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Smooth offers both Viper and me a beer, which we take. This has been a long fucking day, and I don’t see it ending soon. The only high point is that we’re making progress. However, we seem to discover more questions as we find answers.
Puma re-enters the clubhouse and heads in our direction when he spots us. “Tracker said he ID’d the guy who set him up. He said you recognized him.”
Viper opens her mouth to bring him up to speed, but Wildcard stops her. “I think we should have Church. Viper can bring everyone up to speed.”
Puma belts out “Church” before heading into the room where they hold all their club meetings. I slide onto the nearest stool to wait. “You, too, Detective,” Puma shouts. I take a few seconds to gawk at Viper before hopping off the stool and following them in. As the members take their seats, I stand against the back wall and take in the room.
A massive table dominates the space, the Demon Dawg logo etched into the center. Monitors fill one wall while the others hold photos of various landmarks in and around Vegas. I haveonly a few minutes to wonder if the other clubs have a similar setup before Puma calls the meeting to order. He glances at me and nods toward an empty seat at the end of the table. I take it and focus on Puma.
“You all know we’re dealing with a situation regarding Viper,” he starts. “Someone murdered Viper and Max’s father, Wayne Turner. A witness claims to have seen a biker with long blonde hair, which had the cops looking at Viper for the murder. Luckily, Viper has an alibi. However, there is a cop determined to arrest Viper for the murder. The asshole who came here with a warrant for her arrest.”
“Who knew our weapons stash could offer a different type of protection,” Hawk, the Road Captain, chortles until his eyes land on me. “Oh, fuck.”
Puma rolls his eyes as I shake my head. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“I guess I should have mentioned that I requested Detective Sterling join our meeting today,” Puma says. “For those of you who aren’t aware of your surroundings, Hawk.”
I suppress a chuckle at the embarrassment on Hawk’s face.
“As I was saying,” Puma continues. “Traynor is out to get Viper. He even removed Sterling from the case. According to Sterling, Traynor has a witness who saw a biker with long blonde hair enter Wayne’s room. But Spark and Juliet found the identity of the biker, Tracker. He’s with Satan’s Spawn out of Jacksonville. Viper and Chill questioned him. Want to tell everyone what you learned?”
“Tracker admitted to being at the hotel. He claimed someone paid him to show up at the motel and enter Wayne’s room. When he discovered Wayne’s body, he took off. We identified the man who paid Tracker. His name is Gary Mitchell. He’s part of the group who attacked me the night Puma came to my rescue. We thought he was still in jail, but obviously, he’s out. Maxidentified Mitchell as the man Wayne was planning on selling me to when I was younger.”
Every face around the table displays similar expressions of anger and revulsion. I’m sure my expression is the same. “But that’s not all,” I say, forgetting that I’m a guest and not a member. “Sorry.”
“Go ahead,” Puma says.
“We’ve discovered a connection between Gary Mitchell and Lieutenant Traynor. We don’t know how deep the connection goes, but both men used credit cards issued to Michelson Trucking. Spark is looking into their connection to Gary Mitchell.”
“You don’t say?” Dice adds with a grim look. “Josef Gutierrez mentioned Michelson Trucking the other day. Said they’re shipping drugs and weapons across the border. Shipping drugs in and weapons out. He also heard rumors about them trafficking women, maybe even kids.”
“Fuck!” Wildcard explodes. “Fucking animals.”
“Do we think the cop is protecting Michelson Trucking?” Spock, the club secretary, asks. “Having someone in law enforcement on the payroll makes sense, but Traynor can’t help them outside the city.”
I blink at his comment. He’s right. If Traynor is dirty, his influence won’t extend far.
“We’re taking down all three of them?” Hawk asks before glancing at me. “Or are you taking them on?”
“Juliet and Spark have already started the process. They found someone willing to report the payments Traynor’s receiving from Michelson. We’re talking big money with enough evidence to end his career. He’ll find himself in jail before too long.”
“Do we have enough evidence to clear Viper?” Chill asks.
“We should. I plan on taking everything I have to the District Attorney. Viper has a solid alibi, which should be enough to get the warrant canceled. I’ll contact a judge about getting the video feed from the same location Spark used. This will make the evidence admissible in court. I’m also going back to the scene of the murder. I need to check out a hunch. Juliet watched the feed, and we didn’t see anyone entering Wayne’s room aside from Tracker. I remember a connecting door between his room and the one next door. We have a visual of Gary Mitchell going into the room next to Wayne’s. But before I can do anything on the case, I have to talk to my captain. Traynor took me off the case. I need to convince my captain to put me back on it so I can finish it.”
“What about Michelson and Mitchell?” Chill asks.
“I can focus on Mitchell. Other than the credit card he used belonging to Michelson, I’m not sure if I can tie Michelson in,” I admit.
“Okay, then we’ll focus on Michelson. I’ll talk to the Gutierrez brothers along with Senior and see if we can find evidence of their crimes,” Puma says.
I open my mouth to ask his intentions but stop myself. Puma’s eyeing me and gives me a slight nod when he sees I’ve restrained myself. Part of me feels like I’m moving further into the gray area. My lack of concern surprises me. This is something I should find troubling. However, knowing Traynor is dirty and possibly helping Michelson cover his crimes, I have to admit, the good guys need all the help we can get.
Puma ends the meeting, and I join the others in the common room for dinner. As we eat, I glance around the room at the group of bikers who have become my family in only a handful of months. There are guys in the force I’ve known since my days in the academy that I don’t have as close a relationship as I do with these guys. Fuck, I can count on one hand the number ofcops that I trust as completely as I trust the people in this room. That’s a fucking jolt of reality.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN: VIPER
I study Rafe as he watches my family eating dinner. His expression says he’s seeing them for the first time. As if he’s finally realized that they aren’t just my family but his as well. I didn’t see my relationship with Rafe lasting long. He was drop-dead gorgeous but also a stickler for the rules. I figured we’d keep it light, have some fun, and then it would be over. What I didn’t expect was to fall in love with him. I didn’t expect to discover how much I need him in my life, even if it meant my leaving the club. My loyalty to the club would always come first, so I’d leave before I broke their trust. Accepting the possibility that I might have to choose between the two broke my heart. However, these last couple of days, I’ve seen Rafe bend more than I thought possible. I just hope he doesn’t bend so much that he breaks.
