Chapter Three
King
I watched Sinclair disappear down the hall. The memory of that conversation with Sal played on a loop in my head. I pulled my phone from my cut and dialed a number I didn’t use often.
There was one person I knew who could find my mother, even in death. I didn’t contact him lightly, knowing that if I asked this of him, I would owe him in the future.
Even with all the shit that we’d endured over the last several months, the woman who gave birth to me never left my mind.
“King, good to hear from you.”
“Hey, Dread, need a favor.”
“A favor? Or a job?” he asked.
“Take your pick.”
“Must be serious,” the man said before I heard the sound of a door slamming on the other end of the line.
I looked over my shoulder at Jonah, who didn’t look at me. He stared straight ahead until someone moved in the hallway, then his head swiveled. I knew Tank was safe. I waved to Jonah and moved further down the hall.
“I need you to find someone.”
“If you’re calling me, then this isn’t a simple missing person.”
I blew out a frustrated breath. I was taking a chance trusting Dread with this information. He was the president of the Twisted Dragons MC in Cocoa Beach, Florida. A co-ed MC that had a knack for finding what was missing.
Twisted didn’t begin to describe the men and women in this club. But they got results, and right now, that was what I needed.
“Need you to find the woman who gave birth to me.”
My request was met with silence. I waited for Dread to say something. I knew the truth of my lineage had made its way around the biker world.
“Darcy Murphy?” he finally asked.
“Yeah, the only thing is, she died.” I sat in a chair in an empty hallway. My knees threatened to give out on me as I talked about the woman I would never know.
“After I was born, she changed her name to Gretchen Foster.” I paused. “Dread, I’m gonna tell you something to save you some time, but I suggest you keep this fucking quiet.”
“What’s going on, King?”
“After my mother left me with my grandparents, she became Gretchen Foster and met someone. She had another son a little over a year later.”
“Who did she meet?” Dread asked cautiously.
I looked up and down the hallway, ensuring I was alone before answering, “Kane Baudelaire.”
“Jesus fuck, King. Fucking Morpheus?”
“Yeah, before he became fucking Morpheus.” I pulled the band from my hair and let it fall around my shoulders so I could run my hand through it.
“Ravage is your fucking brother?” Dread shouted into the phone.
“How the fuck do you know who Morpheus’ son is?”
I could hear the diabolical smile in his voice when he answered, “Because I’m fucking me.” I shook my head. Dread was a cocky son of a bitch, but I had to admit, he was good at what he did.
“I don’t know what happened to Darcy after Ravage was born, but I do know she died seven years ago. And she had at least one other son besides me and Ravage. He died before she did.”
“But you don’t know where either of them is buried?”
“I don’t know what name she was using when she died. It could have been anything. After Gretchen Foster, she was Bridgit Mahoney. And I know nothing about her son.”
I heard the sound of a pencil scratching on paper. Dread was a bit old school when it came to what he did. He swore he found more information with good old boots on the ground than what could be found through computers.
I didn’t care how he got the information as long as he got me some fucking answers.
“I’ll let you know as soon as I’ve got something.”
“Thanks, Dread.”
“Oh, and, King,” he said.
“Yeah?”
“Watch your back, brother. Word is already spreading about what went down today. Skinner thinks he won by pulling Zephyr from the Brotherhood’s clubhouse, but he lost numbers. It will take him some time to build those back up.”
“Zephyr?”
I knew that fucking name. If Rhea was being honest, and there was no reason for her not to be, Zephyr was the bastard who’d killed Nav’s mom.
He was also one of the names Sypher had given Morpheus when he stood in my clubhouse after taking Massacre’s ink off his chest. That was the kind of shit I wanted to get away from, but I was smack in the middle of it.
“Thanks, man. Let me know what you find.”
“I’ll see to this one personally, brother.”
I disconnected the call and leaned my elbows on my knees, my head in my hands.
When the fuck would it end?
Leaving the hospital, I rode to my brother’s house. I needed to check on Maureen. She’d gotten close to Hash. So close that every other day he asked her to leave Dec and marry him. He’d always tell her that with him being younger, he’d still be alive when her baby graduated high school.
I guess he’d tempted fucking fate.
I pulled up and sat on my bike for a moment after turning it off. The front door opened, and my brother stepped out on the porch. He’d always be my brother. I didn’t care that biologically he was my uncle.
“You coming inside?”
“Yeah, I wanted to check on Maureen.” I swung my leg over the seat and stepped up on the porch.
“Let’s talk out here for a minute,” Dec said. I leaned against the railing and waited. Whatever he’d found wasn’t good. “I went by Mary Ann’s place to talk to her.”
“And?”
“She’s dead, King. Went to see her mom, and she was fine until I told her about Mary Ann. She hadn’t fallen. Mary Ann lied.”
“Son of a bitch.” I rubbed the back of my neck. “They knew Grace was there, and Johnny wasn’t. She was the target.”
“She was the target,” Dec confirmed. “I didn’t say anything at the club because I figured you were dealing with enough shit. How’s Tank and Keys?”
“They’ll live, thank God. We almost lost Tank. If it hadn’t been for that fucker from New York, he’d be dead.” I explained to Declan about Tank’s stupidly rare blood type. And about Sinclair being his father. I trusted my brother completely, but I also respected his position as the town sheriff.
So I told him almost everything.
“What’s your plan for retaliation?” I looked at him, raising an eyebrow. “You can’t let them get away with this.”
“We won’t. But I’m not telling you shit. I won’t put that on you.”
Dec nodded. He knew I wouldn’t tell him our plans.
“You gonna call Sal?”
“Fuck no.”
“He could he—”
“I said no, Dec.”
Declan lifted his hands up beside his head in surrender. He turned around and opened the front door, holding it for me as I passed through.
Maureen sat in the corner of the couch, a blanket over her legs. When she turned my way, her eyes were red and puffy, the remnants of tears streaked down her face. I sat down beside her and pulled her against me as she sobbed into my chest.
My aunt. She was the only worthy link I had to the woman who gave birth to me. And that was only by marriage. I’d known her for less than a year, but she was the only family from Boston I acknowledged. She and her daughter Colleen.
Technically, she was my sister now. Being married to my brother and all. But she took the role of my aunt seriously, and so did I.
We didn’t speak. I held her until she had nothing left. I felt the weight of her body slump into my side, and I thought she’d fallen asleep until she looked up at me.
“I want to come to the clubhouse and cook for the guys.”
“Maureen, no, you’re gonna have that baby any day now.”
“Nonsense, I have weeks to go. I did it when I was pregnant with Colleen.”
“Baby, you’re not the same age you were when you had Colleen,” Declan said, and I gaped at my brother. Stupid fucker should know better.
“Are you saying I’m old, Declan O’Rourke?” Maureen snarked, sitting up straight and glaring at her husband.
“No, just older.” He shrugged.
“You’re so stupid,” Colleen said, coming down the stairs, shaking her head.
“What did I say?” my brother asked, as if he really didn’t know.
I shook my head and focused on Maureen, hoping she would forget wanting to kill her husband if I changed the subject back to her. I loved my brother and didn’t want to lose him too.
“If you think you’re up for it, we’d love to have you,” I told her. “But let the girls do most of the work.”
“Beck, Sam, and Ellie just had babies of their own. They need their rest.”
“I’ll come with her, King. Make sure she isn’t overdoing it.” I smiled at Colleen.
“Declan, you need to go outside. I want to talk to my nephew.”
I closed my eyes, knowing exactly what she wanted to talk to me about. Declan rolled his eyes at his wife. He really was taking his life in his hands tonight. But he went outside and sat on the porch, Colleen following him.
“You need you call your father.”
“No,” I said, standing up and walking over to the fireplace. It was the middle of summer, so there wasn’t a fire burning. It didn’t stop me from staring into where the fire should be.
“King, let him help.”
“There is nothing he can do. This is biker shit. He’s not a biker.”
“This is warfare. And your father knows more than anyone should about warfare. If you don’t call him, I will.”
“Maureen, do not call him,” I snapped, turning to face her. “This has nothing to do with him.”
“He’s your father,” she reasoned.
“He’s my sperm donor.”
“What does that make your mother? An egg donor?”
I didn’t answer her. Darcy was a sore subject with Maureen. She may have only been ten years old when Darcy left town, but their families were close, and Darcy was like an older sister to Maureen.
“I made a call,” I said, my eyes on the floor. “A guy I know who’s good at finding things. Thought maybe he could find where she was buried. I gave him everything I knew.”
I looked up at her. “Did Declan tell you I have a brother?”
“He did,” she said softly. “Have you met him?”
“Briefly. He was in my clubhouse. I was looking right at him and had no idea.”
“What about her other son? The one who died?”
“My guy is looking for him too.”
“Does Sal know?” she asked.
“I’m sure he’ll find out. He seems to know more about my fucking life than I want him to.”
“He loves you.”
I scoffed as I walked back and sat beside her on the couch, laying my head against the back. “I need you to promise me something.”
“Anything.” She smiled.
“When you’re at the clubhouse, I need you to stay in the kitchen unless I’m with you.”
“Why?”
I tilted my head to look at her. “You know I love you. But with that belly, you can’t move fast. Declan would never forgive me if something happened to you and that baby.
I would never forgive myself. I’m gonna have the guys reinforce the door to the pantry, and put a bolt on the inside.
If something like what happened yesterday happens again, I want you in that pantry until Declan or one of my guys comes for you. No arguments. You and Colleen both.”
“I promise. I just need to be at the clubhouse right now.”
I raised my arm and wrapped it around her shoulders as her eyes started to water. “He loved you. I know he asked you to marry him every day, but he thought of you like a mom. He never had a mom growing up.”
“I’m gonna miss him so fucking much.”