The Broken Pieces of Us (The Devil's Dust #2.1)

“You okay, doll?” I ask, concerned.

“What? Yeah,” she answers quickly, as if she was just snapped from a thought. I raise my eyebrow at her. She is not telling me something. There are enough secrets and lies seeping their way through my club already. I don’t need them between me and Babs.

“You can tell me anything, you know that,” I push. I grasp her thick hips, looking down at her, imploring her to tell me more.

She turns her head to the side and bites at her bottom red lip, then turns quickly and faces me with those green eyes and smiles.

“Everything is fine; just been on edge since the arrest is all.” She places her hands on my shoulders and gives a tight squeeze. “You worry too much; go to church. Shadow has been here all morning, anxious about something.” I hesitate, not fully convinced she is telling me the truth. She smiles and gestures for me to go. I smile back and head toward the chapel.

As soon as I walk in, I notice Shadow sitting at the table drumming his fingers against the wooden top as the other boys following behind me and sit in their seats. Shadow looks like shit. His hair is a mess, well, more than usual, and he has bags under his eyes. My heart picks up in rhythm, worried.

“Shadow, you’re in early,” I chime, finding my chair at the head of the table.

“I have some important information,” Shadow says quickly, sitting up from his slouched position.

“I would hope so. You woke me up for a meeting at three in the morning, son,” I inform him, taking a sip of my hot coffee.

“You look like shit,” Hawk hollers from the back of the table, making me grin. Old fucker ain’t got a filter, I swear.

Shadow sighs and rubs the temples of his head. “Yeah, I didn’t sleep much,” he says, frustrated.

I run my hands over my beard, curiosity getting the better of me.

“All right, spill it,” I demand, grabbing my cigs off the table and lighting one. I look at the smoke as it climbs the air. I need to quit this shit, but every time I do, I feel like I’m going to have a fucking heart attack.

“Last night, I went to pick Dani up, and her mother stopped by for a visit,” Shadow starts, breaking my stare off with my cigarette smoke.

“I fucking told you,” Locks interrupts excitedly, pointing at Shadow.

I glare at Locks, wanting him to shut the fuck up so Shadow can tell me what happened between Dani and her mom. I close my eyes and inhale. Actually, maybe I don’t want to hear what he has to say. He might confirm what I fear, that she was in on the bust.

“Go on,” I encourage Shadow.

“She wanted Dani to turn on us, come to her senses,” Shadow continues, his forehead sweating.

“What she say?” Bobby cuts in, his voice dripping with unease. He is just as nervous as I am, afraid she is guilty. Will he help me get Dani out of here if she is a traitor, or want her blood like the rest of the boys will?

“Dani told her no, and when her mom wouldn’t let up, Dani tried to shoot her. Told her to go back to New York and if she came back, she would kill her.” Shadow spills as he drawls out a heavy breath. I can’t help but feel pride that Dani tried to shoot her mom. My face goes lax as my body sags with relief. She didn’t betray me; she isn’t a traitor.

“Well, I’ll be,” I exclaim. I cannot believe I questioned her. Dani is nothing like her mother; I know that. Yet, I still held her like an enemy, treating her like a stepchild. I feel like shit.

“That don’t prove shit!” Locks shouts, slamming his fist on the table.

I groan and can’t help but my roll my eyes. Locks has not been Dani’s biggest fan since she came back. If I left it up to him, he would have surely killed her by now. Just as I’m about to lay into him, a petite knock comes at the door, halting me.

“What?” I yell.

Babs steps in with an ear-to-ear grin. “Hey, boys, I just wanted to remind you that the Fourth of July party is next weekend, so don’t forget.” She smiles, her eyes landing on me right before she closes the door.

“Are you kidding me?” Locks asks, irritated and gesturing toward the door. I would normally snap and throw any female who would interrupt a meeting out of the club, but Babs is different. I would let her sit on my lap and suck my face during one of these damn things if I could.

I play it off and muster a laugh. “Damn women,” I mutter and change the subject. “Make sure Dani is at that party. She is cleared of any potential threats to the club, so let’s get her back in here and start making her feel like family,” I demand, slamming my cigarette in the ashtray.