Chapter 5
“What do you think about Val?”
“Who?” Xander stared at him as they sat in the dining hall, eating.
“The waitress.”
“Mmm. Long hair, green eyes, that gorgeous mouth. And fuck, those tits?—”
“I mean, didn’t you find it odd that she wasn’t crying or screaming? She had a gun to her face. Most people would shit their pants.”
Xander smirked. “Maybe she’s got cement for guts.”
“Hilarious.”
“But to answer your question.” Xander shrugged and put his fork down. “Maybe she’s been around violence before. Given her reaction, I’d say that’s probable.”
Jesse nodded, his gut clenching.
“I got a bad feeling, something ain’t right about this. She’s hiding something.”
“Or she’s just a tough bitch. Avery wouldn’t cower in the same situation.”
“Avery grew up here,” Jesse snapped. “Shit, maybe that’s it. You don’t think Val’s got some connection to another crew, do you?”
“Her? Nah,” Xander waved him off. “I did a check on her.”
“You what? When?”
“As soon as we got back. Same thing with Sam.”
“And?”
“And I can’t find anything until she arrived here five years ago. She probably changed her name. She’s twenty-three, has no debt, lives alone, and keeps to herself.”
“There you go. Where the fuck is she from? What’s her story? Something ain’t right.”
Xander leaned forward. “You need to chill, Jess. I’ll continue to dig into her but right now, she’s not a threat. She hardly leaves town. There’s no connection to any crew.”
“And Sam?”
“He’s liquidated his accounts. The diner is surviving but he’s not making much profit. In short, if we don’t loan him the money, Krypt is gonna take him out. Sooner or later.”
Jesse’s dad and the club President Gage Hellion stepped into the dining hall and made right for them.
“Dad,” Jesse nodded.
Gage sat down and the table shifted. At over two hundred and twenty pounds of muscle, Gage was not to be messed with. He had long blond hair and a beard to match and brown eyes that were always intense.
“What’s this situation with Sam?”
“He’s in debt to the Krypt crew, twenty grand. But we can use him. I say we help him pay off his debt and put him back in there, see what we can learn about their operation. We know gambling is just the tip of it. Parties are a prime way to shell out their latest drugs.”
Gage nodded and looked at Xander. “I hear that there was another witness today. A woman?”
“The waitress, Val Renn,” Xander replied with a nod. “Not much to tell about her. She arrived here five years ago thanks to Rochelle?—”
“You didn’t mention that,” Jesse bit out.
“I didn’t? Well, I’m sure I meant to.” Xander winked at him, and Jesse’s temper ignited. Xander ignored him and kept talking. “Apparently Rochelle picked her up. Val was hitchhiking. Anyway, Val is quiet, lives alone, no money issues, nothing. No boyfriends or lovers from what I can tell online but you never know. Never married. But I can’t find any information on her prior to five years ago so I’m thinking she changed her name. I’ll do a deeper dive tonight.”
“Jesse, talk to Rochelle and see what else she knows about Val. Maybe she told Rochelle stuff she wouldn’t say to anyone else,” Gage commanded. “Xander, find out where the fuck Val came from, I want to know everything. Maybe we can use her too. When’s Sam arriving?”
“Eight.”
“Good. The timing is perfect, and this is a great lead on Krypt. Make sure Sonny and Dante are in on the meeting. Jackson and Wyatt are making a gun haul tonight so fill them in when they’re back.”
“Course,” Jessie replied.
“Sam will get his money but only if he works for us. And I want a full run up on him, I want his phone tracked. Any hint that he’s going to turn to the police, and he’s done. Got it?”
Jesse nodded. “Yes.”
“Understood,” Xander murmured and took another mouthful of food.
Gage got up and stalked off, leaving Xander and Jesse alone again.
Well, not alone. Wyatt and Jackson sauntered up to them and sat down.
“Heard you guys almost had a shootout in town. Like an old western,” Jackson smirked and tilted his cowboy hat.
Jesse rolled his eyes. “I wish. If I wasn’t concerned about witnesses, I would’ve gladly taken those guys out.”
“Me too,” Xander snorted. “Golan called me a ‘freak’, like ouch. Please. We’re fucking bikers. At least make your insult count.”
“Sounds like we got some Krypt ass to whoop,” Wyatt remarked. “Just tell me when and where.”
Jesse nodded. “You’ll be the first to know. The gun run you have comes first.”
“I also heard the hot waitress was there,” Jackson added. “Hmm, the curves on her are so fucking fine.”
“Hands off,” Jesse snapped, and the table grew silent. “What? We might have to bring her in and use her. Xander and I have already made contact so if anyone’s gonna get near her, it’ll be us.”
“A threesome? That’s hot as hell,” Xander remarked, stroking his jaw.
“Fuck off,” Jesse sighed and rolled his eyes. “You know what I mean.”
“I do,” Xander paused and looked at Jackson and Wyatt. “And Jesse’s right. Hands off. We saw her first.”
“Fine by me. I get plenty of tits and ass from the usual randos,” Jackson bragged.
“Speaking of, we having our party tomorrow night?” Wyatt asked.
“It’ll depend how this Krypt thing works out.”
Xander stood up. “Well, I gotta get back to my research. See what I can dig up.”
“I’m going to talk to Rochelle, see you guys later.”
Jesse left the table and headed for his cottage. Once he got his medical bag, he called for his dogs, and they made their way to Nate and Rochelle’s.
This time, Rochelle answered the door.
“You look better,” Jesse stated as he walked in the house.
“I’m feeling better. The fever broke. Now Nate’s the one who can’t get out of bed.”
“Oh shit.”
“That too,” Rochelle quipped.
“I’m going to do another quick check, and then I have some questions for you.”
“About?”
“Val Renn.”
Rochelle shrugged. “I can’t tell you much. I picked her up on a road just outside of Mosley five years ago. She said she was leaving a religious order. Apparently, she was supposed to marry some sixty-year-old man and she was only eighteen at the time.”
Jesse considered that. Mosley. It was a good a place as any to start.
“She didn’t tell you her real name?”
“Nope. She’s not stupid.”
No, it didn’t appear that way.
“Okay, let’s get you checked out. Temperature first.”
Once Jesse confirmed that Rochelle had no fever, he urged her to continue to rest and get lots of fluids. Nate was puking his guts out and had spiked a fever. Jesse gave him electrolyte drinks and said if it continued through to tonight, he’d be back at midnight to give him a saline IV.
When he was done seeing his patients, Jesse hauled ass back to the main house and Xander’s war room.
As usual, Xander had his headphones on, typing away. When he wasn’t working on the club’s security and tech, Xander also helped run the drug manufacturing. In short, Xander was busy and hardly slept. Not that he needed to. He liked to brag that he got 3 or 4 hours and he was good to go. And Jesse had seen Xander fuck. It wasn’t all bragging.
The dogs ran up to their second favorite person and nudged his arm. Xander turned, yanking off his headphones. He petted the dogs and then turned his attention to Jesse.
“Check out Mosley, Alberta,” Jesse demanded. “That’s the town where Rochelle picked up Val.”
“On it,” Xander turned back to his laptop.
“What are you listening to?” Jesse asked, curious.
“Audiobook. Helps me relax.”
“What kind of books?”
“Anything with a lot of descriptive sex,” Xander chuckled and started typing again. “Okay, let’s see here. Mosley, Alberta, population 445. Bigger than Longford. Home to farmers, an old limestone quarry, and, oh yes, a religious order called Holy Sacrifice, led by a man named Simeon Darling. He’s reputed to have several wives and about thirty or so children.”
“Ugh, I can’t imagine one rugrat, never mind thirty,” Jesse shuddered. “That must be where she’s from. Can you find out the names of all the people who live there to get her real identity?”
“That might be a challenge. Says here they don’t believe in modern day communications like the internet. And they don’t believe in registering births or government documentation of any kind. The only reason Simeon shows up on the net is because he made the news when he moved from B.C. to Alberta twenty years ago. He was arrested for DUI.”
“Really? Mr. Holy? Okay, well, I still want Val here with Sam. Tonight. Call the diner and tell Sam to bring her.”
“You think we can use her?”
Jesse was working out scenarios in his head and nodded. “Remember Colt was gonna take her? What if Sam shows up to his next gambling party, with his payment plus Val to sweeten the deal? Except, we get her to spy for us while Sam’s playing. We know that the Krypt crew won’t suspect she’s anything but a piece of ass.”
“That’s a bad idea.”
“Why?”
“She’s shy, and from what I can gather, doesn’t sleep around. Ever. That’s like sending a virgin to be sacrificed.” Xander shook his head. “It’s not gonna work.”
Jesse sighed and ran a hand through his hair. “I want it known that if Sam doesn’t comply and work with us, she’s gonna be used as collateral against his loan. And tell Sonny to get the bunker ready for tonight.”
“You’re ruthless,” Xander quipped and waggled his eyebrows. “I fucking love it.”
“You love yourself. Get back to work.”
“Yes, boss. Oh wait, that’s Gage,” Xander replied with a middle finger. “So you, Jesse, can kiss my ass.”
“You wish.”