Chapter Three
Hollywood
H anging around the clubhouse was just part of my life these days because the clubhouse was my—temporary—home and when a party happened, I was usually in the middle of it.
I looked around at the old ladies and the club whores, feeling ambivalent about the latter and envious of the former. Since I got back to Nevada the whores have fulfilled the need that had been previously satisfied by my left hand. Sometimes my right hand. I liked the club girls, appreciated them because they were easy and casual. They didn’t ask for more than any of us wanted to give. At least until Cindy had gone too far and found herself a permanent home in the desert.
Still after my last girlfriend, Linzey, I didn’t get involved with women, not really. She didn’t want the life I had to give her, and she stomped all over my heart in the process. Love and commitment wasn’t for me. It was all good and nice to see my brothers fall in love and find a different future for them, but it wasn’t for me.
Not now. Not ever.
Still, I eyed the club girls with a hunger that was born of too many years without the touch of a woman. The only eye candy in the whole fucking joint were the female guards and they were nothin’ to jack off to, believe me. Still, after two weeks of bangin’ club whores, my appetite seemed to have waned.
Which was bullshit, since at the moment I had no other options.
“Stop being a fucking perv,” Rebel growled and elbowed me in the side. “We’re ready to meet to talk about the Santangelo problem.”
The Santangelo problem is what we were calling it, but the truth was that it was a Steel Demons problem. The cartel wanted us to step in where the Blood Reapers left off, at least that’s what they said. I didn’t trust those fuckers as far as I could throw the smallest one. But it wasn’t only my call. I was just one vote. “Lead the way.”
When we arrived at our meeting room, nearly everyone else was already there and seated except Diesel and Rocky who always entered last, unless someone was late. “Welcome back to church, Hollywood.”
“Yeah, thanks.” It’s been too long since I sat around this table with my brothers and made a decision that would impact the members directly. It felt damn good to be back, to sit here with them and voice my opinion. Nice that what I thought even fucking mattered to anyone after years of being damn near invisible.
Diesel entered with Rocky right behind him and both men took their seats, Diesel at the head of the table and Rocky to his right. It was symbolic but it said everything about the structure of the MC. “All right, is everyone here?” The question went to the MC secretary, Hawk, who nodded.
“All accounted for.”
“Good.” Diesel nodded as he told us the specifics of what the Santangelos wanted. “They want us to act as a weigh station for their product, mostly drugs, when they hit stateside. We wouldn’t be expected to sell them or repackage them, just accept them and wait for his men to pick them up.” He looked around the room with a grave expression on his face. “I think it’s a bullshit offer but if I’m wrong or you disagree, we have to find a way to make it work.”
Rocky and Gio nodded their agreement. “It won’t be long before they’re asking us to do the grunt work ‘just this time’ and it’ll never fucking stop.” Gio shook his head, already angry even though it was just his suspicions.
Rocky agreed. “Within a month they’ll be asking us to break up the drugs, repackage them and deliver them to distributors. I think it’s an open door to totally fucking us.”
Hawk nodded, relaxed against his chair. “I’m not saying that I trust them for shit, but the money they’re offering means we have to consider it.” He had a woman, and rumor has it a baby on the way, of course his only concern is the money.
“All of us in this room know the truth,” Rebel began. “The Santangelos aren’t offering us shit. As soon as we reject their kind offer, mysterious shit will start happening to our properties and business holdings, to our shipments and even our women. Well, your women,” he offered with a shrug as if was no skin off his back.
I frowned at Rebel. “So you think we should agree?”
“Fuck no,” he shouted. “I’m just saying that before we say no, we should make sure we’re prepared for the blowback.”
It was a good point, an excellent point if I was being honest. We had to figure out how to make saying no palatable to everybody involved. My mind raced, the way it did almost constantly when I was locked up. It was the only thing productive you could really do inside, and I honed my problem-solving skills, used them to keep myself safe and stay alive long enough to taste freedom again. “I have an idea.” I wasn’t usually so hesitant, but I was still finding my footing after being away for so long. The guys had a rhythm, they knew each other better at this point and I needed to catch up. But if war with the fucking cartel was on the table, everybody had to speak up.
“I’m listening.” Diesel kept his gaze fixed on me, open and honest so I could see that he really meant his words.
“We ought to reach out to our contacts in the drug and weapons game, see who doesn’t mind doing business with the cartel, and set up a meeting between them.” Maybe it was a stupid fucking idea, but I needed to add my input if it could save us from battling the cartel.
The room was quiet, and I gritted my teeth together until they ached.
“If we come up with an alternative maybe it’ll minimize the perception of disrespect.” Respect was the only thing you had on the inside, and I learned about it firsthand. “Just something to consider.”
The room was still silent, but Slate spoke up first. “It’s fucking brilliant. We have at least a handful of contacts who don’t mind getting down and dirty if the price is right, consequences be damned. I’m compiling a list right now.” His eyes were wide with excitement as his fingers flew over the keyboard he never went without. “When do we need to have an answer for Santangelo?”
Diesel shrugged. “When we have one, I guess.”
“We should move fast,” Carter suggested. “They’ll likely show up a day earlier than expected and they will want an answer. The Generals did that shit all the time when negotiating with the Taliban.”
“Glad to see some shit hadn’t changed since I was in uniform,” I told him with a laugh. “Fingers crossed but we should still be prepared in case we have to fight.” War was the last thing on my mind, but I’d do what was necessary to protect my brothers and the MC.