28. Deacon
DEACON
.
Knock, knock, knock, knock, knock.
I peeked an eye open at the sound.
Knock, knock, knock, knock, knock.
“What time is it?” Dallas groaned.
Knock, knock, knock, knock, knock.
“Whatever time it is, it’s the wrong time,” Gauge murmured.
Knock, knock, knock, knock, knock.
I groaned and grumbled as my naked ass rolled out of bed. If they kept knocking, they’d wake up Char, and then we’d all have a problem. I lumbered toward the door and cracked it open. I squeezed one eye closed and squinted the other one as the harsh light of the hallway damn near blinded me.
I found Rat standing there with my cell phone in his hand, and I had half a mind to choke him.
“Sheriff’s called three times now,” he said.
That pulled me awake. “Thanks.”
He thumbed over his shoulder. “I’m cooking breakfast. You four want anything?”
I nodded. “Whatever you make is fine, thanks.”
“Yep.”
“Hey, Rat?”
He paused with his back to me. “Yeah, Deac?”
“Get some rest today, okay? It’s a day off for the club. I think we’ve all earned it.”
All he did was nod. “I’ll let them know.”
And after I watched him walk off, I closed the door before dialing Nielson back.
“Morning, sunshine,” he said when he picked up the phone.
“What gives?” I asked as I shuffled back toward the bed.
“I got everyone? Or just you?”
“I mean, you can have everyone if you need us, but we’re sort of just getting up.”
“Who’s that?” Char asked groggily.
“Nielson.”
She motioned with her hand. “Put him on speakerphone.”
I did as the queen of the castle asked before I made my way back into bed. “You’ve got all of us.”
“Great,” Nielson said. “You guys know it’s almost noon, right?”
“You know we’ve all been through hell, right?” Char asked.
Nielson paused. “Point taken.”
“Whatcha need, Sheriff?” Dallas asked curtly.
Nielson chuckled. “Just called with an update.”
Char picked her head up. “What kind of an update?”
“The good kind, I promise.”
“All right, then spit it out,” Gauge muttered.
“Not a morning person, I see,” Nielson said. “Well, I’ll make it brief, then. Marcie’s been processed and taken back to D.C. by Commander Hadley. The last of the federal agents just got on a plane a few minutes ago. I made sure to escort them in case they needed anything.”
I chuckled. “I’m sure you did.”
“You’re damn right I did,” Nielson said. “They also loaded up all of the evidence and that thumb drive with those videos on it.”
Char sat upright in bed, clutching the sheet to her chest. “Wait, they’re taking Bait’s body away?”
“Oh no, no, no,” Nielson said quickly. “Dr. Agemon made sure his body stayed behind. He pulled a late-night last night running the rest of the tests that they would’ve had to run in D.C. He sent that information with Hadley before they got on the plane.”
“And… that’s all?” Dallas asked.
“Not quite,” Nielson said.
“What else is there, then?” Gauge asked as he pinched the bridge of his nose.
I had to admit, even I was tired of hearing from Nielson. We all needed a break from one another.
A big, long, healthy fucking break.
“The footage from the mechanic shop,” Nielson started in, “Commander Hadley knows who the other people were. You know, with Marcie when they stormed the place.”
That got our attention, and all four of us sat up as we hovered around the cell phone while the sheriff continued.
“The other people that were with Dickerson was the team she was originally working with in L.A. on that case against Doc. You remember?”
Char nodded. “Yeah, that was her home base for the case or something, right?”
“Right. Apparently, Dickerson told them to make it look like an abduction for the sake of keeping the op under wraps. She told her people that Bait was a personal friend who was in some trouble, and that she’d owe them one if they worked with her on their downtime to get him out of a sticky situation. ”
“You’re fucking kidding me,” Gauge growled.
“Once Hadley confronted her personally about her fingerprints on the detonator device, she was pretty loose lipped about it. I figured you guys would want to know.”
We all looked around at one another, but none of us knew what to say. What was there to say, at that point?
“Anyway, the biggest reason why I called is because?—”
Char interrupted him. “Please tell me you’re releasing Bait’s body to us today.”
“Ah,” Nielson said with a chuckle, “the smart one’s awake finally.”
Char cackled with the sheriff as she tossed the sheet off her body, but I was less than impressed.
“Wait,” Gauge said.
“I’ll go get Rat,” Dallas said as he threw the covers off himself, too.
“I’ll go tell the rest of the guys,” I said as I handed my phone to Char.
She took it and continued talking. “Thank you for calling us, Nielson. We’ll be there shortly.”
“No problem at all. Dr. Agemon’s waiting for a phone call so he knows what to do next.”
“Church?” Gauge asked as he stood by the door.
“Nah,” I said, “just an announcement time.”
And that’s when Gauge ripped it open and bellowed down the steps.
“ANNOUNCEMENT TIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIME! TEN MINUTES!”
“Home sweet home,” I said flatly. “Thanks for calling again, Sheriff.”
“Anytime. You take care of yourself, okay?”
“We’ll take care of each other, how’s that sound?” she asked as she slipped out of bed.
“Sounds like a plan. Talk soon.”
“Talk soon,” she said before she hung up the call.
She tossed my phone back to me and I caught it. “Home sweet home?”
She blushed furiously from head to toe, and I couldn’t help but study her naked form.
She was the most beautiful creature I had ever set eyes on.
And if she wanted this place to be her home, then so be it.
I’d move her in that afternoon, if she’d let me.
Two good van rides is all it would take, especially if she didn’t want to bring any of her furniture with her.
We could absolutely do that in an afternoon.
I wasn’t sure I’d ever get my fill of her, so long as I lived.
“Well I think we need to go on the hunt for clothes,” Char said as she looked me up and down, “don’t you think?”
“Nah,” Gauge said as he started out of the room, “I was just gonna do the announcement time naked.”
“You would,” Char said with a snicker.
Gauge peered over his shoulder and tossed her a wink. “Don’t tempt me.”
I reached for the satin red sheet and ripped it off the bed. “Here, wrap up in this.”
She took it from me. “Thank you.”
The three of us led the charge, naked as hell, while we escorted Char back to her room.
I didn’t want a single person laying a fucking eye on her in such a vulnerable state.
That was for our eyes only. Me, Gauge, and Dallas.
The three other horses to the beautiful apocalypse she had hailed into our world.
We got changed into clothes and met one another in the foyer where the rest of the crew gathered.
And just as I cupped my hands over my mouth to speak, Char put her hand up.
She even silenced me.
We all watched as she parted the sea of men in the foyer with her presence.
She walked all the way up to Rat, who stood in the corner with his arms crossed over his chest. She stood in front of him and tilted her head.
She helped unfurl his arms before taking his hand in hers.
And as she looked up into his face, all eyes were on them.
“We’re heading to claim Bait’s body so that we can bury him,” she said as she patted the top of his hand. “Would you like to come along?”
I’d never seen Rat do anything even remotely close to what he did in that moment. His eyes glistened as he picked Char up into a massive hug and twirled her around. He collapsed to his knees, crying against her shoulder with such audible sobs that it hitched even my own voice in my throat.
“We did it,” Gauge murmured. “We finally got that man some closure.”
And as I held my hand up in the air to command the attention of the rest of my men, I drew in a deep breath.
“She’s gone, everyone. She’s been arrested, charged, and all of the feds have left. We are heading to pick up Bait. He deserves a proper burial. And anyone who wants to come with us is more than welcome.”
It didn’t shock me that everyone, including Rat and Char while they still held one another and cried, headed right out the fucking door.
“Time to go get our brother,” I murmured to myself.