Page 24 of Hatter

“Better dig fast, brothers.” I locked eyes with each of them. “If not, we may not make it out of this unscathed.”

I saw Rabbit from the corner of my eye, doing his anxious pacing and glancing my way here and there.

“Got something to say, Rabbit?”

He nodded, quick and jerky. “Town’s got more eyes than a freak show, Hatter. Been seeing the same cars, circling like vultures.”

“License plates?” I pressed.

“Out of state. And they aren’t tourists,” he added with certainty. “Two have passed by our clubhouse a little too frequently for it to be a coincidence, which means either Eddie knows Jo is here, or he’s watching us to see if we can be bought.”

“Shit. All right, listen up. We’re on lockdown. No one rides solo and keep your heads on a swivel.”

“We need a Church,” March said. “Like other clubs. Somewhere we can talk without worrying about prying ears. Officers only for the most part.”

“Point taken.” I scanned the room and saw Jo playing a game of pool with Knave. “We’ll sort it out. But first, we strategize. Eddie’s reach is long. Rabbit, you’re our eyes. Keep tracking those vehicles.” I turned to March. “You got the muscle. Make sure everyone’s ready for whatever’s coming. Even if that means calling in reinforcements.”

“I’m always ready,” March replied.

“Absolem,” I continued, “dig deeper. Any dirt you find on Eddie, we use it. Hell, see what you can find on his closest people. Maybe we can find something to turn them against each other.”

“Can do, boss.”

“Meeting’s over. Get to work.” They each nodded, and both Rabbit and March walked off.

We weren’t set up for this sort of thing. Partly my fault. I’d been so focused on building a relationship with the people in town, and letting them know we were here to help, that I hadn’t focused on turning this place into a fortress. That should have been my first step. I’d fucked up, and I hoped we weren’t all going to pay for that mistake.

Even when we’d heard whispers of other clubs wanting to move into this area, we’d handled it without much issue. But this time, things were different. This was on a much bigger scale than anything we’d seen since moving to Warren.

We needed to know every move Eddie made, as well as anyone tied to him. I also wanted to know if he was suspicious about Jo’s location. The man hadn’t tried to bribe us before now, so I didn’t think that’s why he was watching this place. No, it had to be because of Jo.

I’d need to call in some favors to get this done right. I flipped open the burner phone I kept in case of emergency, punching in a sequence of numbers I had memorized long ago. The line rang twice before a voice answered -- a voice that brought back memories of hell on earth.

“What is it?”

“Nicky, it’s Hatter. I need to call in that favor.”

There was a pause on the other end. “What’s the ask?”

“Reinforcements. Eddie Lewis has Warren in his pocket, as well as mob ties, and I think he’s coming for us. Or more specifically, he’s coming for his ex, who I have here at the clubhouse.”

“Resources are tight.” Nicky’s reply was terse, code for “This isn’t charity.”

“Name your price,” I said.

“Will do. Stand by for confirmation.”

The call ended with a click. I stared at the device in my hand, knowing that whatever help they could send wouldn’t come without a steep cost. But this was about survival -- ours, and Jo’s. And you couldn’t put a price on that.

* * *

A couple of days later, things were tenser than ever. The whole place was humming like a live wire, everyone on edge. I watched Rabbit nervously tapping his fingers on the table, eyes darting to the windows every few seconds.

“Stop it,” March said, his hand slamming onto the table as he turned to Rabbit. “You’re making everyone jittery.”

Rabbit didn’t even have time to respond. The scrape of chairs and the surge of movement made my adrenaline spike, and I was on my feet in an instant, ready for combat.

But it wasn’t an attack.

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