Broken Memphis (24 page)

Nodding, Bull doesn't understand why anyone is talking to him. Even I get it, and I'm not the brightest bulb in the box. Trigger is scared now. He's fucked his club, breaking it into factions. Now he has a real enemy, just as fucking crazy as him. Oh, the old man is pissing his jeans now. Seeing his old man down, Madden subtly reminds Trigger the end is coming.

"We lock down Little Memphis," Trigger growls. "Those fuckers want a war, so let's give them a war."

Trigger storms out with Madden close behind. I nearly laugh at how the old man keeps his traitor so close. He'll never see the knife in his back coming.

"You heard him," Ford whispers to Bull. "We're at war. Time for planning is over. We kill anyone not with us."

Bull nods. "Lupe has the kids, and her brother is getting them out of Little Memphis. Where do you want me?"

"Stay close to the hospital. Zombie is a threat, and he's crazy enough to show up here. We need to check on the girls before we can start hunting the fucker. Joker needs to decide how to do Trigger. Then we end this shit now."

Ford strolls over to bullshit his way past the rules and into the patient area. I stare at his back and think about how light Tallulah felt in my arms.

Ignoring the phone vibrating in my pocket, my mind remembers the blood on Bebe. Then I'm thinking about Tallulah's broken body. If the kid dies, how do I come back from losing her? Killing a million men won't fix the pain.

Thinking the call could be from Bebe, I finally look at my phone. I frown at the message as Ford returns to read it over my shoulder.

"Zombie made a mess, so I made a bigger one. Time to start burying Trigger's inner circle. Love, Ginger."

"They want to keep Tallulah overnight, and they're moving her to a room. Bebe got checked out too. We can see them before we go hunting."

"Where are they?" I say, feeling exhausted suddenly.

Ford gives Bull a nod then pulls me towards the elevators. We take it up a floor then walk for what feels like a mile. I both need to see my family and fear looking at their frightened faces again.

Stopping me before we enter the room, he sighs. "Rage feels better than fear. Keep it together for a little longer. Then we'll find you someone to destroy."

I smile at Ford. "You always know the right shit to say."

Calmed by his words, I open the door to find Tallulah in bed and Bebe sitting in a chair next to her. Shay is standing at the windows but hurries over when Ford arrives.

I pull a chair over and sit next to Tallulah. She lifts her arm to show the cast.

"Does it hurt?" I ask, kissing her little fingers.

Tallulah nods, but gives me a smile when I nibble at her pinkie. I notice Bebe relaxing, and a hint of a smile warms her face.

"I broke my arm when I was a kid. It was pretty bad, but the time Ford broke his head was worse. That's why he's so stupid, you know?"

While Ford grunts at my teasing, Tallulah is grinning now. Bebe's eyes light up more the longer I'm in the room. Seeing how much they need me, I hate to leave them.

"Why are you staying the night?" I ask Bebe.

"She hit her head, and they want to keep an eye on her overnight."

"I have a bump," Tallulah says, rubbing the back of her head.

"When Ford had his bump, I would spin a basketball on the tip."

Tallulah looks at Ford who nods. Now she's giggling.

Bebe reaches across the bed and takes my hands. Her touch feels so damn good, and the urge to stay increases.

"How are you?" I ask. "You were limping."

"I just bruised my hip. They gave me pain meds, but I don't want to take anything that'll knock me out."

Shay steps closer to the bed. "I'll stay up and keep watch when you and Tallulah sleep."

Bebe frowns before realizing what her friend is saying. She hasn't realized Ford and I need to leave. When her gaze finds mine, I know she understands.

"Perri went to heaven," she says softly. "She was making a new life, but God wanted her in heaven."

Despite her soft tone for Tallulah's sake, Bebe's eyes are full of rage. Two kids lost their mom today. Jenn is in surgery a floor below us. Her children are waiting outside of town to find out if they're motherless too. Blood has been spilt, and only spilling more blood will make things right.

46

Bebe

Right Thing to Say

Pax walks into the hospital room, and I feel a weight lift off me. Tallulah perks up too. We need him to stay and keep us safe. Not just from the physical threats but the emotional ones too. This big, scary man makes the world easier with his smile. His rough voice helps me believe in good things. Pax brightens a dark, ugly world, but he needs to leave.

The men don't say they have to go. I ignore the signals from them too, but Shay finally forces me to accept reality.

"Can we talk real quick?" I ask Pax.

When he nods, we walk into the adjoining bathroom and shut the door. He seems imposing in the small space, but I only fear him leaving.

"The club needs you," I say, struggling to sound calm.

"Going on the run isn't happening now. We finish this in the next few days, or it finishes us."

Staring up at him, I nod. "I love you."

Pax's cool exterior cracks, and I worry I sound too needy. When I move towards him, he notices my limp. His light blue eyes are dark with worry.

"My hip and thigh are bruised, but nothing's broken. I'll be back to riding you again in a few days. Maybe a week."

Pax grins. "I don't mind you being lazy in bed. Makes me feel like a man on a mission."

We share a smile, but I'm terrified to tell him goodbye. The jinx hanging over my family feels too real now. If I let Pax go, I'm sure I'll never see him again. Never feel his touch or hear his laugh. Never again will I feel safe. No other man will ever love me like Pax. He's my soul mate, and I'm about to say goodbye.

Dumping my panic on him when he needs to be strong can't happen. I might feel beat down after a long day, but I refuse to make things worse on Pax.

"I think a holiday baby will be fun," I say. "Maybe instead of Roy, we could name a boy Roger Reed."

Knowing I want to say so much more, Pax smiles. "I've only known one Roger, and he ate boogers. Not just his either. Real weirdo."

Despite my fear and exhaustion, I laugh. "So no Roger."

"The name Roy will grow on you. Trust me."

"Can I pick the girl's name?"

"Sure, but no nicknames like Lula. I can't explain why it bugs me, but it does."

"Deal," I say, wrapping him in my arms. "Now kiss me like you mean it."

Pax doesn't waste any time. His lips on mine feel so right. Our bodies respond to a hunger outside of the blood and death from today. Hell, I feel his kiss all the way down to my toes. For those few minutes with our bodies pressed against each other, I can't feel the pain in my hip or the fear in my heart.

Knowing the passion must end, I grudgingly let him go. Pax studies my face while I memorize his.

"I hate to ask for anything, especially when you're dealing with Zombie. I only hope you'll make the bastard suffer before you finish him."

Laughing quietly, Pax cups my face. "Only one person has always known the right thing to say to me. Even when Ford razzes me, it's because he knows I need to hear it. Now I have a woman who never fails to say the right things. I'm a lucky fucking man."

As Pax and Ford leave the hospital room, I pray my man's luck continues.

47

Pax

Hunting a Dead Man

Ford thinks about Zombie's life and figures a man on the run will hide where he feels the safest. While I don't believe the asshole is dumb enough to go to his mom's house, we spot Zombie's Harley in her driveway.

We park our bikes two doors down from his mom's place. No reason to sneak up on him when he must know we're coming.

The bat feels electric in my hand. My mind recalls Zombie's expression when we arrived at the mall. His wide eyes followed by a smirk are classic Zombie. I'd seen him freak out on people dozens of times. Every time, he wore the same fucking look. I wonder what he'll look like when I bash in his face.

The front door stands open with only a puny screen to keep us out. I don't need to glance at Ford to know he wants to check around back first.

Stopping halfway around the house, I squat down, and Ford follows my lead.

"Makes sense for him to leave the front door open," I whisper, "if he has the backdoor booby trapped. Make us think what we're thinking, so we'll walk into a trap."

"If I was Zombie, I'd booby-trap both doors, figuring we might have this conversation."

"So we'll burn him out."

Ford makes a run for the nearby bushes. I wait a minute to check for movement in the house. Chasing after Ford, I meet him at the Harleys. We jimmy up a few Molotov cocktails and return to Zombie's house.

Hurrying past a window, I catch sight of Zombie's mom. She's been dead for more than a day, and her life wasn't snuffed gently.

With a fire at the back and the front doors, Zombie only has a few options for escape. The flames rise, turning the dark night into a festive orange. Hiding behind a tree, I hope the asshole makes a run towards me. I crave to be the one who makes him bleed first.

Zombie holds out for as long as he can, but eventually comes running out the backdoor. His gun blazing, he isn't aiming. My shot is more careful and takes out his hand holding the weapon.

Pain doesn't even slow him down. He's planning on going over the fence, so I wait until he's nearly on top of me before I swing the bat. The impact knocks the wind out of him, and he crumbles to the ground.

Zombie stares up at me like a crazed animal. All wide-eyed, but no smirk.

Ford hurries to my side, staring down at Zombie. "You should have saved yourself the torture and blown off your head when you had the chance."

Once I lower the bat on Zombie's head, he's out. We drag him past the burning house to the front yard. The neighbors refuse to come out to see the commotion. They're rightfully scared in this rough neighborhood.

Ford hot-wires Zombie's mom's car, and we shove the asshole in the trunk. After folding his body in half to make him fit, I finally get the lid down.

I drive the car, while Ford follows on his Harley. We never planned where to take him, so I make the decision to head to the 14th Street underpass. Parking on the side of the road, I drag a semi-conscious Zombie from the trunk then toss him down the embankment. Ford and I follow his flopping body.

"Got a text from Joker," Ford says. "If I understand his code correctly, the Blairsville sheriff is dead. Every cop in town is hanging out at the donut shop where he got killed. I guess stealth isn't a concern for us."

"Were we being stealth? I kinda felt like we were being sloppy and obvious."

Ford grins. "It's been a long day, so whatever."

We grab Zombie under the armpits and drag him into the underpass.

"A whole lot of rats around here," I announce. "I figured we'd kill him then dump the body. Or maybe we don't make death so easy."

"It's your little girl in the hospital. If you want him to bleed slow, I'm here for you, turd."

"We're naming our first boy Roy," I say, dropping Zombie in the dark tunnel.

"Why?"

"Roy Reed."

"Sounds like a serial killer. Just make sure he has a good middle name for the news reports."

I flip off Ford, who stretches with his bat over his head. Studying Zombie, I want him awake for the next part. Tallulah didn't have the luxury of sleeping during the attack. How many nightmares will Perri's children suffer because of this evil fucker?
No, Zombie needs to be awake for the suffering.

"Why kill your mom?" I ask Zombie.

Staring through half-open, swollen eyes, he sighs, "She was a nag."

"Lots of moms are," Ford says, frowning. "But people don't kill them. You know you're crazy, right?"

Zombie grins. "Crazy? Or maybe I just see the world the way it is, and you fuckers live the lie."

"Nope," I say, bring the bat down and separating his shoulder bones.

His scream relaxing me, I allow myself to think of Jenn's smile. She's a funny broad and loves Lucky something fierce. Today, her blood was spilled because of this piece of shit.

Ford breaks Zombie's right leg. I think of all those people screaming at the parking lot. How afraid they were. I wonder if the man who died had kids. How will they enjoy Christmas after burying their dad?

Zombie's legs are past broken by the time we stop beating on them. I suspect the bones are dust, yet Zombie remains conscious.

"What did Trigger say to you when he found out you shot up the mall?" Ford asks, digging a blade into Zombie's gut.

"He said I should've saved my bullets for you two."

Ford grins. "Good. I'd hate for the old man to grow a conscience right before we break him."

Studying Zombie, I think about Tallulah, who's seen too much in her young life.

"Are you alright?" Ford asks, standing next to me.

"What happens one day when Tallulah is grown up and finds out what we do? What do I tell her?"

Ford looks around at the dark tunnel then back at me. "She'll understand. You'll just need to explain you aren't like Zombie. You keep your family safe, and the club is part of the family. Kids grow up seeing stuff, and she'll understand more than you think."

"What if I don't have it in me to be a good dad?"

Ford sighs deeply at this question. "I was worrying about that too when the boys moved in with us. Lucky said there are things people can't be, no matter how much they might want to. Things like being a super model or a rocket scientist. We can't choose to look a certain way or be super smart. We can choose other things. He said if I decide to be a good dad then I just had to be one. There's no magic or instructions involved. I would take care of them and keep them safe or I wouldn't. I'd love them or I wouldn't. Being a dad is like being a husband. You choose to be a good one then just be one. It'll be the same for you."