Asher: Heartless Devils MC (9 page)

“John? You okay?” Kenny Slovoski panted.

“Just—”

The pain hit him like a hammer blow. He grimaced against the pain and tried to straighten, but the pain was too much. It felt like the entire club, and all their motorcycles, were piled on his chest.

“I—” he gasped out as he doubled over, his arms coming up to cover his chest, as he went to his knees while fighting the pain.

***

Lee breathed a sigh of relief as the boat began to get her legs. Mr. Hamasaki was going to be pissed about the ruckus around his house, but he had warned him that the Heartless Devils weren’t someone to trifle with. He looked behind him, intending to see the house receding in the distance, but instead he saw Gerry and a giant of a man in a struggle to the death on deck below.

Gerry was clearly overmatched, as the man had an arm around his neck, choking the life out of him while Gerry strained ineffectually to break his grip.

Lee grabbed the gun from the compartment under the wheel and turned to the men below. He fired, the bullet striking Gerry in the leg and making him scream in pain. He fired again and missed them both this time, as the bigger man turned to place Gerry between them. He fired a third time and again missed, the hammering of the boat across the water spoiling his aim.

He yanked the throttles back to idle, and the boat immediately began to settle in the water, lessening the pounding bounce. Before he could turn back, he heard a thudding
whump
and one of the engines cut out. He spun around and saw smoke pouring from the engine hatch.
Fuck! I was shooting into the engines!

***

Asher felt the thud under his feet. He didn’t know a lot about boats, but he knew enough to recognize the sound of an engine fire when he heard one. This bitch was about to go up in a ball of flame. He released the man, allowing him to tumble to the deck, grasping at his neck and coughing.

He stepped away from the man, turned toward Jenny, and without a word picked her up and threw her over the side, following her into the water a moment later.

***

Jenny was screaming as she hit the water. With her hands and feet bound, she couldn’t swim! She sucked in a huge mouthful of water before she could close her mouth and she swallowed it. She was going to die, and she knew it. Why had Asher thrown her overboard? Was he in on the plot all along? As she began to settle toward the bottom, she felt a shock wave hit her as the water brightened briefly. She struggled against the tape around her arms and legs, jerking and spasming, as she strained with every muscle in her body to break the bonds, but it was no use.

***

Asher hit the water and immediately began to sink. Not the strongest swimmer in the best of times, weighted down with his heavy leather coat, boots, and jeans, he wasn’t sure he could save himself, much less Jenny. He immediately shrugged off the coat, feeling less like he was going to drown the moment its dragging weight fell away. As he continued to sink, he quickly removed first one boot, then the other. He was nearing the end of his air supply as he kicked out of his jeans.

Finally free, he looked around for Jenny, spotting her ten feet or so below him. He desperately wanted to swim back up for a breath, but if he was almost out air, so was she. Turning downward, he stroked strongly after her. He swung at her bound wrists once, missed, stroked again, and grabbed her. Holding her wrists, he kicked for his life, but she was so heavy, unable to help, held down by her wet clothes. Paddling with his free hand, his legs were burning in effort, his chest about to explode. However, Asher clawed for the surface.

***

John was still conscious enough to hear and see the boat go up in flames. It was still afloat a couple of hundred yards off the seawall, but he felt the thump of the fuel going off. He knew she was dead. In less than two months, he had lost his wife and his daughter. It wasn’t supposed to be like this. He had kept them out of the club business. It should have been him that died, not them.

The pain renewed itself, twisting his chest mercilessly, as he clawed at his chest, unable to breath. Perhaps he will be joining his wife and daughter again soon.

“Out of the way!” Olly roared, as he shoved his way past the members of the club clustered around their fallen president. They could hear sirens approaching and several members began to run toward the front of the house to perform damage control, but Olly paid attention only to John. He placed his ear to John’s chest, but he couldn’t pick up his heartbeat. Without wasting a second, he began chest compressions.

“Get the paramedics here!” he grunted as he continued to press on John’s chest in a steady rhythm, the rest of the club milling about, unsure of what to do, and wondering why Olly was muttering the chorus from an old disco song, “Ah, ah, ah, ah staying alive, staying alive,” under his breath.

***

Jenny could hear her mother’s voice and she followed, trying to make out what her mother was saying.

“Jenny, go back,” her mother told her. “You’re not ready yet. You need to go back.”

Jenny shook her head. “It hurts there, mama.  Everything hurts. I just want to go to sleep.”

“Later. But not now. Now, you have to go back,” Melissa implored her. “Your father needs you now more than ever.” She paused and looked at her daughter. “And you need to thank Asher for saving your life.”

***

Asher broke the surface with an explosive gasp, hauling Jenny up and out of the water. He couldn’t tell if she was breathing. With a deep breath he went under, as he pushed her higher up out of the water. He worked frantically at her hands, knowing they would both drown if she couldn’t help him. He ripped the tape free, but her hands didn’t move. He came back to the surface, gasping again. His legs were on fire, but they were the only thing keeping them afloat.

“Jenny!” he screamed, trying to shock her into wakefulness. He slapped her, hard, not knowing what else to do. He was sinking, the strength in his legs failing him. He gritted his teeth and kicked harder, but he couldn’t keep it up.

He ducked under again and worked at her legs, ripping at the tape until her legs were free. He wouldn’t let her drown! He wouldn’t!

Her face was underwater again as he came to the surface again, and he hauled her up, out of the water once more. “Jenny! You’ve got to help me, baby! I can’t do it alone! Jenny! Please!”

***

She heard a voice, far away, calling for her. It was Asher, begging her for help. She was so tired, but he needed her.

***

Jenny coughed and began to stir, her arms and legs fluttering weakly. Feeling her move gave him a surge of strength, and he kicked and paddled harder, trying to keep her face out of the water. “That’s it! Fight for it, Jenny! Fight for it!” She became aware of the water.
She was drowning!
Jenny exploded into motion, trying to climb up what she was clinging to, desperate to get out of the water.

***

Jenny came to life in a fury of motion, driving him under as she tried to rise up out of the water. As he went under, she followed, then released him, thrashing and splashing as she tried to keep her face out of the water. He came up beside her, spluttering. “Jenny!” he roared. “It’s alright! Calm down!”

Asher’s harsh voice broke through her panic, and she stopped struggling and began to tread water, swishing her arms back and forth. She was
free! I can swim!
As she got her breathing under control, her panic began to subside. She looked around her and realized it was an easy swim to land. Or would be if she could get out of these clothes.

“Asher! Help me get out of these pants!” she begged as she kicked off her sneakers.

Never before had he been so glad to have a woman ask him to help her get her pants off, and he began to laugh.

Epilogue

Jenny and Asher stood outside CCU, his arm around her waist as they looked through the glass. Her father was alive, but the tubes, needles, and wires spoke clearly of his condition. It has been two days since her near drowning, and she still shivered every time she thought about how close to death she had come.

They swam back to the house they started from and were met there by the police and paramedics. It had taken hours to sort out what had happened. She told her story over and over until the owner of the house appeared. He was Asian, as was her captor, but that was the only similarity. The man introduced to her as the owner of the home, Mr. Hamasaki, was at least thirty years older than the man she had assumed was the owner.

When her story failed to check out, the Miami police had bundled the lot of them down to the police station where she and Asher were finally released. Most of the rest of the Devils had to wait until the next morning for a bail hearing, held over on charges of discharging a firearm within the city limits.

“He’s going to be okay,” Asher said softly though he was sure of anything but. “He’s tough.”

“I know. Mom had tried to get him to step aside years ago, but he wouldn’t do it. He’s only fifty-seven. He shouldn’t have to go out like this.”

“And he won’t. He’ll be back at the clubhouse, kicking ass again before you know it.”

“I hope you’re right.”

“I am.”

They stood silent for a moment. “What are we going to do?”

“We are going to carry on. Now we know that there is a puppet master pulling the strings and this wasn’t some random act of violence. He has a plan. We have to figure out what it is and shut it down.”

“But how? And with Dad laid up…”

“The club is bigger than just your dad. But this has gotten personal. Before you were just a job, but after the boat… I realize you’re more than job. And I owe it to your dad. I promised to keep you safe, and I almost failed. That’s why he is in there now. I owe somebody... for what they did to you, and what they did to John. I intended to pay that debt—in person and in full.”

“Don’t you need to check with the club first?”

“No. They can help or not, but I’m doing this.”   

Jenny began to nod slowly. “I’m with you, no matter what happens. They took my mother from me, and they almost took my father as well. I owe them, too, and I intend to see that they pay for what they have done.”

“They will. I promise you that,” he said as he pulled her in a little tighter.

She watched her dad for a moment longer then turned away. She couldn’t stand to see his ashen face any longer. “Let’s go. I want to go by the clubhouse.”

“What? Why?”

“Because, the Heartless Devils is my Dad’s club. I may not be a member, but they are by God going to hear what I have to say.”

Asher smiled as they turned away from the window.
Daddy’s little princess? Not anymore.
Jenny is one lady he didn’t want to mess with. As they walked out of the hospital, he started making calls to round up the crew. This was something he wanted to see.  

Chapter 8

“Come on, Dad,” Jenny said as she opened the door to the Heartless Devils’ Chevrolet Tahoe.

It had been a bit over a week since her father had a heart attack while trying to rescue her from some very nasty business. He had suffered some significant heart damage, but after almost a week in the hospital, he was finally being released.

John Carter eased himself out of the wheelchair the orderly was holding and Jenny helped him into the front seat.

“Everyone is treating me like an old man,” John groused as Jenny shut the door.

“It’s because you
are
an old man,” Asher Lowe quipped from the driver’s seat with a grin. “Too damn old to be running around like you were.”

“I wouldn’t have been running if some asshole
hadn’t stolen my bike. Still, I guess I can’t be too mad since you used it to save my daughter.”

Jenny Carter crawled into the back of the SUV. “Well, the next time, take someone else’s bike. You’re the President after all!” she added.

“There had better not be a next time,” John replied solemnly.

“Amen to that, brother,” Asher agreed as he put the truck in gear and eased away from the curb.

“So tell me what’s been happening,” John said as they turned south toward the clubhouse. “Nobody would tell me
shit
when I was in the hospital.”

“Because everything is under control. Slovoski is running the club until you get back on your feet. You need to worry about one thing, and that’s getting better.” Asher looked at John and grinned. “You need to hurry it up, too. He’s starting to look mighty comfortable at the head of the table.”

John snorted. “We’ll see about that. The ticker might be acting up, but I’m not ready to hang up my jacket just yet.”

Jenny reached from the back seat and placed her hand on her father’s shoulder. “And nobody wants you to.”

“Especially after Jenny got done with them,” Asher added with another grin.

John twisted in his seat to look at her.

“The day after we were fished out of the drink, she showed up at the clubhouse and started kicking ass and taking names. By the time she finished, the entire club was jumping all over themselves to follow her orders. The John Carter genes run strong in that one,” Asher continued.

“I did not!” Jenny protested.

“The hell you say!” Asher replied with a chuckle. “You weren’t the one having to clean up the piss in the floor!”

“What did you say?” John asked her.

“Nothing! I just told them that my father wasn’t going to be laid up by something as minor as a heart attack, that you would be back, and if I heard even a whisper of doubt about that, they would have to answer to me.”

John added his chuckle to Asher’s as he glanced at the driver. “So how long did it take you to clean the floors?”

“Hours.”

“Here you go, Dad,” Jenny said as John carefully stepped out of the SUV. He wasn’t moving well, but he was moving.

“I think this is stupid! I am perfectly capable of staying by myself.”

“Not going to happen,” Asher said as he pulled open the heavy wooden door leading into the clubhouse.

Inside the room was a sea of black leather and smiling faces. The moment John stepped through, leading the way, the room broke into a loud roar of approval. The Boss was back!

John wouldn’t cry in front of this bunch, but the welcome made him want to. There had been a trickle of visitors to the hospital, but this show of support made it clear the entire club was behind him. He smiled broadly as he raised a hand in acknowledgement of the support, shaking hands and accepting light back-slapping hugs.

“Why are you bunch of losers here?” John asked as the ocean of black parted before him. “Isn’t there something you should be doing? This club doesn’t run itself, you know.”

The men chuckled but made no move to leave. They wanted to be here for the surprise.

Asher and Jenny guided John down the hall and turned him into the first room of the dorm as Asher shoved the door open and stepped back.

John made it two steps inside the room before he stopped and looked around. The dorms were set up with four rooms to each side of a hall with a bath between, and shared by every two rooms. But not this room, not anymore. The center wall had been knocked out between two rooms and the combined space had been converted in a cozy, if small, apartment consisting of a bedroom and living area. Fresh paint, new flooring and ceiling tiles, and some personal items from his house, made it home.

John swallowed hard and stepped into the room, Jenny and Asher following. Kenny Slovoski, the Vice-President of the club, and a few of his closest friends joined them.

“What do you think?” Jenny asked.

“Whose idea was this?” John asked, still shocked over the effort the club had made for him.

“It was Asher’s,” Kenny said. “We were talking about how to keep an eye on you for a while. Asher came up with the idea of opening a couple of the rooms up. Easier for everyone because there’s always someone around. The guys have been busting ass on it all week.”

John glanced around his room as Asher carried his bag into the bedroom. “I can’t thank you guys enough.”

“Hey… we’re the only club in Miami with a Presidential Suit. Just another reason why the HDs kick ass,” Kenny said with a grin. “Come upstairs. There is something else to show you.”

John led the way, slowly, up the steps to the offices, Asher one step behind in case he needed help. Gasping slightly, he made his way to his office, opening the door and stepping in. It was his office, but it had never looked so good. The wood in the room gleamed with fresh varnish and polish, the ratty carpet had been pulled up and hardwood had been put down in its place, and the entire room had received a fresh coat of paint.

“We’ve decided to spruce the entire place up, and we started here,” Kenny continued as John stood open mouthed in amazement. “No more cigars for you… so we figured we would clean the place up a little. One thing led to another and…”

John turned to look at his family. Not just Jenny, but the entire Heartless Devils Motorcycle Club. “I don’t know what to say.”

“How about ‘thank you’?” Jenny suggested with grin and a stage whisper.

Jenny looked up as the deacons clomped down the stairs. She smiled at the strange terms the club used – “deacons” for the group of men that guided the club, “attending chapel” for having a meeting. It was almost as if they didn’t want to admit they were a club… or maybe that was just a tongue-in-cheek way of poking fun at what they did.

“How’d it go?” Jenny asked as Asher approached. She may be the President’s daughter, but that didn’t give her access to the inner-workings of the club.

“I think we have a plan. Your dad is going to turn over most of the day-to-day operations to Slovoski… at least for a while.”

“That’s good.”

“Yeah. Ease him back into it. They have put me in charge of tracking down the ‘puppet master,’ as we call him. We have to find out what’s going on there.”

“That’s good, too.”

“Yeah. They wanted to pull me off your protection detail to focus on that, but I convinced them we were already stretched too thin. But there are going to be times when someone else is going to have to provide your protection.” Asher held up his hand to silence her budding protest. “It’s the way it has to be, Jenny. It’s either that or someone else entirely.”

Jenny fumed a moment, but then relaxed. “Okay, fine. Maybe I can help.”

“No. Absolutely not. You have enough on you plate with school. Besides, this is club business.”

“School will be out in just a few months, and I have a vested interest in finding out who this puppet master asshole is.”

Asher nodded. “And we will. But for now this is on the down low, okay? The last thing we want is to spook him.”

Jenny gave him a crooked grin. “What are you saying? Are you saying that I’m not subtle?”

“Of course you’re subtle. Like a bat to the side of the head.”