Page 37 of Creed (Satan’s Fury MC- Little Rock #6)

CREED

I t had been just over three months since Devin and the kids moved in, and for the most part, things were going well.

It had taken us a beat to adjust to all being under the same roof and figuring out how that all works.

The kids struggled a bit more than Devin and me.

They tiptoed around for a while, not wanting to rock the waters, but they were coming around.

Things got a little tougher when the hearings started, and the kids discovered what exactly their father had been up to.

I was afraid the whole thing would drag out for months, but it seemed they wanted to sweep this one under the rug.

Maddox pleaded guilty and took a plea deal that kept him from being charged with attempted murder.

In a matter of a few weeks, the trial was done, and he was moved to the Arkansas Department of Correction in Grady.

He’d already been there a couple of days, so I needed to get moving.

I grabbed my cut and was on my way out the door when I heard the soft murmur of voices coming from the living room.

Devin's voice was low and soothing, like she was trying her best to talk someone off a ledge. I took a step closer and leaned against the doorframe, just out of sight. That’s when I saw that she was talking to Chrissy.

She was curled up on the edge of the sofa with her arms wrapped tight around her knees.

Devin was sitting right beside her, rubbing slow circles on her back as she listened to Chrissy say, “He’s not who I thought he was. I never thought he could do something like that.”

“I know. It surprised me, too.” Devin shrugged. “But he messed up. He messed up big, and now, he has to pay the consequences for it.”

“I know, but fifteen years. That’s a lifetime. What if he doesn’t make it in there?”

“Your dad’s stronger than you think, baby. And this isn’t forever.”

“That’s what everyone says, but it doesn’t help anything.” Chrissy shook her head and let out a frustrated sob. “It just feels like I’m losing him forever.”

My chest tightened.

That kind of helpless hurt was something I knew all too damn well.

I stepped into the room, and they both looked up.

Devin’s eyes met mine, and I could see the silent plea in them.

I walked over and crouched down in front of Chrissy.

“I know all of this is a lot, and it doesn’t feel fair.

Hell, maybe it isn’t. But his being in jail doesn’t change the fact that he is your father.

He still loves you, and even though he’s made some bad decisions, you can still love him.

You can love him just as much as you always did. ”

She wiped at her eyes but didn’t say anything, just stared at the floor like she was trying not to fall apart. Devin leaned in and added, “And when you’re ready, you can write him or go see him. Whatever you want. You don’t have to shut him out.”

“I don’t know...” Chrissy hesitated, that crack of pain still fresh in her voice. “What if he doesn’t want to see me?”

“He’ll want to see you,” I answered without hesitation. “You’re his kid, and you’re pretty awesome. He loves you and will want to know you’re okay. He’ll want to know that you haven’t given up on him.”

She nodded, and I leaned in and kissed her forehead. “You’re a good kid, Chris. He’s lucky to have you. I know I am.”

I stood and reached for my keys on the table. “I’m heading out for a bit. Be back before dinner.”

“Okay. Be careful.”

“Will do.” As I stepped through the door, I called out, “Love you.”

And they replied in unison, “Love you, too.”

And just like that, my day had been made. I headed out to my bike, and half an hour later, I was at the clubhouse meeting up with Goose. We were only there for a minute before we were on the road to ADC. We needed to pay a visit to a close friend of the club’s and ask him to keep an eye on Maddox.

Goose wasn’t exactly thrilled about the idea and started pouting as soon as we made our way inside. He let out a muffled curse then grumbled, “I hate it here. It sucks.”

“I think that’s kind of the point.”

The clank of the steel doors echoed behind us as Goose and I made our way down to the prison’s visitor area so we could have a word with our good friend, Pookie.

He wasn’t a brother.

Not even close.

But he was a strong supporter and easily influenced.

It only took a little love to get him to do just about anything we wanted him to do, especially if it was Goose giving him the love.

Goose would play along, but he wasn’t happy about it, and he made sure to let me know.

“It smells like sweat, bleach, and stale regret in here.”

“It’s a prison. How do you expect it to smell?”

“I don’t know. Haven’t they ever heard of a Glade plugin.”

“Doubt it’d do any good.”

“Probably not.” He let out an annoyed breath as he said, “Remind me never to end up here.”

I chuckled, “Today should be all the reminding you need.”

When we walked in, Pookie was already sitting at the table with a shit-eating grin plastered on his round face.

His bright orange jumpsuit looked at least two sizes too small, and yet, he’d somehow managed to roll the sleeves up just enough to show off the tattoos on his pudgy forearms. When he saw Goose, his eyes lit up, and he let out a high-pitched squeal.

“Oh, mi amor, you came too!” Pookie sang, dramatically clutching his chest like he was about to faint. “I knew you’d miss me.”

“Ah, hell.” Goose shot me a look, jaw tightening like he was bracing for impact. “You did this shit on purpose, didn’t ya.”

“Oh, cut the crap. You know you love it.”

“Fuck you, brother,” he rasped under his breath, then shifted his scowl into a playful grin as he turned on all the charm he could muster. “ Looking good, Pookie. You been working out?”

“Mmm, don’t play with me, boy.” Pookie flipped his hand in the air, “You know I’m thick, but you like it.”

“Yeah, yeah. You right.”

I stifled a laugh as I slid into the chair across from Pookie. Goose sat next to me, leaning back and running his hand through his hair like he was God’s gift to women and to Pookie. Goose gave him a quick once-over as he asked, “How’s life been treating you in here?”

“Not too bad.” Pookie was practically drooling at this point, and Goose was feeding right into him. “Just getting through the grind. You know how it can be.”

“Sure do.” Goose gave him a wink. “But as long as you give as good as you get, it’s all good.”

“Oh, honey. I always give better.” Pookie gave him a wink. “It makes me worth remembering and has them coming back for more.”

“Ain’t nobody gonna forget you, Pook.”

“That’s the plan.”

“We need a favor,” I said, cutting through all the theatrics.

“Okay. That’s what I’m here for.” Pookie’s grin softened, and he leaned forward, resting his chin on his hands so he was looking directly at me. But his eyes still flickered over to Goose every few seconds like he couldn’t help himself. “What can I do for you, papí?”

“There’s a new guy in here.” I leaned in and tried to keep my voice low as I told him, “Brian Maddox. He’s a cop.”

“I saw your little coppy friend when they brought him in. He’s got a snooty face and a bad attitude.” Pookie scowled. “He’s trying to play it tough, but we all know he’s rattled.”

“That’s good,” Goose said, smirking. “We need him scared.”

“You want me to shank him?” Pookie didn’t even try lowering his voice as he told us, “I can get him while he’s on the shitter. Cause, you know, cops are full of shit.”

“Yeah, I get where you’re going, but no shanking. We don’t want him dead.”

As tempting as it might’ve been, I didn’t want to be the one who ultimately put an end to Austin and Chrissy’s father. It was hard enough for them to face him being behind bars. They didn’t deserve having to see him six feet under, too. “No, just the opposite. We need you to keep him breathing.”

“He’s under your protection?”

“To some extent. A good ass-beatin’ from time to time wouldn’t hurt him. But we need him alive.”

“That’s all?”

“I have a feeling it’s not gonna be that easy.”

“No, cops don’t fare well in here, but I’ve got pull. I should be able to keep him going.”

“And if he happens to mention anything about girls or where he might’ve sent ‘em or anything about ‘em, I need to know about it.”

“Okay. I’ll keep an ear out.”

“And he starts bragging about who he was working with, I need to know that, too.”

I knew our chances of finding any of the girls Maddox had trafficked were slim, but I had to try. For Devin and for the club. We’d never confirmed what Maddox had meant when he said we were connected. I had my suspicions. Preacher did, too, but I needed to know for sure. We all did.

“You got it.” Pookie batted his eyelashes at Goose, “But what’s in it for me, handsome?

“What are you asking for?”

“You boys already do plenty.” He ran the tip of his tongue across his bottom lip before adding, “But I could use a couple of cartons of cigarettes, maybe a few extra hours out in the yard, you know I love the sunshine, and I could definitely go for a conjugal visit with my favorite Fury stud.”

“We can work on the cigarettes and time out in the yard, but I wouldn’t hold ya breath on the visit.”

“Worth a try.” He gave me a shrug. “But no matter. I’ll babysit your cop friend.”

“Thanks, man. We’ll owe you.”

“I like the sound of that.”

“And Pookie,” Goose added, leaning forward, lowering his voice just enough to make it sound like a promise, “Don’t work out too much. It’s not fair to tease folks like you do.”

“You better stop it.” Pookie’s eyes sparkled as he added, “You gonna make a girl blush.”

He winked at Goose, then blew him a kiss as the guard came to collect him. Goose shook his head as Pookie sashayed out of the room. I chuckled as I told him, “You’re gonna end up with a stalker on your hands.”

“Won’t be the first. Won’t be the last.”

As we walked out of the corridor, I felt a quiet satisfaction settle in my chest. We’d planted the seed. I trusted Pookie to look after Maddox, and it would be a bonus if he could get the information we needed.

We got back on our bikes and drove back to the clubhouse. It was a three-hour drive, so it was already dark when we pulled through the gate.

We headed inside, and most of the brothers were already gathering in the bar, including Preacher. We walked over, and as soon as we sat down, he grunted, “Well?”

“Pookie’s in,” I answered. “He’ll keep eyes on Maddox and try to get us the information we need.”

“Good. Knew he would.” A slight smirk crossed Preacher’s face as he looked over to Goose and asked, “Did he enjoy your little visit?”

“You know he did, and hell. Can you blame him? Look at me.”

“I just don’t see it,” Preach grumbled. “You’d think he’d be more into someone with some years behind him and power.”

“How ‘bout that. Prez is jealous,” Goose goaded. “He’s wanting some of that Pookie love.”

“No, the fuck I don’t. That’s not what I meant.”

“Um-hmm.”

I rolled my eyes and shook my head. “You should’ve seen him, Preach. The man was batting his lashes and cheesing it so hard I thought he’d lay one on Goose right then and there.”

“As long as he gets us what we need.”

“Woah, now. I’ll flirt with the dude all day, but smooching is where I draw the line,” Goose said with a grin.

“Glad to hear you have limits.” Preacher’s smile faded as he turned to me and asked, “How are Devin and the kids getting along after everything?”

“The sentencing was tough, especially on Austin. Hasn’t really talked much, but he’ll come around.”

“And Devin?”

“Just doing what she can to help the kids get through.”

“She’s a good one.”

“Damn right, she is.” I chuckled as I told him, “You know she’s been talking to Tabitha about us getting a barn and a couple of horses.”

“You’ve definitely got the room for it, but it takes a lot of time.”

“Tabitha said the same thing. I’m thinking she and the kids need to spend some time out at your place and make sure they know what we’d be getting into.”

“Not a bad idea. Bring them out this weekend and let them ride. You’re welcome any time.”

The words had barely left his mouth when the side door opened, and Devin walked in wearing simple jeans and a fitted T-shirt.

Laura came in right after her, looking like she was ready to hit the club.

Her mini skirt barely covered her thighs, and her off-the-shoulder sweater was revealing more than just her shoulders.

Goose noticed her right off the bat and jabbed me in the ribs. “Who the hell is that?”

His eyes were fixed on Laura, a slow grin spreading across his face. I didn’t even look at him when I answered, “The end of life as you know it.”

“Seriously, man. Who is that?”

“Devin’s friend, Laura.”

“Well, I’d say it’s time to greet our guests.” Goose straightened his cut as he sauntered over to Laura and said, “Hey there, sunshine. You got a name, or should I just call you trouble?”

“Depends.” Laura tilted her head, eyes glinting with amusement. “You got a name, or should I just call you a walking bad decision?”

“Oh, I like her,” Goose laughed.

Devin shot me a look, one eyebrow arched, her lips twitching like she was trying not to smile. “This may be worse than I thought.”

I shrugged, then leaned in and pressed a kiss to her temple. “He could do worse.”

“And she could do better.”

“No doubt.” I motioned my head towards the bar. “You want a drink?”

“Absolutely.” I grabbed us both a cold beer from the cooler and offered one to her. “The kids make it to your mom’s okay?”

“Yes, but I don’t think Austin was all that thrilled about staying there.”

“Was he still going on about Malcomb?”

“Oh, yeah, and he’s probably still going on about it right now with Mom. But I’m sticking to my guns on this. He isn’t going back over there until he brings up that history grade.”

“If it makes any difference, I think you’re doing the right thing.”

“It makes all the difference.”

Laura laughed at something Goose said, and our attention was drawn over to them. My brother was laying it on thick, and Laura was eating it up. It was doubtful it would go anywhere. She was out of his league, and they had nothing in common, but I couldn’t blame him for trying.

Hell, I’d do just about anything to be sitting where I am tonight.

I had my brothers, my club, and my girl.

And nothing could beat that.

Devin looked over at me with that smile. Damn, it got to me every fucking time. I leaned in without thinking and kissed her, long and hard. When we came up for air, I whispered, “Love you.”

“Love you, too.”

“You better ‘cause you’re stuck with me.”

“And you’re stuck with me.”

“I wouldn’t have it any other way.”