Page 13

ROCHELLE

Bond leaves us. Picking up my handgun, I put Daisy back in her cot and checked the house. Everything is as it should be. Seeing a light on in Noni’s house and knowing that I’m not going to settle anytime soon, I get dressed, pack Daisy up, thanking my lucky stars that she’s such a good sleeper and an easy baby. Walking over to Noni’s door, I knock, “Who’s there?” Noni calls out.

“It’s Rochelle,” I answer her. “Can I come in?”

“Of course, give me a minute.”

It doesn’t take long for her to unlock and open the door for me to walk in. “I’m sorry to barge in,” I tell her. “I couldn’t settle.”

Noni waves her hand, “Don’t worry about it, hun. I’m not going to go back to sleep either. Come into the kitchen; you can put Daisy in Sam’s pram, and then you can help me sort out a list for organising things once the sun comes up. We’re going to move the guests to a friend’s hotel and the children with Julia and Grace.”

Guilt instantly fills me , ‘God, they’re rearranging their whole lives for me.’

“I’m so sorry, Noni,” I apologise as I follow her to the kitchen and put Daisy in the pram set up in the corner.

Noni waves her hand as if none of this is a big deal when I know that it’s a huge deal. “Don’t worry about it, Roch. The guys are pretty excited about shedding some blood. Plus, it’s been a little while since we’ve had some drama. We missed the drama with Navy and Gia because we were here.”

“What drama?” I ask curiously.

“Oh, girl, come sit and let me fill you in on the Crows and how they met their ones. It’s not all been plain sailing, let me tell you.”

That’s how I find out about the couples and how they met, and I have to say it settles me some when I realise they really do know what they’re doing and maybe I’d been part of the Black Mambas for so long that I couldn’t see them for what they are—a weak gang run by a weak leader who was so high most of the time that I’m not sure how he functions, especially as whoever pissed him off would get killed pretty quickly.

By the time the sun rose, Noni and I had a working list. I’d already made up my mind that I’d be staying because this was my fight too and I needed to take some of my independence back. Daisy would be going with Julia, though. I needed her to be safe and as far away from whatever was going to happen here as I could get her. And while Julia was a soft-hearted woman, I had a feeling that if someone threatened any of the children, a whole other woman would make herself known.

By mid-morning, with the help of Noni’s friends Ava and Marie, along with their husbands Drake and Sam, who’d helped, we’d ferried the guests to their hotel an hour away.

We were just waiting for Drake and Sam to return to help move all the children, Grace, and Julia. Rogue would be going with them, leaving the rest of us here.

Josie had said she couldn’t leave as she had a few animals that couldn’t be moved. She and Skinny were setting up at the vet’s office and barricading themselves in. The town had been warned about what was happening and were shutting up their shops and bolting the metal grates over the doors and windows.

I’d been surprised that there hadn’t been any pushback when it came to them losing business. I hadn’t realised quite how far the Black Mambas’ reign of terror had stretched, and it seemed most of them had been affected one way or another, and if they hadn’t, they knew someone who had.

I’d been relieved when Bond and Cairo had ridden back in half an hour ago; they’d both been filthy and tired. After a quick kiss, I’d sent him home to wash up because I knew that him being as filthy as he was would be bothering him. It didn’t take him long, and he was back to find out what the next steps were.

Julia and Rogue were getting ready to leave, and I was having a hard time letting go of Daisy. I knew I’d have to suck it up, but it was harder than I’d expected to let her go. We’d never been separated from the day she’d been born.

“Here,” I hand Julia the cool bag, “I’ve expressed as much as I can, but if you need to give her formula, there’s a tin in there as well as some bottles.” I bite my lip. I’m fighting hard against tears.

Julia wrapped her arms around me and Daisy, swaying us slightly. “I’ll look after her for you, Roch. She’ll be safe with me,” Julia assures me.

“Oh, I know that,” I answer. “I’m not worried about her safety; it’s just I’ve never been away from her.”

A firm hand rubs at my back, and I instinctively know it’s Bond, “It’s not too late, Roch; you can go with her.”

Shaking my head, I say, “No, I’ll stay. I know who they all are, and you may need me. Plus, this is my mess, and I need to be here to help clean it up.”

Kissing Daisy one more time, I give her to Bond, who kisses her head before strapping her in her car seat.

Rogue and Julia were getting ready to pull out when Drake and Sam arrived to pick up the older children. They weren’t alone, though. They’d no sooner stopped the car than a tiny whirlwind erupted from the back and flew towards Noni, who laughed as she hugged the new woman.

“What are you doing here?” Noni asks her but didn’t seem overly surprised to see her.

“I heard you guys were going to have a little fun, and I was bored at home, so I thought I’d come and offer my meagre services,” the woman replies with a wide, happy smile.

“Who’s that?” I ask.

“That’s Jill Landry,” Rogue answers. “She’s probably Noni’s best friend after Avy.”

Noni and Jill are talking a mile a minute as Jill goes to the vehicle she’s arrived in and surprisingly pulls out a rifle bag, which she casually throws over her shoulder and starts walking towards the hotel.

Sam and Drake shake their heads as she walks away with Noni towards the hotel. They unload a few more bags and rest them on the ground by the hotel steps.

“We can come back,” Drake offers.

Bull shakes his head before replying, his eyes darting towards his and Noni’s children, “Appreciate the offer but no, you keep our kids safe, and we’ll manage shit here.”

“Okay,” Sam agrees, “but if you need us, we’re not far away.” They turn to walk back to their vehicle and are just about to get in when Sam hesitates and turns back to us, “Bull, make use of Jill, she’s a fantastic shot, better than most. Set her up as a sniper somewhere. She has her rifle as well as a few other things for you to use. And trust me, if she says she can hear an ant taking a shit, then you better believe she can. Her hearing is phenomenal. Trust her.”

Bull stares hard at Sam before he nods, “I will. We’ll set her up on the roof of the hotel with Noni and Roch.”

Sam looks relieved and taps the door before checking on the children in the back of their vehicle. It’s not long before the two vehicles leave, carrying a bit of our hearts with them.

Bull turns to the rest of us and starts to speak until he notices Blaze and Cairo walking up the road, “We’ll wait for those two.” He turns his gaze on Jill, who’s casually leaning up against the hotel wall next to Noni. She waves and smiles at me when she notices me looking at her. I can’t help but smile and wave back; she seems really happy to be here, and I’m wondering if she has a few screws loose. I mean, who would voluntarily be here to fight when she doesn’t even know me?

“Jill,” Bull states, getting her attention, “Sam and Drake say we should use you as a sniper. Is that good with you?”

“Perfect,” she grins happily. “I’m guessing up on the roof.”

Bull nods before querying, “Is there anything else we need to know about you?”

“Umm,” Jill tilts her head back as if she were thinking, “I’ve got great hearing, and my sense of smell is awesome. Oh, and I’m the youngest sibling of nine, so I have some pretty spectacular combat experience,” she sniggers at that comment.

“Along with my Zelda,” she pats her rifle case, “I’ve also got her sisters,” she smirks, pulling up her trousers to show us the handguns strapped to her ankles, then pulls up her sleeves showing us the knives she has strapped to her forearms. “And a few extra goodies that I’ve brought with me to share with you.”

“That’s fucking hot,” Blaze mutters quietly from where he is standing next to me.

Jill’s eyes slide to him and widen slightly when she sees him, “Thank you,” she responds.

“Fuck, your hearing is good,” Bull says. “I barely heard him and I’m standing next to him.”

“I’ll be an asset,” Jill assures Bull. “Do you want to let me in on the rest of the plan so I can get settled?”

“Yeah, let’s meet in Church,” Bull orders. Taking hold of Noni’s hand, he leads the way with the rest of us following.

Bond and I are bringing up the rear, my hand clasped tightly in his. I slow my steps until I stop and look up at him.

“I’m sorry,” I whisper, tears building in my eyes.

“Hey,” Bond cups my head in his hands, tilting my face up to his. “You’ve got nothing to be sorry for. Trust me when I say that this would have happened sooner or later. We don’t put up with gangs terrorising people, and after speaking to some of our townspeople, it seems that the Mambas would have become our problem eventually anyway. At least this way we had warning, and we have inside information.

“Trust me when I say they’re going to make mistakes because they’re pissed and not thinking straight after we blew up their warehouses.”

Bond kisses my forehead, wrapping me in his arms. I sigh and relax for the first time since he woke me up. “It’s going to be okay, baby. We have a plan and we’re good at what we do,” Bond reassures me.

“Now, let’s get in there so Bull can fill us in on what’s going to happen, and we can get this lot dealt with so we can go back to living our lives. We have a house to build and siblings for Daisy to make.”

Laughing slightly, I wipe at the tears that have gathered under my eyes, squeezing him one more time before letting go completely and walking into the room they’d been using for Church. By the time we leave there, I’m no longer worried; they’ve thought about everything, and now it’s just a waiting game until the Mambas make a move.

Dex Macgregor still has people watching them in the city, so at least we’ll have advanced warning of their arrival and can get into our places.

They can only really come at us from the road as the hotel backs onto the river, so we only have to watch from one direction. Blaze, Cairo, and Skinny have set up several booby traps, and Skinny has the place wired tight with cameras all over the place. He’ll be monitoring them along with Josie and feeding us information through our earpieces.

Noni and I will be on the roof with Jill, helping her spot and also picking off those we can from up high.

The men will be on the ground doing what they did best.

I know the Mambas will come in guns blazing, thinking a big show of force will be intimidating. I can’t wait to see Jason’s face when he realises he is outgunned by men who are ten times the man he is.