Jonesy watches me for a beat and nods. “I’ll see what I can do.”
I sigh with relief. “Thanks.”
Jonesy exhales. “There’s one more thing we need to talk about with you.”
My shoulders tense.
“You’re not going to like it,” he adds.
“Try me.” Because I don’t really like any of this.
“We did some digging,” he says carefully. “It’s about the CPS report that started all this.”
My jaw locks, bracing for what he’s about to say. I have a feeling it’s just going to piss me off.
“Like I said, you all are under club protection. Someone messes with you, we’re going to be on it.”
“Who was it?” I ask, bracing myself for Jeremy Toddy or some customer with a beef against Poppy.
“It was your mom,” he finally says.
I stare at him, waiting for the punchline that doesn’t come. “You’re serious?”
Because there’s no way. She’s a shit mom. But I didn’t think she would hurt Poppy and Owen. Two innocent people doingthe best they can. She’s a nurse. She’s supposed to help people. What the actual hell? This is unbelievable.
Jonesy nods his head. “We know for a fact.”
The engines start up again. Jonesy says, “Sorry man. We’ll be in touch on Sully.” The bikes roll out. The firehouse doors loom behind me like a sanctuary I didn’t realize I needed. Betrayal feels pretty heavy right now.
When I walk back inside, every single guy is staring at me from the doorway with arms crossed. They saw and heard the whole thing. Great.
“What the hell was that?” someone asks. "Do we need to go and handle something?”
I don’t answer. I barely hear them. Because now, I’m freaking livid. There’s like a roar of heat in my ears.
All I hear is my mother’s voice about Poppy. Judgmental, always watching, and disappointed. She acts like she’s tried to warn me about Poppy and her family. About her being unstable. As if our family was any better than Poppy’s. My family is shit just like Poppy’s. Even worse now.
I always thought my mom was just being cruel. Something I came to expect from her. Turns out she was also dangerous. Because she’s willing to hurt her own family. If she can hurt them, then she can hurt me. She has no moral compass whatsoever.
Unfortunately, I have a shift to finish, so I need to focus on that. I don’t have the luxury of going and finding my mom and ripping her apart.
We stay busy with calls, even end up at the hospital on a transport, and, luckily, I don’t see her. I need to call my sister and tell Cami what happened. If our mom can do this to Poppy and me, there’s no telling what she would do to Jack and Cami. She’s vile.
The drive home is quiet. I rehearse the words a hundredtimes, and none of them feel right. How do I tell Poppy this without coming unglued? I’m still livid and it’s been hours.
Poppy’s at the counter when I walk in, Owen on the couch playing a game, Ellie sleeping in her bassinet. The sight of them makes me not want to tell them at all. It feels peaceful here and I’m sick of my mother stealing my peace from me.
She takes one look at my face and sets her mug down.
“What happened?” she asks as she cups my jaw, looking me over. “Are you hurt?”
I don’t sit or take off my jacket. “Let’s talk for a minute,” I say as I guide her down the hall to our room.
“The bikers came to the firehouse,” I say as I close the door behind us.
Her eyes widen. “What did they want?”
“I think you were right. They might not be that bad,” I say quietly.
