Chapter 13
Laid Bare
Elizabeth
I took a nap after the visit with the girls. I had enjoyed their company, but their conversation was almost as fast as the men’s. They would have slowed down if I had said something, but this was my issue to deal with, not theirs.
It was refreshing, but when I woke, I didn’t feel like joining whoever was in the main room.
It wouldn’t have been a big deal, and no one would have said anything about my pajama pants.
I loved the noise, but I was too comfortable, buried in bed, lying on Thunder’s pillow.
It smelled like him, wrapped in my arms like a security blanket.
It was nice having someone to share the end of the day with.
We often talked at night, rehashing our days, and if I were being honest, I looked forward to it.
The door opened slowly, and Thunder appeared in the opening.
He waited until he could see that I was awake before storming into the room.
I couldn’t prop my head on my arm—it would hurt too badly—so I said hello and waited.
What I didn’t expect was for him to throw his club cut onto the hook by the door and rip his shirt over the top of his head.
Stop ogling him. Ever since our honeymoon, something had shifted, and I didn’t want it to stop. I was openly admiring my husband, and there was nothing to feel guilty about.
My eyes must have widened because he stopped, the shirt wrapped around his neck. “Do you remember when the police arrested Grizz and the boys?” he asked me.
I nodded. I didn’t remember all the details, but I knew enough.
“The kid showed up at the gate. High as a fucking kite.” Thunder stripped his shirt the rest of the way off, and I wasn’t sure where to look.
“Grizz offered to help him kick the habit, so now he’s downstairs, throwing up all over the fucking place.
I can smell it on me, so I’m going to shower.
” Thunder opened the buckle of his belt, dropping his pants to the floor. He wasn’t paying any attention to me.
I was enjoying every minute of this. His muscles flexed with each movement, and my eyes roamed over his stomach, his pecs, and down his arms, appreciating the years of hard work he must have put in.
His eyebrow raised when he caught me staring. “I smell too bad to steal a kiss, but come sit with me.” That was all he said as he headed for the ensuite, leaving the door open.
I heard the moment he turned the water on, but I didn’t move. I was curious what he’d been up to, and if I went in, all we would do was talk about the day. We were too old to let our hormones talk.
With my dog slippers on, I impulsively went into the ensuite bathroom. Thunder was moving around in the shower. I could see his outline through the curtain, but not well enough to distinguish anything. It made me braver as I sat on the toilet seat, stretching my legs out in front of me.
“Kid?” I asked.
“The kid downstairs? Scrub’s getting him settled. He’s lucky he made it to the gate. Didn’t look too good.”
I caught the outline of his arm as it pressed against the curtain before quickly disappearing. My cheeks flushed, my hand slowly creeping up to my neck. Would it be so bad if I pulled the curtain back and joined him?
A flick of water hit my face. “You looked like you needed a cool-down.” He laughed, letting the curtain slide back into place.
“Not nice.” I laughed. “Next time…go to…your room.”
Thunder pulled back the curtain, standing there completely naked, and I froze. My eyes were wide open, and I think my jaw dropped.
“No, Liz. My place is next to yours.” He leaned against the shower wall, the water pouring over his head and down his chest. “You know what? We should share a room. I’ll move my shit tomorrow.
” He snapped the curtain back into place, not giving me a chance to respond. “How were the girls this morning?”
What did he ask?
“Yes,” I said, hoping it was right. Sometimes when I forgot the question, I answered easily, hoping the other person’s response would give me an idea of the conversation.
Thunder’s laughter bounced off the tiles of the ensuite. “Yes, the girls were hard on you?”
Oh, that’s what he asked. I smiled. Thunder was the only one who clocked that I always needed a minute or two. He’d never poked fun at me or made me feel anxious. He simply gave me a clue and waited.
“Good.” I licked my lips. “Shared stories.”
He made a noise, and then the water shut off. “Sabre should assign someone to keep tabs on them in a crisis. They’ll try that stunt again.”
They would, but I didn’t want to focus on how silly they’d been. The girls had honestly thought they were helping. I changed the subject, not wanting to discuss this anymore for right now. “How’s…Ger…ry?” All I knew was that he was downstairs. I had asked little more than that.
“Okay. He was bitching to anyone he thought would listen as we tried to get the kid settled.” He stepped over the tub, reaching over me for the towel that sat on the counter.
I was about to say something flippant, like he could have just asked me, when I heard a phone ringing. Thunder’s phone was probably in his jeans pocket in the bedroom.
“Do you—“ I went to ask if he’d heard it, but then the sound stopped. I thought it was my imagination, but the phone rang again. The edges of my vision curled in at the incessant sound.
“Liz.” Thunder.
I took a few deep breaths, knowing what was happening but unable to stop it. The sheer black curtain pulled over my vision as the edges met in the middle. I couldn’t see, and when I tried to raise my hand, it was dead weight. All I could do was sit and let this pass.
“Lizzie, are you busy?” Madalyn.
No. I couldn’t form the word. I didn’t want to be trapped in this scene from the past, but I was helpless as I heard my sister’s voice.
“I need your help.”
Stop. Please stop. No one listened to me.
“I need to run to the grocery store. Gerry invited a few of the lawyers over.”
I remembered asking her if he’d made another one of his stupid bets. Gerry was always the first one to pick “the winning team,” except he’d be wrong and would end up paying the price.
Madalyn had gone to the store, and I’d tried to help as much as I could while she was gone. I’d never forget the exact time the police knocked on the door—3:17 in the afternoon. They explained they had contacted Gerry, but he hadn’t been in the office, and this was the next best address.
My whole body shook, and when my vision cleared, the light was so bright, I couldn’t see. Blinking a few times, I couldn’t right myself, but tears were pouring down my cheeks.
“Hey. Hey. It’s okay.”
I couldn’t breathe, an enormous weight sitting on top of my chest.
“Liz, it’s all right.”
Screams echoed around me, and I tried to put my hands over my ears. It was too loud.
“Liz.”
Bobby. I tried to stick with Thunder when we were in public or when I needed a reminder that he was my friend. I only used Bobby when I needed the man, not the biker.
I must have said it out loud because he answered me. “I’m right here. You’re safe.” My vision focused, and all I could see was his concerned face. “Hey, whatever it is, it’s alright. We’ll get through it.”
I slid forward on the seat, throwing myself into his arms. It didn’t matter that he was still wet. I only felt his heat, the solidity of his body. Burying my face into his wet neck, I waited for normalcy. Whatever that was.
“I’ve noticed the blackouts are coming more frequently. For a while, you weren’t having very many.”
“Stress.” It was all I could get out.
He hummed. “Yeah, I know, and I won’t sugarcoat this and tell you it’ll be over soon, but you have to know how proud I am of you. You’ve come so far since I brought you to the clubhouse after the accident.”
“New…normal… I’ll…never be…” I sighed, my breath making the ends of his hair dance.
His arms tightened around me, and I felt his nose press against my forehead. “Flo and Buster are a product of you. They wouldn’t be the women they are without your influence.” My clothes were stuck to my skin, and although I was cold, I would never have pulled away from him. “I remember Peter.”
I wasn’t trying to forget my son, but I bristled against Thunder at the mention of his name.
“He fit, Liz. He was another member of the family, and the only person he could have inherited that from was you.”
“I hear…her voice.” I closed my eyes, hoping to keep the darkness at bay. “The past…plays.”
***
Thunder
I picked her up, wrapping her legs around my waist as I rose from my knees, making sure my feet were steady underneath me before I moved.
Walking into the bedroom, I sat her on the edge of the mattress before opening the closest. I kept a few changes of clothes down here, but I was seriously going to move the rest of my things tomorrow.
A pang shot across my chest, and I gripped my heart as if I were having an attack. I’d had my room upstairs since I’d been a prospect. There was no point in keeping it. Liz wouldn’t be able to climb the stairs, and I’d rather stay with her than hold on.
“Bob…by.”
It was so faint that I barely heard her. “Yeah?” I called from inside the walk-in, reaching for a pair of boxers.
“Phone.”
I didn’t bother drying off, but I pulled the boxers on and jogged out of the closet. “What’s going on?” I asked her.
She didn’t answer, pointing at my pants.
I moved closer to the pile of clothes, and that was when I heard my cell phone ringing.
Silence.
Ringing again.
Someone wanted my attention.
Pulling it from my pants pocket, I checked the screen. Unknown number. What the fuck?
I watched the screen as the phone rang again, only to go silent when I didn’t answer. Not spam. Not like this.
“Next time…answer it,” Liz whispered, and it snapped me out of my head.
I heard her, but something in my gut told me to text Cyph. He’d have the tools to trace the call. No sooner had I sent the text than the phone rang again.
It wasn’t long before there was a knock on the door, and when I opened it, Cyph had his equipment in hand. I hadn’t told him exactly what was going on, in case there was a bug in my phone, but he understood my unspoken meaning.
He took one look at me, in my boxers with water dripping everywhere, and smirked. The phone rang again, distracting him before he could say anything. I went to shut the bedroom door when Sabre came running around the corner.
“Cyph called me.” It was all he said, and I didn’t question it as he entered the room.
Sabre sat next to Liz, holding his hand out for hers.
He was doing me a favor, and while I didn’t like it, this wasn’t about me.
Liz was pale, and I told myself he was trying to give her strength to get through this. I’d done the same for Flo.
The ringing filled the room. Cyph clicked a few things on his tablet before he pointed at me. I answered the call, not saying a word.
“So this is how it’s going to go? I expected different.” The heavily accented voice trailed off. “Friendlier.”
I smirked, knowing exactly who was on the other line, but I still didn’t have a clue what he wanted. Sabre raised his hand, making a motion for me to talk to him.
“You’ve ignored the Iron Shield, Alex. How did I get so lucky?”
He drew in a sharp breath, and it echoed through my phone’s speaker. “I don’t answer to incessant whining.” Sabre’s eyebrow went up. “My girls have shitty taste in men. I blame their shit-stain of a father for that one.”
“That’s one thing we can agree on.” I paused for dramatic effect. “Liz chose you, and you’re just as shitty as the rest of them.” I didn’t know what to expect, but the laughter that bounced through the line surprised me.
“True, true, but does Elizabeth know about your foul deeds, Robert? It’s alright. I already have plans for them.”
I wasn’t a saint. I’d never try to rewrite the past, but I’d left the Corps as a broken man. Angry at my country. Hiding my service because I didn’t want to admit I’d followed orders for the wrong reasons. “Did you really make a deal with Gerry for an arranged marriage?” I rolled my eyes.
“He gave his blessing, and I already have better men selected for them.”
I wouldn’t have believed it, even though I saw it with my own eyes. Liz was never weak in my eyes, but sometimes the world moved around her, not the other way around. She patted Sabre’s arm, stood on her own, and before I could stop her, she grabbed the phone out of my hand.
“What do you want?” she asked without a break in the sentence.
“Mi amor—“
“No.” The word was sharp, and I shared a look with the other men in the room. Liz wasn’t a weak woman, but she’d softened as she’d healed, and to hear her now, it was the best kind of whiplash. I wouldn’t claim any part in whatever this was, but it was hot to watch her stand her ground.
“There she is,” he chuckled.
“I’m done,” she said, teetering on her feet. I reached out to steady her, placing my hand underneath her elbow, but she shook her head, waving me off. “No more. Either show or leave.” She didn’t wait for him to say anything else, hitting the red button on the phone.
“Damn, Aunt E.” Cyph didn’t look up from his tablet as he hit the screen repeatedly. “I got a lock on his phone. He didn’t mask the number.” Cyph shrugged, hitting a few more buttons. “No fucking way.”
Liz sat back down on the bed, exhaustion clear on her face, and Sabre wrapped an arm around her.
“He’s at Diego Lopez’s building.”
“He’s wa…wait…waiting for…you,” Liz spoke. “You…can’t.”
Sabre tightened his arm around her. “I’m not rushing off into a war I can’t win. We’re all safer if we go about our business and pretend he’s not here.” He looked at the two of us. “Church in thirty.”