Chapter 17
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Gemini
Mercury, Orion, Pisces, and I are sitting around the kitchen table, going over all the details of what was found on Sutton’s front porch.
As soon as we walked through the front door, Sutton was shown what room would be hers and she excused herself to shower and call it an early night.
She looked wiped so I didn’t argue with her and ask her to stick around to hear what he unearthed.
“What do y’all think is up with that hunting blind?” I pose the question, because out of everything that was found, that’s the one thing that has caught my attention the most. It’s out of place compared to the other things uncovered.
Orion taps his fingertips on the table as he thinks. “We could be dealing with a poacher. It’d make sense seeing as the blind doesn’t go hand-in-hand with the other shit.”
“In most cases, I’d agree with you,” Mercury states. “However, Jeffries could be using it as a way to spy on Sutton.”
“He’d need binoculars to see her at that distance,” I muse. “If I was stalking someone, I’d want to be close enough to see their every move.”
“It’s the red mark on the calendar that worries me the most,” Mercury conveys. “Until we know what it means and have a clearer understanding of Jeffries’ mind and the way it functions, she needs to be watched.”
Sitting back in my chair, I release a sigh. “That’s easier said than done considering where she works and which department she belongs to. Everything on her floor is secure, no outsiders allowed other than staff.”
“And we don’t have any allies in town that can pull any strings and get us permission to be there with her,” Pisces inserts, shuffling through the photos from the scene that he printed out the very second our feet crossed the threshold. “There’s so much of what I’m seeing that doesn’t add up.”
“It adds up to Jeffries being a psychopath,” Orion helpfully supplies, as if we hadn’t figured that out for ourselves.
“That’s a foregone conclusion,” I say with exasperation. “But what’s his end game? That’s the question that we need to get to the bottom of. I have a feeling that once we can answer that, the rest will fall into place.”
“We could meet up with Midas and Hercules and ask them if he has any close acquaintances that would be willing to roll on him,” Orion suggests. “We get one of them on our side, and if they’re not opposed to flipping on him, we’d have a man on the inside.”
“It’s not a terrible idea,” Mercury admits. “We don’t know the players in town, but those two would.”
“We’re hosting a barbecue tomorrow night to meet their men, let’s pull them to the side and ask them about it then,” I propose.
“I’ll send them a text and ask them to come before the others are scheduled to show up,” Mercury states, looking at me for approval.
“That’s a better idea than taking them to the side and questioning them when we’re supposed to be getting to know the others,” I say, giving him the okay to have them show up early.
“Yeah, I’d rather not split hairs,” Mercury imparts. “Our attention shouldn’t be divided when we’re bringing in men we don’t know.”
“We’re agreed on Hercules and bringing him into the fold though, right?” I probe, hoping we’re on the same page where he’s concerned. “If one of you has any reservations about doing so, we need to discuss it now.”
“I’d like to get to know him better before giving you the thumbs up,” Mercury states. “Not because I have any hinky feelings about him, but because we’re looking at him to fill an officer role.”
“He fits the criteria,” I remind him. “He’s honest, loyal, and has already proven himself to be resourceful.”
Pisces leans forward, saying, “I know we’re gung-ho about filling the table, but I think Mercury is right, we need to take our time and get to know everyone better before offering up a patch.”
“I agree with that to an extent. I’m not ready to jump the gun and give them a cut for simply showing up and being interested in patching in with the Kings,” I clarify. “But with everything we’ve got going on we’re going to need able bodies.”
“Can we at least agree that with those that have all four of our votes, we give it a six month probationary period?” Mercury asks, keeping his eyes glued on me.
“If you think about it, six months isn’t long in the grand scheme of things,” Pisces adds, agreeing with Mercury’s request.
“They can start proving themselves by hitting the ground running,” Orion remarks. With him, actions speak louder than words—something we’re all in consensus about.
We judge people by what they do and how they treat others, that’s what matters most. A man’s word isn’t always believable, especially if they don’t follow through with their promises.
That thought is followed by Sutton’s image floating through my head.
I feel torn. The restructuring of the club needs to be my top priority, but Sutton needs me too.
She isn’t equipped to deal with a man like Allen Jeffries without backup.
Tucking my hands behind my head, I lean back and stare up at the ceiling. “I don’t trust anyone outside of us to watch over Sutton. Jeffries is slippery, he’ll be hard to catch for those who don’t have the experience to know what men like him are capable of.”
“Then we split her workdays between the four of us,” Pisces advises. “She’s not only important to you, Gem, she’s like a sister to the rest of us. We don’t want to see anything happen to her either.”
“In school, I always saw her as a fuzzy kitten who needed some petting,” Orion teases.
When I stand up and my chair goes flying behind me, intent on smacking the shit out of him, he holds his hands up in a defensive position.
“I didn’t mean it like that, Gem. Chill, dude.
Sheesh, someone needs a shot of whiskey to calm his ass down.
What I meant was, she always acted abandoned, like the runt of the litter no one gave a damn whether it survived or not.
Back then, I didn’t have a lot of damns to give, but she pulled on those strings and made me care. That’s all I’m trying to say.”
Mercury leans over toward Orion and says, “If I were you, I’d never use the words petting and Sutton in the same sentence. He’s sensitive where she’s concerned.”
“Wouldn’t you be if you had to watch the girl you had a crush on be tormented in school and there was nothing you could do about it, let alone stop it?
” Pisces poses the question, his point made by the myriad of crestfallen and thoughtful expressions on my cousins’ faces.
Yeah, they hear him, now I hope it sinks in.
Otherwise, I’m going to be knocking a few teeth and brain cells loose.
Sutton is not a pawn to be used to grind my gears and rev my engine.
Plain and motherfucking simple.
“Yeah, I guess I would,” Orion acquiesces.
Since I’m already standing, I figure now is as good of a time as any to head up to my room and crash.
“I’m out, catch y’all in the morning.” As they call out their ‘nights’ I march my way up the stairs and head toward the bedroom I’ve claimed for myself.
This day just seems to draw out the longer I’m awake.
It’s time to catch a few Z’s before I lose control of my temper and strangle a few members of my family.
Besides the obvious which would mean my own head rolling once the aunts found out, it would mean finding more qualified, capable men and I simply don’t have the time to add that to my overflowing plate.
* * *
A shout followed by a squealed whimper has me flying out of my bed and grabbing the gun off my nightstand.
Sutton’s room butts up to mine and the walls are paper thin so you can hear every sound, muffled or not.
My feet carry me out of my room and to the one next door and as I approach, her nightmare grabs a hold of her and has her begging for it to stop.
I’m assuming she’s reliving the day’s events, fuck knows it was strenuous and harrowing enough to cause her to have bad dreams.
Not wanting to shock her awake, I creep into her room and place my gun on her dresser, keeping it far enough away that if she does pop up and her fight instinct kicks in, it’s not within reaching distance.
“Sutton,” I whisper as I stand beside her bed.
“Sutton, pretty girl, you’re having a bad dream, darlin’.
” When her arms and legs flail and she begins to sightlessly punch out at me, I back up a step so I’m out of arm’s reach.
My tone grows sharper as I call her name again, this time, it penetrates and she jolts upward in the bed.
“Sutton, you’re safe. Nobody can get to you while you’re here with me. ”
“What?” she asks, brushing her hair out of her face only to stop on her cheeks as she feels the wetness there. “Was I crying?”
“Bad dream,” I reply, taking a step back toward her. “You alright?”
“No. I don’t think I am,” she responds, a frown marring her face.
Not able to stomach her feeling so distraught, I mimic with my hands for her to slide over, ordering, “Scoot over, beautiful. I’ll stay with you until you fall back asleep.”
She skeptically glances up at me and asks, “Do you think that’s a good idea?”
“I’m not going to take advantage of you, Sutton,” I enlighten her. “I have more integrity than that.”
“I know you do,” she says, blowing out a breath that has her bangs going airborne. “That’s not why I was asking, Gemini. I know you better than that, I just thought–”
I finish her sentence for her. “That since we’re seeing where this goes between us that it’s too soon to tempt fate.”
“Pretty much,” she agrees, sighing. “We’ve both been fighting our feelings for each other for years, I just don’t want us to take one step forward and then two steps back.”
“Tonight, all I want to do is hold you in my arms so we both can catch some much needed sleep,” I state. “I think we can handle one night in the same bed without clawing each other’s clothes off, don’t you?”
“Yeah,” she says, nodding her head. “I think we can handle that.” She slides over toward the wall, giving me enough room to join her, patting the mattress. “Come on, biker man, help me warm the sheets in a platonic manner.”
“That’s a first,” I chuckle as I sit beside her. “Don’t think I’ve ever heard ‘platonic’ and ‘bed’ used in the same sentence when I’m joining a woman.”
She gives me a side-eyed look as she hisses out, “There’s a first time for everything, isn’t there?
” I hate to admit this, even to myself, but Orion was right in his description of her.
She is a kitten with sharp claws and an even sharper tongue.
I didn’t realize before now that a sassy attitude full of piss and vinegar turns me on.
“Word to the wise, Gemini. Don’t hint at another woman being in your bed when you’re crawling into mine.”
“Noted,” I reply. “And I’ll never use a reference like that again.”
“Good idea seeing as it’s crucial to your health,” she snappily responds, still giving me a go to hell look as she sinks down into the mattress, keeping a small amount of distance between us. I’ll allow her to have her space—for now.