The Aces MC Complete Collection

  “No,” I answered, shaking my head a little.

  “Good. That’s exactly what you tell the cops,” he told me ominously before standing back up and disappearing into the crowd.

  I sat there in a daze as an ambulance pulled in with its lights flashing, and I didn’t move a muscle when two policemen ordered everyone to put their hands up.

  They treated me like a threat, and as they took Echo away, I lay handcuffed, face down on the ground, less than a foot from his blood.

  The rest of the day and into the night was a blur of giving statements and listening to apologies from weary policemen. They’d eventually uncuffed me, realizing that I was a victim, though I didn’t feel like one. I was just a bystander to something horrific that I was unable to talk about but would never forget.

  Late that night, after the police had left the apartment and the place was quiet, Farrah finally spoke.

  “I never thought that I could feel worse than the night I realized my mom would never love me,” she told me quietly. “I was wrong.”

  “Things can always get worse,” I told her seriously.

  “I don’t know what could be worse than this.”

  “Me, either,” I answered, wrapping my arm around her shoulder.

  We were quiet for a while, listening to Cody pace back and forth in the kitchen. After all of the trauma of the afternoon, there was nothing for us to do. There were no papers to sign, no questions to answer, just… nothing.

  Eventually Farrah stood, pulling me with her, and headed toward the bathroom.

  “We need to take a shower,” she told me flatly, pushing the door open and ushering me inside.

  She stripped down to her underwear, throwing her clothes out the door as she took them off, while I turned on the water. I assumed she wanted me to stay with her, so I made no move to leave, but was surprised when she came over and started pulling at my t-shirt.

  “What are you doing?” I asked curiously as I let her pull it over my head.

  “You need to take a shower.”

  “Okay, I’ll take one when you’re done,” I told her gently, trying to pull her fingers from the front of my jeans.

  “You need to take one now,” she mumbled urgently, looking into my eyes. “You’ve got bloo—you’ve got bloo—you need to take off these clothes. You need to take a shower right now!”

  I looked down in surprise, realizing for the first time that I was covered in dried blood.

  “Okay, baby girl. I’ll take a shower now,” I answered her quietly, moving her hands so I could strip off my jeans. “Climb in.”

  The shower ran red when we climbed inside, and Farrah kept her eyes pointed toward the ceiling as she grabbed my body wash and started scrubbing. We passed it back and forth, washing our arms and torsos until the half-full bottle was completely gone. Then we started on our hair.

  Farrah was rinsing her hair for the second time when Asa walked into the bathroom and slowly pulled back the curtain. I could see the questions in his eyes, but he didn’t say a word as he reached out a hand to me.

  “We need towels, baby,” I told him quietly, ignoring his hand.

  “Okay,” he answered hoarsely, looking between Farrah and me before walking back out.

  “Okay, Farrah, that’s enough,” I told her gently as she started to pick up the shampoo bottle. I reached behind her and turned off the water as her arms dropped down to her sides. I wrung out her hair while she stood quietly, her eyes vacant.

  “Here are your towels, Sugar,” Asa called, pulling open the curtain. “You need some help?”

  “No, I’ve got her,” I assured him. “I’m going to get her into some clothes and then I’ll be out.”

  “Okay,” he answered, searching my face as he put a hand on my wet cheek. “Call if you need me.”

  I gave him a nod and turned back to Farrah, wrapping one of the towels around me and using the other to dry her off. I held her hand as I led her to my bedroom, but her grip was nonexistent.

  “Farrah, I grabbed you some clothes,” I called out, rifling through my dresser for underwear and pajamas. When she didn’t answer, I turned to find her standing exactly where I’d left her in the middle of the room. “You want some pajamas?”

  She was looking at me—aware of everything that was happening—but it was like her body had just stopped working, except for the tears running down her face.

  “I’m going to help you into these, okay?” I asked, hoping she’d push me away and ask if I was a lesbian. “Okay, well if you don’t mind then neither do I,” I told her with a shrug of my shoulder.

  I unwrapped the towel and ran it over her head once, but she was beginning to shiver, so I dropped it on the floor behind her and started stripping her. I unclasped her bra and pulled the straps down her shoulders, leaving it stuck to her breasts with water as I pulled the oversized sleep shirt over her head. When that part was done, I finished stripping off her bra and pulled her underwear down her legs, thankful she stepped out of them with little prompting.

  When I’d just finished getting my smallest sweatpants over her hips, there was a small knock on the door. As I turned toward it, a familiar head popped through, taking in the scene before walking completely into the room.

  “Gram,” I sighed in relief before rushing to her. “Did Cody call you?”

  “Yep. Told me my baby needed me, so here I am,” she told me gently, kissing my forehead before turning to Farrah. “Get some clothes on, Callie Rose, you’re gonna catch a cold in that towel.”

  I hurriedly threw one of Asa’s t-shirts and a pair of yoga pants on as I watched Gram lead Farrah to the bed. She’d grabbed my hairbrush off the dresser on the way over, and once Farrah was seated, she stood behind her and started brushing.

  “Asa’s out there climbing the walls, Callie,” Gram informed me, running her fingers through Farrah’s hair. “I’ve got things handled in here.”

  Oh, God. I’d forgotten how good it felt to have Gram take control of a situation.

  “Thanks, Gram,” I told her quietly, walking out the door and shutting it quietly behind me.

  Chapter 53

  Grease

  “Give your brother the phone!” I yelled at Callie as I stomped into my boots and left my room.

  I’d been lying on my bed in my underwear, looking at fucking apartment ads, when she’d called. I’d immediately scrambled into some jeans when I heard her scared voice on the other end of the line.

  “Grease, fuck! It’s bad, man,” Cody hissed, his voice low. “Echo was bringing Farrah over and Cal went out to meet them. I didn’t see it. I was in the bathroom when I heard the shots and came running.”

  “Is your sister okay?” I asked as I raced through the clubhouse looking for Poet or Slider. Where the fuck was everyone?

  “Yeah, she wasn’t hurt.” He paused. “Echo’s dead, though.”

  “What the fuck?” I roared, pausing in disbelief. “What the fuck happened?”

  “I have no goddamn idea. When I came out of the apartment, Echo was fucking down, and Callie was wrestling with Farrah on the stairs.”

  I finally found Poet and Slider outside having a smoke. I wasn’t sure why they did it, but if they were smoking together they always stepped outside to do it.

  “Prez, we’ve got fuckin’ problems,” I yelled, practically running toward him. “Cody, I’ll send some boys to you and call you back.”

  I hung up the phone as I reached the men and took a second to control my emotions.

  “Some fucker killed Echo in Callie’s parking lot, with Farrah and Callie fuckin’ watching,” I told them as I flipped open my phone. “I don’t think they knew who it was.”

  “Are the girls okay?” Poet asked calmly, but the twitching of his fingers gave a different impression.

  “Callie’s brother says they’re fine,” I answered, listening to Michael’s phone ring repeatedly before hanging up.

  “We need to get some of our boys over there—Echo’s fuckin??
? dead in her driveway,” I told them both, but Slider was already on his phone.

  “We’ll get some men over there, boyo, calm down.”

  “Fuck that! Some fuck just shot down a brother in my woman’s fuckin’ driveway!” I roared back, completely losing my shit. “She fuckin’ watched it go down, and she’s not strong enough for that shit!”

  “I think the girl will surprise you,” Slider commented as he shoved his phone back in his pocket. “I’ll head out with you and we’ll take some of the boys. Be ready in ten.”

  He turned and walked back into the building as I gaped at his retreating back.

  “Don’t forget that his daughter was there, too. Don’t matter how well he knows her, that’s still his blood, yeah?” Poet warned me quietly, patting me on the back as he passed.

  It didn’t take ten minutes to leave—it took seven—and by the time we rode out, I’d talked to Cody and found out that brothers from the Sacramento Chapter had already showed up. I heard sirens in the background as he hung up, and I hoped that no one did anything stupid.

  I was so scared out of my mind, wondering what shape Callie’d be in when we got there, that I couldn’t focus on anything but that and ended up making the drive on autopilot.

  It reminded me so much of another time I’d raced south to get her that it felt like déjà vu.

  I just prayed to whoever would hear me, that when I got to her, she wasn’t the girl I’d found hiding in a crawlspace.

  Chapter 54

  Callie

  I walked into the living room to find Cody, Asa, and Slider talking quietly. Asa’s back was to me, so I didn’t say anything as I came up behind him and wrapped my arms around his waist. He spun around at my touch and immediately brought both hands to the sides of my head.

  “You okay?” he asked fiercely, searching my face.

  “Yeah,” I answered seriously, comforted just from having him beneath my hands. “Farrah’s a mess, though. She’s practically comatose.”

  “That what the shower was about?”

  “She pulled me in there and refused to get in without me,” I told him with a shrug. “We had blood everywhere.”

  “Gotta say, that’s always been a fantasy, but that shit was not what I thought it’d be,” he said with a small shake of his head, causing me to choke out a small laugh.

  “Yeah, nothing sexy about cleaning blood off,” I told him, my mouth trembling for the first time that night.

  “Christ, Callie,” he whispered, leaning down to kiss me softly. “You scared the shit outta me.”

  “It scared the shit out of me, too,” I answered as he lifted me and then sat down on the couch, setting me in his lap.

  “How’s Farrah?” Slider asked from his perch on the floor. He was sitting against the wall with his elbows resting on bent knees. His eyes were weary as he stared at me, and it was the first time I’d seen any emotion there.

  “She’s a wreck.” I told him honestly. “I don’t think seeing you will help.”

  “I know,” he answered, rubbing the back of his neck as he looked down at the floor. “Couldn’t stay in Eugene—even if she doesn’t want to see me.”

  “I don’t think she’s thinking about you at all,” I told him.

  “That’s enough, Callie,” Asa growled behind me.

  I nodded and shut my mouth. He was right. Slider was trying to do the right thing, as misguided as it was.

  “What happens now?” I asked Asa quietly as I pressed my forehead into the side of his neck.

  “Aces have an in with the local police, so it shouldn’t be long before they release Echo’s body,” he rumbled, rubbing my back. “So we’ll be able to have a funeral.”

  “What about his family?”

  “Didn’t have one, far as I know.”

  “I didn’t even know is real name,” I cried softly as I snuggled in closer.

  “William.”

  “Oh,” I sighed softly. “That’s a good name.”

  “Yeah, Sugar, it is,” he confirmed, kissing the side of my face.

  “What about the guys who did this?”

  “Think we know who it was, not sure yet.”

  “They called him Ace,” I told him, pulling my face back to meet his eyes. “Did they think he was you?”

  “No. No, Sugar. Is that what you’ve been thinking?” he asked gently.

  I nodded, my chin trembling. It had been running through my head the entire night, even though I’d tried to ignore it.

  “Baby, we’re Aces. That’s the name of the club. You know that.” He ran a hand down my face. “Echo was on his bike, which meant he was wearing his cut. They knew who he belonged to.”

  “Oh,” I sighed in relief and then felt horrible for doing so. “So you joined a club that has almost the same name as you? That’s a weird coincidence.”

  Slider barked out a quiet laugh behind me, and I watched Asa’s cheekbones flush.

  “Uh. My dad was an Ace, too,” he grumbled. “Wasn’t with my mom for long, so when I was born, she named me Asa.”

  “In honor of your dad. That’s kind of cool,” I told him tiredly, laying my head back down.

  “Ha. No. More like a reminder,” he snorted, dropping the subject completely as he started talking to the guys.

  I lay there silently, feeling his pulse against my forehead as the men spoke around me. A part of me was horrified that Cody had seen so much, but the other part of me thanked God that he’d been there. I didn’t know what I would’ve done without his help, how Farrah and I would have handled the situation ourselves.

  I grew more and more weary as I listened to Asa’s voice, and soon I was drifting off to him whispering, “Sleep, Calliope. I’ve got you.”

  Chapter 55

  Callie

  They buried Echo in a cemetery near my neighborhood.

  The funeral of an Ace was a thing of beauty. There was no other way to describe it.

  Well over a hundred motorcycles escorted the hearse and a limo carrying Farrah, Cody, Gram, and me from the funeral home to the cemetery. Aces from all over the West Coast had showed up to pay their respects, and the roar of Harley pipes was heard from blocks away, rattling window panes and bringing entire families outside their houses to watch us go by.

  Farrah had come out of her trance the day after Echo was shot, and I watched her intently for days, waiting for her to crack.

  She didn’t.

  She was in mourning—there was no doubt of that—but she hadn’t completely lost her shit the way she had a year before. It seemed as if that year with Echo had made her infinitely stronger, because once she was facing a life without him, she seemed to just… accept it.

  I didn’t think I’d be able to do what she did. It would have completely broken me if I lost Asa.

  The thought that he could be taken from me at any time ran through my mind on a constant loop. I started to hate the club he belonged to, resenting every minute he had to spend there. It was the reason Echo had been gunned down, the reason Asa and I were living apart, and the reason Farrah had been abused for years. It became such a demon in my mind that I couldn’t hear anything about it anymore without inwardly flinching.

  I started having nightmares again for the first time in months. I’d wake up in a cold sweat, curled against Asa on the couch, and burrow into him, sometimes waking him up just so I could hear his voice. I no longer dreamed about my parents’ deaths—I dreamed of Asa’s. I barely slept.

  A week after Echo’s funeral, I woke up slowly, having gotten only an hour’s worth of sleep the night before. The nightmares had plagued me every time I shut my eyes. They became so vivid that I hadn’t been sure if I was awake or asleep, and had laid on the couch, terrified, as I listened to Asa’s heartbeat.

  “Callie Rose, get dressed!” Gram called from the stove. “Need to run a few errands this morning and you’re coming with me.”

  I grumbled as I rolled off the couch and onto my hands and knees. “Gah! I feel like shit
,” I griped as I dragged myself to my feet.

  “Umhmmm,” Gram scoffed from the kitchen.

  “Where’s Asa?” I rasped as I walked toward my room.

  “Took Farrah to some sort of appointment,” she called back over her shoulder.

  God, I was tired. It took me twice as long to get dressed as it usually did, and by the time I made my way back out, Gram was standing at the front door.

  “I’m gonna brush my teeth and stuff—I’ll be right out,” I mumbled.

  “No!” she snapped, and then smiled. “We’re just doing a couple errands. Let’s go.”

  I complained in my head as she asked me to drive her to a pharmacy a few blocks away from the apartment, but followed her out of the car when she snapped her fingers at me. Snapped her fingers—like I was a dog. It wasn’t until we were in the tampon aisle that I started to get a little weirded out—she was way past the need for those.

  “You need to pick a test,” she told me, pointing to a plethora of pregnancy tests ironically surrounded by condoms. “It’s been a long damn time since I’ve been pregnant, and we didn’t use these things.”

  I gaped at her, shocked silent as she watched me through narrowed eyes.

  “Well?”

  “Um…” I looked back and forth between the tests and Gram, completely at a loss for words.

  “I’m guessing you and Asa haven’t been very careful,” she commented, looking over her glasses at me. “I’m pretty sure you’re pregnant.”

  “Why would you think that?” I asked, licking my suddenly dry lips.

  “Because you’re tired all the time, you’re barely eating, and you look like you have four boobs under that shirt because your bra is too small,” she told me matter-of-factly as I looked down at my four breasts.

  “Oh,” I sighed. “Yeah. Maybe we should grab one… since we’re already here.”

  “That’s what I’ve been telling you for the ten minutes we’ve been standing here, Calliope,” she answered as she bent over and picked up a lime-green package of ribbed condoms. “Hmm, interesting.”