Page 14

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

MANE

Ella’s flyby call of, “get to the club now,” had me discombobulated as I wiped the sleep from my eyes. She’s not known to do a quick hang up before I have the chance to ask any questions, the main ones were “why,” and “what’s happened”.

I dug into my easiest outfit of leggings and a loose T-shirt to slip on and rushed out the door after slipping my feet into a pair of sliders. As I drove, I brushed out my hair since it was tangled from my tossing and turning before sleep took me.

As I pull into the clubhouse lot, I dig through my armrest and find a scrunchie to tie my hair up with. Once I’ve wrapped my locks into a messy bun, I wind the fabric around it to hold it in place and quickly exit my vehicle.

When I stroll through the doors, the aromatic smell of coffee has me rushing toward it as I grab a throwaway cup and begin to fill it up before doctoring it to my liking. Once that first sip flows through me, I become more alert to my surroundings and notice that it’s a madhouse.

Finding my mom off to the side, I rush to her and ask, “What’s going on?”

“What I’ve heard through rumblings is that it has something to do with one of Mason’s brothers, but I don’t have any facts. Everyone’s been hush-hush about that,” Mom tells me as she passes me the bag of sugar donuts she had been munching on.

I take two from the package and pass it back to her. “I’m going to see if I can track him down and get first-hand information.” Leaning over, I give her a peck on the cheek, and head toward the back hallway.

When I locate Mason, he’s in the room the club holds church in, his head is bent over as he, Gunner, Hydro, and Ella talk. Kruger, Tex, and Master are standing back but listening to everything they’re discussing. I shove my last donut into my mouth as I walk to their huddle. Mason lifts his head and a crooked smile greets me. He lifts his thumb up and wipes away the remnants of the powder from my lips.

“You okay?” I ask him, even though by the saddened look in his eyes I know he isn’t.

“No. Not really,” he tells me, his voice sounding choked up.

“What’s going on, Mason?” I query.

“My brother, Myles, is missing, Mav can’t find him anywhere, and the circumstances behind his disappearance are questionable.”

“Deputy Dickface?” I ask, my suspicion automatically heading in that direction.

“That’s what we’re thinking but we haven’t been able to confirm that yet,” he responds.

“Everyone take your chair,” Hydro commands. “We have to make a change to our previous thoughts.” The room goes silent as we all sit down. When I glance over at my dad, I notice how dark and luminous his eyes look. He’s in what I refer to as his soldier mode, he’s ready for battle. Then I take in Hydro and notice he’s wearing the same look and I instantly know that things are far more serious than I was thinking they were.

“Jagger, what have you been able to uncover?” Ella questions, giving him the floor. This must’ve been previously discussed, the power play in the room, because neither Hydro nor Dad squirm as she starts the meeting.

“Laura is in the thick of things, that’s no longer in question. She sent a message to a burner phone letting whomever the recipient is know that Mav was there visiting Cotton. A lot of it I’m still interpreting because it came across as some sort of code but I think Mason was right in his assumption. She was giving someone a heads up that Myles was alone and vulnerable,” Jagger explains.

“Is there any way to trace this burner phone?” Dad asks him.

“There is. Something people don’t understand when they buy these is that even though you can use false identity when setting it up, you always leave a fingerprint behind,” Jagger further elaborates.

“Don’t ask him to explain further,” Kruger begs. “Once he starts talking about computers and footprints, there’s no shutting him up.”

“Fuck you, Dad,” Jagger harrumphs, letting both birds fly from his hands. “Not my fault I got all the brains in the family.”

“My son, the smartass,” Kruger grumbles but his eyes are bright from their banter.

“Let’s stay on track, you two,” Gunner sighs. “I don’t know what it is with the two of you and butting heads every time you’re in the same room.”

“It’s their form of foreplay, pres,” Tex teases.

“I’m sorry I asked,” Gunner mumbles, shooting Tex a ‘shut the fuck up’ look.

Tex mimics zipping his lips but the mirth is still dancing behind his eyes. “Do we have a game plan?” I ask, wanting to know how they plan to proceed and how we’re going to get Myles back for Mason.

“We don’t have enough intel to come up with a solid plan,” Hydro interjects. “I think we’re going to have to go in blind on this one and hope for the best.”

“We need to go to Trucktown in teams instead of ambushing them at the same time with the entire club,” Gunner states. “I’ll ride in with Mason and Mane. That won’t look suspicious to the town’s bystanders. A worried brother, his old lady, and her father make more sense than us all riding in as one unit. Then y’all can come in the next day and it’ll appear as if we called you in for help locating Myles.”

“It’s not a solid plan but I think it’s our best course of action,” Hydro agrees. “We’ll be close enough to assist if you three find yourselves in trouble but far enough away that we won’t get the attention of this asshole.”

“What’s his name anyway?” I pipe in. “Deputy Dickface is a mouthful.”

“Benjamin Douglas,” Jagger answers.

“Ole Benji boy, huh?” Kruger snickers. I roll my eyes when Tex holds up his knuckles and the two bozos tap them together, a fit of men-like giggles protruding from their lips. I’m not sure why that play on his name is hilarious to the two, but Benji is easier to say than the alternative.

Mason, having had enough, knocks on the wood, asking, “When can we leave? I don’t like Myles being at this fucker’s mercy. The quicker I can get to town and find out where my brother’s stashed, the sooner I can get him away from him and we can deal with Benji.” I hold in the laughter at how Mason has adopted the deputy’s nickname provided by the club clowns.

“Let’s plan to head out of here at five in the morning,” Hydro answers. “It’ll give us a few hours of shut eye and time to pack before hitting the road. I’ll have Spook find us a place to lay low since he’s the road captain and knows the ins and outs of these towns.”

“How long will it take for us to get to Trucktown from here?” Tiger asks. Being the tail gunner for the club, this is vital information for him to have at his disposal.

“It’s roughly seven hours,” Gadget answers. He spins his laptop around that has maps pulled up on it. “I’ll send Tiger the fastest route and he can pin drop it to y’all’s phones.”

“Meet here at five on the dot,” Hydro orders, banging the gavel on the table. “Pack light and make sure you’re outfitted.”

Ella comes up to my side, telling me, “I still have some of your clothes in my closet. I can pack them in a suitcase for you if you want to stay here with Mason tonight. You can grab toiletries on the road.”

“Thanks, Ella,” Mason states, reaching over and squeezing my hand. “I’d like you to stay with me, beauty, if you’re good with that.”

“I’m good with that,” I answer, laying my head on his shoulder. “I’ll always be here for you, Mason.”

“I know,” he quietly says, kissing the top of my scalp. “Let’s head up to my room so I can pack and we can get a few hours of shut eye.”

“See you in the morning,” I tell Ella as I bypass her and go to my dad’s open arms.

“We’ll find him, baby girl,” Dad promises. “And when we do, Benji boy is going to pay for his indiscretions.” Somebody has been using his word of the day calendar again because Dad doesn’t normally use big words. Mom got it for him one year for Christmas and it’s sort of become a traditional present from there on out.

“I know y’all will find Myles, Dad. I never had any doubts, I just hope Benjamin hasn’t hurt him. That’ll kill Mason.”

“If he’s harmed one hair on that boy’s head, I’ll fuck his world up,” Dad vows and he doesn’t make promises like that lightly.

“See you in the morning,” I tell him as I pull back from his arms. “Get some sleep.”

“You too, love bug. Take care of our boy.” Dad and Mason, even only knowing each other for a few short days have grown close. Gunner doesn’t take easily to outsiders so it’s a conundrum of why he has grown attached to Mason. If I had time to further examine that I’d get to the bottom of it, but there are more crucial things needing my attention so I dismiss it even though it’s a thought that stays in the back of my mind as I follow Mason up the stairs.

Mason is comforted by my silent companionship as he packs and gets ready for our trip. It’s nice to know that we don’t have to talk in order for him to feel peace at being alone with me. When we crawl into bed, he wraps me in his arms and digs his nose into the nape of my neck.

“Night, beauty.”

“Night, Mason. We’re going to find him and end this threat to you, your family, and us.”

“I know, beauty. I know,” he murmurs as sleep pulls him under.