Page 25 of Drifter (Redemption Riders #2)

Getting It Done

Drifter

T his is the shittiest morning we’ve had together.

Shitty because I had to tell Sasha what the guys and I found once we opened the door.

Hawk and I had a general sense that we were going to find money transfer information, encrypted emails between the Russians and McGrath, but we didn’t expect the extent of his interest in the mob business.

McGrath is a key player in laundering dirty money for the mob.

Blood money. Arms dealing, narcotics, that’s all expected.

It was the sex-slave trade that knocked us for a loop.

I wanted to give McGrath the benefit of the doubt, believing that he was being threatened, and this was his only way out.

Not that it’s an excuse or that it would be forgivable, but it would make it easier to understand.

Unfortunately, that’s not the case. The computer locked away in his hidden room reveals how very involved McGrath is in this ugly business.

There are many videos, from the point of taking women off the streets to gang-raping them.

McGrath has film of an actual slave sale, and plenty more of him partaking in the violation of young women.

Some women were too drugged to put up a fight, but others were screaming, begging him to stop.

I’m not sure I’ll ever get the sound of their cries out of my mind.

Taking his company isn’t enough. He must pay.

My first instinct is to end him, but I have to consider Sasha and what that will do to her.

How do you love a man who killed your father?

I can’t risk it. Hawk, Simon, and I decided to have the feds take care of McGrath.

Simon was shell-shocked, just as Sasha is now.

His face contorted with disgust, and he was visibly shaken.

Sasha sits in silence, her hands clasped tightly in her lap, but I can feel her despondence.

Thankfully, she hasn’t seen the details of how her father contributed to making these young women’s lives a living hell.

Simon wasn’t so lucky. He raced for the nearest toilet and was violently ill.

While I’m holding my woman together and preparing her for what’s to come, Simon has the difficult task of keeping up the charade and acting like a loyal son for the entire day.

Fuck, I don’t envy him. Hawk sat him down for a pep talk while Motown and I collected everything and followed Orion’s instructions to make sure we have backups of everything.

All that was shitty, but nothing is worse than watching my woman fall apart.

I want to hold her, but she warns me off.

“I need a minute,” she says, expelling a heavy breath.

The silence is torture. After what seems an eternity, she looks up at me.

“He was coming for me. I was going to be one of those girls. I was going to be delivered to Dr. Sutton, wasn’t I?

That’s the deal he had with him, wasn’t it? ”

“I don’t know, babe,” I say softly. “I want to come to you.” I’m a few feet away, but it feels like miles.

“I know. I’m nothing but collateral damage,” she spits out angrily.

The chair screeches along the floor and nearly topples as she gets up from the table.

“Simon’s out there on his own with our father.

What if he’s not safe? What if Dad knows about us finding his porn den?

” Her brow furrows with concern as she reaches for her phone on the counter.

I clasp her wrist. “He’s covered. He’s not alone, Sasha.

After what we found, we have people trailing him everywhere he goes.

This is bigger than the Redemption Riders.

There are clubs that turn a blind eye to this shit because they’re just as filthy.

And there are clubs that love to ride free, but not at the expense of human dignity.

Live and let live. Yeah, we believe in that.

But we also believe in justice and truth,” I say.

“I sacrificed years of service for freedom and justice for my country. To come home and find that these atrocities exist in my own backyard disgusts me. It’s not something I can ignore.

Neither can the Redemption Riders, Satan’s Pride, or the other clubs and brothers who have morals and values.

Your brother is safe. Hawk made it that way.

” I pause, waiting for her to digest this information.

“Now, baby, come to me.” I take my hand away and open my arms for her to walk into.

It doesn’t take but a moment before she’s in my arms. Her small form fits into mine, and she shudders. Christ! I hate having her go through this kind of angst.

“If you want to cancel tonight, we’ll find another way,” I say. I don’t want her to endure a night with her father.

“We’re going. You need time to get the information to the right people.”

I hold her tighter. “Hawk and I will find another way.”

“We’re sticking to the plan, Drifter,” she says firmly.

“Okay, baby.” Her head comes right under my chin. I dip my lips to her hair, and her arms tighten around me.

“Those poor girls,” she whimpers. I close my eyes, wondering if telling her was the best thing to do.

In the end, I know I did the right thing.

I can’t have her walking into her father’s home without her being on guard, more so than she normally would be.

Should McGrath get tipped off, he’s going to lose his mind, and there’s no telling what he’s capable of.

“We’re doing all we can. Hopefully, we can stop other women from falling into their hands.

With the evidence we have, Orion’s going to do his best to track down the women in the videos and see if we can get help for them.

It’s a long shot, but both the Riders and the Pride are committed to doing all we can. ”

“What do we do in the meantime? I mean, I can’t sit here all day ready to freak out about seeing my father tonight.”

“Bake, baby. That always calms you. I want to make some calls.” An update on Simon would be good and will make us both feel better.

“Not sure that’ll work this time,” she sighs.

“Maybe not, but give it a go, and I’m sure Etain will be traipsing over here soon enough.” I let her go so she can busy her hands clearing the table and immersing herself in her cookie dough batter.

Sasha

Drifter knows me well, and keeping me busy is alleviating some of my anxiety.

It’s Simon I’m concerned about. Right at this moment, he’s with Dad, and after learning everything I did this morning, I’m afraid for his safety.

Drifter makes his calls, confirming the plan for tonight, but checks on me to make sure I’m holding it together.

“The men with eyes on your brother say he’s sitting in a restaurant with your father and the owners of Sherman and Sons Inc.

Even your father’s not stupid enough to do anything in public.

All his emails and phone calls are normal, and his office hasn’t been touched, as of yet,” he tells me, while running a hand down my back.

“We’ll keep getting updates throughout the day. Okay?”

I manage a small smile. “Thank you.”

“Lee and Declan are bringing Etain over. Hawk’s en route with Guard to meet up with their contact, who will deliver what we’ve got to the feds.

It won’t be long before all hell breaks loose after that.

Sofia is finalizing the last of the buyout for the remaining shares. It’s all coming together, sunshine.”

“Don’t buyouts take months?” I ask as I continue to knead the dough for the cinnamon buns I decided to bake.

The cookies are almost done, with the final batch in the oven, and sitting around doing nothing would drive me crazy.

At this rate, I’m going to be baking and making care packages for the entire neighborhood, but whatever!

“Realistically, yeah. But we’re lucky we convinced some of the bigger stakeholders that backing your father at this critical time could cost them.

” Drifter shrugs like it’s no big deal, but I have a feeling there’s way more to it than that.

With all that’s happening, I decide to keep this chat for another time.

“Won’t that mean that everyone who bought them out might take a financial hit?” I’m well aware of how much money the club, their friends, and especially Demon have invested in the company.

“Your brother is on it, and we all know a dip is going to happen, but we’ll ride it out.

” He steals a cookie off the baking sheet, taking a bite that consumes more than half the cookie.

Then adds, “No one went into this with their eyes closed. We have faith in Simon. He’s smart and he knows his stuff. ”

I’m happy to hear him say this. I believe in Simon, but we’re talking about a whole heck of a lot of money, and I’d hate for them to resent me or Simon for getting them involved.

There’s a knock at the door, and Drifter heads over to open it. “Hey, big man, I can smell the sugar from my place,” Etain says with a giggle.

“You’ll find her in the kitchen. She’s moved on to cinnamon buns,” Drifter replies with amusement in his tone.

“Geez! I’m going to gain ten pounds if I keep coming over,” Etain returns, her laughter getting louder, and she comes to join me.

Lee and Declan do their normal chin lift thing to greet me but move off into the living room area with Drifter.

They speak in hushed tones, but I’m not worried because Drifter shares with me.

If there’s anything I need to know, he won’t keep me in the dark.

“What can I do to help?” Etain breaks into my thoughts.

“Do you want to decorate the sugar cookies? I can make icing, and you’re in charge of making them pretty.”

“Love it! But it won’t matter if they’re pretty or not because the guys will inhale without paying attention,” she adds. She’s probably right, but I still like that they’ll be pretty.

“Then we do it because we like it,” I conclude.

Etain, Lee, Declan, and Drifter have done a wonderful job in distracting me from what we must look forward to tonight.

But the time has come, and Drifter and I are getting ready to go to dinner.

The good news is that Simon called himself to check in.

He was very guarded as he spoke to me, but that’s because I heard our father in the background.

“Dad’s looking forward to you and Drifter joining us tonight,” he said.

“Dad says that he ordered Constanza to make your favorite, roast beef.” Constanza has been our maid and cook ever since I can remember.

She’s a sweet older woman, and when I was little, I spent more time with her than I did my own parents.

Roast beef is Dad’s favorite, not mine. It’s not that my father would know anything about my likes and dislikes, so he chose his preference and decided it was mine too.

“Drifter and I are looking forward to dinner. We were just getting dressed,” I confirmed. “How was your day?” I asked casually.

Great,” he replied. “Wheeling and dealing with Dad. All good.” He chuckles. “Dad and I are going to the house now. Mom wants to have drinks before dinner.” Sure she does! Mom’s probably polished off a half a bottle by this point, so what’s another drink or two?

I told him we’d be there soon and disconnected.

Drifter takes his part seriously, dressing in black dress pants and a dark blue shirt, but he opts to put on his leather jacket with the Redemption Rider’s insignia instead of a traditional jacket.

He looks yummy! His wavy hair is fashionably unruly, curling at the ends, and this only makes him hotter.

It’s a shame that we have to leave the house.

I chose pants for the evening. A pair of wide-legged navy chiffon dress pants that I match with a faux wrap ruched top, a pearl choker necklace, and my three-inch spike heels.

My hair is up in a high ponytail, neatly tied with a pearl-encrusted hair accessory.

My makeup is fresh and light, with hues of pink for my cheeks and lips, and soft eyeshadow and mascara for my eyes.

This is how I normally dress to go to dinner with my parents, on the few occasions when I accompanied Simon. Personally, I’m happiest in my yoga pants and oversized tee, but the way Drifter is staring at me, looking me over from head to toe, I see that he likes the results of my efforts.

“Babe, is this your way of delaying arrival at your parents’ house?” he asks with a grin.

I burst out laughing. “I wish.” Then I bat my eyes and sidle up next to him, sliding my fingers into his jacket. “When this is all over, we can celebrate, though.”

He drops his head, his lips lightly touching mine. “Yeah. Let’s get this done.”