Chapter 13

Maverick

First thing the morning after my big showdown with Ruby, I made my way to Mabel's house to check on the state of things. I didn't handle the conversation well last night, but I wasn't sure anyone would have handled it well. Ruby said she would leave in a week, and even though I knew that was the best option, it didn't sit right with me. So I woke up, told Diesel I'd be a little late getting to the clubhouse today, and went to see my grandmother.

"Grandma, you here?" I stepped inside and stomped my feet on the mat.

"I'm where I always am," she called out in a tone that I couldn't quite recognize.

I followed the sound of her voice to the living room, where she sat with a basket of yarn beside her, knitting needles in her hands. "Since when do you knit?"

She shrugged as if it was perfectly normal for me to find her knitting. "I'm learning a new hobby, sonny boy. You got a problem with that?"

"Nope." I looked around the living room, noticing it was quiet. Too quiet. "Where are Sophie and Ruby?"

"Out running errands, I suppose, but I called Brenda Peterson, and she hasn't heard from them either."

My heart plummeted at the thought that she fucked off before the week was over. It might be for the best, but I still needed someone to be there for Mabel. But that begged another question. "Why did you call Brenda if they're running errands?"

Mabel's gaze narrowed in my direction, and she stopped fiddling with her knitting needles. "I'm old, Dylan, but I ain't stupid."

I knew that tone, I'd heard it enough over the past couple of decades to know that I was in the shit house with my grandmother, but it didn't make sense. "I don't think you're stupid, Grandma."

She tossed her head back and let out a loud laugh that echoed off the living room walls. "You must since you're standing there acting all innocent."

"Mabel, you don't know what's going on."

She arched her brows. "Oh, so it's Mabel now? Am I supposed to be scared or worried by your tone, young man?"

"Neither. But you're upset with me, and you shouldn't be."

Her lips tugged into a grin that lacked all amusement. She stared at me for a long time, studying me as if she hadn't known me my whole damn life. "You think I don't know that woman and that sweet little girl are running from someone? You think I didn't pick up on that almost immediately?" She shook her head, disappointment wafting off her in waves. "I knew it the moment I saw how skittish she was."

"You did? Why didn't you say anything?"

Mabel sighed, another sign that she wasn't happy with me. "Because, boy, it ain't your business. And because it's not something you could possibly understand, if you were so inclined to try." She gave me a pointed look that made me feel about two inches tall.

"Grandma, it's not like that."

"It is. Listen to me," she shouted when I was about to speak again. "If this, living with an old woman and getting paid cash week to week, was her alternative, imagine just what she was running from, Dylan." She huffed out a laugh and shook her head. "See? You can't. And to make matters worse, you've gone and scared the poor girl."

"I didn't," I insisted, suddenly annoyed. "I'm trying to look out for you, Grandma. My family." She wasn't convinced. "What happens if whatever it is that Ruby is running from comes here, to your house? What if that trouble sees you as an obstacle to overcome?"

"That's the flaw in your thinking. It's not what she's running from, it's who. Do you get that?" She shook her head without giving me a chance to answer. "She's got all the markers of an abused woman."

"You're wrong," I insisted, even though I couldn't possibly know one way or the other.

"No, you're wrong, Dylan. I've seen some of the old scars. The bruises that never quite go away because one bruise covers another and another, leaving a muddy spot. The broken bones that don't heal properly because her abuser won't let her seek medical help for the damage he's done."

I looked away, feeling angry and ashamed. "And I suppose she shared all of this with you?" Of course she did. Mabel was a sweet old woman who loved a good sob story.

"Hell no, she didn't tell me anything, wouldn't confirm anything, which is a form of confirmation on its own. But I didn't need her to confirm what I already knew because I lived it." She nodded, a wistful smile on her face. "That's right. I had a man like that myself before I met your grandfather, and he saved me."

"I didn't know." My legs felt weak, and I shot a hand out to the wall to hold me up when I felt like faltering.

"I know you didn't, because it wasn't your business to know. It's not the kind of story time a grandmother shares with her boy now, is it?"

"I guess not." My gaze bounced around the room before it landed on my grandmother, the best damn woman I knew. "What's his name, the man before grandpa?"

She laughed. "Don't worry about it. He's long dead now and no concern of yours or mine. Now, I love you, Dylan, with every beat of my heart, but you better fix this and you better do it fast."

"She's manipulating you." Despite her history, there was no way Mabel could possibly know all of that if Ruby hadn't been crying in her ear all morning.

"Oh, is she now? Poor old and feeble Mabel, can't possibly think for herself, is that right?"

"No, that's not it at all, but she came to you because you're a lot nicer than I am."

"Shows what you know," Mabel shot back. "She didn't tell me anything. I heard every word spoken between you two last night. In case you forgot, the reason you never got away with anything as a teenager was because my bedroom is right above the front porch."

"Fuck." The word shot out automatically without thinking.

"Watch your mouth, boy."

"Sorry, Grandma."

"You should be, but not about your filthy mouth. You should be sorry that you're running that woman off when she's just trying to keep her head above water. I like her and I like Sophie, so fix it. Or else."

"Your safety is my primary concern, Mabel."

"And mine is saving another woman from a life I was lucky enough to escape, before it is too late."

"Now you're just trying to make me feel bad."

"That's not my goal, but I hope you do feel bad for bullying a woman in a difficult situation."

Well, shit.

Thankfully, the front door shot open, and Sophie bounded in wearing a bright smile as she skipped towards Mabel. "Grandma Mabel, I got you a treat." She held out the bag like it was a rare gem, a sweet smile on her face as she leaned in to whisper, "It's got bacon and maple on it too." The kid needed a lesson in whispering, but she was too damn cute.

"You got this for me?"

Sophie nodded. "It's very yummy and I hope you like it." That's when Sophie realized they weren't alone, and she gasped at the sight of me. "Hi, Mr. Maverick. Sorry, I didn't get you one, I didn't know you would be here."

"That's all right, Mabel will share hers with me. Won't you, Grandma?"

Mabel let out a low grunt mixed with a laugh. "Don't count on it, boy." She sank her teeth into the muffin with a loud moan as her eyes shuttered close. "Maybe I will, but only because I'll ruin my figure if I eat it all."

"You're beautiful just as you are, Grandma."

"Thank you, Dylan. But I meant what I said earlier."

I nodded at her reminder just as Ruby entered the house with her eyes shielded by dark sunglasses, a baseball cap pulled low on her face. I tried to relieve her of her bags, but she gripped them tighter.

"I'm more than capable of doing my job," she bit out between clenched teeth. "Thank you, though." Without another word or a look back, she rushed to the kitchen like she couldn't wait to get away from me.

I didn't blame her, of course, even though she's the one who lied, but her rejection stung anyway. Mabel watched the little scene play out with a frown on her face, which meant I still had a lot of work to do.

So, I shoved my hands deep in my jeans and walked to the kitchen. To my fate.

I wasn't scared of much; years spent in the military, on a motorcycle, and in my MC had given me a thick skin as well as the skills needed to kick some ass when I needed to. But right now, as I headed towards the hurt, possibly also pissed off woman inside, I was fucking terrified.