by Erin Trejo
Following behind Tank and Torch, I’m lost inside of myself. The same place I told Torch not to hide in, yet I’m there.
“She’s had a rough time Ryker. Give it some time.” Tank slaps his hand on my shoulder yanking me back to reality. A reality I don’t want to be in right now.
“Fuck, Tank. She took a shot at me brother! Your kid was right there.” Seeing the look in his eyes, I know he is madder than he’s letting on about that shit.
“And you protected her. Look, shit has been rough on those girls. Look what they lived with brother. Hell, Jersey was fuckin’ traded out by her own goddamn parents. She needs reassurance. She needs to have that in place so she knows she is cared for, and loved.” Running my hand through my hair I thought that’s what I’ve been doing.
“How do I do that? I thought she already had all that. What the fuck more do I need to do?” Tank shrugs his shoulders as the Spawn’s all gather around.
“Can’t thank you guys enough for comin’ up here. Since Griff’s been gone, no one wants to take this club seriously. We lost out on over 7k this month alone.” Davey, one of the Spawn’s from the northern chapter speaks. He looks like hell. Shit, they all do.
“Who moved in?” All eyes come to rest on me before he speaks.
“Raven’s. Took up residence over at the shop on Willow. They’ve been runnin’ shit out of there since Griff died. They intercepted one of our shipments comin’ in from Cuba.” Shaking my head, that shit’s never good.
Spawn’s have tried to go legit the same way we’ve been trying. It’s hard though, when your life revolved around guns and drugs for as long as we’ve been alive.
“So we roll on them. Run them out of there. Ravens were never about shit when I was Nomad.” Looking around I see the nods. Most of these guys know me from back then. I was all over when I was Nomad.
“I agree. They’re a small club. Shouldn’t take a whole lot to push them out. That’s Spawn’s territory, yeah?” Tank looks over at Davey as he nods.
“Has been for years. We don’t mess around that way much anymore with the new shit opened up. Hell, we didn’t even know they were there until our shipment was gone.” Shaking my head, I wonder what the hell the Ravens were even thinking. They never were a big club. They dabbled in little shit. Weed, hookers, things like that.
“We know how they got it?” Davey nods again.
“Picked up one of our old lady’s a while back. Beat the shit out of her until she talked. Problem was, she had her jaw wired shut and was on so many meds, she didn’t know what was real or not.” That sets a new fire off inside of me. I may be a crazy motherfucker, but after what I saw with Jersey, I don’t like hearing that shit.
Tank’s hand lands on my shoulder drawing my attention to him. I can see the look in his eyes, he knows.
“I agree with Ryker. We move in on them. Let’s get them out of here, but first, I wanted to ask. Who’s your new President?” Looking around the room no one speaks. No one looks at the other, they all look down. I know it had to be hard losing their president, but surely they picked a new one.
“Oh, come the fuck on! You think Griff would have wanted you motherfuckers to be rollin’ around here without a president?” Tank loses his shit. I know he was close to Griff.
“No one measures up to him, brother.” One of the others guys speak before Tank looks ready to lose his shit.
“That’s pretty clear. No one will ever be Griff, but you need to have a president in place. How the fuck you want anyone around here to take you seriously if you don’t? I for one, ain’t rollin’ on shit, until this shit is settled.” Crossing my arms over my chest, Torch mimics my moves. It’s true. I’m not rolling up on another club without a President in place. That would make them, and us look weak.
“Vote on it. NOW!” Tank growls as their heads pop up.
“Nominate.” Looking around the room, they all look to Davey. Well, there it is.
“Who votes Davey as the new President?” I don’t give Tank the chance to speak as I look around the room. Hell, I have my own problems at home that I need to handle. This shit is for kids.
We go around the room and the majority vote for him. Thank fuck, that went quickly.
“There we go. Let’s fuckin’ roll Pres.” Slapping my hand against Davey’s chest, he nods as we all file out.
Chapter 18
Tank
It was hard being there. I know that wasn’t Griff’s clubhouse, but those were his guys. That chapter never had an individual president before. Griff always handled them too. He was good at it. He made his mark on this life.
Davey is a good guy. Has a good heart, but I know his past. He’s a mean son of a bitch that doesn’t care to take a life if he feels threatened. I guess I understand why they haven’t moved on the Ravens. With no true president, it would have back fired on them. I was glad Ryker stepped up the way he did though.
Ryker has a lot of courage in him. He also has a lot of the devil in there. Crazy as hell with a good heart has never been so dangerous.
“Look at that. Just kickin’ back with a beer like it’s the good old days.” Ryker leans against a tree as we scope out the area. We know they are a small club, but we don’t know if Ravens have intercepted more than just the Spawns drugs.
“Fuck that shit. It’s like football Friday in that motherfucker.” Torch chuckles next to Ryker. Glancing at the two of them, I don’t know how these motherfuckers are even alive. They have to be the sons of the devil himself.
“You two havin’ a good time? Want to go join them for a beer?” Sarcastic. I was being sarcastic. I guess I need to think about my choice of words with these two. The glance they just shared wasn’t a good one.
“Sounds about right.” Ryker and Torch both push off the tree they were leaning against, making their way toward the garage. I’m undecided on what to do here. Lay back, or follow these two fuckers up there.
Motioning to a few of the Spawns including their new President, we head forward. I need to remind myself to kick their asses later. Assholes are acting like Creed right now.
“Hello boys.” Ryker pushes the sleeves of his shirt up as he looks at the men in front of him. Crazy fucker. No wonder that girl tried to shoot his ass.
“Well, well, well. Ryker. Haven’t seen you in a while. Can’t say that makes me sad either.” The grunt that escapes Ryker amuses me. Usually I step in as the VP, but when Ryker knows the men we’re after, I let him take the lead. He knows how to work them better than I do.
“Aw Come on now, Ricky. We had some good times, yeah?” Ryker slides his sunglasses onto his head as he looks the man in the eyes.
“If you count shootin’ me in the back a good time, then yeah. What the fuck do you want?” I watch the man stand with a slight crook to his back. Damn, I knew he was off, but he really shot that man!
“Oh yeah. Forgot about that.” Chuckling, Ryker looks around at us. He’s clearly amused by what he did.
“Fuck you Ryker. What the hell are you doin’ here?” Getting in Ryker’s face doesn’t seem like a good idea. Not with that look on his face. The whole scene changes within seconds.
Ryker has the man by the throat dragging him toward the side of the garage, guns drawn, everyone following. Well, isn’t this great.
“Ryker.” Giving him a short but firm warning, he looks over.
“Hey, Tank. Why don’t you go see what’s inside, while me and my old friend have a talk.” I can see the look on his face. This isn’t going to end well.
“Goddamn it Ryker.” Stalking off toward the front, Ravens don’t back off.
“Why don’t we let them talk, yeah?” Stopping in front of one of them, I press my chest against the barrel of his gun. He doesn’t look too happy, but then again neither am I.
“Yeah. Let’s do that.” The man growls before he lowers the gun. By the time I get them around the front of the building Spawns are already inside.
Davey stands at the door with a shit eating gr
in on his face. They must have found their shit.
“You look happy.” Pulling a cigarette out I light it up as I look around the area.
“All of it’s there. Fuckin’ idiots never touched it.” Nodding my head, I’m glad they got their shit back. This run could have turned to shit; I guess it still could.
Screams roll through the air as we all rush toward it. Stepping around the side of the building, I see Ryker with something in his hand while Ricky is on the ground screaming.
“What the fuck is that?” Pointing to whatever it is in his hand, he holds it up and smiles.
“It’s a finger. You want one?” Tossing it at me, I raise my hands and watch the damn thing fall to the ground.
“That’s all your shit, brother. I ain’t into that.” Shaking my head, Ryker laughs.
“Yeah, it is. Why don’t you boys pick this motherfucker up and move out.” Looking around at the Ravens they don’t need to be told twice. They quickly grab him and head toward the front. That was easy. Easier than I thought it would be, but then again they aren’t a large club.
“You have lost your goddamn mind.” Shaking my head, I turn and walk off.
Chapter 19
Creed
“You boys seem to have this all covered, yeah?” Walking around Spawns clubhouse is weird without Griff here. He was a good man, even better brother. He’s greatly missed more than any one of us knows.
“Yeah. We got that new load comin’ in. Recruited a few more guys. We’ve closed off the old maintenance road so there won’t be any more surprises there. Shipments from Florida are runnin’ smooth. Everything looks good.” The new President over here, Benny, smiles as he speaks.
I knew he would be a shoo in with these guys. He’s always been the leader type. He has connections to things the rest of us don’t, and I personally, don’t want.
“Yeah. Tank and the northern boys are handlin’ that other little issue. I don’t think Ravens will be a problem once they take care of it.” Benny nods his head before passing me a beer.
“How’s shit over at Angel’s?” Isn’t that the million-dollar question?
“It’s goin’ brother. We got that shop openin’ up soon and the liquor store is lookin’ good. Get some of that legitimate money flowin’ in.” Benny nods his head before taking a long pull from his own beer.
“Let me know if there’s anything we can help out with. It’d be an honor. Griff always spoke highly of the Angel’s. I’ve known you for a long time, too.” Nodding at him, that I know.
“Well, if all is good here we’re goin’ to ride. We’re thinkin’ about the lake here in a few weeks. You should get the boys together. Let’s make this a family thing.” Putting my hand out, Benny takes it in his. Shaking on our new agreement, I’m ready to get back home.
I head back outside to climb on my bike. An eerie feeling comes over me before Joey looks up.
“We good to ride? I need to go pick somethin’ up.” Glancing back over at him, I nod.
“Yeah. Go ahead. I need some alone time anyway.” Joey nods before starting up his bike.
Sitting on mine, my mind drifts to the old times. Older days, older friends. The life I once lived. The friends I once had.
Jason made me a lot of who I am today. Losing him forced me to take a look at myself. For a long time, I was lost. I didn’t know where I belonged. There are times I still don’t. As happy as I am to have this club and the family I do now, a part of me yearns for the old days.
I wanted to watch Jason play pro football. I wanted to be the best friend that always cheered, and ragged on the star of the team. Back then, that was my dream.
Now things have changed. I find myself looking in the mirror, and wondering if I’m a good enough man. If I made him as proud as he made me.
I miss my parents. My mother mostly. I haven’t been back to see her, and she hasn’t seen Heather either. In some ways, I think its best that way though. My life is far different than it was when we were closer. I pushed myself away from them. Now, I don’t know if that was for the best.
“Wherever you are Jason, I hope you know I love you man. You made me see myself differently, for who I am. If you’re out there, just know that I love your sister with everything I have.” I may look crazy, but there’s a part of me that needs to make that clear for him. Whether or not he can hear me is up in the air. It just needed to be said.
Sliding my phone out of my pocket, I dial Jada.
“Hey.” She sounds at least somewhat happier. That’s always a good thing.
“Hey darlin’. I’m headin’ home.” I can hear her sigh on the other end.
“Are you ok Creed? You’ve never called me when you’ve been on a run like this.” Chuckling slightly to myself, she’s right. I haven’t, but it’s time I start. Life can change in the blink of an eye.
“I know. I just want you to know that I love you.” Before I know it, a tear slides from my eye. Quickly wiping it away, I need to be calm.
“I love you too. Is everything ok?” Laughing, I know she worries.
“Everything’s fine. I’m comin’ home darlin’.”
“Be safe.”
Chapter 20
Ryker
Climbing off my bike, Tank glares at me. I know he has something to say.
“What?” Pulling my gloves off I slap them down onto the seat.
“You are really fuckin’ gone brother. Is that fuckin’ bite marks?” Looking down at my hands, I smile.
“Had to keep that fucker quiet somehow.” Tank shakes his head as I smile. What? It’s true.
Following Tank inside, I see there are people everywhere. No kids though. Oh shit, it’s Friday. Party night. I should be excited about it, but I’m not. I’m still unsure how to handle Jersey.
“That was a short run.” Throwing my arm around Bella she smiles up at me.
“Yeah. I got all kinds of people skills. Look, I’m sorry about what happened.” Bella shakes her head before pulling out of my grasp.
“No. Don’t do that shit Ryker. It’s ok. She needs you, that’s all.” Bella turns and walks away leaving me standing there alone again. I don’t know if that is all that’s wrong with her. I don’t know anything anymore.
I head down the lonely ass hallway and head into my room. Staying at the clubhouse lately has been a relief for me. Sometimes it’s too damn lonely at home. I love Jersey and Ansley, but some days it’s overwhelming, I just need out.
“Where’s my baby?” Seeing Jersey in the corner smoking a cigarette, I look around for my daughter.
“Basement with the other kids. I was helping Jada fill the bar.” I can see the puffy eyes from here.
Walking over, I drop down onto the bed before laying back. I close my eyes and try to think of something, anything to say to her. I don’t know what the hell to do here. I’ve never been in this position before, but there is no way in hell that I can have my old lady shooting at people.
“I talked to Bella. I’m sorry Ryker.” Blowing out a breath, I don’t want to do this.
“I get that shits hard for you right now, but you can’t fuckin’ just go all crazy like that.” I hear that girl huff in the corner before she stands.
“Crazy? You think I’m crazy?” Oh hell, here we go. Opening my eyes, I turn my head to the side to look at her.
“You want the real answer to that darlin’?” Her eyes fill with rage, but she doesn’t understand. That craziness in her is what attracts me to her. Some plain girl would never hold my interests.
“Yeah, Ryker. I think I fucking do!” Snapping at me, I watch her eyes go wild. There it is. That right there, that fire, that rage. I love it.
“Yeah. I think you are fucked up crazy! I think there’s a part of the devil inside of you! I see the fire that ignites in that little head of yours.” Pushing myself up, I stand and face her.
“That’s what you think about me?” She narrows her eyes on me, but I don’t move. I stand there eyeing her back.
“
Damn right I do! I saw that spark inside of you that day in that shit house. It’s what drew me in. I love it. I fuckin’ love that devilish spirit you have.” Her face changes, her expression, void.
“I didn’t want to lose you.” A tear slides down her cheek. As much as I want to go to her, I don’t.
“You will never lose me, Jersey. I can’t breathe without you. You can’t go after family though. That girl, this club. It’s all she has. Her life was hell too, just like yours.” As the realization hits her, she walks off wiping at her face.
I don’t know how to make her understand that she’s all I need. She is all I’ve ever dreamt of having, and she’s ruining it herself.
Dropping back on the bed, I close my eyes again. After a few minutes I feel the bed shift next to me, but I don’t look up.
Jersey’s hand grabs mine, and that electricity flowing through my veins, sparks a desire in me. Does she not feel this? Is it not the same for her?
“A bite mark? Really Ryker?” Her voice has calmed as I feel the cool liquid touch my skin. Gently, she cleans my hand, and I let her.
“He wouldn’t shut up.” Her soft giggle ignites a need inside of me, a feral and all-consuming need for her.
Opening my eyes, I turn my head slightly to watch her work. She cleans me, dresses the wounds. I can see so much caring in her eyes. Could it be that she is really that much in love with me, that she would get jealous?
Pulling my hand from hers, I reach over and pull her around the waist, until she lays on top of me.
“Do you not feel it Jersey? Do you really not know how much I fuckin’ love you?” Gripping her face in my hands, I force her to look at me.
“Sometimes I don’t know why you would want me. I can see the other girls around here. They are so perfect, and I’m just me. Used, and tossed away.” Dropping my hands from her face, I slowly slide her off of me.