Page 10 of Redemption

“Tonight? Most places are closed on Mondays,” he slowly responds, and I can see he’s considering options.

“No, tomorrow.”

“Oh, Testa Rossa! It opened about six months ago, over on Monroe,” he says with a snap of his fingers. “The food is great, and the staff is even better. I can call the manager for you if you want me to?”

“Italian?”

“Yes, but Sicilian Italian food,” he counters, like I should know what the difference is. “And their pizzas are really good, too. Joanna and I will split one of those in their bar area when we’re having a casual night out.”

“Appreciate it,” I tell him, giving him a nod before heading over to my bike. I shake my head, thinking the guy probably spends more on acasual night outthan I have on a woman in years.

*

“Is there anything else?” I ask Piercer and Oak the next day as they report in on the month’s operations. They shrug when they share a look, then shake their heads in unison.

“This week’s party is open to outsiders, right?” Piercer confirms and I nod. “The guy I hired to work at the storage units, he’s beencurious, might be a potential prospect so I’m going to mention it to him.”

“Isn’t he a fireman?” Oak questions him.

“No, an EMT. They don’t get paid shit so he’s moonlighting.”

“An EMT would come in handy around here, but make sure Crasher thoroughly checks him out,” I say, making a mental note to keep an eye on the guy.

“You got anything else for us?” Oak replies, leaning back like he’s getting dug into the chair when he should be heading out.

“No, but I got shit to do, so …” I say, motioning to the door.

Piercer gets the hint and swipes a hand across the back of Oak’s head to get him moving. “Come on, let’s rack some balls.”

The door has barely closed when my newest burner is ringing, and I pick it up to hear what sounds like a pterodactyl screeching.

“Gimme a minute,” Jasper barks out, but I don’t know if he’s talking to me or whichever of his kids is screaming their head off.

Just as I’m about to disconnect the line, he comes back on with the weariest sigh I’ve ever heard. “Fuck, sorry about that.”

“What’s happening?”

“Our friends in Arizona, they’re looking for a new home. I want to offer them one, so if you have any objection, I want to know about it by tomorrow.”

It’s a damn good thing I’m sitting down.

Jasper’s president of our national chapter, but my dad was there with Flint’s father when they formed the Northern Grizzlies. Jigsaw was always going to be the junior man on the totem pole, which is why he decided to strike out and form his own chapter.

There’s a California chapter, but they’ve been pulling away from us for a while now so I would have been less surprised if this call was about them offering a buyout, since Flint owns the property that they’re situated on.

“Tell me what’s going on,” I respond after a moment.

This part of the country isn’t as isolated as where Jasper is situated. If the club in Flagstaff is ditching their current colors, there’s a very real possibility that I’m the one who could pay for it. Granted there seems to be a bit of movement when it comes to those chapters, and it’s not like I’m without friends.

Fifteen minutes later, I’m pinching the bridge of my nose as I regret asking about the situation. As justified as they are for walking away from their national, I just hope it’ll be done without bloodshed. Or further bloodshed, I should say.

“How soon are we talking?”

“If you agree, immediately. Honestly, with their border connections this would be a good thing for us. I know Declan is abrasive but—”

“He’s solid. I ain’t got a problem with him, I’d just like the chance to make a couple of calls.” I pause before bringing up the subject he hasn’t mentioned. “About Bridget, when she goes out there to check their books, I want extra security on her for the time being. That or someone brings them here.”

“If this happens, I was going to tell you to bring her out for the patch over party,” he responds, before groaning when another scream comes over the line. “Christ. Call me tomorrow, I gotta make sure they don’t kill one another.”

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