To Betray A Brother (11 page)

She tilted her head and kissed him. "Thank you for an amazing day filled with wondrous gifts." She lay her head on his chest savouring the security she experienced there, confident everything is as the universe meant it to be.

"Thanks." Penny called as the young girl delivered her morning coffee. She unfolded the newspaper. The headline jumped out at her.
Gangland Style Murder.
Penny took a mouthful, letting the hot coffee run down her throat and coat her insides. She closed her eyes for a moment, letting the mix of chocolate and sugar danced in counterpoint against the bitter flavour of the coffee before she read.

Local police uncovered what they believe to be a gangland murder overnight. Authorities found the BMW of local business and racing identity Justin Byrne burnt out in a disused quarry with an unidentified body bound and gagged in the boot of the car. The victim had sustained multiple bullet wounds to the head and body. Police have not been unable to locate Justin Byrne and are waiting a positive identification of the body.

Police Commissioner Malcolm Snedon said, "We are following every lead to bring this matter to a swift conclusion."

Penny put the paper down and shook her head in disbelief. A small knot formed in her stomach. She had thought Justin quite sexy once. Even with all of his faults, he’d flattered her with his attention. She had never really understood his intent in pursuing her. Then almost overnight, he changed from being affable and sexy to mean and scary. This escalated when she had enlisted Bryce's help with her bike. Some bad blood definitely existed between the two men. She’d seen it flair between them on more than one occasion. The intensity of their hatred for each other had been palpable.

At the thought of Bryce, involuntarily a smile creased her face. Visions of his hard lean body came unbidden. Her body heat rose as she imagined his hands sliding up the back of her leg, cupping her butt as he pulled her to him. Shaking her head, Penny downed the last of her coffee. "Won't get any work done today like that." she said to nobody in particular as she stood and made her way from the coffee shop waving to the girls behind the counter.

Penny opened the door to
Leather and Lace.
She had a lot to get through today, stock to unpack, and about one hundred internet orders to process. The specials deal she had run online over the weekend had been a huge success. Almost all of the old stock and last season's clothes had been snapped up. First things first, she picked up the phone and dialled Bryce's number. The call went through to message bank.

"Hey, did you read today's paper? You need to. See you later." She hadn't expected him to answer. She wasn’t sure if he had returned from his trip yet. He had been out of town for the past couple of days on one the various
club business
trips he needed to disappear for on occasion.

After a couple of hours, Penny had the internet orders completed and ready for delivery to the post office. Half of the new stock was now unpacked and either racked or put into the store room. Her stomach growled. She grabbed a glass of water, determined to finish unpacking before she allowed herself to too get distracted.

She looked at the clock, three thirty. There had been no customers in today. Still she was happy with the fruits of the day's labour. She placed the boxes of orders onto the trolley and rolled them out to the pickup. Bryce’s skill never ceased to amaze her when she looked at the vehicle. He blended old school and modern together to create a special kind of cool. She loaded the boxes into the bed of the pickup and headed back to lock up the shop. Get these out this afternoon and she'd call the day done. There'd be plenty of time to go for a run and then catch up with Bryce.

* * * *

She slowed to walk the last few hundred meters home. Her body relaxed and let the muscles cool, dissipating the lactic acid which had built up during her run. She stopped and stood with her heels hanging over the gutter, letting body weight stretch out her calves. After a minute or so, she walked the last bit to her house. Odin and Warlock bounded up to her as she slipped through the gate. She had grown so accustomed to them being around the house they’d become part of the family, even Tim Tam tolerated them. They were boisterous and loving as they charged about vying for her attention. Penny lowered herself into one final stretch, letting her mind relax as the weight of her upper body folded down into her inner thighs.

Penny finished stretching and headed into the kitchen for a glass of water, glancing at the answering machine. Nothing. She walked past and picked up her cell. Nothing. She would normally have heard back from Bryce by now. They always spoke at least once a day, even when Bryce went away.

She peeled her sweat drenched clothes off and stepped into the shower. Steam filled the room while the water drilled into her back, stinging and massaging all at the same time. Penny grabbed a thick towel and wrapped herself as she wandered into her bedroom. Perfume from the rose garden carried though the open windows as she looked around. The chair in the corner contained a small pile of clothes, hers and Bryce's mixed together. She grabbed them to toss them into the basket.

She hesitated mid-action, holding Bryce's shirt out and breathed. His scent, his quintessential maleness, filled her senses. White hot fire burnt though her in response. She slid one hand over her stomach, down between her legs, and her heart hammered inside her chest as her hips thrust forward. Her other hand cupped her breast, caressing the nipple between finger and thumb. A trail of fire ran over her stomach, down between her thighs. The recollection of their last love making flooded back to her.
Bryce’s tongue burnt a path over her body. His manhood, like velvet covered steel, filled her as their bodies intertwined giving way to passion and fire.
She ached for Bryce and slid her fingers deep inside.

"Mmm. I think I might save this for tonight."

She threatened to explode, the clothes hit the basket, and she grabbed her phone. "God, where is he!"

The number didn't even ring, going instead straight through to voice mail. "Hey, it’s Penny. Call me." She flopped onto the bed. Tim Tam jumped up beside her and nuzzled into her neck. "Where is he, Tim Tam? Do you think something has happened?"

Tim Tam purred in response and curled up on Penny's chest taking every advantage he could for a scratch between the ears.

Day gave way to darkness as the sun slid behind the horizon. Penny's stomach growled. They were planning on dinner together tonight, so she had waited. She checked her phone again. Still nothing. Sighing, Penny got up, went into the kitchen, and made a ham and cheese toasted sandwich. Right now, the only thing she wanted was to see or hear Bryce. Every time she heard a motorcycle, her ears strained, hoping to hear the familiar growl of Bryce’s old Harley.

With nothing better to do, she jumped into the pickup and headed over to Bryce's house. She hoped to catch him engrossed in some project or other. She had seen him lose all track of time once he became engrossed in something. One time she’d walked down into his workshop at three am to ask when he planned on coming to bed.

In no time she had driven the now familiar route to Bryce’s converted barn. Gravel crunched beneath the tires as she drove down past the house and pulled up. Darkness engulfed the barn. Grabbing her keys, she slipped from the car and went inside. The place was empty, and his bike was missing. Club business? She knew clubs exercised strange powers over their members. On the occasions when he had to attend to business, he had always contacted her to let her know he needed to go away to
attend to business
. Whatever that meant. She had never thought to ask, and he had never volunteered. She knew his going away with little notice or her being told little just came with the territory.

She dialled his number again. Nothing changed, straight to voice mail. In desperation, she scrolled though her phone. She found Stitch’s number and pushed the dial button. His phone rang at least before being picked up by voice mail. "Stitch, its Penny. I'm sorry to call, but I’m concerned for Bryce. I’ve not heard anything from him. Can you give me call, please?"

She hung up; the stone in her stomach eased just a little by being able leave a message. What had started out as normal day had become quite challenging and stressful. Weariness crept over her as she sat, trying to decide what to do next. After a few minutes she locked the pickup and went back upstairs, choosing to sleep in his bed rather than go back home. At least the essence of Bryce surrounded her here. She undressed and slipped into bed. The incident with Justin floated in and out of her dreams, intertwined with vision of Bryce laying injured on the road somewhere.

* * * *

The noisy coffee shop went quiet as Penny entered. She stopped, everybody was looking at her. Doing her best to ignore them, she ordered her coffee and took her regular seat.

"Here you go, Penny," said Jenny as she placed the mug on the table.

"Thanks, Jen. I really need this. Had a hell of a night."

"I'm not surprised," responded Jenny. "Bryce is all over the front page of the paper."

"What do you mean Bryce is all over the paper?"

The conversation the background was just a whisper as she handed Penny a copy of the paper. Jenny eyed her. "You don’t know, do you?"

"Know what?" Penny did nothing to hide the exasperation in her voice.

"Shit. Read the front page. If you need anything, just ask.” Jenny patted her hand in a clumsy effort to offer comfort.

Penny's hands shook as she unfolded the newspaper.

War Hero Accused of Murder

Last night Police charged war hero Bryce Huntington with the murder of Justin Byrne. Police allege Bryce Huntington carried out a gangland style execution of Justin Byrne two nights ago. Huntington's lawyer said the allegations were bogus and trumped up at best. "In their hurry to gain an arrest, the police had been negligent, overlooking Justin Byrne’s association and links with organised crime. You do not need to dig far to find out Byrne had been dishonourably discharged from the Army for cowardice in Afghanistan and is now a small time player dealing in illegal weapons." he stated.

Police declined to comment, other than to say they were exploring all leads in the ongoing investigation.

Penny trembled as she put down the paper. With as much dignity as she could muster, she stood. She focussed her energy on putting one foot in front of the other. With her eyes trained on the worn linoleum, she made her way to the door. The whispers reached her ears, none carried far enough for her to hear the conversations. Her legs shook as she walked from the café. Her stomach churned as she walked. Her chest constricted breathing became laboured and difficult. Her hands trembled, making it almost impossible to unlock the shop door. Finally, she got inside and closed the door behind her. She did not want to see anybody at all.

Making her way into the storeroom, Penny slid down the wall. She stared into space, struggling to come to grips with what she had read. She willed herself to look again at the article. Nothing made any sense. She had no idea why Bryce and Justin hated each other, just that each man seemed hell bent on destroying the other. Her breath came in short gasps, almost overwhelming her. She threw the paper to the floor, closed her eyes, and concentrated on bringing her breathing under control.

War hero, what did they mean by war hero? Bryce had been wounded. Shit every time he looked into a mirror, the scarring reminded him. She had seen, felt where enemy shrapnel ripped huge pieces of flesh from his body.

Then she noticed the words
Editorial Page four.
As she thumbed through the pages, her phone rang. She jumped as the harsh sound cut across the silence. Scrabbling in her handbag, she pulled finally found caught the call, before it went to voice mail.

Her voice trembled. "Hello."

"Penny?" An unfamiliar voice came down the phone. "It's Stitch."

"Finally." Her shoulders slumped. "What the hell is going on? I've been trying to get you and Bryce, and then I read in the paper..." She left the last part unfinished.

"Not over the phone. Where are you? I'll come and get you." Stitch's voice sounded strained, tired as he spoke. Yet, she couldn’t mistake he wasn’t requesting a social visit.

"I'm at the shop. The door is locked." Even to her own ears she sounded as tired as he did.

"Ok. Give us ten minutes." The phone went dead.

* * * *

The whistle of the kettle cried out shrill, harsh against the silence. Penny put both hands on the table and pushed herself up. She'd lost track of everything, including how many cups of coffee she'd swallowed. When had she last slept properly? She had no idea. Her hands trembled, the spoon rattled against the coffee jar as she shovelled coffee into the oversize mug. Steam billowed from the spout as she melted the coffee and mixed in the milk.

Penny retuned to the table. Her laptop sat before her, open. She pushed the power button and computer leapt to life. She swallowed the hot bitter coffee, waiting for the laptop to finish booting up. After a moment she started up the video camera and looked into the lens. "God, you look terrible. Like you haven't slept for a week. Your eyes look like a blood moon. I haven't recorded a diary entry for such a long time. Things were going along so well, I believed I didn't need to." She took another swallow of coffee. "What have I got myself into?"