I cursedmyself the whole way back to Mustang Mountain…. for blowing it with Sammy… for losing the guy from the cafe before I figured out who he was… and mainly for not taking my truck in the first place. The only thing I wasn’t pissed at myself about was stopping in Silver Creek. I’d spent years wondering where Sammy ended up. Now I knew she was just down the highway.
It didn’t change anything. She was still better off without me in her life—a fact I’d proven again tonight. Hopefully, that asshole was just passing through and wouldn’t come back to cause her any trouble.
As soon as I got home, I’d let Atlas know to take me off Savage Bones surveillance for a few days. I needed to swap my bike for my truck and pack a few things so I could head back to Silver Creek and keep an eye on the cafe. If anything happened to Sammy… hell, I wouldn’t let myself think about it.
I finally rolled in around nine. Sirius greeted me at the door with his tail wagging. Not even the sight of my overgrown pup was enough to pull me out of the dark mood I’d fallen into. Half-wolf, half-dog, Sirius was one of the pups from the litter of Hades, the town’s unofficial not-so-wild wolf and Persephone, one of the sled dogs my buddy Mack owned.
“Hey, buddy. Brought you back a little meatloaf.” I scratched him behind the ears as I made my way into the kitchen. It was nice having someone to come home to, even just a dog. I’d never stayed in one place long enough to have a pet until I settled in Mustang Mountain a couple of years ago.
Sirius wolfed down the meatloaf in one bite, then sat back and licked his lips.
“That’s all I’ve got for you tonight.” I needed to stop bringing him leftovers before he stopped eating his dog food.
A hot shower beckoned, but I needed to talk to Atlas first. Thanks to the storm, I hadn’t had service in Silver Creek or the couple of times I’d stopped to check on the way home. I pulled my phone out of my pocket. The signal showed one bar. Dammit. I tried calling, but it wouldn’t connect.
The best thing to do would be to get cleaned up and head down to the clubhouse to talk in person. All the officers had been staying there since the beef with Savage Bones had been building.
Within twenty minutes, I’d showered, changed,packed what I needed to stake out the cafe for a few days, and headed down the mountain to the clubhouse with Sirius in the front seat. I nodded at Motor Mouth as he opened the gate to let me into the compound. It had been a few days since I’d stopped by, and it looked like the number of campers and RVs taking refuge under the club’s protection had doubled.
I held the door open for Sirius, then followed him in and ran into Shooter, one of the newer guys. “Hey, have you seen Atlas?”
“He’s off site.” Shooter leaned closer. “Left early this morning to go meet with the president of a club out of Idaho.”
“Did something happen?” Seemed like new bullshit was cropping up every day now. No matter how many small battles we won against the Savage Bones, they kept coming back.
“Something’s always happening. They intercepted a delivery to the merc earlier today. Hijacked the truck and drove it straight off the side of the mountain. Ruby’s pissed as hell. I guess it had a ton of supplies she’d ordered for the music festival coming up in a couple of weeks.”
“Damn. I can’t believe she’s still planning on going with everything that’s been happening around here.” The festival was one of the largest events of the summer in our part of Montana. Ruby had been vying for a vendor booth for years and finally snagged one. Atlas had assigned a few of the Mustang Mountain Riders to gowith her, but I’d assumed he’d canceled since we were in an all-hands-on deck situation.
“They’d probably have to blow up the merc to keep her from heading to that festival. It’s all she’s been talking about for months,” Shooter said.
“Any idea when Atlas will be back?”
Shooter shrugged. “Probably not until tomorrow. What’s going on?”
“I got into it with a guy tonight when I stopped at a cafe in Silver Creek. He threatened the server, and I want to make sure he doesn’t come back later on tonight or tomorrow.” No need to go into more detail. Shooter didn’t need to know this was personal for me.
“What the hell were you doing in Silver Creek?” Shooter bent down to run his hand over Sirius’s back like he had all the time in the world.
“I had a meeting with a potential client in Cutgrass and stopped to get out of the rain and grab some coffee. Some of us actually have to work for a living, bro.” I never missed an opportunity to give him shit. Shooter came from money and had probably never done a day’s worth of real work.
“Work, schmerk.” He shook his head and didn’t bother trying to hide his smile. “I guess you could talk to Thunder. He and Arrow were just in the conference room a few minutes ago.”
“Thanks, man.” I turned away from the noise coming from the main room of the clubhouse and headed toward the area where we did club business. Sirius followed.
“Come on in.” Thunder motioned for me to come into the conference room when he saw me by the doorway. “Did you decide to move into the clubhouse until this bullshit with Savage Bones passes?”
“I prefer to stay at my place unless you need my help.” It’s not that I wasn’t willing to do my part, I just preferred my own space. Seemed like love was in the air at the Mustang Mountain Riders clubhouse, and I didn’t like being surrounded by all the guys and their women. Reminded me too much of what I’d never have.
“I hear you. I’d rather be at my cabin, but I’m not about to put Ashley in danger. Atlas reached out to a club in Idaho. Hopefully, he’ll come back with some extra manpower. It’s time to put this hell behind us.” Thunder pushed back from the table and stood.
“I need to cut out for a couple of days. Think you can get along without me?” I filled him in on what happened in Silver Creek, leaving out the details about my personal history with Sammy. I was still reeling from seeing her. She hadn’t changed a bit. Still took my breath away every time I set eyes on her.
Thunder funneled his hands through his hair. “It’s not a good time for you to leave the club.”
“I didn’t mean to start any shit, but I had to step in.” I’d go with or without the club’s blessing but it sure as hell would be easier to come back if Thunder was okay with me going in the first place.
The two-way radio sitting on the table crackled. “Thunder, is Juice with you?” Motor Mouth asked.
