Cheyenne Chapter 11
It was Friday, and it had been almost a week since I’d seen Serpent. I’d been walking around on pins and needles, waiting for him to make a reappearance. I knew he’d never let it go. Not now that he knew where I was.
Reaper did his best to reassure me that I was safe. He had his club, his friends, plus a bunch of guys he called the Dark Patriots, working on it. I guess there was still a lot I needed to discover about my man. Speaking of my man, that seemed to be surreal to me. I had a man. One who told me every day he loved me. He showed me over and over again that he did, in and out of bed, though in bed had to be some of the best!
He worked last Sunday and Monday to get my stuff moved from my place to the compound. He insisted we had to do it right away with Serpent out there. I hadn’t argued. He’d even convinced Alisse she needed to be there too. I was glad because I hated the idea of her being in danger because of me. She was staying at the house with us in one of the guest rooms, though she seemed to be spending a lot of time at the clubhouse. I wondered if it was to give us privacy or if she was attracted to one of the other guys. She seemed to get along with them well.
So far, we hadn’t seen Serpent or any of the guys who’d been with him last weekend. That didn’t mean they weren’t there. Plus, we were worried about others we had no idea were with him. This meant I never went anywhere without at least two guys with me. Sometimes it was two patches and other times a patch and a prospect. I knew it was stressing the club’s manpower, but Reaper wouldn’t budge. I’d argued we’d be safe at work during the day, but he said no. He didn’t trust them not to do something there. Deep down, I knew he was right.
Serpent had creeped me out even as a kid. He was close to eleven years older than me. He’d always watched me, as far back as I could remember. He’d lurked around the clubhouse. My mom had tried to keep me away as much as she could, but my dad, Ogre, hadn’t always allowed it. Once I got older, he insisted I spend more time there. Looking back, I realized it had corresponded to the time I’d started puberty. The thought made me sick.
It was around that age that Serpent had started to pay even more attention to me. He always seemed to be where I was. He’d brush against me or touch me in little ways. I’d been scared of him. But he hadn’t ever tried anything for years, which I had been so grateful for. I thought I might be mistaken until one day not long before I left. I overheard my mom and dad arguing. Dad had told her that Serpent wanted me and he was going to let him have me. How it would get him in good with Serpent’s dad, Slither. It had been the biggest fight I’d ever heard them have.
In the end, he stormed out after beating the hell out of my mom. That was the night she reached out to her aunt and begged her to take me. Not long afterward, I was smuggled away and my mom got left behind to face Dad’s wrath. A wrath that I knew had resulted in her death. To this day, I felt guilty that I had left, and she had stayed. Alisse dropping down beside me at the table in our breakroom jarred me out of those depressing memories. I smiled at her. “Ready for the day to be over yet?”
She sighed. “Hell yeah, I am. What’s on the agenda for tonight? Movies, the clubhouse, or do you think they’ll go out and let us dance?”
I chuckled. “Good luck on the last one. No way Reaper is going to let us out of the clubhouse to dance, though it does sound great.”
“I could try and talk to him—”
The door swung open and in rushed Crusher and Tinker. They had hard looks on their faces. They came straight over to us.
“We need to go,”
Crusher barked. He got a hold of my arm and pulled me up out of the chair. Tinker did the same to Alisse.
I pulled away. “Why? What’s going on?”
“We’ll explain later. Right now, we need to get out of here. We told Doc you two had to go.”
I stared at them in astonishment. Who would have ever imagined that our upstanding boss, Dr. Simpson, had grown up with MCs? Reaper had explained to her that I was in danger. I thought she’d fire me on the spot. Instead, she calmly told him to do what he needed to do, as long as none of her patients got hurt. Doing what he wanted included the guys having free rein to come and go in the office. A few patients had been scared, but most liked to look at them. The women being the biggest group to stare and drool.
“I need to get my purse,”
I told them. They gave us a minute to get them and then we were out the door and rushed into the truck. They had brought us to work in it this morning. No riding on the back of their bikes. Reaper would kill them. As we backed up to leave, the roar of motorcycles had me swinging around in a panic. My heart settled when I saw it was more Punishers. They surrounded us and followed the truck all the way back to the compound.
I tried to find out what was wrong, but the two of them were staying tight-lipped. I fumed the whole way there. As soon as we parked by the clubhouse, I was out and stomping to the clubhouse. I knew Reaper would be in his office there. As I swung open the door, he came walking out. He opened his arms, but I pushed him away. He gave me a surprised look. “I need to talk to you, alone,”
I told him. He glanced at the guys behind me then nodded. He took my hand and led me to his office.
I paced around as he closed the door. I turned to glare at him. “I’ve done everything you’ve asked, haven’t I? When it comes to moving here, having guards at work, never going anywhere, right?”
“Yeah, you have, baby, and I appreciate it.”
“Well, I’d appreciate it if I ask what’s happening when your brothers come bursting into my work and whisking me away, that they’d say something! Jesus, Holden, I’m not a damn kid. What caused that rush exodus from work?” I yelled.
“Cheyenne, this is the club—”
I cut him off.
“So help me God, if you say it’s club business, I’ll fucking scream and brain you. I know it has to do with Serpent. The only way he’s club business is because of me.”
“Sit here and calm down.”
He pointed to the couch in his office. I took a seat. I knew I was probably overreacting, but this waiting was getting on my nerves. He sat down beside me. “Fine, you’re right, it does have to do with Serpent. We finally found out that he and the Soldiers have been infiltrating various clubs across several states. They get in and then get in good with them before they take them over and get rid of any of the guys who don’t think like they do. They’ve been doing it for the last two years. Rumor is five other clubs have fallen. If they run into opposition, they go after the wives, kids, and families of those members who oppose them. They’ve even hit them at work.”
I sank back into the cushions and choked back a sob. Would I ever be free of the Soldiers of Corruption and Serpent? Maybe I needed to think about leaving and moving again. Reaper tried to take me into his arms, but I resisted. “I can’t do this, Holden. I can’t put you and a bunch of other people at risk. I’m not worth that. I think it’s best if I just leave. It took them ten years to find me, I can disappear again. Somewhere even further away.”
He swore then tugged me into his arms. He kissed me and it was one filled with anger and love. When he finally let me breathe, he stared into my eyes. “Over my goddamn dead body will you fucking leave. Do you hear me? You’re not going anywhere. You’re my old lady. We’re getting married and having babies. Nothing and no one are going to ruin that. They’ve fucked with the wrong club this time, Bright Eyes. I didn’t mean to scare you. I just wanted to get you here where it’s safe.”
I leaned my head on his chest. “What if you’re wrong?”
“Haven’t you heard, I’m never wrong. I can take care of them. I’m not called Reaper for nothing.”
I looked up at him.
“Why do they call you that? Is it because you’ve killed people?”
“Cheyenne, do you really want to know that?”
“I do.”
“Fine, I got it from the SEALs, not from the club. I was good at what I did and that involved killing in defense of my country. I could do it and not let it bother me. Some of the guys started to talk about me reaping souls and then they started to call me Reaper. It stuck. When the club found out, it became my road name.”
“Have you had to kill anyone since you left the SEALs?”
I asked. He said nothing. That was my answer. Was I getting myself into something that I wouldn’t ultimately want? Reaper and the guys all seemed to be the exact opposite of the Soldiers of Corruption; however, I didn’t know how they made their money. The compound was nice. Reaper’s house and the others on it were beautiful and new. I swallowed the lump in my throat and put on a smile.
“Okay, I get why you had to bring us back. But can you ask the guys to please, if something like this happens again, they at least tell us the basics?”
He gave me a nod then hugged me. “Yeah, I will. They’re not used to having women around to ask those kinds of questions. I’ll let them know what they can and can’t share. Now, I hate to do this, but I need to go meet with the guys. Are you staying here or going to the house?”
“I’ll go to the house. Meet me there when you’re done.”
“I will.”
He gave me one more kiss then we went back out to the common room. The guys were all standing there waiting. They looked us over. I didn’t know what they saw, but it seemed to satisfy them. I went over to Alisse. “Come on, we’re going to the house. They have a meeting.”
She didn’t object. We walked out as they walked into church. A part of me wished I was in there, hearing what they had to say. As soon as we were in the house, Alisse started in on me. “So, did you and Reaper have a knock-down drag-out fight? You didn’t look like it was too bad.”
“No, it wasn’t. He promised to get the guys to tell us something if this happens again. They found out some stuff about Serpent. Their club isn’t the only one to be targeted over the last few years.”
“You never really talk about your time with them. I know the basics. I know it’s painful, but it might help.”
“Alisse, I don’t want to remember. Serpent was always there and even as a kid, he creeped the hell out of me. When I found out he’d asked my father to give me to him, I wanted to puke. I was scared to death. That’s what finally broke my mom. She had contact with an aunt. Something my dad didn’t know. She got in touch with her and I was whisked away as soon as they could arrange it. I’ll never get over the fact that I left, and she died. She died because of me,”
I told her, sobbing at this point. She wrapped me in her arms and hugged me.
“She did what any loving mother would do. She protected her child. You would do the same. The only one to blame for her death is your dad. Hell, she was what, fifteen when she had you? She was a child herself. How did she get mixed up with your dad?”
I led her over to the couch so we could sit. “She saw him one day on the street on his motorcycle. He stopped and started to talk to her. She was flattered and all that. He was older than her. Next thing she knew, she was sneaking out to meet him. They became sexually involved. It wasn’t long after that he claimed her and took her to the compound.”
“Didn’t her parents call the cops?”
“Nope, they didn’t. They were very religious and the fact she’d gotten involved with my dad was seen as a sin. They left her to continue to live that sinful life as they called it. My dad was smart though. He married my mom and had her parents sign their consent. I have no idea what he did to get them to agree, but they did.”
“Who was the aunt that helped?”
“My mom’s mother’s sister. She didn’t live there and didn’t get along with her sister and brother-in-law. They looked down on her as a sinner because she had lived with a man. But she had contact with Mom. She didn’t know about the marriage thing until after it was too late. They kept in contact in secret somehow, all those years.”
“Have you told Reaper all this?”
“No, not all of it. He knows a great-aunt helped me. I lived with her until I was twenty when she passed away. We moved a few times over the years to be sure we wouldn’t be found.”
“I think you need to tell him all of it and include all the details about Serpent. It might help them find him or something. Trust him with this.”
I sat there for a long time mulling over what she said. It was a while later that I made my decision.
“I’m going to the clubhouse and talk to them. They should still be in church and I want them to hear all of it. I’ll be back soon.”
She gave me a thumbs-up. The walk to the clubhouse was short, but I was feeling nervous. I hated sharing all my inner thoughts and feelings but it could help. I was just at the door, when I noticed it was cracked open and there were people talking. One of them was Reaper, and the other was Crusher. I was about to open the door when I heard my name.
“Listen, Reaper, I don’t want to piss you off. But I’m just saying, be careful and sure. Cheyenne could be part of this. It’s a little too much of a coincidence, don’t you think, that at the exact time you meet her and get her to come to the compound, Serpent and his guys show up supposedly on the wrong day. We get to see them react to her and the whole thing plays out. It would be the perfect way to get us to take her in. They knew we’d want to protect her. Now she’s here and can listen and tell them anything she hears or sees.”
A searing pain shot through my chest. I backed away from the door. They thought I was working with Serpent! They thought I would be that evil of a person to come in and help destroy a club. To set up more to be like the hellhole one I grew up in. One that used women and children. I took off running back to the house. I made it to the front steps before I bent over and vomited in the bushes. A couple of heaves and then I was up the stairs and bursting in the door. Alisse was on the couch. She looked up at me in surprise. “What’s wrong?”
“We need to get the hell out of here,”
I shouted as I ran to the bedroom and grabbed my bag out of the closet.
“What do you mean, we have to get out of here?”
She followed me.
“They think I’m part of this whole Soldiers takeover thing. That I’m helping Serpent to infiltrate here.”
Her mouth dropped open in shock. “What? What in the world would make you think that?”
“I overheard Reaper and Crusher talking. God, Alisse, I trusted him with me and he thinks it’s all a lie. I’m not going to stay here.”
“Wait, don’t you think you should talk to him? Let him explain.”
“What’s there to explain? They think I’m involved or at least should be watched. I was a prisoner my whole life until I got away from the Soldiers. I won’t be one again.”
“Okay, but how can we leave? They’re not just going to open the front gate and let us waltz out alone.”
I stopped packing and sat down on the bed. She was right. We had to come up with a plan. An idea popped into my head from our earlier talk at work. I stood up.
“Get your stuff. Hide your bag in your car out front. I’ll do the same. When he gets here, let’s convince them we need a night out. That we’re going nuts. We want to dance. We have to get them to agree. If they do, we go dance and pretend to drink. Get them relaxed. Then we go to the bathroom and disappear. We’ll find somewhere to go.”
“You know that sounds nuts, right? No way we’ll pull that off.”
“We have to try. If it doesn’t work, then we wait and find a way to do it on Monday at work. Please, I can’t leave you behind,”
I beseeched her. She sighed.
“Okay, let’s do it. Because if that’s what they think and are planning to use you, then fuck ‘em. I’ll go pack.”
She rushed out of the bedroom. I quickly finished putting a few essentials in the bag. I couldn’t pack much or he’d notice. I got out my hidden stash of money and put it in the bag. I crept to the front windows and looked out. No one was in sight. I ran to her car and opened the trunk to throw in my bag. I barely got it done and was back in the house before Reaper came home. Now came the hard part, convincing him to take us out on the town and then getting away. I had no other choice, though this might kill me. I loved him and I thought he loved me too, but it was like growing up, men would say or do anything to get what they wanted. I’d let myself forget that fact again.
***
Reaper:
I had no idea how in the hell I let myself be talked into this. Here we were, out on the town, so Cheyenne and Alisse could dance. Something we probably shouldn’t be doing with Serpent and his guys out there, but Cheyenne had looked so dejected and sad when she begged me to do this. She said they had been going crazy and needed to blow off a little steam. She wanted to go where there was a band and they could dance. I tried to convince her they could do it at the clubhouse, but she said it wouldn’t be the same.
It was after an hour of seeing her sitting on the couch, staring off into space that I’d caved and said we’d go. But it had to be all of us. She’d eagerly gone to get ready with Alisse. I texted the guys to tell them the plan. They all said they’d be ready to go at eight. We’d left in a big convoy and went to the bar we liked to hang out at, the Deuce. It was mainly a bar that bikers, and blue-collar workers liked to go to. They had good bands on Friday and Saturday nights. This would let the ladies get their dancing fix. We were thinking about buying it if the owner decided to sell it.
I sat at the table and watched them dance. They had barely sat down since we got here two hours ago. The place was fairly full and the dance floor was busy. She and Alisse had been dancing and talking the whole time. It made me happy to see her having a good time. I got up to go get another drink at the bar. The waitress was being run off her feet. When I got back, I sat down and looked at the dance floor. I didn’t see the women. I whipped around to look at my brothers.
“Where are they?”
I asked urgently.
“Don’t worry, they came to the table while you were getting your drink. They’ve just gone to the bathroom. They’ll be back,”
Maniac reassured me. I relaxed back in my chair. I took a drink of my beer and waited. After five more minutes passed and there was no sign of them, I stood up.
“I’m going to go check on them,”
I told the guys before walking off. The hall to the bathroom was crowded. I got to the ladies’ room and knocked. “Cheyenne, babe, are you two alright in there?”
I called out. There was no answer. I knocked again and repeated myself louder. Still nothing. A woman walked up and stared at me standing in front of the bathroom door.
“Hey, my woman and her friend are in there. Would you please go in and tell them I’m out here and worried?”
She thought for a second then nodded as she opened the door. A couple of seconds later she came back out.
“There’s no one in there, mister.”
“What! Are you sure?”
“It’s not that big of a bathroom. I’m sure,”
she told me a little testily.
“Thanks,”
I mumbled as I raced down the hall and back to the table. The guys saw me coming, and all stood up in alarm.
“What’s wrong? Where’s Cheyenne and Alisse?”
Ratchet asked.
“They’re not in there. We need to search for them. Let’s go,”
I shouted. We all left the table to split up and search for them. I was kicking myself for not telling them to take an escort even here. I’d been stupid and hadn’t thought about it. There were a bunch of rough guys in here that I knew wouldn’t let someone touch a woman. Fifteen minutes later, it was obvious they were nowhere in the bar or outside. I was starting to freak out. We were out by the bikes. Mayhem came up.
“Whatever happened, they made Alisse take her car. It’s missing.”
“Jesus Christ! Why didn’t we follow them to the bathroom?”
I shouted as I kicked the side of the building in frustration. All I could see were images of Serpent with his hands on Cheyenne. She was terrified of him and hadn’t told me the whole reason why.
“Let’s get back to the clubhouse so I can get on my computers. I can tap into the security feed here. I helped the bar owner set it up, remember,”
Spawn said as he gave me a sympathetic look. None of them knew what I was going through. My woman was gone. I hadn’t protected her.
“Okay, let’s get there. After Spawn checks the feed, we’ll start search teams and see if we can spot Alisse’s car. They don’t have that much of a head start,”
I told them. It was a mad dash to get on bikes and leave. Even though the ride to the compound was short, it felt like it took forever. I had to find her. She’d better be alright.