Chapter Nine
Deadly Encounters
Kingston
Roy had never made me question his loyalty before. Yeah, he wasn’t as hard as some, and he may not have had the purest of outlaw hearts, but he was my brother.
Well, half-brother.
He’d never failed to support one of the ol’ man’s ideas. And he’d never turned his back on the club when we really needed him. College, or no college.
Finding him at Paxton’s house made me question everything I knew.
I glared at him while we stalled at a red light. He didn’t look my way, but I saw the tension growing in his jaw. He knew I was staring.
“Pussy,” I growled.
He ignored me and rolled on when the light turned. I raced after him to the next light.
“You were gonna tell him our plans?” I challenged, as we idled near Monroe.
He slowly shifted his head in denial but still refused to meet my gaze.
“You’re a goddamn liar, bud,” I doubled down.
He revved his bike, preparing to take off despite the light still not having changed.
My jaw dropped, and I acted on instinct alone. I shot my foot out, catching the traitor in his leg right as he laid on the throttle. The ass of the bike slung right, and skidded into traffic, leaving him like a turtle on its back in the lane next to me.
“... What the fuck!” came his delayed outrage, as the sound of hard braking, and twisting metal compounded the chaos around us.
I gunned my bike, forcing him to abruptly move his leg or allow me to cruise right over it.
“Kingston!” he screamed, as I laughed, and shot down the side road.
“Fuck him,” I mumbled to myself, as I pointed the bike toward our father’s trailer.
My mother was just pulling out as I approached the drive. She gave that dainty, little finger wiggle that always made me groan as we passed each other.
My father’s shadow appeared at the screen door. He took his time opening it and venturing onto the top of his cement steps. When he realized Roy wasn’t with me, he idly scratched his gut and studied the road behind me.
“He ain’t coming.” I couldn’t keep the venom out of my tone. “Why the fuck did you have to tell him anything?”
“Wh–?” His eyes tightened into a hard squint, as he grappled with being spoken to in such a manner.
“You know he ain’t shit. You know he’s a college boy, and not–” I shouted.
“He’s as patched as you are. Keep talking to me like that. I’ll strip both of you ungrateful little cocksuckers.”
“Yeah? Go for it. Ungrateful,” I scoffed, “I just saved your ass, you ungrateful bitch.”
His eyes widened and he moved a little quicker as he tried to close the space between us, his temper staining his face.
“I found him at Pacman’s house running his mouth. He isn’t onboard, so I left him lying in the middle of the four-way. He’ll be busy with the police and finding a ride home now that he’s bikeless. You’re welcome.”
The poor bastard looked like he’d swallowed a fly.
No one disobeyed him.
And no one but Forty-Kal betrayed him.
Until now.
“You’re just doing that fucking thing siblings do. You’re just sayin’ that cause you two are having some brother spat or something.”
“I told him I needed backup and he didn’t show. I told him she needed saving, and he ran out of the house without his cape.”
The vein on the side of dad’s temple stood out a little. He didn’t say anything, but he stopped posturing.
“We’re gonna have to fast track this shit.”
“I have Paxton expecting me tomorrow, you gotta make Roy do it. Make him be a part of it so he can’t tell anyone,” I pressed, suddenly regretting my temper.
What if he was back there singing in a fucking cop’s ear right now?
“Tomorrow then. He’ll do Paxton, and you’ll do the girl,” dad announced.
“Yeah, I can get her tomorrow. I’ll make it happen.” I nodded, as his hand found my shoulder in an affectionate squeeze.
“Fuck. At least I can count on one of you, eh?” He sighed.