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

Chapter Eleven Lake

CHAPTER ELEVEN: LAKE

The following day, we set out early. Nora had coffee and breakfast sandwiches on bagels ready for us in the kitchen. As Nora bounces around the kitchen, Olivia and I eat sandwiches while chugging coffee. Olivia isn’t much of a morning person, and I can’t claim I am either. Nora, however, seems to be.

“What has made you so happy this morning?” Olivia asks her.

“The guys. They offered to set me up with a restaurant! Can you believe it? I’m terrified, but I’m also very excited. I dreamed of running a kitchen but figured it would take me years to earn enough money to invest in one.”

“I didn’t know Hex had already talked about it with you. That’s great. I’m glad you’re interested. We’ve all had your food and know your restaurant will be a success. It’s a good investment for us,” I tell her.

“I’ll make sure you don’t regret it,” Nora assures me. “I have so many ideas. Cleo said she’d help me find a location and help with the planning and remodeling. I’m just so excited and grateful to you guys. You’ve done so much for me. Letting me live here and pay for my keep by practicing my cooking. I can’t ever repay you.”

“Make us lots of money, and we’ll be happy.” I grin at her.

“Have you thought about a theme?” Olivia asks.

“Not yet. Cleo, Delphine, and I are going to brainstorm later today. I have so many ideas that I keep jumping around. Hopefully, they can rein me in and help me decide. Unless you guys wanted something specific? Hex didn’t say. Did you want the restaurant tied to the club? Like Zip’s tattoo parlor, Marked by Demon? Should I call it Demon Diner? If so, I can come up with a diner menu.” Nora’s excitement diminishes as she considers her options.

“Hey, don’t worry about that. Build the restaurant you want to build. We can figure out the name later. We don’t have to tie the name to the club.”

Nora smiles at me. “Okay, I’ll stop freaking out. I’m just so excited. But I’m also afraid I’ll let you down.”

I take her hand and squeeze it. “You could never let us down. You aren’t in this alone. We’ll all pitch in and help. We want you to succeed. Okay?”

“Okay.”

Olivia and I finish our breakfast and head outside. She goes to my bike, but I stop her.

“We have a two-hour ride ahead of us,” I tell her. “You haven’t ridden that long on the bike before. We can take the SUV. It’ll be more comfortable.”

She frowns and looks between the bike and the SUV. “I want to take the bike. I’ll be okay. May have to walk it off once we get there, but I’m looking forward to a long ride.”

“That’s my girl,” I tell her, placing her helmet on her head. We climb on my bike, and she wraps her arms around my waist. I take a minute to enjoy the feel of her wrapped around me—pure bliss.

To give Olivia a break, we stop at a gas station after an hour into our trip. I top off my tank while she walks off the stiffness.

“How are you doing? Sore?” I ask with a chuckle.

She smacks my arm. “Don’t laugh at me.”

“Do you want to use the restroom or get something to eat or drink before we keep going?”

“I’ll use the restroom.”

Taking her hand, I lead her inside the convenience store before going to the cashier to pay for my gas.

“We have surveillance cameras now,” the kid behind the counter tells me.

I frown at him. “Okay, good for you. Why the fuck are you telling me?”

“I don’t want any trouble. If you do anything, the owner will send the feed to the cops.”

“I’m just getting gas. What makes you think I’ll cause problems.”

“Because you and your friends stopped here a week ago and stole from us. They beat up my friend who was working that day. Called him a bunch of names and sent him to the hospital.”

“What the fuck? It wasn’t my friends or me. What did these guys look like? Were they wearing kuttes?” I finger my kutte.

“Yeah, had a bald eagle on the back.”

I turn and show him the Demon Dawgs logo. “Wasn’t us,” I repeat. “What did these guys look like?”

“I don’t know. I didn’t see them.”

I grab a piece of paper and write down Pirate’s number. “Call this guy. His name is Pirate. He’s with my club. Tell him Lake told you to call. Tell him about these guys and when they were here.”

The kid fingers the slip of paper before putting it in his pocket. “I won’t get in trouble for this?”

“No, kid, we just want the information. We had a run-in with these guys yesterday. We want to find them and convince them to move on.”

“Okay, I’ll call.”

Olivia comes out of the restroom as loud pipes echo outside. I step to the window and see three motorcycles riding past the gas station. Stepping outside, I rush to the street to look at them, but they’re too far away.

Olivia’s already at my bike with her helmet strapped.

“Were those the guys we saw yesterday at Francois’ restaurant?”

“I don’t know. I think so, but I didn’t get a good look at them.” I tell her about what the kid inside said about the attack on his coworker.

“We’re over an hour away from Francois’ restaurant. Is it normal for a motorcycle club to cover so much territory?”

I shrug. “Depends on the club and the area. Some clubs own entire towns and the surrounding area. New Orleans is big, so I wouldn’t be surprised if more than one club wants in. Puma’s club in Las Vegas owns all of Vegas, but he has another club in Vegas that they’re allied with—the Shadow Bornes. The Demon Dawgs own San Diego because that’s our mother chapter. Dante’s father and grandfather made sure no other clubs took root. We’re new to New Orleans. We don’t have the numbers to take over the whole city. But so far, we’ve only seen three members of this club. If it’s the same club and if it’s the same guys. They may be starting out. Pirate and Abra are digging into them. We’ll know more when they’ve gathered the info. Come on, let’s go.”

She climbs on behind me, and we continue our journey to the Terrebonne Parish, where our tribe lives and works. Unlike other tribes, the government doesn’t recognize the United Houma Nation. Therefore, where the tribe lives isn’t considered tribal land. We’ve been trying to gain recognition and territorial rights but haven’t succeeded. Yet. The chief has made great strides toward this goal since he took over. Our people make a hard living in the bayou. They earn a living off fishing, trapping, shrimping, and crabbing. No one knows the bayou better than my people.

As we approach our land, I feel Olivia shifting behind me as she takes in the lush surroundings. Our neighborhoods don’t have the typical suburban feel. Most everyone lives deep in the bayou, but that doesn’t stop our tribe from maintaining close ties within the community. We have a few homes further inland for those who don’t rely on the bayou for their livelihood. The main street houses the schools, library, general store, and a handful of homes. The tribe’s chief lives in one of these homes.

He lives across the street from the public school and library. Growing up, I used to think he chose that location to keep an eye on all the kids. Later, I found out I was right. But he didn’t do it for nefarious purposes. He watched the kids like any grandfather would watch his grandkids with pride and an eye for trouble. His house was large but not the largest on the street. That belonged to Dr. Solon. I knew from Toff that Dr. Solon hardly stayed in the house, not after the death of his wife. He has a daughter who was around Toff’s age. I don’t know what has happened to her. I hadn’t seen her since she was sixteen before I joined the Army.

His door opens when I park in front of the chief’s house. Toff comes outside to greet us. A young woman with him. She has the same long black hair, sculptured cheekbones, and copper skin tone enjoyed by most of the tribe. She looks familiar, but I can’t place her. Besides, my attention immediately goes to the two men behind her, Coyote, the chief, and his brother, Crow.

Coyote is scowling at me as I swing off my bike before offering my hand to Olivia.

“What the fuck are you doing here?” Coyote snarls at me.

Olivia stumbles as she disembarks. Likely surprised by the venom in his tone. I steady her before taking her helmet, ignoring the chief as he approaches me. With my arm around Olivia, I turn to face the leader of our tribe. “Hello, Dad. Nice to see you, too.”