Game Changer (Hell's Saints Motorcycle Club) by Paula Marinaro Read Free Book Online

it should be happening. But I won’t be doing it in a way you can see.”
    He took my small hands in his and held them tight.
    “That will not be me not wanting to see you and Claire. That will be me stepping back and letting your daddy be the man I know he is. It’s important to me that you understand that Raine.”
    “I understand.”
    His hands were getting sweaty and he let go of mine to reach into his pocket.
    “Can you read this Raine?” he handed me a small piece of paper.
    “Yes, I can.” And I could.
    “We’re going to read this every day until you memorize it.”
    “My job, Prosper?”
    “A very important part of your job, little darlin’ but not the whole of it. You and I, we’re going to read this so much that no matter what happens or where you are, you’ll be able to bring it to mind.”
    “What is it Prosper?”
    “It’s the whereabouts of a place where you can always find me, little darlin’. Today, tomorrow, twenty years from now. You there, I’m there. And if I’m not there right then, there will always, always be someone there that can find me. You’re gonna walk right into that place and you’re going to go up to the bar and tell whoever is behind it that you’re Raine and you’re looking for Prosper”
    “Prosper?”
    “Yes little darlin’?”
    “What if there’s nobody behind the bar?”
    “Well you see honey that’s a real good question. If you don’t see anybody behind the bar, you just use the lungs that good lord gave you and you belt out a yell asking who it is that’s supposed to be behind the bar and then you tell that man what I just told you. If the day comes, little darlin’ that I’m not around, I’ve made arrangements for that too. What that means is that you and Claire have a safe place. Always.”
    “Like magic.” I whispered. “But better because it’s real.”
    “Just like that, Raine. The other part of your job is to know when you’re going to need to go to that place. That place is not because you miss ole Prosper, or your dad won’t let you eat ice cream for supper. That place is for a time when things are so dark that you cannot see the light coming through. That place is what we call a game changer, sweetheart. That means if there comes a time you when you need that place, everything about your life will have to change because you know it just is not safe for you and Claire to be in it any more. If and when that happens, you come find me.
    “Like when you came and got me and Claire this time, Prosper? Because my daddy didn’t come home, and we didn’t have food, and it felt like it was dark all the time even when it wasn’t?”
    “You got it sweetheart.”
    And I did.

Chapter 10
    The sweet obscure sounds of Eva Cassidy played out from my iPod and I was singing along in perfect harmony. The subtle tones of my young voice had grown into something sweet, strong and sultry. Music gave me such pleasure and transformed me to a place far outside the ties that bound me. I had taught myself to play the guitar and would often sing and play long into the night. It had helped to keep away the loneliness. In those formative years when lifelong friendships were being forged, Claire and I hadn’t exactly had the kind of life that invited that in.
    I was feeling okay and I was singing in the sunshine. Every so often, I would lift up my chin and let the healing shine down on my battered face. I stayed out there most of the day. I let the wind take my hair and the grass tickle my toes. I drank lemonade, then beer and worked in my little garden until my back ached. Occasionally, I would find myself glancing at the back door, a threshold to the world of worry waiting for me on the other side.
    I was glad that the “drop” was over and the MC had their money. Past experiences notwithstanding, I knew it was much better to be off their radar. The Diego thing. I decided not to even go there. I still worried about why he was in my house that night. But,