by Zoey Derrick
Walking out of the bathroom, I go into my closet and pull down my shaving kit. Ever since I came back as Pyro, I haven’t used a shaver, but I’ve always kept one on hand and I need it now. It’s time to make Pyro go away and bring Tryke back to life. This is the best place to start.
I return to the bathroom and plug in the shaver and I flick the switch. It kicks on and the vibration in my hand is a reminder of what I’m about to do. I smile at myself and lift the hair on the side of my head, the one with Lily’s tattoo and I press the shaver to my temple and swipe it through, leaving a nearly bald streak in its path. I come back, closer to my ear, and repeat the process.
I keep going until that side of my head is bald and free of hair, then I start on the other side. I haven’t touched the back yet. It’s been six years since I’ve cut my hair. Here’s hoping I don’t fuck it up.
Ten minutes later and I’m looking at my hair again in the mirror. The top is still too long, but I kind of like it. I can’t see the back, but it feels alright. I have a nice thick stripe of hair running from my forehead to the base of my skull. The mohawk is much longer than I’ve ever had it, but I kind of like it like this.
“There you are,” I say into the mirror. “I’ve missed you.”
For the first time in my life, I regret the scar on the side of my face and I wish there was a way to make it disappear. But unless I’m going to have surgery, it will be a permanent part of my face for the rest of my life. I take a deep breath before I step into the shower.
About thirty minutes later, around ten, I’m headed toward Lily’s house. My scruff has been shaved off, my hair fixed, sort of, and my contacts are gone.
When I pull up in front of Lily’s, I see that someone brought her bike back here from Loki’s and it makes me smile. She can keep riding it. I know Loki won’t stop her and if Loki is willing to let her ride, there ain’t a brother in Roswell who would make her stop.
In hindsight, it was probably ridiculously stupid of me to think she’d stay away from the life, but I’d hoped.
The front door opens and Piper stands there as I kill my bike. “You’re not Loki,” she says sadly.
“No darlin’, I’m not. Is Emily here?”
“Duh,” she says as I approach her.
I laugh. “Do I know you?” she asks me as I step up the front steps.
“No, but I know you,” I tell her with a smile.
“Are you sure?”
“What makes you ask?” I counter.
“You look like mommy’s brother.” My heart picks up a beat in my chest. “But mommy said he died,” she says sadly. “I never got to meet him.”
I kneel before her. “What if I told you that I am your mommy’s brother.”
Her eyes widen and she lights up. “Are you really mommy’s brother? Are you really Unkie Kellen?” she asks, hopeful.
“I am, Piper.”
She gasps, “You know my name?”
I can’t help but chuckle at her. “Yeah, I know your name because I’m your Uncle Kellen.”
She pushes through the door and slams me with a massive hug. Her arms wrap around my neck, holding on for dear life. “So, you’re not dead?” she asks softly.
“No, baby, I’m not dead,” I tell her.
“Piper, what are you doing?” a voice says as a woman comes to the door. My eyes lock on hers, they’re a beautiful shade of blue. Her stick straight black hair cascades down her back. My heart stops in my chest. “Who are you?” she asks, but her voice comes out as more of a whisper and I smile at her.
“I’m Tryke,” I tell her.
She shakes her head. “That’s not possible, he’s dead.”
“No, he’s not,” Piper champions for me, turning around to face Emily. “This is my unkie Kellen. I know it is.”
“It’s a long story,” I say by way of explanation. “I came to talk to you.”
“Is everything alright?” she asks, concern in her voice.
“Hey, Piper, can you do me a favor?” I ask.
“Anything.”
I smile at her eagerness. “Can you give me and Emily a minute to talk?”
“I know, I know, adult stuff,” she mutters as she squirms out of my arms and she ducks inside the house.
I look past Emily and see that Piper has moved into the dining room. “Lily is in the hospital,” I tell her. She gasps and covers her mouth. “She’s alright, just a little beat up, but she’s gonna be there for a couple days.”
“Okay…” she says, unsure of what else to say. “Can we go see her?”
I can’t stop my features from scrunching up. “I wouldn’t recommend it, at least not for a few days. She’s pretty beat up. I don’t want to scare Piper.”
She nods in understanding. “I can handle Piper, but what should I tell her?”
I shrug. I haven’t the first clue about what you tell kids in situations like this. “I don’t…I have no clue,” I admit..
Emily smiles at me, her eyes roaming over my cut and lower. My cock hardens in my jeans and I pray to god she can’t see it. “Kiwi is usually pretty honest,” she says as her eyes make their way back up to my face. I bite the inside of my cheek to stop from blushing like a moron.
After I regain control, just a heartbeat or two, I say to her, “Well, I will leave that up to you, but she’s going to be fine. She needs her rest and some time to recover.”
“What about Loki?” she asks.
“He’s fine. He’s at the hospital with her…” I realize that we’re still standing outside and I’m not sure I like this. “Can I come in?” I ask.
“Absolutely,” she says, opening the door for me to step inside. I walk up to her, putting myself right in front of her. She’s much shorter than I am and her breathing catches in her throat. Her eyes, staring into mine, dilate, and I smirk.
“See something you like?” I ask her.
“Uh huh,” she breathes before her face turns bright red and she breaks our eye contact. I smirk. Taking the door from her hand, I close it gently. Piper is singing in the dining room, some Adam Levine song, Animals, I think it is, with no music playing. I shake my head and press Emily against the wall. I’m not touching her, but she’s trapped between me and the wall.
“And what would you like to do with it?” I ask her.
“Lick it from head to toe.”
My mouth falls slack, my cock hardens further and I move in closer to her, dipping my head so that my lips are mere inches from hers. Her breathing catches in her throat and she tilts her head closer, trying to get me to kiss her. I leave her hanging for a moment, but then I slant my lips over hears.
Electricity flies through me. My cock jumps, my heart skips and my breathing falters the moment our lips touch.
She wraps her arms around my neck, pressing her body against me and I growl into our kiss before wrapping my arms around her and lifting her. She wraps her legs around me and I press her against the wall. Our lips never stop. I slide my tongue along her lower lip and she opens for me. I press my tongue into her mouth and she starts sucking it and flicking her tongue.
I groan again and press my hips into her sex. “Oh god,” she wimpers as she tears her mouth from mine.
“Animals, like Animals,” rings out from the kitchen and it’s like dumping ice water over me. I let Emily back to the floor.
“Wow,” she breathes.
“Wow is right,” I agree.
I lift my hand, brushing the backs of my knuckles down her cheek. “I better go,” I tell her.
“Okay…” she breathes.
I pull back, putting distance between us, and her vision clears, her mind returning to herself and she looks at me like I’ve just stolen her virtue. I smirk at her. With my eyes on her, I say, “Piper, baby, I’m leaving.”
She comes running in and she looks from me to Emily and back to me again. “Already?” she says. “You just got here.”
I smile and break eye contact with Emily to look down at Piper. “I know, baby
, but I got business to take care of.”
“Will you come back?”
I look at Emily again when I answer, “Oh yeah, I’ll be back.”
“Good,” Piper exclaims and she hugs my leg.
“See you later,” I say to both of them, but I’m looking at Emily with a look I hope says it’s a promise. Her mouth falls slack and her chest rises quickly for a moment.
“See you later,” she breathes.
I walk out of the house, my hand going to my cock, shifting it. It’s hard as fucking steel and climbing on my bike isn’t going to be fun like this, but I do it anyway. I look at the time on my phone, just before eleven. I have enough time to swing by the hospital before the meeting.
Chapter Thirty-Two
LOKI
“Hey man, where you at?”
“I just pulled up to the hospital,” Tryke says into the phone. “Wanted to check on her before I hit the clubhouse.”
“She’s still in the emergency room, but they’re working on getting her a bed. Loni is with her now.”
“Why aren’t you with her?” His tone is accusatory.
“I need a shower, a change of clothes and to grab some stuff before I hit the clubhouse. Loni said she’d stay until I got done. The doc said they were gonna keep her out a while longer,” I tell him. Loni was insistent on staying with her while I went to deal with club business. She knows how important today is. She’s been around long enough to understand that. Besides, I’m pretty sure Cowboy made her do it.
“So, you’re not here?”
“No, I just got back to my house.”
“Emily’s hot,” he tells me.
“Dude, she watching my kid,” I tell him with a scrunched-up face.
“And you’re doing my sister, so what’s your point?” he snickers.
“Touché,” I laugh.
“Alright, I’m gonna run in here, I’ll see you at the clubhouse,” he says.
“Yeah, alright,” I tell him and we hang up.
My eyes roam over to my bed and the cut lying across it. A smile spreads across my face as I think about how I’m going to do this today.
As much as I want to be Pres, it’s not my place. Never was. It’s always belonged to Tryke and he, more than anyone else, deserves it. Though if the club voted me in, I wouldn’t be surprised and I’d have no problem making Tryke as Veep. I know he’d take it without a second thought.
I leave the cut and go for the shower. Remembering the last time Kiwi and I took a shower, sadness creeps over me because god knows how long it’s going to be before we can do that again. Jesus, that’s if she even wants to. I growl in anger as I get in the shower.
About an hour later, I’m pulling up to the club. Everyone is here. There’s even a few extra bikes from Colorado and Arizona here. I grab the bag from my side saddle and tuck it under my arm.
When I walk in the door, I’m greeted with a lot of ‘hey man’, ‘how you holdin’ up’ and ‘how is she’ as I step up to the bar. The prospect is quick with a shot for me and I slam it back.
“You see him yet?”
“Nah, you?”
“Yeah, he…I don’t know, he doesn’t look any different.” Two of the Arizona members are talking. I look over at them and I recognize them immediately. They were once Roswell members, but after Tryke’s death they rolled on to Arizona. Rooster put a lot of bad tastes in people’s mouths so they did what they had to and bailed. “They give it to him, you coming back?” the one guy who remarked about looks says.
“Fuck yeah,” the other one says and my reason for doing what I’m about to do is solidified. Roswell has been a small unit for the last six years. We used to be close to Tucson in size, but Rooster ruined all that. I’m eager to get us back on track.
The bell rings behind the bar and I see someone stand up on something toward the hallway. I look and it’s Big Daddy. “As,” he shouts, and the crowd quiets. “As many of you know, Gunnar is dead.” The crowd erupts in cheers to the point of deafening. Big Daddy puts his fingers in his mouth and whistles loud enough to settle them down. “And that Rooster is officially in ATF custody.” The roars and cheers are louder over that statement than they were for Gunnar. Big Daddy whistles again after he gives them a minute to celebrate, and they settle down. “That means, on this day, we must choose a new Roswell President.”
There are several people shouting, “Loki and Tryke”, a couple people shout, “Pyro: and there’s some chuckles. “Enough,” Big Daddy barks. “You know how this goes. Since we no longer have a Veep, it passes to the Sergeant to make the first nomination.” Big Daddy’s eyes meet mine. “He can either nominate himself, or he can choose someone else. This person must be at least a Veteran member of this clubhouse and must have been a full member of this club for ten years. Once they announce their person, the Treasurer and Senior Veteran may confirm or deny and offer their own nominations. Now, you may not know this, but Axel, your Senior Vet, was shot last night. He’s alive, breathing and wide fucking awake, but they won’t let him out of his bed just yet. So, I’ve already spoken with him in regard to his nomination.” Big Daddy’s eyes move around the room. I can’t quite see who he’s looking at. “Once the nominations are in, the Veterans will go to church and cast their votes. Get me?”
The entire common room, including myself erupts in “we get you,” before settling.
Big Daddy’s eyes come back to me. “You’re up Sergeant-at-Arms.”
I nod and walk toward where he’s standing on the box. He greets me by taking my arm and I take his before we fist each other’s backs. “How’s she?” he asks.
“Still sleeping,” I tell him.
He nods and I step up on the box. I scan the crowd once, twice, before coming back to a man I haven’t seen in six years. His contacts are gone. His green eyes look at me with familiarity. His hair cut short on the sides, long through the middle. I nod to him. “Many of you assholes expect me to nominate myself.” I start to unravel the bag to a chorus of laughter. “But I’m not.” There’s a gasp among the masses. “Ten years ago we lost the best President Roswell’s ever had, and ten years ago the club should have been passed to the rightful successor. However, ten years ago, we were younger, dumber and full of more cum than we are now.” This gets me some more laughs. “And it wasn’t the right time. So, my nominee did the right thing, unwilling and unprepared to take the throne, he stepped aside to learn, to understand and to have a solid grasp on who it is at the top. When he was ready to make that step, someone put a hit on him.” My eyes find Tryke’s again. “In an effort to protect himself, and his sister, he did what was best for his family.”
“His sister?”
“She’s dead.”
A shiver runs through me. “No, she’s not. Most of you have had the pleasure of meeting her as Skit or better yet, my old lady,” I tack on.
“No shit?” someone says.
I smile. “She, in case you didn’t know this, is the reason Rooster is in ATF custody and the reason Gunnar is dead,” I tell them and that starts some murmurs and whispers, but I talk over them. “Regardless of that, Tryke, it’s time for you to stand up,” I pull the cut from my bag, “and take this cut back. Take back the real man you are, and step up to be our President.”
Tryke stands up, his eyes are full of emotion, just like mine, as he makes his way through the crowd. Many of the men grab his shoulder and give him encouraging messages to welcome him back.
When he finally reaches the box, I step down. He grabs my arm and I grab his. “Thank you, brother,” he whispers in my ear. I smile.
I take the cut and shake it out. “Take it off, man,” I tell him.
He smiles and removes his Pyro cut and he hands it off to someone. I open the front of his Tryke cut and hold it for him. He smiles and slips his arms inside one at a time. Then he grabs the front and pulls it down, snapping it, and the entire common room erupts.
Big Daddy, Whistler, Sticks, Pixie and Cowboy greet him, welcoming him
back to the club as Tryke before Big Daddy shouts, “Treasurer!”
Tryke rolls his eyes but steps up on the box and the crowd quiets without any prompting.
“I’d prepared a big long speech about the man I wanted to nominate today.” His eyes come to mine. “He deserves it. He kept this club together in my absence. He kept me sane and he’s taken on my sister as his old lady and that alone deserves some serious recognition,” he teases and most of the guys laugh. “And he does deserve the job. You all look up to him, you all turn to him for guidance when you need it and most importantly, he’s been there for each of you when I couldn’t be. But if I nominate Loki, it feels like we’re both swapping our nominations. So, at this time, as Treasurer of Roswell, I hold my nomination.”
“Fair enough,” Big Daddy says.
“Dick,” I tease Tryke as he steps down.
“Cocksucker,” he laughs.
“As I’m standing in for Senior Vet, I offer you no speech or anecdotes but Axel, Senior Veteran of Roswell Wicked Angels by proxy, hereby nominates Loki as president,” he bellows.
I shake my head. “I knew that was comin’,” I mutter.
“So with one nomination each, Tryke, do you wish to offer your nomination?” Big Daddy asks.
“No, I will leave it to the Veterans to decide.”
“Fair enough,” Big Daddy smirks. “Veterans, to church,” he orders and there are fifteen of them, sixteen with Axel, but he nominated, therefore he cannot vote again. The fifteen members of our Veteran squad move through the common room. Cell phones are dropped in the box on the wall and they move into the conference room next to Rooster’s old office.
“You could have sealed the deal, one way or another,” I say to Tryke. “Why didn’t you?”
He gives me a sad smile. “Because it’s not my decision. Pyro’s sure, he’s been around long enough, but Tryke hasn’t,” he says with a hint of regret.
“You did what you had to do,” I remind him.