Page 9 of Absolution

“And you think she’s Ricca?”

“I didn’t at first, until I found this.”

Voodoo’s hand slides from the bar top to his back pocket as a white piece of paper materializes. He slowly unfolds it and lays it out on the bar top for me. Lying before me is a copy of an old black and white photograph from what I can only assume is a yearbook. I scan the faces in each square and smack dab in the middle of the page, I see her. No longer a blonde, but even a different hair color couldn’t hide the face I’ve studied far more than I care to admit, while she slept in my room. Her crescent-shaped, dark eyes that hide the pain behind them and her heart shaped lips blare like a spotlight from the page.

“That’s her, right?” Voodoo questions.

I stare a few seconds longer, before I nod in agreement.

“Look at the name, Ratchet.”

My eyes fall away from her beautiful face to the words written beneath the photograph.

“Erica Abigail Delmont,” I read out loud. Fuck, at least she didn’t lie to me about her middle name.

“The same name listed a survivor in the obituary.”

Relief rushes over me knowing that for the first time in months that I may know where she is, and I’m one step closer to having her back in my life or at least I hope she will be. Unlike any of the other women that have been in my life, Ricca understands the way I tick and after the things I’ve done, that’s not exactly easy to come by.

“Do you know where she is?”

“Like I said, it’s a small town in Kentucky, but having confirmation that this is in fact her real name, it shouldn’t take much longer for me to really pinpoint her location. Give me a few more days, and I’ll drum up whatever I can. We’ll find her brother, even if I have sell what’s left of my soul to the information black market devil himself. His name is Steve, by the way. Horrible guy. You’d probably like him though.”

Voodoo slides from his chair and heads back to his office with the photo in hand. I know he’ll work his tech magic on finding out more information, but knowing her real name alongside the revelation of her mother’s death has only opened a question can of worms. Jesus, was I that stupid to think that she was being up front and honest with me? What else could she be hiding? A kid? A husband? The possibilities of betrayal could be endless, and here I am playing the lost puppy seeking its old master in hopes that maybe she is the girl for me. But lies or not, I will find her, even if its just to make sure that she’s okay in her new life away from me and the club.

With Voodoo working on finding out the information I need, I have only two things left to do, talk to Raze about leaving and getting my ass on the road. The latter I know will take a few days as Voodoo suggested, but I think it’s time to put a check mark next to the first one right now. Pushing away from the bar, I stalk to Raze’s office, but find it empty. With his newly expanded family with Darcy at home, he doesn’t spend as much time here at the clubhouse as he used to when Maj was still around. Not that I blame him for trying to stay away from that crazy bitch that was his ex-wife. May the devil have no mercy on her fucking soul, but it would be fucking nice if he were around a bit more in times like this.

“You need something?” Hero asks, from the doorway of his office. “I heard footsteps and I thought it was Raze coming back from getting the boys from day camp.”

“Day camp?” I question with a cocked-brow.

“Never thought I’d hear Raze and day camp in the same sentence before, but hey, it is what it is as long as the man is happy in his new domestic arrangement,” Hero says with a smile and a shrug of his shoulders. “You need something, Ratch?”

While I am almost certain the entire club knows at least in part about my situation with Ricca, Raze is the only one who knows the extent of my pursuit outside of Voodoo. While I normally don’t hide a damn thing from my brothers, this is different. I may be a cold-hearted son of a bitch when it comes to club business, but having a weakness being paraded out for all of my brothers to see, isn’t exactly my kind of party. It doesn’t help the fact that Ricca played a part in Dani’s near fatal introduction into the Twisted Tribe world. Dani may have forgiven her, but I doubt Hero will ever follow suit.

“It’s nothing. Just needed to talk to the Prez about some time off.”

Hero cocks his eyebrow, waiting on me to elaborate.

“You going on a trip?” He questions me, with a look of suspicion on his face.

“Something like that,” I stammer slightly. “Raze and I had talked about it a few months back, but club business got in the way. Not sure how long I will be gone, but with that giant you picked up, I’m sure you’ll have enough coverage for the club and the security teams. I just wanted to let him know that I was going ahead with my plans is all.”

“How soon are you leaving?” Hero inquires further, while analyzing my body language. For a military guy, he sure doesn’t know how to hide what he’s doing, but then again, he knows this isn’t my typical behavior.

“A couple of days. Just waiting on a few more things to fall into place, before I take off.”

Hero looks me over one more time, before he nods.

“I’ll let the Prez know when he gets back. I hope the trip is worth the time off,” he mumbles, before heading back into the office.

“Me too,” I mutter to myself. “Me too.”

Turning on my heels, I head off to my room to start packing for my trip. Between stuffing my saddlebags and checking my stash of cash, I begin to debate with myself whether or not I am making a huge mistake by wasting so much energy on a woman who left as soon as my back was turned. As much as I want to admit defeat, I can’t push the drive and will to find her out of my head. It’s almost as if she is calling to me like a siren singing wayward boatmen to our deaths, but like them, I can’t resist the chance of seeing her again.

Ready or not, Ricca. Here I come.

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