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Chapter Eleven
Ransom
“So, she goes to visit her girls, and now, she’s getting lunch.”
I watched through the window of the coffee shop as Luna sat with Greta and the doctor who had helped her the other day, Birdie.
The second I had gotten the phone call from Bear that Luna had made a break for it, I was fuming. She hadn’t even offered me one damn day with her not giving me trouble. The fact that she had managed to give Bear the slip was shocking. Part of the reason I had been okay with her staying with him was because he was a damn bounty hunter. He tracked and captured men who were twice, if not three times, the size of Luna, but yet, she had managed to lose him with a little ding dong ditch.
“How are you going to play this?” Bear asked.
I cupped my chin and just watched her. “She knows I know. I called her, and she sent me straight to voicemail.”
“But I don’t think she knows we found her.”
I shook my head. “No, she does not.” As much as I had hated to do it, I had called King. Once I gave him the rundown of what happened, Gambler got on the phone told me he had a tracking app on Greta’s phone. She knew he had put it on there, but he had never had to use it before.
Now we were at Brick in the Wall watching Luna, Greta, and Birdie having lunch.
“You know, I’m kind of walking in on this with clear eyes, and I don’t think either of them really understand how serious this is right now.”
I glanced at Bear. “I don’t know how much more serious a serial killer can get, Bear. He has killed five of the women who worked for her and what does she do? Gives you the slip and goes out for fucking coffee.”
Bear cringed. “I know, Ran, but you need to take a step back and try to see this from her point of view. Luna is a free and feisty spirit who takes orders from no one.”
“She grew up in an MC, Bear. She should be fucking used to it.”
Bear shook his head. “No, she should be fucking fed up with it. She’s not an ol’ lady, you know? She didn’t get the choice to be in that life. Right now, she is running as far as she can from anyone who tells her no or doesn’t listen to her.”
“I told her no because I don’t want her to fucking die, Bear!”
“Again, I know, Ransom, but you just told her no and didn’t give her the chance to speak.”
“There wasn’t anything in the world that she could have told me that would have changed my no into a yes. Not a damn thing.” I wasn’t going to budge on telling her she couldn’t come to work with me. It wasn’t going to happen, especially if I wanted to keep my job after we managed to solve this case.
But I heard Bear.
What he said made sense.
But God dammit, did Luna think she was never going to let anyone ever tell her no again? Being told no was a part of fucking life.
Jesus Christ.
It wasn’t like I was telling her that she couldn’t have a drink, or I was telling her when she could eat. I was just trying to keep her from getting her neck snapped.
Bear sighed. “Just try to keep in mind that there is more going on in Luna’s mind than right now.”
I growled and opened my door. “I’ll keep it in mind.”
I didn’t want Luna to hate me.
I didn’t want her to think that I was just trying to control her.
I just wanted to be with her.
I wanted to be the person who got to see the Luna she hid away.
I just wanted her.
“You want me to come in?” Bear called.
I shook my head.
He held up his hands. “Try to stay calm, Ransom.”
Calm was the last thing that I was, but Luna wasn’t going to know that.
I kept my eyes on the three women sitting by the window as I walked toward the coffeeshop. Luna’s head turned when I was close to the door, and her eyes connected with mine.
There was fear in her eyes. She knew she had fucked up, and she was afraid I was going to go off on her.
Did I want to yell and scream at her and ask her just what the hell she was thinking? Hell yes.
I wasn’t going to do that, though. That would just put a bigger void between Luna and me.
Fear was something I never wanted Luna to feel when she was dealing with me.
The bell above the door chimed when I walked in, and I pushed my sunglasses on top of my head. I moved to the counter, ordered a black coffee, and kept my back to Luna while I took a calming breath. I kept reminding myself she was safe and nothing had happened to her. That was all that mattered.
The barista handed me my coffee, and I turned on my heel toward Luna.
Greta raised her hand and waved as if they weren’t the reason I was there.
“Officer,” Greta called. “Over here.”
Dear God. Part of me believed that Greta was an instigator in all of this.
“Greta,” Luna hissed.
I couldn’t help but smile.
“He’s smiling,” Greta whispered loudly. “I don’t think he’s going to arrest us.”
Arresting both of them was appealing, but they hadn’t broken any laws. Yet.
“Now?” I heard Birdie ask.
Greta nodded and winked.
What in the hell were they up to now?
Birdie raised her hand to her forehead and sighed loudly. “I don’t think I’m right.”
Greta kicked her under the table.
“I mean, I don’t feel right.” Birdie scooted her chair back and slumped in her chair. “I feel a mighty insensibility.”
Greta’s eyes bugged out. “Oh, no, not insensibility.”
As if Greta knew what that meant.
Luna buried her face in her hands and let out a groan.
“Help me, officer,” Birdie called.
Luna shot up from her chair. “Stop,” she shouted. “Just stop.”
Birdie opened one eye and looked up at Luna. “Um, stop my insensibility?”
Greta smacked her hand on the table. “You were supposed to faint in this century, Birdie, not back in the eighteen hundreds.” Greta grabbed her coffee and took a sip.
Birdie opened her other eye and sat up a little bit. “Um, I think I’m starting to feel better.” She fanned her face and gave a weak smile. “It must have been the draft in here.”
Greta licked her finger and held it up in the air. “I’m not feeling a draft, Birdie, unless you’re talking about your horrible acting. If you’re going to roll with Luna and me, you’re gonna have to get your shit together.”
Birdie nodded and smiled. “Maybe I could take an acting class between saving babies.”
Greta tapped her nose. “That is the kind of dedication we like,” she laughed.
Birdie may be a horrible actor, but she seemed to have the type of sense of humor to hold her own with Greta.
Luna glanced at me. “Um, I think Birdie was feeling a little faint, but she’s better now.”
I chuckled and took a sip of my coffee. “That’s good to hear.”
“Uh, do you come here often?” she asked.
I shook my head. “First time.” I held up my cup. “Coffee is good, though.”
“Donuts are good, too,” Greta interrupted. “If that is your thing, officer,” she mumbled out of the side of her mouth.
“Dear God, Greta,” Luna moaned. “I swear she really doesn’t know when to stop.”
I sipped my coffee and smiled.
Luna shuffled her feet and bit her lip. “So, how is your day going?”
“Uh, well, it was going okay.”
She looked over at me. “And now?”
I shrugged. “I mean, it’s been better.”
Luna nodded. “Well, we were just about to head back to my house. Greta and I got the yearning for a coffee and thought we could catch up with Birdie.”
“A yearning,” Greta agreed. She held up her empty cup. “My yearn has been fulfilled.”
“That’s good. I’ll follow you guys’ home, if that’s okay with you.”
Luna nodded vigorously. “We are so fine with that.”
Yeah, I bet she was fine with that. “I’ll just be in my car until you’re ready to go.” I walked out of the café and headed back to my car. I slid into the driver’s seat and took a sip of my coffee.
“You didn’t get me anything?” Bear asked.
I raised my middle finger and flipped him off. “The bounty hunter who can’t do his job doesn’t get coffee.”
“What about the detective who can’t solve his case?” Bear countered.
I pushed my middle finger into Bear’s face. “Go get your own damn coffee.”
“You wouldn’t let me go in,” he muttered.
I lowered my hand and watched the window of the café. Luna was still standing and talking wildly with her hands while Greta sat there with a smug look on her face. “Maybe you should try hooking up with Greta,” I suggested. “If you distract her, maybe Luna won’t do so much crazy shit.”
“I thought I was here to help you solve a few murders, not date your girlfriend’s cousin.”
“Whatever gets the job done,” I muttered. “I heard stories about how crazy Luna’s aunts were, but I have to think that crazy got passed onto the next generation.”
Luna and Greta walked out of the restaurant with Birdie behind them. They waved goodbye to her and got into Greta’s car.
“How much did you yell?” Bear asked.
I started the car and drove behind Greta as she pulled out of the parking lot. “I didn’t. Got a coffee, Luna told me they were headed home, and then I came out here.”
Bear turned in his seat and looked at me. “You took my advice?”
I glanced at him. “Your advice was something I’ve been trying to do with her for two years. I’m not a fucking idiot, Bear. I can see why Luna is the way she is, but that doesn’t make dealing with her any easier.” Sometimes, I needed to be reminded that I had to deal with Luna with caution and give her space.
“Were they terrified when you walked up to them?”
A broad smile spread across my mouth. “I don’t know what exactly their plan was, but once I approached the table, Birdie tried to pretend that she was going to faint, but she said she had an insensibility.”
Bear quirked an eyebrow.
“I don’t fucking know, man. It took everything I had not to laugh.”
“I fucking bet,” Bear chuckled. “You gotta wonder if they were trying to distract you to get Luna out of the building.”
I shrugged. “God knows when Luna and Greta are together. They’re definitely good at keeping me on my toes.”
We drove back to Luna’s, and I parked next to Greta’s car.
Luna hopped out and Greta shifted into reverse before the passenger door was shut. Greta rolled down the window and stuck out her head. “I got some shit to take care of, officer hottie! Go easy on her.” She backed out and shifted the car into drive. “I told her a spanking isn’t always a bad thing.”
“Go away!” Luna shouted.
Bear hopped out of the car and tapped the roof after he shut the door. “See you tonight.”
“What?” Luna gasped. She looked at me. “You’re going back to work?”
“It’s barely noon, Luna. I can’t take off work whenever I feel like it.”
“Oh,” she muttered. “Well, I’ll see you tonight.”
I nodded and headed back to the station. Did I have to go back to work? No. It would have been fine if I took off the rest of the day, but I would have been behind tomorrow.
Luna needed time after her escape, and I did too. I had been able to keep my cool in the café, but I didn’t know if I would be able to when we were in her house, and she was comfortable enough to start throwing excuses and sass at me.
A few hours of being apart was going to do both of us good.
