Chapter 28
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
RYAN
THEN
“I ’m going to kill him,” Jay said from his seat at the table.
We were all gathered in the meeting room of the clubhouse to discuss the Horsemen after one of their members had followed Lexi and I through town that evening. We had been waiting for them to retaliate and I felt like this was the beginning.
“Is this the first time either of you have been followed by the Horsemen?” my dad asked from the head of the table. “You were lucky tonight, Ryan. He was clearly sent to intimidate you. We said no one was to ride alone and yet you were riding down the street with your girlfriend? What if he pulled out a gun and shot one of you?”
The thought made me want to vomit. I would’ve been lying if I said the thought didn’t cross my mind when I spotted the bike in my mirror. If he pulled out a gun, there wasn’t much I could have done to protect Lexi or myself. This question made Jay stand up from his seat and walk out the door, and I knew he was angry. Jay could be a bit of a hot head and the thought of Lexi getting shot was enough to set him off.
“What are we going to do about it?” I asked my dad.
He rubbed his hands over his face. “We’re going to show them we aren’t scared of them. Go and get Jay, the whole club will be riding into Horsemen territory tonight”
“What about Lexi? I can’t leave her here with no protection.”
“I’ll stay with her,” Haz said from beside me as he put his hand on my shoulder. Haz wasn’t one to back down from a fight usually, but I knew just like Jay and I, he had a weak spot for Lexi. He would do anything to protect her and keep her safe, not just for her but also for me.
I left the meeting room and went to look for Jay, but he wasn’t at the bar or outside the clubhouse. I did notice his bike still sitting next to mine which meant he was still here somewhere. I heard his voice coming from my bedroom and I stood at the doorway, not wanting to interrupt their conversation. Jay was sitting on the end of my bed and had Lexi leaning on his chest as she cried into him. I knew she was scared earlier; I could feel her heart racing against me as we rode, but she tried to hide her fear from me. She told me she was fine and she was just a little shaken up but as I stood there and watched her cry into her brother’s chest, I knew she was more than a little bit scared.
Jay noticed me before she did. When he looked up at me, I saw the anger in his eyes and I knew what we needed to do.
The only way to de-escalate the Horsemen threat against Lexi was to eliminate the threat altogether. We wouldn’t just be riding into Horsemen territory tonight to show them we weren’t afraid; we would be showing them we weren’t a club they could toy with. We would end them. Jay and I had a silent conversation and I nodded at him to let him know we were on the same page.
“Alright baby Davis, pick your poison. I have ice cream or tequila.” Haz walked into the room holding up an item in each hand and Lexi raised her head and wiped away her tears. “Tequila it is,” he said once he saw her crying. He handed her the bottle and she took a sip before coughing from the burn in her throat. I started second guessing if Haz was the best person to protect her right now.
“What’s going on?” Lexi asked. Her eyes flickered between Jay and I. She knew us well enough to know when something was happening within the club.
“Jay and I have to head out for a bit, but Haz is going to stay with you.” I stayed in the doorway and put my hands in my jean pockets.
“Ryan, please don’t do this. Don’t openly walk into danger.” She stood from the bed and another tear slipped down her cheek.
“We have to, Lex. Tonight could have ended very differently and next time, maybe it will. We need to show them that there won’t be a next time.” She stepped towards me and wrapped her arms around my waist. I removed my hands from my pockets and put one on her waist and one on the back of her head as I held her against me.
“Please be safe, both of you.” She walked to Jay and he pulled her into a hug as well while I walked over to my bed where Haz had now made himself comfortable. I opened the bedside drawer to check that the gun was still in there. I pointed at it and Haz nodded in return, knowing that I didn’t want to scare Lexi. If he needed protection, then it was there for him to use.
As Jay and I walked towards our bikes where the rest of the club were all set up and ready to go, Lexi ran through the door with Haz following closely behind her. I could see her crying as Jay and I pulled on our helmets. I fought the urge to drop everything and stay with her, but Haz put his arm around her shoulder and pulled her closer to him and I knew she would be safe. She mouthed I love you to both Jay and I as we rode past her and exited the driveway.
* * *
I t was an hour-long ride to Ridge Point, the hometown of the Horsemen. We knew that going directly to their clubhouse would be risky because of the amount of security and protection that most MC clubhouses had onsite, but we also needed to show no fear. My dad, as President, led the bikes the whole way and as we got closer, we pulled over on the side of the road to check we all had our guns on us.
Jay hit my arm and pointed ahead of us, and sure enough there were bikes lined up along the street in front of a rundown bar which told us that the Horsemen were here and not their clubhouse.
Jay and I walked in first and straight away spotted six Horsemen at the bar, one of which was Silas Gray. I walked straight over to him and grabbed a hold of his collar, pulling him backwards off the stool. When he hit the floor, everyone’s attention turned our way.
“Which one of you assholes followed me earlier?” I leaned over him as he tried to get up off the floor. Jay was holding another Horsemen back as the rest of the Vipers piled into the bar. Most of the other patrons knew something was going down and either moved to the other side of the room or left instantly.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about, Ryan.” Silas smirked from the floor and I swung a punch right at his jaw.
“You know exactly what I’m talking about. I was followed by a Horsemen in Haven Cove this afternoon. I want to know who it was.” I saw Jay move from beside me as he walked around Silas and I and towards a younger boy at the end of the bar. He was the Horsemen’s current prospect and he looked like he was maybe nineteen at most. It was clear to see he was trying to hide away from the scene unfolding.
“Where were you this afternoon? A long ride down to Haven Cove perhaps?” Jay asked as he pulled the boy out from behind another member. Jay and I were always on the same page, always thinking the same thing and this time was no different. Jay pushed the boy against the wall and held his forearm against his throat.
“Who told you to follow them?”
“I just did what they asked me to, man. I didn’t hurt anyone.” I could see the sweat dripping down his forehead as Jay’s grip got tighter.
A loud shot sounded throughout the bar. I looked at Jay who had blood on him and the body in front of him fell from his hands. I quickly turned around and saw Stubs standing behind us with his gun pointed in Jay’s direction. He had shot the kid. The other Horsemen all stood from their chairs and crowded around Stubs. He had just killed a member of the Horsemen in their own territory and they were either going to retaliate now or plan something even bigger to hit us later.
“We don’t take threats lightly. You can tell your President that your prospect’s body is just the beginning. If any Horsemen steps foot in Haven Cove or threatens one of our own again, I’ll come back and kill all of you.” My dad pushed Silas away from me and spoke right into his face before pushing him backwards.
The Horsemen all had anger etched over their faces. I took one more look at the prospect lying on the floor surrounded by his own blood before I stuck up my finger at Silas and walked out the door with the rest of my club and rode back to Haven Cove.