Epilogue—Casper
“ W e need to tell her,” Kooper barks at me as I look over some files. Bastard just barged in and sat his ass down across from me. Couldn’t wait for a fucking invitation. I know he’s pissed, but I’m tired and pissed too.
I throw the paperwork down on my new presidential desk and look at him head-on. If it’s a fight he wants, he’s going to get it.
“Tell her what? That we lied to her? That her dad isn’t dead, but we need him to look that way? That he’s in a coma, and we don’t know when he’s coming out of it? That we’re hiding him from damn near everyone because we can’t have our enemies coming after us thinking we’re weak, or worse, use his condition to truly end him?”
“If it’s the truth,” he says with a tight jaw.
I shake my head at his naive comment. I look at Domino, who was helping me go over numbers when Koop barged in. He just shakes his head at Koop’s antics.
“The truth? We don’t have time to deal with this shit. We’ve got enemies, and we can’t be weak. Telling Ruby is a liability.”
“She can keep her mouth shut,” he spits back.
“Can she? She’s a wild card. Law didn’t even know half of the things she was up to. She’s unpredictable, unstable. You willing to bank your life on her keeping her trap shut? You willing to bank your brothers’ lives? Their wives’… the kids’? ”
He crosses his arms and looks away. “Still ain’t right.”
For the first time since he walked in, I agree with him. But right and needed aren’t the same thing.
“Maybe so, but unless you want to go against me and take the president’s badge, it is what it is. So get on board with it and do it quick. I got other shit to deal with, and you throwing a hissy fit about having issues with keeping a secret ain’t even in the top ten of shitty things I need to deal with today.”
He stands quickly before rushing out, slamming the door as he goes.
I turn back to my paperwork, trying to remember where I was.
“He’s right, you know,” Domino says as he clears his throat.
I throw the papers onto the table, giving up completely for the night. “Of course I goddamn know. I just… I just don’t know how else to make it right and keep everyone safe without doing it this way.” I shake my head at the crazy shit show we’re all in now.
“You’re a good boss, Casper,” he says as he kicks his feet up. I give him a look, and he quickly puts them back down.
I huff a laugh at his quickness. That he follows my commands is still asinine to me. Not that the boys didn’t respect me before, but there’s a whole other level now that I’m running shit.
Been at it for five minutes, and I’m already butting heads with some of the top members in the club. Don’t know how Law did it so long. I feel like the world is splintering, and I just started making decisions. I always thought being a sniper was the hardest thing. But I only had to control my actions then, not worry about everyone else’s, like I do now.
“You’ll get the hang of it. We’ve got your back. Koop does too. He’s just got shit to deal with in his head. When it comes down to it, he’ll play the game you put in front of him. We all will. Boys had a choice, and we chose you. Don’t forget, this is a long time coming. We all knew you would step in for Law one day.”
“Ha, wish someone would have told me. I feel like I just fell down the damn rabbit hole without a clue which way is up.”
“But where would the fun be in that?”
A knock on the door, followed by Atom poking his head in a second later, interrupts us. “Yo, Casper, the vet’s here.”
“Vet?” Domino smirks.
I stand, grabbing my phone off the desk and stuffing it into my back pocket. “Shut it. I’ll be back for this later.”
“No rush. I got no hot woman warming my bed of late. Catch me when you want to review it, and we can do it then.”
I nod before heading out. Not that I’m running after some chick. I’m not. I’m intrigued by Wendi, and we’ve got business. That’s it. Doesn’t hurt that she’s nice to look at. Her sister’s fucking unhinged, but I don’t hold that against her. Penny’s autistic, or that’s what Wendi said when I finally manned up and asked. And yeah, I had to man up to do it. It’s not something you just blurt out; it takes finesse to ask why a person is bonkers.
Coming out of the compound, I find the two sisters easily. Not only because they’re standing alone, but also because Penny’s wearing her signature cat-ear headphones. She started putting them on anytime I came around asking about the dogs. She’s told me she thinks cats are better at protecting, and this is her way of promoting cat protection over dogs.
Like I said, the girl is nuts.
As for her sister? Well, damn, she’s just about perfect.
“Hey, you made it.”
Wendi turns at my voice and gives me a warm greeting. There’s just something about this girl. She’s a civilian and has no clue about club life. She shows her lack of knowledge almost every time I see her. Only once did she show me attitude, and it was that moment that intrigued me.
She isn’t as feisty since that night, which is a bit off-putting, but I think her attitude only came out because we startled her at gunpoint and forced her to patch up Domino. Maybe if I wake her up again like that, I’ll see that side of her.
“Yeah, thanks for the invite.”
I wait to see if there’s something more in her eyes that can draw me in. I’m interested, but I’m also interested in a vamp. Not saying I’m looking for an old lady, but since I got the president patch, it might not be a bad idea to shop around. Fuck knows I don’t want any damn vamp thinking they can saddle up with me to gain some kind of “top vamp bitch” label.
“I’m hungry,” Penny cries out, killing whatever there could have been in that moment.
“We’ve got food on the grill now,” I tell her. “Hamburgers, brisket, and hot dogs.”
She wrinkles her nose at me. “Eating dogs is gross. ”
“No, Penny, they aren’t eating actual dogs. It’s hot dogs. You know, the ones in the buns that we had at that baseball game?”
She doesn’t seem impressed.
“You girls went to a game? Was it the Royals?” I walk them to the back of the compound, choosing to stay on the outside of the place and going around the side rather than bringing Penny through the main area. Doubt she would like that, and I honestly don’t know what will set her off. Hell, a brother could be getting serviced by a vamp right now, and I’ve got zero clue if she even knows about the birds and bees and shit.
“A friend took us to a Texas Rangers game a while back. Penny didn’t like it. She didn’t understand why the umpire kept calling strikes or why the mascot, who’s a horse, was only walking around on two feet and not all four.”
“Horses have four feet. They don’t have hands.”
I pull my lips in to keep from laughing. I might not get Penny, but she’s funny as shit.
“How are Richtofen and Galland doing?” Wendi changes the subject to ask about the two German shepherds the club recently acquired from her. I freaking love that they’re named after WWII fighter pilots. Having war dogs in the battle to fight against the enemy just seems right.
“Want to see where we have them set up? We made them a section toward the back.”
“Yeah, that would be great. Penny, I’ll be back. Just hang out with Abigail, okay? Get something to eat.” She waves over to her friend, who smiles and gestures for Penny to join her as we walk to the back of the property.
“Billy!”
I look back and see Abigail running toward us.
Who the fuck is Billy?
I turn to Wendi and watch the color drain from her face.
“Shit.”
“Billy.” Abigail stops right in front of us. “Jack needs you.”
I look to Abigail, then to Wendi, confused as fuck. “Wait, I thought your name was Wendi. Who’s Jack?”
“Damnit.” She runs her hands through her hair in distress. “Look, what we talked about just now? That was true. That was real. Don’t forget that.”
“What?” This one is acting as crazy as her sister.
Before I can question anything more, she grabs me and kisses the ever-loving fuck out of me. Best damn kiss of my life. Fucking fireworks are going off behind my eyes.
But then she stops it before I can even get started and runs after Abigail, who’s already heading back toward the compound.
I’m stunned for half a second before I follow, and a sinking feeling has me thinking I don’t know this chick at all. When I round a tree and see half the club standing about, I take the time to walk around the property to find her. And when I come to the front of the compound and see what’s going on, I know I don’t know this chick. Not at all.
“What the fuck is going on?” I pull my gun and aim it at Wendi. “Drop the fucking gun before I drop you.”
“Think again,” Penny says as she pulls a gun of her own and aims it at my head.
Fucking nuts, this one. Fucking nuts.