Page 38 of Jagger
“Are you sure I can’t talk you out of going?” Cheyenne asked once again.
I stood and pulled her into a hug. Stepping back, I could see she was worried about me, but I had to get her to understand.“For almost six years, I’ve traveled every back road, dirt road, and no road looking for those of our tribe and the tribes around us who’ve been neglected or are suffering. I’ve tried to draw attention to the problems that exist, and it was this that led my father and Trent’s father down this twisted path. People have been hurt, and if I can do anything to protect the women, indigenous and non-indigenous, from suffering, then I have to try.”
“We’ve got her back, Cheyenne,” Animal said, and I looked at the men sitting around the table.
Each of them was a badass in their own right, but they were allowing me to join them on a mission that could get bloody. I was scared, but not of Blur. I was scared that not acting would cause more women to disappear. I was scared that not going would allow Blur to get away with his vile actions. And I was scared that if Jagger went without me, something was going to happen to him, but that was something I wouldn’t admit to anyone.
“We need to get on the road,” Phantom stated, and the four of them stood from their seats.
Jagger handed me a gun from the table, and I tucked it into the back of my pants then slid two extra clips into my pockets. Animal and Trent had holsters, while Jagger mirrored me and tucked his behind his back. Phantom slipped his into his boot and pulled his jeans leg down over it.
The five of us walked out of the kitchen and through the side door, but we left Trent and Cheyenne to have a moment while we got into the two trucks. We decided that two was necessary in case we found someone being held there. I prayed we didn’t, but we were ready if necessary. We had blankets, water, some food, a first aid kit, a satellite phone in case we were in a low coverage area, and a couple tarps, though I didn’t want to think about why we had them.
Jagger got behind the wheel of one truck as I climbed into the backseat, while Animal and Phantom got into the other. Trent walked down the stairs, and I waved to a worried Cheyenne as he got into the passenger seat of our truck.
“She’s worried to death something is going to happen to you,” Trent said to me as Jagger pulled the truck away from the side of the house.
Animal and Phantom followed behind us as we pulled around the front of the house and onto the driveway. Looking at my beautiful horse, who I’d neglected for the last two weeks, enjoying her breakfast with a big blanket over her back made me smile.
Turning to face forward, I replied, “I know she is, but she should know me well enough that this shouldn’t surprise her.”
“If anything happens to you, I’m going into hiding. Your Granny will put a hex on me that I’ll never get rid of. My damn hair will probably fall out or something crazy like that,” Trent said as we turned onto the paved road and away from the ranch.
“She . . . she really has mojo?” Jagger asked, and I chuckled from the backseat.
I didn’t have to explain. Trent did it for me. “She has some crazy ancestral magic that will scare the crap out of you.” Jagger’s eyes grew wide as Trent continued, “Think medicine man meets shaman meets voodoo. That kind of crazy mojo.”
“It’s not that bad.” I laughed, and Trent turned around and gave me a crazy look before turning to Jagger.
“It’s worse. Trust me. Keep Granny happy and all is well.”
I smiled as Jagger looked into the rear-view mirror and remarked, “Then keeping Jackie safe is my only plan in life. I don’t want my junk to rot off or something crazy like that.”
For the next three and a half hours, we talked, some about Blur and some about life. I learned Jagger’s mom had been a music teacher and an accomplished musician in her own right,but he glossed over his father to speak of his Nana and Pappy. Trent spoke about his father and growing up on the ranch, and I told them about my mom running off and being raised by my father and three older brothers.
“Can you fish?” Jagger asked.
“Fish, hunt, and trap. Bow, gun, and knife,” I returned, and he whistled low.
“Jackie is a badass outdoors woman,” Trent reasoned, and I smiled.
We were within ten miles of the property, so I leaned forward and began to show Jagger where to turn. There was a small area near the edge of the property where we could park and walk in, and carefully, I guided the two trucks as close as possible without alerting anyone that we were approaching. They parked the trucks and turned off the engines.
“I’m going to need to go first, in case we’re wrong,” I said, and they both turned to face me in the backseat. I knew they were about to shut this down, so I explained. “If the woman and her two kids are still here and we’re wrong, I don’t want to scare them with four armed bikers walking up. You’ll only be fifteen to twenty feet behind me, and I’ll be on alert.”
“I don’t like this,” Trent protested. “I don’t want you alone for any reason.”
Pushing closer, Trent leaned away as I kissed Jagger softly and whispered, “I’m not alone. Not anymore.”
He closed his eyes, and when they reopened, I saw he was with me, and that gave me courage to confront this. If Blur was there, I was going to kneecap him for having Cheyenne kidnapped. And if he wasn’t, then I was going to speak with the woman and find out what in the fuck was going on up here.
Looking at Jagger, I asked, “Do you have a picture of Blur?”
He nodded and pulled out his phone. After scrolling, he turned his phone so I could see the image. The man lookedpathetic in the picture, and I quickly snapped a photo of his screen before slipping my phone into my back pocket.
Getting out of the truck, I zipped the bottom of my jacket, trying to hide the weapons on me as I kept my phone in my hand. Glancing at the truck before I pivoted around some bushes, I saw Trent and Jagger watching me intently.
The snow was heavier up here as I trotted through the small drifts in the yard, but I didn’t see any other footprints. Looking around as I walked to the trailers, I tried to see if anything seemed unusual, but this whole place seemed unusual. The steps of the trailer were crooked, and I didn’t trust I wouldn’t fall through, so I knocked on the side of the trailer and waited for someone to answer.
