Butch (27 page)

He took her back to where the rest of The Skulls were sitting
enjoying the sunshine. The children were running around, and Cheryl loved every
minute of the time. She kept checking on Matthew, who was having the time of
his life. There was no way she’d be able to simply let him play without looking
over him. Butch put his issues aside and looked to be having fun. The time
passed until she was able to forget the worries that had been plaguing her.

Steven, one of the Skulls, made her laugh with the
jokes he told. The entire experience was amazing. She finally felt at home with
the crowd.
 
Glancing toward the play
area, she frowned. Standing up, she tried to find her son.

“Where’s Matthew?” Cheryl asked, looking around the
large picnic area. She’d taken her eyes off her son for a moment, and she
couldn’t see him anywhere. “Matthew.” She shouted his name, starting to panic. No
one responded to the name.

“Baby, calm down,” Butch said.

“I can’t find him.”

Without looking back toward him, she took off toward
the play area, not bothering to waste time with talking. She saw The Skulls
looking from her to Butch. Cheryl didn’t care what they were thinking. The only
person she cared about was her son, and she couldn’t find him. Fear clawed at
her.

“Cheryl, stop,” Alex said, grabbing her arms. “He’s
around here somewhere. Stop panicking.”

“I know my son.” She shoved him away. “He’s not here.”

“We’re all going to start looking. You don’t need to
worry,” Eva said.

She wasn’t listening. Her son was out there somewhere.
Matthew wouldn’t walk away from the park, not by himself. She looked around the
area he’d been playing. Some of the parents were looking at her strangely. She
didn’t care what they all thought. The only person she cared about was Matthew.
For a few moments she’d been enjoying her time thinking how wonderful it was to
have people like The Skulls in her life, and now her son was missing.

In the background she heard Butch and the others
shouting her name. Seeing a secluded area near the swings, she rounded the bend
and stopped. A man she’d never seen before was pointing a gun at her son’s
head. Matthew was sitting between the
mystery
man’s
legs playing with some new toys.

“Hello, Cheryl,” the man said.

Not taking her eyes off her son, her heart started to
race more than ever before. “Hello.” She spoke calmly, hoping not to scare her
son.

“You don’t know who I am, but I’ve got a friend who
knows you, and he wants to meet you.”

“I don’t know anyone who would own a gun or point it
at my son’s head,” she said.

Sweat bloomed on her forehead. How could she get
Matthew out of danger without him getting hurt? There was no easy way. She
couldn’t grab her
son,
otherwise he’d end up dead.

Tears filled her eyes as she looked at him. “I don’t
know who you are,” she said.

“It’s okay. We know who you are. Gonzalez needs your
cooperation.”

She went to look behind her.

“That’s not a good idea,” he said. “You shout them or
alert them, and I will kill your son.”

The tears she’d tried to keep at bay finally released.

“Please, don’t hurt my son.” She took a step closer
and another.

“I wouldn’t try anything funny. You got the head in a
box. I’m not against doing it to you.”

“You killed that woman?”

“Yes, and she screamed throughout it all. I loved
hearing her scream.”

“I don’t want you to hurt my son. I’ll come with you.”

“Good.”

She reached her son, and he grabbed her arm leading
them both away from any prying eyes. Glancing behind her, she didn’t see any of
The Skulls. None of them knew she’d gone with this man or where she was going.

Cheryl refused to cry more. Nothing good could come
from her letting any tears fall.

The man without a name forced her into the back of the
car. It took every ounce of strength not to shout out, begging for help. She
held onto her son as they pulled away from the curb. She didn’t know what to
do.

Closing her eyes, she hoped Butch found them soon. The
thought of never seeing him again filled her with dread.

“We’re going to be okay, honey,” she said, kissing her
son’s head.

She didn’t know how long they were driving for. The
man pulled up outside of a hotel.

“The boss awaits you,” the man said, opening the door.
There was no chance for her to get away as she was led up to another secluded
room.

Don’t panic.

Keeping her gaze forward, she held onto Matthew as
they were pulled into a beautiful, expensive hotel room.

“Ah, Cheryl, it’s a pleasure to see you again.”

It was Frederick Gonzalez. He wore a business suit and
smiled as she walked in.

“What the hell is going on?”

“It’s quite simple, honey. I want The Skulls, and
you’re the key to getting them.”

She frowned. “There’s no chance. I’m with Butch, not
anyone else.” Cheryl held onto Matthew.

“Yes, and with you gone, he’ll beg to come back to The
Skulls. I don’t know how they’ll handle that, but then I get them to do what I
want when they ask for you back. This is a win-win for me.” He motioned for her
to sit down. “I’d rest if I were you. You’re going to need to relax.”

Sitting down in the sofa, Cheryl wouldn’t let go of
her son. Gonzalez didn’t know that Butch had already asked to return? Trying
not to let her thoughts show, she kept her gaze on her son.

“Oh, if they don’t give me what I want then I will
start to hurt you. I’ll also get Homer to kill your son before he moves onto
you.”

Closing her eyes, she prayed for her son’s life.

Come on, Butch. Find us.

****

Back at the clubhouse Butch was losing his mind. He
couldn’t find Matthew or Cheryl. It was like they both disappeared, which made
no sense. Running fingers through his hair, he waited for Whizz to run a search
on the security footage. The clubhouse was a mess. Furniture was trashed, and broken
bottles were strewn around all over the place. Gonzalez meant business, and he
was taking it out on the club. This had to be about more than Butch and his
past.

“What’s going on?” Butch asked, pointing around the
clubhouse. There weren’t any sweet-butts around either.

“We’ve got Gonzalez looking into every area of our
life,” Nash said. “Everything is a mess right now.”

“It has to be him who’s taken Cheryl and Matthew,”
Alex said, speaking up for the first time.

“You’ve got to help me find her. He will kill her.”
Butch was sure the other man would kill her. There was no way he was going to
put his trust in Gonzalez not to hurt his woman. Memories of the past invaded
his thoughts. He shoved them aside and started to pace. “I knew I shouldn’t
have taken her to the picnic.” Shaking his head, he was so angry with himself.
Instead of listening to
his own
gut, he’d listened to
what she wanted, and now they were both missing.

“Cheryl wanted to go,” Eva said.

“How do I know you’re not working for Gonzalez, huh?”
Butch asked, losing his temper.

All of the
club tensed up.

“What the fuck did you say?” Zero asked, stepping up.
It had been a long time since he’d spoken to his friend.

“No one leaves the club, right? How the fuck do I know
if you’re not even working against me to get me as payback? I asked to come
back, and none of your have given me the time of day. You were begging me back,
and now you’re taking your time.” Zero was on Butch’s ass within seconds of him
talking. Zero slammed his fist into his face. Women screamed, and Prue tugged
Zero away. Butch knew he shouldn’t have said shit like that. His anger and fear
had him lashing out.

“Leave him. He’s not thinking straight,” Prue said,
whispering to Zero’s ear.

“He’s not been thinking straight ever since he fucking
left the club.” Zero looked like he wanted to hurt him even more.

Rolling to his stomach, Butch got to his feet. “She’s
my woman, and you’re not doing anything about it. I asked to come back, and
again you’re keeping my ass waiting.”

He pointed at Tiny. The president of The Skulls stared
at him with a fierce expression on his face. Butch didn’t care what others
thought of him. “For every other woman you were there and reacting to the
smallest slight.”

“There’s a difference,” Tiny said.

“What difference? You need to act. My woman is out
there with our kid.” He turned to Alex, who looked pale. “They’re in danger,
and we’re not doing anything about it.”

“You quit The Skulls, walking away from us. Cheryl is
not a Skull, nor is she part of the club.”

“I asked to come back.”

“You left, Butch.
Letting you back
in takes a fucking vote.
I’ve got to wait until Lash gets back to vote
you back in.”

Butch paused, frowning at him. “This is your decision,
Tiny. Not the club’s.”

“No one has ever walked out like this. I can’t make
this decision on my own. It took the whole club to vote Nash back in, and the
same goes for you.”

“Tiny,” Alex started to talk. Tiny held his hand up.

“No, I’m not listening to any more crap about this.” Tiny
kept his gaze focused on him. “We’re not a fucking library he can take what he
wants when he wants. Lash has a deciding vote, and I’m not doing shit about it
until he gets back.”

“What are you trying to say?” Butch asked but he knew
the truth.

“You’re not a brother anymore until Lash comes back
from Italy. We’re going to help get Cheryl back. We don’t get to help you with
anything else until Lash is back.” Tiny shrugged. “I’m sorry.”

“You’re not sorry,” Butch said. “This is your fucking
club, Tiny.”

“And I’m acting in the club’s best interest. We’re
going to get your woman back, but I’m not going to risk my men for you.”

“I’m fucking begging you, Tiny. Let me back in. I’m
fucking loyal, and I’ll be good for the club,” Butch said, getting to his knees
in front of them. He needed Tiny prepared to do everything to save his woman.

Alex spun away, heading toward the bar. There was no
alcohol to drown his sorrows in.

Staring down at the floor, Butch laughed. “I’m sorry
for leaving the club. You know, Cheryl told me I shouldn’t have left. I thought
I was protecting her, but I was the one who put her in danger.”

“We’re a club and a family, but you didn’t see that.
This shit you’ve caused is your problem, not ours,” Tiny said. “We’ll do what
we can to save Cheryl and her son, not because of you but because we’re not
fucking animals.”

“Tiny?” Eva said.

The other man glared at his wife, and she stopped
talking, holding her hands out, backing down.

It was Butch’s decision to leave The Skulls that had
started this. By leaving he’d insulted the club, and the more he pulled away,
being an asshole, the more the club had moved on. He couldn’t hate Tiny for his
decision. Any president of an MC club would have killed him by now. Tears
filled his eyes at his own stupidity. He shouldn’t have left, and if Lash was
pissed enough, he wasn’t going to get his place back in the club.

“Fine.
I’ll wait to be part of the club. I’ll take whatever decision you all
make. If I have to, I’ll become a prospect again and pull out of my shares
until I earn my loyalty.” He spoke the words, terrified of his future.

Tiny left the room and returned seconds later with his
jacket. He didn’t know what to say when he saw the leather jacket. The last
time he’d worn this very jacket he’d been filled with pride. He wasn’t full of
pride now, no, he was full of shame. No one would help him unless he was a
Skull, and he’d turned his back on the club. Cheryl had been trying to convince
him to rejoin The Skulls, but he’d refused even though he’d been thinking of
joining them again. His own stubbornness had caused this. Cheryl must have
known he was part of a club. Only
he
had denied while she saw through it.

“I’m showing you this jacket because regardless of
what happens, I always thought you’d come back to us,” Tiny said, glaring at him.
“I want to let you back, but I wouldn’t be any kind of fucking leader if I
didn’t put you to a vote like I’ve done everyone else.”

He was sure he detected pain in
Tiny’s
face, but it was gone before he could analyze it.

“Then I’ll wait, and I’ll prove to you all I want to
be here,” Butch said.

“Frederick holds all the cards here. We can’t do
anything until he gets in touch,” Tiny said, taking a seat. Eva put her hand on
Tiny’s
shoulder.

“We can’t do anything but sit and wait?” he asked.

“In case you haven’t noticed,” Nash said, speaking up.
“We’re all fucked here. The cops have torn us apart, and we know it’s because
of Gonzalez. He knows what he’s doing, and he’s going to keep doing it. Devil’s
got the same problem back in Piston County.”