Page 21 of Fire Meets Fire

Because I can protect you.Luckily, I prevent those weird words from coming out of my mouth. “Because we’re not finished with you yet. I want to know exactly how you accessed the shop, bypassed our security and managed to wheel out a bike.”There.I feel like fist pumping the air because I’ve made some sense.

“I can give you that info right here and now.”

“You could,” I agree, scrambling to come up with more. “But you could also work with us to keep people like yourself out of this, and our other businesses in the future.”

“A bitch as a fuckin’ security consultant?” Iron barks. He sweeps his hands back over his bald head and for a second, his piercing eyes stare at me. “Now I’ve heard everything.”

I’m more interested trying to read the expression on Helo’s face, but what I see makes me think I’m not likely to take her on in a game of poker. She could be carefully considering my proposal or already have dismissed it as a joke. She could also be plotting my death.

While my eyes are on her, I hear Bull telling Iron that this is no normal bitch, that her training and skills, as already demonstrated, might indeed have something to offer the MC. For a second, I want to hug my VP for seeing things my way, thenwant to slap myself upside the head. See? I’m already letting a bitch get to me.

I’m about ready to rescind my offer when her features suddenly unfreeze, forming a frown which is accompanied by a little shake of her head. “You want the bounty.”

For a second I’m nonplussed then I realise what she must mean. I feel heat come into my cheeks at the realisation she thinks so little of us, of me, before I accept she’s only our reputation to go on, and by preference, we’d rather appear like demons than angels.

There’s a tinge of ire in my voice as I rush to set her straight, snapping, “Ain’t going to fuckin’ snitch on you. Don’t fuckin’ care if you’re wanted by the feds.”

Bull coughs loudly, getting my attention, then he nudges me, indicating he wants to talk to me privately. Following him, I let him lead me a few steps away. Leaning to speak into my ear, he says, “You make a good point about the feds. Before we let her into our house, don’t you think we ought to know why she’s keeping her fuckin’ head down? If our digging has revealed her location, we could already have heat on our tail. Not sure I want to be caught harbouring a criminal. Or not when it’s not one of ours.”

No MC wants the feds’ attention. They’re always just one step away from slapping a RICO indictment down and the whole club ending up in prison. I stiffen, berating myself that my VP has had to give this lecture to me. I should have paid her the five hundred dollars I promised and let her walk away. He’s utterly right about not inviting trouble into our house and fuck it if that’s not what my dick wants to hear.

Iron joins us with a frown on his face. “Hear your concerns, VP, but look at the girl. Sure, she knows how to defend herself, but I don’t like the thought of a woman being on the run with no transport.” As sergeant-at-arms, he’s all about safety. But eventhough I should be relieved he’s thinking along the same lines as me, I can’t help eyeing him suspiciously, wondering what his interest is in her.

What the fuck is wrong with me?

“Look at her.” Iron jerks his head over his shoulder. Both the VP and I turn our heads. We catch her in an unguarded moment, when for once she’s looking unsure of herself, scanning her surroundings as if she’s waiting for someone to suddenly jump out. “Remember how she just passed out for no reason? If she has one of those attacks, she’d be vulnerable. Anyone could take advantage of her. I agree with Prez. Let’s get her back to the compound and give her some breathing space.”

“We could dump her back at MacPherson’s.” Fuck, I hate that that practical solution came from my mouth, but it would make sense. And, maybe, in the long run, be beneficial to my mental health.

“Nah.” Bull defiantly folds his arms. I suppress my sigh of relief. “There are a lot of unanswered questions. For one, I’d still like to know who she’s running from.”

“Find that out and we might be able to help,” Iron insists.

The VP snorts. “I was thinking more about heading off trouble coming our way.”

Pinching the bridge of my nose, I allow myself a moment to get my head straight. I’d be a piss-poor prez if I ignored what my righthand man had to say. Lowering my hand, I roll my shoulders. “Okay. Let’s see what she has to say.” Turning around, I look for Shitface. Spying him, I order, “Prospect, get this bike back inside, and start doing your fuckin’ work.” I take the few steps that brings me in front of the woman. “You, come with us into the office.”

“Why?”

“You don’t want to come to the clubhouse, so you can answer some questions here.” I read her reluctance and try to sweetenthe deal. “And it does seem I owe you five hundred dollars. I’ve got that in the office.”

I watch as she seems to eye up her chances. She’d given me a run for my money one-on-one, but her gaze peruses Bull and Iron, and then encompasses the other members of my crew standing close by. After a moment of calculating the odds which are clearly stacked against her, she dips her head, and starts to move into the garage.

She knows where the office is. Of course she does. With the number of times she’s robbed from us, the shop’s become her second home. I’ve no hesitation in taking Weasel’s manager seat behind his desk. Iron grabs a chair, and places it in front of the desk for her, while Bull stands behind her with folded arms.

Again with a cursory glance to consider her options, she takes the seat that’s been offered. I take a moment to study her. This is no ordinary woman, and I try to see beyond the short blonde hair that frames her delicate face, and focus away from her athletic form. I’d have previously said I’m a tits kind of guy, but despite her lacking a lot in that area, there’s something about how she’s put together that makes it hard for me to concentrate.

She’s no simple piece of ass. No, she’s one of the legendary Night Stalkers. That she’s got nerves of steel is a given. There’s no point in me coming straight out and asking her for information she doesn’t want to share. She’s been trained to withstand interrogation and torture. Push too hard and all I’ll get is name, rank and number. And only if she’s prepared to give me that.

If I want information out of her, I need to be clever. So instead of shooting straight for the heart of the matter, I ask her something easy to answer and deigned to make her relax. “How did you get in this time?”

Her cheeks puff then relax, as if she was expecting something harder, and her lips curve up. “I noticed an animal had starteddigging a burrow close by the fence. The earth was loose, easy to scoop more of it out and enough for me to squeeze underneath.” She pauses and grins. “The cameras don’t pan that low, so I crossed to the shop on my belly, undetected.”

I have to do no more than raise my brow toward Iron, who gives me a sharp nod. “I’ll go check it out.”

As he leaves the office, there’s no twitch on her face that would suggest what she’s told me is a lie, no expression of awkwardness that she’s going to be found out. I don’t doubt for a moment she’s telling me the truth.

“We need to put cameras at ground level?” I ask.

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