Chapter 17 #2
“Prez,” I roar. “I’ve got a fuckin’ problem. I’m here at Toni’s, and she’s fuckin’ gone. Ace, too. It’s like they’ve never been here.”
“What the fuck? What are you talking about?”
“I’m telling you my son’s missing. His aunt, too.” My voice is an octave higher than normal. Raking my free hand through my hair so hard I pull out a few strands, I barely notice. “Ace is gone, Prez,” I shout. “He’s fuckin’ gone. And I’ve no fuckin’ idea where to look for him.”
There’s silence then he says, “Calm the fuck down, Freak. Go back a step. How do you know they’re missing? They could have gone out somewhere.”
“They’re gone, gone, Prez.” Christ, I’m not making sense.
I try to calm down enough to explain to him.
“The place looks like a furnished rental property, but all the personal items have been taken away. Sheets, cushions, clothing, and personal effects in the bathroom are all missing. I tried ringing Ace and Toni yesterday, but couldn’t get through. ”
“So you assumed a cell tower was down.” Dum obviously came through on giving him the message.
“Prez, what do I fuckin’ do?”
“You sit tight, Freak. I’ll get some brothers out to you. You think over all your interactions with that woman, and see if anything stands out. Did she say she was moving? Or was there anything odd about your interactions?”
“She said nothing. We arranged that I’d meet them both here this morning.” I’m pacing, unable to stop. “I’ll drive around Flagstaff…”
“Brother, you don’t know the area. I doubt that would achieve anything. Why would Toni disappear with your son? Didn’t she give you a hint? Think, man. Is there anything you can remember?”
“I don’t fuckin’ know,” I yell. “I don’t understand this.”
“Freak, calm down. We’re Kings. We’ll find him. I’ll get Pippa and Genie on it. They can track his phone…”
“His phone’s turned off. Couldn’t find him on Life360.”
There’s a pause while he’s thinking. “Text me Toni’s number and her address, and I’ll start Pippa working on it.
She can try to trace her calls. Maybe we’ll find a pattern, or who she’s been talking to.
But, Freak, right now, only you could have a clue about why she’d disappear with him. Was she running from anything?”
“How the fuck would I know? She never told me. If she had, I’d never have left Ace.” Crumpling, I fall to the ground. Unashamed, I wail into the phone, “I can’t lose him, Bullseye.”
Prez’s voice is steady. “You haven’t lost him. We’ll find Ace. I’m going now to organise the troops. We’ll be with you soon. Nobody fucks with the Kings, Freak. Ace is ours. We’ll get him back.”
“We fuckin’ have to.”
The alternative is too hard to think about.
I end the call. With enough wits still left, I quickly text him both Toni’s and Ace’s numbers and her address.
It gives me something to keep myself occupied for all of a few seconds.
What can I do but sit and wait? I’m not known for my patience.
Hanging around here for five hours waiting for my brothers is going to be agony.
But what’s my option? Drive around town?
I’ve got a really bad feeling I’ll not find him at any of the tourist spots I’d have expected her to take him to.
Ace, where the fuck are you?
And, Toni, why, and where did you take him?
Unless they were both abducted. But who commits a kidnapping and takes all their personal shit too?
I start tearing the place apart, trying to find a clue.
But the place has been scrubbed so clean that I doubt even a forensic scientist would discover anything.
I’m just finishing up in Toni’s bedroom when the doorbell rings.
I descend the stairs, leaping down them two by two. I fling the door open, ready to shout at Toni, but slam my mouth shut when I don’t recognise the man standing there, only noticing his hand is held out for me to shake.
Ignoring it, I just snarl, “What?”
Letting his hand drop, he’s obviously taken aback.
“Er, name’s Bob.” Regarding me cautiously, he jerks his head to the side.
“I live next door. I presume you’re the new tenant.
Just wanted to welcome you to the neighbourhood.
” He relaxes enough to give an easy grin.
“Turnaround sure is fast. The place was only vacated yesterday morning.”
Knowing he might have information, I make a concerted effort to soften my features, trying to appear approachable rather than an out-to-kill enforcer.
“I’m Levi,” I tell him, hoping the genuine unsteadiness in my voice might make him want to help me.
“Antoinette, Toni, is my girlfriend. I’ve been out of state working for a while, came home, used the key she’d given me to get in, but found she’s gone.
Man, I’ve no idea what’s going on. You say she moved out yesterday? Any idea where she was going?”
“Oh, boy, no.” Bob looks crestfallen. “I don’t know what to say. How long have you been gone?”
Hoping he hadn’t seen my truck here last week, I shrug. “A month or so.”
“Fuck, I hate to be the bearer of bad news.” He actually looks anything but.
“I think she was stepping out on you. Girl’s got no taste.
There’s been a biker here most nights. Rolls up on his motorcycle at all hours.
” He shakes his head. “She looks like a good girl, dresses like a librarian, don’t know why she’d get mixed up with a lowlife like that. ”
For the first time ever, I’m fucking glad I left my cut in the truck. “She is a librarian,” I inform him, but I’m not quite sure why. It’s more important to ask him questions. “Can you tell me more about this biker dude? Was he threatening her?”
He snorts a laugh. “Threatening? Fucking, more like. They seemed pretty familiar. Hugging on the doorstep and all that.” He brushes his hand over his face, his eyes becoming guarded.
There’s a slight furrow of his brow, and his lips are compressed.
Looks like he’s suddenly realising he’s got a big dude in front of him, and to whom he’s delivering bad news. “Well, I best be getting back…”
Pleading is not in my nature, but it’s my son’s life at stake. I’ll do anything to get information that might help me, including begging. “Please, man, wait. I need to find her. Tell me anything you know about this biker you think she was seeing. Anything might help. It’s probably all a mistake.”
He’d half turned around, but now he swivels back. That he came here so quickly after he thought I moved in suggests he’s the neighbourhood gossip. I’ve just got to find the right buttons to push for him to tell me everything.
“Sorry to disappoint you, but I got the vibe they were really fucking friendly. They certainly looked that way on the doorstep yesterday, when he came to pick her up. Moved all her shit out, him and some of his fellow bikers. Scum of the fucking earth, those gang members, aren’t they?”
“Uh-huh,” I mutter, unconvincingly. “How do you know he was in a… gang?” I barely stop myself from gagging at uttering the civilian word, while also wondering how he’s going to take it when my brothers turn up en masse in a few hours.
Bob puffs himself up. “They were wearing those stupid vests. All matching, like they were cheerleaders or some shit.”
Now we might be getting somewhere. “Did you happen to see the logo on the back?”
“Of course, I did. Couldn’t miss it. Not ones we usually see around here, though we do get all sorts. Flagstaff’s a gateway to the Grand Canyon, and a lot of riders come through.”
I speak through gritted teeth, only just resisting the urge to shake him. “So, who were they?”
His back straightens. “Mojave Devils. Fucking stupid name, if you ask me.”
What the fuck? I feel like I’ve just received a death blow, though that might have struck me more lightly.
I don’t ask him if he’s certain. It’s not a name you can mistake.
With a hitch in my voice, I ask my final question.
“Did you happen to see a teenager with Toni? A boy? This tall?” I hold my hand just below my jawline.
Ace has shot up like a weed this last year. “Dark hair, skinny.”
“No, man, I only saw her and those bikers. Who’s the kid?”
It’s too much of a coincidence for them not to have taken him.
Ace is resourceful. If he’d hidden and they’d left him behind, he’d have found some way to get a message to me.
Ace might not be involved in club business, but he’d witnessed the fucking MDMC attacking our compound late last year.
He’d have known the danger as soon as they’d appeared.
Could he be hiding somewhere? I dash that thought immediately.
He knew I’d be arriving today. He’d have been waiting for me.
Or he would have concealed himself close enough to come to me as soon as I’d appeared.
No, they’ve got him, and Ace would never have gone with them willingly. Which means Bob didn’t see him as they’d snuck him out, maybe even drugged him.
Right now, it’s only the doorframe holding me up. I need to reconnect with Bullseye and tell him about this new development. I also wonder why what point it is for me to wait here, when, to our knowledge, the MDMC operates from a base closer to Tucson.
“Thanks, Bob,” I manage to croak. “Your information’s been useful.”
“No worries, man. I hope you find her. She was a nice woman, not the type to get mixed up with bikers.”
He turns to leave. This time, I don’t stop him. No, she’s definitely not the type to get mixed up with a biker. Or, not this one at least. I’m going to kill her when I find her. No one fucks with my son and lives.
I close the door and slide down behind it, my head in my hands. I’m not even embarrassed to admit that I start to weep. Ace, Ace… I’ve fucking failed you. I have no idea why or how, but Toni had fooled me, drawn me in…and for what? To get her hands on my son. There’s no other explanation.
Grabbing for my phone, I get straight through to Bullseye.
“It’s…” I clear my throat and again try to force out the words. “Prez, a neighbour saw everything. The fuckin’ MDMC has got him. And Toni? She fuckin’ helped them.”