Viper's Demands (Ruthless Sinners MC 8)

“Still mulling it over.” I motioned over to Marlowe, the club’s bartender, letting her know I wanted a beer. “I’m gonna call Dax and see what he has to say about the Broken. Maybe that’ll give us some insight on what to do.”

“Not a bad idea.” Axel took a drink of his beer, then said, “I saw your brother on the news last night. Looks like he’s got another big case.”

“Good for him,” I replied with sarcasm. “Maybe he’ll make partner with this one.”

“Maybe so.” He hesitated a moment, then asked, “You talk to Camden lately?”

“Yeah, I was over at his place the other day.”

“And what about Mia? You talk to her, too?” I gave him a stern look, letting him know I wasn’t in the mood to discuss her, and he immediately held up his hands in surrender and shook his head. “Forget it. Damn, when will I fucking learn?”

“Wondered the same fucking thing myself.”

He turned away from me with an annoyed grumble, and it wasn’t long before he’d started up a conversation with Lisa, our head bartender. I knew I’d pissed him off, but at that moment, I simply didn’t care. I just wanted to drink my beer in peace. I didn’t want to think or talk about Camden, Mia, or anyone else for that matter.

Once I’d finished it, I decided against having another. Something about my exchange with Axel had soured my mood, and I just wanted to get the hell out of there. Without saying a word to anyone, I stood and walked out the back door.

I got in my truck and started home. On the way, I picked up the phone and called Dax. As soon as he answered, he said, “Hey, Viper. What’s going on, brother?”

“I need a favor.”

“Okay, whatcha got?”

“There’s an MC near you called the Broken Knights, and I need you to look into them for me.”

“Sure thing. Anything in particular that you want to know?”

“Whatever you can find out.”

“You got it. I’ll be in touch as soon as I have something.”

“I appreciate it, brother.”

I hung up and continued home.

When I finally made it back to the house, I was surprised to find Mia’s car parked in my driveway. It was late—much too late for her to be there, so I couldn’t help but think something was wrong.

By the time I’d parked, she’d gotten out of her car and was walking in my direction with a distraught look on her face, leaving no doubt that something was up. Before she even made it over to me, I asked, “What’s going on? Are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine.” She tucked her hair nervously behind her ear. “I just really needed to see you. I mean, I need to talk to you about something.”

“Talk about what?”

“It’s … um, it’s about Camden,” she stammered as she tugged at her coat, clearly affected by the bitterness of the cold night air. “Do you think we could talk inside for a minute?”

“Yeah, sure. Come on in.” I climbed up the steps, and she immediately followed. I unlocked the door and motioned her inside. “You want a drink or something?”

“Nothing, thanks.” She followed me into the kitchen. “I’m sorry about just showing up like this. I should’ve—”

“Why don’t you just tell me why you’re here?”

Without any further hesitation, she blurted out, “I think Camden’s having an affair.”

“What the fuck are you talking about?”

“It’s hard to explain. I just know it. I’ve known it for a while. All the calls and text messages at all hours of the night.” She started pacing back and forth. “It’s the only thing that makes sense.”

“He’s a lawyer, Mia. Of course, he’s gonna get calls ‘at all hours of the night’.”

“You don’t understand. These aren’t your typical legal inquiries.” She stopped pacing and sighed. “I can tell. He gets this look on his face.”

“What kind of look?”

“Like it’s someone special he’s talking to—someone he cares about.” She sounded upset, a little angry, a little hurt, but not nearly as heartbroken as I would’ve expected if she honestly thought Camden was screwing around on her. “And whoever he’s talking to calls a lot. At least once a day, if not more.”

“I don’t know, Mia. I think you’ve got this whole thing wrong.” I stepped over to the fridge and grabbed a beer, opened it, and took a long pull. “Camden’s always been crazy about you. There’s no way he’d do anything to fuck it up.”

“I wish you were right, but so much has changed.” Mia sat down at the kitchen table, then gave me a nonchalant shrug. “He doesn’t even look at me anymore, not that he ever really did, at least, not after we were married.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“He never really loved me, Thatch.” She smiled and shook her head with a scoff—like what she was saying wasn’t pure insanity. “I was just another pawn in the game he’s been playing with you all these years.”