Page 32 of Warrant (The Berserker’s Rage MC: Wyoming Chapter #1)

Ainsley

I shut the door to the ambulance and sighed.

The guys had taken off with the rest of the Iron Circle Crew before the ambulance had gotten here.

Warrant had checked on me first, but then he’d left with the others.

They’d needed all the help they could get to take care of the remaining crew members.

Owen was going to follow my deputy to the hospital, but he just had a mild concussion.

Looking down at Aella, I saw that her eyes were drooping.

I wasn’t about to bring them back into my house because there were still bodies—not to mention blood—in there.

“Okay. Into the Tahoe,” I announced. Picking her up, I settled her into the booster seat and waited for Jared to get inside.

“I’ll be right back,” I told him. “Wait here.”

I ran inside and packed a quick bag with enough stuff for the three of us for tonight and tomorrow morning, then went back outside with the dogs. It didn’t take long to get to our destination. Beau let out a happy bay from the backseat when he recognized home.

The kids wasted no time getting out of the vehicle and I went up to the porch and looked around all the usual places people hid keys. I was going to have to speak to Warrant about leaving his spare under a pair of muck boots next to the door. That was a terrible place to hide one.

Ushering the kids inside, I went through the motions of getting Aella ready for bed once more.

When she and Jared were settled into the spare bedroom, I took a quick shower.

It might seem counter intuitive, but I needed it.

Given everything that just happened, I needed the hot water to wash away everything we had just endured.

By the time I came back out, I froze because the kids had crawled into Warrant’s bed and were fast asleep. I couldn’t blame them. The last time they went to sleep they’d been woken up to shooting and death. They were probably too scared to sleep alone.

Creeping out to the kitchen, I whispered for Beau to follow me.

The hound lifted a heavy brow to eye me, but he did as I asked and heaved himself to his feet.

Once we were there, I turned the light on and ran my hands all over his body.

I wasn’t sure where he’d been kicked, but I wanted to make sure he was okay.

He took the opportunity to lick my face all over. He didn’t wince or show any pain, so I knew he wasn’t seriously injured.

“Wait here,” I told him, then went to the fridge.

There was a steak sitting in there. It was probably supposed to be Warrant’s dinner at some point, but now, it was going to the goodest dog.

Unwrapping it from the butcher paper, I put it on a plate, then onto the floor.

I slid down the cabinet next to him and pet him as he ate his reward.

He’d been willing to risk himself for those kids.

For me. He deserved this and more. Once he was finished we went back into the bedroom.

I crawled into bed next to the kids and smiled when Aella snuggled up next to me.

My mind replayed everything that happened tonight as I laid there in the dark.

I could have lost these kids. I wouldn’t have been able to forgive myself if that had happened.

I could have lost Warrant. That bullet had been heading for his heart.

I swallowed hard and tried to think happy thoughts.

Everyone was safe and the Iron Circle wasn’t going to come after anyone again. Not after the MC got done with them.

That was the main reason I was okay with the guys taking them away rather than arresting them.

And there was the dilemma. There would be far too much explaining to do if I hauled nine bloodied up men into the station.

I could’ve managed, but I’d have to fill in some gaps.

Instead, I’d only had to explain to one confused deputy that someone had snuck up behind him and clocked him over the head with something.

It was the truth, but I didn’t elaborate on who had sucker punched him.

That part was just a small lie by omission.

As far as the reports of gun shots, I’d blame that on Cypher and his club.

No one would question a rowdy MC making that kind of noise.

Was it fair? No. But considering that they left me in the dark about everything, it was a small penance.

I’d also have to clean up the house of all the bullet holes and blood, but that was tomorrow's problem.

It was going to be hard to explain away the black eye I had forming from that first asshole sucker punching me.

I wanted to make an arrest. I wanted to haul them in.

I also knew it wouldn’t work. I knew that it would put Jared in more danger down the road.

I knew that this was the only way he would stay safe, and I hated that it was true.

I was so conflicted on what I wanted. My heart and brain were fighting each other. A small tear ran down my cheek.

Despite my racing mind, my body eventually forced it to shut down so that I could sleep. I curled up next to Aella and closed my eyes. Beau was a puddle on the floor in what I knew now was guard duty. He’d let me know if anyone out of place came here looking for us.

I jerked awake the next morning when someone touched my head. The sunlight was streaming in through the window, letting me see that it was Warrant crouched there next to me. I sucked in a breath, trying to calm my nervous system, which was wide awake and ready to fight.

“Sorry, Baby Girl,” he said in a low tone. He brushed his thumb gently over my black eye.

Glancing over, I saw that the kids were still fast asleep. Both dogs were asleep on the floor, though Beau propped open one eye long enough to make sure we were good before going back to snoring. I eased out of bed and took Warrant’s hand.

“How did you know we were here?” I asked.

He hesitated, then admitted, “I’m tracking your phone.”

I stared at him as I sat at the table in his dining room. “You… What? Since when?”

He tried for a charming grin, but it disappeared when I glared at him. “Pretty much since day one.”

“That’s a complete invasion of privacy, Warrant!”

He shrugged one muscular shoulder, looking not in the least bit repentant.

Sighing, I rubbed my forehead. A cup nudged one of my hands and I took the coffee he’d just made with a grateful grunt. I was about a third of the way through when something else occurred to me. “How did you guys know we were in trouble?”

He sighed, then turned and sat down next to me with his own cup of coffee. “I installed cameras in your place.”

I stared at him, cup frozen halfway to my lips. “Cameras.” It wasn’t a question, more of a shocked echo.

“I needed to make sure you were okay when I wasn’t around.”

“Did you put those up from day one also?” I asked through gritted teeth, setting my cup down before I tossed the steaming contents into his smug face. The liquid inside was far too precious to waste on him.

He nodded, watching me with a wary look in his eyes. “Day two, I think. Technically.”

“You didn’t even know me then, Warrant. Why the hell would you do that?”

“I knew you were mine from the minute you walked up to my porch that first night,” he told me. There was no teasing note in his voice for once. He was completely serious.

“You can’t know something like that,” I insisted.

It was crazy. People didn’t fall in love that quickly.

Or know that they wanted to be with another person when they knew nothing about said person.

That only happened in movies. Or books. Not real life.

Not my life. I ignored the little voice inside that reminded me I’d been just as interested—and unable to forget him—since that first day.

He just shrugged his shoulders again.

Sighing, I rested my face in my hands for a moment while I tried to pull myself together. I pushed aside his declaration that I somehow belonged to him at first sight. “You can’t put cameras in people’s homes,” I told him as though I was explaining this to a five-year-old.

He just stared at me.

“It’s illegal,” I growled at him, getting pissed that he wasn’t showing any remorse. “Not to mention creepy.”

Now he looked offended. “I didn’t put one in your bedroom, or bathroom.”

“Because that would be crossing the line?” I asked in disbelief.

He nodded, looking relieved that I understood. I didn’t. I didn’t understand, though I’m grateful he wasn’t being a pervert and watching me undress every night.

“You still can’t do that. Don’t you know what boundaries are?”

“Huh?” He looked confused. It was almost cute.

But I needed to stay mad at him or he’d end up getting out of trouble. He seemed to be good at that. Not this time. I was too conflicted with my feelings to give him any leeway. “Boundaries,” I said with a sigh.

“You mean the left and right fields of fire?” He arched a brow at me.

“No,” I snapped, knowing now he was messing with me.

“I mean it’s against the law, you overgrown ape.

” He just went on staring at me with a neutral expression.

Of course he didn’t care about breaking the law.

Throwing my hands up, I gave up on trying to make him take accountability for his behavior.

“I’m not going to arrest you, ‘cause you saved our lives, but this is your only get out of jail free pass.” I pointed at him in warning. “Get those out of my house.”

“Will do, Sheriff,” he said, hiding his smile behind his coffee cup.

“And take that tracking app off my phone.”

He pulled my phone out of his pocket. Frowning, I patted at my pajamas, wondering how he’d gotten it. “It was on the nightstand,” he said in answer to my silent question. He focused on my phone, tapping away. “There.”

“There what?” I asked as I snatched it out of his hand when he held it out to me.

“Now you can track me, too.”

Staring down at it, my eyes narrowed. “Then why does it say you’re at the hospital?”