Finding Charity: Red Devils M.C. (14 page)

Tick would normally understand family ties, but right now all he cared about was his woman. Thanks to this dumb fuck she was trapped in that cellar at the very least running out of air.

“Fuck, this is a fucking mess. You should have told us Mark. Fuck we’ll deal with that later. Tick you need to call Bone, man. He can send help. We need to get to work. She doesn’t have much air down there. Every second we spend arguing up here is one more she doesn’t have. You say just the one charge. Did you put it on any of the supports?” Ratchet asked the man.

“No, I made sure I didn’t. Like I said I just wanted to collapse the door.” Mark said.

“Tick, call Bone.” Ratchet told him again when he just stood there frozen. He needed to get his shit together. His woman needed him. Taking out his phone he called Bone.

“What’s up, Tick.” Bone answered.

“We need help. Charity’s trapped in a caved in cellar.” Tick said bluntly not bothering to waste time.

“Fuck, Fuck. Trick is gonna lose his fucking mind. He and Katie went over to Greenville day before yesterday. It’s a two day fucking ride, even if Katie’s driving.” Tick was already losing his shit, and he didn’t know what the fuck to do. He needed to get her out.

“I’ll be there with the crew in a hour.” Bone said hanging up. Tick was grateful that the man wasn’t asking a bunch of needless questions.

“What did he say? Ratchet asked from behind him.

“They’re coming. We need to start digging. Get everyone to find shit to dig with. No backhoes. We don’t want to cave it in on top of her. Rock can you see if anyone has a mine drill. We may need it.” Tick said, starting to work out how to get to her. She didn’t have more than two hours of air down there. At least he prayed it was that much, because the thought of her dying down there not knowing how he felt about her almost broke him.

Max was held against Maria, she was trying to tell the boy it wasn’t his fault as he cried hysterically. He walked over kissing his forehead.

“Max, stop, son. It’s not your fault. I’ll get her out. I’ll bring her back, son.” He growled hugging the boy. He could barely think, the only thought running through his mind was that Charity was down there and he needed to get her out.

“I need to go help her, Max. Go to the house with Maria.” The boy nodded and allowed her to lead him away. Tick got up looking around. He didn’t want to think about pulling Charity’s body from that cellar, if he did he wouldn’t survive losing her. He’d had her for such a short time, and now he may have lost her. He knew that he wouldn’t be able to bear her loss.

Charity became aware with her ears ringing and her head pounding. She moved a bit and felt the burning pain in her left leg. Damn, that hurt, she thought, sitting up. She looked down at her leg seeing nothing. It was too damned dark. She could just barely hear the whimpering that was the tiny puppy. She sighed. Okay, she needed to find some light. She reached out feeling around. Finding a shelf to her right, she began searching it. Her leg stung and it was wet. She wished that whatever had happen hadn’t taken out the light.

She wondered as she searched what the hell had happened. She continued to search the shelves finally finding a flash light. She switched it on and a small beam of light lit the darkness. Good, she could at least see. She looked at her leg first, seeing that it was bleeding pretty badly and was cut. No wonder that stung. She needed to find something to stop the bleeding. She shined the light back towards the cellar entrance.

She saw that the doorway was caved in. Shit, that was not good. She needed to stay back from that area. If they were digging her out they would start there. She wasn’t going to be in another cave in. One a day, was plenty, she thought grimly. She began searching the shelves for useful things. She didn’t find much other than farm equipment on most of the shelves. She did find a pair of scissors and another flash light.

She took off her shirt cutting the bottom half off to make a bandage for her leg which still hurt like a bitch, and was bleeding down her leg. She wrapped the strips around her leg wincing in pain as the cloth came into contact with the wound. Floppy was sitting at her feet whimpering. She reached down petting the dog.

“It’s okay buddy.” She told him trying to make herself believe it too. She wondered how much air was down here. She wasn’t sure but with just her and the puppy she’d guess an hour tops. She sighed, still looking around for something useful. She was close to the back wall when she noticed a tarp covering something along the back wall. She walked to it, lifting the tarp. She crowed with glee. If those were full she was going to be okay. Only if they weren’t she was in freaking trouble. She reached out touching the valve on the nearest tank of oxygen.

Thank fuck these weren’t near the door either, she thought. That would have been a disaster. If the explosion had been closer it would have blown these tanks, Floppy and her to smithereens. The tank hissed and air was coming from the mask she had over her face breathing in. She stared at the twelve tanks and knew that they’d likely last about six hours.  

She wondered if the club even remembered that they had these air tanks were down here. She doubted it. They mine shaft cave in that they’d used them for had been almost eight years ago. She remembered because Trick had gone to help dig out the Kelter mine. This was a damned lucky find, she thought. If they’d gotten rid of these, or hell used them a year ago when they were trying to put out that fire crazy Monica had someone start, she’d have likely died of asphyxiation before they could get her out.

She was grateful that the explosion hadn’t started a fire. She felt her leg twinge and sat down near the back wall. Her leg really hurt. The puppy whimpered and climbed into her lap. She pet the small creature calmly. She used the flash light to look around the cellar. It was full of equipment and she wondered if there was any food or water. With no tools it was going to be damned hard to dig her out, and she was almost positive that all the drills and equipment that might help them get to her were in here with her.

That thought depressed her a bit, she was ready to get the hell out of this cellar. Thinking of getting out reminded her of Max. Panicked, she quickly calculated the time it would have taken him to go into the house and get the treats then come back. She sighed in relief when she realized that even if he’d ran the whole way there and back, there was no way he could have been trapped when the cellar door collapsed, Thank God.

He was safe, which made the panic that had overtaken her at the thought of him hurt slowly leave her. Then she thought about what Tick would have felt if Max, his last connection to Vivi was taken from him. He’d likely be just as destroyed as he had been over losing Vivi. Not that she wouldn’t have been the same. She felt like Max was her own. She was the one who helped him tie his shoes, who read to him, and who made sure he did his school work. As she leaned back against the wall sighing. She felt the pain that throbbed in her leg, she was glad Max was safe.

Taking the mask near her she attached it to the puppy’s nose, then turned on the tank. The puppy did not like that much, but she wasn’t going to let Max’s puppy die down here. The boy had suffered enough heart ache in his short life. She and Floppy were going to be alive when they pulled her out of this hole. She was puzzling over the explosion. Leaning on the wall she heard noises above her. Her man was trying to get her out she realized with a smile. All she had to do was wait, she thought, leaning her head back against the back wall.

Tick slammed the shovel back into the dirt again, wishing that they could all dig faster. They had been at it for over an hour. They needed to get her out of there before she ran out of air. They had only gotten about three foot down. This was taking too long, they weren’t going to make it at this rate, he thought, wanting to rage at the world. How could this happen to him, again. To a woman he loved. Fuck, he thought, digging.

Ratchet walked over to him, laying a hand on his shoulder. “You need to take a break you’ve been digging nonstop for an hour. Get some water.”

“No, she’s down there alone losing air. I don’t have time to take a damned water break.” Tick didn’t stop digging, he just kept working. He needed to get to her.

“Ratchet, Mark’s got an idea.” Dog said walking up with the man who’d trapped his woman down in that damned hole in the first place. Tick growled

“Nobody wants to hear any idea this mother fucker has.” Tick told Dog

“Listen, Tick. It’s a good idea. You know we’re running out of options this isn’t fast enough.” Dog told him earnestly. As if he didn’t already fucking know that.

Rock had followed the two men over and he spoke up pissing Tick off even more than he already was.

“His idea may be her only chance.” He bluntly told him.

“I don’t fucking care. We have to get her out! Wasting time talking about ways to do that is not getting her out. She’s already been down there an hour. She may not have much air left.” Tick roared shoving Rock.

“That’s why you need to listen, Tick.” Tiny told him walking up to them.

“Fine, talk, jackass.” Tick told him.

This was wasting time, but these assholes wanted to hear what the man had to say. Didn’t they realizes that this was all his fault? This man was the reason his woman was in that damned cellar in the first place.

“We need to use the drill. The one for drilling wells. We go about two foot from the entrance of the cellar and use the drill to punch through.” Mark told him.

Tick interrupted the man, “Mother fucker are you crazy? You could fucking bring the whole damned thing down on top of her.” Tick couldn’t believe that they were listening to this bullshit. What the fuck were they thinking?

“No, listen to me. That way we only have to go through about three foot to get in. At the very least it would let us get her some air. I mapped the whole thing before I set the charge. I’m positive that if we do this it will work. I know that there are no supports near there either.” Mark insisted

“Fucker, you really think that I will trust you after what you did?” Tick stared at the man his temper seething.

“When I was doing this I didn’t want to take out any of the equipment. Here is where we have to dig. This will work, Tick.” Mark told him stabbing a spot on a crud map he’d made. “If we do this we can get to her in time before she runs out of air.”

“What if she’s underneath where you plan to drill and you crush her instead, jackass?” Tick asked, not wanting to continue wasting time with this line of thinking. They didn’t have time for this.

“Tick, she’d know to get back from the front of the cellar. She’s smart.” Dog told him. He turned his glare on the other man.

“And if she’s hurt and can’t, Dog. If she’s not able to move, or was knocked out. What then? We can’t take that chance!” Tick roared.

Bone walked up to the small group with a phone pressed to his ear and Tank on his heels. “Dog, Trick says do it. Go get the drill so we can start digging. Mark go figure out exactly where we need to dig it out. 

Tick stared at Bone. Had he lost his mind? He wasn’t even asking him what to do? That was his woman down there.

“I fucking said no, Bone!” He bellowed, grabbing Bone.

“Her brother said it’s a go. We’re doing this. You don’t get to make the call, he does. She’s his family. It’s already eating him up that he’s not here to help. I know you care about her Tick, we all do.” Bone shoved him back. “Katie and Trick are on their way they should arrive day after tomorrow. He decides. I’m sorry, Tick.”

“The fuck you say! She’s wearing my fucking patch mother fucker! That means when I say no, you fucking listen!” He went for Bone’s throat, but Ratchet was faster and grabbed him.

“What the hell are you talking about? You couldn’t have patched her without the clubs say so.” Bone roared.

“He did. He patched her, Bone. She agreed.” Ratchet quietly injected.

“Fuck…fuck. I didn’t know. That’s the reason why you don’t patch a woman without the clubs agreement. Why the fuck did you do that when you know damned well that’s how this works, Tick? You consult the club first.” Bone glared at him, but he didn’t give a fuck. Charity was already family getting them to agree in church wouldn’t have been a problem, she was already part of the club.

“She’s mine. She was already club, and I knew that you’d allow it. I was going to handle it this week in church. She needed to be patched, she was trying to date some other man.” Tick growled, eyes narrowed on Bone.

“Fuck, yeah. I get that, but there will have to be some repayment to the club. And Trick is going to lose his mind for real now.” Bone finally said.

“I don’t fucking care. Now let’s quit dicking around and start digging. No fucking drill.” Tick moved intending to go back to digging, but Tank caught his arm.

“Look I get it. If it were Annie. I don’t know what I would fucking do. But their right. It’s her only chance. You know this is taking too long, Tick. You have to take the chance. It’s the only way she has any chance of getting out of there alive. Do you want to be pulling her dead body out of that cellar?” Tank asked him bluntly.

“She likely only has about thirty minutes of air left down there, Tick” Ratchet told him.

He wanted to scream at them that they were all wrong. That they could dig her out, but he knew better. This was taking too fucking long. He’d already been thinking it. Fuck, he thought pushing his hand through his hair. He didn’t want to take any chances with his woman’s life, but these assholes were right. He sighed again.