Page 20 of Cheshire

“Thank you,” she whispered, her voice trembling.

“We protect our own,” I replied, feeling an unexpected pang of tenderness toward the frightened woman. “And that includes you.”

“Listen up,” Hatter called out, as he surveyed the damage around us. “We may have won this battle, but the war’s far from over. Mayor Davis and Sheriff Holmes will keep coming at us, harder and stronger each time. We need to be ready.”

“Damn right,” Absolem agreed. “Let’s clean this mess up and take a breather before we have to jump back into the thick of it.”

“Underland MC stands strong,” I declared, meeting each of my brothers’ gazes in turn. “We won’t let them tear us apart. We’ll bring justice to those bastards -- together.”

As we began to clean up the wreckage, I looked around the room and spotted Jo coming in from the kitchen. I urged Eliza to go to her and helped my brothers with the mess the fight had left behind. I’d have to talk to Eliza and come up with a plan for future events like this. If it happened again, I needed to know she was hidden somewhere safe.

* * *

The women were tucked into bed, and the rest of us were once more focused on what we needed to do next. There wouldn’t be any rest or fun until we’d handled this problem.

“I’m here if anyone needs me or has questions, but like I’ve said before, Cheshire has point on this one. So I’ll let him assign the tasks,” Hatter said.

I scanned the room. “Knave, I need you to track down connections between Sheriff Holmes and any other criminal organizations he’s tied to.”

“The Pres and March, I need you two to investigate any properties or assets linked to Holmes. There has to be something hidden that can help us build our case against him.”

“Absolem, keep digging into his financial backers,” I continued. Absolem nodded, his brow furrowed. He knew if we could track all the money, we might be able to cut off his finances and leave him hobbled.

“Lastly, Rabbit, you’re going to use your skills to gather intel from the streets. We don’t know who else might be involved with this scum, so we need ears everywhere.”

“What about me?” Carpenter asked.

“I want you to work with Jo and Eliza on some self-defense and find them places to hide if something like today’s fight happens again. I think we’ll all be able to focus more if we know they’re safe.”

“On it,” he said.

“And me?” Mock asked.

“I need you to rotate through everyone with a specific task and help as needed.” Mock gave me a brisk nod.

“Am I chopped liver?” Tweedle asked. “Makes me think I’m fucking useless or something.”

“I want you on standby to watch over the women. I can’t think of a more important task,” I said.

“Fine.” Tweedle looked aggravated, but I could tell my words had pleased him.

“Let’s get to it!” I commanded, and the room erupted in action.

As we split up and set our plan in motion, I could feel the tension in the air. We were walking a dangerous tightrope, navigating a treacherous world of underground crime and corruption. One misstep could cost us everything.

* * *

I could feel my heart pounding in my chest as I slipped into the darkened office of one of Holmes’ associates, rifling through drawers and files for any incriminating information. The acrid scent of stale cigar smoke hung heavy in the air.

“Got something,” Rabbit whispered into my earpiece, his voice barely audible above the hum of traffic outside. “Just spotted a meeting between some of Holmes’ men and a couple of guys from out of town. Looks like they’re making a deal. I can’t be one hundred percent sure, but it looked like cash was handed off.”

“Stay on them,” I ordered, my fingers gripping the edge of the desk as I strained to hear any noise that might signal someone approaching. “We need to know who we’re up against, aside from the locals.”

“Understood,” he replied.

There was no room for mistakes, no chance for second-guessing. We were all in this together, each member of the Underland MC playing their part in the fight for justice. And as we delved deeper into the shadows, uncovering the depths of Sheriff Holmes’ criminal empire, I knew we were inching closer to our goal -- and there would be no turning back.

* * *

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