Chapter 15
CHAPTER 15
ARROW
A rrow closed his eyes and rubbed his temples. He was sitting at his desk at the clubhouse, going over the finances. His phone buzzing was a welcome interruption from his methodical review of the spreadsheets. Dax's name flashed on the screen, making his heart rate spike. He answered with a terse, “Talk to me.” He’d been waiting for this call, hoping Dax would have information that brought them one step closer to locking up Mills.
“Got it, man. Jay is a genius and was able to get the dashcam and body cam footage from the night of Catie’s kidnapping. Someone destroyed the hard copies of it, but they weren’t able to completely erase it from the cloud. Sending the footage now,” Dax's voice crackled through the speaker.
Arrow's fingers drummed against his desk as he waited for the file to download. When it finally arrived, he hesitated, his cursor hovering over the play button. He took a deep breath, steeling himself for what he was about to witness.
The grainy dash cam footage filled his screen. His eyes locked onto Emilee's short frame as she frantically waved down the patrol car. Her dark hair whipped around her face; desperation evident in every movement.
“Jesus, Em,” Arrow muttered, his chest tightening. He leaned closer, straining to hear her words about Catie's kidnapping. There was no denying this was a different version of his girl. She’d put on a good thirty pounds since that night, and she was clearly strung out on the video. Damn. His heart clenched seeing her in that state. She begs Mills to help her, and he promises he will. Why doesn’t he put her in the car and immediately go to the scene of the crime? Why doesn’t he call for backup?
Then Mills is on the phone, and a cold voice comes over the speaker ordering he “take care of her.”
Arrow's fists clenched as he watched the unthinkable unfold. The patrol car sped up, and Emilee's body crumpled beneath its wheels.
“No!” he roared, slamming his palm against the desk. His carefully ordered world tilted on its axis as Mills calmly transported Emilee's unconscious form to the hospital.
Arrow's mind raced. How could anyone do this to her? To his fierce, beautiful little girl who'd already been through so much? He wanted to reach through the screen and throttle Mills with his bare hands.
As the footage concluded with Mills' blatant lie about hitting a deer, Arrow sat back, his breathing ragged. The urge to protect Emilee, to shelter her from this cruel reality, overwhelmed him. But he knew she deserved the truth, no matter how painful.
With trembling fingers, he dialed her number. He needed to hear her voice. He knew she was okay, but he was desperate anyway. When she answered, her voice light and teasing, he struggled to keep his own steady.
“Hey, baby girl. Just checking in. I had an unexpected meeting come up at the clubhouse. Are you okay waiting for me to come home or do you want to join us here?”
“I’m good, Daddy. I have a paper due in my online class tomorrow, remember?”
“That’s right. I’m going to order a pizza for you. Make sure you call me if you decide to leave the house for any reason, okay?”
“Of course, Daddy. Can the pizza have extra pepperoni?”
“You’ve got it.” Arrow hung up the phone and quickly ordered a pizza for delivery for his girl. Then, he sent out a group text, demanding Dax, Phantom, Lucky, Mace, Luke and Jay come to a meeting. His tone must have conveyed the urgency because every man he texted said they’d be there within an hour.
Arrow paced the length of the Watchmen clubhouse, his jaw clenched tight as he awaited the arrival of the others. The usually comforting smell of leather and motor oil did little to calm his frayed nerves.
“You okay, brother?” Savage asked him.
“No. Not in a fucking long shot,” Arrow responded.
“Want me to get you a drink?”
“Thanks, brother, but not. I need to be completely level headed for the meeting I just called.” Arrow would love an Irish whiskey on the rocks right about now, but he wouldn’t drink, not until after he brought everyone together.
As the door swung open, Arrow's steely gaze locked onto Mace. Without preamble, he strode forward, his voice low and dangerous.
“We need to discuss your little girl's behavior, Mace. Mia's treatment of Emilee at Day his jaw tight as he watched their reactions.
As the video ended, Lucky slammed his hand on the table. “That bastard! He deliberately ran her down!”
Phantom, usually stoic, had a dangerous glint in his eye. “We won’t let this stand. Both Emilee and Catie deserve justice. Emilee for being run over and Catie for the delay in finding her and what she suffered at the hands of the cartel.”
Arrow nodded, his voice rough with emotion. “Damn straight. Emilee deserves more than this cover-up bullshit. She’s been treated like a lying leper for far too long.”
Dax cleared his throat, drawing everyone's attention. “I've got some good news on that front, boys. I've already reached out to the state inspector general. Sent them everything we've got. They are serving an arrest warrant for Mills tomorrow.”
“How'd you even get this?” Zach asked.
Dax's lips curled into a smirk. “Seems our corrupt friend Mills forgot about cloud backups when he tried to erase the evidence. Amateur move.”
A collective chuckle, tinged with relief, rippled through the room. Arrow felt a weight lift from his shoulders. Maybe, just maybe, they could make this right.
As the meeting wound down, Zach approached Arrow, his expression somber. “I had no idea... about any of this. I'll talk to Catie, let her know what really happened that night.”
Mace nodded, joining them. “Yeah, and I'll be having a serious chat with Mia about her behavior. That's not how we treat people, especially not someone who's been through hell like Emilee.”
Arrow clapped both men on the shoulder, grateful for their support. As the others filed out, he couldn't help but think of Emilee, hoping that someday soon, he could give her the justice and peace she so desperately deserved.
Arrow's boots thudded softly against the hardwood as he entered his house, his mind still reeling from the day's revelations. He found Emilee curled up on the couch, her dark hair spilling over a throw pillow as she flipped through a magazine. The half-eaten pizza sat on the table in front of her.
“Hi, Daddy!” She bounced up onto her knees and reached for her usual hug and kiss from him. He hugged her tightly, holding her a bit longer than usual.
“Hey, Kitten,” he said. “Did you finish your paper?”
“Uh huh. It was on recidivism rates and it was b-o-r-i-n-g.” He hated to break her out of her little headspace, but it was necessary.
“I’m going to need to talk to big girl Emilee tonight,” he said, his voice gentler than usual.
Emilee's blue eyes met his, a flicker of concern crossing her features. She sat back on the couch and eyed him warily. “What's wrong?”
Arrow sank onto the couch beside her, his large frame dwarfing her shorter figure. “We got the dash cam footage from that night,” he said, watching her carefully. “The night of your accident.”
Emilee stiffened, her fingers clenching around the magazine. “Oh,” she breathed, her usual sarcasm notably absent.
“Do you want to see it?” Arrow asked, his hand finding hers and squeezing gently. “It's... it's not easy to watch, Em. But it's your choice. If you do, I’ll be with you the entire time.”
Emilee swallowed hard, her eyes darting around the room before settling back on Arrow. “I... yeah. I need to see it,” she said, her voice barely above a whisper.
Arrow nodded, pulling her onto his lap as he reached for his phone. As he queued up the video, he wrapped his arms around her waist, anchoring her to him.
“I've got you, baby girl,” he murmured into her hair as the footage began to play.
Emilee's body grew tenser with each passing moment, her breath coming in short, sharp gasps as she watched the scene unfold. When Mills' patrol car struck her on-screen self, she let out a choked sob.
“That bastard,” she hissed, her words muffled against Arrow's chest as she buried her face there. “He... he just...”
Arrow held her tightly, his large hand rubbing soothing circles on her back as she broke down. Her sobs tore at his heart, each one feeling like a physical blow.
“I've got you, Em,” he repeated, his own voice rough with emotion. “We're going to make this right, I swear it. Justice is coming for that piece of shit.”
As Emilee's tears soaked through his shirt, Arrow silently renewed his vow. He'd move heaven and earth to make sure she got the justice she deserved, no matter what it took. For a moment, he wondered if he could get to Mills before the arrest warrant made it to him. He let himself fantasize over how he’d make the man suffer. But, he knew he couldn’t do it. If he did, there was a chance he’d be arrested and forced to leave Emilee alone. That was the one thing he wasn’t willing to do. She’d been through too much in her short life, he wouldn’t make her go through any more of it alone.
Emilee's sobs gradually subsided, her body still trembling against Arrow's solid chest. She lifted her tear-stained face, her blue eyes shimmering with a mixture of pain and gratitude.
“Fuck,” she muttered, wiping her nose with the back of her hand. “I'm a mess.”
Arrow cupped her face gently, his thumbs brushing away the remnants of her tears. “You're the strongest person I know, Kitten. What you've been through... it would break most people. But not you.”
Emilee let out a watery chuckle. “Yeah, right. I'm the poster child for resilience, sobbing like a baby.”
“Hey,” Arrow's voice was soft but firm. “Crying doesn't make you weak. It makes you human.”
She leaned into his touch, a small smile tugging at her lips. “When did you get so wise, old man?”
Arrow smirked. “Watch who you are calling old, little girl.”
Emilee rolled her eyes, but her smile widened. Arrow's heart swelled at the sight. He pressed a gentle kiss to her forehead.
“It's been a long day, sweetheart. How about we get ready for bed?”
Emilee nodded; exhaustion evident in her slumped shoulders. Arrow scooped her up effortlessly, carrying her to the bathroom. As he set her down, he turned on the shower, steam quickly filling the room.
“It’s too late for a long bubble bath, so a shower it is. I promise not to take up too much room,” he said, wiggling his eyebrows playfully.
Emilee snorted. “As if you'd let me shower alone, Daddy.”
They undressed and stepped under the hot spray together. Arrow's hands were gentle as he lathered her body, his touch more comforting than sensual. He massaged shampoo into her dark locks, his fingers working out the tension in her scalp.
“Mmm,” Emilee hummed, leaning back against him. “Keep that up and I might fall asleep standing up.”
Arrow chuckled, rinsing her hair. “Can't have you falling asleep in the shower. Bedtime it is, Kitten.”
After drying off, Arrow helped Emilee into her favorite pajamas – a soft, oversized t-shirt with cartoon motorcycles printed on it he’d bought her two weeks ago. He sat her down on the edge of the bed, carefully brushing out her damp hair.
“You know,” Emilee murmured, her eyes half-closed, “for a big, bad biker, you're pretty good at this whole nurturing thing.”
Arrow's hands stilled for a moment. “Only for you, baby. Only for you.”
He braided her hair with practiced ease, tying it off with a small elastic. Emilee yawned widely as Arrow tucked her into bed, sliding in beside her and pulling her close.
“Sleep now, Kitten,” he whispered, his hand rubbing soothing circles on her back. “I've got you.”
Emilee nuzzled into his chest, her breathing already evening out. As she drifted off, Arrow pressed a kiss to the top of her head, silently vowing to always be her safe place to land, no matter what happened outside of these walls.