Chapter Nine

Evelyn

I was in the bedroom with my children. Aneshya especially was really distraught.

"Will Grandpa be all right, Mommy?"

Luke gave me a look and shook his head. I had no idea what to say because my grief was as sharp as Aneshya's, but I now wasn't the time to let it out. There were too many things I needed to focus on. First was making sure my kids were OK.

"I don't think so, sweetie."

Aneshya dissolved into tears, and I pulled her into my arms. "I'm so sorry, Aneshya."

Luke, bless his heart, wiped his eyes but pulled us both into his embrace. It was obvious he was trying to be what he considered the man. Comforting the women when he was clearly hurting, too. That's how we were when Knox stepped into the room.

His jaw was set, but there were still tears in his eyes he refused to let fall. He took us all three in. Then opened his mouth. Before he could speak, however, Aneshya wiggled out of mine and Luke's embrace and threw herself at him.

"I want my grandpa back, Knox!" She was sobbing as she wrapped her arms and legs around him, crying into his neck.

"I know, honey. I do too." Knox's voice was gruff. He held the child tightly to him, rubbing her back with one hand while the other was clamped around her waist.

I'm not sure who moved first, but the next thing I knew, we were all in Knox's arms. Even Luke sniffled while me and Aneshya cried openly.

We stood like that for several minutes and I was struck at how it felt like we were a family. This was what Grover wanted. For Knox to be the missing member in our family instead of Danny. I had to admit, Knox felt like more of a mate than Danny ever had.

It struck me then. The entire thirteen-year relationship I had with Danny wasn't really a relationship. Not like I thought it had been. Looking back, the place I'd called home had been a place for Danny to visit a few days at a time before returning to his real home.

I also realized that it wasn't so much the place that was a home, but the people living there. For me that was Luke and Aneshya, Grover, and now Knox. Knox hadn't been living at the house with us, but he was there every single day. Early morning to late into the night. He took care of us. Made sure we had everything we needed. And it wasn't something he asked, either. He was like Grover had been. He saw we needed something he made it happen.

"Knox." A man I hadn't met stood outside the bedroom door with Mace.

"Gonna need a minute, Ringo."

"I know, brother. I'm sorry. But there's someone here you need to see."

"Bleedin' Christ," Knox swore, but he didn't move from our embrace.

"It's important or I wouldn't bother you."

Knox gave us all one last tight squeeze -- the man really was huge -- before leaning down to kiss my lips gently. "I won't be long."

"It's all right, Knox. Take your time."

He gave me a steady look. "I'll be right back."

When I nodded, he followed Ringo out the door.

* * *

Knox

This was all too much. Not only had I lost my father just when I'd come back into his life, but, more importantly, the kids and Evelyn had lost him. I had so much emotion roiling inside me I wasn't sure what to do with it all. Chief among them was rage.

"Who the fuck is it?" I snapped. Ringo was our enforcer. He hadn't come with Wolf, Mace, Leather, and Falcon. Which meant the boys had called in reinforcements when I hadn't thought to do so. Ringo raised an eyebrow at me. I took a deep breath and let it out, trying to calm myself. "Sorry, brother."

"It's all right. I know you've got a lot to process." He moved us farther away from the bedroom before stopping just outside the living room. Where my dad's body still lay. "It's your brother."

My gaze snapped to Ringo's. "What the fuck is he doing here?" I growled, my anger spiking.

Ringo shrugged. "You'll have to ask him that yourself. All we did was prevent him from entering the house, which he's pissed as hell about."

As if on cue, I could hear Danny's raised voice carrying from outside through the house. I couldn't make out his words, but it was obvious he wasn't happy.

"Motherfucker." Not the best idea to take my anger out on my brother, but it was probably going to happen that way.

Ringo grabbed my arm when I started to stomp through the living room to confront my brother. "Wait, Knox. There's something else." I turned to face the enforcer, giving him my full attention. "He was asking about Evelyn. He thought she'd been the one shot."

"She very well could have been." I shuddered to think about that. The rage nearly overwhelmed me. "If I hadn't been there…"

"You were, Knox." Ringo squeezed my arm again, hard enough to bruise. "You were there, and you protected her, shielded her with your own body. You didn't hesitate. That's what Wolf said. She's your woman and we all know what that means. We also know how that can affect you in this kind of situation. It'd be the same for Rocket or Bullet. Hell, Lemon would go scorched earth if something happened to Rocket, so I get it. But you need to use your head."

"What are you trying to say, Ringo?"

"I got here just a few minutes before Danny did. We haven't called the police or EMS or even the fuckin' coroner. He said he'd heard Evelyn had been killed. Evelyn. By name."

I paused, letting the full meaning of Ringo's words sink in. "No one should have known anything except that maybe they heard gunshots."

Ringo and I locked gazes for several seconds. This… didn't compute. Then it did.

And I. Saw. Red.

Ringo stepped in front of me. "You can't kill him here. And not until we know what's going on. If you can't handle this, I will."

"Like fuck. I'll take care of that fuckin' punk."

"Knox. Not here." Ringo was calm as ever, and it helped to ground me when all I wanted to do was beat the living piss outta my brother.

I took another deep breath, trying to find my calm. Glancing back toward the bedroom where my woman and our kids were, I knew exactly where my calm was.

Our kids.

That thought, more than anything, helped me find something deep inside me I needed to get through this without landing in prison. I not only had my woman to protect, but her children. And yeah, I'd already claimed them as my own. At least, in my heart. This was something I needed to sit down with Luke about and discuss exactly what role he would allow me to play in their lives.

"Good." Ringo nodded and clapped my shoulder. "You found what you needed to do this."

"Yeah." I needed to be as honest with Ringo as I could here. I had the feeling I was going to need every bit of help he and the others could give me. "Not sure how long I can hold it inside, but I've got it."

"Me and the others'll have your back. I'll rein you in if necessary." He tilted his head to the side, warily. "You won't shoot me, will you?"

I barked out a laugh. "If I had a gun, I'd've already shot someone. But I promise I won't fight you too hard."

That seemed to be what Ringo was looking for. Not my promise not to kill him if he tried to pull me out of the situation, but the humor, however dark. I needed it too because I knew now -- I could guarantee -- I wouldn't get myself thrown in prison for killing my brother. Well, ninety percent anyway.

Ringo led the way through the house. In the living room, my gaze was drawn to where my dad had lain lifeless on the floor. They'd moved him and were already cleaning up the blood from the hardwood floor. I raised an eyebrow at Ringo who just nodded at me. I got it. If there was no body, there was nothing to tie me or -- God forbid -- Evie or the kids to Danny's disappearance. ‘Cause that fucker was definitely going to disappear.

"You can't keep me from going inside!" Danny hadn't quite committed to getting up in Mace's face, but he was close. "This is my place! And that's my girlfriend who's been shot!"

Mace didn't say anything, just stood in front of Danny with his arms crossed, not letting him onto the porch. Danny caught sight of me and tried to push past Mace, but Wolf and Leather flanked Mace to form an impenetrable wall.

"What the fuck, Denver? Why do you got your goons keeping me out of my own Goddamned house?"

"You good and pissed, Danny?" My voice was a husky growl, which really should have been a clue to the bastard. Then again, Danny had never been the most intelligent. Or, rather, he simply pushed his way through a situation, banking that he could bully or talk his way out of anything negative that arose.

"Goddamned right I'm pissed!" He pointed a finger in my direction. "This house is mine more than it is yours. I don't know why Dad told me he'd sold it when he obviously didn't, but you have no right to keep me out. Especially when my kids are living here. I got every right to see my kids! Now where's Pop? I need to talk to him about making a place for me here so I can be with my family. My kids need me!"

"No, they don't." I shook my head slowly, seeing where he'd go with this. I had every intention of letting him hang himself before dropping this bombshell. Because I had no doubt that, for whatever reason, for whatever goal he intended to accomplish, Danny had been behind this. And Evelyn had been the target.

"What are you talking about? Of course, they do! You think you're gonna take over their care? You disappeared without a trace. We all thought you were dead! You think you can just come in here, show up all happy like you did something grand, and everything goes back to the way it was? News flash, bro. Things don't fuckin' work that way."

"Got nothin' to do with me."

"You might have been hangin' around a few weeks, but we both know you'll take off sooner rather than later. Those kids just lost their mother. They need someone stable in their life. They need me! Their father!"

I took a couple slow steps toward Danny. Off in the distance I heard motorcycles rumbling toward us. I didn't take my eyes from my target, but the others moved to give me room. Which meant the bikes had to be Grim Road MC.

"Evelyn is perfectly fine, and Luke and Aneshya could give two shits if you come home or not."

Danny blinked up at me, shaking his head. "You're lying. They told me -- uh, that is, I heard she'd been shot."

"Well, whoever told you she was shot got it wrong." I tilted my head. "Who was that, anyway? Happened fifteen minutes ago. We haven't called anyone. No one came around the house when shots were fired. No neighbors in this area to come check things out." Narrowing my eyes even more, I took another slow step toward Danny. "How'd you find out?"

I could tell the exact moment when Danny realized he was caught. His eyes widened, and he backed up a step before stopping himself and lifting his chin. "I know what you're implying. If I'd set something like this up, why would I be here now, knowing you would likely be here? And your goons? I'd have driven on when I saw them if I'd had anything to do with this."

"Unless you thought you'd get away with it. Which you might have. If anyone other than the people standing here knew anything about it."

The bikes I'd heard pulled around the corner and parked so that they flanked Danny's car, effectively blocking in the little MINI Cooper. Normally, no one would have used their bikes as a blockade, but the likelihood of a MINI Cooper doing much damage to someone's bike was slim to none.

By the time Danny thought it might be wise to turn tail and run, our company had parked and dismounted their bikes and were approaching. Danny turned but came up short as Rocket, Lemon, Dom, and Apple were moving steadily toward him.

"What's the meaning of this? You touch me and I'll press charges." Danny stuck up a finger, though he pointed at Lemon and Apple. Not Rocket and Dom. No doubt because he felt more comfortable threatening the women than the men as big as my president and sergeant at arms.

"Don't worry," Lemon said with an evil smile. "You can sue all you want. Well, assuming you survive the being ‘touched'." She made air quotes around the word.

Danny turned around to confront me again. "You've got a lot of nerve, bringing thugs to intimidate me." Then he flashed a cocky grin back over his shoulder at the women. "Wouldn't mind gettin' to know the bitches, though."

The second the words were out of his mouth, something settled inside me. I wouldn't have to take care of my brother. Because Rocket was about to.

Except it wasn't Rocket who reached him first. Apple punted him in the back of the knee, causing him to fall. Lemon followed her by giving Danny a motorcycle boot to the head. He wasn't out, but there was no way he was fighting. Or running.

"It's the bitches you gotta worry about. The thugs are basically harmless." Lemon grinned down at Danny. It wasn't a pleasant smile. "Also, if you believe your girlfriend, the mother of your children, was just killed, should you really be thinkin' ‘bout gettin' to know the bitches?"

Then Apple delivered another kick to the head. "Do you even know what happened here?"

Danny groaned, clutching his head in his arms. I knelt down next to him, grabbing a handful of his hair and forcing him to look at me.

"They didn't kill Evelyn, you worthless piece of shit. They killed Dad."

Danny's eyes got wide, and he shook his head, mouthing the word "no." I held his gaze, letting my bombshell sink in.

"Dad?"

"That's right. Could just as easily have been one of the kids. They were in the house with him. Bullet rebounded off something and went through the front window. Dad took it in the back."

"That's not possible." He'd gone pale, his eyes wide and wild.

I turned to address Ringo. "You said not here. I ain't lettin' him go. What do you want me to do?" As sergeant at arms, Dom was in charge of security. Ringo was in charge of carrying out Dom's orders.

Ringo turned to Dom, who turned to Rocket. The president put his arm around Lemon, who snuggled against him. Neither of them was ever shy about being affectionate with each other, even in a situation like this.

"Lemon filled me in. Got two choices. Let the authorities deal with it or take him back to the compound. Either way, we'll need some kind of proof."

"Already disturbed the scene," Ringo said. "We packaged Mr. Knoxville for transport to wherever Knox wants to bury him."

"Well, I guess that answers that. Crush and Byte are already looking into Danny's movements since the fire. If he did this, they'll find out." Rocket stepped toward me, reaching out a hand. I took it without hesitation. "I'm sorry for your loss, Knox. Lemon said your father was one hell of a man."

"He was. Thanks to you and Lemon, I got to reconnect with him." I shook my head, emotion clogging my throat. "I missed out on the last fifteen years."

"Your father was so proud of you." Lemon reached out and put her hand over mine and Rocket's. "You got to be with him these last few weeks. You got to introduce me to him. Evelyn and Luke and Aneshya got to have you in their lives. All of them love you, Knox."

I snorted. "Never pegged you as the mushy type, Lemon. I can't wait to tell Falcon. He's gonna eat this shit up."

She scowled, but the corner of her lips tugged up. "I take it back. You are a dumbass."

Rocket chuckled, squeezing my hand tightly once before letting go. "You have a cage and a trailer here?"

"Yes. I used the trailer to move furniture here right after the fire." I shrugged. "I intended to bring everyone back to the compound. I was just trying to get Dad to agree to come with us. His only objection was leaving Danny alone."

"A father is a father," Rocket said. "He knew you could take care of yourself and Evelyn and her kids. Danny had no one other than your dad."

"Knox?" I turned to see Evelyn standing on the porch just outside the door. "Is everything all right?"

"Yeah, honey. At least, it will be." I climbed the three steps up to the porch and pulled her into my arms. "Would you mind going back inside? I'll have some things to discuss with you and the kids in a minute."

"That's Danny," she said, not answering my question. "Is he dead?" She looked up at me, her eyes wide but not accusing.

"No."

"Why is he on the ground, bleeding?" Again, she didn't sound accusing or suspicious, just curious.

I sighed. I didn't want to tell her what I suspected. The facts were much cleaner. If my suspicions proved right, I'd figure out a way to tell her then. "Honey, I don't know the particulars, but we're gonna find out."

"Don't believe anything these people say, Evie." Danny had shaken off the blows to the head and was now trying to get Evelyn's attention. He yelled his order to her, and Evelyn's gaze found him. "I came here for you. I was afraid you'd been hurt. You might think Denver cares about you, but he doesn't care about anyone. He left us without a backward glance. You don't think he'll do that to you and the kids too? Me and Dad are immediate family. Do you honestly think he'll stay with you when he wouldn't stay with us?"

"Why would you think I'd been hurt?" Evelyn didn't show any emotion, her face blank. I could see the truth in her eyes, though. She knew something was up, she just didn't know what.

"Because there were gunshots. People heard."

"There aren't any neighbors around. No one called the police, or if they did, they didn't show up. It's only been a few minutes since it happened. How'd you know about this so quickly?" Yeah. She was thinking the same thing I was.

"I'm the father of your children. We've been together for thirteen years! That has to count for something."

"I thought it did." Her voice was soft, and I felt her tremble where she leaned into me. "You've been with your wife for fifteen years. At least, that's how long you've been married. I assume you've actually been together longer. Does that mean something to you too?"

"It's over between me and Jordan. I told her I love you and my children."

Evelyn studied him for several seconds, then shook her head. "You're lying, Danny."

"Evelyn." Danny gave her a look like he thought she was confused. "You don't know these people. Not really. We have a long history together. I know we have some issues to work through, but we've been together a long time. You know me."

"Yeah, Danny. I know you. That's the whole problem." Evelyn lifted her head to me. "I trust you, Knox. Whatever you tell me, I'll believe."

"Will you come with me back to the Grim Road compound? It's a secret place, and we'll have to figure out some things for the kids, but we're already working on a system of homeschooling."

"We can't leave?"

"I'll explain it all to you, and I'll admit it's still a fluid situation, but there is a reason Grim Road is secret. The same reason I let my family believe I was dead. You won't be prisoners, but there are some rules you'll need to follow about coming and going. Will you trust me?"

"I trusted your father more than any other person in my life. He made it abundantly clear he wanted you and me together. Whatever I have to do to honor his last wishes, I'll do as long as you promise you'll make sure my kids are safe and have everything they need."

I smiled down at her, leaning in to kiss her, then pressed my forehead to hers. "On my life, Evelyn. On my Goddamned life."