Chapter 8
Parker
When I told Menace the truth about my past, I thought he’d freak out and send me on my way, especially after he’d heard about the Brants, but he didn’t.
To my surprise, he seemed even more adamant about helping me.
I thought I’d found my knight in shining armor, but when we pulled up to the federal prison, I was beginning to think I had this thing with Menace all wrong.
Acting like it was no big deal, Menace pulled up to the guard at the gate and announced, “We’re here to see Dalton James.”
“Name?”
“I’m Jared Hughes, and this is Aubrey Cash.”
“You got identification?”
“We do.” Menace grabbed his wallet and pulled out his driver’s license, then waited as I did the same. I was more than a little nervous about giving the guard my fake ID, but Menace had left me no choice. “Here ya go.”
I held my breath as the guard gave them the once over, then offered them back to Menace. “You can pull through.”
Without responding, Menace buzzed up his window and drove through the gate, then parked in the front lot beside the entrance. When he shut off the ignition, I turned to him and asked, “What are we doing here?”
“I got someone I need to see.”
“Yeah, I figured that much.” It was moments like these when I wanted to ring Menace’s neck. He knew exactly what I was asking, but he was skirting around the answer. So, I pushed, “Who is Dalton James?”
“He’s one of my brothers.”
“One of your brothers is in jail?”
“Yeah, but it’s not like what you might think.”
“Then, what’s it like?”
As we headed inside, Menace told me about Dalton and his sister, and how she’d called him after her boyfriend attacked her.
There was no missing the anguish in Menace’s voice as he gave me the details of what ensued after Dalton and the boyfriend got into a heated exchange.
He described how they’d fought and fought hard.
A grimace crossed his face as he told me about the final blow that sent the boyfriend sailing.
He ended up hitting his head on the edge of the coffee table, killing him instantly.
By the time we reached security, Menace went on about the trial and explained how he’d gone to see Dalton as often as possible.
Hearing him talk was the distraction I needed to keep from freaking out over the numerous armed guards.
It seemed like it took an eternity for them to get through all the paperwork and IDs, but we finally made our way into the visiting area.
We hadn’t been sitting there long when one of the prisoners started walking in our direction.
By the way Menace told the story, I was expecting Dalton to be an average Joe kind of guy, but there was nothing average coming in our direction.
This guy was huge with muscles bulging from the short sleeves of his orange jumpsuit and fierce green eyes that pierced straight through you.
He was a force to behold, making me feel more than a little intimidated when he sat down at the table and glared at me like I was encroaching on his territory. “Who’s this?”
“Her name is Aubrey. She’s…uh...a friend of mine.”
“Oh yeah?” His eyes skirted over me as he said, “Never known you to have any friends who looked like her.”
“First time for everything.” Menace glanced over to me for a moment, then turned his attention back to Dalton.
He motioned his hand over to Dalton’s bicep, where a skull with flames tattoo marked his skin.
The red, swollen skin made it obvious that it was fresh and quite possibly infected. “I see you got yourself some new ink.”
“Figured it was time.” Dalton lifted his arm, revealing the different tattoos that marked his skin. “Got one for every year I’ve been in here.”
Menace replied with a hint of sarcasm, “Glad you’ve found something to occupy your time.”
“Do what I gotta do. You gonna tell me why you two are here or what?”
“You ever heard anything about a guy named Rossi,” Menace answered. “He’s connected to the Italian mafia.”
“Can’t say that I have, but I could ask around.”
“I’d appreciate it.”
He leaned forward, placing his elbows on the table as he studied Menace for a moment. “Something going on I need to know about?”
“Just taking care of a situation with Aubrey. Nothing for you to be concerned about.” Menace looked over to me before he continued, “We’ve got it covered.”
Maybe it was because there wasn’t much Dalton could do to help while he was behind bars or that they wouldn’t or couldn’t talk about it in front of me, but Menace didn’t tell Dalton the story behind Rossi and me—or his plan of taking me to see this Billy guy.
Instead, he simply said, “Just wanted to stop by and let ya know that we’re gonna be leaving town for a few days. ”
“You know I don’t like that shit. This got something to do with that Rossi fella?”
“Yeah, but like I said, nothing to be concerned about.”
“If you say so.”
“You need anything before we head out?”
“A ticket out of here would be great. Otherwise, I’m good.”
I took another glance around the room, and my chest tightened when I realized we were completely surrounded by men in orange.
It was impossible not to worry that I’d gotten myself into an even bigger mess than I was already in.
I’d been running from criminals for months, and now I landed myself right into the thick of them.
It was enough to make me wonder if I should get up and run out of there, but then it hit me.
Maybe, just maybe, fighting fire with fire was the only way to survive this ordeal with Rossi.
Since Menace and the brothers were going out of their way to help me, I thought it was only fair that I tried to do the same for him.
I could tell by the way he spoke that he and his brothers thought a lot of Dalton, so I looked over to him. “Mind if I ask you a question?”
“Okay. What’s on your mind?”
“Do you have a date set for your parole hearing?”
“Why ya ask?”
“Just curious.”
“Well, if you must know, my case goes up to the parole board in a couple of months, but I’m not holding my breath for an actual hearing. These motherfuckers aren’t gonna let me outta here any time soon.”
“Have you done your part to show that you’re ready to be reintegrated into society? Have you gotten into any trouble while you’ve been here? Did you take any classes or get counseling?
“My father was a lawyer. I worked at his office in the summers while I was going to college, and I picked up on a couple of things.”
“Pfft,” he grumbled. “So, you worked with your daddy, and now you think you know more than my lawyer and can get me out of this place?”
“No, I’m not saying that at all.” I tried to assure him. “My father was really good at his job. He’d always hoped I would follow in his footsteps, so he taught me a few things along the way—like how important a parole hearing could be.”
“How so?”
“Well, there are certain things the board looks at when they’re trying to decide if a hearing is justified, and good behavior is only a small part of it. They want to see that you’re making an effort to prepare for the transition back into society.”
“I’ve done what I can.”
“So, no trouble since you’ve been here?”
“Just a couple of run-ins, but I haven’t initiated anything, and I haven’t killed anyone while I’ve been in here—if that’s what you’re asking.” When I didn’t respond, he said, “It’s hard to keep your nose completely clean in a place like this, but again, I haven’t started any trouble.”
“Okay, that’s a start. What about classes or a job?”
“No classes, but I’m working. Been making fucking license plates for the past two damn years.”
“Would you consider being moved to a position where you could learn a field...maybe plumbing or electrical or carpentry?”
“Those are hard to get.”
“I’m aware, but you can’t get one unless you try,” I pushed. “And the counseling, especially anger management, could go a long—”
“Fuck that,” he grumbled. “I’m not doing that shit.”
“Easy, brother,” Menace said in a calm voice. “She’s just trying to help.”
“Well, I didn’t ask for fucking help!” He leaned over to us as he spat, “It’s bullshit! I don’t need fucking anger management!”
“Clearly.” I stood and turned to Menace. “I think it’s best I wait for you outside.”
“Sit,” Dalton ordered. I didn’t budge. I was too scared to make a move, so I simply stood there until his expression softened, and he muttered, “I’m sorry for the outburst. Please, just sit.”
No longer feeling threatened, I sat down and said, “I’m sorry for pushing. I know Menace thinks a lot of you. Apparently, all your brothers do. I was only trying to give a little advice in hopes of getting you out of this place as soon as possible.”
“You really think the counseling will help?”
“It’s one of the first things my father would suggest to his clients when they were trying to get out on parole.”
Menace and Dalton shared a look, then Menace said, “Just say the word. I’ll get in touch with the attorney and see what we can get set up.”
“Make it happen.”
“You got it.” Menace turned and looked over at the clock above us, then said, “Sorry to cut it short, but we gotta get going.”
“No problem.” We all stood, and Dalton shook Menace’s hand. “You two be careful doing whatever it is you’re gonna be doing.”
“We will.”
Dalton then turned his attention to me. “Thanks for the advice. Unsolicited or not, I appreciate ya trying to help.”
“I hope it helps.”
“You and me both.”
After a final goodbye, Menace and I walked out of the prisoner’s visiting room and out to the parking lot. Moments later, we were back in the SUV and on the road. We hadn’t been riding long when I felt the urge to say, “I’m sorry if I overstepped back there.”
“No need to apologize.” Menace’s eyes skirted over to me for a second, then back to the road as he admitted, “I’ve been trying to figure out how the hell to get him out of there for years, and then you...you come in there and finally give him the hope I never could.”
“You’ve been there for him through all of this. That’ll always mean more to him than a little advice from a stranger.”
“Maybe, but it sure as hell means a lot to me.”
Hearing the sincerity in his voice truly touched me.
It warmed my heart to think I might’ve helped Dalton in some small way, especially since he meant so much to Menace.
I found myself wondering if Billy meant as much to him as Dalton.
I didn’t have a clue who the man was or what he could do to help me with my situation with Rossi.
When Menace mentioned we were going to see him, I didn’t ask questions.
I didn’t see the point. He was offering to help, and I wasn’t in a position to question it, but after our visit with Dalton at the freaking federal prison, I was beginning to wonder if I’d made a mistake in not asking more about him.
He could’ve been a psycho serial killer they hired to just kill off Rossi and the rest of his mafia family…
or worse. They could’ve hired him to finish me off and end my problems altogether.
I highly doubted it was the latter, but that didn’t stop me from asking, “So, what’s the deal with this Billy guy? ”
“What do you want to know?”
“Who is he? How do you know him? What’s he do?” I shrugged. “Anything.”
“I can’t really get into all that.” He kept his eyes on the road ahead as he declared, “It’s club business, and we don’t discuss club business with anyone outside of the club.”
“You don’t talk to anyone about stuff that goes on with the club?”
“Nope.”
“Well, that’s just asinine. I mean, seriously? How does that even work?” I pushed. “There are people who need to know things.”
“Not if they aren’t directly tied to the club.”
“And this Billy guy is tied to the club?”
“He is.”
“Okay, but we’re not going to see him about the club. We’re going to see him because of me. I don’t see why I can’t at least know who the guy is.”
“We might be going to see him because of you, but he’s working with us on behalf of the club. So...”
“Well, that’s just asinine.”
“You already said that.”
“It deems repeating, because it is, in fact, asinine! Very much so.” I crossed my arms with a huff. “What about the ol’ ladies? Do you talk to them about club business?”
“Nope.”
“What about the girls who work in the club?”
“Nope.”
“Asinine.”
“Are you done?” I turned to face him, and when I saw the smirk on his face, I rolled my eyes and glared straight ahead. “You know, you didn’t ask the most important question.”
“Oh, really? And what’s that?”
“Why we don’t share club business?”
“Okay, yes. That’s a good question.” I looked back over to him. “So, why don’t you?”
“We look out for the people we care about and have always believed the less you know, the safer you’ll be. It’s not always easy. In fact, sometimes it’s really fucking hard, but trust me when I say it’s for your benefit. Not mine.”
“Oh well, when you put it like that.”
“Exactly, now settle in. We’ve got a long drive ahead of us.”
“How long?”
“You’re not going to start that shit again, are ya?”
“Nope.” I sat back in my seat and stared straight ahead. “I’m done. Not asking another question.”
“Mm-hmm.”
“Oh, you just wait and see. I won’t ask another question for the rest of the day!”
“Whatever you say, boss.”
“Ass.”
Out of pure spite, I did my best to keep all my questions and doubts to myself, but it wasn’t easy.
There were so many thoughts bouncing around in my head, but every time the temptation to speak started to brew, I swallowed back the thought and tried to focus on the road ahead.
The silence was exhausting, so I finally closed my eyes and dozed off.
I slept right up until a hard jolt had me springing up in my seat and looking out the front window.
We were on a long, winding, gravel road, and there wasn’t a house in sight.
I was about to turn and ask Menace where we were when I remembered that I’d told him I wasn’t asking any more questions.
Trying to work around my stupid declaration, I glanced back at the tall stalks of corn that were growing in the field in front of us and said, “Wow, that’s a lot of corn.”
“Mm-hmm.”
“Looks like a pretty big farm.”
“Apparently so.”
After continuing down the rutted gravel road for another mile or so, we came upon a beautiful pond with a long pier.
Behind it was a large white house resting on top of a hill that looked like it was straight out of a Southern Living magazine.
I’d never seen anything so beautiful. Not only was there a white picket fence outlining the entire property, but also a large walnut tree that cast just the right amount of shade on the enormous front porch; not to mention all the gorgeous ferns that were potted at every corner.
This place was not at all what I was expecting, especially after visiting the prison.
When I couldn’t stand it a minute longer, I finally asked, “Is this Billy’s place? ”
“I knew you couldn’t do it!”