Marek cleared his throat and sat up straighter. “On to the issue with Tag.” My ears perked up at the mention of the guy who could possibly be a Reaper. Last I knew he was still tied up in that basement, but things could’ve changed.
“We don’t believe he’s a Reaper, even though he comes from one.” Our leader spewed out the words as if they pained him, and after hearing the details of what Tag’s father, Vex, did to Sully, I could partially understand his distaste for Tag. But, like he just said, he wasn’t a Reaper.
“Are you sure?” Hawke asked, tucking his hair behind his ear and leaning forward. He looked pissed at the news, and from what I remembered of how he acted in that basement, I could guess the nomad wanted to revisit old wounds.
“Yeah. We had guys we trust dig into his past to see if the story he told Kaden and Linc was true. These same guys have been keeping an eye on the Reapers for years, and none of them have ever seen Tag before, indicating he hasn’t been around the rest of them. He did check out as having a job back in Boston, attending grade school, then high school there as well as college. We even went so far as to visit his mother, and while she didn’t know us personally, she knew who we were. She confirmed she wanted to get him as far away from his father because he was a bad man.”
“Did she wonder why you were there to see her?” Ace spoke that time.
“Yeah, she did. We told her he wanted a job with us, and we liked to vet everyone who applied.”
“She didn’t think that was weird?” I asked.
“No, but then again she was high. She told us about the cancer and how she needs to smoke because of the chemo treatments. This actually works to our advantage because she doesn’t even realize her son hasn’t been around. She told us he came by the other day for a visit, which is obviously impossible since we have him.”
“Okay, then we can let him go,” Kaden rushed to say, glossing over everything Marek just said.
“Well… that’s where it gets tricky,” my ol’ man added. “We didn’t exactly treat him well, and we basically admitted to killing his father, so…”
“So… what?” I asked, hoping to God he didn’t suggest killing Tag because they fucked up.
“Read between the lines, man.” Jagger leaned forward and stared at me. “If we let him go, he can cause an issue for us.”
“So, you’re gonna kill him?” I looked to Jagger, then to my ol’ man, then to Marek, my pulse loud and thrumming in my ears.
“We don’t know yet.”
I ran my hand over the top of my head, releasing the air in my lungs before forgetting how to breathe for a moment. “Can you at least tell us if he’s still strapped to that table? He’s been there for days.”
“I’m fully aware how long he’s been there,” Marek answered, irritation pouring out of him and toward me, but I wasn’t the one who jumped to conclusions, and I certainly wasn’t the one who beat the poor guy before divulging our club had killed his father. Although, the latter part I doubted he’d care much about. But what the hell did I know? “Nash, Miles, and Rez are here. They’re taking turns making sure Tag doesn’t go anywhere until we decide what to do with him.” I didn’t need to ask if Tag had been released from his restraints because Marek’s statement answered my unasked question. My guess would be that they had him contained to one of the bedrooms.
All three men were members of our Laredo charter. I’d met Nash and Miles many times, and I could attest that both men were loyal and the epitome of what a Knights member encompassed. Rez, on the other hand, I’d only met once, so I couldn’t properly form an opinion about him yet. He was younger than the other two, somewhere in his early thirties, I believed.
I’d continue to be on edge where the issue with Tag was concerned, praying for a resolution that didn’t result in his death. If Marek decided to go down that road, however, could I live with knowing that I had a part in killing an innocent man, even if I didn’t commit the act myself?
21
“I think that’s enough for today,” Marek announced, slamming the gavel down before anyone could say anything else.
I could only imagine how hard it was for him to tell us the details of what happened to his wife. From the pained look on his face and the tension in his form, revisiting that sordid past was the last thing he wanted to do, but I was happy he stopped keeping things from some of us. Okay… happy was the wrong word, but I felt empowered having the information because I now knew what types of people we were up against. And while I was fully aware that the Reapers were soulless bastards, and the club that existed today didn’t have the same members from long ago, they seemed to carry the same morals, or lack thereof.
Everyone had left Chambers except for me, Kaden, Marek, and my ol’ man. While I wanted to rush to check on Maddie, I needed to make sure my friend was okay first.
Kaden slowly rose from his seat, Marek coming to stand next to him. “Your mom isn’t volunteering today. Go see her. You’ll see she’s okay.” Kaden nodded, a solemn expression twisting his features. “Don’t let her know you’re aware of all the details. I don’t want her thinkin’ about what happened or worried about you now that you know. She’s been through enough.”
Sully volunteered at a domestic violence shelter, her need to help people who had been abused unfortunately making perfect sense to me now.
“I understand,” his son replied before turning toward me. “Go with me?”
“Of course. Let me check on Maddie first.”
“Okay, I’ll meet you outside.”
“Grab your gun before you go,” Prez shouted after him before he was out of earshot.
“I’ll make sure we have them before we leave here.” I walked out to the common area and while I didn’t want anyone in the room with Maddie—my protectiveness over her becoming stronger all the time—I didn’t want to leave her isolated back there until I returned because I had no idea how long Kaden wanted to spend with his mom. And I wasn’t gonna rush him. “Ace, can you come with me?”
He jogged up next to me. “What’s up?”
“Can you check in on Maddie while I’m gone with Kaden?”
“Yeah, I can do that.” He stopped walking while I continued down the hallway. When I noticed he wasn’t beside me any longer, I turned to search for him.
“Are you comin’?” He looked at me like I was a stranger. “I know she’s seen you before, but I don’t need you scaring her if you were to go in there by yourself later.” He frowned but didn’t move. “Just come on,” I yelled, frustrated he wasn’t making this any easier on me.
“Jesus, Linc. What the fuck’s up your ass?” He was behind me several strides later, but I ignored his question. I should, in fact, ask him the same thing, but I had an idea. Not only was he probably trying to digest everything we found out, but he had his own issues with a certain female.
Knocking on the bedroom door like I’d been doing, I entered shortly after I heard her say, “Come in.”