32. Reese
Reese
Fury pulsed through my veins as I parked outside the Copper Kettle. I had one job. Keep Summer and Nate safe. I shouldn’t have left her alone.
The rain had almost stopped, but thunder still rolled in the distance, and the smell of wet pavement hung in the air. I got out and went into the restaurant, my back rippling with tension.
Summer glanced over her shoulder from her place at the counter and hopped off the stool. In a few strides, I was there, scooping her into my arms. I held her tight against me for a long moment as anger and relief surged through me in waves.
Pulling away, I cupped her cheeks and searched her face. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine. He didn’t hurt me.”
My jaw tightened, and she ran her hands up my chest.
“Reese, I’m okay.” Her tone was soft and soothing. “Let’s just go.”
Leaning in, I brushed her lips with a kiss, then led her out to my dad’s truck. I scanned the street, but the weather had chased most people indoors. And there was no sign of Axel.
Instead of driving straight to my parents’ place, I took a roundabout route to make sure we weren’t followed. Summer remained quiet, gazing out the window.
“I shouldn’t have left you,” I said, eventually breaking the silence.
“It’s not your fault. I shouldn’t have gone to the ATM.” She huffed out a frustrated breath. “I’m so angry right now. I want to rip off his balls and shove them down his throat.”
Involuntarily, I flinched at the image. Although I wanted to do worse.
She twisted in her seat and looked behind us.
“We’re not being followed,” I said.
“Sorry, I know you’re watching. But he’s going to try to follow us at some point.”
“I know he is.”
“He’s patient. He doesn’t seem like he would be, considering he also has a temper. But he is.”
“Prison probably made him more so.”
“I bet it did.”
“Was he locked up when Nate was born?”
“Yeah, he was. Why?”
“I’m just wondering why he didn’t try to take him before. Why now.”
“He didn’t have the chance before.” She sighed. “I wish I’d never told him I was pregnant. We were already broken up when I found out. But my mom knew, so I figured it was only a matter of time before he heard.”
“Why did you break up? Did he hurt you?”
“Not physically. I was starting to wonder if he might, though. Mostly he was controlling and manipulative. And he had a temper.”
“Did you tell him about the pregnancy in person?”
“I wrote him a letter. He wrote back and said the club would take care of me. I didn’t hear from him after that, but I always had a feeling he’d cause trouble when he got out. I should have disappeared. It just always felt impossible.”
We lapsed into silence again. I checked the rearview obsessively—even though no one was behind us—and stewed over Axel’s stunt.
“He had you at gunpoint,” I said, finally. “Why did he walk away? He could have shoved you in a car and forced you to take him to Nate.”
“I don’t know. Maybe he knew I wouldn’t cooperate, even with a gun pointed at me.”
The logical conclusion of that statement made me grind my teeth together. I wanted to rip the guy’s arms off.
“And why show his face at all?” I asked. “He eluded us for days. Now we know for sure he’s still here. Is he that arrogant? He thinks it doesn’t matter?”
“He’s absolutely that arrogant,” she said decisively. “I think he wanted to scare me. And hurt me. He wanted me to know exactly what he has planned for Nate.”
“If he thinks he’s going to turn Nate into another version of himself, he’s underestimating that kid. There’s no way.”
She glanced at me with a weak smile. “It makes me feel better to hear you say that.”
“It’s true. Nate’s not an idiot. Even if Axel got him, which he won’t, he’d never be able to indoctrinate him. Even if only because Nate hates him too much. Watch, he’s going to become a cop just to spite his father.”
She laughed. “That would be some beautiful justice.”
With one last look in the rearview—it was clear—I took the turn up to my parents’ place.
I’d already called my dad to let him know Summer had seen Axel again.
He’d assured me Nate was fine. And apparently someone had called Garrett.
He was getting out of his police cruiser—in uniform—when we pulled up to the house.
He nodded to me as we got out of Dad’s truck, then turned his attention to Summer. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah, fine. Just pissed off.”
I cracked a smile. She was tough.
We went inside to check on Nate. He was too smart not to realize something was going on, but he didn’t seem overly concerned.
Summer didn’t want him to hear the details, so she and I stepped outside with Garrett.
After she relayed what had happened and answered his questions—hearing it again made my blood boil—she went back into the house.
“Have you had any interactions with this guy?” Garrett asked once the door had closed behind her.
“Not face-to-face. He and a couple of his buddies chased us through town once. That’s about as close as I’ve been to him.” I paused. “But I know his type.”
“We don’t usually have problems with motorcycle clubs out here. What do I need to know about his type?”
“The club is his law, so he won’t give two shits about law enforcement, especially several states away. He’ll count on Mayhem to have his back. If Axel gets Nate, the club will do what they have to do to protect them both. Move them, hide them, keep anyone who’s looking for them away.”
“How does Nate see this? Does he want to see his dad?”
“No. He pretty well hates him.”
“I hate to put it like this, but that’s probably good. A lot of boys would idolize a biker. At least we don’t have to worry about him running away from Summer or cooperating with his dad.”
I wanted to snap at him—that asshole is not Nate’s dad—but I bit back the remark.
He took a few more notes on his phone, then slipped it in his pocket. “I think I have what I need, but I’ll call you if I have more questions. You’re staying here?”
“For now. Nate’s safe, but we can’t hole up here forever.”
“You won’t have to.”
My jaw hitched. “What do you think you’re going to be able to do about this?”
His posture shifted, his back stiffening. “My job, Reese. I’m going to do my job. And you need to let me.”
“So, just hang out here with Mom and Dad? Is that what you’re saying?”
“Look, I understand what it’s like to have people you care about in danger.”
“Then you know I can’t step aside and let someone else handle it.”
He met my eyes, his expression hard. “How do you think you’re going to handle it?”
“By making sure he can’t get to Nate.”
He raised his eyebrows.
“For fuck’s sake, Garrett. I didn’t say I’d shoot him in cold blood. Did you talk to Zachary?”
“No. What did you say to him?”
Shaking my head, I glanced away. “Nothing.”
“You can’t go vigilante.”
“I didn’t say I would.”
“But you’re thinking it.”
“What the fuck would you know about what I’m thinking?”
“Nothing.” He spat out the word. “I don’t know where your head is because I don’t know you. You show up and drop the bomb on us that you ran off and joined an outlaw motorcycle club. You can’t blame me if that makes me wonder how you feel about guys like me.”
“That was a long time ago.”
“I get it. And I’m not trying to hold your past against you.”
“But you don’t trust me.”
“I don’t know how far I can trust you. How could I? You care about Nate and Summer, and you want to keep them safe. And you’re a Haven, which, let’s face it, means you’re protective and stubborn as hell. Not a bad combination, as long as it’s tempered with a reasonable respect for the law.”
“Which you don’t think I have.”
“Do you?”
I looked away again. I didn’t know how to answer that. I wasn’t a criminal anymore. But I wasn’t like Garrett, either. I wasn’t like any of my brothers. Never had been.
“I’m not just trying to help Summer and Nate,” Garrett said. “I’m trying to keep you safe, too.”
The smoldering coal of anger in my gut flared to life, and I clenched my fists. “I don’t need you to keep me safe.”
He held up his hands. “Fine. But let us do our job.”
I didn’t reply. Just rested my hands on my hips and turned away.
He walked past me and went into the house, leaving me alone with my frustration.
With my rage.
He was right. He didn’t know me enough to trust me.
And that was no one’s fault but mine.