Chapter Ten
Van
My stomach is so full it’s about to bust, but I still can’t resist the urge to reach across the table and grab another piece of chicken. Every night since Ronni showed up, she has cooked dinner. Some of the shit she makes I’ve never even heard of before. Hell, I even had to drive into Indy just to get the stuff she needed to make all of it. At first, it irritated the hell out of me. After eating a few meals, I have no urge to complain.
Each meal has been better than the last, and tonight is no different. She barbequed chicken on the grill, refusing my offer to help. She even made her own barbeque sauce that turned out fucking amazing. When everything was done, we ate on the back deck. Still now, an hour later, we are relaxing and eating on the leftovers. My guess, there won’t be a damn thing left by the time we go inside.
“I better hit the road. Gotta head over to the clubhouse,” Brass says, standing up and stepping away from the table.
He’s going in to talk to Walker. Our brother is leaving tomorrow, heading to Vegas to pick up Ronni’s stepbrother. It only took one call to the club in Vegas to have the man brought in. Guess the fucker has made some enemies down that way, and they were only too happy to help us take the fucker down.
Laying the half-eaten piece of chicken on my plate, I lift my chin to him. “Remind Walker to keep me updated. I want to know the minute he has that bastard in his hands.”
Ronni looks between the two of us but doesn’t ask any questions. She knows her dad is sending a brother to pick up Miles. He told her so before she even flew into town. Still, she hasn’t brought it up once, hasn’t even asked a question. Most of the time, she pretends like he doesn’t even exist.
Brass returns my chin lift then looks to Ronni. “You keep cooking like this, Ronni, and I just may have to marry you.”
“Such a romantic proposal,” she says with a shake of her head. “You sure know how to make a girl’s heart go pitter patter.”
Leaning down to her, he places his face just inches from her, laying his hand against her cheek. “I might not know much about a woman’s heart, but I guarantee I can make the rest of you do more than just pitter-patter.”
Fuck, I’m done with him trying to get into Ronni’s pants. I’ve tried talking to him about it, let him know that shit isn’t gonna happen. He hasn’t listened to a fucking word I’ve said. Instead, he started working her harder.
Tired of his shit, I scoot back and lift my foot, sending my booted foot into his back. “Get the fuck away from her, and I won’t tell you again that her name is Veronica.”
“Whatever you say, boss.” He lets out a chuckle before walking away.
I watch his back until he disappears around the side of the house. Then, my eyes scan the backyard, watching Cline chase after Denver, a smile covering her face. She should be in bed, but I can’t make myself force her inside just yet. It’s Saturday, so she can sleep in a bit in the morning. She’s having too much fun to make her stop now.
When we first came out here, she wanted him to play fetch with her. With it being dark, and only the back-deck light illuminating the backyard, neither she or Denver could see where the stick ended up. She quickly decided chasing him would be a lot more fun. Hearing her laughter, I realize that she needs another dog of her own. After her last dog died, after being attacked by a coyote, I wanted to wait a while. It looks like the wait is over.
Leaning back in my chair, I take another drink of my beer and enjoy the show a little longer. A beep from my side draws my attention to Ronni, sitting only a few feet away from me. I’m surprised as hell when I see a cellphone in her hand, while she types away on the screen.
In a flash, the phone is in my hand, and I’m shouting, “What the fuck are you thinking? Do you want your brother to find you?”
Dropping the phone on the floor of the deck, I lift my foot over it. Just before I obliterate the thing, Ronni jumps up and pushes my leg. My boot barely misses the phone. Before I can give it another shot, Ronni picks it up and steps back.
“Miles can’t track this phone. It’s a burner, completely untraceable,” she says, moving further away from me. “I used my real phone for the last time when I was in New York. Then, I left it in the hotel room, along with my luggage.”
Tito was worried that Cotton Plains would be the first place her brother looked for her, so he went above and beyond to make sure that her presence was hidden. With the help of her friend, they laid out a trail of breadcrumbs for the fucker to follow that would end in New York.
She left out of Chicago, using her own ID, and flew to JFK in New York. She then checked into a hotel, paying with her credit card. Leaving some of her luggage and obviously her phone in the room, she walked out and headed to LaGuardia. Using a fake ID and a credit card to match, she boarded a plane to Kansas City. Repeating the process, she used a different ID and flew into Indianapolis.
“I don’t care if it is a burner phone. It could still lead that fucker to my front door,” I growl, feeling my frustration building. “All he would have to do is look at your friends’ phones then track every random number he finds.”
She blows out a frustrated breath and says, “What’s your number?”
“Did you not listen to a fucking word I just said?” I growl, shaking my head at her stupidity.
“Please, just give me your number,” she begs, sitting back down at the table.
I finally do as she says, rattling off my number, crossing my arms over my chest, and waiting to see what she is up to. A second later, my phone rings. I look at the screen and see the name Myrtle Upton flash across the screen.
I shake my head, not believing this shit. “Some fake name is not gonna stop your brother from running a trace on the phone.”
If he has the right connections, he’ll be able to track the phone, no matter whose name it is listed under. For enough money, the right man can tell him exactly where she was the last time it was used. Next thing we know, trouble will come knocking.
She doesn’t bother to respond, just calls me again. Instinct has me looking at the screen again. I blink and read the words twice, not quite believing what I see. It says Mario’s pizza, with an 816 area code. If I’m not wrong, that’s a Missouri area code. Looking back through my call log, I see the last number starts with 270, a Kentucky number.
“What the fuck?” I mumble when my phone rings yet again, flashing a different name and another area code.
“My friend gave me this phone. Erin is a tech goddess. You put an electronic device in her hands, she can do anything,” she explains, laying the phone on the table. “When she or Kat calls me, their phone automatically scrambles the number. Even though they are dialing my actual number, anyone looking through their call log will see a random number.”
I look back at my phone, trying to wrap my brain around everything she said. “How the fuck did she do that?”
She shrugs, leaning back in her chair. “When I said Erin is a tech goddess, I meant it. Every security firm in the States and a few overseas has tried to get her on board. Even Homeland Security is banging down her door. Everyone wants her to work her magic for them.”
My mind immediately goes to the club and how she could help us. One of the brothers, Ram, is all into computers. He knows as much about the damn things as I do my bike, but I doubt he would even know how to attempt something like this. It would sure come in handy if we could get this chick down here to teach him some of her tricks.
“She take up any of those offers?” I ask, my brain turning with possibilities.
“Hell no, Erin isn’t ever going to do any of that shit. She doesn’t want to spend her life working for some company that doesn’t give a shit about her,” Ronni says with a shake of her head. “I don’t know where she makes her money, but I know she will never go to work at one of those places.”
I smile, liking this bitch more and more. “We need to get her down here.”
She leans forward and asks, “What?”
Draining my beer, I place the empty bottle on the table. “I’ll have to talk to your dad first, but I think she could teach us a thing or two.”
“She’ll love that.” Ronni lets out a whoop then jumps from her seat and grabs her phone.
My eyes are locked on her bouncing tits as my cock starts to thicken. I push thoughts of having them in my mouth away when her fingers are flying across the screen. Before this shit goes too far, I stand up and jerk the phone out of her hand. I clear out the text she was typing and power it down, shaking my head the entire time.
“As I said, I’ve gotta talk to your dad first,” I remind her, putting her phone in my pocket and sitting down.
“He’ll agree. Dad loves Erin,” she states, plopping down in her seat. “We just have to make sure we never leave them alone.”
Cocking my head to the side, I ask, “Why not?”
“Erin’s goal in life is to get into my dad’s pants.” Ronni loses her smile as a look of revulsion covers her face. “That shit would scar me for life.”
A smile spreads across my face as I say, “Don’t worry, Ronni. We all have a few scars.”