Disciple: Knights Disciples MC (13 page)

CHAPTER TWENTY SIX

Detective Vasquez was unexpectedly pleasant and jovial when he greeted Laura and Will. He was just about to lead them back to an interview room to brief them on Lucas's status but Laura interrupted him. "Um, Will, thanks for the ride but, if you don't mind, I am going to handle this in private."

The detective was quick to catch on. In his good humor, he looked at each of them. "Kids? Is there something going on here? Are we no longer working as a team?"

Laura was not in a joking mood. "Detective Vasquez, I am Lucas's guardian. While Will has been great, to say the least, in his support of my family, this really is a family matter."

"Wow," Will exclaimed, glaring at her. "I never figured you to get hurtful, Laura."

"You just went behind my back. Who was being hurtful? I am entitled to privacy. It's a boundary issue. I guess you don't get that."

"Now wait a minute," Detective Vasquez intervened, "I am not sure what is going on here, but you have a kid in there who is mad as a hornet that he's been busted for stealing cars. He thinks you’re the one who turned him in. But the truth is we already wanted him for some other crimes."

"Other crimes?" Laura looked at the detective and then she looked at Will.

"I was going to tell you that, but I didn't get a chance to," Will replied.

"You had all night," Laura said.

"So kick me for not wrecking the evening," Will shook his head.

"Listen, you two, listen Laura, you don't have a car. And that's not your little brother in there.  That's a gang member with an ax to grind. Will is already on their shit list because of the thing at the biker ball and he's in custody, which puts him in a tricky position with the gang. They're worried about his loyalty. You need protection. I suggest whatever has gone on here gets settled and you bury the hatchet. You need this man."

Laura stewed. She didn't like that the detective was right and that, despite that she was hurt that Will went over her head, she needed him. She had to admit it. "You're right. Are you still willing to help me out?" she asked Will reluctantly. She didn't even want to look at him.

Will fished around until she had to look at him directly. "Yes," he said. "And we are going to talk this out, understood? I am sorry I didn't handle this differently. I was wrong."

Laura kicked herself for not being able to let him off the hook, which, in her book, made her just as wrong. "Okay," she said reluctantly. She braced herself as she faced her brother. It was like facing a rabid dog.

CHAPTER TWENTY SEVEN

"I hope you're proud of yourself," he snarled at her. 

She stared at his hands. Lucas had tattoos on his fingers. "I should say the same thing to you," she returned. "In fact, I don't even know you. I was told my brother was in here. As far as I’m concerned, you murdered my brother. I am going to go home and make funeral plans." When she stood up, he stood up, menacingly.

"You be real careful when you go home, sis," he glared.

"I guess I could understand you if I thought one of your gang members was watching you, but it's just you and me," she said.

Lucas laughed. "And a police detective and your lover boy," he said. "You go ahead and throw a pretend funeral. See if I care. It will be good practice for when you throw a real one." Lucas stared at Will eerily.

Will smiled.  "Way telegraph your plan, Einstein. Never leave a boy to do a smart guy's job."

Lucas lunged for Will, but despite his beefing up he was no match. Will didn't budge.

Lucas smirked eerily. “You do realize both of you are on a list.”

“You are on a list, too, in case you hadn’t noticed,” Will replied.  “And you’re locked up. We are not.”

“I can make bail,” said Lucas. 

And in perfect timing, a district attorney waltzed into the interview room. “Not if you’re threatening the lives of others, which, I will argue, you just did.” Lucas glared menacingly.  “Keep it up. You make my job easy.”

“I want a lawyer,” demanded Lucas.

Laura sighed.  “I can get a referral – ” she began, about to offer to get him one. 

He cut her off sharply. “No,” he said. “I am through with you.”

There was nothing more that Will and Laura could contribute by being there so they left – silently and distant from each other. She sensed that even though he had handled his part badly, Will felt injured. She realized that they were both sulkers. 

Finally Will spoke. “I am sure you want to go home. I do, as well, but if these guys have us on their list as Lucas said, maybe we should strategize.”

“What are you thinking?” she asked in a monotone voice.

“I think we need to leave town,” he said. “If you are required to be present at something in the future, we can arrange remote appearance.”

“You mean like webcam?” she asked.

“Yes,” he said seriously.  “I say we leave tonight. I can load up my bike in the trailer and haul it until we are clear of the icy roads and then I say we do a bike trip to someplace sunny.”

“Like?”

“Florida. Louisiana. Have you ever been to New Orleans? Miami? We can go as far as the Carolinas. I need my bike. I need the ocean. I need the warmth and, whether you believe it or not, I need you,” he said.

Laura wanted to rush into his powerful arms and draw his sweet masculine scent in through her nose and get lost in him. But she wouldn’t give it up. “But my job,” she protested.

“But your life, Laura,” he countered.  “And now my life.”

“Are you blaming me?” she asked seized with a fright that he may have a resentment now for involving him.

“No I do not. I got involved on purpose. I don’t blame you. I am just saying it may be your brother and he may be your responsibility, but it goes beyond that. My guys are at risk. I am at risk. We have to act together. Don’t worry about covering costs. If anything happens to your job, I got you until you can rectify it.”

“I don’t have a mortgage, Will. My mother and father’s house was paid for when they died.  If anything did happen to my job, I could manage. It’s just…I hate letting people down. That job has been very good to me.”

Will spoke frankly to her. “I imagine that you have been very good in return. There’s one person you seem to forget about not letting down and that’s you. Until I came on the scene you said you hardly dated. A beautiful woman like you?”

“I am a single parent,” she protested.

“That went on before you were a single parent,” he scolded. “You put your mother and father first. You put Lucas first. You put your job first. If you included your needs and wants in the mix once in a while, maybe everyone else around you would be a little bit better off, as well. It’s okay to consider yourself.”

She realized what he said was true although it wasn’t easy to accept. She wasn’t in the mood to accept anything.

Will could sense her stubbornness. “Miss Mills, your life is in great danger. You need to leave with me. But at this point I don’t know whether or not to put you over my shoulder or put you over my knee.”

“Am I frustrating you, Mr. Shriner?” she asked.

Will crowded her and replied in a smoky voice. “Just a little bit.”

They swung by Laura’s house and loaded up a bag. When she packed skirts, Will took over the operation and raided her jeans drawers. He set her up with T-shirts, jean shorts, long jeans, and one jean skirt. Heat ran through her, thawing her attitude a little bit, when he selected her underwear. “Hm, look at all this denim. You’ve been ready for a bike trip for a while now.”

She wanted to correct him and say she has been yearning for a biker and didn’t even know it.  She spied on him. He was the Sergeant at Arms for a motorcycle club and a former cop. She thought he was the perfect combination of brains and muscles. Will was such a handsome man, his dark hair fringing his face. His brows were full and framed piercing hazel eyes. His body was cut with such perfect symmetry on a tall and broad and powerful frame.

He did a double take, catching her looking at him. He was tired and pressed, too. His words spun round in her head. She was not the only one this situation affected.  And up until he had said so, Laura was not aware of anyone but herself.  She took a deep breath. When he zipped up her bag she reached out her hand to take it from him.

“That’s okay, I’ve got this,” he said. She wanted to call a truce right there and then, but it didn’t seem like the time.

As they were making their way down the stairs to the entrance of Laura’s house, there was a loud pop like very loud fire cracker. Will shoved Laura flat. “Get down!” he ordered. A shot had been fired into the window to the side of the front door. In this position, Laura knew no one could see to take aim but if they just blasted the area with ammunition they could very well get hit. Will reached into the pocket of his jeans for his phone and called the police.

Laura heard gasping. A raking noise rising up to the ceiling and filing the stairwell and the entryway. Will gripped her. “Laura!” he whispered and frantically searched her while keeping as low a profile as he could. Fortunately, her house being a very old house, the heavy wood trim of the stairs gave them some shelter.

“I’m not hit,” she managed to say.  “I’m just freaked out.”

In seconds cops swarmed her property. Will’s phone rang. It was the police telling him they had him covered.  He and Laura could come out now. They stooped as they ran, remaining as low and still out of instinct. The cops drove the two of them to his house, not taking a chance that his car had been tampered with. They took a statement there. Laura gave the cops the keys to her place, letting them have carte blanche to inspect and collect evidence. A few of the cops stuck around even though Pete and Darren, other Knights’ Disciples, were present. They created a presence while Will hitched his trailer to his truck and loaded his bike up. Laura could not get away fast enough. Will group-texted his club and told them of the road trip. The Knights’ Disciples needed a vacation.

It was an intense experience to be driving out like you were running away in the middle of the night, to be the only people on the entire highway as the snow began to fall and to be suddenly surrounded by a swarm of motorcycles. It was like being on the first drop of a roller coaster.  It was simultaneously scary and exciting. And then it was just plain reassuring. Laura’s insides were as warm as toast. She had no idea until that moment that she had been so insecure, felt on edge. Now she didn’t feel that at all and it was amazing.

"You would probably be riding with them if it weren't for me, huh?" she asked.

Will shrugged. "I don't know. I don't think North Carolina knows she's supposed to be warmer than the two states we just went through."

"Where did they come from?" she asked. "Aren't you all a Maryland club or are you all over?"

"Magic," he winked.

"No, really?" she asked. "They just appeared and knew exactly where to find us."

"Did you see that boxcar that was trailing us for a while?" Laura nodded. "That was them. And all their bikes. We have a place near the stop we just made."

Laura studied him. Every so often he glanced over his expression smoldering and sexy. She had to say it. "You are a beautiful man, Will Shriner.” A sudden fear twisted within her. What if she had crossed the line and his feelings for her had vanished? Maybe he was doing all of this out of a sense of chivalry. He was that kind of guy.

He turned to focus on the road, put both hands on the wheel. It was a perfectly reasonable move, but she felt like he was withdrawing from her. They stopped one more time for fuel and bio breaks before pushing on. They finally landed in Charleston, South Carolina. They knew a hotel with rooms that opened directly outside so that they could park directly in front and keep an eye on their bikes. Will booked it ahead before they left for very late arrival.

"People see bikes and it either brings out the best in them or the worst," said Pete. He shook his head as if recalling. "Remember that time? In D.C.? Like dominos, guy tipped over all of them."

"On purpose?" asked Laura.

Will placed a quieting hand on her shoulder. "Guys it's now four-thirt in the morning. Let's wind down."

Again Laura sensed coldness in him. Maybe they were both tired, and exhaustion could very well make him distant. It made her paranoid. 

Their room was beautiful. High, four-poster beds piled with down comforters and lace trimmed bedding. There were two double beds in the room. For some reason that made Laura more sullen.  She went over to one and parked her back on the chest at the foot of the bed. She turned her back to him and began to undress. He turned the key to the lamps affixed to the walls and lowered the lighting. The room glowed romantically as if by candlelight. Laura tried hoisting herself up on the high mattress. It was no use. She was just about to use the chest as a step when Will came up behind her, swept her up in his arms and delivered her on top of the bed. She scurried under the blankets. They seemed so luscious and inviting, all the while in her mind she braced for whether he would get in the bed with her or climb into the one next to her.

Will walked the hotel room for what seemed like forever, checking the windows, double checking the bikes, fussing with the bags before he settled against the bed that Laura was in. He stripped down to his underwear, brushed the bottoms of his feet and climbed in next to her.

She felt momentary relief until he turned his shoulder to her, set his head on the pillow and went to sleep.