by Brook Wilder
“Looks like she works for the state tax department. I got her new health insurance cards in my hands.”
“Shake down their bedroom and tell me what you find.”
“Mal’s doing that now. I’m headed in that direction. You got to be kidding me. Fucker’s got a bondage closet. Lots of kinky shit in here brother. Fuck a duck, the man’s taking boner pills just like from the commercials. We taking bets on whether it causes an erection lasting four hours or longer?”
“Shut the fuck up and get serious.”
“Damn Rip, the man’s got a whole box full of drugs and money. Mal just pulled out a duffel back with some strange vest and a bunch of guns. Shit there has to be close to a hundred grand in here.”
Rip lit a cigarette. “Looks like our boy has been skimming off the top of his drug deals. Bring the drugs, money, and guns. That vest is important, so bring that as well. It’s something special they came up with to facilitate dealing drugs. I want Hammer to have a look at it.”
“Shit Mal, put that the fuck down.”
“What’s he found?”
The fucker’s old lady has this big bottle of perfume. It’s expensive shit and the only one on her dresser. Mal can’t get his nose out of it.”
Rip thought the situation over for a minute as he took another drag. “Bring the sheets, the perfume and an a few outfits from her closet. Grab the body wash she uses from their shower and bring that too.”
“You’re shittin’ me, right?”
“No prospect, I’m not shitting you. Haul ass back here right goddamn now. Time is money dimwit. And bring a photograph of the wife and kids.”
“Sure thing, Rip. Whatever you say brother.”
Rip walked to the bar and Shelby sat another beer down in front of him.
“Thanks, girl.”
“About what you said. I’ll remember.”
“Glad to hear it. Why are you pulling two days this week? Don’t you girls normally take turns?”
“Gonna go visit my momma next week. Sharon’s covering for me, so I picked up today for her.”
“Don’t’ know how the brother’s would get along without you gals.”
She smiled wearily at him as she wiped down the bar.
“Want to make an easy five grand today, helping out the club? Might come in handy for your trip.”
“I’d like to help. What did you have in mind?”
“Help me wring some information out of a rival gang member.”
Her eyes flew open. “Hell, I’m no good at that kind of shit, Rip.”
“He’s a real piece of shit. Caught him stalking Jaden at his school. He’s hard core evil and ain’t gonna cooperate without extraordinary measures. I need to make him think I have his little wife. He’ll talk to protect his woman. If I can’t get someone to help me out, I guess that I’ll just have to grab her. You know the club doesn’t like gettin’ family members involved but since they started by stalking Jaden, I’m thinkin’ all bets are off. Still, I’d like to avoid that if I can.”
“What exactly do I need to do?”
When the prospects blow back into the clubhouse, they’ll have her shower gel, clothes and perfume. You fix yourself up real nice, and we have a little talk with the man.”
“He’ll be able to see I’m not his wife.”
“He won’t be seeing so well by the time I send for you. You just remember to groan and grab onto him acting real scared but you don’t say one goddamn word.”
“Hearing my voice would blow the whole thing. I see where you’re coming from.”
“You’d really be doing us a favor. It’d get you back in good graces with me and Hammer both. Making a little green on the side is just icing on the cake. I promise, you won’t get hurt.”
Her voice was shaking. “Al…alright. I’ll do it. I’ll do it for Jaden.”
“Good girl. You’re a star. This is the right thing to do. It’s better that he spill the information than I beat it outta him or get his innocent little wife involved.”
She nodded nervously. Rip felt something tug in his gut for the poor woman.
“You got the makins’ of a good old lady in ya, know that Shelby. I’m surprised no one’s snapped you up yet.”
“I’ve been waiting.”
“Maybe for the wrong person. Hammer ain’t never gonna be yours, darlin. Warning the other women off the way you do just pisses him off.”
She leaned over the counter. “You lookin’ for an old lady, Rip?”
He almost choked on his beer. “Me, God no. Noticed Mal’s taken a likin to ya. You seem to like him too.”
“He’s really wonderful, but he’s not even patched yet.”
“Don’t be short sighted. He’s top shelf. He’ll earn that bottom rocker soon enough.”
He watched her pondering his words a brief moment before she spoke. “Giving it all up for a prospect, don’t seem all that smart. I like having a good time.”
“Ain’t no man, prospect or patch, gonna claim a woman when he sees a different brother’s dick in her mouth every other night. Maybe you want to think about what’s important to you while vising you momma.”
She nodded uncomfortably, clearly uncertain how she felt about him telling it to her straight. He knew it was harsh, but he had just about enough empathy for her situation to take time of his life to help her.
As soon as the prospects walked through the door, he surveyed what they’d brought back. Sure enough there was a large duffel with a hundred and seventeen thousand dollars tucked neatly inside all bound and marked in ten thousand dollar bundles. All the way under the cash was hidden eight one pound bricks of meth. There was a stash of twelve small handguns of various calibers and four bricks of marijuana in another duffle. All appeared to be in good working order. He dumped out a smaller knapsack and discovered two hundred tiny cellophane bags of meth, another hundred packets of weed and about fifty little packets of pills he couldn’t readily identify. The denim vest was interesting. It had apparently been recently used because it still had an assortment of different packets of drugs and wads of cash in all the little pockets. He left it just as he found it for Hammer to look at. They had the sheets in one small bag and the female’s clothing and personal items in another. Amazingly enough the prospects had brought the man’s huge bottle of boner pills. Jesus, they were idiots.
“Shelby, here are thing tings we talked about. You know what to do.”
“Yes, sir.”
Taking the items she headed upstairs.
Turning to the prospects he ordered, “Take all this shit to Hammer. He’s in his office. I’ve already talked to him and he’s expecting you. Show him the vest first. You did well, though I’m not sure why you brought the boner pills.”
Cal looked confused. “You said bring all the drugs. Those are drugs.”
“I meant the illegal drugs but that’s fine. We’ll have them if we ever need them. Just a reminder. They aren’t for recreational use.”
The two prospects just stared at him.
Rip rolled his eyes. “That was a joke. What would a boner pill be used for, if not recreational sex?”
The two men chuckled uncomfortably.
“Get the fuck outta here, both of you.”
Some people just had no sense of humor. Heading back down to the dungeon, Rip discovered that his prisoner was awake and pulling on the chains. The effort was proving a futile waste of time as he was tearing the soft tissue around his wrists and ankles, but making no headway towards escaping.
Rip didn’t bother trying to negotiate with him. Instead he walked up and began hitting the man in the face repeatedly. The goal was to black his eyes until they swelled shut, not beat information out of him. It was a good call, because the man wasn’t even tempted to talk. Instead he cursed a blue streak and threatened retribution by his club brothers. Soon he passed out again.
Rip went back upstairs and stood in the hallway waiting for Shelby to get ready for her part. Mal stormed up to him go
ing chest to chest with him. This one was all fire and fight. Not a bad combination for a biker but he’d need to get that shit under control to earn his patch.
“What the hell are you thinking, taking one of our girls down to the dungeon during an interrogation?
Rip gave him a rough shove backwards into the facing wall. It was enough to leave a body sized impression in the drywall. Folding his arms over his chest, he coldly stared the man down.
“You can cut my nuts right of the day I begin answering to a fuckin’ prospect.”
Stubbornly insistent as ever, Mal continued. “Women don’t need to see that shit. If you needed help you should have let us know.”
“Since when is it a prospect’s business how a member uses a whore. The only one allowed to object is Miss. Shelby. She didn’t, so fuck off.”
“It ain’t right and you know it, Rip.”
“Get the fuck outta my sight, before I forget that you’re a little brother.”
Cam came up pulling the young prospect away but not before saying is peace. “Mal might be outta line, but he ain’t wrong.”
“What I do with club whores is club business.” Rip jerked his chin towards the empty hallway, indicating he wanted them gone.
About ten minutes after they stumbled away, Shelby descended the stairs. She looked and smelled fabulous. Wearing a white cotton dress and expensive perfume, she seemed every inch a lady.
Jokingly he extended his elbow for her lock arms with him. She smiled as she slipped her arm through his. “I sure hope you know what you’re doing, Rip.”
“I’m a former Army Ranger. They taught us how to get into the enemy’s head. That’s all we’re doing here, Shelby. Don’t over think this thing, okay?”
“Okay. Lead the way, Rip.”
Just outside the door, he threw her the sheet. “Wrap up.” His voice was a mere whisper.
“Smells like sex.” She kept her voice low, like his.
“He’ll recognize the scent. Don’t get squeamish on me now darlin. We’re doing this for Jaden, remember?”
She folded the sheet into thirds and wrapped it around her shoulders.
“Ready?”
“Let’s just get this over with.”
He strolled into the room and threw a bucket of water on his prisoner as he shouted at him. “Wake up Coyote. Your prospect rolled over on you. I know you’re the Sergeant of Arms for the Grim Crew. Your sweet Maria filled in the rest.”
“What are you talkin’ about? Leave my wife outta this.”
“Poor little Maria cried big crocodile tears when I grabbed her. One good slap was all it took for her to spill her guts. Of course catching her on her lunch break wasn’t easy. Then again, those dumb asses at the state tax office are totally clueless.”
“Touch her and I’ll kill you slowly. I promise you’ll die badly, fucker.”
“You know the one thing I can’t figure out? Why the hell she’s so much in love with you when you beat her, tie her up, and have to use boner pills to get an erection? That’s the only real mystery here. She’s a pretty little thing”
“Leave her alone. We never mess with family members. Been fightin’ for years and never went there before.”
“You opened that door when we found your ass outside Hammer’s kid’s school. You did this to yourself. You little wife smells like heaven, know that? She begged us to take her and leave your little girls alone. Think we should do that after you stalked Hammer’s son?”
“Just leave them out of this, man.” The large tattooed man was beginning to sound desperate. Rip grabbed Shelby and threw her onto the chained man’s chest.
“Go ahead and explain to her how you brought this evil on her and the girls. I’m sure she wants to know. She’d tell you herself, but I taped her mouth shut.”
Shelby made noises like she was trying to talk through a gag and moaned softly as she clutched at his chest. One deep breath was all it took and the large man folded.
“Cut her lose, and I’ll tell you whatever you want.”
“I’ll put her in the office alone. If you tell me everything, I’ll consider letting her go.”
“Swear to me, she won’t be harmed.”
“I swear.”
Chapter 7
Assessment
Hammer’s voice thundered over the meeting room. “If they think they can fuck with our families and live, they’ve got another goddamn think comin’. I want every single member of the Grim Crew six feet under. We’ve been at this for fuckin’ years and it needs to stop.”
Rip had just finished giving his report on the information gleaned from interrogating the two Grim Crew members. The Grim crew had spawned seven new charters in the outlying region, established ties with a dangerous South American cartel, and were looking to muscle in on the arms trade in Arizona in a big way. They had intended to grab Jaden to force the club to negotiate. Every brother in the clubhouse was livid.
“I want ears on every single member we can get our hands on. Their crew sold them out. We have names, some addresses, all their phone numbers, and a schematic of their clubhouse.”
“At the moment they outgun and out man us. We can always purchase more guns, we can’t take on more prospects without clearing them first because we take a chance of them slipping in a mole.”
Hammer sat down again. “What we need are force multipliers. Think of every single thing you can that will give us an advantage and take an advantage away from our enemy. For example we need to tap their phones, be prepared to redirect their calls out for help, bug their clubhouse and homes, and low jack their cars. At the same time, we’ll need someone on our end checking every day to ensure they haven’t managed to wire us at all. We need a good tech team to manage the tremendous amount of data we’re generating to separate the wheat from the chaff.”
“We need more automatic weapons and a sniper rifle in every man’s hand who is qualified to use it. We need every action we take covered by the snipers from the highest vantage points feasible. We need night vision, because most clubs don’t have it.”
“I don’t want anyone caught. We’ll need every single man we’ve got in play if they call on members from other charters. Brainstorm every little advantage money and expertise can give us. For example having every single brother in Kevlar will mean we last longer in a battle and can take out more of the enemy before we fall. We’ll get us a few medics who don’t know anything except how to keep a brother breathing until we can get him medical help. We need ballistic plating for the cages. I want everyone not riding a bike as protected as possible in trucks and vans. We need to ensure no brother is left alone. Travel in pairs and take alternate routes. We can’t have them anticipating our movements.”
The men continued brainstorming late into the night. This was war and every brother was prepared to do whatever they had to in order to win. The clubhouse went on lock down. Jaden was driven back and forth to school every day, while a couple of prospects monitored the premises. Hammer worried about him going to school. It was the time period each day he had the least amount of protection, which was clearly why they tried to pick up there the last time.
As the men filed out, Hammer called Rip over.
“Thanks for the intel. Hear you got a helping hand from Shelby.”
“Unfortunately the Sergeant wasn’t talking. We did a little bait and switch so he thought we had his old lady. Old fart couldn’t give up the goods fast enough.”
“Smart. It was also smart to send the prospects to his house the way you did, in the middle of the day when no one was at home. We got a good haul and no one’s going to be any the wiser.”
“We splitting up the loot and guns?”
“You can have your pick of the guns, cause it was your haul. I’m also earmarking twenty-five grand and a brick of marijuana for you, in honor of your outstanding handling of this situation. The rest of the weapons are going into the club’s gun safe. They’re good weapons and might come in handy in a firefight.”
“The cash would go a long way in gearing us up for what’s coming with the Grim Crew.”
“My thoughts exactly. I know you promised Shelly five grand. That is a bargain, considering the service she provided. I made a few contacts. We can unload the meth and assortment of pills for a tidy hundred and fifty grand. The cash in that duffle, money from selling the drugs, and the cash we fished out of the vest pockets brings our cash haul to around two hundred and seventy grand.”
We keeping the marijuana for party favors?”