Chapter Twenty
Phoenix
It was the last thing I thought I'd see when I showed up at my dad's house earlier- the guys carrying in a horribly wounded Tweak as blood trailed behind them. I thought I'd come hang out with Lace and catch up with Dad if he was around since my classes got canceled for the day.
I've seen blood before and I've cleaned up wounds, but as they carried him to the table everything seemed to freeze. For a moment I thought they were carrying a dead body. He was so pale and still. I couldn't move. Not until I heard Lace gasp and crumple into my side.
When she showed up in a panic and rapidly relayed what happened at the store to my dad and Bear it didn't seem real. Dad looked conflicted as he looked at me. It was like he wanted to explain what was happening but couldn't bring himself to do it. There was no time to let everything sink in as Lace clung to my side. She was sobbing and terrified, mumbling about what happened.
It all became real when the guys and Raven showed up behind her, toting Tweak's ravaged body inside. So much blood. So much chaos.
From what Lace and Raven said, it was all because of some guy named Dom. He started mouthing off to them in the store parking lot, insinuating terrible things to provoke Stitch and his brother. One thing led to another and an all-out brawl ensued.
Tweak wasn't the only one hurt. Almost every guy that was there from the club had some degree of injury. Most were still oozing blood as they watched Doc work. Everything started to make sense. The tension everyone radiated lately, the whispers, closed-door meetings that no one wanted to talk about. Dad was cagey about the club. Everyone was when it would come up in conversation. Even Rae and Lace had been hiding things from me when it came to the MC.
I'm not stupid. I've seen Sons of Anarchy. I know that there are dangerous motorcycle clubs out there. But when everyone kept insisting that nothing strange was going on with the club, that it was just a club- I gave them the benefit of the doubt. I let them keep me in the dark so they'd have one less thing to worry about. After this... After today, that ends. I won't let them shut me out any longer.
I'm too invested in everyone involved to let that happen.
Someone said Raptor and a few others were out dealing with the fallout from the brawl. It didn't take a rocket scientist to read between the lines. They were seeking retribution for what happened to Tweak. They were doing something dangerous, something violent.
Tears welled in my eyes. He promised he'd be careful. What if what happened to Tweak happens to him? What if he's hurt even worse?
As if sensing my distress, Raven nudged my shoulder. "How about we get her upstairs and cleaned up?" She nods to Lace, who's still coated in blood from checking on Stitch earlier.
That's when I see the red splotches streaked over Raven's skin and clothes. I hadn't noticed them until now. It must have happened when she helped get Tweak out of her car. I give her a nod and pull Lace toward the stairs.
We help get Lace cleaned up and settled in our old room before Raven does the same for herself, nabbing a couple of clean shirts from the laundry basket. Lace tucks her knees to her chest as I sit next to her on the bed. I have so many questions- for both of them- but now is not the time. I let Lace rest her head on my shoulder, rubbing her arms soothingly as we all sit in silence and wait.
It seems like hours have passed. Maybe they have since Lace is now asleep next to me. Her tears had been flowing since she got here earlier and relayed what went down at the store. The stress of everything seems to have finally taken its hold on her.
I look over to where Raven is sitting, watching out the window as she gnaws on her bottom lip. I'm angry with her for trying to hide everything from me, but I know why she did it. It's the same reason she does anything- to protect the ones she loves.
Even so, she doesn't get a pass for treating me with kid gloves about what's been going on. She owes me an explanation. When she looks my way, I see my opening and take it. "Why didn't you tell me?" I ask.
She sighs, shaking her head. "You didn't need this on your mind, Nix. Not with all you have going on. You needed to focus on school and building a normal life, not this shit."
"So, you were just never going to tell me?"
Rae clenches her jaw as she looks up at the ceiling. "I wanted to keep you safe."
"For me to be safe I need to know what's going on around me. I'm a big girl, Raven, I can handle it."
She lets her head fall in defeat as she quietly replies, "I know. I'm sorry."
"You can't keep me in the dark anymore, Rae. I need to know what's going on," I tell her.
"I know," she says, sounding defeated.
"Tell me everything," I demand.
So she does. Rae tells me about her suspicions from the beginning, how everyone was acting cagey for a while, and how this guy- Dom- showed up at the bar and basically threatened the club. She told me how he showed up outside the grocery store today and started mouthing off about her and Lace to provoke a fight. By the time she was finished, I felt numb.
We're all in danger. Me, Rae, Dad, Lace... Raptor. My heart skipped a beat as I remembered he wasn't here. He was gone- taking care of club business.
My breath started to stagger as panic set in. Raven hurried to my side, pulling me close. "It's going to be okay, Nix. We can leave, get away from all this mess. We can transfer you to another school. I can get you somewhere safe."
Her words only made the panic worse. Leave? We can't leave, not now. I shake my head. "No! We can't just leave, Rae. I can't leave now. I'm too invested to go anywhere else. School, Dad, Lace, Raptor..."
Tears start to well in my eyes. "I can't go. Besides, if that Dom guy is half as crazy as he sounds, who's to say he wouldn't just follow us to get revenge on the club?"
Raven's face turned stony. I could see the gears turning in her head. I was right and she knew it. There was no leaving. Not anymore. After a minute, her features shifted. There was a fiery determination in her eyes as she said, "Then we stay. We stay and we talk to Viper. He and the guys will keep you safe." Her last words came with such forceful determination that I was worried for anyone who failed to live up to her expectations.
Just then, Archie came into the room. "Viper wants to talk to you downstairs."
I looked down at still sleeping Lace. "Should we wake her?" I asked.
Archie shook his head. "Nah, leave her. Bear said he'll fill her in later."
Raven and I quietly followed Archie to the kitchen where Dad and some of the others were talking. As soon as they noticed us, they fell silent. Dad cocked his head toward the door, signaling them to leave. When most of the men had shuffled out, all that was left were Dad, Bear, Hammer, and Miguel.
"Phoenix, Raven, please take a seat. After what happened today, we've decided there are some things you need to know."
I gripped Raven's hand as we sat down in the open seats at the table. Her jaw was tight as she stared silently at the men across from us.
"I'm sure after today, you have questions," he looked at me.
Before I could respond, he continued, "The MC isn't just a club for guys who love Harleys. Sometimes we get ourselves into trouble. With the law, with other clubs. After today, we can't hide that from you. Not if we want to keep you safe." His words were tight and his emotions heavy.
He cleared his throat as Rae and I sat silently, waiting for him to finish his explanation. "What we do here... It's not always legal. We run our legitimate businesses alongside our... not-so-legitimate ones. Those- well, those tend to snag the attention of competitors from time to time. Other clubs who want what we have and have no issues using force to get it."
My hand squeezed Raven's harder as he told us what he could. Just enough to bring us up to speed on the potential danger we were all facing without giving too many specifics. When he was through, he'd promised to keep us safe and protect us from any fallout from the altercation with Dom and his crew.
He'd confirmed what I told Rae earlier about us leaving and Dom going after us. Dad told us we'd be in more danger by going somewhere else than staying put. He said we would have someone with us at all times, making sure we were safe. His promise was as much for his benefit as for ours when he said that no harm would come to either of us as long as we were under his watch.
My head was still reeling from the information dump I'd received over the last few hours. It almost didn't register when the front door flew open and two hulking forms entered the house. Raven grabbed my hand, staring toward the door. I followed her gaze and almost broke down in tears.
Raptor was standing there, looking feral with a busted lip, bruises on his jaw and temple, and bloody knuckles. I could tell from the splatters on his clothes that the other blood that was visible wasn't his own. Reaper stood close by, wearing a similar appearance. His typical scowl somehow looked even more deadly.
Without thinking, I run to Raptor, grabbing his butchered hands in my own. "Are you okay? You're hurt."
He shakes his head. "I'm fine. I promise. Just a scratch."
I breathe out a shaky sigh as I grab the first aid kit from the table and start tending his wounds. As I clean him up, he asks if I'm all right. I shrug, telling him it was a rough day. I confess that Dad told Raven and me the truth about the club.
I feel him tense at my words. Before either of us can say anymore, Dad starts speaking. "Raptor. Reaper. You two are staying with the girls tonight. Jesse's going to meet you at their place after he closes the bar."
There was no arguing. His word was law, not that I minded having Raptor stay with me all night. I knew the two of us needed to talk. I could feel the anxiety roiling inside him as the truth about his club was finally revealed. He was worried and I knew that wouldn't go away until we talked about it. But not here. Not in front of my dad.
We'd talk later. When we were alone.