16. Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Sixteen
My heart never beat as fast as it did when I heard Wires voice over the line, and I’d never driven as fast as I did right now.
“I knew something like this was going to happen,” Remy said, banging his fist on the dashboard.
I didn’t confirm or deny that he was right. Our mama had always been a sly fox. She survived this long, but she’d never been up against her two sons either. Today was her day of reckoning.
Remy’s phone rang again, and he put it on speaker.
“Stone,” he answered. “What’s happening?”
“Your mother…” his breathing sounded labored, and my heart sped up just a little more. I felt like it was about to beat out of my chest.
Was she dead? Who killed her? Was she alone?
That last question jolted me with surprise. Perhaps I did care for the bitch after all.
“She has Lyra. They were headed…”
“Headed where, Stone?” I yelled then took a calming breath. There was no need to get excited. He’d tell me if he was able.
“The docks,” Stone replied.
“Was she hurt?” I asked, breaking about five hundred traffic laws now that I could see the farm come into view.
There was heavy smoke resembling a blanket of fog in the night sky. I assumed it came from the gunfire.
As the parking lot came into view, I was glad there weren’t any employees who just happened to come in to check on the gators on a day when we were closed. I’d barely got the truck into park before we were fired upon.
“Fuck!” I yelled, ducking even though I knew there was no way the bullets would penetrate the glass or the truck.
Thank God for a bulletproof vehicle.
I rummaged under my seat to grab the two guns I usually kept there. When I turned to Remy, he was doing the same thing. When he was armed, we looked at one another and nodded.
“You ready?”
“Fuck yeah,” I said, giving a dip of my head in acknowledgement.
“Go get your girl. I’ll cover for you.”
We didn’t say anything else because there was nothing else to be said. He was my brother, and I trusted him with my life. We pushed our doors open and fired.
I didn’t know who I hit or how many we were dealing with. The only thing on my mind was plowing down any and everyone who got in the way of me getting to Lyra. The cover of night was helpful and so was the backup that Ace and the few Sinners from the Oakland Chapter with him, provided.
Ace sidled up next to me when I’d just rounded the bend to head down the dirt road that led to my and Remy’s houses.
“Thanks for coming,” I said as Remy took up the rear.
“No problem. I feel like this is my fault anyway. In my defense, though, I didn’t know the guy who bought Jevry. Volkov never gave a name. I may have handled things a different way.”
At the sound of a familiar name, my gaze jerked from in front of me to Ace.
“Volkov?” I questioned.
He nodded. “If you two don’t shut the fuck up, you are going to get us killed,” my brother groused.
Ever the covert soldier.
I gave Ace a look that said we would discuss things later.
When we got to my house, Remy cut to the right, and I went left, followed by Ace. Just up ahead, I made out a figure on the ground.
Who or whatever it was, wasn’t moving.
My gun was drawn out in front of me as we reached our brother. I rolled him over to check his pulse. Stone was dead. The last thing he did was call me to tell me about my mama.
The bitch killed him.
Fear lanced through my body because if she could kill Stone, then what would stop her from killing Lyra.
“Fuck. I’ve got to get to Lyra,” I said, following my mama’s path.
Ace grabbed my shoulder, stopping me.
“Is your head on straight?” he sneered. “I’ve got a wife and kid to get back to. To go in there with your mind fucked up will get all of us killed.”
He was right. I had to get myself together or Lyra could die. My brother could die. I peered into his eyes and gave him a nod. I was good. We were good.
I took off in a slight jog until I could vaguely see my brother’s back in the dark. He was the expert on stealthiness, so I followed his lead. I heard Lyra before I saw her. The scream that rent the air caused my stomach to drop. I lunged forward to get to her, only to be stopped by a firm hand on my shoulder.
Remy shook his head when I stared at him, ready to tear into him for keeping me from Lyra.
“There are too many right now,” he whispered. “We need to take out three of them before we can board.”
I heard his suggestion, but the only thing that occupied my mind was what if he started that boat and they floated away. I might not ever see her again, or worse, Onassis might decide that Lyra wasn’t worth the trouble, or he found out that she actually wasn’t Jevry, and he killed her and dumped her in the lake.
The sting of my nails digging into the palms of my hands ripped me from my morbid thoughts. My fists were balled so tightly that I had to shake my hands out to get my blood circulating again. I had to trust my brother.
He crept forward, and we followed. Remy gestured to Ace and me to go one way, and then he went the other. I could still see him from where we made it onto the docks. Remy was so fast that if I turned, I would have missed him grabbing a guard from behind around the neck and slowly, but more importantly quietly, breaking his neck and then dragging him where no one could see his body.
I put away my gun and pulled my Damascus knife from its sheath. When I came up to one of the guards, I put my knife to use, then dragged him out of sight.
“Two down and one more to go,” I mumbled, making my way down the dock.
Remy took out the last man, then joined me and Ace on the dock.
My mama was the first to see our approach.
“Well, well, well. Look what the bitch brought in,” she said with a wide smile.
“Let her go,” I growled, taking a step forward.
“Uh uh.” she crooned, raising her gun and pointing it at Remy.
At the commotion, a dark-haired man in a tailored suit climbed up from below the deck of the yacht we were standing on.
“Ahh, what is this?” the man asked in a slight accent. “I didn’t know we had guests, Madeline.”
“Dec, I want you to meet my good for nothing sons,” Mama said, then turned to Ace. “I don’t know who the fuck this one is.”
“Good to see you too, Mama,” I deadpanned, holding my knife at the ready while Remy and Ace aimed their guns.
“Ahh, I see. Well, welcome, LeBlanc boys and friend. I supposed you are the ones who took my Jevry from me?”
Incredible. This guy had no idea that he didn’t have Jevry.
“Let her go, or you won’t live to see another sunrise on your Greek Island. Your daddy’s gonna have two dead sons instead of one,” I warned through gritted teeth.
Deacon Onassis threw his head back and laughed. “Oh, you don’t have to worry about that.” The smile on his face fell. “My daddy’s dead.”
Had he killed his father to take over the syndicate once his brother was dead? Power made people do stupid things. That and money. I stared at my mama holding her gun on her sons.
“Lyra has nothing to do with this,” I said, revealing the truth to him. “You need to let her go, now!”
The confident look on his face faltered, and his relaxed posture stiffened as what I’d just said registered.
“You’re lying. My men have been watching her for months now,” he informed.
Just like we thought they were.
Just then, Lyra’s voice reached me. “Let me go!!”
Deacon Onassis turned to Mama.
“Go shut her the fuck up. And don’t fucking kill her. Elias paid too much goddamn money for her.”
While Onassis was distracted with our mama, Remy, Ace, and I took steps to get us closer. From where he stood, either one of them could take him out with a great shot, then that would leave our mama. She was the fucking outlier. I had no doubt, seeing Stone lying dead, that she wouldn’t hesitate to kill Lyra. While I was trying to figure out an angle, mama returned with a now gagged Lyra.
I gave her a once over for injuries. She had a small cut across her cheek, and her hands were bound, but otherwise, she looked unharmed.
Mama’s laughter broke the silence.
“Un-fucking-believable. Beau, you done went and fell in love.” She nuzzled the barrel of her gun against the side of Lyra’s neck. “With this one? Oh, son, you are an unlucky bastard, considering she belongs to him.”
“She doesn’t belong to him because she isn’t Jevry,” I reiterated, not sure why I was trying to argue the point.
“It doesn’t matter,” Deacon said. “Either way, she’s mine. A replacement for my brother’s life, seeing as he was killed before he could collect her. I’ll take her because I want her.”
“Well, too fucking bad because you’re not leaving here with her,” Ace chimed in.
Deacon threw his head back and laughed.
“And who the fuck are you?”
“The motherfucker who’s gonna put a bullet in your brain, just like I did your brother,” Ace growled.
And that was the distraction we needed. Lyra, fucking bless her, stomped on my mama’s foot, used her hands that were tied together in front of her as a hammer, and swung, connecting with my mother’s chin, then swung again and smashed them into her temple.
“Run, Lyra!” I ordered and was pleased she didn’t hesitate to get off the yacht and run. Ace followed her.
It was a relief that I didn’t have to worry about her safety. Deacon didn’t waste any time trying to go after Ace, but I stepped into his path.
“Where the fuck do you think you’re going?” I caught him in the gut with a punch. He bent over, coughing, trying to catch his breath.
“Fuck you,” he wheezed.
I didn’t give him any time to right himself before I rained blows on him. I was pissed because he’d almost taken the most important thing in my life away from me.
Somehow, he kicked my leg out from under me. I hit the deck hard. The boat rocked even more than it already was at the impact of our struggle. I used that to my advantage and grabbed his ankle, pulling him to the deck with me. My knife was just out of my reach.
Fuck, I needed my gun. I couldn’t reach it from the small of my back. Onassis got the upper hand, climbing on top of me and pounding me in my face. I heard a crunch. He broke my fucking orbital bone. I was going to have fucking black eyes for days. It would take forever for that shit to heal.
My knife was closer to me now that I was on my back. I reached out; it was just at the tip of my fingers. I took several shots to the gut that helped me inch even closer to my Damascus. Then I had it.
My grip tightened around the hilt of my knife, and I buried it into his side, causing him to jerk to the right of me. I pushed him off, then stood as far as I could with at least two broken ribs now. It was going to be hell trying to fuck my woman after all of this.
This ended now. I was tired of pussyfooting around.
When he came at me, I didn’t waste any more time trying to enjoy the glide of my blade across his skin. I slashed across his neck, swiping across his carotid artery. His brows raised in surprise like he couldn’t believe he was about to die. I could let him bleed out slowly, or he’d die quickly. But I had a penchant for feeding my gators. I knew the commotion of our fight on the yacht had made them curious. They were lurking. I kicked him into the water and watched as four gators fought for his body amongst his gurgling cries.
I bent to catch my breath and to block out my mama’s screams as Remy held her in his grasp. We climbed out of the yacht.
“Take Mama to the shed,” I told Remy through labored breaths. “I’ll be there in a minute.”
Damn, my ribs hurt. I felt like every time I breathed, my body was on fire. But if I took shallow breaths, things were manageable. My tussle with Onassis had tired me out. I needed to get my wind back without flames shooting through my body.
So, I took my time turning on the yacht's engine and releasing it into the lake and out towards the Gulf. I knew it was going to hurt like shit to jump off this bitch, but I had to. I got a running start, then jumped onto the pier.
“Fuck!” I screamed as I hit the dock. I had to tuck and roll, but it didn’t help with the impact. When I finally was able to pick myself up, I dragged myself to the shed where my brother and Mama were waiting.
As soon as I pushed the door open, I was assaulted with her usual vitriol. It wasn’t anything new; it was just exhausting.
“I knew you two would turn out to be full of shit!” she yelled.
“Mama, shut the fuck up. You brought this shit on yourself when you got your boyfriend to steal our guns and sell them to those motherfuckers. Now you’ve got to pay for your sins,” I told her.
Remy had her tied to a chair. He was leaning on the opposite wall of the shed, as far away from her as he could get.
I walked over to him and got in his face, so he was only focused on me.
“You sure about this?” I asked him.
We were about to make either the biggest mistake of our lives, one that we would regret forever, or we were going to be dutiful sons and live with the fact our mother betrayed us in the worst way.
Just like she always had.
Remy nodded. I could see the coldness behind his eyes. There was nothing there left for her. This was the look he got when, on occasion, he spoke of his time in Special Forces. He never disclosed any details about his missions, but he did speak about the atrocities. Some he witnessed, and others he committed himself.
He was compartmentalizing, and I let him.
“We do this together,” I demanded, not wanting him to hold the burden of our mama’s death on his hands.
Remy finally looked at me. “Together.”
Together, we turned and faced our mama. The woman who gave birth to us but never really loved us. Not like she should have. I let all the hurt, all the pain that I’d felt over the years growing up until now, wash over me.
She tried, unsuccessfully, to appeal to our responsibility as her children, which may have worked had she actually meant it. When realization fell on her features, the customary sneer she kept on her lips for us appeared. When we both raised our guns towards her, that sneer fell, and fear flashed into her eyes, then resolve, which made her features slip back to the usual hate we always garnered from her.
Then, we pulled our triggers.
There was a brief silence before one of us spoke.
“Are you okay?” Remy asked as I stared at our mama’s body slumped over in the chair.
I nodded. “Are you?”
Remy grunted, which I took to mean a yes. We stood there for a few more minutes, just looking at her dead body. I supposed we were just trying to wrap our heads around what happened and the part we played.
Remy moved forward to untie her.
“It had to be done,” he groused.
“Agreed,” I said, suddenly being accosted by the sounds of gunfire and yelling.
Then my phone rang.
“Dragon,” I answered, putting it on speaker without looking at the screen to see who would be calling now when chaos was erupting around us.
“It’s Haven. I don’t know what the fuck y’all are doing at your place but clean it the fuck up!” she ordered. “The police just got a call for gunshots fired, and I don’t want to have to be negotiating fucking bail for the whole damned club tonight,” she finished, then hung up without letting him get a word in.
Haven’s call jolted us into action. I helped Remy finish untying Mama. Remy threw her over his shoulder in a fireman’s carry, and I pushed the door open to the shed.
“Should we take the boat?” I asked, walking toward the pier where we usually launch our tours.
“I’ll take care of it,” Remy said. “You make sure the fellas are still living.”
I nodded.
Instead of continuing with Remy, I broke off toward the main structure of the farm. The gunfire had died down, which hopefully meant whatever Greeks remained were all dead. My gators were going to feast tonight.
Riot greeted me, holding his shoulder. Blood seeped through his fingers.
“I’m glad to see you’re alive,” I greeted. “Tara would’ve kicked my ass if something happened to you.”
“I’m glad too. Everyone make it?”
I didn’t know if he was referring to the girls or Remy, but I shook my head.
“No, Stone is dead. My mother killed him.”
Shock and then anger flittered on his face. Then Riot exhaled slowly, closed his eyes, and then opened them.
“He was a good brother,” Riot said, nodding.
“He was.” I paused for only a moment, aware of the time we had. “Go to Remy’s and tell Ace to make it look like we’re having a fucking party in honor of our brothers from the Oakland Chapter visiting. Police are on the way. Tell him to do a fucking bonfire or some shit.”
Riot nodded and then rushed past me. I didn’t wait to see if my orders were carried out. I just jogged to my destination. I saw several brothers I didn’t recognize congregating at the entrance. I introduced myself, thanked them for coming to help, and asked them to take any of the dead to the pier where I’d left Remy.
“Then you guys, head with Remy to his place. You’ll find Ace there,” I told them.
Once they were off, dragging a few bodies with them, I pushed through the door and found Wires and Brick.
“Where’s Stone?” Brick asked when he didn’t see him with me.
I shook my head. “He didn’t make it. My mama killed him,” I informed them.
“I’ll let Loki know we lost one,” Wires said, clutching his laptop, the other fist clenched tight.
I nodded but stopped him before he could get caught up in talking with Loki and answering the questions I knew would come from this. To be honest, I was surprised the whole damned club wasn’t rolling up here.
“It will have to wait. We’ve got cops on the way. We need to get shit cleaned up.”
“Get up as much brass as you can, then we’ll take them to the boat shed. I told Riot to get a bonfire going so it would look like we were just celebrating a visit from our brothers.”
“Okay, we’re on it,” Brick said, but I could see him struggling with keeping his anger in check.
“Hold it together. You can let it out with Saria,” I said to him, clapping him on the shoulder as he and Wires walked past me to do as I asked.
I looked around the room, relieved no trace of blood was visible to me. I left the hallway light on and killed the lights in the main lobby. When I returned to the parking lot, I fingered the bullet holes in the side of my truck, then hopped in it and drove it back to my place.
By the time I pulled the truck into my garage, I’d thought back to what Remy and I had done. Remy was right; it had to be done, and I didn’t expect to dwell on it anymore. But there was one thing that I absolutely thought happened tonight.
Madeline LeBlanc had finally paid for the sins she committed against her children.
May she rest in hell.