Warrant (Righteous Outlaws #1)(28)

       
           



       

He headed to the office after our dinner, and skipped out before dessert  came. I ordered his favorite: cheesecake with whipped cream and  strawberries. I had the waiter pack it up for me with a couple of forks.

When I was a little kid and I couldn't sleep, I would sneak down to the  kitchen and always find Dad having a late night snack. He would hand me a  fork, and we would talk about our days over cheesecake. He'd give me  advice and make me laugh.

I hoped by going to him now, cheesecake in hand, he would remember that  time. It was a small gesture, but a peace offering nonetheless. He  couldn't just cast me aside because he wasn't happy with my choices. If  he would have allowed me to make my own choices as I was growing up,  maybe I would have been better prepared for the ones I made. But, we  would never know.

I grabbed the cheesecake and headed into Dad's building. It was a  three-story building, just outside of Black Hills. It was in a good  location near the hospital, making it convenient for Dad to be in both  places when he needed to be. I still remember when he purchased the  place. Martha cooked us a huge dinner as if it were a holiday. We pigged  out on turkey and mashed potatoes in celebration.

It's funny how certain memories stand out brighter than others in your  mind. How you clung on to some while others faded. Seems to me, it was  always the simplest ones that had the biggest impact on my life. Who  would have ever thought that something so mundane as sharing a piece of  cheesecake with my father would have left such a lasting impression? I  chose to hold onto the good ones. The ones that made me happy and  brought a smile to my face.

I let the good memories stay front and center, while I took the stairs  to Dad's office. As I walked down the hall, I heard voices drifting out  from one of the exam rooms.

I detected Dad's first. It was loud and clipped. "You better keep your  end of the deal," he said, and I pressed my body against the wall,  listening closely. What deal was he talking about? And who was he in  there with. "We're through."

"We're through when we say we're through," a loud gruff voice said.

"Enough! I said I would take care of it and I meant it." The voice was  familiar, and my heart stopped when I realized it was Cash. "As of  tonight, you're done with the club."

Done with the club? What did my father have to do with the MC? Did he  and Cash know each other before this afternoon? Is that why Dad was so  mad? Because he knew Cash?

"Just remember. This works both ways. We'll cut ties with you, but that  means you can't come back to us, either. You get yourself ass deep in  shit again, and you're on your own. No more loans. No more selling your  drugs and reaping the rewards. You got it," Cash said.

Daddy was selling drugs to the club? Is that what Cash was saying. That  couldn't be true. My father wasn't that type of man. He was a  law-abiding citizen. He wouldn't be mixed up in the MC. That's why he  was so hard on me because he wanted me to be like him. Wanted me to make  all the right choices and do all the right things. Build a life I could  be proud of, and that others could admire.

I needed answers, and I wasn't going to get them standing on this side of the door. I pushed off the wall and went to walk.

"Did you hear that?" the gruff voice said.

"It's well after hours. No one should be in the building."

The door flew open and, before I could react or even scream, a hand  wrapped around my mouth. The cheesecake fell from my hand and thudded  across the floor. A gun pressed to my head and visions from that night  ran rampant in my mind.

The guys hand on Cash's throat, the life being sucked out of him. The blood …

I clawed at the hand holding me, now desperately trying to break free. I  didn't take a man's life to lose mine only a short time later. I bit  down on his hand as hard as I could, and he loosened his grip. I shoved  away from him, but he was quick and turned the gun back on me.

"Panty girl?" he said, with a squint of his eyes before laughing.

"What's going on?" I whispered, not wanting Dad or Cash to know I was  there until I knew what the heck was going on. "Why are you here? What  does my dad have to do with your club?"

Kade scratched his temple with the barrel of his gun. "Sorry,  sweetheart, but that's not my story to tell. But, what I can tell you?  You have my boy all fucked up in the head."

"Who? Cash?"

"He had a death wish today after whatever went down with you two. He  could have gotten himself fucking killed if I didn't take him down.  Luckily, he only got a bullet to the arm."                       
       
           



       

"Cash got shot?" Panic rose inside of me, every worst-case scenario  popping in and out of my head. I thought I heard his voice, but that  didn't mean he wasn't seriously injured. Didn't mean that he  wasn't … dying? What if the bullet nicked an artery? Was that why he was  here? Was Dad treating him? I had so many questions, but the most  important one came out first. "Is he okay?" I asked, taking a deep  breath and preparing myself for the worst.

"He'll be fine, but that's not the point. The point is, you fucked with his head."

"I didn't mean to."

"It doesn't matter whether you meant to or not. What matters is, you fix  this. I've only seen him snap like that once before, and it was when  his old man died. It was fucked up, and I thought I'd lose my best  friend. We're not going to go through that shit again. So, you will fix  this."

I thought about that night at Cash's house when I asked him about his  father. How he tried everything in his power to avoid answering my  questions, and how explosive he became we he finally did. I couldn't  even imagine how he was after it happened. The pain was still so fresh  in his eyes that night you would have thought his dad died only days  prior. It was painstakingly clear that Cash loved his father immensely  and his loss was devastating.

I could barely calm him down that night. I didn't know what to do. I was  completely out of my element. All I knew was that I wanted to be there  for him just as I did now. The only problem was I had no idea how to do  that. Not when my own father could barely look at me.

"I don't know how to fix it. I'm between a rock and a hard place."

"All I'm saying is, figure it the fuck out. You coming?" he asked as he headed back toward the exam room.

I shook my head. "No, and don't tell them I was here."

"Why should I lie for you?"

"Because I just heard things on the other side of that door that are  making me think that my entire life has been a lie. I just want a chance  to find out the truth on my own. And, I don't think ambushing my dad  and Cash at the same time is going to help. I need to talk to them  separately. Please."

Kade didn't say anything. Instead, he bent down and picked up my  cheesecake, handing it to me. "You dropped this. I'm going back in  there. It's best if you get lost."

I didn't know what to expect from Kade; if he was the type of guy that  could care less about other people, or if, beneath the leather and biker  boy badass façade, there was a man with a heart. He just stripped the  leather away and showed me his heart. "Thanks," I said as he nodded  toward the hall. I turned on my heel and hurried away.

I couldn't leave, though. Cash was here. I could talk to him. Piece  together the bits of information I heard with all that he knew. With  what I had just heard, I wasn't ready to talk to Dad yet. I wasn't sure  when I would be, but I knew it wasn't tonight.

The hallway went to a T, and I stood on the side that led to the exit.  Cash and Kade were bound to come this way eventually. I heard muffled  voices coming toward me, and sent up a silent acknowledgement of  gratitude.

As soon as they turned the bend, I stepped out. Kade, without a second's  reaction, held his gun up and pointed it directly at my head. Again.

"Aubree." Cash smacked Kade's hand, forcing the gun down. "Put that thing away, would you?"

"I thought you were leaving?"

"Thought she was leaving? You knew she was here?" Cash asked.

Kade held his hands up. "Look, I'm not getting caught up in this. You two have shit to discuss. Can you give him a ride home?"

"I can." And, because I knew he was giving me the opportunity to speak  with Cash like I had said I wanted, I added. "Thank you." He flashed a  half-hearted smile, and took off toward the exit.

"Come on," I said to Cash, taking in the bandage on his arm, the blood  soaking his shirt and pants. "How are you feeling? Does it hurt?"

"What are you doing here, Sunshine? And I'm not talking about being in  this building. I'm talking about being here with me right now."