Chapter 3
ROCK
“Look, we already know we can’t send Brewer in now that he’s been shot,” Grave said. “So, what’s the point of church, Diesel?”
“The point is that the plan is still in motion. But we need someone to replace Brewer,” he said.
“Are you sure?” Mick asked.
We all turned to him as Diesel’s face set itself into stone.
“I mean, I’m not one to question you. You know that. But hell, Diesel Those men busted up Brewer’s home good. Who’s to say they didn’t know what we were planning in the first place? They’re going to be on high alert now.”
“He’s got a fucking point,” I said. “It’s too dangerous to send someone in now.”
Because there was a fucking rat in our group.
“Someone has to take care of Rex,” Knox said. “I’m not lettin’ that fucker get away with what he did.”
“Then you go into jail and kill him yourself,” Mick said.
“Monroe’s due in a month,” Knox said.
“Then shut the fuck up,” Mick said.
“Whoa. Mick. What the fuck’s gotten into you?” I asked.
“This is bullshit, is what’s gotten into me. And I’m pissed off that I wasn’t here to help you guys do anything about it. But the second we set this damn plan into motion, Brewer almost got killed.”
“Again, he’s got a fucking point,” Grave said.
“If we send someone into that jail to pick off Rex, they’re going to get hurt.
Possibly killed themselves. For all we know, The Black Saddles have sent some of their people into jail like we were about to just to protect the bastard.
We send one guy in there and he’s jumped by four?
Five? What the fuck will we do then?” I asked.
“Okay, everybody calm the hell down,” Diesel said.
“We have to do something,” Knox said. “We can’t sit around with our thumbs up our asses.”
“Then throw out a suggestion that doesn’t get one of us killed,” Grave said.
“Shut the fuck up!”
Diesel’s voice echoed across the chambers of the lodge.
Everyone was on edge, myself fucking included.
Diesel raked his hands down his face and groaned.
I knew how he felt. All of this was frustrating as fuck, and with each passing moment that got foiled only confirmed the thing none of us wanted to talk about on a fucking regular basis.
“Okay,” Diesel said. “You guys are right. The plan’s a botched one. But I think we all need to walk away and cool down from this Brewer incident before we figure out our next move.”
“But Diesel…”
“Can it, Knox.”
The look in Diesel’s eyes automatically disarmed the man, and I didn’t blame him. I was finally beginning to see our President with his ‘no bullshit’ attitude. Diesel had patience. More than any one person needed in their lives. But even he had his limits.
And he was approaching them quickly.
“Do we have any other options at our disposal other than sitting like ducks with fucking targets on our back?” Grave asked.
“Until I can figure out what the fuck is going on and how the hell those assholes keep thwarting us at every turn? No,” Diesel said.
“Thwarting? The hell are we in? Some sort of old fantasy book?” Knox asked.
“You really need to shut up,” Mick said.
“You wanna say that again one more time?” Knox asked as he turned to the man with his fists clamped.
“Enough!” I exclaimed.
Everyone turned their heads and looked at me. Diesel included.
“It’s obvious this church session isn’t gonna accomplish shit. So why don’t we all go our separate ways and cool the fuck down,” I said. “We can come back in a few days with clearer heads and tackle the actual issue at hand.”
My eyes glanced over at Diesel as I tried to mentally communicate to him the fact that we needed to address this bullshit now.
“Church dismissed,” Diesel said. “We’ll come back together in a few days and figure out what we are going to do from here.”
The guys all grumbled as they made their way out of the lodge.
Damn it. This was a shitstorm and it was only getting warmer and bigger by the second.
And all the while, Brewer’s words ran through my mind.
I needed to get him to talk to me. I needed to get him alone and away from that woman of his long enough to have a decent fucking conversation with the man.
I stalked out of the lodge and headed to my bike.
Going to check on Brewer seemed like a good idea. He wasn’t at church anyway. Still in too much pain and way too fucking drugged up to be riding. At this time of day, there was a chance Makenna was at work and Ana at school, which meant Brewer and I could have a decent chance to talk this shit out.
I hopped onto my bike and sped away as fast as I could.
I was getting tired of seeing that damn lodge without it providing any answers.
Church was becoming a hassle and watching my family stand so close to the edge they were about to fall off kept me from sleeping at night.
It pissed me off that none of us knew what the fuck was going on.
And it pissed me off even more that no one was willing to talk about it.
Yes, Rex fucking framed Knox and threw his ass in jail.
But we resolved it and he got some pussy out of the whole deal.
Yes, Rex’s sister ratted on him and got him thrown in jail.
So, we protected her. And Grave got some pussy out of that.
Yes, Rex tried to have his sister killed on numerous occasions. So, we plot killing Rex because the woman’s family and carrying Grave’s child. Got it. I’d do the same fucking thing.
But none of that shit was going to help us if a rat was constantly tattling on us.
I rode through the dead streets of Redding, kicking up dust as the sun beat down onto my back.
Every time I fucking took these roads, she popped into my head.
And every fucking time I thought about her too much, I’d hit up a bar and drink until I fell in bed with another woman.
Some woman who looked like her and briefly smelled like her until she made a sound.
Said my name. Did something to prove to me she wasn’t who I thought she was.
Then I’d get mine, I’d make sure she got hers, and that was that.
I had no idea a summer could fuck me up so badly.
I was in the middle of being a prospect with the Dead Souls when she came along.
Piper. The woman I had to pay. She strolled into one of the bars in town with a pair of jeans painted on tight and a shirt that left nothing to the imagination.
Ruby red lips. Wild blonde hair curled and with dyed ends of every color.
And the tattoo she had underneath those tits of hers was fantastic.
She had five of them when I met her, and to this day I could still remember them.
A beautifully-designed tattoo that cupped tits I put in my mouth as much as I could that summer.
A tattoo that traced around her belly button and pointed to a pussy I licked more than I fucked.
Then three tattoos underneath each of her luscious ass cheeks that cradled them in their intricate design.
Tattoos I marveled at while I slapped my hand against her jiggling cheeks.
She was the kind of woman that gave me a run for my money.
And some of the shit we got up to had a lot to do with the road between Redding and the woods.
Sex on the benches overlooking the forest mountains.
Hand-jobs while I drove my bike down deserted roads.
Her sliding up and down my thickened cock as I raced us through the desert, kicking up clouds of dust to shield our lust for one another.
Her adrenaline addiction rivaled mine.
And I couldn't get enough of her that summer.
But, shit always happens in my life, and that summer was no different.
The guys got into some trouble and I had to come bailing them out.
Which meant I took the fall for some shit that landed me in jail for almost seven months.
Our lawyers got the sentence reduced a great fucking deal.
From three years down to only a few months.
But it was enough time for me to get out and realize Piper had up and left.
Gone back to whatever life she led before she met me.
I careened off the deserted road and took some back roads.
I didn’t have the strength to cruise down fucking memory lane.
I needed to get to Brewer and talk with him.
The last thing on my mind needed to be that woman.
Too much shit had come down onto the club’s shoulders to be thinking about anything else.
But every once in a while, I caught myself wondering what the fuck that woman had done with her life.
I knew she was a native of Redding, but that was all I knew about her.
She was in school, but didn’t know what the hell she wanted to do.
She had come into town because of things she needed to settle with her family, but she never went into detail.
But we didn’t have that kind of relationship.
I was a distraction to her and she was a fine piece of ass for myself.
That didn’t stop me from thinking about her every fucking day I was in jail, though.
When I got out, the guys were waiting for me with my leather cut.
Stitched and emblemed, waiting for me once the jail finally released me.
I went in alone and came back to a family that embraced the whole of me.
And it felt nice. I didn’t have anyone other than them.
I didn’t plan on having anyone else other than them.
But it sure as hell would be nice to take a dip in that woman’s pool again.
If only for a moment.
If she ever came home.