Mace Chapter 13
We made it through the night without having to fight the Outlaws. Our roving guards did report seeing a few of them slinking around during the night, but they didn’t approach, and our people pretended not to see them. The more we acted as if we had no clue they existed, the better.
We’d risen early and packed up to get on the road. We made sure that we talked loudly about having things planned back home that we had to get back to. That was the excuse for leaving early. The further we got away from Lenoir, the less tense Jessamy was. The rest of us stayed alert, but with the size of the group we traveled with, the Outlaws would be suicidal to try and take us on. I promised her we’d be back next year for the run and that we’d find another event to go to before then. Bike rallies and events were happening all the time. Before they ruined it, Jessamy had been thoroughly enjoying herself.
After returning to Cherokee, we left the women to rest or do whatever they wanted. Before tonight’s bachelor party, we had work to do. One of those was questioning the three prisoners we had. The guys who’d taken them away last night brought them back here.
We didn’t keep prisoners or anyone we needed to question on the compound like a lot of clubs did. Instead, we were lucky enough to have a cabin out of town opposite where the compound was. We owned it through a shell company, and Wire cleverly buried the ownership. The cabin wasn’t much. It was what it hid that was the real gem. Hidden in the floor was a trap door. Below, built into the ground, were cells. That’s where we eventually took those who needed to be interrogated or dispatched.
There wasn’t enough room for us, our friends from the other clubs, and the Dark Patriots. We settled on the presidents of all clubs, our officers, Bones, Wire, and me. The others were busy patrolling the compound and setting up things for the wedding.
I laughed when we entered the underground prison. I knew as soon as I saw them that Rage had been responsible for their condition. All three were stripped naked and tied in chairs—nothing unusual about that. What was when you got to looking was the chairs they were in. Each of them had a huge hole cut into the seat, so each man’s cock and balls hung down. Their mouths were gagged.
I looked over at a grinning Rage. “Mind if I ask, is there a reason for those holes, or do you just feel like having fun?”
“I always want to have fun, but I’m glad you asked. This was something I learned when I was a young man. See, my daddy was in the Navy and taught me about boats and sailing. He inspired this. I hope they’re stubborn,” he said gleefully.
I had no clue what else was in store for them, but based on the way Wrath grimaced, he did. I held back my impatience. Agony whispered to Hulk, who went down the row, ripping off their duct tape gags. He wasn’t gentle, and their skin came off with it, as well as their whiskers.
“Bet that stings,” Bones said jovially.
“You’re all dead! Our club will wipe every single one of yours out. Your women will be used in every way imaginable, and when we’re done, if they’re still alive, then those bitches and your brats will be sold,” Crutch snarled.
Although I knew his words pissed everyone off, none of us gave in to the fury. He either thought we’d be frightened by the threat or we’d kill them quickly. If we did the latter, it was less likely we’d take time to torture them and get information.
“Make all the threats you want. It won’t do you any good. We’re going to get the information we need out of you,” Agony informed him.
“If you let us go, we won’t kill all of you. But if we die, so will all of you,” Jester added.
“Do we look stupid? If we let you go, it’s death and destruction on your terms. We’re going to war with your club no matter what. We’ll take doing it with all the information we can get,” Bull told him.
“We’ll never tell you shit,” Cretin spat on the floor after shouting that.
“We’ve heard that before,” Hulk snickered.
“Why don’t you save yourselves pain and suffering? Tell us what we want to know. If you do, we’ll make your deaths quick and relatively painless,” Terror promised.
All three muttered more threats, but we kept laughing and smiling. They were growing more afraid and angrier. I held myself in check by sheer will. I knew we’d start the questioning when the officers and our enforcer thought it was the right time.
After about a half hour of the back and forth, Hulk stepped up to stand before them. He cracked his neck from side to side, pressing his head to the side with his fist on his jaw. Then he clenched his fists, making all his fingers crack. He gave the captives his sadistic smile. I didn’t think he was a true sadist, but he sure gave a good impression when the circumstances called for it. He would protect our club no matter what.
“So, who wants to tell me why you three thought you could go after my brother Mace’s old lady? Did you see her with just a prospect and think, hmm, she’ll be easy to take?” Hulk asked.
When none of them answered, he went to the next question. I knew he’d run through several of them, building on them until they said something or we had to begin forcing it out of them.
“Or did you see her and specifically target her? What was it about her that made you make such a stupid decision? Surely, you didn’t think you could steal her and no one would come after you. We had friends and eyes all over the place. Your first mistake was approaching her. The second was coming with only the three of you and no backup, even if they were in the wings.”
“How do you know we didn’t have other eyes on you? They’ll be riding up to your fucking compound any minute. And when they get done with you, I’ll piss on your rotting corpses,” Crutch snapped.
We chuckled. As it died down, I told them, “The only rotting corpses will be yours, followed by the rest of your degenerate club.”
“Who are you to call us names? I heard at one time, before you became pussies, all of you were just like us,” Cretin said.
“We were never just like you. We might have lived outside the law in some ways, but we didn’t hurt innocent people by selling drugs, extorting money and other shit out of them, forcing them to be sex workers or selling them as slaves,” Rage snarled.
“Then you never had the power or money we have,” Jester smarted off.
“You have no idea what power and money we have. We don’t flaunt it, that’s all. And we do it legally and without always looking over our shoulders, being killed, or going to prison for it,” Reaper told him.
It was another half hour of useless chatter. I was at the end of my patience. When Agony called it, I was about to tell them to start beating or cutting off parts and breaking bones.
“Enough fucking around. They don’t think we’re serious, guys. Mace is about to go crazy on them. If he does, we won’t get anything out of them. Rage, do you wanna tell us the other part of your setup? Unless you just like looking at pathetic excuses for cocks and balls. Christ, my Zave isn’t even three yet, and his are bigger than all of those.” Agony snickered as he pointed at their manhoods.
Our snickers grew as the Outlaws swore at us. Rage walked over to a small wooden crate in the corner. I hadn’t noticed it. He reached in and came back out with a thick, long, braided rope. The kind you’d see at a shipyard. Hanging from one end was a huge knot made out of the same rope. He gave it a twirl. I heard it sing through the air.
“Does anyone know what this is called, other than Wrath?” Rage asked happily.
As we were shaking our heads, Reaper answered, “I do, but I’ll let you tell them.” He smiled delightfully.
“This is called a monkey’s fist. Sailors use it on a lightweight line, called a heaving line, that they attach to a heavier line to pull it across. They use them between ships or between a ship and the shore. Inside the monkey fist is a steel ball bearing that gives it weight when you throw it so it travels further. That’s the original usage for them. However, I found an alternative use years ago. Would you like me to demonstrate?” Rage asked. His eagerness shone on his face.
As we were all nodding, he began whirling the fist and a section of the rope through the air. The whistling sound grew louder. After several circles, he let go. We all cringed and swore. He released it so that the fist came up under the chairs they were in, solidly smashing Cretin’s cock and balls. His scream was inhuman. He vomited all over himself. Jester and Crutch watched in horror as their buddy writhed in misery. I don’t know how he didn’t pass the fuck out. As Rage started winding it up again, they pleaded for him not to do it to them. Rage didn’t listen. He let it fly two more times.
Every man in there was holding himself. Jesus Christ, I almost felt sorry for our prisoners. If someone survived this, his cock would never function again. I had to hand it to Rage. The man was wicked. After giving each one a pop with it, he stepped back but didn’t put it away. He made sure they could see he was still holding it. It took a while for their sobbing, vomiting, and moans to die down. When it did, the questions began again. The same questions as we’d asked already. Only this time, they were answered. Crutch did most of the talking.
“Our pres said to watch for a chance to snatch one of your women. He didn’t say to take yours specifically,” he told me. Tears and snot were running down his face, just as it was the others. The stink of piss and vomit was heavy in the air. He kept going. “He said if we could get our hands on more than one, that would be even better.”
“What were you supposed to do with them if you got any?” Agony asked.
“We were to get them to our crash truck and get them the hell out of there.”
“So you weren’t after Jessamy. She was just the one you thought would be easy to nab,” I reiterated.
“Yeah, exactly. It was just her and that damn prospect. If he had just walked away, everything would’ve been great,” Jester muttered.
“Except he had more guts and loyalty than your whole club put together,” Hulk said.
“If you hadn’t come, we could’ve gotten her,” Cretin said.
“You’re lucky you didn’t try. She was ready for you fuckers. She had a knife and wasn’t afraid to gut one of you. And our prospect was prepared to shoot your asses,” I told them with a smile.
“Where were you supposed to take the women? Was it just the Pagans’ club, or were there others being targeted?” Bull asked.
“Not that we know, but Pres called in groups of us one at a time. There could’ve been others told to snatch different ones,” Crutch replied.
“You didn’t say where they were to be taken. Your clubhouse?” Terror asked.
None of them answered. Rage didn’t wait to be asked. He’d been casually swinging the fist around. When they didn’t answer, he gave it an extra hard twirl and let it go. It took Jester first this time. His scream made the other two yell over each other to answer.
“We were to take them to an abandoned house and wait for further instructions,” Jester yelled the loudest.
“Where is this house?” Hulk growled.
“It’s about halfway between Spartanburg and Greenville,” Crutch supplied.
“Have you been there before? Do you use it often?” Jinx asked.
When they hesitated, all it took was Rage to give one halfhearted whirl, and they spilled it.
“We’ve used it from time to time. Our chapter and the one in Greenville use it. Sometimes we take people there, and other times, we hide shit,” Jester sobbed.
“Does your club have people kidnapping women and girls and selling them?” Wrath asked.
“We get them off the street or wherever. We snatch them ourselves, but I know they’ve gotten them elsewhere, too. I don’t know where from or who brings them,” Crutch said.
“What about working with a trucker or truckers to bring them in from other states?” I asked.
I could tell by their puzzled looks they had no idea. And with the threat to their manhoods and the pain it caused them, I didn’t see them holding back. Shit, so much for getting clear and complete answers.
“Brother, if you want to stay and finish up with Hulk, just to be sure, feel free. We should have a quick church with the rest of the club and some of the other officers. Or do you want us to hold off and let them sweat a while and grill them again?” Agony asked me.
As much as I wanted to inflict some payback for them going after Jessamy, I knew I’d get my chance when we found the true culprits: her kidnappers, Leland, and anyone else who was calling the shots. I shook my head.
“No, if someone else wants to stay, that’s fine. I’d prefer to get this over with and on to the fun. If I can, I’d like to go check on her before we meet.”
“I know Hulk will want to be there, so say, let’s meet in two hours. Then it’s time to finish any other preparations and get ready for Twisted’s bachelor party,” Agony said with a grin.
As we filed out, I wasn’t a bit surprised to hear Rage volunteer to stay with Hulk. Man, Wrath sure had his hands full with his dad, but he was a character. Things were probably never dull with him around.
???
By the time we gathered for Twisted’s party hours later, we were ready to unwind. Church hadn’t revealed anything new. It was more about letting the others know what we discovered and determining our next steps. Bull spoke to Grinder and warned them of the house. Hulk was able to get the location out of them before they killed the Outlaws. Grinder agreed to scope it out, but they promised to hold off going in until Bull gave them the go-ahead. We didn’t want the enemy to know we knew about the location. After the wedding, the clubs would be working to bring the Black Outlaws down for good. When that time came, the house, their clubhouse, and any other locations they used for their illicit activities would be taken out. It was hard to wait, but we couldn’t make a move without all the information. If we did that, they’d just go underground and continue.
The other hackers in the clubs, in addition to Wire and Smoke, would now be working on discovering everything they could about the Black Outlaws and those who took Jessamy. Whether the Outlaws were a part of those who took Jessamy or not, we’d make sure they all were eliminated before we were done. And that those who were taken would receive justice in some way. We knew that we’d never be able to find and rescue all of them, probably not even half, but we’d do what we could. We were lucky that the Dark Patriots had contacts that could take up the fight, especially outside the country and long-term.
We hadn’t planned to leave the compound for Twisted’s party. For one thing, why go to a bar and have to put up with others when we had a perfect one here? Second, going to the strip club wouldn’t be something Twisted or any of the committed guys would care to do. And the single guys could go anytime they wanted to see strippers. That didn’t mean we weren’t allowing the bunnies and some of the hang arounds to come in late for those who wanted to enjoy them. However, by then, the rest of us could go to bed with our women.
We planned to use one of the outbuildings for his party so the women and kids could use the clubhouse. However, our old ladies had vetoed that. They assured us they would be fine using one of them, and since they wouldn’t hang out as long as we men would, they didn’t need much. After spending time together, they intended to split up and go to their various houses. A lot of the others were staying on the compound or in town at one of the hotels. We’d booked a whole hotel out. Everyone had brought prospects, so they were the ones standing watch and would escort families off the compound to the hotel.
Music was playing. Rather than just having it on the stereo, the Iron Punishers played for a while. Others who were musically inclined took turns playing with them and in other groups. We were having fun just talking, drinking, and playing games. Time was flying by.
I was sitting with Twisted. As his best man, I made sure he was having a good time. I was laughing at a joke Steel from Dublin Falls told when Chains from Wrath’s chapter leaned forward.
“Hey, you wanna tell us how the hell Twisted ended up with Zari, and you somehow got your claws into Jessamy? I swear, Wrath, what the hell do we need to do to get fine women coming our way?” he asked.
“Fuck if I know. I figured most of you bastards are all still happy getting your dicks wet no matter who it’s with,” Wrath spouted back. Some of his guys muttered in agreement.
“That shit gets old, man. You might not think so, but it does. I was over it before I met Zari, and I bet most of us were,” Twisted admitted.
“You’re not just getting an old lady, though. You’re taking on two kids, teenagers,” Nomad piped up. He was from Oconee, too.
“I am, but I don’t mind. They’re great kids,” Twisted said.
“When are you and Zari going to have one of your own? Or is she already pregnant, and no one told us?” Ink asked. He was Reaper’s VP.
Twisted shook his head. “She’s not. We’re waiting a bit. We’d like it just to be the four of us for a while before we add anyone else, but we plan to have a few of our own. It’s to give the kids time to settle in this new family we created. We don’t want them thinking they’re being replaced or anything.”
“It’s a good idea. Hey, not to bring a sour note to the party, but we heard what happened with that boy who tried to hurt Aliya. There were two others, weren’t there? What about them?” Payne asked. He was Bull’s enforcer.
Twisted grinned. “Yeah, Matt and Rusty were their names. Those little fuckers thought they were safe until they heard what I did to Billy. That scared them to death. I think they thought since they didn’t try to rape her, they might be in the clear. They were wrong. I waited for them to turn eighteen, like I did him. I paid them each a visit on their eighteenth birthday. They were lucky. I left them intact, but with the warning that if they ever came near my kids again or I heard of them doing something like they did to Arif and Aliya to someone else, they’d reap the reward. They left town just like Billy, although in their cases, it was supposedly to go to college.”
“You’d think they’d go into hiding or something, knowing what might happen on their birthdays,” Blade said. He was from Dublin Falls.
“Oh, they tried. Their folks even tried to tell the cops we were coming for them and a bunch of other shit. But since Billy and his family didn’t say anything, it was their word against ours. Two cops, Ingram and Oliver, sat outside the gate watching us to ensure no one left on their birthdays. They already had a problem with me and Zari. Lucky for us and unlucky for them, we have a hidden exit they have no idea about. We had wild parties going on both nights, and they had no idea a couple of us snuck out and paid those guys a visit. We drove fifty miles to where one of them was hiding. He didn’t think we knew where he was,” Twisted chuckled. I’d been with him on both of those, so I was grinning as well.
“How long did it take them to recover from their beatdowns? And what excuse did they use for their injuries?” someone else yelled. I couldn’t tell who it was.
“About a month. One claimed he was in a car accident. The other ended up claiming he got drunk and didn’t remember. Oliver and Ingram knew it was me, but without proof, they could do nothing,” Twisted snickered.
This earned a toast, and we all held our various drinks in the air. Talk about those shithead boys turned to a bunch of teasing that Twisted still had time to run. I knew Twisted would never do that. He loved Zari like I loved Jessamy. He took it all in fun like it was intended.
It was after eleven, and things were winding down. I thought it was time to head out and find my woman. I needed her. Plus, at any moment, the hang arounds and bunnies would be traipsing through the doors. I wasn’t interested in seeing any of them tonight, especially Christie. I knew she’d been scarce since her confrontation with Jessamy. If she thought I’d forget it, she was wrong. I’d bide my time.
I was relieved when Twisted brought an end to his time. He said he had to get his beauty sleep for the big day tomorrow. This signaled the other married men to get up. There were a ton of goodbyes, teasing remarks, and man hugs before we scattered. I went out the back way to cut across to our house. If my woman weren’t at home, I’d wait for her to join me, or maybe I’d go searching for her. There was a chance she was at one of the other houses. Anticipation had me speeding up. I was ravenous for my Madonna. Even though we’d made love last night after I took her back to our tent, it didn’t matter. I was craving her fiercely.
I was almost at our place, and I could see there were lights on. There weren’t outdoor lights all over the compound, but we did have ones around the houses and other buildings, so there was enough light to keep you from being totally in the dark. I was using those to navigate my way home. I paused to send her a text.
Me: I’m almost home. I hope you’re there waiting and naked, baby. We haven’t had drunk sex yet.
I didn’t wait for her reply. I lifted my head to keep walking and almost jumped. Coming toward me was a figure. I swore under my breath. What the fuck was she doing out here? It was a smiling Christie sashaying her ass coming my way. I scowled at her.
“Keep going. I don’t want to hear shit out of you. You should be inside the clubhouse with the others,” I barked.
“I planned to be there, but then I saw you walking out the back door. Come back, Mace. We can have fun, and she’ll never need to know. Although why you want her, I don’t know.”
“What is it going to take to get it through your head? I don’t want you! I’m with Jessamy, and she’s the woman I want. That’s never changing, goddamn it!”
“But you never gave me a chance! I know if you did, you’d see that I’m a much better woman for you than her,” she whined.
“There’s no woman better than her for me. I love her, and she’s my old lady. I claimed her. It’s a done deal. She’s been voted in and wears my property cut,” I snapped. I wondered if that news had circulated while we were in North Carolina. This batshit woman was making my head hurt. I wanted to laugh when she stomped her foot like a toddler.
“That’s not fair! You can’t. Tell them you changed your mind. Please, let me prove I’m the one.”
The next thing I knew, she fell to her knees at my feet. My laughter died away when she reached for my belt. We were wrestling for my belt buckle when I heard my woman’s voice.
“What the hell is going on out here?”
My heart sank. I glanced up at her. Jessamy was standing not far from us with her hands on her hips and a furious look on her face.
“Babe, it’s not what you think, I swear to God,” I told her hastily.
Surely, she wouldn’t think I wanted this. I shoved Christie away from me. She landed on her ass in the dirt. Her scream of outrage was loud. She scrambled to her feet and whipped around to face Jessamy.
“Go away! Can’t you see? Mace wants me, not you!” Christie shouted.
“Is that why he was fighting you off and pushing you on your ass? Because he wants you? Wow, I’ve mixed up the signals all these years. Mace, I’m sorry you didn’t want the sex and blow jobs I gave you. I didn’t know I was forcing you,” Jessamy said insincerely.
I knew I shouldn’t chuckle, but I couldn’t help it. When Christie heard me, she twirled around to glare at me. “You want me!” she shrieked even louder.
“I’ve had enough! You’re out of here,” I roared as I walked toward her.
I’d personally throw her out and then tell the others later we needed to boot her out for good. As I reached her, she tried to scratch me. I grabbed her wrists to keep her from clawing my eyes out. She struggled, kicked, and screamed like a lunatic.
“Hey, do you need some help?” Nitro asked from behind me. I glanced back at him. He was standing there staring at us.
Right after that, I heard Jessamy snap, “Oh no, you don’t. You’re not biting him.”
I turned back to find my woman had the bunny by the back of her hair, holding her head away from me. Christie had her mouth open.
“Whoa, yep, time for someone to get the fuck off our property. Let’s wrangle this crazy woman,” Nitro said. He had out his phone and was putting it up to his ear. I didn’t know who he was calling, but I could take care of this myself.
“Babe, let go. I’ve got her.”
“No, you won’t do more than restrain her if she tries to hurt you. Me, on the other hand, I’ll snatch her bald and kick her face in. Let’s go. We’ll take her to the gate and show her out. Does she have a car here?” Jessamy asked.
“We’ll have to look and see if it’s parked out in front of the clubhouse. She may have come with someone else,” I told her.
We began marching Christie in that direction. She kept yelling and fighting. Nitro fell into step next to us.
“I got a hold of Bodie. He said she came with one of the others, so there was no car to worry about. Normally, I’d say we’d have someone take her to town, but the way she’s acting, I don’t trust her unless we secure her.”
“Agreed. See if you can find some zip ties. And someone to go along with Bodie. They can take her to town and drop her at her place.”
I didn’t know if Bodie had told others what was happening or if they had just happened to hear it, but before long, we had a massive crowd around us. They were remarking on how nuts she was. I was wrong if I thought she’d settle with so many more witnesses. If anything, she became louder and more frantic.
We were out in front of the clubhouse when Bodie and Rune pulled up in a truck. Rune jumped out. He hurried over and slapped zip ties on her wrists. She tried to kick him, so he did the same to her ankles. Bodie put a gag in her mouth. It was harder than I imagined to get her in the backseat. Bodie slung her over his shoulder and manhandled her inside. With her secured, I gave them their orders.
“Take her to her place. Make sure she gets inside alright, and then get your asses back here before she calls the law on you.”
Atticus came running out of the clubhouse. He held up a small purse. “Here’s her bag. Her keys are in here. And her driver’s license has her address.”
As they drove out the gate with her, the guys asked what the hell they had missed. I wasn’t in the mood to talk all night, but I did give them the highlights. When it came to Jessamy’s part, they smiled.
“You go, girl. Why don’t you take your man home and sex him up so he chooses you?” Pope teased.
She slid her arm around me and smiled. “I plan to do just that. Don’t bother us until morning.” As we walked off, their laughter followed us.