Duke (Aces MC Series Book 2) (17 page)

Duke

I hadn’t heard from Ash, not that I expected to. She’d made
it perfectly clear how she felt towards me and my club. I wasn’t gonna change
who I was for anyone but it didn’t make the rejection hurt any less.
I’d just arrived at the club house after a hard session at the gym. CJ had a
fight coming up in a couple of months and was now in training. He was a fucking
machine and although he was a bare knuckle boxer, I always insisted on wearing
gloves when we sparred.
My phone started to ring and I noticed that it was Chanel. I’d spoken to her
twice yesterday and had offered her a bed here at the club, which she politely
refused. I’d also made sure that Buster was here last night, I didn’t want any
unwanted pregnancies on my watch. Taylor would never forgive me for a start and
I’d have one less Prospect around because I’d fucking kill him. Instead Amy had
offered to sleep over at Taylor’s, which I was thankful for.

“Hi Chanel, what’s up darlin?”
“There’s been a fire in the fucking shop.” She screamed down the phone.
“Calm down Chanel.” She was getting hysterical.  “What shop?” I started to get
dressed quickly as I continued my conversation.
“I came to the high street with Amy to get some breakfast and the fire brigade
were putting out a fire in the salon. What should I do?”
“Are you still with Amy?”
“Yes,”
“Stay with her, I’m on my way.” I hung up and put my phone quickly into my
pocket as I ran up the corridor towards the bar still getting dressed.

“Thank fuck you’re here,” I put on my boots and quickly
tightened them. “There’s been a fire at the salon.” I shouted at the group. I
glanced at them and could see an array of different expressions on their faces.
“Arson?” Bear asked standing beside me and retrieving his keys from his pocket.
“Don’t know but we need to get over there now.”
We ran outside and quickly mounted our motorcycles and took the ten minute
journey over to Epping.

“Duke!” Chanel ran across the street and into my arms before
I’d even dismounted my motorcycle.
“It’s okay darlin. Did you see anything?”
“No, it was already ablaze when we got here.”
“Okay. Go and stand with Buster whilst I talk to Ames.” She smiled and stalked
over to where Buster was standing and fell easily into his embrace.

Amy had just finished talking to the police office as I
joined her in front of the salon.
“What’s going on Ames?”
“I had to lie and say that I was Taylor, so I could get some information.”
That was our Amy, a quick thinker. “So what have you found out?”
“It looks like arson, something was thrown through the window. A witness has
given a description of the man and he also got the registration of the vehicle,
which turns out to be the same as the one that shot at you on Saturday.”
I nodded my head taking in the information. The guys had paid Miss Jennifer
Wright a visit to find that her car had actually been stolen. We ran a
background check but nothing linked her to any of our rivals but I had asked
for her to be put under surveillance for a couple of days for my peace of mind.
Our investigation had met a dead end for now but I only hoped that the police
would make better progress.
“Interesting! What about the salon? Is it a total mess?”
“Luckily the witness called the fire brigade straight away. There’s no
structural damage only cosmetic.”
I nodded my head as I contemplated what we may possibly need to get the salon
back to its former glory.
“Is it arson?” Bear asked as he joined us.
“Yeah, looking that way.” I said as I rubbed my forehead.
“Who would want to ruin Taylor’s business?” Amy asked looking between us.
“This has nothing to do with Taylor, they’re trying to get to me.” I stated as
I crossed my arms and looked around the busy street, trying to see if anything
was out of place. Nothing looked suspicious but I had an uneasy feeling.
Taylor’s place gets wrecked and we ride up here like a bunch of fucking hero’s.
We were leaving ourselves vulnerable in other places.
I looked at Bear, “Make sure we have adequate presence at all of our
establishments. I don’t want to leave ourselves open for attack.”
Bear nodded and stalked back to the rest of the guys, giving them their orders
of where they should be.
“What do you need me to do Duke?” Amy asked.
“Can we get into the building yet?” I asked nodding in the direction of the
salon.
She shook her head, “Not for another couple of hours.” She stated.
“Well you better go and make some lunch then.” I said with a wink.

Two hours later we were allowed back into the salon. I looked
around assessing the damage, it wasn’t too bad. Rob was currently measuring up the
wood that we’d need to replace and I’d called a glazier to replace the broken
window.
Buster and Ramsey had been sent to the local furniture shop to purchase a new
leather sofa and Amy, Chanel and Pam, had taken it upon themselves to clean the
place up.

“Are you getting domesticated?” Diesel asked as he joined me
in the kitchen.
“Fuck off!” I said with humour. “It’s the least I can do for that lot out
there, they don’t have to help out.” I put the hot drinks onto a tray and
carried them into the salon, placing them on the new coffee table with Diesel
following me closely behind.
Everyone was appreciative and took a drink, sitting in various positions around
the salon.
“Thank you, that’s a lovely cup of tea young man.” Pam said as she took her
drink. I’d heard a lot about her from Taylor and Chanel but this was the first
time I’d actually met her. She certainly spoke her mind, which was an endearing
quality.
“I can’t call you Duke, it’s a silly name. What’s your real name dear?”
Diesel started to snigger at my discomfort. “My name’s Mitchell.” I stated
giving her a brilliant smile.
“Why do they call you Duke?” she asked intrigued.
We got asked this question a lot. “We are given our club names. It could be an
abbreviation of our real name like CJ, a nickname from our childhood like Hound
or an association with something like Diesel.”
Diesel smiled proudly as Pam nodded her head understanding but she looked at me
expectantly.
“When I was younger, I liked to play dress up.” God this was embarrassing, not
many people knew why I was called Duke.
“Still does!” Diesel said to the roar of laughter from the group.
I ignored them and continued. “My parents used to take the piss and say that I
had a regal air about me when I used to get into character. It developed from
there and since as long as I can remember I’ve been called Duke.”
“It could’ve been worse I suppose. You could’ve dressed up in women’s clothes,
then what would they’ve called you?” Pam stated as she leaned in her chair
continuing to drink her tea.
Diesel spluttered choking on his drink as it went down the wrong hole. Prick! I
wasn’t helping him, he shouldn’t keep laughing at me. But I knew one thing for
sure, I now knew where Taylor got her smart mouth from.

“Right are you ready ladies? It’s been a long day and it’s
time to get you all home.”
Amy, Chanel and Pam had finished cleaning and I could see that they were all
exhausted, especially Pam although she seemed fitter than most pensioners.
I ushered them out of the door and into the taxi that was waiting for them
outside the salon.
“Thanks again, I really appreciate your help today.” I said smiling as I
assisted Pam into the front seat of the taxi.
“No, thank you dear for fixing Taylor’s salon.” Pam said resting her hand on my
forearm.
I smiled at her kind words, “It’s the least I can do but remember not to tell
her, we don’t want her worrying.”
The three ladies nodded in agreement as I closed the passenger side door and
waved as the driver pulled away into the traffic. Taylor followed them to make
sure they all got home safely.
I stalked back into the salon where the prospects were now painting the freshly
cleaned walls. It still smelt of smoke but I was hoping that a good amount of
airing and the array of air fresheners we had strategically placed around the
salon, may help to eradicate this.
“Diesel and I are heading back to the club house boys, if you need us give me a
call.”
The prospects continued painting, knowing that they weren’t to come back until
the job was completed.

“Pour us a drink Spike.” I said crashing on the sofa next to
him in the bar.
“How’s it all going?” Spike asked as he filled four glasses with the amber
liquid.
“The prospects are painting and Amy’s going shopping for new towels and drapes
tomorrow as the others smell of smoke.” I knocked back my drink in one and
pushed the empty glass over to Spike for a refill.
“I never thought I’d hear the day you spoke about drapes.” Diesel said to the
sniggers from Bear and Spike.
“You’re fucking hilarious!” I said dryly draining my glass and banging it on
the table.
I know he was only messing around but I wasn’t feeling very sociable this
evening so I excused myself and stalked into my office for some peace and quiet.
I leant back in my chair, resting my feet on the desk as I tried to relax after
such a shitty day. I slowly unwound the bandage that was around my right hand
and looked at the abrasion left from scrapping it on the ground. I was taking
pain killers still so I shouldn’t be drinking but the amber liquid was going
down easily this evening and it helped to numb the pain.
There was a knock on the door. “What do you want?” I asked as I threw the
bandage into the bin. I thought it best to give the cut some air.
The door opened slowly and Spike walked in. I noticed straight away that he had
something in his hand. He walked further into the room and put the small
container on my desk before sitting down comfortably on the sofa. I looked
between the container and him as I continued to sit in my relaxed state not
wanting to move.
“I’ve been talking to James.” He stated as his leaned forward on the sofa.
That’s when the penny finally dropped, the pills must be antidepressants. I’d
spoken to Spike in length the other day when I bumped into him at the cemetery.
I’d gone there to speak to Viper. Fucking stupid I know but that was the only
place where I felt close to him. Whenever I needed to vent my anger and thrash
a few things out, I found that place to be my sanctuary.
“And what did he say?” I asked as I placed my hands behind my head, closing my
eyes.
“They increase levels of a group of chemicals in the brain called
neurotransmitters and they can help to improve your mood and emotions.” He
paused and I heard him moving around so I opened my eyes. He was now sitting in
the chair directly in front of me leaning on my desk. “But they won’t address
its causes.” He said looking at me intently.
Spike the fucking therapist was at it again! I sat there contemplating what he
was saying but I didn’t need any fucking medication to make me feel better. I
just needed to man up and get on with it. Fucking depression! It was a made up
word to make sorry arses like myself feel better.
I moved my legs off the desk and placed my feet firmly on the floor, still
keeping eye contact with Spike. I picked up the small container and tossed it
into the bin beside me.
“I appreciate your concern…”
“Don’t fucking dismiss me or the pills completely?” He stated firmly as he rose
to his feet.
Fucking hell! Spike had never raised his voice or spoken to me in such a way,
that I was taken by surprise. He stalked around the desk and bent down to
retrieve the container from the bin. He jiggled it in his hand as he returned
to the other side of the desk as I continued to assess him and his own state of
mind.
He placed the container gently on the table before turning around and stalking
out of the room without saying another word.
What the fuck was that all about?
I leaned forward and picked up the container. I lined up the arrows and pulled
off the plastic lid to reveal the small white tablets. I swished them around
gently.
Was this really the answer?
I sat looking at the tablets and poured a couple onto the palm of my good
hand, when there was a knock on the door.
“Hold on a minute!” I shouted as I returned the pills to the container and held
them firmly under the desk. “Yeah!”
The door swung open widely, “Woods wants to talk to us about the reconnaissance
run.” Bear said standing in the doorway.
“Yeah, give me a minute and I’ll be out.”
“Is everything okay?” He asked looking around the room.
“Everything’s just great.”
Bear smiled briefly before walking up the corridor.
I opened the top draw of my desk and threw the container in there. I wouldn’t
be needing them!

Amy

“Hi Taylor, how you doing?”
“Not too bad and you?”
“I’m good but exhausted. I’ve been so busy at the cafe and a member of staff resigned
at the women’s refuge, so I’ve been helping out there too.” I was trying to
keep the conversation light and not mention Duke as I didn’t want her getting annoyed
with me. “What you been up to?”
“I was ill over the weekend and couldn’t sleep properly but thankfully my sleeping
patterns are now back to normal.
“How ill were you?”
“I just felt sick and had a headache. It must have been something I ate on the
plane.”
“Are you feeling any better now?” I asked concerned.
“Much better thanks. Anyway, more importantly I took my nephews to school
today. I’ve missed them so much.”

We continued our conversation about her nephews but I was a
little bemused as to why she switched the conversation so quickly, diverting it
from herself.

“How’s Sophia doing?”
“She’s doing better but she wants her husband.”
“When’s he back?”
“He phoned earlier on this afternoon and he’s trying to get back this week.”
“Does that mean you’ll be coming home?” I asked hopefully.
Taylor laughed, “I don’t know. I’ll have to see how she’s doing. How are Chanel
and the salon? I tried to call there yesterday but there wasn’t any answer,
which I thought was strange!”
Shit! I was no good at lying, she’d probably see straight through me. “There
was a problem with the phone lines in the whole street, my phone lines were
down too.” I spluttered.
“That’s simply not good enough. We probably lost business because of that. Are
they working now?”
“They said they’ll be working by tomorrow.”
“Well let me know if they…oh…Amy I’ve gotta go…I’m feeling…”
“Taylor! Are you okay?” I could hear a commotion on the other end of the phone
and then a horrible retching sound as Taylor was violently sick.
I listened for a while but there was nothing I could do, so I hung up. I’d give
her a call later when she was feeling a little better and able to talk.