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Oakland.
There was one thing that had gnawed at his gut since he’d been back. One thing that he couldn’t let go. One thing that he had to know.
He popped his bike in gear, twisted the throttle and let out the clutch, rolling out of the lot and gunning it down the street, the roar of his pipes reverberating against the buildings with a deep echoing rumble as he headed north to get his answers.
Twenty minutes later he was stepping off the freight elevator into Crash’s industrial loft. His brother stood in front of him, his arms folded.
“Brother,” he greeted Wolf, and Wolf could see by the look in his eyes that he was wondering at the reason for this visit.
Shannon was in the kitchen area rinsing out some glasses. She turned, giving him a bright smile. “Hey, Wolf.”
“You want a beer?” Crash offered, taking in his demeanor.
“Yeah, sure.” Wolf replied and Crash moved to the refrigerator to pull two out.
“You want one, Shannon?” Crash asked his wife.
“No, thanks, hon.”
Crash gave a jerk of his head toward the stairs to the roof and asked Wolf, “You want to take this outside?”
Wolf’s eyes moved from Crash to Shannon and back. “Actually, I was hoping I could talk with Shannon.”
Crash’s eyes narrowed and he offered, “She’s welcome to join us.”
Code for ‘not on your life am I leaving you alone with my ol’ lady, Brother’. Wolf understood the message loud and clear. He nodded, his eyes moving to Shannon.
She looked between them. “Okaaay.”
They all moved outside. Dusk was falling quickly, turning the sky a deep violet-blue. The lights of the Bay Bridge twinkled in the distance. Wolf took a seat, and Shannon sat down one chair over. Crash chose to remain standing, but planted his ass on the low wall, crossing his legs at his booted ankles. He took a slug of his beer, his eyes on Wolf.
“You had something you needed to talk about?” Crash eyed him.
Wolf leaned forward in his chair, his elbows on his knees, rolling the beer bottle between his palms. “This stays between the three of us.”
“What does?” Crash asked, not quite ready to make any promises without knowing what the fuck this was about. Wolf could understand that.
“It’s about Crystal.”
Crash’s eyes connected with Shannon’s, then returned to Wolf’s as he nodded. “Okay.”
Wolf’s eyes moved from him to Shannon. “Did you know?”
She frowned at him, her eyes moving between Wolf and her husband. “Did I know what?”
“Did you know Crystal was carrying my baby when she left?” Wolf couldn’t be more straight-up than that. He watched Shannon swallow, her discomfort plain, and he knew the answer before she ever responded.
“Yes. I knew.”
Wolf ground his teeth together and stared out at the horizon. Then his eyes swung to his brother. “Did you know?”
“No, Wolf. I had no clue.” Crash shook his head, his eyes unguarded and clear before they moved to his wife, who had obviously kept him in the dark.
Wolf nodded. At least his brothers hadn’t hung him out to dry.
“I thought she’d told you. She made us promise not to say anything, but I thought surely she’d told you,” Shannon explained in a soft voice.
“Us?”
