Warlords Reunion (Reunion #10)

Chapter One

It had been two years since the first arrival of the Warlords to Braaken Ridge, Montana. But those two years had been full of good times and bad, tears of pain and tears of pleasure for the five brothers and their families. Now everything had settled down and life was good.

Charli might have lost her grandpa to Andy’s bullet but she found Ace and a whole new life. The brothers had cleaned up this part of the world and now almost everyone was living the good life.

Charli and Ace’s son, Ben, was six months old now. Luna was pregnant with their first child as well. King and Mags had just had their first baby too, a little girl they called Alison who was born a month ago. Then Jack and Jaden also added to their family with another little girl named Megan.

Everything seemed to be almost perfect now in their world, almost.

Charli was at the cemetery this morning visiting her parents and grandparents when she felt a shiver run up her spine.

A feeling of foreboding washed through her.

She raised her head, searching the area with careful eyes.

She hadn’t felt this particular sensation in a long time and the last time she did, her world came crashing down around her.

In fact, it had been the day before her family was hit by that car. ..

She stood up from the grass where they had been sitting by the headstones and gathered baby Ben up in her arms. She got both herself and Ben to the four by four. With one last look around, she sped off toward the big house and the safety Ace provided his family.

Charli came skidding to a stop just outside the house.

The door opened and Ace came rushing out. “Babe, what’s wrong? Is someone following you?”

Charli just sat there in the four by four, her whole body shaking. She turned to gather her son in her arms.

Ace was right there when she slid off the seat with her son in her arms. Ace wrapped his arms around his little family.

With a huge sigh, Charli planted her face in his broad chest.

After a moment, he tipped her chin up with his fingers and studied her face with questions in his eyes. “What’s going on, Charli? Why did you come tearing back here like the boogeyman was chasing you? Are you and Ben okay?”

Charli nodded. “Yeah, we’re fine but something is gonna change here real soon. I don’t know what’s coming but something is. It's like a black cloud looking for somewhere to bring the storm.”

Ace looked confused. “What does that mean?”

Charli just shook her head.

“Come on, let’s go in the house and talk about this.” He told her. He ushered them inside and were met with concerned looks from everyone else.

King, Jack, Deuce, Joker and some of the women were waiting inside.

Mags came up and asked quietly, “Do you need me to take Ben for you?”

Charli shook her head and gripped her son tighter to her body. Her eyes looked haunted and she stumbled over to the sofa. She lifted her son higher in her arms and then rocked him back to sleep.

Ace sat down beside her.

No one said a word for a long time, then finally Joker knelt in front of her and looking at her, he asked, “What’s going on here, Charli?

Why are you so scared and what are you scared of?

Please tell us.” He paused, then he said, “You’ve always been so strong, so tough, but now you’re sitting here shaking like a damn leaf. Talk to us.”

Charli took a deep breath and looked around at them all. “You all know I’m part Gypsy, right?”

Everyone nodded and waited.

“I figured out that it had to be that part of me that...” She shook her head.

“...that feels things no one else can feel. It's like when the world gets tipped off its axis for a fraction of a second, you know? Most people just don’t get sensations like that but I do and I always have. I just never talk about it. The first time I felt it was the day my parents died. Somehow, I knew that trip would be the last time I would see them. When they all the farm that day all I could do was watch them go. I was just a kid and the feeling I had scared the crap out of me, you know?”

Everyone just stared at her.

Charli shook her head and her voice went low as it trembled, “I knew they were gone the moment the crash happened. In my mind, I could see their souls leave their bodies and I was afraid to say a word about it to anyone. I laid in my bed here that night and I just cried. My grandmother was afraid for me because all I could do was cry. I was safe with my grandparents but I knew before they told me that my parents were gone. When they got the news about the crash she just turned and stared at me. She seemed to realize that I knew what happened to them before this. She and grandpa tried to speak to me but I couldn’t tell them the truth, they would think I was crazy or something.

” Charli let out a long breath and looked up at the ceiling.

Joker patted her hand to encourage her to finish.

She nodded her head and spoke again, “I think they were a little afraid of me after that. For the longest time they would give me strange looks. Then over the years, those feelings got stronger and I didn’t say anything to anyone about what was going on.

But grandpa would watch me carefully. Then my grandma got sick.

Grandpa knew what was coming just by watching me.

He began making preparations and he was there for both of us.

But he knew. Then after she died, he stayed close to me for the longest time. ”

“Did you feel like he was going to die when he did?” Ace finally asked her.

Charli slowly looked at him and nodded. “I knew, I didn’t want to know but I did.” Then she raised a hand to her forehead and she began to rub the place between her eyes. “But this is bad and it's coming right to our front door. I don’t know what it will be exactly, but it will come.”

Ace glanced at his brothers then at the other people in the room and shook his head. Finally, he asked her, “Babe, what can we do?”

Charli raised her head and also looked around at everyone’s faces. “You don’t believe me.”

“It’s not that we don’t believe you but even you have to admit this is a stretch.” Ace shook his head.

“You think I don’t know that?” Charli snapped.

“You think I want to be able to know when bad things are coming that I can’t control?

I hate it. I have never told anyone about this because I don’t want anyone to look at me the way you guys are looking at me right now.

I shouldn’t have shared it. I knew I shouldn't but I can’t hide it anymore either.

I care about you all too much not to warn you that trouble is coming.

You all need to know that much but I don’t have to stand here and look at your expressions of disbelief and doubts.

” She stood from the couch with Ben in her arms and went down the hall.

They all heard the door shut.

Ace sighed heavily. He had been stunned by what she said and he also heard the pain in her voice but he had no idea how to comfort her either.

“What the hell are we supposed to do about this?” Joker asked his oldest brother. “I mean can someone really feel disasters coming?”

Ace ran his hands over his head and shrugged. “I don’t know, but that’s not what’s important here.”

“What is important here then?” King asked his brother.

Ace gazed at his family, his brothers and their wives.

“We have to stand behind her or we might lose everything we built here.” He surged to his feet.

“And I’m not gonna lose the peace and the sense of family we have.

I’m not gonna wait unprepared for something she thinks is coming.

So for a while we’re gonna be prepared for anything to happen. ”

King and the others glanced at each other, then they all turned to look at Ace. One by one they all nodded. They might not know what’s coming if anything at all, but they would be ready for it.

A few hours later...

The house had gone quiet. Everyone was asleep.

Charli wasn’t sleeping as she became like a ghost that haunted the night. The same feeling she’d gotten at the cemetery this morning had come back to her, disturbing her rest.

Now she walked silently through the house, keeping guard over her family. In her hand, she carried her rifle, cocked and loaded as she kept watch over her family. She knew no one believed her premonition but she believed in it. She’d lived with her secret all her life.

She paused at one of the living room windows and searched the front yard. Then her body stiffened and she searched again. Whatever she feared was outside right this moment. She could feel someone staring back at her and the air around her seemed to go still, almost as if it was waiting too.

Charli turned on her heel and went to the back door. Peeking out, she halted but nothing out there alerted her, so she slowly reached for the door handle. She opened the door silently, then slipped outside, pulling the door closed behind her silently.

She used the cover of darkness to slip around the corner of the house and made her way around to the front. Staying in the shadows, she closed her eyes and cleared her mind, almost willing herself to feel where someone was standing.

Opening her eyes, she spotted some kind of movement in the darkness beyond.

She raised her rifle in her hands and snapped on the sights.

A red dot suddenly appeared and it landed against something solid.

“I found you and I will kill you if you don’t tell me why you are here,” she called out softly, just loud enough for her voice to carry.

The shadow moved slightly and someone moved into the moonlight. “Please don’t shoot me, cousin,” a voice called out. “I came here to warn you, not to hurt you.”.

Pausing at the familiar voice, she called out, “Mario? Is that really you?”

“Si, cousin, it's really me and I come with news that you have to hear.” Mario took another step out into the moonlight. “My papa sent me to warn you about what’s coming.”

Charli came down the steps and lowered her rifle. Before she could say anything the shadows moved again and she raised her rifle back to a firing position. “Who’s there with you Mario? Did you bring someone else here?”

“I did but she isn’t dangerous. Please do not shoot her. She found me on the road and begged me to bring her here. She says her name is Angela and she used to live here. She was just looking for a way to come home.”

Charli could hear the truth in his voice. So she once again lowered her rifle and stepped into the light. “Is there anyone else with you? Any more surprises I need to be aware of?” She glared at her cousin.

“No bella, there is just us and you, of course,” Mario called back. “Are you going to trust me or shoot me before I can tell you the news I bring from Italy?”

Charli shook her head, “You’d better come inside before one of the brothers that live here takes a shot at you before I can tell them who you are.”

Mario paused and stared at her. “You have men living here with you? What does Ben have to say about that?” Mario exclaimed with a growl in his voice as his hands clenched into fists.