chapter Nine
“Anybody know what this is about?” Tyler asked, putting his arms out and laying his head on them. It had been a long couple of nights for everyone.
The officers sat around the main table in the clubhouse, waiting to see what they had all been summoned back for.
Liam shook his head, answering Tyler’s yawn with one of his own. “There’s no telling.” He sat up a little straighter, stretching to keep himself awake.
The group looked up as they heard another person come through the door. William Walker strutted down the aisle, gazing at each of them before taking the seat at the head of the table. With the power of a president, he watched the group of men that had assembled, daring them to speak before he did. When it became evident they wouldn’t, he started talking with the booming voice he used when he knew he had a great idea.
“Tomorrow night, the Vojnik are supposed to intercept our drug shipment. We’re going to let them.”
Mummers went up around the table as they all started to protest.
“That shipment is one of two going out, and the boxes all have tracking devices inside the cardboard. We’re gonna let them get it and watch where they take it. Then we’re gonna let them know that the reporter squealed like a pig.”
Tyler winced. He knew the Vojnik, and they would not appreciate that she had shared information. His conscience prickled a little, but he couldn’t let that show. That was a weakness he didn’t want William to know about right now. “Good, she’s been a pain in our ass for months.” That should keep William from knowing what he was thinking.
William nodded. “This way we kill two birds with one stone. Maybe we can get her off our asses for a while and figure out where they’re headquartering out of. Since their clubhouse got raided a few months ago, we have absolutely no idea what they’re doing.”
After hashing out a plan, the group broke up, each going their separate ways. Liam walked with Tyler to their bikes.
“I saw your face in there, brother. Does it bother you we’re taking the reporter’s tip?” Liam asked, covering another yawn with the back of his hand.
“It’s not that really,” Tyler answered, rolling his head on his shoulders. “I just have a bad feelin’ about it.”
It was a well-known fact in the club that when Tyler had a feeling, they better watch themselves. Everyone believed it had to do with his Native American heritage.
“For us or her?”
“Not sure. I can’t seem to get a bead on it. We’ll get a lot of information out of this, but we’ll also put a target on our backs. I’m not sure knowing where the Vojnik are headquartered will be worth the risk. I mean, yeah, we’ll be able to keep an eye on them and possibly stop their part of the drug trade, but at what cost? That’s something your father doesn’t seem to weigh very well,” Tyler grinned.
That was the truth. As a leader William Walker had one glaring weakness, he never weighed the end result with the risk. It sometimes led to bloodshed and turf wars. At the very least, the consequences of this raid would be almost instant. They were potentially messing with the livelihood of another club. There would be retaliation.
“Are you gonna warn her?”
“I feel like I should. At this point we’ve got our hands full with the Vojnik. Trying to figure out where they’re going with their operation and what they’ve got going on. I don’t want to have to worry about her too, but I feel like the target we put on our back will be just as much on hers too.”
Liam nodded. “You know what this feels like to me? A setup. It may not be, but it just feels too convenient. They tell her, and she tells us.”
Those thoughts were what would make Liam a good leader when the time came. He wouldn’t dare question William, but they very well could have just put themselves in a bad situation.
“Maybe it’s not really a setup for us, maybe it’s a setup for her,” Tyler theorized.
‘Good point. Either way, I’m gonna go get some sleep. We have a lot to get accomplished tomorrow. We need to be fresh for it. I gotta put some time in at the shop too, we’re behind. As usual.”
The two clapped hands and half hugged before parting ways and getting on their own bikes.
Denise sat in the kitchen of Liam’s home nursing a cup of decaf coffee. She contemplated the events of the last few days as she swirled the black liquid around. It had been a whirlwind to say the least. Out of all the ways the events could have played out, this was the most surprising ending of them all. She had never expected to move in with Liam Walker.
Getting up, she began walking around the home that she would be calling her own for the foreseeable future. It was funny, she’d had definite ideas when she had thought of how and where Liam lived. The picture in her head had been vastly different from what greeted her now. In her mind she had imagined a run-down trailer with a state of the art garage for his bike located within shouting distance of the clubhouse.
Reality was much different. A two-story house sat on a hill about two miles from the clubhouse. The driveway and landscaping looked like something she would have done to her own home. A large porch wrapped all the way around the house with the back section screened-in. She marveled at the work that had been done there. It had full electricity, ceiling fans, a couch, a table, and a chaise over to the side. She could foresee many afternoons and nights of reading out there if given the chance.
The inside of the house was a huge surprise as well. It didn’t look like a bachelor lived in the space at all. It was warm with the feelings of hearth and home. Pictures of family members were up everywhere as well some that she recognized as members of the club. The walls were all painted neutral tones and everything seemed to match. The bathrooms had large showers and bathtubs. The two rooms that her kids occupied in were good sized and looked like they had been specifically built for children.
It was interesting to her that this seemed to be a home built for a family.
Denise heard the low hum of a motorcycle coming up the driveway. Feeling uncomfortable in her new surroundings, she got up and went to the window, wanting to make sure it was Liam.
She watched, covered by the darkness of the room he had indicated was hers, as he parked and took off the helmet he wore. His shoulder length dark hair was disheveled, and her fingers itched to run through it. As if he felt her eyes on him, he glanced up to the second story window where she stood. It was so dark, she was sure he didn’t see her, but just in case she dropped the curtain and scampered away from the window.
This whole turn of events confused her. Four days ago she had been broke and facing foreclosure on her home. Today she was in an entirely new home and had money from delivering drugs for an outlaw motorcycle club. For the first time since she had lost her factory job, she had some breathing room. She didn’t have the weight on her shoulders of having to feed her family and put gas in her car. It was freeing, liberating. Not to mention after making those checks out to the credit card companies, she knew she would no longer be getting calls that hounded her at all hours of the night.
For the first time in years, she felt like she could be something other than a mother, she could be a woman. Maybe she could explore some of the feelings she’d let hibernate for so long. As soon as those thoughts crossed her mind, she immediately felt guilty. What about her children? Shouldn’t she want to do better for them? Instead of worrying about them, she was worrying about how she could be a woman again. On the other hand, one day those children would leave and then she would again be stuck on her own. There had to be a middle ground, and she meant to find it. The man was just too gorgeous not to look at.
“I mean, really Denise, you’re in a home with a man who could be a supermodel,” she whispered to herself. “If you can’t figure out what to do with him on your own then you need to join the nunnery.”
Knuckles rapped lightly at her bedroom door, and she thought about pretending to be asleep for a moment before her subconscious kicked her own ass.
“Yeah,” she questioned softly.
The door opened and she wanted to lick her lips. He’d obviously taken a shower in the time she’d spent contemplating, and her body took notice. He wore dark sweatpants and a white tank top covered his chest. Hair, curly now that it was wet, clung to the sides of his neck, dripping lightly onto his bare shoulders.
“I just wanted to make sure you’re comfortable,” he whispered, walking further into the room. “Did you find everything you need?”
She nodded and then realized that he couldn’t see her in the dark. Stretching up, she turned the bedside lamp on, blinking as light flooded the room.
“I did,” she stared at him.
Clearing his throat, he sat next to her on the bed. “I was pretty rude earlier, and I didn’t mean to be. I told you to treat this place like home and I meant it. If you need something that I don’t have here, we’ll get it.”
“I know. It’s a gorgeous home,” she complimented.
A grin transformed his face. “Besides my bikes it’s my pride and joy. I’m glad you’re comfortable here.”
“I am.”
He ran his hands along his fleece covered thighs before standing up. “Well I’ll let you get to sleep, it’s going to be a long day tomorrow. Hell, it’s been a long day today.”
“What happens tomorrow?” After the events of this night, she wasn’t sure she wanted to actually get to tomorrow.
“You’ll be told what you need to know, but it won’t be much. Just trust me in what I tell you and what others tell you to do.” He knew it was a lot for her to take on his word, but it was all he had. “Get some sleep.”
With that, he was gone, leaving her to contemplate just what he had told her. Everything was such a secret in this life. It would take some getting used to. But if that’s what would need to happen to keep her kids and herself safe, she would do whatever she had to do.