Fuck! Maybe Austin was right, I needed to fuck Kara, but fat chance of that ever actually happening. So, I better find a replacement. But what the fuck was that about Phoebe? Shit, I promised I’d never think of her again. How did exes always find a way to get to you?
Kara had made it very clear she was not interested in fucking me ever. I had to accept that and move on or my nights would be plagued by haunting dreams of her, and Mom would get pretty upset with me if she had to wash my sheets every single day. I stripped the bed, took a shower, got dressed, and slipped out and headed for the washing machine. Maybe it was time I figured out how to do my own laundry.
“You’ve got to be kidding me!” Mom said, catching me. “Who are you having these dreams about, boy?”
“Harley. I’ve been dreaming about Harley.”
“Then go and fuck her already,” Mom said, snatching the sheets from me. “Tomorrow, you’re doing them yourself.” She stuffed the soiled sheets into the washing machine and then dumped the detergent in, slammed the lid down, and turned it on. It looked simple enough.
It was giant blueberry muffins for breakfast this time. I got one and some coffee and sat down at the table.
Seth and I spent the morning getting more answers out of the kid, then we took a ride, and in the afternoon, we once again gathered everyone in the clubhouse to await Sophie’s arrival.
“What am I doing here, Tony?” Sophie asked, entering the clubhouse. She looked pissed, like I had interrupted her busy day to drag her down here. Well, I probably had.
“Your father betrayed us, so we need new leadership,” I explained.
“My father would never betray you. Kara made all that shit up. She cooked it up with the rival gang, the Blue Devils or whatever.”
“You think Kara made it up? You think Kara is in bed with the Blue Diablos?”
“I know she is. She had dealings with them before she left here for good. You can’t trust Kara. She’s the one who screwed you, not Maxum. The Blue Diablos weren’t necessarily allies, but they weren’t enemies either. Those who defected from the Midnight Saints joined them, so why is it such a big deal?”
“Okay, Kara did not make it up. We know for a fact Maxum screwed us. He isn’t the godly Preacher we all thought he was.” This wasn’t going like I thought at all. I figured she’d turn it down and then maybe she would help us get to her father, but I didn’t expect this. She even said she didn’t know where he was, so why would she side with him if he was running off?
“How dare you speak ill of my father! He hasn’t done anything wrong, and if he has, well, it can’t be entirely his fault. He got in with the wrong crowd, probably got in way over his head, and now he’s lost. He needs help.”
“He doesn’t need help. Sophie, he tried to kill me, and killed Devon in the process. He broke into our warehouse.”
“His warehouse?”
“He stole the money for the hospital. He tried to kill Seth and his girl. The man we knew and loved is gone. Look, we’re on the brink of a war, a war your father started. Now, we need new leadership, and since Kara is throwing her name in the ring, I thought it was only fair to let you do the same. Sophie, I asked you here because I want to offer you a bid to be Prez.”
“Why would you think I would ever want to be Prez? I want nothing to do with this. I’m in law school, I’m trying to better myself so I don’t end up like my mother. You want a female Prez, then go with Kara. She’ll fuck you over in the end, but hey, at least she’ll look good doing it.”
“Why are you so hell bent against Kara? What did she ever do to you?” I couldn’t believe I was coming to her defense once more, but Sophie’s anger did seem unfounded.
Sophie had been taken in by Preach when she was just a child. Her mother had been a church member with a hell of a lot of problems, and Sophie needed a new family to help her grow up and live a better life. Preach offered that, essentially adopting her and making her Kara’s sister. Kara’s problem with her, I thought, had always been jealousy. Preach doted on Sophie in a way he didn’t Kara, called Kara a rebel, a traitor, a whore. Some of those names she earned, some she didn’t.
But Sophie had little reason to hate Kara. Kara had never attacked her directly. All she did was leave.
“Nothing,” she admitted. “But she’s a bitch. Daddy always said so. She’s a whore and a disgrace to our family.”
“Your father was no saint. He is the one who is a disgrace to your family. He was no godly man, Sophie. He hid behind the holy cloth and did lots of misdeeds, and Kara did not make up this shit. Your father has been lying to you, and sooner or later you’ll learn the truth, the same way we did.”
“No, Tony, sooner or later you’ll realize who is really behind it all, and if you make her your Prez, you’re the biggest fool in the world. Don’t call me again.”
“Wait, Sophie, I need you to set up a meeting with your father.”
“I’m not going to help you set him up. You and Kara can play your stupid games without me. Don’t call me again.” With that, she stomped out.
“How’d it go?” Austin asked.
“She’s a real piece of work. I can see why Kara hates her. She has Maxum’s back, so we can’t trust her. She refuses to believe Maxum is bad. She thinks Kara made the shit up. She thinks Kara is in bed with the Blue Diablos.”
“She’s just got the MCs mixed up. She’s not part of this world, so she doesn’t understand it. It was a mistake to try to bring her in. Kara understands this world, even better than we thought she did. Sophie would be no help when it came to this war. I don’t know what you were thinking. Now, what about meeting with Maxum?”
“She won’t help us set him up. She’s got his back, not ours. I better go find Kara and unruffle some of those feathers I helped ruffle. Then, we’ll hold the vote. If they vote for Kara, I’ll be her VP. And you can be second Enforcer. We’ll need another to deal with this war anyway.”
Chapter 9
Kara
I played it cool when I ran into Sophie. I didn’t want her to know asking her to meet my father was my idea. Mostly because I didn’t think she’d go for it if it was. But if it came from Tony, she might just do it.
“What the fuck are you doing here?” I asked, catching Sophie.
“Leaving.”
“What were you doing here?’
“Ask Tony.”
“I’m asking you.”
“Well, I don’t have to tell you shit. Sooner or later, they’ll figure out you’re in bed with the Blue Diablos and then—”
“I’m not in bed with the Blue Diablos. Where did you hear that? I’m in bed with the Crypt Keepers, and that’s a good thing because now they have the backs of the Midnight Saints. Who are you telling that I’m in bed with the Blue Diablos? Did you tell Tony that? Why would you say shit like that? I hate you, but I don’t go around spreading lies about you and try to deliberately hurt you, I just fucking ignore you. Don’t ever let me catch you spreading another lie about me or we’re going to have some serious problems. Now, get out of here, you’re not welcome here.”
I watched her get in her sports car and drive away.
“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have brought her here,” Tony said from behind me. I didn’t even know he was there, and his closeness surprised me. He was catching me at a vulnerable moment, dealing with someone who had been molded to be my fucking replacement. Maybe that was the reason I was noticing his blue eyes. “I guess I didn’t realize where her loyalties lie. It’s clear now, she’s got his back. She thinks he’s a fucking saint and you’re a fucking liar. Did you know she tried to tell me you’re in bed with the fucking Blue Diablos?”
“Yeah. What the hell were you thinking?” My bark didn’t have the usual bite to it. At least he got it now.
“I was thinking it was a good idea because it would piss you off, but clearly it wasn’t.”
Figured.
“She thinks she’s better than me because she dresses better and she’s g
etting her fucking law degree. But how is that going to do any good for this club? Me, I’m a biker chick, always have been, always will be. I loved Harleys when most girls loved horses. My whole body is covered in ink, and I look good in black leather. She’d make an ass of herself if she even tried to climb on the back of a bike.”
“And that’s your argument for why you have a claim and she doesn’t?” His mouth quirked up on one side. Hopefully, he was joking with me. Not that I was good with jokes. Never had been.
“What does it matter anyway? She doesn’t want it.”
“She could change her mind. You did.” I guess he couldn’t help but get that last jab in.
“Are we voting or what?” I demanded, detracting from whatever moment we were having. I didn’t need this right now.
“The vote was already cast. They want us to both lead together.”
“Together? How can we do that if we can’t even stand each other?”
“Well, I guess it’s time to get past that. Truce? For the good of the club?”
He held his hand out to me again. I hesitated, but eventually shook it.
“Alright, now we’re getting somewhere.”
“I’ll still never let your cock get near my pussy.”
“Right. Got it.”
A truce had been made and neither of us liked it much, but it was for the good of the club. The club had spoken, and who were we to deny them what they wanted? We both liked bikes, so that was a start, and tattoos. It wasn’t much to go on. But then we both cared about the club and the members in it, and that was what we would build our foundation on. That and our hatred and anger for Maxum. For now, at least that seemed to be enough.
As long as he chilled the fuck out.
Chapter 10
Tony
I went to the bar with Austin and Seth. Kara and Reagen headed off somewhere. I wouldn’t let Seth go after them. That put him in a foul mood, so after getting a drink in him, I challenged him to a game of pool. To make things fun, we bet a hundred bucks on the eight-ball. I let Seth break, since he needed to use it to get some aggression out. He managed to knock the number six ball in, so he was solids, I was stripes. He knocked the two in next.
I could tell with each ball he knocked in that he was starting to relax. He thought he had the game in the bag. He scratched after the four went in, and then it was my turn. “Nine in the center pocket,” I called out. I lined up my shot and fuck, I scratched. The cue ball went into the pocket, missing the nine completely.
“Oh, come on, Tony! Even a fucking noob could have hit that shot!” Austin yelled at me.
Seth studied the table methodically, then he lined up his cue stick and ball, and wham, the ball shot across the table, bounced off the edge, and knocked the three-ball into the pocket. He lined up his second shot and the one-ball sailed into the pocket. He only had five, seven, and the eight-ball left.
Fuck! I was going to lose this round.
“Best two out of three.”
“Fuck that, Tony, you sore loser,” Seth said as he shot the five-ball into another pocket. Then he scratched, but I could tell he did it on purpose. He was toying with me. Well, I still had a shot at winning this. I lined up the cue ball with the nine again and took my shot. Nine shot into the pocket. I lined it up with ten, determined to do it in order. I shot the cue, and ten sailed across the table, bounced over the pocket and back out to roll to the center of the table. “Fuck! I had that!”
“Tough luck!” Seth sneered. Then, he shot the seven-ball into the pocket.
“Call it!” Austin said.
“Eight-ball, corner pocket. Right corner pocket.” I noticed it was closer to the left one, but Seth wanted to be a show off. He shot the cue ball, it struck the eight-ball and sent it right into the right corner pocket. “God damnit!” I cursed, slamming down my cue stick.
“Pay up!” Seth held out his hand to Austin who had been given both hundreds. I nodded for him to give him the money. He was in a good mood after that.
“You know what I’m going to do with this two hundred bucks?”
“What?”
“Go to the pawn shop and buy Reagen a ring.”
“You can find good shit there.”
“Yeah, I know. I’ve had my eye on this diamond ring, I think it’s perfect. It’s two hundred eighty bucks, which is all I’ve got.”
“Well, what are you waiting for? The shop is still open, go get it,” Austin said, pushing him out the door.
“Wait, Seth.” I opened my wallet and pulled out forty bucks. “It’s the least I can do, since I was a total ass to your woman.”
“Thanks, Tony.”
“Hey, it’s Maxum's money.” I shrugged. “It might as well go to something good.”
“Thanks.”
“Think if I got Kara a ring she’d fuck me?”
“No.” Austin laughed. “I don’t think she’ll ever fuck you, dude. Time to look for someone else. And since when do you care if Kara will fuck you?”
“I was fucking kidding,” I claimed. “I don’t want to fuck her either. If I married her, that would make Maxum my dad, and I don’t want Maxum as my dad.”
“No one ever said marry, we all just said fuck.”
“Yeah, but fucking tends to lead to marrying.”
“Not always. I fuck the same bitch every night, haven’t put a ring on her finger yet, and don’t have any plans to.”
“Yeah, but your bitch is a fucking whore who won’t be tied to one man. She walks around the halls butt naked half the time.”
“She’s a wild cat, she can’t be tamed. If I wasn’t okay with that, I wouldn’t get my cock sucked, and man, can she suck a cock.” He grinned.
“Yeah? What else can she do? What good is she other than a piece of ass?”
“What are women for if not a piece of ass?”
“If Kara is the Prez, that attitude has to change,” I reminded him. I got the feeling I’d have to do a lot of reminding of that to the men. Though, I was sure she would have her own special way of doing just that too.
“Hey, I’m good to my woman. I don’t beat her up, she’s free to come and go, and I don’t ask questions I don’t want to know the answers to. She may be a piece of ass, but she has her freedom.”
“Fine. We should head back.” I dropped a wad of bills on the table, waved to the waitress, and then we headed out.
As soon as we stepped outside, we were jumped. Austin was thrown to the ground, and I took a bat to the gut. My jacket had extra padding, so I didn’t feel it as much. I spun on my attacker and took him down. I removed his helmet and found one of the traitors under my boot. I kicked him in the stomach with all my might. “You fuckers don’t learn.”
“You’re going to get what’s coming to you, Tony,” he shouted up at me. I kicked him again in the gut and once in the head, knocking him out. Vince came out of the bar and dragged the asshole’s unconscious body through the door. He’d spend the night in the freezer till we figured out what to do with him. I didn’t care if he died there, we’d just throw his body out with the trash. The other guy was dead— Austin had snapped his neck. He was dragged to the freezer too.
“You know what, forget the kid, I want to use these fuckers to send Maxum a fucking message. Clearly, he didn’t get our last one. I’ll call up my relative and get him down here to handle it.”
“Are you hurt?” Austin asked.
“Nope, you?”
“Nothing too bad.”
“This is going to be a fucking everyday occurrence. I’m so fucking done with this shit. I can’t do fuck when I have to constantly watch my fucking back. Let’s get back to the clubhouse. We need another officers meeting. When Seth gets back, tell him I want to see him. I got a new plan for the kid we got downstairs.”
My new idea was simple— the kid would join up or die. I needed to replace my lost men.
We returned to the clubhouse.
“You wanted to see me?” Seth asked.
“Yea
h, I got my head full of dynamite, so I don’t need the kid for that. So I was thinking we’ll offer him one chance, to join us or die. But we’ll wait. Keep him down there, give him food and drink for a few days, and get the doc down there to check on him.”
“What do you mean you have your head full of dynamite?” Seth asked.
“Those fucking cowards tried to jump me and Austin. One’s dead, the other will be dead. He’s spending the night in the freezer with his dead companion. I’m going to have his companion’s head removed and stuffed with dynamite. If he’s still alive, he’ll be the one to deliver it to Maxum. Then boom! I doubt the blast will actually catch Maxum, but it just might do some damage to his home and make a nice bloody mess in his yard and send him a message. I don’t even give a shit if he didn’t send them, I want to send him a message. Then we’ll do Kara’s idea.”
“You got it.”
“Kara around?”
“Nope. I can’t find Reagen either. My guess is they went back to the coffeehouse. I’ll head over there.”
“No. Not just yet. I want to hold an officers meeting.”
“Alright, but you know she’ll be pissed you did it without her.”
“This one time, I’m not leaving her out to be an ass. The girls are better off where they are right now, not knowing what went down yet. Besides, I am kind of going with Kara’s plan anyway.”
Seth nodded, and I gathered the officers together in the war room.
“It was brought to my attention that some people are slacking off when they are on warehouse duty. I want these assholes found and punished. Now, I’d kick them out in a heartbeat, but the problem with that is we’d be short more members and God knows we can’t afford to lose another fucking member of our club. Austin and I were jumped at the bar by the two fucking traitors I set loose in the woods. They’ve been dealt with. From now on, traitors won’t just be released, they will be cut open and fed to the dogs. If they can’t be loyal to us, then they don’t deserve to live. We can’t afford to pad the fucking Blue Diablos with more of our traitors and deserters. So, from now on, traitors and deserters will be bled, then they will be released, and the dogs will be set after them. Those the dogs don’t get, the bears will. I’m not fucking around anymore. And don’t expect Kara to be more lenient. She’s a fucking bitch.”
Discord (Midnight Saints MC Book 2) Page 7