Hawk (10 page)

The door banged off the inside wall as Grayson and Alexander made a grand entrance, robust laughter drawing both Kaleb and Kane’s attention. Grayson pushed his ever-present sunglasses up on his head, pulling his overlong chestnut hair from his piercing blue eyes. The two MC brothers shared a private joke as Alexander shut the door and headed for the bar. Grayson joined Kaleb and Kane in the living area, sitting on the adjacent leather chair. His azure gaze turned up in merriment.

“You two seem far too serious for my liking. I say we grab a few fifths of whiskey and go looking for some tail. That is after our meet and greet with Red, of course. We haven’t yet celebrated Kane’s return. I say we gather the Sons and have a grandiose party.”

Kaleb knew Grayson’s desire to celebrate Kane’s return had more to do with his desire for entertainment as he still hadn’t quite gotten over Kane turning his back on the club, and all for the want of a woman. Grayson saw it as a sign of weakness.
Maybe
, Kaleb thought. But with his obsession over Suzi, he certainly couldn’t condemn his twin for his actions. He’d like to think he’d let Suzi rot. But damn if he could say that for certain.

“Nice of you to show up, Gypsy,” Kaleb said, at the late arrival of his VP. His heated gaze bore into Grayson.

“What the fuck?” Grayson’s humor quickly fled. “Xander and I made it before the Knights got here, so I don’t see what the hell you’re being such a dick about. Dude, you need to get laid. I know some ladies from Florence who are always up for a party. I could call them.”

Kaleb didn’t know what pissed him off more. The fact that Grayson voiced his own thoughts just moments ago, or the fact that he felt the need to point out the obvious.

“We have business to attend, Gypsy. My sex life isn’t up for discussion. Get your head in the fucking game.”

“Jesus. Where the hell did the real Hawk go? And who replaced him with this asshole?”

Alexander wisely kept out of the spiraling conversation. Instead he pulled out a stool by the bar and straddled it, leaning back, elbows on the armrests. Apparently, he thought it best to sit on the sidelines for this one.

Smart man.

That, or he, too, still wrestled his own demons for surviving a near beheading. Only the two of them shared the survivors’ guilt. Nicolas and Steven died in their place. Kaleb’s foul mood stemmed from that, as well as the little sprite named Suzi Stevens. Grayson seemed bent on pushing the boundaries of Kaleb’s self-control every chance he got, and at the moment those boundaries shouldn’t be tested. He certainly couldn’t argue with Grayson’s logic that he needed a piece of ass since he had those same thoughts, though he didn’t need a fellow brother to tell him as much. Regardless, their business with the Knights came first. Maybe then he’d take Grayson up on hitting the Rave, knowing he’d have several willing options for getting horizontal, because there were those biker groupies who made themselves available to the Sons. If Suzi meant to parade the fact she had a fiancé in front of him, then he’d make damn sure she knew his options were anything but limited.

The sound of approaching Harleys announced the arrival of their puppet club, saving an argument between the pres and VP. Gravel crunched beneath tires before the rumble of the V-twin engines cut short. Alexander walked to the door and opened it before the first knock came, showing Red and three of his men into the living area of the clubhouse. Kane and Kaleb stood while Gypsy stayed seated. The twins shook hands with each of the men, before offering them a seat on the sofa across from where they had been seated moments ago. Red and his VP sat while the other two men stood behind them, undoubtedly watching their backs. Trust no one seemed to be many MC’s mantras since it was imperative to all their survival. The Knights, though, had nothing to fear from the Sons as long as they continued to be useful.

“You bring us news, Red?” Kane asked as he settled back onto the couch. He glanced back at Alexander. “Bring us some Single Barrel Jack and low ball glasses, Xander.”

“I did some checking, Viper.” He then looked at Kaleb and nodded in respect. “Hawk. No one admitted to making that call, nor did they know of Viper’s absence from the States. I trust my men. If they say they didn’t make that call of distress, then I believe them.”

The man beside Red, wearing the VP patch, said, “I’m assuming whoever made that call had to have known that Viper had been MIA. Why else would Viper send out a distress call when he would be here among his brothers? Or why would the Sons be so willing to head out on a fool’s mission if they knew Viper’s whereabouts?”

“Bird and I interviewed every one of the Knights as well as our prospects,” Red said, putting a name to the VP for Kaleb. “I won’t vouch for our hangarounds. I don’t think we’ve had enough time or interaction yet with any of them to swear they speak the truth or to trust them implicitly.”

“Any new hangarounds within the last few months?” Kaleb asked.

“Not that I know of or that my men have spoken of. The Sons?” Red said.

“We haven’t been open to a lot of hangarounds as we aren’t a trusting bunch. This slaughter keeps up, we’ll definitely be in the market for increasing our numbers.”

Red narrowed his gaze. “You talking patching over?”

Kaleb looked at his twin, who sat quietly beside him. Kane’s expression gave nothing away to his thoughts on the matter of adding new patch members, more specifically taking on the Knights’ numbers. Since he had become a non-voting member, due to turning Cara into one of them, Kaleb supposed Kane probably felt he didn’t have a voice in the matter. Kaleb would speak with him again once they were alone. He looked at Grayson, who up to this point sat quietly listening in. Kaleb would bet that his looking to Kane first for direction didn’t sit well with his VP. Kaleb couldn’t blame him. He needed to remember that even though Kane had returned, he still had no voice in MC matters.

“I’m not sure the Sons are ready to patch another MC,” Grayson said, not taking his eyes from the pres. “It could be taken to a vote. But honestly, I don’t think the Knights have proven themselves as a puppet club.”

A muscle in Red’s cheek ticked. “I think I made it clear when Kane asked for an alignment of clubs that the Knights were no one’s puppet club.”

Grayson raised a brow in challenge. “Then what’re we even doing here? If you aren’t with us … you’re against us.”

“With … you … is what we are, Surfer Boy,” Bird said with a sneer as he drew the words out.

Red gnawed on a toothpick that poked out from his beard. The toothpick switched sides as he said, “The Knights … we’re no one’s patsies. I make that clear.”

“Call it what you will, Red,” Kane spoke up since he was the one who had made the original covenant. “You and I had an agreement that you would align yourself with the Sons. You prove yourselves, then maybe one day the Sons will patch you over and increase the Sons numbers. As Gypsy pointed out, you’re either with us or against us. Against us and we cut off your avenue to the coast. It’s because of our hospitality that you can run your guns through our state. Don’t forget your place with the Sons, Red. It was you who needed our help. Not the other way around.”

“May I remind you, I pay the Sons mighty well for that privilege? It’s a very lucrative deal for you.”

“Before this turns into a fucking pissing match, can we get back to the reason everyone is here?” Kaleb said, as Alexander placed the bottle of Jack in the center of the coffee table with eight glasses.

Kaleb felt the sooner they got the discussion over with, the quicker they got the Knights back on the road and out of Oregon. Grayson looked just shy of ripping someone’s throat out for the Surfer Boy comment. Though with his overlong, shoulder length hair and the ever-present sunglasses, he couldn’t say Bird was incorrect with his description of his MC brother.

Alexander poured two fingers of the whiskey in each glass, then handed them to each man.

“Look,” Red continued, “we’ll keep our ears out for someone who might have a beef with Hawk or the Sons.”

“Does anyone besides us know of our alignment?” Kaleb asked.

“It’s possible,” Red said. “Not that we talk about it, but you allow us to ride through Oregon without repercussions. That speaks volumes in itself.”

Kaleb certainly couldn’t argue with that logic.

“We’ve had your back before, and we continue to do so,” Bird said. “We hear anything, you’ll be the first to know.”

“Be sure that you do,” Grayson said, obvious disdain rolling off him.

Kaleb wondered if there wasn’t more to it than the reference to Grayson’s pretty boy looks. Kaleb chose to ignore the underlying currents for now. After all, unless it was Sons’ business, whatever issue lay between Bird and Grayson was no concern of his. Grayson could take care of his own.

Raising his glass in the air, he said, “Salute.”

Each man followed suit and downed the amber-colored liquid. The burn to the esophagus warmed him almost as much as communion. Standing, Kaleb held out his hand to Red, which the man stood and shook. Bird got to his feet as well, staring down Grayson. Both men looked ready to battle. Kaleb planned to question his VP about it once the Knights made their exit. He followed the fellow MC to the door.

“We’ll be in touch. You do the same.”

Red nodded and the four bikers left the clubhouse. Kaleb shut the door behind them, then glanced at his own men.

Gone was the scorn from Grayson’s face, now replaced with a large smile and a twinkle in his gaze. “Who’s game for a trip to the Rave and getting a little ass? Not pointing any fingers, but, Hawk, I think you could use the release.”

“You’re certainly one to talk, Gypsy.” Kaleb raised a brow in challenge. “Five minutes ago you looked ready to go to battle against Bird.”

Grayson shrugged, with a devil-may-care look. “What can I say? The bastard rubs me the wrong way. Call it a sixth sense. Now, how about finding us some women to party with?”

“I’m all up for communion, but the partying with the ladies, I’ll leave that to you three. I’m pretty sure Cara would rip some throats out if she caught another woman trying to get in my pants.” Kane chuckled. “Now, let’s go look up Draven and get us a party started.”

Chapter 10

Cara opened the heavy glass door to the Sheriff’s Office, her shoulders stiff with unease, and walked over to the dispatch window. Sheriff Ducat had assured her that he would hold her position open for however long she needed to come to terms with her new lifestyle. Ducat knew the MC’s secret. He had kept quiet about the den of vampires residing in Pleasant over the past decade in return for their protection should the S.O. need back up. Ducat liked having the Sons in his corner, not to mention taking care of society’s degenerates. Cara supposed it was much better than the alternative of working against the law. No wonder Kane and his brothers had been so pissed when Cara and her partner tried to lay the murders of three women at their doorstep and why the sheriff hadn’t pressured Cara and Joe to solve the case. The Sons had just as much interest in seeing the killer caught, if not more so, than the S.O. did.

Asking for her job back wasn’t what had her more fidgety than a cock in a cock fight, though, nor the reason she had walked back through the door. Kane’s pockets were deep enough to sustain them several lifetimes, so it wasn’t as if Cara had returned for the promise of a steady paycheck. She had loved the job, plain and simple. Being an officer ran bone-deep, it was her identity. She missed the camaraderie of her fellow deputies. Hell, she missed Hernandez. Not that he’d be any too pleased to see her, which was the sole reason for her sudden case of the jitters. Like it or not, Joe Hernandez had been a good friend over the years, and her relationship with the Sons, more specifically Kane, was not going to sit well with him.

The dispatch looked up from her long row of monitors and smiled at Cara’s approach. “Detective Brahnam … I hadn’t heard that you were back in town.”

“Lisa,” Cara acknowledged. “I sort of slipped in under the radar, no need for fan fair. Is Sheriff Ducat in?”

“Let me buzz you in. He’s in his office on the phone, but I’m sure he’ll be glad to see you.”

The activation of the door buzzed and Cara grasped the handle, pulling open the heavy interior auto-locking door. “Thanks,” she said, then walked past the dispatch office and started down the hall.

“Nice to see you again, Detective,” Lisa called after her.

The sentiment made her smile. “Nice to be here,” she said, and meant it. Cara had come home.

She supposed talking to Sheriff Ducat was the first order of business. Once they set a date for her to return to the job, then she’d talk to Joe … alone. Cara had a feeling he wasn’t going to make this easy for her. No matter how she presented it, Joe would look at it as a betrayal and he’d never accept her relationship with Kane or the Sons.

Sheriff Ducat replaced the phone in the cradle just as Cara walked through the opened doorway. A smile grew wide on his weathered face. Ducat looked as if he had aged several years over the past six months. She hoped like hell her tribulations and near death, followed by her lengthy absence, hadn’t caused him grief.

“Well, I’ll be damned,” he said, beaming. The sheriff stood and rounded his desk, pulling Cara into a bear of a hug. “Dare I hope you came to beg for your old job back?”

Cara laughed. “I was sort of hoping you still had that spot for me.”

“What would make you think any different?”

“Because … I’m different.” Her smile waned as she looked her old mentor in the eye, glad that she didn’t see anything other than acceptance there. “You know what I am.”

Ducat shrugged. “I’ve know what the twins were for years, and the rest of the Sons. The way I look at it, it’s a bonus to the county. Pity the man who comes here looking for trouble. He’ll definitely find it. As long as you can still do your job, you’re welcome here. That side of your life, though, has no business here. I can’t have your fellow deputies knowing about you or the Sons. I fear Lane County would become a modern day witch hunt.”

“That part of my life will have no bearing on my job.”

The sheriff smiled, stuck out his hand and shook hers. “Then welcome back.”

She barely felt his tight grip, her strength growing every day, something she’d have to be careful using around her fellow deputies. Ducat circled his desk, opened the drawer on the lower right side, taking out her Glock and badge and placing it on the desk’s surface.

“I’ve been saving this for you. I was hoping you’d be back. In truth, it will be like having someone with … special skills on board if you will. You talk to Hernandez yet?”

“No. I wanted to speak with you first.”

“You can start back officially Monday.” He returned to his seat. “Hernandez is in his office. You two will still share the office.”

“No new partner?”

He shook his head. “I was waiting for you. And truth be told, I’ll bet he was hoping for your return as well.”

Cara took a deep breath. “Not so sure about that. He’s no fan of Kane or Kaleb. My being a part of their life won’t sit well with him.”

“If he has problems with your return, then you tell him to take it up with me.”

Cara took in a deep breath then released it slowly. “Thank you, Sheriff. Your support means a lot.”

“You’re a good girl, Cara. That hasn’t changed. Now go on, and prove that to Hernandez.”

Cara slipped her Glock in the waistband at the small of her back, then picked up her badge.

“Monday will be soon enough to swear you in. See you at eight. I take it the hours won’t be difficult?”

“Not at all, Sheriff. It’s not like I sleep in a coffin.”

Ducat smiled. “See that you don’t.”

She headed out of the office, just as the phone rang and the sheriff muttered something about election years and politics. Cara’s feet grew leaden the closer she came to her old office. Florescent bulbs flickered in the hallway and the smell of freshly shined floors drifted to her nose. Funny how all her senses had heightened since becoming a vampire. The more blood she consumed, the stronger she became as well. Cara caught a waft of Joe’s aftershave before she even entered the office, telling her he was in the room. She stopped in the doorway, leaning on the doorjamb. Hernandez’s back muscles flexed as he combed through an open file on his desk, speaking with someone on the phone about the papers littering his desk, unaware of her arrival.

His dark hair cut short and curled softly about his ears, looking slightly longer and unkempt from the last time she had saw him. When he replaced the receiver onto the cradle, his spine stiffened as if he had detected her arrival. Joe slowly swiveled in his chair to see her standing there, his expression not one of welcome.

“What the hell do you want, Brahnam?”

“Nice to see you too, Joe.” She offered him a weak smile.

Cara hated the mile-wide gulf between them. She had at one time felt like a little sister to the man. He would have given his life to protect her. Now? She wasn’t so sure.

“No one said anything about it being nice to see you.”

“Damn, Joe, why don’t you really say what’s on your mind? Get it off your chest so we can go back to being partners already.”

“Oh, hell no!” Joe stood and faced off with her. “You’re not coming back to the job and you’re definitely not sharing this office with me.”

Cara’s ire rose. Where did he get off treating her like dirt beneath his Oxfords all of the sudden? “It’s already been decided. I start Monday.”

His gaze narrowed, dislike clearly evident in his brown eyes. “I see.”

She stepped farther into the office and shut the door behind her. No sense allowing the rest of the office privy to their heated exchange. “No, Joseph Hernandez, you don’t see.” She planted her fists on her hips. “It wasn’t that long ago you had my back. Nothing has changed.
I
have not changed.” She thumped her fist against her chest for emphasis.

His anger seemed to rise off him. “I always had your back, Brahnam, that is until you started shacking up with that piece of—”

“Careful, Joe. Regardless what you think of Kane, or his brother for that matter, I do love the man.”

Joe slowly nodded, though he wisely kept his mouth shut. He needed to hear her out.

“And he loves me unconditionally, regardless of what I do for a living. I owe him the same respect.”

“You may, but I don’t. Don’t you think it’s a conflict of interest you working here? He’s an outlaw, for crying out loud, Cara. You’re going to give him an inside to what goes on here. And what if he or any of the Sons are under investigation? You think about that?”

“Kane isn’t breaking any laws.”

“You’re an idiot if you believe that. The Sons are all outlaws. I can’t fucking believe the sheriff okayed you coming back.”

Tears welled in her eyes, but she refused to allow them to fall. Not that she didn’t think Joe would have a hard time with her relationship with Kane, but she hadn’t realized how deep his dislike of them ran. Joe seriously didn’t think he could force her to choose between him and Kane. He had to know that was one argument he couldn’t possibly win.

“You know I love you, Joe. That’s never changed. You’ve always been a big part of my life. But we don’t always get to choose who we fall in love with. Kane Tepes is in my life. I can’t and I won’t give that up … not for anyone or anything.”

“I sure in the hell hope that doesn’t come back to bite you in the ass, honey.”

“Why not let me worry about that?” A tear slipped down her cheek unheeded. “I promise, Joe, that Kane or the Sons will not interfere with my job here. And if it comes to that, I’ll resign.”

Joe’s stance softened. His anger lessened. He may not like Kane, or the idea of her in a relationship with the biker, but no one told her how to live her life … including Kane. She may be mated to him, swore to love him until death, but Kane did not own her. He hadn’t liked the idea of her working with Hernandez again, but he had also known how much the job meant to her. Kane would never stand in the way of her happiness.

Joe sighed, then stuck out his hand. “Welcome back, Brahnam.”

But instead of taking his hand, Cara walked over to him and folded her arms about his waist. Joe paused but a moment before enfolding her within his embrace. “I do love you, Joe.”

“Yeah, you just keep that biker out of my way.” She heard the smile in his voice as she lay her cheek against his muscular chest. “And you tell him if he hurts you, he has to answer to me.”

Cara smiled. Joe wouldn’t stand a chance against Kane, but she’d let him think it a worthy threat anyway.

* * *

Pulling a black tee over his head, Kaleb walked from his bedroom and into the living area of the clubhouse where the Sons gathered. The call from the Knights had come only a few hours prior, but Kaleb had been able to gather a crew at the last minute. The last gun run had been a mere two weeks ago, so they hadn’t been exactly prepared. The caller had apologized to Kaleb, but apparently a deal had gone south and the Knights had been offered a lucrative deal. For the Sons, the money was easy—Kaleb wasn’t about to complain about another forty percent coming their way this month. Kaleb had tried to get a hold of Kane, but his twin wasn’t answering his phone. No matter, they had been doing these runs without him the past six months.

He took care of alerting the sheriff that the Knights would be skirting the town after midnight so that his deputies would be conveniently busy in other areas of the county. The runs had become routine enough that when the Knights rode through Lane County, the locals steered clear in case the state troopers might happen by. The Sheriff’s Office could plead ignorance of the illegal transaction as long as they were on the opposite side of the county. This had been the monthly norm since his brother, Kane, had made the deal with Red six months back.

And a great money-making deal it had been.

The Sons made a good amount of money for little to no work. They did nothing more than usher their once rival MC through the state of Oregon and run interference should they attract attention from outside law enforcement. And the money helped when profits were down at the K&K, the twin’s motorcycle shop, where most of the Sons worked, bringing them honest wages. Kaleb and Grayson had been regulars on every run, always making sure they protected their interest. But tonight, they elected to sit this one out due to prior plans to head to the Rave. He knew his men could handle the run without them, plus he offered each man a bonus on their next K&K paycheck for helping out on short notice.

Not a single man complained. On the contrary, they all stood in the clubhouse ready to go. Alexander, being the Sergeant at Arms, would lead the pack with Anton at his right. Kaleb hated leaving club business up to his men. After all, he was the president and should anything go wrong, he’d hold himself personally responsible.

Grayson had assured him the men were more than capable of playing babysitter to the Knights. He had pointed out that Suzi would probably be waiting dutifully at the Rave as requested. If Kaleb didn’t show, she’d likely take that as a free pass and Kaleb would have to look for another donor or wait another three days to feed from Suzi, which to Kaleb wasn’t acceptable. He needed to feed to keep his strength, so finding Suzi was on his high list of priorities. No other donor would do, not when he couldn’t get the sassy little brunette from his mind. Hell, his dick hardened just at the thought of having her in his arms, whether it was to merely feed or not. He’d not give Suzi an excuse not to fulfill her duty as his personal donor for even a day.