Later that evening, Cat and Luna were standing off to one side of the room.
Luna asked her friend, “Do you think what he said is really true? That I’m the daughter of his son Juan.”
Cat studied her. “I don’t know. Do you want it to be true?”
Luna shrugged. “It would answer some of my questions but then it opens so many more. Does he want a granddaughter? I’m not sure I want a drug cartel for my family, you know? It would be wonderful to know where I belong though.”
Cat nodded. “Yeah, I get that.” She looked down at the floor.
Luna grabbed Cat’s arm. “No I don’t think you do… my first question would be if I am his granddaughter, did he ever bother looking for me or did he just want to find his son to kill him? If Juan were still alive and he found him here, would the old man kill him to prove a point? Would he also kill me, thinking I had something to do with Juan leaving the cartel? What gives him the right to judge me anyway?”
“He would never get close to you to hurt you in any way,” Kota said from behind her. “I told you that I got your back.”
Luna turned and glared at him. “And I told you hotshot, if you can’t accept Cat, then you can’t accept me either.”
“Never said I couldn’t accept her.” Kota growled. “Just having a hard time accepting her so-called gift. She kind of freaks me out, with it you know.”
Luna leaned in close to him and whispered with a glare in her eyes, “Just imagine how she feels when she gets sucked into someone else’s life.”
Kota raised his gaze to Cat and found her looking back with tears of pain in her eyes. He stood tall and nodded at his niece. But he turned and studied the three men from the cartel. “What are you going to do about them?” he asked Luna quietly.
“Not sure I want to do anything about them,” Luna admitted. “I don’t know them and they sure as hell don’t know me. Besides, there’s no real proof I’m his granddaughter. His son Juan is dead and has been my whole life. The old man seems to be pissed about the fact Juan never came back, so I think I’ll just stay away from that, or I might wake up some morning with a slit throat. I’ve got enough problems so I don’t need a drug dealing family on top of everything else.”
“The old man isn’t going to like that,” Kota told her with a nod.
Luna shrugged. “I think that old man will be too busy for a while, just taking back what’s his.” She shuddered. “And things aren’t exactly settled here either. You guys need to find three people and stop them before they stop you. Who knows if any of us are going to be around when the dust settles?”
Cat agreed, “Right now, Isobel is pissed and when she gets pissed, just about anything can and will happen. Then, Nash’s dad is out there and he sounds like he is just on the other side of insane and that’s never a good thing.”
Kota grunted. “You let us worry about Hogg and Isobel. We will get them. They owe this club blood now, and they will pay the debt.”
“They owe us blood as well.” Manuel snarled from behind them.
Kota turned slowly and put himself between him and the girls.
Manuel glared at them all. “That bitch has played me for a fool for the last time and now spilling her blood is the only way to remove the debt she owes the Alvarez family.”
Hawkins joined them and held out his hand to Manuel. “We found this among the other things that my son Jesse took from Isobel. It looks valuable and if it belongs to your family you should have it back.”
Manuel held out his hand and Hawkins dropped the ring into it.
Manuel sighed heavily and closed his eyes as his fingers wrapped around the ring.
“I take it you know the ring.” Hawkins stared at him.
“Si, I know it well.” Manuel opened his eyes and explained, “I gave it to my wife the day I married her and when she died, I saved it for my older son Juan to give to his wife. When we buried Septima, I prayed we’d find the ring one day, so my son Calos could give it to his wife.” He stared at Luna. “Unless you want it? It would have been yours as Juan’s daughter.”
Luna wrapped her arms around her waist and shook her head. “It’s not mine. I don’t want it. You have no proof I am Juan’s daughter. I may not know who I am right now and perhaps, I’ll never know but I have no claim on you or yours.”
Manuel nodded. “As soon as we get my home back and we stomp out the Montoya cartel, I will be back to bring you home. You were born in that house and you will return to it one day.” He walked over to the other two men that came in with him. He spoke to them for a few minutes then turned to Hawkins. “Thank you for returning our amulet. We are on our way to collect our army and soon, we will take back what is ours. When that is settled, we will be back to collect the one you call Luna. The name her father and mother wanted for her was Tiamon Louisa.” He looked over at Luna. “That is your true name child. Tiamon Louisa Alvarez. We are leaving for now, so I hope these bikers will keep you safe until we can return. Adios for now.” Then Manuel headed toward the doors.
The two men with him walked away without looking back.
Luna shivered as she watched them leave the clubhouse. Only when the men were gone, did Luna whisper, “Don’t worry old man, you may come back but I’ll be long gone and you’ll never find me again. I’d rather live without you in my world than accept you into mine.”
Cat looked over at Luna and understood her whispered words. When they were children, they vowed to live a clean life. They had seen too much violence for any adult let alone a child to have to witness. They weren’t afraid of hard work as long as it was legal. They both refused to take the easy way out and break the law to earn a buck.
Cat understood her vow but she was positive no one else would. She wrapped her arm around her shoulder and held her for a moment then everything went to hell as they were all startled to hear shots being traded outside.
Hawkins ordered his men to go up top and help the others. “Get your rifles boys and go to the roof to help Brute. Some of you guys, man the windows and make sure we aren’t getting it from both ends again. Go, go, go!” he shouted while clapping his hands.
Everyone scrambled, several men grabbed their rifles and headed for the roof while the rest pulled their weapons and headed for the windows and the hall. They weren’t going to be surprised again.
The sounds outside reigned chaos for a long time but slowly, the firefight went silent.
Cat didn’t quite trust the silence as she grabbed her own weapon and went to the window next to the bar. She peeked outside and saw the shadows moving. She paused to raise the window just a bit. Pointing her weapon, she let it rip. The shadow screamed and she thought she recognized that scream, so she let another shot rip. The shadow dropped and was still. Cat shouted, “I got someone over here.”
Just then, the men came down from the roof.
Titan and Brute were helping someone down.
Luna gasped when she saw that someone was Kota and that he was hit. His shirt was bloody and he groaned as they moved him.
“What the hell?” Hawkins exclaimed.
“I’m okay dad, just caught a bullet. Still alive here.” Kota grunted as they carried him down the hall to the infirmary.
Luna followed them and stood there while she watched Boots rip the shirt off Kota’s back to get to the bullet hole.
The hole was in his upper chest area and Boots grabbed his kit. He looked at Titan and Brute. “Hold him down boys, this is gonna hurt like hell but I need to get that bullet out.”
Titan and Brute held him down and Kota shouted in pain as Boots dug in his chest to get the bullet buried in his body. Kota struggled to get free but the brothers held him down. Finally, after a few minutes, they all heard a clink of metal hitting a pan.
Titan held him down until Kota passed out. He looked down at his friend.
Boots shook his head. “He’s just out for the count, he’ll be okay.” Next, he cleaned and sutured the wound, washing the blood off his chest. He closed the wound, medicated and bandaged it.
Now, the guys carried in another patient.
Luna turned her head and gasped as the men laid Dennis Matchy on the other bed. She glared at the unconscious man.
Hawkins followed the men in. He saw the look of hate on Luna’s face and he wandered over to her and asked, “Do you know him?”
“Yeah, I know that prick. That’s the beast, Dennis Matchy. I’d hoped to never see that fucker again.” She looked up at Hawkins. “I guess Cat was right, they were working together. What did she call it? An unholy trio. That’s about right.” Turning her head back to Matchy, she whispered, “He’s every bit as bad as Isobel.”
Hawkins studied her for a moment then shook his head. “Yeah and he’s as bad as Hogg ever thought of being too.” He walked over to the end of the bed and watched Boots work for a moment.
Luna didn’t want to even look at Matchy, so she swung her gaze over to Kota. She was surprised to find him awake and looking back at her. She moved toward him and sat down in the chair beside the bed. Leaning forward she whispered, “How—how do you feel?”
Kota groaned. “I’m still alive. Damn Hogg never could shoot straight. I’m pretty sure he got the worst of it. Me and the brothers know how to use a damn gun. I know we hit him at least a few times.”
Luna slowly closed her eyes and shook her head. “Damn you man. Damn your ornery hide.”
“Why are you damning me, woman?” Kota whispered.
“Because you made me care about you even though I wanna hate you,” she whispered back. Then she leaned forward and crushed his lips under hers.
Kota groaned and cupped the back of her neck to bring her closer. He deepened the kiss and they got lost in the pleasure only true love could carry off.
When the kiss finally broke, Kota whispered, “I knew you wanted me, I knew it.”
“Yeah well, I may want you but I know I can’t have you.”
“What? Why not?” Kota frowned.
Luna stared at him with her hurt heart in her eyes. “I told you biker man, you won’t accept Cat, then you don’t accept me either. Do you know how hard it was for her to come here? She tried to use her gift when she was a kid and everyone ridiculed her for it. They called her a freak and they bullied her. They struck out at her and left her bloody more than once. When the Nuns asked about who hit her she would never tell them. In return, she always got in trouble for it. I was the only person in that place that stood beside her. When she left, I endured the six months of confinement but when they brought me out, I found my paperwork and hauled ass. Sadly, I could never find her until I was brought here. I won’t leave her out in the cold again.”
Kota shook his head.
“And yeah biker man, I could probably stay and find my own happily ever after but I won’t because she won’t be here. And I’ll be damned if I’m gonna leave her out in the cold ever again.” She reached out and cupped his jaw. “I think you would have shown me the stars but I’ll never find out now.” She leaned closer and brushed his lips with hers again. When she backed away, the beginnings of tears formed in her eyes.
He reached out and brushed the first tear away with his thumb. “Please don’t run away, stay and fight for us.”
Luna shook her head. “I can’t fight what you guys are doing to her. You’re laying the blame of her mother’s sins on her shoulders and you don’t even acknowledge the fact that her mother hates her almost as much as she hates you guys. Even now, her mother won’t be happy until she sees Cat dead at her feet. How you bikers can be so stupid enough not to see that, hurts. I’m not going to let her down again.” Luna got up and walked toward the door where she stopped and looked back at Dennis laying on the bed. “I hope he dies from his wounds. I know that sounds harsh but it’s the truth. He deserves the hell that’s waiting for him someday.” Then she disappeared into the hall.
Kota stared at the empty doorway.
Hawkins glared at his men. He’d heard every word Luna told Kota and he finally realized just what his club had been putting Cat through. He also had to face what he had done to his own granddaughter as he’d allowed this to go on.
Luna had nailed it when she said they had been blaming her for what her mother had done. Well, that was over as of now. Hawkins wanted her to stay and stay she would. Luna had driven the point home. If this kept up, they would lose Cat and Luna. She’d already stated that she would leave when Cat did. Damnit, Cat was his blood and she belonged here. In fact, she always had. She would have been a tight part of his family, of the club, if it hadn’t been for that freak ass woman Jesse had married. He’d lost too much already and Cat had too. Then today, when he saw the way Manuel had treated Luna, it woke him up. The man told her what she had to do and who she had to be. “Dammit, from this moment on, you boys will treat Cat better.” he growled. “Hell, we all better start treating her better. I’m just as guilty as any of you and if I can change, you’d better too. I’m not going to lose my granddaughter. I already lost her father.”
“You would have lost me too,” Titan assured him. “Cuz if she would have left, I would have followed her. I wouldn’t even have hesitated.”
Silence followed his words.
Finally, Hawkins growled. He looked over at Matchy and saw he was still out. “You make sure that mother fucker can’t get out of the bed when he wakes up. I don’t care if you have to zip tie him to the bed, you make fucking sure he ain’t going nowhere.” Then he turned and left the room.
The next morning, the men combed the woods for Hogg or Isobel. They knew Hogg had been hit at least once, so they were looking for his body. But they didn’t know if Isobel had even been here.
Brute, Titan, Wanderer, and Nash were combing the woods. They all split up, everyone going in a different direction. Wanderer and Nash went north while Titan went east and Brute went west.
Now, Brute stopped to look around. An uneasy silence seemed to hover in the woods today and he felt like something was really off. He got the feeling that someone was watching them. He looked around. Then he looked at the ground to see if there was any sign of tracks in this area. He frowned when he saw a dark red stain by his feet. He crouched down and dipped his finger into the puddle. He raised his fingers and they were stained red. The puddle was blood.
Something dropped onto his shoulder and he looked over at it. More blood. Suddenly, another drop landed on his arm then he looked up. He was surprised to find a girl with unusual colored eyes looking down at him.
Brute just stared at her for a moment. He raised the gun he always carried and pointed it directly at her. “Come down very slowly, or I swear to god, I will drop you where you sit.”
She slowly raised her hands and she didn’t seem to have a weapon. “I’m afraid to move, big guy,” she whispered fearfully.
“Why is that?” he asked as he stared up at her.
“I was following a man, and he is not a nice man. So when he saw me, I hid up here, then there was a lot of shooting. I thought I would be safe but I still caught a bullet. I’ve been here all night and I can’t come down.”
“And why is that?” Brute asked.
“Because I know if I try, I’ll fall out of this fucking tree and break my neck.” Her eyes then rolled up in her head as she tipped forward, falling off the branch.
Brute moved just in time to catch her. Staring down at her paling face, he could see that she was out cold.
Titan and Wanderer came running over to him and they frowned when they saw what he held in his huge arms.
“What the fucking hell, Brute? Who is she?” Titan asked.
“Damned if I know,” Brute admitted. “She said she was following someone and she caught a bullet last night.”
“Well, let’s get her back to the clubhouse.” Wanderer shook his head at the sight of Brute with a small woman in his arms. “Boots sure has been busy lately. And this isn’t gonna make Hawkins happy either. I wonder who she is and why she was shadowing someone?”
Brute didn’t answer as he turned and headed back to the Club with her in his arms.
Nash heard a commotion from the brothers off in the distance. He turned to head that way when he almost tripped over something. Peering down at the ground, he gasped.
Nash knelt down beside his father and stared at him for a moment. Hogg’s breathing was labored and thready. “Dad,” he spoke.
Hogg struggled to open his eyes and when he saw Nash sitting there, he snarled. “It had to be you didn’t it? It had to be you that found me all shot to hell.”
Nash shook his head and leaned toward him. “At least, it won’t be the drugs that took you to hell.”
“Fuck you, kid…” Hogg could barely whisper now. He knew, hell they both knew he wasn’t long for this world.
“What happened to Isobel? Was she here last night?” Nash asked his dad.
Hogg snarled and then coughed. “Yeah, that bitch was here until the shooting started, then she took off. We all watched when the cartel men showed up. She got nervous about that and when the shooting started, she told me I knew where to meet her if I survived.” He paused and waited for the pain to pass. “Well, I guess I’m not going to be able to meet her now, but don’t you worry kid, she has a backup plan, she’s always got a backup plan and someone else to watch her back.” He winced in pain. “One day, her luck will run out and she’ll get caught in her own backup plan. Maybe on that day, there will be no one to watch her back.” Hogg stared at his son and said, “Promise me that one day you’ll watch her die like you’re watching me die.”
Nash nodded his head, but he had one last question to ask, “Why dad? Why would you betray everyone like you did? Tell me that at least. Tell me why you turned your back on me and Wilder like you did.”
“Why?” Hogg groaned as he struggled to breathe. “I—was sick of taking orders from someone else. I wanted to be the one in charge of my life. The money— I had coming in felt good. When Hawkins fucking tossed me out on my ass, I was finally my own boss. I could do what the hell I wanted—and I was beholden to no one.”
“Yeah, you were in charge all right.” Nash sneered. “And look at how badly you fucked up not only your life, but also mine. Did you even care back then that I went hungry most nights while you were out on the town or making your fucking drug runs? Did you care about me at all?”
“Aww, poor baby,” Hogg snarled. He paused and swallowed hard. “You always were a needy little shit.”
“What the hell kind of man says that, Dad? Treating your kid like shit. Fucking selfish, man. Fucking selfish.”
“Y-you’ll be like that. W-wait and see. I—bet you’re already like m-me…”
Nash knelt there and watched his poor excuse for a father breathe his last breath and when the rattling stopped, he knew his dad was gone. When got to his feet, he stared down at him for a moment. “I will never be like you.” He vowed to change right then. His dad was right, he had been bitter and was becoming like him. For once, his father did him a favor. He told him the truth after all.
Nash released a long breath then gazed up at the sky. He turned and walked away. He never bothered to look back. He did see the brothers moving up the path. He looked at Brute and shook his head. He wasn’t a bit surprised to find the other man with a woman in his arms.
The group all paused when they saw him.
Turning to Titan, he said, “I found Hogg. The old bastard is dead. He took four bullets last night and died a few minutes ago. He said Isobel was here until the shooting started then she left. He didn’t say where she was going.”
Titan nodded. “We all know she will be back.” He growled. “And we’ll be ready and waiting for her when she gets here.”
