Looking at Jess, I carefully stared at her. She was acting differently. She was hiding something. Something big. I could clearly see the fear on her face. Whatever it was, it was big enough to scare her.
Phantom carefully continued. “Jess, we found documentation stating that Toxic was ordered to claim you. The Florida president at the time and William Doherty both signed the paperwork. I know this isn’t what you want to hear but your mother was in fact a club…”
“No, she wasn’t!” Jess shouted. “My mother was a college student who was drugged and raped repeatedly. By the time she found out she was pregnant, she knew she couldn’t go home.”
Reaper slowly stood. “What are you saying Jessica? Who was your mother?”
I watched as Jessica’s mind raced. There was more to my woman’s story than she was letting on. Getting to my feet I walked up to her, placed my hands on her shoulders and asked. “Baby. Who was your mother?”
Tears ran down Jess’s face as she whispered shaking her head. “They made me promise Lucas. I gave them my word. I can’t.”
“You knew all along who your real father was didn’t you?”
She nodded.
“Who is your real father?”
“William Doherty,” she whispered.
“Your mother’s real name?”
“Cassandra Montclair.”
“Oh fuck!” several of the brothers shouted.
“Shit!” I cursed, turning to punch a wall with my fist. There wasn’t a club around that hadn’t heard of the name Cassandra Montclair. The young girl was a mystery. Disappeared without a trace at the age of seventeen. She had made worldwide news because of who her family was. Still today, on the anniversary of her disappearance, the local news channels from her hometown would run her story again, hoping for any new leads.
“You’re a daughter of the Sons of Hell?” Reaper asked, plopping back down in his chair. Shock written all over his face.
This was bad.
Like really fucking bad.
The Sons of Hell were an east coast motorcycle club based in Virginia. They were legendary, still were. Both clubs were at war when William and Pops were running the Skulls. After Pop’s was killed, Reaper facilitated a cease fire with their President, Callum Montclair, also known as King. The Sons of Hell were no joke. They protected their territory with an iron fist. They were ruthless and deadly, just like us. The war between our two clubs was deadly. Many brothers were lost during those dark days.
Looking to Reaper, who stared at Jessica, I didn’t know what to say, let alone do. This was big. This was so far out of my realm of comprehension. I didn’t need to be told that if the Sons of Hell ever found out that Jessica was the daughter of Cassandra Montclair, the sister of King, all hell would break loose.
King wasn’t a forgiving man. Like Reaper, he preferred to kill first then ask questions. When his sister went missing all those years ago, the Sons of Hell paved the roads with blood trying to find her but no one knew where she was. If they found out that she was with our club all along, they would start the bloody war between our two clubs again.
“Phantom,” Reaper barely said, as our club sister began typing on her computer.
“Cassandra Montclair was the only daughter of the former President of the Sons of Hell, Steel and Renata Montclair. She was seventeen when she disappeared from her dorm room at Virginia Tech. She has three brothers, King, the current President, Gunner the Vice President, and Pyro, the club’s enforcer, who are all still alive.”
“Fuck!” Reaper roared, slamming his hands down on the table. “This shit is never going to end. How the fuck do I tell the President of another club that my family is the cause of so much destruction?”
“You don’t,” Jessica said, slowly walking over to Reaper. “I do.”
Reaper shook his head. “I can’t let you do that Jess. I can’t. This club is my responsibility. My family’s sins are on my shoulder.”
“He was my father too.”
“I never understood why you hated the Skulls so much. Now I get it. You have every reason to hate this club. More so than I do.”
“I don’t really hate the club, Reaper. I hate the man who caused all this pain. My mother knew if she went home and told her family what happened, the war would continue. She had already lost her father. She didn’t want to lose anyone else. So, she stayed. She endured hell for years to protect those she loved.”
“I have to tell him Jess. Your club royalty. You are the daughter of two club presidents. I can’t ignore this.”
“I know. That’s why we didn’t want you to find out. That’s the secret Kitty asked me to keep. I told her about my mother when we were at camp one summer. We both knew that if either club figured out what happened, the war would start again. Both sides had lost so many brothers. Kitty lost her dad and I lost a grandfather I never got to meet. Neither of us wanted that again. So, we agreed to keep it from you. I’m sorry about that but we only wanted to stop a war.”