For Her Honor (19 page)

He leaned in
to kiss her. The first thing she felt was the cool metal of his lip ring before his studded tongue slid into her mouth. Damn, this man was a walking, erotic mass of sensation. She broke the kiss and looked into those dark eyes of his. “Something else you said got me thinking. About any of Preston’s victims looking for revenge or something. I figured while I’m there I can ask for some names, clients he stole from. Maybe this web guy of yours can check into them or something.”

“It’s w
orth a shot. He might not talk. Or can’t. Don’t push it, Karen.”

“I’
m not. I won’t. Like I said, you got me thinking and……”

“Somethin’ happen?”
He looked out the back window.

She shook her head.
“No, no. Well, not since that night I screamed and it turned out to be the trash can next door. Oh, and that same morning I heard some rustling. Might’ve been animals. There was nothing out there but a white pickup parked on the street….”

Taz grabbed her arms. “What white pickup?”

His black eyes were wide with what she thought was fear. “Taz, what….?”

“When, Karen?
Exactly when and what time?”

Her mind jumbled.
“Saturday morning. Eva and Kelly stopped by with some housewarming swag. It was right after they left. Maybe ten or so. Taz, let go.”

He immediately removed his hands then returned to rub h
er arms. “Sorry.” He backed up, hands on hips. “You absolutely sure it was a white pickup?”

“I saw just the back of it.
As soon as I turned away from the door I heard it take off.”

She watched him pace to the end of the couch, fingers roughly raking through his hair.
“You think whoever the driver was may’ve been lurkin’ out back?”

“
I don’t think so. When I got to the door there was nothing there. Figured it was a squirrel or something. Why?”

“I don’t know.
Could just be a coincidence.” He sat down hard on the couch. “Karen, those guys who shot at us early Monday morning were in a white pickup.”

She sat next to him.
“You mean…..”

“I don’t
know what I mean. Like I said – it could just be a coincidence. But, fuck, if there’s a connection……”

He let the last sentence drag.
She finished it. “Then whoever shot at you was watching you. Followed you?"

“No,” he shook his head.
“Me and Aero left from the clubhouse Sunday night.”

“But you were here all morning before we left
for Ben and Eva’s. Which means that if this truck is the same one, they knew you’ve been coming here. That I live here….”

“No!”
His voice was adamant.

“What if it is?”

“Fuck!” She watched him get up and pace like a feral animal, feeling the anxiety surrounding him. The weight. The pressure of maybe dragging her into whatever line of fire the club had gotten themselves into. She let several quiet moments pass before he turned around. “I’m stayin’ here, Karen. No questions. No walkin’ alone at night. In the mornin’, after I leave, you keep the house locked tight until you leave for work. Eyes and ears, sweetheart. Use ‘em. But I’m also gonna get you a little extra help.” He went to put his holster and cut back on, then motioned towards her bedroom. “Go put jeans on and a pair of closed shoes. We’re headin’ out for a bit.”

She
took his demanding tone as serious. Barefoot and dressed in shorts and a tank top, she went into her room and threw on jeans and sneakers. Figuring they were going on his bike, she wrapped her hair in a ponytail, then came out to grab her purse on the counter.

“Leave it, he said.
“Won’t be needin’ it.” He kissed her, then took her hand. “C’mon. Ain’t got far to go.”

~~~***~~~

Taz loved this creepy, old place. It was out of the way and perfect for blowing off steam when things were too quiet. The building had been long since abandoned – over twenty years now – tightly boarded up and gated to keep wanderers from getting seriously injured. He stopped his bike by the gate and slightly turned his head, a signal for Karen to slide off. He dismounted and watched her reaction to the sight in front of her. “What is this place?”

“Abandoned coal mine.
Coal’s big here in West Virginia, along with lumber.”

“Then why is it abandoned?”

“There was a big collapse. Early nineties, I think. He looked around somberly. “Ben’s dad worked here. He lost him that day.”

He heard her sharp intake of breath.
“Did…..did they ever find…..?”

Taz shook his head. “Nope.
He’s still buried down there.”

“Oh my God.”

Enough reminiscing.
“C’mon. It’s rocky, so watch where you walk.” There was a crumbling retaining wall about twenty-five yards from the fence. Taz jogged over to find what he knew had still been there. Four wooden buckets full of holes were tossed on the other side. He hopped up and over, retrieving the buckets, then lining them side by side on the wall. Evening was in full swing, but a three-quarter moon above provided just enough light. He then went back to where Karen was waiting with a quizzical look. “What’re we doing?”

With swiftness and expertise, he un-holstered his gun, aimed towards the wall and fired, knocking one bucket off.
Hands to mouth, Karen jumped back, startled. “Shit! Taz!”

He grasped his gun – a semi-automatic VS revolver – by the barrel so that the hand grip faced her.
“Your turn.”

She gasped out a laugh.
“Oh, you’ve got to be kidding me.”

“I didn’t drag you out here at night to dance under the stars, sweetheart. Take a shot.”

Karen looked at the gun as if it were an infection. “I don’t think so.”

“So all this talk about bein’ your dad’s independent, fearless daughter was a bunch of bullshit?
Maybe you really are more like your hoity-toity sister.”

He knew taunting her like that would work.
Even in the moonlight, he saw those pale green eyes darken with anger. “Screw you,” she said, grasping the hand of the gun.

But he didn’t let go.
“Rule number one – safety first. Never grab a gun like that in anger. Even in a tense situation, you need to keep your cool. Now, watch and listen.” He explained the parts of the gun and how they worked. He then carefully put it in her hands, then stood behind her. His arms were plastered on the outside of hers as he cupped her hands over the gun. He was so close; it aroused him. The night, the moon, the abandoned mine with this chick in his arms holding his gun – it was fucking hot. He forced himself not to grind himself against her ass and concentrated on the instruction. “Keep a firm grip with your right hand. Use your left to steady it. Brace your feet apart and stabilize your upper body for the kickback.”

“But
the sound. It was a really loud pop. Don’t I need those ear cover thingies?”

Even with the sensation of her silky ponytail rubbing against his cheek, he snorted a laugh.
“Karen. If you gotta act quickly there ain’t gonna be time to put on
ear thingies
,” he mocked. “This is real, sweetheart. Now, concentrate on the bucket and aim. Finger on the trigger, thumb right here. Let me know when you’re ready.”

He heard her breath quicken as well as the increased beat of her heart through her back.
She was nervous. She was scared. Even though this was just a practice shot, this was foreign to a civilian woman who’d grown up the way she had. “Okay.”

“You sure?”

She took a deep breath and steadied her shaking hands he felt under his own. “Yes.”

“Pull the trigger.”

She did and jumped back, almost knocking them both to the ground. Though prepared, the unexpected jolt made her let go, and the gun fell to the ground. “Shit!” Taz pulled her back, not knowing where the barrel had pointed when it landed. “Fuck, Karen!”

She clutched her chest.
“I’m sorry. I….I didn’t expect…..shit, I’m sorry.”

He calmed himself
, then picked up the gun. He looked towards the wall and saw the three buckets still standing. Handing it back to her, he put her in position, then backed away. She was on her own. “Again.” She didn’t look scared this time. Instead she narrowed her eyes with determination as if wanting to erase her faux pas. “Concentrate, Karen.”

“It’s hard to see.
It’s too dark.”

“Good.
Cuz, if you can hit it in the dark you’ll be a master in the daylight.” He got behind her, lightly putting his hands on her hips for a hint of support. Fuck that, he just wanted his hands on her. Watching her hold his gun with that look on her face had him about to explode. “Use the moonlight. Focus, concentrate, aim and fire.”

She did,
stepping back a bit so that she was almost flush against him, the gun still secure in her hands. He heard a sound and saw that one of the buckets was off-kilter from where he’d had it perfectly lined up. “Well, you nicked it. Now knock it. Keep goin’. Got a few more rounds in the mag.”

Her face went from determined to confident as he watched her go through the four steps before firing another round.
Again, the bucket moved, but remained on the wall. “C’mon, sweetheart. Bring it home.” She smiled at his encouragement and bit her lip before taking a deep breath. She fired and hit the bucket. It moved, then teetered off the back. “Bingo!”

“I did it!”

“Only took four tries,” he teased. “How’d it feel?”

She looked dow
n at the gun in her hands. “Scary, but,” she smiled brilliantly, “awesome.”

He laughed out loud.
“If only your mother’s bridge club could see you now.”

“Book club.”

“Whatever. So,” he went over and took the gun from her. He stood tall, right arm raised, left hand casually at his side and aimed at one of the two remaining buckets. “Ready for your own?” He fired, knocking one barrel clean off.

“Uh, I don’t know.”

“Mine ain’t gonna come in handy if it’s on me.” Again, he aimed and fired as if second nature, knocking the last bucket off. “We’ll get you something smaller. Maybe a SIG220 nine mill.”

“I have no idea what that means.”
She looked towards the wall. “You do that pretty good.”

“It’s from
lots of practice.” He saw her wary look and retracted. “We come out here to let loose. Ben especially. Boards coverin’ the building got lots of holes in it from him.” He saw she was still uncertain, holstered his gun and went over to her. “Hey. You won’t be the first chick to carry a gun for protection. My ma keeps one in the bakery and at home.”

“What about Eva and Kelly?”

He shrugged. “Got no idea. What my brothers do with their ol’ ladies is their business.” He gulped at that, because the next line should’ve been,
‘what I do with mine is my own.’
Was that what Karen was quietly becoming? Was saying he was
with
her a way to avoid what was actually happening? He’d practically moved himself in with her, agreed to accompany her to visit her ex in prison, and was giving her moonlight shooting lessons. He’d never done this for a casual fuck. But Karen wasn’t that. She was far from that.

There was only one thing to do
, which kept him from overthinking. “Let’s go.” He kissed her and took her by the hand. Bending her over his bike under the moonlight after firing several rounds would be the perfect ending. But getting her in bed, between the cool sheets while their bodies warmed them, where he could take his time and appreciate every inch of her, enticed him more. She was enticing him more.

And he was falling for it.

Chapter Eighteen

“Anything yet?”

Taz entered the clubhouse in between cars to find Wes
in his little techno-office, taking a break to do intel work. He was hunched over his laptop. “Hogs are getting into impound today. Hopefully we’ll have a VIN later on.”

Taz was on edge.
The entire club was while waiting for the identity of the white pickup. “A’ight. Headin’ out for lunch. Zip’s got the shop. Don’t leave ‘im alone too long.”

“Yeah.
Hey Taz?”

“What?”

Biting his lip, Wes unlocked the top desk drawer and pulled out a cell phone. “I, uh, didn’t tell anyone I did this, but yesterday - at the mill – I pulled this out of Ty’s shirt pocket.”

That got Taz’s attention.
Blowing out a breath, he leaned his butt against the edge of the desk. “Reason bein’?”

Young Wesley somehow looked older than his twenty five years as his face knitted up with concern.
“I don’t know, man. Somethin’ about what happened just don’t seem right. Ain’t buyin’ that it was an accident.”

Taz had kept his own assumptions about the fire to himself.
The cops deemed Ty had suffered a blow to the head by a falling log, causing his lit cigarette to fall and start the fire. The puzzle pieces fit, but now it seemed he wasn’t the only one who thought something was off. “Me neither. What’re you thinkin’?”

Wes shook the phone.
“Was in his shirt pocket, so it didn’t get burned, but its waterlogged. Tryin’ to dry it out. I wanna see if it I can lift anything from it.”

“Worth a shot.
Oh, here.” He took a piece of paper out of his pocket. “Ohio State Pen in Youngstown. Minimum security level. Get the deets for visitation this Saturday, if possible. Inmate’s name’s Preston Vine.”

Wes gave him a wary look
, and Taz cut him off with one of his own. “Do it. Let me know.” He then slapped the young man on the back and headed out. That fire had been nagging him the last two days. The break-in at John Owens’, too. The club told Tanner to stay on guard, as he was related to the two men, just in case there was some idiot out there with a beef for the Owens cousins. With that on his mind, he decided to take a swing past the mill. He’d already wolfed his lunch down around noon while buried in the crumpled fender of a Buick, but needed to get out for an hour. It was the end of the week and the mid-August day was pleasant and dry. Before taking off, he felt his phone vibrate. He smiled, knowing it was Karen checking in. Until he could get her a gun, he’d told her to text him with anything unusual after he left in the morning and also when she arrived at work. Today was a ‘bank’ day, and she was letting him know she’d gotten there early to visit his ma at the bakery first.

A sort of contentment came over him as he took off down the gravel drivewa
y. Club business was stable, and the drama with this mysterious white pickup scratched that itch he hadn’t been able to since slicing Jackie Jones’ tendons. And somehow Karen fit nice and snug into the picture. He never thought he’d see this day. Never thought he’d feel this way, whatever it was he was feeling. Even the club girls, who usually wound up being his mid-day snack, sighed with disappointment when all he offered up with a kiss on the cheek or an innocent little ass pinch. His mind was elsewhere – it was on dark red hair, pale green eyes and a voice he could still hear gasping for air while rolled underneath him. One woman. One fucking woman. Shit, his ma was probably in cahoots with that psychic.

He saw Ben and Tanner’s bikes along with Charles’ car when he pulled up to the mill.
The place was still sectioned off with yellow caution tape, as it was still considered a crime scene, thus operation was at a halt. Though Charles was well off, shutting business down for a day or two had to put a serious dent in his pocket. He went up to Ben and jerked his head towards Charles, who was on the phone. “Hey. Any word?”

“Nah.
Tanner and one of the other guys are taking inventory of what’s left that’s good. He’s on the phone with P.D. to see if we can at least turn on the juice back and finish cutting what we have. Got the insurance company coming down in an hour to do a walkthrough.”

“What about funeral arrangements?”

“Nothing yet. Ty’s parents haven’t given any shit, but they’re gonna go after Charles’ insurance big time.”

“Shit.”
Taz rubbed the back of his head as a bright blue Dodge Ram approached and parked.

“What the fuck is he doing here?”
Ben approached James Mallory, who got out of the truck. “Hey!” What’cha want?”

Taz saw how Mallory backed up two steps at the sight of six
-foot-six Big Ben. “Heard what happened. Want to talk to Charles.”

“Not interested,” Ben shot back.

Mallory looked at Ben, or rather,
up
at Ben, then over to Taz. A weird, knowing grin split his face. “I see Charles got his biker goons on security detail here too.”

Ben puffed his large chest out as Taz shot forward, taking Mallory by the collar of his shirt.
“Wanna see how well we do our jobs, asshole?”

Taz was pulled back by Ben as Mallory pushed him off.
“That’s assault, fellas. I’m guessing with your record that’ll score you a little time away from your club.”

“Whoa.”
Charles Owens snapped his phone closed and joined the scene. “What’s going on?” He then looked at Mallory. “And what are you doing here?”

“Heard what happened.
I decided to take you up on your challenge. Me and my men have been cutting and got a lowboy trailer full of wood ready to unload.”

Charles shook
his head. “Not a good time, Mal. I’m shut down for at least a week.”

“What?”
Mallory looked towards the outer area. “Thought it was just in there?”

“It’s a crime scene.
One of my employees got killed.”

“Sorry to hear that.”
Mallory paused a bit without missing a beat. “Machinery’s intact, right? Show’s gotta go on.”

“Maybe I need to spell it out for you. I’m
shut down
. A week tops.”

Mallory put hi
s hands up in surrender. “Okay, fine. But you can still take the wood – same price as that other company you’ve been sampling?”

“Can’t do it now,” Charles told him.

“What? C’mon, Charles. All that inventory outside got smoked. Ain’t no good. You can at least buy it from me and use it when……”

“I said
no
,” Charles emphatically repeated.

“What the fuck am I gonna do with all that wood – not to mention the labor I’m out?”

“Do you hear yourself?” Charles spat at him. “I just had a fire here two days ago. I lost a shitload of material that
I’m out
and an employee who was crisped past his nut sack. I’m shut down. I have an insurance adjustor on his way. I got a set of parents who are no doubt going to sue me, and all you can think of is me shelling out money for a delivery I can’t receive. I got no idea what’s going to happen after this. I could be ruined.”

Mallory’s eyes narrowed as he closed in on Charles.
Ben was right behind his boss, with Taz chomping at the bit behind him. “Good,” he quietly seethed. “I hope it does, you son of a bitch. See what it’s like to have those Italian shoes pinch on the other foot.”

Charles looked up with venom in his eyes.
“Get……
out
of here!”

“Fuck you!” Mallory emphasized by pointing his finger at Charles.
“You and your thug posse of bikers you hide under.” He bypassed Ben and looked intently at Taz, that weird smile creeping back up on his face. Snorting, he looked back at Charles. “Tell Ty’s parents sorry.”

“Leave.”

With an audacious grunt, Mallory trudged back to his ugly blue truck and took off. Ben looked at Charles. “Boss? You okay?”

A Subaru hatchback now pulled up
, and a guy with a clipboard and an unpleasant look on his face exited. The insurance adjustor. “I’ll let you know after he leaves.”

Charles
left to greet the adjustor. Tanner was still taking stock with an employee. Taz looked warily at Ben. “Mal used Ty’s name. You catch that? And how’d he know he was the one who died?” He paused to think again. “And how did he know what material was lost?”

Ben shrugged.
“Maybe it was in the paper.”

Taz shook his head.
“This entire sitch bugs the shit outta me.” He then tapped Ben on the arm. “Wes lifted Ty’s cell.”

“Oh, shit.”
Ben rolled his eyes. “If the cops find out we stuck our noses in this, they’ll have eyes on us.”

“No one knows.
He just told me today. He got the same gut feelin’ I did.”

Ben folded his massive arms across his chest.
“What? You think……?”

“I do.”

~~~***~~~

Karen got to the bank early, asking the tellers if they wanted coffee.
Both put in orders for iced before she peeked in Jane Marsh’s office. The woman sat stiff in a pale yellow suit. Karen swore she had the same style suit in every color of the rainbow. “Would you like coffee?”

“No thanks.”
She checked her watch. “Have to head out.”

Jane picked up the phone to make a call
, and Karen turned and ran smack into a man who just walked into the bank. He was dressed in work clothes and boots with caked dirt. He eyed her name tag, which she’d automatically put on after getting dressed. “You work here……Karen Hanson?”

He was too close for her liking.
She stepped back. “Can I help you?”

“Need to open an account.”

“Sure.” She held up a finger. “Wait a moment.” She again stuck her head in Jane’s office to find her on the phone. Jane gave her a ‘what?’ look. “New account,” Karen replied.

Jane pointed outside, directing Karen to have him wait in the chair next to her door.
Nodding, Karen turned around to find the man had left. She walked outside and saw no sign of him and figured he must’ve changed his mind. Before heading to Tippitt ‘n Sip-It, she stopped in the bakery. Janice was behind the counter slicing bread for a customer while a fat pignoli cookie was lodged between her lips. After bagging and ringing it up, she washed the cookie down with a bottle of sweating iced tea. “Hey, hon.”

“
Thought I’d stop in and say hi before work. Maybe we can walk around the plaza afterwards. Taz doesn’t want me going down to the reservoir.”

Janice smiled wide, taking another swig from the bottle.
“And you think he’s being bossy?”

“Overboard.”

“Overprotective,” Janice corrected. “He wouldn’t if he didn’t have a reason.”

Karen tapped her nails against the glass case.
“You’ve been awfully quiet on…..us.”

“Because I know when it’s time to shut up.”
She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. “I’m just sitting back and letting the love flourish.” Karen cleared her throat and Janice raised her brows. “You don’t love him?”

“It’s
barely a month. I…..Janice, I don’t know. I didn’t come here for this.”

“Doesn’t matter, hon.
Other circumstances may’ve brought you here, but you’re staying for a different reason.”

“You sure I’m staying
?”

“I am.
Cuz I know my son. Outside he may be the hellion I raised, but inside – he’s a good man. But he’s also a Skull. You love the man on the inside then you accept what he is on the outside. He may’ve bitched about not wanting to be tied down, but he’s different now. The right woman does that to a man. Before you showed up, well, let’s just say my son never believed in one-woman-at-a-time. Now where is he every night?”

In her house and bed, that
was where. Karen didn’t have to answer what Janice already knew. And what Karen knew was that Taz wasn’t an ordinary, everyday guy. Those don’t get dragged in by their friends in the early morning hours with a bullet hole in their shoulder or take you out to an abandoned mine at night for shooting lessons. Taz was part of an entirely different world, which, according to Janice, she would have to revolve around. She already had Betsy Hanson’s rules of society to conform to. Would she be able to do that again after just reclaiming a bit of herself back?

“Listen, I have to go pick up coffee.
You wanna walk tonight?”

Janice shook her head.
“Nah. I’m gonna just take my fat ass home.”

“You’re not fat.”

“I own a bakery and just quit smoking. Do the math, hon.” She sighed, looking at the eight by ten glossies littered on the wall behind her. “I was quite the hot rocker chick. But even under the bleached hair and great tits, I’m not getting any younger.” She looked at Karen across the counter. “Don’t fight what’s meant to happen. What you feel will come. As for my son, I know he loves you. As much as he loves to talk, his actions show it more. But he’ll always need to balance his two lives. You accept that, the man on the inside will love you more than his own life – and the one on the outside will sacrifice it.”