The old steel steps moaned with our movements, making it impossible to hide our location. We’d almost made it to the top when the office door flew open, and we were greeted with the end of a double-barreled shotgun. I didn’t stop, I didn’t think. Adrenaline was now pumping through my veins as my instincts took over. I reached out, grabbing the end of the gun with my hand ramming it into the guy’s chest. The force of the hit threw him off balance causing him to fall back against the door, giving me the opportunity to take my shot. Seconds later, his body dropped to the ground, blood rushing from his wound. With one hard shove, I kicked him out of my way, watching the lifeless figure drop to the ground beneath the stairs.
Commotion stirred inside the office, letting me know there were more guys inside. Without stopping to seek shelter, I advanced towards the door. Maverick called out to me, trying to stop me, but my mind blocked out everything – everything except what was waiting for me on the other side of that door. As I reached into my back holster for my second gun, I struck the middle of the door with my boot, splintering it on its hinges. Gunfire instantly exploded through the room; bullets whipped past me at every angle. Without budging from my spot, I squeezed my trigger and released several rounds, instantly killing the two men that cowered down in the corner of the room. Satisfaction washed over me as I watched their dead bodies slump to the floor.
“Goddamn it, Stitch,” Maverick shouted. “You’re gonna get yourself killed doing shit like that.”
“Still standing, ain’t I?” I mocked.
“Seriously, brother. That was fucking insane,” he said.
I surveyed the room and found the laptop on a small desk. I picked it up and said, “Got it.”
“Thank, fuck.” Maverick walked over and grabbed the laptop, then turned to me and grumbled, “Let’s get the hell out of here.”
When we reached the bottom of the stairs, Guardrail was waiting for us with the prospects. I turned to him and asked, “You find the fourth?”
“Two Bit got him,” Guardrail announced grinning.
“Redemption,” Maverick gloated. He gave him a quick slap on the back and said, “We’re heading back. You and Q’ get this shit cleaned up, and make it fast. You have a half an hour before daylight.”
“On it,” Two Bit answered as he grabbed the two gas cans.
I trusted the prospects, so I got on my bike and said, “Heading back to the club house.”
Maverick and Guardrail followed me, but went their separate ways once we hit town. As soon as I got back to the clubhouse, I went straight to Big Mike’s room to drop off the laptop. He was already waiting for me when I walked into his room.
“This it?” he asked as I handed him the laptop.
“One and only.”
“I’ll start on it now, and hey… I got something for you,” he said, handing me a thick yellow envelope. “That’s what I’ve gathered so far on the info you gave me. I’ll let you know if I come across anything else.”
“Thanks, brother,” I told him, shoving the envelope in the side pocket of my cut as I turned to leave.
I was still buzzing from my adrenaline high, and I needed something to settle me down. Tristen was just the girl to give me what I needed. When she’d fallen upon hard times, Cotton had given her access to one of the empty rooms until she got back on her feet. After knocking on the door, I walked in. She sat up in her bed, quickly rubbing the sleep out of her eyes. A coy smile of understanding spread across her face as she pulled the covers back and lowered herself to the floor. Her eyes sparkled with lust as she reached out to release me from my zipper. As I looked down at her, the realization that my cock wasn’t even half-mast made it clear that I wasn’t going to get the relief that I needed from her. The second she touched me I pulled back… Something was gnawing at me – my mind was in a cluster fuck. A daunting feeling that something big was about to go down, something that could change everything, it consumed me. I couldn’t stop thinking about the safety of my brothers and that boy from the diner and his mom. I had to know what was in that folder. I backed up, looked down at Tristen. “Never mind, darlin’. Go back on back to bed and get some sleep.”
Chapter 5
Wren
“I’m so sorry, Wren. I went over everything with the judge, but he just wouldn’t listen,” Mrs. Daniels explained. She’d called me right after she left the courthouse to let me know what the judge had decided about suspending Michael’s visitation with Wyatt.
“So that’s it?” I asked.
“No. We still have a chance to clear this up. The judge said he would make his final decision at the hearing next month,” Mrs. Daniels explained.
“I just don’t see how he could believe him! The judge saw the pictures, and he knows Michael’s history. It doesn’t make any sense for him to take his side, now,” I cried. I never dreamed that things would turn out the way they had. I felt so defeated, and my heart ached as I listened to Mrs. Daniels tell me everything that happened during their meeting.
“You know better than anyone how good Michael is at turning the blame around. He’s never admitted that he was at fault for anything he’s done. Why would he start now?”
“The whole thing is absurd. How could he blame me, especially with those bruises on Wyatt’s arm?” I snapped.
“His lawyer is really good. He twisted everything around and told the judge that Michael was trying to protect him when he grabbed Wyatt. He said that he was trying to stop him from running out the door.”
“That’s bullshit. Michael didn’t even care that Wyatt had ran away.”
“I told him all that, but his lawyer told the judge that you taught Wyatt to leave. He convinced him that you encouraged Wyatt to run away from him,” she continued.
“I did, but it was only for emergencies. I told him only to leave if something went wrong,” I explained.
“I know that, dear. It’s just that Michael’s trying to make it out like you’ve been trying to turn Wyatt against him, using his Asperger’s to your advantage,” she explained softly. I knew it was difficult for her to break the news to me, and she hated that she couldn’t help me. “Wren, I know this is hard, but we’ll get this all sorted.”
“I hate him,” I confessed.
“Don’t blame yourself, dear. No one would.”
“What now?” I asked.
“Talk to your lawyer and make sure she knows what is going on. Has Jenny made any leeway with Wyatt?”
“She’s tried everything during their sessions, but he hasn’t told her anything.” I felt my frustration building to an all-time high as I told her, “I don’t know what else to do.”
“It will be several weeks before the hearing. Hopefully, she will be able to get through to him before then.”
“God willing. Thank you for letting me know what happened. I appreciate all of your hard work. Please call if you hear anything else,” I told her.
“You know I will. We’ll get through this,” she promised.
When I hung up the phone, I was tempted to call Rachel to cancel our plans to go to the movies. With everything that had happened, I wasn’t in the mood for company, but Wyatt had been looking forward to going for days.
Just as I was reaching for my purse, Wyatt came to my doorway smiling and said, “It’s 11:11, Momma. Are we going to do this thing or what?”
“Yeah, buddy. Let’s roll,” I answered as I grabbed my keys. “We’ll get there in time to grab some popcorn before the movie starts.”
“With butter?” he asked with a pleading look.
“Yeah, with butter.”
“Awesome,” he answered as he bolted towards the door. “I want a soda with mine, too!”
When we got in the car, I motioned to Wyatt to fasten his seatbelt. As soon as it locked into place, Wyatt turned to me and said, “Did you know when Charles Schulz was a kid, he had a terrier named Spike? The dog understood over fifty words, and that’s how he got his idea for Snoopy.”
“Fifty words? That’s pretty incredible,” I laughed. “I’d like to have a dog like that someday.”
Wyatt continued to tell me one fact after the other about the Peanut’s characters, only stopping when we pulled up into the movie theater’s parking lot. Rachel and Annalise, dressed in their most fashionable fall outfits, were already waiting for us at the front door. I couldn’t help but smile when I noticed that they were wearing matching boots. Rachel always made the effort to look her best, even when she was just going to a kid’s movie, and she made sure that her daughter did the same. They both started waving when they saw us park the car. As I turned off the engine and started to gather my things, Rachel pointed to her watch and motioned for us to hurry.
When we finally reached them, Annalise greeted Wyatt with a big smile and said, “I’m gonna get chocolate covered peanuts!” She was a year younger than Wyatt, but acted so much older. Her wavy blonde hair was twisted into a loose bun that bobbed back and forth when she spoke.
Wyatt instantly turned to me and asked, “Can I get some, too?”