Page 42 of Snake (Road Rebels MC 3)
“Well first, I want to thank you. For personally making sure my daughter was all right. She and that child of hers mean… a lot to me,” he said.
Yeah, I’m sure they fucking do, you prick.
“I can only imagine,” I said.
“What um… price… are we talking?” he asked.
“Three hundred thousand, and that comes with up to twenty-four-seven guarding and a private bodyguard for your daughter. Someone to escort her around town should she leave and someone to make sure she gets from A to B safely.”
“My daughter rarely leaves the house,” he said. “That won’t be necessary.”
I felt my blood boiling as those words rolled off his tongue. He was keeping her in that fucking house. I knew it. I felt my fists clenching at my side as I tried to keep my voice was shaking.
“Well, should she choose to leave and should you want her protected, the offer’s there,” I said.
“Three hundred thousand? And that’s protection until the election?” he asked.
“Yep. There’s a core group of us. Five of us. You get all five of us whenever you need us, then the rest of the Angels at the rest of your rallies.”
“Even at our house during the evening?” he asked.
“Yes, sir. Even then. You just designate who you wish to stay, and we’re there.”
The silence on the phone was deafening. I was ready to reach through the phone and grab his throat. I just wanted him to take the fucking deal so I could get on with this shit.
“Okay,” he said. “You have a deal. But all of you are signing paperwork saying you won’t talk to the media.”
“That’s fine. Let me take it up with the group just so everyone is clear, and we’ll send you the paperwork to sign. Same way we did it the first time. Anonymous carrier. You sign, you pay us half up front, and we get to work.”
“I’ll be on the lookout.”
I hung up the phone and sent a text to Doc. We needed church, and we needed it now. I sat in the clubhouse while the rest of the guys showed up, and I was ready to make this short and sweet. I was one vote and a damn signature away from having Harper all to my fucking self.
“Why are we in church again?” Blade asked. “Didn’t we just do this?”
“You said it was important,” Doc said. “What do you have for us?”
“Ryan Thomas perceived a threat at the rally,” I said.
“But the rally was fine,” Ink said.
“What did you do?” Vex asked.
“I called him like you guys told me to. To let him know the rally went fine. But he had his doubts, and I might have used those doubts to sway him into hiring us for the rest of the campaign.”
“You what?” Blade asked.
“For how much?” Doc asked.
“Three hundred thousand. I told him that got the five of us whenever he wanted us, and the rest of the Angels at the rest of his rallies in town. Plus, private protection for his daughter if he wants it,” I said.
“You just want a piece of that pregnant pussy,” Vex said, grinning.
“Didn’t know you had a thing for lactating titties,” Ink said, chuckling.
“I don’t give a damn what he’s into. Three hundred thousand for less than a month’s worth of work? I’m fucking in,” Blade said.
“Okay. That’s one vote. How to the rest of you guys feel?” Doc asked.
“I’m in. I wanna see if he can slay this pussy,” Vex said.
“Same here. I’m in. And fifty bucks said he can’t,” Ink said.
“Obviously Cade’s all for it, so that’s a majority vote. I’m in as well, by the way. Cade, you arranged this, so you get the paperwork out to him. Call our carrier. He’ll know what to do,” Doc said.
I was seething with how they were talking about Harper, but there was nothing I could do about it. I was just one damn signature away from making bank and talking with Harper, and that was all that mattered.
We ended church, and I pulled out the paperwork, then filled it out and called up our carrier. I gave him the details of what was going on and that this needed to be delivered to Ryan Thomas today.
Then, we needed to set a schedule.
Chapter 11
Harper
“Harper! Family meeting!”
The door shook on its hinges as I peeled myself from the covers. What the fuck was happening now? There wasn’t a rally today, I didn’t have a doctor’s appointment, and my mother didn’t have anywhere to drag me to in order to keep a watchful eye on me.
What the hell could this family meeting be about?
I hated these things. Where the three of us sat around the table and pretended to give a shit. Usually, it was just my father telling my mother and me what we should and shouldn’t be doing. Where we should be going, where we should be seen, what we should say if someone from the press approached us. It was annoying, and I was over it. I was over being commanded, and I was over being instructed on what I was supposed to do because of how it would reflect on him.
But I didn’t have a choice, unless I wanted my father to take my door off its frame.
Throwing the covers off my head, I slipped my feet into some slippers. I threw my robe around my body, barely getting it tied before I headed downstairs. The staircase groaned underneath my feet, and I made a mental note of which ones were making noises.
They would be the ones I’d have to avoid when I finally left.
I came around the staircase and headed for the kitchen. I could smell the aroma of freshly-pressed orange juice. I made my way for the kitchen table to pour myself a glass, but when I looked up, I realized my mother had already been crying.
How long did it take me to get down here?
“Sit down, sweetheart,” my father said.
“Juice?” my mother asked.
“No, thank you. What’s going on?” I asked.
My parents looked at each other warily before my mother poured me a glass anyway.
“Honey, someone’s made a threat against me,” he said.
“Doesn’t that happen often?” I asked.
“Not to this extent,” he said.
“Is that why you had all the security at the rally yesterday?” I asked.
“More or less.”
“Well, what did the threat say?” I asked.
“A couple of weeks ago,” my father began, “a package arrived in the mail. It had a few things in it, but among them were photos. Pictures of the family. Of us. Of you.”
“Pictures,” I said.
“Yes, sweetie. Pictures of us out and about. Through the window of our home. Some were of you alone in town, which we’ll talk about later,” my mother said.
“There’s a reason I tell you not to go out into this city alone,” my father said.
“Did you come down here to scold me about it?” I asked. “Or scare me with a threat?”
“We brought you down here to inform you that whoever’s doing this isn’t playing around, Harper. This isn’t a game, and I would appreciate it if you tucked in your attitude and showed us a bit of respect. That protection detail at the rally yesterday was for you.”
“But I thought all of us were in the pictures,” I said.
“Yes, but in the note-”
My father held up his hand to my mother, signaling her to shut up. And in true, obedient form… she did.
“Among the photos was a note, and in it, the writer stated I needed to stop running for Mayor. If I didn’t, they said they would take matters into their own hands to ensure I didn’t win.”
“I still don’t know what that has to do with me,” I said.
“It’s going to scare her,” my mother said.
Nothing could scare me more than you, father dear.
“What?” I asked. “What’s going on? What’s happening, Dad?”
“One of your pictures, when you were in town alone, had your head circled in red. With an ‘X’ through it. I could only assume that when they meant ‘take
matters into their own hands,’ they meant harming you in some way.”
I felt my stomach sink to my knees. My head became dizzy, and my knees grew weak. Someone wanted to kill me? Who the fuck would want to kill me? My father was the asshole. He was the one spewing bullshit day after day. Why did they want to harm me!?
“I told you it was too much,” my mother said as she scrambled for me. “She’s pregnant, Ryan. We can’t bring stuff like this down on her head.”
“It’s not my fault she’s pregnant. And if she wants to be an adult and raise this child right, she’s gotta learn the truths about this world. Especially if I win this election. She’ll always be a target if I do. You both will be. It’s what you signed up for when you said you’d help me with my campaign.”
“No one signed up to die for you, Ryan,” my mother hissed.
