Page 160 of Golden Atonement

“No, they can’t,” Smoke muttered.

“Well, someone did. If it wasn’t Pops, then who the fuck kept gathering information?” Player snarked.

Looking at the big goof, I asked, “Where exactly did you guys find the damn thumb drive? You were with Ghost when he found it, right?”

Massacre sighed, leaning back in his chair. “Yep. It was me, Bayou, Shadow, Hammer, and Ghost. We’d been on the road so long by the time we actually found what Pops hid, we didn’t really care anymore. All of us were tired of the never-ending road. So much happened during that time, some shit I never want to remember.”

“Where Massacre?” Bullseye growled.

The man blinked, then said, “New York City.”

“Shit,” Matrix groaned.

Player piped up, “Do you think Montana knows?”

Phantom shook her head. “I don’t think so. Last I heard, he’s more concerned about his own ghost files.”

“That still doesn’t answer my question.”

“I don’t know, Player,” Phantom snarked. “If you haven’t noticed, I’ve been kind of busy lately. Reaper wants all those fucking files opened and it’s taking time.”

“He doesn’t know,” I said, leaning forward, placing my hands on the table.

“How can you be sure, Remi?” Ink asked.

“Because if he did, we’d have heard about it by now,” I replied, turning to Bullseye and asking, “When was the last time you spoke to her?”

“When Sal took them away. After the shit went down with Ascari and theSociety. Last I heard, Sypher erased their identities and gave them new ones. She was safe somewhere in Maine.”

“Then how the fuck did they find her?” Matrix asked.

Sighing, I looked at Lena. “The files on the thumb drive. Are they in any particular order?”

Shaking her head, Phantom replied, “No. It’s like a jigsaw puzzle. Don’t know what I’m getting until I open it up. There is no rhyme or reason to them. It’s almost like Pops never intended them to be opened.”

“That makes no sense,” Matrix stated. “Then why gather the information?”

“Look,” I began. “We don’t have time to sit here and debate why James Doherty did what he did. All we know is he left this club with a lot of information that still needs to be decoded. And right now, we need to confirm that the file Phantom just decoded is correct. Because if it is, Max is going to lose his shit.”

“So will I,” Bullseye muttered.

“Then you need to call Sypher,” Ink informed.

Looking at the brother, I frowned. “Why me?”

“Because you are the next best thing to Reaper. You know everything. Until he returns, you are in charge.”

“Oh no,” I said, shaking my head. “I’m not a board member or a patched brother. I’m just the wife.”

“No,” Sandman growled, stepping out of the shadows. “You are more than that and you know it.”

“Look, everyone. I understand the gravity of this situation, but I don’t see what I can do. I’m not the president of this club. Ican only do so much. In fact, Bullseye, with Max gone, you make all the decisions.”

“You don’t want me making this one, Remi,” Bullseye stated. “Because it’s taking everything in me right now not to grab my rifle and go hunting.”

“Remi, just call Sypher.” Ink sighed as Bullseye slid his cell phone toward me. Picking it up, I saw he’d already pulled up the number. After hitting the connect button, I placed the phone on speaker so all of us could hear.

“Hey, cuz.” Sypher’s voice filled the room. “What’s up?”

---