Chapter 14

CHAPTER 14

T welve motorcycles roared into the abandoned motel parking lot. Jumper, Demo, Mitch, and Sara were left behind at the clubhouse to guard the ol' ladies and kids. Keys was following close behind in his geeked out van with Pirate driving. Pirate wasn't happy about the assignment, but someone had to drive so Keys could keep working and he was not as useful as the others in a leg race. Will was driving a SUV in case there were any… extras that were going to be brought back to the clubhouse with them.

Unlike when they'd gone after the Pythons, they were in full colors now. No one took three of their club kids and did not face the wrath of the entire Via Daemonia .

There were three possible locations that Keys predicted the pastor took the teens. The first was an abandoned gas station. The Wagoneer had been spotted on a traffic cam aimed in its direction. When the VDMC had arrived there to find no evidence that their kids or the Wagoneer had been there, they moved onto the second location.

"Head's up," Keys' voice called through their earwigs. "I've got movement. South side. Looks like we've got a runner."

"Split up!" Steel ordered. "Search every room! Ghost, Ranger, fetch me that rabbit."

Two bikes veered off from the others. Angel and Cage pulled up to a small building that looked to have once been attached to the main motel, but the awning between had collapsed. Angel, spotting footprints, stopped Cage from stepping onto the path. She pulled her gun, and he followed suit.

Angel wasn't a tracker, but these scuff marks also weren't being hidden. She saw two sets of footprints fairly close to each other. One set was distinctly larger than the other. A third set of prints was different and separate from the first two. She guessed Aaron and Ollie had entered at a run and the third set, which belonged to a man, chased after them.

"I've got blood," came across Angel's earwig. "Lots of it but no body."

"Where are you?" Bear asked.

"South side, room six."

"We got the rabbit," Ghost announced. "Someone sliced his leg up good."

"Bring him to me," Steel ordered. "Has the building been cleared yet?"

Not seeing footprints exiting the office, Angel spoke low into her mic. "Cage and I are about to clear the office. One possible tango inside with the kids."

"On my way!" Bulldog's voice did not hide his rage. More than their parents were, Bulldog was taking the teens' kidnapping personally. As SAA, it was his job to protect everyone in the club, including ol' ladies, club kids, and employees.

Angel signaled to Cage to move and they got into position. The glass window was too crusted over with dust, soot, and cobwebs to get a clear line of sight in. The sun was nearly set, and they were about to lose their only light. Angel doubted a place in this condition still had electricity.

Cage swiftly stepped in front of the old door and kicked it open. Angel burst in, going low, while Cage kept his gun high.

The office room was empty. Angel took in the state of the room as Cage checked behind the counter and what looked to be a supply closet. The dust that once caked the floor was disturbed too much to tell whose footprints belonged to who. However, there was a phone facing them on the counter, its cord and headset dangling down towards the floor. She spotted a tangle of rope and scissors as well. An Ollie-sized handprint in crimson smeared its way across the counter.

A broken window leading out to the algae filled pool caught her attention next. The pool wasn't very large, nor was it fenced in. Leaves and random debris floated in the green tinted water. A broken pool chair bobbed up and down, like something had recently disturbed it. It moved just to the left?—

"Cage!" Angel yelled. Fear gripped her at the sight of the body floating in the pool, but it propelled her forward all the faster.

Angel threw herself through the broken window, barely feeling the sharp edges of the glass as they scraped along her. She sprinted across the overgrown lawn, dropping only her gun before she leapt into the murky water. Angel tried to keep her head above the water, but her boots pulled her down for just a second.

She gripped the arm of the face-down body and managed to turn it over while treading water.

Angel let out a sigh of relief when she saw it wasn't one of the kids. It was Pastor Robins.

Movement out of the corner of her eye had her looking over her right shoulder. Cage was kneeling down at the edge of the pool, holding both of their guns. Bulldog, Lucky, Grumpy, and Bones were rushing out of the office behind him.

"It's the pastor!" she called out to them. She grabbed the man's arm and started pulling him to the edge of the pool where Cage was.

As Cage lifted the body out of the murky pool, Angel gripped the concrete edge and hoisted herself up, twisting to land on her bottom. She spat into the pool, hoping to get out whatever grossness she had inhaled when she went under.

Cage put his fingers to the pastor's pulse. "He's dead," he informed everyone. "Based on the head wound, I'm really hoping that was his blood they found and not one of the kids'."

"Did you see the blood inside?" Angel asked him pointedly. "At least one of the kids is hurt." Her eyes scanned around them. The motel was in the middle of nowhere, completely surrounded by woods and mountain terrain.

Spotting something to her left, Angel stood. Water sloshed in her boots as her eyes narrowed on the object.

Recognizing it, Angel picked up the shoe. She held it up in the air for the others to see. "Bree's leaving us breadcrumbs."

Bulldog approached her. "Smart girl." He looked around and pointed to a broken branch at the edge of the woods. "Ranger taught her that. They went north." He turned around and pointed in the opposite direction.

"These prints lead into the woods." Angel pointed to a footprint that could have belonged to a loafer or a business shoe. Not the sort of shoe one would wear for a trek through the woods.

Bulldog's face darkened. "She knew they were being pursued. They entered here, but she'll turn them north."

Angel didn't normally question Bulldog, but this was her daughter. "How sure are you?"

Bulldog met her eyes. "Very."

Angel nodded once. She needed to get her rifle from Keys' van. It was time to go hunting.

Bree was exhausted, and she wasn't even the one who was carrying another person through the woods. She knew Aaron was tiring because he was staggering more. But it was poor Ollie who was suffering the most. Not only was he not wearing shoes meant for hiking, but he didn't have the endurance Aaron did from years of playing sports. He was also bleeding from being stabbed in the arm with a pair of scissors. Thankfully, it wasn't deep, but Bree knew it was hurting him.

Aaron's hands were now free. The same scissors that had wounded Ollie had set Aaron free only seconds prior. Bree's hopes for the office phone working had not been high, but they still had to try. Unfortunately, they were spotted entering the office as the two men who had helped the pastor kidnap them came back.

The ensuing fight had ended with one of the men fleeing, one chasing them into the woods, and the pastor, who had not died when he hit his head, falling hard into the pool after Aaron bashed him with a pool chair. Bree had no doubt that the club was coming for them—they just needed to survive long enough for them to reach them.

Unfortunately, they'd long ago lost the use of the sun. Their running had turned into a slow walk with lots of tripping by moonlight.

"Do you hear him?" Bree whispered into Aaron's ear.

Aaron paused and listened. This was not the first time they had lost him, but the man pursuing them could usually be heard in the distance.

Ollie stopped too. He leaned up against a large tree trunk, gasping for breath. He was clutching his right arm with his left hand. Bree couldn't see in the dark well enough to know if he was still bleeding. She couldn't tell if her leg had stopped either due to lack of sensation. Moonlight glistened off the tear tracks on Ollie's cheeks.

"I don't hear him," Aaron said softly. "But let's put a little more distance between us and him."

Ollie shook his head. "I can't do it. I can't keep going."

Aaron hiked Bree up more on his back. Even though his hands were no longer tied, he still had to keep his arms under her knees since she couldn't hold them up on her own. Aaron neared Ollie and gently nudged him with his shoulder. "We have to keep moving."

Ollie's chin quivered as he looked up at Aaron with pleading, large brown eyes. "I can't do it, Aaron. I'm not strong like you."

Bree's heart went out to the little guy. If it wasn't for her inability to walk, she knew Aaron would have carried Ollie in a heartbeat.

Aaron moved closer to Ollie, leaning his cheek down on Ollie's dirty mop of hair. It was awkward with Bree stuck to his back, but Aaron was careful not to scrape her leg against the tree bark. "Baby, I don't need you to be strong. I need you to survive. I can't take you on a date if you die here in the woods."

Ollie popped his head out from under Aaron's cheek. "You mean it?"

Aaron nodded. "My pops and I have a project this weekend to build another bathroom, but I was thinking next Friday. I have my first game on Thursday, so I thought Friday would work better. I mean, if you want to?—"

"Yes!" Ollie exclaimed. A little too loudly.

Movement in the distance caught their attention. All three of them pausing, looking back. They could hear footsteps but couldn't see who they belonged to.

Aaron nodded his chin forward. His voice low and rushed, he said, "We got to make it to next Friday, Ollie. Can you keep going?"

Ollie pushed off of the tree trunk like he'd just taken a shot of adrenaline to the heart. "No way am I dying in these woods. I'm going to survive and I'm going to go on my first date and I am going to look fabulous." He started marching off in the same direction they'd been walking before their break.

Bree leaned down to whisper into her brother's ear. "Great motivation," she told him, "but, if you only asked him out to get him to move, I will castrate you myself."

Aaron turned his head enough to look at her over his shoulder. "I was a hundred-percent serious. The only reason I hadn't before was because of the custody battle, but I suddenly realize that I don't care. I'm going to take that boy out on a date and I can't wait to see how fabulous he is going to look."

Bree squeezed him tightly. "Good. But we really do need to find a place to hunker down for the night."

Aaron nodded in agreement before hurrying after Ollie.

The hollowed-out tree they found wasn't much. Ollie had made a disgusted face, but Bree's logical ultimatum of "bugs or homophobic asshole" made Ollie get down on his hands and knees to crawl inside. Aaron placed Bree on her butt and then Ollie helped pull her back into the hole at the base of the tree.

Aaron then walked around to try and hide any evidence that they had been there. He moved a fallen branch in front of the hole. It was large enough to obscure the hole, but still gave them a gap to be able to see out of.

The hole was very cramped. Aaron was sitting with Ollie between his legs and Bree pressed up against his shoulder. Adrenaline kept them awake for a while, listening intently to the sounds of the woods outside. Only a few creepy-crawlies decided to join them but thankfully no snakes or anything with sharp teeth.

Eventually, Bree started to doze. None of them had watches and their phones had been lost or taken, so she didn't know what time it was. Probably earlier than she thought, but the stress of their situation made it hard to decipher how much time had passed.

Something moved outside their tree. Bree sat upright. Aaron quickly placed a hand over Ollie's mouth to stifle his gasp. Her heart was pounding hard in her chest.

Then the branch Aaron had placed in front of the hole started to move. As it was slide out of the way, Aaron placed Ollie on the ground next to Bree. He put himself fully between them and whomever was outside the tree trunk.

The beam of a flashlight blinded her for a second, forcing her to blink and look away.

"Got ‘em," a female voice softly said.

Bree knew immediately it wasn't her mom's voice. Her vision cleared just as a face was illuminated in the hole, looking in on their hiding spot.

Aaron tensed, but Bree let out a sigh of relief. She put a hand on Aaron's shoulder, who had been about to spring into action. "It's okay."

Aaron looked back at her in confusion. "You know him?"

Bree nodded and then threw a wide smile at the man crouched down by the entrance to the tree. "Aaron, Ollie, meet your Uncle Scar."

It took some doing. Aaron had to exit first and then had to drag Bree out of the hole. Ollie crawled out next. The small flashlight held by a woman Bree didn't know helped guide them.

Aaron placed Bree up against a large root of the tree they'd been hiding inside. Ollie pressed himself into her side and Bree put an arm around his shoulders. " That's Scar?" he asked her in a low, almost squeaky, voice.

Scar and the woman were standing a couple of feet away from them. Aaron was standing in front of Bree and Ollie, as if he was still trying to decide if he needed to protect them. Over his shoulder, he asked softly, "Who is Scar?"

Bree didn't keep her voice down. It didn't matter who heard them now. They were the safest they ever would be in their predicament. "Uncle Scar used to be a member of the club. He left last February—because he's a butthead," she said even louder. "Uncle Bulldog says that he's been traveling, trying to find himself or some line of bull. I don't believe it though, because Uncle Scar would only leave us if he thought he was protecting us."

The woman with Scar cracked a smile down at Bree. To Scar, she said, "Girl's got your number."

Aaron looked down at Bree and then back up at Scar. "But…we're safe with him, right?" There was skepticism in his voice.

"The safest," Bree assured him.

"I saw him at the funeral, but I didn't know that was Scar. I never asked Steel or Jenna who he was." Though Steel and Jenna were adopting Ollie, he still used their names. Bree wasn't sure if he was going to eventually call them ‘Mom' and ‘Dad' or if he planned on sticking with their names. That was his choice and none of her business.

The woman walked over to them. She took a backpack off of her back. "I'm Ivy," she told them. "I stayed at the clubhouse with you guys a couple of weeks ago. Did your parents mention me?"

Ollie and Bree nodded, but Aaron shook his head. He hadn't arrived yet by the time Ivy left.

"You're the reason we weren't allowed in the clubhouse for like two weeks," Bree said accusingly.

"Yeah, well…" Ivy shrugged, letting her words trail off. She pulled a first aid kit out of her backpack. She also pulled out water bottles and protein bars. "Who's hurt?"

As Ollie and Bree were patched up, Aaron kept a close eye on Scar. Bree wasn't surprised Aaron had no idea who Scar was. She certainly hadn't mentioned Scar to him, and she doubted Cage or Angel had either.

"Did you call my mom?" Bree asked Ivy. She knew better than to ask Scar that question.

Ivy nodded. "They were already in the woods. They should be here any minute."

Bree's sigh of relief was cut off by Ollie's gasp of fear. Bree looked up to see a man approach them. He looked rough, his once neatly pressed clothes were torn, but she recognized him even in the dark. Ollie pressed himself closer to Bree and Aaron changed his stance to stand over them more.

Bree, however, had a completely different kind of reaction. She calmly stated, "Uncle Scar, that man hurt Ollie," and then sat back to watch the carnage.

A cry of agony came from directly in front of them. Cage gripped his gun tighter as he put on a burst of speed. Angel and Bulldog were right behind him.

They came to a halt at the foot of a very large hollowed-out tree. Bree was sitting on the ground with her arms wrapped around Ollie and Aaron standing protectively over them. Ivy was a little to their right with a huge smile on her face and her phone out recording Scar beating the ever-loving shit out of a man Cage didn't know.

When Bulldog had received a text simply giving coordinates, the entire club had breathed a sigh of relief. Cage had no idea how Scar had found the kids or how he'd even known they were missing, but Cage hadn't cared. They were safe.

"Pops!" Aaron called out and then ran to him.

Cage holstered his gun in time to catch his son. He wrapped his arms around him and held him tight, the feelings of relief were overwhelming. His son was alive and, from what Cage had seen, unharmed.

He heard Angel rush past them and opened his eyes in time to see her fall on her knees next to Bree. Steel was close behind her.

"It's all my fault," he heard Aaron say into his shoulder. "They were hurt because of me."

Cage took a step back and gripped his son's face. Tears were pouring down his young cheeks. "It is not your fault. You are not to blame, son."

Aaron's height and build portrayed him as older, but he was only sixteen. "I tried to protect them. They drugged me and I couldn't fight…"

Cage dragged him back to his chest. "You're safe, they're safe. You protected them. I have no doubt."

Aaron continued to cry into his shirt. Cage looked over to see Bree was clinging to Angel just as hard. Angel had shifted so Bree was on her lap. Steel was consoling a whimpering Ollie. The relief of their reunion was soured by the kids' distress.

Finally, Cage heard Bulldog call out. "That's enough, Scar. Pretty sure he's dead."

Aaron was too large to carry. In order to help cheer Bree and Ollie up, they were given piggyback rides back to the motel by their uncles Ghost and Ranger, who had decided to race. Bets were placed by the other members as further distraction for the teens.

Cage walked ahead with Aaron, but Angel hung back. Bear was examining the man Scar had pulverized to ensure he was actually dead. Ivy was doing something on her phone and grinning to herself about the "extra blood". If it was anyone other than Scar, Angel would be worried about the potential blackmail material that video held.

Except it was Scar and Scar wasn't the sort of man to be blackmailed. Hell, Angel didn't even know his legal name. Only Bulldog knew it, as far as Angel knew.

The pastor and the man Scar had killed needed to be disposed of. The club had their methods. At the rate they were going, Angel was wondering if the club was going to be investing in the swine business soon. There were only so many pig farms in the area they could use without drawing suspicion.

Steel stood silently over the body, staring down at the man who had harmed his adopted son. Angel was pretty sure Steel was wishing for the power to be able to bring the man back to life so he could kill him himself.

Scar and Ivy stood off to the side. They weren't… together , Angel realized. There was too much of a gap between their bodies. They were both standing very similarly with their arms crossed over their chests and feet spread wide. Angel had to wonder if Scar even wanted Ivy with him or if she just kept showing up where he was.

For some reason, that thought amused Angel.

"Scar," Steel said shortly.

The silent man walked up to stand on the other side of the body.

Steel finally looked up. "Bring me Veronica Banks."

Scar nodded once—and Angel had to wonder how Scar even knew who Veronica Banks was. Scar turned and walked away, vanishing into the trees.

Ivy watched Scar leave but made no move to follow.

Angel raised an eyebrow. "Aren't you going with him?"

Ivy shrugged, "Eh. He can handle a soccer mom. Besides, it gets boring when you're the only one who will answer your own conversation starters."

Bulldog let out a sound that resembled a snort.

Steel kicked the body on the ground. "Let's pick up the trash and get going."

The rabbit Ghost and Ranger had caught joined Nathan Moore in the cellar. The club learned nothing that they didn't already know or guess. Veronica Banks had pleaded with Pastor Robins to save her son's soul. She believed that his lifestyle would doom him to an eternity in Hell and she wanted to save him.

As a parent, Angel could understand the woman's fears…to a point. She certainly did not understand or condone the woman's behavior.

They did learn, though, that it was Bree who sliced the man's patellar ligament. Bree had lost her knife, but Angel was pretty sure she was about to receive a new one from each of her uncles. There wasn't a single one of them that wasn't proud of Bree for her actions.

Aaron still felt guilty and claimed he was the reason Bree and Ollie had gotten hurt. No one blamed him. Even Steel. Aaron had tried apologizing to Steel and Jenna for having endangered Ollie, but both of them blew off his apology.

"It's not your fault," Jenna told him gently.

Steel had a slightly different approach. "You protected my son. I'll be forever grateful to you for that. But you break his heart? You disrespect him in any way? And the punishment I have in store for you will make you pray for death…"

Aaron was now so nervous about his date next Friday that he flinched whenever someone brought it up to him.

Ivy had taken back the room she'd used previously like she'd never left. Steel wasn't sure exactly what to do with her. With the Pythons in Pittsburgh gone and the AC Pythons going after the 3Ts, Ivy's mission to shut down the drug pipeline that had killed her sister was done. King's body had washed up on the beach by the AC Boardwalk with two bullet wounds in the back of his head. No one had seen hide nor hair of Fang and assumed the 3Ts or the AC Pythons would catch up with him soon.

Ivy seemed more upset about the absence of the Honeys in the clubhouse than she was about King being executed. "Why the hell would you take away all the free pussy? It was the only good thing about this place!" she whined loudly. Thankfully no kids were around to overhear the complaint.

At their house, Aaron and Cage had the closet gutted and were working on adding the necessary plumbing. Bree even pitched in by handing them tools as they asked for them.

"Are you guys going after my mom?"

Angel had been standing in the hallway by Bree's chair unashamedly watching her man working shirtless when Aaron asked his tentative question.

Cage paused, his eyes finding Angel's. This was a difficult topic. The club was owed justice for what the teens had been put through, but the culprit wasn't a stranger this time. Like with Harper, it was a parent.

Lucky had not liked that the sheriff had lived after how he'd treated Harper and his complacency in his son Richard's actions. However, the club had let the sheriff live because the man's guilt was the worst punishment they could think of for him. More than pain or torture, Ronald Hannigan would live for the rest of his life knowing that his daughter did not trust him and that his wife blamed him for their son's death. He had to look his grandsons in the eyes and know that his inaction was the reason they no longer had a father.

Lucky had killed her brother. He wouldn't take her father from her too.

Veronica's situation was different because, as far as Cage could tell, she did not feel guilty. She believed wholeheartedly that she'd done the righteous thing.

Angel knew that Cage didn't want to lie to his son, but what Veronica had coming to her was club business. Hell, Bree didn't even know that Nathan Moore was suffering a nine-hundred and ninety-six-day penance of daily torture beneath the clubhouse.

Truthfully, Angel didn't have any advice for Cage. She didn't know how she would answer if their roles were reversed. She glanced at Bree to see her daughter watching Cage carefully, like she was looking for the lie.

"You're old enough to know right from wrong, Aaron. Your mom did a very bad thing and she needs to pay for what she did. She not only endangered your life, but also Ollie's and Bree's."

Aaron nodded slowly. "I know that. I just… I'm not sure I want her to die because of it."

Cage's eyes flicked to Angel and then back. "What makes you think she would die because of it?"

Aaron and Bree both scoffed. Then Aaron answered, "That man, Scar, killed the man who had been chasing us because Bree told him that he hurt Ollie. Why would I expect anything less when it comes to my mom?"

"We don't hurt women and children," Cage stated sternly.

"I have no doubt that that is part of your honor code. The exception being when a woman hurts other women and children." Aaron spoke as if he was reading from the VDMC handbook.

Cage was silent for a long moment. "There are some things that we can't tell you. Some things that only patched members can know." He looked between Aaron and Bree. "I can't tell you your mom's fate. All I can say is that she'll never be able to hurt you or anyone else again."

Aaron clearly wasn't satisfied by this answer. "Can I see her…before…you know?"

Angel took pity on Cage and stepped forward. "We can't guarantee anything, sweetheart, but we can try. If that's what you want."

Aaron licked his lips, his uncertainty obvious. "I don't want her to die," he repeated.

Cage and Angel exchanged another look and then nodded. "We'll pass along your request," was the last thing Cage said before changing the subject.

Four days after the prospects had delivered three free meals to the various pig farms in the area, Scar showed up with Veronica Banks. All of the kids were—thankfully—at school. Bulldog sent Yelizaveta to his house after asking if she wouldn't mind helping Frankie with the babies for a little bit. While Yelizaveta was hired to clean, she made it known that she was willing to assist with childcare too.

Ivy was sitting at the bar when Scar dragged a kicking and screaming Veronica into the clubhouse. She looked down at her watch. "You're losing your touch. I had you here a day ago."

Scar completely ignored her.

Aaron's birth mother looked nothing like the prim and proper Christian woman who had shown up at the courthouse with her head held high. Angel wondered if Scar had dragged her behind his sled through a mud field.

She turned to Cage and whispered in his ear, "And you complain about my constant need for a shower."

Cage smiled down at her. "‘Complain' is such a harsh word. My only complaint is when I can't join you."

Angel met his smile before she kissed him.

Steel approached Veronica. Scar had gagged her, but her arms and legs were free of bindings. A quick swipe of Scar's blade and the gag fell from her mouth.

"Who are you?" she demanded. "You have no right to take me! I will call the police."

Carlos walked through the door then. His sheriff's badge gleamed in the overhead lighting.

"Oh, thank the Lord." Veronica got to her feet, her hands going to her hair as if she could wipe out the filth and make herself presentable. "Officer, I want this man arrested." She pointed to Scar. "He kidnapped me in the middle of a church service!"

Carlos glanced at Scar. "A church service? Really? Do I even want to know?"

Scar's only response was to put away his knife.

"Are you staying or going?" Steel asked Carlos.

Veronica's eyes glanced between them, simultaneously picking up on the fact that Steel was in charge and both men were ignoring her. When she spotted Cage by the bar, Angel leaning against him, her eyes went comically wide and her face paled.

"Vinny, what the hell is going on?" she demanded to know.

Everyone ignored her.

"I'll stay," Carlos answered Steel as if Veronica hadn't interrupted their conversation. "Kinda curious to see how this turns out."

Most of the members were at work, but Cage and Angel had called out of their jobs in anticipation of Scar arriving any day. Angel had to side with Ivy on this one; she'd been expecting Scar to have shown up the day before. Four days seemed like a long time for someone as capable as Scar to collect one woman. Even if he had taken her from the middle of a crowded church service.

Tapping behind her brought her attention to Keys. He was standing on the other side of the bar with his laptop. Noticing her eyes on him, he looked up and shrugged. "I wanted to see if I could catch the kidnapping in progress. I mean, how do you take someone from a church? Even churches have security cameras nowadays. Someone had to have seen him."

Angel rolled her eyes and turned back around.

Steel approached Veronica. He crooked his finger at her, wordlessly beckoning her to follow him. Then he turned and walked towards the doorway that led to the apartments.

Veronica looked around the room, but no one stepped forward to help her. Slowly, very cautiously, she followed after Steel. The man hadn't bothered to introduce himself, but his cut clearly stated his name and title.

After giving her a little bit of space, Cage and Angel followed. They were holding hands like they were taking a stroll through the park. Behind them walked Bulldog, Ivy, and Carlos. Angel did not see Scar enter the hallway and wondered if he was still going to be in the main room when they returned.

Steel led Veronica to a vacant apartment. There was a single mattress on the floor with a pillow and blanket. On the wall was a mounted television behind a protection case. The window had been removed and boarded up. In the bathroom, the door had been removed as had the shower curtain. A single roll of toilet paper and hand soap were all that was on the counter.

Steel walked to the center of the room and turned. Veronica stepped into the room but stopped after only a couple of feet. Angel, Cage, and the others crowded around the doorframe like eavesdropping children.

Veronica looked around. After nearly ten minutes and still Steel said nothing, she cleared her throat. "What is this?" she asked fearfully.

"You can thank your son for this," Steel told her plainly. "If it was up to me, you'd be dead already. Your actions endangered my son, my niece, and my nephew— your son."

Veronica chin jutted out. "I was protecting my son. It's not my fault that cripple girl and that fag?—"

"Watch it," Steel snapped darkly.

Veronica snapped her mouth shut mid-sentence. She looked around the apartment. "Why am I here? You have no right to keep me or hold me against my will."

"Probably not," Steel told her with a nod. "But you had no right to kidnap my son either. Call this justice with a bit of vengeance." Steel gestured all around him. "Welcome to your new home."

Veronica's jaw dropped. "You can't expect me to live here ?—"

"Expect? No." Steel shook his head. "Honestly, I could care less if you do. However, if you wish to keep breathing, then this is your only option. If you walk out that door," he pointed to where Angel and the others were gathered, "you die. Slowly and painfully. If you wish to live, then welcome home."

He started to walk past her. "Wait!" she cried out. "What is this? How long do you expect me to stay here?"

Steel whirled on her. "You put your son through hell because of his sexuality. You had him beaten, recite Bible verses, and who knows what else. You had him drugged and kidnapped. And yet, the only reason you are still alive, Veronica Banks, is because of your son. Your gay son pled for leniency on your behalf. He has more heart, more goodness, more forgiveness in his doomed soul than any of us," Steel gestured between himself, Veronica, and the others at the door, "will ever possess. You can think about that while you live out the rest of your pitiful existence in this room. Know that you will never see sunshine, never breathe fresh air, never see the stars again. Your life has been reduced to these four walls."

Steel pointed to the door. "That door isn't even going to remain locked. You are not our prisoner. You are here because it is your only way to live. The second you step through that doorway, you die. On behalf of my gay son, I dare you to doubt me."

He walked away from her. Veronica stared after him, horrified to the point of speechlessness.

Angel and the others were backing away to let Steel leave when Steel suddenly snapped his fingers and turned back around. "I almost forgot." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a remote control. "We wanted to give you some entertainment so my brother, Keys, purchased you a subscription to a very popular gay porn site." Steel turned on the television with a press of a button on the remote. The masculine tones of men groaning and grunting filled the room. "I hear it has some amazing reviews. I hope you have a good life, Veronica Banks."

With that, Steel left the room.

Biting her lip to keep the smile off of her face, Angel reached into the room and closed the door. The lockable doorknob had been removed and had been replaced with a simple, passage door handle.

Cage leaned over Angel and whispered in her ear, "Wanna go for a ride?"

She nodded automatically. They called out to Bree and Aaron to let them know they'd be back later and then headed out into the dusky evening. Angel climbed onto his hog. He handed Angel her helmet and put his on too. He threw his leg over the seat behind her, pressing himself as close to her back as he could.

His hands cupped her boobs from behind. Angel rolled her eyes and moved them down to her waist. She turned the hog on and then drove them out of the driveway.

They passed others on their way out, including Ivy. She seemed to be sticking around and had stated no plans about leaving.

Scar, to everyone's surprise, had still been in the clubhouse when they had returned from putting Veronica in her new bedroom. Steel and Bulldog took him into Steel's office, but no one knew what was said between the three—or rather two—of them.

All Bulldog would say was that Scar would be sticking around.

Angel drove them lazily through town. They passed by the diner and waved to Kelly through the glass windows. Patrick was closing up her tattoo studio, having stayed late to do a Jacob's ladder piercing on some poor soul.

The evening breeze felt nice, cooling after the long September day. Winter would be coming all too soon.

Aaron had his first football game in two days. While he didn't know that his mom was in the clubhouse, Cage did inform him that she was still alive. After speaking with Steel, Cage explained that he did not want her suspected death on Aaron's conscience.

Bree was doing well. She'd made a friend in school named Courtney. Angel had met her mom, Aubrey, during school pickup and the woman seemed nice. Maybe Bree wasn't the only one who could make friends outside of the club.

As they stopped at the overlook where they'd released the paper lanterns in honor of their lost baby, the sun set the rest of the way along the horizon. Angel was sitting sidesaddle on the hog between Cage's legs, leaning back against his chest.

"Are you going to tell me now?" he inquired.

"Hm," she moaned. "Tell you what?"

"How did you do it? How did you get Bree's paperwork and everything transferred?"

Angel felt her lips twitch. "Only if you tell me what you said in Greek."

"I say a lot of things in Greek. You'll need to be more specific."

"In the tub," Angel pressed. "You said something in Greek to me." Looking up, she fluttered her eyelids at him. "It sounded really romantic."

Cage was quiet for a moment before admitting, "Honestly. I don't remember exactly. Something about you being more beautiful than all the stars in the night sky…" He shrugged offhandedly.

Angel snorted. She was in love with an utter dumbass, but he was her dumbass. He could have easily made something up and she never would have known the difference. "My older sister," she said in answer to his original inquiry.

She felt Cage's head tilt in confusion. "You told me your sister died."

"Amber did, my twin," Angel clarified, "but I have another sister. She's six years older than me. We hadn't talked in almost four years. Like my parents, she doesn't agree with my biker lifestyle."

"I rather like your biker lifestyle," Cage said, giving her cheek a kiss. Angel's heart about swelled three sizes. Cage was silent for a minute before he pressed, "So who is your sister that she could do what she did so quickly?"

"I don't know her official title, but she's one of the Deputy Directors of the United States Marshals Service. She basically runs WITSEC."

Angel felt Cage's jaw drop against the back of her head. She gave him some time to process that.

"Wait, so it wasn't your father? The rumor around the club is that your father is some higher up politician."

Angel snorted. "Senator Ferdinand Matthews is the highest of higher up politicians."

Cage sat up so fast that he nearly dumped Angel off of the hog. Thankfully, she grabbed the handlebar and was able to steady herself. "Hold up. Are you fucking serious? Your father is Senator Matthews? As in, the man who just threw his hat in the ring for the next presidential election?"

"I don't pay much attention to the news. Did he really?"

Cage's moonlit expression was a mixture of shock, frustration, and awe. Then all of a sudden, the widest smile appeared on his face.

Angel's eyes glared, not trusting his apparent joy. "What?" she demanded.

"Dude, if he actually gets elected, I am so telling everyone that I am fucking the president's daughter." Angel rolled her eyes at his mirth. "Come on," he cajoled, "it's like every guy's ultimate wet dream!"

"I thought that was Princess Leia in a bikini," she said before she thought better of it. As Cage's eyes lit up, she snapped, "No!" and pointed a finger at him.

He grabbed that finger and used it to pull her close. He wrapped an arm around her waist. "I don't need Princess Leia. I have the hottest, sexiest, most badass woman in my arms who doesn't know how to stay clean and fills up her own swear jar because she doesn't know how to stop cursing. Sweet Angel, you are my ultimate wet dream."

Declaration made, Cage kissed her. Angel kissed him back, meeting his ferocity with equal of her own.

After the past two years, the club was owed some down time. There were kids to be raised and the holidays approaching. Jenna was already getting out her white boards to start planning Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas down to the last morsels of fig pudding. Lila was going to get her puppy and she had a daddy-daughter recital at school that she would not stop talking about. Aaron wanted to start his basic training now to prepare him for the day he entered the Army. Ollie was likely tearing apart his closet at that moment to find something fabulous to wear on his first date with Aaron on Friday. Cassie and Bree still had a lot of healing ahead of them.

The Honeys and their drama were gone. Pumpkin's baby would be joining them in time for Christmas. Maybe in the near future, Angel and Cage would be ready to try again. Angel could not get Cage's description of their little girl out of her head.

But, for the moment, the club could breathe.