CHAPTER 8

Abby

It was just coming up to four in the afternoon. We were running late because of Jonesy, and I was using the drive to Crow Manor to calm myself down. Bloody men. Just one word from Kane Crow, suddenly, it was no problem getting my money.

Muttering under my breath, I saw Sam giving me a look from the corner of my eye.

"What?" I snapped at him.

He grinned, looking way too amused about the whole situation.

"Nothing. It's just I've never seen you like this. You never let anyone get under your skin."

‘Observant little shit,' I thought to myself.

"Yeah, well, he had no right to butt into my business," I muttered.

"Mum, I called him. I didn't like the looks of the guys who pulled up in the Land Rover. I wanted to let someone know where we were. There is too much bad shi… I mean, stuff is happening right now."

He quickly changed his sentence when he caught the look on my face.

I sighed before replying, "I get it, hun. I'm just not used to anyone else stepping into our business. We've managed just fine by ourselves over the years."

"I know, mum, but accepting help when needed isn't weak. You taught me that."

"Smart arse, throwing my word back at me," I grumbled with a grin.

I flicked my indicator and turned into the drive that would take us to the manor. As always, I admired the beautiful old house as we drove past the front entrance and around to the back.

Pulling up, I noticed all the bikes were parked in the spare garage. Admiring them, I parked the van and got out of the vehicle. Sam was already out and admiring the bikes.

Hearing my name being called, I turned my admiring gaze from the bikes to see who it was calling me. I saw Kate coming out of the back door.

Moving towards her, she enfolded me in her arms in a hug.

"Kate, how are you doing? Is there any news on Shep?" I asked.

She shook her head and smiled sadly at me. That was the first time she hadn't been well put together in all the time I had known her. The toll this was taking on her was hard to see.

"No change yet, love. We are hopeful, though. He squeezed Kane's hand the other day. We pray that he wakes up soon, and that there is no permanent damage," she replied.

Wrapping my arm around her shoulders, we turned and watched Sam as he walked around the bikes, admiring them.

Turning her head, she grinned at me, "He's going to catch the bug, and then you will be buying a bike instead of a car," she laughed softly.

I shrugged and replied, "He can have a bike when he can pay for it himself."

Katie snorted at that, "From what I heard, he made pretty good money at the last fair he and Larry did. I don't think that threat is going to work."

"I know. Dammit," I muttered.

She laughed. We watched as Sam jogged over to us and pulled her into a hug. "Hi, Grandma Kate. Do you think Kane will teach me?"

"I heard you had met him at the café. He's quite impressed by you. I'm sure if you ask him, he will. Now I have a favour to ask you, and you can say no if you aren't comfortable doing it."

"You want me to take Ben under my wing and have him hang with Alec and me," he replied before she could ask.

Kate cupped Sam's face in her hands and looked up at him with a warm smile, "You're a good lad, Sam. Yes, I was going to ask that. He hasn't had a fantastic mother to teach him right from wrong. He's not a bad lad. He just needs some direction. That being said, if you are worried about him and anything he's involved in, let us know, and we'll deal with it. But I think he is so grateful that his sisters are safe for now that he won't be doing anything stupid."

Sam nods at her words.

"Now, Noni has brought a bunch of snacks from the bakery, and they are waiting for you in the kitchen. Make sure you speak to Kane about doing any carpentry he needs to do. And if he's not sure, show him the dresser you built me."

I lit up with pride for my lad. Not only was he willing to help someone else, but he was already building a business.

Sam smiled at Kate's words, "I will, Grandma and don't worry about Ben. Alec and I will sort him. I'm going to see what Noni brought. I'm starving."

After another hug, he took off for the kitchen.

I shook my head as he disappeared. I couldn't believe he was hungry again.

Turning back to Kate, "Thanks for saying that, Kate. He was nervous about asking if the MC would let him do the carpentry."

"He's great at what he does, Abby. I wouldn't recommend him if he weren't," Kate answered.

"Now, I had better head to the hospital so I can get back here. My son has decided we need to help a young lad and his sisters, and I want to help Maggie should she need it."

"Is this the Ben you mentioned earlier?" I asked.

She nodded. "Apparently, the drug gang taking over the village is moving onto our children.Children they know are vulnerable. They initiate and film them, so they have them doing the initiation. Ben has two little sisters. The gang threatened to do unspeakable things to the girls if Ben didn't do as they asked. Both Maggie and I are registered as foster carers. We have a meeting tomorrow morning with the council and will see what can be done. The little girls are gorgeous but so quiet, and they cling to Ben. From what he has told me, he is more of a parent than their parents."

She shook her head in disgust, "Anyway, for tonight, they are safe. I had better get going, and if you want anything to eat, you had better hurry."

I laughed and hugged her goodbye. She got her keys out of her bag and got in her car. I waited as she started it up and wavedas she pulled out of the driveway before making my way towards the manor's back door.

Cleaning my boots off, I walked into the bright kitchen. There was a massive table and chairs in the centre. The wide windowsill had an abundant amount of herbs. The cupboards were white with grey countertops, and the walls were painted a light sage green. It was a bright, cheerful room dominated by a man standing at the head of the table, holding a little blonde-haired girl in his arms. She didn't look like she was older than about six by the size of her. The table was surrounded by Noni, Avy and children of various ages chowing down on bakery goods from Noni's bakery Sticky Tricky Bakery.

‘Oh my god, there go my ovaries again,' I thought lustfully as I took in the sight before me.

Noni looked up and saw me standing in the doorway. She shouted, "Girl, get your arse over here and grab something before the gannets demolish it all."

Grinning and shaking my head at my friend, I walked over to the table, getting hugs from both Noni and Avy standing next to her brother.

Lifting my eyes to his clear blue gaze, my breath stuttered in my chest, and I held my hand out to greet him.

"Hi, I'm Abby."

I felt the warmth of his palm, and a shiver ran down my arm as he firmly grabbed my hand, his eyes never leaving my face. I could feel my face flushing under his intense scrutiny.

"Kane," he stated. "It's good to meet you, Abby."

Hearing a throat clear behind me, I broke his stare andturned my attention from him to the little girl in his arms.

"And who is this?" I asked, smiling.

"This is my friend Ellie. Her brother Ben and her sister Bren will visit us for a while. Isn't that right?"

The little girl nodded her head shyly. She was like a tiny doll, with hair so blonde it was almost white and big blue eyes. She was clean, but you could see that the clothes she had on had seen better days.

Smiling at her, I asked, "So Ellie, what food is good? Did you have some already?"

She nodded at me before saying softly, "The cupcakes."

"Well then, cupcake it is," I said, reaching over and grabbing one from the plate in the middle of the table.

Looking around, I saw the other two children, Ben and Bren. Pulling out the chair next to Noni, I poured myself a glass of milk, got comfortable and started chatting with them, trying to ignore the smirking Kane at the end of the table.

I found out that Ellie was eight and Bren was twelve. I was surprised because I took them more for six and eight. They were both so tiny. Their brother Ben was the same age as Sam, and the difference between the two was apparent. Ben was nearly a foot shorter than Sam. He looked severely underweight. I could see how close the three children were. They were quiet and constantly looking to each other for support.

The mother in me wanted to find their parents and punch them. I would speak to Maggie and Kate to see if I could do anything to help the children, so they are not taken advantage of again.