Page 64 of Defended By Bam
Last night Hammer told us we’d have Church today, and he wasn’t happy with me. I found him Friday night, and sure enough, the Bloody Scorpions had been spotted at Thunder Beach. There was no talk of us being involved, but they had been spouting off some shit about finding the fuckers who killed some of their guys not far from there.
All of what was being rumored was vague. It wasn’t clear if they found them or their truck, just that someone killed some of their guys. No mention of the stockyard, either. But that made sense. They didn’t tip off anyone that they had a lightly manned warehouse. Maybe they weren’t as dumb as we thought.
Hammer was already trying to figure out how to handle the Scorpions when I had to tell him I clocked a cop in a parking lot nearby. And not justanycop… Linny’s fucked up ex that we rescued her from.
Too many other clubs were around, and he wasn’t about reprimanding us in mixed company. But he made me stay with him for awhile and when the crowds thinned out a bit, he told me to pack it up and who to send home with us.
The part I told Linny about him returning the keys was true. Hammer needed to check out since he booked the houses, but the real estate office had after-hour key drop offs. He wanted to get some shut-eye and do a little more recon before leaving therally but with a cop following me around, he thought it best that the majority of us headed back but he kept a few guys, including Rogers, with him so they had backup on the way home if needed.
Once Church was called, most of the guys were rested, but not me. I passed out for a short while once I got the girls squared away, but sleep was fleeting.
Part of me wanted to tell Linny what happened, but she had been doing so much better for a while now. Telling her he was there would only freak her out, and for what? I had a plan, as long as Hammer was cool with it. Until I sorted it out with him and we knew what Breaker found out, it wasn’t worth sending her into a spiral. For now, they were tucked safely away at the clubhouse.
The officers were all gathered in the conference room that we used for Church around lunchtime.
Breaker had his laptop but the rest of us sat back in the executive chairs that surrounded the table. He adjusted his black-rimmed glasses, then thrust his fingers through his brown, wavy hair. “Okay, based on his cell activity, he left Georgia right around when Allie did. He probably knew exactly where the beach house was because he was following her.”
Hammer slammed his fist on the table but didn’t speak. After a couple of beats, Breaker continued, “But the good news is, he headed back to Georgia right around the time you all packed up and left. So, he didn’t follow anyone here.”
“Is he still there now?” Rogers asked.
Breaker nodded. “Looks like it.”
Hammer leaned up. “Is there a way to scramble Allie’s phone? If you can track his, he was probably tracking hers. He’s a cop. He probably has a file on her.”
“He’s not an investigator, he’s a patrol, but it’s possible,” Breaker said. “I’ll fix it where he can’t trace it. You may want the shop to scan her SUV, too, though.”
Anyone could get airtags and pop them onto anything. Even if he wasn’t going through his station, he could easily buy a tracker with two-day shipping and stick it on her vehicle, and she’d never notice.
“How the fuck did she get on his radar?” Hammer barked.
Grinding my teeth, I took a breath, then answered. “I don’t know. And for the record, I didn’t even know them until Allie asked me to come help her move something. I didn’t know it was humans.”
“Are you blaming your own sister for this shit?” Rogers asked calmly.
“No. But I’m reminding you how this started,” I said as I stared at Hammer. Honestly, it was dicey getting involved, but it made sense that I–we–did. “Rogers’ cousin in another chapter has an underground operation for theexactproblem Linny was in, and it was communicated what was happening. We’ve never turned our back on a woman in need.” That time I looked at Leigh, then Rogers, then Hammer. With Reggie gone, Glenda could have easily been tossed on the street, but even with Hammer’s hot and cold demeanor, he’d never let that happen.
“That was different,” Hammer said, knowing exactly what I was talking about. “Reggie was one of us.”
“And Allie is my sister. Are you telling me if something happened to me, she wouldn’t have protection because she’s not an Ol' Lady?”
“Godammit, Bama, stop twisting this all around and just admit this is fucked up!” Hammer said, banging the table again and standing. “We’re not putting them out. Any of them, but the last thing we need is a cop snooping around.”
“He’s a fucking beat cop from another state. He would’ve had us swarmed already if he was going to. He’s up to something else.”
“That’s probably true, but regardless, it’s a fucking situation thatwehave to address. Whether he’s a piece of shit or not, a dead cop only brings more problems.”
Rogers dropped his forearms to the table, leaning in. “Look. What’s done is done. We need Breaker to keep an eye on his movement and keep an eye on Allie and Linny until we figure out his angle. Hammer’s right. Until we know he’s planning something, we can’t just get rid of a cop. And we still have the Scorpions to discuss.”
“And Sofie. We have Sofie to keep an eye on, too,” Butterbean said. “Maybe she should skip school ‘til we get this settled, Bama.”
Shaking my head, I said, “The ladies don’t know anything. For now, it’s club business and the less they know the better. So, she can’t skip. But if it’s okay with Hammer, I’ll make sure the school is secured this week.”
Rubbing his hand down his face, Hammer said, “Fine. Seems like a bad fucking idea but she’s your kid, not mine.”
My chest tightened. Not in the vice grip way, like a shot to my heart imagining something bad happening to her and realizing even though she’s not my daughter by blood, she’s my kid. “Like Breaker said, he didn’t follow us here, and besides me, Allie has no ties in this area.”
Hammer’s mouth twitched, but he didn’t say anything.
