Page 77 of Claymore
“What do you mean?”
“Every time something doesn’t go Ray’s way, he’d visit me at our parents’ home. I used to stay there for a while before I moved out. He might go there now that things aren’t going his way. He’ll only come if he thinks I’m alone. I need to go alone,” she said.
“No, you can’t do that, Ella. If he’s off his fucking rocker, he could kill you. How do you know he won’t? How do you know he’ll even show?”
“I don’t, but he did lure me out to warn me about his plans. He doesn’t want to hurt me. It could be our only chance at really putting an end to this,” she said.
“I don’t like it,” I said, firmly.
“I don’t either, Claymore, but this may be our only chance. We all want out of this mess. This is how we get out. Please, let me do this.”
“What if you get hurt?”
“I won’t. You’ll be close. Everything will be fine. Now, we just need a plan,” Ella said.
“Yeah, looks like we do,” Tank said.
“There’s one thing, though. My car, it’s back at my apartment. If one of you takes me there and I grab it, Ray may find out I’m not alone. He may never show. He won’t risk running into any of you if he doesn’t have his cavalry.”
“Ripper? Think we can work something out?” I asked.
“Yeah, I’ll call Ronnie.”
***
I drove Ella down to Axle’s, the scent of motor oil and sweat filling the air. The air was hot, even as the sun finally set, casting an orange glow across all of Mascid. Ronnie was hard at work on some American muscle in the garage when we pulled up. She let her dark hair down, wiping her hands clean of any grease before she approached us.
“Well, well. Long time no see, Claymore. Sorry I haven’t been around the clubhouse much at all. Ripper’s been pretty strict about keeping me away with all the trouble that’s going on, but I’m glad I can help now. So, this must be your lady. Hi Ella, I’m Ronnie,” she said, outstretching her hand.
Ella shook it, smiling warmly at her.
“Nice to properly meet you, Ronnie.”
“I’m afraid it’s been long overdue,” she said with a chuckle.
Ella shot me a soft nod to let me know she had it covered. I headed over to the office where Ripper had been curled up, going over some paperwork.
“Knock knock.”
He tossed the file he’d been looking at down on the desk, glancing back at me.
“Shit’s crazy, huh? All this time looking for Ray only to find out he’s been outsmarted by his own lady. She took his money, burned his assets, and made it nearly impossible for him to ever regain power. Seems to me like she did us a favor,” he said.
“Maybe so, but we still have to figure out what she’s planning to do. Whether destroying us is on the top of her list or not doesn’t matter. I’m sure it’s there. You know what I can’t figure out?”
“Hm?”
“Why would someone like Ray even trust someone like Fang. He’s been notorious for working alone, listening to no one but himself for years. It’s hard to believe that he’d even consider opening up his business to a total stranger no matter how much he wants her. He sure as hell wouldn’t let her control his money or burn bridges, but she did,” I explained.
“Maybe he’s smitten with her.”
“Or maybe she’s not a stranger at all,” I said.
It was like a light bulb went off in my head. I sat there underneath the cook air conditioning in Axle’s office, tapping my foot while all of the pieces finally started fitting together.
“What?” asked Ripper.
“Think about it, Ray may not be so willing to let a total stranger into his operation, but he may make room for someone he knew, someone in his past life. It would make giving her control make sense.”
