Page 31 of Dangerously Deceptive

“Kellan, listen to me very carefully. Take out your wallet and put enough on the table to cover whatever you have ordered, plus a twenty-euro tip. They sound like they have earnt every bit of it. Then you are going to stand up, without causing any more commotion. You are going to apologise to that little old lady who has done nothing wrong, don’t even think about arguing with me on this one, Kel. You are then going to apologise to the manager and walk out of the cafe. Once you are outside, I want you to ring me straight back. Do not deviate from this plan in any way, and for fuck’s sake, do not get yourself into any more trouble. Once you are outside of the cafe, we will come up with a plan, I promise. But, get out of there now before you get kicked out and banned for life. Understood?”

I don’t know which part of his little speech gets my attention, I suspect it was the ‘banned for life’ part. I can hardly keep coming here and wait for Shayla if I'm banned. Because that is exactly what I plan on doing. I will be here each and every day, waiting for her, until she finally gets here. She has only ever seen me at the motel, which is obviously not where I live. With the exception of my number on the phone she no longer appears to have, she has no other way of getting in touch with me. So, I have to be ready to wait until whenever she decides to come.

I do as Liam instructed, leaving well over the twenty-euro tip. I manage to kill two birds with one stone as the manager reaches the old lady at the same time, so I’m able to apologise to them both together.

“I apologise for my rudeness and bad language. I got some bad news today, and have had lots of family issues to deal with. None of that is your problem, but you caught me in the middle of a very bad day. I can only apologise. Please allow me to pay for this lovely lady’s drinks, there should be more than enough here. I’m going to go now. Sorry,” I explained to them both, handing over a few more notes to cover the battleaxe’s drinks, before walking out of the cafe.

Looking left, right, then straight on, I really have no idea which way I should go. One will lead back to my bike and home, but the other will lead to the compound. Instead, I head to the left, the only remaining option, and find the nearest bench to sit on before calling Liam.

“Why isn’t she here, Lee?” I ask Liam as soon as he picks up the phone. I don’t even give him time to say hello. I know he can hear the desperation dripping off each word, as the worst-case scenarios now begin to flood my brain.

I hear Liam groan and I know he hates being so far away when I spiral like this. “Kel, bro, I don’t know. I’m so sorry. I’m assuming you have tried calling,” he asks, and so I fill him in on everything that’s happened so far.

“I don’t see any other way other than walking up to the compound gate and asking for her,” I say the words aloud, and as fucking crazy as it would be to walk into the Reapers’ compound, where they will be armed to the hilt, and just ask them to return Shayla to me, it’s seeming like a good option. Well, it might just be the only option.

Liam releases another huff, and I know he is trying not to get mad at me, to calm me down. I’m sure if I stood in front of him, he would be rolling his eyes at me, but I can’t just stand here and do nothing. Not knowing is killing me.

“Okay, well…we will call that Plan B. It’s not the best idea it—”

Before he has a chance to complete his sentence, I interrupt him, my voice raised. “It’s our only fucking plan, Liam. Do you have a better one?!” I shout.

“Actually, I do,” he replies smugly. Right now, I am torn between ripping him a new asshole for being a cocky twat during my meltdown and ripping him a new asshole for not telling me the plan already.

“Get the fuck on with it, Liam!” I know I'm being a lot harsher than I should be. I will apologise to him later.

“Chill, Kellan. Look, I know you haven’t used it because you didn’t want to, but you do still have Whiskey’s number. Why don’t you ring him and find out what’s going on?” Liam suggests, like it’s the most obvious plan in the world. And it is. Why the fuck didn’t I think of this?

I forgot I had his number from during the heist. I’ve never used it because quite frankly, I can’t stand the prick, but desperate times call for desperate measures.

“That’s actually a good idea. I’m so fucking stupid for not thinking of that myself,” I chastise myself, thumping my fist down onto my thigh.

“Hey, you are far too close to this, Kel. Of course you aren’t going to think logically. Please do me a favour. Go home. Open a beer, relax for a bit, and then ring him. There is probably a very good explanation as to why she isn’t here, but you are not doing yourself any favours by getting riled up on the street. Go home. Please.” His pleading voice is enough to make me see sense. I know he’s right. She isn’t coming now, and the longer I stay here, getting more and more wound up, knowing I'm so close to her, I will just want to go to the compound. Which we all know would be a death sentence for me. I need to get my shit together and work out a plan.

“Yeah, you are right. I’m heading to my bike now,” I say as I stand up, keeping the phone to my ear. Now I know I’m not on high alert, I feel myself begin to deflate. My muscles that seem to have been constantly coiled since the moment I realised Shay wasn’t coming, now seem to be relaxing. Don’t get me wrong, I’m still not happy about any of this fucking situation, but I am starting to get my level head back.

“Ring me when you get home, and for fuck’s sake, ride safely,” Liam states, causing me to chuckle. I love how even when I’m feeling like total crap, his mothering still manages to make me laugh.

We end the call after a few bantering insults, and I can’t quite believe that when I first started talking to him, I was ready to go on a murderous rampage, and I was yelling at old ladies, and now I’m getting on my bike laughing my head off. Liam just has that effect on people, he really is that great of a guy. I’m a sarcastic asshole, and most of the time I do wonder how he tolerates me.

Once I’m home, settled with a beer in hand, I take out my phone and dial the number, dreading what I'm going to hear on the other end. It rings for a long time, and I contemplate hanging up. With each new ring, my heart rate accelerates, my nerves itching as though there are spiders crawling under my skin. I’m torn between hanging up and waiting it out. Thankfully, Whiskey makes the decision for me by answering the phone, his gruff voice surprising me when he finally picks up. “Hello.”

“Hi, it’s…” I trail off. I can’t remember if I even told him my real name. Shayla introduced me as Odin, but that was at the very beginning.

Luckily, Whiskey cuts me off, his hoarse voice echoing over the phone. “I know who you are. Why are you ringing me?”

“Shayla should have met me today at Travis’ Cafe, but she never showed up. I tried ringing… Well, I've actually tried calling a lot.”

“The compound is on lockdown. Nobody in or out. A rival MC has been granted access to the area for a member’s family funeral. To ensure everyone’s safety, we lock down the compound. Once they leave, Shayla will be free to leave. We are anticipating another four days of lockdown, but we do review this every day.” His voice sounds almost rehearsed, like he’s reading from a script, and it’s infuriating.

“But, she was supposed to leave today. She earned her freedom,” I yell down the phone, my frustration making its way to the surface.

“Look, I’m not the one who makes the rules. This was a decision made by Pres, and voted on by the Church. Therefore, there are no exceptions. Shayla is aware of the rules. She knows she will be allowed to leave when the lockdown is lifted,” Jamieson replies, his voice stern and abrupt, but I can also hear the pain in his words when he talks about her leaving. I know exactly how he feels, because it’s how I feel right this damn minute!

“Is she okay?” I mutter, asking the one question I have been dreading knowing the answer to.

“Yes. She will meet you as planned in four days’ time. If that changes, I will contact you. That okay?” he asks, not really giving me any kind of answer to my question. I don’t know whether his lack of a reply should bother me or not.

“Can I talk to her, please?” I ask, desperate for some kind of confirmation that she is okay.

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