Breaking The Biker (The Biker Series) - An MC Gold Vipers Motorcycle Club Biker Romance Novel Page 5

  “I’m going to finish my beer and take off. It was nice talking to you, Raina.”

  “Uh, yeah. Same here.”

  He turned around and walked into the bathroom. As I watched the way he moved, I wasn’t sure why, but his swagger seemed familiar. Shrugging it off, I turned around and went back to the bar.

  “Looks like you two were having a deep conversation over there,” remarked Matt when I returned.

  “Not really,” I said. “I asked him what kind of pizza he wanted and we just got to talking.”

  “So, what did he decide on?”

  “He changed his mind on the pizza. Said he was going to finish his beer and leave.”

  “Excuse me, can I order one of those pizzas?” asked a new customer who had seated himself on the other side of Gordy. He was a mechanic from across the street and a regular.

  I turned to him. “Sure, Jay. What kind would you like?”

  “Pepperoni,” he said. “Is that Tank you were talking to?”

  “Tank?” I repeated, writing down his pizza order. “What are you talking about?”

  “That guy you were talking to over by the bathrooms. I swear, that’s got to be him.”

  “I’m not sure who Tank is, but that guy’s name was Justin,” I answered.

  “I’m sure you’re right. He’s not wearing a cut and I doubt he’d be over on this side of town.”

  “What do you mean, a cut?” asked Matt.

  “You know, it’s what those bikers usually wear,” piped in Gordy. “Displaying the name of their club. They put those patches on them.”

  “That’s right. Your brother Cole is mixed up with the Devil’s Rangers, isn’t he?” asked Matt.

  I couldn’t answer. I felt like the wind had been knocked out of me. There’d been something familiar about Justin, and hadn’t Cole mentioned the name Tank before? I wasn’t sure.

  Matt frowned. “Are you okay, Raina? You look like a ghost.”

  “I need to make a phone call,” I said quickly. “I’ll be back.”

  “Okay,” he answered.

  I raced to the breakroom and tried calling Cole again. This time, he answered.

  “Hey, Raina. What’s up?”

  “There’s a big guy in here with tats and muscles. He’s not wearing a cut, but one of our regulars thinks he looks like a guy named Tank.”

  Cole swore. “Raina, you need to get your ass out of the bar, now.”

  “Who is he?” I whispered, now shaking.

  “Tank is Slammer’s son. The new president of the Gold Vipers.”

  I almost dropped my phone.

  Chapter 9

  When I made it out of the men’s room and back up to the bar, Raina was nowhere to be seen.

  Fuck.

  “It is you,” said a newcomer seated next to Gordy. I’d noticed him by the bar when I’d been talking to Raina. He’d been staring at me and I’d wondered if he’d recognized me. Apparently, he had.

  “Sorry, have we met?” I asked.

  The guy looked disappointed. “I did some work on your old man’s truck last year. Dropped it off at the clubhouse and we had a beer together. Surprised you don’t remember. The name is Jay.”

  “That’s right.” I chugged downed the rest of my Michelob.

  “How is he, by the way?” asked Jay.

  Surprised that he hadn’t heard, I lied and told him that Slammer was fine. “Where’d Raina go?” I asked, searching the bar.

  “She went to the breakroom,” said Matt, studying me with piercing scrutiny. “So, they call you Tank?”

  “Sometimes,” I said, frustrated. My cover was blown to hell and Raina was probably calling her brother Cole. If she knew who I was. “Catch yeah later.”

  I walked out the front door of the bar, pulled my gun out of my ankle holster, and raced around to the employee exit, which was on the other side of the building. I wasn’t sure what I was going to do, but knew that this could be my last chance to talk to her. As I approached the back door, I heard the screeching of tires and turned to see a silver four-door sedan peel away.

  Chapter 10

  I saw Justin in my rearview mirror as I raced out of the parking lot. He was standing next to the back door and would have clearly intercepted me had I left even a few seconds later.

  Shit. Shit. Shit.

  My heart was pounding and my hands shook as I drove blindly through the streets, not sure where to go. Justin knew where I worked. Who I was. What I’d done to his father.

  Why else would he be there?

  There was no doubt in my mind that he would have killed me if I’d have gone on that date. I imagined his hands around my throat, choking the life out of me, and my eyes filled with tears. I was fucking dead.

  My cell phone rang, making me jump.

  “It’s me,” said Cole, when I picked it up. “Are you okay?”

  “Yes,” I said, trying to compose myself. I didn’t need him to hear me crying. “For now.”

  “Jesus Christ, I knew killing Slammer was a bad idea. And now those fuckers know you did it. This is bad, Raina. Really fucking bad.”

  “Yeah, I get it. How do you think they find out?” I asked, my eyes darting to the mirror again.

  “I didn’t say anything but obviously, somebody recognized the van and put two-and-two together. You’ve got to get out of town. Or better yet, I’ll call my Prez and get you some club protection.”

  “I’m not getting help from the Devil’s Rangers,” I snapped. “I trust them as much as I trust the Gold Vipers.”

  “Why can’t you give them a break? They’re on our side.”

  “Don’t even start with me.”

  He sighed. “Fine. Then get your ass out of town. In fact, why don’t you call Sal and tell him that you need to hide out at his place for a while.”

  “Are you fucking kidding me? He’s going to want to know why. I can’t tell him that I shot some biker club’s president,” I snapped. “He’s got enough shit on his plate right now as it is.”

  “What are you talking about?”

  I checked the rearview mirror again and was relieved to find I still wasn’t being followed. “Sal thinks he has liver disease and is going into treatment. I tried calling you earlier, to tell you about it, but you wouldn’t answer.”

  “I’m doing a job right now. He’s got liver disease? Is he going to die?” he asked, sounding worried.

  “Let’s hope not. What kind of a job?”

  “I can’t say. It’s club business.”

  “Great,” I mumbled. “I’m sure it’s totally legal, too.”

  “You’re the last person who should be giving me shit. Besides, if it wasn’t for these guys, I’d have nothing.”

  “You’d have nothing?! Do realize that if it wasn’t for your club, Billy would still be alive?” I cried, angry and frustrated. “That we’d both have him?”

  “It’s wasn’t their fault that Billy was shot. It was the Gold Vipers. Those crazy motherfucking cowards sprayed the party with bullets.”

  “Yeah, and that’s the kind of life you really want? Being part of a club with those kinds of enemies?”

  “You don’t know them the way that I do. They’re my friends. My brothers. We’d die for each other.”

  “You’re only a prospect. They make you do the shit they don’t want to do – and for what? So you can wear their colors someday and end up in jail or six feet under?”

  “You don’t understand.”

  “I understand more than you do obviously. Quit defending them, Cole.”

  “Look, I gotta go. Drive your ass to Sal’s and stay there for the night. Make some shit up about why you have to do it, but go there. Meanwhile, I’ll find someplace safe for you to go tomorrow.”

  “So, I’m supposed to go on the run now?”

  “If you’re not going to accept protection from the club, then we’re going to have to find a different way to keep you alive.”

  I sighed.

  “Don’t wor
ry, sis. I’ll be back as soon as possible and we’ll figure something out. I won’t let them hurt you.”

  “I can’t go on the run. Sal needs me right now,” I replied.

  “You might not have a choice. If Tank is after you, he’s not going to stop looking until he finds you.”

  “He is, huh?”

  “He’ll hunt you down until the day he dies. He was close to his old man.”

  “Maybe I should find him before he finds me.”

  “Are you crazy? Don’t do it, Raina. Don’t even fucking do it.”

  “I don’t think I have any other choice,” I said, hanging up on my brother. He called back and I turned off my cell phone.

  Chapter 11

  I headed home after I called Raptor and filled him in on what had happened over at Sal’s.

  “She obviously knows of Cole’s involvement,” he said.

  “Yep. And I’m sure that he’s now aware that we’re on to him.”

  “Did you try following her?”

  “No,” I said. “She drove off like a bat out of Hell. I’m working on getting an address for her, though.”

  “An address, huh? You call Vera?”

  “Yeah.”

  Vera was a girl I’d banged last month after changing her tire on the side of the road. She worked for the IRS and it didn’t take much to get intel from her, especially addresses.

  “You have to bribe her?”

  “Of course. She’s going to call be back within an hour. Said she had to slip back into work and log in to the computer.”

  “Good thing you slipped it to her a few weeks ago. She’s certainly been coming in handy.”

  “I’ll be coming in handy later, too,” I remarked with sly grin. “The girl has the mouth of a Hoover.”

  “Glad to see you’re finally coming around,” said Raptor, sounding amused. “I was getting worried about you, brother.”

  “I’m just… adjusting,” I said, serious again. Knowing my dad was gone still hurt like a son-of-a-bitch. Knowing that revenge was close at hand, made things a little easier to swallow.

  “It’s good to hear. I know it isn’t easy and we’re all going to miss him.”

  “Yeah,” I replied, feeling my throat tighten.

  “We’re here for you. I’m here for you, brother. You know that, right?”

  “Yes. Same to you. I couldn’t do any of this without you. I mean it.”

  “Fuck that. You’re the ‘Tank’, strong-willed and fearless. You’re more capable of leading this group than any of us and that’s why you were voted in as Prez.”

  I couldn’t help but smile. “You guys make it easy.”

  “Your crew respects and would do anything for you and know you’d do the same.”

  “Damn right. I’d take a bullet for any of you.”

  “And you know that any of us would return the favor.”

  “Yeah.”

  We were both silent for a few seconds.

  “Anyhow, let me know when you get the address and we’ll go talk to her.”

  “That’s okay. I’ll handle it,” I replied, wanting to see Raina again. I knew she was sister to the enemy, but I couldn’t get those eyes out of my head. And those lips. I felt myself grow hard just thinking about them wrapped around my cock.

  “What are you going to do?”

  “Scare her into telling me where Cole is.”

  I figured by her reaction, she probably hated me as much as I hated her piece-of-shit brother, but I needed Raina to know the gravity of the situation and that her brother was playing for the wrong team. Nobody shoots my old man and walks away without facing the consequences. If she could persuade her brother to give me the name of the shooter, I might even just let him live with nothing more than a limp.

  “You sure?” he asked.

  “Yeah.”

  He let out a long sigh. “Do you think she could have been the shooter?”

  “No,” I said, remembering the fearful look she’d given me when I’d approached her for a damn date. My gut told me that there wasn’t an ounce of evil in that girl. The person who killed Slammer was a ruthless killer. Someone probably propositioned by the Devil’s Rangers. “I just don’t see it. Cole’s sister doesn’t seem like a killer.”

  “You and I both know that what she seems like doesn’t mean shit. If this chick did kill your old man, then she won’t think twice about shooting you. Don’t underestimate her.”

  “I hear you,” I replied. “I can handle this princess, though. I just need to get that address.”

  Chapter 12

  Wondering if Justin had caused any kind of scene, I turned my phone back on and dialed the bar. Matt answered

  “Where’d you go?” he asked. I could hear customers laughing and talking in the background. Sal’s was obviously still busy.

  “A friend of mine called with an emergency,” I lied. “She’s in the hospital and needs someone to watch her kids.”

  “Oh, that’s bad news. Hope she’s okay,” he replied sincerely.

  I relaxed. He evidently hadn’t noticed anything unusual and Justin must not have said anything.

  “Well, it’s appendicitis. I’m sorry to do this to you, but I’m not going to be able to make it back in tonight.”

  “It’s okay,” he replied. “We’ve been slammed with customers, but I think we can handle it.”

  I felt so guilty for leaving them, but I knew that going back to the bar was a death wish. “How’s Peggy doing?”

  “She has her hands full, but don’t worry. We’ve got it covered.”

  “Okay. Did Sal stop back in or call?”

  “No. I’m sure he’s sound asleep by now.” He spoke away from the phone. “Hold on, I’ll be right with you, sir.”

  “I’m sure you’re right. I’d better let you take care of the customers. I’ll call you tomorrow and let you know what’s going on.”

  “Okay. I guess we’ll have to reschedule breakfast,” he said, sounding disappointed.

  “Yes. Next time?”

  “Anytime.”

  “Okay. We’ll talk about it later.”

  “Sounds good.”

  I said goodbye and hung up. Matt was definitely into me right now. It was probably better that we hadn’t gone out for breakfast.

  I pulled over to the side of the road and started searching the internet for information on the Gold Vipers and found plenty, including an article about Justin’s deceased girlfriend, a woman named Krystal Blake, who was thought to have been murdered by the Devil’s Rangers.

  “And so it begins,” I mumbled, reading further into the story. Unfortunately, no charges were filed on any of the members of the Devil’s Rangers and there hadn’t been enough DNA evidence to convict anyone, although a biker by the name of Thomas Kramer, nickname Breaker, had been a leading suspect. He was later found dead in his truck, having bled to death by a bullet to the groin. I also found several other articles about Breaker being incarcerated for rape. It was only a couple of months after he was released that the thing with Krystal occurred.

  I continued my search and found a couple of other articles in which two leaders of the Devil’s Rangers had also died. The first one happened three years ago, in a fire up in Minnesota. The leader of the Hayward Chapter, whose road name was Mud, was found in their clubhouse, charbroiled. The other victim was found with his genitals cut off. He’d been dead before the reported fire had taken place. Again, there was no DNA evidence, although some rogue biker, who called himself The Judge, was still wanted for questioning.

  Finally, I found an article that was dated only a few weeks back. Another Devil’s Rangers president had been found dead up in Alaska after some kind of run-in with an FBI agent named Stryker. The man’s name had been Jon Hughes and he’d been head of the Mother Chapter, which in the biker world, was apparently a big deal. Both men had been found dead, along with a couple other members of the Devil’s Rangers. There weren’t any links this time to the Gold Vipers, but it happene
d around the same time that Billy was killed.

  It’s gotta be related, I thought. All of it.

  I started to get dizzy thinking about all of the death and destruction caused by both clubs and knew I had to try talking Cole into running away with me. We had to get as far from Iowa as we possibly could, even if it meant leaving Sal. As far as I was concerned, our being near him was a far more dangerous threat than the liver disease at the moment. But first, I would pay a visit to Slammer’s son. I wanted him to know why I’d killed his father and to make sure he left the rest of my family alone for good.

  I continued searching until I was forced to use my credit card to get the home address for a Justin Fleming, AKA Tank. I knew where their clubhouse was located, but was too skittish to drive by it. There would be too many bikers hanging around the place and if I was spotted, they’d chase me down and that would be that.

  I started the car and began following the directions on my phone to the address, hoping it was correct. When I knew that I was close, I parked two blocks away and took the gun out of my purse. It was the same one I’d killed Slammer with. Cole had warned me to get rid of it, but I’d had too much on my mind. Now, I was glad that I’d kept the damn thing.

  Checking the gun to make sure it was loaded, I shoved it back into my purse and got out of the car. I still wasn’t sure what the hell I was going to do, but something needed to be done about the guy who’d tried ambushing me at Sal’s.

  Justin’s bungalow was in the northern suburbs and looked dark and deserted. It was a white house with black trim, much smaller than most of the others on the block, but kept up very well. There was a metal fence around the front yard and I began to consider the possibility that he might have a dog. I reached into my purse and pulled out a small can of pepper spray that I also carried around with me. I didn’t like the thought of using it on any animal, but I wasn’t about to die because of one. A guy like Tank could have a slew of Pitbulls strutting around his place, and with my luck, they’d get me before he ever could.

  I hurried across the dark street and made it over the sidewalk, up the lawn, and to the back of the house, my heart beating loudly. Trying not to make any noise, I unlatched the metal gate and crept into the backyard, which was relatively private. Behind the house was a large garage, with an alley. I decided that if I made it out of this situation alive, I’d try to escape that way.