Chapter 6

Amy

V en sits close to me as we begin to go over the information from my mom’s case. They must have really been studying the material I collected, because they were familiar with all the details and were even putting forth a theory about what might have happened to her.

Rigs talks about his theory first. “I believe that her meds were redirected to the farm before she was abducted. You said that she’s been estranged from her father for many years. I’m thinking that grabbing her off the streets or dragging her kicking and screaming out of her apartment would have been risky.”

“That’s true,” I tell him. “My old apartment was right in the center of town and my mom almost never left it.”

Rigs flicks through her notes and looks at me, “Is she agoraphobic?”

I shake my head, “No, she just didn’t like leaving her home. I think she saw it as her sanctuary, but she could go out if she needed to, for medical appointments or the rare few times I could coax her out.”

Rigs responds, “I think the perfect way to lure her out was to redirect her meds, act like it was an accident and tell her that she has to come and get them personally.”

My heart jumps into my throat because I feel this gruff biker preacher is onto something.

“I could see that happening, she might not want anything to do with her father, but getting her meds is possibly the one and only reason she might be persuaded to go to his house.”

Ven pulls a chair over and sits beside me. “You said she was estranged from her father. Can you think of any reason he would want her to stay at his house?”

“He used to slave her out,” I respond bitterly. “Her mother died during childbirth. I think he resented her, she had an awful childhood, no physical abuse. More that he ignored her, that is until she got older and more useful. He used her to cook, clean, do laundry for him and all his farmhands. That went on until she was sixteen, around that time he met my step-grandmother. Elsie, my step-grandmother put a stop to it, she was a nice woman, but by then the damage had been done. My mom left the day after the wedding and barely spoke to him again.”

“Did you have contact with him?” Rigs asks.

“Yeah, even though she hated him, she didn’t want to keep me from him. But it wasn’t like happy families or anything, usually if I visited it would just be me and my step-grandmother and I’d help her with the chores. It’s clear that’s all he thought women were good for,” I pause, as another memory flashes through my mind. “My earliest memory of my mom was watching her ironing a mountain of clothing several times a week. Because she had no schooling, she had to take whatever work was available. My father hadn’t stuck around so it was always just me and my mom. She was always so sick, but she worked all the hours God gave to keep a roof over our heads.”

“Fucking hell,” Ven asks. “How did you get out of that situation?”

“She literally worked until she dropped. It happened while I was in school. She was taken to the hospital. I was around nine or ten at the time. A social worker came into the room and my mom didn’t want to talk to her because she was scared they might take me away from her.”

“My Cleo says that’s common. A lot of people get the wrong ideas about social workers. Did this one help?” Siege asks.

“Yes, she told my mom what was available in terms of claiming disability benefits, low-income housing, that kind of stuff. She even helped my mom sign up for adult education lessons, that was the one thing my mom had been most ashamed about—she’d never learned to read.”

“Your mom sounds like a survivor,” Ven says with admiration in his voice.

I smile, “She doesn’t think so, but in the years that followed, she got her GED. She was still too sick to work regularly, but we managed. She scrimped and saved and bought me my first camera. After I graduated from high school, I got lucky and found myself a job at a photography studio helping out. I couldn’t afford college, but I learned on the job. Eventually, I started my own small business and made enough money to afford a nice apartment in a secured building.”

“You sound like you take after your mom,” Ven says and gives my hand a squeeze. My heart races at the unexpected contact. He’s not wrong, people look at women like my mom and think of them as weak, but what they don’t see is the sheer determination they need to fight the system and the years of conditioning.

“I guess it rubs off,” I smile, but feel myself getting teary-eyed. I wish I knew what had happened to her, she has to be alive. I’m sure if she wasn’t then I’d feel it.

“And she disappeared while the two of you were living there, right?”

I nod, unsure how all this information is going to help them find my mother. Most of this was ancient history after all, “I was at work, and when I got back, she was gone. No note, no explanation, no clothing missing, nothing. It’s just like she vanished into thin air.”

Rigs flicks through the information again, I’m not sure he’s reading it, it’s more like he’s gathering his thoughts. He places the scrapbook on the table and fixes me with his serious, dark eyes, “Since the police checked out the train and bus stations and your mom doesn’t drive, the most logical explanation is either that someone drove her away, or she’s still here in Las Salinas. Your theory that your grandfather took her is the most likely scenario.”

Ven runs his hand through his hair. “So what did he do with her between the time his hunting dogs ran you off, and when the police arrived at his farm to perform the wellness check?”

Any hope I had falls flat in my chest. “That’s the bit I don’t understand. Sergeant Pike searched the entire property, even the living quarters above the barn where the farmhands stay.”

Ven wraps his arm around me, probably because my voice is trembling. I’m just so upset about not finding any evidence she was ever there.

He states confidently, “Then they moved her. That’s the only explanation I can think of—”

“Moved her, or did something else,” Rigs says darkly. I don’t want to think about that option, I can’t think about that option.

Glancing at one of his club brothers, Ven asks, “How much land is included in that farm of his?”

I almost choke when the man with the laptop responds, “A little over seven thousand acres.”

“Seven thousand acres? how is that even possible?”

He looks at his laptop, running his finger down the screen he explains, “It looks like he inherited two thousand acres and spent his entire life buying up more. He’s currently got two gas wells he’s leased to Las Salinas Oil and Gas. He harvests hardwood selectively every ten years and has several other business endeavors. The names are obscure, so I have no idea what they deal in. I’m assuming he’s leasing a lot of the property out, because his bank deposits have gone through the roof the last couple of years. Looks like he’s worth almost two million dollars at this point.”

I just sit there stunned, trying to reconcile this with what I know about my grandfather. He’s always been stingy, miserly, and mean as a rattlesnake. I can’t even imagine him as a millionaire. It literally doesn’t compute in my head. And this in the last couple of years? Then I have a thought, all this started around the time my step-grandmother died. Perhaps she was wealthy in her own right?

But however he came into the money, it’s all so odd. Elsie’s funeral was probably the last time I visited the farm before my mom went missing. After that there was no reason for me to see my grandfather, there was no love lost between us, and honestly, I just got a bad feeling being around his thuggish farmhands who turned up around the same time.

Ven can see how overwhelmed I am and hugs me tighter. I sink into him, feeling a little lost.

Siege fixes me a look, “With all that money, he can surely afford to hire a battalion of housekeepers. It makes no sense that he would be holding her at his house to cook and clean for him.”

“Then I’m at a total loss as to what’s happened to her,” I tell him, my voice cracking with emotion.

Ven states quietly, “I think we need to take a break. Amy’s been through a lot today. She needs to get some rest.”

I don’t even object because he’s right. I do need to get out of this room and take some time to decompress.

***

Ven’s suite is cool and clean, I don’t know what I was expecting rooms at an MC clubhouse to be like, but it’s really nice. He leads me to the sofa, and when I sink into it, I realize just how bone tired I am. Everything is hurting and my cut lip is burning, after talking with the guys and telling them about my mom, it’s like I’ve used up my entire day’s storage of energy. The next moment he’s handing me a glass of soda, which reminds me that I should be working instead of relaxing.

I take a sip, it’s deliciously cool and I ask, “So when does my shift start at the bar?”

“Don’t worry about that, there’s no rush. We have prospects tending the bar, if anything, suggesting you help out was more to make you feel better about accepting our help.” He leans over and moves a strand of hair out my face, his expression looks tender and caring.

“Thank you and your club for taking me in and for offering your help in finding my mother. You’ll tell them for me, won’t you.”

“Of course. Don’t worry, everything is in motion. We have thirty-two fully patched brothers in this club, and we’re all going to be working on locating your mom. All you need to worry about is resting up.”

“I just want to earn my keep around here. It’s just that I feel like a windup toy that ran out of energy all the sudden.”

“That’ll be the adrenaline wearing off. Rage gave you something for the pain, you still okay or do you need another dose?”

“I’m a bit sore, but I think the main thing I need right now is rest.”

“You sleep for a while. I’m going to make some food for us.”

I finish my drink and snuggle down under the blanket. All the information we just talked about is swirling around in my brain, confusing and hypnotizing me into a trance-like state where my eyes are getting more tired by the second. I don’t know when they drift shut but the dreams that come are more like nightmares.

I jolt awake with a start and smell the scent of lemon chicken. It smells so good that my stomach is growling. Lying back on the sofa, I try to remember the last time I ate. I think it was lunch yesterday. I drink coffee like it’s going out of style and try to get down a couple of bottles of water each day, but food is that thing I always mean to get around to, but often fall short. My eyes take in his room, there’s a large glass case taking up a heap of wall space, I’m about to ask what it is when I see it and let out a scream.

Ven rushes over, “What’s happened?”

“S- snake,” I stutter, pointing to the five-foot-long python that’s, for want of a better word, snuggling on the rug in front of the TV.

“Oh, that’s Guivre,” he says, bending down and picking up the creature lovingly. Seeing my face, he adds, “Shit. Maybe I should have warned you, you’re not scared of snakes, are you?”

“No,” I say, my voice sounding much calmer. “I just got a shock. What’s wrong with it?” I’m no snake expert, but it looks like there’s something wrong with its skin.

“She’s shedding, I let her out of the vivarium when I’m home. They like things to rub against, and the rug is perfect. I’ll put her back in, if you want?”

I shake my head, “I’m the house guest here, let your roommate chillax by the TV,” I start to laugh at the mental image of a snake watching a movie, then I wince. I touch the side of my face where Big Joe slapped me.

Ven places the snake back on the rug and comes over, “How’s the cheek?”

“It’s more like a dull throbbing pain now.”

“I hate that those assholes keep putting their hands on you. Care to tell me more about our enemy?”

I give him a tired half-smile because I’ve never thought of them as enemies necessarily. Just gigantic pains in the butt. For all intents and purposes, I guess they are my enemy though.

“My grandfather has four full-time farmhands and a bunch of part-timers that I don’t know very well. They came along one by one when my step-grandmother got sick. I never liked them, and when she died, I had no more reasons to visit the farm. Big Joe is the one in charge. And the one that does my grandfather’s dirty work.”

“Is he the one who beat you up today?” Ven asks gently.

I nod. “Yeah, he slapped me across the face, I don’t think he meant for me to hurt my ribs, but he doesn’t know his own strength and I went flying into the edge of the counter.”

“Tell me about the other three,” he coaxes me.

“Hal is the next biggest. Their pecking order seems to go by size. He’s a little younger and has red hair and freckles. He doesn’t seem to enjoy hurting other people as much as Big Joe.”

“That’s two down, two to go,” he saying lightheartedly. I can tell he’s making a mental note of everything I say, so I just get on with it. “The third musketeer is Dan. He’s laid-back, easygoing, and I can tell the violence bothers him. He’s always telling them to dial it down a notch and not take things too far. I used to get on okay with him when I visited the farm.”

Stopping to take a breath I finish up with, “And then there’s Edmund. He doesn’t really interact with anyone other than my grandfather. I’ve never known him to actually leave the farm. I don’t know why, he’s an odd one.”

“Well, I’m eventually going to run into them one day and they’re going to regret putting their hands on you,” he says with an element of dark promise in his tone. “The bit I don’t understand is why they have to knock you around just to deliver a message?”

“They want to be respected by my grandfather so much that they’ll do anything to curry favor with him. They know my grandfather doesn’t care about me, and they won’t get in trouble for knocking me around. To be honest, since my step-grandmother’s funeral I barely saw them. Sometimes I’d see Dan around town, but it’s only over the last month they’ve started visiting the coffee shop on the regular.”

“So around the time you went to the farm and got the local police to do a wellness check?” Ven says.

I nod.

“Sounds to me like they might be tryin’ to scare you off. Don’t worry, I’ll beat that out of them as well.”

Looking at his totally blank expression, I have to assume he’s just joking around, so I respond in kind. “Well, if the wind blew just right and you showed up, Dan would probably tell you everything he knows.”

“One way or another, I’m going to get to the bottom of this.”

Wanting to change the subject, I turn back to his pet, “What did you say her name was?”

“Guivre,” he says with a smile.

I’ve never heard of that name before, so I ask, “Where’s the name from?”

“It’s French, Guivres are mythical creatures from the Medieval French legends. They have a snake’s body, a dragon’s head, and venomous breath. Seemed a good name for her, though obviously she’s not venomous.”

“Nice to meet you, Guivre,” I say. Hopefully, she’s not the jealous kind and doesn’t mind sharing her home with another woman.

Glancing over his shoulder towards the kitchen, Ven asks, “Are you about ready to eat?”

He helps me off the sofa, I keep my hand over my side because it does still hurt. I gingerly sit down at his tiny kitchen table for two and watch while he plates food for me.”

“Everything looks and smells delicious,” I tell him, genuinely surprised that he can pull something homemade together on the fly this way. The first mouthful is pure heaven. His chicken is tender, seasoned perfectly, and melts in my mouth. “This is the best food I’ve tasted since my mother went missing.”

“Let me guess, you were too busy snapping pictures to learn about cooking?”

I nod, not even trying to deny it. “Although I have zero interest in cooking, I’m a passable baker. My mom even taught me to make fresh bread.”

“You realize what that means, don’t you?” he responds after he swallows his mouthful of chicken.

I take a shot in the dark and reply, “That between the two of us, we can make a delicious meal?”

He’s suddenly all smiles. Pointing his fork straight at me he answers, “Damn straight. That’s exactly what it means.”

“Good thing, I’m your old lady then. We’ll be the envy of all your friends when we invite them for dinner.” I wasn’t sure who knew that we weren’t a real couple, I know his club officers did, but I wasn’t sure about the rest of the club.

His expression lights up at the mention of us acting like a real couple. “They’re all going to be disappointed to find that we’re not a couple after all this is over.” Taking a minute to gaze at me, he shakes his head and does a course correction. “Scratch that. All my single club brothers are going to be thrilled to find out you really aren’t my old lady. They’re always on the lookout for a beautiful woman to try it on with.”

“I thought your club had club girls for that,” I tell him.

A rueful smile settles onto his face. “Many of my club brothers are eager to find someone to settle down with. Most club girls are into variety and the few that are persistently looking to settle down are a little on the dysfunctional side.”

“That’s not a nice thing to say,” I protest, thinking the women who come here to spend time with the brothers don’t deserve to be left out of consideration as potential mates.

One side of his mouth quirks up. “Wait until you’ve met a few of them and you’ll end up agreeing with me.”

We spend lunch in casual conversation and just as we’re finishing up, Rage shows up, insisting upon taking me for my x-ray. He tosses something to Ven before checking out my face again.

“Do I really need to go to the hospital?” I protest. “I feel fine. Really, I do.”

He frowns down at me, his face filled with concern “Yeah, you need an x-ray. Ribs usually heal without any intervention, but we need to know what we’re working with.”

It seems like a lot of fuss to me, but I agree to go with him. I don’t think I have much choice in the matter, given the determined look on his face. If I didn’t agree I’d probably be dragged there screaming and kicking.

Before we leave, Ven holds up the thing Rage brought with him. It’s a black leather vest that says ‘Property of the Savage Legion MC’ on the back. He helps me slide it on and zips up the front. I move around a bit, trying to see how my new armor fits. It’s relatively comfortable and it doesn’t take me long to forget I’m even wearing it.