Page 9 of Taming the Demon

“We’ll keep you safe,Chief,” Slade said.

Cyrus got even closer to Chief Dick. He showed his teeth.

“We promise…”

They arrived at the cabin in the woods less than an hour later. When Chief Dick ordered them to hang back, the outlaws didn’t listen. They pulled out their weapons and walked toward the cabin, ready for a fight.

All Chief Dick could do was run his hands through his hair again. He wasn’t sure what he was more pissed off about—havingSOFRAWready to start a war or the fact that he had been mid-blow job from a beautiful stripper when things got interrupted.

None of that mattered now.

Cyrus took the lead and both Slade and Darrow had to get in front of him. They respected that their President wanted to be the lead, but they had to protect him. Darrow was the one who kicked the door open. Slade entered first, gun in hand, eyes searching. Cyrus entered last, behind Darrow.

A smell hits Cyrus’s nose. “Fuck.”

“Yeah,” Darrow said. “Something is wrong here. Hang back a second,Prez.”

Slade looked around the trashed kitchen. Beer bottles, some intact and some broken, littered around. Whiskey bottles too. The table flipped on its side. But that smell…

As soon as Slade stepped into the living room, he froze. “Fuck!”

Cyrus hurried right by Darrow to get into the living room area. Darrow chased him. The three outlaws stood shoulder to shoulderto shoulderand couldn’t believe their eyes. Behind them Chief Dick pushed his way through.

“Oh, fuck,” Chief Dick said.

Now all four stood there, staring down at a man only Chief Dick knew.

“He’s yours?” Cyrus asked.

“Yeah,” Chief Dick said. “Safe to say he’s the one who had been working your rat.”

The detective had his wrists tied at the front of his body. His ankles tied up. A gag wrapped around his mouth. His eyes were open, milky and gray.Dead eyesthat just looked up, not seeing a thing. He looked stiff. He smelled like bodily waste too.

“Fitz was here,” Cyrus said. “He must have come right here after attacking Priest. Looking for a deal? Looking for shelter? Something went wrong. Or maybe it went right.”

“He lost his fucking mind,” Slade said.

“He lost his mind long before this,” Darrow said.

“This is going to be a big problem,” Chief Dick said.

“For you,” Cyrus said. “This will not reflect back on the club. And it will not stop us from finding what is ours and handling it internally. Find a story to tell, Chief Dick.”

Cyrus patted Chief Dick’s back. Cyrus then nodded to Slade and Darrow. They exited the cabin and each helped themselvesto a breath of fresh air that didn’t stink like stale beer and fresh death.

Cyrus rubbed his chin. Then he looked right at Darrow.

“Find her,” Cyrus said. “Find Mara right now.”

Darrow nodded.

What else was he supposed to do right now?

Chapter Four

Like Skipping Stones

Mara stood in the kitchen, her hips swaying to a song that wasn’t playing out loud for the world to hear. She filled an actual wineglass only halfway. The microwave to her right counted down and she licked her lips, her tastebuds ready to celebrate the taste of the hot, buttery popcorn. Donning her body was simply aSOFRAWT-shirt. Tonight was the kind of night that did not require a bra—Thank fucking God for that!

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