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CHAPTER 13

“L ucien?” Wraith called his boss’s name from the office doorway.

“Wraith. Come in. Is something wrong?”

“No. Everything is fine. The cops have finished their investigation. They’re chalking the attack up to a random shooter by the highway. Throwing those shell casings into the truck and cab was smart. Thank goodness Fury thought to dig them out of the pallets as we unloaded the goods.”

“Perfect. Is there anything I can do for you?” Lucien pushed his chair away from his desk and waved a hand toward the chairs facing him.

“Could you dig into a guy for me? He’s my Little’s ex. I need some dirt on him.”

“Financial or women?”

“Either or both. He’s going to sue Caroline for more money,” Wraith told him.

“He’s getting money from her?” Lucien asked.

“Yes. Legally, he’s entitled to part of the royalties from her books.”

“What kind of books?”

“Romance.”

“Hmmm. That’s interesting. She’s not fucking you for research, is she?” Wraith bristled, and Lucien put his hands up. “Just checking. I’m sure you’re being careful.”

Lucien turned to his computer. “What’s his name?”

“Adam McConnell.”

“Address?”

Wraith recited it for him. He moved forward as Lucien typed quickly on his computer.

“Might as well come back here. You’re going to want to read this.” Lucien waved him around the desk and pointed at his screen. “This is his bank statement.”

“I wonder what he blew five grand on. He almost emptied his account.” Wraith focused on the bank’s abbreviation for the vendor who’d collected that money. Anger boiled inside him. His Little girl was worried about money and her ex was tossing money around. He forced himself to focus on the details. “I can’t tell where he spent that. Any ideas?”

“I do, but let’s test my thought.” Lucien copied the bank abbreviation and googled it.

A men’s club appeared as the first possibility. “He wants her to pay for strippers and blow?” Wraith asked in disgust.

“They’re famous for blackmail. I’d bet an hour of revenue on a Saturday night that they have something on him.”

Wraith trusted Lucien’s hunches. The MC president’s intuition had gotten the Devil Daddies out of a lot of sticky situations before anything could happen.

“I need to pay Adam a visit. Could you send me some screenshots? I’d like to clue in Caroline’s lawyer.”

“On their way to your phone,” Lucien assured him as he turned to focus on the computer screen.

Wraith had reached the door when Lucien spoke. “We need to ride to avenge Hellcat. Put it together for tomorrow night. Rally everyone. Skeleton crew here.”

“That’s going to make it tough for the staff at Inferno on a Saturday night.”

“Choose carefully who stays,” Lucien suggested.

“Got it.”

Wraith grabbed a table in a closed section of Inferno with a view of the entrance. He wasn’t sure when Caroline would arrive, but he’d keep an eye out for her. Pulling up the duty roster, he adjusted Inferno’s staffing for Saturday night.

“I’m not working the front door,” Razor announced, drawing his attention.

“Revenge run or checking IDs?” Wraith summed up his choices in a few words.

“Tomorrow? Lucien will insist I stay here to deal with any emergencies when the MC gets back,” Razor said, running a hand through his hair.

“Exactly. You’re good at the front door. I can read intentions, but you’ve got that fancy diploma to prove you have people radar,” Wraith pointed out before adding, “Tomorrow, Inferno will be short-staffed while we’re gone. Having you at the entrance will eliminate fifty percent of possible problems.”

“Eighty,” Razor corrected him.

“Sounds like we both think that’s where you should be.”

“Fuck you, Wraith.”

Amused, Wraith asked, “Does that prove you have a daddy complex or a mommy one?”

“Save me from amateur psychologists,” Razor grumbled and stalked away.

He wouldn’t be the only one to complain to Wraith. Street appeared next. Holding up a hand to ward off the younger man’s demand, Wraith said, “You want to go. I understand. I would too. Lucien’s rules. No revenge rides until you’ve been a Devil for twelve months.”

“I’m at eleven months, Wraith. That’s close. I’m all in,” Street said.

“You’re welcome to talk to Lucien. Have him message me with his approval.”

“There’s no way in hell he’ll do that.”

“Not a chance. That’s why you’re not joining us. Besides, I need you at the back bar. All the hotheads gather there. We need to protect the bartenders. Can you do that?” Wraith asked, aware that Amber worked on Saturdays and Street watched her like a hawk.

“I’ll do it. But I’m in the next time,” the young biker said, making a last demand.

“If I decide you go,” Wraith told him, meeting Street’s glare with a powerful one of his own.

The standoff lasted for a few seconds before Street nodded and retreated. Wraith made a small tally mark on his scratch sheet next to Razor’s. How many would he end up with by the time he finished?

* * *

“I hope you’re not keeping track of the number of minutes I’m late,” Caroline said, glancing at the paper in front of Wraith.

“No, Precious. I’m messing with the schedule for tomorrow night,” he assured her as he stood up to hug and kiss her. “I’m glad to see you, Little girl.”

“Hi, Daddy,” she whispered to him before asking, “Do we have door duty on Saturday?”

“Not on Saturday. You’ll be at home, snuggling with Jam. You might enjoy watching a movie on my laptop.”

“I meant to ask. I’ve got a big TV at my place. We could bring it to your house.”

“That is very sweet of you to offer it,” Wraith told her.

“You don’t want a TV.”

“Not really. I like having all your attention when we’re not working. Between playing in your room, reading, and talking, are you getting bored?”

“No. It’s what everyone else does.” Caroline shrugged.

“Sometimes going along with the rest of humanity isn’t the best thing to do.” Wraith hated the idea of zoning out in front of the TV. But perhaps she needed that escape. He’d keep an eye on her.

“Is anything wrong with the schedule?” she asked.

“No. It’s all fixed now. A group is heading out for a ride tomorrow night. I needed to keep enough Devils here to manage the crowd.”

“Oh, an excursion. I’ll love that.”

“You, Little girl, will be at the cabin safe and secure. This isn’t a joyride.”

“Oh.”

He could tell from her expression that he’d handled that poorly. He didn’t want to spook her further, but he wouldn’t lie to her. “I promise to take you along with the group some other time.”

“Really?”

“Yes, Precious. Another day.”

“Okay. Can we grab some food before we go to the door? Maybe a hot dog and French fries?”

“You are a woman after my own heart. Want chili or boring mustard on yours?” he asked.

“Mustard is less calories,” she said and wrinkled her nose.

“Two hot dogs with chili, it is. Want to come with me or wait at the table and people watch?”

“I’ll stay here.”

“I’ll be fast,” Wraith promised. Leaving the closed area, he weaved through the traffic to the bar to put their orders in and grab a couple of bottles of water. If he was right, his Little girl had forgotten to refill her tumbler while she wrote today.

He turned to meet Hellcat’s furious glare. “Hey, I’m glad to see you moving around. You got out of the hospital today, right?”

“You don’t have me on the list. If anyone deserves to go, it’s me,” Hellcat said and winced as someone ran into him accidentally.

“Tell me you didn’t ride your bike to Inferno,” Wraith demanded.

“Fury brought me from the hospital in a car.”

“Fury did?” Wraith doubted that. The doctors would have instructed him to go home and rest.

“He threatened to walk from his cabin if I didn’t drive him,” Fury said from behind the angry biker.

“Hellcat, go home. If you don’t, I’ll bench you on the next three rides,” Wraith told him. He was absolutely fed up with the amount of crap he’d gotten all day.

“You can’t keep me from trailing you,” Hellcat threatened.

“I can and will. Lucien will pull your membership if you don’t follow protocol.”

“You’d rat me out to Daddy?” Hellcat asked with sarcasm dripping from his words.

“Okay, Hellcat. So that’s why the nurse forced you to sign that paper stating not to make any financial decisions for twenty-four hours. You’ve lost your hold on reality. I’ll drive him home, Wraith. Sorry.” Fury shook his head as he grabbed Hellcat’s arm.

“I don’t need any help,” Hellcat snapped.

“Hellcat? You’re scaring me. Your face is contorted with pain. Would you go rest so you can heal?” Caroline’s quiet, worried voice caused all the men to turn.

Hellcat studied her for a long minute before nodding. “I’ll go home.”

“Thank you. I’ll cook you some chicken soup tomorrow,” she promised.

“She’s not making you chicken soup,” Wraith bluntly told Hellcat. “I’ll bring you a can, and you can suck it up. I need someone to man the gate at the complex. My thought was to see if you were up to it.” He glanced deliberately toward Caroline to clue Hellcat in. Wraith wanted to ensure his Little girl was safe.

Hellcat looked up at the ceiling before nodding. “I’ll man the complex.”

“Thanks, Hellcat,” Wraith told him. “We’ll do a thorough job.”

“Come on, Hellcat. Time to go home.” Fury tried to take his arm, but Hellcat shook him off.

“Feel better, Hellcat,” Caroline called after him.

Wraith wrapped his arm around his Little girl and hugged her close. Hellcat would never have stood down if Caroline hadn’t needed his protection. It was a win-win situation.