Torch (Great Wolves MC) - Jayne Blue Page 0,54

soon. George is working on an appeal of the bail hearing. If he wins, some of us can get bonded out. But it might be a compromise.”

I knew what he meant. “Shit,” I said. “You don’t mean you. You’re the king. They’re gonna let you rot in here for the duration.”

It could be years before the RICO case ever went to trial.

“You have what you need in here?” I asked. Protection. Right now, that was the most important thing for my brothers. In that, it was good they’d all been sent together. It had been a few years since the Wolves were into illegal shit, but we still had allies on the inside. I wondered what my time would have been like if I’d been affiliated with the GWMC when I was inside. It could have been better, but it also could have been worse.

“We’re putting some things in place,” Colt said. “There have been a few scrapes, but nothing we can’t handle.”

“They’re testing you,” I said. “Seeing how vulnerable you are. Whether old alliances are still strong. Colt, man, you gotta watch your back. All the time. Don’t let your guard down even for a second in here.”

“Relax,” he said. “I’ll take care of in here. You need to take care of out there. You understand what I’m telling you?”

The feds had seized almost everything. The bar was shut down. Even some of the bikes had been taken. I was technically homeless but had been crashing at Colt’s old house. He hadn’t sold it when he and Amy got hitched and used it as a rental now. It was empty. For now, it was mine.

“I understand,” I said. “But I’m getting a lot of questions. Amy, the other wives. You gotta give me something to tell them.”

“I don’t want Amy here,” Colt snapped.

“She told me,” I said. “She said you turned her away three times. Look, I didn’t come here to get into your personal business. But Amy’s been a rock. Calm, calculating. Even when the feds have come by.”

Colt stiffened. “How often has that happened?”

“Once or twice,” I said. “She’s got an agent tailing her. She brought him cookies one day.”

Colt laughed. “I’d like to have seen that.”

“You don’t have to worry about her. She knows the drill. She’s taking care of all the families. It’s under control.”

“Good,” he said.

“What about Catman?” I asked. Catman Wade, our former president, had gone up for murder a few years ago. He was still inside but in the state prison system.

“He’s got no reach in here,” Colt said. “You tell Amy. You make sure she understands.”

On the face of it, I understood what he meant. But his eyes hardened, and I knew we were talking about something else entirely.

“What about you?” he asked.

“What about me? I told you, I got it all under control out there. I’ll stay on George. I don’t give a shit if he thinks your bond appeal is a long shot. If he won’t get after it, I’ll find someone who will. It’s absolute bullshit they’re keeping you in here. You haven’t gotten so much as a parking ticket in almost ten years. They’re trying to stick the club with old shit. We’re not alone, Colt. That’s the message I was sent here with. I’ve been in contact with Nash in Florida, Sly in Cali, Sawyer in Grand City ... they’re circling the wagons. We’re gonna get to the bottom of who fucked us over.”

Colt nodded. “That’s good to hear. I was worried. This is big. They’ve set up their own houses.”

“You’re a Wolf,” I said. “That’s thicker than blood.”

A silence settled between us. I wanted to ask him more pointed questions. I know he had the same for me. The truth was, we were nowhere close to finding out who framed us and how.

“Somebody had inside info,” Colt said. “The routes. The cargo. Did George get anywhere with the driver? He’s supposed to come talk to me tomorrow.”

“He’s in the wind,” I said. “The feds were supposed to be sitting on the driver.”

Colt pounded his fist against the table. “Then you need to get on top of that.”

“I’m working it,” I said. I couldn’t give him more details. It had to be enough that he knew I was out there fighting for the club.

“Good,” he said. “Good. Torch, I’m proud of you. We’re gonna get through this.”

“This isn’t my strong suit,” I said. “I wish it was me on the other side of that table.”

Colt’s eyes