Chapter 30 – Phoenix
PHOENIX
“What can I do?” Ember asked.
“Get Tripp and Chloe into rooms. Keep anyone who isn’t a member or an Old Lady out of the common areas until further notice. Somebody will need to take Nora to the hospital, but not yet. It’s going to take a while to get him to the ambulance.”
“Got it,” she said. “You two, come with me. I’ll bring your dinners to you in a minute.”
“Diesel, I need you at the gate. Do not let any cops in,” I said. “Ranger, I want to talk to Byte before we meet them out back. They’ve got No Nuts.”
“Hot damn! It’s been a minute since we’ve had a guest without Carbon here to hog all the fun or Flint to steal all the glory.”
“You get to have plenty of fun. You blew someone’s head off not that long ago.”
“Yeah, and your son was there playing the hero, again,” he said petulantly, though I knew he was joking. “Where is my favorite show-stealer?”
“He’s keeping an eye on things at the diner with Walter and Buck,” I told him as we walked into church. “You got anything?” I asked Byte.
My phone rang before he could answer.
Dash.
Fuck.
I accepted the call and put him on speaker.
“We might have a problem,” he said. “We’re coming up on what looks like a wreck or roadblock. A lot of flashing lights. Any idea what’s going on?”
“Hold on,” Byte said, already typing. “Yeah, there’s definitely an accident. Still checking the other cameras.”
Ranger held up his phone and wiggled it. “Reports say pedestrian versus vehicle. They’re instructing drivers to turn around.”
“Got it. We’ll turn around before we get any closer. Should be there in twenty. Taking the back roads,” he said and ended the call.
I looked at Byte first, then Ranger, wondering if they were thinking the same thing I was. “No,” I said slowly. “Couldn’t be.”
Byte’s fingers raced across his keyboard in response. Ranger plugged one ear with his finger while he stared at his phone.
“Male. Early twenties,” Ranger said loudly.
“Where are you getting that information?” Byte asked, seemingly frustrated.
Ranger grinned and pointed to the earbud in his ear. “Keegan and Gabby got me these for Christmas. I’ve been listening to the police scanner since.”
“Hold on. You’ve been listening since when?” Byte asked.
“Since Christmas,” he said as if the answer was obvious.
I shook my head and chuckled. “Who’s the show-stealer now?”
“Me,” Ranger grinned proudly. “It gives me great pleasure to inform you that the freshest piece of roadkill in Croftridge County is Willy Smith.”
“Well, that’s two down and one to go,” I said.
“Or is it one down and two to go?” Ranger asked. “Since No Nuts isn’t dead yet.”
“I won’t make the same mistake again,” I said harshly.
“Didn’t think you would and don’t care if you do. That boy won’t leave this clubhouse alive.”
“Then why did you ask?”
“’Cause I wanted to know. I’m old. If I don’t say things right the first time, people automatically jump to dementia.”
“No one has even remotely suggested you have dementia,” Byte said. “Ever.”
“Now that I think about it. You’ve been a pain in the ass all week. What gives, old man?” I asked.
Ranger huffed. “You’re right. I’ve been irritating the hell out of you all week. You remember that the next time you forget to send me to a haunted castle for a week. I could’ve been scaring the hell out of Dice and Ink for seven days!”
“All you had to do was say you wanted to go,” I told him.
“That’s rude,” Ranger grumbled. “Inviting yourself on other people’s vacations.”
“You’ll have to save your grievances for later,” I told him. “They should be here soon.”
“Why didn’t one of y’all mention this on the phone?” I demanded.
“We were going to, but we forgot about it after we saw the flashing lights,” Dash said.
“I’ve already called Walter,” Ranger said. “He’s on his way.”
I stepped closer and extended my hand. “What happens if you—?”
Diablo showed his teeth and growled long and low, causing me to instinctively drop my hand and step away.
“I thought he’d let go by now,” Shaker added. “He clamped onto him as soon as they carried Ink away. He released him long enough for us to get him in the truck, but he wouldn’t let go when we got here.”
“We don’t have time for this shit.”
Thankfully, Walter arrived within a few minutes and quickly took in the situation. “Diablo,” he said firmly. “Release.”
Diablo snarled.
“Drop it,” Walter tried.
Diablo growled and shook No Nuts’s leg, causing him to groan—the first sound we’d heard from him.
“Drop it!” Walter repeated.
“Grrrrr!” Diablo replied.
Walter threw his hands in the air, bewildered. “I can keep trying or call Daphne, but I’ve never had to give him a command more than once.”
“I got this,” Ranger said confidently, raising a pistol.
Diablo looked at Ranger, released the leg, and backed away. Ranger promptly put a bullet in No Nuts’s head.
“Before y’all start,” Ranger said. “Diablo wasn’t going to let go for good unless that sack of shit was dead. As Prez said—we don’t have time for this. Problem solved.”
I wanted to be pissed, but he was right. We needed to get rid of No Nuts’s body and clean up anything indicating he’d ever been at the clubhouse so I could call the police about Elsie—if they didn’t show up before then.
“Dash and Duke, wrap him up and take him to the pond across the street. Use the dirt road. Roll him down the hill and make sure he’s out of sight. Use the same truck you brought him here in. Then, I want one of you to drive it to the farm and the other one to come back here.”
“Shaker, grab whoever’s around and start cleaning. Byte, wipe the camera feed.”
“Already done,” he said. “Can I get his phone?”
“Right,” Shaker said and pulled the phone from his pocket, sliding it across the table to Byte. “Sorry about that.”
“Fuck,” I breathed. I felt like I was forgetting something. Or someone.
“You need a board like the coaches use for football plays to keep up with everybody,” Ranger said.
“Why aren’t you helping?”
“I am helping,” he grinned. “First, you should send Annabelle, Ember, Blaze, and Raven to talk to Elsie. See what they can get out of her. Then you need to appoint someone to handle updates on Ink. Done. That’ll be me.
Next, make sure everyone knows what to say to the cops, especially Tripp and Chloe.
Then get Elsie and the cops out of here.
Last, handle that body across the road. I have thoughts on that when you’re ready. ”
“Fuck,” I groaned.
“You’ve been saying that a lot here lately. They say repetitiveness is a sign of dementia.”
“I don’t think you need to send anyone to talk to Elsie,” Byte said, staring at his screen. “These dumbasses texted everything. It’s all right here. Might want to grab a seat.”
We pulled up chairs and huddled around Byte’s laptop, reading page after page of texts as he scrolled.
“Well,” Ranger said, leaning back in his seat. “That made shit a lot easier.”
“How?” I asked, surprised by his words.
“If you hand over that phone when you turn in Elsie, there’ll be no need to worry about what anyone says to the cops. If you keep it for, say, leverage, you only need to have Tripp and Chloe say they brought Elsie here after they discovered what she did.”
“That is what they did,” Byte said flatly.
“Exactly!” Ranger said, then looked at me expectantly. “Well?”
“We’re keeping the fucking phone.”
“Great. I’ll check on Ink. Unless you want me to place a call to Chuck first?” Ranger asked.
“What is happening?” I asked, though I didn’t want an answer.
“I’m showing you how it’s done, son.”
“He’s been microdosing for improved cognitive function,” Byte whispered, followed by a shrug. “Seems to be working.”
“Does Gabby know about that?” I asked, genuinely concerned.
Ranger chuckled. “Who do you think helped me get it?”
“I’m going to talk to Tripp and Chloe,” I said.
“Have you found the third guy yet?” I heard Ranger ask as I was closing the door behind me. I might have to talk to Gabby about whatever the fuck Ranger was doing.
“Thanks, Chuck,” I said, shaking his hand. “I appreciate your help with this one.”
Chuck nodded. “I appreciate yours. Take care.”
I took a moment to exhale with relief before I went back to church. As far as I was concerned, the hard part was over. No Nuts’s dead body, the sixteen-year-old root of all evil, and the cops were all out of my clubhouse, and none of them were coming back.
“All good?” Badger asked.
“All good,” I confirmed and dropped into a chair. “What’s the latest on Ink and Ariel?”
“No changes,” Ranger said.
I nodded in acknowledgment. “Let me see No Nuts’s phone.”
“That’s Ricky,” Byte said and passed the phone to me. “Tap the screen when you’re ready.”
I looked down and tapped the screen.
Calling IckyDickyRicky
“Calvin! Where the fuck are you?” Ricky demanded.
“He’s dead in a ditch by the pond across the street,” I said bluntly. “It’s Phoenix, by the way.”
“The fuck did you say?”
“Your son. He’s dead in a ditch by the pond across the street. We wrapped him in plastic to make things easier. You’ve got one hour to be gone with his body.”
“Who the fuck do you think you’re talking to?” Ricky demanded.
“A man who’ll end up being killed in prison if he doesn’t get his son’s nutless body in time, and I give his phone to the cops. They’ve already got Elsie,” I said.
Ricky screamed into the phone before the call disconnected.
I tilted my head back and closed my eyes while the others discussed the phone call. It didn’t matter what any of us thought. He’d get No Nuts, or he wouldn’t.
Several knocks on the door interrupted my attempt at a quick nap. Shaker opened the door to reveal a wide-eyed Tripp clutching his phone against his chest.
“You need something?” I asked.
“D-did you kill my brother?” he asked, sounding scared and confused.
“Why would you ask that?” I nodded at the phone in his hand. “Is someone on the line?”
Tripp shook his head and lowered his phone. “No. I just got off the phone with my dad. He said he was leaving to pick up Calvin’s body and wants me to meet him at Leon’s house. He’s going to make me bury my brother before he kills me because this is all my fault!”
“Take a breath,” Ranger said as he pulled out a chair. “Come in and have a seat. You can tell us why this is your fault.”
“All of Calvin’s shortcomings are my fault,” Tripp said. “This will be my fault, too. Fuck! What am I going to do?”
“Give me your phone and let me handle your dad,” I said. “Again.”
“I don’t know,” Tripp said. “It’ll be better if I just deal with him now. He doesn’t like having to wait. He’s probably not going to kill me. He’ll just make me work for him.”
“You ever thought about joining the club?” I asked.
“I, uh,” Tripp stammered. “What?”
“If you’re a prospect, your dad won’t be a problem.”
“I don’t understand,” Tripp said.
“You’ll be one of us, and your dad doesn’t fuck with us,” Badger explained.
“Forever?” Tripp asked.
“Yeah,” several of the guys said.
“Deal,” Tripp said excitedly and held out his phone.
“You sure about this?” I asked. “This is a commitment.”
Tripp nodded. “I know about the Blackwings. I’ve heard my dad talk about you before. If I have to choose between a life with him or a life with you, I choose the Blackwings.”
I nodded, impressed with how quickly he made a life-altering decision. “We’ll do the official shit later. Let’s take care of—”
Tripp’s phone rang.
Dad.
“Hey, Ricky. Long time no chat,” I answered.
“You have my other son.”
“I have your only son. And he’s now my prospect. Anything else?”
“I will fucking kill you!” Ricky roared through the phone.
“I’ll make it easy for you and wait right here. Are you coming for me now? Or are you gonna swing back by after you get No Nuts?”
“Fuck. You.”
I ended the call and slid the phone back to Tripp, who picked it up with shaking hands.
“Let me know if he calls back,” I said. I didn’t think he would. Ricky had a history of running his mouth before doing what he was told to do in the first place. We ran him out of Croftridge years ago, and we hadn’t had a problem with him until his offspring unknowingly returned.
“I need a fucking nap,” I said and closed my eyes.
My phone rang, startling me awake.
“Clubhouse. Church. Ricky,” Ranger said, as if I needed someone to tell me where I was and what was going on. I did, but that wasn’t the point.
Luca.
Why the fuck was he calling me in the middle of the night?
“This can’t be good,” I said and cleared my throat to answer.
“My apologies for the late phone call,” Luca said. “You unknowingly provided an opportunity for me, and I haven’t been able to express my gratitude until tonight.”
Possibilities flooded through my mind as I tried to figure out what he was referring to. Then it hit me. “The fire.”
Luca chuckled. “Not exactly. I didn’t find out you were the one who put Calvin in the hospital until after the fire.”
“I see. What did No Nuts do to earn your attention?” I asked. No Nuts was far below Luca’s pay grade.
“He harmed one of mine,” Luca said darkly.
“I came for him the night he tried to hurt your girls, but your men had already been there. I easily found out what happened to Calvin, but no one would tell me who happened to him. After your handiwork, I paid someone to retrieve his testicles from pathology. They are now preserved in resin, dangling from a keychain. I think they’ll help with healing. ”
“Fucking hell, Luca,” I nearly choked.
“As my way of saying thank you, I blew up Ricky’s car after he collected his son. Problem solved.”
“I hope I never piss you off,” I chuckled.
“I can say the same about you,” he said. “Ah, almost forgot. Coleman was in the car with Ricky.”
“Two bitches, one bomb,” I laughed.
“Something like that,” Luca chuckled darkly.