Chapter Eleven

Knox

We pulled into the compound in late afternoon. Evelyn hadn't said much and the kids were pretty quiet. Aneshya was taking Dad's death pretty hard. Luke was occupying his mind by fussing over Evelyn and Aneshya, but he was having trouble as well. Evelyn was just shell-shocked. They'd all been through so much I was surprised she'd only had the one meltdown. Thankfully, she seemed better than in those first few minutes and, most importantly, she hadn't fallen back into that despair.

As we pulled through the gate, a couple of men pulled in front of us as an escort. That told me there was news, likely that the club had found the shooter and had him on club grounds. I'd follow our escorts and let them guide us where Rocket wanted us. I'd learn what they'd found then.

Not surprisingly, they had us go straight to the family area. Our compound was completely fenced off with the common areas around the outside. The club whores and our family areas were both fenced off inside the main compound giving both areas an extra layer of protection. The whole thing was over a square mile with our territory inside the wildlife sanctuary extending a much larger area. As a result, we were able to keep the overgrowth thick to prevent us being spotted from the air.

As we entered the family compound, I followed the escort until they pulled into the driveway of one of the larger cabins we'd built. It would be large enough for us all to be comfortable and for the kids to each have their own room.

I shut off the truck, then turned to Evelyn and the kids. "I think this is where we're gonna set up shop. You guys wanna take a look around?"

Aneshya sniffed but nodded her head. Luke took his sister's hand and squeezed. She smiled at him, and I thought that maybe they'd be all right.

Once out of the truck, I helped Aneshya out, then went around to Evelyn's side. She'd just slid from the truck when I reached her. She stepped into my arms willingly without hesitation, and I hugged her close.

"Hey, guys." Falcon approached us, a welcoming smile on his face. "Lemon said you were coming to stay with us." He held out a hand to Luke. "I'm Falcon." Luke took his hand and nodded at him.

"I'm Luke. This is my sister, Aneshya."

The girl gave Falcon a shy smile but didn't say anything. She clung to her brother, and Luke put an arm around her.

"It's good to meet you, Aneshya. You know Lemon and Apple, right?"

"Yeah," Luke answered. "We like them."

"Good. They're waiting in the house. Thought you'd like to explore and pick out your rooms." Falcon continued to smile but gave me a look. "You think you can do that while your mom and Knox go see Rocket? Me and Bear over there'll be outside if you guys need us."

"Mommy?" Aneshya looked up at Evelyn. I wasn't sure if the girl was afraid or if she was asking permission, but Evelyn knew her daughter.

She knelt down in front of the girl. "I promise I'll be back as soon as I can. I doubt Rocket will keep us too long. No one's gonna hurt you or Luke."

"You're gonna protect us now?" Aneshya addressed me, her eyes wide and questioning.

"I sure am. Me and everyone here. We're all one big family."

That seemed to please Aneshya because she finally had a real, if small, smile. "I like that."

"We're learning how important it is to have family you can rely on, so we like it too."

Evelyn lifted her face to me, giving me a questioning look. I nodded. "Stay with Lemon and Apple. I'll be right back."

Luke stepped up to me. "You take care of my mom. I'll protect Aneshya."

"On my word, Luke. Your mother will be safe. So will you and Aneshya."

Luke and I shared a long look, then Luke nodded. "I don't think you're like Danny. You're his brother, but you're not like him."

"I won't betray any of you, Luke. Not for anything. Do you understand?"

"Yeah. I do." Luke stuck out his hand to me and I took it. He gave me a firm handshake. "If you do to Mom what Danny did, I'll kill you."

"I expect nothing less. You've got more of your grandpa in you than your father."

That seemed to please Luke because he lifted his chin and I saw the ghost of a smile and something like shock. Like I'd just given the kid the highest praise. He nodded once, then took his sister's hand and led her toward the house. We watched until they opened the door. Apple and Lemon greeted them with smiles and hugs. To my amusement, Luke hugged Apple for a very long time. Before Apple finally pushed him off, she was laughing, and Luke was smiling. Then Apple rolled her eyes, threw up her hands, and hugged him again. Luke had a shit-eating grin on his face. I knew one day he'd be capable of breaking hearts wherever he went. The thing was, because of the way Danny had lied to his family, by deceiving them all, Luke would never intentionally harm a woman or child. Physically, mentally, or emotionally. As I saw it, my job now was to reinforce those instincts in him by proving I would always love and protect his family now.

My family.

With that last, though, I leaned in and kissed Evelyn's cheek. "Come on. Let's go see what's going on so we can get back and make sure everyone gets settled in."

Evelyn nodded, then turned her face up to mine. She pulled herself up on her tiptoes and kissed my mouth tenderly. I wrapped my arms around her, kissing her back.

"You up for this? I can go by myself if you want to stay with your kids."

"No. I need to know what happened. And why."

"I know. But you know I can explain it all. After." I wanted to spare her what I knew would be a painful encounter but knew she wouldn't take me up on the offer.

"No. I need to see the truth in his eyes."

"He's lied to you before, Evelyn."

"I know, Knox."

She tried to look away, but I turned her face gently back to me. "I'm not criticizing you, honey. I just don't want to cause you more pain that you've already endured."

"I know. But I need to do this. I'll trust you to have my back."

"You'll do what I tell you? I promised your son I'd never hurt you. If someone else hurts you on my watch, that kid'll jack me in my sleep." I grinned down at her, trying to lighten the mood while still getting her promise to do what I said. If Rocket found out something to condemn Danny and he managed to tug at Evelyn's heart strings, I might not be able to keep that promise to Luke. And I had no desire to, and no intention of, breaking that promise.

She smiled back, though it didn't really reach her eyes. "Yes, Mr. Bossy Pants. I promise I'll do what you tell me. I wouldn't want my son to have to hurt you."

"Good. ‘Cause if I get my ass handed to me by a twelve-year-old, Lemon will take my man card." As I hoped, that got a small giggle from her. "Well, it isn't much, but I'll take it." I smiled down at her, relieved that maybe I could see this through without hurting Evelyn any more than she'd already been.

"I love you, Knox," she whispered. "You're a good man. Don't let anyone tell you differently."

"If anyone else hears that, it'll ruin my reputation." I grinned. "But you're the only one who really matters. You and Luke and Aneshya."

"Let's get this over with. I want to move on with my life. And I want you in it."

"That's my girl." I pulled her close and kissed the top of her head.

We got back in the truck, and I drove deeper into the fenced area of our territory. I knew where Rocket was with Danny. I didn't dread this as much as I simply wanted it to be over. What I wanted to know was why. Why all of it. Why hadn't he left his wife? Why hadn't he told Evelyn about the other woman? Why had he not changed something when Evelyn became pregnant? Why had he let it all continue and built a separate life with Evelyn when he already had a woman he obviously didn't want to leave?

If he'd had something to do with the attack at the house, why had he done it? And yeah, that possibility was something I couldn't let go of. In my heart, I was sure he at least knew about it. But was it him or his wife? Or someone his wife knew, like her father or brother or anyone other than Danny. Because if he'd had no idea it was going to happen, he might get to live. If he'd had anything to do with it or knew it was happening and did nothing about it? Yeah. He wouldn't survive the night.

Grim Road had a two-room, partially underground building constructed into a large knoll. We used it for storage, but in cases like this, it doubled as an interrogation room. There was already a gathering of officers outside who needed to preside and offer judgment recommendations. Rocket had the final say, but this was a serious gathering of members outside of church.

Rocket and Dom leaned against the door talking, while Spike, Leather, and Mace strolled in our direction to greet us as we got out of the truck. Evelyn had slid to my side, because she'd folded up the console and sat next to me in the middle of the front seat. She hadn't spoken during the short ride, but had gripped my arm and laid her face against my shoulder.

I helped her down just as the trio reached us. Evelyn had met nearly everyone in Grim Road over the weeks since the fire. She'd made an impression with them all as a kind woman and a wonderful mother. I was proud to have her for my old lady.

Mace gave Evelyn a warm smile. "Though I'm glad to see you, Evelyn, I didn't think you'd want to come to this. You know, you already told Lemon what happened from your perspective. You don't have to be here."

"I know," Evelyn whispered. "I need to see this through, though. I want some answers, and Danny is the only one who can give them to me."

"You can tell us," Leather coaxed. "We'll get you any answers you need. You won't have to be anywhere around him."

Evelyn shook her head. "No. This is something I need to do. I lived with him for thirteen years. I want to look into his eyes when he's questioned. See the truth for myself."

"I know you don't want to hear this," Mace continued, "and understand I mean no disrespect, but you didn't know he'd been lying to you all that time. Are you sure you can tell when he's lying now?"

Evelyn gave a small smile. "I know I can, now. I think I always could, I just chose to ignore my gut." She shook her head slightly. "I didn't want to admit to myself he had another woman, but I think I knew the whole time. What I didn't know was that I was the other woman. Not her."

Yeah. Danny was a dead man. I could see how this hurt Evelyn. How embarrassed she was. Humiliated. Even if he had nothing to do with the shooting at our old house, I'd probably beat Danny to a fucking bloody pulp on principle.

"I'm sorry he put you through this, Evelyn." Mace held out his hand for Evelyn to take. "You're a good woman. I'm glad Knox found you."

That seemed to take Evelyn by surprise. She gave him a startled look, then the ghost of a smile formed on her lips. "Thank you. I appreciate you saying so." She took his hand and shook it firmly. "I'm so glad he has this club. I love the way you have each other's backs." She looked up at me, and her smile seemed more relaxed as she did. "Everyone needs someone."

"I have you too, baby. But yeah. You can thank Lemon later. She's the one who taught us we needed to open up and share more with each other so we could have each other's backs."

"I'll most definitely do that."

"You guys ready?" Leather looked from me to Evelyn and back.

Evelyn lifted her chin and put her shoulders back. Her hand found mine and held it tightly. "I am."

I smiled at my brave little warrior. She might not be a fighter so much as a protector, but she would absolutely do whatever she had to do for her children. And I was certain she was doing this for them as much as herself, especially since I was pretty sure she knew Danny would die tonight. She needed to have something to tell her children when it was all over.

"Let's do this."