Chapter 24
Bear
J ohn wasn’t what I’d thought he be. I expected some beaten-down shell of a man, not someone I might have to tip my chin up at to stare in the eye.
And he was not happy with Rose at all. “ They’re bikers, Rose .”
“ And you’re a construction worker. Labels , John .”
He seethed quietly.
“ How’s Beth ?” Rose asked quietly.
“ Stable . But her ANC is way too low. They started looking wider for a different donor.”
“ What did her parents say about Carl’s absence?”
John scratched his head obviously uncomfortable discussing this in front of me, but I wasn’t moving.
I needed this information almost as much as Rose did.
Despite his demands, Carl was not following any of his usual patterns.
The only person who’d seen hide or hair of him was Fish .
And that was because of Carl’s doing, not Fish’s .
“ They haven’t seen him either. He left their place a week ago. ”
That tracked.
I strode over and held a hand out. “ Bear .”
John stared at it for a second, then took it. His grip was strong, but the circles under his eyes told a different story. This was a man at the end of his rope. There was real desperation lurking behind his honest expression. “ I’m John . You’re Rose’s …”
“ Yeah . I’m hers. She’s mine.”
That admission did not make him happy. But Rose slid an arm around me, giving the lie a bit of weight.
I let go of his grip and wrapped my arm over her shoulders. “ You ready to go?”
Rose nodded, “ Give Beth my best.”
“ Will do.” John stopped me. “ Bear ? I …” He was going to say something sappy, I just knew it.
“ Keep your shit tight. That’s all. Despite how it looked, I ain’t no baby sitter. Understand ?”
The look he shot Rose was a warning.
A well-deserved one. Like she’d told Gwen , I wasn’t a prince. Far from it. I was a villain who shouldn’t be around him or his kids.
“ Let’s go.”
On the cold ride home, I fought visibility and the temptation to ride faster so Rose wouldn’t shiver so much.
I hadn’t exactly given her time to dress for the ride, and John’s house was tucked northeast of Harrisburg .
That itself was a shit-show when Jackson found out his wife was that far away.
His hand went to his gun before he even blinked.
I stepped between him and the prospect who relayed the news.
I showed him the scrolling feed Hammer had sent during the drive. “ They’re safe, man.”
“ I’ll believe it when I see it.” There’d been murder in his eyes.
And for his sake, I’d buttoned down my own anger and tucked it somewhere I couldn’t even find now. I waited for a light and slipped my hand under Rose’s skirt to rub her leg. “ We’ll be home soon.”
“ I know.” She took the free moment to tuck her skirt tighter so her skin wouldn’t be exposed. I tapped her knee to warn her the opposite light had turned yellow.
A car screamed through the intersection right after the light turned green on our side. I slammed the clutch down and braked hard. Rose’s body bumped mine, and I steadied the bike so we wouldn’t tip. With a little more caution I checked the intersection before ripping through it.
Rose squeezed my waist tighter. I took a moment to pat her hand and warn her to hang on. Fog or not, I never wanted her to let go. Random things like some moron blowing a light could tear us apart.
Or she could get cancer. I could die on a run. A million ways death could find us both knocked on my thoughts, begging to be let in so they could distract me. Or maybe eat me alive, like it had done to John . Even the oldest kids had that haunted knowing in their eyes. I hated it.
And the littlest? By the Allfather , she was a rare one.
Fearless . And just a little too aware of how death can snatch someone you love away.
It showed in the hugs. Those weren’t innocent.
They were driven by despair. She soaked in all of the good because it was going to go away, fast. And she knew she had to hang on as tight as she could because tomorrow?
Shit .
I pulled Rose’s fingers to my lips. Then I put her hand over my heart and made sure it stayed there. I needed her. And I didn’t want to fight anymore. She’d been right. Carl needed an incentive to show up for his sister. And if it took me pissing off both Jackson and Wolf , that’s what it took.
The lights were on at Jackson’s . Zoe’s room was dark. The lounge upstairs lit by a blue glow. Someone was watching a movie.
The downstairs was lit up as well.
I rolled the bike into the garage and handed the keys off to Rose . “ Go in, get warmed up. I need to talk to Jackson first, okay?” Before I let go of her hand, I pulled her close. “ But I need you.”
Her expression changed. “ Why ?”
Because you challenge me to be a better man?
“ I just do. We’ll talk as soon as I get done over there.
” I ran a finger down her delicate skin.
Why on earth did I think a ton of makeup was pretty?
I preferred her light freckles, the slope of her nose…
the way her eyes stared into my soul. She was far from perfect, but so damn strong. I was lost to her. “ I’m yours.”
It hurt.
I hurt.
She tangled her fingers in my beard. “ And I’m yours. I don’t know when that happened, but…”
Thank the Gods .
I kissed her nose. “ Get inside.”
“ Bossy .”
Not if Wolf or Jackson didn’t want me to be.
For that, I needed to face up to the fuck up that tonight was. I knocked on Jackson’s front door. While I waited, I sent him a text message to make sure he knew I was there.
He was not happy when he opened the door. “ Get your ass in here.”
Kate was on the couch. They’d started a fire that crackled perfectly. If you didn’t look at Jackson’s vest or his tattoos, you’d think you just stumbled into one of those cheesy movies where everything can be solved by a hug and maybe a cup of cocoa.
Jackson joined his wife and tucked her tightly at his side.
“ Zoe ?”
“ Watching a movie,” Kate said.
The sound of gunshots and an explosion clued me into any number of the choices she preferred. Luckily , the kid inherited her father’s tastes.
I shuffled my feet, too aware of the cream carpeting. “ I’m sorry about tonight.”
“ How’s the kids and the dad?” Jackson’s question caught me off guard.
“ He’s …rough.” A thousand-yard stare was almost too mild to explain his status. “ The kids are good. Rose got them all sorted.”
“ What do we know about them?”
Kate pretended not to listen. I’d seen that before. She stayed right where she was and soaked it all in, but kept her opinions and nose out of it. I’m sure that wasn’t the case as soon as those two had a private word, but I wouldn’t judge. She’d seen a hell of a lot worse than Jackson in her day.
“ He works construction. I’d lay odds that the house must have been bought by their parents, or with their help. It’s big and has his fingerprints on it. That means it’s not a rental. I do know her parents are loaded. His , I don’t know.”
“ And the cancer?”
At Jackson’s question, Kate sucked in a gasp and looked down.
I watched her carefully. There was something they’d talked about already. Jackson played a mean game and was a difficult read, but Kate was an open book. “ They’re looking for another donor. Carl’s in the wind.”
“ No , he ain’t.” Jackson’s fingers tapped out his thoughts on Kate’s shoulder.
“ You heard from him?”
A grunt. “ I’d barely gotten my ladies home and he called my fucking business phone.”
That was downright suicidal. “ Where is he? I’ll take care of it.”
He met my eyes. “ No . He upped the amount. It’s twenty-five now. I told him to speak that amount to my face so I could gut him.”
Over an unsecured line. “ And ?”
His nostrils flared. “ I want him dead. But I saw that oldest girl in the doorway and want her mom alive more.” His fingers tightened on Kate’s shoulder.
“ I’m sending the hospital’s info to the national prayer chain.
The club could use some good press. When she’s better, we can kill that asshole for laughing at me. ”
Well , that was one way to fix things.
“ Is Wolf on board?”
Jackson’s frown deepened. “ Nope . He’s still concerned about keeping our asses out of trouble.
And that’s his job. So , I can’t do jack shit about that.
” He slipped his arm free and leaned forward clasping his hands together between his knees.
“ Your woman played mine. She used bullets I couldn’t dodge.
Cancer and kids. Fucking low ass…” His fingers tightened so much the knuckles went white.
Kate put a hand on her husband’s back. Her eyes met mine. “ There’s a lot more to her than meets the eye, isn’t there?”
Unfortunately , yes. I nodded.
Her eyes bored into mine. “ My husband does not want Zoe involved with anything dangerous. And I am one-hundred percent in agreement with him. However , I don’t think Rose is as bad as he thinks. So , I need your insight. Is Zoe at risk?”
Jackson fixed on me to read my body language. My hesitation alone was enough of an answer. “ Yeah . All of you are. Carl is…”
“ He’s a fucking nutcase.” Jackson finished for me. “ And your girl?”
“ Rose is strong. She’s dealt with his crazy before.”
“ That’s not a good thing, Bear .”
Jackson was right. I glanced up in time to see him slip a hand over to Kate’s knee and squeeze it.
And maybe I wasn’t seeing the whole picture? Kate knew crazy. Her ex was fifty times worse than Carl because he’d had power. Carl just had crazy going for him. Well , that and the people he sold to. Which in a small way was an army.
“ She thinks she can talk Carl into donating bone marrow for his sister. He’s already given blood.”
Jackson sat back. A look of horror, if that’s what it was, made him pale. The grooves of age, wind, and cares stood out bolder without his usual smirk. “ You can’t let her think like that.”
Kate’s mouth tightened. “ She’s going to, though. She’s going to try to bargain with him.”
Jackson faced his wife. Whatever he saw there made him spin to face me. “ You have to lock her down. Whatever it takes.”
“ I know.”
“ She’s going to hate you for that.” Kate thought deeper. “ She’s going to hate all of us for that.”
Unless we found a donor.
Then I could kill Carl and save everyone a lot of worry.