Deeks shifted in his saddle, the leather creaking under him as he rubbed Harley’s neck with the flat of his palm. He was uncomfortable going on, that was obvious, but I could see the resolution in his eyes. He wasn’t going to leave me hanging.
“Tucker. Eric Tucker.”
“Drew’s father?”
Deeks nodded, but I knew that was all I was going to get. His loyalty was solid as a rock, and any questions I had would have to be directed elsewhere. I knew he felt as though he’d said too much already, and I wanted to let him off the hook.
“Well, that explains a lot.”
Deeks looked over at me, but my only response was a wink, which earned me an indignant huff of disgust.
I started laughing as I gathered the reins in my hand. My body leaned forward to run my hand over the horse's shoulder as it looked longingly out over the grass. The need to run was twitching under her muscles and had her rocking from one foot to the other.
“Deeks?”
“Yeah?”
“Race you!”
With a tap of my heel, all the air left the horse’s lungs and the jerk of her taking off shifted me in the saddle, forcing a yip of excitement from me. Deeks gave a verbal command, and the huff of his horse was the only indication he was game as the thunder of hoofs drowned out the thoughts I wasn't able to escape.
Clarity was a beautiful thing. With the small piece of freedom I’d managed to find thanks to Deeks, everything elsefell into perspective. Did I trust Tate not to fuck this up? No. I didn't. He was fifteen, cocky, and full of attitude. The one thing I did know was that I trusted Drew to watch out for him. I trusted the pack to stop the mess from going too far, and I believed him when he said they would let nothing happen to Tate. As the peace began to settle, the nagging receded, but it wouldn't leave completely. Maybe it never would.
Chapter Fourteen
Drew
Two days had passed since my conversations with Ayda and Tate. The whole club had been made aware of the plans that were going to take place at any moment. It could take a day, a week or maybe even a month, but when the little boys wanted to play, we were ready to play.
When Jedd came charging into the bar, his hand holding onto the doorframe as he huffed out a breath and gave me a nod, I knew his tip off had spotted the youths. It was time to go.
Ayda’s body, which had previously been wrapped around me from behind, deflated quickly. I didn’t miss the hitch in her throat, and I definitely didn’t miss the way she suddenly seemed to forget about everything and everyone in the room except her brother. She fell away from me slowly, her eyes following Tate as he came to life in front of everyone.
Throwing his big gray hoodie up over his head, he dug his hands into the front pockets and flashed his girl, Libby, a wink, with a brand-new swagger to the way he walked suddenly appearing from nowhere. He didn’t look at Ayda. I wouldn’t have, either, if I’d been him.
Turning around, I grabbed both her cheeks, brushing mythumbs over the apples of them before I kissed her softly. She didn’t kiss me back. Her mouth stayed numb like the rest of her, as though she couldn’t really see anything anymore. Pulling away, I trailed a finger over her bottom lip before I leaned in closer and whispered, “On my life.”
Then I was gone, Deeks taking my place as Ayda’s comforter while me, Jedd, Slater, Kenny and Tate hopped into the yard, over to the van.
Slater took the driver’s seat, the rest of us on the two benches that ran along each wall in the back. Tate didn’t look nervous. In fact, he looked like a kid the night before Christmas, and when Kenny got out the kit he needed and began to separate all the wires and mics for the job, the twenty questions started.What’s this do? Where does that go? Oh, man, I can’t believe it. I’m so fucking pumped!
I gave him a quick glare, playing the role of the parent in Ayda’s absence and silently chastising him for his language. Not that I gave a shit—I just knew she was doing her best to knock it out of him where and when she could, so I wasn’t going to encourage him.
When the van crawled along in the darkness, pulling up alongside some thick trees, Kenny and Tate got around to testing the equipment out.
Jedd sat opposite, his jaw tense as he clasped his hands between his parted knees and glanced up at me. All I could do was smirk back at him and shrug. The kid wanted a baptism of fire, and we were going to give him one, for the second time around.
“All set?” Slater called back, clearing his throat before switching the engine off completely and knocking out the lights.
“Just about,” Kenny croaked, his lip between his teeth in concentration as he pulled Tate’s hood up over his head and patted him down to make sure no wires could be seen bulging through the material of his clothes.
“Come on, let’s get this done already.” Tate bounced his knees up and down, flexing the muscles in his arms as he expanded his chest and tried to show each and every one of us just how manly he was. Jedd’s eyes met mine again, and I saw it there—recognition of the similarities between how I had been at the kid's age, and how Tate was then.
Shuffling to the doors, I grabbed the handle and paused, pressing one hand to Tate’s chest and speaking quietly. “You remember what we said, don’t you? Jedd will be a few steps behind you. He’s not wearing his cut, so he won’t get recognized that way, but he’ll be there if you need him. Just do what Kenny told you and keep communication open. Clear your throat, sniff loudly, then clear your throat again. That’s the key for us to get on your ass quick. That’s all it takes. This isn’t about you taking anyone down single-handedly. This is about you finding out what the fuck they think they’re doing in our town, then we can find a calm, not so bloody way of convincing them to stop.” I paused, thinking about what Ayda told me that little scumbag had done and said to her. “And the one your sister said was called Elbow, get close to him. If what she said is true, he’s gonna be the one doing all the talking. He’ll have the most to say.”
Tate nodded along and then we waited it out until Slater leaned back in his seat and spoke up. “Group of youths up ahead, just like our tip off said. Looks like eight of them. No, wait.” The van went quiet, waiting for him to finish. “Seven. One’s a girl.”
“Even better.” I grinned sardonically at the kid. “Do-or-die time, brother. Do-or-die time.”
