“No, there isn’t anyone who would care that much from my old life,” she says, looking down dejectedly. I know a little of that look, what it feels like to cut out your heart to make a new life.
“Prez, I think that answers that, do you need anything else?” I ask, seeing the pain grow on her face.
“No, I think we’ve got what we need to make a plan. Go get some rest you two and trust the Brothers to make this right,” King says, dismissing us.
“Wait. I want to know more. What can I do to help? I need to help,” Tessa interjects, her eyes wide with panic as they flick between King and me.
“Tessa. Take a breath Darlin’. The Brothers are doing everything they can to find your little one. The best thing you can do for him right now is to get yourself healthy and let us know if you think of anything.” turning to me, he says, “Sawyer, you will not let her out of your sight, and I expect you to take care of her.” King stands from his desk, clearly dismissing us this time. Tessa wilts under his declaration, slumping in her seat, the panic and all the fight draining away.
“Church in ten,” King says to no one in particular, putting the final statement on the conversation. He doesn’t need to tell me twice. I nod in deference to the Prez, scoop Tessa up in my arms and stride from the room. She curls into my chest and lets me carry her until we enter my room and I carefully lay her on my bed.
She looks around the unremarkable space for a moment before laying back against the pillows and curling onto her side, her knees drawn up and hands curled under the pillow facing the middle of the bed. She looks so small lying on the bed, and I feel shame well up. I cannot believe that I let her feel this kind pain, that I failed her and Evan so spectacularly. My God, what is that little man feeling away from his mother. What must he be feeling because I wasn’t there to keep him safe, to make his life better, to make him laugh, to pick him up and bring him to bed. Looking back at her I feel a need rise in me and I make my way to bed. I sit down and lay behind her, pulling her close and holding her tight. She presses back against me and we just fit. I can feel her breathing, her heart beating against my hand. This is what I need, to be close, to connect. This woman has unearthed things that I forgot I wanted in life. The scent of sweet vanilla filling my nose from her hair, welcoming and warm.
This. This is the purpose I’ve been missing. Get Evan back, make Tessa whole, protect them both, enjoy them. It is the purpose I have been searching for, the one I never thought I’d find.
“Babydoll. Hey. I know this is a lot, but I promise, we’ve got this. You don’t know much about the Club yet, but this is what we do. We protect our own and deal with those who do us wrong. I’ll make it right, Babydoll,” I say against her hair.
She doesn’t respond, the only sign she even heard me is her curling into herself even further, as if trying to hide from my words. She needs time, she needs sleep.
“Okay, Babydoll. King called Church; I need to go,” I say, giving her a little kiss on the ear. “There’s a bathroom right there if you want to take a bath or something. I’ll be back as soon as I can,” I stand, bending down to place a final kiss on her temple before walking out the door.
When I walk into the meeting room where Church is held, I’m the last one to take his seat before King calls us all to order from the head of the massive table. The golden oak table has the Forsaken Sons emblem burned into the center and is lacquered to a high shine. The wall behind King has photos of each of the current and past officers. Across from the doors, on the far wall, several maps of our territory, schedules of events, and various supply routes hang.
“Brothers, we have ourselves a bit of trouble. You all met Tessa last night, Sawyer’s woman. Late last night, at least two men cut the alarm at Clay’s rental, knocked out Tessa, and kidnapped her boy.” a chorus of growls break out. “I know, I know.” he says, waiting for the room to settle. “Not one of us likes this; we welcomed her here into our home, we put her and her son under our protection. What happened last night flies in the face of everything we stand for. We do not condone the harming of women and children, and we will not abide it happening to one of ours. We protect our own, always.” he says, emphasizing each of his points with a finger against the table. “We are going to deal with this problem like we deal with all our problems. Swiftly, decisively, and finally. Tinker, update on what we know.” he clips, nodding toward the man at the computer.
Tinker stands, pressing a button on a remote to trigger the projector screen behind King’s seat to descend from the ceiling. Leaning over his laptop, he connects to the projector and brings up what look like stills from the security feed at Tessa’s. “Alright, what we know so far is that one man went around the front of the house, came in through the front door, slipping on some ice and busting the screen door, and then let his buddy in the back around 2:00 AM last night. They were in the house for less than five minutes before you see them leaving through the back and down the alley.” Tinker hits the space bar on his laptop and the picture on the screen flips to a shot of two large men in black hooded sweatshirts leaving the house, one carrying a bundle under one arm.
“The camera on the garage caught a shot of a rusted-out Suburban leaving the alley. I traced the plates to a rental place just outside of Seattle. One thing we do know for sure is that these guys are not professionals. Renting a car in their backyard, leaving footprints all over the damn house, let alone fingerprints; they’re fuckin’ amateurs. I mean, come on! How hard is it to…”
“Tink!” King barks, cutting off his rant and bringing attention back to the task at hand.
“Sorry Prez. Yeah, so, they rented using cash, but I was able to pull the records and the van was rented to a Kevin Bucholtz. Now, little Kevin really is of no consequence; some nineteen-year-old punk with nothing worse than a public urination charge on his record. However, what Kevin does have, is a spot as a prospect with The Pikesmen MC, one of the major powers in Seattle,” Tink rattles off, scrolling through a few more pictures on his screen.
King stands and motions for Tinker to sit. “Thanks Brother. The Pikesmen have a handle on some small-time drugs and own some strip clubs in the area. Where they really make their name for themselves is in racketeering and enforcing. They are basically mercenaries for hire for anything from private security to hit men.”
“Why Tessa? Why Evan? Nothing in her past seems to tie her to the Pikesmen, or any MC really. Why target them?” I ask.
“Getting there. Evan’s father, David Lindholm, owns a chrome plating shop in a shithole part of town. He mainly works with auto-shops doing custom jobs. One of those shops? Owned by the Pikesmen MC; plus his books don’t seem to add up so he’s probably laundering as well. For those of you not in the know, David likes to beat up women, steal children, and generally deserves whatever death comes to him as swiftly as possible. He is the reason Tessa ran with Evan and why we’re going to be the swift arm of justice he deserves. From what we can put together, this shit-stain wants his kid back, so he made some kind of deal with the MC to retrieve Evan and bring him back to Seattle,” Tinker answers, standing again.
“How’d the fucker even find her? She changed her name, paid with cash, stuck to the side roads, she did everything right. What changed?” Clay piped in.