Chapter 42

Peg

I didn’t know what to expect when I went with Darcy to meet her parents. We arrive in Phoenix on the bike, but minus our cuts as we’ve come out of the Satan’s Devils area. It’s immediately clear that she’s nothing like her mom, who answers the door dressed to the nines with full makeup on. The woman I’ll be marrying in just a few days has on jeans and a tee, her hair windblown from the ride, and her face bare and natural. As I squeeze her hand I think yet again she’s the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen in my life.

“Darcy.” Her mom looks surprised to see her, and her eyes widen as she looks at me. “Well, don’t stand on the doorstep, come on in. Pops?” she calls out, and a man in his sixties comes into view.

“Darcy.” Like his wife, he doesn’t seem able to do much more than utter her name. Then he half turns. “George, come and see what the cat’s dragged in.”

“Dad.” Darcy holds out her hand and he shakes it. It strikes me how little emotion seems to be involved.

Another man comes into view. This must be her older brother. The one who followed in her dad’s footsteps. It’s a bit awkward, and suddenly her mom realises it. “Come on through,” she invites.

I’ve always envied people who were brought up in a family, going myself from one foster home to another, thinking that anyone who had parents was experiencing the loving affection I never got, but even after a couple of minutes I can see how wrong I was. Darcy’s parents don’t seem to know how to speak to her, and I wonder how she’s developed into such a loving woman when brought up in a cold environment like this.

“So, Darcy,” her dad starts after we’re seated, me perched on the edge of a posh looking sofa. “To what do we owe this pleasure?”

Darcy takes my hand and smiles into my eyes. “This is Peg. Peg and I are getting married.”

“Peg?” Her mom focuses on my name, not her daughter’s announcement.

I roll up my trouser leg. “Peg,” I repeat. “Lost it in the services. Picked up the nickname and it kinda stuck.”

Her mom covers her mouth with her hand, her dad looks a little impressed and just nods.

“But what’s your real name?”

Shaking her head, Darcy gives a little laugh. “That doesn’t matter. We’re getting married, Mom, just wanted you and Pops to know.”

Her brother frowns. “And what do you do for a living, er, Peg?”

“I’m a businessman,” I tell them. “I’m sergeant-at-arms for the Satan’s Devils Motorcycle Club in Tucson. We own a number of businesses, and I make sure everything’s running as it should.” Darcy and I had agreed we weren’t going to sugar-coat anything.

Three mouths drop open. “A criminal club?”

“Pops, no. Not like that at all.”

“Well, I suppose you know what you’re doing. You’ve always looked out for yourself and done what you wanted to do.” Her mother doesn’t seem particularly bothered.

“I’ve come to let you know, and invite you to the wedding if you want to come? It’s next Saturday.”

“I’m sorry.” George frowns. “But I’ll be out of town then.”

“Pops, we’ve got that do at the Wilkinsons’.”

“That’s right, Mother. We have.”

Three pairs of eyes look at Darcy, who shrugs. It was as she expected.

Her father stands up and goes to a cabinet, opens a drawer and pulls something out. He stands, tapping it against the palm of his hand, while giving me an assessing look. “I’ll give you a wedding present.” It’s then I realise he’s holding a check book.

Darcy stands and goes over to him, placing her hand on his arm. “There’s no need to do that. I’ve still got my trust fund, which I haven’t touched.”

His eyes go sharply to me, and I just stare back. “Darcy won’t want for anything married to me.”

“Are you going to do a prenup?” her brother asks with a frown.

“No,” Darcy says simply. “What’s mine is his.”

“Yes,” I say almost at the same time, earning me a glare from my wife-to-be.

Then she turns back to her folks. “Whether we do or not is our business, and none of yours.”

Her mom stands up. “Well, it’s been nice seeing you, Darcy. And you…Peg. I hope you’ll be very happy together.”

Just like that, we’re dismissed. As I climb on the bike, holding my hand for Darcy to get on and put on my sunglasses before I take it off the stand, I look over my shoulder, seeing the front door already shut.

“I did warn you.” Darcy speaks before I do.

“You alright, babe?”

“Peg, this is the way I was brought up. I’m nothing more than a nuisance. They’re probably glad you’re taking me off their hands.”

“Fuck, darlin’. You amaze me.”

Her arms surround me, and her hands squeeze my waist. “Why?”

“Because of the wonderful, carin’, lovin’ woman you turned out to be.” I switch on the ignition, then shout over my shoulder, “Thank fuck you didn’t turn out like your mother.” I shift down into first, then move off.

I’d be the first to admit I would have preferred Flash not to have returned to work, but wasn’t going to try to dissuade her. It’s going to take some time for me to get used to seeing her leave, not knowing what dangers she might be heading into. After that first day, she’s driven herself, never able to promise her shift will end on time. Each time she leaves me for twenty-four hours I miss her like hell.

But I’m marrying her tomorrow. I’ll be taking all of her, which encompasses her passion for life, and that includes her job. As I walk into church, knowing a few hours after this shift ends she’ll be my wife, I’ve got a smile on my face.

“Oh oh. What’s up with Peg?”

“Fucker’s face is all wrong.”

“Yeah, it’s all twisted up.”

“Anyone would think the asshole’s gettin’ married tomorrow.”

As comments are thrown at me, I still don’t let it take my visible pleasure off my face, just cuff Rock and Jekyll around the head as I walk past to take my seat, then watch as the rest of the brothers trail in.

Seeing Joker arrive with his arm around Lady, Blade points his knife toward them. “I suppose you fuckers will be next.”

“What?” Joker’s arm drops, and he looks confused.

“Getting hitched.”

As Lady cocks an eyebrow at Joker, we all crack up at the resultant expression on Joker’s face.

“Okay, let’s get started.” Prez shuts us up even before his ass hits the seat. “Peg’s stag starts after church.”

Hoot and hollers sound, but they’re not getting me drunk. I want to enjoy my wedding tomorrow. I won’t see my old lady again until we meet up to get married. When she comes off shift at seven in the morning, she’s going to be catching a few hours’ sleep up at Sam and Drummer’s. Some stupid shit about it being bad luck to see her before the wedding. Oh yeah, our plans of just sneaking out to city hall had got all fucked up. The whole load of them are coming along, brothers, old ladies, and even the sweet butts. None of them wanted to miss out.

“You with us, Peg?”

“Nah, he’s plotting how to get out of this.”

“Marc will loan you her rat bike if you want to make a run for it.”

I snarl at Heart. Nothing will get me on that Jap bike of hers. If I did want to get away, and I certainly don’t, the Suzuki 7/11 would be the last ride I’d have chosen and the fucker knows it.

While I’ve zoned out they’ve run through our finances, and we’re on to the next subject that is now a regular one on our agenda. The construction at the compound.

“So, Peg, had any more thoughts about your house?”

“Don’t know why we’re bothering restoring more blocks. Brothers are falling like flies and want houses,” Bullet grumbles. But he’s got a point. Darcy and I are also taking advantage of the spare land, building a house up alongside Wraith and Heart’s.

“Glad mine’s finished. Your boys did good there.” Heart nods at the brothers responsible. “Was getting cramped with the twins and Amy in our unit, not to mention the fuckin’ dog.” There had been some fire damage which had delayed Heart and his new family moving in for a few weeks, but they’re all settled now.

Prez wipes his hand over his face and says something you wouldn’t expect a hardened MC prez to say. “Viper, Bullet, can we get a playground set up? At the top of the compound? Fenced in to keep Grunt and his shit out.”

Now we’re discussing swings, slides, and play equipment. Fuck me, only a couple of years ago I would never have expected to be discussing matters like this in church.

“Found Grunt taking a dump outside my room,” Rock grumbles. “Do something about that, will you, Heart?”

“Yeah, I’ll get you some shit bags.” Heart’s unrepentant. “What d’you expect me to do? Put a diaper on him?”

“Well you should be able to. You’re gettin’ enough practice.”

My mouth twitches, then the corners turn up. I fucking love my life. Love my brothers, and in just a few hours, I’ll be marrying the woman I love and who means more to me than life itself.

Mouse is the only one not joining in the repartee, not unusually tapping away on his laptop instead. Suddenly he exclaims, “Oh, fuck.”

It’s loud enough to get all our attention. “What is it, Mouse?”

The part Native American sends a dark-eyed gaze my way. “Just got a news flash up on my screen. There’s been an explosion at a fire.” He pauses before adding. “Several firefighters have been hurt.”

My gut drops. I swear my heart stops beating. “Out of which station? Does it say?”

Mouse shakes his head, but it’s apologetic, full of sympathy, as he says the one word I don’t want to hear pass his lips.

I stand so fast my chair falls over backward. It’s Flash’s station, and her crew is on shift. I wipe my hands through my hair. I don’t know what to do. Don’t know what to say. Just have agonising pains shooting through me, far worse than when I lost my leg. My mouth opens and shuts, but no words come out.

Suddenly, I feel a presence beside me, and arm around my back. “Peg, she’ll be okay.”

“She has to be, Prez. Fucking has to be.”

I pat my pocket. In the initial moment of panic, I’d forgotten we leave our phones outside the room. Pushing past Mouse, Rock, and Hyde in my impatience to get out, I scrabble through the box until I find my cell. Picking it up I find a couple of missed calls and a message from Truck.

Deciding it’s quicker to call him back than listen to voicemail, I press the button and wait impatiently to be connected.

“Truck, it’s Peg.”

As he speaks my legs feel weak, and I reach out my hand to the wall, needing its support to keep me standing. “Where is she?”

“On my way.”

I slide my phone into my pocket and take a moment to get breath into my lungs. My forehead falls against the wall.

“Peg? What’s happened?”

“She was in the building. They brought…they brought her out.” I swing around, my head shaking wildly from side to side. “She’s fuckin’ unconscious. That’s all Truck knows.”

“You know where she is?”

“Yeah.”

“Come on then.” Prez wastes no time, calling out to Sam that tomorrow’s plans might have changed.

Other brothers come and get on their bikes, I don’t even see who they are, but ride after Prez down into Tucson, riding on auto-pilot, hardly aware of where we are, thankful he’s in the lead so all I need do is follow him. Tears blur my eyes before the wind blows them away. I should be enjoying my stag night, not heading to my fiancée’s hospital bed. Fuck, but she’s got to be alright. I can’t lose her, not now. Not ever. Able to now understand how Heart went off the rails when his wife had died, not knowing how I’d survive it.

We pull up outside the emergency room and I almost lay down my bike in my rush, remembering at the last moment to kick down the stand. Then I’m inside. The first person I see is Truck with a stitched-up wound on his forehead, and I run over. “Any news?”

He shakes his head. “Not yet, sorry, Peg. They won’t tell me anything.”

I leave him and walk over to the reception desk and, leaning over, I thunder, “Darcy Cavanaugh. I’m her fiancé. I need to know how she is.” Then noticing the female flinching away from me, add, lowering my voice, “We’re getting married tomorrow.”

Her face softens. “I’m sorry, you’ll have to wait for the doctor. They’ll be doing everything they can. If you want to wait with the firefighters, we’ve given them a room. I’ll tell the doctor where you are.”

Truck’s by my side, and leads me, followed by my brothers, into a waiting room. There’s half a dozen firefighters here, but the only other person I recognise is Hammer, who has his arm in a sling. He nods and comes over.

“What the fuck happened?” I ask him and Truck. Prez, Rock, Mouse, Hyde, and Wraith gather around to listen.

“It looked like a normal warehouse fire. Checked the inventory and saw nothing explosive was being stored. We went inside. It was a big one, so several crews attended.”

Truck takes over, his face red as he spits out. “It was a fucking meth lab. Fucking place exploded, beams came down… Flash was trapped, alongside Slade. Took us a while to get them out.”

“What are her injuries? She gonna make it, Truck?” I’m surprised I managed to stammer the words out. In my head I have visions of her being burned, or even at this moment dying or dead. She can’t be gone.

But it’s Hammer who tells me, “She was unconscious, took a blow to her head. But apart from that we don’t know. Sorry, Peg. Fuck, what a time for this to happen. You’re supposed to getting married in the morning.” As he shakes his head, he looks like he’s in shock himself.

Right now, I can’t give a fuck about getting married. I just need to know she’s going to be okay.

“Any others hurt? And what about Slade?” Prez asks.

“A couple from another crew are suffering from smoke inhalation, but they should be alright. Slade was trapped by his leg, don’t know if he broke it or not yet. Apart from Flash, everyone’s conscious. Truck got struck on the head, but that will probably have done him good, and I wrenched my arm as I…”

As he got Flash out, I complete in my head.

“I’m so fucking sorry, Peg,” Hammer stammers out as he ruefully rubs at his shoulder. But he’s got nothing to be sorry about. He got my woman out and hurt himself in the process. I raise my chin to him.

A doctor stops by. “Firefighter Hammer?” I step up with Hammer alongside the medic. “You can go see Captain Slade now.”

As the doctor turns to go, I touch his sleeve. “Darcy Cavanaugh? I’m her fiancé.”

His kindly sympathetic eyes do nothing to reassure me, and neither do his words. “I’m sorry, they’re still working on her. I’ll get someone to come speak to you when we have any update on her condition.”

Prez steers me to a chair and I sit down clumsily, dropping my face into my hands. Wraith sits beside me, his hand on my back. I hear quiet mumbled conversations from the other firefighters.

One comes over. “Firefighter Cavanaugh is one tough cookie. She’s going to be fine.” I nod automatically at the words while knowing there’s no way he can promise that.

Snippets of various discussions going on around me reach my ears, cancelled and wedding and poor fucker come over loud and clear. A delay to the wedding is a small price to pay. Christ, I don’t care if she never marries me, I just need her alive. Need to know Darcy will be coming home with me. I don’t need that ring on her finger as long as she’s back in my arms. Darcy, don’t leave me. I bang my fist on my knee repetitively, barely able to keep my body still. My good leg bounces in time.

There’s a clock on the wall, it’s hands ticking round so slowly. I stare at it, convinced it’s stopped, and then the second-hand flicks on. It’s eleven-thirty at night. Almost my wedding day. I’ve already been here three tortuous hours, and there’s still been no word. If she’s gone, I’d rather time stopped completely. I don’t want to know, don’t want anyone to tell me. I wouldn’t be able to handle it.

A nurse appears at the doorway. “Er, Peg?”

I stand, unusually for me having trouble getting my balance, Prez puts out his hand and stops me falling back, and then steps up alongside me as I go to the nurse.

She smiles. “You can come and see Ms Cavanaugh now.”

The relief I feel almost has me falling again, my legs barely able to support me. She’s alive. “How is she?”

“She took a while to come around, but we’ve done all the tests, and though she’s inhaled some smoke, and possibly has a concussion, she’s going to be fine. Come on, she’s eager to see you.” She’s going to be alright.

Prez gives me a push to get moving. After everything I’ve been thinking over the past few hours, I can’t let myself believe that she really is going to be okay. I send up a silent prayer as I follow the nurse down a maze of corridors and up in the elevator to the next floor. Then, at last, she stops in front of a door, opens it, and waves me inside.

I pause, taking it in, seeing the love of my life lying there, smiling at me. “You know, we’ve got to stop meetin’ like this.” But my breath catches as I make my joke, and then tension of the past few hours comes out, and suddenly I, sergeant-at-arms for a one percenter club, have tears running from my eyes and streaming down my face. As I wipe them away Darcy holds out her arms, and immediately I accept her invitation, going to her and holding her as though I’m never going to let her go, ever again.