Chapter 18
Priest
Icursed again as I watched Riptide walk up to Jenny and start speaking with her. It hadn’t been my intention to hurt her feelings, I was just out of sorts right now. I’d planned to go to church, then go a few rounds in the ring with one of the guys before I spoke to her today. Then she showed up.
She was right about her news. It was fucking amazing that she’d managed to help me get custody of Caitlyn.
I’d be forever grateful to her. I just couldn’t drum up any enthusiasm at the moment.
My insides felt like they were being twisted up through an emotional wringer and the only way for me to deal with that was to numb myself to everything.
It was a bad day for me and I wasn’t good company for anyone.
The girls were with Wendy’s parents and were staying with them for a week.
They’d taken Caitlyn as well, claiming they wanted to get to know their newest granddaughter.
Her parents were good people. I think after our divorce I’d missed them more than my ex-wife.
It was good for them as well, they lost a daughter.
By having the girls there, they could heal better themselves.
“What the hell was that?”
I groaned inwardly. The accent let me know exactly who was standing behind me in the doorway. I turned and followed Hush inside.
“Nothing.”
“Didn’t look like nothin’. Looked like you said somethin’ stupid and hurt her feelin’s.” Hush scowled at me.
“It’s none of your business, Hush. I’ll make it up to her later.” When I wasn’t feeling so fucking numb.
Hush’s laugh was incredulous. “You poked and prodded at me when I needed it, Boy. Don’t think I’m not goin’ to do the same. It may not make you feel better, but it’s my way of gettin’ back at you.” He gave me a feral smile as though he was going to enjoy every minute of it.
“Want to spar while you nag at me like an old woman?”
His eyes narrowed and I gave him a humorless grin. “Yeah. We’ll go a few rounds,” he grunted.
We started walking back toward the meeting room. Butcher came down the stairs as we passed. “You two are sparring?”
“That’s right. You want in?” I asked.
“Hell yeah.”
We walked into the meeting room and saw Smokehouse sitting there. Everyone started talking all at once.
Lockout had sent Smokehouse out to Wyoming to help out another club a few weeks ago. The Berserker’s Rage MC was an ally club of ours and we helped each other out whenever needed. Smoke had just gotten back in earlier today and we hadn’t had a chance to catch up with him yet.
“Took you long enough getting back home, asshole,” I told him as I took the seat next to him.
“Thanks. I was beginning to think they’d never let me go,” he said with a grin.
“Bullshit,” Hush replied. “You found a woman up there,” he joked.
Smokehouse grinned. “A woman? Like, just one? Ha!”
Everyone groaned and started giving him shit. We all quieted down when Lockout and Riptide walked in. I settled in, eager to see what it was they’d found out.
Dash was seated across the table from me and he winked at me. The bastard had been secretive about what he and Riptide had found. He just kept saying Lockout wanted to go over it at church.
At least this meeting was keeping me occupied and Hush off my ass about what happened before with Jenny. I stared down at the table as Lockout started speaking.
“Dash and Rip managed to track down Caitlyn’s father.”
My eyes shot up and I found Lockout watching me closely. “Who is he?”
“It’s weird,” Riptide answered. “It took a lot of digging to even get a name on this guy. We tried backtracking from Caitlyn's birth certificate, but that record was mysteriously lost. We tried following the mother’s name to her marriage certificate, but that was lost, too. Notice the strange pattern? Anyway, long story short we eventually found a paper trail through credit cards and found the father’s name.
Once we finally got that we started searching and realized that he dropped off the grid the same time Caitlyn and her mom did. ”
My muscles tensed at hearing that. “What does that mean?”
“We’re actually thinking that maybe he has something to do with The Silverbells, but they haven’t gotten the full story yet,” Lockout answered.
“Tracking this guy down has proven to be more difficult than expected. Which means he has something to hide,” Riptide said. “I’m going to figure out what it is.”
“You think he was the one who lured them out there?” Hush asked after we all processed what Riptide was telling us.
“Not sure yet,” Riptide answered. “But that’s the current theory. Either lured, or he took them and forced them to go with him. Stole Sherry’s car and drove them out to that area.”
“It’s a clue to go off, either way,” Dash added. “Maybe it’ll get us some answers about what’s happening out there.”
“Fucking finally,” Butcher muttered. Toxic elbowed him under the table. “What?” Butcher complained. “This is taking forever and I just want to know what’s going on and who I can kill.”
“Really?” Toxic asked, one eyebrow raised in suspicion.
“Well, I don’t really care what’s going on,” he admitted. “Just want to know who to kill.”
Everyone chuckled at that. Typical Butcher. No finesse. He was more of a smash and grab type guy. He also had more of a heart than he let on and it wasn’t hard to see that he actually liked Caitlyn. He’d never admit it, but he was pretty good with my kids. It was only babies who freaked him out.
“So what’s the plan?” I asked.
“The guys are going to go check out Chet Holden’s last known address. See if there is anything there to find.”
“Figures,” I said. “Chet. Even without knowing what he did to Caitlyn and her mom, he sounds like a douche. No one names their kid Chet unless they intend to raise a douche,” I muttered.
The others nodded in agreement.
“Put me on this, too,” I told Lockout.
His eyes narrowed, not because of my request, but because they all knew I was struggling after Wendy. “Not sure that’s a good idea, Brother. You’re a little close to this one.”
Grinding my back teeth together so I didn’t do something stupid, I tried to keep control of my temper.
The fact that I felt close to losing it—especially on my friend and president—was a testament to the inner turmoil I felt.
I was known for my calm composure, in battle and otherwise.
The last few days I’ve been feeling more and more like a loose cannon.
My God, is this how Butcher feels every day?
“Lock.” I met his gaze. “I need to be a part of this. Caitlyn is my daughter.”
“That’s part of the reason it might be better if you stayed here,” he said. He leaned forward, elbows on the wooden table in front of us. “But fine. You can go. Don’t make me fucking regret it, Priest.”
The relief was so sharp I didn’t even argue. I listened to them plan the mission. By the time they were done I had my errant emotions under control once more.
“Anything else?” Lockout asked.
“Taz stopped by earlier,” I told him. Ignoring the dark looks I was getting from both Hush and Riptide, I continued. “CPS is granting me custody of Caitlyn.”
Everyone started talking all at once again. They were all relieved and excited about the news.
“There’s still more I’ll have to do to officially adopt her, but the biggest hurdle is over with.”
I received a bunch of slaps on the back and grinned because despite how hard they connected they were all happy for me.
It was finally starting to sink in. I only wished I’d been able to react when Jenny had told me the news.
The numbness was fading a bit, thanks to knowing we were finally moving forward with Caitlyn and The Silverbells.
Lockout released us and I glanced at my phone. No messages. I typed out a quick text to Jenny, letting her know I had club business that would keep me out late tonight, but that I’d call her in the morning. I frowned when, after a few minutes, she hadn’t replied.
“Still want to get in a couple rounds before tonight?” Hush asked, walking up.
“Yeah. I need it.” I followed him and Butcher to the gym. Some of the other guys came with us, eager to watch us fight.
Hellfire was already in the gym lifting when we got there. He arched a brow. “Sparring?”
“That’s right,” Butcher answered. “You looking to get in on it?”
“Fuck yeah.” He dropped the barbell he was holding and the weights crashed to the ground. “You’re mine today, Butcher.”
“Aw, Hell,” he said, fluttering his lashes. “I knew you wanted me.”
Hellfire snorted while Hush and I laughed at Butcher’s shit talking.
Hellfire was huge—even bigger than me—but Butcher was fast and fucking mean.
Worse, he took hits like Rocky Balboa, they just seemed to fuel him.
It would be a fun fight to watch. Not that we hadn’t seen every combination between our brothers that could be made, but it was still fun to watch them pit themselves against each other.
“We’re first,” I called out, ripping my shirt off over my head.
I needed the sting of my knuckles hitting flesh.
The blood from being pummeled myself. The feelings slinking around inside of me needed an outlet.
Between this and our mission later tonight, I knew I was going to feel a fuck ton lighter by tomorrow.
* * *
I sat on my bike, watching the building in front of us. The apartment building was quiet—most of the residents were asleep for the night—but we still waited for about twenty minutes, monitoring the people coming and going. There weren’t many.
“Let’s go,” Riptide whispered.
Me and Butcher got off our bikes, looking around as we walked up the stairs that led us to the apartment Chet Holden had been renting. According to Riptide, he’d stopped paying rent the same day that Sherry and Caitlyn had gone missing in the desert. It was too much of a coincidence for me.
We were lucky; although he had stopped paying the rent, Tucson wouldn’t allow you to evict someone for at least ninety days after they stopped payments. We were still inside that window. So if he left anything behind, it should be here.