Chapter 18
Jackie
C heyenne tried and failed to talk me out of going with the Sinners to find that house. Her contention was they would be able to handle the situation better without me there, but I disagreed. I loved my cousin like a sister, but she and I lived very different lives—she had lived in Rapid City her whole life while I grew up on the reservation.
I spent time with elders of the tribe, listening to stories of our ancestors and when the buffalo roamed the grasslands free. I learned skills that many of the younger generation didn’t care about, and when I was ten, I was taken on my first hunt. They taught me to track, conceal, and humanely kill an animal. I learned how to give thanks to Mother Earth for the animal’s sacrifice, and when it came time to butcher the animal, I was involved with that too.
The sight of blood didn’t scare me, and the thought of using what I knew to stop someone who thought it was okay to take vulnerable women and force them into who knows what filled me with pride.
After speaking with Cheyenne, I joined Jagger and the others in a small room off Trent and Cheyenne’s bedroom. I’d never seen the hidden door in the countless times I’d been in the bedroom, and when they opened it, they revealed an arsenal.
“Pops always made sure the house was protected,” Trent remarked as he handed a 9mm to each of us before closing the door back and hiding the room again.
We returned to the kitchen and placed the guns onto the table for Animal to load the clips. I asked Cheyenne, “Do you still have that knife I gave you for your eighteenth birthday?”
“It’s in my dresser. Let me go get it,” she said and left the room.
Jagger looked at me with a curious smile, so I explained, “While I learned firearms here with Cheyenne’s dad, I learned knife skills on the reservation from my uncles.”
Cheyenne returned with the elk horn-handled knife I had custom made for her to celebrate her advancement into womanhood. Truth be told, I wanted to make sure she was protected. She handed me the knife and the sheath for it, and I stood from the table and unhooked my belt. Sliding the leather through the sheath, I positioned it on my right side and re-fastened my belt. Retaking my seat, I looked up and realized everyone was watching me.
“I won’t be a hinderance to your mission, but I won’t be a shrinking flower either. We may not even be on the right track, but I’d rather be prepared.”
Jagger smiled as he said, “My brave little warrior.”
Roughstock interjected, “The trucks are being gassed up now. We need to get moving if we want to get back tonight.” He looked at me and asked, “How far do you think it is?”
The GPS was spotty on the reservation, and some houses didn’t have addresses, so we were only able to get a general idea of how to reach the property. I ran the route through my head, thinking of which way was the best to get there.
“I’d say about two hours north, then another hour and fifteen, maybe thirty northeast.”
“Are you sure I can’t talk you out of going?” Cheyenne asked once again.
I stood and pulled her into a hug. Stepping back, I could see she was worried about me, but I had to get her to understand. “For almost six years, I’ve traveled every back road, dirt road, and no road looking for those of our tribe and the tribes around us who’ve been neglected or are suffering. I’ve tried to draw attention to the problems that exist, and it was this that led my father and Trent’s father down this twisted path. People have been hurt, and if I can do anything to protect the women, indigenous and non-indigenous, from suffering, then I have to try.”
“We’ve got her back, Cheyenne,” Animal said, and I looked at the men sitting around the table.
Each of them was a badass in their own right, but they were allowing me to join them on a mission that could get bloody. I was scared, but not of Blur. I was scared that not acting would cause more women to disappear. I was scared that not going would allow Blur to get away with his vile actions. And I was scared that if Jagger went without me, something was going to happen to him, but that was something I wouldn’t admit to anyone.
“We need to get on the road,” Phantom stated, and the four of them stood from their seats.
Jagger handed me a gun from the table, and I tucked it into the back of my pants then slid two extra clips into my pockets. Animal and Trent had holsters, while Jagger mirrored me and tucked his behind his back. Phantom slipped his into his boot and pulled his jeans leg down over it.
The five of us walked out of the kitchen and through the side door, but we left Trent and Cheyenne to have a moment while we got into the two trucks. We decided that two was necessary in case we found someone being held there. I prayed we didn’t, but we were ready if necessary. We had blankets, water, some food, a first aid kit, a satellite phone in case we were in a low coverage area, and a couple tarps, though I didn’t want to think about why we had them.
Jagger got behind the wheel of one truck as I climbed into the backseat, while Animal and Phantom got into the other. Trent walked down the stairs, and I waved to a worried Cheyenne as he got into the passenger seat of our truck.
“She’s worried to death something is going to happen to you,” Trent said to me as Jagger pulled the truck away from the side of the house.
Animal and Phantom followed behind us as we pulled around the front of the house and onto the driveway. Looking at my beautiful horse, who I’d neglected for the last two weeks, enjoying her breakfast with a big blanket over her back made me smile.
Turning to face forward, I replied, “I know she is, but she should know me well enough that this shouldn’t surprise her.”
“If anything happens to you, I’m going into hiding. Your Granny will put a hex on me that I’ll never get rid of. My damn hair will probably fall out or something crazy like that,” Trent said as we turned onto the paved road and away from the ranch.
“She . . . she really has mojo?” Jagger asked, and I chuckled from the backseat.
I didn’t have to explain. Trent did it for me. “She has some crazy ancestral magic that will scare the crap out of you.” Jagger’s eyes grew wide as Trent continued, “Think medicine man meets shaman meets voodoo. That kind of crazy mojo.”
“It’s not that bad.” I laughed, and Trent turned around and gave me a crazy look before turning to Jagger.
“It’s worse. Trust me. Keep Granny happy and all is well.”
I smiled as Jagger looked into the rear-view mirror and remarked, “Then keeping Jackie safe is my only plan in life. I don’t want my junk to rot off or something crazy like that.”
For the next three and a half hours, we talked, some about Blur and some about life. I learned Jagger’s mom had been a music teacher and an accomplished musician in her own right, but he glossed over his father to speak of his Nana and Pappy. Trent spoke about his father and growing up on the ranch, and I told them about my mom running off and being raised by my father and three older brothers.
“Can you fish?” Jagger asked.
“Fish, hunt, and trap. Bow, gun, and knife,” I returned, and he whistled low.
“Jackie is a badass outdoors woman,” Trent reasoned, and I smiled.
We were within ten miles of the property, so I leaned forward and began to show Jagger where to turn. There was a small area near the edge of the property where we could park and walk in, and carefully, I guided the two trucks as close as possible without alerting anyone that we were approaching. They parked the trucks and turned off the engines.
“I’m going to need to go first, in case we’re wrong,” I said, and they both turned to face me in the backseat. I knew they were about to shut this down, so I explained. “If the woman and her two kids are still here and we’re wrong, I don’t want to scare them with four armed bikers walking up. You’ll only be fifteen to twenty feet behind me, and I’ll be on alert.”
“I don’t like this,” Trent protested. “I don’t want you alone for any reason.”
Pushing closer, Trent leaned away as I kissed Jagger softly and whispered, “I’m not alone. Not anymore.”
He closed his eyes, and when they reopened, I saw he was with me, and that gave me courage to confront this. If Blur was there, I was going to kneecap him for having Cheyenne kidnapped. And if he wasn’t, then I was going to speak with the woman and find out what in the fuck was going on up here.
Looking at Jagger, I asked, “Do you have a picture of Blur?”
He nodded and pulled out his phone. After scrolling, he turned his phone so I could see the image. The man looked pathetic in the picture, and I quickly snapped a photo of his screen before slipping my phone into my back pocket.
Getting out of the truck, I zipped the bottom of my jacket, trying to hide the weapons on me as I kept my phone in my hand. Glancing at the truck before I pivoted around some bushes, I saw Trent and Jagger watching me intently.
The snow was heavier up here as I trotted through the small drifts in the yard, but I didn’t see any other footprints. Looking around as I walked to the trailers, I tried to see if anything seemed unusual, but this whole place seemed unusual. The steps of the trailer were crooked, and I didn’t trust I wouldn’t fall through, so I knocked on the side of the trailer and waited for someone to answer.
The door opened, and a woman poked her head around the door as she asked, “Can I help you?”
I smiled, trying to be engaging as I said, “I was up this way a few years ago, and I met with a woman and her two children. I was wondering if she’s around.”
“You must be looking for my sister and her kids. They moved back to Montana a couple years ago,” she explained.
I took one step closer, and she cut her eyes to the side. Someone seemed to be behind her in the trailer, so I asked, “Do you have her contact information?”
I mouthed ‘Are you okay’ to her, and she shook her head so indiscernibly that if I hadn’t been staring at her, I would have missed it. She raised her right hand and showed me the palm before she tucked her thumb against her palm and closed her fingers over it. I recognized the sign as a request for help.
Looking at the phone in my hand, I carefully opened it as the woman spoke. “I don’t have her new phone number.” She turned her head then looked back at me and said, “If you want to leave your number, I can give it to her when she contacts me again.”
Lifting the phone in front of my chest, I showed her the picture of Blur I’d just taken, and once again, she gave an almost invisible nod. “I can just cross her off the list if she’s moved out of state. Is there anything I can do to assist you before I move on?”
‘Help is coming,’ I mouthed to her.
“No, but thank you for checking on my sister. What’s your name? I’ll let her know you stopped by.”
“I’m Jacqueline. And you are?” I inquired, hoping I could get her name.
A noise from inside the trailer drew her attention, and she looked back out at me as she replied, “I’ve got to see what my cat knocked over, but it was nice meeting you.”
The door closed quickly, and I made sure to keep my pace steady and at a normal gait as I returned to the trucks. When I turned the corner of trees and saw the guys watching, I gave them a nod.
They got out and quietly closed the doors as Animal and Phantom joined Trent and Jagger at the front truck.
“There’s a lady in the yellow trailer, and she gave me the sign for help. When I showed her Blur’s picture, she confirmed he’s the one inside with her. I don’t know if there’s anyone else, but we need to get her to safety,” I explained.
The men were free to kick the door in and drag Blur out by his hair, but I wouldn’t let anything happen to the woman. She’s innocent in all of this, I assumed, and she shouldn’t get caught in the crossfire. The only person who needed to die today was Blur.