Strays (Red Kings #1) (27 page)

“Me too, kid. How you holdin' up?”

“I'm good now that I know she's okay. I'll be much better when we're out of here though.”

Dean nodded, grateful he wouldn't have to be giving a pep talk to an emotionally unstable biker. “I heard you adjusted fine to Lakeside life.”

“Yeah, I like it. A lot. Kinda miss Macon, but it's nice here.”

They sat in silence for a minute as they took in Jackie's sleeping form a few feet away. “How's she getting along?”

Tyler shrugged and thought about his reply momentarily. “Well enough, I guess. She doesn't spend as much time at the garage as she did in Macon. Sort of keeps to herself and her art. But she likes everyone and they seem to like her too.”

“That's good.”

“Dean, there's something you should know...”

“She's pregnant, I heard.” Tyler's shocked expression would have been funny if not for the subject of discussion. “Nash told me on the way down here.”

“Oh... right.” He took a moment to collect his thoughts, jumping forward in the conversation he had been working out in his head. “Well, she was planning on leaving before all of this happened. She says she's still going to after she gets out.” A curious look from Dean made him continue. “Jackie knew you'd find out eventually and was afraid of what your reaction would be. She didn't want to be here when you showed up.”

“Nobody told her I was coming?”

“Bianca threatened to kill anyone who did. She's been determined to get you two in a room together for quite a while now.”

Dean scoffed and rolled his eyes as an understanding hit him. “Sounds like she's been talking to Nash. Should have seen that one coming.” Laughing lightly, the pair fell silent once again until the Macon biker spoke a few minutes later. “Why didn't she just tell me?”

“You'd have to ask her for the exact reasons, but from what I gathered during our conversation this morning, she was just scared. Scared of being a mom, of your reaction, of how it would affect you and the club. She knew you didn't want a kid and that it wouldn't really fit in with the life you guys had. I guess she thought not telling you was the best option for everyone.”

“That decision wasn't up to her,” he muttered, repeating the words he'd heard only minutes ago.

“I think she had the idea in her head that you'd make her get rid of the baby when you found out.”

To tell the truth, the thought had crossed his mind a few times, but he knew Jackie would never go for it. And somewhere, a part of him would never allow it either, even if he did decide that fatherhood wasn't his thing.

With a smile, Dean replied, “Nobody can make her do anything.”

Tyler laughed and nodded his head in agreement. “Yeah, that's pretty true.” He pulled his hands from his pockets and took a few steps towards the door. “I'm gonna get some coffee. Give you a few minutes to... talk or whatever. I'll see ya later.” Before Dean could protest, the prospect was out the door.

He looked around the room with a sigh, wondering what he was supposed to do now that they were alone. Should he talk to her, even though she couldn't hear him? Should he just sit there and stare at her? Or should he sneak out of the hospital while Bianca had abandoned her post at the door in order to accompany Tyler on his quest for coffee?

While the latter idea sounded incredibly appealing at the moment, he knew he would get an earful from the woman when she saw him later. Instead, he took residence in the recently-vacated chair next to the bed and simply watched Jackie sleep.

His life had done a complete one hundred and eighty degree flip in the past few months. He wasn't the kind of guy that should be going through this sort of stuff. Relationships, babies, heartache... love. These things were for normal people with normal nine-to-five jobs and normal lives.

He was a fucking biker.

A sex-loving, liquor-drinking, car-stealing, money-making, law-breaking, people-killing biker.

There was no part of him that had ever thought about falling in love and settling down. His nights consisted of a new girl to fuck and multiple bottles of alcohol to drink as he partied with his fellow Kings. He was the type of man that laughed at all of the normal, boring people with two and a half kids, white picket fences, and a golden retriever named Spot.

And yet, here he sat next to a woman that had gotten so deep under his skin. So deep that he couldn't get rid of her, no matter how hard he tried. This was also the same woman that had made him second-guess the job he had loved for so long. And she had almost cost him his position in the club due to the odd feelings she had instilled in him when he wasn't looking.

The more he tried to deny it, the more he realized that he had become a changed man. Granted, he still loved to hurt and kill people. But now he actually thought about what he was doing, instead of acting first and thinking later. And while Luke hadn't seemed too pleased with his new-found tendencies, Dean was sure he would like it more than the constantly angry phase he had been so fond of lately.

But in the scheme of things, it didn't really matter. From what he'd been told, Jackie had no intention of talking to him, much less staying in town. Which supported his idea that they would be much better off apart.

Because she was pregnant and there was no part of him that had ever wanted a child. He hated when they screamed and he absolutely refused to change dirty diapers. He couldn't find any positive aspect about them. Besides, a child didn't need to be around the type of things he did for a living. Even he and his twisted mind knew that a clubhouse full of drunk, rowdy criminals was no place to raise a kid.

So he would just have a little chat with Jackie when she woke up, make sure they were on speaking terms again, and then send her on her way with some cash to somewhere suitable for a baby and far away from him.

That would work, right?

Mentally reassuring himself that it was a good plan, Dean stood up and placed a quick kiss to Jackie's forehead before exiting the room. He made his way down the corridor, anger building with each step as he remembered a quick conversation he'd had before leaving her in Lakeside all those days ago.

He met Bianca and Tyler at the waiting room down the hall, both holding a cup of hot coffee in their hands.

“Where's Jagger?” 

33

July 20
th

Entering the lot at Vic's Auto Shop, Dean parked his bike and made his way to the clubhouse, oblivious to everything around him as he entered the building.

“Dean! Hey, Dean!”

He ignored Nash’s shouts and let the door shut behind him, the smell of smoke and beer invading his senses. His eyes found their target slouching at the end of the bar.

The Macon biker was next to Jagger in a few quick strides, the scantily-clad ladies scrambling to get out of his path. Shaking the man’s shoulder, Dean waited for him to look up and narrowed his eyes when their gazes locked.

“Dean, hey man.” Jagger stood up and made to hug the other man, resignation filtering briefly across his face when Dean pushed him back.

“What the hell happened?”

“They came at us so fast. I dunno.” Jagger shrugged his shoulders, at a loss for words. He knew he should apologize, but he was sure that wasn’t going to be enough for Dean. Not by a long shot.

“You don’t know?”

“I'm sorry, man! Assholes came after me, not Jackie. She was just there.” Running a hand through his long, dark hair, the sergeant at arms sighed. “She wasn’t supposed to get hurt.”
“But she did! She’s in a damn hospital bed and you’re here, enjoying yourself!”

“Look, man. I don’t know what you want me to say.” Throwing his hands up, Jagger turned his back to Dean. “I know sorry doesn’t cut it, but that’s just all I got right now.” He'd been beating himself up since the accident, knowing it wasn't really his fault, but not able to place the blame elsewhere. He'd made a promise to look after the woman when she arrived and had managed to fail miserably in just a few short months. It wasn't like him to feel guilty, but he hated not keeping his end of a deal.

“Goddamn right, it ain’t gonna cut it.” Mumbling under his breath, Dean grabbed Jagger’s shoulder and forcefully turned him around. Not paying any attention to the other occupants of the room, he let his fist fly, delighted by the sickening thud that echoed when it connected with his opponent’s jaw.

Stumbling back, Jagger was barely able to steady himself against the bar before he was yanked forward again, another one of Dean’s fists getting familiar with his face.

“Shit, man!” 

Dean was vaguely aware of the other guys trying to restrain him, but he was so pumped up on rage and adrenaline that their attempts hardly fazed him. He was like a madman, a predator on the prowl, as he continued his assault on Jagger, trying to get all of his frustrations out on him. The Saints, Jackie… the baby. It was all too much for him.

“Jesus Christ, Dean, that’s enough!” Nash moved in on his traveling companion, trying to grab his arm with little success. His efforts to break up the fight were rewarded by an elbow in the face courtesy of the killer. The blow took him off guard and he stumbled back and into a table, the only thing that stopped him from falling on his ass. Shaking his head, Nash made for Dean again and grabbed him at the waist, hauling him off and away from Jagger with Lincoln's help. “What the fuck, man? You trying to kill him or what?”

“Asshole deserved it.”

“Right.” Lincoln scoffed. “It wasn’t his fault, Dean. He didn’t deserve a beating.”

“Nah, he's right.” Jagger shook his head and wiped a bit of blood from his lip. “I deserved it. Jackie was my responsibility, I should’ve kept her safe.”

“You’re damn right, you should have.” Making his way past a reluctant Nash, Dean stared the bloodied man down before going to the bar. He got two beers out of the fridge and then sat down heavily. Opening one bottle, he took a swig from the amber liquid before laying his head in his hand.

Nash and Jagger exchanged glances before Jagger sat down next to the man and opened the other beer.

“Look, Dean.” The Lakeside biker held the cold bottle against his face, relishing in the soothing effect it had on the bruises already starting to form. “I’m really sorry about what happened to your girl.”

“I know.” Taking another pull from his beer, he nodded in the other man's direction. “So am I.”

That’s how Vic found them when he entered the clubhouse a half hour later.  He cocked an eyebrow when he saw Jagger, a grin forming on his lips.

“You got a makeover, Jag?” The president looked at the other two men and shook his head. “Courtesy of Dean, I presume.”

“We had some… issues to resolve.”

“Well, you done with that or should I look for a new Sergeant?”

Nodding, Dean thumped Jagger on the back. “I’m done. Now…” He twisted around on the stool and looked Vic in the eyes. “…when do I get to kill somebody?”

“We’re just about to figure that out.” He gestured toward the meeting room. “Gather your shit. Meeting in ten.”
 

***

“Look, you can’t just bust down their bar and demand for Tiago to give up the pricks that went after Jackie. He probably doesn’t even know who she is.” Finn took a drag from his cigarette and looked Dean in the eyes.

“He’s right. This was about Jagger, not the girl.” Johnny nodded and leaned on the wooden table. “She was just in the wrong place at the wrong time.”

“That ‘wrong place, wrong time’ bullshit is not flying. Doesn’t matter if they were targeting Jagger or not. She’s still the one laying in that hospital bed.” Looking around the table, Dean’s gaze settled on Vic. “Retaliation for Jagger? That’s just a bonus for me. The shit that happened to Jackie? Heads are gonna roll.”

“I hear what you’re saying, brother, I do. And you’ll get your revenge, but we gotta be smart about this. That attack wasn’t about the girl, and it wasn’t as much about Jagger as it was about the club.” Running a hand over his head, Vic sighed. “This is war and half-cocked just isn’t the way to go. As much as I want to kill the assholes that are responsible for this mess, we also gotta kill whatever ambitions the Saints have about gaining territory. Digging a few graves along the way is inevitable.” Smirking, he looked at the killer. “Yeah?”

“Yeah.” Lighting a cigarette, Dean smiled. “As long as someone dies, everything’s fine.”

“We take them down, whole fucking MC.” Jagger spoke up, rocking back on his chair. “You’re right, this is war. Kill or be killed. We off Tiago and his crew, put an end to this problem.”

“And you think that’ll be all?” Benz shook his head at him, a grim look on his face. “What happens when someone else takes his place? Nah, that would just make things worse.”

“Then what do you propose, oh all-knowing one?”

“We take out their Jacksonville heroin factory.” Tyler’s voice was hard as he said it, his eyes focused on the president.

The whole table turned to look at him, surprise written on every face. He’d been silent the whole time, the thing with Jackie taking a toll on him. He was the one that had been hit the hardest with everything, since they were as close as two people could be. A silence descended on the bikers, every person mulling over the suggestion. Finn was the first to speak up, supporting the prospect’s plan.

“Yeah, that’s a good idea.” Taking a drag from his cigarette, he blew the smoke out and explained his view on things. “That’s why all of this started in the first place, right? The Saints were pushing their business into Lakeside. We take out the factory, we put a stop to that shit. They’ll stop selling their stuff in town because they won’t have anything
to
sell. Slow down the heroin trade, get a message across to the assholes. Put a stop to the bullshit they’re doing.”

“Okay, I like that idea. We need to take a vote on this thing?” When the occupants of the room shook their heads, the charter president nodded. “Now… you got a plan figured out, prospect, or was this stroke of genius a one time thing?” Vic smiled at Tyler, waiting for his answer. The kid wasn’t the smartest when it came to anything that wasn’t electronic, but he had to give it to him, this wasn't a bad idea.

“Oh, I got a plan alright.”