Chapter 35
35
Robyn
K yra’s in the other room. I can hear her sometimes talking to someone, sometimes crying. She’s asking for me, but I can’t do a goddamn thing from here. I’m locked in this room, pacing like a desperate animal.
“Dammit,” I mutter as I try to pry the window open for the umpteenth time.
It won’t budge. It’s nailed shut.
Besides, there are too many Hughes goons downstairs in the driveway. We’re in a shady side of town, Rogue River, by the looks of it. It’s dark out, and footsteps echo in and around this house that looks abandoned. There’s dust and grime everywhere. The fabrics on the bed smell rotten and old. I’m afraid to even sit in the armchair. God knows what tiny creatures live inside it.
“Hey! Let me out of here!” I shout and pound on the bedroom door. “Let me out!”
Finally, a key turns in the lock. Marlo saunters in, and I move back toward the window.
“You’re particularly loud, you know that?” she says and sighs as she approaches me, her heels clicking across the old, creaky hardwood floor. “Relax, Robyn. Kyra’s fine. I’m sure you can hear her.”
“Yeah, I can hear her. It doesn’t mean she’s okay,” I snap.
“I have no intention of harming the child,” she says, raising an eyebrow at me. “I got her a Happy Meal, a nanny, and a few toys—brand-new toys, might I add. She’s quite entertained.”
“What is all this? Why are you doing this?” I ask, crossing my arms.
She smiles softly, and I take a second to look her over from head to toe: hair in perfect shape, lusciously combed into an elegant bun, tight jeans and black stilettos, blue cashmere sweater, and sapphire earrings sparkling just below her jawline. Meanwhile, I’m disheveled, pale, and sweating in my tracksuit and work boots, wondering if I’ll ever get to enjoy a hot shower again.
“I’m sure you understand why you’re here,” Marlo calmly says. “You’re a part of the plan, Robyn. For me, it’s nothing personal.”
“And for Calvin?”
“Oh, he’s just looking for payback, but I got him to agree that Kyra needs a family. You won’t be able to provide that for her.”
“Are you fucking kidding me?” I gasp, not sure whether to gouge her eyes out or just laugh in her face. Her audacity is colossal, to say the least. “Marlo, you have no children of your own. Kyra’s my baby. I gave birth to her. You’re not going to take her away from me.”
Diesel, Jagger, and Knox would never stand for that. It’s the one thing I know for sure. Whatever these maniacs think they’re doing, it won’t work. Even if something, God forbid, happens to me… my guys will go scorched earth on everyone’s asses if that’s what it takes to get Kyra back safe. But we’re not done yet. I still have a baby growing inside me, a reason to keep fighting. I just have to be smart about it.
“Robyn, I’m not sure you understand,” Marlo says, hands casually resting on her bony hips. “You don’t have a say in anything at this point.”
I scoff and shake my head. “Wow, you’re off your rocker. So what’s the plan, Marlo? You use me as bait to get the guys, right? You kill us all. And then what? You and Calvin ride off into the sunset with my daughter?”
“You make it sound kind of silly.” She giggles softly. “But yeah, pretty much.”
“You’re crazy.”
“Robyn, I’ve been working toward this moment for a while now. I’ve got money invested in new projects. I’ve got business partners and a great outlook for the future. I’ve rekindled many of my daddy’s connections. And like it or not, Redwood is going back to the way it was a half-decade ago. It will be mine, every damn street corner.”
“It’ll never work,” I say. “The people have seen for themselves that Redwood can thrive without your toxic filth, without kids gunning other kids down in the streets for a fucking eight ball. And with the DEA already here, you’re nuts if you think—”
“Honey, the DEA is in on it.”
“What?” I gasp.
“Well, Spalding is anyway. He’s a principal partner. You see, he understood the real issue. You take one dealer down; another one pops up to take his place. You take a kilo of heroin off the streets, then somebody else puts another kilo back on the streets. It never ends because there will always be a demand for this stuff. It’s the most lucrative business this country has to offer.”
“You make me sick.”
“Well, I would’ve loved to continue with real estate development, truth be told, but the Sinaloa cartel made me an offer I couldn’t bring myself to refuse,” Marlo continues as if I didn’t speak. “A couple of risk analyses later, and I realized that what my daddy and my grandaddy before me were doing was worth the hassle and the risk. Your precious Riders thought they could take the self-righteous path all the way through, but it doesn’t work like that.”
“They’ve been changing Redwood for the better. They created jobs for the people. Their businesses are pouring money back into the local economy. Come on, Marlo, you’re supposedly a smart businesswoman. You’d be an idiot not to recognize the value they’ve added to Redwood, to the whole district.”
“It’s peanuts compared to what my dope routes bring in,” she replies. “Listen, Robyn, like I said, it’s nothing personal. The Riders are in my way, and you’re an excellent hook for their leadership. Once it’s done and over, Calvin will decide what we’re going to do with you. I can’t promise much, though, except maybe a quick death. I’m sure I can get him to agree to that.”
I stare at her in genuine disbelief. “You’re together?”
“It was only natural. Your time is over, Robyn. No need for jealousy—”
“What jealousy?” I say with a wholehearted laugh. “Calvin is a narcissistic piece of shit. He had me going for a while, I’ll give him credit for that much. But he’s mediocre in every possible sense. Even in bed, he’s nothing special.”
Marlo chuckles. “Now, now, don’t lie.”
“I’m not lying. I’m the one who made the emotional connection. It was my love for him that made Calvin special, Marlo. You take your feelings out of the equation, and you’ll realize precisely how worthless he actually is.” I glare at her with narrowed eyes. “What, you thought you were missing out?”
“Not missing out. I knew it was only a matter of time before he’d turn to me. Then the whole prison thing happened, and, well…”
“The whole prison thing happened because Calvin killed a man.” I say as I stare at her, disbelief clouding my voice. “Marlo, are you not hearing yourself? And do you really think my daughter will ever accept you? Say you get away with it all. Say I’m dead and buried and you’ve got Redwood back where you want it. Do you really think my daughter will ever look at you and see anything other than the bitch responsible for the death of her mother?”
Marlo shoots me a cold glare, the kind that sends shivers down my spine. I have a feeling she might pull the trigger herself if given the chance, but Calvin wants that honor. I never bought his whole “I miss you” shtick anyway. That man lies the same way he breathes—effortlessly.
“Kyra will grow up. Her memories of you will fade. I’ll make sure of it. You’ll be a nobody in the dark recesses of her mind,” Marlo says. “Calvin and I will be her family. And someday, I’ll give her a little brother, someone she’ll be able to support when it’s time to take over the business.”
“Oh, you’re not going to pass your drug empire on to Kyra?” I scoff.
“ My blood inherits everything, not yours,” Marlo hisses. “Be thankful I intend to spare her life.”
I point a furious finger at her, no longer able to control myself. “Thankful for what? For the way you’ve both been tormenting me? For kidnapping me? For not letting me see my own child? Grow up, Marlo. You’re not God. You’re just a drug dealer yearning for a prick’s affection. Sooner or later, all of this will come back to bite you in the ass.”
“You’ll be long gone by then.”
I keep trying to talk some sense into this woman, but I don’t think it’s working. “Calvin is playing you. He’ll get you killed. Knox, Diesel, Jagger… they’ll never let you live. They’ll never allow you to hurt me.”
“Yet here you are,” she says, sounding bored now. “Relax, Robyn. It’ll all be over soon. And like I said, I’ll make sure it’s quick for you. I’ll get Kyra out of here before it happens.” She pauses and thinks about it for a moment. “You know what? I’ll do you another kindness. I’ll let you say goodbye to your daughter when the time comes.”
My limbs tremble with rage. The inability to do anything is too much to bear. I’m getting dizzy. As much as I try, I have no choice but to sit down before I fall over.
“I’ll have some water brought to you,” Marlo says, feigning kindness. “Calvin and I are going to own the whole district. And Kyra will always have a place in our home. I want you to find comfort in that thought.”
“Is this your way of making me feel better?”
“I’m not a monster.”
“You’re just a useful idiot,” I say.
She’s about to reply, but Calvin walks into the room with wide, excited eyes. My stomach turns at the mere sight of this man. Then, the familiar rumbling of Harley engines captures my attention.
My heart jumps to my throat.
“They’re here, ladies. It’s showtime,” Calvin quips.
“You’re going to die,” I mutter, watching two of my men come up the driveway.
The rest of the street—mostly abandoned houses and derelict buildings— seems empty. No wonder they chose this place. It’s out of reach. Yet the sight of Knox and Jagger pulling over sends fresh signals to my brain. It allows for hope to blossom in my chest.
It’s a dangerous thing to feel. But it’s all I have left.
“What are you going to do?” I ask them.
Calvin takes Marlo in his arms and gives her a short but intense kiss before he looks at me. “Oh, baby, I’m gonna do what I should’ve done years ago. I’m gonna put a bullet in their heads for everything they did to me.”
“Everything they did to you ? Really, Calvin? No accountability whatsoever.”
“Time’s up,” Marlo cuts in with a wry smile. “Try all you want. There’s no stopping what’s about to happen.”
“I’ll have one of the boys bring you downstairs in a bit,” Calvin says.
I watch, helpless and furious, as Marlo and Calvin leave the room, locking the door behind them. I’m running out of time, that much is true, and I need to find my way out of here before they come back for me—because when they do come back, it’ll be to end me.
Outside, I notice there’s no third Harley. No Diesel anywhere in sight.
“Oh,” I whisper. “He’s here.”
I can’t see him. But I can almost feel him.
And all I can do is pray that the forces of this merciless universe guide him and Knox and Jagger as far away from death as possible. We need to survive tonight, one way or another.
Not long afterward, the door opens again. Paulie, of all people, comes in. My heart stops. For a moment, I feel a pang of hope bursting through me. I even smile at him.
“Paulie, thank God!” I exclaim. “You…” But my voice fades as I see the grim look on his face and the lack of patches on his leather jacket. “No…”
“I’m sorry, Robyn,” he says. “I need to take you downstairs.”
“Oh, God. It’s you,” I reply, my synapses firing rapidly. “The dope in the basement. You’ve been working with Marlo and Calvin the whole time.”
“I promise you, I never meant for any of this to happen.” He tries to touch me, but I slap his hand away. “Don’t fight it, Robyn. It’ll only get worse.”
Tears sting my eyes. “We trusted you. I trusted you. This whole time I was never safe with you, was I?”
“Someday, it will all make sense.”
“When? After I’m dead?” I scoff, looking him up and down. “Fuck you, Paulie.”
“I deserve that. But we still have to go downstairs. They’re about to come in,” he sighs deeply. “And Calvin wants to be extra dramatic. I tried to tone him down, but he’s got his heart set on this.”
I shake my head slowly. “You disgust me.”
“I know.”
He tries to take me by the hand once more, but I reject him completely. “I can walk by myself,” I snap.
“Fine. Then walk.”
I give him a sour look, my stomach turning as bile rises up to the back of my throat. I’m not sure if it’s the morning sickness or just sheer disgust, but I have to push through. There has to be an opportunity for me to do something. My survival instincts are sharp. I’ve lived through so much already. It can’t have all been for naught.
Slowly, I exit the room with Paulie walking right behind me.
I noticed the gun on his belt. Judging the company he’s been keeping, I don’t think he’ll hesitate to use it on me. I make my way downstairs one step at a time.
The house is a wreck. It’s filthy and moldy, every surface covered in age-old grime and thick layers of dust. But the wide-open living room has my full attention. Marlo and Calvin are ready to greet their incoming guests while several guards linger in the hallway. I can hear the voices outside, the patting down of jackets. They’re getting checked for weapons before they’re allowed in.
“Show’s about to start,” Calvin says to me. “Sit down.”
“Kyra is safe. She’s upstairs,” Marlo adds. “She doesn’t know anything. I had the nanny—”
I cut her off. “With all due respect, Marlo, shut your fucking mouth about my daughter. I know you think you’ll get away with everything, but I promise you, you’ll never have Kyra.”
Calvin chuckles dryly. “You always were a fighter.” He pauses and gives Paulie an appreciative nod. “Thanks, buddy. Stick around.”
“I can just—”
“I said stick around,” he insists.
Paulie takes a deep breath and lowers his gaze. It dawns on me. “They don’t know?” I ask Paulie. “Jagger and Knox. They don’t know you’re the one who betrayed them.”
The front door opens. I hear the thudding of their boots as they come in.
“This is the best day ever,” Calvin quips.
As soon as Knox and Jagger step into the living room, I see the color drain from their faces. One look at Paulie, at Calvin and Marlo… and the cold hard truth hits them. It breaks my heart to see it all unfolding like this.
“I should’ve known,” Knox mutters. Paulie opens his mouth to say something, but Knox shakes his head and stops him. “I don’t even want to hear it.” He looks at me next. “Are you okay?”
“As okay as I can be,” I say. “But Knox, you know they’re not letting me walk out of here alive.”
“We’ll see,” Jagger cuts in, giving me a reassuring wink. “We’re here to negotiate.”
“Welcome, gentlemen,” Calvin says with a huge grin. “I suppose you want to hear about the terms and conditions first?”
Knox rolls his eyes. “We’re here to speak to Marlo. She’s in charge, right?”
“That I most certainly am,” she replies with a pleasant smile.
“Which makes you a fucking stooge,” Jagger chuckles as he looks at Calvin.
“Say that again,” Calvin says, almost losing control, his grip tightening on his gun.
“Calvin, please,” Marlo says, trying to calm him down.
But he doesn’t like that very much. It’s obvious to me. It’s sad she didn’t see this coming. Calvin takes a step forward. “Honey, let me handle this. I’ve been waiting a long time—”
“Calvin, please,” she says again. This time, I notice the shift in her voice.
And so does Calvin. He’s seething just beneath the surface, and I see a fire burning in his eyes. It’s the rage of a narcissist who thought he’d take center stage in this conversation. Oh, how the humiliation must sting on the deepest level.
“Gentlemen, the deal is simple,” Marlo adds, shifting her focus to Knox and Jagger while they keep stealing worried glances at me. “I’m sorry it had to come to this, but you didn’t leave me with any other option.”
“So, what was it, Paulie?” Jagger changes the subject without taking his eyes off Marlo. “Better pay? Loyalty to an old friend? Fear that we might not withstand the Hughes expansion? What drove you to betray the club?”
“Look, Jag, it’s not as simple as that,” Paulie says by way of an explanation.
“It is that simple actually,” Jagger replies. “What was it? Knox might not want to know, but I sure as hell do.”
“Are you stalling?” Marlo smiles.
“For what? No, I genuinely want to know. I mean, we’re already here. Calvin saw fit that Paulie should be present for this,” Jagger says. “I assume this was supposed to be some kind of dramatic reveal.” He shoots a cool grin over at Calvin. “You’re so bad at this, buddy. It fell so flat; it’s almost ridiculous.”
“I swear to God, I will kill you right here, right now,” Calvin snaps.
Marlo raises a hand to stop him from taking a step forward. “Remember what we talked about,” she says to her unhinged lover.
“I don’t know why I’m surprised to see you whipped by a woman,” Jagger says with a chuckle.
I understand what he’s doing, pushing Calvin’s buttons like this. They need chaos in this room, and the idea makes every muscle in my body tighten in anticipation of something either life-saving or catastrophic. Whatever happens, I need to be ready to fight my way to freedom, to my daughter.
Marlo groans with frustration. “Jagger, stop it! The situation is simple! Enough beating around the bush, enough stalling,” she says. “Hand over the Rogue Riders MC, and you get Robyn back. That’s it.”
“Yeah, it does sound simple enough,” Knox mutters. “Were you expecting us to bring over some legal paperwork to attest to the club’s new ownership?”
“You’re smart enough to know the answer to that question.”
“And my daughter?” I ask, playing along with what I know is a crock of shit.
“Kyra stays with her father and me,” Marlo replies.
“Knox, they mean to kill me,” I say.
Marlo chuckles softly. “No, darling. I’ll admit that I did say that upstairs, but that was just to mess with you. I’m a woman of my word. I get the club; you get to walk out of here alive. But Kyra stays with us.”
“You’re delusional,” Knox tells her.
“What I am is the leader of this fucking county,” she hisses. “I have the power and the money, and I call the shots. And you, you’re all my bitches. You all will do as I say. That’s how it works. That’s how it has always worked.”
Calvin scoffs, drawing a sideways glare from Marlo.
“Wait, did she promise you a seat at the table?” Jagger, still laughing, says to Calvin, quick to pick up on the strife lingering between them. He’s hell-bent on pushing every single button Calvin has. “Buddy, you can’t tell your head from your ass, which is why you never advanced in the club, why we were never sorry to kick you out. You contributed absolutely nothing.”
“I contributed here,” Calvin says.
“Paulie did most of the work by the looks of it,” Knox replies. “Planting the drugs, tipping off the DEA, all that crap.”
“He didn’t need to tip anybody off,” a man’s voice cuts through the room.
Our heads turn with a collective snap as Agent Frank Spalding steps in from the hallway. I didn’t hear the front door opening, so he probably used the back entrance. His self-satisfied smirk irritates me beyond belief. He’s supposed to be a federal agent.
“Ah, the man of the hour,” Knox says. “You soil that badge you flaunt with every breath you take.”
“Spare me the morality lesson,” Spalding retorts. “Let’s get back to the issue at hand here. I don’t have all day.”
Jagger exhales sharply. “What’s your take in all of this? Twenty percent? Thirty?”
“None of your goddamn business,” Spalding says.
“The club’s paperwork,” Marlo tries to veer the conversation back on topic. “Did you bring it?”
“Not even twenty percent?” Jagger says to Spalding before looking at Marlo. “Good grief, Marlo, you really played these two for absolute idiots, didn’t you? Hats off to you, girl. I am genuinely impressed.”
“You’re never getting my club,” Knox tells Marlo. “We’re not here to negotiate anything.”
“Are you sure about that?” Marlo asks.
Knox doesn’t answer. Instead, he stares at a glimmering red dot on Calvin’s chest. I didn’t even notice it. My pulse starts racing as Marlo follows Knox’s gaze. Jagger doesn’t move an inch. I can’t even breathe. Calvin looks down and freezes.
“I’m sure,” Knox finally says. “We’re taking Robyn and Kyra and we’re leaving. In about five minutes, this house will be swarming with state troopers. I’ve already alerted the sheriff regarding the entire situation. He knows to consider any DEA agent as potentially hostile. It’s over.”
“Five minutes,” Marlo tells Calvin. Her calmness bothers me.
“Yeah, I guess we have to speed it up a little bit,” he mutters.
Something is wrong.
Calvin nods twice, and the red dot moves from his chest to mine.
I freeze.
“Oh, God,” I whisper, afraid to even breathe.
“Here’s the thing,” Calvin says. “The moment I saw only two of you show up, I figured you had a different plan.”
The front door slams open and Diesel gets dragged into the room.
Half his face is bruised from a serious beating, and he struggles to remain upright as two massive goons hold him, hands behind his broad back. I’m surprised they were able to subdue him, but then I notice the taser burn on the side of his neck.
“Diesel,” I utter.
“I’m good, baby,” he tells me with a heavy breath.
“That right there,” Calvin points at the red dot on my chest. “That’s my sniper, not yours.”
“Paulie told us plenty about your military exploits,” Marlo adds. “We knew you wouldn’t accept defeat easily. It made sense that you would try something like this. But I won’t hold it against you. It was worth a shot. I probably would’ve done the same if I were in your shoes. It’s time to get serious, though. It is time to face the music, gentlemen. Give me the Rogue Riders MC. I’ll give you Robyn.”
Calvin scoffs, lips twisted with disgust. “Come on, Marlo. They’re fucked. Might as well kill them. The whole club ownership shtick was only supposed to work until our guys caught Diesel. Diesel’s here. Let’s just get this over with.”
“Calvin, darling. I’m a woman of my word. I don’t make false promises.”
Does she mean to say that she is actually trying to negotiate here after gleefully jumping into bed with a loose cannon like Calvin Russo? It won’t end well for Marlo because my ex-husband is already one inch closer to the edge. If there’s one thing he hates more than being humiliated by a Rider, it’s being humiliated by a woman.
And that is precisely what’s going on here.
“Marlo, you have to stop this,” I say, trying to reason with her. “Let us walk away. Let me take my daughter, and let me—”
“I’ve had enough of this,” Spalding interjects and draws his weapon. He points it at my head. “Screw your snipers. I’ll get the ball rolling.”