Chapter Seventeen
Garrett
The party is in full swing when I pull the bike to a stop at the Disciples clubhouse. It’s been a while since I showed up at a party, but I have to speak to Nero. It’s the only time I can guarantee he will be here. He’s been impossible to get hold of.
I need to know who Caleb Dexter really is.
That prick has been stalking Calli. Maybe stalking is too literal a statement. I’m pretty sure he isn’t following her outside, but he’s showing up whenever she is in the apartment building lobby.
For the past four days, I’ve watched her step out of the elevator, either with the asshole behind her, or he’s been hanging around waiting for her. Which means he knows her routine.
He was there when I dropped her off. He ducked out of the way when he saw me. By the time I finished kissing the shit out of her, he was gone. The kiss served as a distraction for Calli. I’m pretty sure she didn’t remember her name by the time we came up for air.
I never stake a claim on anyone, but something about that prick watching us made me lose control. I want him to know she’ll never be his.
She’s not mine either, which is beside the point. The last thing I need is her getting hurt. Something about him is pissing me off. Nero is the only one who can put me out of this fucking misery.
It’s a typical gathering at the clubhouse. Eventually, it will move over to the bar next door, but for now, the music is loud. The space is full of brothers, either with their old ladies or other random women they’ve invited.
Booze is flowing freely, and everyone seems in good spirits. Most of the parties here remain semi-calm. Nero doesn’t mind the brothers blowing off steam now and then, but he always has the surrounding area in the back of his mind. He never wants to draw attention.
As I pass through toward the bar area, I greet some brothers I’m friendly with and dip my chin at those I’m not. A couple of women try to get my attention but I’ve no interest.
“Ghost, don’t see you here often.”
Nashville is one of the younger brothers. He started prospecting at eighteen. I’ve always been friendly with him. He’s a good guy, trustworthy and loyal to the club. Like most of the brothers, he doesn’t understand my agreement with Nero. He never gives me shit about it, which is why I don’t mind stopping in my mission to find the Prez.
We shoot the shit for a few minutes, and he asks if he can come in for some ink.
“Yeah, call the shop. Let Lucky know I said you’re a VIP. She’ll get you booked in the next couple of weeks.”
“Appreciate it.” He glances over my shoulder, frowns, and looks back at me. “I know you’re usually not a fixture here, but it’s rare to see Phoenix too.”
“What?”
I turn in time to see my friend hurrying over to the stairs and taking them two at a time. Shit, that can’t be good. The only thing up there where he might be going, is one of the bedrooms.
Nero is sitting by the bar, so Phoenix is not going up there to find him. I don’t bother saying goodbye to Nashville and head to the stairs. Nero and I meet at the bottom at the same time. He gives me a hard look.
“He didn’t come with me.”
He curses.
“Is Kate here?”
Nero nods. “Yeah.”
Saying nothing else, we head up the stairs. It takes a lot to allow Nero ahead of me. I’m worried about Phoenix, but can’t break etiquette. Getting embroiled in some kind of bitching about it won’t help me or my best friend right now.
Shouting comes from the bedroom and the sound of crashing. We don’t bother looking at one another as we rush that way. The door to the furthest bedroom from the stairs is wide open. A woman shrieks and my friend yells. The unmistakable sound of flesh hitting flesh comes next.
Nero gets there ahead of me, but only by a second. I take it all in as the Prez barges into the room. Phoenix is grappling with a brother who is only wearing his jeans, which are barely hanging on to his ass. His mom is standing in the corner, holding something over her front to hide her naked top half.
There are lines of coke on the cabinet behind her. Despite her screeching, her eyes are unfocused. Phoenix is roaring as he lays into the guy. Nero and I both move at the same time. Unspoken, I go to Phoenix, while Nero takes his club member.
I’m happy to see Phoenix has fared better than the other guy, but he is going to have a shiner, and his eyebrow is bleeding. The rage on his face is shocking, but understandable.
No one wants to walk in on their mom getting high and fucking some random bastard. It’s a struggle, but I wrap my arms around his torso and bend my elbows up under his arm pits, effectively locking his arms in the air. He pushes back and tries to pull out of my grip, but I’ve got him in an unbreakable hold.
Nero has the other dude by the throat up against the wall. His pants have lost their battle and are now halfway down his legs. It’s preventing him from getting away. Not that Nero is letting him. It only takes a moment for him to figure out who has him by the throat.
“Let me fucking go!” Phoenix roars.
Using my knee against the back of his thigh, I swing him around, so he is facing away from what is going on. Nero is yelling all kinds of shit at the other guy. His mom is now leaning back against the wall, her eyes glassy. Looking everywhere but at her son.
“Stop,” I say into Phoenix’s ear. He’s still fighting to get away from me. I repeat my order and say his name a few times before it finally sinks in who has hold of him. He immediately stops struggling.
His voice is lower when he speaks. “Let me go, Garrett.”
“You good?”
He turns his head away from me to look at his half-brother and the man, who now has another cut on his lip. His body tenses again, then he loosens up.
“I let you go, you back off.”
“Fucking asshole was giving her drugs.”
“Can you stay back?” I say in a calming tone. He’s in a manic state and me reacting the same way won’t help the situation at all.
“Fuck,” he spits out. “Fuck!” the shout startles his mom.
She lets out a small shriek before losing her footing and sinking to the floor.
“Mom.”
When he struggles this time, I let him go. Standing back, I watch as he takes three large strides across the room and crouches down in front of her. He tugs off his shirt and helps her into it, careful not to let anyone see her naked.
“Baby, don’t be mad,” she cries.
“It’s okay, mom. We’re getting out of here, okay? Let me help you up.”
The gentle way he speaks to her and helps her to her feet is fucking heartbreaking. The fight is forgotten. He wants to protect her.
“It was only one time. Just a little. I needed it, baby. You understand that, right?”
Phoenix speaks soothing words to her as he guides her out of the room. He doesn’t spare a glance at anyone else. I’m not offended. He’ll talk to me when he is in a better headspace.
Nero won’t get that. Phoenix will blame him for letting his mom hang around here. And for the men he oversees giving her more drugs.
Once they’re gone, I face the two men in the room.
“Put your fucking pants on. Stupid prick,” Nero steps back.
He is breathing heavily as he glares at the man. A brief glance at me gives nothing away about what he is thinking. Once the man is dressed, he tells him to get the fuck out and don’t come back until he’s called in to answer for this.
It takes a lot for me not to deck the fucker as he passes. Nero takes out his cell phone and barks at whoever it is to make sure Phoenix is taken care of and to get Grim the hell out of the clubhouse to wait for him. He listens for a moment, then hangs up without another word.
I watch as he takes in the room, pausing on the bag of coke and the powder on the bureau. A tightening of the skin around his eyes is the only sign he’s irritated. Nero doesn’t like drugs in the clubhouse.
Whoever the fuck this Grim asshole is, he’s in for a world of hurt. I’ve never been good at keeping my anger hidden. For once, I don’t give a shit that it’s the President glaring back at me.
It’s not my place to question this but Nero reads my body language. He hisses out a curse but doesn’t take his eyes off me.
“Roadie got them out of the clubhouse. Let him know I’ll get his bike to him.”
“That’s it?”
“How I handle this is my business. Club business,” he emphasizes.
“Did you know he is trying to get her into rehab?”
He doesn’t answer me. He will not tell me anything.
“She should have been barred.”
Nero steps right up to me. “I said, it’s club business. Garrett .”
I barely hold off the scoff. For a brief second, I consider giving him shit about the lack of respect he shows his own blood relative over this bunch of assholes. Then I remember why I came here. And it registers he called me by my name. Not Ghost.
It’s his way of saying he knows I’m here for a reason but he will give me nothing tonight.
None of it matters right now. I need to check on Phoenix. Nero doesn’t come anywhere near close to being a priority. I’ll figure out this thing with Calli. Even if means scaring Caleb off myself.
Nero walks around me without another word. Standing alone in the bedroom, I can’t shake the disgust at this whole fucked up place. If I could get the fuck out, I would.
Once you’re sworn in, the only way out is being found to be a traitor, utter disgrace or death. I’ve been lucky Nero has kept me so far on the outside.
The problem now is, I don’t know what way he will go. Pull me in, or push me away. I don’t regret showing up, I wouldn’t have been here to stop Phoenix killing that asshole.
Downstairs, Nero’s eyes are on me as I make my way to the door. I don’t look in his direction.
Fuck him. He let her in here tonight. Regardless of whether he knew a brother was giving her drugs or not.
Nothing good can come of her being here. Nero should have been there for his brother. Instead, he let him down and now Phoenix is going to be fucked up.
The ride back to Canton seems to take forever, but I eventually reach the shop and head upstairs. I purposely waited to call Phoenix and am glad he answers when I finally do.
“What did Nero say?” he cuts off any questions I have.
“A whole lot of nothing.”
“Fucking typical. I’m so done with his shit.”
I’m inclined to agree but I say nothing more about the Blackhawk Disciples. “How is she?”
“Finally stopped crying. I’m trying to get her to sleep it off.”
“What are you gonna do?”
“I’m taking her up to Bethesda tomorrow.”
“Good. Does she know?”
“Telling her now would be pointless. I could do without the argument. Tonight at least. It’ll all come tomorrow.”
“Okay.”
“I’ll need some time.”
“Don’t worry about it, get her situated.”
He lets out a sigh. I don’t particularly like the idea of leaving him alone to deal with her tonight, or what he is going to go through with her tomorrow, but he won’t want me getting involved.
“If you need anything,” I say.
“Yeah,” he cuts me off. “I know. I’ll be in touch.”
We end the call, and I grab myself a bottle of beer from the fridge. Tonight didn’t go how I intended. Seeing what went down with Phoenix’s mom is a wake-up call of how men can so easily take advantage of women. Sure, it’s a different scenario but I’m worried even more about Calli.
Why do I suddenly have the urge to see her? This isn’t me. What am I gonna do, show up at her door in the middle of the fucking night? All I can think about is what sinking into her right now would do to help.
Being selfish isn’t who I am. At least not in that way. When I eventually go to bed, I’m angry that I’m thinking about her. Everything is going to shit. Calli is the last thing I should be thinking about.
Over the next week, I only hear from Phoenix twice, one to say they arrived, and she’s checked in. Then to tell me he is staying in Bethesda for a few days. Everyone at the shop knows something is up, but no one is talking about it.
Mostly because I shut it down as soon as it starts. Sumner picked up quick to avoid the topic. Shane not so much. It comes from a good place, so I wasn’t too hard on the kid, while making sure he understood to shut the fuck up about it.
Phoenix is the most subdued I’ve seen in a long while when he returns a week later. Not even Lucky can cheer him up. Given our conversation before everything went to shit, and how he intends to move on, I know why.
Seeing how upset Phoenix is about his mom makes me think about mine.
It’s been years since I visited her. After what happened to Gwen, she shut me out completely. It didn’t matter what I did, or how much I tried to make her see me. She blamed me for not being there. To her, it was like both her kids died when we lost Gwen.
Instead of continually fighting for her to remember I was alive, I enlisted. And everything changed for me.
The last time I saw her was when she had a mental break and I had to leave the service to deal with it. It could be time to reach out. I know where she is, I was the one who put her there.
She’ll take one look at me and remember Gwen.
Everyone used to say we could be twins. We had a lot of the same features and characteristics. Gwen was always the light to my darkness. The positive to my negative. We were different in the things we enjoyed, our friends, and interests. I would drop everything in a heartbeat if she needed me.
Until that one night when I wasn’t there. Pushing away those thoughts is something I got good at over the years. There is no point dwelling on the past.
The same as every night this week, after shutting up the shop, I go to the second apartment and try to figure out Caleb. Over an hour later, I’m still no closer to understanding him with my limited surveillance.
My phone rings and I stare at the screen.
Phoenix hasn’t spoken to Nero since that night. I only know this because the Prez keeps calling me asking how he is. Guess tonight is no different.
Fuck him if he thinks I’m giving him anything. If Phoenix hasn’t taken the time to update his brother, I won’t do it either. My loyalty lies with my friend, not Nero.
My instinct is to ignore the call, but that would be a dumb move that will only cause me more headaches.
“I have a job for you.”
Not even a little surprised there is no preamble or greeting. “Yeah?”
“We’re out of town for a few days. When I get back, be at the club. Ivan will tell you when.”
“Right.”
There is a pause. “You got a problem?”
“No.” I’m not afraid of him. My answer is only quick to get him off the phone.
There is more silence. Then he sighs. “How is he?”
“The same. Keeping busy.”
“He can’t keep internalizing this.”
Something stupid comes over me. I’m tired, my eyes are hurting like hell after pouring over all the footage and recordings.
“He asked for her to be kept away from the club. Can you blame him for his reaction finding her there? Given the situation she was in.”
Nero says nothing. He knows the truth. No one gets into the clubhouse without him knowing. He didn’t like what went down with the drugs, but he didn’t stop her from being there. Like he promised Phoenix he would.
Maybe I’ve overstepped my boundaries. Nero needs to be called out.
“He can’t keep avoiding me.”
“He needs time.”
“I say when this is done.”
Fucking asshole. There is nothing to say to that, so I keep my mouth shut.
“When Ivan texts you, do your job.”
“When have I ever not?”
“Watch your fucking tone.”
Caleb’s face is paused on the screen beside me. Staring at him, I kick myself for antagonizing Nero. He won’t tell me anything if I keep this up. I fucking hate bowing to him but it’s the oath I took when I was a stupid kid, excited to be a part of something I thought was bigger than me.
“I’ll be there.”
Nero hangs up. If I didn’t need it, I’d have thrown the phone at the wall. Instead, I drop it on the desk, the clattering loud in the empty apartment.
Pressing both palms down on the desk, I stare at Calli moving out of the shot. Caleb is standing behind her. She’s completely unaware he’s there.
For the first time in a long time, and this is surprising to no one more than me, I actually give a shit about someone. What I see when Caleb looks at Calli, I don’t like.