Hell Fire Riders MC: The Complete MC Series, page 44
Harper smiled. “Yes, Mr. Bossy Boots. I think I know the drill.”
Michael walked over to her and grabbed her by the arms. “Sweetheart, it only takes one slip up. You may not even notice you’re being followed. If they find us here, we’re dead and so is any chance we have of stopping them.”
Harper pulled her arms free from his grasp and looped them around his neck. “I know and I would never let that happen. I’ll be careful,” she whispered. Then she patted his cheek, turned and disappeared through the front door.
They heard her car roar to life and back out of the driveway.
Judson turned to Michael. “You really know how to spoil a mood, don’t you?”
Michael walked to the front door and closed it quietly. He turned to Judson. “I’m not here for pleasure, mine or hers, besides that, there isn’t anything between us but friendship. I’m here to stop a terrorist, but first I have to find him.” He went out to the kitchen and set up his computer. When he hooked up the printer, he began copying his files. While they printed out, Michael went back to the living room and pulled the drapes closed. He then moved the sofa away from the wall and began taking down Harper’s aunt’s pictures and what not.
When the wall was cleared, Michael went to his grab bag and the original file he started five years ago. He began pinning everything up on the wall. When he came to the pictures of his wife and daughter he paused for a moment, then began pinning them up too. While he did that he could feel Phoebe’s eyes watching him. She didn’t say much but she was watching.
Judson came in with a handful of new reports and began pinning them beside the others. When he saw the crime scene photos, he could barely look at them. They brought nothing but bad memories. Within forty-five minutes, they had everything up on the wall. They had worked silently and efficiently. It was almost like old times.
A few minutes later, Harper came in from the garage with a couple of bags of groceries. When she saw what they had done, she looked amazed. “You guys didn’t waste any time, did you?” Her question faded when her eyes found the photos of Melissa and Kelly. She looked stunned. No one in the office other than Judson and Kenn had seen them before. She put the bags on the floor and walked closer. Tears welled in her eyes as she went from one photo to another.
Michael went over to the bags and picked them up. He carried them back to the kitchen and began unpacking them.
Phoebe grabbed the rest and followed him.
Harper glanced at Judson and asked quietly, “How does he stand it?”
Judson shrugged. “He just does.” He gazed at the photos and shook his head. “Maybe he came back here for revenge, or for the chance to find their murderers. Quite frankly, I don’t care why he came back. I do know one thing…he won’t stop until he does find them. It’s the only way he’ll come to terms with Melissa and Kelly’s deaths. He hasn’t done that yet and for the healing process to begin, he has to be at peace.”
“I can understand that,” Harper said. “So who’s the woman? I’ve never known you guys to work with anyone new.”
Judson shrugged and glanced toward the kitchen. “She has a friend who went up against the Vipers a long time ago. A lot longer than we realized they were even here. We found them six years ago but we found out they’ve been here about twelve years before that.”
“Are you kidding me?” Harper was shocked. “How could that be?”
Judson shrugged. “I don’t know but that’s something Michael is going to find out.” Then he remembered something and turned to her. “If anyone at all calls the office looking for me, tell them I’m on assignment and can’t be reached. Don’t, under any circumstances, give out a phone number or address to anyone. You can let us know they called and we’ll verify it on our end. I don’t want anyone knowing Michael is back for any reason.”
Harper nodded. “Okay, I understand. I bought you guys a Trac phone. It can’t be traced.” She took a deep breath and sighed. “I’d better head on home. Everything has to look like normal.” She glanced at the photos again and reached out to Judson, placing her hand on his arm. “Take care of him and yourself. I don’t want anything to happen to you guys.”
“Don’t worry about that,” Judson vowed. “It won’t.”
Harper made her way to the kitchen and found Michael had brought all the bags in from the car. He was standing at the kitchen sink looking outside, smoking a cigarette.
Phoebe was sitting quietly at the table.
Harper walked up behind him and wrapped her arms around his waist. She kissed the back of his neck and turned to leave without saying a word.
Michael stared out the window for another moment or two, then threw what was left of his cigarette in the sink. He braced his hands on the counter and closed his eyes. He had to steel his heart so he could do his job. This was the first time in five years he’d looked at the pictures of Melissa and Kelly.
He smiled when he turned and saw a couple of bottles of Black Velvet and a fresh carton of cigarettes on the counter. Shaking his head, he removed a couple pairs of jeans and a couple shirts next. When he came to the phone, he checked it and found Harper’s number already on it.
Judson came into the kitchen and looked at all the stuff on the table. “Wow, she didn’t miss a trick, did she?”
Michael tossed him the Trac phone. “No, she didn’t. Why don’t you start supper and I’ll get this stuff put away?”
“Sounds like a plan to me. I’m getting hungry anyway.”
Phoebe didn’t say anything. She’d been sitting on the sofa earlier watching everything happen. “I can cook supper,” she volunteered. “I’m sure you guys have other things to do and I need something to keep from worrying about Willow.”
Michael and Judson nodded.
“Gage called earlier,” Michael told her. “She is fine, by the way. They are going back to where her grandfather lived. She thinks there might be something more there, something her grandpa had hidden.”
Phoebe nodded. “I thought she was nuts when she told us we had to go to there a week ago. I told her whatever she left there was gone a long time ago but the damn book was right where she left it all those years ago. She said she didn’t know what the book was but she needed to get it.”
“Do you really think there’s more stuff hidden?” Michael asked.
Phoebe shrugged. “I don’t know. She never spoke of her family before. In all the years I’ve known her, she never told me anything about them. I never expected to hear they were a biker family.”
Michael almost smiled at this. “Her grandfather was a feared gun dealer and the leader of a tough MC in his day. He was a punk and a killer. Nothing to be proud of as far as I’m concerned.”
Phoebe shook her head. “I’m sure the only thing Willow remembers of him was the fact he was someone she loved before she was old enough to know what kind of man he was. She was just a child when her family was killed. You can judge him if you want but to people like us, any family member that treated us with love and kindness will be remembered with love and kindness.”
Michael frowned then turned and walked away.
Judson just stood there and looked at Phoebe. “You gotta understand. He lost everything in his world that mattered to him and it was the bad guys who did it.” He turned and walked away as well.
Half an hour later, they sat down to a meal of fried chicken, mashed potatoes. No one said a word while they ate. When Phoebe cleared the dishes and served the coffee, Michael and Judson began discussing the case.
“I think I found something while I was pinning up the new data,” Judson said.
Michael glanced at him. “What would that be?”
Judson grabbed his cup. “In one of the original transmissions the offices translated, there was a symbol that matched one under the triangle on your bedroom wall.”
Michael pushed his chair away from the table. “Show me.”
Judson got up and followed him into the other room. He found the spot he was looking for and then he pointed it out to Michael. Michael studied it then went over to the photos of his bedroom wall. He studied the symbol carefully again. When he turned back to Judson, he had a look in his eyes that Judson recognized.
“I think you’re right.” Michael turned back to the photo and drew an imaginary line under the phrase. “This roughly translates, ‘Fear the White Dog.’” He went back to the phrase Judson found earlier and drew another line under it. “This translates, ‘The White Dog is ready to commence in ten days.’ ”
Judson checked the date on the transmission. It was three days old. He glanced at Michael and said, “We have seven days to find them before their jihad begins.”
Michael exhaled deeply. “At least now, we know how much time we don’t have left.”
They went back to the kitchen to finish their coffee. As they sat down, the Trac phone began to ring. Judson picked it up and checked who was calling. “It’s Harper.” He flipped the phone open and greeted her. “Do you miss us already?” he asked with a grin. The grin slowly faded as he listened to her reply. He slowly closed the phone and when he looked at Michael, his expression was bleak. “The bastards’ fire bombed your house earlier tonight.”
Michael felt a fresh blow of pain hit his soul. The house he shared with Melissa and Kelly was gone. He couldn’t live there without them five years ago, so he moved away from the city but he’d maintained the house all these years hoping one day the pain would be gone and he could go back there. He hadn’t reached that point yet and now, the house was gone. “Damn them to Hell,” he growled. He could feel the nausea churning inside his stomach.
Judson got up and grabbed Michael’s cigarettes. Lighting one before he tossed the pack to Michael.
He stood there thinking for a moment then he pushed away from the counter and went to the living room.
Turning on the television, he saw the news report. Firemen were still there trying to get the fire under control.
Michael and Phoebe joined him a minute or so later and they watched in silence as fire destroyed the house. Phoebe moved over to the sofa and sat down watching the news report.
When the cameras panned the crowd, Michael hissed. He grabbed the remote and paused the picture on one of the groups of people watching the blaze. He stepped closer to the television and tapped one of the crowd. He turned to Judson. “I know that guy. He was one of the men I was tracking five years ago. I’ll bet he’s the one that followed you and the one that shot out the tire.” He turned back to crowd of people then snapped his head toward Judson again. “He’s the one I’m going to kill first,” he vowed.
Judson reached for the phone in his pocket and called Harper to tell her the news.
Michael went outside, he felt too worked up to stay inside. After a while, he came back to go to bed. Yeah, right, as if he could sleep this night away. He kept pushing all the memories of his family in that house away.
He laid down and stared at the dark ceiling for a long time. Then Michael heard his door open and close. A moment later, he felt someone get into bed with him.
“I know what this looks like but I’m not here for anything but peace of mind. I feel safer with you than without you. If I promise not to touch you, can I stay with you?” Phoebe whispered.
Michael chuckled softly. For the first time in a very long time, he didn’t want to be alone. All day, he’d kept track of Phoebe and not once had she bothered him. He was beginning to feel comfortable around her and it didn’t bother him. Usually, if a woman got too close, he felt a sense of guilt but not so much with her. He hadn’t taken the time to wonder why yet but right now, it didn’t matter. He gathered her up in his arms and held her close, almost expecting to feel sweat pouring out of him but nothing happened. He didn’t feel the badly, in fact it almost felt right to have her here with him.
Phoebe smiled. Brushing her lips to his skin lightly, she snuggled down next to him and laid her head on his shoulder.
For the first time in many years while in bed to go to sleep, Michael felt calm. He fell asleep almost before he could close his eyes.
Chapter Six
Harper stood up from her desk the next morning and casually made her way to Kenn’s office. When she knocked on the door, she found him watching the news report on the fire. Closing the door behind her, she said, “Judson called me last night. He said in one of the pictures of the crowd Michael found a man he recognized standing there.”
Kenn seemed worried. “Damn, they’re looking for him. They know he’s back in town and they’re searching for him.”
“Who are they?” Harper asked.
“They’re the people that murdered his wife and child five years ago to get him kicked off the case,” Kenn said. He sat down at his desk and opened a drawer. Pulling out a file, he opened it and slid it across his desk.
Harper picked it up and began glancing through it. It was a file on Michael Severns. “I know all that but why him?”
“There are good agents out there and then there’s Michael Severns. He has a special knack for this kind of work. The gift he has is that he can think like a terrorist. He knows what’s going through their minds before they do. He can anticipate their next move. He has this uncanny skill of revealing people and plans that no one else can seem to find,” he paused then went on. “Five years ago, this group was moving up the chain of command and Michael was very close to uncovering the main players. He evaded three attempts on his life and when the Bleu Vipers couldn’t kill him, they went after his wife and child. Melissa and Kelly weren’t so lucky.”
Harper glanced up from the report. “I saw the crime scene photos. Michael put them up on the wall at my aunt’s house. They were horrible to see.”
Kenn nodded. “Michael went home that night and found them butchered in his bed.”
Harper stumbled over to the chair in Kenn office. “Now the bastards firebombed his house.”
Kenn leaned forward. “They won’t stop until they find him and kill him. We need a copy of the news film. We need to find this guy and identify him. Maybe this will break the case open for us.” He sat back in his chair and thought for a moment. “Have Carla send our best facial recognition software to Michael’s computer. I don’t know if we have a leak in this office or not but I’m not going to chance it.”
“If you had to hazard a guess, who do you think the leak is?”
“I’m not even going to go there. If there is another leak in this office, we’ll find him or her,” Kenn replied.
“I can’t imagine any reason for a person to turn their back on their country,” Harper seethed. “If what we think is going to happen actually happens, the United States might never recover.”
“That’s why we need to do this on the QT. If this were to get out to the general public, there would be panic in the streets, and we don’t want that.”
Harper nodded. “Well, Michael also doesn’t want either of us to stop by the house in case we’re followed.
“That’s probably best. He needs to concentrate, just make sure he’s got what he needs.”
Harper got up and went to the door. She paused and turned to her boss. “Do you really think Michael can find this group again? I mean, it has been five years since he found them the first time.”
“He’ll find them again. He’s got a reason to move heaven and earth to uncover them. They tried to kill him and now, they burned his house to the ground. He’ll find them. The only question I have is if he’ll find them before the deadline.”
Harper left Kenn’s office and went to Carla’s office. Then she went back to her own office and began calling the news channels to request a copy of the news reports. When she had everything she needed, she forwarded the info to Michael’s computer. She got up to get a cup of coffee and noticed a group of people watching the big screen television. She wandered over to the group and her gaze swung up to the screen.
Her eyes widened as she saw the news coverage of another fire. This one was in Kansas City. A warehouse had exploded in the early hours of the morning resulting in one death and scores of injuries. As she watched the firemen battle the blaze, her thoughts were racing ahead. She went back to her office and called Judson. When he answered she asked, “Are you guys watching television?”
“No, why? What’s going on?” Judson asked.
“Well, first Michael’s house gets firebombed, and now there’s an explosion in Kansas City. Has Michael found any clue as to where the places are this group is targeting?”
“Hang on a minute,” Judson told her.
In the background, she could hear the television being turned on.
“Damn. We’ll call you right back.”
Harper pulled the cell phone away from her ear and looked at it. She slowly closed it and placed it on her desk, then she shifted her gaze to the outer office. She gazed at each of the individuals standing out there watching the television. She studied each of their faces in detail.
Carla Winesap stared at the scene. She was petite black woman with shoulder length straight hair. The look in her eyes spoke of horror at what she was seeing. Glen Portman was a six-foot-three slender man who desperately needed a haircut. His scruffy beard didn’t appeal to her but there were women that liked it, she hazarded a guess. He was intelligent enough but there was something about the man she didn’t care for. It was like he had a secret he wasn’t willing to share.
Sean Courtney, on loan from the FBI, was an about average size man. His close cropped hair was dark in color, as were his eyes. His skin was a dark color but he didn’t look black. His English was perfect, almost too perfect, but he couldn’t be faulted for that.
Then there was Matthias Ewing. He was a go getter, smart and quick. His closely cropped hair was sandy brown in color and he kept his beard trimmed nice and neat. He had an air that was easy and fun.
Her eyes shifted to the last person in the other room. Brody Dentin. Harper liked Brody. He was a well-groomed black man who always dressed well. His girlfriend Gina Corbin was white and together, they made a dynamite team.
