That was it. I’d had enough.
“Piper, I’ll take you Monday or Tuesday. You pick which day and be ready by nine.” I got to my feet before Bone came downstairs. “I’ll be out at the hangar.”
“Thank you, Cobra!” Piper turned toward our mom. “Wanna go baby shopping with me, Momma?”
“You bet I do.”
“You didn’t finish your food.” Buff pointed to my plate. “You feeling okay?”
“I’m fine. Just not hungry.” I went to the back door and winked at Piper.
“You’re the best big brother.”
“Oh, please,” Buff scoffed. “You say that anytime one of us does something for you.”
“Exactly. I don’t have favorites.” Piper took her plate and joined Buff at the table.
I shook my head as I left. She totally knew how to work us to her advantage.
“Bye, son.” Lady M gave me a look that said:Keep me posted.
I left, relieved to be out of the suffocating kitchen. On the wraparound porch, I checked out the sky. It was a clear May day, not a single cloud. There was a breeze, which was typical for North Dakota. We had more breezy days than not, whether it was winter or summer.
My phone buzzed in my cut pocket. I took it out and answered.
“Storm, everything okay?” When my cousin called, it wasn’t usually to chat. We weren’t those kinds of relatives. We helped each other when needed and talked in person, but we didn’t call for no reason.
“Hey, you told me to call about anything regarding Karma.”
“Shit. What happened?” My guts twisted in my stomach.
“Nothing. Well, nothing concrete. Her tire was slashed at work yesterday. It could’ve been a bunch of teenagers screwing around.”
“Or it could be something more.” I squeezed my cell phone in my hand as I tried to not overreact.
“Yeah, but there wasn’t anything on the security footage. Grizz said her car was parked in a bad spot.”
“You need to put up more cameras.”
“Already on it.”
“Does anything seem off to you? I don’t want her alone at the parlor.”
“I’m spread thin, man. We’ve recruited a couple of new prospects, but they aren’t trained yet. Ire will check in several times a day. That’s about all I can do right now.”
I scratch my chin, not entirely sure what to tell him. I couldn’t make demands of him. Karma was in his territory. He was already doing me a solid by watching her when she wasn’t part of his club.
“Have you talked to her?” I asked, even though Storm wasn’t much of a conversationalist.
“No. You should call her.”
I snorted. “As if she’d willingly talk to me.”
“I don’t know what to tell you. But you need to make her listen, especially if you believe Nova is yours.”
“Yeah, I keep hearing that. Karma just drives me crazy. If I boss her around, it could blow up in my face.”
“I get your worries. Want me to lock her up?”