Chapter Sixteen—Mortician #2
“I’m not cheating, Kendall,” Johnnie called, backing down from his fuckery. “I don’t want another woman.”
Digger snickered. Mortician thumped his stupid head.
“I just want to matter to you,” Johnnie whispered.
Kendall lifted her chin. “Same, Johnnie. I want to matter to you, fuckhead.” She started off again.
“Your kids, Kendall,” Digger called.
“They want to sleep here.” She sailed away.
“This not a fucking motel,” Digger yelled.
“Fuck you, asshole.” Her voice traveled down the hallway. A moment later, the elevator dinged.
Outlaw walked away too and headed to the nursery. Mort would’ve followed him if he hadn’t gotten Meggie’s text, reminding him she needed his help.
More fuckery all around.
Meggie girl didn’t buy the story Johnnie and Easton were handing to her and neither did Mort. Easton, he discovered, had gone to the room where Diesel, Bishop, and the other kids were.
Over the years, Mort comforted and advised Meggie.
He’d never been as free with his hugs to her as he was with Kendall.
And even Zoann. But Meggie had needed a hug.
She needed reassurance that everything would be fine.
Hurt and in pain, she’d finally given into her misery and started to cry.
After keeping her in a bear hug until she ran out of tears, Mort called for her nurse.
Once Meggie gave into the sedative and pain medication and fell asleep, Mort turned to Rebel and finally had the chance to take a good look at her.
His own heart broke a little and he’d understood everyone’s reaction, from Prez on down to Axel.
He’d bent and kissed Rebel’s forehead. “You going to be all right, baby,” he said quietly. “We all love you.”
Sighing, he went to the nursery and found Outlaw feeding Jo.
“Prez, we got a situation,” he’d announced, and apprised Outlaw of what Meggie told him.
At first he hadn’t said anything, then he sat the baby’s bottle on a small metal cart, laid a burp cloth on his shoulder, stood, and placed Jo on his shoulder. “Johnnie went to Megan with that bullshit?”
“Yeah, Outlaw.”
A thoughtful expression crossed his face, then he said, “Call Riley. See what he come up with. If there’s a connection to Bash…” He’d glowered. “If there ain’t, do whatever, Mort.”
“An extensive background check take several days.”
“If Riley find a connection to Bash at the end of the full check, then we fuck him, Johnnie, and Easton up.”
He’d patted Jo’s back. “What Megan said, Mort? Do she even care if me or Diesel fuck that motherfucker up?”
“Which one?”
“Who the fuck I’m kiddin’? She gave those assfucks up, instead of tryin’ to find a way to fix the shit and save their miserable fuckin’ lives.”
A burp escaped Jo, and Outlaw’s face softened.
Mort smiled. “Goddamn, that bring back memories.”
Returning to the rocker, Prez cradled Jo, adjusting her blanket. “You think if Megan got another baby in her, she’ll come back to me?”
“Prez, all you got to do is apologize to her and mean it. Let this shit settle down before you start manipulating her. Right now, she don’t see your games as a joke. As for a baby, you threatened Digger when you thought he might tell Meggie girl to have another baby.”
“That shit not up to no motherfucker but me.”
“And Meggie.” Mort looked at the infant, seeing himself instead of Outlaw with a newborn Bailey recently delivered.
She wanted another baby, so if he suddenly got baby fever, she wouldn’t have a problem.
But they still had so many unresolved issues.
Kind of like Prez and Meggie girl. “A pregnancy a pregnancy. No matter who want her to have another baby, it might still risk her life.”
Prez flinched.
“Think about this,” Mort said quietly. “CJ. Her potato. If you don’t think he cut out for the life, then I applaud you for giving up a dream both you and him had since forever.
I don’t know if I could do that shit. But, Prez, you coming between him and his mama.
She want Reb to do normal teenage girl shit.
Think about what she want for CJ. One normal thing that I fucking know of.
Graduate high school and walk across the fucking stage. ”
“She’s seen two graduations for a son. Diesel’s high school and college ceremonies,” Outlaw grouched, gently rocking Jo.
“Meggie love Diesel, but that motherfucker not CJ. What the fuck is wrong with you that you can’t see she madder than a motherfucker over CJ? Over the fucking reason CJ was brought into the club, which led to his decision to drop out of fucking school.”
“I didn’t sleep with that cunt!” he snarled. At his raised voice, Jo jumped, startled. He gritted his teeth. “I didn’t cheat, Mort.”
“I know, Prez. Meggie know. Stop saying it because we been over this so many fucking times, I’m not only sick of hearing it, I’m sick of you having to say it. I’m fucking sick of anything connected to Torie.”
“Yet, you usin’ that cunt to blame me for comin’ between Megan and CJ.”
“Prez, what the fuck you been smoking?” Mort thrust his fingers through his locs in frustration.
“You told CJ he not fit to join the fucking club, Outlaw. Meggie want him to finish school. The kid won’t ever go back if he think you can teach him to be a biker or if he can prove his worth by hanging around you.
He choosing between you and Meggie out of fear. ”
Instead of helping, Mort seemed to have made shit worse.
“It ain’t my fault, Mort. It’s her fuckin’ fault.”
Mort gaped at Prez. “What?”
Nodding, Outlaw explained his theory, and Mort decided to end the conversation. He’d be there to pick up Prez’s fucking teeth the day he spouted his nonsense to Meggie.
“I need to get shit rolling with Tío, Outlaw. I’ll let you know–”
“I don’t give a fuck, Mort. Just handle it.”
“You got it, Prez.” Mort started to turn but couldn’t leave his friend in such a precarious frame of mind.
“Meggie don’t want a twenty-year-old kid to die, Outlaw.
But she don’t trust Johnnie and Easton’s story didn’t add up.
I doubt she want them to die as long as they not a threat to you.
She not up for games right now,” he reiterated. “You or them, it’s you. Always.”
“She told you that?” he asked quietly. “The last part, I mean.”
She’d been sobbing in his arms when she said that, but Mort left that out. “Yeah, Prez.”
The smallest smile curved his mouth and he sat a little straighter. “Let me know what you find out about Tío, so we can go from there.”
“Jo sleeping, Outlaw. Why don’t we figure this shit out together?”
By the time they’d gotten downstairs, Tío was still in surgery and Tabitha was gone.
Outlaw called Riley and a preliminary background check revealed he’d been born in Colombia to Constanza Martinez and Gomez Arias, and was twenty-five, not twenty.
He’d recently moved to the area from Providence, RI.
In essence, Easton and Johnnie’s stories checked out, minus the age difference.
On the surface. Prez ordered Mort to make arrangements to have Tío moved to somewhere out of Diesel’s reach.
They’d summoned Diesel to the smoking area near the elevators to get his take on the situation.
Motherfucker wholeheartedly believed Tío was connected to Bash.
Prez speculated Diesel killed Shine because Tabitha opened her mouth about their private business.
Diesel insisted that was only a partial reason. He thought Shine was a spy.
But Prez wasn’t thinking like Outlaw. He was thinking like Christopher.
Now, hours after that upheaval, Mort hoped Prez had it right. If not, Bash and company drew ever closer to the interior of the club and their families.
Fuck.
As early morning stole away the darkness of dawn, a thin, misty fog rose from the ground in a haunting layer, the forest trapped between the frost of winter and the coming spring.
Across the way, Roxanne’s front door opened, and Grant waved. Straightening, Mortician nodded. His step brother-in-law took that as an invitation to visit and rushed down the steps, jogging across the cobblestoned pathway.
Blond, strapping, and blue-eyed, Grant could’ve been a hot, young playboy with the world at his feet. But he was a good kid, overcoming the murder of his mother and embracing his father’s new wife and new life. He smiled. “Just the man I want to see.”
Mort dug in his cut for his pack of cigarettes and a lighter. After Grant accepted one, Mort lit both. Knox hadn’t been happy when he discovered Grant’s smoking habit.
“You been stalking me or you got lucky and found me out here?”
“A little of both, Mort. You usually come out early in the morning and I’d been keeping watch at my window, waiting for you, then I fell asleep.”
Taking his cigarette between his fingers, Mort said, “this sound serious. Please don’t tell me your woman pregnant and you want me to tell Knox.”
“Pregnant? Cassidy Struthers? Never.”
“Glad to hear you keeping your cock covered.”
“And out of her,” Grant grumbled. “She’s not my type.”
She was a tall, willowy blonde from old money. Usually just his type.
“Knox and Hal loved her,” Mort said.
“Then Dad and Granddad can marry her,” Grant announced. “She’s so spoiled, Mort.”
“Ummhmm.” Mort took a few puffs of his cigarette. “And Brynn Mason not?”
Grant flushed. “Brynn’s too young for me, so she doesn’t count.”
Mort left it at that. He trusted Grant with Brynn more than he trusted Diesel with Rebel. “If this not about a chick, what do you need to talk to me about?”
Eyeing Mort with unease, Grant shifted. “CJ called me,” he said unexpectedly. Why was that news? They’d been friends almost from the moment they met. “He’s really upset about Rebel. I promised him I’d visit so we could talk in the cafeteria.”
“What did he say to that?” Mort asked, waiting for the real reason he’d mentioned CJ.
“He told me to come to the room because he didn’t want to leave his mom and sister’s side. Especially since Outlaw is so scarce.”