Chapter 9

Gideon

A noise jars me up in the middle of the night. I'm probably just hearing things. Or maybe it's Ivy. She's not in bed with me. After those backshots I gave her, she must've gone back to sleep in the room where Lilly is.

I glance at the clock. It's almost 3:00 a.m. I was just about to roll over and catch more shuteye when I hear more noise. This time, it sounds like glass shattering and I know for a fact my mind isn't playing tricks on me.

I ease up, grab my gun from the bottom drawer of my nightstand and walk quietly down the hallway. I open the door to Ivy and Lilly's room. They're both lying there, sleeping soundly, so neither of them is the source of the noise. I had to rule that out first.

I head to the kitchen and see a shadow standing at the back door. The glass is busted out and it appears they're trying to unlock the door from the inside.

Without warning I fire off a shot and the guy scrambles to get away. I wanted to chase him, but I didn't want to leave Ivy and Lilly at the house unattended just in case there were more of them – whoever they are.

I go back to the room and shake Ivy awake.

"Hmm," she says, groggy and sleep-ridden.

"Ivy, get up! Come on. I have to get you and Lilly out of here."

"What? What's…" she rubs her tired eyes asking, "What's going on, Gideon?"

"Somebody tried to break into the house."

The terrified look on her face troubles me, but I don't have time to console her right now. I have to get my family to safety.

She gets up, dresses quickly, and straps Lilly in the car seat sitting by the bed.

"Come on. Get your things. We gotta go!" I say, encouraging her to move faster.

I take the car seat with Lilly, thankful that she's so tired, she hasn't woken up to any of this. I'm amazed they'd both slept through the glass shatter and the shot I fired off. I wanted to empty the clip, but for sure that would've woke them up. They've been through too much already to be having flashbacks.

Once we're all in the Scat, I floor it to the clubhouse. Someone is usually always there, and I'm counting on that for the safety of my girls.

"It's him. I know it is, but how did he find me?" Ivy asks.

"I'm not sure, but now, it's my turn to find him."

I pull up in front of the clubhouse, park, and say, "Get Lilly. I'm going to see if Prez is around."

I go inside and find Loki at the bar slumped over. The man knows how to handle his liquor, so I know he isn't drunk. He's just there, probably devising plans for the operation of this joint and the whole club. The weight of it all is on his shoulders, but today, this early in the morning, we have more pressing matters.

I say, "Prez…"

"Hawk, what are you doing here so early? Heard you were shacking up with your ol' lady. Y'all working it out, huh?"

"Something like that. Ay, listen, man. I got a problem. I can handle it on my own, but—"

"Now, you know that ain't how we roll around here," he says, cutting me off. "What seems to be the issue?"

"Somebody tried to break into my place a lil' while ago. I think it's the man Ivy is running from. I shot at him, but didn't pursue…had to make sure Ivy and Lilly were fine."

"You get a look at him?"

"It was dark, he had on all black."

"'Nuff said. I'm calling church."

"I can handle it on my own, Loki. I don't want to cause any undue stress on my brothers."

"I know you can handle it on your own, but that's what the brotherhood is for. You just got out of the slammer. No sense in going back in so early, now is there?"

Ivy walks in with Lilly.

Loki looks at me, pulls out a credit card, and says, "Get them a hotel for a few nights. Then you come back here. We're going to get this handled, brother."

I take the card and instruct Ivy to follow me back to the car. I drive to a hotel down the street, making sure no one is following us. Once I get them all checked in, I say, "Don't leave this room for anything. Do you understand me?"

"Yes. I got it."

"I'll be back for you."

"Gideon, please stay out of trouble," she says pleadingly. She looks scared like she's going to lose me again.

I tell her, "I promise I won't get caught this time, but this guy crossed the line. He has to pay for his sins. We all do, at some point. Right, sweetheart?"

"Just be safe, okay?"

"I'll do my best."

I head back to my house to leave the car and get my motorcycle, then cruise back to the clubhouse. I couldn't have been gone a half hour and everybody's here. Loki is sitting at the head of the table. I glance around at everyone else. Dragon looks like he hadn't had any sleep. Wraith is always ready to ride. He looks alert and down for whatever's about to happen. He always is. Bishop is also alert, sipping on a beer at almost four-something in the morning. Lion is playing with a butterfly knife and Sheol is calm, looking over at me like he can't wait for Prez to let them all know what's happening.

In a way, I'm amazed he called this meeting. I'm no officer – just a member – but I guess in his eyes, the club is the club, and if you're a member, you're a member.

"What's pressing this early in the morning?" Bishop asks. "We haven't had church in a month."

Loki says, "Well, some stuff went down tonight with Hawk, and we need to take care of business. Hawk, you want to fill in the blanks."

"Sure. So, after getting out of the joint, I learned that my ol' lady was being abused by some guy named Cash. I moved her and her daughter—well, our daughter—in with me for a while just to keep them safe. They've been with me for almost two weeks now and somehow, this man must've found out where she was because someone bashed in my back door earlier this morning. I fired a shot and he ran. I got Ivy and Lilly out of the house as fast as I could. They're at a hotel now."

"With no protection?" Wraith asks.

"I made sure we weren't being followed. I had to take them somewhere."

"Doesn't matter," Wraith says. "Somebody should be with them, just in case."

"I agree," Loki says. "Sheol, when the meeting is over, I want you to head over there. If anyone looks like a suspect—"

Sheol flashes an evil grin. "Yeah, I know what to do."

"Hawk, do you have any idea who this man is?" Lion asks.

"All I know is what Ivy told me. She said his name was Cash Brooke."

"I know that name," Wraith says, but he looks like he can't pinpoint where he's heard it before.

"Did you get a good look at him?" Bishop asks.

"No. Like I told Loki, it was dark. Maybe he had on a ski mask, but I'm not sure. He was tall, I remember with a slim build."

"I don't care what he looks like," Dragon says. "It sounds to me like LeBlanc Gator Tours needs to take him for a ride."

"That's what I'm talking about," Lion says, then fist bumps with Dragon.

"Hawk, what's your ol' lady's relation to this man?" Bishop asks.

"They were together while I was locked up. She broke it off with me, started seeing him a few months after Lilly was born and—"

"I got it! I know that rat bastard! He was one of the idiots who robbed that bank with your brother."

Blood rushes to my head and all I see is red. That's his connection? He was one of them? And my brother Gage is stupid enough to tell him where Ivy was staying? It had to be Gage who's been feeding him information, and if it was, he'd feel my wrath later. For now, I have to make sure to handle this pressing business.

"What are we going to do to this fool?" Dragon asks.

"I'll figure that out when I get there," I say.

"Where is there ?" Bishop asks.

I say, "We'll swing by Gage's place, rough him up a bit and he'll tell me where to find his idiot friend."

"Okay, then let's ride," Loki says.

We grab our helmets and follow in succession as Loki leads the formation. I had already given him the address to Gage's run-down duplex and now, we're pulling up. I told the boys I'll handle it because they're liable to kill him on the spot. I mean, so am I – you just don't mess with a man's family – but at least I'll give him grace along with the black eye he's got coming.

I jump off my Harley, ready for redemption when I walk toward the door. Gage opens the door before I can kick it open and he catches my right fist to his right eye.

He winces. "Hey, what the hell, man?" he asks, covering his eye that will be bruised by morning.

I punch him again. This time he falls backward into the living room, if you can call it a living room in this dump. The place looks and smells like something on Hoarders – exactly how I imagined he was living.

He spits blood and looks at me like he's befuddled. He probably is. I've always had my brother's back, even when he didn't have mine, but he crossed the line when he messed with my family.

"Whoa, man! What are you doing?"

"Cash Brooke—you know that prick, so don't play dumb. That's one of your bank robbery buddies, isn't it?"

He wipes blood from his mouth.

"Isn't it!"

He winces some more like the punk that he is, touching his mouth and looking at the blood on his hand.

I say, "You better start talking, Gage, or I swear I'm going to knock every tooth out of your mouth."

"Okay, okay! Yeah, I know him!"

"Did you know he was with Ivy while I was locked up?"

"I mean, I saw them together a few times."

"You're a friggin' liar!"

"I'm not lying, Gideon. I swear!"

"Imma ask you a question and if you lie to me, I'm going to unleash the gates of hell on you. Did you tell him where I lived?"

"Ye-yeah. He said he had something to give Ivy."

"And how did you know Ivy was at my place?"

"Brandon told me."

I grind my teeth and punch him in the gut. "You crossed the line, Gage. I've always had your back and you pull this on me, but this is it. I'm done. You hear me? Done! If you ever step foot on my property, you're going to catch heat. Think I'm playing? Try me. Now, tell me where this fool is?"

"I don't know. He's in and out. I let him crash here for a few days last week, but I haven't seen him since then."

"Come on, fellas," I say. "I'm going to search every corner of this city until I find him!"

"Ay, here's a thought," Loki says. "You got the name ‘Hawk' because you don't miss. Did you check the yard to see if you hit that fool?"

"No, I didn't. I was too busy trying to get my wife and kid to safety."

"I say we roll back to your place and check the yard," Loki suggests.

"Good idea," I tell him. "Let's roll."

In the cover of darkness, we roll through the muggy streets heading back to my place. When we arrive, everyone draws their weapon of choice and we converge on the place like a trained SWAT Team.

Loki says, "Bishop and Wraith—we'll take the back. Hawk, take Lion and Dragon with you."

"Ten-four," I reply. "With my gun drawn, I walk in the front door, clearing room after room.

Lion says, "I doubt if he came back here."

"You never know," Dragon says. "I'm hoping he did. It's been a while since I last stabbed somebody."

They chuckle.

"Ay, out here," I hear Loki say from the backyard. We run in that direction, stepping over broken glass to get out back. When we get back there, Loki has a flashlight pointed toward the ground. A man in all black, wearing a ski mask is lying face down on the earth.

"Is he dead?" Lion kicks him.

"Looks that way," Dragon responds.

"I knew it," Loki says. "Don't know why you doubted yourself, Hawk. You got him with one shot. Impressive."

Now, I start freaking out because I just got out of jail. It's not a good feeling to think I'm going back there, leaving Ivy and Lilly behind.

I say, "Man, I got a kid. I can't go down for this."

"Why would you?" Wraith asks. "The prick had it coming. He tried to break into your house."

"The law won't see it that way."

"Screw the law!" Loki exclaims. "We make our own laws. He did the crime and now, he's paid for it. And don't you worry about going back in. That's not going to happen."

"Yeah," Dragon says. "The gators will be well-fed tonight. Woo!"

"Ain't none of this coming back to you," Loki says.

"All you have to do is keep your idiot brother in check," Bishop advises.

"That won't be a problem."

"Good," Loki says. "Now, bring a rug or something so we can get this garbage off your property."

I go into the house, pull up the rug in the living room and bring it out to them. They spread it on the ground, move Cash's body on it and roll it up. While they do that, I run to the garage to get a roll of duct tape and run back, helping them secure the rug and its filthy contents. Afterward, they pick up the rug and carry it to my car. I pop the trunk, they throw the rug inside and the package is ready for transport.

I follow Dragon to LeBlanc Gator Tours where we transfer the dead woman-abuser onto the boat.

Dragon says, "I got it from here. Go take care of your family."

Loki pats me on the shoulder and says, "Good work, Hawk."

"Yeah. Thanks," I say, not feeling particularly good about this. I am grateful that Ivy and Lilly no longer have to live in fear, but it shouldn't have taken this for it to happen. When I got out of prison, I wanted to keep my hands clean of this stuff, but, then again, had the man not tried to break into my house, he'd probably still be alive, wouldn't he?

I look at the members of this motorcycle club for a moment, each of them, and reflect how they had my back through all of this. I say, "I appreciate everything. Y'all really came through for me."

"That's what we do," Bishop says. "We're family, man."

"Yeah," Loki adds. "Family."

I return to my car. They get on their bikes and we roll out. Tomorrow, I'll get my car detailed and washed by some prospects at the clubhouse. Right now, I'm going to the hotel to be with my family.