The Winter of Regrets by Needa Warrant Page B

Angie and Dusty’s father. I wasn’t ever supposed to tell anyone that because they were both told he was dead. He got framed for a crime and Diablo took on his family.”
    “Shit.” Mad Jack shook his head.
    She took a toke on the joint, then passed it back to him. “Of course,” she went on, “the drinking doesn’t help. Lacy-Jane’s right; Violet would not be a good mother. My mother said she couldn’t wait to push Angie and Dusty out of the house, and the only reason Bebe didn’t get treated that way was because Diablo refused to allow it. When he knew he was dying of cancer, he sent both of them to his brother Rebel. I know an awful lot I shouldn’t know. Pass me that joint.”
    Jack let her have another toke, fascinated with what he was hearing. “Tell me more about them, Dee.”
    She moved over to the couch and curled up in the corner. “I used to hear my mother and Violet talk. I’d be playing in the room quietly and heard a lot of stuff. Rebel was the love of her life, and he was supposed to go to jail for thirty years or so. They found out he wasn’t guilty after a long time in prison. Diablo wanted her, so Rebel made her agree to be with his brother. She has a tattoo across her breast with a purple rose. It’s always been there, Rebel’s Rose. Dusty hates her with a passion and I think that’s the one person besides Rebel who Violet is scared of. She’s so into the MC life it’s scary. My mother wanted me to leave it and have a better life.”
    “Your mother sounded like a great person,” he muttered quietly.
    Touched, she took Jack’s hand. “My mother would have loved you. You’re so much different from the bikers in Maryland. I know that Angie got close to Rebel, but Dusty stayed away. She had a hard time with Loco; I know that from the stories. Dusty helps Angie with her bills and got her to live in Florida because Violet is always trying to hook her daughters up with bikers. Angie had to come get Bebe to live with her because Violet was trying to push Whiskey on her. It was a bad time, happened before I left to come here. He settled on Margo because she got pregnant.”
    Jack seemed stirred by that news as he listened intently, his eyes wandering in thought. She rubbed her forehead and twisted her neck, then continued on.
    “I don’t want to think about any more of those days, Jack. Dragging up the dirt isn’t good, and please don’t let anyone know what I told you. It could be dangerous. I don’t know if Rebel ever told the girls who he really is.” She lifted her eyes. “Let’s head over to your parent’s house. I need to know what your mother plans to do with this mess.”
    “How’s Lacy-Jane connected to all of this?” asked Jack, trying to piece it all together in his mind. “I understand she’s your cousin, but why didn’t she help you with Margo?”
    “Lacy-Jane lived with us after her mother and father got killed in a bike accident. She was my mother’s sister’s daughter. She married young. Stevie got drafted and was a machine gunner in Nam. He didn’t make it back here, and Lacey-Jane never dealt with it well. Don’t ever call her just Lacy; she gets really mad if you don’t say her whole name. Margo liked having her in the house. She brought money in and she cooked and cleaned.” Dee finally got a smile on her face, thinking of her cousin’s insistent use of her full name. “We could never shorten it or give her a nickname. Only Stevie was allowed to call her Lace.”
    Jack didn’t say much to Dee, but he had stored everything away in his head. One day, that information might come in handy for him, Darko, and Nefarious MC.
     

 
     
    J o flat-out refused to talk to her doctor about her behavior, but cooled her temper down. Nailz saw an improvement in her attitude. Even Katri was behaving. Maybe , he thought, all she needed was some help and a friend . Having the Regan’s talk to her had helped somewhat, except Kima wasn’t speaking to her mother