Bas walked into the RBMC clubhouse and instantly sought out Sky. He refused to call her Pixie anymore or even think of her with that name anymore. Sky that was who she was and what he would call her. He liked it, wanted to say it out loud. He also wanted to go to her and hold her like he had before, but he had work to do. That could all come later.
He hated the look of disappointment he saw on her face when she started walking towards the meeting room, but it couldn’t be helped. She had gotten up from her seat as though she was going to come to him and he wanted that, just not yet. He needed to get things in order. Now that he had seen that she was safe with his own eyes, that would have to hold him over, forcing his body to move away from where she was at the table. Bas went towards the meeting room. A Prospect that was standing by the door must have had orders to let him in because before he even got to the door, the kid opened it.
Bas hadn’t ever been in their meeting room before. It was a place that the Club conducted business, and outsiders were not welcome. Him being invited was a rarity. Well, invited wasn’t precisely the word. More like his presence was demanded, and he wasn’t going to deny the request. Seeing all the unhappy, pissed off faces pointing in his direction, Bas knew this meeting wasn’t going to go very well. It looked like the whole Club was there to witness what was to come. He couldn’t tell any of them what was really going on, but they did have the right to some answers.
Tuck was the first one to speak. "Mother fucker, you might be linked to this Club by blood, and I might respect you and your boss, but nothing will stop me from taking you out if you bring problems to this Club. You get here and all hell breaks out."
"Shit Tuck, listen, I was only supposed to come out and check up on Shelby Thomas, nothing more. I don’t have any idea who the guy was that I just transported, or what has happened since. What I can tell you is that I will take care of it. Jacks is already calling in the calvary, and we should have this mess cleaned in no time. With minimal to no blowback on the RBMC."
"Yeah, you think so, asshole. This is a small town, and already we are getting looks. The commotion at the bar and then the apartment has raised some eyebrows, and I’m also pretty sure the helicopter drew some additional attention. People talk, and that brings unwanted eyes. You understand that?"
"Yeah man, we should have this cleared up within the hour. But I need to speak to Sky. I have to find out what happened in that apartment and figure out what steps I need to take. Link said that she was Club and I don’t want to piss you off, but this can’t be helped and if she is involved in what I was sent here to investigate. I might need to take her off your hands. Are you going to have a problem with that?"
"Hell yeah! I’m going to have a problem with that. But fuck, I can’t stop her if she agrees. And dude, that is a big if. She doesn’t know you. The Club can vouch for you and NAC, but tell me what makes you think I’m going to do that without some assurances and answers? It seems to me that everything was all peaceful like until you stepped foot into our territory. Now look where we are at."
"Shit man, I don’t have the answers you want. I’ve already told Link, and he said he informed you that this was supposed to be a simple surveillance job. Sky wasn’t even the one I was sent here to watch. I have to talk to her and figure out if what just happened is because of something the Shelby chick did or because of what I am looking into for NAC. Right now none of us have those answers, and until we get them, I won’t be able to do anything more than I have already set up."
Bas continued, "NAC will take the snake and the man you have in custody off your hands. We will also make sure there isn’t any blowback on the Club with any authorities that might get a little interested in recent events."
"Fuck!” Tuck yelled. “I don’t like this, but I don’t see any other way. If Pixie agrees, you can talk with her, but I want in on anything the two of you decided. I owe it to her and her uncle to keep her safe. NAC is good, but so are we. If Pixie needs to hide out, we can make that happen just as easily as your people can."
"Okay, now tell me everything that has happened and whatever else you think I might need to know," Bas questioned.
"We did some checking. The first man you and Pix downed has not been in town long. We couldn’t even find a vehicle that he had used to get here. But there were two other unknowns that came to town about two days ago, one of which is the man currently spending time in our shed. They didn’t do much; stuck to themselves and stayed out at the Motel on Highway 75. They didn’t interact with the locals and didn’t bring any attention to themselves. The Motel clerk said that they were just passing through on the way to Florida, but that was all the information he had."
"I had our computer guy, Punk, check it out too. There weren’t any charges made to the rooms and no phone calls from the landline. From what little we know, the guys stuck to the fast food joints down on the highway out of town. I wish I had more, but that is about it. I am being told they came off as businessmen."
"Pixie hasn’t said much. She was in shock when we got to the apartment and dispatched the guy holding her. I have a Prospect keeping an eye on her right now. He knows that if she gets that urge to run again, to detain her until one of the members is available to deal with it. But it’s been quiet so far. We don’t know if she saw what happened to her cousin or came in afterward. But dude, that snake would be enough to freak anyone out by itself. The possibility of seeing a cousin brutally murdered before your own eyes would put anyone over the edge. It could be the topping on the turd cake she was just handed."
"Oh, come on, I thought you guys were badasses," Bas joked. "That is the second time I’ve heard about this snake. Fuck, I know you guys have all worked in jungles. No way could it have been that big. Maybe the shock made your mind think a little tiny gardener snake was a big bad anaconda. Kind of like when Link talks about his dick. You know he talks a good game, gets the chicks all excited, and then bam, micropenis." Bas said all this with a straight face, shaking his head like, what a shame, and Link took the bait.
"Shut up, asshole. And why are you looking at my dick anyways? That’s just weird."
"Dude, you’re the one with the weird exhibitionist problem, not me. If you don’t want people to notice the wee pee pee, then don’t put it out there."
The whole room laughed, making Link just a little more pissed off, but it was all in good fun. His brother did have exhibitionist tendencies, but thankfully Bas had never seen them. Not an image he wanted in his head.
"Whatever, asshole, take a look at this."
Link shoved his cell phone in front of Bas’ face. The picture chilled him, but not because of the obviously dead girl lying on the floor. No, they hadn’t been exaggerating at all. The snake was impossibly huge and he would place bets that it was not only a snake, but a Shifter. Son of a bitch, Bas thought, things just got a hell of a lot more fucked-up.
"Yeah, I guess that is a little bigger than a garden snake,” Bas declared. “Fuck man, I don’t think I have ever seen anything like it. The fucker must be an exotic, hybrid, or genetically engineered something. I’m going to have to call Jacks and tell him that the exterminator is going to need more than a pillowcase for this baby. Listen, I need to make some calls to ensure the guys coming in to take care of this know what they are in for. Do you mind if I send this pic to myself? That way I can forward it to Jacks."
"Yeah go for it,” Link said.
Bas immediately sent the photo to Jacks. The only text he sent said, “Our problems just got bigger.” It only took Jacks a second to respond, and his text was just as simple, “Got it Matthias in on his way along with a few Delta guys. ETA 30 minutes.”
Bas looked up and said right to Tuck, "I need to talk with Sky now. Are you okay with me doing it in private?"
"No man, but it doesn’t seem like I have a choice. So that you know, after you talk to her, I will be having a conversation with her. I don’t want you go pressuring her or causing her any more harm. This shit will wear on her like nothing else. She is loyal and felt Shelby was her responsibility in this world. Now that she’s gone, Pix is going to be at loose ends. I don’t want her making any decisions that cause her any more problems. Get me?"
"What do you think I am going to do to her? NAC is in the business of protecting women. We don’t harm them, and I’m not about to start now. I just need to get some answers. Figure out what my next move is and go from there. I wouldn’t hurt a hair on her head, let alone cause her any more grief
"Man, I get it, and I know it, but you have to understand where I am coming from. Pixie is Club. I don’t need to say anymore than that and you know it. If Senior wasn’t blowing up my phone right now and you weren’t family to some of my members, we wouldn’t even be talking right now."
Bas had no idea Senior was in contact with Link. It kind of ticked him off though because the bastard hadn’t bothered to return his call. But what the shit what was he going to do about it?
"Take the office. I’ll have the Prospect bring her in," Tuck said.
When none of the guys made a move to get up from the table, Bas figured he had been dismissed. He walked out the door and down the hall on the left. This time he didn’t seek out Sky. He knew she would be with him soon enough and he couldn’t wait.
His need for Sky had only grown. Being so close, yet so far away, was literally tearing him apart. There was a hum that was running right underneath his skin, and he knew it was all Sky. Damn, could she be his mate? The guys said the attraction was intense, but they never said anything about electric. Could they have screwed up and Sky, not Shelby, was a Franklin Baby? If she wasn’t, how did any of this make sense? Why was she the one getting attacked? His feelings and actions were out of control. His bear was desperate for her touch and her presence. Or was all of this just part of him going rogue?
Fuck, Bas didn’t know. His bear and brain were so messed up right now, he could be going rogue, or it could be something else entirely. But one thing he did know for certain-Skylar Thomas had the answers to a lot of his questions, and he was going to make her answer them all. He needed to keep his eye on the prize. If he was going rogue and the beast within him wanted to harm or hurt Sky, he would take himself out first. There wouldn’t be any need for Jacks or any of the others to act because Bas knew he would die rather than hurt Skylar “Pixie” Thomas.