Out of the Ashes (36 page)

“GET DOWN!” Someone yelled amidst the chaos.

I felt something whiz past my face and people started falling to the ground everywhere. Once I figured what was going on, I whirled around, one thought on my mind. “Lexie!” I screamed, sprinting towards the stage.

I dodged past the men who tried to grab me and pin me down. My frigging daughter was standing atop of a stage while people
fucking shot at her
. She was a prime target. To my horror, she and the band hadn’t even moved; it was like she was frozen in horror. Then, before I could get any farther Killian vaulted onto the stage like some kind of Olympic athlete and half tackled Lexie, covering her body with his. I watched him yell at the other guys as they too dropped to the ground, covering their heads. I realized that I was still running toward my daughter, gunshots still deafening my ears amidst the screams. Vaguely, I noted other men, our men, crouching and firing with their own guns. Brock was shielding Amy with his entire body, while shooting on his stomach. Then I wasn’t standing anymore. I was on the ground, a hard body crouched over mine.

“Stay down, babe,” Gage commanded urgently.

I struggled with him slightly. “Lexie!” I pleaded at him.

I watched him glance at the stage, something working in his eyes.

Then there was silence. Not complete silence; there were a couple of whimpers, screams at the odd gunshot as men leapt up, firing at the bikes that were screaming out of the parking lot.

Gage quickly ran his eyes over me. Satisfied, he leapt up and I followed him with my eyes to see him sprinting to his bike with a couple of other men. To make chase. I repeat to chase the people who had just come and
shot up a party
.

I didn’t think about that, just scrambled up and raced toward the stage, not seeing anything but my daughter standing amidst a hail of gunfire. My eyes locked on Killian, who was crouched next to her, gently pulling her up, his hands hurriedly moving over her body as if to check for something. My whole frame stilled. Gunshots. He was checking my baby for gunshot wounds.

And with that, arms circled around me, stopping me from making it to her. I struggled to get free.

“Baby, stop,” a tight voice commanded.

I didn’t stop fighting, even though the voice was familiar, full of urgency and panic. “Let me go,” I half screamed.

Hands moved to grip my shoulders and turned me to face him. Zane quickly ran his eyes up and down my body. His eyes were tortured. It seemed like his entire body sagged in relief when he realized I wasn’t bleeding from any gunshot wounds.

“Let me go to my daughter,” I gritted out in fury.

He jerked at my tone and his eyes grew panicked as they sought out the stage. My eyes followed his, and I sagged in relief to see Killian lifting her off the stage and setting her on her feet. Her eyes locked on mine and Zane’s and she ran over.

“Mom!” she cried.

I pulled slightly out of Zane’s arms to embrace my daughter. I clutched her to me, smelling her hair, letting myself finally breathe since the moment I heard those shots.

“You’re okay,” I whispered into her hair. “You’re okay,” I repeated this time to myself. I watched the horror unfold around me without letting her go. Kids were crying, but luckily unharmed. Cade had his small daughter clasped tightly in the crook of his arm while he crouched in front of his pregnant wife, eyes worriedly roving every inch of her. He barked orders to those around him. My eyes moved. A woman lay sobbing next to the prone body of a greying man in a cut. My eyes moved. The beautiful African American man I saw earlier was leaning against a picnic table. His grim-faced partner was pressing his tee against his arm, red blossoming through the shirt. My eyes moved. The boys from the stage were, thank God, unharmed and pale faced, helping direct younger children inside.

My eyes moved and locked on tortured ones. Familiar ones. His hand rested on Lexie’s head for a moment, his eyes closing as if to make sure she was real. He gave me a long look, then he was gone. My eyes followed him as he mounted his bike along with a couple of others and roared off in the direction the shooters had gone moments earlier.

“She still asleep?” I asked quietly.

Killian nodded stiffly. His face was grim. Lexie was curled up against him on the sofa while he was half lying down. He had refused to leave her side the whole horrible afternoon, which I thanked my lucky stars for. She was trying to hold it together but was visibly shaken. His presence seemed to calm her slightly. I was also trying to hold it together, considering I was the mom and everything. The cops had arrived pretty quickly, not long after the ambulances, taking the three wounded people away. The coroner also came to take the one dead body. Dead
person
.

Cade had also insisted Gwen be taken into the hospital, even though she seemed shaken but unharmed. Their small daughter went too.

Before the police had arrived, Cade had come over to me to make sure I was okay. it was the only time he actually left Gwen’s side before she was taken away. Once he had been assured of my health, his concerns moved to something else. “Cops are going to come soon,” he said in a low voice.

I nodded. There was just a freaking shooting; of course the freaking cops were coming.

“Need to know what you saw,” he clipped.

My head jerked up. “What do you mean?”

He eyed me. “You see the shooters, Mia?” he asked carefully, gently even.

I wasn’t fooled by his tone, and had a small inkling of where this conversation was going. “I was too busy dodging bullets to get a clear vision for any police sketch, if that’s what you’re asking,” I said a tad sarcastically.

His face hardened. “Lexie was on the stage. She see anything?” he asked slowly.

I bristled, looking to my daughter, who was smiling weakly at no doubt a bad joke Sam was telling to try and lift her spirits. She was tucked tightly into Killian’s shoulder. “I haven’t really interrogated my daughter, considering she’s mildly traumatized from
getting shot at
,” I informed him icily.

Cade’s face gentled. “Know this shit is hard, babe. My pregnant wife and baby daughter were there too.” His eyes turned murderous and he glanced their way, as if to make sure they were still okay. “But you need to know. We handle this. Not the cops,” he said firmly.

My heart sank and I got what he was asking. “The cops handle this, because it’s
how it freaking works
,” I whisper yelled at him.

He shook his head. “Not in this world.”

I swallowed tightly. “If you’re asking me to tell my daughter to lie to the police, you’re crossing the line. In fact, you’re so far past the line, the line is a dot to you,” I hissed, failing to be intimidated by his stare.

He sighed, running his hand through his stubble. “People that did this killed my brother,” he said tightly. “Shot at your kid.” He nodded to Lexie. “You want them serving a bullshit sentence if the cops ever do get around to catching them, or you want justice?” he asked flatly.

I narrowed my eyes. “You’re not talking about justice, you’re talking about revenge.”

He eyed me warily. “Sometimes they’re one in the same, babe.”

I chewed my lip, something swirling in my belly. I wanted to gather my daughter up and get her the fuck out of here. These people were nice, good people. But no matter what way you swung it, their lifestyle caused someone to get dead today. Almost caused my daughter to get dead. Zane was nowhere to be seen. Who knows where he was, if he was covered in his own blood...or someone else’s. I shivered at the thought. My mind moved involuntarily to the issues, the problems my kid was no doubt going to have after witnessing this shit. The nightmares. Her happy, carefree life would never be the same. The way she viewed the world would never be the same. An ugly part of me wanted those people who shattered that view to be punished. Not in a way that had them sleeping in a cell and getting out for good behavior.

“I’ll find out if she saw anything,” I said finally, hating myself. “If she did I won’t tell her to lie to the police,” I told him firmly. “But if she did see something, you’re the first to know.”

Cade’s face was blank, then he nodded. He touched my shoulder lightly. “You’re a good mom, Mia, and a strong woman. Your girl too.” He paused. “You’re good for him.”

I knew immediately who he was talking about.

“Today was heavy,” he continued.

Understatement of the freaking century.

“It’s not normal. Not okay. And will never happen again,” he promised firmly. “Our life might be rough, slide into grey sometimes. But trust me, this isn’t how it is.”

I felt like he could see my thoughts, see my panic. My desperation to get the fuck out of here as quickly as possible. He was trying to get me to understand. I nodded slowly, more to disguise my true intentions than anything else.

He looked at me a moment more then got up, continuing to make his rounds.

Turns out Lexie did see something, something that could help at least.

“They were covered,” she said slowly, Cade and Brock watching her. We were in the room called “church” where they had directed Lexie, Killian—who refused to leave her side—and I once I informed them of her information. To their credit, they were gentle and patient with her, speaking softly. “Their faces, I mean,” she corrected quickly. Her voice was stronger than mine would have been. I smiled tightly, proud of her strength. But then a teenage girl shouldn’t have to be strong when recounting what she saw from a freaking drive by shooting.

“But they had bikes—kind of like yours, like Zane’s, but not as cool,” she smiled slightly and Killian squeezed her hand.

Brock’s mouth turned up a tad but Cade’s face stayed blank.

“Couldn’t say what make they were, but definitely weren’t Harley’s,” she said with certainty.

My eyebrows rose at this. Since when did my daughter know the difference between a Harley and a.anything?

Brock’s eyebrows also rose at this and he looked...impressed. “Lost Knights,” he muttered under his breath.

Cade nodded tightly. “Maybe,” he said back. “Anything else, honey?” he asked slowly.

She nodded. “The vests. Leather like yours, but with a different patch. I don’t know what it was but it had red in it,” she said firmly. Something moved in her gaze and she sat up straighter. “The bikes,” she said quickly. “I knew they were familiar but I only just remembered where from. You know that day in the vintage shop in Hope?” she asked me.

I nodded as the blood drained from my face.

“That’s where I knew them from. They’re the same ones, I’m sure of it,” she declared confidently.

Cade’s face went hard as granite and I would’ve been terrified if it was directed at me. It wasn’t. It was at the Lost Knights. It was the look of murder. It immediately transformed when he focused on Lexie once more. “Thanks honey, you did great.”

He made to move.

“You don’t want me to tell the police, do you?” she asked suddenly and Brock and Cade both jerked with surprise.

“Lexie...” I started, my stomach swirling once more at the mature look on my daughter’s childlike face.

She looked at me. “No Mom, it’s okay.” She turned back to Cade and Brock, who were staring at her. “I get it. The police, they probably won’t find them. Even if they do, there’s a chance they might not even go to prison.” She paused. “Not all of them, anyway. But you—” She gave Cade a meaningful look. “You’ll find them, won’t you?” Her voice was certain.

He nodded slowly. I didn’t imagine it was easy to surprise Cade, the big bad president of the Sons of Templar MC, but I’m pretty sure my sixteen-year-old just did. She sure surprised the ever loving shit out of her mom, and not in a good way.

Lexie nodded too. “Right. Well. That’s that, then,” she said firmly.

Cade seemed to jerk out of his amazement, and bent down and kissed Lexie on the head quickly. He gave me a meaningful look then left the room. Killian was looking at Lexie in the same kind of proud amazement as Brock and Cade, and murmured something in her ear.

I, on the other hand, was not impressed my daughter figured it out, then took it upon herself to make clear she wouldn’t be ratting to the cops on what she saw. My sixteen-year-old daughter, lying to the police because of some biker code. I felt like throwing up over the fact the bikers that Zane assured us we were safe from were the ones that shot at us today. That killed someone today.