Entranced Heart of a Hellhound

1. In Due Time

IN DUE TIME

BLUE

“Mama, please. I cannot do this shit with you right now,” I grumble, picking up my necessities to put into my work bag.

“You watch your mouth! You don’t tell me what you can and can’t do!” She yells in a drunken slur.

“Listen, if you want me to give you money, I gotta go to work. I don’t have time to argue with you about getting Chauncey out of jail again.

He didn’t have no business tryin’ to rob them folks store in the first place.

” I shake my head at the thought of trying to get my mama’s no-good husband out of jail.

“Your daddy…”

“That man is not my daddy,” I cut off her words, narrowing my eyes at her.

My mama is fragile, and I try not to speak to her in a disrespectful way, but she knows good and damn well that I don’t play about her calling that fucker my dad. I only stayed the night over here because he’s gone. Now, she wants to badger me.

“You know I didn’t mean anything by it, sweetie,” she solemnly apologizes.

“I know, Mama. But you know I don’t play about that.”

Mama sighs, “I’m sorry, Blue.”

“It’s fine, Mama. But you know Jeffery Blue Anderson is my only daddy.”

“I know. I know. But Chauncey has tried to be there for you. But you’d rather hang out at that godforsaken clubhouse. You know I wish you didn’t put yourself in danger on my account. Please, stop going there. Please,” Mama pleads desperately.

Her words are a stab in the gut, but she knows as well as I do there’s no other way. I do my best to stay understanding, but we have the same argument at least three times per week, and I only see her four. I know my mama means well, but we both know the deal.

If I’m going to pay off my nursing school loans and the debts her husband racked up, then we need a safe way to get money fast. Working for the Hellhounds is the only way I know to do that.

Besides, I’ve been around the Hounds for as long as I can remember. My dad was a member, and my uncle and cousins still are. Yeah, their dealings are illegal as hell, but it is what it is. The Hounds are family, and I can trust them.

“Mama, we’ve been over this.”

I give her a pointed look, and she looks away in shame. I sigh. I love my mama, and I don’t want her feeling bad. It’s a cruel world, and life has not been kind to her. I know she’s done the best she can, but she can’t keep me from going to work.

“I know, baby. Just… just be safe. Okay?”

“Yeah, Mama. I’m always safe. No more beers for tonight, alright? I’ll make sure Aunt Delores checks on you this evening.”

“You’re not coming back again tonight?”

“No, Ma. I told you that I’m working a double. If we ever want to get out of this hole, I gotta work.”

My mom nods somberly, but I know she’s agreeing out of guilt. After all, if it weren’t for her, I wouldn’t have to damn near work every waking hour. But she’s my mama, and I will do almost anything for her. It’s partially my fault for not saying no in the first place.

However, I will always be the dutiful daughter. I feel bad that she was dealt such a shitty hand in life. I feel even worse for enabling her instead of getting her the help she needed when I was able. But the time for self-pitying is done. Now, I gotta do what I gotta do.

“I’ll see you later,” I say over my shoulder before leaving out the door.

Driving to work took forty-five minutes, and it was an act of God that I made it without an accident, because I sure as hell don’t remember how I got here. My mind has been on all the events that led me to where I am now in life.

I’ll never forget the day that we found out my dad had been gunned down in a turf war with a rival motorcycle club. It was the day that Mama truly stopped living. When my dad died, he took a piece of my mom with him.

My Uncle Tree got revenge for my daddy and the club, and he always made sure I was taken care of.

But when Uncle Tree went to jail, we lost touch with that side of the family for a while.

I’ll always be thankful to my Uncle for looking out for us when he could, and when he got out, he made sure we were good.

I hopped out of my car and ran my hands down my scrubs. I work at one of the busiest hospitals in Dallas. Duncan Memorial is by far one of the nicest hospitals in the area; however, working in the emergency room can be stressful as hell.

I had already been picking up extra shifts at the hospital when my mom asked for my help.

When I got to the bottom of why she needed money and how much she owed, I about had a heart attack.

Even with all the double shifts I was pulling, I still wouldn’t have enough money in time to get my mom out of trouble.

So, I picked up some shifts at the clubhouse clinic, which is why Mama has been so worried.

She knows all about the Hellhounds and what they represent.

She also knows that working with Dr. Caesar at the Hellhounds clinic could make me lose my nursing license.

I worked my ass off to get through nursing school, and I took out so many fucking loans to help me that I didn’t think I would ever get out of debt.

But as soon as I was making headway, Chauncey got Mama wrapped up in his bullshit.

Chauncey used all of Mama’s money, credit, and even all of her savings to feed his bad habits. I don’t think he’s ever worked an honest day in his miserable life. He’s always scamming and scheming. Yet, she still won’t leave his dusty ass.

I hate that motherfucker.

Chauncey came into my mother’s life when she was at her lowest. Mama was still grieving the loss of her husband, and Chauncey was there, being a shoulder for her to cry on. Before I even realized what was happening, Mama was hooked on alcohol, drugs, and her brand-new husband.

I was living my own life and didn’t know how to deal with her grief and my own.

But I still blamed myself for not seeing the signs of her drug abuse.

Eventually, I called my Aunt Delores, and she swooped in like a savior.

I’ll never forget the look on her face when she came sashaying through the door to chastise her younger sister.

“Carol Anne, what the heck do you think you’re doing getting hooked on that mess? Blue would whoop your behind if he were still breathin’.”

Aunt Delores even moved from Austin to Dallas to help pull her sister out of the gutter she had fallen in, but Chauncey had his hooks in her deep.

He still does. We were able to get Mama into a facility and off the drugs, but the alcohol is still an issue.

No matter what we’ve tried, she just won’t give it up.

However, with Chauncey in jail again, I’ve been able to get rid of all the hard liquor in her house. But she keeps beer stocked as a compromise for not drinking the hard stuff. If she would just let go of that good-for-nothing man, life would be much easier.

“Hey, Doctor Blue! How’s the medical business?” Tiny asks with a big smile on her lightly freckled face.

No matter how many times I tell her that I’m not a doctor, it doesn't matter. All she says is, “You went to some sort of medical school, so you’re a doctor in my book.” I can’t argue with her reasoning, so I don’t try anymore.

“It’s good, Tiny. I’m finished at the clinic.” I look around and see she’s by herself. “Do you need some help?”

“Actually, I do. We need to restock the whiskey. It’s in the back. Tell Cherry and B.B. to get it and get their narrow asses out here!”

“Yes, ma’am.” I salute and saunter to the back of the bar to do as she says.

Tiny is an Old Lady. An Old Lady is like a wife; most are legally married, but in the eyes of the club, being an Old Lady is forever. There is no divorce, and the Hounds take that shit very seriously.

Her Old Man, Rope, is one of the Hounds’ enforcers. He is one of the club’s founding members, and I’ve known Tiny since I was a little girl. She’s worn the same long red ponytail since forever, and she stands about five feet tall. That’s how she got her nickname, Tiny.

Cherry and B.B. are bunnies. Bunnies are groupies who will do anything to become an Old Lady to the brothers. They’re likely to be passed around until they get tired and leave. There are always new bunnies with every party.

Then there are sweet butts. Sweet butts are basically like girlfriends. They are more familiar and usually have or had a relationship with a brother at some point. But they can also be groupies.

I’m surprised Tiny has them on bar duty tonight because usually a house mouse works the bar.

A house mouse is a girl who lives and works at the clubhouse.

They cook, clean, and do chores to pay off some sort of debt.

They don’t usually get involved with the brothers.

Most pay their dues and get the fuck out.

As soon as I come into view, Cherry and B.B. stop talking. They sneer at me with narrowed eyes. I smirk because these bitches know I’ll dog walk their asses in a heartbeat.

They’re mad because I grew up here and didn’t have to fuck and suck my way into the Hounds, unlike them. The brothers respect me, which is something they’ll never have.

“Tiny said to get the whiskey and hurry up and get y’all’s funky asses to the front.”

Both women jump up to grab the bottles of liquor so they can scurry away as quickly as possible. I chuckle. They might want to act tough, but they know if they get on the wrong side of Tiny, they’ll regret it.

I go to the locker room that some of the girls use to shower and change.

I should be tired, but I’m too worked up from the adrenaline of working in the ER and the clinic.

We don’t just service the Hounds in their clinic; we treat members of allies too.

Different motorcycle clubs, street gangs, and sometimes just people who are familiar with the life.

Almost all of them are criminals, but that’s the nature of the beast.

I’m just glad Tashari, another of Dr. Caesar’s full-time nurses, wanted to take a vacation. The timing was great because I could pick up her shifts without any problems. I should be able to pay off Mama’s debt in no time.

I sigh, thinking about all the heartache Mama had gone through with the Hounds.

You would think that I would have enough sense to stay away from them.

You would think that being practically obsessed with one of their leaders would be the last thing I would want.

Unfortunately, I can’t think when it comes to one man...

Bishop.

Edward “Bishop” Younger is the Vice President of the Hounds, and he is one of the many reasons why I knew I could come and work here without any problems. Even though I have family members here who would go to war for me, Bishop has always protected me without question.

Bishop’s dark brown hair, streaked with silver, makes me want to run my fingers through it and mess it up. Those green-brown hazel eyes and plump pink lips, framed by a thick beard, get me goin’. And the man is so tall, I instantly want to climb his big ass like a tree.

When we’re in the same room, the chemistry is off the charts. He likes to flirt with me, but he backs right off when I start flirting back. His wall goes up so high, I don’t think anyone could get over it.

But for me it’s more than sex, although the two of us are like fire and gasoline.

We get hotter the more we interact. The heat is palpable, and over the last few weeks it’s come to a boiling point.

If he gives me one more sultry look, I’m going to rock his world and make him forget why he keeps running from me.

Yeah, Bishop Younger will be mine in due time.