10. Ashley
Priest didhis best to keep me informed of what was happening with Thunder and the others, but I could tell he was holding something back. Rae and I huddled together on the couch with Scamp between us while he paced the narrow width of the family room.
“You’re going to wear a groove into the floor.” Rae got up to make more coffee. The three of us had downed a pot already while we waited for news.
I hadn’t heard directly from Thunder since he left me at his place, though he’d sent a few texts to Priest. Evidently, the Savage Bones were holed up in an abandoned commercial building outside of town. No one had heard from Lightning in hours. My stomach twisted and turned as I thought about how Thunder might feel. Not knowing if his brother was injured or being held captive inside must be driving him mad.
I just hoped he’d stay calm. He was used to performing well under pressure, but being at the mercy of a rival MC was a whole new level of hell.
Rae came back with a full carafe. “Need a refill, hon?”
I popped the top off my insulated tumbler and held it out to her. The sun would start to rise soon. I wasn’t sure if that would make things better or worse for Thunder and the other guys.
“Still no word?” I asked Priest.
His jaw clenched as he shook his head. “I’ve half a mind to head down to the clubhouse.”
“We should.” I’d had enough of sitting around in the dark and waiting for someone to decide to update us. At least at the clubhouse, we’d be in the epicenter of the Riders’ headquarters. Surely Atlas was in the loop.
Rae set the carafe down on the counter. “Are you sure that’s a good idea? Thunder wanted us to stay put.”
“Sunshine, I need to do something. Sitting around here while my brothers are putting themselves at risk is driving me mad.” Priest gathered her into his arms.
I had to look away. Seeing them holding each other sent pain slicing through my chest. What if I never got to touch Thunder again? He had to come back to me. Life wouldn’t be so cruel to let me finally find the man meant for me then rip him away.
“What do you think, Ashley? Are you okay going to the clubhouse?” Rae called out.
“Can Scamp come too?” I was already shrugging on the sweatshirt Thunder had left with me.
I buried my hand in Scamp’s fur the whole ride down the mountain. Each passing second carried us closer to the clubhouse, and hopefully closer to finding out what was going on. Most of the lights blazed inside. Didn’t look like anyone was getting any rest. Two guys at the gate waved us through and Priest pulled up to the door.
We rushed inside to find Stone and a couple of the newer club members sitting around the big TV in the family room.
“Is that drone footage?” Priest asked.
“Yeah. Juice is patching it through. He’s been trying to see if there’s anyone inside besides those motherfuckers,” Stone said.
The lighting was terrible, but I could make out the outline of the building. While we watched, bursts of light danced across the screen.
“What was that?” I ran toward the television, hoping there was just a glitch in the transmission.
“They’ve been firing for the past half hour.” Stone shook his head and pointed to an area at the top right of the screen. “If we can get our guys over there, I think they can get out.”
The whole screen lit up, then went dark.
“There go your eyes,” Priest said.
“Fuck.” Stone picked up his phone. “They took out the drone. That was the only way for us to track them.”
“What can we do?” Someone needed to do something, and fast.
“Unless you’ve got a drone in your back pocket, it’s going to have to wait,” Stone said.
“Not in my pocket, but we have one back at the ranch. We don’t use it very often, but Dusty got it so we could do remote checks on the cattle.” I wanted to help, wanted to feel like I was doing something besides sitting around and waiting.
“You know how to fly it?” Stone asked.
I’d done it a couple of times, but Dusty was the pro. Sensing they wouldn’t let me go get it unless I convinced them I knew exactly what I was doing, I bent the truth a little. “Yes.”
“I’ll take her back to get it,” Priest said. “Rae, you stay here. I’ll be back before you know it.”
I pulled my best friend into a hug. “It’ll be okay. I promise.”
A thin layerof fog hovered over the road as we approached the ranch. It looked peaceful in the soft early morning light. It was hard to believe the horrors that had happened over the past few days. Hoping that we were on the cusp of putting an end to the Savage Bones’s hold on Mustang Mountain, I directed Priest to the outbuilding where I’d seen Dusty store the drone. The farm truck was parked in front, and I heard noise coming from inside as soon as I opened the door.
Priest motioned for me to stay back as he pulled a gun from the glove compartment. My pulse whooshed through my ears and I held my breath while Priest inched closer and closer to the door.
Dusty came out holding the case to the drone. His forehead creased when he saw me. “What are you doing here? I thought you’d be at work already.”
Priest pointed the gun at Dusty. “Going somewhere with that?”
Dusty’s eyes widened. “Just trying to check on some cattle. What’s with the gun?”
“Haven’t you heard what’s happening?” I stepped out from behind the door of the truck and headed toward Dusty. “The Savage Bones stole our fertilizer. Thunder and some others followed them back?—”
“Don’t say anything more, Ashley,” Priest warned.
“What? He’s not involved in any of this.” I wasn’t sure whether to walk toward Priest to convince him to put down the gun or head toward Dusty to keep him from freaking out because he was being held at gunpoint.
“How do you think the Savage Bones knew where to find the fertilizer?” Priest glared at the man who’d been a part of my life since the day I was born.
“No.” I couldn’t believe it. Didn’t want to believe it. “Dusty?”
He set down the drone and held his hands up. “They weren’t supposed to hurt anyone.”
My stomach turned itself inside out. “What are you talking about?”
“The fertilizer. They knew we were getting a shipment. Two guys cornered me a few weeks ago and said if I left the outbuilding unlocked they’d come take the fertilizer and no one would get hurt. I’d heard rumors about some bikers threatening a few of the local ranchers. It’s not the first time it’s happened and it won’t be the last. Your granddad and I held our ground over the years, and I thought this would be the same.”
“You knew they were coming, and you didn’t warn anyone?” My fingers curled into fists as anger spiraled through me. “What if Gram had been here?”
“I’m sorry, Ashley.” He kept his eyes trained on the ground in front of him. “They didn’t show the night they said they were coming. I waited, thinking I’d scare them off myself, but no one came. I figured they’d gotten what they wanted from someone else.”
“You can save the rest of the story for when we get to the clubhouse,” Priest said. “Right now, I need you to get in the truck nice and slow.” He kept the gun trained on Dusty while he picked up the drone and set it in the back of the truck.
Dusty got into the back seat and Priest slid in next to him.
“Think you can drive us back?” Priest asked me.
I still had so many questions, but standing around and grilling Dusty wasn’t going to get me any closer to helping Thunder. With the two men glaring at each other behind me, I shifted the seat forward and started the truck.