“Boxer’s informant will let him know when it’s done.”
“And can we trust him?”
“Boxer trusts him. Apparently, Ava was his little sister’s friend. He wants Dutra to pay as much as we do.”
“Oh fuck.”
“Yeah, small world.” Storm pushed his chair back and stood. “I gotta go.” He looked at his watch. “Your dinner is in less than an hour. You need to get your boy straight on his job. If he gets this right and doesn’t fuck it up, he’ll have a nice payout when he’s released from this place.”
“I might want to sponsor him. He has nothing on the outside.” This wasn’t the right time to talk about Ryder’s situation. I just wanted to mention it.
Storm eyed me, a glint of sympathy in his eyes. Several of us in the club came from the same crummy lot in life—no real family. No nothing.
“We’ll discuss it when you’re out. Keep your nose clean. I need you, brother. Dodge is driving me crazy.” Storm’s stare pinned me in my chair. “I didn’t even bring him with me. Track came instead.”
I smirked to myself. Storm had little patience for anyone. I was sure Dodge was a pain in the ass while filling my boots. Couldn’t say I blamed him after his girl and baby were stolen from him.
Stolen was probably harsh. Justin was a good man. Protective over his daughter, Emilee, as any father would be.
But, if it were me, I would’ve gone after Justin. Nobody would ever take my woman and baby from me. But some gangbangers had in a permanent, violent way. I’d be damned now if I ever let it happen again.
I’ll raise hell if anyone comes between me and my woman.
Roja flashed behind my eyes.Mi vida… my heart pounded hard in my chest. Never being with her again was painful to imagine.
How could I have been so stupid to push her away? After this shit with Dutra was done, I’d have Storm bring her to see me so I could apologize.
I just prayed she’d forgive me.
8
Storm
TRACK AND I were on our way back to the compound when Copper called not ten minutes after leaving the jail. While I was visiting Hero, Track checked in on some of the businesses we provided security to. With Hero locked up and Boxer preparing for his fight, Track had to pick up the slack.
Copper clearly sounded worried about Tara, so I turned right around and went to her place. The prospect wasn’t one to exaggerate shit, so I knew he wasn’t bullshitting me.
The brisk air chilled me to the bone. Sometimes we’d have an early snowfall in October. Kids would tromp through the streets bundled in winter gear while trick or treating. Those cheap polyester costumes in the stores were a waste of money in the northern states, unless the kids stayed inside to wear them. A mask was all they needed to go with their winter gear, so they didn’t freeze their asses off.
Except the snow didn’t always stick around. It just teased us. Gave us a taste of what was to come. Not that Minnesotans expected anything less than six months of winter. For fuck’s sake, it was a long-ass season here. Why my west coast brothers stayed was beyond me. I grew up in these parts, but Hero and Wolf were California boys. They had the beach while I had subzero temperatures. Whatever. To each his own.
My brothers and I had already taken our snowmobiles out of storage to get them in tip-top shape. Trail signs were recently posted throughout the town and in the country. If we couldn’t ride our hogs, then a snowmobile was the next best thing. We screwed around a lot during winter, racing each other through the woods behind the clubhouse, and did lots of hunting and ice fishing.
The extreme cold didn’t keep us inside. We loved it. I was fucking happy more people didn’t move here.
I pulled my bike alongside Copper’s, where he was perched on the seat. His grim expression told me this wasn’t good. Track came in next to me.
I jerked my chin. “What’s up?” My gaze scanned the area, assuring nothing appeared amiss. In my mind, Tara was Hero’s woman. That put her under the club’s protection. But being Angel’s best friend elevated Tara’s status even more for me.
“Thank fuck you’re here.” Copper dragged his hand over his cheek. “I have a bad feeling, Prez. Tara wasn’t doing so well after she saw Hero.”
“Yeah, we’ll deal with that issue later.” My jaw twitched. Copper should’ve called me the second he knew Tara was going to see Hero. Damn, prospects knew better than to think for themselves.
“I know I screwed up.” He brushed his hand through his hair, nervously looking at the trailer house. “But I couldn’t exactly stop her from entering the building with people around.” He exhaled a shuddered breath. The kid was seriously worked up over this.
“No, I suppose not. What’s got you worried?”
I cut my eyes at Track, who looked equally concerned.