The room falls quiet while the possibility of a rat sinks in.
Inquisitive eyes begin to sweep around the table, and I know I have to get a grip on this before my men start to turn on each other and our trust turns to shit.
“I don’t think we have a rat, we’ve been taking the same route for six months. It was bound to become predictable to anyone. It’s why Denzel and I have changed the routes again,” I explain.
“There’s not many different routes left to take, Boss. We’ve changed the routes so many times over the years. I’m not sure what route to take that we haven’t been on before,” Big Ron says, leaning his arms on the edge of the table.
“It’s not just the route this time, the destination as well. He has a new buyer and our first run is next week. He wants us on three runs a month now and I want every guy we have to ride with us. The prospects will stay here and watch the place while we’re gone.”
“That’s a lot more dollar,” Michael whistles.
“Which comes with more risks,” I point out needlessly. My guys aren’t stupid, they all know the risks from our enemy and the law.
“What about the Raging Riders? We can’t keep letting them get away with trying to ambush us,” Michael says, with a controlled anger resonating deep in his voice.
I knew his hatred for the Raging Riders would overshadow the news about more work.
“I know we can’t, when everyone’s here we’ll plan what to do next,” I say, trying to placate him for now.
“We don’t need a plan Mark, it’s easy. We go on a spree and just take them out one by one,” he growls.
I didn’t get much sleep last night and the last thing I need right now is my brother and his ever growing desire to kill taking up my time.
“Michael, if we do that then it won’t take long for Hunter to bring the fight here again. We need to think rationally. Micky, Oak and I need a few hours’ sleep, call everyone and tell them to be here tonight where we will figure out what we’ll do next.”
Knowing my brother so well I can see he doesn’t agree with me and that I am going to have to keep a closer eye on him.
“Will do, and by the way, I got engaged last night,” he says.
“To who?” Oak laughs.
“To Kitty, who else?” Michael frowns.
“I was only asking, I didn’t think you two were that serious.”
“Well we are.”
“Congratulations brother,” I say, holding my hand out to shake his hand.
At least we have something good to look forward to. He obviously doesn’t want to make a big deal out of it because he stands and leaves the room first.
Everyone else leaves the back room and goes their own ways. Rayna is still asleep when I undress and climb in beside her.
She moves onto her side and I pull her back against my chest and rest my hand on her stomach.
“She knows you’re home,” Rayna croaks, her voice thick with sleep.
I feel the baby moving around under my hand and can’t help smile hoping the baby does know it’s me.
“She’s a he, I don’t know how many times I have to tell you,” I chuckle, closing my eyes.
“Nope, she’s a she and by the way she’s pressing into my bladder, you have woken her up.”
“I can’t wait till she’s here with us,” I say, kissing the back of Rayna’s bare shoulder.
“Nor can I, I won’t have to pee every five minutes.”
She pulls the covers back and heaves herself out of bed.
“Are you coming back?” I ask, trying to ignore the burning in my eyes from lack of sleep.
“I’m going baby shopping with Flo today, and yes before you ask, Micky is meant to be coming with us and no we won’t go off our own. You go to sleep, you look like death warmed up.”
“Come find me when you get back,” I tell her, “and please look after yourself and the baby while you’re gone.”
“I will,” she promises and disappears to the bathroom.
She’s lucky I trust Micky to look out for her as if I was there myself otherwise she would be cooped up here today while I am sleeping.
My eyes close for the final time and within seconds I am out.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
Michael
I can’t believe Mark is stalling again. Actually yes I can, he always does this. The Raging Riders are nothing but a pain in our asses and the sooner they are gone, the better. The only way they are going to disappear is if we make them. Mark is always wanting to wait and use our brains, but this time it’s simple. Kill them all. Take them out one by one until they don’t have a club at all.
“I was thinking, now we’re getting married we should look for our own house,” Kitty says, getting my attention.
That didn’t take long, I only asked her to marry me last night and she’s already mapping out our fucking future.
I breathe deeply and remind myself this is what I want, that I am only angry because of Mark and the Raging fucking Riders. I shouldn’t take it out on her.
“Sure, whatever house you want it’s yours,” I say, “Listen, I’ve got to go out.”
“Where are you going?” she asks.
“I’ll see you tonight,” I say, dodging her question.
She huffs but she doesn’t argue with me.
I quickly search for Pope which is what we call Tommy now since I heard him praying for the Raging fucker years ago as he bled out on the ground. I only called him it a few times before everyone picked up on it and started calling him it too.
He is working on his project bike when I head outside and find him alone.
“Are you up for a ride?” I ask him, looking around us.
Mark must still be asleep and no one else is paying attention to us.
He nods once and begins to put his tools away.
We make a quick exit and ride out. I don’t exactly have a plan but like I told Mark, we don’t need one. I can’t sit around and wait for Mark to decide how we are going to proceed. Maybe if I get the ball rolling he won’t have a choice but to hit back hard with blood and bullets.
Over the last few years we have been noting the bars and clubs they frequently use and the hang outs they go to. I decide to head to the bar they use furthest from their clubhouse and Pope and I sit back in the shadows and wait.
“What are we doing here?” Pope finally asks.
“Mark needs to see that we have to take action.”
That’s all I give him, for a young guy Pope is wise and knows why we are here.
Our actions tonight will affect everyone in the club, however, it needs to be done. The longer we sit around the more we look like pussies.
I try to think it through like Mark would but give up when a Raging Rider stumbles out of the bar with a chick on his arm. It’s pretty dark out but I am pretty certain the chick isn’t happy about leaving with the fucker.
Pope sits up straighter on his bike and throws the cigarette he was smoking to the ground.
As soon as I hear the cunt laughing at something he himself had said, something inside me snaps and I swing my leg over my bike and head towards him. Pope is close behind me and we both draw our guns. In the split seconds we cross the street, I still don’t have a plan.
I think back to all the times his club has ambushed us and got away with it and everything falls into place.
The guy is so drunk he doesn’t see us coming, he doesn’t even realize who we are when we step around him and stop him from moving on.
I was right, the woman who he has his arm curled around has a split lip and tears streaking her face.
Her eyes widen in pure fear when I raise my gun and point blank shoot the fucker between the eyes.
He falls to the ground taking the woman with him. I reach out my hand to help her up but she falls back on her ass and scrambles away. When she’s back on her feet she tears up the path and tries to run.
“Get her back, I’ll deal with him,” I say, stowing my gun back
in my cut.
I drag the lifeless body around the corner and into the first alley I come across. I want him to be found but I also need a bit of time before the chase begins. Throwing the body against the dumpster I make my way back to our bikes and I am happy to see no one ventured out of the bar to see what was going on. The music is so loud inside, the gun shot wouldn’t have been heard.
I didn’t count on the woman being a part of it but in situations like this I tend to just roll with it.
From the way she was with him I doubt she’ll care that he is dead.
Pope comes back with the woman holding her arm so she can’t run off again. She is shaking and visibly scared but thankfully she isn’t making a sound.
“She’ll have to come with us for now,” I tell Pope.
He secures her on the back of his back and without any more fuss we ride away.
The clubhouse is lively and loud when we get back just after midnight. We park our bikes in the garages and head towards the bar. Pope keeps the woman close to him and she follows without causing any dramas. She almost looks like she feels safe with Pope, poor girl.
There is no way I can hide what I have done tonight and I don’t want to either. Heads turn to us as we walk through the bar and stare at the woman. She isn’t bad to look at, going by her appearance it’s a shock that we found her with a Raging Rider. They usually like their women more jacked up and strung out.
Her dark brown hair looks like she regularly visits the hair salon and her clothes covering her body look expensive.
Mark immediately looks suspicious when he sees us and the girl.
“We need to talk,” I tell him before he can get a word out.
He pushes away from the bar and before we can go somewhere more private, the woman tugs on my arm. At that point I spot Kitty watching from the other side of the bar, and she does not look happy. I push her to the back of mind for a moment so I can deal with this shit first.
“I get why you brought me here but I won’t say anything, I swear.”
Her eyes search mine waiting for me to reply but Mark cuts in.
“We should talk. Now,” he growls and turns to walk to the backroom.
I don’t say anything to the woman, I nod to Pope and he comes up behind her and leads her to a table by the juke box then sits next to her.
Mark is bent over the table taking deep breaths when I walk in the backroom and close the door behind me.
“What have you done?” he asks. His voice is calm but the determination to get the truth from me pours out.
I lean against the wall and take out my cigarettes, keeping my distance from him.
I tell him exactly what happened tonight hoping he will see my point and finally agree with me.
He slowly walks around the table, I can see him thinking of what he wants to say.
He stands directly in front of me and holds my gaze solidly. Here it comes, the famous Mark Blake fucking lecture.
“Do you know how good it’s felt not to have to worry about you constantly? Thinking if you’re going to end up in jail or worse, in the ground because you’re temper got the better of you in the wrong place with the wrong person?”
He waits for me to say something but I remain silent.
“Since you’ve been wearing this patch, I’ve watched you grow into someone who has levelled out and thinks. You’ve found a grip on control and believe it or not, that makes you more dangerous. What you did tonight was reckless and now we’ve got an eye witness shaking in fear in our fuckin’ bar.”
His words hit home and I take a seat in one of the chairs.
“I admit you’re right, I was reckless with the girl but what I did tonight should be happening every night until the last Raging cunt is dead,” I argue.
Mark slams his fist on the table and growls, “That wasn’t your call to make.”
I stand and hold my head high, I go for a change in tactic just to get him off my back.
“I’ll sort the girl out, and there wasn’t anyone else who saw us so quit worrying like a bitch,” I spit.
“Like Hunter won’t know it was us,” he retorts.
“Whatever happens doesn’t matter, not him or anyone else is ripping this club apart.” I vow.
He sighs and I see the fight leave him.
“Sometimes I’d love some your arrogance and confidence,” he mutters.
“Hey, it’s your confidence that keeps this club together.”
“Okay, go and sort the girl out and I’ll be happier,” he says.
“For what it’s worth, if the gun was in the other hand they wouldn’t hesitate to pull the trigger and take satisfaction in watching us bleed out.”
He doesn’t commit to an answer but he knows I am right. I see him nod and I leave the room to find the girl still sitting with Pope at the table and now with a drink in her hand.
I search out Kitty first and gesture for her to come to me. When she is close enough I pull her into my arms and kiss her hard, in front of everyone.
“Hello to you too,” she giggles when I pull back slightly.
“Hey,” I say, giving her my best smile.
“Who’s the girl?” she asks, like I knew she would.
It kind of turns me on to see her jealous, thank fuck it’s only every now and then though because that shit would get old real quick.
“She’s an inconvenience. I’m going to sort it out then I want you in bed waiting for me, don’t worry I won’t be long,” I add quickly, when I see her frown.
She kisses me quickly again before heading to the stairs.
“What’s your name, darlin’?” I ask the girl, taking a seat with her and Pope.
“Sally,” she says, quietly.
“Listen Sally, I’m going to be honest with you. I’m tired and I have no desire to hurt you. Tell me how much you will need to start over somewhere far, far away from here?”
“I don’t need your money, I have my own and plenty of it,” she says, adamantly.
This takes me by surprise.
“What’s a girl like you doing in a dive like that then?”
She shrugs her shoulders and then explains, “I found out who my boyfriend really was and went to break up with him.”
This could be interesting if she has a boyfriend who is going to come looking for her, knowing our luck though it will be the guy I shot down.
“Who’s your boyfriend?” I ask.
“The guy you killed,” she murmurs.
I look at her hard. “You don’t seem to care he’s dead, even if you were breaking up with him.”
“I don’t care, I care that I was there and saw it happen.”
Thinking of herself, we have more in common than I thought.
I look to Pope but as usual he is saying nothing.
“Okay, you’ve got two choices. You can either stay around here but you’ll have my guy here showing up every day to make sure you’re not talking to the wrong people,” I raise my eyebrow, conveying I mean the cops, “Or, you can let me help you set up somewhere else and hope you find better taste in men.”
She looks to Pope while she thinks it over. He uncomfortably shifts in his chair and looks away from her.
“Would he be able to come with me so I’ll feel safe till I end up wherever?” she says, meaning Pope.
Hearing this, Pope looks like he wants to be sick. At this point I will give her whatever the fuck she wants to keep her happy and her mouth clamped shut.
“Sure, but you’ll have to leave now because I need him back here in a few days,” I tell her.
She nods and sips her drink.
“Wait here while I talk to him, we won’t be far.”
Pope follows me over to the bar and I reach into my pocket to count out what cash I have on me.
“Here’s a hundred and fifty bucks to pay for gas and shit, make sure she gets some clothes and that. Don’t let her go back to her place, if anyone saw her leave with that cunt then the first stop they’ll go to for an
swers is her place.”
He isn’t happy about this but he nods once and takes the cash I am offering.
Sally waves meekly at me before Pope ushers her out of the bar. I breathe a sigh of relief that that’s over with and with Kitty waiting on me upstairs, my work here is done.
Heading for the stairs I pass Mark and squeeze his shoulder, he stops his conversation with Oak and looks up to me.
“She’s sorted, she isn’t going to be a problem.”
I don’t stick around, I am up the stairs and ready to end this day between my fiancée’s legs.
CHAPTER TWENTY
Mark
Every morning I make sure I eat breakfast with Rayna. I’m not always around to make dinner but I won’t miss breakfast with my wife unless I’m on a run and I have no choice.
I shouldn’t laugh when she has to sit sideways at the table otherwise she can’t reach her plate over her ever growing stomach that prevents her from tucking her chair in.
The smile soon disappears when her skin visibly pales before me when she lifts a fork full of bacon to her mouth.
“I take it the baby doesn’t want bacon for breakfast?” I frown.
“Nope,” she mutters, pushing her plate away.
From the second she said I do I wanted to start our own family but Rayna wanted to enjoy our marriage just the two of us for a while before we had a baby. I have waited so long for this and now I can’t wait till she gives birth. She hardly sleeps anymore because the baby keeps her up by kicking and moving all night. Food she has been eating for years makes her sick and she is tired all of the time. She isn’t herself these days and I’m looking forward to the day I get my wife back to her happy self.
I expected the pregnancy to be easier than this, all you hear about is how beautiful and natural it is for a woman to bear a child but I can’t help worrying about her day and night. Something about this doesn’t sit right with me and it has made me question whether I want to put her through this again in the future.
“Spend the day in bed today and get some rest, I know you don’t want to hear it but you look worn out.”
Biker Born: The Lost Souls MC Series (The Lost Souls Series Book 4) Page 13