Chapter Eighteen – Mortician #4
“I thought you said it was because Mattie was a beautiful girl.” Harley rocked on her heels. “Aren’t I?”
“Yeah, Harley, so shut up,” Axel snapped. “Mattie does it sometimes. You want to do it all the fucking time. A man gets tired of being corrected.”
“When I see a man, I’ll tell Harley not to correct him,” Bailey said.
“Little dude—” Mortician started, holding onto his sanity by a thread.
“You want Dad to talk to her, Uncle Mort?” Axel asked. “Or me?”
“This is ridiculous. It would be my word against yours.”
Ryder held up his cell phone. “Actually, Aunt Bailey, even though Axel doesn’t lie, he told us to record because Diesel said there are certain words that should have foolproof evidence. Trespassing is one of them.”
He hit play and allowed them to listen from the moment Axel said what trespassing meant to when Bailey called Meggie a bitch.
“Your choice, Aunt.” Ransom said. “Ax or Dad?”
“Axel,” Bailey said weakly.
“I’m sorry, ‘k, Uncle Mort?” Axel didn’t care about Mortician’s response and turned to Bailey.
“If you don’t act like you got fucking sense and lay off my mom and my brother, I’m telling Dad.
Nofuckingbody in my house cares about you ‘cause you don’t care about nofuckingbody in my house.
We don’t worry about what you’re doing, so stop worrying about what my mom is doing.
It won’t end pretty for you. We love Uncle Mort.
We love Harley, Lou, and Kaleb. We love Lolly, Grant, and Pop.
We used to love you too. Then you turned into you. Mean and lemony.”
“Bitter,” Ransom said.
“Aren’t those motherfuckers bitter, Ran?” Axel asked.
“They’re sour,” Ryder told him.
“Fine, Aunt Bailey. Mean and sour. You don’t smell sour. You smell really good, but you act sour. And you don’t got no fucking reason to. Uncle Mort didn’t turn into a stupid motherfucker like Dad.”
“I bet you wouldn’t say that to Outlaw,” Bailey said with hostility.
“I not only said that to that motherfucker but I made him fucking suffer for what he did to Mom,” Axel replied.
“I served him dirt and poop stuff. I put chili pepper spray on his toilet paper. I put hair melting stuff in his shampoo and conditioner and Mom’s body wash.
I gave that motherfucker chance after chance with each fucking step.
If he would’ve just admitted his crimes, all he would’ve seen was the spray paint and had the chili pepper spray on his ass. ”
“You really…?” Bailey looked at Mortician.
He nodded and her eyes widened.
“Even if you don’t love Uncle Mort no more, straighten up. Otherwise, we’ll get rid of you and keep him like we’re planning to do with Uncle Johnnie and Uncle Cash. I might have to get rid of Aunt Fee, too, since she got in Mom’s face over that stupid motherfucker. I’m not too sure yet.”
“I love Lucas,” Bailey said crisply.
“No, you hate that motherfucker,” Axel said crossly. “’Cause, Aunt Bailey, if you loved him, you would stop risking his fucking life by fucking with Mom and CJ. I would really, really miss Uncle Mort if you get him fucking killed.”
“Meggie can’t like him as much as she pretends if she allows her husband to kill him,” Bailey said.
“Her husband is his president.” Axel jabbed a thumb toward Mortician.
“Put some fucking respect on that man. All of you are on Mom’s No-Kill List, but you’re either Uncle Johnnie level stupid or Uncle Cash level mean if you think she won’t fucking scrape your names off with a fucking knife if you fuck with CJ.
That woman don’t play about her husband and her children. Test her at you own detergent.”
“Detriment,” Harley said.
“Beautiful girls are so fucking spoiled,” Axel grumped, cutting his eyes at her.
“Always got to do things their own fucking way.” He turned back to Bailey.
“You don’t act like you’re a part of the family no more, which won’t help either.
Family is on the No-Kill List. See how that goes?
You think because Harley decided to see Nardo that you can blame CJ. ”
“I already know it’s my fault,” Bailey gritted. “Lucas probably blabbed to Meggie that I allowed her to go when he said no.”
“Oh.” Axel shook his head. “I’m wasting my fucking breath.”
“As well as all of my oxygen.”
He made a face at her. “Last thing.”
“Promise?” she sniped. “Since you blackmailed me into listening to you and held us hostage in our home.”
“You’re not learning a fucking thing,” Axel complained.
“Call the cops. See how long you and your man lasts. You’re so fucking mean because you’re so fucking guilty.
It’s done, Aunt Bailey. You don’t get to cry over the fucking spilled milk ‘cause it can’t get back in the fucking bottle.
Live with it. Deal with it. Stop being a miserable cunt and pushing everybody away.
Stop trying to get Uncle Mort killed. Harley came to her fucking senses.
I even offered CJ one of my bombs to shove up Nardo’s ass, but he said no.
He will be taken care of ‘cause of club code. Harley belongs to us. We take care of our own. You can belong to us again too. The fucking choice is yours.”
He started to stomp away, then stopped, ran to Bailey and hugged her.
“I hate being mean to beautiful girls but sometimes a man got to deal out tough realties.”
Harley bit down on her lip.
“You was once my…” Axel paused and counted.
“In my top ten girl relations. Now you’ve fallen off the stick.
You and Mom took me and Kaleb to a museum when I was a kid.
Mom had to bring something to Dad, so you took me with you and we danced and did all kinds of fun stuffs.
I thought you were so cool. And CJ was always saying how he hung out in this fucking kitchen while you braided Harley’s hair.
You showed him stuffs and he was just so fucking happy to be hanging out with such beautiful girls and having you and Harley all to himself.
I’ll bet you don’t even remember none of that. ”
“I do,” Bailey croaked.
“Then act like it and lay off my fucking brother before you really fuck up everything. I won’t tell Mom and Dad. Unless you piss me off and make me,” he said, and stomped away.
“Can we go with him, Mom?” Kaleb asked.
For the first time in weeks, Bailey looked at Mortician and he nodded.
“Go ahead, son,” she said weakly. She looked at Harley. “You can go and visit with Mattie and Rebel.”
“Thanks, Mommie,” Harley said.
“Axel was serious,” Bailey murmured once they were alone.
“Quite.” What else could Mort say? She hadn’t listened to him. It was almost hard to believe that kid got through to her. “Do you believe him?”
“Yes,” she whispered.
Mort was too tired to broach another topic. “I’m going to the club to get some rest, Bailey.”
“I’m sorry, Lucas,” she whispered.
“Me too, Bailey,” he said, and walked out.