Shaking her head, she flashes me an exasperated glance. “I’ve always thought of you as a son, and this only solidifies that notion even more. Just be good to my daughter.”
“You have my word.”
“All right, lover boy, go to church. I have a feeling this session is about you.” She grins, making me scrunch my forehead with confusion. Church is for me? Before I can say anything else, Chaos is kissing her like his life depends on it, and Dad’s clapping me on the back, walking me to church.
The brothers make their way around the table, sitting in their usual spots. I stand against the wall, behind my father’s place. He’s my sponsor, so this is where I belong in this room. The other prospects move into place, Mako behind Jinx, Saint behind Sly, and Crow behind North. Bear sits off to the side since he’s a nomad hanging around the club to help out a bit.
“Now that my daughter’s been safely brought home, we have a few matters to discuss,” Chaos begins once everyone’s settled into their places. “Bash.” He nods to Dad.
“As y’all know, I’ve taken Sterling under my wing the past few years and have taught him about an important source of the club’s income.” The brothers nod, keeping him talking. “Chaos has given his vote to patch Sterling a full member and as his sponsor, I agree with our prez. Sterling has helped bring in a lot of deals and is trustworthy. He’s loyal to the Kings of Carnage, to all of us, and it’s time to put it to a vote. I’m nominating he receive his patch today.”
Chaos stares at me a beat before saying, “Sterling has my vote.” Dad speaks up next, confirming, then the rest of the table follows suit. My chest is racing, my heart beating so fast it’s like running laps. I trusted Chaos’ word, but I didn’t think they’d vote on it right now. I’m thrilled, don’t get me wrong, just a bit overwhelmed—in a good way.
Church grabs a fresh patch from one of the safes and hands it over to my dad. Ruin gets up from his place and scoots another chair next to his. I’m the lowest on the totem pole, but I couldn’t give a fuck. I’m a member, a fucking King, and that’s all that matters in the moment. I take the patch, thanking everyone, and sit in the vacant chair. Bear leans over, slapping me on the back in congratulations. He knows this has been a huge priority of mine and it means a great deal.
“All right,” Chaos grumbles after a beat, and we all quiet down again. “We still have this Twisted Snakes issue to discuss. I’ve been in contact with a few clubs since the shit went down in town, and they’ve had the same bullshit happen to them as well.”
Jinx huffs. “The fuck? They trying to go to war?”
Chaos shrugs, “Truth is, none of us know what the fuck those pussies are after. Several members of other clubs have been shot. They’ve been scouting for more information like us.”
Dad speaks up, “It’s random. It’s fucking everyone up. No one is expecting it, so no one is reacting quick enough.”
Sly agrees. “And innocents can get caught in the crossfire. It’s basically a fucking drive-by. God forbid they’d been by the Pub or the truck stop. Could you imagine how many people could’ve been shot if they were?”
North mentions, “The girls at Centerfolds haven’t heard anything either, and usually they catch a lot of shit from Johns passing through town. So not only are the Snakes hitting, but they’re doing so quietly.”
Bear offers, “May be a good time to call on some more Nomads. Get a traveling group together, chase them down out in the middle of nowhere to take care of business.”
Chaos’ head bobs, “Yes, that’s exactly what we need to be considering.”
It grows quiet as everyone contemplates options, so I say, “I’ll go when my bike’s out of the shop. Should have it back this week or so, then I can be one to volunteer.”
“No,” Dad grunts immediately.
Chaos backs him up, “He’s right. It’s too risky. We don’t know fuck all about this other club’s usual whereabouts. I like Bear’s suggestion of a nomad group. I can make some more calls, see if there’s some boys wanting in on it to hunt these bastards out on the open road. The nomads will know the lay of the land—depending on where it is—better than we would. We’re familiar with here and the surrounding areas. If we stick to where we know, we’re less likely to die while picking them off should they come back through. We need to protect this town while getting our payback.”
“And if we go to war?” North inquires.
“You know that’s last resort,” Dad says while glancing around the table. “We have our families to think of. We’re not all young kids anymore with shit to fall back on.”
Chaos grunts, “Agreed. For now we do some more digging and keep our eyes peeled. I’ll reach out to some other charters and see about a nomad group. In the meantime, stay on your guard. If they roll through, pop it in the group chat immediately. If you receive the text from anyone, drop whatever the fuck you’re doing and go in for backup. I want these motherfuckers dead if they roll through our territory again. We’ll send a message either way we end up going about this.”
Me being fully patched now means the Twisted Snakes shot at two patched members, as well as a nomad. It’s a big statement for an out-of-town club to make. It usually ends in significant blowback and at times a turf war. Chaos doesn’t want their turf, but with what went down, he may offer it to another KOC charter in trade for something he does want. Nashville KOC is closer to the Twisted Snakes MC, so they may be interested in this as well.
Chaos calls an end to church, pausing beside me long enough to remind, “You have my daughter to protect now. Don’t die before she has a chance to be happy with you or I’ll dig your ass up and shoot you myself.”
My hands raise, palms out. “Don’t have to tell me twice.” And I mean it. Leigh is my priority, aside from Kings of Carnage, and she always will be. I thought I was going to lose my shit not knowing where she was for a few days, and I never want to face that feeling again.
“Shots!” Ruin shouts as we head out of church and he scoops Tyra into his arms. Those two have gotten hot and heavy and I’m happy for them both.
I seek out Leigh immediately, and I won’t lie, it feels sweet having her waiting for me. It’s also damn good finally having my member patch. A sense of belonging washes over me. I’ve always wanted to be a part of this club with my best friend and here we are, fully patched members for life. “You got patched?” she asks, brows raised. It looks like she was crying a bit, but seems to be fine now.
“Yeah, they just voted me in,” I murmur, reaching out to grip her hip. I pull her in closer.
She beams. “Congrats. I’m so happy for you.”
“For us,” I lean down, murmuring against her lips. “We’re a team now, remember?”
“I could never forget, nor would I want to.” She pushes up on her tip-toes, pressing her mouth to mine. I don’t take it as deeply as I want, respecting her father. I’ll give him a little more time to warm up to me and Leigh being a couple. It doesn’t mean I won’t be affectionate towards her, but I’ll definitely be respectful about it.
“You’re not upset being deeper into club life?”
She holds me tightly, laying her head to my chest. “Of course not. I love the club. I enjoy all of it. My issues weren’t with KOC. It was with not having privacy and the option to make my own choices.” I nod, peppering a kiss to the top of her head.
“Thanks, brother,” I say to Ruin as he hands a shot to me. I can finally call him brother and it has a new meaning behind it.
“Uh, how about me, assface?” Leigh scolds and Ru grins.
“I spoke to your boss. You have to work in an hour.”
“Shit!” She pulls out of my hold. “Thanks for reminding me. I’ve been stuck in a bubble since last night and didn’t realize it’s already Tuesday.”
I tap my glass to Ruin’s and hold it up. Everyone around me holds theirs in the air as well. “To Sterling,” they cheer in unison, and I toss the tequila back.
“Can you give me a ride be
fore you drink too much?”
“Yeah, I can drop you off, and I’ll make sure you have your car by the time you get off.”
“Thank you.” she offers me a grateful smile and I can’t hold back from kissing her again. She’s so fucking sweet.
Cambri interrupts, “How about I take you now so you can change and Sterling can celebrate with his brothers.”
“I don’t mind,” I say immediately, not wanting Leigh to ever think I’d shove her off to party.
“You’ve earned it,” Cambri says. “Besides, it’ll give me a chance to catch up some more with my daughter.”
I glance to Leigh and she nods. She gives me another kiss and promises to see me after work. I have a feeling she’ll be picking my ass up if Ruin has any say in the matter. Dad comes over next, hands loaded with Kamikaze shots, since he’s a vodka drinker, and I know damn well it’s going to be a crazy, loud night. One I’ll hopefully never forget.
The wise man said:
Do not take revenge, the rotten fruits will fall by themselves.
- Pinterest Meme
A few weeks later, Ruin hurries towards me as soon as I enter the club. “What’s up?” I greet, instantly alert.
“Chaos got a hit on the Twisted Snakes’ location.”
“No shit? They close?” I want to catch them this round while being prepared. I don’t take kindly to being shot at. We’ve been sitting back, collecting whatever we can on their club, and I think we’re all feeling a bit better because of it. Not only that, but it’s given us time to plan on how to handle it.
“That’s the thing, brother, remember how prez was saying the Snakes were pulling the same with other clubs?”
I nod.
“They hit Texas, came across some Oath Keeper’s MC Nomads.”
My mouth drops open. That’s the same club my father works with. One of them had airbrushed our tanks a while back. “Snakes were in central Texas?”
He shakes his head. “No, they came across each other on I-10 heading into New Mexico.”
“Fuck, I wonder who it was.”
“He said it was some guys called Exterminator, Magnum, and Zeus. They were on a quick run to the Mexican border and managed to cross paths with the Twisted Snakes close to New Mexico. Chaos thinks they were headed for either Vegas or Cali.”
“Did the Oath Keepers make it?”
“One was shot, but supposedly they killed all but two Twisted Snakes. One of the survivors headed into New Mexico, while the other escaped east.”
“There’s a chance we can catch one of them then.”
He agrees. “There’s also the possibility of the other guy going for backup.”
“Holy shit, is there a plan?”
“Prez wants us keeping an eye on the surrounding routes heading into town. If we can get him incapacitated but alive, even better. The ultimate goal is to not allow him back to their clubhouse, in case they have others there as well.”
“Bet. Everybody else know?”
He nods. “Yep, you are the last to show up.”
“I was waiting for Leigh to go to work. I followed her to the smoothie shop before coming here.”
His brows lift. “Chaos will see you’re good for her soon enough.”
“I have a feeling if he didn’t already know, I wouldn’t be near her now.”
He chuckles. “You’re probably right.”
“And what about you? Does it bother you I’m with your sister?”
He shrugs. “It did at first. I was fucking pissed because it never crossed my mind you could be interested in her. I spoke to my mom, though, and she made me see some shit differently. Besides, I’m not sure I could deal with some prick showing up and being kissy face with her and shit. I’d probably end up burying him and she’d hate me. It works out better this way for all of us.”
It’s my turn to laugh. “I don’t want to go there, bro. I’ll get edgy just picturing her with someone else, and I need my mind right so we can catch this Snake.”
“I doubt we’ll see him, but let’s ride.”
We hop on our bikes and take off. It feels so fucking good to have my custom Street 750 back. She may be a 2016, but Harley wasn’t fucking around when they made the motorcycle. She holds up like a true beast, one I plan to keep around for a long time, even if it is a bit uncomfortable since I’ve gotten taller. The bike was perfect when I was younger, but once I shot over five-ten it got a little uncomfortable on longer rides.
I follow Ruin out to a less-traveled road, one I’ve taken several times with my father. These less popular backroads are good for runs if only a few of you are riding. The cops are unlikely to pop you on some bullshit, versus if it’s a big group of guys on a run.
He turns onto a private drive, swooping around to conceal the bikes in the shade of some tall bushes and trees. We’re right at the mouth of the road but out of sight, so we can easily haul ass after someone from here. It’s a long way to the actual property, so we most likely won’t come across the owners or visitors while we wait. If we do, they won’t say shit anyhow. This is club business, and while Uprising may be full of nosey fuckers, they also tend to keep their distance.
We toe our kickstands down, resting back on our seats. Ruin reaches into a bag, pulling free a tub of cookies.
“Where’d they come from?”
“Stopped by Centerfolds. Aspen made a bunch so I swiped them.”
I flash a grin. “Nice.” He holds the tub towards me and I grab a handful.
“Dick,” he grumbles, not willing to share anymore. Not that I can blame him, but I’m starving.
“Anything going on at the shop?”
“Inked this sick jester last night. Thought it was going to take two sessions but I knocked it out.”
“That’s what’s up. I need to stop in to get my KOC tatted.”
He finishes a cookie and asks, “When you want it? Where?”
“Soon as possible, so whenever you’re not booked. I’m not sure, probably let Leigh pick a spot for me.”
He rolls his eyes. “Please, Spade, you know I’ll ink you up whenever you want it. Swing by the house tomorrow around noon and I’ll get the outline done at least.”
“Appreciate it.”
He bops his head and we sit around shooting the shit for a few more hours. On hour three, we perk up, hearing the faint roar of pipes. I chin lift towards his pocket. “Anybody hit you up?”
He shakes his head. “Nah, my shit hasn’t vibrated. I told Tyra not to text unless it’s an emergency today, since we’re all on look out.”
“Fuck, could it be?” We quietly start our engines—well, as quiet as we can so as to not spook anyone.
“We can hope. Talk about fucking luck if it’s that bastard,” Ruin mutters.
I agree and toe-up my kickstand, getting ready to take off. We wait, and wait, and as my impatience is beginning to claw at my insides, the rider finally swoops by. We both gun it, hauling ass to get up on the guy before he can punch it and leave us in his dust. I’m able to make out the same symbol on his patch as before and gesture to Ruin that I think it’s who we’re looking for. The rider picks up on us hot on his tail and gives it everything he’s got.
I’m racing down the old roadway far too fast to retrieve my nine from my holster. Ruin is probably in the same predicament, so no shooting the dude to get him to slow the fuck down apparently. I want his guy something fierce, but he’s not going down easy. We were only about twenty minutes outside of town when doing a leisurely fifty-five miles per hour. He’s doing anything but. If I had to guess, he’s pushing a hundred, and we’re not on the right road for that shit. At this rate, we’re going to be shooting straight through the main part of Uprising. I can see it in my mind, the people out walking by the business, them crossing the street, and then the fucking stoplight.
Christ, unless that light is green and everyone is cleared out of the way, this is going to end badly, I already know it. I tap my emergency call button and it links me to D
ad. His voice is loud in my earpiece. “You all right?”
“We’re behind him.”
“I’ll head to you.”
“No, he’s going to town. He’s going too fast.”
“Be safe, Sterling. Nothing is more important than your life. Love you, son.” He hangs up, not wanting to distract me. Dad has always been psycho about distractions along with drinking then riding. He didn’t care if I was plastered, so long as I didn’t ride or drive after.
I concentrate on the road, on keeping in control of my bike. I can hear Ruin beside me, but I don’t dare look over at him right now. He’s probably worrying about the same thing as I am. We’ll race right by the diner, Mooney’s, Jupiter’s, and two gas stations, amongst other small businesses. This is a fucking shitstorm on the horizon.
My adrenaline thrums through me, my heart beating double-time. My teeth are clenched, my muscles tight as I attempt to run down one of the fuckers who were the reason I dipped my bike before. We need to question him and find out what the fuck his club’s been doing riding through territories and having random shootouts with other clubs. Do they have a death wish or something? The fuckers are crazy. They come across a big enough club and they’d be toast in a blink. Hell, they would’ve been had they not caught the three of us out by ourselves. That seems to be their MO though, going after a few people here and there. Bunch of fucking pussies.
A crossroad is coming up, and I see the eighteen-wheeler at the stop sign. He’s not going to care how fast we’re going, if he can even gauge it from that far away. For any other vehicle, it’d be plenty of time for him to get out on the road. In this case, however, it’s not going to happen. I ease up on my gas, honking so Ruin will do the same. He must see it too because he and I begin to back off.
The scene in front of us plays out like a bad horror movie…The type where you can’t look away in time, and you see it all play out in front of you. It’s something I’ll remember for the rest of my life.
Sterling: Kings of Carnage MC - Prospects (Kings of Carnage - Prospects Book 2) Page 14