Chapter 9
Diesel
I told Lucky everything, including my time with the Chosen. I’m not sure what compelled me to divulge so much about myself, but once I started, I didn’t stop until I’d gotten it all out. She was just so easy to talk to, and I never once saw a flicker of judgement when I spoke. I’d never met anyone quite like her. After all she’s been through, I would expect her to be guarded, to surround herself in a protective wall and not let anyone get close to her, but when she was with me, there were no walls. It was just her and I, and with every new moment we were together, we grew closer. It all seemed so strange to me. She didn’t even have a name, but she was more real to me than any woman I’d ever met. I wanted to keep her close and protect her because the mere thought of someone hurting her drove me insane. As we sat there talking, I vowed to myself that I would do everything in my power to keep her safe.
After we finished eating, I took her back to her room, and I was about to head back to my own so she could get settled when she got a funny look on her face. “What’s wrong?”
“I hate to ask since you’ve been stuck with me all day, but can you stay with me for just a little while longer … just until I fall asleep?”
“You worried you’re gonna have another bad dream?”
“A little bit. That last one really got to me. I was hoping if you’d stay, I might not have another one. I know one of the guys usually sits outside in the hall and watches over things, but it’s just not the same as having you in here with me,” she confessed.
I knew those nightmares had been wearing on her, and I couldn’t blame her for being worried. Hell, I was worried myself. After seeing how upset they’d made her, I’d made a habit of checking in on her every night to make sure she was okay. I hoped that she was right and my staying might stop them from coming, even if it was just for a little while, so I answered, “Of course.”
I walked over and sat down in the chair at the foot of her bed, and once I was settled, she turned to face the wall. I listened as her breathing became shallow, and I thought she had gone to sleep, until she asked, “Would you mind lying down next to me?”
“What?”
“Will you lie down with me?” she asked again.
“You sure about that?”
Without turning to look at me, she replied, “I’m just so tired of feeling lost and alone … I don’t want to feel alone right now.”
I knew it wasn’t a good idea. I’d already started to have feelings for her, feelings I had no business having, and being in that bed with her was just going to make them harder to ignore. But after hearing the vulnerability in her voice, there was no way I could turn her down. I got up from the chair and walked over to the bed, carefully settling in next to her. I leaned my head back on the pillow and tried to pretend that she wasn’t there, but my body knew. Just like every time before, as soon as I got close to her, I felt a rush that made it damn near impossible not to reach for her, take her in my arms, and show her how much I wanted her. But I knew that wasn’t an option, not now—not when there was so much uncertainty surrounding her. Trying my best not to disturb her, I turned to look at her, and she hadn’t moved. She stayed planted in her spot until she finally drifted off to sleep. I laid there for several hours, simply listening to the rhythm of her breathing, and without realizing what I was doing, I fell sound asleep.
I woke up the next morning with Lucky’s beautiful, dark eyes staring at me. She was propped up on her elbow, and she smiled. “Good morning.”
“Good morning.” I sat up and rubbed the sleep out of my eyes. “I must’ve fallen asleep. I didn’t mean to stay the night in your bed.”
“That’s okay.” A light blush crossed her face as she added, “It was nice having you here.”
“Were you able to get any sleep?”
“Yeah. I slept great. Better than I have in days”
“Well, that’s good to hear.” I smiled as I told her, “I was afraid my snoring might’ve kept you awake.”
“I’m pretty sure I was the one who was snoring, but thanks for not noticing.”
“Never said I didn’t notice. You snore with the best of them. Pretty sure you’ve got the rest of the guys beat in that department.” I teased.
“Seriously?”
“Yep.” I got out of the bed and stretched. “I need a hot shower and some coffee. How about you?”
“Sounds good to me.”
“Good.” As I headed for the door, I told her, “I’ll be back as soon as I get out of the shower.”
“Okay.”
I’d just gotten dressed and was on my way to get Lucky when I spotted Two Bit heading towards me. He was known for saying whatever was on his mind, and from the expression on his face, it was clear that he had something to say. With his eyebrow cocked, he announced, “We found something.”
“What?” He motioned for me to go with him, and as I followed him down the hall, I anxiously asked, “What the hell did you find?”
“A car,” he answered as he walked into the bar.
Maverick and Stitch were at one of the back tables talking with Cotton, and as soon as we walked up, I heard Maverick say, “We tried, but with all the snow and ice, we just couldn’t get down there.”
“Hell, the damn thing is almost a hundred feet down the ravine. Even if there wasn’t any snow, I don’t know how we’d get to it without some help.”
“Do you think the car is Lucky’s?”
Maverick turned to me and answered, “Yeah, but we won’t know for sure until we can get down there and check it out.”
“Where is it?”
Stitch cleared his throat as he crossed his arms. As the club’s enforcer, he was always thinking one step ahead, and his voice was deep and methodical as he answered, “About three miles east of here—at Eagle’s point. She must’ve lost control around that curve and flipped over the embankment. The car is pretty fucked up. It’s a fuckin’ miracle she made it out of there alive.”
Every ounce of empathy I had kicked in as I asked, “She walked for three miles in that storm?”
“Apparently so.” Cotton’s eyes were filled with concern. “Looks like she was running from something after all.”
“The question is, from what? Or better yet, from who?” Maverick asked.
“Hopefully, we’ll find some answers in that car.” Cotton turned to Maverick and said, “Get with Guardrail and see what equipment he has that might help us get down there.”
Guardrail was the club’s VP, and he was also the front man for the club’s construction company. If anyone had something that would help us, it would be him, so I wasn’t surprised when Maverick replied, “Already did. He said he could have us something here by noon.”
Cotton shook his head. “Gonna need to be sooner than that. We need to get to it before someone else does.”
“I’ll call him back.” He stepped to the side and dialed his number. After talking to him for just a few minutes, he hung up the phone and turned back to us. “He’ll be here in two hours.
“Good. Meet back here at ten, and then we’ll head over there. And dress warm. It’s cold as shit out there,” Cotton ordered.
After we dispersed, I went down the hall towards Lucky’s room where I found Drake, one of our prospects, standing by her door. “Morning, Diesel. How’s it going, brother?”
“It’s going. You?”
“Better now that it stopped fucking snowing. Hell, I thought that storm would never pass.”
“I hear ya.” I nodded towards the door. “Is Lucky in there?”
“Yep.”
I knocked on her door, and as I waited for her to answer, I considered telling her about the car. I thought it might lift her spirits but decided against it, thinking I didn’t want her to be disappointed if it turned out to be nothing. When she opened the door, I asked, “You ready to grab a bite to eat?”
“Not at the moment.” She motioned to a small tray of food behind her. “Cass already brought me something.”
“Oh. Okay.” I turned back and made sure that Drake was still close by. “I’ve got some things to take care of for a few hours, but Cass or Doc will be around if you need anything.”
“I’ll be fine. Cass brought me some magazines to read, so I’ll just hang out here until you get back.”
“I’ll be back soon,” I told her as I made my way down the hallway towards the kitchen. I didn’t like that she couldn’t contact me if she needed me, so I’d need to talk to Cotton about getting her a burner phone. But that would have to wait until later. For now, I needed to get some food in my stomach and then meet the guys to go check out that car. When I walked into the kitchen, Stitch and Maverick were already sitting down at the table, eating their eggs and drinking their coffee, while Two Bit and Clutch were at the stove, filling their plates with food. I walked over and poured myself a cup of coffee before going over to the stove to get my food. Once I’d made my plate, I went over and joined the others at the table.
Without talking to anyone in particular, Maverick said, “Henley and Cass tried to take Thomas sledding yesterday, but Henley said he wasn’t having any part of it. She sat him on her lap, and when they went down that little hill in front of the house, he pitched an ever lovin’ fit.”
He’d married Henley before I was even associated with the club, but I didn’t have to be around from the beginning to know that they were crazy about each other—and they absolutely adored their two-year-old son, Thomas. Clutch laughed as he said, “Sounds like he takes after his old man.”
“The hell you say. I used to love to go sledding when I was a kid. There wasn’t a hill I wouldn’t try,” he argued.
“Give him time,” Stitch told him. “He’ll be out there scaring the shit out of you before you know it.”
“What about Mia? Does she like the snow?” Clutch asked.
“Nope. She’s not a fan either, but Wyatt seems to like it … at least for a little while.”
I sat there listening to them talk about their kids, and as always, I was amazed to see the softer side of the very men who I knew could be hard as nails. Hell, Stitch could bring the strongest men to their knees without breaking a sweat, but when he talked about his kids, he looked like an average Joe. We’d been sitting there talking for almost an hour when I heard Cass say, “Guys. You need to come see this.”
We all turned, and when found her standing in the doorway with a panicked look on her face, we all got up and followed her into the TV room. I had no idea what was going on until I heard Cass say, “Isn’t that Lucky?”
I looked up at the television, and as soon as I saw those beautiful, dark eyes staring back at me, I knew it was her. My breath caught in my throat as I read the word MISSING written in bold red letters above her picture, and when I started searching for her name, my heart dropped to the pit of my stomach when I noticed the picture of the man next to her. Without reading any further, I knew it was her husband. Fuck.
“Yep, that’s her,” Maverick announced.
I ignored him as I listened to the news anchor describe how Brady and Ellie Blackwell had been declared missing after neither one of them had shown up for work. She stated that the police had begun an investigation, but as of yet, they had found no leads. My mind was reeling as I listened to her say that Brady Blackwell’s father, Police Chief Grayson Blackwell, had offered a reward for any information regarding the couple’s whereabouts. When she finally finished talking, I turned to my brothers and said, “This doesn’t make any fucking sense. If they’re both missing, how the hell did she end up here?”
“She’s the only one who can answer that, brother,” Stitch replied. “And if the cops are looking for her, it’s only a matter of time before they start sniffing around here.”
“You got that right,” Cotton grumbled as he shook his head. “Especially if that’s her car in the ravine. Either way, we need to be prepared. Consider us on high alert.”
Maverick stepped forward and said, “Is there a reason why we’re putting our necks out for this chick? Hell, we don’t know anything about her.”
Without batting an eye, Cotton replied, “Fate brought her to our doorstep, and we chose to take her in. We’re not turning our backs on her now. We’re going to see this thing though.”
His words proved once again that Cotton was a man of honor, making me proud to be his brother. I glanced back up at the screen, and as I stared at her picture, I muttered, “Ellie Blackwell.”
Hearing me, Clutch replied, “And Brady Blackwell. The chick’s married, Diesel.”
“I’m not buying it, Clutch. Something about this just doesn’t feel right.”
“I guess there’s only one way for you to find out.”
With that, I turned and went straight to her room. When I got to her door, I took a deep breath, and after I knocked, she answered, “It’s open.”
I opened the door and found her sitting Indian style at the foot of her bed. Her hair was pulled up on top of her head in a messy bun, and she was wearing one of my t-shirts that was at least two sizes too big for her. There was a magazine in her lap, and when she looked up and saw me standing there, a smile spread across her face. Breathtaking. She was absolutely breathtaking.
She cocked her head to the side and said, “That was fast. I wasn’t expecting you until later.”
I didn’t respond. I couldn’t. What I wanted more than anything else was sitting right there in front of me, and the thought that she might belong to another made my blood run cold. I didn’t want to lose her, not like this. But then, I couldn’t lose what I never had, and I couldn’t keep what wasn’t mine. Noticing my struggle, her smile quickly faded. “Is everything okay?”
I’d wanted to ease my way into it, but the words just rolled right off my tongue. “Are you Ellie Blackwell?”