Outlaw glanced in Diesel’s direction, softening a fraction. “Yeah, boy?”
“You said I could join you in here until the meeting started.”
“Then get a fuckin’ drink and sit the fuck down.”
“Deel!” A miniature version of Meggie bounded in, skidding into the boy. “You left me,” Rebel pouted, holding her arms out to him.
Diesel sighed, but picked her up as she wanted.
Outlaw snatched her from Diesel’s arms, grinning at the relief in the boy’s gray eyes. He hugged the little girl and she squealed. “Leave Diesel in peace, girl.”
“Elle!” Rule hollered, running into the room, as if Rebel had escaped him and he’d had to hunt for her.
“’Law!” Right behind Rule, CJ came in. “Bun-Bun got Ryder and brought him to Mommie. MegAnn bringing him to you, ‘Law.” He greeted each of them, ending with, “Ashfuck Dig!”
“Hey, lil dude.”
“Ryder!” Rebel screamed as Meggie carried in the kid. “You woke up.”
“You woke him up,” CJ accused, rubbing his chubby little fingers over his cut. Cash couldn’t imagine how Meggie would get him in a suit for the christenings.
“Did not!” Rebel cried, wiggling to get out of her father’s arms.
“Did.”
Rebel ran to CJ, as Meggie handed Ryder to Outlaw.
“Come on, Rebel,” Meggie instructed, interrupting Rebel’s determination to change CJ’s mind. “I need your help.”
“Okay, Mommie,” she said, skipping to Meggie and accepting the hand she held out.
Kendall met Meggie at the door. “Can we get started soon? I need to get home to my children.”
“Yeah, sure,” Meggie agreed. “Let me round everyone up.”
Instead of following behind Meggie, Kendall lingered in the door, reminding Cash he needed to pull Johnnie aside and warn him that his wife was threatening to clue Meggie in on a lot of shit better left unsaid.
Kendall stared at the back of Ryder’s head, who was busy being amused by his dad.
Resenting Ryder because he resembled Johnnie with his blond hair and light blue-green eyes that appeared gray at certain angles should’ve alerted the motherfucker to Kendall’s mental state. Cash believed it had as much to do with that as it had to do with Johnnie being with Meggie at the start of her labor for the kid.
“Stretch, find Fee while I see what the fuck takin’ Megan so long to call us in to fuckin’ dinner,” Outlaw suggested, departing the room without a single glance to Kendall.
“I’m tired,” she said, laying a hand on her belly and studying Johnnie through her lashes.
“We’ll leave in thirty minutes. The meeting won’t take long.”
“Where’s Rory, Ant Kenda?” CJ asked, halting her departure.
“At home. Out of this shitty weather. Where we should be.”
CJ frowned. “You don’t like it here?”
“I don’t like your father.”
“Kendall!” Johnnie barked, while Diesel choked.
Confusion knitted the child’s brow. “You don’t like ‘Law?”
“He doesn’t like me. He talks about me all the time!”
“’Law talk about you?” the kid squeaked out.
“Kendall, this is a child. Shut up,” Johnnie ordered.
“You know he talks about me, CJ. He talks about me to everyone.”
Johnnie approached Kendall. “It’s time for us to leave now.”
“’Law talk about Mommie all the time,” CJ explained, interrupting Johnnie’s intentions. “‘Law love Mommie. ‘Law don’t talk about you, Ant Kenda.”
“I’m not ready to leave, Johnnie,” she announced. “I need to talk to Meggie.”
“For what, Red?” Mort asked in exasperation.
“Meggie needs to know the real cost of being that dickhead’s wife.”
“What’s the cost, Kendall?” Johnnie challenged. “That she has a husband who adores her and four beautiful kids?”
“The cost is she’s as much of a murderer as Outlaw! She threatened Charlotte first. The cost is her mother was killed after betraying the club to save Meggie. That makes her a double murderer!”
CJ’s gasped and his eyes rounded. Before any of them decided what to do, the kid screamed, “’LAW!”
“Let him tell his father,” Kendall cried as CJ ran out. “I don’t care.”
“You fucking should!” Johnnie barked. “He’s going to shoot your fucking ass off. You don’t know how to let shit drop.”
“He thinks he’s so smart. Well, it’s my will against his, and I’m the one with the education. He can’t win and I have you in my corner.”
“No, you don’t in this case. I’m not getting shot again for more bullshit.”
“What the fuck goin’ on in here?” Outlaw asked, holding his son’s hand “Why my boy pullin’ me away, sobbin’ about Megan killin’ motherfuckers?”
“Where Meggie girl, Prez?” Mort asked.
“Tellin’ Wilcunt, Zoann, Fee, Bailey and Stretch dinner about to be served so the meetin’ can start. I was in the goddamn kitchen stealin’ more of Megan food.”
“I told CJ about Meggie being the murderer that she is,” Kendall announced with triumph. “You’ve ruined so many lives. Why spare your wife’s feelings? She should know that she killed Traveler and her mother. She’s as responsible for Dinah’s death as the assholes who actually pulled the trigger.”
Either Kendall was crazy or stupid. Instead of seeing Outlaw’s rage, she continued her rant.
“You think you’re so fucking smart? You think you’re able to figure everything out. When you can’t even judge your own fucking family.” She smirked. “You know your precious little sister? Fee? She’s been hiding the fact that she’s been fucking Cash and Stretch for months. She knew all about Daphne and my plans to ruin your fucking marriage.”
Cash got to his feet, but Mort’s hand on his shoulder stopped him. The betrayal darkening Outlaw’s face outweighed Kendall’s announcement. As the words penetrated, his look changed to rage.
He growled and lunged, but Johnnie stepped in the pathway, struggling to hold Outlaw back.
“Move the fuck outta the way.”
“Christopher, listen to me!” Johnnie started.
“Fuck you,” Outlaw returned, so angry he shook. “You knew about this, Johnnie?” he asked, his voice hard and cold. “You knew this cunt was fuckin’ with my Megan and you let her?”
“Not until after it was done, Christopher,” Johnnie admitted, still holding Outlaw back.
He jerked away from Johnnie. “Cash, get Fee in here,” he ordered, not realizing that Cash had known, too.
“Outlaw, it isn’t what you think,” Cash began, unwittingly allowing Johnnie time to yank his bitch toward the door.
“Come on, Kendall,” he ordered, hustling her away.
For once, she kept quiet. She looked...horrified. As if she couldn’t believe what she’d said. Well, that made a bunch of motherfuckers unable to believe her big fucking mouth.
“’Law?” CJ asked in a trembling voice, staring at his father with fear.
Outlaw deflated and drew in a sharp breath, the pulse in his neck pounding harder. “Son, I ain’t ever fuckin’ told you to keep any-fuckin-thing from your Ma and my ass hatin’ to do it now. But don’t tell Megan nothin’ you fuckin’ heard today. Okay?”
“Okay, ‘Law.” He was quiet and then, “Why?”
“Cuz…cuz it’ll make your ma sad and we ain’t wantin’ her to cry, is we?”
“No, ‘Law.”
Outlaw bared his teeth, attempting a smile. “Okay, boy. Diesel, take CJ and get him something to eat.”
“Yes, sir,” Diesel said.
“You okay?” Cash asked once Diesel and CJ were gone.
“As soon as I fuckin’ kill Kendall, I’ma be fine.”
“I have no love lost for her but I know you don’t really intend to kill her,” Cash said.
“The fuck I
don’t. This time that cunt gone too far. She pissed over Charlotte and Brooks, instead of thankin’ me—Megan—that those two fuckheads alive, she wanna get fuckin’ revenge, so she goin’ after her favorite fuckin’ target. My girl. Kendall hate Megan so fuckin’ much, she made my boy cry. Cry. And she made me tell him to do some-fuckin-thing I never want him to do. Lie to Megan. I ain’t sure what I gotta kill her first over.”
Cash swallowed, wondering where Fee fit into all of this. He hoped the other stuff took precedence over confronting her. Cash needed to warn her that Kendall had betrayed her, after all. “You can only kill Kendall once, brother.” Unfortunately.
“I can fuck her up in degrees,” Outlaw snarled. “Keep revivin’ her ‘til I chop her fuckin’ head off.”
“That’s John Boy’s old lady, Prez,” Mort said into the deathly silence.
“She fucked with Megan and my boy. If that bitch wanna fuck over her kid and Johnnie ain’t givin’ a fuck, that’s them. How-fuckin-ever, her death would be their fuckin’ salvation. She fuckin’ up all of them.”
“She’s pregnant,” Cash said.
Outlaw paused, a muscle ticking in his jaw. As if the world were suddenly turning against Kendall for all her many fuck-ups, Meggie rushed in, a shell-shocked look in her eyes.
“Where’s Kendall? I need to talk to her…CJ’s crying because of her.” Panic entered her eyes. “He said Kendall told him…”
“What the fuck our boy say happened, baby?”
Her chin wobbled. “I k-killed Traveler and…and Mama. I’m a murderer two times. What did he mean?”
“Meggie girl,” Mortician started, halting at Outlaw’s glower.
“What did CJ mean?” Meggie grabbed her head and released a small sob. “No, I-I know what he meant about Traveler. I-I killed him. My bullet took his life. Not yours.”
“Megan, baby, listen to me, I ain’t sure why Kendall sayin’ that bullshit but she just fuckin’ with you. Me, Mort, Val, and Digger was all there. We all looked at that motherfucker. I killed him. Your conscience clear. You just disabled him and saved me.”
Swiping the back of her hand across her cheeks, she nodded. “But Kendall has said this several times, Christopher. Even Stretch implied it. For her to say the same to CJ…”
“Don’t mean fuck-all,” Outlaw snapped. “You trust me for every fucking thing else, why the fuck my ass gonna lie to you about this? I woulda told you you shot that motherfucker ass off to save my ass. I woulda reminded you, if you fuckin’ hadn’t, I’d be fuckin’ deader than fuck. My head woulda got blown the fuck off. I woulda asked you why the fuck you cryin’ over killin’ a motherfucker who meant to kill me, even though I know your first kill fuck with you the rest of your fuckin’ life. Something about knowin’ what the fuck you done and maybe something else coulda been done, so you wouldn’t become a goddamn executioner. But none of that the case, baby.” Jaw clenched, he looked at Megan again. “I swear on Ma grave, your conscience clear.”
“And Mama? H-how did I kill her?”
“That just go to show you, that cunt fuckin’ with you, yeah? You wasn’t even at the clubhouse when Dinah got fucked up.”
She thought for a moment. “This is going to be another long pregnancy with Kendall, huh?” she asked in a shaky voice.
“Shit gonna be fine,” Outlaw swore. “Trust me. Now,” he said when she opened her mouth to speak. “I’ma send these motherfuckers home with their bitches and I’ma have Bunny watch our kids, so me and you can fuck. Okay, baby?”
“Okay.” Without another word, she turned and walked out.
“Prez, now, Red not thinking right,” Mort started.
“Yeah, Outlaw,” Val added, seeing the wild look creeping into Outlaw’s eyes. “I don’t like Kendall at all, but…”
“But fuckin’ nothin’, Val. I told my boy to lie to his Ma for fuckin’ nothing. I shoulda known the lil’ motherfucker wasn’t waitin’ to run to her. If he woulda told her I told his lil fuckin’ ass to lie, Megan woulda known. If that wasn’t fuckin’ bad e-fuckin-nuff, I swore on Ma grave. Swore to a motherfuckin’ lie cuz of a motherfuckin’ mean bitch that don’t deserve to live. As long as she alive, she a threat to my girl.”
“Only when she pregnant,” Digger said. “Just keep Meggie away from Kendall for now.”
“Yeah, Prez, Kendall pregnant,” Mort reminded him.
“For once, I ain’t givin’ a fuck. Tonight, I’m seein’ to my girl. First thing tomorrow, I’ma get rid of fuckin’ Kendall once and for fuckin’ all.” Outlaw turned to Val. “I’ma talk to Fee, then you and Bitsy take her. Let her go back to her place. I ain’t much carin’. She let that cunt fuck with my marriage. My Megan. As far as I’m concern, she ain’t my family no more.”
It seemed as if having Ryder, Rebel, and Rule christened wasn’t fucking meant to be. Every time the subject came up, other shit interfered.
In the aftermath of Johnnie taking his bitch away, Christopher sent CJ upstairs and then stormed to the den to confront Fee. Following behind, Val took Zoann aside and whispered the events of what the fuck happened to her. In turn, she went to Fee, then, together, they started for Christopher, both of them with tears in their eyes.
Fee could’ve lied to him from here to hell. She could’ve fucked him up. Did anything to him and he would’ve forgiven her. He’d forgive his sisters any-fucking-thing at all. Except when it came to Megan.
He held his hand up, pretending he wasn’t as hurt as he was angry. “Get the fuck outta my face, Ophelia.”
“Christopher, please—”
“You wanna take Megan away from me, you might as well carve my fuckin’ heart out. I thought you and Bitsy knew that Megan my everything.” He wanted to blast her head off, but he simply asked. “How the fuck you did that to me?”
“Let me explain,” she sobbed. “Please. It wasn’t like that. She blackmailed me and…and…” She ran to him and hugged him, but he stood frozen, refusing to touch her.
“You knew what Kendall was doing, Fee?” Zoann asked on a gasp.
Turning from one to the other, Fee seemed as if she didn’t know who to address first. “Zoann, she was blackmailing me. She was going to tell.”
Zoann backed away. “Would you have fucked with my marriage, too, Ophelia?”
Fee looked between them, tears streaming down her face, her eyes wild with desperation. “Please!” Realizing that Christopher wouldn’t give an inch, she turned to Zoann. “She was going to have Cash and Stretch killed.”
“Kendall doesn’t have the authority to have anyone killed,” Zoann snarled, shoving Fee away.
“I wouldn’t have done this to you, Zoann. The only reason I let her do it to Meggie and Christopher is because I knew Meggie would forgive him.”
Zoann narrowed her eyes, then hit Fee so hard across her face she stumbled back. “I need to kick your ass up and down this house. How dare you gamble with his marriage on Kendall’s orders.”
“My God, don’t do this to me!” Fee cried, holding her cheek and doubling over. “I’m so sorry. Please. I love you both so much. We’re family. You’re all I have left.”
“Fine fucking time to think about that,” Zoann yelled, her face red with anger. “You should’ve remembered that when Kendall was sending Daphne to fuck with Christopher. We weren’t your family then?”
Val walked up to Zoann and pulled her into his arms. “Puff, come on. Let’s go home and cool off.” He looked at Fee. “Come on, babe.”
“No—” Zoann started.
Val hugged her. “Yeah, Puff. You don’t want her to leave while she’s still recovering. You’re just hurt and angry. It’s over. Meggie and Outlaw’s marriage survived. She didn’t fuck with us. That’s your baby sister, so cool off, then revisit this.”
Christopher knew Val was talking as much to Zoann as he was to him. But he didn’t care. It didn’t matter that Cash had pulled Fee into his arms to console her. Or that Stretch was there, too, touching Fee’s shoulder.
“As for Kendall…” Val scratched his chin. “Fuck…I never thought I’d say this shit.” Scratching his temple, he cleared his throat. “Exile her somewhere. Johnnie love her. He’s pissed with her, but if anything happens to her, he’ll lose his fucking mind.”
“He gonna fuckin’ find it again,” Christopher said, tired and wanting to check on Megan.
“What that mean, Prez?” Mort asked, a silent observer to this heartache. Bailey stood next to him, a frown of concern on her face.
If only Roxy was there, she’d slap Kendall into fucking line. Fuck, if Roxy had been there, Kendall might’ve toned her shit down a little.
“I ain’t…” Christopher swallowed and leaned against the wall, tipping his head back. “It mean I’m killin’ Kendall.” She’d left him no choice.
Her bullshit with Daphne proved to him that she’d do anything to hurt Megan.
Mort bowed his head. “That mean you have to kill Johnnie, too, Prez.”
The idea sent chills down his spine. His whole life had been spent protecting Johnnie.
“Meggie love Johnnie, Outlaw,” Val said. “As her friend and brother-in-law.”
Christopher knew what Val meant.
“You kill the motherfucker, she’ll be heartbroken.”
“Yeah, Outlaw, she might even start to get ideas about Traveler,” Digger said.
He’d have to convince her otherwise, but he would kill Kendall and Johnnie. She’d fucked with him one time too many.
“Christopher,” Fee sniffled, tipping to him. She hugged him again. “I’m so sorry. Forgive me, please. I’m begging you. Kendall is off her meds and I thought I could be her friend. I thought she’d back off. Yes, I was afraid for Cash and Stretch, but—but, please.”
Christopher pushed her away from him. “Get the fuck outta my house and don’t ever set fuckin’ foot in it again,” he told her and stormed to his bedroom, where he found Megan laying on the sofa, curled around CJ. Neither of them were sleeping, but the liveliness they usually exhibited was gone.
They were both silent, clinging to one another. At his approach, CJ sat up.
“’Law.”
Just one word. No inflection. No joy. Nothing.
Death Dwellers Motorcycle Club:: Fifteen Bad Boy Biker Books Page 357