Out of Darkness (23 page)

H
ours later, the two of them lay tangled up in the sheets of his big bed. A cold front had moved through, bringing with it a steady rain that pelted the tin roof of the farm house. Because it was older, it was also drafty. Laying together, sharing body heat under the covers seemed to be the best way to spend the rest of their day.

Meredith sighed as she entangled her leg with his and scooted closer to the warmth of his body. She lifted her head as she raked her nails across his stomach. “What are we going to do about William?”

That question had been on the tip of her tongue the entire time they had been here together, but she hadn’t yet wanted to break the spell they seemed to be under.

His large hand grabbed hers at his stomach, stilling the motions she made there. Turning it over, he brought the palm up to his mouth and brushed a kiss there on the delicate skin. “I put a passcode on his phone that I can get into. Right now, the only thing we
can
do is wait and see if he continues to contact that number. It’s the only proof we have he’s involved.”

She hated that answer because that meant she would more than likely have to go back to the clubhouse. “I figured you would say that.”

“I’m not askin’ you to do something you don’t wanna do, baby. If you don’t wanna stay in the clubhouse anymore, then we won’t. We’ll stay here if you want.”

“How does that work, Tyler? You’re an officer. This is too far out for you to be riding back and forth all the time.”

He knew that she spoke the truth, but he would still do whatever would be easiest for her. “Relationships are about compromise,” he shrugged.

“Compromise, yes. Giving me my way, no,” she argued.

“I don’t see it as you getting ‘your way’. You don’t feel safe there. Who am I to tell you that you have to stay?”

The words that were coming out of his mouth gave her the warm fuzzies, but she knew they were not realistic. It was time for her to put on her big girl panties and deal.

“You’re right, I don’t feel safe with him there. But with you by my side, I know that no one will hurt me. I can’t run from this my whole life. I either take a stand now, or I let it rule me. That is a choice I have to make.”

His hand tangled in her hair as he pressed slightly against her neck, meeting her halfway for a kiss. “You truly are one of the bravest people I’ve ever known,” he whispered.

“I don’t feel brave. I feel scared shitless.”

His deep laugh warmed every part of her that was chilled by the thought of going back to the clubhouse.

“That’s understandable. You never know. Maybe it will put pressure on him, seeing you every day.”

“He’s seen me every day since the attack that I’ve been there. I don’t think William Walker gives a shit.”

A slow grin spread over Tyler’s face. “He’s seen you and we’ve seen him, but we haven’t really expressed to him how we feel about you being raped. Now have we?”

“I don’t think I’m following.”

“By the time I’m done with him, he’s going to regret the day he went after you. If you think the ‘curse of the skull cup’ was bad, you ain’t seen nothin’ yet, baby.”

That thought scared her and thrilled her at the same time. “Can you please just leave Jagger out of this one? He really was just doing me a favor.”

“Yeah, I’ll leave him alone. Even though it’s obvious you have a soft spot for the boy,” he growled.

She giggled, running her hand up his stomach to his throat. There she caressed his Adam’s apple and ran the tip of her nail to his chin. “Don’t be jealous, Tyler. It doesn’t become you.”

His eyes took on a predatory gleam. “Oh, I’m not jealous. Any man who sees you in the next couple of weeks will know you’re spoken for.”

“What do you mean?”

“You have a hickey the size of a half dollar on your neck. It’s a beauty if I do say so myself,” he grinned in a way that told her just how happy with himself he was.

She groaned. “Oh Tyler, now I’m gonna look like a waitress from
Wet Wanda’s
.”

“It’s hot and I think it makes you hot, whether you wanna be straight with me or not.”

He was so full of himself, lying next to her with a huge grin on his face.

“I’ll wear a turtleneck,” she threatened.

“The hell you will,” he fired back, leaning over her body to admire his handiwork.

“I might as well have a tattoo on my forehead that says ‘Tyler’s woman’.”

His grin was dead sexy. “We can arrange that. It would be considered a true honor by my people.”

“Now you’re just being sarcastic,” she poked him in the stomach.

“That hurts,” he complained when she poked a little too hard at his ribs.

“Poor baby,” she cooed. “Maybe I should kiss it and make it better.”

“Maybe you should.”

The smile she flashed him was pure feminine affection and appreciation all rolled into one. Pressing him flat on his back, she leaned over and placed soft, soothing kisses where she had poked her finger. He lay back, enjoying the attention she gave him. All of a sudden, she sucked on the smooth skin there, leaving a bruise almost immediately.

“There,” she smiled when she came up for air. “I marked you too.”

“I’ll wear mine like a badge of honor. Not like a two bit hooker at a titty bar,” he quipped causing her to yelp and reach out to pinch to the spot that she had just marked.

Holding her wrists back, he laughed at her attempts to overpower him. “Watch your knee,” he laughed, when she continued to struggle against him.

It was futile. He was almost a foot taller than her and outweighed her by over a hundred pounds. Breathing heavily, she gave up the fight. “One day, Tyler Blackfoot, you are going to regret that remark,” her voice held great promise.

“I’m shakin’, baby. Can’t wait to see what you do.”

Liam sat on the back porch of his home also enjoying the rain, along with a cup of coffee. He did some of his best thinking on this porch – in that, he and Denise were very similar. He had woken early this morning and taken the kids to school, not wanting them to stand out in the rain waiting on the bus. When he had gotten back to the house, Denise was still asleep. Since he hadn’t been put on the schedule for Walker’s Wheels, he had this whole day to himself.

He was moody today, still pissed over the information that Tyler had given him about his father. It was no secret that the father/son relationship between the two of them was tenuous at best. The person who had really been mother and father to him had been his sister, Roni. He had never really cared what the biological parents ever thought, only what Roni thought. He couldn’t deny that this hurt though. It was like William was two different people. A Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. He preached loyalty to the club, but he violated it when he went after a woman that would be an old lady someday. It made him wonder what he really would have done to Denise if he hadn’t stepped in when he did where she was concerned.

“Goddamn it,” he swore, running his hands over his head and letting it hang.

“What’s the matter?”

That soft voice got him every time. In a world that bordered on insane, she grounded him like no other person could. Without saying anything, he reached out for her and sat her on his lap. More than anyone besides Tyler, he trusted her.

“Tyler told me that he thinks Dad ordered the rape on Meredith.”

Tears sprang to Denise’s eyes, and he cursed again.

“I didn’t tell you this to upset you, honey.”

“I’m pregnant,” she sniffed. “I’m emotional.”

“I’m sorry that I don’t know how to deal with these hormones,” he apologized.

“It’s okay, tell me everything.”

He related the story to her and watched as her face went from one of complete devastation to one of complete anger.

“How could he do that and look at her every day?” she whispered, running her hand along his shoulders.

“I don’t know. He’s a different kind of man than I thought he was. That’s for sure. It makes me sick that I’m his family. It makes me sick to think of what he could have easily done to you.”

“Don’t drive yourself crazy. We can’t worry about the past and we can’t change it, but we’ve got to make the future better. We’re about to have three kids in this family and the members are starting to settle down. If this club is going to be successful, we need to make changes.”

He knew that she was being honest, but he wasn’t exactly sure what to do about it. “I know, we need to make some plans.”

Maybe it was time for him to plan his ascension to the top.

Chapter Thirty-Two

“Y
ou think Rooster will help us?” Tyler asked as he and Liam sat outside the Sheriff’s office downtown.

“I think it’s worth a shot,” Liam answered.

They were taking a huge chance, sitting just off of the historical downtown area of the square, their bikes parked at an angle on the street. Every officer that came out wearing the brown of the Sheriff’s department gave their bikes and their cuts a once over. Liam was pretty sure that everyone knew who they were. The two of them sat in silence, watching each officer that came out of the building. When they noticed the red head of the man they wanted to see, Liam whistled and motioned for him to come on over.

“To what do I owe this pleasure?” he asked as he walked over. The loose-hipped way he walked belied the turmoil he felt inside.

Liam took off his sunglasses and leveled his old friend with a stare. “We need some assistance for old times’ sake.”

Rooster didn’t like the sound of that, in fact it caused sweat to break out on his brow. “Is this gonna be illegal?”

“Not all of it, and I think you might remember how much you owe me.”

This intrigued Tyler, he had never heard much of the story involving the old friends. He filed that away to ask about later.

Rooster’s face got red enough to match his hair. “What do you need?”

This is where Tyler took over. “I need a dump on William’s phone. I set up a passcode on it, but it’s not working the way I want it to. I want numbers, texts, GPS locations. It’s an iPhone, I know it can be done, but you need a subpoena for what I need.”

Rooster widened his stance and crossed his arms over his chest. “You mean to tell me your hacker can’t get you what you need?”

“Not all of it. There’s some kind of security glitch on it, and honestly, I’m trying to keep this quiet.”

“What exactly are you lookin’ for here?”

It was on the tip of Tyler’s tongue to lie, but he felt that maybe in this moment with this person who looked to be willing to help them – the truth would set him free. “I’m positive he ordered a rape on someone I care deeply about. I want his balls in a noose for it, but I can’t make a play without the correct information.”

“Now I can’t condone you killing somebody.”

“Never said I’d kill him. I will tell you this though, whatever you wanna do to him is fine with me when I get done with him. I have a feeling William Walker has many more secrets that none of us know about.”

Liam picked up the conversation. “I’m givin’ you a little professional courtesy here. When his ass gets taken down, I’m takin’ over Heaven Hill.”

Rooster did his best to digest all the information that had been given to him. When push came to shove, he really did owe Liam. “Y’all are gonna have to give me a little bit of time. I think I can work it, but I’ll
have
to get a judge to sign off on it. I have to have some sort of investigation going on.”