Chapter Eighteen #3
“Rebel, tell your side and stop addin’ shit,” Christopher ordered.
“Fine!”
“No! No! No!” Harley said, sobbing. “Everything she says is a lie.”
“Reb ain’t said a motherfuckin’ thing, Harley,” Christopher growled. “We got your side. Shut the fuck up so we can get Rebel’s.”
“We’ve heard enough, Lucas,” Bailey said.
Mortician shook his head. “No, Bailey. We got to hear all sides—”
Drawing herself up, Bailey fisted her hands on her hips. “You’re humiliating our daughter. Show us whose side you’re on and prove your love now . You say you love us? Show it. I’m telling you we’ve heard everything we need to hear.”
“And my ass tellin’ you we ain’t,” Christopher roared, interrupting whatever Mortician might have said. “You shuttin’ the fuck up, Bailey, just like motherfuckin’ Harley. You welcome to get to fuckin’ steppin’. Harley not leavin’ this motherfucker until we hear Rebel side.”
Meggie hated Mortician’s stricken look. Outrage dropped into Bailey’s face.
“Mort can’t do nothing, Bailey,” Digger said. “Outlaw word final. Don’t put your man in this position and have his ass shot off.”
Bailey threw Christopher an accusatory look. “You wouldn’t!”
“Mort my good friend,” Christopher responded. “My family, so he get more leeway than a regular member. But this is my fuckin’ house and I’m his president. Most of fuckin’ all, Rebel my daughter.”
“We refuse to listen to Rebel’s side,” Bailey snarled. “This is a family matter not a club matter.”
Christopher glared at Bailey. Envisioning the dissolution of a decades-old friendship between Christopher and Mortician, Meggie stepped in.
“She’s right, Christopher,” she said sourly, interceding because of the men not because of Bailey. “Therefore, you can’t bar Mortician from speaking up or taking his family and leaving. ”
Like everything recently, the camaraderie of their extended family was damaged.
Instead of adding their two cents, everyone remained silent.
Uneasiness hung in the air. Since Christopher’s birthday party, when Meggie announced he could kill Johnnie, family matters turned into uncomfortable situations instead of boisterous disagreements.
“We’ll be leaving in that case,” Bailey said, gesturing for Harley.
She smirked at Rebel.
“Bailey?” Meggie called, folding her arms and halting her and Harley’s retreat.
Turning to her and placing an arm around Harley’s shoulder, Bailey lifted a brow.
“Don’t ever set foot in this house again. You want Harley’s behavior to go unchecked, that’s up to you. But I don’t want you or her at this house or at the table at the club.”
Bailey blinked; Harley gasped.
“You want to be a part of this family?” Meggie continued. “Your daughter is being held as accountable as mine. Either Rebel tells her side of the story with Harley present or I’m barring you and her.”
“You wouldn’t,” Bailey said.
Arms still folded, Meggie lifted a brow. “Try me.”
“You just said you didn’t want to come between Daddy and Uncle Christopher, Aunt Meggie,” Harley said, her voice trembling with feigned despair. Anger burned in her eyes. “You’re doing exactly that.”
“My decree for you and your mom have no bearings on your daddy and your brothers,” Meggie responded.
“Especially in club matters. This isn’t a do-or-die, life-or-death situation where Christopher and Mortician have to take sides and ruin their working relationship and their friendship because we, as wives and daughters, can’t handle our own business. ”
Harley studied Meggie. “If…if I can’t come over or go to the club, I can’t see CJ…never mind, I’ll see him at school.”
The triumph in those words annoyed Meggie. She smiled. “Unless he attends whatever school Bailey would send you to, I’ll see to it that you’d never see even the back of my son.”
Harley and Bailey exchanged glances, unaware of what a tenuous place Meggie felt she had in CJ’s life. Not that those two witches needed to know.
“So what will it be?” Meggie asked. “We’re hearing Rebel’s story or you two are leaving?”
Bailey pulled Harley into her arms and hugged her tightly, then drew in a deep breath and released her. They both looked at Rebel.
“Tell us why the fuck you knocked Harley out, Rebel,” Christopher said.
“Harley said she and Ryan—” Rebel blew out a breath, irritation crossing her features— “She and Ryan kissed. She said it to make CJ jealous. I called her desperate because Ryan .” She shivered dramatically.
“The extra commentary’s unnecessary, baby,” Christopher told her. “Bitsy and Val don’t like hearin’ their boy a motherfucker.”
“Uncle Val and Aunt Zoann not stupid, Dad,” Axel said with indignation. “They know Ryan’s a motherfucker. Unlike Aunt Bailey who can’t see Harley’s a liar and mean.”
“You callin’ your Aunt Bailey stupid, boy?”
“Aunt Bailey’s not stupid, Dad,” Ryder answered. “She’s just blind because Harley’s vicious.”
“ Harley’s stupid,” Axel said. “She punched the Blonde Viper for no fucking reason. The only person who ever beat Reb was Mattie. Not even Uncle Johnnie bested Reb and Harley thought she could? Stupid, I say. The prosecution rests.” He smiled at Rebel. “I got it right, Reb? ”
“This shit out of hand.” Christopher stalked to the door. “All lil’ motherfuckers except CJ, Rebel, Mattie, Rory, Devon, and Harley get the fuck out.”
“I want to hear what my sons have to say,” Bailey said stubbornly.
“Lou stay,” Christopher said.
Once all the other kids trooped out, grumbling about unfairness, he turned to Lou. “Tell your ma what happened.”
“If you lie on me, I’ll never forgive you,” Harley swore.
“If you throw in never crying or talking to me again, you have a deal. I’ll lie and say Rebel attacked you.
Otherwise, I’m telling how you keep trying to play CJ no matter how much we all tell you all he wants is honesty.
You really think Rebel’s going to sit quietly while you mistreat her brother? ”
“You’re my brother.”
Lou shrugged. “It’s your fault Mom and Dad don’t like each other anymore.
It’s your fault Lolly doesn’t visit us anymore.
It’s your fault Lolly and Mom aren’t friends anymore.
You can’t be mean to people and not expect retaliation.
I always looked up to you. Everybody thought you were so smart and pretty.
But you’re mean, petty, and spiteful. I wish I wasn’t your brother.
I wish Dad could take Kaleb and me, and leave you and Mom, so we could be happy again. ”
“Lou—” Mort started.
Harley rushed Lou and punched him in the mouth. “Motherfucker!” she yelled.
CJ shoved Lou behind him before Harley hit him again. Instead, she walloped CJ’s chest since he was taller than her brother. Before she inflicted any more damage, Mortician plucked her toward him. To Meggie’s way of thinking, Harley had just proven her guilt.
“Go away, Daddy! Blame me—”
“Enough, Harley,” Bailey said sharply .
“They’re all lying on me. I swear! Rebel attacked me for no reason.”
Bailey rubbed her temples. “You haven’t learned a thing in the weeks you’ve been barred from the house,” she said, giving no indication if she believed Harley or not.
Meggie was firmly on the side of not .
“Have you learned your lesson, Mommie?”
“I’ve learned a lot, heifer,” Bailey snarled. “You better hope Zoann still wants your ass at her house because you can’t come home.”
“Mommie, please! I don’t have enough clothes. I miss my room. All my stuff is home and—”
“Come back long enough to get more things,” Mortician said. “But that’s it because I agree with your momma. Until you learn respect, you not welcome home.”
“Mommie! Daddy—”
Bailey raised her hand. “No. I don’t want to hear anymore.” She ran to the door and threw it open, a sob floating behind her.
Axel nearly fell in. He must’ve been leaning against the door, listening. He threw Meggie a guilty look, grinned, and stepped out of Bailey’s way.
“Mom!” Kaleb called.
“I’m leaving, Kal,” she said around tears.
Once Bailey turned into the hallway, Kaleb darted out of sight, going in the same direction as his mother.
“Let’s go home, Lou,” Mort said sadly.
“I’ll walk with you,” Digger said. “We’ll see to Bailey and the boys, then go have a drink at the club.” He looked at Harley and shook his head.
“Harley, you, Ryan, and me need to talk,” Zoann said.
“It was just a stupid kiss, Aunt Zoann. Get over it.”
“That applies to you, Harley,” Mort said. “You need to get over it and stop using people to have your way. If you threw your kiss with Ryan in CJ’s face, then you just used Ryan to make CJ jealous.”
“You don’t know nothing, Daddy,” Harley said, on the verge of tears. Again .
Grudgingly, Meggie agreed. She suspected Harley and Ryan engaged in more than kissing, but needed the full story to forestall the coming storm.