Page 71 of Restless
She sniffled, tears streaming down her cheeks. “I talked to Brooks,” she sobbed. “He wouldn’t give me any details, but Johnnie is embroiled in a club matter that he hasn’t told your Uncle Christopher about. After Meggie was out of immediate danger, your dad had Brooks call your uncle and offer a minimal account of whatever is going on.” She swiped at her cheeks. “Brooks won’t tell me. He’s afraid for himself and afraid for Johnnie. He told me Outlaw is so distracted, the issue went over his head, and he said to keep him posted. I begged Brooks for more details,” she said tearfully. “All he said was he thinks Johnnie went to deal with the problem alone, but if we tell anyone he might get into trouble, be seen as a traitor, or both by the club, so we have to wait until he comes home, dead or alive.”
She leaned her head against her knees and wailed, her shoulders shaking with the force of her tears.
Rory brushed his fingers over her hair. “Mom, Dad’s smart.” He was a motherfucking idiot. “I’m sure he knows better than to face any threat without the backing of the club,if it has to do with the club.” Ha! Just as there was a reason behind his disappearance, there was a reason for keeping his dealings with Bash from the club. “He can’t strike a rival club without repercussions. Brothers would wonder why we were being targeted. Dad knows he’d start a war.”
The Scorpions were Dweller enemies; therefore, hostilities between the two clubs already existed. So, yes, it was a possibility that Dad felt as if he had nothing to lose if…what?
Mom lifted her head, and Rory dropped his hand from her hair.
“I asked Brooks to call me the moment he hears from your father, but it’s been hours.”
How long had Rory been in his room? Fuck, he hadn’t been doing a very good job of watching over his mother. She could’ve slit her wrists and bled out; or OD’d on her pills and faded away.
He hugged her tightly, so grateful she was still breathing that he trembled. “I love you, Mom. Everything’s going to be all right.”
She shuddered against him.
A beep indicated an incoming message, and he disentangled himself.
Ryan:I’m here, fuckhead. You have five minutes before I bounce.
Scowling, Rory stood, then helped his mother to her feet. It pleased him that he was almost eye level with her. “I’m going talk to Ryan about something, then I’ll get JJ, so we can cook for you and Mattie.”
She nodded, instead of demanding to know why he’d meet with Ryan. “I’ll call Brooks—”
Rory headed to the door. “No, Mom. I’ll call him myself. It’s club business, and you know Dad doesn’t want you involved.”
“I’ll call Mort,” she said in a small voice.
“Uncle Mort is a good choice. Or Lolly. Or Aunt Meg…Never mind,” he mumbled, and rushed out the door. He didn’t want dumb ass to leave, and he didn’t want to put his fucking foot in his mouth again.
Rory walked the short distance to the cave and found Ryan inside. Daylight was fading away and casting long shadows into the rocky space. Rory used the flashlight on his phone to beam onto his cousin.
“Who the fuck is Bash?”
Ryan’s belligerence turned wary.
“Look, fuckhead, I think the entire club is at risk. My dad knows who that motherfucker is, and so do you.”
“You can’t prove it,” Ryan finally spat. “And if you try to, I’ll reveal the information you just gave to me. Uncle Johnnie knows Bash as well.”
“I don’t give a fuck about you, motherfucker,” Rory snapped. It shocked him to see hurt flicker across Ryan’s face, gone too quick for Rory to experience true remorse. He opened the website with the incriminating information, then handed his phone to Ryan. “Get this shit off the fucking site,” he said, watching the motherfucker closely as he read. “Erase it from the Internet.”
“Goddamn,” Ryan whispered, returning Rory’s phone. He closed his eyes. “Goddamn, goddamn, goddamn. This is so fucking bad.”
Rory thought about his father’s library and the big desk with the locked drawer. As soon as he saw to his Mom and called Brooks, he’d find a way to get into that desk. Maybe, the answer to this puzzle was inside. Meanwhile, he wanted to shake his cousin until his teeth rattled.
“Do you care to fucking elaborate?”
“Bash and Uncle Johnnie are brothers—”
“I figured as much, asshole. I don’t need bones. I need meat. The fucking crux of the situation.”
“I’ll take the information down, but a digital footprint is almost impossible to completely erase, Rory.”
“This is an obscure website with only a few hundred visitors in the two years it’s been up, so—”
“So how the fuck do you know about it?”
