12. Sprocket #2
As if we’d rehearsed it, we all dropped to one knee as Eagle lifted the ring box, lid pulled back so she could see what we offered her.
It was a ring with an ace of spades with a skull on top of it, the eye sockets filled with two diamonds.
It was a combination of our logo, her personal calling card, and what engagement ring would be complete without a diamond or two.
“Dax Rose Blackmore, will you marry us?” Eagle asked.
I once believed that nothing could shock this woman, but from what I was seeing at this moment, we’d made her speechless.
“We’ve all talked, and there is no one else for us but you. Please make us the happiest men forever by being ours as much as we are yours,” Picasso added, trying to give her time to wrap her head around what was going on.
Dax shook her head slowly as a smile tugged at her lips. “The fact that you all want to tie yourselves to my crazy ass means you’ve lost your ever-loving minds.”
“So, is that a yes?” Cognac asked, his voice hopeful.
“Fuck my life in the best way possible, yes,” she answered, tossing her hands up in the air like she had no other choice.
The room erupted in cheers so loud I thought the building would come down.
We’d all known if we did this with just the eight of us, she would have found a way to avoid the answer.
Doing it in front of everyone was risky but also forced her to give us her true and honest choice.
Eagle stood, passing the ring box to Void, who pulled it out and slid it on her finger.
Now she was smiling like an idiot, fully accepting what we were offering.
Void pulled her in and kissed the shit out of her. Next was Cognac, then Wes snuck in there, whispering something in her ear that made her laugh before he stole his own kiss. Picasso pulled her out of his hold, but instead of kissing her, he guided her to the front of the stage.
“Now that we’ve gotten that part settled, I feel confident in giving you our answer on membership,” Eagle said with a chuckle as he displayed the cut he’d had draped over one arm.
“I present to you, Little Queen, our co-president and wife. This is unorthodox for an MC to even consider adding a woman to the crew, let alone making her leadership. I think you would all agree she has more than earned her place in our midst as well as shown her value as a leader. As queen of the Empire, it would have been wrong for her to be anything less than our partner in crew as well as in life.”
Eagle shifted, holding the cut open for her to slide on easily. Dax’s eyes were wide as she took in the eager faces of the crew, then back to us. Ever so slowly, she slipped her arms into the cut and grinned down at the patches sewn on it.
“That’s not all,” Picasso interjected. “We would also like to welcome Weston Price to the Phantom Saints as our new Sergeant at Arms. He is now fully in charge of security and defense of the compound. It's what he’s already been doing. We’re just officially giving him the title.
Next, we welcome Cameron Black into the crew as our Secretary.
He will be in charge of all meetings, records, and coordination between outside law enforcement. ”
“As your leaders, we know this is a big change, but if you think about it, these men have already been doing these roles, having zero expectation of being brought into the crew. What we want the Phantom Saints to represent is how important loyalty is to each and every one of us. Every person earns the right to wear these cuts and no choice is made lightly,” Eagle explained, noticing the uncertain looks flitting about the crowd.
Dax stepped up in between the two newly patched men and gave everyone a wide grin. “Don’t worry. If they fuck up, I’ll see that they’re punished to the full extent of my abilities.”
That simple teasing set everyone at ease, making them chuckle. They might not trust the guys, but Dax had them eating out of the palm of her hand. The bold, brash woman said it like it was and didn’t hold back. This is what made people trust her. She said what she meant and meant what she said.
“Alright, everyone, settle down. We have one more important matter we need to discuss,” Eagle announced, waving his hands to hush everyone.
“In another week or so, the eight of us will be leaving for New York.
In our place, Mutt and Gator will be proxy president and vice president.
They will still be in contact with us about how things are going, but if there is an immediate need, they will be who you're going to. These men are like brothers to me and have been loyal since the beginning. They play vital roles but for us, every day, recruiting business as well as members along with managing our other shops off property. Give them the respect they deserve, and I know everything will go smoothly.”
My brows rose as Dax stepped up next to Eagle, resting her hand on his arm, letting him know she had something to say.
The choice to make Dax a co-president was one that all seven of us argued about for days.
It wasn’t until yesterday when the patch had to be placed that we agreed it was the best call.
I’d been team co-president all the way, but Wes and Picasso worried adding more to her plate might not be wise.
What they didn’t understand is she was going to take that role whether we gave her the title or not.
She didn’t know how to be anything other than a leader of people.
“Eagle might be one for the diplomatic approach, but I’m sure you’ve seen that isn’t really my thing.
That being said, Gator and Mutt bleed Phantom Saints, so does Tilly for that matter,” Dax stated.
“If word gets back to us that you’ve been disrespecting those we’ve decided to put in charge, then you’ll be having a chat with me about it when we get back. ”
That was threat enough for most people to take seriously. They’d all seen how her talks went. Most ended with something bleeding or broken if they didn’t catch onto the problem fast enough.
“Any questions?” she asked, leaning her head against Eagle’s arm, acting all sweet. Murmurs of no and shaking of heads were the unanimous responses to her question. “Delightful. Was there anything else we needed to go over?” Dax questioned, looking back at all of us.
Void chuckled and came up behind her, settling his hand on her hips. “I think that’s enough for one night, don't you think, little demon?”
Her answer was to pull him down into a quick kiss. “Works for me, big guy.”
“You heard the lady,” Cognac called out to the members. “Enough of the heavy, let’s party, turn on the music, and bust out the champagne. The queen of the Hidden Empire said yes to our sorry asses.”
The room cheered, and Tops slid over the wooden bar to start pulling out the plastic glasses and bottles of champagne.
After all the fighting and surviving we’ve been doing for the past month, now it was time to celebrate the life we still had, and there were no better people I wanted to party with than right here.