Springfield
Pepper
Decker just left, taking Travis to Memphis where he has family to visit. I run through a mental checklist to make sure I have everything, including the earrings with the tracking device. I already have them on so I won't have to worry about forgetting. After forty-five minutes, I bid goodbye to Mary and make it on the road by seven, which should put me there around two.
I call Wolf as soon as I get a signal and smile when he answers on the first ring.
“Hey, baby. Are you on the way out?” His deep voice melts my heart and has me wanting him with me.
“Yes, I left about an hour ago. Should get there around two.”
He sighs. "Okay, baby. Call me every two hours until you get there. If I don't answer, leave a message. If it's important, then get in touch with Decker."
I can tell he's worried and missing me as badly as I do him. "I will. I love you."
"Love you too, sweetheart. Now focus on driving."
"I will." When we end the call, I'm worried it could be our last. I trust Decker, but even he says he's unsure of who they're dealing with. I just wanted to help and it seemed like they were going to find me no matter what.
There's nothing really to look at as I take Interstate 55 straight to Springfield. I stop once to use the bathroom and watch everything and everyone around. No one seems particularly interested in me. I haven't noticed anyone following either, but Decker seems to think they know where I'm heading anyways, which means they could be waiting there.
I call my mom. Her voice brings tears to my eyes for I miss her so much. I could regret leaving her for this trip, but that would mean regretting meeting Wolf.
“Hello sweetheart, how are you?”
“I'm good, Mom, just on my way to my meeting.” I manage to keep my voice steady, so she doesn’t catch how upset I really am. I've always been able to hide my emotions well. Unless I'm angry.
"Alone or is that Wolf with you?"
I smile at her wording. He is a wolf for sure. "No, I'm by myself."
"Are you sure that's safe? Why aren't they watching you?" She's almost frantic.
I don't like hearing her concerned tone. "It's okay. No one’s with me in the car, but someone is watching out for me."
She tsks. “I'm still am going to worry about you.”
“I know, Mom, but everything will be all right. Have you had any more problems?” We are really too much alike because I worry about her just as much. She's my best friend.
"Yes and no." She sighs.
"Well, what happened?" I tap the steering wheel, freaking out. My mom is having to deal with some freak who decided he wanted to be obsessed with me.
"Yes, he did show up one night and tried to break in. No, there really wasn't a problem because those big biker men stopped him before he even had the door open and scared him to death. Then they called the cops and he was arrested." She sighs dramatically. "Those biker men are still insisting on sticking around until they make sure he's going to stay where he's at. I don't think he'll mess with us anymore. They really worked the scary magic on him."
“Thank God they were there! They need to keep an eye out, so stop complaining about that. They can't be too hard on the eyes anyways." I'm trying to lighten the conversation, but my heart is still racing from her news.
"Oh they're not, but they're much too young for me. Anyways, I'm safe so you don't need to worry about me anymore."
“I'll always worry, just like you will always worry about me. I don't want to stop our conversation. It means I can't hear her voice, and I love talking to my mom. "Mom, I'll call you later when we can talk longer. I'll be driving for a while."
“Okay, sounds good. I will talk to you then. Be careful.”
Hanging up, I settle in for the drive. When I finally make it to Springfield, I start looking for my hotel. It is supposed to be near the Lincoln Museum. My publisher set up my reservation. I know Decker is already there from his earlier text on the burner phone he gave me to use. We decided it might be a good idea for me to have an extra phone in case something happens to me. Having him there helps me not to feel all by myself.
As I pull to the front of the hotel, a valet comes out to help with my luggage. Another valet drives my SUV to the parking garage. I'm not going to need my car, since my publisher has provided a driver to take me where I need to go. I plan on doing a little site-seeing all day Sunday with an assistant from my publishing house.
The front desk has all my reservation stuff ready when I walk in. I settle into my room easily, which is extremely nice. The room has a king size bed with a great view of downtown. Room service will deliver my supper so I don't have to go anywhere for the rest of the day.
When Sunday morning comes around, I meet the assistant in the lobby for our tour of Springfield. A woman sits in one the chairs in front of the concierge desk—the only person there. “Hey, I'm Pepper.”
She stands with a smile on her face and offers a hand. "I'm Hannah, your assistant for the trip. It’s great to finally meet you. Are you ready for the grand tour?”
I can’t believe what a beautiful woman she is. She has long, brown hair with golden and red highlights. The most outstanding feature, though, are her eyes. Her long eyelashes frame a set of vivid medium green eyes with a starburst of gold.
“Sure am. I hope I'm not putting you out.”
“No, not at all. I live by myself and would have just sat at home all day. This is great to get to go around the city with you.”
“Lead the way,” I tell her, excited.
“The driver is supposed to pick us up, and I thought we could start by getting some breakfast,” she offers.
My stomach growls and I'm glad she doesn't seem to notice. “Sounds good. Let’s go.”
After eating large platefuls of pancakes, bacon, and eggs, we tour all the historical sites Springfield offers. When we're finishing up with the day, I feel the hairs on the back of my neck tingle. It’s the first time I've felt like someone is watching me. Trying to look around without being obvious, I don't see anyone following us.
We arrive at the hotel and I get out of the car. “Thanks for the tour, I'll see you tomorrow at the meeting.”
“You're welcome, I'm scheduled to pick you up in the morning at nine.” She smiles and waves.
“Okay, see you then.”
Going into the hotel, I stop by the front desk to see if there are any messages. They hand me a sealed envelope. I open it to find out it is from Decker, telling me to stop by his room.
Getting on the elevator, I start to hit the button for Decker’s floor. Then, a huge man gets on with me. He gives me the creeps, reminding me of Bobby, the guy who broke into Wolf’s bedroom. I decide to go to my room instead. Getting out on my floor, the guy stays in the elevator, but is sticking his head out when I happen to look back. I walk faster to my room. Before putting my key card in, I look back again. The elevator doors are closing. Not wasting any time, I rush inside, shaking and breathing hard. I lock all the locks and flip the safety knob, too.
I lean on the door, getting myself together. Grabbing the burner phone from my pocketbook, I hit the button for Decker’s cell.
Decker answers after a few rings. “What’s up? I thought you were coming to my room.”
Sliding down the door to sit on the floor, I tell him about the guy in the elevator. This is the first time I've really felt so frightened. I’ve been nervous and tense in the last few days and with that stalker creep following me before my trip, but this feels so real now. Fear eats at me.
“I think I've had someone following me today,” I whisper as I grip the phone.
“You were, and I was following them. There were two of them. Both big men, and maybe looked a little alike. They didn't have on a cut or colors. We still don't where they are from.”
“You know, Ghost would have a picture of Bobby, the guy I saw going through Wolf’s bedroom. Maybe you should see if he can text you a copy. We would be able to rule him in or out."
He goes silent for a while, then finally tells me, “That’s a good idea.”
We get off the phone and I'm exhausted. Feeling like I’ve had enough excitement for the day, I decide again to get my supper from room service. Hopefully, I'll be able to sleep tonight.
Wolf
I read the text from Hitch and turn to Ghost. "Send Bobby’s picture, the asshole who broke into my room, to this number."
I call the number out and he sends it. A minute later, his phone rings with the same number. He answers on speaker. "Yeah?"
"Hey man, this is Decker. I need to speak to Wolf."
"I'm here. You're on speaker and Ghost can be trusted." I'm anxious to know why he needed the picture.
He lets out a long breath before speaking. "The man in the picture was following Pepper today along with another man."
"Shit! I shouldn't have let her go. You need to have more than just you. Fuck that. I'm coming." I'm out of my seat and nearly out the door before Ghost stops me.
"Wolf, calm down. You can't just take off without some of us with you. Let's figure out who's going and then leave. We can be out of here in twenty minutes tops," Ghost tries to reason with me.
"Ten minutes and I'm out." I remember Decker is still on the phone. "That motherfucker was a new prospect for Red, but I'm not really sure. Red acted like he had no clue about what the guy was up to, but he's also a sneaky SOB."
"I heard he's running guns and drugs and that if they can go through your turf, it'll save them a lot. They're envious of your club. Either way, whoever your mole is, they knew where Pepper was going. I checked her car up and down. There was not a tracker."
We don't have a good lead on the mole, but I'm not saying who my suspects are yet. "How's Pepper?"
"I can tell she's a little shaken up now that she's seen someone is actually after her," he answers.
This is shitty. "Fuckers! I'll get every one of them for scaring her."
"Yeah, I know what you mean. She's a sweet girl and doesn't deserve some assholes wanting to harm her." His words are sharp.
"I know I don't have to tell you, but I am anyways. Keep a good eye on my girl. We'll see you soon." I leave the room before they click off and hurry to get shit together so I can leave.