RAFE
I didn’t like it, but I couldn’t stop her. Beth was going into work. Even if I told her to stay home again, I had a good feeling she’d head in anyway. After finding Tristan dead, and having that run in with the Hells Spawn, I was reluctant not to follow her all the way to the hospital and camp out in the parking lot, but she could be pretty damn stubborn.
“It will be fine, Rafe. I’ll text you at lunch if that will make you feel better.” She turned away from me with her little smirk on her face. If Madison wasn’t sitting at the table eating her cocoa puffs, I would have given her a slap on her ass.
“You’ll do better than that, you’ll text me every couple of hours. And I’m coming over for lunch, so you text me what time that happens.” I stepped behind her as she finished smearing peanut butter on some bread for Madison’s lunch, and gripped her hips. Fuck, she smelled so good, like spring flowers.
She let out a loud sigh. “Fine. Do you want a peanut butter and jelly sandwich too, or will you be bringing your own food?” She gestured to the loaf of bread and looked over her shoulder at me.
“Isn’t that Maddie’s lunch?”
“No, she can’t bring peanuts to the day care. She’s having carrot sticks and a ham sandwich.”
I picked up the jar of generic peanut butter and looked over at Madison. “You don’t like ham?”
She snatched the jar back from me and screwed on the lid. “Ham is expensive if you don’t buy the crap loaded with antibodies and preservatives.” Her answer didn’t sit well with me. She was a fucking nurse, but had to eat PB&J sandwiches because she gave the good stuff to her daughter.
“Her dad doesn’t send you any cash to help out?”
“No. I have to hurry up, I need to grab Brittany and I’m starting to run late.” She tossed the peanut butter back in the cabinet and shoved the jelly in the fridge before she jogged out of the room. I heard the bathroom door shut and leaded against the countertop. These two deserved so much better than stale bread and generic peanut butter. If I could get my hands on that fucker who walked out on them, I’d rip his throat out.
“Mommy makes good ham sandwiches.” Maddie smiled at me over her bowl of chocolate cereal. “She gives me mustard.”
“You like mustard, huh?”
“Uh-huh.” She took the last bite of her cereal and climbed down from her chair. Carrying the bowl still half full of milk to the sink, she dumped it out and put the plastic bowl on the counter. “Rafe. Are you sleeping over again tonight?”
“You bet, baby girl. Is that okay with you?” I gave her a serious look and tucked my hands into my front pockets. Her hair bounced when she nodded and her chocolate mouth spread wide as she smiled.
“You make mommy smile. She doesn’t do that a lot.” She ran over to me and wrapped her little hands around my waist, hugging me tight. Not knowing exactly what to do, I patted her head.
“She should do it more. She’s pretty when she smiles,” I said down to her.
Still holding onto me, she craned her neck back to look up at me. “Am I pretty too?” She gave me a wide smile and I had to laugh. I reached down and plucked her from the ground, tossing her in the air before catching her.
“You are the prettiest little girl in the world, baby girl. And don’t you let anyone tell you different. You got me?” I pushed her hair out of her eyes. Such wide green eyes just like her mother.
“Got you, Rafe.” She wrapped her arms around my neck and squeezed. “Your lip is fat.” She pressed on it, reminding me that I had split it open the night before. “And you’re purple.” She pressed on my jaw where a bruise had already begun to form.
“Just a few owies. I’m fine,” I assured her.
When I put her back on the ground I noticed Beth standing in the living room watching us. A concerned look on her face. As soon as Madison saw her and ran over to her, she smiled brightly and picked up the little girl. “Let’s finish getting your shoes on, we have to get going.” She disappeared with her into her room, leaving me to stand there staring after them.
Never in my mind had I thought about having a family of my own. I figured maybe one day I’d hook up with a woman and make her my old lady, but even that didn’t really appeal to me. But then Beth and that little girl of hers walked into my life and turned everything upside down. I couldn’t stand the idea of Beth sweating over a pile of bills she couldn’t pay, or Madison having to grow up as the poor kid in class.
“Hey.” Beth walked back into the kitchen, alone. “She’s getting attached to you.” She walked around me, gathering up the sparse pieces of her lunch and pilling them into a paper lunch bag.
I took her arm and turned her to face me, cupping her face with both of my hands. “I meant what I said, Beth. I’m not going anywhere.”
“I can’t be your old lady.” The way she said the term made me want to laugh. It sounded so foreign coming from her lips.
“I don’t want you to be. I want you to be my girl. For now, let’s just say that. You’re mine, and I’m yours.”
“Maddie doesn’t remember Jeremy walking out on us, but she will remember you disappearing. What happens if you get killed? Your club isn’t exactly a charitable organization, you know.”
“Nothing will happen to you. I won’t let it. You and Madison, you’re under my protection now. You’ll have the club’s protection as well.” I pulled her into my arms and lifted her chin with my finger.
“Last night. You came home all banged up. You got into a fight, right? Trying to find out who killed your friend? How can you protect us when you’re out looking for a killer?” She yanked her face out of my hands and took a step back. “I’m late. Lock the door when you leave, okay?”
She called for Madison, who came running out of her room with a small pink princess backpack bouncing behind her. “Bye, Rafe!” She waved at me and reached out for Beth’s hand.
With her purse slung over her shoulder and brown lunch in hand, she walked out of the house. I watched them through the front windows while she buckled Madison into the backseat and then slid into the front of the car. She paused a moment by my bike, looking it over as though it were going to bite her or something.
I heard the choke start of the car and shook my head. After I found out what I could about Tristan’s death, I was going get a car from the compound and bring it over for her. That death trap she called a car was going to the dump.
***
Gray sat at the head of the table when I walked into the meeting room. Solemn faces greeted me when I pulled into the courtyard. JC had texted me about Tristan on my way over. News was out. Another of our club murdered.
When Gray noticed me, he jumped up to greet me. A sincere handshake and a slap to my back. “I know you heard already, brother. I know you and Tristan were close.”
“Jason patched him in, wanted him to sit at the table one day.” I nodded. Tristan had been closer to Jason. He reminded Jason of my little brother, without all the smarts he told me. Tristan had started getting caught up in drugs and trying to find a place among a few crews in town when Jason plucked his drunk ass out of the gutter and threw a prospect kutte on his back. He said the boy needed focus and the club would give him that, just like it did for us.
“We’ll find the fucker who did this,” he promised me, and if I hadn’t known him for the arrogant prick that he was, I might have believed him.
“Yeah. We will.”
“I heard you made a stop at Dunkin’s Divebar last night. Had a chat with Damien.” He released my hand and motioned for me to take a seat at the table beside him. The chatter in the room died down, but no one interrupted us.
“Yeah. Was looking for my girl, he was there.”
“That chick from the bar? Things getting serious?” His tone remained casual, like he was just making small talk, but his looked at me with more intent than before. He was digging.
“Serious enough.” I nodded. “Thought I saw her car, but I was wrong.”
“It would be easy if the Hell’s Spawn had a hand in Jason’s murder, and don’t think I’m not looking at that angle. I am, but we can’t start a fucking war until we know for sure.”
“What about Tristan? You don’t think those two have a connection, Tristan and him? Jason was priming him; you don’t think that maybe that had something to do with is death?” I clenched my teeth, trying to keep my anger in. I wanted to explode. Grab the fucker by the jacket and toss his ass against the wall. He knew something and he didn’t want me knowing it.
“Stay away from Hell’s Spawn until we have proof.” The warning rang clear in his voice. My jaw tightened.
“What’s being done for Tristan? He didn’t have any family.”
“The girls are handling the arrangements. Club is gonna foot the bill. The viewing will be tomorrow night, funeral the day after. Club’s gonna have a picnic this weekend. You should bring your new girl with.”
“Yeah. Maybe.”
“Club’s got some healing to do, but we’ll get through it.” He nodded and slapped my shoulder. “I know you wanted this seat, and I have to say you’re taking it better than I thought you would. I know I can count on you to help rebuild our strength.”
I looked around the room, at the eyes watching us and the hopeful expressions on the younger members. They just wanted their club put back together. It angered me to know that I was alone in my search for Jason’s killer, but I understood those men. Without the club, most of them would be lost, straggling around for work, getting arrested. With the club they had a focus, they had a family. I wouldn’t take that from them. But damned if I would let Gray keep his fucking seat once I found out what happened to Jason.
“Whatever the club needs.” I nodded. “I’m taking one of the Ultimas from the back inventory. Beth needs something that runs better than the piece of crap she’s driving now.”
“Sure thing. No problem. That rust bucket wouldn’t last another month, better to get her in something safe.”
I looked at him for a long minute, letting his comment sink in, then got up from the table. “Thanks. Tell the girls if they need anything for Tristan’s funeral, to let me know.”
“You got it, man.” He turned away then, starting up a new conversation.
Several of the guys clapped me on the back as I made my way out. I stopped to talk to a few of them, gathered some more information about Tristan’s death. One of the girls found him around two in the morning. He was supposed to pick her up from a friend’s house and never showed, which wasn’t like him, so she went over to check on him.
There was a connection between Jason and Tristan’s murder and I needed to find out what that was. I remembered something Jason had said that night about the drug runs.
First I would get a car set up for Beth, then I’d be heading over to Javier’s side of town for some answers.