RAFE

 

The dim lighting of the overhead street lamps barely lit my way toward the highway. The summer night air was cool against my skin as I pushed my bike over the speed limit, almost daring the cops to pull me over. Nothing mattered at that moment more than finding Madison. To do that, I needed to get back to the club house. I needed to find out who Brittany had been seeing in the club. They might know where she was or why the fuck she took Maddie.

 

Beth wasn’t wrong. Maddie was missing because of me. Someone wanted me, but I still didn’t know why. I hadn’t fought Gray’s win on the presidency, and I hadn’t even been at the club over the past few weeks to get in his way. I kept an ear out for some the crazy shit he wanted to push through the club, but I stayed low. My only focus being on finding Jason’s killer.

 

Maddie had to be okay. If Brittany had her, the odds were good that she was at least safe. No matter what member had been stupid enough to touch one of my girls, at least I knew Brittany loved that little girl. It wouldn’t stop me from ripping her throat out when I found them, but at the moment it helped calm me enough to keep my head focused and on straight.

 

Beth would understand once this was all finished. Once I had Maddie back in her arms, and Jason’s killer was found. Once the club was whole again, she’d see that it wasn’t as bad as her worried mind was painting it out to be.

 

The clubhouse was lit up when I pulled into the lot. The wake had wrapped up and the members were celebrating Tristan the only way they knew how—drinking themselves stupid. Guys with their girls stood in clusters on the front porch and sprinkled throughout the lot leaning against their bikes. No one seemed to pay much attention to my entrance. I was only their fucking VP.

 

To that end, I wasn’t much of one anymore. I’d spent more time consumed by finding Jason’s killer and keeping Beth safe. I hadn’t been at the club house at all in the past few weeks. Who the fuck knew what Gray was up to, and I wasn’t there to oversee it, to put a stop to shit I knew would kill the club. Too many members were newer, didn’t know what Jason had been trying to build with the club. True, the gun runs weren’t legal shit, and none of us enjoyed all the heat from the cops, but it was putting more than a little bread on our tables at night. Jason wanted to keep it that way.

 

Gray put up the front about wanting to get us legit, but after talking to Javier, I knew better. He wanted us back in the drug gang, and he’d hide it all behind the scenes of his strip clubs and porn business. I doubted anyone really knew what he was up to.

 

I walked through the newly remodeled clubhouse looking for Gray and not finding him anywhere. I asked a few guys but no one had seen him since the funeral home. “He was talking with Sarah after you cut her down in the parking lot, maybe he took her home to soothe her wounds,” Darrel joked, pushing a beer at me.

 

I shook my head and shoved it away. “He’s gonna stick his dick in that?” I scoffed. Sarah had been relatively new to the club when I had my time with her, but since then she’d made the rounds a few times. One too many trips to the free clinic for me, my dick wouldn’t ever go near her again.

 

“Maybe you taught her well enough when you were riding her.” Darrell laughed, the several beers he’d already down tainting his breath. “Besides, a little plastic wrap and he’ll be fine.”

 

“Yeah. Hey, you seen a girl in here lately, blonde hair with purple streaks?” Luckily Brittany had that telling feature, it would make finding her a bit easier than if her sister had been hanging around. Chrissy was pretty, just like Brittany, but pretty blondes were sort of like wallpaper around the clubhouse.

 

“Nah, I would have noticed. Girls with those highlights are freaks in the sack, and my dick hasn’t been wet in days.”

 

I looked around the newly remodeled bar area and saw plenty of newbie biker girls who would probably drop to their knees if asked to. Why those local girls thought it was so cool to be used up by us never made sense to me, and I never really questioned it. But after having spent time with Beth, and getting to know Maddie, I’d kill anyone who treated my girls that way. No fucking way Maddie was going to grow up to be a MC whore.

 

I gave Darrell a shove on his shoulder with an approving nod, but focused my thoughts elsewhere. Gray wasn’t anywhere to be seen and no one seemed to know where he was.

 

I shot him a text, but heard nothing.

 

I text Beth to see if she’d heard back from Brittany, but she wasn’t answering me either. I’d have to head back to her house soon. She couldn’t be alone right now. She would be beside herself with worry and do something stupid. I needed to get back there as soon as possible.

 

Thick, heavy smoke hung in the air around the bar area. I’d forgotten how hard it was to breathe in there sometimes. Music blared in the background and every few minutes another toast went up for Tristan. I looked around at my brothers, wondering who the fuck they really were. Half of them didn’t even question how Tristan died, just took whatever bullshit Gray handed them. The other half had questions, but didn’t have the balls to raise their fucking hand.

 

The only strong connection I had was with JC. He was my eyes and ears while I was off playing vigilante. He informed me most of the members thought the vote getting Gray into the chair was a bunch of bullshit, and they trusted Gray as far as they could throw his beer bellied ass, but no one said a word to anyone who countered. When the gavel was raised, they all bowed their fucking heads.

 

I didn’t blame them. Not really. To stand up to the president was like suggesting someone kick your ass—unless you had a position to back it up. If you had voting rights, you had clout. But even those members around the table turned their heads. Maybe Gray bought them, made them think they’d be getting a kick ass pay increase with the new drug crew.

 

Only trouble was, Javier was in a bad way. If he died, did that deal he was trying to make with Gray go flat?

 

Keeping myself focused on one asshole at a time, I pushed my way through the crowded club. A few girls tried to claw their way into my arms, but I managed to pry them off me. Even without Beth waiting at home, I had more important things to get to.

 

Gray’s office sat empty. The computer screen was dark, the windows all shut, which was odd for Gray. He was paranoid about closed in spaces. He refused to admit he was claustrophobic, but had to have windows open in every room he was in, and never did I see him get into an elevator.

 

“Hey!’ JC stopped me as I made my way back through the crowd. “I’ve been looking for you. Heard you were here.”

 

His normally composed expression was all twisted up with stress. His eyes were wide, and he sounded like he’d been running around. “That girl from the bar, she was over at the funeral home tonight. Talking with Gray, he got pissed at her and she left. But she’s friends with your girl, man, right?”

 

“What girl? Purple streaks?”

 

“Yeah, that one. She walked in and Gray all but shoved her out the fucking door. I heard them arguing in the lot and then she took off.”

 

“Did you hear what they were saying? It’s important. Think.” I grabbed him by his jacket, gripping it hard.

 

He shook his head. “That’s why I’m looking for you. I heard them saying something about your girl and her kid. Beth’s got a little girl, right?”

 

“Fuck!” I released his coat and dragged my hand through my hair. “Madison is her daughter. When I dropped Beth off tonight she wasn’t there. Fucking Brittany texted her and told her to do whatever he says. Gray is the fucking he. And he has my girl.”