3

Little Toy Bikers and a Woman on the Run

Chapter 101 Stupid

Jax had tactfully gone for a swim in the lake so Scarlett and her father could have some alone time.

"I'm still mad at you for scaring me."

"How did your boyfriend take it?"

They had gotten deck furniture out of the storage shed and were sitting outside.

Scarlett rolled her eyes. Her father had the ability to make her feel like a teen-ager.

"He isn't my boyfriend."

"OK. He isn't your boyfriend."

Scarlett rolled her eyes again because she knew from the tone of her father's voice that he didn't believe his own words.

"I told him to go out to the lake," Scarlett said, deciding not to continue the battle over her father calling Jax her boyfriend, "and swim away. He told me I couldn't defend myself because I can barely walk.

"He saw me take the handgun from the cabinet. He went over to it and got the AK. I had trouble with the stairs. He practically had to pull me up them."

"It was brave of him to stay."

"Yeah, he was really great."

"You were stupid to try to send him away. What if there had been a real team coming? You can't fight in your physical condition. You aren't bringing down a team of skilled mercenaries with a handgun. I doubt you could even fire a gun effectively in your current condition."

"I don't want anyone else killed because of me."

"How did you plan to get out of the situation? You sure as hell can't run. If the team hit the house, you can be damn sure that you couldn't just hide under the bed and they would go away."

"I can't have anyone else die because of me," Scarlett said, her eyes filling with tears.

She would never get over walking into her co-worker's home and finding them all dead. Worse still was when she thought of the loved ones left behind and the pain they experienced and were still experiencing. Sometimes the weight of it all was overwhelming. Those were the times when she hated herself the most.

"What you are doing is fucking dangerous. If you want to get out of this alive, you better stay focused. That means if you think there's a team after you, let Jax protect you. I love you and I want you to live."

"I just don't want him to die for me."

"Scarlett, this guy is an outlaw biker. He will probably end up murdered or in prison. Those are the brutal facts. You know them. We talked about this. You can't worry about his safety."

"I know," she said, sighing. "I know."

"Don't make this mistake again. The next time there's a security breach, it could be a team after you. In your current physical condition, you need all the help you can get. Why didn't you tell me how bad you are?"

"I didn't want you to worry."

"I worry all the time. Use the Nora ID and stop by an urgent care or walk in clinic on your way back to Charming and get a physiotherapy prescription."

"I can't drive more than about twenty minutes. It's hard for me to lift or move my legs from the accelerator to the brake."

"That's better anyway. I'll find you a place to go within an hour of Charming. Pay someone to drive you. I'm sure Jax can help you find someone who can drive you to therapy appointments. Have the person stay in the car or in the lobby so they don't hear your name or if they do, tell them Nora's your real first name."

"Do you know what I need . . ."

"I know how to find a good physio place. I saw all the crap ones you went to until you saw the neurologist who sent you somewhere great. I'll pose as a doctor and look at them. I know there needs to be a gym that patients are actually using, preferably with a therapist or trainer watching over the people. Extra credit points if there's a therapist working with a patient in the gym."

"Thanks, dad."

"Do you think he could have killed Violet?"

"No. If I thought there was a chance he did it, I wouldn't have brought him up here."

"OK. Just remember don't make decisions based on emotion. I've taught you better. You need to keep your head in this or you will get yourself killed. You've got too many enemies including your boyfriend. If he knew your true identity, how long do you think you would be alive? He could even be the one to kill you."