Electra Chapter 4
I’d been an employee of Wrath’s Recovery for two weeks.
In a way, it was hard to believe. Overall, the time had sped by.
I enjoyed working with the people there—some more than others.
Jauhnna and Diablo were favorites. There was no one I disliked.
Swerve, I put in a category of his own. He was still somewhat reserved with me.
He didn’t smile or joke with me the way he did with others.
He was polite, but you’d be that way with a stranger.
I disliked how his behavior made me feel disappointed.
In response to his attitude, I made sure to be strictly professional and polite to him, just as he was with me.
Dozer, however, adored me, and I felt the same way about him.
I didn’t hold back when I greeted him or gave him love.
He lapped it up. Swerve referred to me as Dozer’s girlfriend. I was good with that.
He was thorough in his training of me. He knew what he was doing, even if he had only been there a short while.
I discovered that on one of our training days.
Today, I wasn’t in the best mood. I’d been up late working on other things, and they hadn’t been ones I liked to do, but they had to be done.
I had other obligations than just working for the Horsemen.
I wondered who would drop by the office today.
I was up and running on my own. I showed Swerve I meant what I said about not needing him to repeat everything for me.
I was independent after three days with him.
I was proud of myself, but a part of me wished I hadn’t been so good at learning.
What that achieved was confidence that I could handle things, so Swerve had hardly been around all last week and the first half of this one.
He’d drop in to check here and there. The rest of the time, I had Jauhnna, and a couple of times Diablo was here.
I did meet other members of the Horsemen.
One’s name was Wolverine. He was friendly, enjoyed teasing, and kept me entertained with his stories.
He was the club’s medic. When I asked why they’d need one of those, he shrugged and said they could hurt themselves when they did stupid shit.
Wolverine told me he’d been a Navy corpsman before joining the club.
He worked with another member, Cowboy, on their boat charter company, Hook & Reel Charters.
He asked if I’d ever been out on a boat on the ocean.
I told him no. Wolverine was determined to take me out one day and show me not only how incredible the vast open ocean was, but also to get me to fish.
It was something else I hadn’t done, and he felt I should put it on my life’s bucket list. I wasn’t sure whether I agreed with him, but I didn’t say no. We left it as a maybe.
In addition to Wolverine, Swerve, and Diablo, I’d been introduced to Scorpion, the club’s VP, and Micro, their treasurer slash computer expert.
Micro had thoroughly gone over the books with me.
He was very anal about how they had to be kept and the reporting I needed to do to him every month.
However, he was a charming guy to be around.
Scorpion had told me a little about himself, but the rest was about his old lady, Paige.
You could tell by the way he talked and the expression on his face that he loved her dearly.
He was the same as Diablo with Jauhnna. It seemed they were the only ones with an old lady in their club.
Scorpion and Paige had reconnected a year ago.
He didn’t explain what he meant by reconnected, and I didn’t pry. But it left me curious to meet her.
Entering the office, I was soon disappointed when Annette informed me that Swerve wouldn’t be there for the rest of the week.
She told me that if I had issues, I could call him.
I had his personal number, but I was determined never to use it.
I hated the idea of him believing I was incompetent or clingy.
“Thanks, but I don’t see that I’ll need him. Let me know if you need me for anything. Otherwise, I’ll be in my office.”
“I will. Oh, don’t forget, we have an admission coming in soon,” Annette reminded me.
“I’m all ready,” I assured her.
I looked forward to this. It would be my first real admission.
I’d been taken through the steps by Jauhnna, but no one had arrived since I started.
The club had given me the information they had, so I would have a way to prepare for her and get a sense of the kind of situation she was coming from.
While the club worked to get her on her feet and independent, they’d keep her safe from her abuser and, if need be, help her get a new identity.
That wasn’t an easy thing to do, but they had connections to the Dark Patriots, which enabled them to gain access to a government contact willing to help.
If it weren’t for that, there would be no way they could legally change someone’s identity.
It wasn’t as easy as people believed. That was especially true if you didn’t want to leave a trail.
Those kinds, like the WitSec variety, had to be well hidden.
With our pre-day chat over with, I let Annette get to work, and I did the same. In my office, I went through my morning ritual and then double-checked that I had everything for the admission. Jauhnna was coming in to oversee and help if necessary. Minutes later, I got a text from Jauhnna.
Jauhnna: Please forgive me, E. I know I was supposed to help today, but I’m not feeling well. I can’t be there. But I promise someone will be there to help.
Me: There’s nothing to forgive. I hope it’s nothing serious and you’ll be well soon. I can handle this. You don’t need to send someone.
Jauhnna: Bless you. I’d still feel better if, for your first one, you had someone to help you. Diablo is arranging it. Not sure who will be there. Call me if you need me.
Me: I won’t need to bother you. Rest and get better. See you soon.
Jauhnna: See you soon.
I was curious to see who it would be, but until then, I had other work to keep me occupied. A little while later, I heard my name being called. I smiled. It was Micro. I stood up and walked toward the door of my office.
“Oh, Electra, where are you? I’ve come all this way to see you and you won’t even come out and say hello,” he grumbled good-naturedly.
“Of course not. You know how I am. You have to come to me,” I called back.
I heard him chuckle, then moments later, he was framed in the doorway.
He leaned against it, grinning. I could admit that he wasn’t hard on the eyes.
None of the Horsemen I’d met so far were.
However, they didn’t compare to Swerve. You’d think his frosty attitude would reduce his attractiveness, but it didn’t for some reason.
I knew if it were any other man, it would.
“Ah, come on, admit it, you’re thrilled it’s me. You’ve missed the hell out of me and have been trying to figure out how to get me back here, haven’t you? I bet you begged Diablo to send me,” he teased.
I rolled my eyes. “Sure, if that’s what makes you feel necessary, we’ll go with that…delusion,” I smirked.
Micro let loose a slight growl and rushed toward me with his arms open.
I knew what he wanted. The guy was a hugger.
After the first day, I’d been able to do it without hesitating.
I didn’t tend to hug people unless I knew someone well.
I opened mine, and we wrapped our arms around each other.
He was taller than I was, so my face ended up on his upper chest.
“Damn, I’ve missed you. How has it been going? I hear nothing but great things,” he murmured to me.
We parted before I answered him. I took him over to sit at a small table I had in my space.
“It’s been going great on my end. I’m so glad the bosses think I’m doing well. How did Diablo shanghai you into being the one to come today?”
“He didn’t have to shanghai me. He sent out a mass text to see if anyone could do it. I was the first of several who responded, and so here I am. I enjoyed my other days here. Who would say no to spending time with a beautiful, intelligent woman?”
I slightly shook my head as I gave him my warning look. “Talk like that will get you kicked out,” I warned him.
“Hey, I can’t help it if I flirt. I know you’re not looking to hook up or get serious, and I accept that. But it doesn’t mean we can’t have fun honing my skills.”
His smile made me break, and I chuckled. “Fine, I’ll help you hone those pathetic skills you have. If we ever hope to find you a woman one day, you need work,” I teased. Micro laughed loudly.
We caught up on how his work at Vintage Rummages was.
It was the club’s thrift store. I’d been impressed yet taken aback by the businesses they owned.
Not what you typically saw bikers having their hands in.
None was cash-based. All made money, even this place, even though it was a charity-based organization.
I’d seen the paperwork that proved it. According to the financial reports, it did seem to stay in the black, thanks to the various individuals and organizations that were donors.
Some of them gave huge quantities. It made me wonder what they got in return.
Was it just tax breaks, or something more?
We were interrupted by his phone ringing. He checked it. “It’s the team bringing our newest in. Jauhnna said she took you through the process. I’ll stand back and let you take the lead. If you have any questions, ask. It’s your show, unless you want me to do it and you observe.”
Since I was still new and this would be my first admission, I guess they wanted him to be the one to organize the transport. I hoped that after this, they’d call me directly, once I proved I could handle it from start to finish.
“No, I prefer to do it and have you watch and mentor me if I overlook something or you have input.”