Fuck.
Pulling it out of my pocket, I check the screen and sigh. It’s our club president, Blaze, and I can’t send his call to voice mail.
“Yeah, boss, what’s up?” I answer as Smith and Moose stare up at me.
“I need your help with something,” he answers, slurring his words and my brows pull up. I can’t remember the last time I saw Blaze drunk but he sounds blitzed right now. “Can you come to the clubhouse?”
I nod, glancing down at my watch. “Yeah, give me fifteen.”
He hangs up without another word and I shake my head as I pull the phone away from my ear.
“Everything okay?” Smith asks and I nod.
“Yeah. Blaze just needs to talk to me. I’ll see you boys later.”
Moose smirks. “You better thank him for saving you from matrimonial bliss.”
“Fuck off, asshole,” I shoot back with a laugh as I back away from the table and flip them off. “Oh, and thanks for paying my tab.”
“Son of a bitch,” he hisses and I turn around, ducking out of the front door. Headlights illuminate the front of the bar as a car swings into the lot and I zip up my leather jacket to fight off the chill in the air. When I reach my bike, I swing my leg over and I smile as she rumbles to life beneath me. I’ve been all over this country and no place feels like home like the back of my bike.
My phone rings again and I glance at the screen, silencing it when I see that it’s Rowan, my baby sister. I’ll just have to call her back later. The streets are quiet as I make my way to the clubhouse and it provides me with an easy ride to clear my thoughts. As I get closer, I start to wonder what Blaze could need my help with and why the hell he’s drowning in a bottle tonight.
I first joined the Bayou Devils MC four years ago, right after I rolled into town. At that point, I’d been on the road for two years and I was tired of the nomadic lifestyle. The pain that had once driven me from my home was dulled and I was ready to build a life again somewhere. Blaze and the club had just undergone a major restructuring, getting out of guns and drugs after he was shot, and he didn’t have a whole lot of people in his corner but he was determined to make the club legitimate. When I heard of the work they were doing to help those in need, it struck a chord with me and I found a new home for myself.
The clubhouse parking lot is empty except for Blaze’s bike when I pull in and I park next to him, worry gnawing at me. We had a lot of drama go down with Ali and Carly, Storm and Chance’s girls, a while back but things have been quiet lately. Still, I can’t shake this feeling like something big is on the horizon. It’s like I’m constantly poised, ready for an attack from any angle and I wish I could figure out why.
When I walk into the clubhouse, my gaze is drawn to the bar where Blaze is posted on a stool, a glass filled with amber liquid in his hand. He downs the rest of it and sets it on the bar as he grabs the bottle of bourbon and pours himself some more.
“Thanks for coming,” he slurs, not meeting my eyes. I scan the room, looking for anyone else but it’s empty.
“Where’s everyone at?”
He turns, his bloodshot eyes flicking around the room like he’s just now realizing no one is here before he shrugs and falls off his stool, somehow staying upright. He grabs his glass off the bar. “Follow me. There’s something I need to show you.”
I do as instructed, following behind him as he stumbles into his office. He shuts the door and motions for me to sit down as he ambles over to the filing cabinet and grabs another bottle of bourbon out of the top drawer. He carries it, with his glass, over to the desk and sinks into the chair, hopelessness and pain contorting his face. This isn’t the same man that I’ve come to know over the past four years and I’m even more worried about why he’s called me here tonight.
“What’s going on, Blaze?”
He finishes off the liquor in his glass before tossing a thick file across the desk and it lands in front of me with a thump. “I need you to do something for me.”
I rip my gaze away from him as he pours more bourbon in his glass and glance down at the folder in front of me, flipping it open. A photo of a young woman with dark red hair, pale skin, and amber eyes that seem to shred right through me lays on top and I meet his gaze again.
“Who is she?”
He shakes his head. “You don’t need to know that.”
What the fuck?
We’re a pretty tight club and we don’t keep secrets from each other, something that he insisted on when he turned everything around.
“What do you mean I don’t need to know?”
Blaze shakes his head, finishing off another glass and reaching for the bottle again. “Don’t worry about that. I just need you to follow her.”
“Follow her?” I ask, standing up and snatching the bottle out of his hand. “And how much of this have you had tonight?”
“Not enough,” he snarls, reaching for the bottle but I manage to keep it out of his grasp.
“I think you’ve had plenty.”
“No,” he moans, propping his elbows on the desk and dropping his head into his hands. “Just let me forget.”
“Jesus Christ, Blaze. Forget what?”
He grabs his glass and throws it across the room. I flinch as it hits the wall and shatters.
“Just do what I asked you to do!”
I stare down at the photo again, running through reasons why Blaze might need me to follow this woman. I flip through some more pictures of her, looking for any clue as to why he would ask me to do this. “Why?”
“Just do it, Kodiak. Follow her and report back to me every day. I want to know what she’s doing and who she’s seeing. Everything. Every little detail.”
I drop the photos and back away from the desk, shaking my head. The club has been dedicated to protecting people for the last five years and this doesn’t feel right.
“I need to know why I’m doing this.”
Blaze lets out a sardonic laugh. “No, you don’t. I’m your president and I’ve given you an order.”
I tense and meet his hard stare. “You know I respect the hell out of you, Blaze, but if you think I’m going to stalk some poor innocent woman without knowing why, you’re out of your goddamn mind.”
“Just do it!” he roars and I cross my arms over my chest, waiting for him to keep talking. Finally, he sighs. “You’re not stalking her and I need you to trust that I have a damn good reason if I’m asking you to do this.”
After studying him for a moment, I nod. He’s right. I know what kind of man Blaze is so I don’t really believe that he means this woman any harm but it’s still weird for him to be so evasive.
“Are you in trouble, Blaze? Is she?”
“No more questions, Kodiak. I need your help. Will you do this for me?”
I glance down at the photos on the desk and sigh. “What am I looking for exactly?”
“Don’t worry about that yet. Just record everything.”
Without another word, he grabs the bottle of liquor out of my hand and storms out of the office. I stare down at the photo and wonder what the hell I’m getting myself into.
* * * *