Train wanted to defy Viper’s order and go to Ohio. It was hard to stand idly by as each of the members awoke and learned what had happened that morning.

“Do you think Sasha will get mad if I borrow her new black dress?” Stori came up from behind him, running her hand over his ass.

He shoved himself away from her, moving to the other side of the counter. “What do you think?”

“Sorry,” she mumbled, escaping into the kitchen.

Jewell took the whisky bottle away from Viper, refilling Train’s glass for him. “You going to make us all pay for Killyama stabbing you in the back?”

He gave a humorless smile. “No. It wasn’t the first time I ever got stabbed.” Train almost spilled his drink onto the jacket he had laid there. The night she had been cold, he had tried to get her to wear it. She wasn’t worthy to touch him or the jacket now. “But it will be the last time.”

13

“Get your ass off my bike. I told you last night I had nothing to say to you.”

Killyama got off Shade’s bike, snidely asking, “You have any luck getting Sasha out of jail yet?”

“No, but if you came to gloat, you’re barking up the wrong tree. You need to leave before anyone comes out and sees you. I can guarantee Hammer and Jonas won’t be enough to pull them off you.”

“They aren’t here. They’re asleep in their hotel room. They told me I’m wasting my time.”

“They’re right.”

“Where are you going?”

Shade remained silent, getting on his bike and starting the motor.

“Fine, don’t answer. You can say hi to Sasha when they arrest your ass.” Killyama turned and started walking toward the SUV she had parked at the convenience store across the street.

Shade rode his bike across the street, waiting for her to reach him.

“You could have offered me a ride.”

“I thought you don’t ride with married men?”

“I’m tired,” she excused. “I haven’t slept in two nights.”

“I bet Train isn’t getting much sleep tonight, either.” Shade’s penetrating blue eyes studied her reaction as Killyama winced while thinking about how the women would be helping Train repair his wounded pride.

“I thought of a way to help Sasha,” she spoke quickly, trying to keep him from reading too much.

“What? Have her plead to the charge? Or throw her to the mercy of the court?”

“You haven’t been able to find a lawyer in Ohio?” she asked, ignoring his stab.

“No.”

Killyama reached into her pocket then gave him a card. “He’ll help, but he’s expensive.”

Shade took the card, shoving it into his jacket pocket without even looking at it. “I hope you’re not expecting me to say thanks.”

“No.” Killyama gave him a wry smile. “It doesn’t matter which lawyer you get. The DA has an air tight case against her, which is why Diamond hasn’t been able to get the charges dropped. Until you can find some new evidence, Sasha is only going to be a memory for the next five to seven years.”

“What’s your idea?”

“Kane still has one of the necklaces he accused Sasha of stealing. He has it stashed at his father’s house. There’s no breaking in there; you’ll get caught before you get a foot inside the gate.”

Shade didn’t seem surprised, and he was still listening. “I don’t get caught.”

“You will. Jonas says there is no getting past the security. It doesn’t make a difference anyway. You can’t steal them then take them to the police. You can’t tell them you stole them from him, even if you tell the police or Sasha’s lawyer the jewelry is there. They have to have probable cause to get a search warrant.” Killyama took a deep breath, relieving the tension that had been building as she talked. “Once a week, Kane goes golfing.”

“Crash will be relieved that he hasn’t lost his touch. You’re not telling me anything we don’t know.”

“Did you know Kane’s not actually golfing? He borrows the caddy to drive over to a small hotel that has a massage parlor attached.”

Shade turned off his motor. “How did you find this out?”

“One of Kane’s ex-girlfriends told me. She managed to get ahold of his burner phone when they were dating while he was taking a shower. He had told Cassandra the extra phone was for clients; that he was dappling in real estate. What he has been dappling in is hookers.

“While Kane’s at the massage parlor, Hammer, Jonas, and I are going to try to grab his burner phone as an insurance policy. We don’t know what’s on it, so I don’t want to put all of our eggs in that basket. What I suggest is you break into Kane’s car at the golf course. Cassandra said he keeps the gate opener to his father’s house on the window visor. He’s on vacation in the Hamptons, by the way, and the staff is off. Kane keeps his keys in the console. Apparently, he doesn’t even take his wallet into the massage parlor. He pays in cash.”

“Like you said, I can’t take the jewelry.”

“You won’t have to. Just arrange for it to be seen easily. The cops won’t need a search warrant if the jewelry is in plain sight when the police and the fire department put out the fire you set.”

“Sounds like you have everything all planned out. What I don’t understand is what you need me for? You, Hammer, and Jonas can do this on your own. If you think you’re going to win points from Train, you won’t. He hates you right now. The whole club does. You’ve broken a friendship with the Destructors, and the fallout will affect Beth, Lily, and Diamond, too. Viper ordered them not to have any association with you.”

Killyama didn’t blink an eye, knowing any response she made would be recounted to The Last Riders.

“Dude, is that supposed to get me upset? I don’t give a fuck about The Last Riders, and if Beth, Lily, and Diamond listen to Viper, that’s on them, not me. The only fallout I need you to care about is when the shit hits the fan, and daddy big bucks comes racing back from his vacation. Then you make sure it doesn’t get swept under the rug. To do that, it’s going to take lots of money and finesse. You wouldn’t have caught Lily’s attention if you couldn’t handle that. The dude whose card I gave you can help you and will point you in the right direction.”

“I take it he wants his own cut?” Shade took the card out of his pocket to look at it. “He’s not a lawyer? How can a Professor of Economics at the university help?”

“He has money and connections, and he’s running for mayor. He’s trying to get into politics, but two things have stopped him: Kane’s father and the current mayor. If Yates helps us, it eliminates daddy big bucks who holds the mayor’s purse strings. One thing Kentucky and Ohio have in common is the good ol’ boy system. Yates wants to prove corruption in the courts system and slide into home plate. But does it really matter as long as Sasha gets out?”

“Moon will be all over this plan. The mayor has been breathing down his neck ever since he found out his daughter wasn’t the virgin she was pretending to be.”