Page 58 of Jacked and Jaded

“Thanks. I will.” He squatted to Ryker’s level. “Gimme a hug, buddy, so I can hit the road.”

Ryker launched himself at Jackson this time. “We’re going to have to work on this whole tackling people thing.” He wrapped his arms around him and kissed his cheek. “You have a good time at the beach and you listen to your mom and Carlos. Do not go running off on your own. You stay with them at all times. Got it?”

“Yes. Got it.” Ryker nodded his head.

“Love you, buddy. Have fun.” Jackson was treated to a tight hug around his neck and he soaked it in. He loved it when Ryker squeezed him tight with those little arms. He wasn’t stupid. One day in the not so distant future, his son wouldn’t want to give him hugs and that would be a day that would break his heart.

He rose to his feet and said goodbye to Zoey. “Be careful and if you guys need anything at all, don’t hesitate to call me.”

“Got it. Bye, Jackson.”

He hopped in his truck and made his way to the clubhouse. As he took his seat and leaned back in his chair, he was grateful to see he wasn’t the last one to show up. He’d had a busy morning already and he wondered if his day was about to get a lot busier. He and the other brothers would find out soon. Trick was the last to arrive as he took his seat across the table from Jackson.

“All right, now that everyone is here, let’s get this started. First order of business, there have been no more shipment hijackings since Chance took care of the two men in his club.”

That was great news.

“The second order of business, the new clubhouse will be ready to move into in two weeks. We’ll need everyone to move your own shit from your old rooms to your new ones. Everyone will need to chip in and help move everything in the bar and kitchen. I expect everyone to be here for that.”

There was a round of various forms of agreements around the table. Getting everyone to help out would never be a problem. The club worked well as a group.

“The next order of business comes from Jackson.” He motioned for him to take the floor.

“As you all know by now, my woman, Calliope, was beaten and raped by her ex boyfriend, Clint Maxwell. I’ve tried to be patient and let the police do their thing. I’m done waiting. Calliope is going nuts being forced to stay home or have a bodyguard everywhere she goes. She’s starting to feel like a prisoner despite knowing what we’re doing is for her safety. I’ve been getting info from our contacts in Boulder and I want to make a move. I want to kidnap his ass and bring him to the safe house. I want justice for Calliope so she can live free again without worrying about that asshole popping up out of nowhere. I’d appreciate the club’s help with this.” He looked every man in the eye and got a nod of agreement from every single one. The Sons of Redemption did not tolerate anyone hurting one of their own and as soon as Jackson claimed her, she was part of their family.

“Some of you might not know her friend Bellamy, but some of you met her last night. This dickhead burned her business down because she wouldn’t tell him where Calliope had moved to. She didn’t know, but she wouldn’t have given her up even if she had.”

“We’re all in. What do you have in mind?” Race asked from the head of the table. He was kicked back in his big office chair, but even from where Jackson was sitting he could see how tense he was.

Before he could lay out his plan, they were interrupted by an urgent knock on the door. One of the prospects, Lance, stuck his head in the door. “I’m sorry to interrupt, but Jackson, your phone has been ringing nonstop for the last five minutes. Thought it might be important.” He waved the phone around.

Jackson was up and across the room in seconds. He took the phone from him and it immediately started ringing again. The caller ID showed it was his man in Boulder. “Hello?”

“Thank God. I’ve been trying to call you. Your guy is on the move. My man was following him. He was on the road headed your way last night when he pulled over at a rest stop thirty minutes out of Redemption. He got the jump on my man, hit him in the head. He just woke up in the hospital and called me to warn me. Your guy’s in a rental.”

“Thanks. Appreciate it.” Jackson hung up and turned to face the table. “It looks like Clint might already be here. He headed this way last night. He was being tailed. He somehow got the jump on our guy, ended up putting him in the hospital. The guy just woke up to warn us.”

His heart jumped in his chest when his phone started to ring in his hand again. Chris’s name popped up. “Chris?”

“No. It’s Bellamy. I’m locked in a closet with Chris. Clint showed up and hit Chris in the head. He’s not waking up and there’s blood.” She was crying and making it hard for him to understand what she was saying. The one thing he did catch turned his blood cold. “He has Calliope and I can hear him yelling at her in the other room.”

“Bellamy, I’m on my way. Hang on. I’ll be there in less than ten minutes.” Jackson hung up. “Clint’s at my house. He hurt Chris, locked him and Bellamy in a closet and he has Calliope somewhere in the house yelling at her.”

Everyone rushed from the room and jumped on their bikes. Jackson jumped into his truck and wished he had his bike. If he had it, there wasn’t any kind of traffic that could get in his way. Someone or something must have been looking out for him because he was lucky enough to hit every green light on his way there. He had a few close calls when someone thought they could pull out in front him.

He slowed his truck and parked at the neighbor’s, his brothers killing their bikes and parking farther down. They were all running down the sidewalk to catch up with him. As a group they fanned out and circled the house.

Calliope and Bellamywere sitting at the kitchen table, listening to stories about Chris’s childhood. Some of the things he and his brothers got into were crazy. She couldn’t believe they survived their childhood. It made her wish she’d had at least one brother or sister to get into trouble with as she was growing up. Hopefully, Jackson would want more children and they could give Ryker a younger sibling. She was turning to bring the coffee pot to the table to give everyone a refill when the back door crashed open, glass shattering, wood splintering and banging off the wall.

The sudden loud noise startled her so bad, she screamed and dropped the coffee pot, hot coffee and glass going everywhere. Everything happened as if in slow motion. Chris tried to stand, but was knocked to the floor when Clint swung a ball bat at his head. She and Bellamy both screamed as they watched him hit the floor, unconscious. They could already see blood on his head and pooling on the floor. She prayed that he was all right and Clint didn’t do any permanent damage.

He backhanded Bellamy, knocking her into the wall. “Shut up! Both of you, shut the fuck up, now!” He pointed a gun a Bellamy, then turned it on Calliope. She was shaking so hard, she feared her legs would go out from under her. She was paralyzed with fear. Clint had found her. He had hurt her friends. She knew she needed to do something, but her mind was like a blank slate. All it could focus on was how badly he’d hurt her last time.

Clint moved around the kitchen, searching drawers for Lord knew what. Not finding what he wanted, he swore. “Where’s the nearest closet?”

She was so frightened, she couldn’t find her voice. Her inability to answer him right away earned Bellamy another slap across the face. “I can do this all day long, Calliope. Where is the closest fucking closet?”

“I—in the bedroom.” Calliope pointed down the hall toward Bellamy’s room. The guestroom was the closest one she could think of.

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