I follow him into the school building. “Is this where you live?”
He nods. “We’ve been knocking down walls and converting the old classrooms into rooms for the guys as we need them. It’s not a bad setup really. The cafeteria’s still in place, so there’s room to hang out and cook, and it’s handy to have a gym and locker rooms already built in.”
Not too different from when I visited friends in the dorms at college. He leads me down some stairs and out the back of the building. Music and the sound of weights hitting the floor come out of a pair of open double doors. I glance inside and see the gym he mentioned. Several guys are in there working out. It’s nothing fancy, but from the look of all the men I’ve seen so far, it’s clearly working for them.
A little ways away from the building, they’ve put together an informal shooting range. There’s a covered shooting area with chairs and equipment set up. A fence separates the shooting zone from the field where targets are set up at the end of marked lanes.
I didn’t think they were lying when they said there were women attached to the club, but I didn’t expect to see them for the first time while they’re clearly packing up from practicing at the range. One is short and curvy, with blonde highlights in her brown hair, and the other is taller and more slender, peering at us curiously through chunky glasses.
The shorter of the two waves. “Hey Colt. Jess and I’ll be out of your way in a sec.”
He nods. “Paige.”
“Who’s this?” The girl with the glasses cocks her head and looks at me.
“Hold up.” Paige’s eyes go wide as she jumps in before I get a chance to introduce myself. “Quinn Callahan! She plays that demon girl on the show I told you to watch. Please, tell me you have insider information on season two!” Her voice gets more and more excited as she goes on. “Wait, I knew you were sort of local, but what are you doinghere?”
“It’s um… complicated.”
“Hi, I’m Jessica, but you can call me Jess.” The other girl holds out her hand with a grin. “Please excuse Paige, she has a six month old and is either way too much online because she’s up all night, or completely out of the loop.”
“Well, long story short, someone tried to kidnap me and I hired Priest, Colt and Sinner to keep it from happening again.”
“Huh. It went the other way for me,” Jess says.
Colt huffs a laugh. “I’ll get us set up, don’t go anywhere.”
A lightbulb goes off over Paige’s head. “Wait a minute. You’re the one I got the sheets and stuff for! I can’t believe Priest held out on me. Gah. I wondered why he didn’t just pick stuff up from the communal stash. Men leave out all the important parts.”
“I wish I could thank you by telling you I knew what’s going to happen on the show, but none of us know yet either. I think our chances are really good for another season, though.”
“I’m holding you to that.”
Jess laughs. “Now you’re in trouble. If it doesn’t pan out, she’ll sic the Outlaw Sons on your production company.”
“Don’t worry, I’d let you know ahead of time so you can arrange an alibi. We like you.” Paige winks.
“You don’t even know me,” I say with a little laugh.
“No, but there’s a reason you’re here,” Jess says. “Living here has taught me to trust my instincts, and if Colt brought you back here to practice, whatever’s going on isn’t just business.”
Colt’s eyes narrow.
Jess doesn’t flinch. “I’m going to say I told you so.”
He snorts. “Whatever. Leave the lockbox open.”
“Knock yourselves out. Come on, Paige. Let’s go rescue Anne from your demon spawn.”
When I turn back to Colt, he’s watching me with a considering look that turns into a scowl. “This way.”
“They seemed nice,” I venture.
“Paige and Jess? Yeah, they’re trouble, but mostly worth it, I suppose.” He’s crouched down, sorting through a lockbox with various weapon-y looking things in it.
“Just mostly? High praise.”
Colt actually laughs. It’s a nice sound. “Well, I’m not one of their men, so mostly’s as far as they’re going to get.”
