Chapter Eighteen
“T hen use me as bait ,” Luke said. “There is no way we can let him take innocent girls. I won’t allow it.”
“That is not your call to make,” Lash said.
“He wants to kill me, and trust me, he is not going to stop until he has filled that order. You’ve got to stop trying to protect me.”
Anthony watched the scene unfold.
It was rare for Lash to talk this out with the whole club, but the truth was, he needed everyone to be on alert. Young girls were going missing, and they were running out of time. A third one had been reported missing just this morning. The sheriff was not happy, and seeing as they were supposed to be on good terms with the sheriff, this didn’t look so good.
“If he puts himself out there as bait, they may already know,” Anthony said.
“Look, I can handle myself, okay? I think I’ve got it covered.” Luke didn’t look too happy.
“I know you’ve got it covered,” Anthony said. “The idea is to get the girls back, safe and alive. What we don’t want is to hand his son over on a silver platter.”
“Then Anthony and I should do it,” Daisy said.
This surprised him. He turned toward his woman. The plan he had didn’t involve her. “You should stay here,” Anthony said.
She rolled her eyes at him. “Think about it,” Daisy said. “Anthony and I are the best targets. Now, I know I’m not a child, and nothing to look at, but stealing a Skull kid...” She lifted her fingers and gave air quotes as she did this. “Would be too appealing.”
He looked toward his dad, but Lash was no help, and now he was pissed off.
“This is not happening,” Anthony said.
“Shut up,” Lash said. “And what would the appeal of Anthony be?”
“They know the general hierarchy of the club. With you as leader, it makes sense that Anthony would take your place. No one is looking at Miles.” She turned toward him. “No offense.”
“None taken.”
“And it would be all for the taking,” Daisy said.
There was silence and Anthony knew it would be even better than putting Luke on the chopping block.
“Anthony and I leave. It’s like we run away from our punishment and sneak out, to where this all started,” Daisy said. She turned to look at Anthony. “We go to the field, where Ryan raped Tabitha.” She looked back to Lash. “It would be poetic to them. And we both know we can take care of ourselves.”
“You’re asking me to allow the two of you to go alone?” he asked.
“You’d have to finally allow us to have weapons, but if you think about it, it’s the only good plan.” Daisy took a breath. “Or, we go from house to house, checking every filled and abandoned property across Fort Wills. That is going to take time, and they could move.”
She looked toward Luke. “Wouldn’t your dad find it too great an opportunity to pass up?”
Luke glanced toward him, and Anthony wanted to send him a warning.
“Don’t look at him. I know he would be happier trying to get your dad by himself, but Anthony alone won’t work, especially as the last couple of months it hasn’t.”
“Yet, you and I sneaking out, that works?” Anthony asked.
“Yes. After all, we’re married and have been through a great deal of punishment. We’re young and in love. We’re also stupid, at least that is what he thinks,” Daisy said.
He hated that it sounded like a good idea. He tried to think of a single reason it was a bad idea, and he was coming up completely blank. Gritting his teeth, he stared at his father and saw he was also having the same trouble. Neither of them could come up with an alternative plan. Daisy had them beat, and this pissed him off.
“I’ll give you both the weapons you’re going to need,” Lash said.
There was no argument.
Anthony was pissed and he went straight to his father, who had already dismissed the meeting.
“You’ve got to be kidding me. There is no way you can put her life on the line.”
“Damn it, Anthony, I am not putting my life on the line here. Those girls need someone, and we’re going to be the ones to help them.”
He should have known Daisy wouldn’t let this slide.
“Then let me handle it. He’ll come after me,” Anthony said.
His father turned toward him.
“Not happening. Do you really think you’ll be a draw to him? The idea is to capture him,” Daisy said. “We need to know the location of those girls. That is what we’re doing. If it was just luring him, then Luke would have been a perfect candidate. You know we can do this.”
“I can do this.”
“Damn it, Anthony, what is your problem?”
“The last time we faced them, I nearly lost you. Now do you get it? You were put in the hospital. You nearly died, Daisy. I can’t ... there’s no...” He looked at Daisy, and for the first time in his life, he felt ... he fucking felt , and it was killing him. He couldn’t stand it.
This was not like Daisy facing off at the quad, where there were rules. This was real. There was a chance Luke’s dad would just shoot to kill.
Daisy looked at him, and that frown went away as she stepped toward him, cupping his face. For a second, she didn’t say anything.
“It’s going to be all right.”
“Nothing can happen to you,” he said. “Nothing.”
“Nothing is going to happen, because we’re going to be there. You and I are going to sneak off, and the guys at the club will find a way to get to us. We’re going to be okay,” Daisy said.
He stroked her cheek, pushing some of her hair out of the way. Anthony pulled her into his arms, and knew he had no choice but to make sure it was going to be okay. For the club, for those girls, and for his woman.
****
I t had been a long time since they had been to the field. Daisy didn’t like coming here, and she and Anthony had found a more secluded spot, away from where everything had gone wrong. Tabitha had no choice but to take them to the spot where it happened. It was dark, and it was cold.
Anthony held her hand, and she felt how tightly his grip was. He pulled her into his arms, and she looked up at him.
“It’s going to be okay,” she said.
“And if he doesn’t come?” Anthony asked.
“Then we sneak out again, and again, and again until he does.”
“We’re wasting time.”
“And while this is happening, my dad is checking every camera in town. He’s trying to find anything that would lead back to the Monster Dogs MC. He is doing what we can’t.”
He rubbed her arms. “Are you cold?”
“No, I’m not. Are you?” she asked.
“No.”
He continued to rub her arms in an attempt to keep her warm.
“You know, I wouldn’t change anything,” Daisy said, which took him by surprise, and he pulled back a little and looked at her.
“What?”
“About us. About our time together. You know how some people have regrets about what happened. I don’t, not with you. I don’t regret what happened that day with my dad. I don’t regret ... being with you. I love you.” She put her hand on his chest, went up onto her tiptoes, and kissed him. “And I love being married to you. I wouldn’t even change our garish wedding back in Vegas. It was just you and me, and that is all I need.”
He pushed some of her hair off her face. “You’re all I need.”
“You said ... you wanted to have children, that you’re ready. Do you think you are? When we talked about it in the past, you always sounded like you’d be a little jealous if we were to have children.”
Anthony sighed and she waited. She was trying her best to distract him, but for him to also look natural with her.
Before he could answer, she pulled him down toward her and forced him to kiss her. He wrapped his arms around her as if on instinct, and she didn’t want him to stop.
“You’re making this hard for me,” he said.
“Good. It’s not supposed to be easy.” She gave a little chuckle. “All good things come to those that make it harder.”
“I don’t think that is how the statement goes.”
“I’m making it up as I go along, and trying to get you to relax. Relax for me.” She kissed him.
Anthony sighed. “Fine, I know it is going to be hard. I don’t like sharing you with the club. Fucking hate it when Tabitha comes calling. But I love you, and I know having a little Daisy running around is going to be the sweetest thing ever. Also, I know how much you have wanted children, and you held off for me, for us . I’m not going to take that away from you.”
“And we might get little Anthonys,” she said. “Cute little babies, with the chubbiest of cheeks, and the giggles when you tickle them.”
He smiled as she went for his ribs, but she wasn’t trying to tickle him.
“You’re selling me on the concept of babies and family.”
“Family is so important,” Daisy said. “I see that, with everyone, with the club.”
“And you’re part of it.”
She nodded. “I know it has taken me a long time to accept it, but you’re right. I am part of the Skulls. I’m one of you. I always will be.”
And with that, he kissed her.
They stood, stealing kisses, and Daisy knew the time had passed. She frowned. This was too good an opportunity for their enemies to pass up.
Anthony did start to relax, and she knew it was because he had already realized no one was coming for them. Not tonight.
“It’s not going to work,” Anthony said.
“No, I have a feeling they already know what we’re doing,” Daisy said.
“How?”
“Luke’s dad is no fool, Anthony. He was able to steal girls, move them around, and it wasn’t like he was ever too far from Fort Wills.” Daisy sighed. “There is no point in us staying here.” She glanced down at the time. “It’s already been two hours.”
And yet, it hadn’t felt that long to her.
They had to steal time during their punishment. She was tired all the time, as was everyone else.
Anthony pulled out his cell phone. “Yeah, Dad said to head on back. It’s not going to work.”
Daisy took his hand, and they started to head back to the Skulls’ compound. “Come on, it would have been so cool if it had worked.”
“Yeah, it would have,” Anthony said. “You do come up with some great plans, this just wasn’t one of them.”
“We’ll get them.”
For the children that had been taken, she truly hoped they got to them soon.
****
“W e need to stop meeting like this,” Ned Walker said.
Lash climbed off his bike and reached out, shaking the older man’s hand. He’d always liked Ned, even if they didn’t quite see eye to eye.
“Can’t have you at the club right now.”
“I know. I know. We’ll let it blow over. Do you think your boy even suspects anything?”
“No,” Lash said. “And I don’t want him to.”
Ned laughed. “You know, there is nothing wrong with moving stuff and working for the Billionaires. You can do both.”
“No, I can’t. My hands are tied.”
Ned sighed. “You needed the Monster Dogs taken care of, and you knew your son was getting impatient.”
Lash looked at him and waited. “Your point?”
“You were the one who told me to provide the guns, anything your son needed, and you even paid the extra he couldn’t afford. You knew exactly what they were doing and when, and yet you’re punishing them?” Ned asked.
“I don’t need you to tell me how to conduct my business. You need to know that I’m making sure the next generation of the Skulls can handle themselves. They have banded together. They had the option of allowing Anthony to take the fall. They didn’t. They passed my test. They took on the Monster Dogs, and it was amateurish at best. But that comes with time and experience. I now know how willing they all are. I know the club runs in their veins, and that is most important.”
“And if Daisy had died?” Ned asked.
“I was not going to let that happen.”
“But Daisy still ended up in the hospital.”
Lash looked at Ned. “Are we going to have a problem here?”
“None at all,” Ned said, holding up his hands. “If you need to solve another problem, you know where to find me.”
Lash watched as Ned climbed into his car and took off. There were no hard feelings between the two of them. This was a courtesy visit.
Lash had known his son was a ticking time bomb. He had watched as with every passing month, moving into years, his hatred of the Monster Dogs was not squashed. His son couldn’t stand what had happened, and he knew the only way to tame that monster was to allow his son to be set free. He had to allow Anthony to take on the enemy himself, with his friends at his back.
It was time for him to see just what Anthony was capable of. He knew his son had changed a murder scene to look like suicide, to protect Daisy. There were a few men who had been cruel to Daisy—strangers, nobodies—that had been found in ditches, and Lash knew his son was a lot like him.
So, he set the wheels in motion. Monster Dogs MC needed to be taken out. Lash couldn’t do it himself, with the ties of the club. With Ned’s help, they planted the idea in his son’s head, until there was no turning back, and he knew it happened at Christmas last year.
Lash didn’t know why they hit the day they did, and why they hadn’t anticipated things might go south. This is why he was also allowing them to face punishment. The Billionaires no longer cared what happened to the Monster Dogs MC, and had in fact taken care of the legal shit that could have come knocking on their door.
Now it was up to him to refine his son’s ability.
He knew Daisy was the key to all of that. The only person Anthony protected above all others, was Daisy. He loved her more than anything, and Lash knew if something had happened to Daisy, if she hadn’t woken up from the coma, his son would have been lost to him forever. He had to protect Daisy at all costs.
It was why tonight, even as Anthony and Daisy snuck out to start their plan, he made sure his men followed. He already gotten the text that it was all clear.
Luke’s father was waiting for something, for what, he didn’t know.
He needed to find those girls, otherwise, there was going to be a shitstorm at Fort Wills. The locals were more than happy with the Skulls, as long as they were reaping the rewards of their good fortune. That tide would turn very fucking quickly if he didn’t solve this problem.
He had watched the locals turn on them before, and he wouldn’t allow it to happen again.