Hell Fire Riders MC: The Complete MC Series, page 50
“I don’t understand that kind of mindset,” Georgia said.
“Most people don’t. That’s why we’ll never win a war in the Arab lands. We don’t understand their mindsets. We hate the idea of killing and they don’t seem to value human life. They believe that those who die from their ranks will be honored in the hereafter. This is the way they’ve lived for thousands of years.”
“What about Drake Carrington?” Georgia asked. “How does he fit into this mess?”
Michael shrugged. “Like I said before, we don’t have all the pieces of the puzzle yet. If he’s left in charge, he won’t be the one calling the shots. Ali and the deaf man will be the real power behind whatever government is left.”
“What does that mean?” Georgia asked.
“He’ll be the figurehead but not the one really in charge. They will tell him what to do until they no longer need him. Then when they no longer need to hide behind him, his death will be very public and they will emerge as the new government,” Michael said.
“You paint such a dismal portrait of our future,” Jack commented.
“Believe me,” Michael countered. “My portrait is probably very calm and kind as compared to what they have in mind. This is just the first step. They won’t be happy until everything we hold dear is nothing more than ashes.”
“You’re not very optimistic,” Jack pointed out.
Michael turned to glare at him. “No, I’m not. I’m telling you in plain English what’s about to happen. It’s not going to be another attempt to disrupt our lives, this is going to be so much worse than 9/11. What happened in New York that day will be nothing compared to what’s coming now. We were stunned by the fall of the Towers, but this is going to be much more horrible. They want to show us real terror. They want to show us they are in charge now and they don’t care how many people they have to kill to do it.”
“How do you know this is what they have in mind?” Georgia asked.
Michael walked over to the window and looked out over the city. “I was a black ops soldier in Desert Storm. Afghanistan was at war with its neighbors and there was fighting in the streets. I saw the horrors up close and personal. Then I began talking to the city elders. There was something in their eyes that told me this kind of fighting and terror was nothing new to them, and it wasn’t. They’d lived this way for generations. Most of them didn’t remember what they were fighting for anymore. They were scratching out a living the best they could. They had nothing left but they survived. They were merely fighting for the right to live.” He turned to look at the group. “The people in the Vipers Crew want to break us. As soon as they get the power, more will come here. They want to break our spirit and they will do what they must to do it.”
“We have to stop that from happening,” Jack stated.
“We’re working on it,” Judson replied.
“Let’s hope you succeed. The alternate sounds like something from a horror movie.” Georgia visibly shuddered.
Chapter Eleven
When Gage opened the door, he saw Stone, Sam and Shay, standing there. Stone had a tray of coffee in his hands and he handed it to Gage as they all walked into the room.
Willow was sitting on the sofa and took a cup as Gage joined her. “What more can I tell you gentlemen?”
“What happened that day your grandfather picked you up at school?” Stone asked. “What did he tell you about the first shooting at Lowell?”
Willow shrugged. “I was only six at the time. When he got there, he looked shook up. His clothes were torn up and he looked a wreck. The school didn’t want him to take me but he did anyway. He put me on the back of his bike and took off. We rode a long way that day.” She turned to Gage. “The reason I was in the back of Michael’s truck was I was checking out your bike. It looked just like grandpa’s and I had to know if was his or not.”
Gage frowned. “My bike looks like your grandpa’s?”
Willow shook her head. “No, your bike is his bike. Somehow, you ended up with his bike. I couldn’t believe it at first but it’s true. Under the seat, it has some words written there. I put them there to remember my parents and my family. I couldn’t believe it was the same bike after all these years.”
Stone looked over at Gage and saw the stunned look on his face. “What happened next?”
“We went to Marlborough and met my uncles and what was left of my grandpa’s MC. Grandpa moved us out to the cabin then and the next little while, they began rebuilding the place. They replaced the cabin with a bigger place and got the hiding places set up. They had to move everything over from the place in Lowell and get back into business. They also had to watch for the Vipers. Grandpa was going to hunt them down and take them out and over time, he got a few of them but then they found out where we were staying. It took them two years to find us again.” She paused to sip her coffee. “The day the shooting happened, it was almost eerie around the compound that morning. Grandpa had a notion there was trouble coming, so he stayed in the cabin with me. Then that morning, Uncle Pony came running up to the front door and yelled at grandpa to take cover. Grandpa pushed me into the hidey hole he built into the wall and told me I had to keep quiet. He told me not to say a word or they would kill me. He told me I had to survive to tell the world what happened and to warn everyone that something bad was coming.”
The men all sat and quietly listened.
Tears rolled down her face as she gripped the cup in her hand almost crushing it. “I was just a kid.” Her voice was little more than a whisper. “I remember the noise and being terrified. I could hear the shooting and people screaming all around me. I peeked out at one point and I could see several of the men covered in blood all over the room. Grandpa saw me and screamed at me to get back in the hole. Pony and Declan were laying on the floor covered in blood. Grandpa was bleeding from his shoulder. I heard another shot and saw his head explode. I crawled back into the hole and waited for someone to pull me out of there and shoot me. Then it grew quiet. The shooting was over and I was there all alone. I don’t think I moved at all for a long time. I peeked out into the room and saw several men dragging the bodies out of the cabin. They didn’t notice me, not then. It got dark outside and I didn’t come out. I don’t think I moved all night but when the sun came out the next day, I sneaked out of the hole and looked around. There was no one left alive.”
Willow was silent for a moment as the men waited for her to finish her story.
“There were bodies everywhere. I was by the door when I saw something I’d never seen before. It was a small book. When I picked it up, I heard a noise outside. I grabbed the book and went back inside the hole. It was the police. They called out and then came inside. One of them rushed back out and puked all over the yard. They were there for hours while they collected all the bodies.”
“Why didn’t you let them know you were alive at that point?” Shay asked.
Willow shook her head. “Grandpa didn’t like the police. He told me never to talk to them, besides he told me to stay in the hole and not to talk or someone would kill me. I didn’t know who I could trust.”
“The police wouldn’t have hurt you.” Shay scoffed.
Willow glared at him. “I was a scared kid. I’d just seen my family murdered.”
“What happened then?” Gage asked as he glared at Shay.
“The police left after a long time and it got dark again. I stayed hidden until the next day when someone came back. I peeked out and saw the first group was back. They seemed to be looking for something and when they didn’t find it, they set fire to the cabin. I knew I had to get out of there so I sneaked out through the hole in the floor. I ran for the woods as fast as I could and managed to hide for a couple more days. Then a game warden found me and turned me over to the authorities. They put me into the foster care system and I never went back there again. I couldn’t speak by then, so growing up was a challenge.”
“What about the book?” Stone asked.
“When I first got to the woods, I climbed a tree and was hiding there. I didn’t know if those men had seen me leave the cabin or not. I finally saw them leave. I stayed there for a long time but I finally got hungry and I knew where there was something to eat, so I climbed down. I had my own special place in the woods where I would go to be alone, so I went there and stayed a day or two. I hid the book in case someone found me.”
“What made you remember the book after all this time?” Sam asked.
“I saw that damn tattoo again. The triangle with the reaper inside,” Willow finally explained. “Phoebe and I were working in a diner just outside of Chicago and man came in. He sat down at the counter and when he reached for the menu, I saw the tattoo on his wrist. It brought back the memories of the past.”
“Did you know this guy?” Sam spoke again.
Willow shook her head. “I’d never seen him before. I couldn’t even tell you what he looked like all I could see was that damn tattoo. Phoebe told me I went in the back room and passed out after that. My boss sent us both home. Phoebe wouldn’t let me go alone. We left the next day for Boston. I had to get the book back. I didn’t have a clue what I was going to do with it but I had to get my hands on it.” She shrugged. Looking over at Gage, she said, “Then I found you guys and you know the rest.”
As Scott led the group back through the tunnels to their starting point, he kept looking back at Michael. When he opened the last door, he let the others through but reached out and stopped him. “Is what you said, really going to happen?”
“It will, if we can’t stop it.” Michael stared at him for a moment. “Why? Do you know something you think we should know?”
Scott nodded. “Maybe I do.” He shifted his stance. “Part of my job is to know who the people I serve are and who they associate with. I have files on everyone within the government and beyond. Last week, I overheard something I didn’t understand at the time but when you mentioned Alex Daniels, it all made sense.”
“What did you overhear?”
“Alex was talking on the phone to someone and he wasn’t very happy. I thought I heard him mention Kansas City but I can’t be sure. He did mention a man named Jethro but I didn’t catch a last name or what he wanted this man to do.”
“I would really appreciate a look at your files, if you don’t mind?” Michael asked.
Scott nodded. “I’ll get them to you as soon as possible.” He turned to go, but hesitated. “You mentioned a deaf man?”
Michael nodded. “Ali was using sign language to someone in the room with him, why?”
“This may or may not mean anything, but Drake Carrington’s father is deaf. When he was exiled from Syria, as part of his punishment they gave him the same punishment the man he was guarding suffered. The man took a blow to the side of his head that broke his ear drum. He was left deaf on one side. Drake’s father lost his hearing on both sides.”
“How do you know all of this?” Michael asked.
“I told you.” Scott stared back at him. “It’s part of my job to know the people around the people I’m in charge of. I’ve been doing this job for some time now and I’m good at what I do.”
“Send me whatever you have as quickly as you can and maybe we can stop this from happening before it gets started.”
“God, I hope so.” Scott looked troubled.
A few hours later, Michael received an email from Scott. When he opened it, he was astounded by the sheer volume of the information he had collected over the years. Scott warned him that the files were for his eyes only and Michael was okay with that.
He clicked on the file titled, Carrington. Sub-files came up on the screen and he clicked on the one for Alan Carrington. When the file came up, he saw a picture of an older man with dark eyes and almost all white hair. His hair was brushed back away from his face and it spilled down to his shoulders. If you didn’t know he was deaf, you couldn’t tell for the arrogant look on his face. In this photo, he was posed sitting in a chair. In his left hand, he was holding an ebony black cane. Michael’s eyes were drawn to his ring finger where a large gold ring with a jade stone was present. Michael had seen that ring before and now, he knew another member of the group he was looking for.
Michael stared at Alan’s eyes for a few minutes. He couldn’t read much from the photograph but he could read enough. This man was dangerous.
He skipped down to the text and began reading about Alan’s escape from Syria. Most of the information he read, he already knew. Then he found something he didn’t know. The man Alan had been in charge of guarding all those years ago had been Prince Ali’s uncle, Mohammah Alkeem. When he failed to keep Alkeem safe from harm and Alkeem suffered a blow to his head that rendered him deaf on one side, Alkeem’s father King Jalbar took Alan’s hearing and banished him from Syria.
Michael skipped the rest of the briefing and skipped down to Scott’s notes. Scott noted that Alan might not be what he pretended. He wrote that bodyguards usually take a lifelong commitment to whomever they serve. Michael found that an interesting fact and he couldn’t help but wonder if Alan was still serving the family that deafened him.
He went back to the sub file page and clicked on Drew’s file. Drew was born here in the United States after his mother, father and older brother Drake had become citizens. He had a normal life until he went to college. That’s where he met and became friends with a man named Alex Daniels. Michael knew Alex was in truth, Ali Rudan.
Scott had noted that Ali seemed to be the alpha male in the friendship and Drew was the follower. In his junior year, Drew’s cousin Nick joined the group.
He went back to the sub-file page and clicked on Drake Carrington’s name. There was nothing in the file to hint that Drake was anything but what he seemed to be. He didn’t seem to have any ties to Syria or the Rudan royal family. He married Margret Stillman and together, they raised four children.
Drake entered politics at an early age and now at forty-nine years old, he was Vice President of the United States.
Michael went back to the sub-file page again and clicked on Alex Daniel’s file. He was surprised to find no link to his family ties. Scott hadn’t dug very far into Alex’s background. All the information Scott had was after Alex joined Drew in college.
Scott tracked Alex’s rise in politics. He seemed flawless in his rise through the ranks. Right now, he worked as the Press Secretary to the White House.
Michael couldn’t help but wonder why there was no mention of his ties to Syria. Had Alex hidden his past that well or had Scott just not seen it? Scott seemed to have the best interest of his clients in mind, then why wasn’t there any warning in the files?
He went back to the sub files and clicked on Drew’s cousin, Nicholas R. Carrington, file. Scott had noted that Nick had come over from Syria to join Drew in college; in fact, his Uncle Alan had sponsored his transfer under an education visa. After graduation, Nick had applied for another visa that would allow him to stay on. Every three years, he applied for an extension until a few years ago, he became a citizen himself.
There was a copy of his background check in the file. As Michael read it, he didn’t find anything in the file that would alert anyone to what his political beliefs were.
All in all, Scott’s files helped immensely, though Scott would never have known which parts of his file helped the most.
He glanced at the clock on the wall and found it was after midnight. He pushed his chair away from the table, went to the refrigerator and grabbed a bottle of beer. Twisting off the cap, he took a long swig. He felt tired but was avoiding going to sleep.
Snickerdoodles was resting on a rug in front of the sink. He raised his head and looked at his master.
Michael grabbed his cigarettes and walked to the back door. He put the beer bottle on the table and motioned for Snicker to join him and they went outside for a moment. As he lit a cigarette, he watched Snicker go out to do his thing. Michael looked at the night sky as he stood there. He saw a clear sky filled with stars. The neighborhood around him was quiet and right now, he appreciated the quiet. It gave him time to think. He heard the door open again and he turned his head to see Phoebe join him.
“Are you ok?” she asked quietly. It had been a long day. Left alone all day, she looked over the evidence they left on the walls and found it gruesome.
“Yeah. It’s just been a very long day.”
“Yeah, I get that.” She swiped a strand of hair behind her ear. “I was looking at the photos on the wall and I think I recognized one of the men. I think I saw him in the diner in Chicago the day Willow went nuts.”
“What do you mean?” Michael turned to face her.
“When this guy came in and sat down, she stared at him for the longest time, then she went in the back and just sat there. I asked her what was wrong but it was like she’d seen something that scared the bejesus out of her. The next morning, she insisted we go to Marlborough. It was like she was possessed or something. We couldn’t get there fast enough.”
“Is that where she got the book?”
Phoebe nodded. “I tried to tell her the book might not still be there but she insisted it would be.” She rolled her eyes. “And it was right where she left it sixteen years ago. I couldn’t believe it.”
“How could Willow work in a diner when she didn’t speak?”
Phoebe grinned slightly. “She’s a damn good short order cook. She doesn’t have to talk to cook.”
When Snicker joined them on the deck, Michael turned and ushered Phoebe back into the house. Phoebe told him good night but Michael didn’t want to go to bed. He didn’t want to dream that night. He sat down at the table and lit another cigarette. Grabbing his beer, he took another swig. He watched Snicker have a drink of water. He shut down his computer, finished his beer and stood up. He went over to the doorway and turned off the light. He moved toward the hall and laid down on his bed. His body needed to rest but he could tell he wouldn’t be getting much sleep. His mind was wound too tight and he couldn’t shut off the thoughts going round and round inside his brain.
