Chapter 7
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Lily
Whatever I was expecting, it sure wasn’t this. Who would have thought a secret, mysterious organization helping abused women was possible? Sure, I came to terms with that after meeting my three helpers. After learning this was a real organization, my mind pictured a dark, hidden underground room as their base of operations. Never in a million years would I have guessed the secret organization to be bikers.
Our eight-hour ride turned into nearly twelve. Shepherd is not a drive-straight-through type of guy. After arriving here, I can definitely picture him as a biker who loves to ride for the beauty and enjoyment of it. He stopped about once an hour for snacks, restroom breaks, and just to stretch our legs. He got gas at every stop whether we needed it or not. It was a good thing he did. A multi-car and truck pile-up on the interstate just outside of Memphis caused a two-hour delay.
The shock of realizing how wrong I was about all of this stunned me into silence when we pulled up to the fence around the building. Shepherd called ahead when we were about ten minutes away. He didn’t speak to the young biker at the guard house. The man simply nodded to Shepherd, opened the gate, and stood at attention like a soldier until we were safely through the gate.
I’m not sure exactly where we are in Tennessee. The hundred bikes in front of the building assure me this is a motorcycle club. This entire journey has been insane. Nothing should surprise me at this point. I’m not even sure if I should be alarmed when Shepherd passes the front lot and drives around to a private one on the right side of the building.
The side door opens the moment we park. Whoa. Are there no small bikers in this club? Surely there are. This man is as big as Shepherd and Andrew. He’s older but definitely not out of shape.
My door opens, causing me to jump and squeak. Shepherd lightly chuckles. I snap my head to the driver’s seat. Empty. When did he get out?
“Come on, Lily. Let’s get you inside.” He opens the back door and gets my bag.
Numbly and quietly, I walk with him to the open door. Is this man in the doorway Jacob? Should I say hello? I have no idea what I’m supposed to do. Nina could have explained things better.
“Worley Bird.” Shepherd nods to the man as we step inside.
Okay. He’s not Jacob. What kind of name is Worley Bird, though?
“Shepherd.” Worley Bird nods back. His eyes drop to me. “Hello, angel. Follow me.”
Sounds from a very lively party come from somewhere in the building. I walk between the two huge bikers down an empty hallway. For the first time, I can study the emblem on the back of the man in front of me. I got glimpses of Shepherds when we stopped. This one looks to be the same. Do all biker emblems have this much detail? The sounds of the party fade as I get lost in the details of the design.
A shield with a Viking sits in the center of a set of golden wings. The wings are outlined and shaded in places with red. What appears to be banners or ribbons adorn the top and bottom. The top one says Viking Warriors MC. The bottom one says Tennessee. Shepherd’s bottom one says Texas. It’s the only thing I caught during one of our stops. I was too afraid to ask him if I could get a closer look at the design. There seems to be a deep red or burgundy glow around the wings. It’s absolutely beautiful.
The party must be around the corner. I don’t get to see it. Strangely enough, I want to. I have no idea what’s come over me. I’ve never been to a biker party. I’m led to a door on the right. Once again, what I was expecting the room to be isn’t what I find inside.
The office is huge. Naturally, there’s a wooden desk. Everything else takes me by surprise. The two chairs on this side look to be made of comfortable leather. A couch with a recliner on each side sits in both corners of the room closest to the door. The biggest surprise is the large window behind the desk. It becomes my focus point. Somehow, I find peace and comfort in the window. Yeah, my brain’s just that warped. Why a window removes my anxiety is beyond me.
“Hello, angel.” The deep voice has me snapping my gaze to the man behind the desk.
My anxiety amps right back up. No one has to tell me. Somehow, I just know. This is him. This is Jacob. Even with him sitting, I can tell he’s as big as the rest of these men. He’s strong and confident. He holds himself a little differently than the others. He’s their leader. He’s bold, brave, and a protector—or someone’s destroyer. Your attitude determines which side of this man you get. No clue how I know all that just by looking into his eyes. I’ve never been able to do it before.
Oh, please let me be on his good side.
He smiles and motions to the chairs in front of the desk. “You definitely are, angel.”
I groan as I sink into one of the leather chairs. I said that out loud. I’m going to have to get better control of myself than this.
“Shepherd, thanks for bringing her.” The man behind the desk stands and clasps arms with my helper.
“Jacob, this is Lily. I’ll let her tell you her story.” Shepherd pauses and places a hand on my shoulder. “Stay brave, Lily. Tell him everything. Jacob’s a good man. You can trust him. You remember?”
He means, do I remember what Nina told me to say? I nod. I may not remember what she said word for word, but I remember enough.
“You’re leaving?” I glance over my shoulder at the door. I don’t want him to go.
“Just for a moment. Your story is yours. You don’t need me or anyone else hearing it. I’ll come back in a bit if you want.”
“Yeah.” They seem to have a system for how things are done. Asking him to stay would probably be pointless, no matter how comforting his presence would make me.
Shepherd places my bag on my lap and leaves the room. I’m left alone with Jacob and Worley Bird. The big biker by the door isn’t as scary. He smiles. His face holds no anger, only kindness and concern. I know the face of evil. I have nothing to fear here.
A light tap comes on the door. Worley Bird opens it just a crack at first. He quickly opens the door wide and lets a woman in. I follow her as she walks across the room beside Jacob. She never takes her eyes off me.
“This is my ole' lady, Evelyn.” His arm lovingly goes around her waist. The two share one of the sweetest smiles I’ve ever seen before looking back at me.
“Hello, angel. Do you have a message for us?” Evelyn asks.
Okay. At first, I thought it was just a coincidence. Maybe kindness because they don’t know my name. It’s not. There’s a meaning to this. Why are they all calling me angel? My helpers called me by my real name. No one here has asked.
“Um.” I swallow hard and think. Message? Oh, yeah. “I was told to ask for Jacob.” I give the man a nervous smile. “And to say Ariel.”
Jacob and Evelyn’s small smiles completely fade as their eyes meet. She closes her eyes for a moment and takes a deep breath. An indescribable pain radiates from her. One of the reasons I became a nurse was because I sensed other people’s pain and wanted to help heal it.
“Okay.” Jacob clears his throat. “Can I get your envelope?”
“Oh, yeah.” I quickly unzip my bag and hand him the sealed envelope Nina shoved inside.
The door behind me opens and closes. I don’t turn around. My heart has latched onto the broken woman behind the desk. Embarrassment and shame fill me as I watch her go through my file with her husband. I’m assuming ole' lady means she’s his wife. Whether these two are legally married or not, she definitely has the role of his wife.
Someone moves to stand beside me. I look up at Shepherd. He came back. Someone else moves behind me. I don’t look to see who it is. My eyes remain on Evelyn. Finally, after what feels like an eternity, Jacob closes the file. His hand balls into a fist before laying them flat on top of the file.
Evelyn wipes a tear from the corner of her eye. Seeing her break almost breaks me. I didn’t see everything Nina put in that folder. If the contents detail my life with Joel, why does it make Evelyn cry?
“Who sent you to us?” Jacob asks.
“Nina Lowe.”
The couple look at each other again before turning to every person in the room. I know there are more than two people behind me. How many more? I’m not sure, but I feel their presence. Jacob nods to them.
Evelyn walks around the desk and offers me her hands. Without hesitation, I place mine into hers. She pulls me to my feet. We’re about the same height. I don’t flinch or protest when she reaches up to remove my sunglasses.
Jacob quickly stands. He fights to keep his hand flat on the desk. “Welcome to the Viking Warriors.”
“And to Ariel’s Angels,” Evelyn adds.
Okay. I saw the club name on the back of Worley Bird’s vest. Nina told me to ask for Jacob and say Ariel. Since arriving here, they’ve called me angel. It’s all connected somehow.
“I don’t understand.”
“We’ve been rescuing women and children from domestic violence for going on twelve years,” Jacob says.
Wow. That’s impressive. I work in the medical field, but I’ve never heard of an organization like this. If I had known something like this existed, I could have shared it with so many women in LA.
My eyes meet Evelyn’s. “Thank you for helping me, but why would you all do this?”
She glances over her shoulder at her husband. Her tears fall unchecked. The pain in her eyes when she looks back at me almost crumbles me to my knees.
"Because not everyone makes it out." She’s unable to smile through her tears this time.
“Ariel,” I whisper when it hits me.
She nods. “Our daughter.”
“I’m sure you have more questions. We’ll answer those the best we can in time.” Jacob moves behind his wife and wraps his arms around her. She falls easily against his chest. “Just know, you’re safe here. We’ll protect you and help you start over.”
“The party’s a bit loud. There’s more people here tonight than we expected. I don’t think keeping her in the clubhouse is a good idea.” Worley Bird moves to stand on my left.
“He’s right.” Evelyn glances up at her husband. “Lily should stay in the guest house. Evie and I will make sure she has everything she needs for a few days.” Her head snaps toward someone behind me. “Where are the kids?”
Shepherd steps forward. “I walked them to the kitchen and left them with Nana since you were here.”
Evelyn sighs with relief. “Thank you, Shepherd.” She kisses Jacob’s cheek. “I should go check on them.”
“I can walk Lily to the guest house.” The deep voice behind me wraps around me like a blanket.
“Really?” Evelyn raises an eyebrow.
The soothing voice chuckles. “Yes, Mom. Really.”
Jacob looks around the room. His gaze finally settles over my head. “Okay then. Thanks, son.”
Evelyn hands me back the sunglasses. “I’ll meet you at the guest house shortly. We’ll get a list together of what you need.”
“Thank you.” I slip the glasses on and turn to meet my escort. I’m at eye level with the man’s throat and have to tilt my head back to see his face.
Wow.
His smile widens. Several others chuckle.
Oh no. I drop my head all the way back. I did it again.
“Come on, Lily.” Mr. Wow takes my hand and pulls me toward the door. “I’ll walk you to the guest house.”
“Shepherd,” I gasp and spin around to face my helper. I don’t miss the deep growl from my escort. I ignore him. “What happens to you now?”
He grins. “Don’t worry about me, darlin’.” The escort growls deeper. Shepherd ignores him, too. “I’m going to enjoy this party tonight and head back to Texas tomorrow.”
“Thank you for everything.” He has no idea how much I mean those words.
“My pleasure, darlin'. But don’t worry. I have a strange feeling you and I will see each other again soon.” Shepherd bends over laughing when the escort steps between us.
“Bye, Shepherd,” Mr. Wow snaps before turning to face me, keeping Shepherd completely blocked from my view.
“Bye, Jack. Welcome home,” Shepherd says as we move toward the door.
Jack? His name is Jack. At the door, I lock eyes with another man who looks a lot like Jack.
I look between them several times. “Twins?”
“Nope.” Jack takes my hand again and gently pulls me into the hall. “Cousins.”
Cousins? I would have guessed they were brothers. Jack leads me to the same door Shepherd and I entered. We start down a path behind the building along a large wooden fence. The party is on the other side. It’s nice to hear people laughing and having fun for a change. I squeeze the hand holding mine once we pass the fence. He pauses and turns to face me.
“Hi. I’m Lily Harman.” Yeah, it’s corny, but we weren’t properly introduced. “Thank you for helping me.”
“Hi, Lily. I’m Jack McLeod.” His eyes seem to find mine through the sunglasses. I know it’s not possible, though. “I will do whatever it takes to protect you forever.”
“Forever?” I whisper.
He nods once, sealing his promise.
Oh wow.
He lightly chuckles again. Uh. I’m not able to control myself around him. I’m going to have to figure out how. I can’t let my mind wander like this.