In Too Deep (The Lovers Duet) (5 page)

“Then who the hell is Sergeant-at-Arms for the Demon’s Bastards if my brother has been ceremoniously dumped?”

Cillian concentrated on driving before he reached for a Marlboro and lit up. “It really is none of our concern…or yours. There are plenty of capable members of DB who can become SAAs so we didn’t ask. In the meantime, Trey has replaced our current one and he’s a genius when it comes to computers. An agreement was signed that nothing about DB would be disclosed by Trey and we mean it. There is no true relationship without trust, don’t you agree?”

Linx didn’t bother to answer as he watched the landscape fly past them. He knew enough about the MCs but not enough he could engage in a full conversation and know what they were talking about.

He was glad he brought along his bass so he could at least practice while he was away. Although he truly did worry about Trista’s state of mind despite her tough act of nonchalance. Yes, she knew the truth about her parents but they might as well be dead. She couldn’t see them and had no idea whether they were still in the country or outside of it.

The whole thought made Linx as depressed as his wife.

“So, how much has Trista told you about how the MCs work?” Cillian wondered in that slight Northern Irish accent of his.

“Not much,” Linx lied straight-faced. “She really doesn’t like to talk about her life here. It makes sense when you think about all the tragedy this place has caused for her.”

“Is Trey alive or not?” she interrupted from the back seat. “Why all the switching of clubs and the cloak and dagger if he isn’t?”

“We know as much as you do darlin’…and what we do know that you don’t is club business so I can’t tell you. If the Prez doesn’t declare it need to know when you talk to him then I strongly suggest you keep that mouth of yours shut!”

“Listen, I’m not some sweet butt or old lady you can just order around. I came here out of
respect
because Dizzy
summoned
me but we could have just as easily boarded that plane heading to Dublin.”

Cillian laughed out loud though it was cold and mirthless. “That’s highly doubtful, darlin’. You and your rock star hubby wouldn’t have lasted a week. Me da doesn’t fuck around and he knows somethin’ otherwise he wouldn’t have involved you two at all. I could fucking kill Siobhán meself for her callin’ you at all. Whatever went down was club business and you were never supposed to know. It pisses me off that bitch thinks she can just play games like this and get you all riled up when it’s us that has to clean up your mess and calm you down.”

“Is that the bitch who called me? Who is she and how did she get my number? Someone was shot that night, Cillian. It’s killin’ me—don’t you understand that? I need to know my brother’s safe and you can’t tell me a goddamn thing because you’re just speaking in riddles. Fuck!”

Linx turned toward Cillian who gave him a wry smile. “I don’t envy you with that one. Eighteen or not, she’s still a fucking pain in the arse and hellcat on top of it.”

“I wouldn’t trade her for any other woman in the world.” He looked away and observed the woodsy area that surrounded them.

They soon came upon a huge compound that was completely surrounded and hidden by the majestic forests which grew wild and free in this part of Nevada. The air had some bite to it but it was firmly autumn and the weather attested to this fact. There was a slight breeze as he helped Cillian with the bags while Trista paced back and forth like a caged animal.

The compound was completely secure with barbed wire along a perimeter fence. There was also an auto body shop off to the side along with numerous vehicles and an impound lot. The structure itself was secure with hardly any windows and if there was an area for the kids, Linx couldn’t see it from his vantage point.

“You guys don’t live here, do you?”

“The prospects do because they aren’t allowed to have their own place and who else would clean up if it wasn’t for them and the sweet butts, also known as Saint sluts to us club members. The members live off property. The compound actually straddles between Pine Bluff and Birch Tree but all the Saint members live in Birch Tree proper.” Cillian explained as he punched a code into a metal door and it buzzed open.

Linx held the door as Trista walked in and they faced the common area, which was set up very much like a saloon. There was a bar area where plenty of men with their LS cuts were drinking and smoking. Women were dotted around but most looked like old ladies, not Saint sluts. They hung out in groups and wore a lot more clothing than common biker trash. Plus they all had their nails done, their hair coiffed and most held alcoholic beverages in their hand.

There was also a strong scent of chronic in the air and if there were children on the premises, they weren’t allowed in this area because it was strictly adults who were present.

One tall guy who couldn’t have been more than twenty-three or –four approached Cillian. “Quinn, show our guests to their accommodations and once they’ve settled in, take them down to see Da. He was adamant they meet him shortly after they arrived.”

Quinn glared at Linx with gorgeous blue eyes, the same color as Cillian’s though he looked more like Jaden otherwise. All the Coxes had the same features more or less and it was easy to tell they were all siblings.

Like Linx, they shared an Irish Catholic upbringing that included plenty of siblings and he doubted he’d met them all.

Trista clung to Linx as they followed Quinn down a narrow hall and up a flight of stairs. The second story looked like a hotel. There were rows of doors but it was hard to tell which room belonged to whom since there wasn’t exactly numbers on the door. The place was much bigger and a lot more luxurious than it looked from the outside.

It wasn’t overdone but the place was clean and there wasn’t anything worn down or dilapidated about the building.

“We just had the interior redone before we had to go on lockdown,” Quinn said in an American accent that bore no resemblance to his older brother’s. “Pretty ironic because Dad didn’t think we would be on lockdown any time soon until that shit with Brooklyn took place in Carson City.”

Linx looked at Trista; her face was beet red and she didn’t look pleased at all. “Cillian told us this had nothing to do with the Carson City shooting.”

“Well, in a way, it doesn’t. The White Knights are pissed because the Mexican Cartel is taking away some of their precious business. They want to retaliate anyway due to Brooklyn gettin’ shot by Trey so it’s all tied in together. However, you didn’t hear it from me. It’s club business and I would like to keep all my appendages so if my dad asks, you two don’t know shit—got it?”

Quinn stopped at a random door, unlocked it and handed Linx the key as they stepped inside. The lamp next to the bed was illuminated and their luggage was already placed inside the room. It was a decent sized bedroom with an attached bathroom that contained a toilet, sink and shower stall.

“Yeah, we got it.” Trista pushed Quinn out the room rudely. “Give us fifteen minutes and we’ll be ready to speak with your old man.”

She slammed the door in Quinn’s face before she turned to face him. Linx knew she was pissed off and yet there was something else present in those blue eyes of hers that almost broke him in two.

His beautiful Trista, the woman who had stolen his heart like a thief in the night, looked worn out and defeated. She was only eighteen—though her nineteenth birthday was less than a couple months away—and she’d already lived through so much tragedy and misery, he honestly didn’t know how much more she could take.

Linx grabbed her by the waist and slid his arms around her before he pulled her into his embrace.

“Baby, I know this is so fuckin’ hard for you and seein’ you this way…it makes me want to just wrap you up and take you somewhere far, far away. This isn’t right…you lookin’ like this and feelin’ the way you do. If I could, I would take that misery away because I’m tired of you bein’ like this.”

“Me too.” She sighed and pulled away only slightly so they could look into one another’s eyes. “But don’t feel too bad for me because I’m prepared. I’m not some novice and no matter how far I run,
this
…
shit
…has always been a part of my life. I’ve been in Clusterfuck Central since my brother joined the Demon’s Bastards and all the sudden, he’s a Lucifer’s Saint and no one says shit, feels shit about it? I don’t fuckin’ buy it.”

“What are you talkin’ ‘bout, babe?”

“No one’s giving us the whole story because they think we’re stupid and we’re soft. You haven’t been around violence in years and I’m now the pampered wife of a rich rock star. They think I’ve changed.” Her blue eyes hardened into ice chips. “They’re fucking wrong. I’m still the same old Trista and all those Boston ways that lie within you better re-emerge real quick. I’m countin’ on you, Linx. Don’t let me down.”

“Wait…what’s goin’ on?” he questioned her as they separated and she strolled to her luggage before she bent down on her hunches and opened her suitcase.

“We just need to prepare, that’s all I’m sayin’. ‘Cause shit’s about to get real ugly and both of us have to be able to think on our feet when everything can change real fast. You feelin’ me?”

Linx’s heart thudded in his chest but already, he could feel the old him re-emerging. The person he was before all the rock star shit and the fame and the money. That was just window dressing for who he really was. The son of a father who was, by all means, a hard-working, Irish Catholic family man, while all that time he and his siblings were growing up, his father was a contributor to the IRA and the cause for a United Ireland.

“I’m feelin’ you, babe.”

“Good. Now let’s get dressed and see what the
Prez
has to say that is so goddamn important.”

He couldn’t stop himself from laughing out loud, if only to break the tension. “You are one crazy bitch, you know that?”

She cocked her head to the side and smiled. “Yeah, but that’s why you love me so much and one of the main reasons why you married me. I may be a little crazy, my ass is a little dumb, especially when it comes to a big cock, but I
ain’t
no fuckin’ dumb ass.”

They stared at one another before Linx walked over and opened his own suitcase. They definitely needed a change of clothes and some answers but the former came first.

Linx grabbed Trista’s arm and brought her closer to him. “Hey, you wanna hit the shower? I’m feeling a bit grungy.”

“I thought you would never ask,” Trista responded with a smile on her face.

He knew whatever they had planned would take more than a mere fifteen minutes.

Chapter Five