Page 44 of Sinners MC: A MC Anthology

I practiced my lines as well as possible. Tanner helped me with everything I had to ask Crow to get him to confess, and Wilder was there with me for support. He also helped me seem more confident, so Crow wouldn’t be suspicious.

Three days had passed, and I was sitting in Tanner’s car with him and Wilder a few blocks away from Crow’s home. He gave me a new car key, which hid a tiny camera. He told me to put in on the coffee table or wherever it would get a good shot of Crow. I was also wired, so I had to make sure he wouldn’t try to take my clothes off.

I had texted him a few hours before and asked if he’d be okay with me coming over for a while to spend some time. That wasn’t too sketchy, and he luckily agreed.

I was nervous, but I knew that at least four of the guys from the MC would observe the house in case something happened or I needed help. We decided on a safe word, and when I’d say that word, Tanner would hear and knock on Crow’s door.

“Redwood,” I repeated quietly, and Wilder squeezed my thigh.

“You’ll be fine. I know you can do it,” he said, motivating me to frame my, well, ex-boyfriend, I guess.

I looked at him with a smile that didn’t meet my eyes, and he leaned over to kiss my forehead. “Ready?” he asked, and I nodded with hesitation.

“We’ll be right here,” Tanner said, and I stepped out of the car, holding the fake car key tightly in my hand.

Before I walked up the path to Crow’s door, I turned one last time to look at Wilder. He gave me a nod, then lifted the corner of his mouth, encouraging me even more.

I had no idea what was going on between us. I missed him, even though he was close every day. I wanted him to hold me when Crow had his arms wrapped around me, proudly displaying me in front of the whole club. But Wilder was the only one I wanted.

As I reached the door, I took a deep breath and rang the doorbell. Just a second later, Crow opened the door with a cigarette in his mouth and an annoyed look on his face.

“Hi,” I said, but I wasn’t sure he heard it.

“You okay?” he asked, letting me inside.

“Yes, you?”

He shrugged, and with his lack of enthusiasm, I was suddenly more confident about the whole mission.

Chapter Eleven

Kiplyn

I set down the key on the coffee table, making sure the camera in it pointed directly toward Crow, who sat down on the couch. He looked at his phone while I sat down next to him, keeping a little distance between us.

“How was your day?” I asked to ease into a conversation with him.

“Okay. Had some shit to handle.”

I nodded, looking down at my hands and picking at the skin on my fingers. I was used to this. Usually, when I came here unannounced, he used that chance to take me to bed. We didn’t talk much, not lately.

Since this quietness didn’t get me anywhere, I decided to start with the questions I’d implanted into my brain before coming here.

“A friend of mine accidentally started a fire in her home.” I chuckled to make it seem like it was a funny story and not a way to get to his secret. “She burned down her whole bookshelf. I would be so upset if that happened to me,” I said.

He let out a laugh, but it didn’t seem authentic. “Shit happens.”

I nodded, looking back down at my hands. “I’ve played with matches in my room before when I was little. I can’t imagine how fast something would catch on fire. Just by accident.”

“There’s a small chance that you’ll light shit on fire with one fucking match. To create chaos, you’ll need something better than that.”

How was I already going in the right direction? Tanner told me that it could take hours to finally get the conversation to a point where he would confess.

“Have you tried before? I mean…did you ever try and make a big fire? I once saw a huge bonfire by the lake. Some college kids lit it.”

Crow nodded and put his phone away, finally looking me in the eyes. “There are lots of things I’ve tried.” But that was all he said. “Are you hungry?” he asked.

Great. He changed the subject.

---