Obsession (Sons of Judah MC Book 2) (4 page)

“Oh!” Stacy couldn’t think. “No, it’s…we will figure it out. Don’t worry about it.”

It was only when he said things like these that she realized that his job wasn’t what she would describe as normal. This guy dealt with danger every single day, and she couldn’t ever understand the scope of his work. Stacy put her arms around his neck and kissed him. “Thank you for a lovely evening and night. I had a great time.”

“Me too.” He patted her lightly on the butt. “Dinner tonight?”

She frowned. “There is a function in the hotel, and I am required to attend. How about tomorrow night? Why don’t you come over to my place and I will cook for you.”

“Can you cook?”

She stepped away and picked up her purse. “Drop by and you can see for yourself. See you later.”

“Bye.”

She strode out, feeling extraordinarily perky and chipper. Being with Marco was definitely good for her soul. He was so easy and amiable that everything seemed lighter and more adventurous. Stacy looked forward to their date tomorrow. It was bound to be fun.

Chapter Four

Marco sat with Simon as they discussed the latest findings. One of their warehouses was looted in the night. It was obvious as to who was behind it. The Romans. Those bastards wouldn’t sit until they got the all-out war that they wanted. It was bound to hurt business, and the Sons of Judah didn’t want it.

“Those idiots are going to destroy everything,” said Marco. He debated telling Simon about the encounter he had with two of their goons but decided against it. There was no use bringing up something that was destined to increase hostility. “If we don’t explain to them…”

Brandon strode forward. It was clear he heard Marco’s statement. “The time for talk has long gone. We don’t want to have any sort of conversation with those assholes anymore. It has been done for far too long. We can’t give them any more chances. What they did last night was direct sabotage, and I don’t want to tolerate any more of that shit.” Brandon cracked his knuckles. “They want a war. Well, by God, they are going to get one.”

Marco gulped. He wasn’t one to back away from a fight, but this one was bound to hurt far more people than he could even imagine. If there was a war, people would die. The police would become involved, and their business would take a nosedive. Only one gang was bound to come out as a victor, and although he had large faith in the fighting abilities of his people, Marco was aware that Wes wasn’t a fool. He would give them a hard time.

“If that’s what you want, we will back you,” he said.

“That’s exactly what I want. I’ve tried to give them many opportunities to get the fuck away from us, but they haven’t learned a thing.” Brandon sat. “Now about the warehouse. How much damage did we sustain?”

“Lost stuff worth thirty thousand dollars. That’s a big loss,” said Simon.

“Did you call Wes?”

“I talked to his men, and they are, of course, claiming that they had nothing to do with it.”

“Who else would have done such a thing?  Damn those assholes. We’ve got to teach them a lesson. Gather the men. We’re going to launch an assault on one of their places. Give me a target, something important, and something that will hit them hard.”

Marco didn’t think it was the right approach. Acting in anger wasn’t the right choice. “Maybe we should do some reconnaissance first.”

“If we don’t do something quick, they will think we’re scared of them, and we don’t want them to have that impression,” growled Brandon.

He was on the war path, and while Marco admired the sentiment, he still didn’t think it was the right approach to take in these circumstances. They didn’t know everything that was going on. Whoever planned the whole attack wouldn’t just sit and wait for a counter attack. They must have a strategy in place, and if they acted in haste, they would end up playing into their hands. “We could do something two days later also,” he said. “There is no hurry. We must be cautious.”

“Caution is for pussies,” said Brandon. “We’re going to put the fear of God in them so that they never attack any of us ever again. Those bastards need to know that we’re way better than them and they shouldn’t think about messing with us.”

Marco rubbed his hand on his brow. He didn’t know how else he could convince Brandon to change his mind. There was something about this scenario that troubled him. It was almost too predictable. If they attacked now, surely the other gang would expect a maneuver like that. They would be prepared. The damage the Sons of Judah might sustain in such an attack could be immeasurable. He didn’t want anyone to get hurt or to die.

If things could be solved with a good talk then that was required, but it was obvious that Brandon had run out of patience. He wasn’t a man who could wait for too long. If the other gang knew that about him, then they would know that he would order an attack.

Shit.

This move was a recipe for disaster.

He raked his mind to think of a way to tell them that he didn’t approve of this choice, but they were already talking animatedly about the plan, and he knew that if he made too many noises against it, Brandon would get pissed off. It was better to let things be. He would just make sure that he kept a firm eye on the plan.

“They have a place in the northern part of the city where they keep some of the stolen stash that they distribute in the state,” said Simon. “I’ve been there once and I think I can draw out the layout. We don’t have time to check if there is any stuff there, although I think there is bound to be. If there is nothing there, we will vandalize the place and move out. In any case, they will learn the lesson that they shouldn’t mess with us.”

Brandon grinned, and then he looked at Marco. “You don’t like the plan?”

He cleared his throat. “It’s…ok, but I still think we should exercise caution.”

“Exercise caution?” Brandon sneered. “When did you become a pansy? We will go in, and we will hit them hard.” He narrowed his eyes. “What’s wrong with you?”

“I am…” He couldn’t say that he had a gut feeling about this. Brandon would laugh at such a notion. He was a man utterly devoid of imagination, and he wouldn’t be able to understand such notions. “Nothing. It’s…”

“He has a girl,” smirked Simon.

“Really?” Brandon leaned back. He tapped his finger on the table. “I haven’t seen you with anyone from the club.”

“She is not any of the women who work at the club.” There were a number of women who worked in the club—either as employees or in exchange for free bread and board. Most bikers were happy to date these women because they knew the score. “She’s not even from the club.”

Marco wasn’t comfortable talking about it. This was the perfect time to tell them that she was Ned’s ex-wife, but something made him bite down on his tongue. In the mood that he was in, Brandon would insist on meeting her. Frankly, Marco wasn’t sure if Stacy would be up for such an encounter. She wasn’t used to meeting hard men like Simon and Brandon. It was a good thing that Ned had not created any trouble as yet. Perhaps the man was also biding his time. Whatever it was, he was happy to keep her as his secret a little longer.

“Not from the club? Marco, you devil.” Brandon slapped his hand on the table. “We’ll meet her soon enough. Invite her to one of the cookouts once this shit is over. Actually, I might have a barbeque at my place once we teach those bastards a lesson. Bring her along. The gang would be happy to see her, and we would love to celebrate the defeat of the Romans with her.”

Marco didn’t think everything would work out as well as Brandon envisioned, but if they managed to hit the other club a little bit, then at least the fire for revenge would die down and maybe they would be able to chalk out a plan that would serve them better. “So when do you intend to leave for the raid? I’m guessing later tonight?”

He would have to cancel his dinner plans with Stacy. She must already be planning for it, and he would hate to do this to her at the last minute, but his club needed him, and there was no way he could let them do this alone. “We will hit them at midnight,” announced Brandon. “Gather the troops. I want twelve good men who aren’t afraid to get their hands dirty in a fight. Tell them to be here by eleven and I will explain the approach. In the meantime, Simon I want you to draw the map so that we have an idea of which direction we are entering, and we need to have at least two exit points. We’ll have cars ready at both places.”

“Sure thing, boss.”

“What about me?” asked Marco.

Brandon considered him with a smirk on his face. “You’re rushing headlong on the love boat, Marco. I think it’s better if you concentrated on that for now. I don’t want you to go there while you are distracted by thoughts of your lady love.”

He didn’t like the statement. It was intended as an insult, and he took it as such. “I can do my job well.”

Brandon leaned forward and clapped him on the shoulder. “I know you can, Marco, but right now I think you’re a bit inattentive, and I don’t want you to spread that among the men.”

It took him only a moment to realize that Brandon was afraid he might convince the men that it was a bad move to attack the warehouse. Although he wanted to argue, Marco knew that Brandon wouldn’t like it. It would only antagonize him even further. He met Simon’s gaze and then nodded. He’d made a mess of things, and it was better to shut his mouth and roll with the punches.

“Fine. But I would like to be included in the next raid.”

Brandon relaxed and grinned. “Sure, sure, why not. But first we’ve got to make a success of this. Now, Simon, I am thinking that we take along some of the younger boys.”

Marco stood. There was no place here for him right now, and that was ok. If Brandon wanted to continue with this foolhardy scheme, then there was no way he could stop him now. The end result of this wouldn’t be good, but Brandon wouldn’t listen to him. Sometimes Marco thought that by joining a biker’s club, he’d condemned himself to a life of dubious activities. This wasn’t what he signed up for initially, but the transition from a biker to a chief happened so smoothly and so slowly that he didn’t realize until he was in it knee deep.

After he left, he made his way to Stacy’s house. He was already running a bit late, and there was no time for him to change. He picked up a bouquet of flowers on the way to make up for his late arrival. As he climbed the stairs to her apartment, someone tapped him on the shoulder. He whirled to see Ned.

“What are you doing here?” he asked.

“I should ask you the same,” said Ned.

The man wasn’t coming down from Stacy’s apartment. He must have been standing outside when Marco came in. Had he also come to see Stacy? Or perhaps was he waiting to see if Marco came to meet her. Was he actually stalking Marco or Stacy? “I came to see Stacy. What about you?” With an effort, Marco kept his voice calm and even.

“I am actually here to see you.”

“So you were basically waiting here to see if I would show up?” he questioned.

“Something like that. I know that you guys have been meeting fairly often and when I saw her carrying bags of groceries, I knew that you would show up soon.” Ned sneered. “I am surprised that you lasted this long. You’re not really in her class.”

Ned was trying to goad him. He could see that easily enough. “I know that, but she doesn’t seem to mind, and I don’t think it is any of your business.”

Ned crossed his arm. “She is my ex-wife.”

“And the word
ex
is very important in that statement,” said Marco. He didn’t know what the hell Ned was doing. Was it possible that he wanted his wife back? If so, there was going to be more trouble than he was prepared for. There was a time when Marco would have tried to step away with grace, but now it was too late for such a maneuver. He was crazy about Stacy, and there was no way he was going to let Ned have her—especially when he knew that the man didn’t even respect her.

“Our separation was a mistake.”

“Not separation. A divorce, and it’s final.”

“Look, dude. I want you to stay away from my wife.” Ned pointed a finger at her. “You know that I have long arms, and trust me, if I want, I can make life very difficult for you. The biker club that you belong to needs me, and if I tell them how you have violated my trust, they might decide to kick you out.”

A fission of fear skidded through Marco’s spine. It was true that if Ned raised an issue, he might find himself getting a lot of flak. Already he wasn’t in Brandon’s good books, and this incident might make him persona non grata, but he couldn’t do anything about this. Stacy was his, and he wasn’t about to hand her back to this man on a platter. Ned didn’t deserve her. He had her and due to his mistakes, he lost her. Now, this was Marco’s chance, and he wasn’t about to blow it.

“You can do whatever the hell you want,” he said. “I am not afraid of you.”

Ned smiled. The coldness in his eyes didn’t waver. “You should be, dude. And you will know soon enough why I am saying all this. Now, for the last time, I am telling you to stay away from my girl, and if you don’t do it, I am going to make life hell for you.”