Chapter Eight
Zeke
I ’M MEETING ROOSTER and Carbon at Slayer’s Pit today. It’s the strip club the MC owns and I’ve only ever been there during the day when the dancers are rehearsing and everyone else is getting ready to open for the night. I have no desire to go watch a bunch of strippers dancing around when I have no clue where Melissa is or if she’s okay. In the six months I’ve been in Frostford and with the club, I haven’t touched another girl or watched the strippers. Melissa consumes me and she’s the only woman I’ll ever want in my bed, on the back of my bike, or at my side. If it weren’t for business, I wouldn’t be going to the strip club now.
Riding through town, I pay attention to my surroundings. People here don’t always look for bikes and I’ve almost been hit more than a few times riding through town. With it being later in the night, there isn’t much traffic on the road. Frostford might not close everything down early, but there aren’t a ton of people out once night hits. They get to their destination and stay put until it’s time to go home. At least that’s what I’ve found.
Pulling into the parking lot of Slayer’s Pit, I take in how full the parking lot is. For a week night, there isn’t a single empty spot here. It’s good for the club. I pull up to where Rooster’s and Carbon’s bikes are right up at the building, and back in right next to them. Shutting my engine off, I hear yelling coming from around the side of the building. I’m instantly alert as I take off my helmet and pull the knife from its sheath at my hip.
Walking around the building, I find Rooster and Carbon with their backs to the strip club and a man standing in front of them. He’s got a gun in his hand and is waving it around like a maniac. I don’t make any moves as he paces back and forth mumbling and keeping his eyes trained on the men before him.
“You fucking ruined me!” the man suddenly yells, turning to fully face my President and Vice President. “I can’t sell my product because you’re always there stopping me. My girls can’t find anyone to fuck because someone from your fucking club always puts a stop to it. Why can’t you leave us the fuck alone and go about your business?”
“You’re pushin’ drugs and unwillin’ girls, Rob. It’s not gonna happen in our territory and we’ve had this discussion more than once,” Rooster says calmly, not taking his eyes off the man in front of him.
“I don’t give a fuck what you say! This isn’t just your town. You can’t go around making trouble for everyone because you don’t like what someone else is doing. That’s not how this works!” he says, once again waving the gun around in the air.
“Rob, this isn’t how you approach us,” Carbon says, trying to calm the man down. “We will sit down with you at any point in time to discuss your business ventures. Now isn’t the right time and you’re not doin’ it in the right way.”
“Fuck your way,” Rob says, lifting the gun and pulling the trigger.
The bullet doesn’t hit either man before him, but I’m not willing to give him another chance to get a shot off. Moving as quietly and as fast as I can, I come up behind him and place my knife at his throat. Rob begins thrashing in my hold as I wrap my other arm around his torso.
“Drop the fuckin’ gun!” I grit out between clenched teeth.
“Fuck. You,” he returns, his voice barely audible as he tries not to move with my blade pressed against his throat.
“Last fuckin’ chance, asshole,” I inform him, my voice hard and cold as he starts to lift the gun again.
I don’t give him a chance to pull the trigger or think of much else as I slide my knife across his throat. Rob instantly drops the gun to the ground at our feet and brings his hands up to hold the wound in his neck. There’s nothing he can do to stop the blood from flowing or close the slice I just made. I slit his throat from one side to the other. It was either take him out or let him get another shot off at Rooster and Carbon. I’m not about to lose either man because someone didn’t like not being able to push drugs and women who didn’t want to be prostitutes. Fuck that bullshit!
“You always save the fuckin’ day, Zeke,” Rooster says, kicking Rob’s gun out of reach as the man moves slightly on the ground at our feet.
“Heard him yellin’ at ya when I got off my bike and waited to see how it was gonna play out. Didn’t wanna just jump in and kill him if you two could contain the situation,” I say, shrugging my shoulders in response.
I’m sure I’ve done what anyone else in the club would do if they walked up to see someone else being held at gun point. To me, it doesn’t matter if the person is a member of the club or some random person on the street. I see a situation I don’t like, I’m going to take care of it. Usually, I wouldn’t kill the person, but this man fired a shot at two men and was going to keep shooting until he ran out of bullets. He’s not in the right frame of mind to do anything else but try to win anyway he can. Even if it’s killing another person because he doesn’t like what they’ve said or done.
“Rob’s a real piece of shit. Pushes drugs to everyone he can and has a stable of girls who aren’t willin’ to whore themselves out for him. He would beat the hell out of them and then force them to take on whatever man had paid for their time,” Rooster informs me, looking down at the man as he finally stops moving between us. “Carbon, call in for a clean-up. Need to get him removed before anyone else comes outside and sees him here. Zeke, head back to the clubhouse. We’ll meet you there. Tell the guys we’re havin’ an emergency church once we get back.”
“On it. Anythin’ else you need me to do when I get back?” I question Rooster, not sure what’s going on right now.
“No. We’ll have church and then talk to you about why we brought you out here to begin with. Don’t really feel like bein’ here any longer after Rob’s appearance,” Rooster tells me, looking down at the man in question.
Walking back around the strip club, I make my way to my bike and straddle it while putting my helmet back on. I have no clue what the hell is going on right now, but I’ll do what Rooster needs me to because it’s what I’ve always done since coming here. Starting up my bike, I head back to the clubhouse with nerves flooding me. I don’t honestly know if I overstepped the situation tonight, but I just couldn’t take a risk that something would happen to Rooster or Carbon. I guess I’ll know once they get back and then have church.
On my ride back, thoughts of Melissa fill my mind. Brick has been doing his best to locate her through his resources on the computer, but continues to hit dead ends. I have no clue why he can’t find her. He’s getting frustrated and so am I. There isn’t a record of her anywhere other than Mirfield. And she hasn’t used her debit card or anything in the last six months. It’s as if she fucking vanished into thin air. If I find out Venom did something to her, I’ll make sure someone pays for his sins. I’ve already killed him so someone else will have to feel my wrath.
***
R ooster and Carbon made it back to the clubhouse and everyone is currently in church. I’m currently behind the bar hooking up a keg when I hear the front door open. A woman saunters in, looking around the room. My eyes don’t linger on her as I go back to paying attention to getting the keg hooked up for Karmen. I’ve already helped her stock the bar and brought out all the clean glasses for her. It’s something I’ve taken to doing since she took some time off. There’s no reason for her to do everything when I’m more than capable of helping her.
Just as I’m finishing up, I hear my name being called by Omen. Once again, he’s standing at the end of the hallway that leads to the offices, bathrooms, and the meeting room. Standing up, I quickly wash my hands off and then make my way over to my friend.
“What’s goin’ on?” I ask him, not sure if the guys need something while they’re still meeting or not.
“Need you in church,” he states, turning on his heel and making his way back into the room where the table is filled with the members.
Taking the seat at the end of the table where I did the last time, I wait to find out what’s going on. Rooster and everyone else stares me down for several long minutes. No one says a word as I remain sitting still in my seat. I look at each man and wait to see what’s going on. Finally, Rooster starts speaking.
“When I met you a little over six months ago, you saved my life. Didn’t hesitate or worry about any repercussions comin’ your way. You were fully prepared to go to prison. Since then, you’ve busted your ass here at the clubhouse, workin’ at the bike shop, and goin’ to trade school to get certified. We don’t have to repeat ourselves or ask you to do somethin’ most of the time. You help out everyone here from the members to the club girls. Hell, you spent an entire day followin’ around my ol’ lady while she shopped. We all know that’s not fun.
“Tonight, you show up to a meetin’ and walk into a situation Carbon and I were tryin’ to gain control of. Instead of runnin’ in guns blazin’ or leavin’ us to fend for ourselves, you watched and waited to find out what was goin’ on. When you felt you had no other choice, you stepped in and took care of the man causin’ problems. Again, there was no hesitation or anythin’ on your part. One bullet almost hittin’ our VP had you movin’ without a second thought. So, we’ve all talked and taken a vote. Zeke, you are the newest patched member of the Dirty Slayers. Welcome to the brotherhood!” Rooster says, his face breaking into a wide smile as the men surrounding me start clapping and whooping as they all stand from their seats.
I have no words right now. Walking in here tonight, this is the last thing I expected. As far as I knew, I still had six months left to Prospect before they voted on patching me in. My eyes don’t leave Rooster as he grabs something from in front of him and makes his way around the table toward me.
“Proud of you, son. You have more than proven yourself since comin’ here and deserve this. We don’t typically vote anyone in this early, but savin’ my ass twice and Carbon’s once seemed like special circumstances,” he tells me, setting the patches down in front of me with care.
Pulling out my knife, I rest it on the table in front of where I was sitting before standing and sliding my cut off. I lay it on the table in front of me so the patches are up. Picking my knife up, I cut off the Prospect patch very carefully. Holding it up in my hand, I can’t stop the smile from spreading across my own face as the guys all start cheering once again. Omen is instantly at my side.
“We forgot one thing, Zeke. Your road name. From this moment forward, you’ll be known as Homicide. We’ve all seen how you handle business and take care of those who do you, or anyone you know, wrong. I’m proud to call you brother,” he informs me, handing over the flash with my road name on it.
One by one all the guys come over to me and give me a man hug while pounding on my back. My cut remains safely on the table in front of me with the patches resting at its side. I’m stunned and still haven’t been able to process the fact that I’m a fully patched member of the club.
“Now, Homicide, get those patches sewn on your cut and meet us in the common room. It’s time to get fuckin’ drunk!” Brick calls out, causing everyone to cheer once again.
I remain in the meeting room as everyone else files out. Grabbing the sewing kit someone left for me, I begin putting the patches on my cut. It takes me forever because I’ve never sewn anything a day in my life. The hardest part is fucking threading the damn needle. My fingers are too fucking fat to be trying to put a small piece of thread through the tiniest hole known to man. When I finally get it threaded and the patches sewn on, I can’t stop the pride from filling me. Sliding my cut back on over my shoulder, it somehow feels different. Like I’m truly part of a bigger thing. A family that really cares about one another.
Walking out of church, I make sure the door is closed and locked firmly behind me and make my way into the common room. As soon as I reach the end of the hallway, the cheering is boisterous. It echoes off the walls and surrounds me as Omen walks up to my side with a beer in hand. It’s still closed and I remove the top before taking a long pull of the drink.
“The night is yours, Homicide,” Omen states as the same women who walked in the clubhouse makes her way over to me with a sultry smile on her face. “Homicide, let me introduce you to Brenda. Brenda, meet our newest member, Homicide.”
I take in the woman standing before me. She’s got long bottle blonde hair with dark ass roots showing. Her tits are barely covered in her tight shirt. It’s cut so low I can practically see her nipples poking through. Brenda’s face is caked with make-up and the skirt she’s wearing leaves nothing to anyone’s imagination. Everything about this woman is fake as hell. Including her smile.
“It’s so nice to meet you, Homicide. Care to join me for a drink?” she asks, her voice instantly grating on my nerves.
“No, thank you,” I respond causing Omen to choke on the sip of beer he just took.
“You’re not gonna spend time with Brenda?” he questions me with shock covering his face.
“No, I’m not.”
“Homicide, don’t be like that. I’m sure I can make you enjoy your night. It’s a celebration for you, after all,” Brenda says, stepping up into me and running her hand down my chest.
I grab her hand to stop her from touching me. “Don’t fuckin’ touch me unless I tell you to. I won’t ever fuckin’ tell you to touch me. I’ve got a girl and you don’t even fuckin’ compare to her,” I grit out through clenched teeth.
“I don’t see a girl at your side right now,” she purrs, not pulling her hand from me or attempting to get away from me at all.
“I don’t give a shit what you see. I’m tellin’ you, I got a girl and you’re not her. I’ve been here six fuckin’ months and haven’t touched a single woman here. I don’t go out to find some random woman to fuck or anythin’ else. You’re not gonna make me change my ways, Brenda. Stay the fuck away from me,” I state, anger filling me as I let go of her wrist and move away from her.
As I walk across the common room toward the bar, I feel Brenda’s eyes on me. I still don’t give her the attention she craves. I might still be relatively new to this world, but I’ve learned to spot the patch chasers. Brenda is definitely a patch chaser. She doesn’t give a fuck whose bed she ends up in as long as he’s a fully patched member. I’m sure if I paid close enough attention, I’d find her paying more attention to the officers than the regular patched members. She wants ol’ lady status and doesn’t care how she obtains it. Including trapping one of us to get her way. Brenda won’t be the first woman to do this, and she won’t be the last either. I just won’t be one of her victims.
Taking a seat between Brick and Knuckle, I continue drinking my beer while keeping my back toward the rest of the common room. This is the only place I’ll ever sit with my back to the room. I might have taken out Venom and his guys, but Mad Dog is still out there somewhere. Yes, we’ve been looking for him on a daily basis. Brick is also using his computer to search for him. As I knew he would, Mad Dog has gone underground and we won’t be able to find him until he’s ready to make a move. He’d have to find me first, but I’m sure he’s got connections. Not that he’s usually clear headed enough to use those connections. Mad Dog is as much of an addict as Venom and the rest of his guys were.
Here, in the safety of the clubhouse, I know I don’t have to watch my back or look over my shoulder for the fucker to come at me. These men will have my back like I’ve had theirs for the last six months. For tonight, I can get drunk off my ass and celebrate having a family again. The only thing that would make it better would be Melissa here with me. Her taking this journey with me and not being out there where I have no clue what’s going on.