Page 104 of Protector

His eyes widened. “Bear? Shit. Might as well kill me now.”

Carnage tightened his hold on Rick’s arms. “Maybe we save the killin’ for your ma, you little shit. She’s gonna be mad as hell when she finds out you attacked Grey’s Ol’ Lady.”

Molly’s mother had retired down in the Houston area not long after I lost the girls, and after battling several lengthy illnesses, had come to rely on her daughter more. Once, after too many drinks, Molly had admitted that Rick was spending too much time with a local gang, but I doubted even she knew just how bad his situation was. If so, she never would’ve left him alone.

The three of us jumped when the door burst open, flying into the wall with a resounding clang. Jamie was the first one through, the haunted look in his eyes a clear indicator that he’d been watching the cameras and had ridden like hell to get here.

He looked over to where Hawk’s body hung limply from the ropes and then back over to Rick before his gaze came to rest on my face as if asking,you good?

I nodded with a sigh as Bear walked in. The minute he saw who it was, his gaze darkened, and he approached with clenched fists. “You went runnin’ back to the fuckin’ gangbangers after your mama begged you to stay, didn’t you? Jesus fuckin’ Christ, son, do you know the kind of trouble you’re in?”

“You aren’t my real dad, so you can stop pretending for your friends.”

Jamie stepped forward and jerked Rick’s chin up toward his. “You show some goddamn respect when you’re talkin’ to your old man—”

“¡Vete a la chingada!” he snarled. “My old man was murdered, and I’m not stopping until I find out who it was.”

I winced when Jamie grinned, knowing it wasn’t going to end well for anybody.

“Well, guess what? You found him. I sent your father to the Reaper. Wanna know why?”

“My father’s uncle said he was murdered in cold blood,” Rick said quietly, sounding less like a vicious thug and more like a scared little boy.

“Cold blood? He found out your mama was knocked up with you and cut her belly open before leavin’ her to bleed out on the floor. Did the world a favor when I put him down.”

Rick’s chin moved toward his chest, but Jamie forced his head back again with a low growl. “You ain’t a man. You might’ve acted tough when you laid hands on my Ol’ Lady but look at you now; pissin’ your pants like a baby. Way I see it, Silent Phoenix owns your ass now. Two options…”

He held up two fingers. “You can either give up your gangbangeramigosand work for me, or you can keep up the shitty teenager bullshit you got goin’ on, and I’ll send you back to your buddies in pieces.”

As much as I wanted to intervene on Rick’s behalf, I wouldn’t disrespect Jamie. Every action had a consequence; I just hoped he made the right decision, so he lived long enough to regret his.

“Don’t be stubborn, boy,” Bear begged him. “For once in your fuckin’ life, do the right thing.”

Jamie added, “Before you answer, I got one little thing to add. That man behind me? He stepped the fuck up and raised you as his own. I might’ve ended your father, but that man’s been your daddy. So, you choose option one, there ain’t gonna be any more disrespect. Am I clear?”

Rick sniffed and nodded. “Yes, sir.”

“That’s what I like to hear.” Jamie clapped him on the shoulder. “Now, you gonna tell me what I want to know, or am I carvin’ you up first?”

Sweat ran down the sides of Rick’s face. “I’ll tell you everything you wanna know. I’ll pledge to do whatever you need, but could we take a second to fix my leg first?”

His eyes rolled back in his head, and he slumped forward with a soft sigh as Jamie looked down to where blood was pulsing steadily from the wound in his thigh.

When his eyes met mine in question, I shrugged. “May have forgotten to mention that I stabbed him.”

“Jesus, Celia.” He ran a hand over his face before waving Bear over. “Call Eli, get him put back together. If he gives us what we need, send in one of the club whores as a gift.”

He pointed at me. “You. Outside. Now.”

I watched him through narrowed eyes and waited for the other bikers to leave before marching toward the stairs, bracing myself for the lecture that was inevitably headed my way.

The day’s events played at high-speed in my head, and I rubbed my forehead in frustration. Between arguing with Ryan, getting mouthy with Jamie, fighting off Mikey’s advances, and cursing at the guy fromHub City, I’d also managed to commit a murder and a stabbing just to round things out.

I’d be lucky if he ever let me leave the farmhouse again.

“Heard you visited with Cueball this afternoon.”

I froze, halfway up the stairs, and slowly turned around. “Cueball?”

---