Page 18

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

T wenty-four hours later, Deacon and Viper rode to Dalton. Shifter and Blade asked them to stay a few more days, but Deacon was anxious to get his clubhouse back in order. He promised to return as soon as word of Gomez’s improvement came. Trent was staying.

Right on cue, forty-eight hours passed, and Johnny received a text from Blade, which he thought was odd as they were both in the clubhouse.

Gomez can take visitors for a few minutes. Take Isolde, and keep this strictly to yourself. I’ll text Barron to join you.

Frowning, Johnny typed back.

What’s going on?

A feeling I have. I follow my hunches.

Will they let us in? We’re not family.

Gomez doesn’t have relatives. Deacon is the responsible party, and he left a list of approved names before he left.

Isolde was playing in Cel’s Little room. Johnny was pleased his baby girl had the support and comfort of someone who’d lived the life for so long and could teach her a lot. Plus, Isolde would soon meet Yoanni, Barron’s Little. This influenced him further to stay in Garden City rather than move to Dalton. Deacon needed time to come around toward Johnny, and he could always ride up with Isolde for a visit.

The two girls were sitting at Cel’s small table. A complete play tea set was displayed as they happily chatted. Making choo-choo noises, little Jerrod played with his train set nearby.

“Hey, girls, sorry to interrupt. I need to take Isolde somewhere.”

Cel and Isolde blinked at him.

“Hi, Daddy,” Isolde chirped in her Little voice, which always warmed his heart.

“S’okay,” Cel said. “We play later.”

He studied Isolde’s get-up—the cute, flowery short skirt, argyle knit Mary-Jane shoes, and ankle socks—and decided a change in clothes was essential. “You need to change, baby. We’re going out.”

She sashayed toward him. “We are?”

“Yes.” Bending his head, he whispered. “We have permission to see Gomez.”

“Yay.” Clapping her hands, she rushed over to Cel, and hugged her friend. “I’s sorry.”

“No sorry,” Cel murmured, smiling with a mischievous grin. “We’s good girls. No want heinies spank.”

“Nooo.” Isolde turned to hold Johnny’s hand. “I’s a good girl, Daddy. I’s obey. ”

“Yes, you do.” Chuckling, he led her out of the room, then turned into the main hallway. As he did, her transformation was immediate. Isolde went from cute skipping to the upright walk of an adult.

Johnny opened his door, and Trent stepped out of the darkness.

“Whassup, guys?” Trent said.

Isolde jumped the gun on him. “Good news. We?—”

Johnny yanked her arm. She glanced up a him with a question on her face.

“She’s so excited,” Johnny answered before she said anything about Gomez. “We’re going to the movies.”

Trent narrowed his eyes slightly, then looked from Isolde to Johnny. “Oh, what are you going to watch? Is it good? I love movie theaters. I could join you.”

Evidently, Trent didn’t buy Johnny’s excuse. A sudden chill, a weird sensation similar to a premonition or warning, ran up and down Johnny’s spine.

“My girl loves animation. That’s all I can say without giving away the title. If a movie theater filled to the rafters with screaming kids is your jam, you’re welcome to come.”

A lazy smile curved Trent’s lip. “Screaming kids, huh? I’ll pass. Have fun.” He nodded and walked toward the front of the clubhouse.

Johnny dragged Isolde inside his room and shut the door with a loud slam. “Fuck, that was close.”

“What am I missing?” She folded her arms.

He pulled her toward the farthest wall from the door. Holding her arms, he whispered, “Got a text from Blade. We can visit Gomez. I should’ve warned you; he asked me not to say a word to anyone except Barron. He’s coming with us, but you have to change your clothes, baby. ”

“I almost blew it. Why the secrecy?” Isolde asked as she stripped off her skirt and stepped out of her shoes.

Johnny rummaged through her closet in search of jeans. He found a pair, then tossed them to her. “Blade has a hunch, and just now, when we ran into Trent, I had a bad feeling.”

“You mean Trent, a sworn member of the Dalton MC, is the bad guy?” she asked wide-eyed as she dressed. “I don’t believe it. He and Gomez are the best of friends. They are, or were inseparable until Gomez was attacked.”

“I’m not saying he’s the traitor.” Johnny helped her pull down her top, then straightened her mussed hair. “But you’d be surprised what some people are willing to do for money. If the offer is generous, some guys would betray their own mother. In any case, I had to stop you from telling him where we were going because you were so excited. Until this snake is found, we all have to be very careful.”

“I understand.”

Johnny’s phone buzzed. He read the screen. “Okay, Barron’s waiting for us already. Let’s go check on Gomez.”

The elevator doors dinged open on the SDU floor. Johnny, Isolde, and Barron walked out into the long corridor. Johnny scanned the signs and pointed forward. “Nurses’ desk. Straight ahead.”

They made it to a busy nurses’ station and waited a moment, hoping to catch the attention of at least one.

“May I help you?” A young man dressed in green scrubs spoke to them.

“We came to see our friend,” Johnny replied. “We realize we can only visit him for a few minutes.”

“Name of the patient?”

“Gomez Murray,” Isolde answered .

“What are your names?”

“Isolde Lennox, Johnny Wells, and Barron Priestly.”

“You two are on the list, not him, and you can’t go in.” The young man frowned.

“But we were told we could,” Isolde moaned. “Our names are on the approved list. May we see him from the hallway at least?”

“Sorry, I didn’t explain myself,” the nurse said. “I meant to say you can’t go in yet. Just now, one of the approved visitors went to see Mr. Murray. We enforce a break between visits. Once he’s done, you’ll have to wait half an hour before going in.”

Johnny frowned as his gut suddenly twisted. “One of us? We’ll watch from the corridor until it’s our turn.”

“Okay, but no loud conversations. This is a quiet zone.”

“You got it.” He turned to Isolde and Barron. “Hurry.”

“What is it?” Barron whispered, keeping pace with Johnny.

“I have a bad feeling about this.”

Johnny came to a halt, then holding Isolde behind him, he peered through the long window. His fears materialized. He didn’t see any attending nurses in the room. His blood froze. Trent, syringe in hand, stood next to the unconscious Gomez, ready to plunge the needle into the IV tube.

Johnny turned to Isolde. “Run to the nurses’ station, baby. Get help. Hurry! Barron, with me.”

As Isolde took off down the corridor, he pulled the heavy door open and barged into the room. Amid the loud beeps of monitors, a startled Trent gawked at the two men. Barron moved to the left as Johnny went to the right to face Trent directly. Johnny palmed his jeans’ pockets, searching for a weapon, and cursed under his breath. He’d left the gun behind and carried no knife.

“Come any closer and I’ll stick it in!” Trent hissed. Sweat covered his forehead. A drop ran trailed down his colorless face.

“What good will it do except to kill your friend?” Johnny took a conciliatory tone. Trent was already riled up enough. One wrong move, and Gomez would die. “Either way, you’re toast. We all know what you did. This doesn’t end well for you, unless you cooperate.”

“Here’s the reality. Touch the IV with that needle, and you’ll be on the floor before you can breathe,” Barron threatened, tight fists at his sides. “I never fail at this distance.”

Johnny couldn’t help but wonder what the fuck Barron was talking about.

“And I’ll have enough time to pull the IV out.” Johnny stepped forward, feeling a strange calmness.

Behind him someone turned the lights up in the ward as nurses spoke with excitement. Johnny overheard, “Security and police are on their way.”

“Daddy,” Isolde called out.

He didn’t turn. “Yes, baby. Trent is going to put down the syringe and kneel. Come on, dude, it’s over. Think, man.”

Trent blinked. Wiping his forehead with his free hand, he lowered the syringe a bit.

“Don’t make your situation worse.” Johnny continued softly. “You haven’t killed anyone, and you could testify against the cartel. That might improve your chances. Come on, drop the needle.”

“You don’t know what you’re saying,” Trent glowered. “I can’t testify. The cartel will kill me. I failed them. That means I’m dead already. Failure is unacceptable.”

“The MC will protect you. We’re brothers, and we take care of our own. We can put in a good word. Ask the authorities to relocate you.” Johnny moved two steps closer and so did Barron.

“The authorities will relocate me?” Trent scoffed. “You’re such an idiot. The cartel has no mercy. They’ll find me no matter what.”

“You’re not?—”

“Don’t move any fucking closer!” Trent shouted. Eyes fixed on Johnny, he lifted the needle to the IV.

Barron’s jump was a blur. The forward kick connected with Trent’s knee, shattering the joint.

Isolde screamed.

Trent collapsed onto his side. Running to the fallen man, Johnny snatched the needle from Trent’s fingers.

Pandemonium exploded as nurses hurried into the room, spreading out to reassure the disturbed patients. Four security officers arrived, weapons out. Two nurses knelt next to Trent as they examined his shattered knee. A third brought rigid splints to immobilize the joint while the guy wailed and sobbed in pain.

Gomez remained blissfully unconscious. He would never know how close he’d come to dying, twice.

Holding Isolde tightly to his side, Johnny glared at the whining Trent, then spoke to Barron. “I thought you never failed at close distance.”

“Who says I failed?” Barron retorted.

“But the knee?”

“In this place, firing a gun is out of the question.” Barron smirked. “Trent hesitated long enough, making plenty of space between him and the IV tube. When he lifted the needle a second time, I knew I couldn’t wait. I had to act and went for the knee. I’m aware Captain Weaver wants him alive to answer questions, so this is perfect. The guy’s going to pay for a long time.”

“That’s my friend Barron.” Johnny laughed. “Cool thinker under pressure.”

“I’ve had my moments of total panic. You, of all people, should remember.”

Johnny was about to argue whenhe recalled the Yoanni incident. “Yeah, dude. That chick was nuts…”

A resident doctor appeared on the scene, shouting at their little group. “What you’ve done is unacceptable! I’ll make sure the hospital files charges against you. You’ve disrupted our patients and injured a visitor. Someone has to pay for the cleanup and damages.”

“Actually,” Captain Weaver thundered in his deep voice behind the doctor, “this ward is now the scene of an attempted crime, and as such, you’ll have to move the patients to another room. I want full details of what transpired hereand the name of every nurse who was on duty for questioning.” He studied the condition of the room, the moaning patients, the nurses splinting Trent’s leg, then turned to the officer with him. “Cuff him, Jenkins, before they put him on a stretcher. I need to talk to these three.” He jutted his head toward Johnny, Isolde, and Barron.

“Right away, Captain.” Handcuffs in hand, the officer scurried toward Trent.

“Let’s go.” Weaver motioned for Johnny’s group to follow. He strode into an empty room across the way. Folding his arms and facing them, he asked, “Okay. The highlights. Details later.”

Quickly, Johnny reminded the captain about the attempt against Gomez’s life, then explained his and Blade’s suspicions. Though they hadn’t shared their concerns about Trent with each other, they had been on the same page. He explained how they found Trent ready toinject something lethal into Gomez’s IV, the attempt to stop him, and Barron’s kick to the knee, which neutralized the threat.

“You’re free to go for now,” Weaver said. “Don’t leave town. I’ll have questions for y’all at the station.” He paused. “Gomez is a lucky man.”

“He sure is.” Putting his arm around Isolde’s shoulder Johnny led them down the hospital corridor to the elevators, with Barron keeping pace beside him.

“Will this stop the Wolves from coming after us?” Isolde asked.

“Not just yet, baby. The end of this feud rests on Rover’s and your father’s shoulders.”

Hours later, once the commotion subsided in the clubhouse and questions and comments about the incident in the hospital ended, Johnny and Isolde found refuge in his bedroom. Lying in bed, Johnny held Isolde closely in his arms as he reflected on recent events.

Life had been a severe whirlwind.

She sighed softly.

“What’s on your mind, baby?”

“I was thinking about us, my father, what you said earlier about the Wolves.”

“Tell me about us and your father first.”

She wiggled closer to his chest, as if that was possible. He was pretty sure there wasn’t an inch of space between them, exactly how he wanted it.

“Well, my father’s not going to come around anytime soon. He’s too stubborn. I know him. Where does that leave us?”

He kissed her fragrant hair. “Meaning?”

“Um…”

“Spit it out, baby.”

“I heard you mention marriage to him. Do we have to wait until he softens?”

Johnny smiled. “I see. Tell me. Should we wait, put our lives on hold until your father relents?”

She stiffened. “Nooo.”

“So let’s get married right away. There’s no point in waiting. Right?”

“Right.” Isolde squealed softly. “Sounds lovely. What about the Wolves?”

“We can talk about them tomorrow, when we get our permit and get the ball rolling. How does that sound?”

“Sounds perfect. ”

Abruptly, Johnny flipped Isolde on her back, caging her between his arms.

“No. You’re perfect,” he whispered. “Open your mouth for me. I need to kiss you, taste you.”

Isolde ran her arms around his neck and smiled. “Yes, my mouth, my pussy, take all of me.” She anchored her legs around his waist, inviting his cock into her core. In a single move, Johnny thrust his erection into the slick depths of her sheath as his tongue probed her mouth.

This was his dream, his forbidden fantasy of long ago, no longer taboo. Isolde was all his, without reservation or doubt. As emotions throttled him in the midst of possession, his soul demanded he whisper, “I adore you. You’re the love of my life.”

“And you’re mine,” she whispered back.