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DC
Packing our bags did not take long. While I packed my mind raced through every single option we had. We didn’t have many but I could work with what we had. If I could get my hands on Jane I could get her to talk and all we needed was her pointing fingers at the Maingarde organisation. And how irritating is it to have to say Maingarde Organisation every time we talk about them? From now on to me they are MORG, and if I had my way they would all end up in the morgue damned soon.
How my dad and Freeze fitted into this mess I still did not know, but I would. Very soon.
Crawling to the middle of the bed I plumped the cushions against the headboard and sat back against them. I needed to solve this puzzle. Where did it start and who was involved?
Breathing deep I concentrated on what I knew and started to draw it together.
According to the information I had it all started with Jane Warne. And she had made it all about me. About me and Hawk, but it wasn’t. Not at all. It had been about the club all along.
She had started double dealing long before I came into the picture. She had been gathering information about the club by sleeping with as many of the members as she could and pumping (haha) them for information. She had supplied the information that had enabled Big Ed to break into and rob the Iron Dogz Trucking container yard.
Whose container did they rob? The way Hawk reacted it had to have been Dominick Maingarde’s. What did they steal? And why did they steal it?
Or even better. Why did the step-ogre order Big Ed to steal whatever was in that container? Or was it done to test the defences of the Iron Dogz? Or the loyalty of Dominick Maingarde?
What was Freeze’s involvement in this? And my dad? Were the Road Warriors working for the MORG? And if they were, where did that leave my dad and me? Was I his daughter or an asset to be used to bring Hawk to his knees?
I could not let that happen. I would never let it happen.
There were markers I could pull in from people who owed me, and there were many of them.
But first I needed to talk to Alien or Skel. I hoped like hell they were still on my side.
Alien picked up after the first ring.
“Babe, you need to get your ass to a secure location, right now. Tell your old man there will be a raid on the clubhouse late tonight. The fuckers Freeze brought in are talking about using fucking grenades and shit. They don’t fucking care if women and children get hurt or die as long as they get their hands on you and Hawk.”
I was shocked silent, but my friend wasn’t.
“Freeze has fucking lost it and Doc isn’t doing anything to stop him. I have no fucking idea what is going on. Shit is dark on this side. The brothers were fucking pissed off that we double crossed the Iron Dogz. Skel has locked himself in his room and Gav threw his prospect kutte at Tiny and walked out, disrespecting his president. He threw it, DC. Even if this shit gets sorted he will never be allowed back in, fucking never. He left. I hope like fuck he comes to you, where he’ll be safe. Tiny was gutted when Gav called him a traitor as he walked out. Freeze wanted Boeta to take care of him and Tiny lost his shit. He swore that if anything happened to Gav he wouldn’t rest until he put Freeze’s daughter in the ground, and if they took him out before he could do it someone else would finish the job for him. Jesus, DC, we are fucking falling apart over here and fucking Raj is strutting around like he’s the fucking king. I just can’t see what the play is here.”
I took in a big breath and then I gave him what I knew. He was silent as I spoke, only his increased breathing letting me know he was still there.
“So that’s what I think might be going down, A. I don’t think any of us are safe. We’re all being used in some freaking major play against the clubs. They made sure we are enemies so none of us get to see the full picture. Raj being related to the Sharma’s and making a play for me is keeping Doc’s head out of the game. Seeing Raj strutting around keeps Doc in his head. This is exactly what they want.”
“Shit, DC, you might be right.”
“I think I am. The MORG is at the bottom of this. Oh, and MORG stands for Maingarde Organisation, easier to say. They want Iron Dogz Trucking and the properties the Dogz own around the country and are moving to take it over. They could move whatever the hell they want if they had ownership. I’m not sure why they want the Road Warriors. Maybe Freeze and the step-ogre have plans to take over drug and gun running in Southern Africa, I don’t know.”
Even to my ears that did not sound right, but it was all I had.
“I need to take this to Skel, Rover and Grizz. I trust them. Right now they are the only ones I trust. This shit is going to kill my club, babe.” Alien sounded totally despondent and wrecked.
I was so very afraid he was right. This was betrayal on a massive scale. For Tiny to threaten Freeze’s daughter in order to keep Gav safe was unbelievable. But it had happened.
And then it hit me. Like a tonne of bricks falling from the sky. The damn sky was falling.
“Shit, shit, shit. I know what’s happening with the Road Warriors! Fuck. A, they got to Freeze. It’s his daughter. They’ve either got her stashed somewhere or they have eyes on her. That’s the reason why Freeze is acting so damned weird. He’s trying to save his freaking daughter and destroying his club and the Iron Dogz in the process.”
Alien’s shocked gasp echoed over the line.
“Fuck! If you’re right why the fuck didn’t he ask for help? Fucking hell, that’s why he sent Rooster back to Cape Town. It wasn’t because he was pissed off that he didn’t claim you. He needed someone there besides Wild Man when shit goes bad. What are we going to do?”
“You talk to Skel, get him up to speed. We’ll get hold of Rooster and give him all the help we can to get Freeze’s daughter to a safe location. The minute we can assure Freeze she’s safe the game changes.”
“I’m going to Skel right now. What do you want me to do about Tiny and Doc? Do we bring them in on this?”
It was a very difficult question to answer but after only a few seconds of doubt I went with my gut.
“Yes. But A, be careful, we don’t know who else is on the MORG payroll. Call me when you have spoken to them. Watch your back, please. I don’t want to lose you.”
Staring at my phone I shook my head. I needed to speak to Hawk to assure save passage for Gav if he came to us. I hoped and prayed he came to us. He wouldn’t be safe anywhere else. Freeze could not let the insult go however much he might want to. He couldn’t if he wanted to keep his position as national president and president of the Cape Town chapter.
It was going to be difficult enough to retain his presidency once his brothers found out how far over the line he had stepped for his daughter.
And then it suddenly hit me right between the eyes.
Freeze, you fucking asshole. That’s why he threatened Gav. He knew Tiny, knew exactly how he would react to any threats against his sons. Tiny would do whatever he could to get even. He would turn on the families of those who threatened his boys. And who was Freeze’s family?
His daughter. His damned daughter and he knew Tiny would threaten her and in so doing he knew someone would go looking for her. I was amazed my dad hadn’t clicked yet. Or maybe he knew and was playing his own game. It would not surprise me at all.
I needed to find Hawk but first I had to ensure Gav knew he had a safe place waiting for him.
I sent a quick text telling him to get to the Iron Dogz clubhouse. Promising him safe passage. I hoped he listened.
Hopping off the bed I left the room to find my old man and give him the latest.
I found him deep in conversation with Ice and Kid at the bar. There was no one else around so I deemed it safe to talk. Even so I kept my voice low.
“I just spoke to Alien. The Warriors are falling apart. Gav threw his kutte at Tiny, called him a traitor and stormed out. Freeze wanted him taken care of and Tiny threatened to put Freeze’s daughter in the ground if they touched his son. Skel has locked himself in his room and is refusing to talk to anyone.”
“Jesus. What the fuck is going on?” Ice shook his head in confusion.
“Some of the brothers feel betrayed and are considering leaving the club. Raj is walking around like he’s the king, Alien’s words, and Doc is losing his mind. Alien asked me to keep Gav safe if he comes to me. I sent him a text and told him to come here. If you could send Dollar to pick up Deena just in case she’s being targeted as well that would be good.”
Hawk nodded and I saw Kid texting. One thing down a few more to go.
“There are men who aren’t part of the club around Freeze. Alien couldn’t tell me who they were because he doesn’t know. They plan to raid the compound tonight and they will be using grenades and shit. They want Hawk and I, no one else matters. So I don’t think we have to worry about the cops storming in here to arrest you just yet.”
“Could he give you a time?” Hawk now had his phone out as well and was furiously texting.
“No, only that it will be tonight. But I have more to tell you and it’s going to sound crazy but I swear if you listen to the end you’ll see that it makes sense.”
And then I laid my theory about Freeze being blackmailed out to them. They watched me with hard eyes as I explained, no one said a word after I finished. I held my breath as I waited.
My man did not disappoint.
“Okay, so here’s what we are going to do. Step one. Secure the compound against the coming attack. Increase the perimeter patrols and have eyes on the cameras at all times. I want everyone armed and vigilant. The minute those bastards attack we’ll have SAPS on our asses, so prepare for that.” Ice and Kid nodded their agreement.
“Step two. We need to secure Freeze’s daughter. Rooster and Wild Man can run the search in Cape Town. They might have to find a safe location because neither of our clubhouses will be safe. Maybe stash her with Pixie, no one will think to look there. Once we have her safe we’ll get a message to Freeze.”
He pulled on his beard as he contemplated his next step. Then he looked at me and smiled.
“Step three. I’m going to have to piss Doc off to get him out of his head. That will be easy enough because he’s already pissed off. We need him back in the game and taking care of Raj. Step four flows out of step three. We need to find Jane and Big Ed and neutralise them or keep them on ice for later use.” I totally agreed with the last one but I was worried about him pissing Doc off, which might not go well.
“Step five is already in the works. Our lawyers are working on proving the club’s non-involvement in the trafficking ring. And I’m working on arranging a sit down with Dominick Maingarde. But we will discuss our options at the table before I meet with him.”
Hawk’s face was cold and hard as he laid out the final step and it actually made a chill race up my spine. My man was a total badass and exactly what I have always wanted.
“Step six is taking care of the traitors. In our club as well as in the Road Warriors’ club. Speedy and his rogues wore Iron Dogz kuttes, they disrespected our club, our colours and our code. They brought the Iron Dogz to the attention of the authorities which we don’t fucking need. They will be handed over to us. I won’t accept anything other than that.”
He looked over at Ice. “Did I cover everything? I don’t want to have anything biting us in the ass at a later date.”
“If there’s anything you left out we will take care of it, don’t worry. We’ve got your back, Prez.” Ice said and Kid nodded in agreement.
“See to it that Gav has safe passage into the compound. He’ll be riding without a kutte but he’s still a potential brother. I think I might poach him from the Road Warriors, he would be a good man to have at our backs.”
The men laughed, I didn’t. Gav was a hothead and after the shit died down the Road Warriors would most probably offer him his prospect kutte back. But only after they made him pay in blood for disrespecting his VP, his kutte and his club. Most probably. Maybe.
If the worst happened and they didn’t he would find a home with the Iron Dogz. It would break Tiny’s heart and devastate Skel. But they would just have to deal.
Hawk’s heavy arm came around me and drew me into his side as Ice and Kid went off to set his orders into motion.
“What has you so deep in thought, little bird?”
“Gav. I’m worried about him.”
“He made his decision, baby, there’s nothing you can do about it. He’s welcome here and after this is done we’ll see what Doc and Tiny has to say. I have a feeling Freeze will not be the one making the decisions for the Road Warriors once this shit has died down.”
I sighed heavily because I knew what it might mean for my dad. He was already at the national table as Freeze’s VP and travelled a lot. With Freeze gone he would have to step up and it meant he would be gone more than he was at the moment. That would dump Deena right back into my lap. Shit.
Ignoring those thoughts I concentrated on the now.
“Did Hotdog make a decision regarding the women?”
“Yes, little bird. Every single one of my chapters has an underground escape route. There’s a secret tunnel leading to the property next door. The previous owner of the property was a conspiracy theorist and while running his business above ground he built this elaborate bomb shelter underneath the property. The property went up for auction after his death and the club bought it using a shell company. The tunnel was built after they discovered the shelter and turned it into a hidden safe house. The women have been moved and they have prospects guarding the access points.”
That was definitely a sneaky move.
“I want you to join them, baby. I won’t be able to concentrate on what’s coming for us with you still in the clubhouse. I need to know that you’re safe. And I think Hotdog wants you to watch over his old lady and the others. None of them have ever held a gun or received any self-defence training. They’ll be sitting ducks if the fuckers make it past us and discover that tunnel.”
The ass, using the one thing that would sway me to leave him at the clubhouse. Helpless women.
But the young man walking through the doors made me forget all about it. For all intents and purposes he was my little brother and I loved him. The rage and heartbreak in his eyes had my eyes burning with unshed tears. I could not do it to him when he was struggling so hard to control his own, so I swallowed my tears and smiled.
Ignoring the silently watching men I walked over and wrapped him in my arms, just holding him, not saying a word.
Hawk gently removed me from Gav’s arms and set me to the side. I held my breath.
“Gav, you’re welcome in my club.” There was a beat of silence before he continued and my heart jerked in my chest at the coldness in his voice. “You acted like a spoilt child and disrespected your president, your VP and your club colours but I understand that you were under immense provocation, therefore I will let it pass without consequences. There are reasons for what is happening right now, but as a prospect you would not have been in the loop. Once we have sorted the shit between our clubs I will put in a good word for you if you want to return to the Road Warriors. Tonight I need you to stand with us against a mutual enemy. I need your skills, Gav. What do you say?”
My little brother didn’t disappoint. He tightened his shoulders and nodded.
“I know what I did and I’m aware of the consequences. I’ll deal with it.”
His mouth was a thin hard line, his eyes still filled with rage but the sadness had been replaced by hard resolve. In front of my eyes my irresponsible and fun loving little brother became a man his brothers could rely on.
“I’m in. Whatever you need, Prez.”
