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“She insists she’s going back with you guys,” Creed said, motioning his head to the woman over his shoulder. “We offered to let her get her bearings back and stay here for a bit, but she said no.”

After we found out she didn’t have a brother, she refused to meet whoever it was that said he was. Poor girl was going to have trust issues from hell after all this, and I didn’t blame her one bit. I also couldn’t fault her for not wanting to stay there.

Hawk nodded. “I understand. Let me call the airline to see if I can get her a seat. We’ll keep her safe and out of the way while we find out who this guy is that claimed to be her brother.”

Creed shook all of our hands.

“Thank you for everything, Creed,” Hawk said as he held Creed’s hand in a firm grip.

“It’s what brothers do,” he said with a hint of a grin.

Hawk went over to talk to Eliska. Once he confirmed her decision, we settled our travel plans. It was decided that Phoenix and Angel would fly to Iowa with Eliska and take her to the clubhouse. Hawk and I were catching the original flight to Nashville, and we would go to the diner to see who the fuck the dude was claiming to be her brother. Then we’d hop a later flight back to Des Moines.

Asses dragging, we all loaded up in the SUV, and the Jacksonville chapter’s prospect drove us to the airport. We thanked him and headed to the security checkpoint.

“Just act natural,” I told Eliska. “The IDs are in your real name, and they’re good. No one will question a thing.”

She nodded and clutched the small tote bag close to her chest. I cast a glance at Hawk, who quickly stepped up and rested a hand on her forearm.

“Everything’s going to be just fine. Relax,” he said, and she visibly did as he said.

As we made our way through the airport, Eliska stopped me. We all paused, and she scanned the group. “Thank you. It doesn’t seem sufficient, but my gratitude is beyond words.”

We nodded. Though we took the law into our hands, that was exactly why we did it. For people like her that would’ve been lost in an overloaded system and the maze of red tape that accompanied that flawed system.

Then they went to their terminal while Hawk and I found ours.

Before we knew it, we were taking our seats and anxiously awaiting takeoff.

By the time we landed in Nashville, it was late afternoon, and we were exhausted. Though we ended up being gone less than two days, it seemed forever.

Hawk and I hopped an Uber and had him drop us off before the diner. We walked up the last block. When we got there, we paused at the corner of the building to glance in through the plate-glass window. You could’ve blown me over with a feather when I saw the man seated back at the corner table we’d instructed him to be waiting in.

I exchanged a confused glance with Hawk, and we entered the restaurant. The dark-haired man looked up, and a shocked expression painted his face. He stood when we stopped at the table.

“Calix?” Hawk asked. “What the fuck?”

“I’m meeting someone here,” he replied as his eyes narrowed. Calix had gone to one of our chapters in Tennessee after helping to save Voodoo. We hadn’t seen him since.

“Yeah. Us,” I clarified.

“It was you guys? But how? I’ve been dealing with a woman. I—never mind.” He trailed off. “Where is she?” he questioned as his gaze darted around.

“Eliska?” I cocked a brow as I waited for his answer. He nodded.

“Why did you lie about her being your sister?” Hawk demanded.

Calix scanned the room again. “Can we sit?”

Without answering, we all grabbed a chair. Calix propped his forearms on the edge of the table and laced his fingers. Then he stared at them a moment before raising his odd-colored eyes to where we were still waiting for an answer.

“I thought if the person I hired thought she was my sister it would gain more attention, sympathy, empathy? Whatever. Not that I’m sure hackers have any of that, but my contact said she was a woman and was better than she realized. Eliska is actually a good friend. She’s a fucking librarian.” He sighed when the waitress stopped at our table.

We all ordered coffee.

“Continue,” I encouraged him.

“She used to let me into the library after hours to use the internet. We became friends.”


Tags: Kristine Allen Royal Bastards MC: Ankeny, IA Fantasy