Ridge takes over the explanation then, “Their whole demeanor instantly changed, and became a hell of a lot more respectful. The guy that was in charge apologised.”
“His exact words were, fuck, I’m so sorry; we’re aware that Jynx has taken over the Ravens, and we have absolutely no intention of making an enemy out of her,” Dax adds.
“And then he offered his assistance if we need any help protecting the town and said he’d make sure all of his associates are aware of the Raven protection over the town and that no one will bother it,” Fox adds.
“Then he apologized again and left.” Harley adds, her smirk widening, “Looked fucking terrified too. See, I want to be like you when I grow up.”
My eyebrows are in my hairline, but if I’m being completely honest, I’m not surprised that my reputation has preceded me; it’s happened before; it’s just never happened with Ravens.
“That’s our girl,” Ace smiles, looking damn proud.
“I think we’re pretty fucking lucky that you are the one that took out Treyton and are leading the Ravens how you are, I also have a feeling that once the ex Ravens get wind of how much our reputation is growing, they might start wanting back in.” Sawyer says.
I pull a face, “They can want back in all they want, I value loyalty and they showed absolutely none. They will not be allowed in, and accepting new members will be few and far between. I like that we’re small now, and I like that I can trust all of my members and that I know everyone and their strengths and weaknesses, or at least I will. A couple of the other members are a bit more elusive to me, but I want to fix that.”
“And that’s what makes you such a good boss,” Asher replies.
“I think all of the remaining Ravens would agree with you that we’re happy to keep it small. Especially since it’s working so well.” Lorcan adds.
“Good,” I reply.
“So what are you guys doing now?” Harley asks me.
“Well, we’ve got a couple of loose ends to tie up here, and then I guess we’re coming home,” I grin.
“So you’re all done here then?” Colt asks, and I pick up on something hidden behind the question.
The guys must hear it too because they all share a look, and none of us miss the way that all of the Conspiracy look at Harley and she shifts slightly in her seat, avoiding looking at all of them.
“Yeah, pretty much. We should be home in a few days,” I reply, the curiosity evident in my tone.
“Oh, that’s good,” Colt says and then responds, “Harley?”
She stays silent until Sawyer says, “If you don’t tell her, I will.”
“Alright, I’ve had enough. What’s going on? Someone start talking,” I say to the Conspiracy as a whole, because although it clearly has something to do with Harley, and I’m beginning to get a suspicion about what, I don’t care which one of them tells me what’s going on so long as one of them does.
Harley sighs and scrubs a hand over her face, “It can really wait until you’re back and settled into things again.”
Nash crosses his arms over his broad chest as he says, “No, it can’t.”
She sighs again before she dramatically throws her hands up in her air and exclaims, “Fine.” She looks at me, her eyes not straying anywhere else as she explains, “So, you know that issue mentioned on the plane when we were going to help Waverly and Micha?”
I’m instantly alert as I nod and reply, “Yes?”
“Well, he’s made another attempt on my life.”
“Fuck,” I exclaim, anger tainting my tone, “alright, I need to know everything right now.”
Harley’s eyes widen slightly, but she nods, “He’s an ex from my hometown, a low-level thug, big in our hometown, but he has no actual connections elsewhere. I have checked. He doesn’t need them though; he’s incredibly dangerous all by himself. He thinks he owns me, no matter how many times I change my number, he gets it and then won’t stop calling or texting. Since I started with the Conspiracy team his abusive calls and stalking have upped to trying to end my life, his exact thoughts are if he can’t have me no one can. He’s gotten close to succeeding a couple of times.”
Sawyer’s voice whips out, sounding deadly as he says, “He put her in the fucking hospital. We almost fucking lost her, and now he’s trying again. He always works in a pattern, first pictures of her in places he shouldn’t be able to get pictures, and then he tries to approach her, makes it obvious that he’s stalking her and finally tries to kill her.”
“I have to ask, why haven’t you taken him out?” Rip asks them, and to be honest, that’s something that I was wondering too.
“That’s mostly my fault,” Harley starts, “I guess I still felt some loyalty or some shit for him, our families were really close, I grew up with him. His sister was my best friend before she died. He was always a bit too intense for me, something always made me feel uneasy, but after Savannah died, I spiraled and made the mistake of getting close to him, only to find out how dark and twisted he really fucking is.”
“I’m sorry,” I tell her sincerely, and she nods, giving me a small smile.