She looked next door and saw Comanche sitting outside too and raised her bottle at him.
He lifted the beer he was drinking in return to her salute.
Neither motioned the other over, so each of them sat in the silence of the night.
Kelly hadn’t told the guys about being pregnant.It was still very early and she wanted to wait at least another month.Besides, she knew they would flip and then not allow her to work on bikes or even ride one.No, she would wait, she was only a few months along still and not even showing yet.
She peered up at the stars and just sat there.It was good to have all the guys still here with her.She had thought they might leave when she married Shay, but they didn’t.And they had all found their spot.In mechanics or heading into missions that Shay and Pappy lined up.She always tried not to worry about them and Shay.The man took too many chances but that was one of the things she loved about him.He loved his country and despite officially leaving the service, he still served.
She finished her drink and was about to stand up when her phone rang, disturbing the silence.She looked down at it, not recognizing the number on the screen.The area code was Iowa.It had been a long damn time since she had been there.She picked it up and tapped the screen, “Hello.”
An audible gasp came from on the other end then a distracted female voice called out, “Kelly?Is that really you?Please tell me it’s you.”
Kelly froze.“Char?Charlene Richards?”
“Oh, thank God.”Char sighed hard.“I’ve been trying to find you for over a year.I was so hoping you would remember me.”
Kelly paused then asked, “Where did you go?One day you were there and the next you weren’t.What happened to you?”She swallowed hard and added, “I thought we were best friends growing up.”
“Oh honey, I thought so too,” Char told her.“The night we left for good, my uncle came for us,” Char explained.“Our mom’s brother, Victor.He busted through our door then he and my mom had a fight.He told her she had disgraced the family long enough.He needed her to come home and do her duty for the family.Mom told him she had walked away from the family for a reason and she wasn’t going back.”
Kelly could read the shock in her voice, but she didn’t say anything yet.She just listened.
“Victor told my mom she didn’t have to live like she did now.That all she had to do was come back and apologize to our mother and take her place again.”Char caught her breath and then she stumbled on, “But Mom told him she wouldn’t come back and she didn’t owe her mother any apology because she hadn’t done anything wrong.She just didn’t want to be in an arranged marriage for the purpose of a business deal.That’s when Victor looked around our house and said,So where is your husband then?Why then are you living here in this dump of a house?You know what mother’s rules are.”
Kelly had to ask, “What were the rules about?”
Char paused then said, “My grandmother is a powerful woman and rich too.My mom told us that all the children were to be married off to the highest bidder and that my mom was supposed to marry a man named Taggert Williams before I was born.But my mom didn’t love him, she loved my dad instead and they had to run away to be together.My dad’s name was Luke Richards and he died in a construction accident two years after Rosie was born.I was ten at the time and I saw how hard my mom worked for everything we had after my dad was gone.We had to give up the house and move to the neighborhood where we met you, remember?”
“I remember,” Kelly said quietly.“I remember your mom too.”
“Yeah well, that night Victor hit my mom, over and over.In fact, he left her there, on the floor unconscious.Do you remember my little sister Rosie?”
“Yeah, I remember her.Sweet little Rosie.Of course.”
“He grabbed me and Rosie.We fought him then he had another guy come in.He hit us and they made us leave.They had to literally drag us out of that house and drove away with us.He took us to our grandmother’s house in Kansas City and that old biddy made our lives hell for the next six years.She groomed me and Rosie to make us biddable brides to gain our place in society.We were nothing more than slaves to gain another link to our grandmother’s business empire.”
Kelly gasped and asked.“What did you do?”
Char went quiet for a few seconds then she said softly, “I took a note from my mom’s book and I ran away before grandma dearest could sell me into marriage with a man three times my age.I walked from Kansas City back to Iowa and that’s where I found my mom’s headstone.That beating Victor had given her along with both of her daughters disappearing...it killed her.She died of a broken heart.”
“Oh, my God,” Kelly whispered.“What have you been doing since then?”
Char replied with a growl in her voice, “I’ve been watching and waiting for the right time to get back at Victor.To bring the old bitch’s empire down and I’m almost there.Then a year ago I found out something.My grandmother made another deal, this time she made one for Rosie.Before I could stop her, she sold my baby sister into a marriage with the devil himself.I finally found Rosie and I think she’s in real trouble.”
“What do you mean, in trouble?”Kelly asked.
Char took a deep breath and told her, “A week ago, Rosie finally called me.She said she was a prisoner inside his house and she thought he was gonna kill her.That’s when I heard her scream and then the phone went dead.Oh, Kelly, I have to get her out of that house and get her safe.”
“What do you want me to do?”Kelly asked.
“I want you to meet me and go on a rescue mission with me,” Char said.“Will you help me get my sister out of her hell and somewhere safe?I know it’s asking a lot from someone you haven’t seen in almost five years but I don’t know who else to ask.If I went in alone I don’t think Rosie or I would survive.I need your help.”
Kelly smiled and she said, “You better not go without me.Just tell me when and where to meet you.I’ll be there.”She paused, “Can I bring a friend along?”
Char sighed deeply.“God yes, bring whoever you want, we may need the help.Meet me in San Antonio as soon as you can get there.I’ll be on the River Walk.”
“Ok, it should only take me a few hours to get there.Wait for me,” Kelly told her.She ended the call then looked over at Comanche.She rose to her feet and walked across the lawn to his patio.
