My heart hammers in my chest as he pulls me off of the mattress before tucking me into his side. We walk back over to the door and duck inside. Once in the stairwell, we hear the front door of the clubhouse slam open and several people yelling and my hands start to shake. He stops halfway down the stairs and presses me against the wall, slamming his lips to mine. It gives me something to focus on, something to distract me from the fear running rampant through my body and when he pulls away, he meets my eyes.
“I’ve got you, baby, you hear me? You have nothing to be scared of. Okay?”
I nod even though I have my doubts. “Okay.”
He kisses me one last time before he laces his fingers with mine and we walk the rest of the way down the stairs, stepping into the hallway. Before we can move in either direction, three police officers charge up the stairs decked out in tactical gear with their guns drawn.
“Get down!” the first one screams but I’m frozen in place, shaking as I stare at the large weapon pointed at my chest. Travis gives my hand a squeeze, tugging on my arm as he sinks to the floor and I follow his lead as everything swirls around us in slow motion. I can hear yelling in the main area of the clubhouse and someone is crying… “Get on your fucking stomach!”
I try to catch my breath as I sink to my belly and Travis grabs my hand as two of the officers move on down the hallway, searching for more people, while the one who screamed at me stands over us, his gun still trained on my body. Laying my head flat on the floor, I look at Travis as tears streak down my face. Fury lights up his eyes and his gaze flicks to our babysitter but I give his hand another squeeze to stop him from doing anything stupid.
“I’m okay,” I whisper, soft enough that the cop standing over us won’t hear me and he searches my face for a moment, desperation and anger shining in his eyes, before nodding.
“I got you.”
I nod. “I know.”
“Shut the fuck up,” the cop hisses, nudging my arm with his boot and Travis’s gaze flicks up toward him as his nostrils flare and his lip curls back in a snarl. My heart hammers in my chest at the thought of him getting hurt because of me and I squeeze his hand again. When he looks back at me, I shake my head and it stops him but it doesn’t do much to quell his rage.
The other two officers step back into the hallway with Moose, Juliette, Fuzz, Piper, and Nix walking in a single file line in front of them as they train their guns at their backs.
“Up,” the officer guarding us orders and Travis stands up before helping me to my feet and wrapping his arm around me as I glance at the officer’s last name printed on his name tag.
Riley.
He grabs my arm, his fingers digging into my skin as he jerks me out of Travis’s grip and I let out a squeak of pain as tears sting my eyes. Holy shit. That really fucking hurt.
Travis steps forward, his hands balled into fists at his sides and that snarl on his face again. He looks ready to murder someone and I get the feeling that he doesn’t give a single shit if he goes to jail or gets shot. The thought sends a powerful wave of pain crashing into me and I shake my head as his gaze meets mine.
“Please, no,” I whisper, still shaking my head. His gaze flicks to mine and he searches my eyes for a moment before he nods but his muscles don’t relax one bit as he falls in line behind me. The three officers lead us down the stairs and into the bar area before instructing us to line up along one wall, opposite from everyone else, and press our backs against it.
“Keep your hands where I can fucking see them,” Officer Riley orders so I splay my hands flat against the wall as my heart climbs into my throat. Another officer leads Quinn and all of the kids out of the movie theater. Her eyes are wide with fear as she holds baby Magnolia in her arms and the kids are all terrified, some of them screaming as tears run down their chubby little cheeks and others trying to pull away from the group in an attempt to escape. It all breaks my fucking heart.
“Get your hands off of me,” Emma snarls, pulling the attention of everyone in the room as she and Ali try to step forward to get their children but an officer has a hand on both of them, pushing them back. Nix and Storm both look ready to tear someone’s head off but two other officers have a gun trained on each of them, daring them to make a move. Emma tries to shove the hand away but it’s no use. “I am going to get my children.”
The officer trying to restrain them glances back at Riley, who nods in approval so he releases them. They march across the room, their heads held high like they are daring one of them to take a shot. When they reach their kids, Ali takes Magnolia from Quinn and gives her arm a reassuring squeeze before walking back over to the wall. Emma crouches down and all four of her kids rush her, throwing themselves into her arms. Her boys, Grady and Corbin, cast very pissed off glances at the officer who tried to stop her and despite the situation, a small smile stretches across my face at their fierce protective streak. No doubt something they learned from their daddy and grandpa.
“Listen up,” a severe looking woman calls as she walks into the room in a tailored pantsuit and I instantly dislike her. Maybe it’s the blatant arrogance rolling off of her in waves or her smug face as she looks down at all of us but I can’t stand the bitch and I don’t even know her name yet. She stops in the middle of the room, crosses her arms over her chest, and flashes us a cold smile as her gaze flicks over the faces around her. “My name is Sergeant Williams. I’m looking for Logan Chambers.”
Storm steps forward and raises his hand. “That’s me.”
“Excellent. Come with me, Mr. Chambers, and the rest of you, wait here.” She snaps her fingers, expecting him to follow her like a dog as she starts walking toward the war room with all the swagger of someone who knows they are in complete control. Storm fights back a snarl as he walks behind her and once they step inside, she shuts and locks the door but it feels like a jail cell slamming shut.
“Are you okay?” Travis asks as he inches closer to me along the wall, concern in his eyes as he hooks his pinky finger with mine. I nod but despite that, he still scowls and glances down my body before he gaze flicks to my arm where Riley grabbed me. “Did he hurt you? ‘Cause I swear to God, I’ll fucking…”
“Travis,” I snap and his gaze meets mine again. “Don’t do anything stupid. I’m okay.”
He nods, his body sagging with relief. “Good.”
“What do you think this is all about?” I ask and he shakes his head before scanning the room.
“I don’t know but you don’t bring this much fire power for something small.”
Uncomfortable silence descends over all of us as we wait for Storm to come back out of the war room and my belly flips as my mind screams for relief.
I want out of this room.
I want to get away from these damn cops.
Oh, and also, I hope to never see Officer fucking Riley again.
Yelling reaches us through the door of the war room but it’s not Storm losing his temper in there and as I listen to Sergeant Williams demand answers from him, I rack my brain for what any of us could have done that would have brought this level of persecution down on us but I’ve honestly got nothing. These people, despite the biker club reputation they get saddled with, are some of the kindest, most down to earth people I’ve ever met and every single one of them has accepted me into their family, as I am, with no reservations or conditions. They don’t seem like the kind of people who would ever do anything to warrant a fucking S.W.A.T. raid let alone a police investigation.