Asher: Heartless Devils MC (22 page)

“No answer,” Asher said as he hung up his phone. It was later in the evening and he wasn’t surprised that John didn’t answer his office phone. “Let me try his cell.” He let the phone ring until it went into voicemail, then he hung up. “Still nothing.”

“Try him on his new cell number,” Jenny suggested.

“I don’t have that. Do you?”

Jenny scrolled through her contacts until she found it, and pressed the button to dial.

“So…have you decided to listen to reason?” her father asked.

“Depends on how reasonable you’re willing to be,” she snapped after placing the phone on speaker and laying it on the table between them.

“I want you to come home, Jenny. This isn’t right.”

“I’m not the one who threatened you,” she reminded him.

“I never threatened you!”

“No, but you threatened Asher. That’s the same thing.”

John was quiet for a moment. “He has to answer for what he has done, Jenny. I’m sorry, but I can’t make an exception, even for you.”

“Then I guess we’re done talking,” she said as she reached for the phone. She didn’t even know why she had bothered to call. She knew this was exactly how this conversation was going to go.

“John, this is Asher. I want to come in,” he said before Jenny could touch the phone.

“What’s stopping you?”

“I want your assurance that nothing will happen to Jenny.”

“What do you think I’m going to do to her, Asher? What she did to the Demonios de Sangre member? I’m not the one who is corrupt. That’s you.”

Asher ground his teeth but held his tongue. “I just want your assurance that you won’t take your anger for me out on Jenny. Everything I’ve done I’ve done because I wanted to, not because she made me. Understand?”

There was a long pause. “Agreed. But you are still going to have to stand in chapel.”

“I understand. I’m not ashamed of what I have done. Can you say the same?”

There was another long pause. “We’ll let the Deacons decide. Fair enough for you?”

“Fair enough. We’ll be there in the morning. Ten o’clock.”

“The Deacons will be waiting,” John said ominously.

“I look forward to it,” Asher lied then ended the call.

“Don’t do it,” Jenny said with tears in her eyes. “What if you can’t convince them? Dad has had a week to work on them, to make them see things his way.”

Asher took her hands and held them. They felt cold. “Do you believe we acted in the best interest of the club?”

“Yes.”

“So do I. So now it’s time to walk the talk. If you can’t stand up for what you believe, maybe you don’t really believe it.”

Jenny sniffed. “I know. But I’m afraid.”

“Don’t be. What happens happens. I don’t think they will dispatch me. I think the worst that will happen is they will strip me of my colors.”

“But the club, that’s your life!”

“No…you’re my life.”

Jenny sobbed once then gathered herself. “Take me to bed and hold me.”

Asher smiled as he stood and pulled her to her feet before guiding her to the bed.

“Are you sure about this?” Jenny asked as she removed her helmet and placed it on one of the rearview mirrors of her bike.

“No, but it has to be done. No matter what happens, you stay out of it, okay?”

She swung her leg off the bike and stood waiting for him to join her. They were a team now and they would enter the lion’s den of the Heartless Devils clubhouse together. She watched as Asher rolled his shoulders then went hard as nails.

He opened the heavy wooden door and stepped into the main room of the clubhouse. “Where?” he asked Gator.

“The Boss’s office,.” He didn’t look too happy as he fell into step behind them as they marched across the room and up the steps to the second floor.

Asher and Jenny entered her dad’s office and stopped before the desk. John was seated behind it while Kenny Slovoski, the Vice President, relaxed on the couch as Gator joined Chains standing in watchful silence to either side of the door.

John stared at them for a moment. “I’m surprised you came.”

“I said I would,” Asher said, his voice ice cold and diamond hard. “I’ve done nothing that isn’t in the best interest of the club, and I’m willing to stand in chapel to prove it.”

John nodded slowly. “Jenny. Wait outside please.”

“No. I’m with Asher. What you do to him applies to me.”

“This is club business. Wait outside. Nothing is going to happen to him before he stands in chapel.”

“No,” she repeated firmly.

“Jenny…it’s okay,” Asher said softly.

“No, it’s not fucking okay. We stand together or we leave together!”

John made eye contact with Chains, looked at Jenny, and then gave a slight twitch of his head. Chains stepped forward and took Jenny gently by the arm. “Come on. Your dad needs to talk to Asher alone.”

She jerked her arm free. “Fuck off! I’m not leaving!”

“Jenny,” Asher tried again.

“No, damnit! I’m not going!”

John’s mouth hardened. He had tried to be gentle, but he wasn’t going to be defied by his own daughter in front of these men. “Get her the fuck out of here,” he snapped.

Chains took her arm again, more aggressively this time, and started to steer her out. She dug her heels in and fought against his pull, yanking at his grip. “Let go of me!”

“Jenny! Stop!” Asher barked but she continued to yank at her arm as Chains tried to drag her out.

She had about enough of this thug pulling on her arm, so she hauled hard against his pull to get him off balanced, then kicked at him savagely, a front snap kick she had learned in her self-defense class.

Chains saw the kick coming, and twisted his hips to block most of it, but Jenny’s mule like kick still sent a shock wave radiating out from his groin. He grunted in pain, grimacing and doubling over. “You bitch!” he roared as he straightened and slapped her hard across the face.

Jenny saw the slap coming and tried to block it, but Chains was too strong and she couldn’t fully parry it. She staggered back so hard she felt dizzy and her cheek burned as if being licked by flame. Before she could react, Asher was moving with a roar, tackling Chains and driving him into the wall so hard she heard the creaking crack of breaking wood and the pictures crashed to the floor.

Asher went red in fury. After driving Chains into the wall, he backed off a half step and threw a hard right into the stunned man’s face that connected solidly. Blood sprayed from the shattered lip and he could tell he was out on his feet, but he was in a rage, all his frustrations boiling over and focusing down on Chains, ignited by him hitting Jenny. He drew back his right hand again, prepared to pound Chains’ face into a bloody pulp.

Gator recovered from his shock and tackled Asher from the side as Asher drew back again. Asher outweighed Gator by fifty pounds or more, but his tackle was enough to prevent him from throwing his punch. The two men went down, but Asher threw Gator off as if he weighed nothing. Asher jumped to his feet and hauled Gator up from the floor by the front of his colors as he cocked his fist to deliver a crushing blow.

“Enough!” Kenny roared as he grabbed Asher from behind and locked him up in a full nelson, his arms under Asher’s armpits and his fingers interlaced behind his head. Kenny had never seen Asher like this and it was a truly terrifying sight. Chains was regarded as the baddest of the badasses in the club, but Asher had taken him out of the fight in seconds. Asher bellowed and strained against the arm lock and Kenny wasn’t sure he was going to be able to hold him.
He’s strong as a fucking ox!

“Enough!” Kenny roared again, struggling against Asher until he felt Asher relax. “You good?” Kenny asked more calmly, still trying to defuse the situation, but not releasing his hold.

“Yeah. Let me go,” Asher panted.

Kenny released him then gave him a thump on the back.

“Sorry brother. I just lost it,” Asher said as he and Gator embraced and pounded each other on the back.”

“It’s okay,” Gator replied as they separated. “No harm.”

Asher then turned to the still wobbly Chains. “Don’t you
ever
lay a hand on her again.”

“Yeah. Sorry, brother. I shouldn’t have done that. Are you okay?” Chains asked Jenny.

“You hit me again and I will kill you!” she snarled.

Chains worked his jaw and wiped blood on his sleeve. “I don’t think you’ll have to. Asher tried to do it for you. Fuck, Asher, you have a punch like a goddamn gorilla.”

Asher stared at Chains a moment longer then relaxed. “Jenny…please…it’s okay. Just wait outside. Nobody is going to hurt me or touch you,” he said with a hard look at Chains.

“Yeah. I need to go look at my face anyway.”

As everyone filed out, Asher grabbed Chains by the arm. “I will fucking kill you if you ever do that again, understand?”

Chains nodded. “Sorry, brother. It won’t happen again.”

Asher released his arm, tossing it away in disgust and then turned to face John and Kenny.

Chapter 18

“Say what you have to say,” Asher said the moment the door to the office closed, “and let’s get this over with.”

“Why, Asher?” John asked.

“Why what? Why have I tried to put together a deal to protect the club? Why have I have hunted down Melissa’s, your wife’s, killers? Why—”

“Why did you drag Jenny into this?” John asked, cutting Asher off as his tirade began to build.

That gave Asher pause. “Is that what this is about?”

“Yes! Goddamnit, Asher! I didn’t want her future to be affected by the club, and now you have dragged her into the middle of it against my specific orders!”

“I didn’t
drag
her anywhere. In case you haven’t noticed, she a grown woman. She has a mind of her own and she does what she wants.”

“You were to keep her out of club business!”

“And we were to find her mother’s killer! But we didn’t do that, did we? John, you’re so blinded by your fear for Jenny, you aren’t seeing things clearly! Were you really going to let the Demonios de Sangre get away with killing your
wife
?” Asher roared.

“Asher, the club comes first,” Kenny said quietly.

“And part of the club is protecting our own! Melissa was John’s old lady!” Asher retorted. “Are we just going to stand around and let other clubs kill our members now…or just their old ladies? If we are, then I’m ready to leave because this is no longer the club I joined!”

“Of course not!” John barked. “But we have to move carefully. We can’t have a war with the other clubs.”

“What fucking war!” Asher bellowed. “You have a fucking deal right in front of you! The Bucs and Trifectas are onboard. All they need is your assurance the Devils are going to be there when the chips are down! I told them we would be…but that was before I knew we had turned into a bunch of pussies!”

John went red in the face and he stood slowly, leaning forward with both hands on the desk. “Is that what you think? That I’m a pussy?”

“It’s not what I used to think. But you’ve changed, John. I don’t know if it’s the heart attack, Melissa’s death, or Jenny’s kidnapping, but you’ve changed. You act like you’re paralyzed with fear. When you wanted to back off and not hit the Trifectas, I supported that. The picture was muddy and we weren’t sure. It was the right call. But now, now we know the asshole that is fucking with us. But all you can think about Jenny.”

John stared at Asher a moment.
Was he right? Had he become paralyzed? Maybe, but he would deal with Hamasaki in time. Now was the time to deal with Asher.
“It doesn’t change the fact that you disobeyed the club. We voted in chapel and you went against the club.”

“I tried to bring the club in! But instead of listening, you declared me rogue!”

“It doesn’t matter!”

“It does fucking matter! We had the opportunity to avenge Melissa and you didn’t take it. So I did. We had the opportunity to sign off on the deal with the Bucs and the Trifectas, but we didn’t take it. Now that deal is hanging by a thread. But rather than dealing with it, we’re in here jacking off so you can have your pound of flesh! Fine, let’s go to chapel and get this over with.”

“John,” Kenny said softly. “You know I will support your call, but maybe Asher is right. Maybe we—”

“Jenny is a fucking murderer because of him!” John shouted, turning on Kenny. He could feel his chest begin to tighten and he sat down abruptly. Grimacing, he opened the small vial around his neck that contained the tiny nitroglycerine tablets. He shook one out and placed it under his tongue. Within moments, the tightness began to ease.

“She didn’t kill anyone, John,” Asher said softly as the paleness in John’s face began to fade. “I know that’s what she said, but I pulled the trigger.”

“But she was there,” John said softly, trying to stay calm.

“She was there,” Asher agreed. “She wanted to see justice served.”

John nodded, his head against the back of his chair. “So not a murderer. Just an accessory to murder.”

Asher nodded. John had him there. “Yes. She’s a good woman, John. She had the opportunity to pull the trigger and couldn’t do it. But it had to be done, and you know it.”

“John,” Kenny began again. “Asher has to stand before the Deacons for what he has done, but do you really think he has been working against the best interests of the club?”

John shook his head. “No. But he still was dealing for the club against orders.”

“He will have to stand for that,” Kenny agreed. “But is that really worth pushing a dispatch?”

John thought for a moment. “No,” he said quietly. “But I can’t forgive him for what he has done.”

“What?” Kenny asked. “Look deep, John. What has he done? Asher’s right. The whole club has noticed. You’ve changed. Ever since Melissa was killed, you’ve lost your way. The club backs you, John. We always have, we always will, but you need to search deep, brother, and find out what is driving you. Is it club, or is it personal?”

John looked at Kenny. “You think this is personal?”

Kenny stared back at his old friend. “Only you can answer that, brother.”

John rose to his feet again staring at Asher across his desk. “You’ve corrupted her. You were supposed to protect her, not corrupt her. Melissa never wanted her involved in the club, and I intend to see those wishes respected.”

“She not in the club, John! She has no connection to the club,” Asher argued.

“You’re fucking her, Asher! How much more involved in the club is there? She bought a fucking hog and she’s carrying a gun! And worst of all, you involved her in a fucking
hit!”

“So? She rides a Harley! How many lawyers and doctors in this town have Harleys? How many carry guns? That’s doesn’t make her a club member, John. She—”

Jenny had been standing in the hall outside her father’s office door, listening as her lover and her father argued. She had enough of this shit and before Gator could react, she twisted the knob and shoved the door open with a bang.

“Enough!” she shouted as she strode into the room. Gator caught her arm before she reached Asher’s side, but she shook of the gently restraining hand. “You seem to think I’m still twelve years old,” she snapped at her father. “Well, I’m not. I’m twenty-four and I will do whatever I damn well please. If I want to ride a fucking Harley or learn to shoot a gun, then I will, and there isn’t a damn thing you can do about. If I want to fuck every man in this club, then I will. I will do what I want, when I want, and if you don’t like it, then you can just get over it or I will simply walk out of your life. Forever. It’s your choice, Dad. So you need to decide what it’s going to be.”

John stared at his daughter. She had never been a shrinking violet, but he had never seen this tough, confident, woman standing before him. “You don’t mean that!”

“I do mean it. Don’t try me, Dad, because you’ll lose. I’m my own woman and I don’t answer to you, or Asher, or anyone else. The sooner you accept that, the sooner we can get past this stupid shit and do what needs to be done.”

John squinted at his daughter. She had never challenged him like this and he wasn’t sure he liked it. “And what’s that?”

“Dealing with Hamasaki.”

John frowned slightly. “Why do you care?”

“Because he is the one that is ultimately responsible for Mom’s death and I want to see him pay for what he did.”

“Are you going to kill him, too?” John asked, mildly alarmed by his daughter.

“If I have to. I’m not going to let him get away with killing Mom. The only question is, am I going to have to do it alone or with the club’s help? Either way, I intend to see that Hamasaki answers for what he did.”

John looked at Asher. “You did this to her!”

Asher shook his head. “No. She has always been like this. You just never saw it. She’s taken the best of her mother
and
her father, and become her own person.”

John looked back to Jenny as she stood there, hip cocked with a calm self-assurance on her face…mixed with a healthy dose of annoyance. She looked exactly the same, yet she appeared older, wiser, and more mature than he had ever seen her. She had changed since Melissa’s death, but most especially in the last couple of weeks she had metamorphosed. His little girl had grown up.

“Jenny…I don’t—” he began.

“I’m going downstairs,” Jenny interrupted and then looked at her cell for the time. “I’m leaving in ten minutes. You have that long to decide if you want me to be part of your life or not.”

Without giving her father a chance to answer she spun on her toe and marched out, leaving the men alone. Asher watched her retreating back and turned to follow.

He closed the door on the way out and John turned to Kenny. “You said I changed. If it’s true, why haven’t you said anything?”

“We did, John. You just didn’t hear us. We’ve been giving you time, time to heal.”

John sat down slowly.
Was it personal?
“Get out. I have to think. Ask Jenny to not leave.”

Kenny nodded and walked to the door, pausing before shutting it behind him. “Search deep, brother, and do the right thing,” he said softly before closing the door behind him.

Jenny looked up as Kenny stepped off the last step and into the main room. The Deacons were gathered around and none looked happy. “What’s the word?” she asked.

“He asked me to ask you to stay. I think you should. Your father, he’s fighting his demons right now. Give him some time, Jenny. He loves you. You mean the world to him and if you leave, it will kill him.”

“He’s not killing Asher!”

“John…he’s broken, Jenny. He loved Melissa more than you can know. He’s been trying to hold all that in, to be strong for the club, and it’s gutting him. He needs to let it go. He needs you. Up there, just now, you reminded me so much of her. You’re different, but you had that same determination she had.”

Asher pulled Jenny tighter into his side. “It’ll be okay, Jenny. I’ll stand in chapel and accept the judgment of the club.”

“I’ll not let them kill you, Asher!”

Kenny looked at Jenny, his eyes soft and full of love, like a kind uncle. “A dispatch requires a unanimous vote. There won’t be one,” he said softly.

Jenny stared into Kenny’s eyes, holding them, searching for truth. “Thank you.”

Kenny smiled. “Asher, and his generation, they are the future of the club. He still has to stand, but there will be no dispatch.”

Jenny pulled Kenny to her and kissed him softly, the merest brush of her lips to his. “Thank you,” she whispered as she slowly pulled her hands away from his face.

The entire group turned and watched the steps, hearing the clump of John’s decent. He looked haggard as he stepped off the last step and into the room. “Let’s get this shit over,” he growled, never slowing his step as he turned into chapel.

“It’s okay, Jenny,” Asher said before kissing her on the lips. “Don’t interfere.”

She nodded slowly, struggling to hold her tears. “I’ll be right here waiting for you…no matter what happens.”

He smiled as he backed away, dragging his hand across her body, waiting to feel her beneath his fingers until the very last moment. “This won’t take long.”

Asher was the last member of the Heartless Devils to step into chapel, and he shut the heavy wooden door behind him. His chair, at John’s left, was empty, and it would remain empty for the moment. He stepped to the end of the table where those standing in chapel traditionally stood, and turned to face John. He drew himself up to his full height, standing ramrod straight. He had done nothing to be ashamed up and he wouldn’t look weak or uncertain in front of these men.