Lake’s Legacy (Demon Dawgs MC: New Orleans #3)

Chapter Nine Lake

CHAPTER NINE: LAKE

I chuckle at Hex’s expression when Cleo compliments Francois. We’re all jealous fuckers when it comes to our women. We don’t like them noticing other men exist, much less complimenting them.

“I’ll place your order,” Francois says, smirking at Hex’s obvious irritation. “I hear little Nora is close to graduating. Michael will be sad to see her leave.”

“How do you know Nora?” Abra asks, glaring at Francois.

“My husband Michael is her teacher at the culinary school. He feels like a father to that little girl. I’ve offered her a position here once she graduates.”

I frown at his comment. Only this morning did we discuss setting up a restaurant for Nora as another source of income for the club. None of us considered she might have other options that she’s pursuing. I glance at Dixie and nod. If we want to keep Nora, we should talk to her soon.

“We’re very proud of her, too,” Delphine tells Francois. “We’re also very grateful to have been her taste testers.”

When Francois leaves, Hex turns to Dixie. “We should talk to Nora when we return to the clubhouse.” Dixie nods.

“Talk to her about what?” Delphine asks.

“We were discussing new business opportunities during Church. We thought we’d see if Nora wanted to partner with us in opening a new restaurant. The club needs more income, and I know a restaurant with her as head chef would do well.”

“That’s a great idea!” Cleo exclaims. “I think she’d jump at the opportunity. It’s something she’s always wanted. Let’s hurry up and eat so we can return to the clubhouse. I can’t wait to work with her! We can look for a good location and then get everything set up. Oh, this is going to be so much fun!”

Hex smirks at Cleo when she pulls out her phone and gets busy.

“What are you doing?” Hex asks her.

“I’m contacting my realtor. He needs to find us some properties to look at.”

“Don’t you think we should talk to Nora first?” Delphine asks with a chuckle.

Cleo’s crestfallen expression has Hex sending a dirty look toward his mother.

“It won’t hurt for you to have him get started,” Hex tells Cleo.

“No, Delphine’s right. We need to talk to Nora first. But I’m certain she’ll say yes. I know how much she loves you guys. She’ll be thrilled to know how much confidence you have in her. Besides, we should probably discuss the type of restaurant we want to open before we start looking at locations.’

“You’re opening a restaurant?” Francois asks, coming into the courtyard carrying two plates. Behind him are a series of waitstaff carrying food and drinks. Francois lays one plate in front of Cleo and the other in front of Hex. At the same time, his staff serves everyone else. Once the staff leaves, Cleo explains.

“We’re talking about the Demon Dawgs investing in a restaurant,” Cleo explains. “The club already owns a bar. They think a restaurant would be a good investment.”

Francois nods. “It can be. I'd be interested in selling if you were looking for an established restaurant. Or, if you wanted to invest.”

Cleo looks scandalized. “Why? You’ve owned this restaurant since I was a kid.”

He waves his hands to stop Cleo from asking questions. “I shouldn’t have mentioned it. Now is not the time to discuss business. Now is the time to eat and enjoy your food. We can talk later. Please, enjoy your meal.”

Once Francois leaves, Cleo picks up her fork but only toys with her food.

“Eat,” Hex orders her.

She eats a few bites while we dig into our meal. It’s a delicious pasta dish with chunks of lobster, basil, and sun-dried tomatoes swimming in a rich, cheesy sauce.

“This is excellent,” Hex says, his eyes on Cleo. She nods.

“I’ve always loved Francois’ food. I can’t understand why he’s looking to sell. He can’t be having money troubles.”

“Don’t let it ruin your meal. You can talk to him about it when we’ve finished,” Hex prods. He glances around the table, likely looking for a way to distract Cleo. His eyes land on Pirate.

“I’ve accessed the network,” Pirate says. “Want to see what I found?”

“Yes,” Hex says as Pirate turns his laptop around so we can all see the screen. Olivia sits next to Pirate, so she has the best view. However, I can see enough to know he’s pulled up the video feed for the hospital parking lot. I spot Olivia’s car. I can see the silly cat ornament hanging down.

“Now watch,” Pirate says. He hits the spacebar to start the paused black-and-white video. The lights on Olivia’s car flash just before a man wearing scrubs, a mask, and a surgery cap comes into view. He opens the car door before reaching inside and popping the hood. Opening the hood, he leans inside before slamming the hood shut and walking out of view.

“I tried following him into the hospital but lost him inside.”

Olivia nods. “He used my keys, didn’t he? So, how did he get them? They were in my purse in the women’s locker room.”

“I’ll study the video when we get back to the clubhouse. However, I counted dozens of staff members going in and out of the women’s locker room before they tampered with her car until Olivia left.”

“What about when I went to take my shower?” Olivia asks. “I had my phone with me all day. Someone could have taken it only when I was in the shower.”

“Good thinking. Okay, I see you enter. Let’s see. Yeah, eight people went in and out while you were in there. Do you recognize any of them?”

He plays the video for Olivia.

“Sylvia and Joyce both went in during that time. Could have been one of them.”

“It could also be someone she doesn’t know,” I say. “If someone is working with these guys, they could be dressed in scrubs, too, but not be on staff.”

“When we return to the clubhouse, I’ll play around with the footage to see if I can get IDs on the other women. I’ll also track the guy through the hospital. Might get a look at him without the gear or see who he interacts with,” Pirate offers as he shuts his laptop and slides it into his messenger bag.

“Let’s get back then,” Hex says, pulling out his wallet.

“I want to use the restroom before we go,” Cleo says, standing up. Delphine and Olivia follow her inside.

Hex digs out eight one hundred dollar bills and tosses them on the table to cover the tab and tip. We move to the lobby to wait for the women. I glance around the restaurant and see every table full of people enjoying their meal. We’ve moved past the lunch hour and are well into the dead period between lunch and dinner, yet the restaurant’s packed. I spy several Tulane staff members, including the woman I had accosted while searching for Olivia the previous night. She’s having a late lunch with someone I assume is a doctor, going by his expensive suit. Why did Francois approach us about investing in his restaurant? He seems to be doing well enough. I may recommend that we take Francois’ offer seriously. If due diligence proves he’s doing as well as I think, creating a partnership would be a no-brainer.

My phone pings. Toff. Shit.

“What?” I answer.

“Are you on your way?” he asks.

“No. Something came up. I’m still coming, but probably not until tomorrow.”

When Toff doesn’t respond, I check to see if we’re still connected.

“Please come. The tribe needs your help, not just the medical shit. Something’s going on. I don’t know what to do about it.”

“Like what?”

“I can’t tell you everything over the phone. Some members of the tribe are having trouble with outsiders. I don’t know how or why, but I know this relates to the clinic attack. I need you to come check things out. I could use a second opinion, especially from someone who understands how these people think.”

I frown at his comment. “What does that mean? How the tribe thinks? You know them better than I do.” I’d been off tribal land ever since the day after graduation. I may have gone back to visit, but I never spent more than a few hours with either Toff or our father. And I never spent time with anyone else within the tribe. That wasn’t my life any longer. The Demon Dawgs are my family now.

“Not the tribe. There’s a group of white men who are harassing our people. They’ve made threats against at least two of them. Maybe more. We don’t know what the fuck they’re after. I thought you could figure it out.”

“Because I’m a criminal?”

“No, because you’re part of a motorcycle club. So are they. I think. At least they ride around on bikes and wear the same type of vests you do.”

“Kuttes,” I correct him as I consider what he’s telling me. “Do they have a club logo on the back?”

“I don’t know. I haven’t seen them. Just know they’re bad news.”

Suddenly, Hex and the others bolt down the hallway. What the fuck?

“Yeah, I’ll be there tomorrow morning. Gotta go.”