Deeds: Broken Deeds MC (12 page)

“Fuck. Yeah. Sorry. Still getting used to the whole Lips name thing. Okay, moving on. We’re heading over to see Grams. Sorry you’re stuck with me, but there’s nothing you or me can do about it so… let’s have some fun, okay?”

“Yes ma’am. I need to do some reading so it’s actually not that big of a deal for me.”

“Good. But what is a big deal is you calling me ma’am. I know it’s fucking polite and gentlemanly and all that shit, but it makes me feel old and creeps me the fuck out. So, let’s can that shit, okay?”

Again his laughter fills the air. Shit. All this guy does is laugh. I’m in for a fucking funny day.

After knocking a few times on Grams’ door, it finally opens to a prospect standing in the doorway. Greasy hair pulled back, dark eyes and about the same size as me. I haven’t seen him around yet so I hold out my hand to introduce myself. “Hi, I’m…”

“Yeah, it’s Lips. I know. I’m glad you’re finally here. Grams has been talking about you for the last few hours. My brain hurts from all that babbling. She decided to clean a little while ago, thank fuck. It’s hard to talk over a vacuum cleaner.”

Now I know he’s nice and all to watch Grams, but he’s insulting her right in front of me. “You need to shut up and step away from me. Grams is fucking adorable and if you can’t appreciate her company, then you can sit on your thumb right the fuck here on the porch.”

Stepping around him, I know I was being rude but it just rubs me the wrong way. Old people like to talk. About anything. Grams was just excited. Besides, he should be grateful she’s around to make his brain hurt.

Walking inside with Depay close behind me, I follow the sound of the vacuum. Grams is standing near the couch as she turns and notices me. Switching off the vacuum, she leaves it next to the couch as she walks towards me and grabs me in a hug.

“Hey, pumpkin! Would you like some tea?” With a huge smile on my face, I nod and she turns to Depay. “What about you, son, would you like some?” When Depay nods, Grams motions for us to sit on the couch. “Go on, make yourselves at home. I’ll be right back.”

She disappears into the kitchen. I sit on one of the big comfy chairs across from the couch while I look around the room. It’s a bit small but it has everything Grams needs. A little dining room table, a couch with a tiny table in front of it, and two of these lovely chairs I’m sitting in now.

There are a few old paintings on the walls and lots of pictures. I make a mental note to check those out later. She has fluffy white carpet and wait a minute, doesn’t she have cats? I’m not seeing any but she was just vacuuming the place so they might be hiding. I’m still taking in the details of the room when I notice a big black spot moving on the carpet. When I focus on it, I can hardly believe what I’m seeing.

Speechless, I point at it and my head whips from the black thing to Depay. He sees my movements and trails his eyes along the direction of my finger pointing. His eyes widen and he stands up quickly grabbing the vacuum and turning it on while he pulls the brush off the hose. In one swift move, he traps the freaking huge monster of a spider underneath it.

When he pulls his arm back, the fucking spider is still there, clinging to the carpet. He puts the hose over it again and this time keeps it there for a long time. He looks at me and I can tell he’s wondering if it’s gone. I shrug… how the fuck would I know? When Depay pulls the vacuum away it is still there like it’s got every freaking leg wrapped around the carpet fibers, holding on for dear life!

Depay looks at me and now we’re both freaking out. Depay pulls up his foot to crush the spider but before he can set it down, Grams walks in.

“Wait!” her high pitched voice carries over the noise of the vacuum. We both watch as Grams disappears into the kitchen and walks back out a few seconds later with a glass and some duct tape.

She scoops the spider up in the glass and tapes it shut, locking the spider inside. She walks back into the kitchen. Depay turns the vacuum off and we both look at each other. I shrug my shoulders and follow Grams into the kitchen with Depay trailing behind me. Grams opens the back door and walks to a small shed.

Inside she has a huge open closet like the one I have at home for all my books. Except instead of nice, clean books, she’s got all these taped-up glasses with spiders inside them. What the hell? Stepping closer, I look at her collection or graveyard or… Fuck! Grams is a freaking spider serial killer. “You do know this…” I point to the glasses. “Is just as bad as stepping on them, right?”

“No, it isn’t.” She puts the newly captured addition to her collection on the top shelf as I take a step closer, tapping a glass where a dark brown fluffy ball resides, thinking it’s dead. It moves and I jump, damn thing about scared the piss out of me.

“Jesus, you’re keeping them alive?” Depay just fucking chuckles behind me.

“I leave little holes so they can get air.” And she says it like it’s the fucking normal thing to do. “It’s not like I can kill them or set them free. I mean, if I set them free they just come back inside. Do you know how many spiders you swallow while you sleep? They fall right into your mouth. I’ve seen some documentaries where people had spiders in their ears. So I just catch them and lock them back here.”

Yeah, that sounds freaking normal. What the hell? What does she mean, do you know  how many spiders you swallow when you sleep? I just, fuck! That’s just gross! In your ear? Well, alrighty then. Leave them in the collection. “We should get back inside. We need tea. I need tea. I need… to be somewhere other than here. Fuck. Let’s not ever talk about this, okay?”

“Whatever you say, pumpkin.” Depay fucking chuckles again. Does that dude ever stop laughing? He turns to leave and his eyes widen and his laughter stops.

His voice is filled with awe. “You got a bike, Grams?”

Now it’s Grams’ turn to chuckle. “Sure do, son. Want to see my baby?” We step closer to the rear of the shed where the shape of a bike becomes more visible with just a white sheet keeping us from seeing the beauty underneath. Grams walks up and throws off the sheet and uncovers the coolest bike ever in my book. It’s a classic. ‘36 EL V-twin, suspension built into the seat, foot clutch… it’s… wow. The low whistle behind me indicate Depay shares my opinion.

Grams starts the bike and as its rumble fills the shed, goosebumps rise on my skin. It’s awesome and I’m itching to take it for a spin. Just as fast, Grams shuts it off. Covering it back up with the sheet she says, “That’s all you kids get. She’s mine and I don’t share my bike. I come out here often to listen to it purr and it reminds me of the good old days. That’s private. Now, how about that tea, kids?”

Returning to the living room, Grams puts away the vacuum as we reclaim our previous seats. Just seconds after it’s out of sight, a fluffy gray Persian cat appears. Yeah, just like I thought earlier, hiding out. Walking up to the couch, the cat eyes Depay and he stares right back like they are in a standoff or some shit. The poor cat still has her front paw up, not willing to take the next step with Depay staring at her like that. She turns and walks to me. “Yeah, you come here, sweetheart, leave that big grumpy biker alone.” Cue the fucking annoying chuckle. The cat jumps on my lap and settles down, purring loudly as I run my hand over her soft fur.

“Ah, I see Sheba found her way to your lap. She must like you.” Grams has a huge smile on her face. Near her legs is another Persian cat. This one is white. Bending down Grams picks up the cat and sits in the chair next to me. “This is Sissi. She’s a little shy but she’s the sweetest of all three.”

If that’s the sweetest and the one in my lap is sweet too, what’s up with the one we haven’t met yet? Speak of the devil, here comes a hideous creature sneaking into the room. Okay, it might also be a Persian but it’s just…

“Jesus! What the hell did you do to Bright?” Okay, with the question Depay just threw out there I’m glad it’s not just me labeling it a hideous creature.

Grams waves her hand like there’s nothing wrong and it’s as normal as wearing pants to work. “Stupid cat drives me nuts. He bites and scratches when he needs brushing and his fur was a mess. So I asked JJ and he shaved the fur off his body. Well except for his legs, tail, and head. Because that would just be weird and honestly it might hurt him.”

Yeah, I mean, I guess that makes sense but the cat seriously looks more like a poodle than a cat now. Judging by the way it’s stalking towards me, it must feel naked and more than a little upset with its new hairstyle. He’s looking at me like he's in the mood to hunt and I’m seriously thinking about standing up so I can run if need be.

“Never mind Bright.” Grams says. “He’s weird like that all the time.” Uh huh Grams, did you forget how you just mentioned him biting and scratching? He sits down in front of me, raises his paw against the chair to dig his nails in and scratch. What. The. Fuck. Is it threatening me? ‘Cause I damn well feel a bit frightened. Will Grams hate me if I suggest we put him in a big vase, duct tape the lid, and place him with her collection? Yeah… better not suggest that and just ignore the creepy fucker.

After a few hours passing the time looking at photographs and listening to Grams talk about old memories, I walk back into the living room while Grams puts away the photos. Depay is sitting on the couch, looking at his phone. I'm curious what has him so engrossed so I peek over his shoulder to find out what he’s reading.

It’s information about babies and being a parent. Huh, poor thing. “You can read all you want and try to gather as much information as you can, but when a situation happens, it’s all going out the window and you need to do what feels right.”

He looks at me like I need to get my nose out of his business and fast. Yeah, that shit never works with me so I sit down right next to him. “I’ve heard you just found out you had a kid. How old is she? Wait, she
is
a she, right?”

Not knowing where this might lead, he nods slowly. “Yeah, she’s four. I haven’t seen her yet. They won’t let me. But I’m going for full custody. The only thing I know is her fucking name. Hadley. The reason I know is that it’s on the papers.”

He shakes his head in disbelief and I can see the pain clearly in his eyes. This sucks. No one should feel this way. I try to never be one to judge, so I would like to think the mom either had or thinks she had a very good reason for never telling him. Must be, because why the hell would you keep a family apart like that? It’s not like you can hide that shit forever. Hello, karma.

I bump my shoulder with his. “Don’t worry; we’re all here for you. You know that, right? You’re not alone in this; you’ve got the club, Grams and me.” He looks at me funny, and I fucking swear if he laughs I’m gonna punch him.

“You?” Okay, the way that just sounded, filled with disbelief, I think I’d rather hear him laugh at me.

“Yes, me. I could watch her for you or help out with lady things and shit. I’m good with kids. Oh hey, I could pierce her ears for you.”

“The
fuck
you will.”

I tap his knee. “See? Already the protective daddy. You’ve got this, honey. No worries.”

******

Leaving Grams after a little while, so she can take a nap, Depay and I head back to the house. I grab the parent interviews that Deeds left for me and plunk my ass on the couch. With the remote in one hand, I pull the casefile and my notebook and pen onto my lap. One last glance to Depay shows me he’s looking at his phone again.

Such a sweet and warm person, reading up on how to be a dad. Poor thing. There’s no preparing yourself for kids at any age. Being a parent from day one or thrown in the mix later in life, you’re in for a wild ride. Seatbelts or not, hold on to your hat because it’s gonna be one hell of a ride. Some days it can be awesome but other days you'll want to puke your brains out, get amped up for more or just beg to stop the ride. But it’s worth it all in the end. He’ll know soon enough.

Shit, now I’m feeling all emotional about this whole kid thing. Depay’s mess and this horrible situation with the missing kids are really starting to get to me. The hard fucked up world that we live in is fucking scary. They need to be saved, fast!

I press play and drop the remote. A pen with my notebook takes its place and I hone in on the screen. The flat black flashes to an empty room with four chairs and a table. It looks like an interrogation room except it’s more styled like an office. A couple walks in first and take a seat at one side of the table. They must be the parents, because the next person in is a guy in a suit and he just screams cop. Tall, slim and with a high-maintenance haircut.

The next person who steps into the room has me perched on the front of my seat. My notebook falls to the ground as I point my pen at the television. “That’s… He…. A fucking
suit
?”

That idiot Depay chuckles but his eyes are still glued to his phone.

“Holy shit, that’s a big ass watch on his wrist.”

Depay glances up. “Yeah, that’s to draw attention away from the ink on his hands. Throws them off so he doesn’t scream thug.

Yeah, that sounds about right. Oh man, he walks in there like he owns the place. Deeds leans over the table and shakes hands with both parents before sitting down. He takes the lead in the conversation and I’m having a hard time keeping focus. My focus is riveted on Deeds.

He looks amazing in a suit, so different and high class. It’s not only that but his whole appearance screams authority. Yeah, he has that when he walks around his guys, but this? This is a Lieutenant, Captain, lead investigator, head of the whole freaking police department thing.

Oh, God! He isn’t… they aren’t. Are they? Turning so fast, the movement makes Depay look up at me.

“What?” he asks.

“You guys are cops. Fucking SWAT or some kind of government cleanup crew, or…
fuck
! Or something close to it. Say it, fucker! I just know you guys are. This is all… fuck! How in the hell didn’t I see this shit sooner?”