Page 46 of Dancin' with Demons

“It’s not fool-proof, but it’s the best we got for now,” Catacomb says.

“That’s why I’m comin’, brother,” Reaper says meetin’ my gaze, his eyes hard and sincere. “I ain’t gonna let nothin’ happen to your woman and kid. You have my word.”

“Do not tell Raylynn,” Catacomb says makin’ me look at him, his face deadly serious. “Not a fuckin’ word, Renegade.”

Huffin’, I shake my head. “I can’t lie to her, Phoenix. Not when she’s in danger.”

“If she knows and starts actin’ weird around Hammer, you’re puttin’ her in more danger. We tip him off in any way before we’re really ready, shit could get a lot worse. Without an inside man, none of us have a fuckin’ clue how the person givin’ him orders will react. For all I know, whoever that is might just decide to blow Raylynn’s brains out and call it a day. So you decide between tellin’ her and potentially gettin’ her hurt, and lyin’ to her to keep her safe.”

The war in my head at the moment pisses me off. Finally, I groan and slap the wall. “Fine. Not a word. But if anythin’, and I mean anythin’, happens and she gets hurt, I’ll punch everyone in this room.”

Catacomb stands from his chair and comes to stop in front of, restin’ his hand on my shoulder. “Makoa, you know that of all the men, I’m closest to you, and your family is my family. I’m not gonna put Raylynn or Savior in danger if I can avoid it, and I’ll defend ‘em with my life if necessary. But we need to catch whoever is usin’ Hammer life a puppet. Deep down, you know that.”

“I know, Prez,” I sigh, “I just . . . I can’t lose ‘em.”

“You won’t,” Catacomb says with way more confidence than I can muster at the moment. “Now, go get ‘em ready without alertin’ ‘em, and take ‘em to that massive fuckin’ house of yours. Maybe invite Miss Irene over. Raylynn seemed upbeat the days y’all went to see her these past few weeks. But go relax, let us do what we gotta do, don’t kill Reaper wile you’re home, and you call if anythin’, and I mean anythin’, seems even a bit out of place.”

Noddin’, I turn my eyes on the Geek Squad. “When you puttin’ those cameras in?”

Hardwire scoffs. “We did it this mornin’. You didn’t think we’d wait, did you? Kinda defeats the purpose of ‘em bein’ hidden, don’t ya think?”

Chucklin’, I shake my head and turn to head out of the office with Reaper and Catacomb behind me. The Geek Squad stays behind, and I’m hopin’ they can figure this shit out quick. Listenin’ to Hammer on that recordin’ talk about want to fuck my woman, especially thinkin’ back on the comments he made that first day in Church, makes me want to fuckin’ break his neck. As we step into the common room, I stop and turn back to Catacomb.

“Hammer can’t be here when I claim her,” I say quietly so only the three of us can hear me. “I will not let him have that.”

“Let’s hope she doesn’t ask you to before we handle his ass then,” he says back just as quietly.

Turnin’ back, we head over to the table and Savior is already out of her seat with another picture in her hand. Pickin’ her up, she hands it to me— it’s Hei-Hei and Pua playin’ on the beach. “You know, little one, I think I know the perfect place to hang these pictures.”

“Oh, where?” Savior sits tall in my arms, her little hands clasped together in front of her, those blue eyes full of excitement.

“At our house,” I say, glancin’ over at Raylynn. “I think it’s time we go get settled in there, too.”

Raylynn comes over and slides her arm around my waist as I slide my free one around her shoulder. “You sure? Is it safe for us to be there instead of here?”

“I’ll be joinin’ you, Raylynn,” Reaper says as he steps up next to us, “that way, there’s added protection. Just in case.”

Savior lets out an excited squeal and claps her hands, makin’ us all laugh. As we head to the room, I give Catacomb a small nod and notice that just past him at the fr end of the bar, Hammer is watchin’ us, his eyes narrow and features tight. If I had to guess, he looks a little pissed. No doubt Catacomb already noticed it too. At the door to our room, Reaper says he’s gonna go pack some stuff and meet us outside.

Settin’ Savior down, I tell her to go pick anythin’ she wants to take with us and put it on her bed so I can pack it, and send Raylynn to our room to do the same, along with lettin’ her know what few things I need. It takes about twenty minutes to get everythin’ together and meet Reaper in the common room. He holds the door open for us to head outside, everyone carryin’ several bags while Savior skips ahead of us toward the SUV. Steppin’ up the back, I use the key fob to pop the trunk and load our shit.

“Have fun playin’ house.”

The three of us turn around, the hair on my arms and neck already standin’ on edge. Hammer leans against the side of the clubhouse, a cigarette hangin’ from his lips, his eyes on my woman. I glance at Raylynn, her shoulders tense, her body stiff. I wonder if Hammer’s always made her this uncomfortable? I never noticed before, but right now, it’s insanely obvious that she’s uncomfortable just lookin’ at him.

“Here, little love,” I say quietly, bringin’ her attention to me as I hold her keys out to her. “You and Savior drive the SUV and follow me. Reaper will be on his bike behind you, okay?”

Takin’ the keys from my hand, she nods, and I take the opportunity to kiss her before walkin’ her to the driver’s side while Reaper scoops Savior up and gets her into her booster seat. Once Raylynn starts the engine, I head to my bike and fire it up. Raylynn backs out and waits for me to get in front of her while Reaper gets behind her. I nod to Joshua and he opens the gate, allowin’ us to file out.

Raylynn does the speed limit and I have to remind myself she’s never driven to my house, so floorin’ it on my bike like I usually would isn’t a good idea. Reaper is probably back there groanin’ at the slow pace. He and I have always driven fast. One of these days, I need to get Raylynn on this bike. Get her used to ridin’ behind me. Savior, too, when she’s a little older and I can convince Raylynn it’s completely safe.

Pullin’ into my circular driveway, I cut the engine and pull my helmet off, settin’ it on the back of my bike. Raylynn pulls the SUV in next to me, and for a moment after cuttin’ her engine, she stares through the windshield at my house, her mouth hangin’ open a little. Tappin’ on the window, she jumps, her hand flyin’ to cover her heart. I open the door as she pulls the keys from the ignition and slides from the vehicle, the door on the other side openin’ as Reaper appears and gets Savior out.

“You okay, little love?” I run my fingers through her hair, watchin’ carefully as she takes deep calculated breaths. I’m slowly learnin’ that her breathin’ like this means she’s overwhelmed and tryin’ to self-soothe.

“I, uh, didn’t realize your house was this big when you talked about it,” she says, stumblin’ over her words a little.

“If it’s too big, we can always sell it and get Somethin’ else,” I say, runnin’ my fingertips gently across her neck to try and help calm her.

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