10 – Serenity
I keep my distance, trying not to let myself be noticed as I follow the car through town and down some side streets. I pull back, letting other cars fall in front of me, so it doesn’t look obvious that I’m following them. They come to a stop at a house just outside of town, and that house has large fences around it. A woman gets out, swiping a card, and the gate opens.
I keep driving, knowing I can’t stop.
Damnit.
Heart racing, I drive back toward the rally, but as I near closer, I notice the red and blue flashing lights of police cars. They’re everywhere. My eyes widen as I quickly pull the truck over and watch as the cops are speaking to Jackson and Spike, both men standing with their arms crossed.
They’re questioning them, and that means they’ll be looking for me.
I need to get out of here.
I turn the truck around and get as far away as I can, finding a quiet street to slip down where I turn the truck off. I have no way of contacting them to tell them I’m okay, but I know I can’t go back. Taking a deep breath, I take in my surroundings. A few cafes, a couple of boutique stores, all of them too risky for me to step into.
I have no doubt my face has been plastered all over the news.
There are two women standing at the end of the street, looking as though they’re waiting for a cab. I take the risk and jump out of the truck, approaching them. They see me coming, and when I offer a smile, I pray they don’t know who I am.
“I’m so sorry to bother you ladies,” I say, keeping my smile, “but I lost my phone, and I really need to call my partner. Could I borrow a phone?”
The blond woman blinks a few times, then nods and hands me her phone. “Sure.”
I dial Jackson’s number, and he answers on the second ring. “Yeah?”
“It’s me. I know where he is, and I am hiding, I saw the cops.”
“Whose phone is this?”
“I borrowed it and ...”
“Fuck. They could be tapped into my phone. Hang up and get out of there right now. Go to the parking lot where we do business and wait for me. Don’t move from there.”
Where we do business?
I swallow, and then realize he’s talking about the wharf. I hand the phone back to the blond lady, and she offers me a weary smile. Turning, I rush off and get back into the car. What I didn’t realize is that all along, those women knew who I was, and they immediately called the cops.
I don’t realize until flashing lights suddenly appear behind me.
My eyes widen, and my heart skips a beat.
Oh no.
No, no.
This is bad.
My eyes dart around the road, desperately trying to find a place where I can get the hell out of here, but I can’t find any roads that are safe to turn down. Is my only option to get out and run? I don’t have anyone to help this time, no one with a map, nothing.
I make a hasty decision and turn the truck back toward the location where the rally is, praying I’ll pass one of the club members who can help me. I keep the speed up, running red lights and desperately weaving through cars as I near the location. Passing two bikes, I wave my hands frantically.
It doesn’t take them long to figure out what’s happening.
I swerve down a side street, and two cop cars are on my tail.
I made a huge mistake, and I know it.
I’m just coming to the end of the street when the loud rumble of the bikes whizz up behind me and skid in front of the cop cars. I don’t look back, I don’t even consider that the cops might hit them, I just speed up, turning down random streets until I’m sure I’m alone, then I get out of the truck and run.
I’ll hide all damn night if I have to.
I get out of the main area in town and find some thick woods behind the local store to take a shallow, ragged breath. Pressing my hands to my knees, I try to come up with a plan on what to do next. The cops will be buzzing around town looking for me, and I don’t want to give them even the smallest chance to catch me.
The wharf is a solid twenty-minute drive, which means it’s at least triple that in walking distance.
I don’t think I have a choice.
I’ve been there enough to know how to make my way down the long, open road. Thankfully there are enough trees and woodland running down the sides of that road that I just might be able to shield myself. If the police were tapping Jackson’s phone, then they might figure out what he was talking about, though I’m hopeful they won’t, considering they have never busted them.
I have no choice now but to walk and hope like hell that I don’t get caught.
Then I have to face the wrath of Jackson when I return.
I promised I’d stay in that car.
I made a huge mistake, and I know it.
IT TAKES ME A LITTLE over two hours to get to the wharf, and by the time I do, it’s late afternoon. If needed, I can hide until it’s dark, but I’m hoping it won’t come to that. Making my way toward the area where business is usually conducted, I peer over a large concrete wall and glance down, seeing that there aren’t any police.
A black truck is parked by a large dock, and it’s hard to tell from here, but I think that is one of the club’s trucks.
Biting my lip, I take the risk and make my way down toward it. As I near, the doors open, and I breathe a sigh of relief when Jackson gets out. It doesn’t last long, though, because the furious expression on his face has me stopping in my tracks, putting my hands up in a futile attempt to explain myself before he can blast me.
“I saw him. I saw Gerard, and he was in disguise. At least, I think it was him, and I had to follow him.”
“You think ?” Jackson’s voice comes out in a hiss, and I know that he’s angry, wild in fact.
I made a mistake, a huge one at that, and I know I just risked everything. He’s angry at me, and, honestly, he has a right to be. I fucked up.
“It looked like him, and nobody else noticed. I couldn’t pass up the chance to follow him. I know I made a mistake, Jackson ...”
“A mistake?”
His voice is scaring me.
I open my mouth, but nothing comes out.
He continues.
“Not only did you alert him to the fact that we’re fuckin’ lookin’ for him but you tangled my guys up in a mess, and now the cops know we’re helpin’ you. You just sunk every fuckin’ plan with one stupid move.”
My heart breaks.
I fucked up.
“I’m sorry, Jackson,” I whisper. “I just ... I wanted so badly to find him, I wasn’t thinking.”
“No fuckin’ shit,” he growls. “Do you have any idea what you’ve done?”
I hang my head.
“Easy, boss,” Spike says, carefully. I didn’t even see him get out of the car. “She didn’t do it on purpose.”
Jackson doesn’t look at me when he orders, “Get her out of here. I am going to try and fix this shit before it’s too late.”
His words hurt.
They’re crushing.
I know he’s mad at me, but damn.
“Jackson,” I say, stepping toward him. “I made a mistake. I’m sorry.”
“Your mistakes have cost us a fuckin’ lot in the last few months.”
Without looking at me, he gets into another truck that pulls up, then he’s gone.
Spike looks to me, offering a small smile. “He’ll get over it, don’t worry, precious. Come on, let’s get you out of here.”
My heart feels as though it’s being torn in two as I climb into the truck next to Ciara. She offers me a comforting smile, but it does little to make me feel better. I know I made a mistake the first time I went after Gerard, and once again, I made the same one going after him again.
But that man is ruining everything.
I didn’t want to see him get away with it once more.
I don’t say anything as we drive, and the silence feels deafening as the long stretches of road do nothing to drown out my thoughts. I feel terrible, and it seems that right now, all the decisions I’m making are the wrong ones. We had a good plan, and I ruined it because I didn’t think.
By the time we reach the house, it is dark, and I can’t see Jackson anywhere. I’m guessing he isn’t back yet. That’s probably a good thing, because I don’t want to go to sleep when I know he is in another room not speaking to me. That would make everything worse. Instead, I get out of the car and silently make my way there ... alone.
Addison comes in after I’ve had a shower and am getting into bed. She offers me a small smile and then closes the door behind her. “He’s just upset, he’ll come around.”
“I fucked up,” I exhale. “I saw him getting away, and I just didn’t think ...”
“Honestly, honey, I would have done the same thing. That man has upended your world, it’s only fair that you don’t want to see him slip away.”
I bring my legs to my chest, my back against the headboard. “Yeah, but I ruined all our plans. The police know the club are helping me now, and that’s going to make everything worse.”
“They don’t really have proof of that, other than the bikes stopping them from catching you. It isn’t enough, and even if they do go searching, they won’t find anything. Trust Jackson to sort this out, it’s what he does.”
“If he ever speaks to me again,” I mumble.
Addison sits on the edge of the bed. “Trust me, he will. He is moody, but he gets over things quickly. Get some rest, things will look better in the morning.”
I hope she’s right.
God, I hope she’s right.