Page 38 of Friar
Dr.Kestral appeared at her other side, checking the monitor.“You’re doing well, Cheri.The treatment is working.But we need to keep you here for observation.”
She nodded weakly, her eyes already drooping with exhaustion.Before she drifted off again, her gaze found mine, a question in their depths.
“Someone poisoned your food,” I confirmed, seeing no point in hiding the truth.“Arsenic.”
Her eyes widened slightly, fear and understanding dawning simultaneously.“Tasha,” she whispered.
The name hung in the air between us, a verdict rendered without evidence but with absolute certainty.I nodded once, jaws clenched so tight I could feel my teeth grinding.Looked like we both felt it was Tasha.
“I’ll find who did this,” I promised, my voice dropping to a whisper only she could hear.“And they’ll pay with their life.”
Her fingers tightened around mine momentarily before relaxing as she slipped back into unconsciousness.Dr.Cooper adjusted something on her IV, his expression grave but determined.
I settled into the chair beside her bed, one hand still holding hers, the other resting protectively on her stomach.Outside, the sun was setting, painting the sky blood-red.Appropriate, I thought grimly.Before this was over, blood would be spilled.My woman and baby could have lost their lives, and I would make the person responsible pay.
That was the code I lived by.The only justice I understood.
Chapter Fourteen
Friar
The Church room reeked of anger and stale cigarettes, the air thick with tension that had been building for two days.I sat with my back to the wall, one hand on Cheri’s knee beneath the table, the other curled into a fist so tight my knuckles had gone white.She shouldn’t have been here, still too weak, but she’d insisted, and I hadn’t wanted her out of my sight.Said she needed to see their faces when they discussed who tried to kill her.Who tried to kill our baby.
Beast sat at the head of the table, his massive frame seemingly too large for the wooden chair that creaked beneath him.His face betrayed nothing, carved from stone as he surveyed the brothers gathered around.
“Let’s get this started,” Beast said, his voice cutting through the low murmurs.“You all know why we’re here.Someone poisoned food at our barbecue.Poisoned one of our own.”His gaze flicked to Cheri, then back to the table.“Dr.Cooper and Dr.Kestral both confirmed it was arsenic.High dose.Deliberate.”
Cheri’s hand found mine under the table, her fingers ice-cold and trembling.The doctors had only released her yesterday afternoon, with strict orders to rest and return for follow-up treatment.The baby had survived, which was a miracle, according to Dr.Cooper, but we wouldn’t know if there was lasting damage for weeks, maybe months.
“Could’ve been an accident,” Snake said, leaning back in his chair, arms crossed over his chest.“Food contamination happens.Remember when half the club got the shits from that seafood place in Millport?”
I leaned forward, ready to rip his fucking head off, but Beast’s hand shot up, stopping me before I could speak.
“Let him finish,” Beast ordered.
Snake’s gaze met mine, challenging but not unkind.“Look, brother, I know you’re hurting.But we gotta consider all angles.Arsenic’s in rat poison, pesticides.Could’ve been on someone’s hands who helped with the food.Cross-contamination.”
“Bullshit,” I spat, the word like acid on my tongue.“You think someone accidentally dumped enough rat poison in her food to nearly kill her?To endanger my child?And it’s clear she was targeted.No one else got sick.”
Snake shrugged, not backing down.“I’m saying we don’t know yet.Could be someone has it out for the club, not Cheri specifically.Could be random.Maybe it’s a coincidence it ended up in Cheri’s plate.”
“There was nothing random about it,” Wrangler said.“The timing’s too convenient.Just weeks after Tasha makes a scene at the clubhouse?After Friar publicly humiliates her in front of everyone?After she threatens both of them?”He shook his head.“That’s not coincidence.That’s payback.”
Murmurs of agreement rippled around the table.Cheri’s grip tightened on my hand, her nails digging half-moons into my palm.
“We haven’t found Tasha yet,” Hawk added, his voice carrying the weight of his VP patch.“She cleared out of her apartment.Credit cards haven’t been used.Phone’s off.That’s not the behavior of an innocent woman.”
“That’s not proof either,” Snake countered, tapping his fingers on the scarred wooden table.“Could be she got scared, figured she’d be the first one we’d suspect.I’m not saying she didn’t do it.I’m saying we need more than circumstantial bullshit before we put a hit out on a woman.”
The room erupted then, multiple voices speaking over each other.I caught fragments --”club whore with a grudge,” “not the first time she’s gone psycho,” “no proof, just speculation” -- each comment fueling the fire burning in my chest.
I looked over at Cheri.She sat perfectly still, only the rapid pulse at her throat betraying her fear.Her gaze moved from face to face, watching the debate like it was happening in a foreign language she was struggling to translate.
“Enough!”Beast’s voice cut through the chaos and the room fell instantly silent.“This isn’t helping.We need facts, not theories.”He gestured to Shield, who sat in the corner, hunched over his laptop.“What have you got?”
Shield didn’t look up, his fingers continuing to fly across the keyboard as he responded.“Working through the security footage from the barbecue.Quality’s shit, but I’m enhancing what I can.I’m thinking someone tampered with the cameras.”He paused, squinting at something on screen.“Got footage of the food table, the grill area, most of the yard.Running facial recognition on everyone who came near the serving area.”
Beast nodded, satisfied.“Good.Keep at it.”He turned back to the table.“Until we have concrete evidence, no one makes a move.But I want Tasha found.Brought in.Questioned.”His gaze hardened as he looked around the room.“Alive.You understand me?Alive.”
