CHAPTER EIGHT
-:- RUGER -:-
First meeting I have to attend is regarding the incident while on shift.
Lincoln, Bones, and Arrow are in attendance and both myself and Drake take a seat at the round table in the discussion room, as Lincoln calls it.
It’s the room next to the main security office and is used for meetings of any kind.
“Okay, I’ve spoken to the fire department, the ambulance crew, and Forest. We have no backlash coming from this.
None of the on-scene individuals saw anything to show why the kid was doing what he did.
The other one you mentioned Drake, this Jack, as yet has not been found.
Wings, Target, and Buzz are speaking to their street contacts to see what they can find out.
” Lincoln leans back in his seat and looks at Bones.
“The client who owns the warehouse does not know who or why anyone would want to torch it. But he said he was getting some vibes from a business competitor. He doesn’t think that they would go to these extremes.
We are checking it out because at this stage it’s our only way of pointing a finger.
” Bones also sits back now he’s said his piece.
Arrow looks at me, then at Drake. “Are you both okay? Do you need to see a counselor?”
Drake snorts, “Nope. Not my bag. I’ll do my own therapy if I need any.”
“Yeah, me too. I’ve seen shit like that and worse.
I’m okay, we didn’t do it. The stupid fucker did it to himself.
” I have no sympathy for the kid. He was an arrogant little prick who would have made nothing of himself.
Unlike the other, that said no and fucked off.
Now he will survive, how I don’t know, but he has some morals.
“Are you going to check out this competitor, then?” I snidely remark because you can nearly make a bet they are involved.
“Oh yes. Delta is looking into it now…I think it’s more than likely this other business is involved. But why is the question?” Bones mutters, more to himself than us, but we all hear him clearly and we all nod in agreement.
Drake taps on the table. “Let’s just wait and see what everyone finds. I’ll speak to some people I know, too. This young kid can’t be that hard to find.”
“Yeah, I agree. The client is as astounded as we are about what’s happened.
Nobody has claimed the kid, and Delta is looking at everything she can to see if he was in the system at one time, fostered, thrown out of a home, or anything else.
” Arrow stands along with Bones. Knowing we’ve done all we can for now, Drake and I leave and head down to the cafeteria, as Penny has called it.
Drake speaks as we take a seat. “I’ll ask around about this ‘Jack’. I’ve a feeling he’s going to be tricky to find. You bet he’s living on the street or couch surfing?”
“Yeah, that’s my gut feeling, too,” I reply, and give Magnus a nod when he places a plate of chicken burritos in front of me, licking my lips as the aroma hits me. My stomach growls loudly, and I give Drake a smirk when he laughs at the noise.
“Did you hear about Garth and Bones with that Mr. Rathcall shit?” Drake asks.
Finishing the bite I had in my mouth, I wipe with a paper napkin and grin.
“Yeah. They did a fuckin’ number on him.
He was an arrogant asshole who thought he could sexually harass women.
Well, he’s been disabused of that notion.
I heard he’s selling up and moving out of town. Going to retire to Florida, maybe!”
“Better there than here. Piece of shit that he is. Why is it that some men feel they can do that? Do you reckon it makes them feel big? Important? Untouchable?” Drake growls.
“No idea, but he’s been taught a lesson, so let’s hope he goes to Florida or he may end up a visitor to Nell.” We both chuckle at that thought, but wouldn’t feel sorry for the asshole if it happened.
“Don’t forget we have that meeting in two hours. I’m going to get a bit of shuteye until then.” Drake wanders over to the counter and hands over his mug and plate. I am only a minute behind him because I’m heading back to the clubhouse.
At the clubhouse I peek in at Punkin and she’s fast asleep still. That Tylenol must have knocked her for six. What has me smiling is Penny lying beside her lightly snoring. She looks so peaceful that I quietly close the door and head outside to find Harris and make sure they have the right plot.
Seeing that they are in fact at the right plot, I relax somewhat. Harris waves when he sees me and I quickly make my way over to him. “How are things going?” I ask when I reach him.
“Good. We are digging out the foundations. I have the blueprint from Hammer. Are there any changes?” Harris asks as he turns more to me from where he was watching his team working.
“Not that I know of. I’ll be showing the duplicate blueprint to my woman later today, but I can’t see her having any problem with the layout.” I hope not anyway, it’s a beautiful house, or will be when it’s built.
“It’s a grand house, Ruger. I love the way you have the floor to ceiling windows in the back, overlooking the fields behind, and the sun will set every night, giving you a scenic view right from your living room.
” Harris looks over the fields he’s mentioned and he’s right.
It is a scenic view, and now the club owns a lot of the land, it will stay that way for a long time.
“Okay, I’ve gotta go, but any changes I’ll let you know immediately.” I throw that to Harris as I turn and walk back to the clubhouse frontage where my hog is parked. I’m going to have to get back for the meeting, so need to make a move.
Grinning as I have a thought. I’m going to get Penny some flowers. She’ll love that I hope. Brothers have told me to be romantic, so I hope this is classed as romantic!
Walking into Tilly’s Florista and Craft Arcade, I give a smile to Kya and Drew. “Hello, ladies.”
“Hi, Ruger. What you doing here?” Kya asks.
Now Kya is BS’ Ol’ Lady, and she’s a great woman.
I’ve a lot of time for Kya, she helps anyone, and everyone.
She also took over the leadership of the girl gang.
Not sure what will happen with that, but I know Mia was exhausted with it.
She’s going to continue helping any of the women of the club, but she doesn’t want to continue running any girl nights, bike runs or anything else.
“I’m here to get Penny some flowers. I want something really special. I was told to be romantic.” I can’t help but roll my eyes, which has the two of them giggling. “So, here I am.”
“Okay, how about something like this?” Kya asks, and I follow her to a stand where she pulls out a beautiful bouquet of pink, purple, white and green. The colors hit you.
“Yeah, that’s great. Can you deliver to the clubhouse soon? That’s where she is at the moment with Punkin.” I take out my wallet ready to pay.
“Yeah, we can do that. I’ll go see my man while I’m there.” Kya gives me a wink then waggles her eyebrows suggestively.
“No, I don’t want to know. Got enough of that going on with Knuckles and Jo.” I snort a laugh, taking myself and them by surprise.
Half an hour later, I’m sitting next to Knuckles, Colton, and Garth while they conduct interviews. Two so far are out the door. What a pair of idiots, not sure who tells these people they are something special, but they are as thick as a plank and couldn’t stop a man if needed.
Declan Scott was a good one, prior experience as a bodyguard, also had experience with managing a gym, so fit, healthy and able.
Noah Sylvester was another that Garth took a liking to. He thought Noah and Declan would make a good team, and I have to admit I think they will, too. They were both told to report to the clubhouse on Sunday morning for a brief workout so we could confirm their fitness and combat skills.
Now, let's think about the asshole Harry Finchley. He was arrogant, a sweet talker, and he knew nothing. He had no qualifications for anything. He wasn’t even fit. He had a beer gut that belayed any chance we’d see him fit enough to run after an intruder, never mind take one down.
Knuckles told him straight to his face he was not getting the job, and if he wanted to reapply at any time, he would have to get fit and have built up some experience.
I can tell you it didn’t go down well. But at least he was gone.
Garth, however, didn’t like him, and he didn’t like the comments Drake had made.
“I’m going to have Delta look into this asshole,” Garth mumbles more to himself than us, but I have to admit I agree there is something off about him.
When Pryce arrives, I reckon this is gonna be good. He stands tall and looks everyone in the eye. He’s maybe younger than most of us, but he’s seen some stuff I reckon, by the look he has in his eye.
“Okay, Pryce. You’ve had a good word put in for you. We know about your circumstances, too. But can you take down a criminal? Can you run long enough to catch one? How fit are you?” Colton asks.
“Well, let’s see…I work out at the gym twice a week. I have run a half marathon for charity…um, yeah, that’s about it. No real fighting skills, but I’ve been in fights and come out okay.” Pryce stands, continuing to look everyone in the eye.
“Okay. How about you come over to the clubhouse Sunday morning and we’ll see how well you can take down a criminal. If you are good enough, we’ll get you training in hand-to-hand in no time at all.” Knuckles waits for Pryce’s reply.
It comes in the shape of a nod and, “Yeah, I can do that. This Sunday suit?”
“That’s fine. If you work out well on Sunday, then you got yourself a job.” Knuckles holds his hands out to shake and once that’s done Pryce leaves. “I reckon he’s a good one. What do you think, Garth? And you, Colton?”
Colton taps the table. “I’m in. I think he’ll be a good one. He’s one I’ll watch for the MC, too.”
“I thought that’s what you’d do,” Garth chuckles. “Come on, let’s get done here for the day. It’s getting late for meetings, and we don’t have anyone else do we?”
“Actually, we do,” I add, and as I’ve said nothing much since I arrived, and Drake looks like he’s gone to sleep I am alert at this point. I’m interested in what they are going to say or do next.
Bentley walks in with a 5’7” brunette who is wearing jeans, a tee, cowboy boots, and a cowboy hat. “This is Dallas, and she’s here to interview for a security position.”
Now, everyone sits up straight, giving each other a look before asking Dallas to take a seat. Colton takes over, which is interesting as he’s usually laid back at this sort of thing and lets others take the lead.
“Hi, Dallas. What experience do you have that can benefit us at BaronsSecure?” Colton gets straight to the point.
“G’day all.” Dallas throws out as she takes a seat.
“Well, I’ve been a ranch hand for eight years.
Throwing steers means having strength, speed and dexterity.
I’ve worked bar at Saltwater Stevens, which had me doing bouncer duties, too.
But I’ve won two belts in boxing. Was fun, but when I splattered my last opponent’s nose so bad she had to have surgery, I thought it best to not do that anymore.
” Dallas smirks at her last comment, and Knuckles chuckles because he knows what it’s like, and so does Colton who is grinning.
Garth leans forward. “Would you be happy to come over to the local MC compound and work out with us on Sunday morning? Show us what you are capable of before we decide?”
“Yeah, no problem. I can do that. Are you speaking of the Raging Barons MC compound on the edge of town?” Dallas stands as she replies to Garth.
Colton speaks again. “Come around 9:00 a.m. and you can warm up with the women. We’ll get more details from you if you pass the physical side of things.”
Holding her hand out, Dallas shakes the hand of each of us before leaving, and I have to say, “She looks fit, healthy and able. I like her, and I reckon she’s got some hidden talent. She’ll make a brilliant partner for Pryce if they both work out?”
“Yeah, you’re right Ruger, they would make a good team,” Drake adds, and who knew the fucker was even awake? “So, on Sunday morning we have Declan, Noah, Pryce, and Dallas to put through their paces. It’s gonna be interesting.”
We all nod in agreement as we break up the meeting and head our separate ways. I’m heading out to the cafeteria because my stomach needs a good meal before I change into work gear. It’s going to be a long night, and I’m ready for this week's night duty to be over with.
I am looking forward to sneaking into bed with Penny in the morning. Cuddles are always going to be welcome, and spooning my woman will never get old.