Page 15 of Jack

Shepherd lowers his head to meet her eyes. “She will be.”

Everly nods. She and her brother lock eyes. A flood of emotions overtakes them. They silently become each other’s strength. It’s always been this way between them. For a long time, one couldn’t be in a room if the other wasn’t there.

“Logan, why don’t you take your sister to the kitchen to Nanny?” I suggest. My Mom’s better at comforting Everly in moments like this.

Logan pushes off the table and takes his sister by the hand. “Come on, Evie. Let’s go find Nanny.”

Jay’s phone dings. He reads the text and pockets his phone. “We’re being summoned.”

I stand. My eyes follow Logan and Everly walking toward the clubhouse. “Shep?”

“You guys go ahead. I’ll follow them and make sure they get to your mom. I’ll meet you in the office.”

Shepherd doesn’t just follow. He catches up and walks with them.

Shepherd’s watchful eye is greatly appreciated. No one here would ever bother Everly. Logan would rip them apart if they touched her. Plus, she’s wearing a Property of Viking Warriors cut. All our young girls wear them at parties. It lets newcomers and visitors know this is one of our daughters. Touching one of these girls would get a man killed.

Jay and Coty follow me inside. A few brothers in our chapter have a path cleared to the hallway leading to Dad’s office. They stand side by side, creating a wall. They know an angel is here. I nod to each of them as I pass. This is the most important part of our charter. It’s also the part no one knows about but our patched members and their ole ladies. Well, there are a few outsiders who help us. Each of those people has been vetted for loyalty and has sworn their life to the cause and its secrecy.

I pause outside the office door. It takes a moment to mentally and emotionally prepare myself for what we’re about to walk in on. I haven’t done this in a long time. This is the first angel I’ll have seen in two years. Each one is different. Every single one of them is precious and deserves to be treated as such. When I’m prepared, I lightly knock on the door so the sound doesn’t spook our angel.

Worley Bird eases the door open and nods when he sees me. I push the door open and step inside with Jay and Coty right behind me. One look at our angel, even from behind, causes me to stumble back into Jay. His hands quickly reach out to steady me. I was wrong. I wasn’t prepared for her.

Chapter 7

__________

Lily

Whatever I was expecting, it sure wasn’t this. Who would have thought a secret, mysterious organization helping abused women was possible? Sure, I came to terms with that after meeting my three helpers. After learning this was a real organization, my mind pictured a dark, hidden underground room as their base of operations. Never in a million years would I have guessed the secret organization to be bikers.

Our eight-hour ride turned into nearly twelve. Shepherd is not a drive-straight-through type of guy. After arriving here, I can definitely picture him as a biker who loves to ride for the beauty and enjoyment of it. He stopped about once an hour for snacks, restroom breaks, and just to stretch our legs. He got gas at every stop whether we needed it or not. It was a good thing he did. A multi-car and truck pile-up on the interstate just outside of Memphis caused a two-hour delay.

The shock of realizing how wrong I was about all of this stunned me into silence when we pulled up to the fence around the building. Shepherd called ahead when we were about ten minutes away. He didn’t speak to the young biker at the guard house. The man simply nodded to Shepherd, opened the gate, and stood at attention like a soldier until we were safely through the gate.

I’m not sure exactly where we are in Tennessee. The hundred bikes in front of the building assure me this is a motorcycle club. This entire journey has been insane. Nothing should surprise me at this point. I’m not even sure if I should be alarmed when Shepherd passes the front lot and drives around to a private one on the right side of the building.

The side door opens the moment we park. Whoa. Are there no small bikers in this club? Surely there are. This man is as big as Shepherd and Andrew. He’s older but definitely not out of shape.

My door opens, causing me to jump and squeak. Shepherd lightly chuckles. I snap my head to the driver’s seat. Empty. When did he get out?

“Come on, Lily. Let’s get you inside.” He opens the back door and gets my bag.

Numbly and quietly, I walk with him to the open door. Is this man in the doorway Jacob? Should I say hello? I have no idea what I’m supposed to do. Nina could have explained things better.

“Worley Bird.” Shepherd nods to the man as we step inside.

Okay. He’s not Jacob. What kind of name is Worley Bird, though?

“Shepherd.” Worley Bird nods back. His eyes drop to me. “Hello, angel. Follow me.”

Sounds from a very lively party come from somewhere in the building. I walk between the two huge bikers down an emptyhallway. For the first time, I can study the emblem on the back of the man in front of me. I got glimpses of Shepherds when we stopped. This one looks to be the same. Do all biker emblems have this much detail? The sounds of the party fade as I get lost in the details of the design.

A shield with a Viking sits in the center of a set of golden wings. The wings are outlined and shaded in places with red. What appears to be banners or ribbons adorn the top and bottom. The top one says Viking Warriors MC. The bottom one says Tennessee. Shepherd’s bottom one says Texas. It’s the only thing I caught during one of our stops. I was too afraid to ask him if I could get a closer look at the design. There seems to be a deep red or burgundy glow around the wings. It’s absolutely beautiful.

The party must be around the corner. I don’t get to see it. Strangely enough, I want to. I have no idea what’s come over me. I’ve never been to a biker party. I’m led to a door on the right. Once again, what I was expecting the room to be isn’t what I find inside.

The office is huge. Naturally, there’s a wooden desk. Everything else takes me by surprise. The two chairs on this side look to be made of comfortable leather. A couch with a recliner on each side sits in both corners of the room closest to the door. The biggest surprise is the large window behind the desk. It becomes my focus point. Somehow, I find peace and comfort in the window. Yeah, my brain’s just that warped. Why a window removes my anxiety is beyond me.

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