“You’ve got that right. Plus, I don’t want to bring trouble your way, not when your girls are ready to pop, and you’ve finally managed to have a few months of peace.”
“I appreciate that, but trouble looming or not, you and yours are always welcome here. Now, as far as Boar’s place, he said you could start sending people to him right away. I would suggest having the families leave as discreetly as possible from their respective homes instead of coming to the clubhouse and leaving as a unit. You never know where they have eyes, and it’s obvious they do have eyes on you.”
“Good point. Thanks for your help, Phoenix. I’m in over my head with this one.”
“That’s what makes you a good leader; you can admit when you need help, and you don’t hesitate to ask for it. You also took what Layla said seriously, even though she’s new to you and the club. I’m proud of you. Now, enough of the sappy shit. Get done what needs doing and call if you need me.”
Once again, I felt myself choking back my emotions. I didn’t have time for that shit. Redirecting my focus, I spent the next few hours notifying everyone of the new plans. I was, of course, met with a variety of reactions, Leigh’s being the most colorful.
“I’ll cooperate with a smile on my face and keep all complaints to myself for the duration of our stay if you’ll grant me one request,” she said in an eerily sweet tone.
“And that would be?” I asked, dreading what I would hear next.
“I want you to put the whores at Boar’s clubhouse. They have no business being around the families and potentially causing drama or scarring children with their late-night proclivities. A child doesn’t need to learn what a threesome is when they wake up in the middle of the night wanting a drink of water. As an added bonus, you could tell Boar it’s your way of thanking him for his hospitality. I mean, they’re whores; whore them.”
“If I do this, you’ll willingly comply and hold all complaints?” I asked.
“You have my word. I’ll even help out with the cooking and the cleaning,” she offered.
“You’ve got a deal.”
“Great!” I could hear the smile in her voice. “I’ll head out soon and see if I can help Boar with the preparations.”
“Actually, if you wouldn’t mind, I’d like you to be in charge of the room assignments. You know the ins and outs of who should and shouldn’t be roomed together, or near each other, or in the same damn house.”
“I’ll be happy to. See you tonight.”
The rest of the day was complete and total chaos. I had to recharge my cell phone twice before I ever left the clubhouse. As if I didn’t have enough to deal with, it started snowing around two o’clock. By the time Layla and I made it back to my place, packed our bags, and were ready to get on the road, there were several inches of snow on the ground, and it was dark.
“Are you sure this is a good idea? I’m thinking we should wait until morning to leave,” Layla said as she peeked out the window at the still falling snow.
“We can’t wait until morning. They’re saying this storm is going to dump at least eight more inches over the next few hours. We won’t be able to get there if we don’t go tonight. It could be days before the roads are cleared.”
“If that’s the case, then isn’t the same true for whoever is threatening the club? If we can’t get through, neither can they.”
“Maybe. Maybe not,” I huffed. “I don’t have time to argue with you about this. We need to get moving. Are you finished packing?”
She grumbled something I couldn’t make out before saying, “Almost. I need to grab a few things from the bathroom, use the facilities, and then I’ll be ready.”
I finished packing and carried my bag out to the truck parked in my garage. I wasn’t thrilled about driving to Reedy Fork in the midst of a snowstorm, but I was less thrilled about staying in my house with Layla like proverbial sitting ducks.
Turning to go back inside and hurry her along, I froze mid-step when I heard a noise I could only describe as one solid force crashing into another. It was unbearably loud and left no doubt in my mind that whatever it was had left destruction in its path. Then, everything went black.
16
Icompletely disagreed with Copper. I thought it was far too dangerous for us to drive to Reedy Fork. We would be fine until the storm let up and the roads were cleared. Then, I would be more than happy to go to Reedy Fork.
I was in the bathroom, hastily tossing my toiletries into a bag when I heard a loud crash, or maybe it was a crunch. I had no idea what it was, but it was alarmingly loud and had me damn near jumping out of my skin. Then, the freaking power went out leaving me in total darkness and an eerily loud silence.
I managed to feel my way along the wall and find the doorway. “Copper?” I called out.
When he didn’t answer, my pulse ratcheted up a few notches. I crept further into the hall, keeping one hand on the wall to guide me. “Copper?” I called again.
I heard a door open and close followed by heavy footsteps. I froze and forced myself to breathe quietly.
“Layla?” Copper called, causing me to sag with relief.
“Copper, what happened?” I asked.