Savage Fire (Savage Angels MC #2) (23 page)

Then she sits up and says, “Kat put some of Dane’s T‐shirts in one of those bags. Could you find me one to sleep in? It will feel better than this scratchy gown and Jonas’s jacket.”

I nod and go through the bags and find an old black T‐shirt. I put it in front of her and she smiles.

“Salvatore, could you help me? I can’t undo the gown at the back, could you help me out of it, please?”

“This is not a hardship for me, it would be my honor.” She leans forward and I remove the jacket and

then undo the gown. I stand and pull the bed covers off her then grab the gown and remove it from her body. She is sitting on the bed, naked, and my cock is hard. Her nipples have hardened and I reach out and touch her. She gasps as I trail a finger between her breasts. My eyes go to her legs, which are cut and scraped, and I remember what has been done to her. I kiss her on the forehead and grab the T‐shirt. She tries to cover herself with her hands.

I grab her hands and say, “Do not cover yourself from me. It is not that I don’t want you but I am hoping to take much more than half an hour with you, Amare. You will be asleep very soon.” I look at the T‐shirt and say, “How do you want to do this? How do I put this on you without hurting you?”

She smiles and says, “Hands first then over my head.”

I do as she says; Dane’s T‐shirt is miles too big for her but it is softer than the gown. She lies down and I pull the covers up. “Sleep now. Close your eyes and dream only of me.” I smile at her and whisper, “E ' l'amore bene, si sono protetti, sei al sicuro.”
It’s alright love, you are protected, you are safe.

“One day you are going to have to tell me what that means,” she says with a chuckle.

“One day.”

She closes her eyes and within twenty minutes, she is asleep. I wait another ten minutes then I head up to the main house.

Bear

D
arkness is slowly creeping its way across the sky. Those of us that are most trusted—the inner circle—have yet again been called out to the barn. It is Rebel’s and my task to bring Fith. No one can really believe that he has betrayed us the way that he has. I am standing on the porch to the clubhouse. I look up and see splashes of orange as night fights its way into the world; to me it looks almost like blood seeping away. I’m a tad melodramatic tonight. I sigh and go back into the building and to the room where Fith is being held.

As I enter, he stands but avoids eye contact. I move my gaze to Rebel, who gives me the slightest shake of his head, meaning that Fith has not uttered a word.

“Fith, you and I have been through a lot together. Before Dane became President I used to wonder how you would integrate into the club without all the bullshit, without all the mayhem but you surprised me. You’ve been loyal to Dane and the club, so why did you do this?”

“She had me by the fucking balls. You have no idea what Ms. Saunders was actually like. She had shit on everyone. Well, those she considered a threat, just ask Justice Leaverton.” I raise my eyebrows at him. “Yeah, that’s right, the town Mayor isn’t as squeaky clean as you think he his.”

“Why didn’t you say anything after she died, after you got the recording back? You could have said you only just discovered the gun running, you could have gotten yourself out.”

“You all would have figured out that I was in on it.”

“Alright then, why not shut it down completely?”

“The money.” He begins to pace.

“The money?” I repeat his statement. He looks at me and his eyes are wild as he nods. “Brother, it’s not like you’ve been living large. You still have the same bike, the same everything as far as I can see. So where is the money?”

“Bear, it was so easy. She had deals with everyone. I really didn’t need to do very much except keep it going. At first, I didn’t spend the money cause I didn’t want to be caught. Then I decided to stockpile it. I have over one point five million in cash.”

Rebel makes a noise and I stare at him. “One point five million in cash?” Rebel says with a growl. He stands and pins Fith with a look. “What were you going to do with it? What the fuck were you thinking?”

“I was thinking, brother, that I could be done with this fucking life except I couldn’t walk away. The MC has been my family, I’ve looked after it, and I’ve helped it grow. What the fuck was I going to do, anyway?  Lie on the beach? Drink beers in some foreign land and have no fucking friends? I was hoping to stay in town and retire, buy a house and leave the club. I was hoping that you would all vote and let me leave on good standing.”

It doesn’t happen often but when one of us retires or leaves the club, we vote. Good standing means you turn in your colors but you can keep your tattoos and still come to club events and rides. Bad standing means you are ostracized, you turn in your colors, get your tattoos removed or covered and you are dead to us.

“Where is the money, Fith?” I ask.

He shakes his head. “I’m not stupid, you are going to kill me for my betrayal, and it’s the only thing I have left to bargain with. I’m not fucking telling you.” He sits back down and folds his arms.

I look at Rebel. “We need to get him out to the barn. Dane wants us all there.” I glance at Fith. “All of us.”

Rebel

“B
ear, I need to see the Sheriff. We don’t want him sniffing about now that we are handling this in‐house.

Can you wait for me to see him? Or do you want to head out now?” We have moved outside of the room that Fith is in and stand in the hallway.

“We’ll wait. Go talk to the Sheriff.” He gives me a tight smile and rubs his face. “The longer we take the longer I can talk to Fith and try and figure out where the money is.”

I nod and turn then walk outside and find my bike. Tourmaline is a small town. It’s the kind of place you can leave your doors open and not worry. I ride up Main Street towards the Sheriff’s Office. It’s at the other end of town.

I dismount from my bike and walk into the station. The Sheriff is at the back of the room talking to one of his deputies. I do a two-fingered wave and he does a chin lift. I open the pen and walk towards him.

“Evening, Sheriff,” I say.

“Rebel.” He turns and walks into his office. I follow and shut the door. “I went into Betties tonight to get a bite to eat and Rosie tells me how Emily went for a hike and got lost in the wild. But amazingly, the Savage Angels found her and she’s safe and sound.” He sits and stares at me. I say nothing and I can feel his anger radiating out of him. “Curious though, Mr. Finlay from the hardware store swears he saw the Savage Angels carry a practically naked Emily into the Doctor’s this morning.” Again, he waits and again I say nothing.  “So I spoke to Doc Jordan, hell, I even questioned Maggie and they both said the same thing. That she got lost and hurt herself. When I asked if she was naked, Maggie said she’d burned her clothes because she couldn’t find firewood. Now, do you want to tell me the truth? I will not have you and your MC dishing out justice. We have a system, we have laws and it’s my job to uphold them.” His voice is full of anger.

I stand there, not sure what to say to this man. Personally, I like him; he is so much better than the last Sheriff. He’s good for this town; he’s hard but fair, but we have lived and supported this town for a very long time, and we will not be told what to do.

“Sheriff Morales, it sounds to me as if you have it all figured out. We will of course bring Emily to you tomorrow so she can verify what has happened,” I say.

“Tell me, the footage we both looked at where it looked like Johnnie Vanetti was supporting her as she fainted, what was that all about?” He gives me a tight smile.

“He was just asking for directions, that’s all,” I say.

“Right.” He stands and takes a step towards me. “You tell your President I’ll be watching. You tell him I don’t like this and I’ll be paying more attention to you all in the future. Do you understand?”

“I’ll tell him, Sheriff.” I nod and open the door.

As I step through it, he says, “Remember to bring Emily to me tomorrow.” I nod respectfully at him before I make my way back to my bike.

Dane

I
see Salvatore as he walks towards the house. Kat is upstairs making sure Dave and Truth are ok. I meet him at the front door.

“Coffee?” He accepts with a nod. I lead the way into the kitchen and he sits at my dining table.

“She is ok, a little shook up but she’s going to be fine,” says Sal.

I’m pouring two cups of coffee from the machine when Dave walks into the room.

“Dane, could you please pour me a cup?” he says. He turns, looks at Sal, holds out his hand and says, “Dave Lawrence.”

Sal stands, grabs his hand and says, “Salvatore Agostino.” They shake and then Dave swipes a cup of coffee and sits opposite Sal.

“So tell me, Dane, what have you found out about Christina Saunders?” He looks tired. “

Before we start, Dave, does Kat know anything about her mother?” I ask.

He chuckles and he says, “Yes, Kat knows her mother loved her and left her a beautiful home. She has no idea what that woman was really like.” He sighs and stares at Sal. “How do you fit into all of this?”

Sal looks at me and says, “Is he to be trusted?”

“To a point.”

He nods and says, “I am affiliated with the Abruzzi Family, and we had a deal with Ms. Saunders.”

“Dane, did you ever wonder why Kat or her lawyers never challenged you on the transport business?” asks Dave.

“Kat and I had a conversation about that; she didn’t even know it existed until we met. I offered to give it back to her or even pay her something for it but she said no.” I take a seat at the head of the table and pass Sal his coffee.

Dave nods his head and says, “I didn’t want her to have it, my dear boy. I decided if that woman had something to do with it then I didn’t want my princess anywhere near it and it would appear that I was right.” Dave is fiercely protective of Kat and it doesn’t surprise me that he has kept secrets from her, even if it is about her own mother.

“Yes, as it turns out you were.” The coffee tastes like acid in my mouth as I think about Ms. Saunders, who I thought was my friend. “Dave, do you know anything about her that could be of use to us?”

“She’s been in the transport business for a long time. I know she ran her illegal activities either through them or around them. She was smart, Dane, but I was lucky; she slipped up with me. She assumed that because I am in the music industry I must be around drugs. Apart from the odd bit of fun at parties in my youth,” he pauses and smiles at Sal, “I never got involved. The bands I manage, I try to keep them away from it. I even write it in as a code of conduct into their contracts. So when she approached me and showed her true colors, I never trusted her again and tried like hell to keep Kat away from her.”

I nod and stare at Sal whose gaze is riveted on his cup of coffee. “Thanks, Dave.”

“Is my girl in any trouble? Can anything blow back on her?”

“No, Dave, she’s not involved.”

“Dane, are you involved? Because if you are that means my girl is involved. Tell me how I can help?”

I am sure that in all his years around the music industry Dave has seen his fair share of shit but this is slightly above his pay grade.

“Dave, Dane is right; your girl is not involved. Nothing will blow back on her,” says Sal with no small measure of authority.

“Good. That’s all I needed to hear. Now, I need sleep. Will you both excuse me?” We both nod at him; he stands and begins to walk out of the room. Before he gets too far he stops and says, “I have friends in many circles. If you need anything all you have to do is ask.” He smiles at us then leaves.

“Everyone who is important is out at the barn, including your men.”

Sal nods at me and says, “Good. Before we leave, could you ask Kat to check in on Emily? I don’t want her to wake up and be afraid. She was in a considerable amount of pain and I gave her two painkillers. Her hands are the worst.”

When I think about what could have happened to her, it makes me angry. Kat walks into the kitchen and puts her arms around me.

“How’s Emily?” she asks as she stares at Sal.

“Asleep, she may not wake up for dinner,” he says.

“Kat, do you think you could go and sit with her? We may have to work late and Sal doesn’t want her to wake up and be afraid.” My woman is still mad at me. She thinks I disrespected her back at the Compound and I understand why she would feel that way but it’s not the case. I am used to being in charge and having my men do as they are told. It is rare for someone to question me.

“Of course I can. I’ve got a new book on my kindle so I can sit and read it while she sleeps.”

“Thank you,” says Sal.

“Ain’t nothin’, she’s family,” says Kat with a grin. “I will need sustenance though so I’m taking chips and chocolate with me. Which means tomorrow, my love, you will need to come jogging with me so I can work it all off.” She kisses the top of my head and starts opening cupboards.

I look to Sal who has a smile on his face. “If he won’t go jogging with you tomorrow, Kat, come find me. I could use the exercise.”

She chuckles and comes back to me with chips and chocolate firmly in her grasp. “I’ll hold you to that. Now, the pair of you go and do what you need to do and come back to us.” She bends, gives me the barest of kisses, then pulls back and stares into my eyes. “Don’t be too late.” She clutches my face and kisses me thoroughly, puts her forehead to mine, smiles then heads for the door. She’s forgiven me a little bit but I still have a long way to go.

“Shall we go?” Sal is ready to hit the road and he is right, we should make a move. It’s going to be a long night.

Salvatore

Y
ou have to admire these bikers. They know how to treat those that have wronged them. The barn has new plastic on the floor and Guido and Johnnie stand on it in the center of the room. My men are here also and I move towards Tony.

“Boss,” he says with a chin lift

“Tony. Have you had a conversation with them?” I say, motioning towards them.