CHAPTER TEN #2
After helping Honey into the passenger seat, I close her door and pull out my phone, dialing Zero.
He picks up on the first ring. “Yo.”
“I need you to hack into the security cameras at Hank’s Tree Farm on Badger Line Road,” I say, keeping my voice low. “Someone took Honey’s boys. I need to know who, and I need to know now.”
“On it,” Zero says without hesitation. “Text me any information you got.”
“Look for a man with two boys. He sped out of here in a black sedan.” I end the call and quickly send him all the details I can remember.
Rounding the hood of the truck, I climb in beside Honey. She’s staring straight ahead, her hands clutched tightly in her lap.
I wish there was something I could say—some way to make her forgive me.
Heaving a sigh, I start the engine.
We’re barely out of the lot when my phone dings. I glance at the screen.
Zero’s sent a photo—a clear shot of a black sedan with fucking Eddie behind the wheel. In the backseat, I can just make out Tommy’s auburn hair.
That motherfucker.
I grip the steering wheel so hard my knuckles turn white, but I don’t say anything to Honey. She’ll want to call the cops again, and they’ll waste precious time with paperwork and procedure. This is my fault, and I’m going to fix it myself.
The drive to the clubhouse is silent, the tension between us thick enough to cut. When we arrive, I try to help Honey out of the truck, but she shrugs away from my touch. The rejection stings more than I want to admit.
Inside, the place is quieter than usual. A few of my brothers are scattered around, and they look up with interest when we enter. Their expressions change to concern when they see Honey’s tear-streaked face.
“Take her to the old ladies,” I tell Bubbles, who’s wiping down the bar. She nods and hurries over, wrapping an arm around Honey’s shoulders.
“Come on, hon,” she says softly. “Let’s get you sitting down.”
Honey allows herself to be led away, not even looking back at me. I watch her go, feeling like my heart’s being ripped out of my chest, then head straight to the chapel.
Inside, Chief is seated at the head of the table, his expression grim. Rage, Reign, Killer, Zero, and Morpheus are already here, all wearing similar looks of concern.
“What happened?” Chief asks the second I close the door.
I relay the events at the tree farm, my voice steady despite the storm raging inside me. When I finish, the room is silent for a beat.
“Motherfucker needs to die,” Chief finally says, his tone matter-of-fact.
“He’s her kid’s father.” I sigh, running a hand over my face. “I don’t want to be responsible for killing their dad.”
“But you’re gonna make sure he knows to stay the fuck away?” Rage asks.
“Damn straight.” I look at Zero, who’s hunched over his laptop. “You got anything yet?”
“Working on it.” His fingers fly over the keyboard. “I’m tracking his cell phone. Just need a few more—got it!”
We all lean forward as Zero swivels his screen around.
“He’s at 4872 Oakhall Trail,” Zero announces. “It’s out in the sticks, about twenty miles from here. Probably a cabin or something.”
“Let’s go,” Chief says, already pushing back from the table.
I head straight for the main room, my eyes finding Honey immediately. She’s sitting with the old ladies.
She looks up when I approach, her eyes hollow with fear and exhaustion.
“We’ve got a lead,” I tell her, keeping my voice low. “I’m going to get them back.”
“I’m coming with you,” she says, rising to her feet.
I shake my head. “No, baby. You need to trust me to handle this.”
Her eyes search mine, looking for reassurance, for something to hold onto. Finally, she nods, though it’s clear she wants to fight me on this.
“Bring my babies back to me,” she whispers, tears welling in her eyes again. “Please, Caleb.”
I cup her face in my hands, pressing my forehead to hers. “I promise.”
I kiss her once, hard and quick, then turn and stride out the door before I can change my mind about leaving her behind.
Outside, my brothers are already waiting on their bikes. I climb into my truck, and moments later, we’re tearing down the road toward Oakhall Trail.
The cabin is set back from the road, hidden from view by a thick line of pine trees. Eddie’s red Mustang is parked out front, right next to the black sedan I saw leaving the lot at Hank’s Tree Farm.
Skidding to a stop in front of the cabin, I’m out of my truck in a heartbeat. Chief, Morph, and the others roar up right behind me, but I’m not waiting.
I storm up the porch steps, lift my leg, and kick in the door without hesitation.
My eyes dart around the tiny cabin. It’s a one-room shithole. Not the kind of place my boys should be. In the corner of the room, a cot holds two small forms.
Tommy and Jackson.
I stare at their little bodies for a heartbeat.
“Boys,” I whisper, moving closer.
Tommy’s eyes are closed, and Jackson is too still.
The door to my right creaks as it opens. Eddie’s wild, bloodshot eyes lock with mine, and I roar, “What the fuck did you do to them?”
He startles, but recovers quickly, his lips curling into a sneer. “The little shits wouldn’t stop screaming,” he spits. “So I gave them some cough medicine to shut them up.”
“You drugged them?” I growl.
“Fuck!” I hear Morpheus hiss from behind me.
I close the distance and drive my fist into Eddie’s face with every ounce of strength I possess. He stumbles back, blood spurting from his nose, but I don’t stop. I hit him again, and again.
“Get the boys out of here,” I growl at my brothers, not taking my eyes off the piece of shit in front of me.
I catch Morpheus and Reign out of the corner of my eye as they carry the boys outside.
“If you ever—” I grab Eddie by the collar of his shirt and land another blow, “—come near Honey or her boys again, nobody will ever find your fucking body. You understand me?”
I drop the bastard to the floor.
Eddie cowers against the wall, blood pouring from his nose and the gash above his eye. His pants darken as he pisses himself.
“I understand! I swear! Just please don’t kill me,” he whimpers.
Disgusted, I turn to leave, already thinking about getting the boys back to Honey and getting them checked out by a doctor.
That’s when I hear it—the unmistakable sound of a hammer being cocked.
“You gonna shoot me in the back, you cocksucker?” I turn around slowly.
Eddie’s holding a small revolver, pointed right at my chest. His hand is shaking, but at this distance, it hardly matters.
“You think you can just take my family?” he snarls, his voice wavering. “Honey’s never going to see those boys again. I swear to God, I’ll—”
The gun goes off, but the shot goes wide.
“Fuck!” My hands go up to cover my head, and my eyes fly to the splintered wood beside me.
Without thinking, I draw the pistol at my back and fire.
The bullet catches Eddie right between the eyes, a perfect shot.
He crumples to the floor with a loud thump, the gun falling from his lifeless hand.
For a moment, the cabin is silent except for the ringing in my ears. Suddenly, the door bursts open, and my brothers rush in, weapons drawn.
They all stop short when they see Eddie’s body on the floor, a pool of blood spreading beneath his head.
“So much for letting the fucker live.” Reign chuckles.
Killer steps around him and smirks. “Good riddance,” he says, turning to me. “Get out of here, brother. Take your boys back to their momma. I’ll handle this.”
I nod, relief washing over me. “Thanks, brother.”
Killer grunts.
Holstering my weapon, I head outside. I took Eddie’s life—the father of Honey’s boys.
Fuck!
But as I approach my truck where Tommy and Jackson are stirring in the backseat, looking drowsy but alive, I can’t bring myself to regret it.
I’ll live with what I’ve done.
Tommy and Jackson are my boys now.
And I’ve got to get my boys home to their momma.