Gabriel - Jessie Cooke Page 0,30

eyes and bloody knuckles all stopped what they were doing and for a few seconds you could have heard a pin drop in the room before Lear said:

“Take him, but hear me, Blackheart, when I say that I don’t want to see a Joker kutte anywhere near my club in the future.”

Blackheart chuckled. “You keep your boys on your own side of the border. You know if it comes down to a war, you won’t survive us.”

“I’m doing you a favor here,” Lear said. “Take him.” The looks on the faces of some of his men were shocked that he’d just let the Jokers come in and demand Gregor, and he’d give him up, without a fight. Blackheart would never let that happen. He dealt with what needed to be dealt with himself when it came to his men. But he had known Lear wouldn’t sacrifice the rest of his club for one man, especially a man who would beat and rape a woman. If he did that, and lived through it, he’d have his own old lady to answer to because for all her faults, Love was a fierce protector of the young women who came through that club, and Blackheart could only guess that was why men like Gregor came across the border and looked elsewhere for the women they thought they could abuse, and get away with it.

11

“I think there’s some guy following me,” Patrice said, ducking into Gabe’s room. He’d been in the hospital for over twenty-four hours. They hadn’t let him see Chance and the last Patrice had told him, his friend was still unconscious. He’d gotten a call from Blackheart, checking on him, but he hadn’t seen any of his brothers, which was strange. When he had gotten shot, Blackheart had someone at the hospital watching him 24/7. He wondered what they were so busy with, and he was so afraid they were taking care of the man who had done this to Chance without him that if he could get up and walk, he would have left by now.

He pushed up in the bed and tried to throw his legs over the side. Suppressing a groan he said, “Someone’s following you?”

“Don’t try to get up. It’s okay...I think it’s one of you...I mean, a Joker. I mean, I know it is, but I’m not positive he’s following me...shit, lie back down, I’m fine. I just keep seeing this guy. Yesterday he was here in the hospital and on my way home last night I’m pretty sure I saw a Harley following me. Then first thing this morning I stopped at my usual coffee place and when I came out, he was sitting there on his bike across the street. It’s a little creepy, but I don’t think he wants to hurt me. He’s had plenty of opportunity if he did.”

“What’s he look like?”

She shrugged. “I don’t know...young, I guess, maybe your age. He’s got dark hair and he wears it in a ponytail, and he has a little mustache, almost like Blackheart’s, but no beard.”

“He wearing a prospect patch?”

She shrugged again and chuckled. “Hell, Gabe, I don’t even really know what a prospect is.”

He winked at her and said, “I’ll teach you,” before reaching for the burner phone beside the bed and pressing in Blackheart’s number. When his president didn’t answer, he tried Le Singe. Getting frustrated when he didn’t answer either, he called Lowlife...and then finally one of the prospects that Chance had sort of “adopted,” a kid they called “Brain.”

“Yeah?”

“Brain? It’s Gabe.”

“Hey, buddy! How are you?”

“I’m okay. Need the fuck outta here. Hey, who’s following my girl?” As soon as the words “my girl” came out of his mouth, he felt his face go hot. He looked over at Patrice though and she smiled.

“Limp Bizkit is on her, the boss told him to keep her in his sights.”

Gabe breathed a sigh of relief. He’d been pretty sure it was someone like that who Patrice was describing and that Blackheart undoubtedly had someone protecting her, but just thinking about anyone doing to Patrice what they’d done to Sharon made the bile rise up in the back of his throat. “Thanks, bro.”

“Sure. Any idea how Chance is doing? Last the boss told us he was still unconscious.”

“Yeah, he’s still sleeping,” Gabe said. “Sleeping” sounded better than unconscious, less permanent. “Anything else going on that I need to know about?”

He could almost hear the smile in his friend’s voice when he said, “I knocked