20. Screamer
SCREAMER
It’s time to put my game face on.
Pain radiates through my jaw, and my knuckles are raw, but I ignore it. When I heard the commotion from church, my blood ran cold as I raced into the common area. Then I saw the fighting, and Roxie standing there so close to the mayhem, and I broke.
“Screamer, stop!”
Her pleas penetrate the haze in my mind, and my fist freezes mid-air. Unfortunately, Shuffle takes that opportunity to land a solid blow to my face. My skin splits open on my cheek, and he throws another punch.
“Shuffle!” Roxie screams.
Her brother and I roll around on the floor, trading jabs. We’re so caught up in pummeling each other that Roxie’s nearness doesn’t register. And when she grabs the back of her brother’s shirt to try and pull him off me, he doesn’t realize it’s her until it’s too late.
Shuffle throws his head back to dislodge her, catching her in the chest. She stumbles backward, falling to her ass on the floor and hitting her head.
“Ouch,” she shrieks.
I immediately shove Shuffle away from me and scramble to her side. “Jesus, are you okay?”
Her eyes seem unfocused, but she manages to nod. “I’m?—”
“Get away from her!” Shuffle demands, and I jump to my feet and whirl on him.
My chest heaves, and my fists clench. “I’m gonna fucking kill you for hurting her,” I snarl.
“Fuck you,” he barks. “I told you that she’s off-limits.”
He reaches for my cut, but Roxie slides between us. I hadn’t even realized she got up.
“Both of you, stop!” She pushes on my chest, and I take a step back. She does the same to her brother, but he’s not as cooperative. “Ryan, stop.”
“I’ve got a dead brother on the side of the road,” Shuffle begins. “And you’re here with him. Jesus, Rox, you were engaged to be married not that long ago. What the hell is wrong with you?”
I growl, intent on setting him straight, but Roxie beats me to the punch.
“What’s wrong with me?” she snaps. “God, Ryan, you’re such an asshole. You’re right… Saint is dead. And yes, I came here. But I did it for you!”
He rears back as if slapped. “Whaddya mean you did it for me?”
“Maybe you two should take this somewhere more private,” Crow suggests, and that’s when I notice that the rest of the fighting has ceased, and all eyes are on me, Roxie, and Shuffle.
“No, that’s okay,” Roxie states. “If he wants answers, he’s gonna get answers.” She keeps her gaze level on her brother. “You want to know the truth, Ry? Will that make you happy?”
“Dammit, Rox, spit it out,” he commands.
She wraps her arms around herself and starts to pace. Shuffle follows her every move, and when she doesn’t ‘spit it out’, he takes a step toward her. I grab his shirt to stop him.
“Give her a minute,” I bite out.
“She’s my sister,” Shuffle argues. “I’ll?—”
“Saint is dead because of me,” she blurts, and his head whips in her direction.
“What?”
Roxie takes a deep breath and moves to stand in front of her brother. She squares her shoulders and rubs the back of her head. “You heard me. He’s dead because of me. I…” She licks her lips. “Jace didn’t break up with me. I left him because he beat the shit out of me.”
That seems to knock the wind from Shuffle’s sails, and his shoulders sag.
Over the next few minutes, she spills all the sordid details of her relationship with Jace, how he hurt her, and how she ran.
By the time she finishes, she’s crying, and I’m doing everything in my power not to lift her into my arms and carry her to my room to console her.
“So, you think Jace killed Saint?” Shuffle asks.
Crow steps forward and hands him the note we found with Saint. “Here.”
Shuffle reads it and swears under his breath. “Where can we find him?”
“That’s just it,” I say. “We have no clue. I filled Addison in, and she’s got her people working on it. I’m guessing the police are already at the scene.”
Shuffle nods. “Okay. Yeah, that’s good.”
Normally, we don’t like to involve law enforcement. But Addison is one of the good ones, and we all trust her. The fact that Shuffle isn’t fighting her involvement tells me all I need to know: He might be pissed at me, but he trusts us enough to follow suit with Addison.
“Ry, please believe me,” Roxie cries. “The only reason I didn’t call you or come to you is because I don’t know what more Jace will do. Saint’s gone. I can’t lose you, too.”
“I believe you,” he assures her. “But him?” Shuffle nods in my direction. “You hate bikers.”
“I don’t hate bikers,” she insists.
Her brother moves to stand toe to toe with me. “I warned you to stay away from her, Screamer.”
“You did.”
“If I remember correctly, I also told you I’d gut the next guy who hurt her.”
I look from him to Roxie. “Have I hurt you, sweetheart?” She shakes her head, and I return my attention to him. “See. No reason to spill guts.”
“What part of off-limits don’t you understand?” he counters.
“You don’t get to?—”
“She’s. Mine,” I tell him, cutting Roxie off.
“I don’t belong to you,” she argues.
“Are you claiming her?” Shuffle asks.
“Jesus, I’m standing right here.” Roxie waves her hands.
“I am,” I confirm, ignoring her.
“No, he’s not,” she snaps.
“Yes, sweetheart,” I say without looking at her. “I am. It doesn’t change anything other than your brother can’t do shit about you being here.”
“He couldn’t before,” she insists.
“Well,” Crow chimes in, coming to stand next to me. “Now that that’s settled, I think we all need to talk about the situation with Roxie’s ex.”
“Nothing is settled,” Roxie gripes.
Shuffle opens his mouth to argue, but Addison comes running into the common area with her cell up to her ear.
“Hey, sorry to interrupt, but I’ve got one of my detectives on the phone,” she says. “They want to know if you want them to notify Rae about Saint, or if you’d prefer to do it.”
“That’s an option?” Shuffle asks.
“Of course,” Addison says matter-of-factly. “I know how clubs work. And I also know that it will probably be easier for her to hear the news from someone she knows.”
“I’ll tell her,” Roxie says.
“Are you sure?” I ask, worried about how that conversation will affect her.
Roxie nods. “Yeah.”
“Do you want me to go with you?” Addison asks.
Roxie seems to think about it for a minute before replaying. “That’d be great, thanks.”
Addison walks away to relay the message to her detective, and Crow and Shuffle face each other again.
“How ‘bout we head into our meeting room?” Crow asks. “We can discuss how to proceed with your sister’s ex.”
Shuffle looks to his VP, Bear, who nods. “Yeah, okay.”
My brothers, and the LTMC members move through the common area toward the meeting room. I remain behind to talk to Roxie for a minute.
“Are you sure you’ll be okay talking to Rae?” I ask again.
“No,” she whispers. “But it’s not about me, is it?”
Heaving a sigh, I lean in and kiss her forehead. “Come back here after?”
“Okay.”
“Call me if you need me.”
“I will.”
With that, she walks out of the clubhouse. A few minutes later, Addison joins her, and I hear Addison’s car start.
Heart cracked, and body aching, I trudge to the meeting room. It’s time to put my game face on.