Chapter 26
*~* Cannon *~*
Thursday already, and what a hectic time the last couple of days has been.
The crem has been rushed off its feet with a sudden influx of business.
Everybody has been helping with the bar after a problem with the delivery, or lack of should I say, of some of the furniture.
Fury and Mateo had ordered some barstools that were a bit antique styled.
They had shaped, brass effect seats on them, a bit like old tractor seats, that didn’t swivel and the stools were fixed to the floor.
As soon as Pattie saw them in situ, she raised a valid point.
Customers could only sit on them and stare at the bar.
They couldn’t face each other to chat or watch what was going on in the bar.
So they had to go. New ones were ordered, but the delivery was hit and miss as to whether they would arrive on time.
Working her magic, Pattie promised a bonus for the company and one for the driver if they got them here in time for them to be fitted before the opening time.
We got them this morning, and Guardrail had them fitted within minutes.
Mateo and Fury had been texting on and off all morning. I wouldn’t be surprised if he was doing it behind Spirit’s back, or he thinks he was. I don’t believe she wouldn’t know what he was up to. I think he’s enjoying being waited on, hand and foot, too.
The bar opened at three p.m. to a small crowd. The first twenty customers got their first drink free, but one of them tried to order enough drinks to last the weekend, never mind the afternoon. We explained it to him politely, his first drink was free, and he got the message.
Mateo and Spirit are at the bar, close to the main entrance, where there is less chance of getting caught up in any trouble.
Fury keeps popping over to Mateo, and he must keep talking shop, because after his third visit, he is intercepted by Spirit who sends him away, undoubtedly with a bug in his ear.
As the afternoon wore on, we saw a steady increase in customers, and they were all well-behaved.
I’m watching a couple of tables away from the bar that are slowly filling up with what I think are guys who look like they can handle themselves.
I know Hellion, Bear, and Rage have all got their eyes on them, too.
The ladies are expected at any time. We asked them to wait until they could all come together.
We didn’t want to tempt any assholes by having them appearing singly or in pairs.
Pattie is flitting around the place like a true professional, pointing out any tables that need clearing by the servers and not letting anyone stand idle.
I think Pres made a good call with her as deputy manager.
Even if Mateo hadn’t been injured, she fits in well.
She fired one male server right off the bat when he stated that he wasn’t taking orders from her or any woman in a bar.
She put her stamp on the team immediately with that action, and he was gone before the doors even opened.
Bill and Tanner have arrived. Earlier than I expected but at least not on duty. That’s a good start, I think to myself. They get a drink at the bar and then head over to join me at my table.
“Hi, guys. How’s things?” I stand and give them each a handshake as they approach.
“All good with us, Cannon. Not seen those assholes in town again, so that’s a positive.” Bill grins.
“That’s a little worrying as we haven’t seen any replacements. It could mean that they are being a little more discreet, which is not a good thing from our point of view,” Tanner adds to the conversation.
“You are always such a glass-half-empty kind of guy, you know that? Jeez. Take the fact that they aren’t visible as a good sign, why don’t you?” Bill laughs at his co-worker's shake of the head.
“You have enough positivity for the pair of us. I’ll err on the side of caution every time.” Tanner takes a swallow of his beer, and seeing me looking he states, “Alcohol-free. I’m always on duty.”
I nod at my bottle of water and admitted to something similar. “I couldn’t tell you the last time I was drunk. Tipsy, yes, but not fall-down drunk.” Tanner draws my attention to the two tables that I’d been keeping my eye on.
“Yes, they are on my radar, Tanner. I don’t think they are here for a good time. At least not in the same sense as the other clientele.” Bill glances over to the tables, and one of the guys smirks and raises his glass of beer to him.
“Well, looks like you just made a friend, Bill. When it kicks off, I’m sure he’ll come looking for you. Watch your back, buddy. I don’t think he’ll fight fair.” I grin at him, and it’s at this point that the ladies arrive.
The atmosphere in the bar changes as soon as they walk in as a group.
All male attention focuses their way, and I’m not surprised.
They all look stunning. They have obviously gone out of their way to make an entrance, and boy, have they.
When the initial effect has worn off the males present, there is clapping and some wolf-whistles.
The women give mock bows to show their appreciation and then take over a large table that had been reserved for them, subtly surrounded by tables containing brothers and officers.
Pattie is there in an instant and has two servers with her, each carrying trays with glasses and bottles of champagne.
She says something to the group, and they all look at each other and shrug.
Barbara leaves the table, walks over to me, and gives me a kiss.
Winking at me, she damn near cat-walks back to their table, and I groan.
Not out of desire, but because she has just unknowingly singled us both out as targets.
Everything remains calm and relatively peaceful until…the ladies need the restroom. This is what the two tables near me appear to have been waiting for.
Barbara, Molly, and Jamie get halfway across the floor when three guys approach them, head on.
Grinning, the first one to reach them puts a hand on Molly’s waist, as though he was her dance partner.
The one in front of Barbara bows gentlemanly, but smirking, and the third takes hold of Jamie’s hand.
Before any brother or officer gets to move, Molly steps toward her dance partner and introduces her right knee to his nuts. Barbara introduces her right knee to her gentleman's nose, and Jamie does something to her guy's hand that results in a loud snapping noise and some girly screams.
As one, the remaining women at the table step over to their comrades and Pattie flies out from somewhere near the bar to join them.
The guy with the bleeding nose recovers first and takes a step toward Barbara, reaching out to grab her.
A shadow appears between them, and a barely recognizable Italian voice screams shrilly, “You can just fock the hell off.” A spray of something flies across the guy's face, and then a foot, wearing a very large Goth-style, heavy-heeled boot lands squarely between his legs.
More guys approach both us and the ladies from the tables, and before I can stand up, Bill is flying across the room.
Tanner takes the guy down with one punch and then steps into a second guy.
They trade a couple of punches before Tanner knocks him out cold and reaches for his non-alcoholic beverage.
“Thirsty work,” he shouts and then heads to the tables to take the fight to them.
Pattie smiles lovingly at a man approaching her and then lays him out cold with a full bottle of champagne.
Allegra curses her for wasting it and passes her an empty bottle from the nearest table.
Pattie looks at her, grins, apologizes, and then looks for another target.
Barbara has a napkin and is dabbing at what looks like blood on her dress at knee level.
Molly and Jamie are shouting encouragement at Pattie as she takes on two guys, but when a third shows his intention of joining in, they go in for the kill.
Molly grabs his junk and twists for all she’s worth, while Jamie jumps on his back, yanking his head as far back as she can and punching him in the throat.
Out of the corner of my eye, I see Spirit slip off her barstool and stand in front of Mateo.
A guy stands in front of her and says something which has her face turn into a mask of absolute rage.
She whistles, and a missile launches itself from behind Mateo’s chair.
It’s a furry missile and it must be nuclear-powered because it takes the guy down in an instant and there is blood splattering everywhere.
As I turn back to look at the center of the fighting, I see Pres behind Griller and Breaker.
It looks like he is trying desperately to get into the action, but whenever he tries to get past them, they close ranks with other officers and shout, “Don’t worry, Pres.
We’ve got your back. We’ll keep you safe.
” No one gets within arm's reach of Pres, and he is furious.
Everything suddenly stops when a shot rings out in the room. Everyone looks at each other and checks for injuries. I leap toward Barbara and almost fall over Allegra as she steps away from a man gripping his stomach.
“You do not call me a focking wop whore and point a gun at me, you stupid focking idiot!” Her face is red with anger and disgust. “This was a good fight until you had to spoil it.”
Tanner appears and gently takes the weapon from her, I think before she finishes the job.
Jamie steps forward and starts barking orders for what she needs to deal with the injury.
The brothers and officers stop treating it as a brawl and start restraining the troublemakers.
Pres starts shouting orders, and I put a call to the prospects to bring a couple of our vans to the rear of the club.
We will want to talk to these assholes before any of them are released, if indeed they are.
Holding Barbara close, I see she is unharmed and, if I’m honest, doesn’t seem put out by all that has just gone down. She steps away from me and goes to Allegra, who is still shaking with anger and watching Jamie work on her attacker.
“You focking bastaard. You piece of shit in man’s clothing. I hope you live, get a massive infection and die slowly.” She spits on him, narrowly missing Jamie.
“Barbara, can you take her to the bar and maybe get her a drink or something to calm her down? I think she’s in shock,” Jamie asks, very politely.
“I am only shocked I didn’t kill the son of a puttana!
I will not fail the next time.” Allegra turns to Barbara, smiles as sweet as can be, and says, “Come, sister of mine. We shall drink and forget my misfortune and poor aim. Where is your other sister? She must join us, and we shall drink to our fabulous sisterhood.” Dragging Barbara to the bar she sees Pattie and refuses to take no for an answer when she tries to politely refuse joining them for a drink.
Fury steps forward and suggests that her skills in customer service would be better spent with Allegra than with clearing up the mess in the bar.
Tanner tucks the gun into his waistband at his spine and looks around for Bill, who is just standing up from where he landed when he was blindsided at the start of all this.
Pres is still berating Breaker and Griller as they walk out the rear to go back to the clubhouse and interrogate our guests.
Mateo is stroking the head of the furry missile that took down the guy who said something that seriously pissed Spirit off.
Marcia and Bri are still at the table, drinking champagne as if nothing has happened.
Another woman sitting with them looks around the room and attracts a server, asking for more bottles to be brought over.
Looking closer, I see it is Anya. I didn’t recognize her.
I’m also surprised that one of the club women has been allowed to join the old ladies on an outing.
Vortex appears at my elbow and sees where I’m looking. “She’s not a clubwoman anymore. She quit and Pres has taken her on as a cook. The brothers will be officially told to leave her well alone at the next church, in the meantime, Pres sent a text to all.”
“What the fuck just happened, Vortex?” I look at him almost bewildered.
“I’d say that Ghost and Hellion have done a fucking fantastic job of showing our women how to look after themselves.
Don’t you think? Your Barbara didn’t put a hair out of place or smudge her make-up.
As for that Italian woman. Well. What is there to say?
She was out of this world.” The appreciation in his voice does not go unnoticed.
“You know she’s as good as my sister, don’t you?” I point this out and see what comes of it.
“You’re just jealous because Barbara has more sisters than you do. Anyway, I’m going to have a drink and stay here for a while.”
“Not going back to the clubhouse just yet?” I ask him surprised that he’s going to hang out here.
“Somebody will have to get Allegra home safe, might as well be me. Also, I am not going anywhere near Pres until he calms down. I don’t give out much hope for Breaker or Griller for the next few weeks. They are going to get every shit job he can think of for stopping him getting his hands dirty.”
We laugh long and hard at that, because Pres has a long memory and holds a grudge like no one I know.