Ride the Wind, page 6
I was still pretty clueless. “But why the hell do you want Reese to go to her car? Is her friend there or something?”
“Still no fucking clue where the hell her friend is. I’m hoping if this car is her’s, it will get us closer to wherever she is.”
I guess that all made sense, but I didn’t know why Ransom was calling me about it. “Good luck.”
“Good luck?” Ransom laughed. “What the hell, man? It looked like you two were a thing.”
Nope. “No. I told you what the deal was between her and I. Nothing going on.”
“You owe me fifty bucks,” I heard Bear bellow in the background.
“No, no,” Ransom insisted. “We didn’t put a timeline on our bet. It can still happen.”
“What the hell are you two betting on?” I asked.
“Nothing,” they replied in unison.
I had a hunch about what they bet on, but I didn’t care. “Then why the hell did you call me?”
“I guess for nothing right now,” Ransom laughed. “Talk to you later, brother.” Ransom ended the call.
I tossed my phone on the bed and groaned.
No.
I did not care about anything that Ransom had told me.
Kerry’s car had not one thing to do with me.
The same went for Reese.
I did not care, and that was the end of it.
Maybe.
*
Chapter Eleven
Reese
“You’re sure this is it?”
I laid my hand on the hood of the dark green car and sighed. “Yeah, this is hers. She loved that decal on the back window.”
“Let’s keep the dumbfuckery to a minimum today,” Bear read. A smile spread across his lips. “I think I like this chick.”
“Kerry was one of a kind.”
“Is,” Ransom corrected. “We don’t know anything yet.”
He was right, but I didn’t think it was a good sign that we had just found her car with no plates and the VIN number scratched off. “So what now?” I asked. “Can tell what happened to her?” It had been a while since I had spent a rainy afternoon watching true crime shows, but I figured Ransom could get a few clues from Kerry’s car.
Ransom put on a pair of plastic gloves and opened the driver’s door. “Once the car gets to Brayton, everything will be fingerprinted and processed. Hopefully, there will be some prints that we’ll be able to pull.” He leaned inside the car. “Her purse is on the passenger floor, and her cell phone is in the cup holder.”
My heart sank.
“If she took off to start a new life, she wouldn’t have taken any of that stuff with her,” Bear pointed out. “She can’t take her past if she wants something new. Is the purse dumped out?”
I tried to peer around Ransom, but I couldn’t see past the steering wheel.
“No, nothing is spilling out of it.” Ransom glanced over his shoulder at me. “You know what color her purse was?”
Oh god. I tried to picture her walking into Layers every morning. “Uh, I think she had two. One is white with fringe, and the other was just black with a few pockets.”
“The black one is on the floor.”
Oh, Kerry. Where in the hell were you?
“Incoming,” Bear softly called.
Ransom backed out of the car and looked over the roof at four bikers and a woman headed over to the car.
“Still weird seeing her in that cut,” Bear laughed. He leaned against Ransom’s cruiser he had parked next to Kerry’s car.
“I heard that,” the woman called.
“Do you have to piss her off like that?” Ransom groaned. “For one day, I would love not to have to threaten to beat your or one of the guy's asses.”
Bear shrugged. “Luna is feisty. She makes it fun to pick on her.”
So this was the famous Luna Zig and Ransom had talked about.
The four people stopped in front of Kerry’s car, and I couldn’t take my eyes off one of the guys.
Was that Zig?
Wasn’t he a member of the Sons of Sin? The only knowledge I had about MCs had been from Sons of Anarchy, and while that was limited, I was pretty sure you couldn’t be a member of two MCs at the same time. Seemed like a big no-no.
“Find anything out?” an older guy asked.
Ransom shrugged. “Possibly. We can’t really know until we get the car processed. Reese did confirm that this is Kerry’s car. The sticker on the back window matches what Kerry had.”
The older guy nodded to me. “I’m King.”
“King is Zig’s uncle. Ransom took over the introductions. “That’s Luna, and then Hero and Zag.”
Zag?
Was I in an alternate universe?
Zag nodded to me, and my jaw dropped.
“Something wrong?” King asked.
Ransom chuckled. “She had no clue about Zag.”
Bear smirked and shook his head. “I was hoping for this.”
“Zig,” I blurted. “You have to mean Zig.” They just had to be saying his name wrong, right? How was this guy Zag, but looked just like Zig?
Hero glanced at Zag. “Or you’ve been messing around on Tess.”
Zag flipped off Hero. “Like I have fucking time for that, or even want to.” He curled his lips and shook his head.
“What in the world is going on?” I demanded. All I thought I was doing was help identify Kerry’s car, but now I was staring at a guy who looked like Zig but wasn’t Zig.
Thankfully King decided to put me out of my confusing misery. “Zag is Zig’s twin brother, babe. Luna and Hero are his cousins.”
I blinked slowly.
“They’re technically not identical, but they sure as fuck look like it.” Luna crossed her arms over her chest. “If you look closely, you can tell Zag is a douche and Zig is a dipshit.”
Hero sputtered. “Damn, Luna. You’re not pulling any punches today.”
“Does she ever?” Ransom mumbled.
“I used to like Zig until he took off.” Luna shrugged. “Now he’s a dipshit.”
“Shut it,” King grunted. “Just one fucking time, I wish you dumbasses would keep your mouths shut.”
“I love when they do this,” Bear whispered. “It’s like a fucking show.”
“Why the hell do I need to keep my mouth shut?” Hero asked. “I didn’t say anything stupid. If I had, I would have said Zag was a dipshit.”
“You just did,” Zag and Luna said in unison.
I was still reeling from the fact that Zig had a twin who was in a different MC. Hell, it seemed like his whole family was in a different MC from him. How did that happen?
“Zig on the way over?” King asked Ransom.
Ransom shook his head. “I called him, but he said he’s not a part of this.”
“I thought you said she was with him when you went on your call at the Sons of Sin,” Luna questioned.
“She was, but they’re not together.” Ransom nodded to me. “Ask her for yourself.”
King, Zag, Luna, and Hero all stared at me.
I cleared my throat and tried not to sound like an idiot. “Uh, I’m not with Zig. His dead friend was with my now missing friend, and we just happened to meet when my missing friend took off with his dead friend while I was sleeping in the backyard of the Sons of Sin clubhouse.” And I managed to sound like an idiot.
“Did anyone else get lost the second time she mentioned the dead friend?” Hero asked.
Zag raised his hand. “That would be my dumbass.”
“We met, but we’re not together. I haven’t seen or talked to him for a few days. No plans to either.”
Luna raised her eyebrow. “Interesting.”
It felt like this was my time to leave. I had let Ransom know the car was Kerry’s, and now I was ready to go. “Uh, I think I will get going, though.” I turned to Ransom. “Please let me know when you find out anything about Kerry.”
Ransom nodded. “Will do, Reese. It might be a couple of days before I know much more.”
I would be waiting by the phone until he called.
I nodded to Bear. “I hope Greta likes everything you picked out for her.”
Bear smiled. “If there is anything left by the time she gets off work.”
I rolled my eyes and waved lamely at Zag-Not-Zig, King, Hero, and Luna. “Uh, it was nice meeting you all.”
They gave me a variety of chin lifts and nods.
“What did Bear get Greta?” I heard Luna ask as I slipped into my car. I slammed my door and started my car. I watched Ransom and Bear pull out the large pink boxes filled with pastries and donuts. They set them on the hood of Ransom’s cruiser and flipped the lids back.
I couldn’t hear anything, but I could tell they were oohing and ahhing over everything.
I loved watching people enjoy my hard work. It made it all worth it in the end.
If only Kerry could have been in my car with me to witness the cop, bounty hunter, and bikers enjoying everything.
Hopefully, with her car being found, she would be soon, too.
I freakin’ hoped so.
*
Chapter Twelve
Zig
Get on your bike and get your ass back to the clubhouse.
I ignored the loud voice in my head and walked up the steps to Reese’s front door.
I raised my hand and rapped loudly.
This was a dumb idea, but I was here.
Ever since Ransom had called me this afternoon, I hadn’t been able to get Reese out of my mind. She had been on the edges of my mind for the past few days, but now she was front and center.
I knew how desperate she was to find her friend, and something inside me had me knocking on her door to make sure she was okay. If they had found Kerry’s car, but Kerry wasn’t in it, she might not have gotten good news.
The front door opened a crack. “What are you doing here?” Reese called.
I didn’t fucking know.
“You told me you would forget where I lived,” she continued.
I shrugged and ran my fingers through my hair. “I guess I forgot to forget.”
She pulled the door open a few more inches. “So why did you forget to forget?”
“Uh, Ransom called me today and told me they had found Kerry’s car.”
“Yeah?”
“Was it her car?” I asked.
Reese nodded.
“Was she in it?”
Reese shook her head. “She wasn’t in it, but her purse and phone were.”
That was not a good sign. “Are you okay?”
She shrugged and leaned against the door. “I’m as good as can be.”
“Can I come in?”
“Um, I’m in the middle of something.”
It was eight thirty on a Wednesday night. What in the hell could she be in the middle of? “Something I can help with?” What in the fuck was I doing? She had just given me the opportunity to get the hell out of here. I came here to find out if she was okay; she said she was, so now my ass needed to get back on my bike.
“Are you good with a sponge?” she asked.
I tipped my head to the side. “Uh, well, I think so?”
She stepped away from the door and pushed it open. “Then come on in.”
I stepped through the door and followed her into the living room and kitchen.
“This is a nice place,” I commented.
“Thanks. I’ve been here a few years.” We stopped at the kitchen island, and I looked at a half-decorated cake. “This is what I was in the middle of,” she explained.
“You bake at work, and then come home and bake?” I asked. That was fucking crazy.
“It’s for my neighbor. She’s turning seventy tomorrow, and her daughter called me frantically on my way back from Rockton and asked me if I could make a cake for tomorrow.”
“And you said yes,” I guessed.
“You would be correct.”
“I can help however you want, darlin’, but I don’t think I’ll be a good help.”
Reese laughed and shook her head. “I don’t need your help with the cake.” She turned and nodded to the sink. “I could use your help with all the cake dishes, though. One of the perks of owning a bakery is that I have someone to do the dishes for me. When I’m home, it’s all on me.”
“That’s what you meant when you said sponge,” I chuckled.
“Did you think I needed help with a sponge bath or something?” she laughed lightly.
That would have been a hell of a lot better than doing a sink full of dishes. “I mean, it did cross my mind.”
She shook her head and turned back to the cake. “Nope, no sponge bath. Just you, a sponge, and some dish soap.”
Was I really going to do her damn dishes for her? I should just leave. Make some excuse that I needed to get back to the clubhouse and take off.
I didn’t.
I took off my cut and draped it over the back of one of the stools at the island. “Do I get a beer or something after doing your dirty work?”
She laughed. “I mean, if that’s the only incentive you need to do the dishes, then yes. You can even have two if you want.”
She at least had the water made and dishes soaking. I may have grown up in an MC, but that didn’t mean my mom didn’t make me do chores. I just didn’t do them often now.
“So, what was Kerry’s car like?” I asked. “Was it wrecked or anything?” I turned to the side and leaned against the sink.
Reese grabbed a metal spatula and focused on the cake in front of her. She spun it slowly and swiped the spatula along the side of the cake. “Uh, no. Unless you think the plates missing and the VIN number scratched off wrecked.”
That did not sound good. Whoever ditched the car did not want it to be traced back to Kerry. “Anything else?”
“You mean anything else like me finding out you have a twin?” She propped her hand on her hip and glared at me. “I thought I had entered some alternate universe when they said his name was Zag, and he looked just like you.”
“You met Zag?” Jesus, I hadn’t really thought about her meeting any of the guys from the club, especially Zag. I hadn’t spoken to him in weeks. Things had changed between us, and I didn’t know if they would ever go back to the way that they were.
“I did. I made a fool of myself, too.”
“What’d you do?” I laughed.
“I rambled my way through telling them about Brain and Kerry, but I botched the hell out of it.” She closed her eyes. “I also told him his name is Zig, not Zag like he didn’t know his own name.”
“Darlin’,” I laughed.
“I looked like a fool, Zig. You should have told me you had a twin brother that looks exactly like you.”
“So you’re saying when I meet someone knew I should just blurt out that I have a twin brother?”
Reese rolled her eyes. “Well, no, not right away, but I think that should be information you should divulge at some point.”
“I’ll keep that in mind, darlin’.” I turned back to the sink and reached my hands into the soapy water. “Anything else happen?”
She sighed heavily. “They asked if you were coming. Ransom told him you didn’t want anything to do with Kerry or me.”
I glanced over my shoulder at her. “I didn’t say that.”
“Uh, yeah, you did,” she laughed. “And it’s okay. You don’t know Kerry or me. I shouldn’t have barged in the way I did and demanded you help me.”
“You didn’t demand.” She was forceful, but it wasn’t a demand. “You just wanted help finding your friend.”
“And when you helped, you found your friend dead,” she countered. She looked up from the cake. “Did they find out who killed him?”
I shook my head. “Nothing yet.”
“Is Ransom thinking that Brain and Kerry are related somehow.”
I grabbed a spoon from the water and swiped the sponge over it. “I don’t really know what Ransom is thinking. I only talked to him for thirty seconds yesterday.”
“What about your club? You guys have to have some kind of clue who killed Brain.”
My club. The Sons of Sin wasn’t my club. I was patched in, but they weren’t anyone's club when it came down to it. It was every man for themselves. “They don’t care. Or if they do, they aren’t telling me.”
“Interesting,” Reese murmured.
I turned to look at her. She was bent over the cake with a bag full of icing in one hand and the other turning the cake as she piped. Giant, pillowing puffs of icing were left in the wake of her tip, and the cake transformed before my eyes. “Damn,” I mumbled. “You weren’t joking when you said cake decorating in your thing.”
She finished the huge border and straightened. “This isn’t that great, Zig,” she laughed. “I’m just doing a quick and easy design.”
“If that is easy, I would love to see what a hard design would be.”
She rolled her eyes and grabbed a bag filled with pink icing. “Prepare for your mind to be blown,” she laughed. “I’m going to make a few roses.”
And man, did she blow my mind.
All my life, Meg was the one to be baking and cook. I had watched her many times before, but there was something different about how Reese decorated the cake. It was like art for her.
“You’re making me nervous by watching me,” she droned as she piped icing onto a small platform she held between her fingers.
I held up my hands and turned back to the sink. “Sorry, sorry. I know I’m just here to do your dirty work.”
She laughed lightly. “I was kind of confused when I opened the door, and you were standing there, but now I’m glad you came over.”
“I bet,” I chuckled. I finished the dishes without bothering her while she worked.
Five minutes later, she announced, “All done. You can stop playing in the water and look now.”
I didn’t think doing the ridiculous amount of spoons she had in the sink was playing with water, but whatever. I grabbed the dish towel and dried my hands as I turned. “Holy fuck,” I gasped. “How in the hell did you do that in seconds?”
She spun the turntable and smiled proudly. “I don’t think it was seconds, but this did come together in the end. I think the pink flowers really pop against the dark green leaves.”
