Total pages in book: 86
Estimated words: 83244 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 416(@200wpm)___ 333(@250wpm)___ 277(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 83244 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 416(@200wpm)___ 333(@250wpm)___ 277(@300wpm)
As soon as we rounded the corner, a man stood and started towards us. He was wearing a cut, which meant he was a brother, but I had no idea which one. He was probably pushing fifty, built, and salt-and-pepper had taken over most of his dark hair. But there wasn’t anything old about the way he carried himself.
My eyes dropped to the Vice President rocker on his cut, and that’s when I realized it was Ace, KC’s second-in-command and a good friend of Drifter. He looked his brother up and down for a half second before a grin broke across his face. “Well, I’ll be damned.”
“Hey, brother.” They shared a quick, brotherly hug. “It’s been a while.”
“You can say that again,” Ace muttered. “I missed your drive-through.”
“Drive-through?” Drifter scoffed. “Is that what we’re calling it these days?”
“Just calling it like I see it.” Ace smiled. “Good to see ya, brother.”
“You too. Wish it were under better circumstances.”
“You and me both.”
Drifter looked over to me and said, “This is Smitty. He’s one of the new Little Rock crew.”
“Good to meet ya.”
“You too.”
Drifter wasted no time before asking, “How’s Stone?”
“He’s hanging in there.” Ace glanced down the hall. “Still in and out, but Coop says that’s to be expected.”
“How bad was it?”
“Bullet missed his heart by a damn miracle.” Ace blew out a slow breath. “Second one got his shoulder. Collapsed a lung and did some damage on the way through, but the doc said his numbers have been improving since they brought him in.”
“That’s good. Relieved to hear it.” He paused for a beat, letting the relief set in before asking, “You got anything on who did it?”
“Not yet. Mercy’s been digging since we got word of what happened. He’ll get what we need, but it’ll take some time.”
“That’s something we don’t have.”
“I feel ya, brother, but we’re all hands on deck. We’ll find them and make ‘em pay. You have my word on that.”
“I’m here. Just let me know what you need me to do.”
“Why don’t you start by going in to see him?” Ace answered. “I know it’d mean a lot to him to know you were here.”
Drifter nodded and followed him into Stone’s room. I hung back. It wasn’t my place to join. These men had history that stretched back longer than I’d been old enough to ride a bike. Drifter didn't need me hanging around while he saw one of his best friends and his former president after he was almost murdered.
I walked into the waiting room and slipped my phone from my pocket before sitting down in the corner. I pulled up Brooke’s contact and stared at it for a moment. I wanted to say something to her. I just wasn’t sure what. So, I decided to test the waters and keep it simple.
Me:
Thanks for meeting me today.
It was late. I wasn’t sure she would even respond, and then I saw the three dots.
Brooke:
It was good to see you and finally get the chance to talk.
Me:
Yeah, it was.
Can I ask a favor?
Brooke:
Of course.
I hesitated. It suddenly felt stupid even to ask, like it was too much, too soon. Then, I reminded myself that she was my daughter, too.
Me:
Could you send me a picture of Anslee?
I hit send before I could overthink it, then glanced around the waiting room. There was a guy sitting across from me with the glow from two computer screens reflecting off his face. His fingers never stopped moving across the keyboard. If it hadn’t been for his cut, I would’ve thought he was the hospital’s IT guy. My guess was that it was Mercy, KC’s computer guy.
Every club had one guy who could dig up information the rest of us couldn't.
According to Drifter, if you gave him a name and enough time, he'd know where you lived, what you drove, who you owed money to, and what you'd had for breakfast. I found it hard to believe that he could compare to Shep. That man was like a damn computer wizard, but from the looks of it, Mercy was going to find the answers he was looking for.
I left him be. I saw no point in bothering the man. Hell, whatever was on those screens was well above my pay grade. So, I got up and walked over to the vending machine. I grabbed a soda and a pack of crackers before heading back over to my spot in the corner.
I’d just sat down when my phone buzzed with a text. I grabbed it and eagerly opened the message.
Brooke:
I couldn’t decide which one to send.
I have entirely too many.
Two images came up. My thumb hovered over the screen for half a second before I opened it, and once I did, my heart nearly exploded in my chest. Anslee was sitting on the hardwood floor with colorful blocks scattered around her. There were a couple of tall towers behind her, and judging by the grin on her adorable face, she'd built every bit of it herself.