In the distance, Elias heard a distinct rumble coming closer with every second that passed. Oh, man. “Seth.”
“Yeah. I hear them. Load up and let’s head back. I don’t want to go into explanations with Blackthorn while we’re under observation by the police.”
A moment later, Seth and Teagan took the lead, with the other couples on motorcycles falling in behind them. Noah tailed the last bike.
They’d ridden about a mile when they came upon a group of motorcycle riders blocking the dirt road. Seth and the others slowed to a stop a few feet from the larger group.
“Looks like someone called Dutch.” Noah put the truck in park but kept the engine running, his gaze glued to the unfolding scene outside.
“Probably. Dutch has his fingers in every business in town,” Elias said. He quartered the area, on the lookout for more riders joining the party, especially ones from the Reckoners.
Noah glanced over his shoulder. “How do you know that?”
“Easy.” He grinned. “I asked Zane. Riley was already asleep when I thought of looking into that angle.”
“Huh. I didn’t think of that, and I should have.”
“No reason you should, Noah. You didn’t grow up in an MC.”
“And investing in local businesses is standard operating procedure for MCs?” He sounded skeptical.
Elias didn’t blame him for that. It did sound crazy. “I don’t know about other MCs, but that’s the way the Reckoners work. Dad always invested in the towns where they set up their headquarters. He said the MC got less flak from the cops if the townspeople liked them.”
Noah glanced over his shoulder at Elias. “Blackthorn is close enough to the Reckoners that they’re following your old man’s advice?”
Yeah, there was that minor problem. “He might be a terrible father, but he’s a dynamic leader. He’s always been able to manipulate people around him. Dutch is an amateur compared to Dad.”
Ahead of them, the Blackthorn Riders burst into laughter and climbed back on their motorcycles. They turned the bikes around and started the engines.
Seth waited until they rode away before coming to the driver’s side of the truck.
“Everything okay?” Noah asked.
“I told them the same story that you and Iona gave the detectives.” He rolled his eyes. “The lot of them thought it was a great joke that we wanted the women to learn to ride a bike. They’re setting up a place for Artemis to try their hand at riding the bikes.”
Violet shuddered. “I don’t want to learn that, Seth.”
“Violet.” Iona said nothing more.
The medic sighed. “Yes, ma’am.”
Noah twisted in his seat and looked at Iona, anger simmering in his eyes.
Iona raised an eyebrow, daring him to challenge her.
Elias readied himself to put his body between Iona and Noah. This wasn’t good. The women of Artemis were fierce fighters. They could take you down before you blinked twice.
“Ice it down,” Seth snapped. “We need to go. Remember, we’re a unified front. Act like it.”
“It’s okay, Noah.” Violet squeezed his forearm. “You don’t mind teaching me, do you?”
He turned to his wife. “Of course not. I’ll enjoy it.”
“Since that’s settled, let’s get moving,” Seth murmured. “We can’t delay long without arousing more of Dutch’s suspicions.”
The group returned to the cabin and, ignoring Dutch and his crew, unloaded gear, and dropped it off inside the building.
When they finished, Dutch scowled. “You moved bags from the truck. You said you were just looking for a place to ride. Looks like you packed up to leave.”
