Page 33 of Denial

“I’d be happy to go to lunch with you,” I tell her honestly as she steps back and closes my door for me.

Leaving the trailer park, I head back to the compound making sure to follow all the rules of the road so I don’t get pulled over on the way home with Ice in the back seat. When we tossed her into the backseat, I saw the bruising already forming on her temple and know she’s going to wake up with a nasty headache. It’s the least she deserves after all the shit she’s pulled over the years.

I’m paranoid and jerky the entire trip back to the clubhouse. Thankfully, I get there in one piece and don’t see any cops on the way there. I drive around the back of the clubhouse and park my car before shutting off the engine. I do find it weird that no one is on the gate when I pulled up, but if something is going on inside the clubhouse, then he could’ve been pulled to ensure that all hands were helping inside the building instead of watching the gate.

Getting out of my car, I’m not about to walk through the basement to get in the common room of the clubhouse. I’ve always hated basements and this one is no different. If anything it’s worse because I know the cells are down here and the hitman is already down there. I don’t want to be anywhere near the fucker or listen to anything he feels the need to see. After making sure Ice is still knocked out, I lock the doors of my car and take the keys with me. See, the thing about my car is the locks won’t unlock from the inside. For some reason, the button doesn’t work. Even if Ice wakes up, she won’t be able to get away because I have the keys in my hand and will only hand them over to one of the guys because I can’t involve the ol’ ladies in this.

As I walk around the clubhouse, I get the feeling that someone is watching me. Brushing it off as paranoia because of what I’ve just done, I ignore my gut feeling and continue walking without searching the area around me. It’s a mistake I tend not to make, but I should be safe on the compound with my entire family inside the building.

“Not a smart move to let a pretty thing like you out on your own,” a male voice says from behind me.

His voice is a harsh snarl and it sends chills through my entire body. Turning around, I face the man and am taken back. For the most part, he looks like the kind of man who rules a boardroom. The sneer and lifeless eyes he has are the only indicators that there is something very wrong with him. Backing up a step, I almost trip over my cane but manage to catch myself at the very last second.

“Who are you?” I ask him, knowing I’ve never seen this man before in my life.

“My name is Garrison. I’m sure if you mentioned it to someone you have inside, she’d tell you all about me. I believe you know my girlfriend, Morgan,” he answers me as I once again falter because this is the man who has abused her, held her hostage with others, and so many more vile things.

I open my mouth to scream when he rushes to stand in front of me. “I wouldn’t do that if I were you. Wouldn’t want anyone to get hurt more than they will in a matter of minutes. You’re coming with me. Now!”

“No, I don’t think I will. See, if you take me, then you’ll have two clubs on your ass. And one of those clubs is filled with my dad and uncles. Men who raised me and taught me everything they know. So, I’m not sure that you really wanna take me from the compound,” I state hoping that someone will come outside and see what’s going on.

“Everyone is preoccupied right now. And it’s not because of anything I did. You can thank yourself for the distraction this time. See, you might have eliminated all the cameras and bugs from the compound, but I still have eyes inside. Now that the girls are back, my contact has let me know that everyone is searching for you. I’ve been watching and more than a few guys have already come outside and searched the parking lot and grounds for you. Now they’re back inside thinking that they’ve somehow missed you. By the time anyone thinks to check the security system, I’ll be long gone with you,” Garrison states, a cocky smugness to his voice that grates on my nerves almost as much as Ice’s voice does.

“Again, I’m not going to go anywhere with you. See, I’ve seen what you do to the women you’re around and I’ve been beaten enough lately. Becker made sure of that,” I state as Garrison’s eyes widen and I realize that he knows Becker somehow. There’s just the briefest hint of recognition before he quickly slips that blank mask back down in place.

“Don’t give a fuck what you’ve been through. See, I need a way to get my woman back and it’s going to take me forcing the club’s hand in doing so. You might not be an ol’ lady yet, but you sure as fuck are a club brat. From what I’ve heard, your dad is a fucking lunatic and will go to any lengths to get you back. This means that I’ll get what I want and you’ll get brought back home without too much damage done to you,” Garrison states as if he truly knows anything about my family, especially my dad.

“See, that’s where you’re wrong. You think my dad is just gonna hand over anything you want because you tell him you’ve got me. My dad is a fucking beast when one of his girls are hurt. To know that you’ve taken me for your own selfish gain, and he’ll do absolutely nothing you want him to do. And everyone in the club will back him up because he’s been a loyal member for most of his life. That’s something I’m sure you know nothing about if you have to resort to taking one woman just to try to blackmail others into giving you a woman who wants nothing to do with you,” I taunt him, knowing I’m only poking the bear and probably making a huge mistake in the long run, but it’s the best thing I can think to do right now.

“I’ll take my chances. If I have to keep you long-term, I’ll just end up selling you to the highest bidder. Either way, you won’t be a burden to me for very long. I’m not playing fucking games with you,” Garrison growls out before he raises his fist and lands one solid punch to my temple.

Instantly my vision begins to blur and I know I’m not going to remain conscious for very long. I try to open my mouth to scream, but nothing comes out. Garrison’s dark laughter is the last thing I hear before I’m pulled completely under into the black abyss. This time there aren’t any thoughts of my family, Jinx, or anything else. I welcome the escape because for the first time in weeks I don’t feel any pain or deep muscle aches from the strain I’ve been under with therapy.

Chapter Twenty-One

Jinx

EVERYONE HAS BEEN searching for Hope all over the compound and inside the clubhouse. She went with the ol’ ladies and kids when Vault cleared out the clubhouse so we could talk about shit but now she’s missing. Gwen and Faith told us Hope started back before everyone so she could run up to the bedroom and get changed before we all had dinner together. None of us saw her enter the clubhouse or go upstairs at all. King and Fox are currently going through the footage from the security cameras to see if they can follow her movements but they’re having a hard time pulling anything up. While the cameras weren’t shut down, there is something wrong with the feed. I have no clue what they’re talking about because I don’t know about computers and all the shit my best friend does when he’s working. Still, I always try to listen and figure out what’s going on because it’s only going to help us as a club for more of us to understand what the hell King is talking about when he goes off on one of his tangents.

“Guys, you need to check this shit out,” Deegan calls out, racing into the clubhouse from outside as I stand from the table with Killer.

Killer and I just came in and sat down for a second to try and figure out more places to search for our girl. We follow Deegan outside and I once again don’t spot Hope’s car in the parking lot with the rest of the bikes and vehicles. That was the first thing I looked for when Killer and I went outside because she wouldn’t walk anywhere with how sore she’s been. We didn’t see it and thought she might have gone to the store or something and forgot to tell anyone. Hope isn’t like that, but things happen so it was a possibility in my mind and it’s the one that gave me hope that she was still here somewhere and nothing had happened to her.

A group of us follows Deegan outside and walk around the clubhouse to the back where we unload the stupid fucks who screw the club over. Sitting just in front of the door is Hope’s car and it’s not empty. I can see someone thrashing around inside and wonder what the fuck is going on. Killer and I step up to the car and I startle when Killer starts laughing his ass off. It’s so loud I’m surprised his laughter isn’t echoing off the clubhouse to fill the air around us even more.

“What’s so fuckin’ funny?” Vault asks, pissed that we can’t find Hope anywhere as he steps up next to us.

“Seems my girl was listenin’ in to our conversation for at least a little while,” Killer says as I realize what, or who, I’m looking at in the back of Hope’s car. “She delivered that stupid skank directly to our door. It still doesn’t explain where my daughter is, but I’m gonna guess this is Ice.”

“That’s definitely Ice,” I state as Killer steps up and tries to open the backdoor of Hope’s car.

The door doesn’t open and I look to the front, noticing the doors have been locked. Killer isn’t gonna get the doors open because I know there’s something messed up with the locks on Hope’s car. For some reason, you can lock them with the button on the inside, but the only way to get back in her car is with the keys. I immediately start searching the ground around the car for her keys.

“What are you lookin’ for, Jinx?” Vault asks me with a smile on his face.

“There’s somethin’ wrong with the locks on her car. We need the keys to open the doors. Even if the bitch inside presses the button to unlock the doors, they won’t open. She kept meanin’ to make an appointment at the garage to get it fixed, but didn’t get around to it. I should’ve made the damn appointment myself, but we weren’t together and I knew she wouldn’t appreciate if I just randomly made her one,” I answer my President while continuing to search for her keys.

“Everyone look for Hope and her keys. Bring them to Killer or Jinx the second you find them,” Vault orders everyone outside as I hear the guys start looking for any sign of them.

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