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“Damn. Unbelievable,” Zaiden said. “How many guys do you think would be called Chains, and I’ve met the both of them.” He laughed.
Chains smiled. He was amused at the ability of this guy, especially if he’d come up with that line off the cuff.
Zaiden decided to settle any doubts he thought Chains might have and question his honesty, since he still didn’t have his hands on the box yet. “You know,” he said. “As soon as I saw you there I did wonder whether you were the Chandler I knew back then.”
“Chandler?” Chains said.
“Yeah. Chandler Blanchard. You don’t know him, do you?”
“Nope.”
Fuck, he’s not very talkative. I need to soften him up.“To be honest,” Zaiden said. Chains’ eyebrows shot up.Hmm…he doesn’t trust me.“As soon as I saw you I wondered how the hell Chandler had transformed from the boy I knew into someone like you. You’re a big mother…” He turned to Juliette and said, “Sorry, Juliette.” She smiled. “He’s not short on muscle, is he?”
She nodded.Maybe I will work more on her, and Chains will come ’round by default.
“Chandler was a skinny guy back then. I sort of looked out for him. I’d always been a lot bigger than others my age and I hated bullies with a vengeance. After we left school I always wondered what happened to him and when I was trying to find the box, Chains’ name was mentioned in the same breath as yours and I just assumed…with a name like that…it was my friend.”
“Would you like a coffee?” Juliette asked.
Bingo. I’m getting somewhere.“I don’t want to impose on you, but I wouldn’t say no.”
Chains pulled up a chair that was sitting on the porch and Zaiden stepped up and sat on it. He picked up the box and looked at it. “I can’t believe it’s been found,” he said.
“Yep, you got lucky, I guess,” Chains said.
Juliette came back out and handed Zaiden a mug, and after thanking her he said, “What a day. I’m going for a ride after I leave here. Just to celebrate.” He didn’t ask them…yet. He didn’t want to seem pushy.
“It is,” Chains said.
“We’ve been going for quite a lot of rides recently,” Juliette said as she squeezed Chains’ hand. “So many beautiful roads around here. I didn’t know what I’d been missing until I met this guy.”
They were smiling at each other like two lovebirds.
Seizing the opportunity, Zaiden said, “I don’t know any of the roads around here, other than coming to here from where I was staying. Maybe you’d like to ride with me. I’d love to follow and see what you can show me.”
“Sure,” Chains said. “We can leave soon if you like.”
Zaiden couldn’t believe his luck. As he glanced around to ensure neither of them were paying attention, he gave the box a gentle shake, his ears catching the faint sound of a mysterious rattle. The day was getting better and better. One part of the plan had been accomplished, now Nathan would have to do his part.
When they were ready to leave, both Zaiden and Chains were on their phones texting.
Chains to Blackheart, and Zaiden to Nathan. Neither suspected what the other was up to.
15
Earlier, Chains and Juliette had had a meeting with Blackheart at the club. In Blackheart’s office, the prez swiftly popped the USB into his computer. As the footage began to play, Juliette felt a lump form in her throat. The low-res video showed Zaiden, easy to identify despite the poor image quality, caught up in a lethal face-off with a familiar person. A well-liked and respected member of their community. A sense of dread coiled in Juliette’s stomach.
After a nerve-wracking pause, Blackheart hit pause on the video and glanced over at Juliette and Chains. “Gotta make a call,” he muttered. “Give me some space.”
Exiting back into the clubhouse, Juliette felt sick to her stomach over the shock of the video. Her mind was a whirlwind of thoughts and emotions. When Blackheart finally appeared, he handed over the locked box to Juliette.
“Contact Zaiden,” he said, “and hand this over to him.”
“What? When?” she asked.
“ASAP. Tomorrow,” Blackheart responded. “At your place…with Chains.”
“I’m freaked out,” she confessed. “Did you not see what he did?”
