CHAPTER FOUR

– ROWAN –

It’s been two hours since Dwight’s lips left mine and I can still feel the tingle of electricity he ignited by that mere kiss. Damn. Talk about a connection. A kiss is just a kiss, and sex is just sex. At least, that’s what I’ve thought all my life. Clearly, there’s such a thing as animalistic attraction. Something I wasn’t aware of until Dwight kissed me.

“Rox to Rowan, are you going to vacation inside your brain with spicy Dwight dreams? Or are you going to tell me about it so we can exchange hints and tips?”

I blink a few times to process Rox’s statement and all I can come up with is, “The way his kiss affected me I’d say the sex would be mind-blowing.”

Rox grins. “Then we’ll save that discussion for when you’ve done the hot, heavy, and nekkid stuff.”

Raised voices draw my attention toward Marlene and Brixton who are standing near the bar.

“What’s going on?” I question.

Could it have something to do with the fact that Meadow was called into work only an hour after the guys left? She’s a medical examiner, so being called into work means a dead body, right? Fingers crossed they found Caddy dead in a bathtub.

Asher is sitting in a chair across from us and leans in. “Marlene’s brother was made aware of the fact that his sister, who was kidnapped after she was born, has been found. He wants to meet her.”

“Oh,” I muse and glance back at Marlene and Brixton. “She doesn’t look very happy about it.”

Rox pats my knee. “I would guess that she doesn’t want to risk anyone’s life until Caddy is out of the picture for good.”

I bob my head in understanding. Asher glances at his phone and is firing off a message. I’m curious and would like to ask if there’s any news, but I also don’t want to be too much of a burden.

Luckily Rox doesn’t have any issues when it comes to soothing her curiosity when she asks, “Was the bitch in the hotel room? Or did she yet again book something to throw us off?”

“They found a dead body stashed in the bathroom of her hotel room.” Asher frowns at his phone. “A woman. Meadow said that the clothes indicated she was one of the hotel’s housekeepers. Her body was wrapped in garbage bags and sealed shut, probably in an effort to keep the stench at bay to give her a few days head start since the room was paid for for a week along with a ‘do not disturb’ sign.” He thumbs the screen. “They’ve put a BOLO on the housekeeper’s car since it’s missing along with the dead woman’s keys and purse. They sent an officer to the dead woman’s house since she lives with her mother.”

I lean back on the couch and release a deep breath. This woman is totally crazy and on a wild killing spree. I’m lucky to still be alive. Hell, if it wasn’t for Dwight I wouldn’t be sitting here right now.

My mind is still fuzzy and I rub my temples. There are only flashes I remember of what happened yesterday. Sylvan instantly attacking me as soon as I saw him, fading in and out while I was tied up, fragments of Caddy and Sylvan arguing, the water…drowning. I don’t remember much of that.

Caddy did mention something and I wonder out loud, “Would she go to her mother?”

Sylvan accused her of contacting her mother, complaining about how she had family left while he had no one anymore.

“Rox, love, would you mind getting my bag?” I faintly hear Asher state right before he grips my wrists to pull my hands away from my face. “Hey, are you okay?”

A sigh rips from me. “Fine. Just a little fuzzy.”

Rox places a bag next to Asher, and now I’m sighing because he’s shining a light in my eyes and taking my temperature.

“I’m tired, and frustrated because I’m trying to remember. Some of the things that happened yesterday are still gaps in my memory,” I grumble.

“You’re still recovering,” Asher muses as he takes my blood pressure. “It’s probably best if you take some more rest.”

“I don’t want to get some rest, I want to remember their conversation so I might be helpful in some way. I hate sitting around, doing nothing while others risk their lives, or are held back from living because some bitch is still out there killing anyone that stands in her way.”

“You overheard their conversation?” Tage questions as he steps closer.

I wince and hear the frustration in my own voice when I tell him, “I heard them talking, yes. I have no clue what it was about. My head was hurting and I was fading in and out of consciousness. I think Sylvan mentioned Caddy’s mother. How she still had family or contacted family? I don’t know.”

Asher and Tage share a look.

“What?” I ask.

“Holt, Caddy’s father, kicked her mother to the curb when he found out she kidnapped Marlene as a baby. We assumed they didn’t have any contact.” Tage pulls his phone from his pocket. “Let me check the file. I think Cecil ran a background check.”

Asher thumbs through his phone as well and they almost simultaneously say, “Last known whereabouts is listed as New Jersey. We handed the information over to the feds for the kidnapping of Marlene since she was transported over state lines.”

Tage smiles. “She fucked up, picking a state where a kidnapping felony doesn’t expire.”

Asher nods and says, “My former president’s younger brother is the president of the NJ chapter of Broken Deeds MC. Want me to call him? I’m pretty sure they can find the woman faster than the feds if she’s still in NJ.”

Tage points his phone at Asher. “Smart thinking. Reach out and let them dig their teeth in. If they do find out where the woman is staying, make sure they observe the place. I don’t want Caddy spooked if she does show up there. Do they run the same kind of club as Archer?”

“Spence’s chapter mainly works undercover cases. They have a different contract with the government,” Asher states.

“Good. Get Spence up to speed and since they’re in a different state and know their shit, they will be capable enough to handle it from their end. Just make sure to tell them Caddy is shoot on sight if she does show up. We don’t want her to slip away a-fucking-gain,” Tage grunts.

“Got it, VP,” Asher says and stalks toward church to make the call in private.

Lorelei plunks down next to me, holding her little niece in her arms. “I’m so freaking tired. Who the hell thought it was a great idea to get pregnant while raising my sister’s kid?” She turns to face me. “It’s a rhetorical question. I love my niece, I love being pregnant, but what I do not love is feeling like shit.”

I hold my hands out. “May I?”

“Hell yes,” she sighs in relief. “Thank you. My arms are drained and I really, really need a minute to talk to my old man. Do you mind?”

My eyes are locked on the tiny baby and I take the rattle from Tage’s hand when I tell her, “Go on, I got her.”

The weight shifts both left and right from me on the couch, but I only have eyes for the tiny baby staring up at me.

“Where are you on the baby fever scale?” Rox questions from my left. “Because three out of the five old ladies are pregnant. It’s only because I made a pact with Alwyn that she and I are only still firmly practicing to potentially be successful in a few years.”

I roll my eyes. “You can plan all you want, but life doesn’t allow to be dictated. Sure, you can set some guidelines, shift course when you feel the wind in your sails, but life is like the wide-open sea; the depth below with its untamed wildness, and a sky that can seem clear but can turn stormy in the blink of an eye.”

Rox tilts her head. “So…you’re the kind of girl who fucks bare and lets faith decide if you’re getting knocked up now or whenever your womb melts with the number one sperm racer?”

“What kind of answer is that?” I squeak. “All I was trying to say is that you might be dating a guy for a few weeks here and then the next day he turns out to be a cheating asshole and then you have to find someone else who interests you. And what if all men are assholes? What if the one I feel an amazing connection with doesn’t experience it the same way? What then? I do desire a family at some point in time, but if life keeps plunging me into the depths of the sea or turning sunshine into a freaking storm I’ll end up with nothing.”

Rox snaps her fingers. “You should have said that instead of the wind in your sails shit. And for the record? All men are indeed assholes, women too because everybody has one. It’s the level of assholery you need to take into account if you find the right guy.”

I shake my head and focus on the baby in my arms.

“So…” Rox starts again. “You feel a connection with Dwight, eh? And just so you know…I’m pretty damn sure he feels the same way. That kiss you gave him was hawt. Like flames licking your pu–”

“Woman,” Asher growls as he steps closer. “Stop hooking brothers up. Dwight can handle his own life, okay?”

Rox gives her old man an unpolite gesture. “I’m just making sure this club has kickass old ladies, which you can’t deny we need to keep the testosterone in balance.”

I can’t help but smile at her statement and the tiny baby in my arms. With everything going on, I’d rather focus on Joanne who has no clue about the dangers and destruction life holds. Yet, knowing how she came into this world is a stark contrast to how cruel taking one breath after the other can be.

Yet, this brotherhood embraces the good and fights for justice. Something as noble as that is a blessing in my book. Hopefully, they manage to close this case the way they managed to close the danger this tiny baby was once wrapped in.