I hear crashing and loud voices upstairs. More voices than the three who were in the van. I hear yelling and then loud bangs that could only be gunshots, followed by thuds on the floor. I’m guessing bodies landing on the floor above me. I hear loud footsteps all over the floor above me. I don’t know if this is a good thing or a bad thing for me. I mean, I didn’t get the impression that Asshole had a lot of people helping him.
The crashing and gunshots last for what I’m guessing is a few minutes, and then both stop, but the footsteps don’t. I hear voices, but I can’t make out what they’re saying. They definitely sound like all men just by the deepness of their voices. Someone finds the door to the cellar because the doorknob starts twisting. It stops after a few seconds, and I know as soon as they get it open, I’m either going to be saved, or it’s going to make my situation worse. I’m not sure which way my luck is going, and my stomach is in turmoil, waiting for the door to be unlocked and opened. I really wish I could see so I could maybe break off a piece of wood from the shelf or something.
There’s a crash as someone's leg comes through the door. Another kick, and it crashes open. A shadow fills the doorway, but with the light coming from behind, I can’t see the man’s face. A voice from the past shocks the ever-loving hell out of me. “Hey, Kim Kim.”
Rock
About twenty minutes ago
It’s been a few hours since Riff got a call from the Knights Wrath asking for help. Apparently, the fucksticks that are all that’s left of the Sangre Devils decided to take one of their women. Maine sent some brothers to their clubhouse to see if they were there.
Maine just walked into the main room with his phone to his ear. His eyebrows could not go higher if he fucking tried. “I’d say fucking burn that shit to the ground, but given what you found, maybe just bring back the two you found and place an anonymous call to the sheriff.” He’s recommending for them to call the law? What the fuck could they have found?
Maine hangs up and looks around the room. I know the plan was that if the brothers who went didn’t find anything, he would take me, Tonk, Keys, Shadow, and Maverick over to the property we know the shithead Taz acquired recently. “She wasn’t at their clubhouse. Riff said only two guys were there and were so highthey didn’t even know they were there. But someone in that club is a sick son of a bitch because their freezers were filled with body parts.Femalebody parts. That’s why I suggested an anonymous tip to the sheriff. They might have families looking for them, and I can’t imagine being the cause they don’t find out what happened to them. I might be a fucker, but that’s a different kind of fucked up.” The brothers around the room all nod and share their agreement with Pres. He continues with his plan. “Seeing as she wasn’t there, we’re going to go check out that farm. Keys looked into it for me and told me that behind the barn that you can see from the road, there’s a rundown farmhouse. So when we get there, I want Shadow, Keys, and Maverick to check out the barn. Tonk and Rock, you’ll be with me and checking out the house. Make sure you’ve got plenty of ammo in your sidearms. I know there can’t be that many guys there, but when they’re as crazy and stupid as Taz, sometimes they don’t go down quietly.”
We are all checking our weapons when Maverick asks a question. “So this woman we’re looking for, do we know her name? I mean, if we find her, she’s probably going to be spooked, and if we know who she is, it might help reassure her.” Maine nods. “Her name is Kimbra. I know she’s got kids and has a medical background. I know she’s been claimed by one of the brothers and may be married, but I’m not sure.” It can’t be. I mean, what are the fucking odds? “Did you say Kimbra?”Maine looks over at me. “Yeah, I know it’s a different name, but I confirmed it with Riff.” I rub my face and try to get my emotions in check. Maverick bumps my elbow as he heads to the door to leave. “What’s goin’ on?” I shake my head. “Just a name I haven’t heard in over a decade.” We all head toward our bikes. Keys speaks up, “Is she someone you know from school or something?” I can’t help the sigh that comes out. The last few times I saw her, I was high as a kite and in the middle of my addiction. “Or something. There is only one person I know with that name, and it’s my sister.”
Maine and Tonk, who’ve known me the longest, both have shocked looks on their faces. Maine gets on his Harley and glares at me. “Why the fuck do we not know that you have a sister? What the fuck is up with that, Rock?” I sit on my bike and look over at my brothers. “Because the last bunch of times I saw her, I was deep in my addiction and only cared about my next high. She’s my younger sister. She was in the middle of medical school or residency and was doing really well. She was married and had just had a baby. When I got clean, I was honestly embarrassed to seek her out and see her. Plus, at that point, I didn’t know where she was and didn’t know how to find her.”
Keys is the last to get on his bike. “Well, it sounds like she’s not married to that guy anymore, so who knows what her life is like. Hopefully, she’s there and in one piece.” She better fucking be okay. I may not be worthy of calling myself her brother, but shedefinitely deserves good things in life, and if it is her and Taz has harmed one hair on her head, well, let’s just say they won’t find a single piece of the fucker. Time to go hunting.
It doesn’t take us long to get to the farm since they’re in our fucking territory. The three checking out the barn stop, and the rest of us continue down the road to the house. I don’t see any bikes outside, but I do see a van that matches the pictures that the Knights sent us.
I’m sure Maine has a plan on how to handle any of the guys we might run into. We pull up and park behind the van. As soon as we get off our bikes, the front door opens, and Taz, the fucker himself, comes out. I know he’s been trying to get a meeting with Maine and try to work with us, but not a single brother wants to deal with his ass. He’s an idiot and has pissed off all the clubs his former president used to work with. Rumor has it he’s even pissed off the Russians by shorting a few deliveries to them. Someone has a fucking death wish.
“Maine, gentlemen. To what do I owe the pleasure of this visit?” Maine walks up the bottom of the steps to look at the slimy creep. “Funny, a couple of things. First is that rumor has it that you’ve bought this property inourterritory without coming to us first. Not really a way to fucking endear yourself to us or any other clubs we’re friendly with.” Watching Taz pale as Pres speaks is a funny sight to see. “Secondly, we got a call from a friendly club over in Toketee Creek. Care to guess why?” Taz’seyes widen, and he takes off back into the house. Well, shit. Maine takes his gun out, and we follow. Tonk hurries and goes inside in front of Maine. Maine and I go right behind him, my gun out and ready.
As soon as I walk in the door, I hear a gunshot and hear a loud thump on the floor. Looking to my right, I see Tonk standing there with his gun out, and I see on the floor some of the biggest shoes I think I’ve ever seen in person. Tonk looks over and shrugs his shoulders. “He had a fucking big-ass knife and was coming at me.” I nod and move to the left. Just as I turn the corner, I see two men on cots. One is unconscious, and the other is looking at me. Before I can ask him a question, he lifts a gun, and without thought, I shoot. Having been shot before, I know it hurts like a son of a bitch. I’ll be damned if someone lying down is gonna get the drop on me. I hear Maine shout out from another part of the house, and I take off in the direction that his shout came from.
I walk into what turns out to be the kitchen, and I see Maine standing in an open door, looking out to the trees behind the house. He looks back at us. “Taz is off in the woods somewhere. I don’t think I got him, but I know I hit the other fucker. He took off after Taz but fell the first time I hit him. Asshole got up and took off, and I’m not sure if I got him again. We might want to check the woods.” I hear footsteps behind me, and I quickly turn around but put my gun away when I see it’s Keys and the otherbrothers who were checking out the barn. “There was no one in the barn, but one of these fuckers is sick. Between what you said they found at the clubhouse and theobjectswe saw in the barn, I’m not going to be watchingTexas Chainsaw Massacreanytime soon.” He shrugs as whatever he saw gave him the chills.
“Well, she’s not in the barn or on the main floor. Let’s check the rest of the fucking house. If they were here, she’s gotta be here. Let’s search the rest of the place top to bottom,” Maine tells us. I hear a few brothers head upstairs. I look around and see a door, and I would bet a place like this has a basement. I turn the doorknob, and it’s locked. The keyhole is on this side, but fuck if I’m gonna take the time to try and find a key in this place. I kick it once, and my foot goes through the center of the door, but it doesn’t open it. I kick it again, as close to the lock as I can. It splinters open to a dark room. I look down the stairs, and I see a pair of eyes looking back at me like I’m looking at a mirror. I can’t help the smile that escapes. “Hey, Kim Kim.”
Kimbra
Maybe I did hit my head when Brander threw me down the stairs. My mouth moves without thought. “Brady?” He gives me a smile I’ve not seen in more years than I care to count. “Yeah, it’s me. Long time no see, lil’ sis. Heard there are some people looking for you. Are you hurt? Did those fuckers touch you?” Ishake my head and stand up. “I’ve got some scrapes and bruises, I’m guessing from when the creeper tossed me in here a few minutes ago, but other than that, I’m fine.” He flips on the light and comes down the stairs. He opens his arms, and I rush forward for a big brother hug. I can feel the tears starting. “You know I tried looking for you more than once.” I can feel him sigh and rest his chin on the top of my head like he used to when we were teenagers taking care of each other. “I finally got clean about nine years ago but was too embarrassed to try and find you.” Before I can tell him how dumb that was, someone speaks from the top of the stairs. “Let’s continue this family reunion at our clubhouse, shall we? Her family is going to meet us there.”
Brady releases me, and we head upstairs. “That was my president, Maine. You okay to ride, or do we need to get someone to bring a cage over here?” When I step into the kitchen, I realize I’m surrounded by bikers, and they definitely look a bit rougher than the guys in Ben’s club. “I’m good to ride, but it better be with you. I don’t think Ben would be okay with me riding anyone else’s bike but my brother’s.” Brady’s eyes widen. “Holy shit, you really are with a biker, aren’t ya?” One of his brothers speaks up as we all walk out of this decrepit house. “Man, Rock, why couldn’t you have kept in touch with your sister? I have a feeling she’d have made a great old lady.” The man withPresidenton his cut, so he must be Maine, rolls his eyes and glares at the brother who said that as he gets on hisHarley. “Before Rock loses it, shut up, Maverick.” He looks over at me once I’ve climbed behind Brady on his bike. “Let’s get our guest to our clubhouse and show her some decent hospitality as she waits for her ride home.”
The ride is a short one. I’m still trying to come to grips with the fact that it’s my brother who I’ve got my arms wrapped around. My brother, who I was scared I would never see again. My family of blood has doubled in size now since I know he’s alive and well. I know family is more than just blood, but there’s nothing like having the only other person in the world who shares your childhood memories back in the land of the living and in your life.
Brady and the other riders all slow down, turning onto a small, paved road. I see a big fence with a gate ahead. Maine in the front waves, and the gates start to open. They all pull in, parking next to each other across a parking lot from a big building. I get off Brady’s bike so he can get off. He takes his helmet off me and sets it on his bike. “Let’s get you inside. Sparrow will have some stuff to clean your scrapes. I’m sure Batya will have some food ready, and she might have a clean shirt you can wear.” I look down, and it’s the first time I realize just how filthy my shirt is. “Yeah, it would probably be good to clean up, but I want to have a long overdue conversation with you, too.” Brady grabs me by the shoulders and gives the top of my head a peck. “I figured as much. Also, you should know that everyone here calls me Rock.”I scrunch up my nose at him. “You aren’t anything like The Rock. Why do they call you that?” I hear chuckling around me, and Brady smiles and shakes his head. “Nah, it has nothing to do with him. It’s because when I was a prospect and still fairly new into my sobriety, I used my head to head-butt a few guys I got into fights with. A few of the brothers said I have a head as hard as a rock. I’ve since learned not to do that, but the name stuck. You, however, call me Brady.” Thank goodness. I don’t think I could really call him Rock.
We head inside, and I’m pleasantly surprised at how clean and bright it is. I know that’s judgey, but if they’re all bachelors, then can you blame me? A woman who’s about my height and also carrying a little more around the middle, but on her, it just looks like beautiful curves. I want to hate her, but the smile on her face is so welcoming it’s like I physically can’t.
“You look like you could do with a drink and some chocolate. Am I right? I’m Batya, by the way. I’m kind of the Malka or queen bitch around here. Without me, they would eat crap, and this place would look like a frat house.” I can’t help but smile at her. “You are a genius because I could really use a drink and some chocolate.” I sit down at a table in the room as Brady grabs a chair to sit next to me. I watch a young man, probably in his early to mid-twenties, walk over toward us. He has a slight limp, but it doesn’t slow his gait. He glares over at Batya. “Don’t give her a fucking big head. We’ll never hear the end of it.” He setsdown a bag and looks at me. “I usually patch these guys up, but you being a doctor and all, I’m feeling a little underqualified.” I smile. “Well…” He gives me a small grin. “Sparrow.” He nods toward the bag. “Well, Sparrow, first of all, I’m an OBGYN and not a wound expert or anything. You also probably know that it’s always easier to have someone else clean up your wounds than trying to do it yourself, so if you wouldn’t mind, I’d appreciate the help.” He sits down next to me and gets to work cleaning my hands and elbows, which got the worst of it.
Batya comes out a few minutes later with a cup of what smells like cinnamon tea and some chocolate cookies. “Here ya go. I’m gonna go find some clean clothes for you to change into.” I give her my thanks as Sparrow finishes up. “You might say you are underqualified, but your bandaging and method of cleaning is as good as I’ve seen in the emergency room before.” He gives me a huge smile and a nod. He gets up and leaves the room. I look over at Brady, and I can see by his face he’s got a question on the tip of his tongue. “Go on and ask me.” He leans on his elbows that rest on the table. “I see by that ring on your finger you're married or engaged to this biker who’s coming with his brothers to get you. What happened to Brian? You two seemed so in love, and you had just had a baby the last time we talked.” I take a sip of the tea and set the mug back down. I tell him what happened with Brian, and I can tell it pisses him off. “He and I are doing alright co-parenting so far, and that’s the bestI could hope for. I’ve got three kids. Branson James is almost thirteen and obsessed with playing baseball.” His eyebrows go up, but he lets me continue. “Bentley Jonathan is nine and way too smart. He loves working on anything machine-related, and if I let him, he would be building a car in the backyard. Bailey Marie is almost six and a total princess. There’s not enough pink in the world for her. Ben and I are engaged, we’re planning our wedding. He’s…he’s amazing. He’s great with the kids, and he treats me wonderfully. We love spending time together. I can’t wait to marry him.” I look up from my tea, and I swear, Brady’s eyes are glassy. “You gave your oldest dad’s middle name, and your second, you gave mine. Even with all my shit with the drugs and everything.” I shake my head. “Brady, we both dealt with the accident and Mom dying in different ways. You had the added stress of keeping a roof over our heads while I finished high school. I probably spent way too much time studying because, frankly, doing anything else would’ve given me time to think and deal with my emotions. I probably still really haven’t dealt with it in a healthy way all these decades later, but we’re all human and deal with things the best way we can. I’m not mad at you about the drugs, Brady. I’m just sad you’ve been clean this long, and you didn’t think I’d want you to be a part of my and my kids’ lives. They’ve got an uncle who they’d love to meet.”
He rubs the tip of his chin like he always has when he’s trying to figure out what to say. “I’m sorry for disappointing you, KimKim. I would like to meet your kids.” I must give him a face. “You know I’m not going to let you leave my life again, right? I know we live a few hours apart, but that’s not an excuse to miss visiting and big events.” Brady smiles at me. “I get that. I won’t disappear again. Promise.” I reach over and squeeze his hands. “Good. Maybe you can come for a visit soon. I’d like you to meet them before the wedding.” He looks up at me. “You want me at your wedding?” I roll my eyes without thought. “What did I just say? Yes, I mean, who else would I want to walk me down the aisle?” The jerk stands up, moves around the table, and yanks me up into a bear hug. “I would be honored to. I’ve missed you so fucking much, sis. I can’t say I’m glad you got kidnapped, but I’m really fucking glad this is the result of it.” I squeeze him back. “Same here.”
The roar of motorcycles stops anything else I was going to say. Brady squeezes me once more and lets me go. “Sounds like your man and the cavalry's here. Best we go out and greet them.” He’s right. We head outside, and I see my family pulling into the parking lot with my man in the middle of the sea of bikes.
Ben pulls up in front of me and gets off his bike so quickly that he barely gets the stand down before he leaves his bike. He moves so quickly he’s got me in his arms before I can barely blink. “Fuck. Doc, you have no idea how scared I was.” He moves just enough to give me a kiss, one that I can feel all his emotions through. I know he would’ve gone to the ends of the earth to findme and bring me home. He breaks the kiss and starts to pat me down. “You’re not hurt, are you, love?” I shake my head. “Just a couple of scrapes and bruises. Nothing that won’t heal in a couple of days.” He looks pissed. I squeeze his hand. “Hey. I’m here, and I’m fine. That’s all that matters. I’m fine, Mathis.” The soft look he gives me when I use his first name has me wishing we were alone right now so I could show him just how fine I am.
A voice behind me speaks up. “When you two are ready, everyone else is inside. We’re gonna have a chat about everything before you guys head back home.” I smile up at Ben. “Wanna know one good thing that came from this?” Ben looks at me like I hit my head. “What the fuck could be good about you being taken at gunpoint, Doc?” I turn and gesture toward the only other person still outside. “Meet my brother, Brady.” Ben’s eyebrows go sky-high. “The one you haven’t heard from in years?” Brady, being the smartass he’s always been, remarks, “Pretty damn sure I’m the only big brother she’s got.”
The two of them shake hands and give each other that chin lift thing that all these guys seem to do to each other. Ben, who’s not stopped touching me in some way, pulls me close to him again. “Let’s go inside and have that discussion so we can get home to our kids.” When he calls themourkids, it makes me want to cry happy tears.
