Page 26 of Raven
Noticing my cup was empty, he grabbed it and went to stand when I asked, “What are you doing?”
“I’m getting my woman some more coffee,” he answered as he took my cup and reentered the house, returning a minute later with a steamy cup of perfectly sweetened coffee. “Here you go, beautiful.”
“Thanks,” I responded as he sat back down and began to drink his coffee alongside me.
I didn’t want to rush into the conversation about Rooster, but I also didn’t want to let the day drag on before we discussed everything. Carefully, I sat my cup onto the table and turned to face him. He was scrolling on his phone, chuckling at something on the screen.
Clearing my throat, I saw him look at me, and something on my face must have shown him my worry, because he placed his phone onto the table, took my hand, and asked, “What’s going on, Sydney?”
Glancing down at the table, I contemplated where to start the conversation. The beginning was always a good place, so I lifted my eyes to him. Caleb was looking straight at me, waiting for me to explain.
“I told you about my mother?” he nodded, so I continued. “When Uncle Billy and I got the call about her death, I thought that would be the last thing I would have to deal with where she was concerned. And please let me say that I know she was troubled most of her life, but I was always hoping she would pull herself together.” Shaking my head, I admitted, “Unfortunately, that never happened.”
“You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to,” he whispered and I gave him a sad smile, wishing that was possible.
“About three months after she died, I was back in Oregon, working and helping Uncle Billy get the books straight so he could put the shop on the market. I was going to miss working with him, but he needed to retire so he could finally have the life he deserved. He was taking a few days off and I was working at the shop when three guys pulled up. They had trouble written all over them, but I refused to let them intimidate me.”
I felt a shiver race down my spine remembering them and their rotten, crooked teeth, their dirty clothes, and the obvious addiction issues they had. I was terrified of them but wouldn’t let them see fear in me.
“What did they want?” he asked.
“Money,” I stated plainly. “More specifically, money they said my mother owed them.”
His eyes grew wide then his eyebrows furrowed, and he listened to me recount the conversation almost a year ago now. “Rooster, the one who was in charge, told me about how my mother stole a shipment from them and they were out twenty-five grand to one of the cartels. I told them she was dead, and that’s when they informed me her debt was now mine.”
“Bullshit,” he stated, and I held my hand up, needing to finish the story.
“I told him I didn’t have any money, and if it was something she took from them, there wasn’t anything I could do about it.” Looking down, I added, “Rooster said I always had an ATM between my legs, and he and his boys would be happy to help me make the money I now owed.”
“Did . . . did they hurt you?” he asked through barely contained rage.
“No,” I insisted. “I was able to convince them I could pay them off, if they gave me time. They didn’t seem too sure of my offer, but when they saw the bike I was working on, they made me agree to have the debt repaid within a year.”
“What did Billy say?” Caleb asked before he kissed the back of my hands.
“Nothing. I didn’t tell him who or what the problem was, only that my mother was still causing problems from the grave.”
“Why didn’t you tell him? He could’ve helped.”
“And let him spend his retirement money bailing me out, just like he’d done his entire life with my mother?” I shook my head. “I couldn’t let him spend everything he had, just to fix another problem for her.” I paused then added, “He had already given up so much for me, I couldn’t take anything else from him.”
“Is that why you moved to Rapid City? To get away from this Rooster and his friends?” Caleb inquired.
“Partly. Billy suggested I come here and find a job. He said you and the Sinners Revenge were good men, and you would be fair with me, not judging me or my abilities on my gender.”
“How much do you still owe Rooster?”
“Just under fifteen thousand. I’ve been making payments every two weeks since my first check.” Then, I quietly admitted, “I’ve paid ten thousand in the last three months.”
He sat back and looked at me, but I could see the wheels spinning in his brain. “Something about this doesn’t seem right.”
“What do you mean?” I asked, not understanding his statement.
“I mean, how many times have you heard about a cartel giving someone a year to repay a debt?” Caleb asked, and I stopped to think about his question.
Shrugging, I didn’t have a response, so I asked, “Why does that matter? He said she owed him, and either I was going to pay or he was going to take it out of Billy’s ass,” I paused before adding, “or mine.”
“How do you send the money to him?” Caleb inquired.
