Gunner (Savaged Souls MC #2) Read online

  “Are we going to be able to live with these changes or will the men cry for mutiny?” Boone asked with a grin.

  Gunner scoffed. “Well, one of us is going to cry mutiny but that’s to be expected. From this day forward, Dana is going to start pulling her own weight around here.” He looked over at his VP. “Right after we deal with Blacky and Arizona, I want to get Winona moved back here and settled. I want you guys to find a place to live and for her to open her shop. But you have to be close to the compound in case I need you. I can’t protect her, if you guys are all the way across town.”

  “We were talking about that last night. I think she’s willing to move but she wants to bring her partner Lucille with her.” Boone looked at his President. “If you want us close, then you need to make that clear to Dana. She promised to leave her sister alone and she’d better keep her word.”

  Gunner nodded. “I’ll let her know.” He finished his coffee then got to his feet. “I guess it’s time to be a daddy now. I’d rather not do this in front of the men, so I’m going to talk to her in her room.”

  Boone nodded. “That might be better for the men as well as for her.”

  Gunner stared at him for a moment then asked. “How is Winona doing this morning?”

  Boone grinned. “Why don’t you ask her yourself? She’s been in the kitchen since four this morning.”

  Gunner snapped his head toward the kitchen door. “I’ve been sitting here for an hour, how did I not notice that?”

  Boone shrugged but grinned as he watched Gunner storm toward the kitchen.

  Gunner swung the kitchen door open and glared at his daughter. She was busy taking a tray of baking powder biscuits out of the oven. She looked up at him and nodded. The sausage gravy bubbling on the stove top smelled wonderful. She had a huge bowl of whipped eggs ready to cook as well.

  “What the hell are you doing?” Gunner growled.

  “Well dad, in case I need to tell you, I’m making breakfast.” Winona smirked.

  “Why? You just took a beating a few days ago and you look like hell yet.”

  She set the pan down on the counter then took off her oven mitts. Then she looked at him. “I learned a long time ago about pain and how to deal with it. I didn’t have a choice then and I found I could work through it. I may look like hell but the bruises will fade in a couple of days. I will never give into the pain or let it rule my life. Please don’t ask me to do that now. If I give in to this, then Blacky wins and I’ll be damned if I’m going to let that happen.”

  Gunner felt her words slam into his soul. He had somehow failed her through all this time. Well, one of the changes he had to make would be to not underestimate her again. Taking a deep breath, he exhaled and ran his hands over the back of his head. “Ok baby girl, this one is on me. I still have a lot to learn about you don’t I?”

  Winona nodded but she was smiling.

  Gunner walked closer to her and wrapping her in his arms, he kissed her forehead. “I’ll learn as we go, baby.”

  She squirmed in his arms. “Dad, I have to tell you something.”

  Gunner wouldn’t let her break away but he leaned back and looked down at her. “What is it?”

  “I called my partner last night and we agreed to move here and set up shop together here in Jasper. I really couldn’t do this alone and Lucille agreed to move here to help.” She paused. Then added, “I hope that’s okay?”

  “Of course, it’s okay. Honey, whatever you need and as long as you’re happy, then it’s fine by me.”

  “Who knows dad, maybe you’ll come to like her. She’s a very nice woman.”

  “Well, we’ll see about that, little girl.” Gunner snorted. Sighing heavily, he shook his head. “Gotta go. I have to lay down the law, new changes are coming so something like Blacky, never happens again. And the first change is not going to be pleasant but it needs to be done.”

  Winona shrugged then turned back to what she was doing and soon breakfast was ready to serve.

  Gunner made his way to the bedroom hall. He nodded at the man sitting outside Dana’s room.

  Gypsy got up and walked to the dining room. He needed coffee.

  Gunner took a deep breath and exhaled as he reached for the doorknob. When he entered the room, Dana was still asleep. He went over to the window and threw open the curtains.

  When the sun shone in the room, Dana angrily screamed out. “What the hell?” she sat up in bed grasping the covers. “What is going on, dad?”

  “It’s time to rise and shine girl.” Gunner crossed his arms over his chest.

  She turned her head and looked at the alarm clock. “It’s only seven thirty. I don’t go to work until noon today.”

  “Wrong. You’re going to start working full time and full time starts at nine a.m.”

  “What the hell are you talking about?” Dana asked. “I’ve only ever had to work part time before.”

  “Well that had been true baby girl, not anymore.” He gritted his teeth. “Things are going to change around here and this is one of those changes. You are going to work full time and live on what you can earn. Everyone else does it, so can you. Which means you’re going to have to hustle to earn your paycheck.”

  Dana just stared at him in shock.

  “Also, your sister is going to be here until she can find her own place and get her bakery set up, so you’re going to have to deal with it. I suggest you stay clear from her and leave her the hell alone. You will be on probation for the next six months. Get up, do what you’re told to do and keep your nose clean. That also means you have to pull your own weight, your earning that starting today. You broke the trust of the men and you have to prove you can keep your word now.”

  “And if I can’t?” Dana asked while looking stunned.

  “They are giving you only one chance to change, you said you could do that. You have to prove what your word is worth. I can’t stand up for you anymore if you aren’t willing to show them you want to change. You are my daughter and I love you but you are the only one who can do this. It’s sink or swim time baby girl.”

  Then he turned and walked toward the door.

  When Gunner walked out and closed the door behind him, Dana realized something. She’d lost her Princess status because of her sister. Pushing the covers off, she got out of bed. Her dad was right. He couldn’t help her, this was something she had to do on her own. All her life, her dad tried to tell her a person’s word meant their honor.

  If this was her last chance then she would do things right. She was his daughter after all. Winona might be her sister but Gunner raised her, she knew all his quirks and expectations. She would come out on top of this contest and leave her sister crying in the dust.

  After she got dressed and brushed her hair, Dana joined the group in the dining hall, her eyes went to the spot where her father always sat, only to find it empty. Looking around, she finally found him sitting with Boone and Winona. Her Dad had his arm across the back of Winona’s chair and the two were laughing at something. Pursing her lips tight at the annoyance she felt, she went to get herself a cup of coffee.

  She fixed herself a plate and went to her usual seat. Sitting down, she cast dagger eyes at Winona’s table. When Jeeter sat down next to her, she cast a frown at him.

  “You about ready to go to work now?” he asked.

  Dana sighed. “So now, I am going to have a babysitter?”

  “Yup.” Jeeter nodded.

  “Wonderful.” Dana rolled her eyes.

  “Would you rather be thrown out on the streets?” he asked her softly. “You might deserve it, but I don’t think your dad deserves that, do you?”

  “What about me?” Dana asked.

  “What about you?” Jeeter stared at her. “This isn’t about you. You brought this on yourself and you know it. You put all of us in danger and didn’t give a shit about that did you? All because you didn’t like your sister. Did you ever once think about what she went through in her life, while you were u
sing an abusing this club?”

  Dana glared at him. “Maybe I just don’t care. She wants me to leave her alone, so fine I’ll leave her the hell alone.”

  “Yeah?” Jeeter stared at her. “Is that right? Well honey, maybe you better start caring. You’re the one who said she could change.” Shaking his head, he got to his feet. “I’ll be waiting at the door, you got 10 minutes.”

  Dana wanted to smash her coffee cup up against his head, but she knew she had to behave herself. As Jeeter said, it would be up to her to show them she could change. She let him talk her into that conversation. She had to be more careful if she didn’t want to have to leave this place. This was her birthright not Winona’s. From now on, she’d just have to be more careful that’s all.

  She got up and without looking over at the table her father sat at, she stomped her way to her bedroom to grab her stuff, then she stalked toward the front door.

  Jeeter just raised an eyebrow when the door slammed and she stomped her way over to where he was waiting and glared at him. “Do not say word, just take me to work then get lost.” She growled.

  Jeeter reminded her to go clean up her table spot, as she was now responsible for cleaning up behind herself.

  Dana gritted her teeth as she wanted to scream and walk out but she had to play nice. After clearing her dishes, she followed him out.

  Jeeter got in and waited until she opened her own door and got inside the vehicle. Neither one of them said a word as he drove across town to the club’s beauty shop and spa. She barely waited for him to stop before she was out and stormed into the building.

  Julie was standing behind the counter and she was startled when Dana stormed inside. “Miss Dana... you’re here already?”

  “Obviously,” Dana nearly spat the word at her. “My first appointment isn’t until one this afternoon, what the hell am I going to do until then?”

  “Well we did have a last minute hair cut call in first thing this morning,” Julie told her.

  Dana growled. “I’ll take it. I suppose you heard I have to work here full time now right?”

  Julie nodded. “Yeah, we got the phone call this morning.”

  Just then, a woman entered the salon. She was tall and thin and had a hard look to her. She hid her eyes behind a pair of dark sunglasses. She was wearing a pair of nice dark blue colored slacks and blue linen jacket that covered a black tank top.

  She looked nice and carried herself well. Her hair was pulled back into a ponytail and reached half way down her back. It was a rich cascade of dark curls. “I’m here for a hair trim,” she reminded them. “I called in last minute under the name Yvette.”

  Dana looked her over quickly and motioned for her to follow her. “I’ll be doing your hair this morning.”

  Yvette reached up and lowered her glasses just enough to look out over the top. “And you are?”

  Dana raised her eyebrow at the query. “I’m Dana.”

  Yvette smiled and said. “I guess you’ll do nicely.” Then she replaced her glasses and took the lead as she walked down the aisle to the back.

  Dana stopped at the last chair and motioned for Yvette to sit.

  Yvette kept her sunglasses on as long as possible while Dana loosened her hair and combed it out with her fingers. When Dana reached to her table for a comb, Yvette grabbed her wrist and turned it so she could see the tat Dana had there. “What is this?” Yvette wanted to know. “What is this Savaged Souls group?”

  Dana tried to pull her wrist out of the other woman’s grasp but Yvette only tightened her grip. “It’s my father’s MC.” She gritted through her teeth.

  “Your father? Who is your father?”

  Dana heard the demand in her voice and she didn’t like it. “That’s hardly any of your business now is it?”

  “I will ask you again,” Yvette growled. “Who is your father?”

  Dana could hear the hint of an accent in the other woman’s voice and it sent a shiver through her body. She had no idea who this woman was but she wasn’t going to answer any of her questions. “I said that’s none of your business.”

  Yvette smiled but the glee never made it to her eyes. Yvette reached up and removed her glasses.

  Dana gasped, as she read nothing but cold emptiness in her eyes. “Who are you and what do you want?” she finally whispered.

  “I want information only,” Yvette told her. “If you give that to me, I will not be forced to kill you and the other girl.”

  Dana began to sweat at her announcement. “Why would you want to kill us? We didn’t do anything wrong.”

  Yvette tapped Dana’s face hard with her free hand. “I did not say you did, I just like killing people. If you tell me what I want to know I might not have to kill you,” She looked over at Julie and said, “...or her.”

  “What do you want to know?” Dana asked as a thread of fear trickled through her. Nothing like this had happened to her before and she wasn’t sure what to do.

  “I want information on one of your men.”

  “I don’t know anything about their work or club duties.” Dana whimpered as Yvette tightened her grip again.

  “You know the men in your father’s club though don’t you?”

  Dana nodded.

  “Do you know a man named Blacky?” Yvette asked.

  Dana eyes went wide and sweat beaded on her forehead.

  Yvette noticed this too. “Oh, I see you do know him. Is he here? In this area? I need to have a conversation with that bastard.”

  “He’s here,” Dana admitted.

  “You will take me to him,” Yvette demanded.

  “I can’t,” Dana told her with a trembling voice.

  “You will take me to him,” she insisted as she twisted Dana’s arm.

  “You don’t understand!” Dana cried out but not too loudly. She looked over her shoulder at Julie and saw she was busy doing paperwork. She looked back at Yvette. “I can’t take you to Blacky because he’s sitting in our jail cell. He’s been judged by a tribunal and found guilty. He’s going to be hanged in two days.”

  Yvette bit her lip for a moment then shook her head. “No, he will not be hanged, not yet. He owes us lots of money and he cannot die until we get paid.” Then she got to her feet and looked down on Dana. “You will come with me in his place until your father gives this Blacky up to us.”

  “But I can’t go anywhere. I’m being watched,” Dana argued.

  Yvette scoffed. “By the biker sitting in the car watching this place? He won’t be a problem. We will just go out the back door, but you will come with me now.” She leaned toward Dana. Lowering her glasses again, she glared over the top of them. “Do not force me to hurt you. If you cooperate with me, I will not kill you. If you do not, I will take my time with you. You will beg for death before I’m done with you and I will have no mercy.” She spared a glance at Julie then nodded at the door not too far down the hall. “Go and do not raise any alarm or you will be the first to die. Then all your coworkers will join you in death as well.”

  Dana was shaking so badly that she could barely move. She made her way to the back door. She knew it would set off a silent alarm to the clubhouse and she knew that was her only hope to get out of this without losing her life. She only hoped her father would check out the alarm and notice she was missing. She really didn’t want to die.

  Chapter Three

  When the silent alarm went off, Rigger was in his office at the compound as he cued up the camera at the spa. When he saw Dana exit the building, he frowned. Then he saw another woman exit right behind her. As she grabbed Dana by the hair and pulled her back, he saw the look of terror on Dana’s face. The next thing he saw was Dana looking into the camera with a frightened stare.

  The other woman grabbed her hair and pushed her along. The exchange didn’t look friendly so Rigger got up and went out to get Gunner and Boone.

  When they all returned along with Winona and a few of the other brothers, they all watched in silence as the fo
otage played out.

  Winona gasped when she saw the other woman but said nothing.

  “What the fuck is all of this?” Gunner growled low. “Get Jeeter on the phone and have him check this out. If this is one of her tricks, I swear I’ll slap the piss out of her.”

  No one noticed Winona as she went to the corner of the room and sat down on the floor. She was shaking so badly, she couldn’t think. She was remembering a night long ago when she was a girl of eight years old.

  She’d been sitting on the floor that night as well, when she heard loud voices coming from the other room. She knew better than to even look but she heard a voice she didn’t recognize that night and she couldn’t help herself. She had to find out what was going on. She crept over to the door and peeked out.

  She saw three men standing there with a tall thin woman with long dark curly hair. The men were talking to Mike Brewer and another man he called Blacky. She didn’t understand the words as they were muttered in a low voice but she could understand the threat behind them. Their words were spoken in a voice she didn’t understand but she saw Mike and Sheila were watching what was going on but nothing made a difference to them. She could tell they were too stoned to even care what was happening around them.

  There was another man there as well. The other man was on his knees and beaten up pretty bad. The woman looked down at him and drew a weapon from her pocket. Then she took a moment to twist something on the end of the gun. Then she pointed the gun at the kneeling man’s head and pulled the trigger.

  Winona heard a soft pop and saw the man collapse to the floor. Spatters of blood and human flesh flew everywhere. She almost screamed out loud but managed to watch what happened next without uttering a sound.

  Mike and Sheila didn’t move a muscle and Blacky just looked annoyed.

  The woman just smiled and untwisted the piece from the barrel of her gun and pocketed both items.