AllFreeNovel
Share Us
It feels weird being this close to Punk when I’m Maceo’s fiancée, but I don’t have another option of getting home.
“Where’s Maceo?” I ask.
“Atlas has been working with Chase and Gauge all day after he finished at the gym. Chase has found a lot of damaging evidence against Jacob, but none of it can be used since it was obtained illegally,” he informs before starting his bike. “Hold on tight, Jo.”
Eagle and Ziggy lead the caravan with Punk and I in the middle and Flay and Brass taking the rear. It always seems like overkill to have this many men watching out for me, but I’m not going to argue anymore with Maceo. He’s made it clear I’m top priority and the Ravens are protecting their first lady.
We get to the MC’s rental and I see Maceo in the garage with Chase and Gauge, huddled around one of the computers. I climb off Punk’s bike and remove my helmet. Maceo stands from his stool and makes his way toward me, Hades padding alongside him. When Maceo is toe to toe with me, he bends down and gives me a deep kiss, making my toes curl in my steel-toed boots.
Maceo raises a dark eyebrow at Punk. “Thank you for bringing my fiancée home. I trust you were on your best behavior?”
“Didn’t touch or hit on her, I swear,” Punk says quickly.
I slap Maceo on the chest gently. “Stop being a bully. Punk is always a gentleman to me.”
Maceo laughs and Punk relaxes. “He knows I’m fucking with him, Pixie.”
I look at Maceo expectantly. “Punk said Chase found the mother lode on Jacob?”
Bright white teeth take over Maceo’s smile. “He sure did. Come have a look.” He takes my hand and pulls me gently to the garage where Chase and Gauge are working. Punk follows and goes to the fridge in the garage to grab everyone beers.
Maceo sits his fine muscled ass on a stool and sits me on one of his tree-trunk legs. “Chase, why don’t you give my woman the run down?”
Chase gives me a knowing grin. “The fucker is smart, I’ll give him that much. He’s avoiding using his credit cards because he knows they can be traced, but he took out a large cash withdrawal from his savings a week before he vandalized our turf.
“I hacked into surveillance videos around the area and caught him on camera entering a motel Monday morning around four, on the outskirts of Fort Collins. He paid with cash, we assume, since his credit shows nothing. Video footage shows him leaving around three in the afternoon.
“We believe he avoided buying a plane ticket because that could be traced. He drove here in his own vehicle. You would be unfamiliar with it since he purchased the black Volvo after you two had split. He probably thought he was safe traveling around town because no one would recognize it.
“The surveillance video outside your condo clearly shows him staking out the property in his car, probably waiting for you to return. We got him driving by our rental, too, but he was smart enough to keep driving and not stop.
“The fucker left his cell off or didn’t bring it because his cell plan shows nothing. More than likely he bought a burner to use for an emergency.”
A cold shudder runs through me. The idea of having Jacob stakeout my condo gives me the heebie-jeebies. “In other words, we’ve got nothing we can turn over to the cops?”
“We’ve shown them the videos from our properties, but I can’t turn over the motel surveillance video without getting myself arrested for hacking. This is unfortunate since it’s the only video with actual confirmation of him being present in Fort Collins,” Chase answers.
“Why can’t we go to the motel and ask for it? Maybe they would be willing to hand it over without a warrant,” I suggest.
All the men shake their heads.
“Not gonna happen. The motel is a corrupt hot spot and the owner is as crooked as they come. He’s been burned one too many times and won’t work with cops. Anyone who knows our club knows we work with local law enforcement. We already told police we thought we saw Jacob enter the motel, but without a warrant, the owner isn’t handing over anything. Police can’t get a warrant since there’s not enough evidence to merit one,” Gauge explains apologetically.
“There’s no other surveillance video around town showing he was here? What about a gas station or a restaurant? He needs food and fuel,” I try again.
Again they all shake their heads.
“He never left the motel once he arrived. He visited your condo, our rental, and the build site before checking into the hotel. I couldn’t pick up his license plate in either video, but it’s his car, I’m certain. City surveillance cams show his car cruising around town, but he’s got fake plates. Says it’s from Nevada. No luck seeing inside the car since the windows are tinted. As far as food, he probably didn’t eat or brought it all with him in the car. Fuel can easily be transported as well in the trunk of a vehicle.” Chase says.
I shake my head and fight the tears stinging the back of my eyes. “He planned this. This was thought out and calculated. On his credit charges, did it show him buying any of his supplies, like the surplus of gas, or the spray paint and baseball bat?”
“Nothing comes up. Cash transactions at stores don’t have a name attached. You’re right, he did plan it all out,” Gauge says.
“Like I said, he’s smart,” Chase murmurs, staring at his computer screens.
“Yes, he is. He swiped all my work right out from under my nose without me knowing. And he’s a smooth talker. All of my family and old friends believe I’m the one who had the issues in the relationship because he was able to con all of them,” I admit with angry tears. I could kick myself for having dated a fucking manipulative genius.
“Well, he may be smart, but we’re definitely smarter,” Chase says with a wicked gleam in his brown eyes. “You see, every time he’s acted out it’s because he’s provoked. He broke into your condo after you turned him away from the job. Atlas marked you as his in front of him. He could have been planning this second attack for a while like you say, but he sprung into action after I uploaded the picture of you two to our security company website. I posted the picture on Saturday around noon, giving him plenty of time to make the seventeen-hour commute by car with time to spare.”
