I found Jenna in the lounge when the meeting ended, hiding away from the noise and chaos. She smiled when she saw me, standing up from the couch and came toward me. She stood on her toes to kiss me as I wrapped my arms around her waist.
I explained the plan to her, that The Devil's Riders would watch the warehouse we thought Bonnie was being held, to make sure that nothing changed, and follow along if anything did.
"And," I hesitated a moment, looking away from her, swallowing hard. "Beast wants us to meet with Lucas."
"But?" she wondered, picking up on my agitation.
"But... he wants us to give you up."
I felt her tense up in my arms, her breath catching as she looked up at me. I forced myself to meet her eyes, expecting her to beg, or cry or something, but she looked determined, almost defiant, her green eyes flashing.
"If that's what it takes."
"You don't have to do this," I told her firmly. "I can hide you-"
"I know you told me that it isn't my fault," she said, cutting me off, "but, if he'll let Bonnie go, for me, then I'll go to him."
I tried to argue, but she shook her head, not listening.
Eventually, I gave up, and Jenna and I left the lounge, and made our way back into the main part of the clubhouse. We joined Clyde, where he was standing with Jack and Troy, not contributing to their conversation.
I saw Beast across the room, and he caught my eye, motioning me over.
"I'll be back in a minute," I murmured in Jenna's ear.
She nodded and stood with Clyde, watching me as I made my way across the club room to join Beast.
"Got a minute?"
I nodded, following him into the office.
"I'm taking it you talked to your dad?" He began, taking a seat.
"Something like that," I answered, still standing.
"I didn't mean for that to happen to your sister," he told me. "I loved her like a daughter, she wasn't supposed to get hurt."
"But she did," I reminded him. "And, because o0f that, my dad's spent my entire life in jail, my mum remarried..."
"And if I could take it back, then I would," he said firmly. "I want to make up for it. That's why I'm giving you soldiers to go to war with this prick."
"Or," I said, crossing my arms, "you want to wipe out the competition."
"The thought crossed my mind," he admitted. "But I know you like that blonde, and I know she adores you."
"I don't want to give her up," I told him firmly.
"I'm not going to make the same mistake," he promised me. "We're prepared for this. Last time..."
He trailed off, looking grim.
"Last time what?" I pressed.
"Last time," he said, lowering his voice, "when that woman come to us for help and I convinced her to sell her daughter to Lucas, the club voted against it."
"You went behind their backs?" I guessed.
"I trailed him myself, but I had no one to back me, and I lost her."
I froze, staring at him in disbelief. Of all the terrible things Beast had done, the things I knew about as well as the ones I didn't, that woukd be by far the worst.
"She's been raped every single day of her life since she was sixteen," I told him. "You ruined her life."
"And I'm trying to make it right."
"By giving her up to the guy who did it to her?" I almost yelled.
"But this time," he said firmly, "I won't lose her. We're going to follow him to where he keeps those girls, and we're going to kill him."
***
The plan was in motion. As Clyde had pointed out, Lucas knew where to find Bonnie, so it would make sense thatbhe could have eyes on the clubhouse, and become suspitious when we all left at once. So, throughout the day, the Specters left, one by one, taking up their posts, around twon, or starting the two hour drive from here to the warehouse Diesel had mentioned.
It was 7:00 PM, just one more hour until we were to meet with Lucas on the outskirts of town, and exchange Jenna for Bonnie.
I felt sick.
Jenna didn't look much better, keeping to herself in one of the bedrooms in the back of the clubhouse. I sat with her, neither of us talking, holding onto each other tightly, until Clyde knocked on the door.
"It's time," he said, and I nodded, leading Jenna from the room.
Clyde grabbed her arm on the way out.
"I know the risk you're taking for us," he said to her, his eyes boring into hers. "I don't know how to thank you."
"Just help them get me out of there when you get Bonnie back," she told him, holding his gaze.
The three of us climbed into Clyde's car and began the drive to the spot Lucas told us to meet him.
The trip was completely silent, all of us on edge, but it seemed to go by far too quickly. All too soon, we were there.
Clyde turned off the engine, pocketing the keys, staring out the front windshield.
"Where are they?" He wondered, and I shook my head.
There was one road in and out of the town, and we were parked on the side of it, completely alone.
I pulled my phone from my pocket, quickly texting Beast to inform him we'd arrived at our destination, but we were alone.
"It's early, still," Clyde pointed out. "We still have another ten minutes."
I nodded, staring ahead, scaning the horizon for any sign of Lucas or his men.
Finally, after the longest, most tense ten minutes of my life, I saw a vehicle approaching.
"Stay here," I told Jenna, and me and Clyde climbed out as a white van pulled up on the other side of the road.
The side door opened, and fibe guys climbed out, while the driver stayed in his seat, the engine idling.
They were all armed with hand guns, similar to the one Clyde pulled from his belt, pointing first at one, then another, realising as I did, that we were in way over our heads.
"Fuck," he muttered as they all pointed their guns at us.
"Put it down, man," I murmured to him as he backed up a step.
"Listen to your friend," one guy said.
Hed just emerged from the front passenger seat, unarmed, and I recognised him as the guy who had been accompanying Lucas the first time I saw him at the shop.
Letting out a frustrated growl, Clyde dropped his gun to the ground and we both raised our hands to show we were unarmed.
"My name is Dominic," he told us, brushing his hand down the front of his suit jacket. "Thank you for meeting us here."
"I don't give a fuck who you are," Clyde snapped. "Where the fuck is my wife?"
Dominic ignored Clyde, giving some gesture to the guns.
Two of them came to us, patting us down, checking to see that we were unarmed while the other three kept their guns trained on us. One pocketed my two knives, while the other took three off Clyde, as well as his brass knuckled. Then, when they were satisfied, they forced us to our knees, with our hands behind our heads.
"Where's Bonnie?" Clyde demanded once more, and I glanced toward the van, the door still slid open, and realised with a sinking feeling that she wasn't there.
"That stunning little brunette?" Dominic sneered. "Don't worry about her, Lucas will look after her well. He'll get a good price for her, spirited as she is."
Clyde lurched to his feet, leaping at Dominic, ready to tear his throat out, but two guys were on him straight away. He managed to duck under the first swing, but the second came from behind, and caught him off guard. It wasn't long before they got him on the ground, where they both started kicking the shit out of him.
I had to fight every urge driving me to throw myself at them to try and help my friend, but I knew they would kill us both if I did.
"That's enough, boys," Dominic told them, and they stepped back. One of them pulled Clyde up roughly from the ground and I grimaced as he groaned.
I looked over at him, my heart racing. There was blood pouring over his mouth and down his chin to his shirt from his nose, and I could already see the swelling and the bruises that were forming over the rest of his face.
He was glaring up at the guy closest to him, who once again had his gun trained on him. I don't know how he kept the gun so steady, the look Clyde fixed him with almost had me trembling.
"Breath man," I murmured to him, though I wasn't sure if he even heard me, since his glare didn't even waver. "You're no good to Bonnie with a bullet between your eyes."
I saw the muscle in his jaw jump with how tightly it was clenched.
"You touch her, you're a fucking dead man," he growled through gritted teeth.
"You have a gun in your face, and you're threatening me?" Dominic laughed, then turned to the two at his left. "Get the girl."
I growled as they went to Clyde's car, wrenching the doors open and dragged Jenna out along the ground.
She was kicking and screaming, but they managed to wrestle her into the van, piling in after her, and slid the door shut again.
"If you follow us," Dominic told us dismissively, "you die."