Chapter 15

Who the fuck is Jeremy Green?

"I'm sorry sir but Officer Wheatley is on patrol right now and Detective Florez has stepped out of the office," the dispatcher told him in that same bored voice she'd used to tell him the exact same thing when he'd called the day before. "If you'd like to leave your name and a number where you can be reached…"

"She can wallpaper the inside of her patrol car with my name and number at this point, I've left it enough times," Maddox grumbled, cutting her off. "What I want to know is when she plans on getting back to me. I have a few questions for her."

"I'm sure that she will call you once she has something new to report," the dispatcher replied. "As I told you yesterday, this is a small department and officers have been busy investigating the incident, but unless someone comes forward with new information there is little we have to go on at the moment."

"Then I wish someone would explain that to my insurance company because they have been up my ass to provide them with proof that I am not responsible for the damage that was done to my bike. Since Officer Wheatley was the officer on the scene, they need that report to come from her since apparently, the photo evidence I provided, including tire scuff marks going over the curb and across the sidewalk, aren't good enough for them. Since she didn't take any pictures when she showed up, they are looking for an official report from her about what she saw."

"Sir, I understand your frustration…"

"You don't understand shit."

"I understand that people were grievously injured by the same party involved in the incident with your motorcycle and we take that sort of thing very seriously around here," the dispatcher replied, her tone having shifted from bored to holier than though, which just left him wishing that instead of his bike, the bastard had plowed through the window of their police station ‘cause maybe then they'd have actually managed to catch the sonofabitch.

Hell, at this point it was starting to seem like the only way there would ever be a resolution to the incident and fuckin' justice for what that bastard had done, was if someone found the driver, gift wrapped them and left them duct-taped to the hood of a squad car.

"I'll find that far easier to believe when they are caught," Maddox grumbled before jabbing the red phone icon to disconnect the call.

What he really wished he had right now was a heavy old rotary phone with an indestructible headset so he could have the satisfaction of slamming it in her ear.

"Yeah, that went well," Archer muttered from where he stood stocking the final cooler with products.

"Don't even start with me."

"Whose starting with you?" Archer asked. "Not me, and not the poor dispatcher who at this point is going to start hanging up the moment she hears your voice because you are seriously getting out of control. Do you really think badgering them daily is going to change what they know?"

"If I could get a call back, I wouldn't have to badger anyone," Maddox grumbled.

"And I'm sure you'll get one when someone has information to share. Until then, you're just being a dick for no reason other than you're pissed that Haven hasn't been able to locate the last two parts he needs to get your bike back on the road and you're taking it out on anyone and everyone ‘cause you don't know what to do with this sudden downtime," Archer pointed out. "Here's a thought, figure it out before you get yourself arrested for badgering an officer, ‘cause I'm not gonna be the one to bail you out, not with the way you've been snapping at me every time we have a conversation. I didn't hit your bike, the dispatcher didn't hit your bike, no one, expect maybe Jeremy Green, knows who hit your bike! So if you could stop giving the rest of the world shit ‘cause you picked a crappy parking spot, it would be nice."

"Who the fuck is Jeremy Green! That is the second time someone's mentioned something about a Jeremy seeing what hit my baby."

"He's an old skater buddy of Haven's and a major stoner. His old man is a one percenter, the same as you used to be."

"Then why the hell hasn't he come forward and owned up to what he saw?" Maddox snapped and yet the moment he said it he could have kicked himself, because he knew why. Biker code meant you didn't snitch, period. Hell, biker code meant you solved your own shit, which was what he'd have liked to be doing only getting hit with felonious assault charge at this point in his life would put a serious crimp in the rest of the things he had planned.

Archer just raised an eyebrow at him and fixed him with a pointed stare. "You know why."

"Yeah, I do. So where do I find Jeremy?"

"The fuck am I supposed to know? He was never my friend. You should ask Haven, though for his sake I hope he doesn't know. Jeremy was the biggest pain in the ass when we were growing up, always following my brother everywhere and coming up with the worst ideas."

"Was he part of whatever it was that got your brother locked up."

"No."

"Then I guess he didn't have the worst ideas now, did he?"

The pointed look Maddox gave him was more to see how Archer reacted than any real give-a-damn for Jeremy Green, though he did hope Haven stayed away from him. His reasons were purely selfish and involved a particular raincheck he was eager to see if Haven decided to take him up on. When Archer ducked his head and looked away, the suspicion Maddox had been harboring reared its ugly head again.

"I guess he didn't," Archer muttered before hurrying away from the room.

Like that wasn't a surefire answer as to who might have been behind the issue. Maddox had begun to suspect as much after overhearing the gossip between two ladies at the grocery store. When he'd asked a clerk who they were, he'd been told that one operated the local candy shop while the other worked up at city hall. The only reason he'd stopped to listen at all was because he'd heard the name of his business mentioned and turned to find that they were discussing Archer and Haven. It had come as a bit of a shock to hear one say that it had been Archer who everyone had expected to see sent away to do hard time, but he'd yet to confront the man as to why. The longer they were in Foggy Basin the more he was convinced that his business partner was keeping secrets from him, a fact that when coupled with the state of his bike, had left him in a perpetual state of pissed off.

So maybe it was time he looked for this Jeremy himself and see if he could kill two birds with one stoner. If he could find out what happened to his bike while also learning more about what had led to Haven committing assault, then it was win-win all the way around.

Maybe then he'd stop caring so much about the whole incident and be able to move on with the growing relationship between him and Haven. The man had come to occupy his thoughts as much as his Harley and his store did, and that was saying something. Haven was such a contradiction. The shyness, the way he giggled instead of laughing, then squirming around in his seat like he'd been caught being naughty, was heart-meltingly endearing. His love of poetry and the way he'd hesitantly admitted to having written a few pieces himself have given Maddox a glimpse of his creative side and he'd love to supply him with notebooks and take him to the bookstore to pick out whatever he wanted.

At first glance, with those scowling turquoise eyes and the way he carried himself like he was looking for a fight, it was easy to mistake him for a badass. But each conversation showed a softness he'd only have been able to keep if someone looked out for him on the inside, which left him wondering who and why and what they'd gotten out of the whole deal.

Which lead to flashes of jealousy he didn't want to think about because it was unreasonable for him to bristle at the images that popped into his head. He did though, every time he fucked around and thought of Haven behind bars then in the next thought pictured him on his knees paying for protection and whatever else he'd gotten from the person who'd ensured that he wasn't passed around like the pretty little pet he so beguilingly resembled. Hell, he'd found himself reacting similarly every time Jeremy's name was mentioned in conjunction with Haven's, which was beginning to happen a lot as he'd inquired around about his testy mechanic.

To a man, they'd assured him that his bike couldn't be in better hands. The stories they'd told about a young Haven peering around his father's leg as he'd worked on something, or toddling behind him as he'd been searching for a tool, had left him with no doubt that the young man had grown up with a love and appreciation for the innerworkings of vehicles. It was still difficult to get a sense of what they thought about him outside of the shop. Some had referred to him as hardheaded while others had called him a sweetheart who'd been extremely protective of his younger brother and a collector of strays, both the two-legged and four-legged kind.

Chuckling to himself, he recalled the conversation between him and Haven about The Notorious S.O.X. when he'd warned Haven to keep the razor-clawed beast away from what was left of his paint job. The way Haven had raised an eyebrow and looked at him like he was crazy, pointed to the mess and informed him that any damage the cat did would be an improvement would have been funny if it hadn't meant taking a good hard look at his bike and seeing her as she was, not the way she'd been back when she'd still been in pristine condition. Haven hadn't been wrong, but Maddox hadn't been in the mood for his snark any more than he was in the mood for his brother's.

Okay, not true.

The snark had been an equal mix of sarcasm and sass, offering a glimpse of a bratty side Maddox was curious to see fully emerge.

Why?

Because he knew just how much fun they could have if Haven let Maddox try to tame it.

Now that brought the first smile to his face all day.

A glance around showed there was nothing left for him to do but fuss with things that were already well up to his standards, so rather than continue to drive himself batshit crazy, he decided to see if he was as good at stoner hunting as he'd been at hunting up whoever had crossed his old club.

Seeking answers from the man in the backroom opening the final few boxes would be step one, Maddox decided as he shoved away from the counter he'd been leaning against and headed to the back. The last thing he expected to hear as he neared the storeroom was the tail end of a conversation.

Just pass along the message when you see him, please, this is important.

Silence, save for the soft rustle of tissue paper.

I don't care if he just rescued a bunch of nuns from a raging river, I don't want him near my brother.

More silence.

You wanna fuck around and find out what will happen if he starts running around with my brother again?

This rustle was angrier and accompanied by a low, tearing sound. The threatening tone he heard his partner use wasn't one he'd ever heard come from Archer before. It sounded like something he'd have said back in his enforcer days with the Marauding Demons, which didn't bode well for whoever was on the receiving end of that threat.

No, goddammit! The last thing I need is anyone opening that old can of worms. It doesn't matter what happened back then. It was all a fucked-up mistake that is never going to happen again! I just need Jeremy to stay the hell away from Haven before I'm forced to make a bigger mess out of him than I did Andy Robles. Haven would never forgive me for that and the last thing I want to do is hurt my brother again. So make sure Jeremy gets the point so it doesn't become an issue. I can't go down this road again. I won't. I have a new life now and I don't ever want to go back to the bullshit we were dealing with before. I need this. More than I've needed anything in a long time. You're the only one who might be able to get through to him and make him listen, so please just talk to him, okay.

Now there was nothing but the sound of paper being shredded and something hard bouncing as it clattered to the floor.

Yeah. Thanks.

Everything about Archer screamed desperate and resolved. Maddox had seen flashes of temper in the past, especially that first year they'd worked together, but Archer had always swallowed it down and humbled himself, proof of just how desperately he'd needed this job and how willing he'd been to learn. Now it was beginning to seem like that had stemmed from a place of fear.

Maddox had always suspected that he'd been running from something, but Maddox had been raised among men who believed in keeping their own counsel…and secrets. Lots and lots of secrets. He'd seen no reason to push for answers he wouldn't have offered if the shoe was on the other foot. When no one from Archer's past showed up to confront him about anything, Maddox had considered it a non-issue.

Now Maddox had someone else he was curious to know more about. Andy Robles . That wasn't a name Maddox intended to forget. Not until he got a few answers about the circumstances surrounding whatever it was Archer had done to him.

Stepping through the doorway, Maddox kept his features natural even when Archer's eyes widened at the sight of him there. He knew, just from the way Archer's gaze met his, then skimmed away, that he was subtly trying to study the rest of him, looking for clues in his body language as to if he'd overheard anything or not. Unfortunately for Archer, Maddox was too well versed in schooling his features and appearing relaxed even when he wasn't, for his young protégé to get any sort of read off him, but it was sure fun watching him try.

"I'm heading out for a bit," Maddox announced. "Lock up if you leave. I don't know when I'll be back."

"Okay."

Maddox let several moments of silence hang between them, in which Archer went back to unwrapping the tissue covered items.

"Got a question for you," Maddox said when Archer was almost finished with the box.

"Shoot," Archer said, looking everywhere but at him.

"Do you know what club Jeremy's old man used to ride with?"

"No."

"Would Haven?"

Archer's eyes narrowed before he answered, "Probably."

"Would he also know how I can find him?"

When Archer's nostrils flared and he drew back from the box he'd been rummaging through, standing to his full height rather than his usual slouch, Maddox immediately picked up on another key bit of information.

"Don't go getting my brother mixed up with Jeremy Green!" Archer snapped. "Find him on your own if you're that determined to get answers out of him, not that I think he'll tell you anything anymore than he'd say to the cops."

"Is there a particular reason you're willing to risk an assault charge to keep him away from your brother."

The standoff might have been epic, if Archer hadn't spun around, kicked an empty box out of his path, then stormed out the door, snarling over his shoulder for Maddox to lock up his fuckin' self if he was leaving.

Guess that meant he was done for the day. Shaking his head, Maddox finished unpacking the box, got the product arranged, checked that the lock on the front door was still engaged, then readjusted the shades to keep nosy folks from being able to see too much of the interior before the grand unveiling. Satisfied that everything was the way it needed to be for the morning, he headed through the back, shoving the rear door open only to encounter resistance as the metal recoiled back at him.

"Owe! Fuckkkk!"

Oops , Maddox muttered as he opened the door with a bit more caution this time, about to give Archer shit for storming off like a brat only to have to return for whatever it was he'd forgotten. Only it wasn't Archer seated on the ground in the ally, but his pink-haired brother, River, holding a hand to his nose with rivets of blood streaming through his fingers.

Oh yeah, that was gonna leave a mark.