“Maybe I should have waited.” Alison turns in her seat to better face me. “And I swear, I didn't tell Nova about this because I thought she'd do anything, but I was scared for my little boy. If I waited just one more moment, my father might have killed him. He wouldn't have thought twice about it, Brooke. I watched him murder his own brother when I was fifteen, so I have no doubt killing his own grandson would have meant nothing to him. So when Nova told me who she was and that she could help me right then and there, I had to let her, Brooke.”
I swallow hard and clasp my stomach. What kind of people have I gotten myself mixed up with?
Killers, outlaws, vigilantes. God, only knows what Alison's father's MC is like. From what she told me about her mother getting her out of that place, I'd say she was the only one who ever gave a damn about her.
As Alison sits here telling me how abusive the men of the Dirty Coyotes are, and the way they treat people, even their wives, I know they're dogs. Dogs who need putting down.
Since when do you think like this, Brooke?
“It's been fourteen minutes. Should we leave?” Alison is right; it's been fourteen minutes. Nova said not to wait for her for any reason.
I open my mouth to answer Alison, when the passenger side door flies open, causing both Alison and me to yelp. “Shut up!” Nova hisses whole shoving a sleeping bundle at Alison. “Take him.”
I pull back and strap myself into my seat. Nova is already in the car and pulling away. I didn't even notice her approaching, and I had one eye on the outside. How did she move undetected with a child in her arms?
If there were trouble inside the house, surely Alison and I would have heard something? Seen something?
“My little boy.” Alison sobs while kissing her sons head.
I wipe a tear from my cheek. I can only imagine how much pain she's been in today, wondering if she'd ever hold her son again.
“Mommy? Mommy!” I smile at the scene before me, mother and son holding onto each other, thankful they weren't torn apart for good. “I want to see Daddy, Mommy.”
“We'll be with Daddy soon, I promise. What happened in there, Nova?”
“I told you,” Nova deadpans. “It was a simple in and out. Click won't be causing you any more problems.”
There is so much left unsaid, but Nova says nothing more, and neither Alison or I ask Nova to clarify what she meant by what she just said.
The rest of the journey is made in silence. I'm shaking cold the whole way. I want to hold Gabe so badly right now. I need to know he's safe. This could have been me, but there's no knowing if I would ever have gotten my baby back.
We pull up outside the clubhouse gates, waiting for Jimmy to open them and let us through. Nova tells us, “Leave the talking to me. Shepard will want words, your men will be angry, and the rest of them will be annoyed. Not to mention, I have again called their masculinity into question. Men tend to get pissed off about that.”
“Are they going to punish us? All I wanted was to make sure Teddy was safe.”
“Alison,” Nova looks at her through the corner of her eye. “I know you grew up in an MC that promotes the abuse, battery, and torture of women, including their own, but the Snakes do not. No man belonging to this club would ever lay a hand on any of us. They'll be angry, but it will be coming from a place of fear. Bad things have happened to too many of our women in the past. All they want is to keep us safe. Sometimes they forget that we're not weak women.
“Try not to worry; I'll take the brunt of their anger because it won't faze me at all. I shouldn't have taken either of you with me, as I said before, it'll be me they have it in for, and I'll own that. Just remember, leave this to me.”
The whole clubhouse falls silent as soon as we walk into the main room. All eyes are on us, there are so many of them here, and I feel very uneasy.
“Where the hell do you think you've been?”
“Save it, Jett, I already sent a group text to let you all know exactly where I was and that Alison was with me. Let's not make a big deal out of this.”
Jett narrows his eyes, but it's Shepard who moves toward us. “'Let's not make a big deal out of this'? Are you crazy?! You could have gotten the three of you killed!”
“How dare you drag Brooke into your stupid games!” I hadn't seen Hawk before I heard him speak, but he's suddenly beside me, pulling me into his arms. I wrap mine tightly around his back and breathe deeply.
“Give it a rest, Hawk. She's fine.”
“Why you...”
“I want my Daddy!” Teddy starts to cry. I can't say as I blame him, the yelling and the atmosphere is intense, to say the least.
“Alison!” She spins on the spot, and Kong catches her instantly, holding his family in his arms. He must have been elsewhere. It looks like he just came into the room. “Are you both okay?” Alison nods her head. She's still crying.
“Daddy, I missed you.”
“I missed you too, little man.”
“Kong, take Alison and Teddy to your room. Once they're settled, meet us for church. Brooke, stay with Coral and Tammy. Lion, lock the doors after you make sure the gates are secure. I'm taking no chances tonight. Nova, come with the rest of us. You've got some explaining to do.”
Will this night never end?
I woke up this morning feeling happier than I had in a long time, for it to end with a damn stakeout and kidnap. I'm exhausted, and I just want to go home to my son. God knows how long I'll be waiting for Hawk to finish before that happens.
“You okay, baby?” I nod. “You're not. I don't want to leave you, but I don't have a choice.”
“It's okay.”
“I promise I'll be as quick as I can, and then I'll take you home. I love you, Brooke.”
“I love you, too.”
He kisses me softly. “I won't be long.”
Famous last words.
Chapter Sixteen
Hawk
The room is silent. Deathly silent. Each person is looking from Shepard to Nova. He's pissed and then some with her and what she's done. I'm not happy with her for dragging Brooke with her, but I've calmed down a little knowing she's okay. However, I still have a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach. Anything could have happened to those women tonight. The utter fear I had inside of me when I read the text message from Nova, the yelling coming from everyone in the room, and the way the Prez yelled that no one could follow because we couldn't get in the way of Nova when she's working... Jesus, I've never felt so angry and scared in my life!
I have no doubt in my mind that Nova knows exactly what she's doing, or that she's good at what she does. I have every faith that she's taught Brooke well when it comes to self-defense, and that she can handle herself. She's worked damn hard the past couple of months with her training. If she was attacked in the street, I have no doubt Brooke would remember her training and fight back. She'd hurt the motherfucker enough to bring him down and run for help.
However, tonight, she was thrown into a situation with a man who would have killed her the second he saw her. She would have stood no chance against a man like Click. He's not the kind of man who asks questions before he shoots. If he'd seen the girls, they'd be dead now.
I don't think Nova even realizes nor cares at this point. In her mind, Alison and Brooke weren't hurt, no one saw them, Click didn't find out they were there, so why the hell are we all angry with her?
“Dad, please stop giving me the evil eye.”
“You could have gotten Brooke and Alison killed! What would have happened had Click seen you?!”
Nova doesn't even flinch when Prez yells. She licks her top teeth and swallows. She looks over at Tank sitting opposite her and smirks. Nova acts like she takes nothing seriously, but I guarantee this is very serious in her mind. “Do you honestly think I would have thrown them into danger?”
No one answers, which annoys Nova because she grits her teeth.
“When I walked in here and saw Alison, I introduced myself as I al
ways do to anyone new. I asked her why she was crying. Alison told me and the others how scared she was something would happen to Teddy before the day was out. She said that you were all in here working things out, but she didn't think she had long left before something terrible happened to that little boy.
“I told Alison who I was and that I'd go get Teddy for her. She told me no at first, and that she thought she should wait for you guys. I explained that I'd be in and out and back here faster than you guys could blink. Alison agreed because like any other mother in this world, she just wanted her son with her.
“I did knock the damn door so that I could tell you what I had planned, but you yelled for whomever it was to leave,”
I remember the door knocking while we were deep in conversation, and Shepard did tell them to go away.
“I had no intention of taking Alison with me, but she begged me to take her. She said Teddy would be scared because he doesn't know me. I made sure that Alison knew to wait in the car, and if I wasn't back in fifteen minutes, she was to take the car and come back here. No exceptions.”