“Yeah, she does. But I can’t get in to show you anything,” she tells me, but she isn’t accurate. Hermoine showed me where she keeps her extra key. She’s old school and hides it under a frog-shaped flowerpot out front. I go over to the pot and swipe the key, then head to the door. I unlock the door for Hermoine’s worker and me, then the two of us head inside.
I recall where Hermoine’s office is, so I head into it, and thankfully as I start up her computer, there isn’t a password prompt. “No password?” I raise my brows and look at the girl.
She takes off her coat and hangs it up on the rack on the back of the door. “No, she lets us all use the computer if we need to. It’s how we get into Workday to log our hours and all of that.”
“Okay, cool. Do you know which program is her security cameras?”
She nods once and grabs the mouse, then scrolls over an icon that looks like a little robot. She double-clicks it and then puts the cursor on top of something that I think will be very important. “This here is the notifications. Any time there’s any sort of movement, it’ll be logged here.”
“Cool. Thank you for showing me. And I’m sorry, what’s your name again? I know I’ve seen you in here before in passing, but I don’t think we’ve ever formally been introduced.” I hate being that guy who seems like he doesn’t pay attention, but I’m not going to lie and act like I know her name.
“It’s Callie. So, Hermoine isn’t in . . . but since you got me in, I’m going to call Sage and get her in here so we can start getting ready for the day. The shop’s been closed, and I’m sure Hermoine would want us to keep it up and running for her, at least until you can find something out.”
“I think that’s a great idea,” I tell Callie, and she walks off toward the front. I’m sure she’s already calling her co-worker and getting prepped for the day.
While she’s off doing whatever she needs to do, I’m looking through the footage over the last couple of days. I start the day that the window was replaced, slowly looking through every notification that happened that day. She has cameras aimed at the front, through her dining area, another on the other side of her dining area, one that goes out the front door, and another one that’s on the back door and a bit behind her building, leading up to the dumpster. I go through the stuff on the inside first, and everything looks like it was a normal day, besides the man who came into her coffee shop that morning. He had a cut on, but I can’t make out the detail from these angles. Eventually, it leads me to a dead end, so I look over the camera out back, and I finally get something.
Hermoine is taking out the trash and the same man from earlier in the day comes up behind her. Only now do I see the full emblem on the cut. This guy is from the Lucifer’s Heretics MC. What in the actual fuck is someone from their club doing around here, and why the hell are they fucking with Hermoine?
“Callie!” I yell the woman’s name, and she’s quick to come back into the office.
“Hey, what’s up?”
“Do you recognize this man? Have you seen him in here as a customer before?” I point to the man wearing the Lucifer’s Heretics MC cut, and she shakes her head.
“No, I’m sorry. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him in here, actually.” Callie comes closer to the screen to try and get a better look, but I don’t expect a different answer.
“Okay, thank you. Sorry to have bothered you while you’re getting everything ready,” I tell her, and she looks at the screen and then back at me.
“Did you find something out about Hermoine? Did something happen?” Callie asks, obviously concerned about her boss and friend.
“I’m still working on it, but once I find out for sure, I’ll let you know.” I don’t want to lie to the girl, but I don’t want to alarm her either. I’m going to figure out what happened to Hermoine, and this fucker from the Lucifer’s Heretics MC hit her on the head and took her. Is it because I’ve been seen around Hermoine as of late? Have they been watching me . . . looking for someone close to use as leverage? Fuck, it wouldn’t be the first time it’s ever happened, and I’m sure it won’t be the last.
If something happened to Hermoine, I don’t know what I’d do. Sure, we’ve been friends for years . . . but right now, knowing she was taken is fucking with me. I care about this woman in a larger way than I’d just care about a friend. I’m very fond of her, and if anything happened to her, I don’t know what I’d do.
Unfortunately for the Lucifer’s Heretics, the idiot who took Hermoine was dumb enough to have their license plate in clear view of the camera. I write the plate number down and exit out of the security camera program, then walk toward the front where Callie is. “I’d almost suggest going home and coming back in a couple of days, but I somehow think you’re going to give me some pushback on it.”
“Hermoine would want to stay open. She’s loyal to her customers, and the past couple of days have already been unplanned closings. I’m going to stay open for her, and if she has a problem with it, then she can tell me when she’s back. I’ll handle the repercussions.” I have to admit, Callie has some serious dedication.
“Well, in that case, you won’t have a problem with it that I’m going to send two of my girls here to help you out. They were here when you and one of your co-workers had the flu, so they know the lay of the land.”
“Are you sure?” Callie asks me as she’s putting a coffee filter in one of the larger machines.
“Yes, I am. I need to get going but thank you. You’ve been a massive help.”
“No, I should be thanking you. From that serious look on your face, I can tell you found something. Just bring her back.”
I give her a nod and walk out through the front door, then head back to my bike. I have to get back to the clubhouse, but first, I send a text to the group chat.
To: Deathstalkers MC
Church in 10.
I hop on my bike, throw on my face mask and helmet in record time and ride like hell to get back to the club. As I pull into the parking lot of the club, the garage door’s being opened, so I roll right on it. There’s practically fire coming from my boots as I rush into the room where we hold church, and everyone’s in here. Good. I don’t want to deal with any tardiness this morning.
I swallow hard as I look at my brothers. “I’m going to cut straight to the chase here. Hermoine was taken by someone from the Lucifer’s Heretics MC. I want you to get on the phone with our allies. I don’t care who calls who, but we need everyone we can get to help us with this. This means call the Reapers Rejects MC in Billings, Montana. Call the Iron Vex MC, who have clubs in Toronto, Boston, and New York City. Call the Skulls Renegade MC in Gainesville, Tennessee. Call the Sons of Gods MC in Birmingham, Alabama. The Bayou Devils MC in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Even the Satan’s Raiders MC in Los Angeles. I want someone on the phone with every Prez or VP. I want to know if anyone has information on what the Lucifer’s Heretics MC has been up to.” As I speak, the guys can hardly believe what I’m telling them. Everyone here knows Hermoine is sweet as pie, so I’m certain they’re having a hard time knowing she was taken.