Chapter Nineteen.
Calamity
I was sure my gun should be smoking as I stared at the bodies of six Beauregard men. Behind me, Myka held Jayes tightly, with Demi in front of her holding a shotgun.
“Are you okay?” I demanded.
“We’re fine; you got to us quick enough,” Myka replied in a shaky voice.
“Call this in,” I ordered Demi.
She toed the body she’d dropped with the shotgun. Content that he was dead, Demi checked her second kill before lowering her weapon and yanking her phone out. I didn’t pay attention as I finished checking the four guys I’d shot and then backed away to cover Jayes and Myka.
As soon as Falcon called in about Cates being hit, I’d headed for Myka and Jayes. I’d sensed this was a diversion, and I’d not been wrong. Six Beauregards approached from the water and grabbed Myka and Jayes. They’d snatched them from the clubhouse yard and were shoving them towards the boat.
Myka was fighting, but with her casts she wasn’t exactly effective.
Two, seeing me chase after them, confronted me, and I’d shot them at point-blank range.
The others had drawn their own weapons, but Demi had appeared from nowhere and blasted a couple with her shotgun.
It gave me the chance to shoot the fifth.
Myka had elbowed the sixth and fallen away from him, and my bullet took him between the eyes.
“Should we fall back to the clubhouse? Prez, we’re too exposed here,” Demi asked.
“Yes. I’ll push Myka. Demi, take point. You’re faster to react than me,” I said without heat. My leg played up still. It always would, and I wouldn’t risk somebody because of false ego and not being able to match their fitness.
“Prez…”
“Demi, it is what it is. Doesn’t make me a lesser man, makes me someone aware of my limitations,” I replied.
“And that is why I chose you as president. Ain’t no other brother better suited to it than you,” Drake said from behind me. I turned around, and he stood there with his weapon drawn. “Phoe wanted to come help Penny tonight. I heard the shots.”
“Let’s get out of the open,” I ordered, my skin crawling as if someone was watching.
“Yeah,” Drake agreed and scooped down and picked Jayes up. He was so very silent; I was worried he was going into shock. I helped Myka into her wheelchair, which she’d been dragged out of, and began pushing her to safety. Falcon would screw when he heard what had happened. And I didn’t blame him.
Falcon
I stared at the ramshackle cabin; cops surrounded it, and Rawson and Dawson were both inside.
“Back off!” Rawson bellowed.
“Ain’t happening. You shot the sheriff. Nobody’s letting you walk from that,” Farell yelled in return.
Rawson fired in sheer temper, and we all ducked behind the cars.
“He’s lost it,” I murmured to Farell, who nodded.
“Rawson, surrender, there’s nowhere to go,” Farell demanded.
“Fuck you, pig!” From inside the cabin came the sounds of fighting and shouting, and then the door flew open.
Dawson ran out, looking worried and scared.
Moments later he lurched forward as a shot took him between the shoulder blades.
Dawson looked shocked before falling to his knees.
A second bullet skimmed the dirt next to him before a third spun him around.
Dawson collapsed on his back, and his arms fell open.
“Fuckin’ traitor!” Rawson yelled from inside. The door was booted shut again.
“Christ, he killed his own brother,” a deputy gasped.
“He’s still alive.” I nodded to Dawson.
“Yeah, but not for long if we can’t get him help,” Farell stated.
“Don’t think that’s happening,” I murmured as Rawson let loose another stream of bullets.
“Fuckin’ hillbilly, redneck assholes,” Farell muttered.
“Technically, they’re not…”
“Shut up, Falcon,” Farell ordered, and I snorted.
Minutes became an hour, then four more passed. Farell had contacted SWAT, and they were ready to breach.
“I want my Ma,” Rawson suddenly yelled.
“We can call her,” Farell called.
“Do it.”
“Think he’s getting ready to surrender?” I asked. This didn’t sit right.
“No, the fuckers’ going to suicide by cop,” Farell replied. He nodded to a nearby deputy.
“Go get Wanda-Faye down here.”
Another hour passed, and I kept Calamity updated. He was strangely quiet, and I was surprised he wasn’t here. Finally, a car rolled up with Wanda-Faye. She stared with hatred at all of us.
“Wanda-Faye, you need to talk Rawson down. He’s stopping us reaching Dawson,” Farell said as her gaze latched onto Dawson. He’d stopped twitching hours ago.
“My boy,” she gritted out.
“Make Rawson surrender, and we’ll be able to get Dawson help,” Farell pushed.
“Fine.” Wanda-Faye was rigid. There was pure hate in her eyes, and my gut tensed. Shit, this was about to turn dark.
“Rawson Beauregard!” Wanda-Faye bellowed.
“Ma!” he called back. “I didn’t mean to kill Merle; he was screwing us over.”
“Shut your mouth. Get your ass out here,” Wanda-Faye ordered.
“Not until you understand. Merle was a rat, and Lawson planned to hand himself in. Thought the cops would go easy on us for what we did to Dawson’s cunt. I had to silence him. He was turning snitch.”
“Said quieten down, boy,” Wanda-Faye snapped.
“And Dawson, he wanted to tell the pigs it was me that beat his woman. Dirty bastard. Who sticks it to a brother, Ma? They all pushed me to kill them, you understand, right?”
“I know you killed family, Rawson. Murdered your own blood,” Wanda-Faye shrieked. “Get out here and die like a man! You piece of shit!”
“Crap,” I muttered.
“Wanda-Faye, leave!” Farell ordered, but the bitch was up and running her mouth.
“Should’a drowned you at birth. Always knew you were a wrong-un. Mean-spirited, just like your daddy. I didn’t beat the badness outta ya!” Wanda-Faye screeched, her eyes on Dawson’s lifeless body.
“Ma!”
“That’s my baby!” Wanda-Faye yelled, and a sob tore from her. “Should be you lying there, Rawson.”
There it was: the trigger. Rawson burst from the cabin, firing madly.
Deputies and SWAT opened fire, and he went down in a hail of bullets. Silence fell, and I glanced across at Wanda-Faye staring at Rawson’s body with sheer hatred. With a muffled sob she began staggering towards Dawson, but a deputy caught her and restrained her.
Wanda-Faye turned with despair in her eyes, which became hate again when she saw me.
“Tell that slut she’ll pay for my boys’ deaths. She’s behind this. Myka will learn what grief is,” Wanda-Faye promised.
“Go near my woman, and I’ll remove you and your family from this earth.” It wasn’t a threat, but a promise.
“You wanted a war, you’ve got one.”
“Didn’t want anything. This is on you and how you raised kids. Wrong-uns all of them,” I retorted.
“Redskin bastard,” Wanda-Faye hissed.
“Yeah, and I collect scalps too.”
Wanda-Faye looked horrified and let a deputy lead her away. This shit with the Beauregards wasn’t over, far from it. However, Myka and Jayes were safe for now.
I was trying not to strangle my family as they explained what had happened. Myka was pale and Jayes shaken, but they were safe. I was barely bottling my temper when Nova appeared.
“Calm down. Myka needed you where you were. She’ll sleep easier knowing they’re dead and won’t be returning. You saw that with your eyes, better than a deputy telling her and Myka wondering if the cop ID’d the wrong body.”
That was true. Myka seemed remarkably calm.
I wrapped her up in my arms and hauled Jayes in.
They were safe for now. And the Beauregards must be struggling.
Rawson was responsible for the deaths of numerous family members.
I wondered who had been calling the shots, because it seemed wrong that Rawson had ordered his relatives to snatch Myka.
It would have made more sense for him and Dawson to grab her and Jayes while his family caused the distraction. No, something wasn’t right, but I couldn’t work out what. Calamity gave me a long look. I could see it in his expression. He also knew this wasn’t over. We were missing something big.
Myka
Rosie opened the door to the library and led me through it.
It had been four weeks, and things had started to settle down.
Wanda-Faye had buried three children, and the Beauregards the rest of them.
They were quiet for now; it wouldn’t last. Wanda-Faye had a gut full of hate.
The evil bitch had gone after Dawson’s house, and I let her have it.
I wasn’t ever setting foot back there again.
I’d been talking to Falcon about what came next. My future plans had changed. He’d suggested me going to college and doing a few taster courses, which was a possibility. Falcon had also said I could stay home and be a housewife. He didn’t care as long as I was happy.
Jayes had taken a while to recover and had been clingy with both Falcon and me.
But the biggest thing had happened yesterday.
Jayes had called Falcon dad in front of the club, and I thought Falcon was going to cry; he looked so proud.
Jayes was definitely his son in spirit; they were like fish when in the water.
Falcon’s trainer had signed on to help devise a programme for Jayes as he agreed how talented Jayes was.
“Relax,” Aggie, Gauntlet’s gran, ordered, appearing. “You’re so tense, girl.”
“This is The Book Club.”
“Yup, and you’ve been invited.” Aggie grinned. She opened the door, and Rosie and I entered. Twelve heads swivelled, and grins and hellos were aimed at us.
“Come and sit down. Rosie, fetch drinks for you and Myka. We’ve got a few issues to deal with. For example, the sheriff and Nightmare were both shouting at each other in the hospital about her getting shot. There’s something between those two,” Mrs Maple said with a glint in her eye.
Holy crap, was she matchmaking? Rosie passed me a coffee and sat down.
“Second, there’s Natalie. That Jess is doing her best to ruin her.
We need to slap Jess down to size. Then there’s the vote regarding the new houses.
It’s a no, and we need to make sure they don’t happen.
Not on green land. There’s plenty of reclaimable land that can be used. ” Mrs Maple looked around.
“There’s a few other minor things, and then we’ll get down to discussing Elizabeth N. Harris’s Bloodlust. I certainly wouldn’t mind being sucked on by a vampire.”
I choked on a mouthful of coffee and swallowed it.
Aggie winked at me.
“Welcome to Book Club!”