Broken Angels MC Book 3
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Riki Leigh Bishop
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31
Chapter 1
TWELVE YEARS AGO
I’m finally graduating after seven years of elementary school, two years of middle school, and four years of high school. I’m counting kindergarten in those seven years of elementary school. I’ve always despised school, but I knew I needed an education if I wanted to take over my dad’s position when I returned from the Marines.
My dad and his Army buddies founded the Broken Angels MC after their last tour overseas. I’ve always wanted to follow in my father’s footsteps, but the Army didn’t appeal to me like the Marines did. However, there was one person who made my high school days bearable.
Megan Sting. My girlfriend for four years and the love of my life. I grew up watching my parents together, and all the men of the club with their ol’ ladies. I knew I wanted that kind of unconditional love with someone. And Megan was that someone for me.
I remember telling my dad about her. He asked me if my soul called out to her. I told him I wasn’t sure. But as I got to know her better, I found myself falling deeper in love with her. We fought like cats and dogs most days, but that didn’t matter to me.
We were each other’s firsts. She pushed me to study and supported my decision to join the military. I knew after the first few months that she was the one for me. I thought she would become my ol’ lady when I finished my military service and prospecting for the club. I couldn’t have been more wrong, but I didn’t know it then.
“Hey, man. You ready to get this over with?” Westyn, one of my best friends, asks. He’s next in line to take the President spot in the club. He’s standing with my two other best friends, Axyl and Patrick. Axyl is next in line to be the Vice President, and Patrick is one of the enforcers, like me. We’re all the same age, so we’re all graduating together.
“Hell yeah. I’m ready to be done with that place.” I’m also planning to propose to Megan before taking her to the courthouse. I want her to be my wife before I leave for basic training.
“I hear you, man. I’m ready to be done with that place too. Lana’s been complaining and pouting because I’m leaving her here alone,” Axyl says, rolling his eyes.
Axyl met Lana when he and Westyn came to pick up Aliana, Westyn’s younger sister, after she skipped school a couple of years ago. Everyone could see how Aliana felt about Axyl, and how she changed when Axyl started dating Lana. “She’s upset about facing high school alone while she’s pregnant.”
Lana is two months pregnant. It was a surprise when she announced it. She burst into the clubhouse with a huge smile on her face and shouted that she was pregnant to everyone there.
“Maybe you shouldn’t have gotten involved with one of Aliana’s friends,” Westyn snaps. He’s not happy with how his sister is acting right now. She’s in love with a man who is in love with someone else. I remember her face when Lana announced her pregnancy. It was heartbreaking.
“You’ve been on my case, angry about something since Lana announced she was pregnant. What’s your problem, man?” Axyl snaps back at him.
“You broke my sister’s heart! That’s why I’m angry!” Westyn retorts. Before Axyl can respond, our dads walk into the room.
“That’s enough! What’s done is done. It’s time for you four to get to the school.” My dad looks at me with pride in his eyes. We hold each other’s gaze for a few more minutes before he gives me a slight nod and leaves the room. I’ve always wanted to make him proud, and I’ve done everything I could to do so.
“Let’s go before they come back and light a fire under our asses. Or worse, before they send our moms up here,” Patrick says.
Westyn and Axyl share a heated look before I slap the back of their heads and we head downstairs.
“What’s your problem, Aliana? You’re supposed to be my friend,” Lana’s whiny voice echoes. “You need to get over the fact that I’m with him and having his baby.”
“Just leave me alone, Lana. We’re not friends. We never were. You got what you wanted. Just leave me alone and don’t talk to me.”
Ali pushes past her and Lana, being the drama queen she is, falls to the floor with a cry of pain.
“What the hell, Aliana? Was that necessary?” Axyl asks, being the fool that he is. “She’s pregnant.”
“I barely touched her.” Her voice is soft, but firm.
“That doesn’t matter. You hit her hard enough to make her fall. What would have happened if you hurt the baby?” he snarls.
“Ax, what if she’s hurt my baby?” Lana’s voice breaks, tears welling up in her eyes. “I can’t lose this baby. My baby.” She buries her face in Axyl’s chest, sobbing. Axyl shoots a harsh look at Ali.
I glance at Ali, noticing her struggle to hold back her own tears. She’s not the same girl we knew two years ago.
She’s quieter now, doesn’t speak her mind as much. She doesn’t hang around us like she used to.
“Are you fucking kidding me right now?” Westyn’s voice booms through the room.
“Wes, just stop. It’s fine. If he wants to defend drama queen Barbie, then let him.”
Ali storms out, disappearing into the waiting car. There’s a glimpse of the old Ali we all knew and loved.
“Son, I love you, but you’re a fucking idiot. She didn’t do anything wrong,” Calvin, Axyl’s dad, says.
“She pushed her. I saw it with my own eyes,” Axyl retorts, helping a still-crying Lana off the floor. “Are you okay, baby?”
“I’m fine. I think she hates me. I just wish I knew why,” Lana replies. But she knows exactly why Ali isn’t friends with her anymore.
The only one who doesn’t know is Axyl. He looks at her the same way, but he’s blinded by different factors.
“You saw what you wanted to see. Aliana barely touched her. But you won’t listen to me. Get in the car. You’re going to be late,” Calvin says, disappointment etched on his face.
Lana has her claws deep in Axyl, and he’s the only one who can’t see how toxic she really is.
We all pile into our cars and head to the school. I can’t wait to see my girl.
She couldn’t come to the clubhouse today and ride with us because her family wanted to celebrate with her. So, this will be the first time I’ve seen her since yesterday.
Does it make me sound like a wimp if I say I miss my girl even though I saw her less than twenty-four hours ago? Probably.
But do I care? Not at all. She’s my everything.
When we arrive at the school, we park and head inside while our parents find seats in the gym. I scan the crowd for Megan, but she’s nowhere to be seen.
I join the rest of my class, hoping to spot her inside. I’m standing in line next to my walking partner when the “Pomp and Circumstance” begins.
As we file into the gym, I continue to search for her. Even though she’ll be behind me, I should still be able to spot her. I crane my neck, but she’s not there.
I keep looking for her during the valedictorian’s speech. I look for her as our names are called. But when the principal calls her name, she doesn’t appear. She’s not here.
I don’t know where she is. She was so excited about graduation. We talked last night before bed. She said she’d meet me here, but she hasn’t shown up.
I quickly pull out my phone and text her. By the time the ceremony ends, she still hasn’t replied. As I walk over to my parents, I try to call her, but it goes straight to voicemail.
I’m starting to worry. She never turns her phone off. She always wants to be available when I call.
She once told me that the best part of her day is when she gets to see me or talk to me. And damn it, I feel the same way.
“Hey, son! I’m proud of you,” my dad says, clapping a hand on my shoulder.
I’ve always wanted to make him proud, and I knew one way to do that was to work hard in school and graduate with honors. It wasn’t easy, but I did it.
“Thanks, Dad. I couldn’t have done this without you pushing me to reach my goals,” I tell him.
Megan may have made my days bearable, but it was my family that helped me achieve the goals I set for myself.
I could have been partying with the guys, or fooling around with the club girls, but instead, I was in my room studying.
“It was all you, son. Where’s Megan?” my dad asks.
“I don’t know. She said she’d meet me here. Her parents wanted to take her out for breakfast to celebrate.
“I texted her and tried to call, but her phone went straight to voicemail,” I tell him. I’m sure he can see the worry on my face.
“Why don’t you go check on her before you head to the clubhouse for dinner with the family,” my mom suggests. I give her a kiss on the cheek and head over to the guys.
After everyone congratulates us on our graduation, I tell them what’s going on, and we head over to Megan’s house. The feeling of dread grows stronger the closer we get to her house.
I have a feeling that whatever we find is going to change my life, and not for the better.
It takes about twenty minutes to get to her house from the school. When we arrive, it looks empty. There are no lights on, not even the porch light, which they always leave on.
I walk up to the door with my brothers behind me and knock. There’s no answer. I knock for about ten minutes before trying the doorknob.
It’s locked, which doesn’t surprise me. Maybe they went somewhere and it took longer than they planned. That happens, right?
I turn to face my brothers, who are standing behind me. I knew they wouldn’t stay in the truck; they’d be right here with me in case things went sideways.
I’m not going to panic right now, no matter how much I want to.
“Let’s swing back to the clubhouse. Hack can check if something’s up or if they’re just out doing family stuff,” Westyn suggests, always the level-headed one.
We all agree and start heading back to the truck. I take one last glance at Megan’s house before climbing back in, and we set off for the clubhouse.
The ride back is quiet, giving me too much time to think…and overthink. What if something’s happened to them? What if she just left and no one wants to tell me?
Her parents never hid their dislike for me. But being around a bunch of bikers who love to talk shit, I learned to grow a thick skin early on, so their words never bothered me.
Her parents were the overprotective type. They didn’t want her going anywhere, and if she did, she had to be home by dinner.
To say she was often late would be an understatement. She never wanted to go home, and I knew that if I took her home before she was ready, she’d just leave.
“We’re here. Let’s go find Hack.” Hack is Blake’s dad. He’s our club’s tech guy. If anyone can find out what’s going on, it’s him.
Blake already has his road name because of his behavior. He’s a damn snoop and can find anything and everything he wants.
We call him Snoopy because of his knack for finding shit that no one else would think to look for. He’s even better than his dad at some things, and his skills are always put to good use.
“Any luck finding your girl?” my dad asks when we walk inside.
“No, I need Hack to check on them and see if anything happened overnight. When we got there, the porch light was off, and no one answered the door when I knocked,” I tell him.
“We peeked in the windows but didn’t see anyone,” Westyn adds. “It’s like they vanished into thin air.”
That’s the damn truth. I pull out my phone and try to call her, but it goes straight to voicemail, again.
“Don’t worry, son. If there’s anything to find, Hack will find it. Go enjoy your day with your brothers. The ol’ ladies are making a celebratory dinner,” Prez says.
I nod and head toward the doors that lead outside. I know I won’t be able to relax until Megan is back in my arms, but there’s nothing I can do right now.
Prez is right though—if there’s anything to be found, Hack will find it.
***
Over the past week, I’ve been going back to Megan’s house to see if she’s home. I go there multiple times a day and there’s still no sign of them. They’ve all just disappeared.
I haven’t given up though, and neither has any member of the club. Hack hasn’t found anything yet, but I know he will. Something is about to happen, I just know it.
I have that gut feeling I had last week when I knew something was wrong. I knew that something was going to change, and soon, too.
“Hey, man. Heading out?” I turn to see Westyn sitting at the bar with Aliana. I’m supposed to leave for basic next week and want to have answers before I do.
“Yeah. I need answers, man. I need to know before I leave. I just need to know,” I tell him. He nods and gets up to follow me. “You don’t have to come. Stay here with your sister.
“She needs you more than I do right now.” One look at Aliana and I can tell that she needs someone more than something right now, and that someone just happens to be her big brother.
“No. It’s okay. I’m just going to go home,” Ali, being the awesome chick that she is, says. She’s there for others, but when she needs someone, she doesn’t ask for it. She suffers in silence.
Westyn looks between her and me, torn between his best friend and his little sister.
“Just go, Wes. I’ll be fine. Jackson is supposed to come over later when he’s done in the shop. Your brother needs you. I’ll be fine.”
She gives him a forced smile and leaves the building.
“She thinks she’s hiding her pain, but she’s not. I can see right through it,” Westyn says as we head outside. I nod because I see it, too.
She doesn’t want anyone to share her problems. She doesn’t want to burden us with her issues when we have our own shit to deal with. Her words, not mine.
“You know how your sister is though. She doesn’t want anyone to worry about her. She wants to worry about everyone else and not the other way around,” I say.
When we reach my truck, we climb in. This is my baby. Pops and I fixed it up together. We went to the junkyard looking for a bike when I found a 1975 Chevrolet C10.
She was rusted and abandoned, but I brought her home. Dad and I worked on her for months until she was in perfect condition.
She’s red with white stripes running from fender to fender.
I also brought home my bike that day, too. We worked on my 1970 Harley Davidson FLH as we worked on the truck. I painted her to match the truck.
“I know, but I hate this shit, Eliot. She’s my baby sister and she’s hurting. One of my best friends is the one hurting her. How the fuck am I supposed to handle that?
“I know she wants to be with him. She has since she started noticing boys. I don’t want her to be with anyone because she’s my little sister, but fuck if I can stop her.
“I want my old sister back, the smart-mouthed, wild-ass sister. The one that didn’t hold back on how she was feeling,” Westyn vents.
“I get it, dude. She’s still hung up on Axyl. It’s been a couple of years. It’s not something she can just shake off. It’s going to take time.
“And Lana’s constant digs aren’t doing her any favors,” I add.
“She’s planning to leave after graduation. She told me earlier today, before you came into the main room. She’s heading off to college.
“She says it’s about spreading her wings, but damn if I don’t know the real reason.”
I’m taken aback, but before I can respond, we’re pulling up to Megan’s house.
Westyn and I hop out of the truck and head towards the porch. Everything looks the same. The lights are still off.
The only difference is the note taped to the door. I stride up, yank it off, and unfold it. The words inside tear me to pieces.
Eliot,
Last week, we lost our daughter. She snuck out to see you. I don’t know what she saw in you, but she ‘loved’ you enough to risk everything.
We warned her about you. We said you’d be the end of her, and we were right. She was hit by a car while walking in the dark. The driver didn’t stop.
She’s gone because of you. I hope you can live with that. You’re the reason we had to bury our daughter. She died because she wanted to see you.
You’ll never see her again, just like us. I hope you have a miserable life.
Mr. Sting
I crumple to the ground, my legs giving out. The love of my life. The woman I was going to marry is gone. Snatched away in an instant.
I can’t wrap my head around it, but one thing is clear: Megan was my everything, and now she’s gone.
