Page 39 of Redemption

“Prez?” Tyrant calls from the porch. “Don’t shoot my ass.”

“Come in, break right,” I tell him before looking back to Any. “How many are on the property?”

“Five, I think. She did it on purpose, didn’t she?”

I frown, trying to make sense of her words as I continue back, clearing the first floor.

“There are two in the barn, and the other three are wishing they were dead upstairs,” she calls out as I’m nearly through the dining room before ending up in the kitchen. “The others left, figuring you were on to them if you knew enough to have Rouge drop off poisoned food.”

“What the fuck are you talking about?” Tyrant asks her for clarification.

“I heated up that ready-made chili she got at the grocery store,” Any says, stopping when I hold up a hand. Three more of our brothers have entered so I signal to them to drag the other guys down to the yard, before I signal for her to continue. “I don’t eat chili and a couple of those fat fucks had so much, well they started getting sick before Tyre and some of the others even got to eat.”

“Where is Tyre?” I ask, frustrated when she shrugs.

“He’s out looking for Able, they were supposed to bring back a huge payday. No one’s seen him and Zero since they left for the casino.”

She stops talking and starts snickering when she hears gagging from above. “Oh, yeah, they’re just now getting a whiff of what I’ve been dealing with. Vomit and shit everywhere up there.”

I smell the men before I see them and immediately understand what Any meant. There’s no doubt in my mind that death is looking pretty good to the two guys who can barely make it down the stairs.

“Where’s the third one?” Tyrant gives voice to the question I was wondering about.

“Dead.” Comes Happy’s response as he keeps a few steps between him and the second man down the stairs.

“You next,” the Rebel spits out, pulling a gun from his waistband.

Happy immediately kicks his leg out, missing the man’s arm but catching him in the back. I flinch when the gun discharges, but the guy drops it as he’s thrown on top of the Rebel in front of him and they land in a heap at the foot of the stairs.

Feeling my chest, I look between my brothers, making sure no one got hit and that’s when I hear a soft thud. There’s a trail of blood from where Any slid down the wall at her back to where she’s now collapsed on the floor.

I move, standing over her and knowing that while she’s trying to talk, she doesn’t have long to live. She coughs up a spray of blood, confirming that her lung was punctured, then gives me her biggest smile.

“Boom, moth…” Are the last two sounds that she utters.

“What’s a ‘boom moth’?” Happy asks, popping a piece of gum into his mouth.

“I don’t know, but I don’t like this.” Looking at the two Rebels in front of me, I make a quick decision. “Get them to the barn,anyone who gives up any information can live. Tyrant, you and Oak handle that – quickly, I’m going to meet up with Roman and the others to start back.”

He motions for the others to head to the barn while he hangs back, standing by as I move to get on my bike.

“Rouge poisoned them, didn’t she?” he asks, and I nod, thinking that’s the most likely scenario.

“Get Swann on the phone, tell him to call in everyone who isn’t here right now. I want the compound locked down. Tell him that Crasher should …”

“Crasher went to pick Bridget up from the airport,” he reminds me and I swear.

“Make sure there aren’t any animals in that relic,” I order him, pointing at what passes as a barn. “Then you end those assholes and torch it. Efficiently, Tyrant, not extravagantly. I want every one of you to make it home tonight.”

“I hear ya,” he says, clapping me on the back as my hog roars to life and I head to the long driveway.

Signaling Roman and the others, they mount up and follow me, immediately understanding there’s no time for questions.

Adrenaline is surging through my bloodstream like it used to during my deployment, but all I care about now is making sure that Sloane is safe. I jerk the handles when the Bluetooth device in my helmet beeps and I answer it without thinking.

“Grace is safe.” Ford’s voice is calm and once I register his words, I let out a deep breath. “Did I catch you at a bad time?”

“Doing a community service,” I tell him, figuring he’s smart enough to catch my meaning. “Still more to handle, but isn’t there always?”

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