Jameson: Mayhem Makers (Forsaken MC #1)

3. Jameson

A fter digging deeper into Miguel Alvarez for a few days, I went to my dad’s office at the Forsaken’s strip club with everything I’d found that I thought could help us. I knocked on the closed door. “Hey, Dad, I have the info you wanted.”

I heard a woman giggle, then my dad cleared his throat. “Come back in five minutes.”

I chuckled. “That’s all?”

“Get the fuck outta here, Jameson!” my dad retorted gruffly.

Laughing harder, I went to the bar and ordered a beer. As I took a swig, I wondered which one of the girls my dad had in his office this time.

Ever since my mom died, my dad never got serious with anyone else. From what he told us when we were kids, she was a junkie prostitute who he accidentally fell in love with. He’d tried multiple times to get her clean, but the only times she would were when she was pregnant with Raleigh, Dixyn, and me. Once we were born, she’d go back to using shortly after.

My dad acted like my mom’s death wasn’t that hard for him, but I didn’t believe that. She was the only woman he ever loved, and I think he felt like he was a failure because he couldn’t save her. He resolved to never fall in love again so he’d never feel that way again.

Sometimes, I felt bad for him, especially when I was around Dixyn and Bullet. Their kind of love was genuine and made me want what they had. Other times, I felt like he was a genius because he had a revolving door of pussy with no drama.

After I finished my beer, I went back to my dad’s office to find the door open. I knocked again. “I guess the saying is true.”

He arched a brow. “What?”

“Like father, like son. Raleigh only takes a couple of minutes to get off, too.”

He narrowed his dark eyes at me. “What the hell do you want, Jameson? If you came here to bust my balls, you can fuck off.”

Chuckling, I held up the file folder in my hand. “I got the info on Matteo’s brother.” I tossed the file on his desk. “He’s got a wife and five daughters.”

A small grin curved my father’s lips as he opened the folder and started flipping through the papers. “Is that so?”

I sat down in the chair in front of his desk. “They live in Miami, but he’s been traveling back and forth to Matteo’s compound; most likely preparing to move now that he’s in charge.”

My dad glanced up at me. “Is he planning to take the family with him?”

“It seems so. But the eldest daughter ran away from the Miami home a few nights ago.”

One of our nomads, Nodin, happened to be in Georgia and took a detour to Miami when I reached out to him about Miguel.

“Nodin has been following her since. She’s traveling with a friend, and they’re in New Orleans right now.”

My dad sat back and stroked his beard, staying quiet.

“What are you thinking?” I asked.

“I think reaching out to Nodin was a good idea. Having him tail the girl was an even better one. You went above and beyond what I expected.”

I sat up, swelling with pride. When my grandpa died and my dad became president, he appointed a temporary VP because he wasn’t sure who he wanted to be his second. Currently, I was sergeant at arms, but I’d been trying to prove to him that I could handle the responsibility, and I hoped this put me one step closer to becoming VP. “Thanks, Pops.”

“So tell me where your thought process is now.”

“Well, we don’t know where she’s going.” Leaning forward, I moved the pictures of the other family aside until the eldest daughter Lucia’s was in the center. “I’m hoping that this little joyride she’s on leads anywhere near here, and then we grab her.”

“Take her for ransom?” my dad asked.

I nodded. “Trade her for a cease-fire. He leaves us and the Kings alone, and he gets his daughter back unharmed.”

My dad grinned widely. “Brilliant. Let’s just hope she comes this way. I doubt it would be easy for Nodin to transport a hostage that far without drawing heat.”

“He checks in every night. I’ll stay on top of this and handle everything.”

“Good. I’m pretty sure Miguel will send his men after her. Hopefully, we can get to her first.”

“I’ll make sure to let Nodin know about the possibility and to stay alert,” I replied.

My dad stroked his beard again. “Say we do catch her… where do you plan to keep her?”

I chuckled, rubbing the back of my neck. “I haven’t gotten that far yet. First thought is the compound; second is one of the safe houses in the desert.”

He nodded. “Pros and cons to each. Compound would be better guarded but would draw heat from the cartel. Safe house is harder to find but less defense against an attack.”

I shrugged. “Luckily, we have some time to think about it. If she does come this way, it won’t be for a few days at least.”

“Nice work, son. If we’re able to get our hands on her, it’s a game changer.”

Pride filled me again from his praise. My dad didn’t give it easily and definitely wasn’t one for feelings. The only time I ever saw him vulnerable was with Dixyn and his new granddaughter, and that was rare. “I won’t let you down.”

“Good. Take this info to Bullet and let him know what’s going on. With more eyes looking for this girl, the more likely we are to get her.”

I nodded. “I will.”

He straightened the photos and papers before putting them back in the file folder and handing them to me. “Anything else?”

That was his way of wrapping things up. “Nope. I’ll keep you updated.”

I stood and took the file folder from him, then turned for the exit.

“Oh, wait. Did you inventory all the new pieces from the last drop?”

I paused at the door and turned around. “Yep. Finished yesterday. All logged and accounted for.”

My dad gave me a half grin. “Good. Thanks again, son.”

I smiled back. “No problem, Pops.”

As I walked out, my mind was racing. I wondered if we could really get that lucky to have the daughter of the new cartel lord get close enough to kidnap her and use her to our benefit.

In the decade I’d been a formal member of the Forsaken, we’d done plenty of kidnapping and ransoms, so I was comfortable with the task. But as I opened the folder and looked down at the picture of my target, guilt gnawed at me.

Frowning, I tried to analyze my reaction. Was it because she was a beautiful woman and getting pulled into our mess with the cartel at no fault of her own? Based on the brief research I’d done, Lucia was pretty sheltered and wasn’t involved in her dad’s criminal underworld. She was innocent, and the only thing she was guilty of was being born into the wrong family.

I pushed my thoughts aside. I couldn’t let doubt and uncertainty cloud my judgment. If Miguel really wasn’t planning to stop coming after us until we were all dead, then we needed to do something drastic to settle the score.

Even if that meant taking an innocent woman hostage.

Since I’d promised Dixyn I’d come visit her and the baby, I thought I’d kill two birds with one stone and fill Bullet in on our plan. I sent my sister a text to make sure he was there before heading over.

It was still weird to me that my sister was the old lady of a Suicide King, and that she’d had a kid with him. Even though we were civil, sometimes the bad blood hung in the air and created tension, especially with some of the non-familial Forsaken. They didn’t care that the Kings had helped save Dixyn, and the rivalry was too deep to forget.

My dad did a good job of reminding them of their place and keeping the peace. I had to admit that sharing the burden of war with the cartel was a nice perk to our new friendliness with the Kings. I’d much rather have a King die than a Forsaken, no matter the status between our clubs.

I knocked on Dixyn and Bullet’s door. After a few seconds, the door opened to Bullet grinning. “Hey, Jameson. Come on in.”

So weird.

I entered, scanning the place for Dixyn and Poppy. I didn’t see them, so I asked Bullet, “Where’s my sister and niece?”

He gestured behind him with a jerk of his head. “Dixyn’s finishing up feeding her. Shouldn’t be too much longer. You want a beer?”

I shrugged. “Sure.”

When he brought me the bottle, I said, “My father wanted me to discuss something with you.”

He arched a brow. “Go on.”

I handed him the file folder. “Raleigh and I were tailed on our last run. We confronted the cunts, and before offing them, one of them told me that they weren’t going to stop until all the Forsaken and Kings were dead.”

Bullet’s jaw clenched as he looked through the papers. “Stupid wetbacks.”

“He said the new boss was looking for revenge for his brother. So I did a little digging and found out who the new leader is.”

“Miguel Alvarez.”

I nodded, taking a swig of my beer. “And he has five daughters, the eldest of which happened to run away from home and is currently on a road trip being tailed by one of our nomads.”

A smirk curved one corner of his lips. “You planning on grabbing her?”

“If she comes this way. Dad wanted to keep you in the loop so you can also be on the lookout for her.”

“Do you think she’ll come here?”

I shrugged. “Not here, but possibly Vegas. From what I gathered so far, she’s been pretty sheltered her whole life, so I think this might be some kind of bucket list trip.”

“And who doesn’t want to go to Vegas?” Bullet said with a chuckle.

“Exactly.”

Bullet briefly scanned over the photo of Lucia, then closed the folder and handed it back to me. “Send me all this, and I’ll make sure my guys are aware.”

I held up my hand. “You can keep it. I have another copy back at the clubhouse.”

“Thanks, kid. I’ll show the club and make sure everyone is on the lookout.”

A few moments later, Dixyn entered the room, holding Poppy in her arms. She smiled brightly at me. “Hey.”

“Hey.” Her bright red hair was a mess, and she had dark bags under her eyes. “You look like shit.”

Dixyn smacked her teeth as Bullet jabbed my arm. “You watch your mouth.”

I almost hit him back until I saw his playful grin. I had to remind myself that we were friendly now. Holding up my hands in surrender, I apologized, “Sorry, just a little brotherly teasing.”

“Well, you try waking up every two hours to nurse a newborn,” Dixyn retorted as she came over to me. “I’m lucky I get any sleep at all.”

“You still look beautiful to me, kitten,” Bullet said, pulling my sister against him and kissing her.

I frowned. “Ew, can you not do that in front of me?”

Dixyn smiled against Bullet’s lips, then pulled away. “Sorry, big brother, but I’m someone’s old lady now.”

Shaking my head, I changed the subject. “How old is Poppy now?”

“About six weeks,” she answered with a smile as she gazed down at her daughter. She brought her eyes to mine. “Do you want to hold her?”

I tensed. I’d briefly held her when she was a few days old, and I was uncomfortable as hell. “I’m not sure I should. She’s so tiny and breakable.”

Dixyn giggled, then headed for the couch. “Come sit down, and I’ll help you.”

I followed, sitting beside her. “Are you sure? I don’t want to hurt her.”

My sister rolled her eyes. “If this big lug can hold her without breaking her, anyone can,” she joked, gesturing to Bullet.

I was still unsure but tried to relax. “If you say so.”

Dixyn leaned forward, placing Poppy in my arms. “Just support her head in the crook of your elbow.” She helped position Poppy in my cradled arms, then pulled her hands away. “Just like that.”

I stiffened, feeling awkward and unnatural. I didn’t want to move, afraid of dropping her.

Dixyn giggled. “Relax, Jameson. You’re not going to break her.”

“But if you do, I break you,” Bullet threatened gruffly.

I didn’t know if he was kidding or not. I glanced at Dixyn, arching a brow, who threw a death glare at Bullet. “Shut up, Ford.”

He threw his hands up, laughing. “I’m just kidding.”

I forced a chuckle. Poppy started to squirm and cry, and I tensed more, leaning toward Dixyn. “Here, she obviously isn’t happy with me.”

Dixyn shook her head with a laugh. “You’re not getting off that easy. Try bouncing her.”

I did as my sister said, trying to calm the crying baby in my arms. After a few seconds, she started to quiet, her little squirms slowing until she finally stilled. Her scrunched face relaxed, and her little mouth fell open.

“See,” Dixyn whispered, grinning widely. “You’re a natural.”

My chest filled with warmth as I gazed down at the sleeping infant. I couldn’t help but smile at the small accomplishment of soothing her to sleep.

“We might have to have you babysit sometime,” Bullet commented before taking a swig of his beer.

I furrowed my brows. “Um, I don’t think I’m ready for that yet.”

Dixyn laughed, placing a hand on my shoulder. “I’m not ready for that yet, either.”

After I left Dixyn’s, I headed back to the compound. On my way, I got a call from Nodin. “Hey, brother, what’s up?”

“The girl is on the move.”

“Any idea where?”

“I overheard her and her friend talking about a book signing or some shit in Frisco, Texas.”

My brows furrowed. “Book signing? What the hell is that?”

“Fuck if I know,” he responded with a gruff chuckle. “I’ll let you know when they stop again.”

“Okay, thanks.”

Since the next stop on Lucia’s road trip was in Texas, I was hoping that was a sign that she was making her way to Nevada. And if she was, it would probably be within the next couple of days, maybe a week at the most.

Instead of going to the compound, I decided to check out our nearest safe house to see if it was stocked and ready for a hostage. It was about an hour away, in the middle of the desert.

We had several safe houses around Laughlin, at least one on all of our frequently traveled routes for runs. Most were abandoned buildings of some sort, mainly gas stations, but the one I had in mind was an old house my dad had bought when the club first started. It was a two-bedroom house on about ten acres, so it had plenty of space and privacy.

This safe house was the one that we used when we needed to hole up for a few days or if we didn’t want to keep a hostage in the compound or at our warehouse. With the cartel always hanging around Laughlin now, I felt like that particular safe house would be the best option.

When I got there, I went inside and took stock of what we had. Whenever one of the Forsaken used the house, they were supposed to restock with two weeks’ worth of supplies for two people, but some of the guys were lazy and didn’t always do it.

I made a list of things we needed, then headed to the compound to switch out my bike for my Tahoe so I could load all the supplies and transport them. Then I headed to the grocery store to get everything, and once I finished, I took it back out to the safe house and unloaded the haul.

I’d picked up several cases of bottled water, a variety of canned goods, and toilet paper. Once I organized everything, I decided to head to the strip club to unwind.

When I got there, a few other Forsaken were there at the bar, so I joined them. After a few beers, one of my favorite strippers tapped me on the shoulder.

I turned around, eyeing her up and down. She wore a maid’s apron, but her tits were out, and she had a feather duster with a whip at the other end. “Want to come get dirty with me?”

Lucia’s face flashed in my head, but I pushed the image aside as I smirked. “Sure thing, sweetheart. Lead the way.”