Page 27 of Prospect
"Let me talk with her first?" I ask. "She's skittish around men. I might get more information from her than you can." I look to both Jake and Logan. "There's something else you need to know about Luna, and I'm not sure if Sam thought to tell you." I look at Sam. The look on his face says he didn't mention it. I turn my attention back to Jake. "Luna is deaf."
Jake crosses his arms over his broad chest. "That makes things a little more difficult."
"But she reads lips," I rush to add. "Give me a chance to talk with her first. I already knew she was hiding from someone, an ex, but never asked her about the details."
Jake thinks it over for a moment before he decides. "Alright. Find out what you can, but you stress to her that this fucker has threatened my family."
I give Jake a firm understanding nod then walk toward Sam. He tucks a strand of hair behind my ear. Feeling a weight on my shoulders, I bury my face in his chest, and he tells me, "you got this, Firefly." He's right. I'll do whatever it takes to make sure these women and myself are safe.
Sam, Jake and Logan follow me inside. I continue my way down the hall toward Luna's room and open the door. I find her sitting on a chair next to the window with a paintbrush in one hand and a pallet full of colors in the other as she stares at the blank canvas in front of her. I ease my way further into her room so that I don't startle her. Sensing my presence, she turns her head my way. She takes in my disheveled state. Matted hair, bruised face, and smudged mascara under my eyes. Her eyes widen, and a gasping sound leaves her mouth hinting at the first sound I have ever heard from her. She places her things on a table beside her and walks toward me. Luna studies my face, then ever so softly touches my shoulder.
"I'm going to be okay," I assure her as I lead the way to her bed, and we sit on the edge together. I face her. "I was attacked at work—by a man," I explain trying to ease my way into the conversation. She nods slowly. I grab her by the hand. "He said he knows who you are. He mentioned you by name." She covers her mouth. Pulling her other hand free from mine, she backs away from me. I get her to look at me again. "He threatened my family and me. I need you to tell me who he is." She shakes her head and shuts her eyes. She's frightened. I get it. I am too. But we need to learn not to let that fear control us. I need to get her to tell me something—anything. I slide closer to her. She lifts her head, tears streaming down her face as I continue to talk. She focuses on my mouth. "Please. Tell me something. We won't let anything happen to you, but I need to be able to tell those men out there—my family a name or a description so they can find this guy," I beg her.
Finally, she nods. Grabbing her notebook, she begins to write. She hands it to me.
What did he look like? It could be any of them. They go by the name Savage Outlaw MC.
"An MC?" I whisper to myself. Then I remember and look at Luna. "I didn't see his face, but would it help if I told you he smelled like he smoked a carton of cigarettes a day and bathed in alcohol?" Recognition shines in her eyes, and I become hopeful. She takes the notebook and scribbles more words.
Pike. He is their VP.
I sag my shoulders and ask, "Luna, how did you get mixed up with these guys?" I hand her notebook back hoping she will share with me. She does.
I became involved with the President. Stupid. I know. I thought he was a good guy. He treated me nice enough. That all changed when I saw something I shouldn’t have. He beat me. Dumped my body on the side of the road and left me for dead. I survived. Now he is sitting in jail until the trial. And I am the key witness.
I read all this. Though she doesn't give me details, it's enough to read between the lines and understand why she is so fearful. Lifting my eyes from the paper, I look at her. "Now they want to finish the job."
Chapter thirteen
Sam
Pacing the living room at Sofia's house, I do my best to rein in my anger. I'm angry because some motherfucker put his filthy hands on my woman, but most of all I'm angry at myself for letting it happen. I am in charge of keeping her safe. The club trusted me with the task, and in return, I failed them both.
"Sam," Jake's gruff voice calls out interrupting my personal tirade."I know you're inside your head right now, and nothing me or anyone else says will make a difference, but get your shit under control." He points toward the back of the house where Sofia disappeared to a few minutes ago. "Your woman doesn't need you like this. She's going to need you to be the level headed one. Sofia may be holding up well now, but this shit is going to hit hard later, and when it does, she'll need you to get her through it. You got me?"
I run my hand down my face. "Yeah, I got you. You're right. It's just that I fucked up. I fucked up and my girl paid for it. That bastard marked her; made her bleed, Jake." I shake my head. "I want the son of a bitch to pay."
"Oh, he'll pay," Jake declares. "Now take all the fire burnin' inside your belly and focus that energy on how you plan on makin' it happen."
Just then Sofia appears from the back of the house with Luna in tow. She hovers behind Sofia while refusing to make eye contact with me, Jake or Logan. She's afraid of us. I don't know if it's because we are male or because of our cuts. I look over at Jake and Logan to see they've made the same assessment. Sofia is the first to speak. "I want to start by saying you know how New Hope House operates. We don't turn any woman away no matter what their past is. We also don't force them to tell us their stories. I know first hand how difficult opening up can be." At Sofia's admission, Jake's and Logan's features soften. "My number one priority is making sure the women who stay here are safe. The second is helping them start over and rebuild their lives. Luna is no exception, except for today. Today I had to break one of my rules and ask Luna to share why she came here. She is terrified, but because of my attack, she is more than willing to give you whatever information you want. I'm going to start by telling you what she has already told me. If you have any more questions, she is prepared to answer."
Jake nods. "Alright sweetheart. Tell us what you know."
Sofia and Luna take a seat on the sofa. Luna is visibly shaking. Sofia reaches over and takes her hand, offering support. "Luna's ex's name is Rex. He's also the president of the Savage Outlaw MC." Sofia drops the bomb. One we sure as hell wasn't expecting.
"Son of a fuckin' bitch," Jake hisses the same time "fuck" escapes both mine and Logan's mouth. When our body language causes a panicked look to strike Luna's face, Sofia urges her to look at hers and read her lips.
"It's okay. Nobody here is going to hurt you. The Kings are not like that. I promise." Luna closes her eyes and nods frantically as she gets her fear under control.
"Was it her ex that attacked you?" I ask.
"No. Luna says he's in jail awaiting trial."
"Trial for what?" Logan questions.
"Murder. Luna witnessed the whole thing. She is supposed to testify against him. She believes it was Pike, Rex's brother who attacked me."
"He's sending a message to Luna through you," I state.
