Molding Stone

A Bump in the Road

I had just locked the doors and turned off the signs when there was a knock on the back door of the bar. I knew it wasn't Happy, he would have gone to the apartment door knowing that I would be up there momentarily. The fact that Ace wasn't barking his head off meant that it was someone that he knew. I flipped the lights off as I made my way to the door. I peeked around the door and smiled when I saw Kozik on the other side.

"Little late to perch at the bar, Koz." I teased but he didn't smile and that worried me.

"If this is about club business, Hap's not here." I said as I held open the door and let him inside with Ace on his heels.

"I know. This is about Hap." Koz said and I froze in my tracks.

"Is he hurt?" I asked and turned to really look at Kozik. He quickly shook his head.

"No, to my knowledge he's perfectly fine. He called me about an hour ago from the police station." Kozik reassured and I felt like I could breathe again.

"If he called you, what are you doing here?" I asked and led him up the stairs to the apartment.

"Usually when Hap gets in trouble it's because of club stuff, but this time he wasn't doing anything for the club. I went to Brick to get the money to bail him out, but because he wasn't on club business when he got hauled in, his bail has to come out of personal funds." I raised a brow at that as I pulled out two beers from the fridge. Kozik sighed and gave me a nod as he took the beer.

"Normally I would just pay it and have Hap pay me back, but I gave a loan to my brother that he hasn't paid back yet. I'm broke for the time being. With you being Hap's girl, I was hoping you could help." There was no doubt in my mind that I would, it was just if I could.

"How much are we talking?" Kozik cringed at the question and scratched at the back of his head.

"Five grand." He said and I almost choked on my beer.

"What the fuck did he do!" I asked. This not being a club related offense I had no problem asking. Kozik cringed again as he fidgeted with the label on the beer bottle.

"He didn't give any details just where he was and how much to bail him out." I groaned as I ran my hand through my hair. I looked down at the bottle in my hand before setting it on the counter and getting into the cabinet above the fridge to get the bottle of Jack Daniels that Hap had stashed there. I poured two shots and threw mine back, letting myself focus on the burn down my throat instead of the anxiety that forking over five thousand dollars was causing me. I did another shot before putting the jack away.

"When can we go get him?" I asked and Kozik looked surprised.

"You've got five grand sitting around?" I glared at him.

"He's going to pay me back every penny." I said and Kozik chuckled, but I could see the relief in his expression.

"He can be bailed out in the morning." I nodded and looked to the clock on the wall. It was only a couple hours till sun up, there wasn't going to be much sleep for me tonight. Though what was that saying? You can sleep when you're dead, right?

"You can crash in the spare room, if you want. I just have to get out some clean sheets." I offered and started to stand but Kozik quickly stopped me.

"Just show me where they are, I'll do it. Thanks, Jade." He said and pulled me into a tight bear hug. I smiled and returned the hug for a moment before pulling away. I pulled the sheets out of the hall closet and handed them to Kozik and pointed to the door down the hall. With one last 'thank you' and a kiss to the cheek, Kozik walked down the hall and left me alone in my living room. Ace whined from the doorway to my bedroom and I had to laugh. Since Hap had started sleeping here most nights, Ace had been kicked out of the bed. As much as he seemed to love Hap, he loved the nights he didn't come home more.