Chapter 13
Menace
“Iknow you both are eager to get home, but I think it’s best for you to stay here ... at least for a few more days.”
“Any particular reason why?”
“Many reasons.” Billy walked over to the kitchen counter and poured himself some coffee.
He was wearing his usual khakis and button-down shirt, but they were wrinkled to shit like he’d slept in them, although I knew otherwise due to his red eyes, which he could barely keep open.
“We just need time to let the dust settle a bit.”
“What dust?” When he didn’t immediately respond, I pushed, “Come on, Billy. You’re gonna have to give me a little something here.”
“We need time for the district attorney in California to receive Parker’s message. Once he has it in his hands, he’ll be able to make the connection to her suicide.”
“How’s he going to do that?”
“It shouldn’t be difficult. He merely has to look at the Kentucky postmark on the envelope, and then it won’t take much to link it to the accident that occurred there last night.”
“What kind of accident?”
“A young woman drove her car off a mountain cliff.” He took a sip of his coffee. “It was unfortunate at best. The car caught fire on impact, so the remains will be difficult to identify.”
“So, they’ll use the medical records I uploaded to confirm that it was Parker.”
“Exactly.” Billy walked over and picked up his duffle bag, then continued down the hall. “It’s the beginning of the end, my friend…the beginning of the end.”
He said nothing more as he entered his bedroom and closed the door.
For the first time since this whole matter started, I felt pretty good, so I decided to call Viper and fill him in on everything that had taken place.
Knowing Parker was still in the bedroom, I grabbed my phone from my pocket and headed out to the front porch.
Viper was pleased to hear that, so far, everything Billy had put into play seemed to be going well.
“Any idea when you two will be coming back?”
“Billy wants us to hole up here for a few more days just to be sure the incident went as planned.”
“I see.”
Something about the tone of Viper’s voice concerned me. “Why? Is everything okay there?”
“Not sure yet.” He cleared his throat, then continued, “But we’ll handle it. Stay vigilant and get back here as soon as you can.”
“You sure? I can head back now if—”
“Stay put like Billy told ya. I’ve got it covered.”
I didn’t like not being there when my brothers needed me, but unfortunately, I didn’t have a choice in the matter. Besides, I knew Viper would do whatever was needed to protect his club. “Just let me know if you change your mind.”
“I won’t. Hang tight, and hopefully, we’ll see you soon.”
“Yeah, sure, Prez.”
I didn’t have a good feeling as I ended the call.
When curiosity got the best of me, I went inside and turned on my laptop.
Seconds later, I was studying the surveillance feed from Stilettos.
While I spent most of my time at the club on the east side of town, we had two separate strip clubs and were considering the possibility of opening a third.
I was sitting at the kitchen table and looking through the footage from the night before when Parker came up behind me. “Whatcha doing?”
“Just checking things out at the club.”
“Everything okay?”
“As far as I can tell.”
A smile crossed her face as she leaned down and pointed to Country on the screen. He was in the back of the bar, towering over some chick, and it was clear from the way he was smiling, he was hitting on her. Parker giggled as she said, “Looks like Country is up to his old tricks.”
“Yeah, I’m not surprised.” I glanced up at her. “You know, now that I think about it, you never mentioned that you thought he was scary.”
“What?”
“Last night.” I crossed my arms with a suspicious expression. “As I recall, you thought Widow, Hawk, and Viper were oh-so scary, but you didn’t say anything about Country.”
“No, I guess I didn’t. Why do you ask? You worried about him?”
“Nope. Just making a point.”
“Mm-hmm,” she mumbled with her eyebrow cocked high. “Well, if you must know, you’re right. I’ve never thought of Country as scary, but I have no doubt he could be if he was provoked. Thankfully, he’s never felt that need with me.”
“He best not be feeling any kind of need where you’re concerned.”
Before she could respond, the front door swung open, and a young brunette stepped inside the house with an overnight bag in one hand and a backpack slung over her shoulder.
She was wearing a pair of ripped jeans with a black off-the-shoulder top, and her hair was pulled back in a fancy braid.
The chick was a looker, which made me wonder what the hell she was doing at Billy’s.
She was about to continue into the kitchen but stopped dead in her tracks when she noticed Parker and me at the table. “Oh, hey.”
“Hey.” Seeming unfazed by the girl’s unexpected arrival, Parker took a step towards her and smiled. “You must be Kiersten.”
“I am.”
“Your father mentioned you might be coming by.” Parker motioned her hand over in my direction and said, “This is Menace, and I’m Parker. We’re, uh ... We’re friends of your father’s.”
“That’s funny. I’ve never known my father to have any friends.” She took her overnight bag and tossed it onto the sofa. “Where is he anyway?”
“He just went into his bedroom.” I stood up and walked over to Parker. “He had a long night last night.”
“Oh? And why’s that?”
“Well, he’s ...”
I had no idea how much the girl knew about Billy and his line of work, so I wasn’t sure how to answer.
I was trying to think of an excuse for us being there when she smiled, “Ah, he’s doing a job for ya.
Say nothing more. We live by that ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ philosophy around here.
I don’t really like all the secrecy, but there’s not much I can do about it. ”
“Sis?” Billy stepped out of his bedroom wearing a pair of baggy boxers and an old wife beater.
It was the first time I’d seen him without his khakis and button-down, and I was shocked to see that the guy was cut.
He was muscled up from head to fucking toe, without an inch of fat on him anywhere.
His arms were tatted up, and there were several deep scars on each of them that looked to be bullet wounds.
Surprise marked his tired face as he stared at his daughter and asked, “Is it really you?”
“Yes, Daddy. It’s really me.” She walked over and wrapped her arms around Billy, hugging him tightly.
The ordinarily cold and distant man I’d become accustomed to practically melted in his daughter’s arms as he hugged her back.
“But I won’t be here long. I’ve gotta get back to finish up a project I’ve been working on, and it’s looking like I might have a new one coming up on the horizon. I don’t know for sure.”
“Well, I’m glad you’re here—even if it’s only for a short visit.” Billy took a step back, and there was no mistaking the love in his eyes as he gazed at his beautiful daughter. “You look well.”
“I am well ... very well, actually.” She gave him a warm smile, then turned her attention to Parker and me. “I’ve met your friends.”
“Oh, yes. They’ll be here for just a few more days.”
“Yeah, but we’ll do our best to stay out of your hair,” Parker added. “I know you don’t get to come home often, and we wouldn’t want to get in the way of you enjoying some time with your father.”
“Oh, don’t worry about that.” Kiersten motioned her head towards her father. “If you know my father at all, then you also know he’s usually busy in his office. I just get a few glimpses of him when he comes out for air.”
“I have to work,” Billy replied, sounding wounded.
“I know, Daddy.” Kiersten placed her hand on his shoulder. “You look tired. Why don’t you go take a nap, and I’ll fix dinner tonight.”
“I don’t want you to have to cook. I can—”
“I want to cook,” she argued. “Go get some rest, and we’ll catch up when you’re feeling more rested.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes, I’m positive.” She shooed him to leave. “Now, go.”
Billy nodded, then turned and headed back to his room, leaving Parker and me alone with his daughter.
I thought she would have something more to say to us, but instead, she walked over to the sofa and grabbed her backpack, then slung it over her shoulder.
As Kiersten started out the front door, she turned to Parker and said, “I’m going to town for a bit. You wanna tag along?”
“Oh, that would be great, but ...”
I had no doubt that Parker would love to get out of the house, even for a little while, but the fear of being seen had her turning to look at me for affirmation.
Billy lived in a small town close to the Kentucky border.
I found it doubtful that anyone would recognize her, so I said, “I’m sure it would be fine. ”
“Are you sure?” Parker’s brows furrowed with concern. “Maybe I should just stay here like Billy said.”
“If you’re worried, you could hang out in my car.
I’m only going to grab a few groceries, so it shouldn’t take long,” Kiersten suggested, making me wonder how much she knew about her father’s line of work.
Clearly, she was aware of the secrecy, but I had a feeling it was more than that.
When Parker didn’t answer right away, Kiersten leaned over to her and smiled. “I’d really enjoy the company.”
“Okay, I’ll tag along then.”
“Great!” As they headed out the door, Kiersten looked back over to me and announced, “We’ll be back in a couple of hours.”