by Xyla Turner
The club board met to deliberate about the new wave of chapters that applied to be apart of the Lady Guardian charter. Once they were approved, they would go to Razor and the Legion of Guardians to make it official. After the board met to deliberate, our phones started going off. All at the same time.
“What’s wrong?” I asked grabbing my phone.
Apparently, one of the guys we had a hit on, popped up on our radar. The club had a Google Alert of people who had wronged, assaulted or violated any member or client of ours. If their names came up in any media format, we were notified.
The name that popped up on my screen was Mark Wringle. I looked up and saw that Brooklyn had seen it as well, because she went stark still. Her pen was in mid-air, her face was white and mouth open in surprise.
“Oh babe,” Goldie muttered and reached for her first. “He’s going to trial. This is great news.”
Cut looked up from her phone and pinned those eyes on me.
“What?” I mouthed to her, since I figured she didn’t want to say anything in front of Brooklyn.
A sound played from Silva’s phone, which sounded like a press conference, then the familiar voice of Alaric Hunt, came through. “My client, Mark Wringle, was framed and made to be perceived as a predator, when in fact it was all a lie. The district has decided to take on this case, because it needs to be clear that false accusations will be taken seriously, as the livelihood of many people has been tanked. This is in no way, to negate, the shame that has been done to the real victims, but Ms. Shelly Leechy is no victim. She, my fellow citizens, is a predator.”
All eyes, every single one of them hit me at that moment and all I could do was sit there with my mouth wide open. At least five minutes passed by before I got up and went to my office.
Cut, hit the gavel, letting them know that our meeting had adjourned, because I was not in any place to close out our official board meeting. Sharp pain crossed through my chest and a looming migraine began to dance over my eyebrows. With blurred vision, I sank in my chair as I replayed what I just heard over the phone. In complete unbelief, I shook my mouse so the computer would wake up. There was a need to actually see this happening in real time. It just couldn’t be believed. Not my Alaric. Not my man. Defending a known sexual predator and calling the women, predators and not victims.
This was too fucking much. A hot tear ran down my face and then more joined the goddamn party. A knock rang on the door, but I had no answer, as I clicked to see Alaric standing behind the podium, with the real predator right next to him, in an expensive ass suit. There was no reason to click on the volume, because I don’t know if my heart could take much more assault at that point. It was him. In the flesh with all his bones.
It was Alaric Hunt.
That night, I didn’t go home. Hell, five minutes after seeing him, I didn’t even stay at the compound. I hopped on my bike and rode until the tears had dried up, my body was ragged and I feared having an accident. My phone had been left at the compound and for a good reason, to be honest. There was no one that I wanted to talk to at this point and no one would understand anyway.
This was a big part of my issue, as I took over things. My friendships dwindled because I was the President and had to make decisions that were bigger than one person or my friend, but for the larger organization. This had not always made people happy, even those closest to me. My board had a different understanding about this, since we were also making decisions as a team. It was not just me and that was something I spent the first two years trying to instill in them, we were a team. What we did is what would stick. None of us liked Roe and how she ran it, then let’s do something different, but it required us to think differently.
That was the cost of leadership and like now, as I checked into a hotel by my lonesome, I was not sure who to call. I didn’t have girlfriends, I had sisters. Only God knew, if Goldie was slashing his tires, Brooklyn was probably burning down his house and Silva was torching the man with fire and brimstone.
Alive.
Alaric was someone that I let inside. The man had actually been inside of our compound and men are rarely ever there, even with the husbands. The club is not really where they go. Alaric was also, associated with me. Someone I picked to date, inside my heart, my life, and hell, even my body. Yet, he was just like the asshole, Talbert from all those months ago. I was a lawyer, but damn, these people lacked integrity. There was nothing there and the sad part about all of that, is, I didn’t see it before. Shit, maybe I did and ignored it, like the many women before me. Hell, this was probably a repeat of the R.W.E scandal from over six years ago. Now, my judge of character would be called into question. I was fucking an engaged man for six months and did not even know that his fiancée worked in the same building. Let’s not forget the same firm.
I wasn’t fit to lead. Fit to run shit. Hell, fit to even argue on someone’s behalf.
One night turned into two, as I tried to figure out where I went wrong and how I could have allowed myself to actually fall for someone whose heart was for someone else and now, who represented a sexual predator that had assaulted one of my team members.
Normally, I was stronger than this, but I really wanted to cry.
So, I did.
Then on day three, I showered, grabbed some food and headed back home. It was time to take out the garbage.
11
Alaric
One strong day in court, landed with me having two days of shit and none of that had to do with court. The case was doing well, she was being proven a liar over and over again. I found witness after witness at former jobs and other places of employment where we were able to show that Ms. Leechy was a habitual liar. The case wasn’t the problem.
The fucking problem was Eva Justice Wyatt. She just dropped off the face of the earth with no phone, contact or anything. Even her club didn’t know where she went, because I’d been knocking down their doors for days. Those women were so hostile towards me, I couldn’t figure out what happened, until I kept banging on the door and they sent Goldie to answer.
“Goldie, what the fuck is going on?” I asked. “What did I do? Where is Eva?”
“You got a lot of fucking nerve,” she answered me with squinted eyes and her hunting knife in her hand. “I should gut your ass where you stand.”
I had enough sense to be scared that she would, but also no fucks to give in order to locate Eva.
“Look, Goldie, do what you have to do, but unless you’re telling me what the fuck is going on, I don’t have time to figure this shit out. I need answers!” I yelled at her.
She blinked and then twisted her head to look at me. “You honestly don’t know?”
“No, I don’t fucking know. Do you think I’d be sitting here letting you threaten me? Where is Eva?”
My patience was gone at that point, so I turned to walk away, because that bullshit could not be entertained.
“Listen, if she hasn’t said anything, then I won’t. But for the record we don’t know where she’s at and we’re turning over heaven and hell to find her. If you find her, let us know.” Goldie said this with hope at the end of her statement.
“Like you all would do the same.” I let that hang out there because she and I both knew, if they saw her before I did, they would say shit.
Therefore, I remained close and it was on one of my stakeouts of the compound that I saw a group of bikers come in from the Legion of Guardians motorcycle club. They must be on the hunt as well, which made me really panic. This is the only reason why I knocked on the door of that club, knowing that Justice wasn’t there.
This time, none of the women answered the door, but a big man with a long beard.
“Fuck are you?” he barked.
“I’m Rick, here to see Justice or find out how I can help find her.” I nodded.
He grunted before saying, “Fuck off.”
It was safe to say, this was no ordinary door, but a steel one that weighted a lot. This did not stop me from
putting my entire weight against it, to keep him from shutting me out. I might have been a little jazzed with coffee, adrenaline and pure concern for my woman, that I actually shoved the door open. The guy that blocked it, moved to the side, which sent me flying in with the momentum I used to push in inside. When I gathered myself and looked up, I saw several men, Goldie, Cut and Brooklyn. The guys all had cuts on that read Legion of Guardians. The patches read National President, VP, Member, Secretary and Sergeant of Arms.
“Wow, I didn’t know the cavalry was here?” I nodded at the older man that had President on his cut. “Y’all here to find my woman?”
“Ex-girlfriend,” Goldie snarled.
“What?” The President scoffed with a gravely voice. “You look familiar.”
“Yeah, you’ve seen his ass on TV, defending a known sex predator,” Cut chimed in, sending the blow to my chest.
“What, that’s bullshit,” I snapped back.
“Fuck, yeah. You’re that lawyer.” The President chimed in with narrowed eyes.
“You fucking with one of these women?” The big guy waved around.
“Watch how you speak about these women,” I warned him.
“Think you the one that needs to watch it,” the other voice added, and that was when I saw he had a blade in his hand, tapping it on his thigh.
Fuck.
Talbert’s speech about motorcycle gangs came to mind but lawyer or not, I wasn’t leaving here without finding something about Eva.
“Listen, I don’t really give a fuck what you’re here for, but I need to find my girlfriend. We had plans, she took off, they don’t know where she’s at, I called the police and they’re no goddamn help. You are the Legion of Guardians’, right? I assume you are supposed to be here to help, but if you’re not.” I leaned into the guy with the knife. “Fuck you and get me somebody who can.”
“This dude is crazy,” the black guy muttered with VP and the name Bronx on his cut.
“Fuck you too,” I nodded at him. “So, what’s it’s going to be?”
My adrenaline was already in full blast, so much so, that I didn’t see what was coming at me next. A large hand raised above me and a sting ran across my face.
Fuck.
“What the …” I muttered as I looked up to see Brooklyn standing in front of me with tears streaming down her eyes.
“She left because of you, you fucking asshole. You’re just like all the rest of them. She left because you’re representing the man who sexually assaulted me. I did nothing to deserve it. I didn’t even want to be with him, but he touched me in places that I could never speak of and you, the first man she’s let inside of her heart in years, turns out to be contributing to the problem.” She took a deep breath. “So, you want to know why she left. It was because of you.”
Brooklyn turned her tear-stained face away from me and walked out of the room.
“Looks like we need to talk,” the President spoke again with his gaze on me. “The names Razor.”
Fuck me.
* * *
After careful deliberation with Razor, Bronx, Apollo, Cut, Goldie and Bear, I realized exactly where I had fucked up. They still had no idea where Eva was, but they had a few leads. Since they were, literally a legion, they had branches all over the country. Therefore a black woman on the back of a Harley, by herself, was bound to show up. I suggested that they talk to their rival gang, Banshee Bitches. Apollo assured me that the Lady Guardians already had a show down with them, which is why Silva wasn’t at the compound. Apparently, after holding a knife to their President’s neck, while on camera, the police can pick you up for questioning. Silva did not care, but the Guardians were getting her out today. They really wanted to ensure they didn’t have Eva first. The only other person that I could have thought about was Talbert, who was too slimy to actually do anything. His pride was hurt, but he wasn’t capable of making someone disappear.
Once I explained things to everyone about Mark Wringle, they began to understand. Goldie even brokered a conversation with Brooklyn and we devised a plan. Cut ran in the room with a phone to her ear, yelling, “I got a hit on her credit card. It was used in a few towns over, near Allentown, at a motel called, The Pointe. She checked out a couple of hours ago, so she may be headed home soon.” She nodded and threw on her cut.
My heart was relieved and I think a breath released that was being held in for what, days?
“You know her best,” Razor nodded towards Cut. “What’s the best approach?”
She sighed, looked at me, then at Goldie.
“She’s hurt and is probably feeling vulnerable. We’re her girls, but we’re also her members. He’s well,” she jerked her finger towards me. “He…”
“I’m going to her house either fucking way. She needs to hear it from me, if that’s why she left. I want to know and she hears it from me.” I announced and stood up.
Goldie and Cut looked at Razor, but he nodded in their direction before saying, “Nobody comes between a man and his woman. Lesson: You’re her girls, but if she’s mad at him, then it’s him that needs to fix that shit. He’s sitting here defying all odds, willing to do so, so let him. He’s not, then that’s another story. Handle your business, but her beef is with him. Y’all can swoop in later, but not before him.”
Bronx nodded and oddly enough so did Bear, right before he said, “Y’all wouldn’t stop me from seeing my Dessy. None of y’all.”
Apollo grunted and that was when I left. No permission was needed. It was appreciated, but I didn’t really care what they thought.
My heart was beating out of my chest at a rate faster than I could even track. Several traffic laws were broken, but fuck it, I was a lawyer. I’d get out of it somehow.
When I arrived at her place, the lights were still off and it looked the same as the past few nights I had come by. Judging by the time, she should be arriving within the hour.
**__**
Eva
Home sweet home.
I missed my bed more than I realized as I grew closer to the house. I figured it would have a few of the girls looking for me or staked out at the house, but I was not anticipating thee man sitting on my steps throwing rocks.
Goddamit.
Walking my baby back into the driveway, my heart began to beat wildly. It wasn’t that I had feelings for him or that I was seriously disappointed. Well, it could have been that, but I was done.
“Eva,” he called.
I didn’t answer, just put my kickstand down, took off my helmet and nabbed my keys from the ignition.
“Eva, sweetheart?” Alaric called again, “can we talk?”
“Leave my property, please.” I uttered as I made my way to the front door. “Don’t come back.”
There was a sigh and then I felt heat on my back. I put my hand in my pocket and turned abruptly, as if there was a threat.
“I said, to leave my property and never…”
My words were cut off.
“I spoke to Brooklyn, I know what happened.” He said with a hand raised, as if he was asking for mercy. “She told me what happened to her with the support from Cut and Goldie. Silva is locked up, by the way and I met Razor, Bronx, Bear and Apollo. They’re a swell bunch.”
What in the actual fuck?
I leaned towards him at his words and hissed, “What?”
“Brooklyn, she told me what happened. She walked me through everything. I have a plan, okay. But you didn’t give me a fucking chance to hear my side. You just left. Everyone was worried sick about you.” He was about to continue, but I stopped him by shaking my head.
“No, Alaric. You don’t get to come to my house, chastise me for taking time that I needed.” My finger was shaking at him too. “You don’t.”
A flash of what looked like anger passed over him and then he was in my face, almost seething.
“I don’t!” he threw his hand out towards my bike. “You just get up, ride off into the fucking sunset and don’t say boo to nobody. D
o you care that people care about you? Your job, your club, me. People that love you and worry that something could have happened. But fuck all of us, huh?”
I’d never seen Alaric that mad before. It’d only been around six months of so, but he was hotter than fish grease.
“You don’t tell me what I can’t do when it comes to you. I was worried fucking sick. Everyone was.” He lowered his voice before running his fingers through his thick hair in frustration. “Did you leave because of me? Because of the case?”
Alaric’s word were almost a whisper when he asked his last question.
“Yeah,” I nodded and crossed my arms over my chest.
“Fuck,” Alaric said under his breath and lowered his eyes. A few minutes later, with renewed courage, he said, “I have a plan, Eva. Will you at least hear me out?”
My head shook in the negative first and then I spoke.
“Alaric, let me speak. I was in a relationship with someone who was engaged. His fiancée worked in the same building and firm as me and I didn’t know the first damn thing about him being engaged. That was over six years ago. I was painted to be some type of homewrecker, people looked at me funny, I was given stupid cases, to keep me busy and I was the villain. Forget that I didn’t know, forget that I was actually the victim in this case, and forget that the affair involved two willing parties with one of them in the dark about their relationship status.” I paused to see that he was actually listening. “So, imagine my surprise when I wake up to find the man that I care deeply for, plastered on the news defending a known sexual predator. To put the icing on the cake, he assaulted one of my members. She came to the club, fleeing from him, years ago. And I, their President, let you into my life. Into my bed and in my fucking club. My members know you and that we are together and now what? What do they think of their fearless leader? She sure knows how to fucking pick them?”