"You take Izzy home, and Flash and I will handle it," I replied, standing and sticking the gun in my waistband. "Is she okay, James?"

"Yeah. She's just pa.s.sed out. Hopefully she won't remember a d.a.m.n thing."

"f.u.c.k. No one can know about Rebel's death. Got me? No one besides the few people we called. Especially not Izzy. Do not tell her." I walked out the door, leaving James behind.

Anxiety raked my body as I walked toward the car. I needed to see Izzy with my own eyes. Flash stood outside as Izzy lay slumped over in the back. Opening the door, I could hear her small snores.

"I checked her. She's fine," James said, pushing me away and scooping her into his arms. "I'll get her home. Shh, doll. Sleep," James whispered in her ear as he held her body tight.

"Flash!" I barked, causing Flash to jump.

"What?"

"Get your a.s.s in the room. Let's get Rebel and get the f.u.c.k out of here. James is taking Izzy home."

Flash looked at Izzy and James then nodded to me before disappearing into the room.

James laid Izzy in the front seat. "You be careful, Thomas," he said as he gently closed the car door, trying not to wake her.

I stepped closer, standing toe to toe with him. "I'll text you when it's done. Keep her safe."

"You're okay with this?"

"f.u.c.k no. I'm still going to kick your a.s.s when everything is said and done, but for now, you make sure she's okay-and clean your arm."

"I'll wait until she wakes up and then I'll head back up to make sure s.h.i.t doesn't go down in the MC."

"No, you stay with her until you get the all-clear from me. Do not come back. Do you understand me?"

"I can't leave you without backup," James said, shaking his head.

"I'll be fine, James."

No one knew where we were. Those dumb f.u.c.ks were too busy getting drunk and stoned, on top of drowning in p.u.s.s.y, to realize that Rebel and I were missing.

"I can't bear the thought of losing you, Thomas. You're like a brother to me."

"I don't have time to stand here and argue with your stubborn a.s.s. Let me ask you this: Do you love her?" I lifted my chin, motioning toward my sister.

"Yes."

"Then keep her safe, James. I can handle the club, and Bobby will be around for help. Flash too. Now get the f.u.c.k out of here and take her home. Make sure she's sleeping."

"Not a problem," James said, smiling as he started to turn his back.

But I couldn't let him off the hook that f.u.c.king easily, so I did a total a.s.shole move. I cold-c.o.c.ked him when he wasn't looking, landing one flat against his jaw.

"What the f.u.c.k was that for?" he howled, rubbing his chin.

"Keep your d.i.c.k in your pants," I replied before leaving him standing outside with a stupid-a.s.s grin on his face.

Then I watched as Izzy and James pulled away, leaving us behind to clean up the mess.

Chapter 5.

Television makes it seem easy to dispose of a body and cover up a crime, but it sure as f.u.c.k isn't. Florida does have some advantages, though: the state is riddled with alligators, vultures, and dense forests where humans rarely travel. But finding the right location and doing the task is harder than it looks. I racked my brain, trying to decide the best course of action to get rid of Rebel.

Flash and I cleaned up the motel, spending a couple of hours scrubbing the blood and s.h.i.t from the carpet, to no avail. Why did the a.s.shole have to bleed so d.a.m.n much? The room was a f.u.c.kin' b.l.o.o.d.y mess.

"What the f.u.c.k are we going to do now?" Flash's voice was high-pitched as he looked around the room.

"First, calm the f.u.c.k down. Jesus. s.h.i.t like this happens." I slapped him on the back of the head as I put some bloodied towels into a garbage bag.

He reached for his phone. "I should call this in."

I knocked his hand down, making the phone fall to the floor. "Don't be a dumba.s.s."

"What else can we do? We have to call it in and go through the proper channels." He raked his fingers through his hair, staring at the giant stain in the s.h.a.g carpet.

"We're going to cut out the carpet and pay off the desk girl to keep her mouth shut."

"But that's... But..." he stuttered as he shook his head.

I kneeled down, looking him in the eyes as I tried to keep my anger in check. "Listen, Flash, and listen very carefully. This is the only way we can do it. I'll handle it if you're too chickens.h.i.t."

"I didn't say I was scared, Thomas. I just worry about what will happen when they find out."

"They?" I asked, c.o.c.king an eyebrow at him as I climbed to my feet.

"Yeah. You know, our real jobs. Or have you forgotten about them?" He rose to his feet, placing his hands on his hips and glaring at me.

"Motherf.u.c.ker, they are on my mind every minute of every G.o.dd.a.m.n day. They will never know about this. Do you get me?"

His mouth hung open as his eyes grew wide. "But that's wrong."

"Jesus." I threw up my hands, trying to do anything but wring his neck and add him to the pile of bodies that had acc.u.mulated during my time in the Sun Devils MC. "It was self-defense, but there would be backlash. Do you want to lose your job? If they find out about Izzy and how you mixed your personal life with your undercover work, what will they say?"

His mouth snapped shut as he began to rub his face. "Fine. You're right. We all f.u.c.ked up on this one."

I pulled my knife from my boot. His eyes widened as he backed up.

I swear to s.h.i.t my patience for this man is hanging on by a thread. "I'm not going to kill you. This is for the carpet."

"Oh, okay." His face softened as his shoulders visibly relaxed.

What type of requirements did they have to get into the FBI? Either his IQ was off the charts but he was lacking in common sense or something wasn't right. I'd like to believe he was a clueless genius. What a G.o.dd.a.m.n oxymoron.

We didn't speak as I cut the bloodied carpet then rolled Rebel's body inside to carry it out. It basically screamed, We're hiding a body! But at this point, I didn't give a f.u.c.k. The motel was deserted and I just wanted to get the f.u.c.k out of there.

After cleaning the room, we carried out the evidence and wiped it down, ridding it of prints. Luckily, I found Rebel's keys on the table near the door, since we were now carless. I hadn't thought the entire plan through. We were winging it. Clueless geniuses weren't cut out for winging s.h.i.t, but I, on the other hand, had grown used to it.

After tossing his body in the trunk, I headed to the reception desk to handle the front desk girl. With a smile and a couple hundred dollars, I explained how the woman inside the room had turned into a tiger in the sack, trashing the room. Sliding the bills across the desk, I asked for her discretion, and she rea.s.sured me that privacy was of great importance to her.

"In the pa.s.senger's seat. I'm driving, Flash," I said, reaching for the driver's-side door handle.

He nodded, not putting up a fight as I climbed in and turned on the engine. After he sat down, closing the door behind him, I took off, not wasting another moment.

"Where are we going?" he asked, buckling his seatbelt and taking a deep breath.

"To a place they'll never find him." I had the perfect spot picked out. There was a forest nearby, and I knew there was plenty of wildlife there that would take care of his body. I had left out the part of how exactly we were going to place his body.

We couldn't leave him whole. He needed to be broken down into smaller bits and scattered throughout the forest. It was a necessary evil, and one I didn't want to think about, but f.u.c.k it. Sometimes, s.h.i.t needed to get done.

In all my life, I'd never thought I'd be a part of covering up a murder, but it had been self-defense. If one of us hadn't killed Rebel, he'd have come after us or at least gotten his hands on Izzy again. That wasn't something I could have let happen. He'd needed to be taken out, and James had done it before I'd been able to pull the trigger.

Twenty minutes south of the motel was the Withlacoochee National Forest. Covering miles upon miles, it was desolate and expansive. Parts of him would be placed by the lake and in the dense underbrush, waiting for scavengers such as vultures to eat the remains and dispose of the evidence. At least enough of it that it wouldn't lead the authorities straight back to us.

Bikers turned up dead all the time. It wasn't anything out of the ordinary. Hopefully, it would be chalked up to gang violence and quickly forgotten, thrown on the bottom of countless unsolved cases sitting on a desk.

"Are we dumping him in a lake?" Flash asked as we turned down a dark road.

"Part of him," I replied, glancing at him before returning my eyes to the road.

"What the f.u.c.k do you mean, part of him?" His voice cracked on the last three words.

I laughed, shaking my head. "We can't leave him in one piece. We're going to scatter him around."

"How the f.u.c.k are we going to do that?"

"Easy. A few simple cuts and it's done." I knew it was a crock of s.h.i.t. There was nothing easy about cutting up a body. I'd seen it done during my time with the Sun Devils.

"What are we going to do it with-your pocket knife? This should be fun to watch."

I shook my head again, laughter bursting out of me. There really wasn't much funny about the situation, but his stupidity was priceless.

"Rebel has a bunch of s.h.i.t in the trunk that we can use. I said we. You're taking part in this s.h.i.t too. You're going to be just as culpable as I am if you decide to open your fat mouth someday." Finding the spot that offered some cover, I pulled into the brush and turned off the car, including the lights.

"You're a f.u.c.ker, Thomas."

"I've always been one. I'll do anything to protect my family, Flash. Anything. Don't ever forget it. Now, get your a.s.s out of the car and help me finish this."

"f.u.c.king b.a.s.t.a.r.d," he mumbled as he climbed out, slamming the door behind him.

I smiled, happy that he realized I'd easily kill him to protect my sister. Flash didn't want to tangle with me. I'd end him in a hot f.u.c.kin' second. At this point I was pretty sure James would gladly take up the task for me.

Rebel's head clunked against the trunk as we pulled his body out and let it fall to the ground. Using my phone for light, we searched the trunk to find the tools needed for the job. Inside, he had a hacksaw, a hammer, an axe, and a couple of other small hand tools that would make the job easier.

It took us thirty minutes of sawing, hacking, and chopping until I was satisfied with the size of the pieces. The entire time, I wanted to vomit, but I kept telling myself that there was no other way.

We took a couple of handfuls each trip, wandering apart and throwing pieces of Rebel in the forest. I instructed Flash to place brush and debris on top. The animals would easily find them from the smell.

We met back at the car when the deed was done. The laws we'd broken tonight were very clear, but sometimes the law was meant to be broken. No one could say that they'd never do it, especially when it came to protecting family.

After throwing the tools in the trunk, we headed back toward Izzy's in relative silence to get my car. As we got closer, Flash finally piped up and interrupted my thoughts.

"Now what?" he asked, fidgeting with the radio.

"I'll hide the car and keep it under wraps. Take my car back and leave it a block from the compound. I'll grab it after I store Rebel's car. See if anyone is talking about Izzy or me. I'll head to my friend's to spend the night. Call me if you hear anything."

"Okay," he said, his voice still shaky and unsure.

"It'll be okay, Flash."

"What if they know about you, Thomas?"

"You let me handle it if they do. I can bring an end to the club tonight if needed. I want to try to get them on record for a few more things before I end the operation, but it can end at any time. I have enough to put most of them away for their natural lives." Coming to a stop in front of Izzy's house, I felt like I could breathe, seeing James's car in the driveway and knowing Izzy was home safely.

"I'll call if I hear anything," Flash said as he opened the door. Stopping before he climbed out, he turned to me. "I'm sorry, Thomas."

"For what?" I asked, caught off guard by his statement.

He didn't look me in the eye when he said, "For involving Izzy and putting your entire family at risk."

"Flash," I said as I jumped out of the car. "What's done is done. It's in the past. The only thing to focus on now is keeping them all safe from this point forward."

Staring at me with soft eyes, a small smile on his face, he replied, "There's nothing more important. I have your back, brother."

"Then no apology necessary. Let's get changed and get the f.u.c.k out of here before someone sees us. I have extra clothes and some s.h.i.t to wash up with in the trunk of my car."

"Always prepared, aren't you?" He followed me to the trunk.

"I've learned to be." I nodded, popping the trunk and rifling through the contents.

After grabbing two fresh T-shirts, I tossed one to him and set mine down. Once I'd removed the one I was wearing, which was covered in blood and dirt, I reached for a rag and a jug of water. I wet the rag, wiping away the traces of Rebel left on my flesh before slipping on the new shirt. Then I repeated the process with my pants before I washed my face and hands.

I tossed the water and a new rag to Flash, waiting for him to get cleaned up. After gathering our clothes, I put them in the trunk, covering them with the other contents inside. I didn't want blood-soaked clothes to be visible. Then Flash caught the keys I threw at him and still looked unsure about the entire situation.

"You got this. Just go back and rest. I'll call you tomorrow. Remember, leave the car a couple of blocks away and I'll find it."

"Okay, man. Follow me back toward the compound, though?" he asked, twirling the keys in his hand.

"Fine. Let's go." I motioned for him to get in as I slammed the trunk and headed toward Rebel's car.