Chapter 28
CLUTCH - THAT LOOK
I wouldn't let anyone touch the room after I trashed it.
I sat on the floor with my brothers until one by one we got up and left the destruction behind us.
I had gone back in to grab my things, but the door remained open, the room destroyed as a visual reminder of what we had done, what this club had become.
No one asked questions, they didn’t need to. A strange sort of silence had fallen over the clubhouse, it was like something had died and we didn’t know how to come back from it.
Two more weeks had passed with several so called sightings of either Razor or Bex, but none had panned out until we had finally gotten a lead that Razor had been seen leaving Mara’s doctors office late one night and Cypher was able to verify it by hacking into a traffic camera across the street.
Mara had been concerned that the doctor could be in danger if Razor went back looking for information on her or the baby.
So here we were approaching them with offers of security, until the threat had passed.
Mara’s doctor, an older man with a clean cut salt and pepper beard and hair that matched, hesitated at first until his son had stepped out onto their front porch, scanned us all with a scowl on his face and then stopped when his eyes landed on Mara, a punch drunk look blanketed his face as he stopped mid sentence staring at her.
Angel glared, his dad chuckled taking in the scene and Mara didn’t seem to notice until her doctor elbowed his son saying “You’d think because he was a doctor that would make him people smart. ”
Mara, seemingly noticing the newcomer, snapped her eyes to his and a blush I had never seen on the club princess blanketed across her cheeks as she smiled softly at him.
Angel pulled her closer to his side and growled out, “Do you want our protection or not?”
This was now Mara’s turn to elbow him in the stomach. I heard a chuckle from Torch, who was standing guard by his bike, with a grumpy and silent Axel beside him.
Instead of learning from my mistakes, at least two of my brothers had decided to follow right behind me and were currently suffering the consequences. It was like we couldn’t help but fuck up, say the wrong things… Side with the wrong people.
“I am so sorry Dr Hart, I dragged you into this without thinking about how this could impact you or your family.” Mara stepped forward and sighed looking off in the distance before focusing back on her doctor. “Enough people have been hurt because of me…”
I flinched at her words knowing exactly who she was talking about. I felt Angel’s eyes land on me but we had barely spoken in the last month, not sure what was left to say.
“...and I would hate for anything to happen to you or your family because you just so happened to be my doctor.”
Dr junior still hadn’t taken his eyes off of Mara, Angel's phone went off and he ran a hand over his face and groaned.
“Mara, I need to get you back to the compound.”
Mara looked up at him, “Can’t I stay at Fours?”
Angel shook his head, “No, even he’s risking the repercussions of going to the Clubhouse. We need to keep everyone together so we have less places to safeguard.”
I heard Axel murmuring something, but I didn’t get a chance to ask him what he said because baby Dr Hart stepped forward, “I can keep her safe.”
A prospect pulled up beside Axel and Torch in one of our trucks.
Angel muttered something like “I don't have time for this shit.” before taking a deep breath and shooting him a look “What the fuck are you gonna do Dr Dougie.”.
That had the younger Dr Hart standing to his full height and taking another step towards Angel, which had Torch and I stepping in closer.
“Ms. Calder, if we are going to be spending more time together you can call me Gregory and I don’t think you’ve met my son Gavin.
He just came home from his third tour of duty…
” he shot a look at Angel before looking back at Mara saying, “...and will be joining our family practice as a Paediatrician.”
Gavin stepped up to Mara and held a hand out to introduce himself. Mara smiled in response, reached out to shake his hand saying “Please call me Mara.”
He didn’t respond, just stared down at her like he was seeing magic for the first time.
A sharp stabbing pain worked its way through my chest and it took everything in me not to rub at the ache in my heart.
Because I knew that look, I knew that feeling of seeing someone for the first time and your whole world felt like it had just changed.
I stepped back and turned away from them, scanning the long stretch of road leading up to the house.
Trying to breathe through the discomfort, trying to block out the memories that had been haunting me.
The days had both been long and gone by too fast since she left, since the last time I held my wife in my arms. Since I fucked up so spectacularly that even if we got through all this shit whole and I found her, there was no guarantee that she’d ever speak to me again.
The older Hart chuckled saying, “This is going to be fun.” and then yelled over his shoulder, “Just let me pack a bag.”
I heard a shuffle, then a grunt and Gavin murmuring, “I’ll be right back.”
It took them five minutes to collect the few things they needed and then jump into the truck with Mara and the prospect. But not without Angel giving the prospect direct orders to keep Dr Dougie away from his sister.
Angel and I took the lead, with Axel and Torch guarding the back of the truck. Our President had been extra protective of his sister since she had come back. Like if he kept her close enough to him, it could undo some of the wrong and she’d never be left unprotected again.
We passed the spot where we had found Bex's car on the way back to the compound and even though I knew she wouldn’t be there, I couldn't help but scan the area for any sign of her.
As we approached Four’s property, we slowed slightly so he could join in formation, with Dani riding with him. I dropped back behind Angel and Four.
The sun was gold across the plot of land I had found weeks ago, it was beautiful but it also felt like a symbol for everything I got wrong, for what could have been.
I kept my eyes forward, scanning the horizon for any danger.
Trying to take my mind off of her and focusing on keeping the people around me safe, finding and killing Razor, then finding Bex and trying my best to make things right.
We arrived back at the compound and escorted our new guests into the clubhouse.
When we got in the main area we were met with a flurry of activity, brothers talking over one another, Cypher trying to get control of the room, Meg, Marisol and some of the Ol’ Ladies sitting in a corner booth looking pissed as hell.
Cypher saw us and moved quickly in our direction. Angel gestured at Mara to take the doctors over near the bar and we stepped in closer to the table with the ol’ ladies and away from some of the chaos.
“What the fuck is going on?” Angel whisper growled.
Cypher stepped in closer, “No fucking idea, prez, we keep getting hits on Razor, keep getting tips. It's like our system has gone haywire…”
He was cut off by Meg, “Go figure your systems are all fucked after you let your little girlfriend play around in them.”
The look that passed over Cypher’s face was a mix of anguish and exasperation. “I don't have a girlfriend, I have an Ol’ Lady.”
Meg huffed and rolled her eyes, responding, “No. You don’t.”
At that, I scanned the women at the table, noticing for the first time that none of them were wearing their cuts.
Marisol had her arms crossed over her chest, looking away from Axel, who couldn’t take his eyes off her.
Meg, for once, didn’t have flour lingering on her clothes and was dressed in far more revealing clothing than I had ever seen her in before.
Cypher went to respond, but stopped when Angel stomped his foot, yelling, “Keep your personal shit out of this. Cypher, I need to know…”
He didn’t get a chance to finish because all our phones lit up with the SOS from the front gate. All arguing stopped as everyone reacted. I was the first one out the front door; the high-pitched sound of metal crunching was the only warning we got before the first bullet flew.