15. Smitty
SMITTY
Iwas dog tired.
Not the kind of tired that came from throwing wrenches or doing a double at the Vault.
This was the kind that came after only getting a couple hours of sleep, and exhaustion settled into your bones.
Normally, that would have had my ass dragging in the worst kind of way, but today, I felt like nothing could stand in my way.
And that was all due to my night with Brooke.
I couldn’t even close my eyes without seeing her sleeping there next to me. I didn’t want to leave her, especially when she was looking so damn beautiful, but I knew it was the right thing to do. We’d answered some hefty questions last night, but we left just as many hanging in the wind.
Ryan was still out there, and I had no doubt that he was hurting over all this. He was hurting because of choices neither Brooke nor I could take back or wanted to take back. Brooke built a home with him, and when they were ready, they would have to figure out the ins and outs of parting ways.
It wouldn’t be easy, and I had no idea when or how it would happen. But for the first time in years, I wasn’t wondering if she still loved me. I knew, and that alone was enough to put a grin on my face as I pushed through the clubhouse doors.
I was immediately hit with the scent of cigarette smoke and bourbon, and silence, something you rarely found at the Fury clubhouse. Memphis and several of the guys were in the bar, huddled up around Drifter, and whatever was going on, it had all their attention.
Drifter was the first to notice that I’d walked up, and he wore half a smirk as he asked, “You remember Pete and the breakfast burritos?”
“You mean the best ones in town?”
“Yeah, that’d be the place.” He cocked his brow. “Well, good ol’ Pete came through this morning.”
“Oh yeah?”
Drifter nodded, “One of his regulars came in this morning. Guy’s got ties to a club over there, and he let it slip that Stone’s shooting wasn’t just some random hit.”
“We already knew that.”
“But we weren’t sure that it was the Coyotes.”
“He confirm it?”
“He did, and he said they were bragging that more was coming Fury’s way.”
I thought back over the last few weeks with the fire at Prez’s barn, Maverick’s accident, Gus’s attack, and then Stone. At first, it seemed like separate incidents, and the fact they happened so close together was mere coincidence. Pete’s info proved that wasn’t the case.
“I take it you passed the word along to Stone.”
“Called him as soon as I got off the phone with Pete. They’re already making plans to put an end to their bullshit once and for all. In a matter of days, there won’t be a Coyote breathing in Kansas City.”
“Same needs to happen here and everywhere else, for that matter,” Prez growled. “I’m sick of these fuckers. I want them dealt with, and I want them dealt with now.”
“We’re right there with you, brother,” Creed answered back. “We thought we wiped them out when we dealt with the scouts.”
“Clearly, we were wrong.”
Those four words changed the conversation. Creed nodded. “We should’ve dug in after the fire. I knew something was off, but…”
“I put club duty in the hands of Sergei and his brothers. That was my mistake, and I own it,” Prez interrupted. “Now, we move on from it and fry these assholes.”
“We have to find them first.”
“I’m working on it,” Shep told him. “But I’m gonna need some help.”
“What do you need?” Grim asked.
“I need a roster or some kind of list of members. Something I can use to differentiate the living from the dead.”
“I’ll see what I can do,” Grim replied. “I’ve got some calls I can make.”
Creed nodded. “I’ll make some, too.”
“Hell, everybody make some damn calls. We started this mess.” Prez looked around the room, his voice steady as he said, “We gotta finish it, and to do that, we gotta quit making assumptions. We need every rumor chased down. Every loose end dealt with. If somebody’s out there coordinating attacks on Fury chapters, it’s up to us to find them. ”
The room came alive with brothers splitting off into conversations, deciding who was contacting who. I stood there for a second, trying to figure out the best way I could help, and I had nothing. I had no contacts. I had no one to call for help.
Twenty-four hours ago, my biggest concern was meeting my daughter for the first time and whether Brooke would let me into her life again. Now, the entire Fury family had a target on its back. If the Coyotes were really coming for us, they’d made the mistake of a lifetime.
Fury didn’t back down.
If they wanted a war, we’d give it to them.
I overheard Memphis tell Goose, “These Coyote fuckers are smarter than I thought… Separate chapters. Separate states. Same timeframe. It took time to sort all that out.”
“And some brains, too.”
“Which means someone was smart enough not to be standing in that clubhouse when we hit it.”
“Exactly. And that means he won’t be easy to find.”
“And that’s why we have Shep.”
He was right. Shep was our ticket to figuring out who was behind the hits.
It would take him some time, but at least now he knew who he was dealing with.
And once he got the list of members, he could look for obituaries, arrests, hospital visits, and even family connections to each and every member to figure out who was still breathing.
It was going to take time though.
“Let’s wrap it. We’ve got shit to do,” Prez announced. “I want you boys on high alert. If something feels off, call it in. I’d rather answer ten false alarms than bury another brother.”
“Understood.”
“And if you hear something, I want to be the first to know about it.”
A chorus of agreement rolled through the room. The meeting broke apart almost as quickly as it had started. Brothers paired off to make calls and compare notes while others left to start their shift at the Vault.
I had some time to kill, so I decided to stop by the kitchen for a cup of coffee.
I’d just started down the hall when I spotted Duggar in the family room, sweeping up a mess I had no doubt he didn’t make.
The second I started walking over to him, he looked up and grinned. “Hey, man. How’s it shaking?”
“I was about to ask you the same.”
“I’m not even worth asking about. I’m not the one sportin’ a new patch.”
“I’ve had it all of five minutes.”
“Long enough to start giving us orders.”
“Got no orders to give.”
“But you will.”
He was frustrated. It was understandable. He and I had prospected together for the past eleven months, and now, I had a patch, and he still had a broom in his hand. But his time was coming. He just had to be a little patient.
I glanced around the room as I said, “Looks like you’re about done in here.”
“Give it five minutes,” he chuckled. “Somebody’ll make another mess.”
“Yeah, you’re probably right.”
I rolled my shoulders, trying to ease the tension. He noticed and said, “You’re looking a little rough around the edges, man.”
“Just tired.”
“Figured they’d be taking it a bit easier on ya.”
“Not that kind of tired.”
“So…” He glanced down at the prospect rocker on his cut. “Is it worth it?”
“Every damn second,” I answered without hesitation.
“Even after vomit-tron?”
“Even after.” He let out a defeated breath.
“Gotta remember, they’re not just seeing if you can ride or take orders.
They’re trying to figure out what kind of man you are.
I had to do some of that figuring myself, and there were times I didn’t like what I saw.
Worked on it, and things had a way of coming full circle. ”
“Hope the same holds true for me.”
“It will.”
He motioned his head down the hall. “Sounded pretty serious in there.”
“It was.”
“So, what’s going on?”
“I can’t.”
“What do you mean?” His brows furrowed. “I’m just asking…”
“And I can’t,” I cut him off. “You know how it is.”
“Yeah, I get it.” He looked down at the floor and nudged the broom with his boot. “You’re a brother now.”
“I’m still your friend, and in no time, I’ll be your brother.” I stepped a little closer. “But until then, there are rules in place, and I don’t want to do anything to jeopardize your patch or mine.”
“I get it... Appreciate you looking out for me.” He reached into his pocket, pulled out a pack of cigarettes, and tapped one free. “Didn’t mean to put you in a bad spot.”
“I know you didn’t.” Duggar lit his cigarette and took a slow drag, blowing the smoke toward the back door. “We’re good.”
The silence only lasted a couple of seconds before he looked at me with that same crooked grin he always got when he was about to give me shit. “Sooo…”
“What now?”
“What about the girl from the fair?”
“You gotta be kidding me.” I shook my head. “You heard about it, too?”
“You know how it is.” His smirk widened. “These guys gossip more than a bunch of schoolgirls.”
“Yeah, they do.”
“So, what’s the deal?”
A smile crept across my face as I told him, “Turns out I’ve got a daughter.”
“No shit?”
“No shit.” I let out a long breath. “She’s not quite two, and the cutest damn kid I’ve ever laid eyes on… And her mother’s pretty incredible, too.”
“That mean you two are sorting things out?”
“Trying to.” I cleared my throat. “It’s tough trying to make up for lost time. Every instinct I’ve got tells me to move them in with me, take care of ‘em, and tell the whole world she’s mine.”
“That what she want?”
The question caught me off guard. Truth was we hadn’t really talked about it. I’d hoped she wanted the same, but she hadn’t actually said the words. “I would think so… I mean after everything we’ve been through.”
“I’m not saying don’t fight for her,” he said softly. “Hell, fight for her with all you got, but don’t confuse fighting with rushing.”
“I’ll do my best.”
“I’m happy for you, man.”
“Appreciate it, Duggar.”
I gave him a nod and stepped out of the room. Duggar was a good man. His words stuck with me for the rest of the afternoon. Fight for her with all you got, but don’t confuse fighting with rushing.
That shit was tough, especially when you were impatient like me. The thought had me reaching for my phone. I pulled up Brooke’s number and texted: