There was a postal truck on the other side of the large gates, and three men in dark clothing standing around outside.
“Hadley!” Blizzard grabbed my arm and pulled me to a standstill. He spun me to face him, his features serious, almost scary. “We need to wait for Leo.”
My brain was mush. All I wanted to do was get that package and hide it away.
I knew it was from him.
The Brothers by Blood didn’t get mail here. They had a postal box in town where everything was sent for the members who lived at the clubhouse. Any big packages that required a signature were left at the post office until they could be signed for. That was where Skins had sent the packages he’d forwarded me. They’d never come to the gate.
A flurry of footsteps pulled my attention. “What’s going on?” Leo asked as he jogged over to us, Optimus, Wrench, and Kit following close behind him.
“There’s a delivery truck here with a package for Hadley,” Blizzard answered, finally releasing my arm now he had back up.
“I need to sign for it,” I told Leo. I just wanted to get the damn package and be done. I didn’t even want to open it. I knew what it would be.
He looked down at me, his face no longer happy and bright like he’d been ten minutes ago. “You aren’t signing for anything.”
He stormed forward, and I raced to catch up with him as the boys followed behind us.
“Leo!”
“I know who that package is from, Hadley,” he said as he motioned for the guys at the gate to pull them open.
Of course he knew, they knew everything.
“As far as we know, he could be just guessing that you’re here,” Leo explained as he stepped through the crack in the gate.
I laughed darkly. “Just guessing? Simon doesn’t guess, Leo. He knows. He doesn’t do anything half-assed or based on assumptions because that’s what gets people killed in their job.”
The young delivery guy stood awkwardly by his truck, shifting from one foot to the other.
“Give me the box,” Leo demanded.
“I-I can’t… She has to sign for it, man,” he stuttered, his eyes widening as three more brothers stepped through the gate behind me.
Leo snatched the box from his hand. “Sign it yourself, she ain’t doing it.”
The kid looked like he wanted to object, or maybe he was trying not to pee his pants. It didn’t matter, though because he quickly scurried back to the driver’s side of the vehicle and skidded away down the street.
“Fine. I didn’t sign. Can I have the box now?” I asked holding out my hand.
“You can have it after church tomorrow after we sit down and discuss what the hell is going on… and what’s inside,” Optimus said, moving forward and taking the small package from Leo’s hand.
Leo let him have it. His eyes staying focused on me. They were heated, not angry but upset.
“We’ll deal with this tomorrow,” Optimus said again, watching Leo carefully. “Make sure she makes it to church.”
“She?” I asked, confused.
“Yeah,” he confirmed. “I think it’s time we learned a bit more about what the fuck is going on.”