Chapter Eleven

Remy

" R emy? Sorry, but Jovie is back looking for you." Beth calls out.

That's odd. Usually her dad peels out like his butt is on fire and we don't see them again until the next day. Jovie's in luck. I'm officially off the clock and was about to leave. Placing my phone in my handbag, I put it down on the break room table and head out into the main area, walking toward Jovie, who is standing just inside the main doors, tears pooling in her eyes.

"Jovie, sweetie, what's wrong?" I squat down in front of her so we're level. Her little chest is heaving, and she sniffles, trying to calm herself. I wrap my arms around her, looking over her shoulder at Beth, who is frowning at us.

"My daddy said he needed to talk to you outside. He squeezed my arm hard and told me I had to get you." She looks up at me with those big brown eyes as tears well up.

She's too little to understand that her dad is an awful man who shouldn't have children. I nod at her before I turn to let Beth know where I'm going. Not that she would mind, given that I'm officially off the clock. Looking around, she isn't at her desk, so I assume she's helping someone.

"Come on little miss, let's see what your dad wants, hmm?"

Taking her hand, we both step outside the front doors. I swivel my head left and right, looking for his junker car. He normally parks right out front, however, today he's down the road a little. I have no idea why and I don't care to know why. The man is horrible.

As we walk closer, Jovie's steps get slower and slower. Looking down at her, she seems afraid, which makes sense. She's just been manhandled by someone who is meant to love her. I jiggle her hand until she looks up at me.

"It's going to be OK Jovie. I'm here and I remember a clever little girl told me that big things protect little things. Remember?"

She smiles up at me and nods. We slow to a stop in front of his car and the driver's door creaks open. Her dad steps out, looking even worse than the last time I saw him.

"Jovie said you wanted to talk to me?"

He licks his lips, his eyes looking me up and down.

"Oh, I wanna do more than talk to you, sweetheart." He roughly grabs Jovie, shoving her towards the car. "Get in there, you little shit. Just like your fucking mother." He spits as Jovie sobs and climbs into the backseat.

There is no booster seat, so she pulls the seatbelt over her shoulder, the band digging into the side of her cheek before she clips it and raises her arm up and over it, the seat belt under her armpits.

I don't know why, but this angers me to the point of no return. He may be half a foot taller than I am, but I don't care. I also don't care about the smell coming off of him as I lean into him.

"Don't you ever talk to her like that again." My voice is firm, not the quiet whisper it is when I'm trying to be invisible. Here and now I need to protect Jovie. I need him to see me.

"Oh yeah, I'm going to love teaching you a lesson," He says as he palms his privates. My eyes shoot to his leering face, his pupils blown wide from whatever he has stuck in his veins.

"I don't learn lessons from men who bully children."

"How about men with guns?" A voice whispers in my ear. I freeze. Ice flows through my veins, my gut clenching, breath coming in pants. I know that voice.

"Snake."

Wire

Checking my phone for the 500th time since I've been here, I see nothing from Retta. Fuck! Thinking back on all our interactions, I'm wracking my brain trying to think through the messages. Did she give me signals she wanted to meet or was I being so pushy she felt she had to agree to meeting me?

Running my hands through my hair that's feeling a little too long, I try to shake those thoughts out of my head. I know Retta. She wouldn't just go along with something I said. Over the years, she's gotten sassier with me. I know for a fact the Retta I know would have put me in my place if she felt I was being an asshole.

Maybe something happened to her dad? I know recently he's been unwell. Maybe there's been an emergency, and she didn't have time to message? Blowing out a frustrated breath, I take in the view and decide to wait a little longer, just in case there was traffic or some shit. Yeah, I'm whipped.

The phone vibrating in my hand has me scrambling to answer. "Retta?"

"Wire! It's me."

"Chewy? What's wrong?"

"Is Remy with you?" Pulling my phone from my ear, I look at it. "Why would Remy be with me?"

"Shit. OK. We have a problem. We need you back now, Wire."

Throwing my leg over my girl, I put on my brain bucket, then rev the shit out of my bike and peel out. I've already switched Chewy over to bluetooth.

"Give me the rundown Chewy, I'm on my way now."

"No, I will tell you in person. You might lose your shit if I tell you now and I don't need one of my besties to crash. Ride safe, Wire. See you soon."

With that, she hangs up on me, and now my gut is swirling with anxiety. I gun it down the familiar roads, making the hour long drive in close to 40 minutes. Riding up to the compound, I wave at Jimmy, the prospect on the gates, and he gets them open wide enough for me to peel through. I park my girl in her spot, take off my brain bucket and place it on the seat before heading straight in to find out what's got Chewy wound up.

Walking through the door of the clubhouse, I'm met with my brothers sitting around the dining room, Marx standing in the middle. What the hell happened?

"Wire, have you heard from Remy?" Marx barks at me before I've even closed the door behind me.

My brows pull low. "No. Why's that?"

"Fuck," He curses under his breath. Hands on hips, he looks at the ground before looking me in the eye. "We're not sure where she is. Beth from the library called to let Remy know she left her purse behind. Saw her car in the lot and thought one of us had picked her up, but no one has seen or heard from her."

My eyes dart to the Jim Beam clock on the wall. Her shift finished at 4pm. It's now 6pm.

"I'm guessing you've tried her phone?" I ask, trying to remain calm. How in the space of an afternoon did the two women I have feelings for both go radio silent?

"Done that, brother. This isn't like her. She leads a quiet existence, goes to work, then comes home," Tank answers. He and Sniper both have furrowed brows. I get it. They're her friends.

"What about Ana? They're friends. Maybe they met up?"

"I've already checked in with Ana. She hasn't seen her since my party," Tav says. I can see the concern on his face. He's a softy.

Feet thumping down the hall has us all turning to face Chewy, her laptop balanced on her forearm.

"I have something! Beth said the last time she saw Remy she was on her way outside with a little girl named Jovie."

"Jovie's dad is a dickhead. He's threatened Remy before. She has a soft spot for Jovie. The kid is clearly being neglected." I fill in the gaps, letting my brothers know why Remy would be outside, especially with Hammer around.

The tension is starting to grow, brothers are cursing and Marx looks like he's about to lose it. Chewy grabs the remote to turn on the projector, then taps a couple of keys. By the looks of the footage it must be a lamp post camera, as it shows the shops just down from the library and a piece of shit car. We watch as Remy comes into camera with Jovie, and her fuck knuckle dad gets out of his car.

"That's the fucker that's been hanging around the yard!" Tanks yells. Chewy pauses the video so Tank can get a better look. He stands to get closer to the wall where the projector beams, squinting for a moment before shooting a look at Sniper.

"Yeah, that's him. We've chased him a couple of times but keep losing him. He's a wily little fucker."

"Meth heads always are," Rider bites out.

Chewy unpauses the video and we watch as he manhandles his kid; grabbing her roughly, pulling growls from my brothers. We all watch in fascination as Remy steps forward, getting into his space. Even though she's shorter than him, she gets in his face and I feel pride bubbling in my chest. Remy is fierce as she protects that little girl. That is until someone steps out of the shadows and holds a gun to her head.

"That motherfucker Snake!" Marx growls, teeth clenched, looking as if he's going to go on a berserker rampage any minute now.

We watch as Jovie's father pops the trunk and Snake shoves Remy in. He then turns to look at the camera, smiling wide and flipping the bird.

"The motherfucker knew we would pull footage," Rhodie shakes his head in disgust as Chewy shuts down the video and then curls up on her man's lap.

He holds her to him, murmuring how we will find her. And we will. There is no option. The feelings I have for Remy may be confusing, but they are real and deep. And I'm not letting any Death Rider motherfucker take her away from her home.

"What's the plan Pres?"

We all look at Marx, his jaw clenching hard.

"Fuck brothers. I don't know. We lost the princess of our ally club. I need to let Savage and Flack know before we do anything else. Don't forget we've been told by your momma, Wire, that we have to lie low. Whatever the fuck we do has to be stealth and fucking planned to the nth degree." He runs his hand through his hair, and then his beard. "First, we need intel. We need eyes all over this fucking town. Need to find out where those fuckers are holed up."

"Aw shit." Chewy says, staring at her laptop screen.

"What now, Chewy?" Marx asks, the look on his face showing that he is pretty fucking close to his last straw.

"The plates on Jovie's dad's car belong to the woman they found at the yard. Jayla Stevens." Chewy beams her license up on the big screen next to the frozen picture of Jovie's dad with her car.

"Fuck me. You don't think…?" Switch's voice drifts off as he too gets closer to the photos. We all stand around looking at the features of Jovie, her father and this Jayla Stevens.

"Surely that's not Jovie's mother." Rider says, eyes flicking between the photos.

"Only one way to find out. We have her home address. Who's going?" Chewy says, standing with a huge smile on her face.

I let out a deep sigh before speaking up. "I'll go."

"What the fuck Wire? I need you here," Marx orders, but I'm already shaking my head at him.

"I'm sorry, Pres, but I can get the info we need. I know the address. It's the trailer park my dad's whole side of the family live in. They'll talk to me."

Marx's brow furrows as he considers my words. "You sure?

"Yeah."

My brothers sit silent. They know what my relationship with my father and his family is like. It may be a little distant, but everyone knows distant family has a better chance of poking around than strangers. If a stranger asks questions, they'll clam up tighter than a duck's ass.

"Chewy, you're in the control center. Rider and Rhodie, you're with Wire. That place has always been shady as fuck, and I don't expect it to be any better. Tav, you and Tank take the van. Just in case these fuckers are dumber than they look and have Remy there. Everyone else, back on the streets looking for Hammer, but do it quietly. Obey the road rules, don't speed. I don't want the wrath of Wire's momma coming down on me if you lot draw any attention to us. I have a Pres to call." Marx grimaces before nodding at us and turning to head into his office. Shoulders slumped.

"Mount up boys" Rhodie slaps me on the shoulder and leads the way.