“Isn’t that the motorcycle you’ve had a hard-on for, but couldn’t bring yourself to buy?”
Jewell gave Shade a scathing glance. “I don’t have Rider’s financial resources.”
Shade raised an eyebrow. “Remember I’m the one who prints out the paychecks.”
“It’s hard for me to justify another bike when I have a perfectly good one.”
“I bet it’ll be much easier to justify after you take a few test rides.”
She narrowed her eyes on Shade. Was there anything going on in the club that Shade was unaware of?
When Nickel’s face turned a sickly shade of yellow, Jewell knew her late-night joy rides were over.
Rider set his cell phone back down with a suspicious glance at her.
Turning her attention back to her food, Jewell saw Rory hiding his amusement as he talked to Cash.
She had just finished eating when Viper and Reaper rose from their booth. As one, the other brothers rose from the table to follow them out of the door as Knox took care of the bill.
Taking out his phone, Viper pulled up a street map. “Reaper, Silas, Moses, and I will be in his truck on the adjacent street. The rest of you will park your vehicles on the other surrounding side streets. Try to park where you can get a view of Incog’s house. If you can’t, do the best you can. Keep your radio on so we can monitor what’s going on.”
Viper switched his attention from the map to Rory and her. “Jewell and Rory, your main objective is just get inside the house. Once you’re in there, make an excuse to leave, and we’ll take it from there.”
Jewell looked at Viper in confusion. “You don’t want us to try to get the layout of the house?”
“That’s all I need you to do. I don’t want to put either of you in danger more than I need to.”
“But yesterday, the plan was—”
“I can handle myself.” Rory seemed just as confused. “If the change is because of your concern for Jewell, I think I can manage to get inside of the house without her.”
Viper’s expression hardened. “I don’t want to take the chance Incog won’t open the door. Getting the door opened is your main objective, got it?”
Jewell nodded without understanding.
Seeing they were no longer opposing his order, Viper gave a curt nod to the group. “Load up.”
Jewell walked beside Rory as they made their way back to his car, which was still sitting in the hotel parking lot.
“What in the fuck was that?” he asked.
“I have no idea,” Jewell muttered, afraid Viper would hear.
Once in his SUV, Jewell buckled her seat belt.
“Nervous?” He glanced at her as he backed the SUV out of the parking spot.
Jewell shook her head. “No.”
“Getting in might be easy, but don’t be fooled. Leaving without giving Incog what he wants is going to be easier said than done.”
“Maybe,” she noncommittedly agreed. Despite Rory’s warning, she still couldn’t find it within herself to be frightened. “Somehow, I think Viper has a plan going on without our knowledge.”
“Like what?”
“I have no fucking clue. It isn’t like Viper to change his plans on a dime. Something else is going on.”
“Damn. It would be nice to know.”
None of The Last Riders pulled out of the parking lot until Rory did. Then, one by one, they drove after them.
“Yes, it would be. But I trust Viper. He’s doing what he thinks needs to be done to keep us, and Elizabeth, safe.”
“Who were the two men who showed up at the restaurant?”
Jewell closed her eyes in embarrassment. “I’m sorry. I forgot to introduce you. They are Ginny’s brothers—Reaper’s brothers-in-law—Silas and Moses.”
“Are they Last Riders?”
“No.”
“Then why are they here?”
“That’s the same question I asked Shade,” she told him.
“What did he say?”
“He told me to ask Viper.”
“Did you?”
“I didn’t have time.”
“You can’t think of any reason they would be here?”
Jewell shook her head, still puzzled as to the reason. “No, I have no idea.”
The oddity of Viper staying with Silas and Moses as they took point instead of choosing other Last Riders was confusing in itself. That they were being so secretive about the reason made it even more unusual.
Driving to the address that Incog had provided took ten minutes. As they neared it, she saw the houses go from being close together to further apart.
“This is the street. We’re looking for 104 Winding Way,” Rory told her.
Jewell started reading off mailboxes, reading the house numbers. She pointed toward the left. “That should be it.”
Rory pulled into the driveway, and they both looked at the house next to the address that Incog had given them. The front yard had a swing set and a child’s electric car.
“Fuck,” Jewell swore, sick to her stomach that children lived next to the man who wanted to whip her bloody.
“My sentiments exactly.”
He turned the SUV off, and they got out of the car to walk sedately to the front door.