Page 154 of Fury

I raised my chin at Catch. “Time to move this along, man.”

Catch swallowed, his hard eyes glowering at his sister and then snapping back to his soon-to-be ex-girlfriend.

“Thank you, Tania,” Jill said. “I really appreciate this. God, you don’t even know me.” She kissed the side of her daughter’s face, her gaze hanging on Tania like she was grateful for the unexpected seat on the last lifeboat, the ship sinking fast underneath her feet.

“You’re welcome,” replied Tania.

Jill was a good girl from what I’d experienced of her around the club. She was friendly and helped out without having to be asked, without complaining, worked at the local laundromat to bring money in to her family.

Catch had to learn that to give up was not being less of a man or a failure, that there was strength in admitting the broken couldn’t be fixed no more. But he was emotional. I’d checked that shit at the door years ago, hadn’t I?

Catch jerked his chin toward the exit, and his girlfriend rolled her eyes. She brushed past Grace, and Becca reached out a chubby hand and nabbed Grace’s sunglasses from her face. She nabbed them right back, sliding them on once more. Diamond bands were on the ring finger. She’d gotten married again.

Good for you.

“You okay?” I asked her.

“Me? Yes, thanks.” She flashed a quick grin at me.

“Long day, Maddie?” asked Butler, an edge of irony in his tone. Of course he knew her. “Got a nice bruise there.”

“It’s not every day you get held at gunpoint and your life is threatened by a ratty-ass biker, is it?” Tania jumped in, shooting me a look.

I let out a laugh. I’d missed her.

“How ’bout you ladies give me the details on this piece of shit so I can head out after him?” Butler asked.

“Sure,” Grace murmured, glancing at me. I held onto her gaze and didn’t let go.

I’d started keeping track of Grace after I’d seen her in Colorado at that Harley Davidson store. She’d kept drifting all over the country, working at different HD stores, keeping pretty much to herself. I’d stopped after year two. Was she back with the One-Eyed Jacks now and that’s why she was playing it incognito standing here in my clubhouse? Did Tania, Grace, and Butler think I wouldn’t like a One-Eyed Jack woman on my property? I appreciated their caution. Now I wanted to see how they’d respond.

“You know these two?” I asked Butler. “Tania’s from your parts.”

“Yeah,” Butler replied curtly. “We met years ago in Meager before I went up north.”

My attention slid to Tania. She raised her chin and took in a long slow breath.

“Never seen this one before.” Butler gestured at Grace.

Real smooth. What an actor. But Jacks loyalty came first for him, as it should.

Tania said, “Maddie came down with me from Racine last week to help me with my move.”

So Tania was back in South Dakota, and it sounded like she was on her own.

Tania returned my heavy look with one of her own.Don’t ask me now. I’ll tell you another time.

I cocked an eyebrow.I’ll make sure there’ll be another time.

“Butler, find out what these two know, and bring me that motherfucker,” I said.

“Let’s go, ladies.” Butler gestured towards the main door.

Tania glanced at me over her shoulder and smiled. A smile that raced through the dark tunnels and hallways of my soul, leaving a familiar trickle of warm light in its wake.

Good to see you too, baby.

Butler got the job done.He caught Creeper that night and brought him into the safe house I’d designated for him earlier, about ten miles into the woods northwest of the clubhouse. Catch and I arrived within the hour. Catch jumped off his bike and tore into the shed. He wanted his revenge for his daughter, for losing his old lady.

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