Chapter 1

Following the dipshit who showed up at the clubhouse, my gut's telling me he's up to no good.

I'm not one for bullshit and never have been. It's the way I grew up, and that won't ever change. I learned a long time ago to listen to my gut the way my dad used to tell me—the way my mom did.

Both my parents showed me to be tough as nails. Even now, with my dad gone, my mom is the toughest person I know. She's a hard ass, but still, she has the softest heart.A while back, when she first met Avery's nieces and nephews, she took to them just as my sister Leanna did. My mom is a big help to Leanna with those kids and loves spending time with them. Between the two women, they've done everything to give them the life they should've had in the first place.

No kid should live the way they'd been living. In a run-down trailer, dirty and hungry. Now, they've got a good life, a woman who cares for them, and a grandmother who adores them. Hell, if my mom were younger, she'd have taken them as her own, I'm sure of it. If Mom could, she'd adopt them all in a heartbeat. Mom had wanted a houseful of kids but only ended up with my older sister and me. During her pregnancy with me, there had been complications that made it so she couldn't have any more. Now, she's got the joy of helping my sister with raising those kids and loves every minute of it.

I refocus, shifting my mind back to task as I watch Simon pull off the road and down a dirty lane. Colt and I pull off to the side of the road. I glance over at him without a word. Simultaneously, we both park our bikes and climb off. There is no reason to announce ourselves. We didn't hide we were following him, but we didn't make it obvious either.

Together, Colt and I take to the woods, staying out of sight and following the path until Simon's car comes into view with him standing outside of it, leaning against the side.

I stop behind one of the giant oaks and lean against it to listen.

"You sure this is a good idea?" Simon asks. "I think this whole thing is bullshit. What's so important with getting in with these assholes?"

Hmm, interesting. I glance at the tree next to me and catch Colt's inquisitive look.

"Because I have plans for them all," the other man states. "They took something of mine, and I want it back."

"And that would be?" Simon prompts.

"None of your concern."

Taking a peek around the tree, I get a good look at the man Simon is speaking with. Something about the older man looks familiar, but I can't put my finger on it.

"I get you think that, Johnathan, but it's my ass on the line here. You want me to do this, you've got to give me something."Simon pushes off his car and rakes his fingers through his hair.

"Watch your tone with me, boy. It's not me who owes money. That would be your family. I could easily exploit your family business to the world, but you help me, those stay a secret, and I don't take Gwyneth as payment."

"You touch my sister, and you'll regret it."

Furrowing my brow, I start connecting dots. This is bullshit, and I'm definitely getting a bad feeling about all this.

"Don't you threaten me, boy," Johnathan snaps. "You do as you're told, and I won't touch sweet, little Gwyneth. Get in with that club. Find a way to separate the women from the men. I want my property back, and while at it, go ahead and get your hands on Honor as well. She's a pretty thing, and both of them would make perfect pets."

Tension flows through my veins, and my hand itches to reach for my gun. To go ahead and pull the trigger, killing both these men. It would keep the headache to come at bay, but I can't, not yet. I need to hear what else is said.

"You promise if I do this Gwyn stays safe?" Simon asks, sounding somewhat timid.

"I give you my word. I'll clear your debt, and so will the others if you succeed in this. But if you can take out the brats as well, I'll throw in a bonus," Johnathan states, chuckling menacingly.

At those words, everything clicks in place, and I know who this fucker is. He's the man who . . . fuck . . . this isn't good.

Another thought pops into my head, and I know we need to talk to Cy. Find this Gwyneth. If we do that, then we'll be able to keep control of dipshit Simon since he seems to have a soft spot for her.

Glancing at Colt, I jerk my chin and start heading in the direction we came from. It's time to get back to the clubhouse, fill the others in, and plan because there's a shitstorm coming, and it's not the one that involves Avery's siblings. Those idiots are being dealt with come tomorrow. This storm has to do with a war that's been stalled. Now, it's happening, and I've got to warn my brothers.

Then I'm going to find this Gwyneth.

"What did you find out?" Hammer demands the moment Colt and I get back to the clubhouse.

After hearing the conversation between Simon and Johnathan, I'm more than ready to get my hands on the woman who seems to be the answer to keeping Simon in check. By getting this Gwyneth chick, we can draw the weasel in and find out exactly what Johnathan wants.

On the way here, I rolled it over in my head. Malice is going to lose his mind when he finds out who's behind this. With everything else going on between the cartel's bullshit and Avery's siblings, along with the satanic group called The Delivers, it became less priority. Something none of us should have allowed to happen.

We all know my VP's family is fucked and crazy. His uncle mostly. A while back, he'd used a clubwhore to attempt to kill not just his woman but their triplets. It was fucked-up all that happened, but I remember Bambi saying the name and her brother, Mario, saying he's the man who was supposed to be purchasing Willow.

Fuck.

Cy hadn't been able to find much on the guy other than a picture when he first looked into the whole thing. That's why I figured out who the guy was when Simon mentioned his name. Then he'd talked about getting what belonged to him. I was able to connect the dots.

"Where's Malice?" I push the question out through gritted teeth. I don't want to be the one who is the bearer of bad news. It usually means the messenger gets a fist to the face.

Hammer looks between Colt and myself, grimaces, and motions for us to follow him to his office. Malice is already in there, sitting in front of Hammer's desk, looking over some papers.

"Close the door behind you," Hammer orders and moves around his desk to take a seat while Malice looks over his shoulder in our direction.

Colt closes the door and comes to stand next to me.

"Now, what did you find out," Hammer grinds out.

"Simon was meeting with a man named Johnathan." I pause long enough to meet Malice's narrowed gaze. "I got a look at him and it's the guy who supposedly was buying Willow."

"Motherfucker," Malice snarls, coming out of his seat and starts pacing the room. "You're sure? It was him?"

Nodding, Colt and I go over all that we witnessed, including the threat made against Simon's sister and how that's what's being held over the man. It's because of the girl he's following directions to protect her. "If we get our hands on this Gwyneth chick, we can pull Simon in and make him talk."

"I agree," Colt adds. "He didn't seem to care as much about the debt or his parents as he did about his sister. She's important to him."

"Get Cy to find her and bring her ass in," Hammer commands. "If you're right, then we can use her to bring the bastard out of hiding once and for all."

"I'd suggest the women be put on lockdown," I advise, thinking about how he'd wanted Simon to separate the women from the men. If the women are on lockdown, they can't come to harm.

"Agreed," Hammer grunts. "I'll be sending a notice out, but I also want to keep this quiet the best we can. No need to worry any of them if we don't have to."

I give a curt nod, turn, and leave the office. I need to search for Cy, then I've got to get to my mom's for dinner. She's got a rule that she's had since I first moved out when I was eighteen and prospecting for the club. Every week, I'm at her place for dinner. Usually, it's a Sunday or Monday unless something comes up and I have to reschedule for another night. I don't miss dinner with my mom. If I even attempted to, she'd have my ass.

For a woman near her seventies, she can be a hard ass. It's the way she raised my sister and me both.

Leanna is older than me by six years, married a man who died overseas, and never remarried. Leanna buried herself in work and helped our mom out, along with driving me insane. The two of them are known to try and meddle in my life. Leanna seems to think I need a woman so I'll settle down.

I'm good without the headache that comes with a woman.

A couple years ago, Leanna had been at the clubhouse helping out with a few things when we'd gotten back to the clubhouse with Avery's nieces and nephews we'd taken out of a bad situation. Those kids immediately became my sister's world. Even now, she loves them like they were her own.

The nights that I'm at my mom's for dinner, and they're all there, it's always hilarious, and I'm happy for them all.

Still, it doesn't stop their attempts to get me to settle down.

With a slight shake of my head, I push thoughts of dinner aside and focus again on the task at hand. This Gwyneth chick is a priority. Hopefully, we can get this taken care of quick fast and in a hurry. The last thing we need is more drama around the clubhouse than we've already got going on.