Chapter 29 #3
“Seemed pretty skilled with that gun. Those criminals been teaching you a thing or two?” the cop behind the steering wheel asked as he climbed in.
I mimed zipping my lips, doing as Josie said by staying quiet, and he seemed annoyed that I wasn’t about to incriminate myself.
I wasn’t saying shit.
Hunter
It was four in the morning. Two hours since I’d arrived to find Rory in the hallway with mayhem around her, and we were finally allowed to leave.
The cops were being pricks to me, only letting the guys upstairs for a change of clothes while being supervised, leaving me in my boxers, shoes, and a shirt.
Tyler brought me down some sweats but said the cop wouldn’t let him get me a hoodie. The pants were better than nothing.
“We can go to ours,” Jensen said, motioning to Lukas. “Plenty of room for all of us there.”
“As much as that sounds like a good idea, it’s not. It’s hard to keep a property that size secure. Mine doesn’t have much space, but we can go to Mark’s. He’s at least got the spare bedroom,” I reminded them, earning a sour look from Caden.
“We need to stay in Ashburn. What happens when Rory and Mom are done?”
“They can come too.”
“You expect my mom to crash on the couch in a dog pile or something?” he growled, and I rolled my eyes.
“Chill out. I can change the sheets and she can have one of the rooms to herself.”
“Your house is dangerous.”
“You’re just trying to pick a fight at this point. What do you mean my house is dangerous? Your fancy house with all the bells and whistles didn’t keep intruders out tonight. How is mine dangerous?” I asked dryly, and Lukas put his hands up in a time-out motion.
“I think Marco’s is a good idea. Tell Josie not to leave without security, and let them know where we’re going.”
“Look, even the one with anxiety agrees with me,” I said brightly, the anxious man in question giving me a light shove. “You get hold of Josie. I’ll call D to fill him in too. I’ll take up the rear, so drive straight to Marco’s.”
We headed outside as a group, Caden and Tyler going in the Challenger, while Jensen and Lukas followed in Jensen’s Camaro. I went last and grabbed my phone from the center console, dialing Diesel’s number once we were on the road.
“What’s up?” Diesel asked, sounding pretty alert for this hour of the morning.
“You want to meet me at Marco’s? Shit went down at Holloway’s,” I replied, glancing around for trouble.
“Something happened?” Diesel was on the move, his keys jingling as a door slammed.
“Break-in. Everyone’s fine, but Rory was taken in for questioning and Josie’s with her. I’m following the guys to Marco’s so we can figure it all out.”
“I’m on the way,” he replied before hanging up, making it easier for me to keep an eye out for trouble.
Marco was making coffee when I unlocked the door to let us all in, and I frowned disapprovingly at the joint between his lips. He shot me an irritated look, knowing exactly why I was looking at him like that.
“Fuck off, man. What happened? Break-in? Who was it?”
“No idea. No one we recognize. They were there to kill,” I answered, and he hummed.
“Not the Soldiers then. Did they look like hired muscle?”
“Nah. Average men. There were three of them.”
“Anyone hurt?”
“Only them,” I chuckled, sitting at the table and accepting a cup of coffee from him as he started handing them out. “Rory killed two and managed to keep the third breathing.”
“I wish we still had cameras inside. I want to see it,” he grumbled, earning the stink eye from the guys as they sipped coffee. None of us were going to get any more sleep now, so we might as well wake up properly. “Do you think they’ll try to charge her?”
“Possibly, but Josie was getting Kirk Jennings to meet them at the station, so hopefully it will get sorted out fast. The worst they could get her for is the gun, and she’s not on probation or anything.
It was purely self-defense, they had guns and were kicking doors in,” I answered, hearing Diesel’s truck pull in. “I’m surprised D didn’t beat us here.”
Marco let him in, and once we were all in the kitchen with coffee, the guys gave us a detailed rundown on the entire situation.
“Any word from the Kings?” Diesel asked once we’d gone over it all, and I shook my head.
“As far as I know, Evans is currently up north with the MC in Holland Grove. He left a skeleton crew in Stoneleigh, so I doubt they’d do anything. Besides, that bastard likes making a show of it. He’d show up himself.”
“Random attack?” Tyler offered, all of us snorting.
“The chance of that being random is slim. They weren’t there to rob the place, they were looking for someone. My guess is Rory,” I answered, glancing at Diesel. “You sure Skeet’s not involved?”
I didn’t really believe it was possible either, but it was worth asking.
“We’ve been buried with our own shit. I honestly don’t think she’s a blip on his radar right now.
Besides, if he was going to send someone after her on his behalf, it’s not like he’d need to hire random thugs.
Most of the crew would love to tear her to pieces,” he muttered, resting an arm on the table.
“Think broader. Who did she piss off in prison? Maybe this is an attack from the inside?”
“We’re visiting Lex on Thursday. I’ll do some digging,” I said, wondering if he was onto something.
“If the Soldiers don’t want her dead, who sent that girl into the prison to kill her?
That has to be connected, right?” Lukas questioned, and that part had honestly never made sense to me.
They wanted her alive for a reason, so why try to get her killed?
Did they think she was never getting out and wanted to prove they could still get to her in there?
That didn’t make sense either, the girl attacked the day she was getting released.
“There has to be a new player on the board. Soldiers could have sold her off, right?” Lukas suggested, and Marco nodded.
“They could, but I doubt it. There could be someone else Max paid before his death who’s come for her.
I think we start by asking Hendricks so we can at least cross him off.
Speak to Lexi about the possibility of an internal hit from the prison on Thursday, and in the meantime, we’ll keep an eye out for trouble,” he said firmly, all of us looking at Caden’s phone when it buzzed on the table.
“Rory’s being let go now, no charges,” he said with relief, texting back. “Looks like Mom wants to go to a hotel.”
“Tell her to go to Crystal Chandelier. I’ll make sure the penthouse is ready for her,” Tyler said, his phone in hand as he started texting too.
I eyed them, a huff of laughter leaving me. “The fancy hotel in Crestford?”
“You’re a shitty stalker if you don’t know that your obsession’s boyfriend has investments. I own it. Luke owns the Sky Lodge here too,” Tyler said dryly, Marco giving me a look like I was stupid.
“You didn’t know that? Ty has a million restaurants,” he explained, and Tyler scoffed.
“I only own three.”
“Oh, my bad,” Marco said dryly. “Can Rory get dropped off here, or do you want me to go and get her?”
“Mom’s got security with her. They’ll bring her here,” Caden answered, and it felt like forever until I heard the car outside.
Rory looked tired as I opened the door to let her in, Josie standing beside her to get a peek inside.
“Make sure she sleeps,” Josie said as Rory stepped inside and surprisingly slid her arms around my middle to bury her face in my chest.
“I will. Call me if you need anything,” I said seriously, and she gave my arm an appreciative squeeze before stepping inside a little more to see the others all sitting around the table.
“I assume none of you have had any more sleep, so I won’t bother you about skipping school today. Thanks for sorting out the hotel, Ty.”
“Anything for you, Mom,” Tyler replied sweetly, and once she’d seen everyone with her own eyes, she headed back to the car to leave.
“Thanks for the clothes,” Rory mumbled, peering up at me. “I can nap, right? We can chase people down later?”
“Yeah, babe. Go lie down. Take the guys with you,” I murmured, steering her over to the others. Jensen and Lukas instantly took her from me to take her to the spare bedroom, while Caden and Tyler decided to stay in the kitchen with us.
I’d give it a few hours then knock on Hendricks’ door. If I went without Rory, I’d almost believe she’d actually kill me.