Page 25 of Kraken (Hades Abyss MC #4: Mississippi Chapter)

Kraken

I’d ridden straight through to Phoebe’s hometown, only stopping once for gas.

When I’d checked my phone, the Pres had sent a selfie of him and my woman sitting on my damn couch.

I’d shaken my head, but I’d been damn grateful he’d gone to my house.

At least I knew my woman was taken care of while I handled this shit.

I eyed the house where she’d grown up. Looked like a nice enough neighborhood.

All the yards were neatly mowed. Homes were freshly painted.

Not so much as a broken window or patched roof in sight.

I’d always thought kids in these types of places had it easy.

Maybe Phoebe hadn’t faced many hardships growing up, but what her family had done to her was beyond horrific. Who the fuck sold their own damn kid?

I parked my bike in the shadows and pulled out the items I needed from my saddlebags.

Grizzly stood beside me, ready to extract Phoebe’s sister and get her to safety.

He’d also brought along his son-in-law, Dragon, as backup.

I didn’t think a preacher and his wife would give me too many problems, but I wouldn’t argue over having another set of hands.

Titan had also put in a request with our Missouri chapter and their newly patched Prospect, Iron, had come as well.

I knew the kid had been with the Hades Abyss a long time.

He’d more than proven himself, and I was grateful to have him here, even if I only asked for help with the clean-up or made him a lookout.

I wanted these people to suffer, but I didn’t want to be away from Phoebe longer than necessary.

I could have easily asked someone else to handle this, but she was my wife and my responsibility.

Which meant getting vengeance for all she’d suffered was also mine.

“You ready?” I asked the men standing with me.

They all nodded and we fanned out. Grizzly went with me through the front while Dragon and Iron took the back.

It was early morning but not quite light outside.

Getting through the front door was almost too easy, and it didn’t make a sound as it swung open.

With my gun in one hand and my knife in the other, I entered the house and scanned each room. Silence. Utter and complete silence.

Grizzly jerked his head toward the stairs, then motioned something to Dragon.

I went up to the second floor and nudged open the first door.

The room was empty, but I could tell immediately it had been Phoebe’s.

Even after all this time, her scent still faintly lingered in the air.

A picture set on the dresser of her and what I assumed to be her family.

The second room belonged to the sister. Wizard hadn’t said much about her.

Grizzly entered the room and I stood guard, waiting to see if the parents made an appearance.

He covered the girl’s mouth to stifle any screams as he woke her.

Poor kid. Her eyes were wide, and I could practically hear her heart racing she was so damn scared.

“I’m married to your sister,” I whispered. “We’re going to take you somewhere safe.”

She seemed to calm a little and tugged at Grizzly’s hand. He released her, but I could tell he was braced to grab her and run if she screamed.

“Phoebe’s okay?” she asked.

“She’s fine. We have a daughter and another baby on the way.” I smiled. “Go with Grizzly. I’ll make sure you see your sister soon.”

The girl got out of bed. “I’m Meredith. Are you really married to Phoebe?”

I nodded. I’d show her the pictures on my phone, but I wasn’t about to relinquish my weapons. Not until her parents were at least restrained.

Her lip quivered. “They did something bad, didn’t they? I knew she’d never leave like that. She told me she was sneaking out for a party, but she never came back.”

“Your family isn’t all that nice,” I said. “We’ll talk later. Right now, you need to go.”

“Pack a few things,” Grizzly told her, “but be quick about it.”

She hurried to her closet, opened the door, and took out a small suitcase.

While she threw things inside, I listened intently for any sounds in the house.

I heard the soft tread of steps coming from behind and clocked Dragon coming up the stairs.

He must have left Iron downstairs as a lookout.

When Meredith finished packing, Grizzly took her suitcase and he ushered her downstairs.

“I’m with you until you say otherwise,” Dragon said. “Brought my bike so I have my own way home. Griz will take the girl in the club truck.”

We checked the next room, finding an office, then the jackpot with the fourth door.

The preacher and his wife lay sleeping, each in their own twin-size bed.

Made me wonder how they’d managed to have two daughters if they didn’t even sleep together.

I jerked my chin toward the wife and Dragon crept to her side.

I tossed him a length of rope and while he secured her, I pressed my gun to the preacher’s head. His eyes snapped open.

“We need to have a talk,” I said. “About Phoebe.”

He audibly swallowed but didn’t so much as blink. I yanked the covers to the foot of the bed and made him stand, then forced him to his knees.

“Whatever she’s done --” Before he could finish the sentence, I slammed my fist into his jaw.

“What she’s done? That girl is an angel, and you threw her away. Sold her to the Sadistic Saints. They raped her. Repeatedly. Made her their little whore. Was the money worth it?” I asked.

“You don’t understand,” the preacher said. “She was a willful child. The blood of monsters ran through her veins.”

“Well, at least you admit what you are,” I said.

He shook his head. “She wasn’t ours. Not really. Her daddy was some biker filth who blew through town, got a local girl pregnant. We took her in, decided to raise her as our own. But I could see the evil in her.”

“Evil? Evil!” I rammed my fist into his face twice.

“My wife is not fucking evil. You are! Do you honestly think a seventeen-year-old girl deserved to be raped by an entire club of bikers? You’re supposed to be a man of God.

What happened to forgiveness and all that other bullshit you spout on Sunday mornings?

Isn’t that kind of the mantra of a man like you?

Turn the other cheek and all that shit? But you didn’t protect an innocent girl.

Tossed her to the wolves and didn’t even look back. ”

Dragon shifted his eyes on the preacher. “What club?”

My gaze jerked to him, then back to the man at my feet. He was right. We needed to know where Phoebe’s real father had come from. The bastard probably didn’t even know he had a kid, much less what had happened to her.

I pointed to my cut. “I’m with Hades Abyss. The men you sold Phoebe to were the Sadistic Saints. What club was Phoebe’s father from?”

The man pissed himself and started shaking.

“What. Fucking. Club?” I yelled, shoving my gun against his temple.

“Yours,” he said in a near whisper. “Her dad was from your club. The woman told us the man’s name, but it wasn’t a real name.”

“His road name,” Dragon muttered. “What was it?”

“Titan,” the preacher said.

The world tipped under my feet and the breath in my lungs stalled.

Holy shit . Titan? My Pres was going to flip the fuck out, and so was Phoebe.

He wasn’t much older than me. Only two years for that matter.

If he’d knocked up some girl around these parts, it must have been right after he patched in.

With Phoebe being nineteen -- and I didn’t want to think about the fact I’d forgotten her birthday -- it meant the Pres had only been her age when she’d been conceived.

Our chapter was relatively new, but most of us had come from other Hades Abyss chapters, and Titan had been one of them.

“I need to make a call,” I said. “What was her mother’s name?”

The preacher held my gaze. “Mary Chambers. She was only eighteen and scared. I’m sure that filth took advantage of her. She came to the church for help.”

I snorted. Yeah, right. The Pres only had to crook a finger for a woman to drop her panties. I had no doubt even back then he’d had the girls falling at his feet.

“I’ll watch them,” Dragon said. “He needs to know.”

I agreed. I stepped into the hall and pulled the door shut, then dialed Titan. I could hear Phoebe laughing in the background when he answered.

“You done yet?” he asked.

“No. I hit a… snag.”

“What the fuck kind of snag?” he asked.

“Do you remember ever being in these parts before? Maybe shortly after you’d patched into the club?”

“Vaguely. The Sadistic Saints weren’t there back then. Another club was, but they disbanded about a decade ago. Why?”

“Preacher says Phoebe isn’t his kid, that he took her in when a girl named Mary Chambers dropped off her infant daughter. A daughter conceived by her and a biker.”

I waited a moment, then Titan started cursing a blue streak. I heard him moving through the house and a door slammed.

“Are you fucking with me right now? Are you telling me Phoebe might be my daughter?” he asked.

“Not fucking with you. He’s claiming you’re Phoebe’s dad. Is it possible? The name Mary Chambers doesn’t seem even a little familiar?”

“I… I don’t…” He sighed. “I hooked up with some girl in that town back then. I honestly don’t remember her name. Met her at a party.”

“Look at my wife. Really look at her. Anything familiar at all?” I asked.

I heard him go back inside, then heard Phoebe saying something.

“Titan, put me on speaker. She needs to hear this.”

I heard a click. “All right. She can hear you.”

“Baby girl, I need you to listen. The preacher says he’s not your real dad. Looking at him and his wife, I honestly don’t see any resemblance to you. He claims your mom was a teen mother who didn’t want her baby.”

“Tell her the rest,” Titan said.

“And the preacher claims the father of that baby, of you , was a man called Titan wearing colors like mine.”