by K E Osborn
Luc’s eyes light up. “What would a decent breakfast entail?”
Bex looks at me. I clear my throat stepping closer to Luc. “Look, I want to thank you for saving Bex last night. It was decent of you—”
“Decent?” Luc blurts out.
“I’m trying here, man,” I grunt.
Luc waves his hand through the air. “Please then, continue.”
Scrunching up my face, I sigh. “We have pancakes… well, I mean we ate most of them, but we left some…. for you.”
Luc’s eyes widen as he smiles. It’s not fake, it’s not out of being a smartass. It’s genuine. “You saved me pancakes?”
“That’s what I said. So, are you gonna stop pussy-footing about in here, or are you gonna come out and eat them?”
Luc’s lips fall as his head snaps looking at Bex who’s smiling. Luc lets out a long, puff of air while slowly standing up from the floor like he’s unsure of whether he is being punked or not.
He looks back at me, his face completely stunned. “Y-You’re letting me out?”
Tensing up, I point at him. “If you fucking behave yourself.”
He scoffs. “What, like I’m an adolescent teen going through puberty there, Ty? I’m just gonna eat some pancakes. What could go wrong?”
I shake my head. “Nothing better go wrong, or I swear I’ll fucking end you myself.”
Bex tilts her head at me seeming disappointed, but Luc gives me a Boy Scout salute. “Sir, yes, sir.” He turns to Bex. “Is he always this bossy?”
She shrugs as Luc claps his hands together, then rubs them like he’s excited. “Right, then… let’s get out of this supply closet, shall we?”
Bex sighs. “One thing, Luc, the clubroom is full of brothers. One wrong move—”
“Got it. I’ll be good, I promise, doc. I’m not sacrificing my chance at pancakes for anything.”
I step forward grabbing Luc by his elbow. He lets me as I walk him through the door, stiffening a little as we exit the supply closet, almost like he’s a little anxious my brothers will be waiting for him on the other side. But no one’s here other than a few stragglers, and they’re not even paying attention as we walk from the back of the clubroom to the front. Casual glances look our way as Torque comes over bobbing his head in a gesture of greeting.
“Luc, good to see you out and about,” Torque affirms putting his hand out for Luc to shake.
Luc looks at Torque’s hand like this could be some kind of trick, but he takes it, shaking cautiously as Scratch walks past slapping Luc on the back, hard, but in a brotherly way as he tips his chin at him.
“Good save last night, man,” Scratch calls out as he continues walking past.
Luc’s eyes are wide, still in shock as he finally let’s go of Torque’s hand. “Umm… shit! Sorry. Yeah, thanks for letting me come out. It’s good not to see the same four damn walls.”
Torque signals for Ruby to come over. She sashays out from behind the bar carrying a mug of coffee. “Here you go, cutie,” she chimes handing Luc the mug.
His eyes almost fall out of his face taking in the beauty of this woman.
Torque gestures to some seats. “Take him over there, get him settled. I’ll get Cindi and Rubes to bring over his breakfast,” Torque announces.
“Thanks, Pres,” I reply.
“Yeah, thanks, Pres,” Luc murmurs.
I open my eyes wide as Torque double takes, placing his hand on Luc’s shoulder, looking in his eyes. “It’s Torque. I’m not your president. Not yet, anyway.”
“Shit, sorry. I just thought—”
“Forget it. You didn’t know. But that comes with privilege, you gotta earn it. What you did last night, Luc, it was a step in the right direction. Keep up the good work.” Torque turns walking off.
I grab Luc pushing him toward the empty table, so he can sit down and let this all sink in. We all sit, me next to Luc, Bex opposite him, with brothers around us at other tables as we wait for his pancakes to come. He quietly sips on his coffee as he takes in the atmosphere of the room.
“I still can’t find it,” Zane calls out sliding into the seat next to Pyro and Lala.
Pyro lets out a laugh shaking his head. “You must have been so fucking wasted to lose your cell, brother.”
“I don’t even know when I lost it. I’m going crazy without it.”
“How’s this… if you can stack five pancakes in your mouth, I’ll buy you a new cell.” Pyro lays the bet down at the table next to us.
“Oh, for fuck’s sake, you guys are such children,” Lala berates as Zane booms with laughter.
“Challenge fucking accepted,” Zane cheers as he starts piling the fluffy round buttermilk cakes into his mouth. I glance at Luc who’s smiling with a curious look on his face.
Luc shifts closer to Bex. “Is this sort of thing a regular occurrence here?”
“Unfortunately, yes. These guys can be idiots most of the time. Serious when it calls for it. But above all, have your back one hundred percent of the time,” Bex states making me want to pick her up to kiss the fuck out of her.
“Hmm,” he hums as he sits back in his seat watching the show. Yeah, this brotherhood is pretty fucking epic—the good, the bad, even the ugly, it’s all fucking worth it.
Ruby strolls up to the edge of the table carrying a huge stack of pancakes dripping with maple syrup, even a few pieces of crispy bacon. I didn’t know that was on the menu. “Hey, guys, got a stack here for Luc.” Ruby places it down in front of him, her ample tits lining up right in his face as he licks his lips. I’m pretty sure he did that at the sight of her cleavage and not the breakfast in front of him. Her perfect teeth on show as he eyes her seductively. She winks at him then saunters away from the table like she owns the place. Well, she practically does own the joint. Cindi’s the head club girl—she’s royalty around here.
“Jeeesus! They don’t make women like her where I’m from.” Luc shakes his head grabbing his fork and knife, finally turning his head to the pancakes in front of him. “Or food like this for that matter.”
“So, Luc, the men who came here last night…” I begin talking. I don’t want to just sit here watching the fucker eat, that’s damn weird, so we may as well talk. “They’ll be missed, right?”
He tilts his head to the side like he’s thinking. “They were young. The ones I saw, anyway. They sent in the disposable Sovereigns, the boys in training who weren’t cutting it, the ones they knew who weren’t going to make it in the long run.”
Bex and I look at each other. “Why would they do that?”
He chews loudly on a piece of bacon. “To send a message. Either it worked, and they got me out, or if it didn’t, they all died. It doesn’t matter, but it showed you they know where I am…” He stops eating and looks directly at us. “They will come for me again.”
I huff. “And you couldn’t have told us this last night?”
He shrugs. “No one asked me. You all disappeared after the attack. I thought maybe you might have come back in, doc, but nope, just a clean-up crew, then bam, all alone again.”
“Do you know when they’ll try again?” Bex asks the question I should have.
He shakes his head. “No clue.” He shovels some more pancake in his mouth seeming blasé about the whole thing. I really need to get this information to Torque, but I can’t leave Luc alone here with Bex.
“So, this brotherhood thing…” he pauses as I watch him looking around the room at everyone, “… it doesn’t seem like such a bad deal.”
My eyes widen as Bex leans forward. “You think you’d like being here?” Bex asks getting a little ahead of herself.
He shrugs. “I guess. I mean I don’t know how Ty feels about it, but the rest of these guys seem pretty laid back. Even though you’ve had me holed up in a supply closet for weeks, but I know it was only so you could get me to trust you. I feel like I know you guys now. I see this club, the way you’re acting with each other, the way you behave with each other. It�
��s so different than with the Sovereigns. It’s more relaxed, more casual, more fun. I like it. I want to be a part of it. I want to feel at home somewhere, not always feel like I’m walking on eggshells.” He looks around the room where everyone’s getting on with their morning. “It’s good not to have people constantly watching your every fucking move, assessing you, judging you, trying to figure out what steps you’re going to make before they make them on you. Being a Sovereign is hard fucking work.” He sighs. “Being a brother feels like a close-knit family… I want that.”
Sinking in my chair, I relax a little hearing his words, they sound sincere. I think he’s telling the truth. I’m pretty sure he wants out of the Sovereigns, but it’s also hard to know if you’re being played. I just can’t tell.
Bex sits forward reaching out for his hand. “Luc, I think it’s brave you want to flip sides. I see you want to do this, but I sense a little hesitation. Is it because you want to go back to the Sovereigns? It’s okay, you can tell us.”
He shakes his head. “No. Fuck, no. It’s ‘cause I’m worried they’ll come back to take me against my will, then I’ll be forced to go back to them anyway. And if I don’t go with them, they’ll hurt you for trying to help me.”
I sit forward. “You think they’ll hurt Bex?”
He grimaces. “I think they’ll hurt anyone who tried to turn me.”
My stomach churns as I think of those men, those assholes getting their hands on Bex. The way they tortured me, I can’t imagine the unspeakable things they would do to her. I turn to Zane beside us grabbing his shoulder as he continues eating his pancakes. “Prospect.”
He looks at me his eyes bulging out of his face as he wipes some syrup from his chin. “Yeah?”
“Get over here. Sit with the doc and Luc while I go talk to Torque. Don’t let them out of your sight. Fucking stay on Luc like a fucking hooker with herpes.”
“Nice, Ty, real nice,” Luc mutters rolling his eyes as he continues to eat.
Bex doesn’t seem fazed by my sudden departure notice. She simply looks at me, her hand comes up touching mine as I stand. Her face lights up in a small, but beautiful turn of her lips as she stays calm. “Go. Talk to the Pres, tell him everything and come up with a solution. I know there’ll be one, but don’t stress. Once Luc’s finished eating, Zane and I will put him back in his closet.”
“Awww, but…” Luc calls out in a mock child voice.
Zane stifles a laugh as I grunt looking at him. “Don’t let him do anything other than eat and walk to the closet.”
“Got it,” Zane relays sliding out of his seat, then over to where I was sitting. He drags his plate over then continues eating next to Bex.
I glance at her, but she tilts her head toward Torque letting me know it’s okay for me to go. I need to do this right now. Who knows when the Sovereigns are coming. They may already be on their way. I need to talk to Torque, I need to do it now, this can’t wait. I just hope Zane can handle Luc.
It’s one smartass to another, they’ll probably end up best fucking friends.
BEX
Zane and Luc are having a hell of a time together. This is probably bad of me to think, but this is way too much fun for a Saturday morning considering Torque and the rest of the brothers are currently in church discussing what I’m assuming is the Sovereigns next attack and their strategy to combat said situation.
“No shit! You don’t know what a video game is? Fuck, man, they really did shelter you. First thing we need to do when you get full access to the club is you, Pyro, and me are having a boys’ night, yeah? We’re going into the theater room to play Call of Duty. Of course, I’m gonna kick your pasty white ass, but still… it’s gonna be epic, Luc,” Zane gushes sitting forward like he’s all excited.
Luc sits back taking it all in. “Who you calling pasty white? I’ll have you know I work hard on this pale complexion, thank you, fucker.”
Zane snorts. “What about the hair then? Shoulder-length black, straight hair… that’s not something the ladies love, is it?”
I’m stunned at Zane’s forwardness. “Zane. You can’t say shit like that.”
“Why? It’s true isn’t it, doc?”
I glance at Luc with a shrug. He kind of looks like an Italian male model. I think he’s good looking, but I can’t say that, or Chains will get jealous.
“It suits him. I think you’re gorgeous, Luc,” Ruby announces as she strolls up to the table picking up the empty plates, her lips turned up showing her perfect pearly whites.
She really is stunning.
“It’s you who’s the gorgeous one, Ruby,” Luc replies.
I pull my lips in trying to hide my delight as Ruby’s face flushes crimson red. It’s not often I see the club girl blushing. “I’ll ah… just clean this right up,” she murmurs, taking a double look at Luc, then she saunters away from the table taking the plates with her.
Zane shakes his head. “Shit, man. Ruby never acts that way in front of the brothers. She has her tits-a-tingling for you!”
Luc lets out a loud laugh. “Her tits-a-tingling?”
Zane shrugs. “Yeah, it’s a thing.”
I scrunch up my face. “It’s not a thing.”
“It’s a thing,” Zane reiterates who looks chuffed with himself.
“You’re an idiot. But anyway, I have things I need to do. So, Luc, I’m sorry, but I think your time’s up,” I relay.
His face falls sullen as his eyes take in the clubroom. He looks over every little detail like he’s plotting it to memory. It’s as if he’s never going to see the light of day again. I’m sure they’ll let him out again tomorrow. “Thank you, doc, I know this was your doing. Me, being let out. I just want you to know I appreciate it. I appreciate everything you’ve done for me.”
I stand from the table. “You’re welcome, but we have plenty more time together yet, Luc. I’m not going anywhere. I’ll still be in every day to check on you.”
The corners of his lips turn just faintly as Zane jumps out of the seat. We all walk toward the back of the clubroom to the supply closet.
“Do you think… I mean…” Luc trails off as we approach the rear door of the clubroom. He looks at it then slumps. “No, never mind. It’s stupid.”
“What do you want, man? I’ll see if I can bring it to you?” Zane asks.
I’m sure if he’s being let out during the day he’ll be allowed more things in his room now. He looks to the rear door again, I tense up slightly.
“I haven’t felt the sun on my body for weeks. Do you think…” he pauses.
“I don’t know,” I instantly reply as Zane rubs the back of his neck seeming uncomfortable with the suggestion like I am.
Luc slumps his body. “I know it’s stupid, but I miss the outdoors. We could just pop out there for say, two minutes. Just enough for me to feel the sun then come back in. Zane, you can hang onto me if you want. I mean, where am I going to go? The place is a compound. There’re high bars locking me in, a man on the gate, I can’t get out, I can’t go anywhere. More importantly, I’m not going to ‘cause I like it here.” He looks at me with pleading eyes. “C’mon, doc, please? Give me this… please?”
I peer at Zane. He shakes his head letting me know he doesn’t like this idea. I steady my shoulders. “If I allow this, it’s two minutes, then you come back in with no fighting against Zane or me. If you try to make a run for it, I will give Zane permission to shoot you on the spot.”
“Wouldn’t have it any other way, doc.”
Zane clenches his jaw. He knows he can pull rank, but I know he won’t. He’s made friends with Luc, so he wants to see him happy just as much as I do. “Okay, fine, but Luc, follow my rules. Don’t do anything stupid. My patch is on the line here. I’m so damn close to getting it, I don’t need you fucking it the shit up.”
“Got it, boss,” Luc affirms.
I take a deep breath. Chains will be so unhappy at me for doing this. It’s dangerous. No other brothers are around to h
elp us out if shit goes south, but Zane’s strong. He and Luc are about the same size. I don’t think for a second Luc’s capable of hurting me.
Do I trust him completely? No.
But I feel like we have to show him this small amount of trust in order for him to build his trust in us. This is a two-way street, and maybe this will be the plank which starts mending the bridge between us all.
We step to the back door. I open it as Zane grabs Luc’s arm to hold him. I step through watching Luc as he doesn’t take in his surroundings but merely closes his eyes, his face up to the warm sun taking in its rays. His face lights up in serine calmness as his body relaxes while we stand by the back door. My breathing’s a little faster, my heart’s beating slightly quicker at the risk we’re taking.
Zane’s holding onto Luc so tightly it looks like he’s strangling his arm, but Luc doesn’t seem to care as his head faces the morning sunshine. Luc seems content as we all stand here in an awkward silence.
It’s calming in a way knowing Luc’s settled enough just to stand here in the sun taking it in. A peaceful ease washes over all of us as we stand here, birds chirp in the heights of the trees, the summer breeze all around us. There’s a slight squeak from the chains of the children’s swings which rings through the yard as the rustling of the leaves in the trees crackle while I take in the beautiful day. Now I understand what Luc’s been missing out on all this time. Being locked up in a dim closet for weeks on end must have been stifling. It’s no wonder he needed this, no wonder he’s just standing here soaking up the heat of the summer sun adorning his alabaster skin.
Suddenly, his eyes lurch open. He looks at Zane, his eyes narrow, his movements fast as Luc reaches down around the back of Zane’s pants. Zane’s quick to move, but Luc’s quicker as he grabs Zane’s gun from his pants aiming it at Zane’s forehead.
I tense up letting out a gasp as I put my hands up in surrender along with Zane. He grits his teeth in obvious disdain. “Fuck!” Zane spits.
“Sorry man,” Luc murmurs.
“Luc, think about this,” I try to talk him down.