Jackson (MC Sinners #7)

23 – Jackson

“ T here’s some beat-up guy here for you,” Muff says, approaching me at the desk where I’m still frantically searching for Serenity.

We can’t find her, but Hound has made it clear he has demands, and we’re not getting her back until we give in. He’s careful, making sure we can’t get close enough to catch him. He wants us to step down, to hand over this territory and leave town.

He’s delusional.

But we’re running out of time.

“What?” I snap, glaring at Muff.

“There’s a guy out front asking for you, he’s all beat-up, said it’s urgent...”

“Damn it.”

I throw my phone down and head out of the clubhouse to the front gates, where a man in his late twenties is standing, his face swollen and bruised, a phone in his hand, and an expression I can’t quite read. He looks almost scared.

“What do you want?” I bark, my mood sour.

“Are you Jackson?”

I nod sharply.

He exhales, slowly turning his phone toward me. “Please don’t kill me.”

I’m about to ask what he’s talking about when I hear her voice coming from the phone. Her sweet voice. My hand lashes out, and I take the phone, staring at the video of her. I can barely see her in the dim room, maybe a basement, and she looks exhausted.

I focus on her words.

“Hey Jacks, it’s me. I’m okay, I promise. I need you to help Walker. He knows where I am and can help get me out, but you have to promise to help him. Please, Jackson, this is the only way. I love you.”

My eyes snap back to the man in front of me, and I growl, “You better start talking.”

He nods, taking the phone back and begins explaining. “My name is Walker, and don’t kill me, but I’m Hound’s son.”

I reel back, eyes widening, fists clenching.

He talks quickly. “I’m not on his side. I’ve never been on his side, but he promised to get me out of some trouble if I helped him. My job was to watch Serenity. I never hurt her. I fed her, gave her water, and she promised if I help her, you’ll help me...”

It takes everything not to grab this guy and shake him, but if he’s telling the truth, he knows where Serenity is. The message he played seemed legit, not forced.

“How do I know this isn’t a setup to get me where your father wants?”

“I can’t prove anything except that Serenity is okay. I’m begging you to believe me. I have no ties to that man, and I don’t care what happens to him. I just want to be free.”

I grit my teeth and stare at him.

“He did that to your face?”

He nods. “Because I told him not to kill Serenity and that he was making the wrong choice.”

“Tell me where she is.”

“She’s in a basement at an old house his brother owns, about twenty minutes away. I can get you there, but I need to know your plan. My father is smart, he won’t go down without a fight.”

He’s right.

Everything in me wants to charge in and get her, but that risks all our lives.

“Come inside, we’ll talk.”

“I can’t,” he says. “It’s risky I’m here as it is.”

Turning, I wave a hand and one of my guys walks over. “Find Spike and Cade,” I order.

He leaves, and a minute later, Spike and Cade appear by my side. I go over everything Walker told me, showing them the video. After watching it, Spike’s eyes meet mine. “Is this legit?”

“I don’t know,” I say, narrowing my eyes at Walker, “But it’s all we’ve got.”

“You’re messing with the wrong club if you’re lying,” Spike growls.

Walker nods. “I know.”

“We need a plan, and we need it now,” I say.

“I have an idea that could deal with both our problems,” Cade murmurs, eyes narrowing.

“I’m listening.”

“We need to take Gerard and Hound down. Why not do it together? We’ll arrange for Hound to meet us to discuss terms, but Gerard will show up. They’ll clash, and the police will arrive. Gerard might squeal, but Hound won’t want to be the only one taken. It could work if they both go down.”

I purse my lips. “Could work, but it could also go wrong.”

“Jackson’s right, Hound might just kill Gerard on the spot and take off,” Spike adds.

“If Gerard has something to offer him,” Walker suggests.

“What could Gerard offer Hound?” I mutter.

“Loyalty. Insight.”

I shake my head. “It won’t work.”

“It might if Gerard thinks Hound can help him get away from us,” Cade says, crossing his arms. “If he’s the man I think he is, he’ll offer Hound a deal to escape the situation.”

Gerard is cocky enough to try.

“It seems obvious,” Walker says. “Hound is smart, he’ll sniff out a trap, but if this ‘Gerard’ got away, and Hound caught him, it might work.”

“How do we get them both in the same place?” I ask. “We need them removed from the situation.”

“Hound will take him back to where Serenity is. He’ll think he’s got the upper hand and be cocky. When they’re there, I’ll let you know, and the police can come. There won’t be a way for him to escape then.”

That’s a better plan.

The only one with hope of working.

“Not sure we want either of them to live after this,” Spike mutters.

“We’ll deal with that when they’re behind bars,” I mutter. “For now, we need to get her back.”

“So, we have a plan?”

We all look at Walker. “Can you get word to your father that we’re looking for Gerard because he took off? If he thinks he can find him...”

Walker nods. “You let him escape. I’ll make sure Hound gets him.”

This better work.

It has to.

"LET ME GO," GERARD yells, struggling against the chains on his arms, growing angrier by the minute in our basement.

His sister sits silently, unsure of her fate. She knows what her brother did, and I can see in her eyes that it has shattered her. I feel a pang of sympathy, but I can’t risk letting her go yet.

Not yet, at least.

"Shut up," I snarl, marching over to haul him up. "You're not leaving until you're behind bars where you belong."

"I won't let you do this," he bellows. "I refuse."

"You don’t have a choice. Sit still so I can fix these damn chains."

He ceases his writhing, chest heaving with heavy breaths as he glares at me. I wish I cared. My sole focus is getting Serenity back. I'll use this bastard to do it, no matter the cost. Even if it kills him, it's no concern of mine.

I unlock the chains to adjust them when chaos erupts outside, just as planned. My head snaps around as a gunshot echoes. Gerard’s sister jerks, looking around frantically. Another shot rings out. It’s just Cade outside, firing a gun, while everyone yells obscenities. But it’s enough.

"Jackson!" Spike bellows.

"Damn," I curse, dropping Gerard’s arms and rushing out.

I pull the door closed behind me, making sure it doesn’t latch properly in my haste to leave.

We let the chaos continue a bit longer until it grows quiet again, then head inside. By now, Gerard will have realized that he’s not completely secured. I didn’t fully undo his chains, just one arm, but with that free, he can gradually unscrew the bolt from the wall and pull the chain off. He’ll have to drag it with him, but that’s intentional.

"You think it’ll work?" Spike asks once we’re inside the club.

"It’ll work. Let’s ride. He needs to believe he can escape."

"Think the sister will go to the cops?"

I shrug. "Even if she does, what can she say? We abducted her and forced her brother to confess to murder? I doubt she’ll do it unless he persuades her. Either way, it’s a problem for another day."

"Fair point. Let’s move."

We mount our bikes and roar out, the loud engines echoing through the compound. Gerard will hear it and make his move. If he’s smart—and he is—he’ll seize the first chance to flee. It's his nature; he's slippery like a snake.

We ride to a prearranged spot with Walker, waiting for him. He had one job: ensure Hound knew we were looking for Gerard and that he was crucial to us. Hound will exploit any leverage he can find. If he thinks he can gain more, he'll try.

Walker’s role is to spot Gerard leaving the club and call it in. Hound will take it from there. It’s a perfect plan, provided Walker's as loyal as he claims. If not, it could backfire, but if he is, then he’s a weapon Hound won’t see coming.

His loyal son, the ultimate act of betrayal.

Walker arrives within the hour, stepping out of a car different from the one he drove yesterday. He approaches, slipping the burner phone we gave him into his pocket, and stops in front of us, arms crossed. "He got him."

The relief almost makes me shout.

"Did he suspect anything?" Spike asks, taking a drag on his cigarette.

Walker shakes his head. "No. I’ve been keeping an eye on your club when not taking care of Serenity, so he didn’t suspect I'd be there for no reason. I told him I overheard some members talking about searching for Gerard. Then, I just happened to be watching the club when Gerard sneaked out. I called him, and the rest is history."

Perfect.

This could work.

It might be our way to eliminate them both.

"What’s our next move?" Muff murmurs, eyes on Walker.

"We wait until he has Gerard at the house. Then Walker will make Serenity call the police, claiming she’s been kidnapped. They’ll trace the location, storm in, and take them down."

"What if Gerard runs?" Muff worries.

"He won't. He’ll try twisting it to his advantage, claiming Hound kidnapped him too. But I'll ensure a cop gets the recording before they go in," I growl, fists clenching.

I want nothing more than to kill them both, but we can’t risk anything happening to Serenity right now.

Once they’re in prison, though, it’s fair game.

They won’t last long enough to escape.

No.

We’ll make sure they breathe their last behind bars.

I vow it.