Chapter 5
“Don’t tell me you are going down to that clubhouse again,” my mom said as she entered my bedroom. She took a seat on the edge of the bed.
I glanced at her through the mirror on my vanity and felt sad. I could see the stress lines on her face. I even noticed a few new gray hairs.
Angela Harris used to be the happiest woman in the world, at least to me. Now, she just seemed like a shell of herself since my brother passed. I couldn’t recall the last time she even smiled.
I turned around to face her after I put my earrings in.
“Mommy, I’m doing this so we can get justice for Rameek. Don’t you want that?”
“Of course, I do. But I don’t want to lose another child in the process.
You don’t know what any of those people are capable of.
And before you say anything, yes, we took money from them for your brother’s funeral, but we really didn’t have a choice.
Your father and I were never financially prepared to lose either of you.
The money from the club came in handy, but that doesn’t mean I want you around there.
The few I did meet were nice, but you seemed convinced that one of them killed your brother.
What makes you think they won’t kill you? ”
I had no real answer for her, because I wasn’t sure.
Except for the dirty looks I’d gotten from multiple women, everyone else had been nice to me.
It had only been a few days, but I felt comfortable.
Kane sat at the bar almost the whole time I worked.
If he wasn’t there, Tech or Slider was. Slider was my favorite so far because he kept me laughing in between customers.
I wanted to think none of them did it, but I still wasn’t sure. I’d watched enough documentaries to know that killers liked to pretend to be nice until they weren’t. I needed to continue to build trust with them so I could uncover the truth.
I walked over to the bed and sat next to my mother. I wrapped my arm around her shoulder and hugged her.
“Nothing is going to happen to me. I need you to spend some time with Daddy and enjoy yourselves for a change. Don’t stress over me.”
“I worry about you regardless of where you go; that’s just what a mother does. I’m even more worried now after losing your brother, but I also know I have to trust you. Just promise me that you will be safe, and if you feel like you are in danger at any time, get out of there.”
“I promise you I will.” I stood, then kissed her cheek. “I have to get out of here before I’m late.”
I picked up my bag from the floor, then grabbed my coat, and walked downstairs.
Some days, I hated that I moved back home because at least one of my parents was always around, so one of them would see my comings and goings.
I knew they worried about me, but they couldn’t tell me what to do.
I was an adult, and as long as I didn’t disrespect them, they had to let me do my thing.
My mother hated me working at the clubhouse, but she always packed me lunch like they didn’t have food there. She also made sure my water bottle was full. I guessed that was one of the perks of living at home. I hadn’t cooked since I moved back.
Once I had everything, I left the house and headed to my car.
As I drove to work, I couldn’t help but think about Kane.
He’d been nicer than I thought he’d be. I still didn’t fully trust him, though.
I hadn’t seen him entertain any of the women who tried their best to get his attention, but that didn’t mean anything to me.
I wasn’t trying to be anything more than an employee of his.
He was nice to look at, though. Every time our eyes met, my body warmed.
It had been a minute since I dealt with anybody, so maybe I just looked for the attention I lacked.
Whatever it was, I needed to forget about Kane.
I wasn’t trying to be a part of his stable.
It didn’t take me long to get to work. There weren’t too many people there, but I knew how quickly that could change.
“Who do we have here?”
I turned around and faced the person who asked the question.
It was a guy who looked older, but still fine.
He had some gray streaks in his full beard.
His locs were black, but there was a patch of gray hair near his temples.
His eyes looked like pools of tar. He made me feel a little uneasy, but I played it off.
He looked familiar, but I couldn’t figure out where.
“Hi, I’m Raina. I’m the new bartender.”
He rubbed his chin and smiled at me. I looked around for Kane, Slider, or one of the other guys because this man made me very uncomfortable.
“Welcome, Raina.” The way he said my name sent chills up my spine. “I’m Beast, the president of the Vipers.” He stretched his hand across the bar.
His hand felt clammy when I shook it, so I quickly snatched it away.
“Oh, okay. Nice to meet you.”
“Likewise. I won’t hold you up. Welcome, and I’ll see you around.” He walked toward the back, and I was glad he was away from me.
After that encounter, the rest of the first part of my shift went off without a hitch.
Most people came in from work and just wanted to relax for a bit before they went home.
I hadn’t seen Kane the whole day, but Tech or Slider was there for a while.
At one point, Rico sat at the end of the bar, but he only hung around for a little while.
I noticed he was the quieter one out of the guys.
I never saw Beast again, and I couldn’t be more thankful.
“Hey, girl,” Carmen said as she sat at the bar.
“Hey. Are you drinking?”
Carmen, also known as Caramel, was the club’s secretary, and she and I had become associates over the last few days.
She was petite with a caramel complexion, and she didn’t take any of the guys’ shit.
I’d seen her put a few of the men in their place.
She and Isis, the treasurer, were the only two women who had patches and were officers.
The two of them had been nice to me and welcomed me, unlike the rest of the women who hung around.
“No. I just came to check on you. I have some paperwork to do before the boss man comes back.”
I laughed when she rolled her eyes. I figured out Kane was the main one who ran things. It made me wonder how Beast was the president, but I didn’t ask any questions.
“He isn’t that bad, is he?”
“No. Kane is cool. He just gets on my nerves sometimes.”
“I can see that.” I bit my lip because I wasn’t sure if I wanted to ask my next question. “Hey, were you friends with my brother?”
A look crossed her face, and if I didn’t know any better, she and my brother were more than friends.
“We were. It still bothers me that someone took his life.” She stood from the chair and looked around. “I’ll talk to you later.”
Something about the way she looked and said it made me think she knew something she was afraid to speak about. I wanted to ask her more questions, but I didn’t get a chance to.
“Watch your fucking mouth!”
I looked up when I heard someone shout. Tech, Rico, and Slider were all gone somewhere, so they couldn’t stop whatever happened.
I heard a chair scrape, and the other guy jumped up.
“And what the fuck you going to do?”
Multiple people looked on, but nobody stepped in to help.
Before I could blink, one of the men popped the other guy over the head with a bottle. The two went at it, while everybody just watched.
My hands shook as I watched them beat each other damn near to death. Both of them were bloody, and even one of their shirts was ripped.
“Aye!” A loud voice boomed that caused my stomach to coil.
Kane and Slider stomped over to the fight and pulled the two guys apart.
“Y’all know that shit don’t fly around here. Get the fuck out!” They tossed the guys outside.
“Somebody clean this shit up!” Kane’s voice boomed through the clubhouse when he reentered.
His eyes landed on me, and I tried to pretend I wasn’t affected, but I was.
I watched him walk toward me. He had on a Vipers hoodie with jeans and black Timberland boots.
“You good, Munch?” His husky voice caused goosebumps to pebble on my skin.
The same thing happened every time I heard his voice. I wore a long-sleeved shirt, so he couldn’t see it.
“Ye-yeah. I’m fine.”
Kane narrowed his eyes and stared at me. He stopped moving the toothpick he had in his mouth.
“Don’t lie to me, Munch.”
My pussy tingled every time he called me that name, even though I hated it at first.
I pushed my glasses up on my face, then wiped the counter down, even though it was already clean.
“I’m fine, Kane. For real.”
I wasn’t a stranger to fights, but what I witnessed wasn’t a regular fight, and it made me think some of these people were more dangerous than I thought. I couldn’t tell Kane that, though, because I didn’t want him to think I couldn’t handle it.
Kane stared at me for another second until he smiled.
“Aight, Munch. I’ll let you get back to work.”
He practically marched to where the fight had taken place and barked orders at the people who were supposed to be cleaning it.
Even though I didn’t want to, I couldn’t help but be turned on by the way he commanded a room.
It didn’t take long for everything to go back to the way it was before the fight. Kane and Slider disappeared to the back, and I was actually a little disappointed.
I brushed it off and continued to do my job.