Dealing with the Devil (13 page)

A silent correspondence volleyed back and forth between the two women, debating what information should be shared. Bea finally nodded but Julia was the one who spoke up, “The rest of the group headed for Errol. Lucy’s husband heads up the Devil’s Own out there. Adela and Cecelia believe they can get Los Santos and the Nightriders to join forces. Candy is going to get in touch with Marco and see if the Redhawks would be open to an alliance.”

“He doesn’t need to know all that,” Bea pressed.

Steve began furiously taking notes. “The more I know, the better I’ll be able to help.” He paused and glanced at Julia. “I can tell there’s a reason you don’t trust law enforcement. Believe me, I used to be just like you…” He licked his lips, “But I’m here for one reason and one reason only, and that’s to put Sofía Salma behind bars.”

The conviction with which Steve spoke seemed to calm Julia down because she exhaled sharply. “I still have the map Adela made of the compound and Cecelia’s entry and exit points. Plus, Bea knows the medical wing better than anyone.” Glancing around the room, Jules noticed several boxes stacked against the wall that she assumed were relevant to the case. “May I?”

“Help yourself.” Steve pointed her in the right direction and the two of them delved right in. It didn’t take long before they became lost in strategizing and coming up with creative ways to break into the compound. Bea smiled knowingly as she slipped from the room in search of coffee. Steve and Julia were lost in their own little world. All previous hesitations seemed to fly out the window.

* * *

Cecelia jammed on the brakes as she pulled off onto the only road into Errol. “Hey, wake up,” Cece snapped, startling Candy out of a very peaceful sleep. Adela had copiloted the entire way, which gave the other girl a chance to finally rest. Now that they’d reached the border, uneasiness crept into Cecelia’s chest. Up ahead there was a barricade set up and a several scouts meandering around. Reaching into her pocket, Cece grabbed her knife and held it tightly as a blonde boy with a crew cut stomped toward the window.

Kyle’s fingertips wrapped around the gun strapped to his waist as he knocked on the van’s window. With four different motorcycle clubs and every MC leader who was worth their salt being in town, it was unanimously decided that the borders needed to be locked down tight. Errol was a small town. Everybody knew everybody else and that meant strangers stuck out like a sore thumb. Whoever was in this van, they definitely weren’t one of the locals. “If you’re looking for a shortcut, you need to go around. Borders are closed.”

Adela shifted uncomfortably, tucking her legs beneath her and wrapping her arms around her chest. Candy rested a comforting hand on her shoulder to soothe her. “Cece, you need to keep your cool. They’re probably just afraid of Black Jack retaliation. Keep it calm.”

“I’m always calm.” Cecelia snarled and rolled down the window. “We’re here to see Archie.” She might as well have told him she wanted to see the Wizard of Oz; the boy’s expression was cold and blank. “
Now
,” Cece added, for good measure.

“Step out of the car.” Kyle’s hand wrapped tighter around his gun. This woman was very abrasive and when the streetlight hit her face, he could see she was deeply scarred along the left side of her face. Something seemed off with her and he wasn’t taking any chances. “
Now
.” He parroted.

Cecelia’s jaw tightened in anger. “You either get Archie here or I’m going to fuck you and this barricade up,
pendejo
.” She could see he was reaching for his gun and she launched herself out of the car, tackling him to the ground. There was a shout of angry voices behind her as she wrestled the gun away from Kyle and stood up, pointing it blindly at anyone who dared come near her. Cece whirled around, looking for an exit point but there were twelve barrels pointing at her. There was no escape…Cecelia was outgunned, outnumbered, and there was only one way she could see this going down. She cursed a blue streak and put her hands up in defeat.

“Cecelia?”

The voice sounded so familiar but…how could that be? When she turned, her heart nearly stopped. “Ramón?” Cece cried.

Candy slammed the van door open. Adela suddenly took off like a shot, tears burning down her face as she leapt into the arms of the tallest man in the group. The massive man in a Nightrider’s cut dwarfed the tiny girl; he hugged Adela tightly as she sobbed unintelligible words into his shoulder.

“What’s going on here?” Candy slipped out of the van, her eyes wandering over the group and her heart suddenly stopped. She glanced over at the prospect that had addressed them first.

Spitting blood, Kyle dragged himself from the ground. He glared daggers at Cecelia, wishing that she wasn’t playfully joking with Ramón Diaz—third in command of Los Santos. Any other day, he’d have dished it out as good as she’d given it to him. Instead, Kyle turned his attention to Candy. “You’re one of them, aren’t you? The girls who were taken?”

Candy’s chest ached with anxiety. Men from every club were milling around, chatting amongst themselves. She exhaled shakily, ignoring Kyle’s question. “Is
Marco
here?”

Kyle’s brow furrowed, “Yeah. He’s at the bed and breakfast. Are you—”

Horror ripped through Candy as she staggered away from him. “I need to get out of here. Call Archie
now
!” Candy’s only thought was of her son…the son Marco didn’t know they had. “Cece! Adela! Let’s go!”

“What’s got your panties in a wad?” Cecelia raised an eyebrow. Candy didn’t answer, glaring harder instead. Shrugging it off, Cece took charge again. “Alright boys, there will be time for shooting the shit later. I need Rogelio and the rest of
los Presidentes
at the Devil’s Headquarters pronto.” She turned back toward Kyle with a lazy smile that was intended as an apology. “Make it happen.”

Kyle fired off a text to Archie and got an immediate response telling him to bring the girls to the clubhouse. Rogelio, Narayan, Tim, and Marco were on their way as well. Kyle led Cecelia back toward the van with a quick set of directions. Even though she was clearly not happy with him, she got back into the van without argument and took off down the road.

Within five minutes the girls were being admitted into the gravel parking lot of the bar. Cece was blown away as she walked past men from every club, wearing their colors with pride. “They’re here…
they’re
all here…”

“I never thought I’d see the day…” Candy stayed close to Cecelia. She looked green as she came face to face with Marco. It took every ounce of strength in her body to avoid his steely gaze.

“Daddy!” Adela launched herself up the stairs and into her father’s warm embrace. There were so many emotions rushing through her at the moment that she could hardly breathe. Bosko Narayan seemed to beam with pride, tears gathering in his warm brown eyes. It was the first time any of them had seen the man do anything more than grimace and frown.

Archie’s heart twisted up in his chest as he took a step forward. “Where’s Lucy? Where is my wife?” He pressed, stepping closer to Cecelia. The long silence that hung between them made him feel weak in the knees. “Is she—”

“
No
.” Cecelia stepped forward, her scarred visage seeming illuminated in the pale light of the bar. She heard a wheezing gasp from beside her and she bit her lip, “I’m fine,
hermano
,” Cece comforted Rogelio. She turned to face Archie without fear. “Lucy chose to stay behind…” She contemplated telling Archie about the baby and how Lucy sacrificed herself to help them but decided against it. It was not her secret to tell. “She made it possible for us to get out safely.” When she turned, there was a lanky man standing outside the bar, his face was twisted into a scowl. Cece realized right away that there was a slight resemblance between Lucy and him. “Are you Danny?”

Danny had been kept fairly sedated, whether it was Archie’s cold medicine cocktail or whatever booze he could get his hands on. When the woman addressed him, he blinked twice before her words registered. “Who’s asking?”

“
I’m
asking,” Cecelia fired back. “Lucy wanted me to give this letter to her brother, so I’m looking for him. Are you Daniel Harding or not?”

Danny’s attitude changed immediately. “Give it to me!” He could hardly breathe he was clenching his body so hard. Closing the distance between them, he reached for the letter. “Please…”

Cecelia placed a hand on Danny’s arm and slid the letter into his hand. “Hey.” She seemed softer suddenly. “She’s going to be fine. Lucy is a fighter.” There was a moment of quiet solidarity between them.

“What’s it say?” Archie probed, eager to know what his wife had to say to
Danny
but not him. A pang of jealousy stabbed through him before he could stop it. “Come on, don’t keep us in suspense!”

Danny tore the letter open and read silently. His heart pounded as Lucy’s words came to life on the page. He swallowed before he began to read aloud: “Danny, I keep thinking about my fifth birthday. One of the kids at my party pushed me down and got dirt all over my dress. You got in trouble for beating him up and were sent to bed with no cake. I snuck upstairs and brought you some anyway…” Danny’s voice cracked painfully. “That night you made me a promise that you would always protect me, no matter what the cost. I think that may have been the cake talking but all these years later, you have always held up your end of the bargain. No matter what happens, I want you to understand that you never let me down. Please look after Gabe the way you’ve always looked after me. He’s going to need your support now more than ever. Gabe will always be family, please remember that. I love you. Take care of yourself. Lucy.” Danny didn’t bother to wipe the tears streaming down his face as he rounded on Cecelia. “What the fuck is this? You said she was okay!”

Cecelia grabbed the letter from his hand and frowned. “Damn it! Stupid
puta
is trying to say goodbye like we aren’t going to fucking break down the walls and get her out of there!” She drew in a ragged breath. “I don’t care if I have to give up my life to do it.” She turned to Danny and grasped his shoulders tightly. “Don’t get yourself worked up. Lucy is family now and I won’t rest until she’s safe.”

Archie felt his stomach tighten painfully. “Why would she write something like this?” He turned to face the scarred woman and he licked his lips. He’d somehow lulled himself into a false sense of security. The Black Jacks wouldn’t hurt Lucy…right? Looking at Cece now, he was worried he’d misjudged the situation. “Did Sofía do that to you?”

“Sí,” Cecelia replied softly. “A couple weeks after I arrived, I tried to escape…they had to bring out the big guns to stop me. She said it was an accident but I don’t believe it for a second. That woman is unhinged. It took me months to recover. I almost lost my eye.” Cece swallowed. “Just another reason we need to get moving. Lucy sent us here to find you. She hoped we could get the boys together to fight this side by side.” She grinned at Archie. “You’re way ahead of the game.”

“With the Black Jacks holding our people hostage, we couldn’t take any chances with fucking this up. You’re too important…” Lucy was too important. Archie’s grief was starting to bleed into anger. Why would Lucy stay behind? Why would she write Danny a goodbye letter like that? Why had she sacrificed herself for these strangers? Archie would give anything to get her back…anything at all.

* * *

Candy had done an excellent job of giving Marco the silent treatment, but when Danny and Archie went into the house the group began to disperse and she could feel his eyes on her. Shifting uncomfortably, Candy looked for a way to escape. She broke left, heading toward the van, but he was faster. Marco grabbed her arm before she could bolt.

“So…” Marco’s face was contorted into a frown. “How long has it been, Candy?”

“Not long enough.” Candy inched away from him. “If you’ll excuse me—” She tried to turn away but he dogged her every step. The familiar scent of sandalwood and leather made her heart twist in her chest. “Seriously! What do you want, Marco?”

“I just want to make sure you’re okay!” Marco snarled.

“What do you even care?” She fired back. “I haven’t heard from you in fifteen years! Don’t you dare stand there and act like you give a damn about me.”

“Jesus, Candy…” Marco scrubbed a hand across his stubbled jaw. “
You
were the one who ended things between us. I don’t have any resentment toward you for breaking things off, honey, but don’t act like it was my choice!” Marco’s brows furrowed.

Candy slumped, knowing that he was right but hating how badly she still cared for him. “I’m fine, okay? Julia went with Bea, I’m sure she’s fine too.” This time when Candy shrugged away from Marco, she made sure to put distance between them. Heading back into the house, she followed the sound of voices. Cecelia had settled at the War Room table with Archie, Danny, and the rest of the Devils. Candy ensured her seat was far, far away from Marco before inserting herself into the conversation.

Anita entered a few minutes later with Mort and Kyle in tow. “I’ve been in contact with Steve. He said that there are two women there who were part of the group who broke out of the Black Jacks compound?” A sigh of relief washed over the table. “I don’t know all the details yet but it seems that Steve’s got a further reaching influence than I realized.” Her complexion seemed chalky and her voice shook. “That being said, the FBI is willing to compensate you for your cooperation in this investigation.”

Archie half expected pandemonium to break out at the mere mention of the feds…but instead, silence reigned. He glanced around the room. “What do you think, boys, this could be our best shot?”

“I’m all for it,” Tim replied. “My girl’s still in there. I ain’t takin’ any chances.” He rested his palm on the table. “With the feds behind us, we don’t need to worry about somebody taking the fall if things go south.”

“Marco?” Archie turned to him next.

“I’m in.”

“You have my support, as well,” Narayan offered.

Rogelio Santos was nodding in agreement.