Chapter Eleven
Knox
I rode down the highway, the wind whipping through my hair and a knot the size of a football in my gut. I knew that this meet with Merle was going to go bad. The only question was, how bad? Merle and the Dawgs had been looking to kill me ever since we ran them out of town. They'd tried to take me out a couple of times already and had almost succeeded once.
Taking shots at me was one thing. But taking a child – my nephew at that – was something else entirely. It crossed a line that should never be crossed. Ever.
I rumbled down the dirt road that led to the old abandoned warehouse where Merle had called the meet. The moon was high overhead, swift moving clouds crossing its face, casting the world around us in alternating patterns of light and shadow.
When I pulled into the lot, I found Merle standing there next to his bike. One of his men stood behind him, holding Liam by the scruff of his neck. I shut off my engine and climbed off my bike, looking around the lot – casting a wary eye at the darkened and broken out windows of the warehouse. I couldn't see them, but I knew his men were there – some in the warehouse, others in the woods that pressed close to the edge of the parking lot.
“Take off the cut, Knox,” Merle yelled. “Let me see that you're unarmed.”
I dropped my cut onto the back of my bike and untucked my shirt, holding my arms out and turning in a slow circle, showing him that I was in fact, without a weapon.
“As requested,” I said.
“Damn, boy,” Merle said. “I didn't think you had the stones to show up here alone and unarmed. Are you stupid or somethin'?”
“I'm here to talk deal, Merle,” I said. “I held up my end. Now, let the boy go.”
Merle grinned and shook his head. “Not quite yet,” he said. “We need to talk some business first.”
“Fine,” I snapped. “What the hell do you want?”
Merle smiled. “Oh, you know, not much,” he said. “Cut the shit, Merle,” I said. “What do you want?”
“It's just all business with you now, isn't it? You know,” he said. “I remember when you used to have a sense of humor. I remember when you and I used to be able to kick back, have a beer, and a few laughs together. Whatever happened to that guy?”
“Oh, that guy?” I said. “I found out you were dealing dope in my town. That shit doesn't fly here, Merle.”
“Well, call me crazy, but I just have a feeling it'll be making a comeback.”
And that was the crux of the issue. I'd expected it. He wanted me to allow the Dawgs back into Blackburn – and give them the freedom to operate with impunity.
“Not going to happen,” I said, my voice cold. “I'm not going to let you poison this town.”
“Then the kid dies.”
The man holding Liam produced a gun and put it to the top of his head. The boy stared at me, his eyes wide, saying nothing. He didn't even look all that scared. Grace was right, he was different. He processed things and acted very differently than other kids.
I held up my hand. “Wait,” I said. “Just stop. Talk to me, Merle, what do you want?”
“Fine. All work, no play,” he said. “What I want is for your Outlaws to get the fuck out of Blackburn. Permanently. You all are done here.”
“Is that all?” I asked.
“No,” he said. “And I want your head.” He shrugged. “Only seems fair,” he said. “I can't exactly just let you off scot free. Being soft on a punk ass little bitch like you wouldn't look good for my rep, you know?”
My eyes drifted to the boy again and he continued to look straight at me. He wasn't moving. Wasn't speaking. He was so damn still, I wasn't even sure he was breathing. My life for his. That's what it all boiled down to. I had to die so that my nephew could live.
There were a lot of regrets I had about my life, things I maybe would have done differently. And a lot of things I never got around to doing that I wish I would have. But Liam was just starting out in life and I'd had a few decades behind me already. I couldn't, in good conscience, let his life be snuffed out before he had a chance.
Who knew, the kid might be the one to cure cancer.
“Fine,” I said. “You have a deal. Now, why don't you bring your guys out from hiding and stop being such a pussy.”
“Excellent,” Merle crowed and then pushed a button on his cell phone. “You can come out now.”
Out of the darkness of the warehouse and the woods came a dozen of his men – all about as heavily armed as my guys were. I resisted the urge to look at the woods. I just had to trust they were out there, and they were coming for me.
“I want you to call your VP,” Merle said. “I want you to tell him to pack up your clubhouse and be out of Blackburn before dawn.”
“Dawn? Are you serious?”
“As a fuckin' heart attack, Knox,” he said, his expression darkening. “Now, do it.”
I sighed and slipped my phone out of my pocket, punching in Dean's number. Merle walked over and stood close to me, his body odor and bad breath completely repellent.
“Speaker, please,” he said. “Not that I don't trust you – I just don't trust you.”
Dean's line rang and he picked it up on the second ring. “Boss, what's up?”
“Dean, Merle's here with me,” I said. “He's given us his demands.”
“This should be priceless,” he said.
“No need for the snark, Dean,” Merle said. “Go fuck yourself,” Dean snapped, drawing a guffaw of laughter from Merle.
“You need to pack up the clubhouse,” I said. “Get the guys out of here. By dawn.”
Dean laughed. “Seriously?” he scoffed. “You're not asking for much, are you asshole?”
“Only want what's rightfully ours,” he said. “The Dawgs were here before the Outlaws. And yet, you pricks think you run the place.”
“Dean,” I said. “My nephew's life is at stake. Do what he says.”
“What about you?”
Merle looked at me, giving me a predatory grin.
“I'll catch up with you guys,” he said. “Just get the guys out of there.”
There was a long moment of silence on the line. I looked from Merle, to his group of men standing around Liam, and back again.
“Fine, boss,” Dean said. “If that’s what you really want.”
“It is,” I replied.
“And you’ll hook up with us later?”
“Count on it.”
I disconnected the call, dropped the phone back into my pocket, and then looked at Merle.
“Happy?” I asked.
“It’s a start.”
“The boy,” I said. “I’ve agreed to your terms, so let the boy go.”
Merle shrugged. “Fine. A deal is a deal,” he said and then turned to his men. “Let the brat go.”
The man holding Liam let him go and the boy calmly walked over to me. Standing before me, he turned his face to me, his eyes wide. I knelt down and pulled him to me, embracing him tightly. He said nothing and stood awkwardly, somewhat stiffly in my arms, but at least he wasn’t pulling away. It was a strange sensation that coursed through me, but in a way, I felt paternal toward the boy.
Merle walked back to his men, who'd fanned out in a line. He looked at me, a cruel smile upon his lips.
“This little reunion is touching and all, but really, it's time for us to be on our way,” he said. “Boys, kill them both.”
Merle's men stepped forward, bringing their guns to bear. I gritted my teeth, cutting a quick glance at the forest. And then, as if I was witnessing a miracle, the night was lit up by multiple muzzle flashes and the chattering of automatic gunfire shattered the night air.
Merle's men screamed, some of them hitting the ground in pools of blood. They spun toward the forest and started firing wildly. I pulled Liam to the ground, shielding him with my body as the shots rang out.
The gun battle was fierce, but short lived. Dean and my men had the high ground and the cover. Merle's men were out in the open and exposed, just as we'd planned. When I looked up, not a single one of Merle's men were left standing. They were all laying in bloody heaps on the cracked pavement of the old warehouse parking lot.
Dean and the guys were coming down out of the woods, laughing and high-fiving each other. I stood up and helped Liam to his feet. Squatting down, I looked him in the eye.
“Are you okay?”
The boy looked at me, his dark, soulful eyes boring into mine – but he said nothing. He just returned my gaze. I stood up and ruffled his hair.
“Yeah, you seem okay to me.”
Dean walked over to me and I pulled him into a tight embrace. “Good to see you alive and in one piece,” he said.
“Yeah, you too, brother. Great work,” I said. “Do me a favor, stay here with the kid for a minute.”
“You got it, boss.
I walked over to the group of bodies on the ground and started looking around, and when I didn't find what I was looking for, a knot formed in my belly, constricting painfully.
“Where's Merle?” I asked. “Did anybody see Merle?”
Everybody else looked at one another, shaking their heads.
“Shit,” I said and hustled back to Dean. “Where did you park the vans?”
“Miller's Road,” I said. “Half a mile back through the trees.”
I wasn't sure how, I just knew I had to get back to the vans – back to Grace. If Merle knew about Liam, he knew about her. And something inside of me – some sixth sense or primal part of my brain – told me that she was in danger.
“Give me a gun,” I called out.
One of my men tossed me a Glock. I did a quick check of the clip, saw it was full, and tucked it into the waistband of my jeans.
“Stay with the kid,” I said.
Turning, I sprinted off through the woods, my heart thundering in my chest and my adrenaline surging. The night was dark, and within the confines of the forest, it was even darker. With as quickly and carelessly as I was moving, I was having a hard time keeping myself on my feet and avoiding tree roots, holes in the ground, or any other number of things that could have tripped me up and broken my leg. Or worse.
Somehow, I managed to find Miller's Road, still on my feet, and in one piece. The vans were parked about fifty yards down the road from where I stood. And when I looked, I felt my pulse race while my heart sank at the same time.
“Knox,” Merle yelled. “Get your ass over here. Now.”
Swallowing the lump in my throat while trying to control the knots in my stomach, and keep my head clear, I marched down the road. Merle was there, standing behind Grace, his arm around her throat and a gun pointed at her head.
“Grace, are you okay?” I asked.
“I'm fine,” she said, sounding a lot calmer than I would have imagined she'd be.
There was fear on her face and her eyes shimmered with tears. But for the most part, she was holding herself together admirably well – reinforcing the idea in my head that she was made of a lot sterner stuff than I gave her credit for. When I first met her, I thought she'd be a delicate little flower with delicate little sensibilities.
But she was ferocious. Tough. There was a core of strength in her that surprised me.
“You killed my men, you son of a bitch,” Merle seethed.
“You were going to kill me and the boy,” I said. “So, let's not split hairs about who screwed who over, huh? Now, why don't you just step away from Grace and let's kill each other like civilized human beings.”
“I don't think so,” he said. “I'm just going to kill you both.”
“Your beef is with me,” I yelled. “Leave her out of it.”
“I'd really like to, but –”
Grace moved so quickly, I barely had time to process what was happening, let alone react. She slammed her head backward, smashing it into Merle's face with so much force, I heard the crack from where I was standing.
Merle howled in pain and grabbed for his nose, the blood pouring down his face – and he loosened his grip on her. Grace smartly dove to the side, landing on the ground and lying flat. I pulled my gun and without hesitating, I fired four shots in rapid succession. I watched as Merle's body twitched and jerked, blossoms of red blooming on his white t-shirt.
The gun he was holding fell to the dirt at his feet as he fell to his knees. He looked at me, eyes wide, a rivulet of blood running from the corner of his mouth. Unbelievably, Merle started trying to rise to his feet again. I brought my gun up again and fired two shots – both punched straight through his chest.
A wet, gurgling noise escaped his lips a moment before he pitched forward, falling face down into the dirt. Merle lay there, unmoving. Dead. Dropping the gun, I dashed over to Grace and helped her to her feet. I pulled her into a tight embrace and she immediately buried her face into my shoulder and started to sob. I just held her, stroking her hair, telling her over and over again, that things were going to be alright.
A few minutes later, she raised her head and looked at me. “Liam?”
“Safe,” I said. “He's safe.”
A smile spread across her face as tears rolled down her cheeks. I kissed her forehead and then each of her cheeks.
“It's over,” I said softly. “It's over.”
At that moment, Dean led my guys and Liam out of the woods. He looked at me and Grace, a relieved smile spreading across his face.
“Grace,” Liam said as he ran to her.
Grace fell to her knees and grabbed the boy, pulling him into a tight embrace. I watched them with a smile on my face. And as I looked at them, I felt my heart swell with a feeling I'd never had before. It was powerful and shook me to my very core. I didn't know what it was that I was feeling, but I had time to figure it out.
There was one thought that kept replaying in my mind on an endless loop – everything really was going to be okay.