Chapter 15
FIFTEEN
STORM
DOTTIE
I’m literally losing my mind. The clubhouse is packed with people and more coming in every few minutes.
The townsfolk, Sheriff George, and some of his deputies, along with two motorcycle clubs are trying to figure out what the fuck just went down.
Hearing the sheriff explain to Noodles, Panther, Avalanche, and the rest of the guys from Panther’s ranch and others from the Blue Sky Sanctuary has me worried beyond belief.
Samson not only shot our sister Duchess, but he also shot two of his own men and then set them on fire.
Who the fuck does that? Well, damn, I know that Wrench, Shadow, and a few others like Chains from the Grimm Wolves MC would do it in a second and probably have.
My mind is drifting and getting foggy so I make my way to the kitchen to grab some coffee.
Before the swinging door shuts behind me, I’m in the arms of Momma Diane.
The comfort this woman has given both Dani and I is unbelievable.
I can’t let my emotions get the best of me yet again and when I go to pull back, she holds on tighter.
“Dottie, no, hold on to me for a few more minutes. If not for you then for me, because one of my girls is missing and I need some comfort.”
This woman cares more for my sister and me than our own parents. I mean, damn, our father might be behind all of this. Hearing someone pushing the door open behind me, I feel her small hands from behind hanging on to me.
“Hey, Dottie, don’t give up hope. I never will. We’ll find our sister and bring her home. So take a minute or two, get your head together, then get your butt out there. Let’s get this shit moving.”
Leave it to Tink, tiny and mighty, trying to keep my spirits up.
I feel her holding on so tightly I can feel her baby bump, and that almost brings a smile to my face.
She and Noodles are beyond the moon happy and instead of her being home taking it easy, as she’s been instructed, my prez is here worried about me.
I push away from Momma Diane and turn to Tink.
“Hey, Tink, don’t jeopardize that little miracle for this bullshit. Promise you’ll take care of yourself. I couldn’t live with myself if something happened to you. Faith, Mercy, and Noodles need you.”
She looks up and the determination and courage in those green eyes shocks me. Then she follows up with her words.
“Dottie, someone took one of our sisters. You know there’s nowhere he can hide that the Devil’s Handmaidens won’t find his ass, eventually. I’m fine and promise not to push it, but you’re my sister, as is Dani, so there is nowhere else I need to be. We’ll get her home, sister, that I can promise.”
Hearing a commotion in the great room, we all rush out to see Raven with a laptop in her hands, screaming at Freak.
“Motherfucker, I told you it was that huge-ass SUV. Dumbass, you probably drank too many of those energy drinks already and can’t concentrate.
We’re looking for a two thousand nineteen Chevy Suburban LS, dark gray.
I don’t see Dani, but it’s definitely this dude and he’s alone for now.
The vehicle belongs to a religious organization out in South Dakota.
It caught my eye because I know that both you and Dani are from there, Storm.
Not much more, though we are tracing anything we can pull up on that organization.
It’s gonna take time because for a religious group they have stellar security.
I put a call out to Karma to give us a hand.
He’s on it, and Brick said if we need anything to let them know. ”
Knowing the Grimm Wolves have our backs gives me some comfort.
Karma is one of the most intelligent technicians out there, though Raven and Freak are right behind him.
When we work on some difficult cases, the three of them usually put their heads together.
Seeing everyone here willing to help find Dani, I clear my throat then look to Shadow.
She grins her demonic grin before placing her fingers in her mouth and letting out a shrill whistle.
“Storm’s got something she wants to say, so shut the fuck up and pay attention.”
Taking a minute, I gather my thoughts.
“Thanks, Shadow. All I want is to let y’all know how much it means to me that you’re all willing to take time outta of your lives to find Dani.
I can never pay you back, but wanted each of you to know how much Timber-Ghost means to the both of us.
You all are our family. The only one we want because we choose you. ”
No one says a word and I put my head down, feeling like I should have said more, but didn’t have it in me.
I know she’s alive as I can feel it in my body.
We’re connected being twins, so I’m thinking I’d know if he killed her.
Feeling him behind me, I turn to see Benji watching me with those midnight-black eyes of his.
“Dottie, need anything?”
“Yeah, Benji, I need Dani.”
Hearing his frantic barking, I turn just in time for Bowie to run and leap at me. If not for Benji being behind me, I would have tumbled down on my ass. Somehow our dog knows something is up. Seeing Enzo walking in with Ollie, he comes directly to me, ignoring people saying hello to him.
“Dottie, anything you need, girl, I’m here. Now Bowie isn’t a search and rescue dog but he’s loyal so if you need to use him when you have a hit on Dani, do it. He’ll find her, I have no doubt.”
I look down into the most beautiful brown eyes ever as he licks my face.
When Enzo tells him “Sitzen” Bowie immediately gets off me and sits down at full alert.
Enzo did that so I look at Bowie as a working dog not just a pet.
I give him a small smile and look around.
So many people are here in the clubhouse and outside in the parking lot and on the patio.
God, we have to find her because I can’t even think of the alternative, though that dark fucker from hell is lurking around every corner.
Benji leads me to a small table off the great room and I sit just as Peanut brings me an ice-cold bottle of water. She grabs my hand and places two pills in it.
“I know your head is splitting, take them, just some Tylenol. Let me know if you need anything else. Here, Halo, brought you a water too. Take a minute, you two, try to chill. Something’s going to break soon, I can feel it.”
She squeezes my shoulder then walks away. I don’t know what to do and seems like there are so many people doing things, I take Peanut’s advice and try to refocus myself.
“Dottie, why would your father, after all this time, come looking for you guys? I’m trying to make sense of it, and something isn’t right.
How long have you been up here in Montana?
And how in the hell would he even know where to look?
Who’s this brotherhood and would they have known that you two were part of the Devil’s Handmaidens club?
I’m getting the feeling your father is being used without even knowing it.
Like you know, dangling a carrot in front of a starving donkey or however the saying goes. ”
Benji’s comment has that switch move in my brain.
Holy fuck, he’s right. This has probably nothing to do with Dani and my father but with that crazy as shit brotherhood we keep coming up against and knocking the fuck down.
Somehow two insane groups of people found each other and we are now living in their union.
Looking around, I see Tink and Glory so I wave them to me.
“Benji just said something that helped clear the fog from my mind. What if this isn’t our father’s doing but a payback from the Thunder Cloud Knuckle Brotherhood?
We’ve been busting their balls for a long while now, and the last time we collided, in the end we forced them to get the hell out of and away from Timber-Ghost. Maybe they did their homework to find a way to make us pay and found out about Dani and my past. I know I’m reaching, but after so long I can’t see our father wasting valuable time, let alone his money, to go to this extreme. ”
Tink’s eyes never leave my face, and it’s times like this I know why she’s our prez.
She always takes the time to really think shit through.
She turns to Glory, telling her to bring Raven to us.
Then my prez grabs a chair and pulls it next to me, making me move closer to Benji.
He immediately places his arm around my shoulders, which has me leaning into him.
His body heat comforts me, which I need right now.
Tink starts throwing out different scenarios about our father and the brotherhood.
When she comes up empty-handed, Benji leans forward and shocks both of us.
“I know I’m not up to speed on everything you all do, but if you’ve been a thorn in this, what are they called?
Yeah, the Thunder Cloud Knuckle Brotherhood which, just sayin’, is a really stupid-ass name.
Maybe they’re trying to distract your club from what they really are doing and are using the connection with Dottie and Dani’s relationship with their father.
I mean, you haven’t spoken to anyone from South Dakota in how long, Dottie? ”
I think for a second, then tell him we ran when we were almost twenty and ended up in Montana when we had just turned twenty-one. Found the Devil’s Handmaidens like, I think, six or nine months later when we drove into Timber-Ghost Montana and strolled into The Wooden Spirits Bar & Grill.
Thinking about it, since we are twenty-four now, we’ve been with the club for over two years.
Yeah, still prospects, I think to myself because of one stupid idea when we took that trip to Texas for that book signing Hannah kind of dragged us to.
Thinking about it brings a sad smile to my face, as Dani was never so happy as she was at that signing.
Shaking my head, I try to remember what we were talking about.
Benji squeezes my shoulder so I look up at him, and immediately he places a gentle kiss on the tip of my nose.
Hearing a throat clear, I look to see Raven standing there with a shit-eating grin on her face.
Great, just what I need, the club comedian, though she doesn’t say a thing, just looks at Tink.
“Raven, need you to backtrack on any information you can find on the brotherhood and their recent involvement with anyone. See how close they are to town and how many they’ve rebuilt their numbers up to.
Also, have Freak check any of the known members to get an idea what they’ve been up too.
Halo and Dottie came up with a theory that has some merit. Thanks, sister.”
Glory grabs a chair and pulls up next to Benji.
Having my prez and VP sitting with me at my time of need makes my heart feel almost full, though not quite, as one huge piece of it is missing—my twin sister.
The longer she is gone the more I worry that we won’t find her in time.
Feeling two people grab my hands, I’m shocked when first Benji then Tink both tell me that “Yeah, we will find her.”
Then Tink gently reminds me how after all those years we found Hannah, better known now as Squirt.
She watches me with those green eyes of hers that seem to be reaching inside me, giving my heart a gentle hug, and I can almost believe her.
I want to but am so scared to put all my faith into letting myself hope, and then something goes terribly wrong and I lose Dani forever.
That is something I won’t survive, no matter how many people surround me with love and support.
Losing my other half will literally kill me.