Fighting Destiny (Forsaken Sinners MC; Book 2) (Forsaken Sinners MC Series) (16 page)

“No need. I’ll take you.” I turn around to tell him it’s no problem, but he cuts me off. “I’m taking you, end of discussion.” Knowing there will be no getting out of it, I just nod and watch him walk into the back.

“Okay then. I’ll see you when you get here.” With that, she hangs up and I get back to work, almost wishing I could work longer.

When I’m ready to close up, Louie walks up to me desk. “You ready to go?” He asks nicely.

“Yeah, I’m just powering everything down. I can meet you out back,” I say without looking up from my computer. Maybe if I give him the cold shoulder or act like a bitch long enough, he’ll revert back to his old self around me, but realistically, is that what I really want? No, not really.

He doesn’t say anything, but after a couple of seconds, he finally starts walking towards the back. Thank goodness. I hate it when people just stand there and watch me as they wait for me. Grabbing my purse, I make sure the front door is locked, turn off all the lights and head out back to meet up with Louie.

When I walk outside, I don’t see him right away ‘cause he’s not by his bike. Then I hear a door slam a little further down the lot and notice someone getting out of a truck. Wait, that’s Toby’s truck. What’s he doing here? He didn’t reply back to my message about me going to Dani’s and him possibly picking me up, but I didn’t think that was because he’d be picking me up here.

Just as I’m about to question him, I notice that it’s not Toby, but Louie. 

“Why do you have Toby’s truck? Something wrong with your bike?” It’s not like I haven’t ridden on a bike before, so I’m not sure why he would feel the need to get the truck instead of just taking his bike.

“No, there’s nothing wrong with my bike.” That’s all he says before he closes the door behind me once I’m inside the truck. When he gets in on his side, I look at him, waiting for him to elaborate more, but I get nothing.

For some reason, I’m bothered by this and want to know, so I ask again. “So, if there isn’t anything wrong with your bike, why are we using Toby’s truck?” He’s quiet as he pulls out of the parking spot and gets us onto the road.

Once we’re on the highway, he finally answers. “Because it would be disrespectful to Toby to have you ride behind me on my bike. I don’t know how much Toby has told you about club laws, but that’s one of them. Once a brother has laid claim to a woman, she shouldn’t be on the back of anyone’s bike but her old man’s.” That’s interesting. Toby hasn’t told me much about the ‘laws,’ but we’ve spoken a little about their way of life. I guess he hinted to different rules, but we haven’t gone over them in detail.

“But wait a minute. You said she
shouldn’t
be on the back of anyone’s bike, except for the man who’s claimed her. As in, it’s not really a law?” I’m actually curious about this, not trying to be a smart-ass. I find it kind of fascinating the way the club lives and thinks.

Louie glances at me for a few seconds. He must see the curiosity in my eyes because he laughs a little before answering me. “No, it’s not a law. More like a rule of thumb, or a code between brothers. Like I said, it would be disrespectful, so I told him I was borrowing his truck.” I nod my head and think about what he’s said. I guess I can see how it would be considered disrespectful to a brother if he saw the woman he was seeing on the back of another brother’s bike. I’ve never even seen Dani on any of the guys’ bikes, but I guess I just assumed that was because she was pregnant, but maybe it’s because of the same reason I’m not riding behind Louie right now.

We make it to Dani’s house in what seems like no time at all. As soon as we pull up, instead of keeping the engine running, Louie surprises me by turning the engine off and getting out of the truck. Before I can even gather my stuff and open my door, he’s already there.

Hopping down from the truck, I walk beside Louie. Without even knocking, he just walks right in. “Yo, where’s my beer, bitch?” Even though the words sound cruel, I can tell by the smile on his face and the tone of his voice that he’s messing around. Dani confirms my suspicions when she walks into the room smiling.

“Go get your own beer, bitch!” She yells back before walking up to him and giving him a hug.

After she lets him go, he goes off to get a beer and find Blaze, I would guess, and Dani walks up to me. “You look nice,” she says before pulling me in for a hug as well.

When she releases me, I look down and laugh. I’m wearing an old pair of jeans and an old t-shirt. “If I look nice, then you look like Queen of fucking France.” That has us both cracking up.

Heading into the kitchen, she asks if I want a beer. I nod and wait while she grabs a bottle for me and a bottle of water for herself, then we head out back where they have a porch swing set up. It looks cozy and relaxing.

We’re both quiet for a couple of minutes, just swinging and drinking our drinks. “So, do you want to talk about what happened yesterday?” Dani asks, finally breaking the silence.

Not really in the mood to talk about it, I shake my head. “Not right now, if that’s okay?” I don’t look at her, just down at my lap while I pick at the label on my beer bottle. She reaches over and places her hand over mine, stopping me.

“Of course it’s okay, but I’m here when you’re ready to talk about it. You can tell me anything and I won’t judge, I promise.”

Finally looking up at her, I smile and squeeze her hand. “Thanks. Why don’t you show me the baby stuff you were talking about?” She’s instantly giddy, which is another thing I’ve never seen Dani be, and grabs my hand before leading me inside the house and up the stairs.

Toby

I’m still staring at the computer screen, waiting for something to pop out at me, something I missed to show me where this fucker is hiding. I’ve never had so much trouble finding someone before, and this dickhead is supposed to be an amateur, at least that’s what we’re assuming, anyway.

It’s quiet in here, just the way I like it, but the quiet suddenly vanishes when Tom Tom comes barreling into the room. “We’ve got a lead. He was spotted a couple of towns over, heading into a strip club.” I stand up as soon as he says he’s got a lead. It’s about fucking time.

As I grab my jacket, I say, “I want someone on him. Make sure he doesn’t leave.” Tom Tom nods and puts his phone to his ear.

Going down the hall, I open the door to Mack’s office to let him know we’re rolling out, but he’s not alone. Our “House mom,” whom we all call KitKat, is currently on her knees in front of Mack, bobbing her head to a fast rhythm, up and down his dick. “Sorry Pres, but we got a lock on him. Tom Tom and I are heading out. Blaze and Louie are with the girls now, but I’m gonna send them an update to let them know to keep them there until we have the fucker.” It wasn’t my intention to interrupt and cut off his happy time, but he pushes Kat aside, not nearly as rough as he would have if it were any other club whore, and stands.

“I’ll notify Blaze and Louie, but I want to roll heavy. Get every other available brother ready to ride in five,” Mack says as he rights himself, buckling up his pants.

I head out of his office and let Tom Tom know the plan, then head into the main room to see who’s here.

Five minutes later, we’re rolling out of the clubhouse. There’s seven of us total; Mack, Skinner, Tom Tom, Slayer, Lyle, a prospect, and myself. We should have no problem getting our hands on him and neutralizing any problems that may arise.

The only thing that makes us nervous is that this is the first time we’ve gotten a lock on him. We have no idea if he’s playing alone or if he brought someone else in. We know he has money, so he could easily pay some muscle to help carry out whatever plan he has, and we know he has a plan. Otherwise, he wouldn’t be here anymore―he’d be home.

Regardless, with the seven of us, I know we’ll be able to handle whatever comes at us. It’ll be a piece of cake. Even if this is a fucking trap, which it very well could be.

It took us only about thirty minutes to reach the town where Rick was last seen, a couple of minutes to find the strip club he was said to be at, and less than a minute to figure out he was no longer there.

“You have got to be shitting me! Which dipshit was supposed to keep his eye on him and make sure he didn’t get away?” I yell at Tom Tom. I can’t fucking believe we were this fucking close to having him, and now he’s gone―again. Who knows when he’ll turn up next.

Tom Tom looks a little pissed off as well, but tries to hide it, probably because he can tell I’m hanging on by a thread. “I had called in a favor to a guy that I used to hack for. He said he was close and would keep me posted,” he says.

“Yeah? And where the fuck is this guy now, huh? Some fucking favor.” I am beyond reason and watching my tongue anymore. We should’ve fucking had him and we don’t.

“All right, just calm the fuck down, Toby. Tom Tom, call your guy and find out what happened. Skinner, take Slayer with you and talk to everyone inside, show them the picture and see if they remember anything useful. Lyle, head back. I want you at the door for the next couple of days in case he stops by our strip club. I don’t know why he came here, but it can’t be as simple as him needing a little peep show. Take Ryan with you to help out,” Mack orders.

After everyone leaves and does his bidding, it’s just me and him. “Call and check on the girls and let the boys know what’s going on. I’m gonna put some calls out to surrounding clubs to have them keep an eye out. I think it’s time to bring more allies in.”

As much as I don’t like the idea of relying on anyone other than my brothers, I know that it’s a good decision. The more eyes we have out for Sara’s ex, the easier it should be to track him down. Maybe we should even call in reinforcements from a few of our other chapters. We could use the extra men to find him faster.

Walking over to my bike, I take out my phone and dial Blaze.

He picks up after the first ring, probably waiting for an update. “You got him?” he asks as soon as he answers.

“No,” I growl into the phone. “Tom Tom’s man is nowhere to be found and neither is that fucker, Rick.” I hear Blaze shuffling around or moving, hopefully somewhere away from the girls so they don’t hear. We didn’t want to worry or upset them so we didn’t even tell them we had a lock on him.

“Son-of-a-bitch. What’s the plan now?” he grits out.

I give him the rundown of what’s going on here and what we’re gonna do now. “How are the girls?” I ask, hoping they’re still none the wiser.

“They’re upstairs looking at baby shit,” he tells me. I laugh a little, even though I feel anything but happy.

“Of course they are. Anyway, you think you can keep Sara there till I get back? Not sure how long it’s gonna be yet.”

He’s quiet for a little bit, which has me worried. Blaze is rarely quiet. Finally he says, “I’m not sure. I’ll do my best, brother, but unless we tell her what’s going on, it may look suspicious if I ask her to stay.” He’s got a point.

“Okay, well could you get Dani to keep her there?” I don’t want her at home, even if Louie stays there with her. At least at Dani and Blaze’s house, I know Louie and Blaze can protect them both better.

“Well, I could ask her, but you know Dani. She’s gonna ask more questions than your girl would.” Ugh, why does this have to be so fucking difficult?

“All right, just make sure Louie stays sharp. Everyone else is busy doing shit so it’s just gonna be him.” I know if it comes down to it, Louie will protect Sara with his life. I just hope it doesn’t come down to that.

“She’ll be fine. Just do what you gotta do and get back to her. I’ll let you know when they leave and Louie will keep you updated on his end. Be safe,” He says before he hangs up.

Making my way back towards Mack, I relay my conversation with Blaze. “The girls are safe, so let’s get to work on our end,” he says, then I follow him into the club to help question people.

Two and a half hours later, we have no information. No one even noticed Rick coming inside here, and none of the cameras were live so we can’t even look to see what he was doing here. Shit, maybe it wasn’t even him in the first place, or it could have been a ploy to get us away from Sara. If that’s the case, I know she’s safe with Blaze and Louie.

Lyle checked in about an hour ago, telling us that the club is clear and he’ll stand guard at the door for the rest of the night. He has the prospect sweeping the inside to make sure nothing is missed. If that fucker tries to enter our club, we’ll have him.

Tom Tom hasn’t been able to reach his guy that was supposed to be here, so we’ve decided to put word out that we’re looking for him too. As soon as we find him, we’ll question his loyalty and know why the fuck he wasn’t where he said he was. It’s because of him that we may have lost our opportunity to grab Rick, if he was here.

With nothing else to do here, we decide to head back home.

Blaze messaged me about a half hour ago, saying that Sara was still at his house, which surprised me, but makes me feel a lot better. Sitting on my bike, I pull out my phone to send a group message to Blaze and Louie before we hit the road.

Me: On my way. Should be there in 30.

Once on the road, I take the time to think about what I should say to Sara if she asks if we have anything on her ex yet. I want to keep her informed as much as I can so she knows the danger is real and to watch her back, even though we have someone with her at all times. I don’t want to give her too much to frighten her, but I can’t not tell her anything because I promised her if we had anything, I’d tell her. Then I think, technically, we don’t have anything, so maybe it would be all right to not say anything?

I also think about what I should do to get her to forgive me for how I acted. I knew it wasn’t going to be as simple as just telling her I was sorry, but I didn’t think she’d still be this distant, or say that she needs more time to think about everything. I just don’t get it. She knows I love her and that I was just worried that something had happened to her. Why is she still mad at me?

When I’m about five minutes from town, it finally dawns on me. Everything that she lived through with her ex has shaped her into the woman I love today, but it has also shown her what she doesn’t want in her life.

I came across as angry, and even though she knows I would never hurt her, I’ve made her doubt me. How could I be so fucking stupid and blind? I was so quick with my anger, and though I wasn’t meaning to direct it at her, but at what she did, that’s not how she saw it.

If that is what’s going on in her head, I have a lot to make up for. I don’t care if it takes me years to prove that I’m the right man for her, I’ll do whatever I need to do to make her see that I would never hurt her.

Pulling up outside of Blaze and Dani’s house, I cut the engine on my bike and hurry up the walk. I need Sara in my arms, if only to reassure myself that she’s here and that she’s all right.

As soon as I get up the stairs, Blaze and Louie are already there with the door open, waiting for me. “So?” Louie asks.

“Nothing new. Mack is calling in some favors, asking people to keep an eye out for him. I don’t particularly like it, but we need more ears to the ground and people watching out for him. He’s also going to tell some of our sister chapters about what’s going on, see if any of them can spare some men to come help us out. Hopefully with the extra eyes and man power we can find him again so we can grab him,” I say the last part through gritted teeth. I just want the fucker found and taken care of so Sara doesn’t have to worry about him anymore.

“We also have eyes out for the guy Tom Tom called in. Since he wasn’t there and obviously didn’t hold Rick for us, we want to know what the fuck happened. Not sure if he was compromised, or if he was taken out, but we want to bring him in to figure it out. If he’s a problem, we’ll have to deal with him too. Tom Tom isn’t too happy right now.” That’s actually an understatement, but they know him as well as I do. You don’t bail when someone cashes in a favor.

They both nod their heads, understanding what I’m talking about. “So what’s the plan? What do you need from us?” This comes from Louie.

“Well, I’m not sure if you’re scheduled every day, but I need you to be there, regardless if you’re working or not. I want you in the shop and close to Sara at all times. If Dani is there, you’ll stick close to both of them. I don’t see Rick targeting Dani alone, so until we decide differently, your main goal is Sara. I also want you close after hours if that’s at all possible. I’ll be staying inside the apartment with her, but may not be a bad idea for you to be inside as well, or at least in the shop or outside. We’ll rotate people to help you, but I want you close to her at all times until we finish this.” He nods is approval, so I move to look at Blaze.

“Like I said, I don’t think Dani is a target, but I want to be safe, so keep her close and make sure she’s carrying. When she’s with Sara, I want at least four men on them at all times. When they’re not together, Blaze, I think just you being with Dani is enough for now. Our main concern is Sara. We need to make sure she’s covered.” Blaze doesn’t look too happy, but he agrees.

“I also want to get Sara trained on using a gun. Maybe we can bring it up around Dani and they can go together. Dani can give her a run down. Other than that, let’s just keep our eyes open and be ready. If you see the fucker around but he’s not making a move, let’s get a tail on him until we come up with the best plan of action to remove the threat. But if he makes a move, do whatever it takes to take him out before he gets close to either of the girls. You got me?” I look them both in the eye and see a mutual understanding. I know they won’t let me down.