Page 19 of Link (Dragon Riders MC 1)
“What, you don’t believe me?”
I rolled my eyes. “Will you just do as I’m asking you, please?”
She sighed. “I’m sorry. I guess I’m just—”
My fingers stopped. “I know. It’s hard, pulling away from what happened with Mom and Dad.”
“You, too?”
My fingers started typing again. “Yeah. Me, too.”
I was still typing long after Hope finished talking. I laid her down on the couch in my office and pulled out a blanket I had used many times to help me sleep in this place during late nights. I tucked her in and kissed her bruised cheek, trying not to get my own tears on her already-drenched skin.
Then, I went back to work.
A lot of digging on the internet and one very early morning phone call to the police pointed me in the direction I needed to be looking. And how convenient, that the place Hope described was a motel on the other side of town. Owned by none other than Jonathan “Skeleton” Branson.
I picked up my office phone and dialed the main number, wondering how much I could talk myself into over the phone.
“Bones Motel, this is Deidra speaking.”
Bones. Fabulous. Idiots. “Yes. Hello there. I’m looking to speak with a man by the name of Mr. Jonathan Branson?”
She paused. “Uh, who?”
“His nickname is ‘Skeleton,’ I believe.”
“Oh! Yes! Well, he’s kind of busy at the moment. Can I take a message?”
“No. But you can put me on hold. I’ll wait.”
“Are you sure? He could be a while.”
“Yes. I’m sure. After all, a lawyer’s got all the time in the world.”
She gulped over the phone. “You’re a lawyer?”
“Yes, ma’am. So, let Skelly know that at his earliest convenience, he really needs to pick up the phone if he doesn’t want to be dealing with the police just yet.”
There was scrambling on the other end of the line as I leaned back. Hope’s soft snores started filling my office, and my prayer was that Skeleton didn’t hear. I drew in a deep breath as I watched the time tick by on my laptop. Five minutes. Ten minutes. Twenty minutes. If this man thought he could out-wait me, he was certainly mistaken. One time, I’d sat in an uncooperative police department for four hours before I finally got what I wanted.
I had plenty of work to keep me busy while I sat on this silent phone call.
Then, he picked up. “Bones Motel, this is Skeleton.”
I put on my best smile. “Mr. Branson, my name is Joanna Slater. How are you doing this evening?”
“Probably better than you.”
“Not sure that’s possible. However, I’ll cut to the chase since you seem to be a busy man: it’s unlawful for you to keep contracts regarding your employees in a place where they can’t access them. If it has their signature, they’re legally bound to a copy. You know this, right?”
He chuckled. “You’re cute. Want a contract of your own?”
“Hardly. I’m actually calling to discuss a—”
He interrupted me. “Well, if you don’t want a contract of your own, then get the fuck off my phones. Because if you feel, for one second, that you can call and intimidate my people just to get your hands on some signed pieces of paper? You’ve got another thing coming.”
“Threatening a lawyer doesn’t usually end well, Jonathan.”
“Call me whatever you want, bitch. I know your kind. You want a contract? Come down and sign one. Otherwise, come with a warrant. Because you ain’t gettin’ shit until you do.”7LinkI read the message on my phone over and over again, just to make sure I read it right. Ice had sent me a message last night out of thin air, and I didn’t like what he had to say one bit.
Ice: G.J.’s had another shipment come in. Can’t figure out what’s in it. Nothing good, I’m sure.I shook my head as I deleted the message.
The Golden Jags had really been stepping on some toes lately. Rumors said they purchased the old Bones Motel on the outskirts of town a few months back. But no one’s been able to get close enough to the damn thing to figure out what the fuck they purchased it for. Surely, not to get into the motel business. But the running theory was that in exchange for paying them for drugs, people were able to rent rooms in order to get high.
And I didn’t like that shit one bit.
Not in my hometown, anyway.
I looked at the clock and sighed. I needed to get my ass out of bed anyway. It was almost eight in the morning, and I had a church meeting with the guys at the bar in an hour. It didn’t help that I had a raging erection, either. Because the past two weeks had been filled with nothing but thoughts and dreams of Joanna. I couldn't wash her away from my memory. No matter what I did and no matter what kind of company I kept, she was always there.
