“Nah. One of our chapters is full of technical experts. They’ve got the resources to go far deeper than Token.” I level my stare at her. “They’ll succeed, Mary. I’ve no doubt of that.”
Her expressions says she’s not convinced. But then, she doesn’t know me or my brothers, or the lengths we’ll go to, to set things right.
She’s biting her lip. “I want to go home, but Patsy said I shouldn’t.”
“She’s right,” I don’t hesitate in telling her. “Not going to keep you here against your will,” I pinch the brow of my nose, “but here you’ll both be safe.”
“But you’re no closer to finding Owen or Devon.”
“Babe,” I growl. “If you think you can face them down alone, then you’ve got another fuckin’ think coming. There’s a risk that Owen wants more from Alicia, if only to make sure she’s keeping quiet. If you go home, you’ll be unprotected.”
“But for how long?” she queries, shaking her head. “I’ve got work and Alicia’s got school. We can’t stay at the compound. All the stuff we need is at our house. We’ve got no clothes here, only what we’re wearing. How long until you find them and put a stop to this? You’ve already spent weeks searching, and nothing’s come up.”
I can’t tell her we’re hoping to get a lead when Utah hacks into the credit card database. There are some things she’s better off not knowing, but she’s right in that I can’t give her a timeframe.
“When I first met the club girls, I wanted to get into my car and drive. But I stayed and got to know them. They’re good people.”
They probably were, to her. I know enough about women not to tell her this, but they’d have scratched out her eyes if she were younger. But seeing as Alicia’s too young, and Mary herself too old, they’d retracted their claws and acted human.
“But thinking about staying just brought up problems. I thought about going to stay with a friend. Kristen or Terra would be happy to have us.”
Sounds like a good solution, so why don’t I like it? Because I’m a control freak, always have been. I was voted the sergeant-at-arms because it suits me to be in charge of everything and I’ve never run from responsibility.
“I dismissed that idea too,” she continues, to my relief. Sounds like she’s staying. But it seems I’ve been premature in my assumption. “So it’s back to plan A. Alicia and I will go home this evening.”
“No—”
“Let me finish, Grumbler?” Her gaze lowers and when she looks at me again, it’s through her eyelashes. Even her voice sounds shy when she asks, “I’d like you to come home with us?” The next words come out in a rush. “I know it’s an imposition, but if Owen or Devon put in an appearance, you’ll be there to deal with them.”
Fuck. She’s come up with a solution. While I don’t want to put her or Alicia in danger, it’s only a small risk that Owen or Devon would turn up. But if they did, and I was there to intercept them, it saves the club tracking them down.
My mind starts working at light speed. “I’ll come back and stay. As you say, we can’t fix a timescale, so if I can’t be with you, another brother will. I’ll get a prospect to escort Alicia to and from school.”
Her face lights up. She leans toward me, places her palms either side of my face and plants a kiss straight on my lips. Just a peck, but fuck it surprises me. But I don’t get a chance to think about it.
“Grumbler, thank you so much.” She grins widely. “I almost want Owen to visit now. He’ll be no match for you.”
“I fuckin’ hope he comes to us too.” I tap the table, knowing I need to get Lost in on this. “I’ll need to run this by Prez. I’ll take you back to Alicia.”
Mary glances behind her, then turns back to me. “She’s only in the kitchen over there, I don’t need an escort.”
Her way, however, is blocked by the bodies of my brothers. Maybe it was meeting the club girls, maybe it’s just that she’s recovered her balance from the shock she received earlier, but Mary seems to be feeling more confident in the clubhouse.
I raise my chin at her. “I’ll come find you when I’ve squared it with Lost. He’ll be fine with it,” I hastily reassure her. “I just need to warn him what we’re doing.”
With a little nod, she stands, and confidently walks through the clubroom, nimbly evading Pennywise striding from the bar carrying two beers over to the pool table.
Lost is in his office as I expected and looks up as I enter. Quickly, I run Mary’s proposal past him.
When I finish, he sits back, linking his hands behind his head. “That’s a fuckin’ good idea, Grumbler.” His eyes narrow slightly. “You need backup, or are you okay on your own?”
I’d briefly thought about having someone there with me and had dismissed it. “If Owen and Devon turn up, I won’t have a problem taking either of them on, or both of them together. I’ll go back with Mary in her car, so in the unlikely event they’ve got eyes on her place, they won’t see me arriving.”
“You want the prospect to come in a cage when he’s going to take the kid to school?”
Now this is our prez. He thinks of everything. “Yeah.” I don’t want Alicia on the back of any man’s bike, not even a prospect’s. “Can you organise Wrangler or Curtis?”
“Why not Connor? He’s closer to her in age.”
And he’s a good-looking fucker. “His age is exactly why I don’t want him.”
Lost tosses back his head and chuckles loudly. “I’ll feel sorry for the kid if you and Mary become an item.”
Now it’s my turn to bark out a laugh. “Not fuckin’ going to happen, Lost. We’re
