Page 96 of Banshee
“Let’s go inside, and I will tell you what I know.”
I put my arm around her and led her into the clubhouse. Inside, I looked around for Haizley and found her at the bar. I nodded for her to follow us into church. I led Aspen to a chair, and Haizley sat next to her.
Kronos and Zeus, along with Asclepius, Rhea, and Diana, followed us. Kronos stood against the wall behind Aspen, his arms crossed over his chest.
“The Death Dogs attacked the bar in town. When we rode out there, Banshee didn’t come inside with the rest of us. No one realized it until Mimic received a 9-1-1 text from him. We followed the location on his phone, and it led us to the highway just out of town, where we found his bike.”
“But not him?” Zeus asked.
“No. What we did find was Pepper. Dead.”
Aspen gasped, and I looked in her eyes. “Banshee did that for you. Whatever happens to him, he wanted you to be free. Pepper is dead.”
“They took him, didn’t they?” she asked.
“Yes,” I confirmed. “Skinner will call to make a trade.”
“I have money!”
“What?” I asked, sitting back in my chair. I fucking knew she’d been keeping something from me.
“I have money. Skinner’s money. With Pepper dead, I don’t need it anymore. Skinner can have it all if he gives back Banshee.”
“How much?” Cash asked.
“Almost a million dollars.”
Son of a fucking bitch!
Chapter Thirty-One
Aspen
I paced the main room of the clubhouse. The men had been gone for hours. Grace was here. Johnny brought her in, and she sat at the bar muttering about high-handed men.
I wasn’t listening.
That wasn’t strictly true. I wasn’t listening to the chaos around me, but my ears were tuned to the outside. Waiting to hear the rumble of the bikes returning. I needed Banshee to come home. Safe and unharmed.
“Aspen, honey, come sit down.”
“No,” I answered, continuing to pace.
“Aspen, I know you worried—”
“Do you, Mother? Do you know how worried I am? Do you even know anything about me?”
“That’s not fair—”
I spun around at my sister’s words. “Fair? You want to talk about fair?” I looked around the room and walked over to Beck. “You see this woman? She didn’t grow up with her father. She didn’t know anything about him until she moved back here and found out he was the sheriff. That was at her grandmother’s funeral. And why did her mother keep her from him? Because his brother was in a club. Is that fair?”
I moved to stand by Ellie. “This woman lost her brother for a decade, only to find him when she came here to do a book release. Again, because he was in the club.
“Melissa isn’t here, but she lost her brother because of the club. He thought he was doing right by her. Another man who doesn’t ask the woman what she fucking wants.”
I looked around. “Kytten and Mimic aren’t here. But they are both in a club. It was because of a club that they were lost to us. Why Diana was lost to us. I had to hide because of a club. Is that fair? None of this is fair. Grace was hurt because of a club. And it all stems from you, Mother. You and your secrets!”
“IRENE ELIZABETH COOPER!” my father bellowed.
