Chapter 19
Standing Together
Tessa
My sleep is restless, at best. I can’t help but think of the other business owners being bullied by Bronson. I have Motown and the Redemption Riders taking care of me and the Cozy Corner, but who is there to protect the others?
I hear Motown come to bed and slide in next to me. Immediately, as he always does when we’re in bed, he cradles my body, spooning me. His heavy arm comes around my middle, and his lips brush my cheek.
“It’s going to be all right, baby,” he whispers in my ear.
“It’s not fair,” I murmur back.
“No, baby, it isn’t.”
“What makes a man do such horrible things to good people? Don’s a feisty old man, but he’s no match for Bronson. The others must be scared out of their minds.” I exhale a heavy breath.
“Bronson has been terrorizing this town long enough. I’d like to tell you more, Tess, but club business is on a need-to-know basis for our women.
It’s as much for your protection as it is for our peace of mind that we keep the bad shit out of your lives as much as we can.
I can tell you there’s a plan in place and we’re going to tear Bronson’s operation apart piece by piece,” Motown says, giving me a little squeeze. “Do you believe me?”
“I know you’ll do everything you can to make it okay.
I can’t help being scared, though. You mean more to me than the Cozy Corner, and I fall apart if anything happens to you or your brothers.
This all started with me, and I can’t shake the feeling that I brought this to your door,” I admit, telling him my deepest fear.
“Bronson had a plan going back years ago. You were an added bonus. If he could have you and use your business, he would be the king on his throne, sitting on a satin pillow, with you to warm his bed. His ego was bruised, so he’s attempting another tactic, but it’s going to blow up in his face.
” He comes up on an elbow and turns me onto my back so our eyes meet.
“In a way, I have to thank that fucker. If it weren’t for his audacity to make a move on you, it might have taken me longer to ‘pull my finger out of my ass,’ as Ruth would say.
” He chuckles, and I can’t help but smile.
“We’ll send Bronson flowers as a thank-you in jail,” I joke.
“Good idea, babe. A guy getting flowers in prison will get him a few beatings from the other inmates,” he kids. His tone grows low and serious, “I swear to you, Tessa, this is going to end soon, and you, Don, Clara, Liz, Dina, and anyone else he’s threatened will be able to sleep easy.”
“We should start a neighborhood watch or something,” I say, feeling helpless and wanting to do something, anything, really, to help.
“It might be an idea to start a phone tree. If Bronson or one of his henchmen shows up, any one of them could make a call or send a text for help,” he suggests.
I sit up in bed. “That’s a fabulous idea.” I reach for my phone on the nightstand. He wraps his hand around my wrist and pulls it back.
“Babe, it’s late. You’ll freak everybody out if you start sending messages at this hour.
It’s a plan for tomorrow. I’m sure Sasha can help you with that.
She knows this town better than any of us, and she’s loved by everyone, and Etain is the most organized person I’ve ever met.
She can help too.” He pulls me down and kisses me gently. “Sleep, Tess.”
Two little words, and suddenly, I’m exhausted and find my lids drifting shut.
During breakfast, I speak with Sasha and Etain about Motown’s idea of a phone tree. Sasha is one hundred percent onboard with the idea. Etain is just as excited, but being the planner that she is, she wants to gather all the business owners together and talk it out.
“We don’t have time to go door to door and see who’s interested and who isn’t,” Sasha says. “The problem is happening now!”
“We can just randomly put everyone’s name on the list and say Tag. You’re it! Come help me!” Etain returns, waving her arms dramatically.
“Maybe, let’s stop and think this through for a minute.
All the storefronts that have been approached so far are within two blocks of the Cozy Corner.
There are maybe fifty businesses in the area.
We can start there. It’s more practical this way.
The shops nearby are the ones that will be able to help in a hurry.
We can add to the list and maybe make it more reasonable depending on location,” I suggest.
Etain immediately sees the benefit of my idea, and Sasha is smiling and nodding, “All right, the next step is contacting the store owners and informing them of our plan,” Sasha says.
“You’d be the best person for that, Sasha,” Etain says. She turns to me and adds, “Sasha is part of every committee and volunteer association in town. They know her well, and they love her.”
“I’m lovable,” I tease with a grin.
“Totally!” Sasha agrees.
“Absolutely! However, think of it this way: yesterday you were threatened by some thugs, and the very next day, a stranger shows up at your door. It won’t matter that your intentions are good; they’re going to be suspicious,” Etain explains.
I see her point. “I’ve got the accounting up to date for the garage.
I’ll hang with Tessa. Sasha will connect with the store owners, and we’ll meet up at the Cozy Corner this afternoon. ”
“Sasha doesn’t go anywhere alone,” Drifter says loudly. I nearly jump two feet when I hear his gravelly voice. I didn’t even see him arrive. “I’ve got business with Hawk this morning. The grand scheme will have to wait.”
“I’ll go with Sasha,” Flex volunteers. “I’ve got an errand to do for Hawk and can take Sasha along with me. We’ll hit as many places as possible.”
“Hawk wants us all back at the club by three.” Drifter turns to look at Etain and me.
“You need to close the shop early and get back here.” This is where I would normally tell him that I have a business to run and I need to stay open to pay bills, but Drifter is not the kind of guy you negotiate with, especially when he’s using a serious tone.
Motown hears what’s going on and walks over to us. “Sorry, Tessa, but this is for your own protection. We can’t have our women out there with Bronson poised to strike, and we need all the club brothers on hand for what comes next.”
“What about Ruth?” I ask.
“We have Ruth covered, baby.” He sweeps his fingers across my cheekbone, then through the tresses of my hair, before he pulls me close and puts his arm around my waist. “I’ll come by and pick you up myself.”
I don’t argue with that. I like sitting on the back of his bike.
“Promise me, when this is all over and we have an entire day to ourselves, that we’ll go for a long ride out in the country. Just you and me,” I ask, resting my head on his shoulder.
“Damn straight. I’ll show you what riding free is really like,” Motown confirms, brushing his lips over mine.
“Yo!” is heard from across the room. Both Drifter and Motown turn abruptly to see Hawk motioning for both men to make their way over to him.
“Go on, honey,” I urge softly, then watch him saunter over to their prez. Despite the lurking dangers, I can’t help but notice how sexy Motown’s swagger is, with his jeans hugging his ass in all the right places.
Etain giggles. “Earth to Tessa. Come back to us.”
I can feel the heat in my cheeks as I bite my lower lip.
“Don’t worry, Tess,” Sasha says. “Drifter makes me starry-eyed too whenever he says my name. And Etain, she’s gaga for Hawk and waits by the window when he leaves in the morning until his bike is out of sight.
We’re independent women with talents and careers of our own, but that doesn’t mean we can’t fall in love with sexy bikers who know how to treat their women. ”
“She’s right, you know. I get the same look in my eyes when I see Hawk as you do when Motown’s around,” Etain replies with a goofy grin. “But we have work to do.”
With that, Tacitus drives Etain and me to my shop, and Flex is with Sasha for the day.
While Etain is busy going back and forth with Sasha on names and numbers to add to the emergency phone tree, I’m busy with customers.
Today is the busiest one the store has seen yet.
The best part is that I’ve sold two big-ticket items. One is an oak side table, and another is a decorative shelf unit.
I picked up both pieces from an auction house months ago for a good price.
I was going to keep them for my own place, but decided to see if they would sell.
The good news is that the table and shelf are going to customers who greatly appreciate their purchases.
The bad news is that I’m going to have to go to more auctions to find furniture to fill my home.
Still, it’s not a bad problem to have. I love shopping!
Motown
I spend my day perched on the roof of the building across from the hotel where Bronson’s men are holding Logan. I made a quick stop to pick up a pair of binoculars of my own, then peer into the room to catch a glimpse of our man on the inside.
Each time the curtains move, I look for a sign from Logan.
The biggest problem we have is knowing we’ll be meeting tonight, but not having the location.
Getting a text with the location an hour before is not ideal.
This means we’ll be rushing to ensure the men are ready for the takedown.
We won’t get another opportunity like this.
Orion is releasing information to the feds about the drug trafficking operation.
A simple call won’t do; we need to feed them more information to convince them to jump on the bandwagon.
Reno contacted Alessio Cassini, and after infiltrating the Russian drug shipment and capturing a couple of their soldiers, he’s been able to get photos of the crates, along with the shipping manifest.
Normally, Alessio would take this as a personal win.
He could easily have decided to keep the product and move on.
It’s his relationship with Reno that has Alessio providing the proof we need to cripple Bronson’s empire.
I didn’t know how far Reno’s reach was until he gave us specific emails about where the evidence is being sent.
Reno has a man high up in a federal agency.
It’s close to nine, and the sun has set. Decker is getting anxious.
“Anything?” Decker asks. He’s worried about Logan.
I get it. Decker was a street kid, and if it weren’t for Logan, he would have been just another statistic of gang violence.
Whether Logan was at the right place at the right time or because he was a concerned citizen who saw a lost young man and gave him his time, Logan saved Decker and gave him purpose.
I don’t know what went on between the two of them, but Decker found his way to us without Logan.
Decker’s been quiet about his past, but he’s been with us from the start.
I do know that Decker and Logan meet regularly. Up until this last week, I knew almost nothing about Logan, and yet, here we are, on the same side.
I hand Decker my binoculars. “Take a look.”
Decker shakes his head. “I don’t see him.”
“If you look close, you can see his shadow as he paces the room.”
Decker lets out a breath. “Yeah, I see it.” He lifts his head to look at me. “I hate that he’s in there on his own.”
“Agreed. But you said it yourself, he’s smart. His senses are sharp, and he’s been in difficult situations before. Remember, Logan’s been under heavy fire in war. He knows how to handle himself under pressure. He wouldn’t have survived this long under the radar if he wasn’t capable.”
“He’s always alone. I don’t think he talks to many people,” Decker says.
“He talks to you.”
“That’s because I’m a pain in the ass and force myself on him. I won’t let him shut me out. I keep going back, whether he likes it or not,” he confesses.
“You don’t think Logan could have thrown you out?
Especially when you were a pain in his ass.
He might want to be alone, but that doesn’t mean he shuts out the people he cares about.
” Decker shrugs, unconvinced. “I’ve been where he’s been.
Soldiers fight for their country, thinking they’re protecting freedom.
Then they come home and see more atrocities in their own city streets.
You start wondering, what the hell am I doing?
” I sigh. “I did that, and when my time was up, I came home. But I had nothing to come home to.”
“Logan had a sister. I’m not sure how bad it was, because he hasn’t said, but she’s gone, and he’s feeling it.
He’s angry. He’s also grieving the loss of his family.
He’s smart, though. He decided to work with us instead of going off on his own.
I have to convince him to come see Hawk,” Decker says, sighing deeply.
“That’s what friends do. You’re a good friend to him. Logan saw that and trusted you. Now, he’s not doing this alone. He has us, and we’re not going to let him down.”
“What if they don’t think he’s useful anymore and kill him?” Decker asks.
“That’s why we’re here. We’re keeping an eye on him. Drifter and Demon have eyes on Bronson, trailing his every move. The minute Logan is escorted out of the hotel, we’ll be right behind them.”
“I just want this done and for him to be out of there,” Decker says.
I put my hand on his shoulder. “We stand together, shoulder to shoulder, every brother from our club, Satan’s Pride, and even with Reno and his soldiers. We’re going to win this fight and bring Logan home safe and sound,” I say with conviction.