Page 39 of Sabre’s Guard

I reach over and squeeze her hand. “I’m happy that worked out for you, darlin’. You would have been bored out of your everlovin’ mind sittin’ here all day with endless hours to fill. I’ll get Zen to set you up with a VPN, so working online is safer for you.”

Relief is stamped all over her pretty face, and I’m glad to see it.

I bring a piece of crispy bacon to her mouth and say, “Eat up. Your breakfast is gettin’ cold.”

She takes a gigantic bite off the piece I’m holding out for her, and I throw the rest in my mouth. We finish eating and get on with our day, only with much less awkwardness.

They make me a list of what needs collecting from the house. Other than clothes, it’s essential things like medications for Aunt Carol, Noah’s school kit, and Linsey wanted the fire safe from her closet that contained birth certificates, her college diploma, and Noah’s school records. Her aunt also wanted the coffee grinder and stash of beans from the freezer—that woman certainly takes her morning brew seriously.

I step out onto the porch and text Talon their list. Linsey’s list contained nothing really personal, so I add a couple of other items, like the quilt draped over the back of her sofa that she likes to spread over herself and the pillow off her bed just so she feels at home at my house.

Talon texts back a thumbs-up.

The retrieval run rolls at four. Talon leads it with Tusk and a couple of young prospects. He calls when they’re heading back. “Let Miss Carol know I got her grinder and her beans. Tell her she’s got better coffee equipment than the clubhouse and I’m filin’ a grievance.”

“You think you’re funny, brother, but you’re not. Did you get the rest of the stuff on their list?”

“Yeah, we got it all.” He pauses for a few seconds and adds, “I put a stop on their mail, like you asked. It goes into effect tomorrow. They’re gonna hold it at the post office and we’ll send somebody a couple times a week.”

“Thanks, I appreciate that, Talon.”

“Yeah, I’m a great friend. Look, Rick is gonna take first shift tonight with Levi backin’ him up. I’ve got pairs of prospects rotating every eight hours. The cameras are still rollin’ in case whoever that ignorant fuck was gets curious enough to come back for a second look.”

“Thanks again, brother,” I tell him.

“No problem. I know sometimes it takes a village to raise an idiot.”

“You’re getting village idiot mixed up with it taking a village to raise a child.”

“No, I’m not,” he deadpans back.

I cut the call, so he doesn’t hear me chuckle. My best friend is the master of lame-ass jokes.

***

Church is at six. I drop a kiss on Linsey’s cheek and remind her to set the security system when I leave.

Our meeting room’s full when I get there. Siege has the gavel in front of him and Zen’s laptop is already wired into the screen on the wall. I stand up and walk the brothers through it. The hospital. The sentence, aggravated by weapons and drug charges. The early release, which pisses them off as bad as it pissed off me. The surveillance, the break-in, the envelope and the message about her being his in God’s eyes.

“You know how I feel about people using religion to excuse their evilness,” Rigs grumbles. Rigs used to be a chaplain back in the Marines. He got stripped of his role after he nearly killed a man who was messing with his underage cousin. He might not be officially a man of God anymore, but he still believes in his own way.

“Dylan checked in with his parole officer in Billings on Friday afternoon,” I tell the table. “In person, on schedule, fourteen hours away. So either he checked in and drove straight through, or somebody came in his place. Which means we can’t even say for certain who we’re huntin’. What I can tell you is somebody broke into Linsey’s aunt’s home, and I want this fucker found.”

Siege doesn’t deliberate long. He never does when there’s a kid in the mix. He looks around the room once and brings the gavel down.

“The Legion ain’t waitin’ for a second attempt. This is Sabre’s woman, and he’s been a righteous brother. We owe him our support on this.” He points the gavel down the table. “Zen, keep trackin’ the ex. Hack his phone if you have to. Dig through his family’s social media. Talon, Rider, canvass the area. Hotels, motels, rentals. Anybody with links to Montana, I wanna know. Tex, give Sabre whatever he needs.”

Then the gavel swings around to me. “And your job is keepin’ that family at your house and safe. If anything pops off there, you don’t do anything stupid and you don’t go it alone. Shelter and wait for backup. We hunt as a club. Understood?”

“Understood, Prez.”

***

I’m the last one up, standing in my kitchen gazing out the window above the sink, wondering if Dylan is out there somewhere, creeping around, watching the house.

My phone buzzes on the counter. It’s Zen.

“What’s up, Zen? Talk to me, brother.”