Duke Page 4

  Suddenly, something occurred to me. “Wait a minute. I thought you were keeping an eye on her. How the fuck could you not tell me about my son?” I yelled, causing the baby to cry.

  “Duke!” My Aunt Leigh, Judge’s mom, scolded when she heard us yelling and the baby crying. When did she arrive? She plucked the baby from my arms, grabbed the diaper bag from the floor, and announced, “We’ll just be down the hall so you boys can finish sorting things out.”

  “I’ll let that one slide, but you watch your tone. You’re in my clubhouse and you will show me respect. Now, before you go digging a hole you can’t climb out of, I didn’t know about the baby. None of us did. We did watch her, but we couldn’t ever get close to her.”

  “You couldn’t tell she was pregnant? You didn’t see the freaking baby?” I questioned. This shit was unbelievable.

  “I know it sounds crazy, but we had no idea she was pregnant and we never saw the baby. She must have known we were checking up on her. She always parked in the garage and closed the door before she got out. She’s got tint on her windows, so we couldn’t see anything in the back seat,” he explained.

  I couldn’t think of a damn thing to say. I looked at the ground and pinched the bridge of my nose. I could feel a headache coming on. Ever since my attack, I would get severe headaches from time to time. My doctor said they were likely brought on by stress. Guess he was right.

  Copper pulled his phone from his pocket. “Excuse me,” he said, before disappearing down a hallway.

  “Did you talk to anybody before you left? Carbon or Phoenix?” Judge asked.

  “No, and fuck Carbon. You guys may not have known, but there is no way she managed to keep that shit from Carbon,” I spat. My anger was ramping up, which meant my head was pounding harder.

  “Don’t jump to conclusions. Carbon hasn’t been back to Devil Springs since he left with Reese after their family was murdered. When they came back, she went to live with their grandmother and he moved to Croftridge with Phoenix and the rest of you.”

  “Bullshit. You guys have had our club up here for parties many times since then.”

  “Yeah, but think back, Carbon didn’t come to a single one. He would go visit Reese and their grandmother in Reedy Fork whenever we had a party. Reese missing is probably the only thing that could get him to come back here and I have a bad feeling that we’re about to test that theory,” Judge said.

  “You really think she’s missing?” I asked. I wasn’t sure that I believed that yet. Or, maybe I didn’t want to believe it.

  I didn’t notice that Copper had returned until he chimed in, “I tried to call her, but her phone is going straight to voicemail. I sent Batta and Tiny to ride out to her house and see if she was there or if anything seemed out of place. I checked with her boss and she did show up at work today. Said she didn’t notice anything out of the ordinary, but Reese did ask if she could leave an hour early.”

  I dropped down to the sofa. I was exhausted and my head was not letting up. I needed to at least get off of my feet for a bit. “You’ll have to excuse me, my circuits are overloaded at the moment. What exactly are you getting at?”

  “I think something happened to Reese between when she got off work and when you received the call from the daycare. Spazz, see if you can get into her phone records, maybe get a location. We need to call Carbon and Phoenix. Duke, it’s your choice. I’ll be happy to make that call for you.”

  “Thanks, Copper, but I think I should be the one to call Carbon. He’s going to lose his shit, so if you could wait a few minutes and then give Phoenix a call, that would be helpful.”

  “No problem. You can go in my office if you want some privacy,” he offered.

  I sat down in his office and took in a deep breath. I did not want to make this call. I raised the phone to my ear and waited.

  “Duke, what’s happenin’, brother?” Carbon answered.

  I cleared my throat, “Carbon, man, um, I don’t know how to tell you this, so I’m just going to say it. I was called to Devil Springs today to pick up my son from daycare because his mother didn’t show up to get him. I think something has happened to Reese.”

  I was met with a few beats of silence before he exploded. “WHAT? What the fuck, Duke? Your son? My sister? You better be fucking with me. I’m gonna kick your ass either way, but you better not be speaking the truth to me right now!!” he roared.

  Well, he took that about as well as I expected. “Look, I didn’t know about him until today. So, be pissed, flip your shit, whatever. Just get your ass up here!”

  He didn’t say anything. I could hear him breathing, heavily, but he remained silent. Finally, he choked out, “I can’t,” and then the line went dead.

  Copper entered his office with his phone to his ear. “Yeah, he’s right here, hang on.” He handed his phone to me, “It’s Phoenix.”

  “Prez,” I mumbled into the phone.

  “Duke, brother, we’re heading out now and Carbon will be coming with us, willingly or not. Hang in there, brother.”

  I handed the phone back to Copper, completely confused by Phoenix’s reaction. He didn’t sound pissed at all. He sounded like he understood. Hell, I guess he did. He knew what it was like to find out you had a kid you knew nothing about. He also knew what it was like for your woman to be missing, not that Reese was my woman. She wasn’t, but she was my child’s mother.

  Oh, who was I kidding? I wanted Reese from the moment I met her and I still did.

  Shit.

  CHAPTER 6

  Duke

  “Phoenix and some of his crew are about 45 minutes out, but go ahead and tell us what you found,” Copper said to Batta and Tiny. They had just returned from Reese’s house.

  “We didn’t see any signs of a struggle or forced entry. Everything was locked up tight when we arrived. Her car wasn’t there, neither was she. We did find some letters in her bedroom that we thought might be of interest,” Batta said. Tiny handed a small stack of papers to Copper.

  Copper scanned the page on top, growled, flipped to the next one, growled louder, and then rapidly flipped through all of the papers. “What the fuck is this shit?”

  I snatched the papers from Copper and flipped through them myself. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. “Why wouldn’t she tell anyone she was receiving threats?” I wondered out loud.

  “Do we have any idea when she got these? Is there a possibility that these are old?” Copper asked no one in particular.

  Judge chimed in, “I think it’s safe to assume those are recent given the fact that she is currently missing.” I knew that, I just didn’t want to acknowledge it. I was certain Carbon knew nothing about the threats. He wouldn’t have left her up here alone if he had.

  Shit.

  Shit.

  Shit.

  “Spazz, any luck with her phone?” Bronze asked.

  “Not a damn thing. The last time she used it was yesterday. Don’t know if the battery is dead or what, but I can’t get a location on it,” Spazz told us, dejectedly.

  “All right, Tiny, round up about five guys and the prospects. Spread out through town and see if you can spot her or her car anywhere,” Copper ordered.

  The clubhouse doors crashed open revealing a furious and frantic Carbon. Phoenix stood just behind him, looking like he was going to strangle Carbon. What the hell? I thought they were still at least 30 minutes away.

  “Update! Now!” Carbon roared. He looked like a rabid beast with his wild eyes and his chest heaving.

  Phoenix clapped his hand on Carbon’s shoulder and squeezed. “Lock it down, brother, or I’ll be locking you down, feel me?” he warned. Phoenix was the only one close to Carbon’s intimidating size and had the best shot at controlling him if he went on a rampage.

  Carbon’s nostrils flared, his chest rose and fell with his heavy breaths. He nodded, but didn’t say anything else. He fixed his eyes on Copper and waited for him to speak.

  Copper promptly filled them in on
what we knew so far and handed the letters to Carbon. He looked at the papers, one by one. Then, the big guy collapsed onto a sofa and hung his head. The sound that erupted from him could only be described as the pained cry of a wounded animal. I knew this was hard for him, being in the town where his family was killed, and now his only living sibling was missing.

  We gave him a moment to pull himself together. He quieted, but remained seated and hunched over. Copper carefully asked, “We know you didn’t know about the threats, but do you have any idea as to who may have sent them?”

  Carbon shook his head. “No idea, Copper.” He hung his head again. “My baby sister was up here dealing with so much on her own and I had no idea because I was too much of a pussy to come back to this town. Damn. It!”

  Phoenix, being the only one who could get away with speaking to Carbon in such a way, ordered, “Not now, Carbon. Get your ass off the floor and get it into gear. Reese needs you. Man up for your sister.”

  I wouldn’t have believed it if I hadn’t seen it for myself. All emotion disappeared from Carbon’s face. He rose from the floor in one fluid motion, straightened his spine, squared his shoulders, and nodded. Carbon the frightened brother was gone and the stone-cold enforcer had returned.

  We heard the rumble of several Harleys approaching the forecourt. By the sound of it, the rest of the Croftridge crew had arrived. Moments later, Badger, Dash, Byte, Shaker, Edge, and Prospect Coal entered the common room. Surprisingly, it was Byte who spoke first. “Did you get a location on her phone? What about her car?”

  “Spazz couldn’t locate her phone,” I answered. “Some of the Devil Springs brothers rode out a bit ago to see if they could spot her car.”

  Byte scoffed and plopped down at a nearby table. He pulled his laptop out of his backpack and started clicking keys. “I need her cell phone number and make and model of her car, license plate if you have it.”

  Copper gave him the information he requested, even the license plate, which surprised me. He shrugged, “We only ever saw her in her car and I have a photographic memory.”

  Byte continued clicking, “Fuck! I’m getting nothing on her phone.”

  More clicking.

  “Fuck yeah! Got her car!” he shouted.

  Carbon pounced like a starving dog, “Where?”

  “I sent you the coordinates,” he said as Carbon’s phone dinged.

  “I’m going with you,” I informed. He didn’t respond as he walked out the door.

  Phoenix ordered, “Edge and Coal, follow them with the cage.” I wish I didn’t hear his next words, which I assumed were directed at Copper, but I did. “You got a doc in the club or someone you use when you need to be patched up?” I’m guessing Copper nodded because Phoenix continued speaking, “Good. Get them here now, just in case.”

  CHAPTER 7

  Duke

  Carbon looked at the coordinates and knew exactly where her car was. He was on his bike and out of the parking lot in mere seconds. It was all I could do to keep up with him. That fucker was fast for a big guy.

  It didn’t take us long to get there. I was surprised we both made it in one piece and also that we didn’t get picked up by the local police. I had never driven so fast and so recklessly on unfamiliar roads before, but we had to get to her as fast as possible. I just knew something was wrong, I could feel it in my gut.

  We stopped on the side of a dark, winding mountain road. The tire marks on the pavement and the mangled guardrail indicated we were likely in the right spot. Walking closer to the guardrail, I studied the surrounding area. Brush and small trees leading to a drop-off had been flattened, tire tracks clearly visible, right up to the edge.

  I looked toward Carbon. He was frozen in place, just like I was. Neither of us said a word. If we didn’t say it, maybe it wasn’t true. But we both knew what happened.

  Her car went over and there was no way she could have survived.

  We were both still standing there in silence when Edge and Coal pulled up in the cage, followed shortly by Phoenix, Dash, and Copper. Phoenix walked up to the guardrail and looked out at the drop-off. He shook his head and turned back to me, “Did she…?”

  I could barely speak, it was almost a whisper, “Looks that way.”

  Phoenix nodded solemnly. He walked over to Edge and Coal and whispered something to them. He walked back to where I was standing and quietly said, “I’m going to need you and Copper to help me get Carbon in the cage. I can tell by just looking at him that he’s going to lose it any second now. Can’t say I blame him, but it’s going to take all three of us and even that might not be enough.”

  “Now?” I asked.

  “Yeah. The sooner the better.”

  Phoenix carefully approached Carbon first and placed his hand on his shoulder. I started moving quickly toward them, expecting Carbon to respond with violence. Shockingly, the big man crumpled to the ground in the middle of the road and roared his pain into the night. He folded in on himself, his body shaking as he sobbed. We all stood there quietly, giving him our silent support. I had tears running down my own face and I bet every brother there did as well.

  In between Carbon’s cries of pain, I heard it. I wasn’t sure at first, but then I heard it again. “Shhh!” I hissed. “Did you hear that?”

  “No, what was it?” Dash asked.

  “Listen,” I whispered-yelled as I walked closer to the edge of the road.

  “Help me.” It wasn’t loud, but it was definitely a female calling for help.

  I whirled around. “You heard that, right?”

  Obviously, they did because Carbon was on his feet and running toward the drop-off, the rest right behind him.

  “Get a flashlight!” Phoenix yelled.

  “Already did, Prez,” Coal said and proudly handed a flashlight to Phoenix.

  Phoenix turned it on and what we saw will forever be ingrained in my memory. There, about 20 feet down, was Reese’s car, precariously sitting in a large tree, with Reese still inside. My eyes met hers, filled with a mixture of fear and relief.

  Copper started barking orders, “Someone call 9-1-1! We need a couple of fire trucks out here. Check the cage and your bikes. Bring me all of the rope and cordage you can find. Hurry!”

  I ran to my bike. I kept paracord in one of the storage compartments. The uses for it were endless and it didn’t take up much space, so I always kept some. I also had a few chains and tie-down straps, so I grabbed those, too.

  I took the items over to Copper, where he was engaged in a heated conversation with Phoenix. “You can’t be serious! I’m not letting you do this!”

  “I am doing this and you’re not going to stop me. What if it was Ember in that car? You would want someone to go down there and get her. I just happen to be here and have experience with these types of rescues. We don’t have time to wait for the fire department to get here. We don’t have time for this bullshit either. Help me make a harness and get the ropes ready,” Copper returned.

  “Even if you can get down there to her, you might not be able to get her back up. What if she’s hurt?” Phoenix questioned.

  Copper was already working on his harness, “Take a look at that car, Phoenix. It’s moving. It ain’t going to stay in that tree much longer. I can hear the wood creaking as we speak. We have to get her out now. If I can’t get her back up, which I damn well know I can, I’ll hang there with her until the trucks get here with better equipment to pull us up.”

  Carbon was silently stringing rope together and quickly tying knots. Once he was finished, he looped the rope around a large tree trunk and secured it. He moved to a nearby tree trunk and repeated the process.

  I watched in awe as my brothers worked as fast as they could to create a rudimentary rope rescue system from the items a few of us had on our bikes. I probably should have been watching Reese, trying to reassure her that help was on the way, but I just couldn’t. I wasn’t strong enough to look into those big green eyes filled with fear. I couldn’t stomac
h the thought of watching her plummet to her death if the car fell. I was scared and weak, and very much ashamed of myself, but that didn’t change anything.

  When the ropes were ready, Copper went to the edge of the drop-off and Carbon and Phoenix began to carefully lower him. More flashlights had materialized. I could clearly see Reese, and to my horror, I could clearly see blood. I started to turn away again, unable to watch the scene before me, when she said my name, “Duke.” That one word, my name, a broken sob, was filled with so much pain it almost brought me to my knees.

  I locked eyes with her. She placed her hand on the window, tears running down her face, and asked, “James?” She was on the verge of death and she was worried about our son.

  “He’s okay,” I rasped out.

  Her relief was visible. Her lips trembled with her next words, “I’m so sorry.”

  What could I say? I wanted to yell and scream at her. How could she have kept my son from me? If she hadn’t wrecked her car, how long would she have kept him from me? I couldn’t do that, though. There were more important things to focus on.

  I was still trying to formulate a response when Copper reached the car. Reese sobbed in earnest when she saw him. I’m not sure what Copper said to her, but she shook her head. He said something else and she shook her head again. The next thing Copper said was clearly heard, “You have to, Reesie Piecie. You have to!”

  She grimaced, clearly in pain, as she tried to move. She gingerly maneuvered her body and lowered the back of her seat. She looked to Copper, her face full of uncertainty. He nodded. She took in a breath and started crawling toward the back seat.

  The tree creaked and groaned with the shifting of the car. Where in the hell was the fire department? If they didn’t get here soon, we were going to have two casualties on our hands.

  Carbon shifted his weight and leaned to one side. Dash walked in a different direction, pulling firmly on the rope he was holding, while Phoenix held his rope steady. They were moving Copper toward the rear of the car. My heart was pounding, my chest tight, but I couldn’t take my eyes off of Reese.