9 | The Decision Mac
Present Day
“W hat the fuck is wrong with you?” Shy demands.
“Something’s wrong. I can’t explain it. I…I…” I trail off, running my hand through my hair, frustrated.
He’s going to think I’m crazy.
“You what? Talk to me, brother,” Shy says in a softer tone.
“I’m dreaming of both of them together,” I say out loud for the first time.
“Dreaming of who?” Shy leans forward, sounding concerned.
“Of Ray and Faith. They’re together in my dreams,” I announce, sounding crazy.
Shy’s eyebrows shoot up. He knows about my dreams of Faith and her warnings.
“What do they say?” he asks.
I stop pacing the room and look straight at my best friend. “Faith says the same shit about the girl with two faces, and Ray says to come find her.”
Shy stands, rounding the table to stand in front of me. I feel like I’m losing my mind as I search his expression for any clue of what he’s thinking.
Shy grabs both my shoulders, squeezing me.
“How often?” he drawls.
“Every time I close my eyes,” I answer immediately.
“For how long?” he drills me.
“A few weeks now.”
“Do you think Ray is the girl with two faces?” he fires back.
I don’t answer. Instead, I stand there feeling helpless.
He gives me a shake. “What does your gut say?”
I shrug. “I don’t know, but I do know something’s wrong. We’re missing something.”
Shy lets me go. Grabbing his chin, he turns to move back to the head of the table. I don’t say anything, just let him think.
“What do you want to do?” Shy asks, sitting back down.
I shrug.
“Do you think Ray has two faces? Like she’s going to betray you, or what are you thinking?” Shy asks, but I can tell he’s more or less rambling off what’s going through his mind.
“I don’t know. That is what is killing me. The not knowing or understanding. I mean, my dreams are my subconscious, right?” I fire off back at him.
“Fuck, brother. I have no fucking clue. What do you want to do?”
I shrugged again because I didn’t have a clue.
I left our meeting earlier today to meet Blink and search out a lead he found, but it was a dead end again. We got a lead on Dexter but needed to return for our mandatory club meeting. We have to finalize all the Chicago details.
He asks, “Can you hold off until after this meeting?”
I nod.
“Have you decided about the vote tonight?” Shy asks, taking me off guard.
I haven’t spoken to anyone about the offer my dad and uncle presented to me. I forgot all about it with everything else going on and looking for Raydene.
“What do you think?” I ask him.
“I wouldn’t stop you, but I can’t say I wouldn’t miss you. I want whatever you want. If you think being here in Chicago with Raydene is the way to go, I won’t stop you,” Shy answers, leaning forward.
I sit down in my VP position next to him. I’ve never wanted to be president. I’ve always been like Cash and would rather be my best friend’s backup. I protect the president and make decisions when needed.
I lean back in the chair, folding my hands in my lap. I look at my best friend. “From the day you saved my life, I vowed I’d protect you. You know how I feel about being prez. I don’t see me leaving your side anytime soon,” I say with a smirk. “Plus, it’s not even like that with Ray. Even if we find her, she chose him. We’re friends. I’m just concerned about her.”
Shy’s face lights up like a kid in a candy store. “Brother, I didn’t want to say it, but I don’t think I can do this shit without you. We’ve been inseparable since that day. You’re more than a club brother. You’re my family.”
I nod. “I agree. I’m sorry I’m all over the place, but this is really fucking with me. I know something’s wrong, and now, with all the dreams. It’s knocking me on my ass,” I confess.
“Well, after the meeting, let’s follow up on the lead on Dexter. If we can’t find Ray, let’s find Dexter,” Shy offers.
I nod.
“I’m sorry I’ve been distracted with all this shit, but let’s figure out Ray before we head home. I’ll stay with you,” Shy declares.
I nod again but finally say, “Thank you. I don’t think I can go back until I find her.”
“Well, once everything’s settled here, we’ll have more eyes out there looking. We’ll find her,” Shy promises, patting me on the shoulder.
I nod.
We’ve been in church—for a members-only meeting—for almost two hours. Wrench was voted as the new Chicago chapter president and Slim as vice president.
We decided to keep all our arrangements with the Reapers and the Chicago outfit. We froze all the transportation stuff until we figure out what was happening with JJ and King. We’re not doing business with anyone we don’t trust.
All the men brought to the table their problems, concerns, and any discrepancies they have with the club. Wrench handled all of them like a pro, so it was unanimous that we picked him for prez.
Most of the threats have been eliminated except the Russians and whatever dealings Ronny was making with all those people that night. Dexter, I feel, is the key to finding out. He’s a piece of shit that will squeal once we start to interrogate him.
But right now, things are quiet and safe.
“The last thing we need to bring to the table is Raydene Walker,” Shy announces next to me.
I snap my head at him.
What the fuck? I wasn’t expecting him to bring in all our brothers. We have every chapter president, along with their officers, here today to vote for a new president.
All eyes land on Shy next to me. I’m sure murmurs run across the table because half of them don’t know Raydene.
“Who?” I hear a few members shout out.
Wolfe stands up. “She’s Vi and Ruby’s best friend, DJs with them, and lives here in Chicago. She’s been missing since she left New York. We’ve only heard from her a few times.” Wolfe pauses, looking over at Shy and me.
I sit forward. “She’s Dexter’s girlfriend. I got a text from her before we came here asking for help and a picture of her with a black eye. Since then, she’s blown us off, and we haven’t been able to locate her.”
Pyro, one of the Chicago members, speaks up. “She DJs under the name X-Ray. She was added to the Detroit festival at the last minute.”
“I sit up. How did you know that?” I demand.
He shrugs. “I was supposed to go to the festival but canceled because of everything that happened here.”
I glance at Dallas, who’s standing up. “I need my computer.”
I want to yell at him, but he’s been dealing with so much all at once. Raydene hasn’t been our main priority.
“Did she show up?” I asked Pyro.
He shrugged. “I could try to find out online. See if anyone posted any videos.
“When was the festival?” I fire off next.
“Two weekends ago,” Pyro answers.
“Okay, this is what we need. We need everyone to put the word out we’re looking for Raydene. We need to find her and make sure she’s okay,” Wolfe says to the room.
“Any news you come straight to Mac,” Shy orders to the room.
Wolfe stands up, grabs the gavel, and says, “Okay, anything else? If not, the meeting is adjourned. Be safe for all those who aren’t headed to Club Fizz.”
All the men hoot and holler as they make their way out to the bar, but I stay seated, waiting for Dallas to return with his computer.
My New York club members and Cash, Wolfe, and Bear stay with me.
Chiv is the first to speak. “I’m headed to the club early to watch Vi.”
Wolfe nods, replying, “We’ll head over together. We’ve planned an official party for Wrench and Slim for next weekend. I thought the girls would be gone, and we could celebrate.”
The room laughs, knowing Wolfe likes to party without his daughter and her girls near. He can’t get laid as much as he’d wish.
Dallas rushes back in with his computer. “She didn’t show up for her set. There is a bunch of talk about her flaking.”
Ray wouldn’t miss an event without telling them or canceling. She texted Vi a few weeks back, saying she was getting on a plane for her next event around that time.
“You say Dexter has been sighted around town?” Shy glances at me and then Blink.
Blink answers before I can. “Yeah, we need to hit up this strip club he’s known to go to on weekends. It’s one of JJ’s spots.”
“Okay, a few of us should hit up this spot before heading to the club. Marcus and his men are at the club with the girls, so they’ll be okay until we get there,” Wolfe explains, standing up.
My father grabs my shoulder when I stand up. “We’ll find her, son,” then gives me a reassuring pat.
I reply calmly, “Thanks, Pops.”