We can’t find any reason why she’s targeting River. So we thought maybe there was something between Sparrow and Emma.”
Dagger went from relaxed to tense in less than a second.
“No fucking way. I admit, my brother had a lot of bitches but it all stopped the minute he met River. She was only seventeen so he waited and while he waited he didn’t touch another bitch. He loved his old lady, fucking worshipped the ground she walked on. Your bitch wouldn’t have made any impression on him at all, he was all about River. And when his Rivzie got pregnant he was the fucking happiest man on the planet. He was that asshole who buys every single pregnancy book he can find and reads them all. Don’t know how many times he grossed us out in church discussing shit we didn’t want to know anything about. At the time he and Jinx were the only ones with old ladies at our table and the bastards made sure to rub it in our faces.”
Dagger went silent and Ice gave him time.
“The night he was murdered he was supposed to take River out to dinner. But that same afternoon Jinx had found his old lady fucking some civvie bastard in their bed and went on a bender. He went to a bar our club frequents and that evening the bar owner called Sparrow to collect his buddy. He dropped River off at home and went to fetch Jinx. Sparrow calmed him down and got some coffee down him to try and sober him up. They walked out of the bar into an ambush. A blacked out Beemer was waiting right outside, windows open and Sparrow took three to the chest and abdomen. Jinx took two to the upper chest.”
Dagger sat forward and rubbed his hands over his face and pulled down hard on his beard.
“As they were leaving the bar Sparrow had called me to tell me he was taking Jinx to his place. And I heard it all. My brother and his best friend going down, and as he went down Sparrow kept giving me information. Make, model, number plate, how many in the car. At first I don’t think he realised how bad he was hit. And then he did. And still he tried to tell me something, tried to warn me about something, he mentioned you. And then it was all about his girl and his son.”
Dagger breathed in heavily.
“Jesus Christ. My brother should not be dead. He should be sitting here watching his boy jump around. He should be the one putting babies in his old lady’s belly.”
Sucking the emotion back in he sat up and his voice went hard and flat.
“Jinx was drunk off his ass and blacked out when he was shot. Still has a no recall of that night. I recorded it, that last call from my brother. I started recording by mistake but once I realised what was happening I recorded it all. I can’t fucking listen to it but I’ll forward it to you. If anything, and I mean any-fucking-thing comes from it I want to be the first to know. Vengeance belongs to me and the Sinner’s Sons.”
Ice didn’t know what to say. Listening to your brother getting shot and dying and not being able to do anything about it had to be one of the most difficult things to live through.
“If we find anything I’ll call you immediately. You have my word.”
Ice hadn’t known Jinx had been with Sparrow the night he had been killed or that he had been a target as well. It changed things. If they could get Jinx to remember what he saw. He didn’t know how but felt sure they could find some way to do it.
Some way to jolt his brain
While they sat silently side by side watching the kids he sent Ziggy a text and he didn’t hide it from Dagger.
Research memory black outs. Find me a way to get those memories back. Fast
Ice took his nieces home and loved the hugs and kisses he got from them. And then he silently allowed Gail to give him hell about Emma, again. He would have given anything to tell her the truth but there was no way he could. He knew his sister, knew she would call Genna and the two of them would immediately rain hell down on Emma. It was something he could not allow to happen, he had to keep his sisters safe.
By the time he walked back into the clubhouse Dagger had forwarded the recording to him. Hawk was sitting at the bar with a bottle of water in his hand. Waiting. DC sat next to her man, her eyes on him as he walked up. Those dark eyes of hers were so damned mysterious they hardly ever showed what she was thinking or feeling.
“Dagger sent me the recording I texted you about. Do you want me to give it to Ziggy?”
Hawk nodded slowly then glanced at DC. “Yes, once he’s done whatever needs doing we will meet in the chapel. I’ve called the officers in so we have more ears listening. Maybe Dagger missed something. His brother was dying and that’s what he would have concentrated on.”
Ice cleared his throat before he could speak. “He did say he can’t listen to it and I think he meant he couldn’t handle hearing it again. So it’s possible he missed something.” Glancing down at his dusty and scuffed up boots Ice shook his head. “Must have been fucking hard.”
Shaking his head to dislodge those thoughts he concentrated on what else he had found.
“Did you know Jinx was with him and got shot as well?” He was watching Hawk but he saw DC’s eyes narrow before she locked it down.
Hawk frowned. “No, I don’t think it was ever mentioned. Do you think the Sinner’s Sons scrubbed it out of the reports to keep him safe?”
Giving it some thought Ice nodded. “It could be. It’s what I would’ve done if it had happened to two of our guys. Dagger said Jinx blacked out and has no memory of what happened. I asked Ziggy to do some research, see if we can somehow jog his memory.”
DC spoke so softly it was difficult to hear her with the noise in the common room. “Maybe listening to the recording would do it. Jinx was Sparrow’s best friend. I think he blames himself for what happened.”
“How do you know this, little bird?” Hawk frowned at his old lady and typical of DC she frowned right back at him.
“I know because River told me. She said her man and Jinx had been best friends and always pulling pranks on their brothers. Now Jinx hardly ever smiles and most of the time only when he’s with Duncan. And since that bitch targeted River and Duncan he has virtually moved in with them to keep them safe.” She shrugged. “And she’s right, he never smiles or laughs.”
“Fine. Enough talking about Jinx not smiling. We listen to the recording and make decisions after.” Hawk growled.
Ice hid a smile. His cousin did not like DC talking about another man. And that man living with River? He didn’t feel all warm and fuzzy about it either.
Ziggy had brought speakers to the chapel and he had set up his laptop and some other shit. Ice had no idea what it was and wasn’t interested in finding out either. As long as what he did gave them a clear recording to listen to he was happy.
He was surprised to see DC joining them but said nothing. All the officers were in the room, including Bulldog, his dad. Ice knew in his gut this recording was going to change things. How or why he didn’t know. He just felt it.
And then Ziggy cleared his throat and it was time.
“I’ve run the recording through a programme and cleaned it of hisses and hums so what we’re going to hear are as clear as I can get it right now. I can work on it more after we’re done here and clarify the background voices.”
He drew in a very deep breath and slowly released it, then he clicked a button and a dead m
an’s voice filled the room.
“I’ve got him, Dagger. He’s fucking stukkend (broken and drunk), brother. When I get my hands on the fucking bitch she’s going to be sorry. I’m taking him home with me. My Rivzie and I will keep an eye on him and we’ll see you in the morning.”
The sounds of scuffling and murmurs and then Dagger’s voice.
“Good, you keep him with you, Sparrow. I tried to stop him when he left here but he wasn’t in a good place and didn’t want to hear me.”
Sounds of grunting and heavy breathing.
“Jesus, fuck, Jinx. Why is your ass so fucking heavy, brother? Been eating too much of mum’s good food lately, have you?”
“Fuck you, Row. You been eating too, and your ass is getting fat.”
Laughter and shuffling sounded.
“Hey, Tone, can you get the door for me, please my man. Got my hands full over here.”
“Sure, Sparrow. You take care of him now. Our friend here is not in a good place right now.”
An unknown voice said. Must have been Tone.
“Listen, Sparrow, I want the two of you here early. We’ve got some shit to do …”
“Hey!” A voice called out, sounding high and thin.
“What the fuck! Ambush! Ambush! Dagger, fuck, brother…”
Sounds of multiple shots and dull thuds and groans.
“Jinx, motherfucker! Get the fuck down! Get down!”
Sounds of heavy bodies falling, grunts, groans and breaths hissing out.
“Sparrow! Fuck! Dylan fucking talk to me! DYLAN!!!!”
Sounds of a car accelerating, wheels squealing and then heavy breathing.
“Darren, brother, we’re both down. Black Beemer, not sure of the year, tinted windows, chrome hubs, HGT735GP…th….three…. in the car. Two…..shooters.”
Then the sound of stuttered breathing and Dagger running and shouting at his brothers calling them to ride.
As he did he continued to talk to Sparrow.
“Where are you shot, Dylan? Talk to me little brother.”
“Oh fuck, chest…and… ab…abdomen. Jinx got...two…chest.”
“I’m on my bike, little brother. You fucking stay with me, I’m ten minutes out. I’m coming, you hear me, you fucking stay with me, Dylan!”
Screaming engines from several bikes can be heard but the sounds of Sparrow struggling to breathe and talk virtually drowns them out.
Then another voice shouting. “Call an ambulance! Bring me some fucking towels, right the fuck now! Stop fucking staring and help me you motherfuckers!”
Scuffling and grunts.
“Hold on, Sparrow. The girls are getting some towels to stop the bleeding. You just hold the fuck on, brother, okay?”
The voice soothed.
“Have to…have to tell…you. Saw……the…..car…..before. Ice……Ice. He….he….hotel.”
A heavy sigh then he continues.
“Ice……warn…….bitches.”
“Did the fucking Dogz do this? Sparrow! Did fucking Ice do this? I’m going to fucking kill them all!”
Heavy struggling breaths.
“Tone…..please…..hold…..phone. Not Ice…..she…..warn…..bit….bitches”
“Almost there, little brother. I’m almost with you. Hold on, please hold the fuck on.”
“Pro…..protect……my….s…s...son. Promise…..me. Protect…..my…..fam…..family, please….brother. Be……be…..ware…..bit…..bitches.”
“I’ve got you, Dylan. I promise but hold on for me, please, little brother.”
“Fuck…..don’t ….want…to….die…..Darren. Love….you…..bro. Tell my…..Rivzie…..tell her……love her….past…..death into…..forever. Love….you….all so…..fucking….much…..take care…..of…..my…..fam…”
A struggling gurgle and then silence and then the sounds of a woman crying as the man, most probably Tone spoke to Dagger.
“Dagger, brother, I’m so sorry. He’s gone, my brother.”
Dagger screamed, and then there were no more words, just the sound of the big man crying but still racing to his brother before the call cuts off.
DC’s head was on her folded arms on the table and her shoulders jerked as she cried silently. Hawk was crouched next to her, his arm around her shoulders as he whispered to her. Then she sniffed and sat up. She didn’t hide her tears, just brushed them away as she reached for the bottle of water in front of her and took deep gulps.
“Jesus. Fuck. I never want to listen to that shit ever fucking again. I can’t.” Kahn said softly as he cried openly and wiped the tears from his eyes. “Knew him. He teased me when I was a prospect and watching over the bikes at a rally. Said I looked like the fucking Aga Kahn the way I stood watch. Gave me my road name that day. Always laughing, always ready to help. He didn’t care if you were in his club or not. Made friends where ever he went. I want to fucking gut whoever did this. He did not deserve to die like that.”
The minute Sparrow had given Dagger the details of the car Ice had frozen in his seat. He knew the car. Knew it very fucking well because he had bought it for Emmie. The car she had told him had been stolen from the campus parking lot.
“The car was Emma’s car” His voice sounded harsh and loud in the silence. “The car she told me had been stolen out of the campus parking lot a few days before she walked out on me. It was never recovered. Where the fuck was that car before it was used for the hit on Sparrow? And where is it now?”
Kid sat forward and tapped a finger on the table. “A better question. How did Sparrow know the car was linked to Ice? He clearly said he had seen the car before and he kept on saying bitches and she. He identified two shooters. I think they were female and he knew who they were but being mortally wounded and trying to get a message to his family he didn’t think to name them. But the clues are there. We just have to listen very fucking carefully.”
Spider shook his head. “He said he’d seen it before. That’s the clue. He had seen the car with bitches in it somewhere before and those bitches got antsy and took him out before he could put it together.”
“He repeated ‘warn’ twice.” Bulldog said very quietly. “What if he meant Warne as in the surname? And why mention Ice and bitches? I think Sparrow saw something go down with Jane and Emma but he most probably shrugged it off as Iron Dogz bitches doing whatever. Emma wasn’t supposed to be in South Africa at the time. So I have two questions. What was Emma doing here? And why was she with Jane, a woman she’s supposed to hate?”
“He said ‘hotel’. He was trying to say something about a hotel. It sounded like he said ‘he’ but what if he was trying to say the hotel’s name?” Jagger pulled on his goatee. “There are a few hotels in the area starting with an H. Ziggy, would they keep records of guests going back five years?”
“If it was one of the fancy ones, yes, certainly. But if it was the smaller ones it’s doubtful.” Ziggy tapped on his laptop. “I can put a list together if you want.”
“Yes, do that. I think Sparrow saw the car with the two bitches at a hotel with someone they did not want to be seen with. There’s our connection.” Jagger sighed. “And instead of waiting to see if he was going to rat them out, they hit him first. If we’re lucky Jinx might have been with him the day he saw them and it’s the reason why he was shot as well. Not remembering anything about that night most probably saved his life.”
“I have photos of the fucking piece of shit car.” Ice growled. “We can show them to him and see if he recognises it. Plus we need photos of Jane and Emma from five to seven years ago. Both of them changed their looks quite drastically.”
A horribly cold voice with absolutely no inflection in it at all filled the room and everyone froze.
“I want Emma Coetzee in my dungeon. If you don’t give her to me I will have her picked up and taken to a place where I can play without any interruptions. She will face the Crow and confess her sins.”
Holy. Fucking. Shit.
DC was no longer DC.
She had become the thing nightmares were made of. A nightmare he had watched at work and hoped he didn’t have to ever again. The Crow.
“Baby, no.” Hawk’s voice was soft and he reached for DC’s clenched fist. “Crow, we can’t allow you to take care of Emma right now. We need the bitch without any marks on her. But maybe when we’re done with her, maybe then there would be time for you to ask some questions. Okay?”
“Are you bargaining with me, Hawk?” That flat, cold and scary as fuck voice asked.
“Yes.” He said without hesitation. “Yes I am.”
A heavy sigh flew past DC’s clenched lips, and it was as if she was battling herself and then she blinked and warmth flooded back into her dark eyes.
“Fuck.” She whispered. “Sorry, that wasn’t supposed to happen. I’ve got it under control now.”
“Can I just say, you are one scary motherfucker, DC.” Spider shook his head and then gave her a sly grin. “I’m fetching you the next time Genna threatens to cut my nuts off while I’m sleeping.”
Laughter rang out and Ice could hear the sudden relief in their voices. Trust his little brother to break the tension in the room.
Hawk rapped his knuckles on the table and silence fell once again.
“Let’s get back to work and solve this puzzle. Ice, you and Kid arrange with Dagger to have a meeting with Jinx. Ziggy will get the photos together and let’s see if Jinx can help us out.”
Drumming his fingers on the arm of his chair he sat back and looked around the table.
“We now know they won’t hesitate to shoot if they think they’ve been compromised. We are going on alert until this is done. I’ve got a burning in my gut and it just won’t go away. We are going to be careful. I don’t want to lose anyone of you. We keep our eyes peeled for the black Beemer. I think they use it to hit their targets. You see the fucking car you duck and cover. Ice, no further meetings with the bitch, we’re getting too close.”
Ice didn’t want to but he had to disagree with his president.
“Prez, she’s going to call. You know she is, and I can only stall her for a short while. She thinks she’s got me against the ropes with the kid thing. By now she’s found out the Howards are gone and she’s going to make another play. If I’m not in contact with her how are we going to prepare for their next move?”
Lost And Found In Blue (Iron Dogz MC Book 2) Page 15