Page 45 of Cougar

Cowboy stops what he’s doing with his gun, pointing it to the ground, and looks me in the eye. “We’re gonna grab her, and we’re gonna fucking kill her.”

Sounds of shock work their way throughout. When I look around the room, there’s a small amount of doubt on everyone’s faces. We couldn’t kill Sonya. Abilene had to do it. Can any of us truly kill this woman? It’s a valid concern. We all took an oath. An oath that Sonya pointed out is flawed. Case in point, this exact fucking moment.

“Is anyone here going to have a problem pulling the trigger on her?” Cowboy asks.

I take a deep breath and a moment to think about it. All that pops up is Bonnie and everything she said to AJ about getting rid of the baby. She had told AJ my son would be better off with parents more capable. She wasn’t trying to find someone to love my son; she was trying to sell him. “No. I won’t have a problem. She tried to convince AJ to give her my son. She wants to sell my son. He will never be safe here if that woman is alive. I’ll gladly fucking kill her. No hesitations.”

Nods and words of agreement fill the room. Cowboy puts his gun back in his holster and straightens his cut, “Let’s go get the bitch.”

***

After we came up with a plan A, we hit the road. The further we talked about it, the more agitated Cowboy became. While the plan seemed solid enough at first, I’m starting to think it isn’t going to work. We’re gonna end up getting the cops called on us, and while we haven’t completely confirmed it, we’re positive that Connard is on Bonnie’s payroll.

We don’t want her to know we’re coming. Because of this, the ride comes to an end quickly when Cowboy pulls us off before turning down her street. Gears parks the truck we plan to stash her cuntass in behind us all.

Cowboy is too close to this. He feels a personal sting on this because she was a core component to a lot of shit that went sideways in his life. One that he couldn’t put a face or name to until now. The ride out to Bonnie’s house was tense, and it’s evident that he won’t calm down.

Cowboy is going to snap. The concern about unwanted police attention is coming to fruition. He’s ready to go in hot. He’s grown and become an amazing Prez, but when it comes to Marley and what she went through, he isn’t going to go in with a methodical head. The drugs Bonnie brought in took part in her death. I look around at the few brothers here, and it seems like we are all on the same wavelength.

“Prez,” Copper starts as he gets off his bike, and Cowboy looks at him with a wild look in his eye. “I am speaking to you with respect, but as someone who has been a part of more than a few takedowns, you can’t go into this wired like you are. That’s when mistakes happen. We can’t bring the cops into this. I have an idea,” his eyes cut to me quickly, and I have a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach.

“Well?” Cowboy snaps, “What is it?” His body is radiating anger. If it were up to him, he would probably go in, shoot her, and walk out. We can’t have that. We have to get what we can out of her.

“Bonnie has been approaching Aletta about the baby. She has some serious hard-on to get me alone as well. What if I bring Cougar to her, and we strike some deal? This allows us to get in the house so we can accomplish the takedown behind closed doors—with no suspicion from the neighbors. We’ll drive up in the truck, load her in, and leave with none the wiser.” Copper explains as his eyes flit from me to Cowboy. Cowboy signals Gears and Sever out of the truck.

As we start the drive down the street in the old farm truck, I hear the bikes start-up and retreat—indicating Cowboy told everyone to fall back. A group of bikers hanging out on the street at night raises suspicion we can’t have. I look in the side mirror and see the red glow of a cigarette, and I know Cowboy is still there watching—making sure we don’t fuck up. I pray we don’t because we only have one chance to do this.

Copper parks in Bonnie’s driveway. Once out of the truck, we slowly make our way to her front door. I can hear my pulse pounding in my ears. I know Copper is talking to me, but I can’t make out what he’s saying. When we make it to the darkened front porch, he pounds his fist on the door in the authoritative cop knock he has perfected over the years on the police force. The silence only amplifies the sound of my pounding heart. I need to get my shit together so I can get this accomplished.

The porch light flicks on, startling me from my thoughts. There is a series of clicks and the sound of metal scraping on metal. How many locks does she need? I shoot Copper a side eye, but his eyes are still glued to the door.

“Well, well, well. Look who we have here,” Bonnie drawls looking from Copper to me and back to Copper. I see a slow smirk stretch on Copper’s lips as he leans over Bonnie on the door frame. Looking down at her, he gives her a wink.

“I heard you were talking to the woman that belongs to my guy here. Saying you could take the little problem he has off his hands.” Copper is smooth. He leans more into the door frame, and I swear I watch Bonnie swoon. “I convinced him he should take you up on your offer.” I think I am going to have to watch my back with him and how fast he can think on the fly.

“Hmm, you weren’t nice to me last time we saw each other, Mr. Anderson. Why should I believe you’re here for little ol’ me?” Bonnie pouts her lips and runs her talon-like nails along his chest.

Copper looks as if he’s about to give an excuse, but “I found out the kid may not be mine.” I state before I can stop myself. “She tried to trap me. But you’re known in the community. You know of good people who will take great care of the baby.” I try to look as sad and heartbroken as I can. But I feel sick to my stomach.

Bonnie eyes us like she isn’t buying it. We don’t need her to, not fully. We just need to get into the house with her and close the door behind us to get what we need done.

“Noah, why would you come to me and not Elvira? I am sure she knows people.” Bonnie does sound a little suspicious. I chance a glance at him because I’m now worried, but he doesn’t miss a beat.

“The truth is, kids fucking suck. I got slammed with three, and they’re the worst fucking things I have to deal with. I can’t go to Elvira when she’s the grandmother of the little brats. At least I can save him from the fucked up fate I was dealt.”

Her eyes look from him to me again as she opens the door wider, letting us pass her. Fuck, she needs to be in front of us. How are we going to take her down? But Copper must have been three steps ahead of me. He spins and pins Bonnie to the door with his body. He places his hands on either side of her head. He leans low and starts whispering in her ear. I can’t make out anything, but Bonnie has a wide smile as she peers at me over his broad shoulder. She ducks under his arm and starts to make her way over to me.

In the blink of an eye, Copper’s face changes, and he has her in a chokehold. His bulging forearm and bicep squeeze on either side of her neck, slowly cutting off the blood supply to her brain. She’s fighting. Her legs are going wild, and her hands are clawing at him as she tries to scream out.

I’m useless as I stand here, completely stunned. My mind is still trying to process this Jekyll and Hyde moment my brother just had.

“Cougar!” Copper croaks out at me, causing me to snap out of it and grab her legs.

“We need to stop her from waking up anyone that may be in the house,” I tell him. Copper adjusts his hold and tightens it. This is taking too long. She needs to go down faster. We can’t do anything else, though, because we need her alive for now. The chokehold is our best option. The delay in blood will cause her to pass out, whereas the deprivation of air will shut her brain down, and we won’t get the answers we need. It feels like an hour, but I know it’s been less than a minute before Bonnie finally falls limp in his arms.

“In my back pocket, I have a rag and some cuffs.” Copper says, still holding her up. I hand him the cuffs, and he rolls her over, bringing her arms behind her back. He places the cuffs on her wrists, and from the looks of it, as tight as he can. Once he flips her back over, he holds up her head, and I tie the rag around her, making sure it’s in her mouth and as tight as possible.

Now the fun part. Making it seem as if we were never here.

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