Banished Souls MC (5 page)

He made his way past dark offices, and rooms filled with various goods. All legitimate.

He came to the door that led down to the sub basement and opened it. Again, no guard.

Down the stairs and down another hall. At the end he could see a room with the light on, and the sound of voices as well as music. He quietly approached, and peered around the corner into the room.

He saw two men milling about a small stock room, arranging stacks of small crates piled up against one wall. A small loading dock door was open to the night with a van backed up to it. The van still had its interior lights on, and music was playing loudly from its interior speakers.

Caine felt his temper flare up again.

He jumped into the room and screamed "Freeze! Police!"

Both men jolted, almost dropping the crates they carried.

"Ah, Christ on a unicycle!" Pacer said, recovering his composure. The other man, Angus, was clutching his chest.

"Jesus, Caine," Pacer said. "What the hell? I coulda dropped this." Indicating the crate. Inside was the sound of clinking bottles.

"Be glad you didn't," Caine said. "You couldn't afford the bill." He then glared at the both of them. They froze up, this time for good reason. "What the hell's going on upstairs?" he asked evenly.

Pacer glanced at Angus, then said, "Isn't Mark on the gate?"

Caine nodded in frustration. "Yeah, but no one is on the God damned door. Gate's not the issue. The door is. Cops can roll onto any property they want, but to enter a building they need a warrant, or a pretence. Without a warrant the guard on the door blunts any crap reason the cops can come up with. But if no one is on the door, they could walk in and make up an excuse later."

Pacer did not interrupt. He obviously knew the reasoning behind their type of security. Especially right now. But he wasn't going to correct Caine on anything.

When he noticed Caine waiting for an explanation Pacer said, "We had a guard on the door. He should have been there."

For some reason this made Caine even more angry. "Who is this dead man?"

"Hey, we're outta toilet paper," came a new voice from behind him.

Caine turned.

Basher was standing in the doorway, looking nonplussed. He had a magazine rolled up in one hand, and a walkie talkie hooked into his belt which he was doing up.

Even from where he stood Caine could see that the walkie talkie was actually turned off.

Caine fumed. Here he was, surrounded by crates of stolen, expensive bottles of high end alcohol, and the one person who could prevent snoopy cops from finding it all, had been taking a dump.

Caine walked up to Basher who appeared to at least recognize the trouble he was in. Fear was on his face.

"You're suppose to be on the door." Caine seethed.

"I... uh.... yeah," Basher managed.

Caine wanted to beat the crap out of him. He had more than enough right to do so, regardless of Basher's connection to Grunt. But Caine had already beat on two people that day and was feeling like progress was just not getting made with that approach.

He decided to file this away for another time.

"This is a black mark, idiot," Caine said. Basher just stared, waiting to be hit.

Caine made a visible effort to contain himself, then said, "Get back to the door, and don't leave it again."

Basher nodded, pulled away from Caine and practically fled down the hall to resume his post.

"And turn on your damned radio!" Caine called after.

He took a breath and looked at the other two men, who were waiting for something to happen to them next.

Caine waved dismissively at them. "Get back to work. We got a schedule."

As he watched them load the last of the crates into the van Caine's mind wandered away from the important business at hand.

Strangely, he found himself smiling, thinking of Cherish and the sensuous taste of her lips.

Chapter 6

Cherish

Cherish certainly did not expect Caine to check in on her that night, but when there was no sign of him she still felt a little hurt.

Here we go again, she thought. Bikers caught up in their own crap, never mind anyone else. She should take it as a sign. Moreover, a blessing. A sign to leave, maybe?

She thought of their heavy make out session. His mouth hungrily kissing hers. His strong hands all over her. Their bodies pressed together.

Phew. Maybe she should give this guy a shot, at least. She was in town after all, so why not see what happens? But staying in town meant money, of which she had little to none.

So, the next morning, she got up early, skipping breakfast. Instead, she wandered around the neighborhood looking for a pay-phone. Finding one was far more challenging in this day and age since everyone had a mobile phone of their own. But she couldn't risk using her new phone, nor the hotel phone. Each could be traced back to her location, if anyone was looking for her.

And she knew Devlin would, and had the means to do so.

She found a phone on the side of a liquor store, plastered with graffiti. After a vain attempt to clean off the receiver, she made a long distance collect call to her mother. As she waited for her mother to accept the charges she felt her heart in her throat.

Her mother would be worried, not just in general, but even more so after Cherish asked for a cash infusion.

Soon, her mother answered and accepted the charge.

"Oh, honey. Are you alright?" Her mother's soothing voice came from clear across the country. It always made Cherish feel warm inside.

"Yeah, mom. Everything is fine. I just need some money."

"Again?" her mother said, and Cherish felt a guilty sting.

"Yes, mom. Sorry, but I just need to get by until I get paid." A little white lie never hurt.

"You got work, honey? Oh, that's great. Doing what?"

Forget that she didn't actually have the stripper job yet, but there was no way Cherish was going to tell her mother about it. She hoped her mother never found out she was a highly skilled peeler. It would just keep conversations manageable.

"I'm a barista, mom."

"A what?"

"I make fancy coffees. Pays pretty good, too. Or will once I get my first check."

That was enough to win her mother over. They arranged for a transfer, where Cherish could easily pick it up at a local agency.

As they said their good byes her mother suddenly said, "Oh, dear. David called for you."

Cherish froze. "David? Are you sure?"

"Oh, it wasn't me who answered, it was your father who spoke to him. Let me ask." Her mother fumbled with the phone, and Cherish could hear the low grumbling that was her father's voice. She was grateful she didn't have to speak to him herself.

Her mother returned. "Not David, dear. It was a man named Devlin."

Now Cherish was in full panic mode. Of course, Devlin would try to wheedle information out of her ageing parents. But he could have called using another name. Using his real name was meant as a message to Cherish.

It was him telling her, I'm looking for you.

"Did dad say anything to him?"

"No, dear. Should he have?"

"No, not at all. That's good mom. Thanks for the money. I promise to pay you back as soon as I can."

"That's all right. As long as it helps."

They said their goodbyes, and hung up. Cherish suddenly felt very alone. She looked around, checking the streets, as if Devlin's blue mustang would be right there, waiting for her.

But it wasn't.

Keep your head together, girl. He can't find you here, and he won't.

She picked up the money, which really wasn't much to begin with, and went for a simple breakfast. Coffee and a donut. Breakfast of champions. As she sat in the coffee shop, watching the traffic pass by outside, she thought of what Devlin had done. It was quite a crappy thing to do, involving her parents. But par for the course when it came to Devlin and his manipulative schemes. He wanted her back, and in a big way.

But if she was someone else's, that would be less of a problem. And she knew exactly the kind of man who could deal with Devlin, and even the rest of his crew if needed.

And it just so happened, she was absolutely smitten with this individual.

Caine.

Again, she thought of their hook up. Hot stuff. Deeply passionate, even for a couple of strangers. She tried not to think to much about him not showing up again last night. She realized they had not even exchanged numbers. She didn't want to push for it as he left, but had he avoided that on purpose?

She shook her head. There was only one real way to find out for certain how serious this guy was, or could be. If Booty Bumps was Caine's second home, then maybe she should just head over there that night and check things out. What could it hurt to see?

Satisfied with her plan, she returned to the dreary motel. She was bound and determined to be the hottest woman in that bar.

Caine will never know what hit him!

At 9:30 that evening she stepped out of the taxi and stood before the blazing neon sign of Booty Bumps. Already, a small line up had started. She got in line, apprehensive of all the looks she was getting.

"Cherish?" came a voice.

Cherish turned and saw Addie walking toward her, with a couple of other women. All were dressed up for a serious night on the town.

Addie then engulfed Cherish in a big hug. "Cherish, baby. I wasn't sure I would see you again."

Cherish smiled, not entirely sure what to make of Addie's behaviour. Her last image of Addie was of her glaring from the side of the road.

"I'm still here," Cherish said. "Thought I would come down and see what this place was like at night and full of people."

Addie's friends were watching her intently, maybe sizing her up as potential competition.

"Well, I'm glad you're here. Let's party it up!" Addie pulled her out of the line and toward the door. "We don't wait in line at this place. Not dressed like this!" They all laughed.

Addie didn't even have to speak to the bouncer at the door, who simply waved them through with a smile.

Inside was loud and crowded. Just as Cherish had expected. Nearly all the tables were taken, especially the ones closest to the stage. A beautiful brunette was swinging naked around a pole on the stage, much to the delight of the audience.

Cherish immediately started to look around for Caine, but it was just to crowded, and she was a little too short. Addie pulled her along. "We got a table just for us!" she shouted over the noise.

She was led to a large booth along a side wall, which was on the highest tier. Here they could see the entire bar. Cherish sat down along with the other women, Addie snuggling up against her.

"Pretty wild, huh?" Addie said.

Cherish nodded. This was definitely one of the more higher end establishments she'd been in. She looked down at the stage, as the brunette finished up her set, bent over and wiggling a magnificent butt in the face of a customer who was waving dollar bills at her.

Cherish very much wanted to be on that stage. All that money would be really helpful right now. But she had a purpose tonight, other than money.

Caine.

She peered about, trying to locate him. And then she caught her breath. There Caine was near a back corner. He looked just as handsome as before, perhaps more. He was locked in an intense conversation with T-Bone.

Cherish really wanted to saunter over and surprise him, but it looked like he was all business at the moment. That was fine. She would wait.

Addie was watching Cherish and saw she was eyeballing Caine. Addie leaned over and said, "We need to get sloshed! Drinks! Booze!" She shouted at the waitress. Soon a tray of colorful drinks was brought over. As the women started to down them, Cherish sipped her drink. She wanted to be mostly sober when she talked to Caine.

But not that sober when I rip his clothes off, she thought with a smile.

"Oh, come on now," Addie said, looking a little offended. "That is not how we party here, girlfriend. Here," She plopped a vodka shooter in front of them both. "You gotta do this one."

"No, I couldn't. I didn't really eat today," Cherish said. Which wasn't even an lie.

"Uh uh," Addie said, more insistent. "Let's do this. Everyone!" The other women grabbed a shooter each and slung them back. Cherish relented and did the same. The alcohol burned as it slid down her throat. Not all that unpleasant a sensation.

Addie introduced the other girls, but Cherish was terrible with names. And the booze didn't help.

The girl sitting next to her, named Bonnie, started chatting Cherish up. Everyone was joking and laughing.

Addie nudged Cherish. "Here's a looker for ya."

Cherish looked up at a large, very handsome man who approached their table. She was taken aback at how chiseled his features were, and his movie star good looks.

Wow, she thought. They sprout up everywhere here. She couldn't tell how much of that was the booze or her libido.

The large man leaned over and offered his hand to Cherish, "Hey,  you're new here. What's your name, little lady?"

Cherish took his hand, which engulfed hers completely. It was calloused and warm. "Cherish."

The big man smiled standing up. "Friends call me Basher. You having a good time?"

Cherish nodded, feeling her world swim a little. Strangely she seemed fixated on his large pectorals which bulged beneath his tight t-shirt. "Yup!" she declared.

Basher grinned. "Well, you let me know when you want a better one." He walked away to disappear into the crowd.

All the women at the table made teasing noises, and everyone laughed.

"Hot, huh?" Addie said.

"Yeah," Cherish said. "Who is he, anyway?"

"He's with the Club," Addie said. "An up and comer. Maybe President one day."

Cherish was impressed. But after all this booze, she figured she would be impressed with anything right about now.

"I know that's a big deal to them," Cherish said. Her words were starting to slur.

"You do?" Addie asked with a smile. "How?"

"Oh, I used to be hooked up with a guy in the Krimson Klowns," she said. It came out as more boastful than it felt.

"Who?" Addie asked, a little insistent.

"His name was Devlin. A complete dick, really," Cherish said. And as soon as the words left her mouth she regretted it. She really wanted to forget that part of her life. That was the past. This was the present.

She looked around for Caine again. She saw him moving through the crowd, but it looked like he was going to miss her table. Cherish pushed herself out of the booth.

"I got to hit the bathroom," Cherish said.

"I'll come," Addie said.