Page 89 of Wild Side
I don’t know what that means, but again, not my business. Leaving him, I turn around and walk out of the room. I’m heading toward Bullet’s office when I hear my brother call out my name, causing me to stop.
Goose is standing at the entrance to the conference room, where we typically hold church. Arching a brow, I tilt my head to the side in question. He doesn’t say anything else. He jerks hischin toward the room before slipping inside, a silent request to follow him.
The room is empty when I enter, save for Goose, who is sitting in his usual chair. He doesn’t say anything right away. My eyes scan the space around me, taking in all the memorabilia from the club's inception until now.
I can’t help but wonder what the men from the first days would think about us now. I hope they’d be proud. Slowly, I make my way over to the chair across from Goose’s. Sinking down into the seat, I lean back slightly as I wait for him to speak.
He opens a file folder, which surprises me. My brother may be good with numbers, as the treasurer, but paperwork is not his strong suit.
“What’s this?” I ask when he doesn’t say anything immediately.
He pushes the folder across the wooden table so it’s directly in front of me. Dipping my chin slightly, I look down at the papers in front of me. I don’t read them, but one thing stands out.
It’s a name.
Sabrina Kane.
“What’s this?” I ask again.
“Sabrina Kane. Zadie’s mother.”
My eyes snap up to meet his. “Sabrina Kane?”
He dips his chin in a single nod, then clears his throat. “Sabrina Kane was a seventeen-year-old kid when she met and ran off with Halo Rowan. Had a bad home life, but a grandmother who gave a shit. Grandma filed a missing person’s report that went a hell of a lot of nowhere.”
I flip the page, and there, staring back at me, is an almost exact copy-and-paste replica of Zadie. Her hair is a little bigger, her makeup darker, but it’s her.
That is Zadie’s mother.
She’s beautiful. And young. Too goddamn young. I thought the fact that I was nine years older than Zadie was bad, but this goes beyond that. Halo was my age, and this person looking back at me is very much not a woman yet, but instead a girl.
My brother doesn’t stop; he continues. “Once she was knocked up, he kept her around for just long enough to give birth to Zadie. Then he did exactly what he said. He turned her out. But not to the men in the club.”
“To whom?” I demand, my body feeling like it’s vibrating, barely containing my rage, and ready to explode all at the same time.
I know that none of this has to do with Goose. He’s just the messenger, but I’m still pissed the fuck off. I’m so angry I could seriously punch my fist through the table. My knee begins to bounce, and I wonder how I’m going to tell my woman this.
How am I going to tell Zadie what happened to her mother, what her own father did to her when she was younger than Zadie is now?Fuck. What a goddamn shit show. But apparently, that’s not the end of it.
“He sold her to a pimp in the Bay Area known for mistreating his girls. She died of an overdose a year later.”
Fuck.
Closing the file, I stand from my chair, my eyes finding my brother’s. This took a toll on him, which surprises me. He’s not usually an emotional type of guy. That trait fell more onto me than him.
“You good?” I ask.
He shakes his head once. “I hate that she went through that.”
“Yeah,” I rasp. “Me too.”
“We did that to her,” he whispers.
Slamming my palm down on the table, I make him jump, his gaze snapping to mine in surprise. “No,” I grind out. “We did not. The Reapers did not. One fucked-up piece of shit did that.And I killed him. I wish I could do it all over again and make it hurt a hell of a lot more.”
Goose jerks his chin up slightly, his eyes staying on mine for a brief moment before he closes them in a slow nod and gathers himself. “Go home to your woman. Tell her or don’t. That’s up to you. I’m glad she found us.”
My lips curve up into a grin. “I’m fucking grateful she found me, but at the same time, I’m happy as fuck she has a family now, one that loves her.”
