Chapter Twenty-Four
Bullet and I are lying on my bed, my head on his chest, as he plays with my fingers.
“Your dad comes home soon,” he says, breaking the silence.
“Ugh, don’t remind me,” I groan.
“You’re still mad at him.”
“Of course I am.”
In true Bullet fashion, he doesn’t push. He doesn’t try and convince me to forgive him.
“It’s going to be weird when he gets back. We won’t have this place to ourselves anymore.”
“I hadn’t even thought about it. I guess we will have to start hanging out in your room at the clubhouse.”
“I guess so,” he murmurs.
I open my mouth to say something but stop when my phone rings.
“You should answer that.”
I groan as I roll over. I grab my phone off my nightstand and answer it without looking at the caller ID.
“This better be important,” I mutter in lieu of a hello.
“Actually, it is. I need you guys to come to my dad’s rally today.”
“Adalyn?” I ask.
Bullet looks over at me and frowns.
“Who else would it be?” She chuckles.
“What’s this about a rally?” I ask as I put the phone on speaker.
Bullet mouths, “Thank you.”
“He has a political rally in downtown Vegas today. I could really use a friend, and I think you guys will want to hear what he has to say. I overheard that he’s going to announce his plans on how to rid the city of crime,” she tells us.
Bullet reaches over and hits mute. “Don’t even think about it. It’s a bad idea.”
“She doesn’t want to go alone, and I’m the only one she has here.”
Bullet sighs. “You’ve already made up your mind, haven’t you?”
“Yes.”
“Fine. Let me gather some guys, and we can go together.”
“Harlee, you there?”
I hit the mute button, unmuting the call. “Yeah, I’ll be there. Send me the directions and the time.”
“Thank you,” she sighs in relief.
“It’s no problem. I’ll see you soon.”
I hang up and look up at Bullet. “For the record, I don’t want to go, but it’s the right thing to do.”
“It’s a fucking trap.”
“I hope you’re wrong.”
Bullet
“We shouldn’t be here,” Trigger mutters as the crowd moves around us.
“I agree,” Bullet says.
“Come on, boys, this isn’t the stupidest thing we’ve ever done,” Wrath tells us.
“Um, that doesn’t fill me with confidence,” I tell him.
“Eh, you’ll live.” He shrugs.
Bullet wraps his arms around my waist and pulls me into him.
“This place is fuckin’ packed,” Reaper says as he comes up next to us.
“I don’t like how open it is,” Hades says as he scans the surrounding rooftops.
“Have you seen her yet?” Reaper asks.
I shake my head. “No, if I had to guess, she’s probably stuck with William. She probably didn’t think about the fact that he would want her with him.”
Honestly, it’s something I should have thought about before I made us all come out here.
“Trap,” Trigger mutters under his breath.
Unease rolls through me.
What if they are right and this is a trap? What if something happens to one of us or all of us because I was adamant that I show up for her?
As much as I like Adalyn, she’s essentially a stranger. I owe her no loyalty. Not like these guys.
“I’m sorry,” I murmur.
Something in my voice must give me away because all of the guys look my way and frown.
“You have nothing to be sorry for, Harlee,” Reaper tells me.
“You were just trying to do the right thing. Nothing wrong with that,” Wrath tells me.
I open my mouth to say something, but the sound of cheering stops me.
We all turn toward the stage and watch as William Dansworth takes the stage along with Adalyn and several other people I’ve never seen before. In his ill-fitting suit he waves to the crowd, eating up the attention.
Just looking at him makes me feel sick.
“Hello, Las Vegas,” he coos into the microphone.
“Slimy fucking politicians. This guy really tried to be a part of the club?” Hades asks.
“Yeah,” several of the guys say in unison.
I don’t look away from the stage, though. My eyes are stuck on Adalyn, who looks downright petrified.
What did he do to her to make her look like that?
“My name is William Dansworth, and I will be the next mayor of this fine city,” he says, making everyone cheer.
Dansworth smirks as he leans against the podium.
“It’s no secret that our city is riddled with crime.
Not only at the hands of the homeless population that keeps growing, but thanks to gangs, cartels, motorcycle clubs, and the Mafia, who keep coming to town.
They think they can come here and own a piece of our paradise, but enough is enough.
Hear me when I tell you that our administration will not stand for it. ”
The crowd loses their shit, feeding his ego.
“My first order of business…”
Pop. Pop. Pop. Pop.
“Fuck!” the guys yell in unison as we all duck.
Eyes still stuck on the stage, I watch in horror as William smiles deviously, standing tall.
“He planned this,” I murmur.
“I don’t care. Keep low and run,” Bullet tells me as shots continue to ring out.
As a group we fight our way through the crowd. When I think we are in the home stretch, the guys jerk to a stop.
“Put your hands up!” someone yells.
I peek around Hades and see a dozen cops standing in front of us. Bullet lets go of me but doesn’t look away from the shit show in front of us.
“Go. You know what to do,” he murmurs to me.
For a moment, I war with myself. I should stay with them. They did nothing wrong. Wrong place. Wrong time.
Shots ring out again, making me flinch.
The cops begin to move forward as the guys place their hands on their hands.
“Go, Harlee,” Bullet hisses.
Finally, I do as I was told, and I run. I don’t stop until I reach Bullet’s bike. Breathing hard, I lean down and rest my hands on my knees, trying to catch my breath. Well shit, it looks like Bullet wasn’t wrong and this was a trap. Son of a bitch.
My eyes are shut, and my head is tipped back. From the outside, I look like I don’t have a care in the world, but on the inside, I’m a fucking mess.
Did Harlee make it out okay? Did she manage to call for help?
Harlee. Harlee. Harlee.
All my thoughts revolve around her.
I should be worried that I’m locked in an interrogation room for the first time ever, but I don’t give a fuck. I know I did nothing wrong. I had nothing on me. My hands are clean. At least today they are.
“Come on, kid, just tell us the truth. We could cut you a deal,” one of the pencil-dick cops says.
I want to ask him if that shit really works, but I bite my tongue.
I must zone out because the next thing I know is I hear the door opening.
“Boys, I know you weren’t trying to talk to my client without his lawyer present,” the lawyer says as he walks into the room.
“He didn’t request council,” one of them lies.
I lift my head and raise a brow.
“Bullshit. I asked for it when you slapped cuffs on me and again when you placed me in the back of the cop car at the rally. A third time when we pulled into the parking lot and then a fourth time when we came in here. I asked, you just ignored me.”
The skinny dude on the left’s face turns bright red.
“Come on, Jacob, you’re free,” my lawyer tells me as he hands me a bag of my possessions.
“What, no he’s not. We can hold him for twenty-four hours,” the red-faced cop says.
“He’s free to go,” the police chief says as he steps into the room.
“You have them under control, I presume?” my lawyer asks.
“Yes. Get out of here,” the chief grits out.
“Nice seeing you boys.” I smirk as I stand.
I leave the room and make my way out of the police station.
“Is she…” I ask as soon as we step outside.
“Harlee is fine,” my lawyer says, cutting me off.
“Thank God,” I mutter as relief fills me.
“She did the right thing and called Natalie, who then called me. I was pulling up when I got Reaper’s call. Come on, everyone is waiting for us over here,” he says.
I follow him down the steps and around the building. I breathe a sigh of relief when I see all the guys standing around an SUV.
“You good?” Reaper asks as I approach.
“I’m fine.”
“As touching as this is, we should head out before they find something to drag us back in for,” our lawyer says as he unlocks the SUV.
“Please tell me you didn’t steal some soccer mom’s ride,” Wrath says.
The lawyer scoffs. “Of course not, my secretary, though, is a different story. It has third-row seating, so everyone should fit.”
“Lovely,” Hades mutters.
All of us pile into the SUV and head toward the clubhouse. As he drives, I turn on my phone.
Harlee: Help is on the way, dear!
Harlee: Remember, snitches get stitches.
Harlee: Okay, come home at any time…I’m bored, and you know what happens when I get bored.
I laugh as I read her messages.
Me: I’m on my way.
“Everyone check in with their women?” Reaper asks from the front seat.
“Harlee’s good,” I tell him.
“Tara’s ready to raise hell.” Wrath chuckles.
Hades and Trigger stay quiet.
We make it back to the clubhouse quickly. As soon as the SUV comes to a stop, the clubhouse door springs open and women start pushing each other outside.
I laugh as I watch Harlee hop the railing, rushing toward me.
“Better get out,” Hades murmurs.
I jump out just in time for her to crash into me.
“You’re okay,” she sighs against my neck.
“I’m good.”
She pulls back and grabs my face, slamming her lips against mine. I forget where we are and everything around us. All of my thoughts are consumed by the woman in my arms.
“Are they trying to make a porno?” our lawyer asks thoughtfully.
“They are young and in love,” Natalie says, defending us.
Harlee laughs as she pulls away. Much to my dismay, she unwraps her legs from around my waist and jumps down. Before she can step to the side, I pull her in front of me, wrapping my arms around her neck.
“I’m sorry,” she tells the guys.
“What are you sorry for?” Wrath asks.
“It was a trap. I knew it, you knew it, and yet I was adamant we went.”
“Do you think Adalyn set us up?” Trigger asks as he crosses his arms over his chest.
“I don’t know. I’d like to think she didn’t, but there is always a chance. If she did, though, I don’t think it was something she did willingly,” she tells us.
“Has she reached out to you?” I ask.
Harlee shakes her head. “I know it’s stupid, but I’m worried about her.”
“It’s not stupid, Dansworth is a loose cannon. We all know it,” Reaper says as he holds onto Natalie.
“What do we do now?” Harlee asks after a moment of silence.
“Now you let us handle it. If she calls, you let us know. Don’t do anything with her without us knowing first,” Trigger says.
Reaper nods. “I agree. I know it sucks, and she’s your friend, but she’s being used against you, against us. We can’t let it continue.” Reaper looks over at the lawyer. “Did you catch anything while you were waiting for us at the police station?”
“Just the classic bullshit propaganda. I know it might be hard, Harlee, but I agree with Trigger, stay away from the girl. At least until we can get her away from her old man,” the lawyer says.
Harlee reluctantly nods. “Okay, I can do that.”
“Okay, now that everyone is home, how about we head inside and eat? I ordered a bunch of food because I didn’t know how long it would be, and I knew you guys would be hungry. Lawyer, you are more than welcome to stay,” Natalie says.
The lawyer shakes his head. “As much as I would love to, I need to get back to the office. My secretary needs her car back before it’s too late to pick her kids up from daycare.”
“Thanks for coming to our rescue,” Reaper tells him.
“Anytime. I’ll see you guys later.”
We step away from the SUV and watch as he gets in and then drives away.
“Come on guys, the food is getting cold,” Natalie says.
Harlee pulls out of my arms, but I catch her hand. I look down at my girl and see that she’s struggling. She hates that she put us into that kind of position. What she doesn’t get is that we did it willingly. We knew what would happen.
Now all we have to do is convince her that it’s okay. No harm, no foul.