Beautiful Outlaw (30 page)

“Thank fuck I didn’t take the phone out.” As soon as the words leave my mouth, I have a clear picture of what going on inside the house.  Somehow, Shay made it to the safe room.  Red left knowing there was no chance to get to her, but Marcus wasn’t willing to leave his wife behind. 

“She told him to get hold of you, guess she didn’t remember your number, but he called me instead.”

As his words sinks in, I let out a relieved breath.  “How did she get in the safe room?”

“I don’t know.  All I know is that she’s in there alone, but Marcus is doing his best to get to her.”

“That ain’t gonna happen.” As long as the lock is engaged from the inside, nothing short of a nuclear bomb is opening that door. 

Lock nods, “That’s what I figured, so all we need to do is take Marcus’s ass down and get her to open the door.”

“Is she okay?” I ask, praying that his answer is yes. 

Lock nods, agreeing with me.  “She’s hurt.  Dad says she claims it’s just a few broken ribs. He wanted to call 911, but she begged him not to call the police.  She said if he did, you would be in trouble.”

“Fuck!” I shout, fighting the urge to hit something. My woman, the person that I promised to keep safe, is protecting me.  She’s probably scared out of her fuckin’ mind, and she’s more worried about me getting in trouble than herself being caught by a mad man. I’d spend the rest of my life in prison if it meant getting her out of this shit quicker. “She should’ve called the police, not fuckin’ worry about me.”

“He’s giving us an hour to get her out.  If not, he’s calling the police.”

“Fuck,” I hear Rollo mumble. 

Looking to him, I bark out my orders again.  “Get your ass to the hospital.”

He nods before stepping away.  “Be careful brother.”

“I always am,” I reply, before turning to Tin.  “Keep your eyes open.”

Knowing that our time is ticking, I step away from them and head towards the house and call out to Lock.  “Lets get this shit done.”

My Savior

Shay

My eyes nearly slide shut, while I listen to Dad talking to Jeremy in the background.  He called my brother from his cell while talking to me on the house phone. He let me know that Jeremy was in Rich Hill and that he and Bowie were coming to get me, I just don’t know if it will be quick enough. 

I can hear a mumbled
be careful
before he’s back on the line with me.  “That man of yours and Jeremy are on their way inside now.  You should be out of that room in just a minute.”

Knowing that if I don’t stay awake I won’t be able to open the door for them, I force myself to sit up straighter.  “Good, I’m ready to get out of here.”

“I’m sure you are,” He says before asking, “Are you sure it’s just your ribs?”

Still tasting blood, I know the answer is no.  I don’t want to lie to Dad, but I do anyway.  “Yeah, that’s all.  Well, I do have a few bumps and bruises.”

“You’re just like your mom,” Dad says, bringing up a picture of mom in my mind.  “She thought she could lie to me and get away with it too.”

“I’m okay, Daddy.  I swear it.  Just sore and tired.” So damn tired that I’m not sure I’ll be able to force myself to stay awake.

I hear him take a deep breath before he says, “You remind me more of Chelsea every day.”

“I may look like her, but she always said I acted just like you.” If I had the energy, I would laugh over how many times I had heard her say I was just like Dad.  Of course, she only said it when I had gotten in trouble.

His gentle laugh comes through the phone, overshadowing the pain I feel.  His next words send a wave of warmth through my body.  “She was wrong, sweetheart.   You’re an exact replica of your mother, inside and out.”

“I miss her, Daddy,” I whisper out as tears fall down my cheeks.  “I miss her every day, every hour.”

“I do too, Laura.”

I can hear the sadness in his voice and that brings on a new batch of tears.  “I’m so sorry I wasn’t there for her.”

“But you were.  You were with her every day, don’t doubt that.” 

I wasn’t though.  First, Marcus kept me away.  Then, I let my own fear rule me.  Spending my time hiding from him, I missed the last few months of my mother’s life.  Before I can deny his words, I hear the sound of banging footsteps and gunshots.  A second later, Bowie is shouting my name.  “Open the door, baby.”

I let out a strangled cry, not from pain but relief. I knew he would come, knew he would save me. “He’s here.”

His fists bang on the door as he shouts out, “It’s safe, now. Let me in.”

“Is that Jeremy?” Dad asks into the phone.

Pushing myself off the floor, I whisper.  “No, it’s Bowie.”

He continues pounding on the door, still screaming.  “Open the door, Shay.”

“I’m coming,” I say as loudly as I can, before stepping away from the wall.  A moment of dizziness overtakes me, and I almost fall down.  Nearly dropping the phone, I reach out and grab the wall.  When my head finally clears, I take a step forward. 

Realizing I’m still holding the phone and my dad is on the other end, I do my best to soothe his worries.  “I’m okay now, Daddy. Bowie saved me.” Not waiting for a reply from him, I drop the phone and walk to the door. 

It seems to take forever to reach it, each step causing more pain.  My vision blurs, black spots dancing in front of me, as I reach the door.  Not thinking, I reach for the handle.  It doesn’t turn, causing me to shout out in frustration. 

I’m about to fall to the floor, when I see the key pad beside the door.  Stepping towards it, I use what little strength I have left to push the green button, DISARM.  I step back, just as the lock disengages.  A second later, Bowie pushes the door open.  His eyes search the room, before landing on me.  Then, he is at my side and pulling me into his arms.  His sudden embrace causes me to scream out in pain.

“Where are you hurt?” He ask, quickly letting me go. 

I don’t have time to reply, before I start to fall. He catches me, causing even more pain to wrack through my body.  “Are you okay, baby?”

I try to force my lips to move as I shake my head no.  “It hurts so bad.”

“We’ll get you fixed up; I promise.” He places a soft kiss on my forehead, before swinging me up into his arms and rushing from the room. 

Before we reach the stairs, I see my brother standing over Marcus.  Blood is pouring from both of his legs, but other than that he seems fine; fine enough to be threatening Jeremy.  “I will have your badge for this.”

Jeremy brings his foot down on Marcus’s bloodied leg, bringing his threats to an end, then turns to look at me.  “Are you okay, sis?”

“I am now,” I whisper out, trying my best to smile. 

My brother smiles back, lifting two fingers to his chest and tapping them against his heart.   Then turns to Bowie and asks, “I have a few questions for him, but what do you want me to do with this bastard after I’m done?”

I know the question is not for me, though, and I know Bowie will make sure he’ll never hurt me or anyone else again, so I let my eyes fall closed. 

Just as the darkness starts to take me once again, Bowie answers.  “Keep him alive till I get back.”

Game Over

Bowie

As soon as I step out the door, Tin is by my side.  Looking down at Shay he asks, “Is she okay?”

Shaking my head, I walk towards Marcus’s car trying to control the fury building inside me.  “I need you to get her to the hospital.  Stay with her, until I get done here.”

Tin looks at me then back to the house.  Before turning back to me he asks, “I can stay here and help Lock clean up the mess.  You need to go with Shay.”

He’s wrong.  I want to be with Shay, but I need to finish this shit first.   I shake my head again, not willing to argue with him.  “No, I want you to do what I tell you and not ask any fuckin’ questions.”

“Fuck, Bowie.  You wearing the President patch doesn’t change anything.  You’re still my damn brother; I want to help you.”

I take in a deep breath, trying to control the urge to scream at him to fuckin’ quit questioning my orders.  “By taking her to the hospital, you’re helping me.  I have to get back in there and question that motherfucker. I have to do this myself.”

His eyes grow with the realization that I haven’t killed Marcus yet. “He’s not dead?”

“No, I have to make sure that this shit ends here.  If he dies without telling me everything, I won’t know if he has hired someone else to come after her.  You know how this shit goes.  The mother-fucker being dead doesn’t necessarily end our troubles.”

“Fuck,” He mutters, finally realizing that taking out the key players does not mean that the game is over. 

Using one arm to hold Shay, I use the other to dig through my pocket and pull out the keys I took off Marcus the moment I shot his ass in the knees.  Tossing Tin the keys, I finish walking to the car.  After motioning for him to open the door, he steps in front of me and clicks unlock on the keys.  A second later, he has the back door open and steps aside for me to put her inside. 

I lean inside and place her into the backseat as gently as I can.  She lets out a soft moan as I pull my arms away from her.  Her eyes flutter open and she whispers, “I love you.”

Bringing my lips to her, I whisper the words back, words I’ve never said to a woman before.  “I love you too.”

When I pull back, I see her eyes are closed.  I give her another kiss, before climbing from the car.  After shutting the door, I turn to look at Tin.  “Call me when you get her to the hospital.”

“You know I’m gonna get asked questions. What do you want to me to tell them?”

“Tell them you found her lying at the bottom of the stairs, nothing else,” I say, knowing the simpler the story the more likely it is to be believed. 

“They ain’t gonna believe that shit,” He says with a shake of his head.  “Rollo just took Tag in, now me coming with her.  They’re gonna know it has something to do with the club.”

He’s right, but I don’t really give a fuck. “Take your cutt off before you walk in.  If they still make a connection and ask you questions, you know what to do.”

“Keep my fuckin’ mouth shut,” He replies with a nod.

“Exactly,” I say, as I take one last look at Shay then turn towards the house.  “Get her out of here, Tin.”

Not waiting for him to do what he’s told, I walk away.  The sound of the engine starts as I step onto the porch but I don’t look back.  Throwing the door open, I stomp through the house.  Hesitating as I step over Domino’s body, my mind begins to wonder who killed her before I realize that I don’t give a fuck and keep on walking. 

Lock’s voice reaches my ears as I start down the steps.  “What the hell did you do to her?”

“I’m not telling you anything.  You took Laura from me. She was perfect, nothing like the others.”  Marcus shouts.  “She was the perfect wife, my perfect angel.”

“Answer my fuckin’ question,” Lock barks out, sending a kick into the man’s side. 

A hiss of pain leaves the bastards lips before he can respond.  “I tried with them but they wouldn’t listen.  Laura listened; she did everything I said.”

I watch as Lock leans down and grabs the front of his shirt.  “Tell me what you did to Heather?”

Walking over to them, I push him off the bastard.  “What the fuck are you two talking about?”

Lock steps back, fisting his hands at his side.  “I did a little research.  This bastard has had six wives before my sister, five of which are dead.”

Shock rushes through me as the implication worms its way into my brain; Shay could’ve been next.  “You’re fuckin’ kidding me, right.”

“The first four are buried, but the body of the last one was never found.  She had only been married to him for nine months before she went she went missing.” He explains staring down at Marcus.  “Her family thinks she ran away but this bastard somehow had her declared dead.”

I look down to Marcus and shake my head.  “That’s fucked up, brother, but it has nothing to do with today.”

“No,” Lock agrees. “But, I want some answers out of him before he dies. Her family deserves to know what happened to her.”

“We don’t have time for you to play cop.  As soon as Shay gets to the hospital, the boys in blue are gonna be asking questions.  We need to get this shit done and cleaned up before they come knocking on my door.” I also got to get some shit moved to cover the door, can’t let the cops see it, but I don’t tell him that.

“Just give me a few minutes with him,” Lock asks.  “She’s not much older than Laura. Her family has been looking for her for more than ten years; I need to give them some closure.”

I may be a cold bastard, but right now I have too much shit to deal with.  A woman that’s probably been dead for a decade isn’t at the top of my lists of priorities. Looking into his determined eyes, I take a step back.  “This doesn’t have shit to do with you.  Why the hell do you care so much?”

“I let my sister live with the bastard for years, fuckin’ years.  I knew shit wasn’t right but never stepped in to fix it. I’ll never forgive myself for that shit.  I need to do this, need to find out what happened to Heather. I have to do this for Laura.”

“You’ll never find her.  She’s gone,” Marcus gasps out as he tries to sit up.  “She wasn’t worthy; she wasn’t perfect like Gwendolyn.”

I give him a quick kick, putting him on his back again and look back at Lock.  “You got five minutes,” I say, wondering if I can hold out that long before I put a bullet in the bastard’s brain. 

Awake

Shay

I wake up to the sound of machines beeping and force my eyes to open.  Tin is sitting beside me, his head resting on the bed.  Slowly moving my head, I search the room for Bowie.  He isn’t here, and I want to cry out for him.  I need him here, need him to hold my hand and tell me that everything is all right. 

I’m blinking back my tears, when I feel a hand grab my arm.  “Thank fuck, you’re awake.”

Turing to look at Tin, I do my best to force the tears away.  “Where’s Bowie?”