Pope stared at her for a moment before he ran his hand over the top of his head.“I hope you’re right.I’ll have Fox send him the file and I guess we’ll see what he does about it.”
Daisy nodded, then she gasped as if she just remembered something.“One more thing, if you have anyone good with a rifle, get them on your roof.My brother Digger likes to throw grenades over the fence after dark.He figures if the explosion is big enough then the rest of them can get inside and do their own kind of damage.They like the element of surprise on their side.”
Pope nodded his thanks for the info.“I’ll get some guys on the roof.Just in case.”He turned and walked out.
Nobody in the room said a word.Not yet.
Torin walked over to the window and stared out into the sun lit yard.Finally, he spoke, “What else can we look forward to?”
“With my brothers and father?”Daisy shrugged.“Just about any attack move you can think of.The only thing you can really count on is that he thinks he can do anything, any time and anywhere.He really believes that no one with any power will be able to touch him.His word is law at home and he would be right, he’s paid off lawyers, judges and cops.”
“But he’s nowhere near his home is he?”Patch reasoned.“He’s in our territory now.”
Daisy looked at him and nodded.“But he doesn’t think that matters.He thinks he’s protected no matter where he goes.”
Torin scoffed.“Yeah?People around here don’t think that way.Plus, we have an ace on our side.”He smirked.“And that ace just might trump his belief in his own omnipotence.”
Patch turned his head to look at him, the grin on his face widening with every second.“You think Thumper will be interested in that flash drive, don’t you?”
Torin nodded and agreed.“Oh yeah, I think he’s going to be very interested in that flash drive.”
Daisy looked back and forth at them.“And just who is this Thumper guy?”
Patch snickered.“He is a member of our club but he’s also a U.S.Marshal.If he knows about your dad and your brothers he can bring hell right down on their shoulders.And if Satan gets involved?Thumper will definitely want to be the one to stomp him in the mud.In fact, he’s been following every move Satan has made.But so far, he’s never gotten anywhere near him.If your information is real, he’ll bring them both down.”
Torin turned and nodded at Daisy as he grabbed his phone and texted his dad.
A few minutes later, Pope rushed into the room along with several others.He looked at Torin and asked, “Are you sure about this?Contacting the Marshal might be wise but they might come after her as well.”He motioned to Daisy.“They might connect her with her family and think she’s working with them.”
Daisy looked skeptical as she explained, “I ran away for a reason.My family and I use that term loosely...would rather see me dead than have me work for them.”
Pope shook his head.“They might think because you have files from your dad’s computer that you are involved in his enterprises.”
Daisy’s jaw flexed.She dug into her backpack and brought out a notebook.She handed it to Pope and said, “Then you give them this record of what they’ve done to me since my mother died.You show them this book and let them ask me face to face.”
Torin glanced at the book, then looked over at Daisy.“What’s in it?”
Daisy went a bit pale as she refused to tell him, instead she stared down at the sheet that covered her.
Tension grew in the room and finally, Pope nodded.“We’ll give Thumper a call.We might need him for this.” He turned and walked out of the room.
Torin went over to her bed and sat down.“What is in that notebook?”he repeated his earlier question.
Daisy didn’t look up, instead she spoke quietly, “Before she left, my mom warned me that if anything happened to her I should keep a record of what they did to me.At first, I didn’t know what she was talking about.It was only after she didn’t come back with my dad that I finally understood.It had been her protection that kept me safe.I was only ten when my life went to hell in a hurry.So I got myself that notebook and I kept track of things.I was lucky they never found it.I think they never looked because they just did not care.That book is fourteen years of their bullshit.”
Torin slowly closed his eyes and lowered his head.“You didn’t have any help at all?Anywhere you could go that would be safe for you?”
Daisy shook her head.“I had one friend who would patch me up if I needed it but he never acknowledged it.He couldn’t, if my dad ever knew he helped me he would run the whole family out of town.My dad was pretty free with his fists and my friend didn’t want any trouble.His mom even had to take me to a hospital once but she wouldn’t give them my name, she didn’t want my dad to know she helped me.I never told him either.”She shrugged.“He never even noticed the cast on my hand for three weeks so what does that tell you about my father?”
“What about the school?”Patch asked.“Didn’t they ever say anything, do anything?”
Daisy shook her head.“My dad ran that town, no one even said anything and I missed enough days of school that they never cared anyway.No one would ever look me directly in the eyes on a good day, and especially when there were bruises.No way in hell.”Raising her gaze, she saw the pity in their eyes, she curled her lip and snapped, “Don’t you dare pity me.I don’t want it nor do I expect it.The one thing my life has taught me is that pity serves no purpose so it's useless.I survived and that alone made me stronger than my father or brothers.If I could survive them I could survive anything.When all is said and done I’m gonna walk away while they rot in prison or end up in the ground.And a year from now, I’ll come back and piss on their graves.”
Torin looked a bit stunned at her words.He shook his head slightly and glanced over at Patch.
Smiling at her, Patch drawled, “Well girl, those days are about to be over.You won’t have to put up with that shit any longer.And if your dad or brothers come in our gates shooting, they’re gonna be real surprised when we shoot back.And we’re gonna make damn sure they finally understand that they aren’t bullet proof.”
Daisy nodded and laid back on her pillow.Her eyes filled with tears but she held them back.
