Not Constructive: Red Eyes MC Series Book #6 Read online

  There were more nods around the club. Grant stepped forward again and started assigning people different stakeout positions so that we could gather the information that we needed. By the end of the meeting, I felt a lot better about the way that the club was headed, as did a lot of the people there, I was sure.

  “It feels like things are getting back to normal,” Grant said as the meeting came to a close and members started filing out the door. He sighed and leaned against the arm of the couch next to me. “But you were pretty quiet.”

  I shrugged.

  The truth was, now that I knew what was happening to the club, that everything was all sorted out there, just like I had hoped, my mind had jumped to other topics. Again, I was thinking back to the previous day. Had I done the right thing? Should I have fought harder to get that meeting with Braxton and Grant moved to a different day?

  It sounded like we still weren’t going to take action against Lex, so what would another day have hurt? Braxton had threatened that if we didn’t meet yesterday, he wasn’t going to talk to us ever again, but I had my doubts about that now. Especially if he was so sure that he didn’t want to be president of the club and that he needed Grant’s help to come up with a plan of action.

  They’d both just selfishly wanted the meeting to be the previous day, and I was the one who ended up getting screwed over by it.

  I should have been glad that they had at least agreed to meet, but I couldn’t find that happiness inside of me. I was still just frustrated, more than anything else. Maybe staying in the club hadn’t been the right call at all.

  But I had made that decision, and now I had to live with it.

  My phone started ringing, cutting off whatever Grant was about to say. I frowned when I saw that it was Lex’s number. Was he watching me now? Did he know that I was at the clubhouse? That we had just finished up this meeting? Maybe he had a rat, someone on the inside who was feeding him information. Maybe he knew that Grant and Braxton had managed to put aside their differences and he was ready to come to an agreement with the club again.

  I didn’t think things were going to be that simple, though. Not when it came to Lex.

  “It’s Lex,” I said to Grant and Braxton so that they would know to stick around for a minute. Then, I answered the phone.

  “Hello, Cameron,” Lex said pleasantly. “How are things going with the club? Or with your broken club, that is?”

  I wanted to tell him that the club was no longer broken and that we had come back together. But I also didn’t want to tell him any more information than I had to. Let him figure it out on his own. Until he figured it out, we had a little bit of an advantage on him. We weren’t as weak as he thought that we were.

  Lex just laughed as I stayed silent, though. “I just wanted to let you know that I’m about to take your girlfriend’s kid out of school early today. I’m here to pick him up now. What was the boy’s name again? Sam Blalock?”

  “Leave Sam out of this,” I said as coldly as I could. But I knew the note of worry was obvious in my voice.

  “But why should I?” Lex asked. “You fucked with my life. Let me fuck with yours.”

  He hung up before I could reply to that.

  “What did he want?” Grant asked immediately.

  “Come on,” I said. “I need you guys to come with me. I’ll explain on the way.” I was already halfway to the door before either of them had moved. I was mindless in my need to get to the school and get to Sam before Lex could do anything to the boy.

  Should I call Tara? God, she was going to kill me if something happened to Sam because of me. I remembered what she had said before, how Lex couldn’t do anything to Sam while he was at school because he was always with his teacher. I hadn’t thought about the fact that Lex might try to find a way to get him away from his teacher.

  I knew that schools usually had a list of people who were allowed to pick up certain students, but I wouldn’t put it past Lex to find a way onto Sam’s list as an uncle or some other relation. Or he might bribe them or threaten them with a gun if they wouldn’t release Sam. I wouldn’t put anything past him.

  I hadn’t done my job in keeping the club safe, and I hadn’t done my job at keeping Tara and Sam safe either. What the hell was I thinking?

  I was stretched too thin. I knew that. There was no way that I could look out for everyone. There was no way I could focus on the club while at the same time focusing on Tara and her son and their safety. But that was no excuse. Yet again, I had made too many commitments, and they were coming back to bite me in the ass.

  I couldn’t call Tara. She would kill me. But more than that, I was sure that she would call the police, just like she had threatened to do when she said that she didn’t need me there to protect her anymore. Then, she would have to explain why Lex was after her son, and she was sure to tell them that I was with Red Eyes and that I was the reason why Sam was in danger. The next thing I knew, I would have the sheriff after me, desperate to find any way to send me to jail.

  I didn’t want the police involved in this. We had learned before that Lex would just get off on all the charges, and if he pulled that again, he would continue to be a problem while I couldn’t be any help to Grant.

  No, we needed to handle this ourselves. Us and Lex. Once and for all. We needed to show him that we weren’t to be messed with, that it was in his best interest to reinstate that agreement that he’d had with Ray. And we needed to do it now.

  I honestly didn’t know what it was that Lex was playing at. Why take Sam? Why target me of all of the people in Red Eyes? He knew that I wasn’t the leader of the club. I was just the treasurer. Taking me out of the picture would be an inconvenience for Braxton and Grant. That was all. Unless he thought that in taking me out, he could confuse our books enough that he would be able to take over more of our businesses in the interim?

  But that was a stretch. I couldn’t see him getting our most loyal businesses to start paying dues to him, no matter what kind of threats he gave them.

  I just had to make sure that Sam was safe. And I had to keep Tara from hearing about any of this.

  But then, I started thinking about it from her point of view. If Sam was my kid, I would want to know exactly what was happening. And maybe she could call over to the school and make sure that they didn’t release Sam to anyone. Maybe she needed to know.

  Besides, I wasn’t sure that I could live with the guilt of not telling her about this. It was bad enough that I had gotten her and Sam involved in this. I didn’t want to lie to her as well. Her son was in danger, and she deserved to know.

  I had to tell her. I pulled out my phone and started dialing, even as I raced toward the school.

  36

  Tara

  Maddie looked worried when I came in to work on Tuesday. “What are you doing here?” I asked in surprise. “You aren’t on the schedule for today.”

  “I know,” Maddie said. “But I assumed you could use a little company.”

  “I’m fine,” I said, even though I knew there was no way that she would believe that.

  Sure enough: “Bullshit. If you were fine, then you wouldn’t be wearing your blouse inside out.”

  I blushed when I looked down and saw that she was right. But I shook my head. “I have a five-year-old son who I have to get ready for school first thing in the morning,” I reminded her. “Sometimes, things are a little hectic around the house. It doesn’t mean that I’m not fine.”

  “All right,” Maddie said, shrugging. “So what ended up happening yesterday? Everything okay?”

  I bit my lip and looked away from her. “Cameron didn’t show up at the school for Parents Day like he had promised,” I told her. “Or he didn’t show up there on time, anyway. He says that he showed up a little while later, but I had already taken Sam home by that point.”

  “Oh man, little Sammy must have been so upset,” Maddie said. “I know how much not having a dad bothers him.”

  “Yeah.” I sighed.
“He cried so much that even after ice cream, he went home and napped until dinnertime.”

  “Poor thing,” Maddie said. She paused. “But you said that Cameron told you he showed up there. So you talked to him?”

  “He showed up at the house, just after I had put Sam down for a nap,” I said. “He wanted to tell Sam that he was sorry.”

  “You didn’t let him, did you?” Maddie asked, sounding worried. “I mean, it’s kind of good that he wanted to apologize, that he realizes that he screwed up, but I wouldn’t want him anywhere near my kid after something like that.”

  “Like I said, I had already put Sam down for a nap. I told Cameron to get out of there, that I didn’t want to see him again. He screwed up. I told him not to promise that he’d be there if he couldn’t be there, and I told him not to hurt Sam. I’d never be able to trust him again.”

  Maddie gave me a hug. “I know I’m biased, but I think that’s for the best,” she said. “I knew right from the start that getting involved with him was a bad idea.”

  “I know.” I sighed. And I wished that I could say that this had nothing to do with him being in Red Eyes, but that was precisely what the problem was. He was in Red Eyes, and that was his first priority. I had just been worrying about the wrong things. I had worried about the trouble that Lex might cause or the fact that Sam might grow up wanting to become a member of the MC. I had been worried that Cameron would get tired of us and that he would leave.

  But I hadn’t thought about the other trouble that he might cause. I hadn’t thought about the fact that we were always going to come in second to his other responsibilities. I hadn’t thought about the fact that he might unintentionally hurt us like this.

  “We’ve been talking about having a girls’ night, and I think this is the perfect time for it,” Maddie declared. “We’ll go out this weekend, get all dressed up, and find you a better man than Cameron could ever have been.”

  I shook my head, sighing. “I don’t think so,” I told her. “I’m just not ready to open my heart up to anyone again. I need to focus on things with Sam. I haven’t been doing my best job of being a mom lately.”

  “Don’t say that,” Maddie said, shaking her head.

  “Sam’s been spending more time with you than he has with me, almost,” I protested. “And if I’d really wanted to keep him safe, I never would have started something with Cameron. You know that just as well as I do.” I shook my head. “I need to focus on raising Sam so that he doesn’t grow up to be some terrible guy like the guys that I date.”

  “What are you saying?” Maddie asked. “That you’re not going to date anyone again until Sam is grown up and out of the house? That’s a little ridiculous, don’t you think?”

  I shook my head. “That’s the way that it needs to be,” I told her.

  Even saying it, I felt so lonely. But there was no way around it. I couldn’t let anything happen to Sam. I couldn’t let him get hurt like this again.

  My phone rang a little while later, and I grimaced when I saw that it was Cameron.

  “Ugh, is that him?” Maddie asked, accurately reading my expression.

  “Yeah, it’s him,” I said. “I’m not going to answer it.” I started to put it back in my pocket, but Maddie gestured for me to hand it over to her.

  “Give it to me,” she said. “I’ll make sure he quits calling you.”

  I laughed and shook my head. The thought of him never calling me again made me sad, but again, it was one of those things that I knew needed to happen. “Here,” I said, handing her the phone.

  “Now listen here, you lowlife, scum of the earth,” Maddie said when she picked up. Then, she frowned, listening to whatever Cameron was saying in response. She put her hand over the phone’s receiver and held it away from her mouth. “He says he needs to speak with you. That it’s an emergency.”

  I thought about it for a second. An emergency? Something to do with Lex? Suddenly, I felt my blood run cold. What if something had happened to Sam?

  “Give it to me,” I said urgently, almost snatching the phone out of Maddie’s hand. “Cameron? What’s going on?” I was already breathless with worry. I couldn’t bear the thought that something had happened to my son. I just hoped that maybe, somehow, my premonition was wrong.

  “It’s Sam,” Cameron said immediately. “I’m on my way to his school right now, and I’m going to take care of it. But I thought I should tell you.”

  “Tell me what?” I asked sharply.

  “That Lex is on his way to the school as well. He told me that he’s going to pick Sam up early.”

  “He can’t do that,” I said immediately. “The only person who’s allowed to pick him up from school is me.” But I remembered the way his teacher just let him run over to my car, no questions asked, and I had to wonder.

  As though echoing my thoughts, Sam said, “Unfortunately, I think that if Lex wants to find a way around the system, he’s going to find a way around the system. You just don’t know what kinds of things he’s capable of.”

  I swallowed hard, not liking the sound of that. “I’m on my way to the school,” I said, already grabbing my keys.

  “I don’t know if that’s the best idea,” Cameron said grimly. “I need you to trust me to handle this. I’ll keep you updated. But if Lex really is there, and I’m sure that he’s going to be, I don’t want you anywhere near that school. He might decide to take you as well. He might just be using Sam as bait as it is.”

  “He’s my son,” I all but screamed. “Cameron, you can’t tell me not to be there. He’s my son.”

  There was silence on the other end of the line for a long moment. “I know,” Cameron finally said. He paused. “Just do me a favor and don’t get the police involved just yet, okay? I want to see if we can handle this without them. I’ll tell you why later.”

  I frowned, but I had never had any problem with trusting him, even though I probably shouldn’t. “All right,” I said reluctantly. “No police. But so help me God, Cameron, if anything happens to Sam, I’m going to kill you.”

  “I know,” Cameron said grimly. “And I’ll deserve it.”

  “What’s going on?” Maddie asked the second I hung up the phone. I was already racing toward the door, but she caught my arm. “Tara. I know he’s your son, but I have to know what’s going on. So I can call the police if I have to.”

  “That guy, Lex—the creepy guy that wants to take over Red Eyes or whatever—is apparently going to try to kidnap Sam,” I told her. “I have to stop him.”

  “Go,” Maddie said, immediately letting go of my arm.

  I broke every speed limit between the funeral home and Sam’s school, but I didn’t even care if they caught me on camera and gave me a ticket. The only thing I could think of right now was Sam and his safety.

  What the hell had I gotten us into?

  37

  Cameron

  We got to the school at almost the exact same time as Lex was driving up and immediately swarmed him. Grant and Braxton might have been fighting before over who got to lead Red Eyes, but this time, they let me take point. It was my battle to fight. It was my fault that we were in this mess to begin with.

  I never should have gotten involved with Tara. Especially not after Lex had shown up that first time at the funeral home to talk to her, to ask her what her relationship was with Red Eyes and with me. I had known that there was going to be trouble since he had shown up at Ray’s funeral.

  But I had selfishly gone on with it anyway. I had put Tara and her young son in danger. I didn’t deserve to have a family. There was no way that I would ever be able to keep a family safe. Tara didn’t deserve to be stuck with a lowlife like me.

  That was what Maddie had called me over the phone, and I had to admit that she was right. That instead of feeling angry at the names that she called me, I just felt guilty.

  Could I rectify the situation now? I at least had to try.

  I was aware of Tara arriving as well, of her ru
nning across the parking lot toward us, but I tried not to focus on her. Instead, I kept my gaze on Lex. I didn’t need any distractions right now. I needed to convince him to leave Sam alone.

  “Get the hell out of here,” I snarled.

  Lex laughed. “Or what?” he asked. He glanced back and forth between Grant and Cameron. “I see that the two of you are friends again. Does that mean you’re hoping your little club can unite against me and put me in jail for real this time?”

  “We’re not just going to put you in jail,” I growled. “We’re going to put you in the dirt this time. Once and for all.”

  Lex snorted and waved at something over his shoulder. Four burly goons swarmed up out of nowhere. I never expected Lex to show up there without backup, but it made me even more worried about the fact that Tara was there, even though she was keeping her distance for the moment.

  I tried to defuse the situation. “Come on, Lex, you know that you don’t want to fight us,” I told him. “Why are you so hell-bent on taking our territory anyway?”

  “I’m not,” Lex said, shaking his head. “Before, I was set on destroying Ray.”

  “But you weren’t able to do that, and now you’ll never get another chance,” Braxton said triumphantly. “Why the hell are you still fighting then?”

  “Now I want revenge,” Lex said, shrugging. He grinned at us, a dangerous, almost psychotic glint to his eyes. “You put most of my guys in jail before. Hell, you almost managed to put me in jail. And I can’t just sit back and let you think that you’ve gotten away with it.”

  “So you’ve decided to take out some fringe businesses of ours, ones that barely pay anything in dues to begin with, and now you want to fight us?” Braxton asked. He snorted. “Doesn’t seem like a very solid revenge plan. I’m disappointed, Lex.”