Shadow Chapter 15
Over twelve hours later, and I still felt like shit for making Cambria sick.
When the call came in, and I heard the woman’s unhinged tone, I knew I had to try to get her to see one of us as an ally.
There was no way I’d ask Cambria to do it, so I did.
There was no time or way to explain it to her.
I had to keep Maggie Marie on the call as long as possible.
I was tracing her call and pumping her for information.
I prayed we’d get something that would lead us to the whole group and let us eliminate them as a threat.
It had worked, but it sickened my woman so badly that she ended up vomiting and not just once. That was the end of our sleep, though I tried to get her to go back to bed. I rallied the troops, and we all got to work.
The spot chosen for the meeting on Tuesday night was in Macon.
That was forty miles from Eatonton. The place Maggie Marie chose was an old church.
According to our research, it had shut down several years ago.
And it sat not within the city limits, but outside them.
When you lived in the South as we did, you could find churches everywhere, and that included out in the middle of nowhere.
There were more churches per capita than in any northern state and most of the world, I was willing to bet.
The clubhouse became a hive of activity as I alerted Wrath, Undertaker, Sloan, Everly, Crusher, and Smoke about the call.
Wrath was the one who got the other members out of bed—our day had been a tedious one.
I hadn’t had a chance to sit down and speak to Cambria about what I did and how it affected her.
When I asked if she was alright or needed anything, she said she was fine and waved away my offers of food and drink. Her paleness told me she wasn’t okay.
The entire day had flown by, and it was now nine o’clock at night.
We were breaking for the night. Sloan, Betty, and Jalisa had provided us with snacks and meals throughout the day.
They said it was the least they could do.
Cambria worked on her part online and didn’t shirk any duties, but she kept driving herself to do more.
She even jumped in to help make some of the food, although the others tried to wave her away.
However, the day had yielded a lot of information, and a plan was forming to take care of Brooks’s followers.
Undertaker was already working with the other Patriots and Anderson to get his ass into the prison.
That left whoever exposed Cambria’s real identity to find.
I was hoping this meeting with Maggie Marie would give us that information.
There had been one argument that had transpired today.
It was when Cambria was informed that she wouldn’t be going with us to the meeting in Macon.
She argued that it was only right for her to go.
I reminded her of how much she had set off the crazed groupie, and if there were more than one, which I suspected there would be, it would make things too volatile.
Plus, I didn’t want her in the middle of a situation that could go sideways at any second.
We’d argued for over an hour, until finally she threw up her hands in defeat and stopped talking. That was thirty minutes ago. After a tense half hour with the others, Wrath had said we all need to get rest for work tomorrow. We’d be going about our business as usual.
Cambria hadn’t said a word other than to nod when the others wished us a good night. Entering our house, she headed straight to the bedroom after she took off her things. I followed her after shedding my cut and boots. She bypassed the bed and went into the bathroom. I followed her.
“Cambria, you’re mad at me. We need to talk about it. I’m sorry that you disagree with the decision. But you have to see it from my standpoint.”
She whipped around. “What is your standpoint? You’re sidelining me.
And I don’t think that’s fair. And you wouldn’t like it if you were pushed aside when something directly involved and impacted you.
Don’t tell me that you guys can’t protect me.
You’re taking more than two with you. Even if most won’t be visible, you’re prepared. ”
She was right, but the man in me, the protector, wanted to keep my woman safely tucked away. If something went terribly wrong, I wanted her nowhere near it.
“Cambria, come into the bedroom and sit. I’ll explain.” I told her.
I held out my hand. She eyed it, then swept past me without taking it.
Yep, she was royally pissed at me. I followed her to find she’d sat in the chair rather than on the bed.
That meant there was no way I could sit next to her.
She left me no choice. I dropped to a knee in front of her.
I snagged her hand. She tried to resist, but I refused to let go, so she gave in.
“You’re right. I’m taking a large group.
And while they should be more than enough to protect you, I can’t chance it.
No, wait, let me finish. What we’re about to do is going to turn into something illegal.
Those fanatics aren’t likely to be persuaded to leave you alone.
They’re dangerous. And getting them locked away is nearly impossible.
“But even if we could, they may still be freed at some point or have others they can contact to carry out their plan. I won’t risk them finding you and coming after you again.
We’ll take every precaution to avoid attracting attention, but it could still happen.
If it should, I don’t want you to go down with the rest of us.
I couldn’t deal with it if you went to prison for it.
The guys and I are aware of the risks, and we’re willing to take them.
And if the worst happens, we can survive.
But the only way I can survive is knowing you’re safe and on the outside with my club. ”
She was studying me by the time I was done. She was no longer trying to get me to let go of her hand. Instead, she gripped mine with hers.
“Shaine, all those things you just said you can’t handle, neither can I.
How will I survive if you’re killed or sent to prison?
I’ll be half a person merely existing. I’ll worry every day that something will happen to you in there.
And I’ll have the guilt that not only you but your brothers were sent there because of me. ”
There was anguish in her voice, and her eyes were misted with tears. One slipped free. I wiped it away with my thumb. I hated to see her cry.
“Twilight, don’t cry. I swear, I’ll do everything possible to get back to you.
You saw where the church is. It’s isolated with no houses within a couple of miles.
They clearly chose it for a reason. If they think they’ll get their hands on you, they’re in for a shock.
And we’ll have to question them. I want to know how many more know your location and name.
We can’t risk any out there going free. And Undertaker will be headed to Nevada.
Anderson has arranged a way in for him. He’ll be in prison and in a position to take Brooks down by the end of the week.
The end is in sight. Please, let us do this the way we know how.
Stay here with the other ladies. I swear to God, this isn’t me being sexist. It’s me protecting my heart. ”
Cambria sat there for a good minute or more, not saying anything. It was nerve-racking. Finally, she broke the tense silence.
“I won’t lie and say that I’m happy with this or that I’m not still upset that I’m being relegated to the bleachers on this one when it directly involved me.
However, I do see your point, even if I disagree.
I want you to know that, as our life together continues, if we run into problems like this and I can help, I won’t be put on the sidelines every time.
You want me to be happy. I have to be your partner to be that.
Having hidden parts of you or aspects I can’t be part of is a trigger for me, Shaine.
After what Garen did, that will never go away.
I know there’s what you call club business, I’ll work to accept that.
But if you’re always going off doing things like what you plan to do in a day, and I’m left in the dark or not included, when I can be of assistance, or if it involves me personally, it will put a wedge in our relationship. ”
I heard her warning loud and clear. And in our club, since the addition of Jalisa, we have been labeling fewer issues as club business and therefore not to be discussed with our women.
Jalisa wouldn’t stand for it. Wrath would have a wilder woman on his hands if he did that.
The premise of it had always been to protect our families.
If they didn’t know anything and shit went sideways, then they couldn’t be dragged into it by the cops.
They could honestly deny any knowledge. But we weren’t into the life that the club used to be in, where that was happening all the time.
Ninety percent of the time, we were legitimate.
“I hear you, and I swear, you won’t be. Have I earned your favor back enough to get a kiss? I hate feeling distance between us, my dark angel,” I whispered.
Cambria shrugged as she said, “Maybe.”
Taking a risk, I brought her head down to mine and latched onto her mouth. As we kissed, and thankfully, she was an active participant, I relaxed.
???
It was go time. The last two days had been long, as we completed our planning and worked our jobs as if nothing was different. However, tonight, several of my brothers and I were headed to meet Maggie Marie and her fellow fanatics at the abandoned church. We were confident she wouldn’t come alone.