Wrath Chapter 10 #2
“Jae, honey, calm down. Tell me what’s wrong,” Psycho said. He had the right amount of confusion in his voice and on his face, but something told me it was all an act.
“Don’t act innocent with me. You know what’s wrong. Why would you do that?” she snarled.
“Do what? You’re not making sense. How much did you have to drink?” he asked.
“Stop pretending, Psycho. You know why she’s pissed. And I’m right there with her. Why the hell did you do it? If it was a joke, it wasn’t funny,” I snapped.
“Clearly, they’ve both had too much to drink,” Psycho said.
“I’ve had one drink hours ago, and your daughter isn’t drunk. Answer the question,” I added.
“What’s wrong, son?” Dad softly asked as he came to stand next to me. He had Betty held protectively in his arms.
Panther and Scooter were close to Psycho, demanding to know what was wrong.
Cougar pushed his way through the crowd.
He was scowling. “Why don’t you tell everyone what you told Pebbles to do, Psycho?
I think they’d love to know,” Cougar demanded.
He crossed his arms over his chest and glared at Jalisa’s dad.
“I don’t know what Pebs told you, but whatever it was, it was a lie. You know you can’t trust a bunny to tell the truth. They make up lies to stir trouble,” Psycho said dismissively.
“Sometimes that’s true, but not this time. She’s hysterical because she made a play for Jalisa’s old man.” This elicited groans from the Fiends. Cougar went on. “What made it even worse is she’s scared that if Jae doesn’t beat her, you will,” Cougar spat.
“Why would I do that?” Psycho feigned confusion.
“Stop with the act,” I growled.
“Will someone tell me what the fuck is the problem? What happened?” Panther bellowed.
Jalisa whipped to face Panther. “I’ll tell you.
Your enforcer, best friend, and my father told Pebbles that the Pagans would be here tonight and to bring as many women as she could.
She was instructed that they were all single and the president likes to play hard to get, and she was to ensure she had sex with him.
To help her know who he was, she was shown a picture.
She was led to believe it was a game Wrath likes to play,” Jalisa snarled.
Astonishment swept over Panther and Scooter’s faces. Panther stared at his friend. “Psycho, tell me you didn’t. For God’s sake, tell me you didn’t try to cause trouble between your daughter and her old man. I thought we talked about this, and you were over it,” he half-pleaded.
Psycho didn’t respond. He stood there staring at his friend.
I didn’t know how long it would’ve continued if Jalisa hadn’t ended it.
She hauled back her fist and punched Psycho in the gut.
He was busy watching Panther, so he didn’t see it in time.
It knocked the wind out of him, and he doubled over.
“Let’s get the fuck out of here. I want to go home,” Jalisa told me.
She turned her back on her dad and most of the Fiends.
I wanted to say so much, but now wasn’t the time.
Instead, I circled my finger in the air and followed her.
As I caught up to her, the other Pagans fell in behind us.
We were all on alert in case someone got the stupid idea to prevent us from leaving.
We should’ve remembered where we were and who they were.
There were a lot of grumbling and angry expressions.
“Wait, hold on,” Panther yelled. Somehow, he caught us at the door. He was red, and I swore I saw regret in his eyes.
“I’m sorry. I had no clue he would do that. I thought he’d gotten over being butt hurt that you chose a Pagan over a Fiend. He said he’d thought about it and was okay with your choice, Jae. I swear on the life of my son, I had no idea. Don’t go,” he begged.
“It’s time to leave. If I stay, I’ll forget he’s my dad and do something I can’t take back. Just keep him away from us,” she growled.
“Honey, I know you’re upset and have a reason to be, so does Wrath. But please, calm down and think about it. Find a way to forgive him. If you want to leave, just give us a few minutes to get ready so we can escort you back.”
“No, there’s no need for that. I’ll take my chances with Black Outlaws rather than trust our backs to this club.
How do I know he’s the only one who doesn’t accept my choice?
Do I need to watch my man’s back every second to ensure he’s not hurt or killed by the people I thought were my family?
I never in a hundred years thought any of you would do something like this, especially my dad,” she exclaimed.
“Jalisa, you need to take a breath, babe. Let’s just get home. Panther, you and I will talk later. This changes things. I need to rethink the strategy for the car show.”
Tonda and Lona were crying and clinging to their men.
They begged us not to leave, but I was with Jalisa.
Despite the possible worry that the Outlaws could be watching and waiting for us, the more significant danger might be right in this room.
I wanted to kick myself for staying as long as we had and for dismissing the Cherokee members.
We walked out. As we put on our jackets and helmets to mount our bikes, Cougar came outside. He was shaking his head, and he came over to me.
“Man, I can’t believe he did that. I’m sorry, and I know you’re angry and hurt.
I don’t blame you. But I want you to know.
Psycho doesn’t speak for this club. There was a long talk in church about his attitude, and he told everyone he had accepted it.
He’s taken his stupid desire for Jalisa always to remain a Fiend too far.
As long as she’s happy, you treat her well, and she’s safe, I don’t care if your club isn’t a one-percenter.
Psycho needs his head knocked a few times, and based on how people are muttering in there, he may get it.
Ride safe, and please, Jae, text me so I know you made it home. ”
I couldn’t be angry with him, so I shook his hand.
Jalisa hugged him. When we were finished, he stepped back and let us get on our way.
He remained out there until we cleared the gate.
The ride home was nerve-racking. We had our heads on a swivel, even Jalisa.
She was as tense as a bowstring. She rode with her handgun along her leg, just as the guys and I rode with ours easily within reach.
We all breathed an immense sigh of relief when we pulled safely into the Pagan compound.
It was almost one in the morning, but Nomad, Keno, and Chaos were awake and came out to greet us despite the time.
Since they were on guard duty, there were no women around.
They could tell that something was wrong as we got off our bikes.
I noted that the Cherokee guys’ bikes weren’t there.
They must’ve decided to go home after all.
I wasn’t in the mood to talk, but I knew I at least needed to tell the men who stayed behind what was up.
“Hey, why don’t you and Jalisa go home? I’ll tell Nomad, Chaos, and Keno what went down. I think you two need time alone,” Storm said softly.
“Hey, man, thanks. I’d appreciate it. Do that, and we can all talk more later today.”
He gave me a fist bump. I let the others know we were going home. There were calls of goodnight. I led a quiet Jalisa to the house. I wondered what I could do to make her feel better and soothe the sense of betrayal she felt.
???
I let Jalisa shower and get ready for bed while I did the same in another bathroom.
I knew we needed to talk about what happened tonight, but I thought I should let her calm down first. I was in bed waiting when she came walking in.
She wore a pair of shorts that barely covered her ass.
I wasn’t sure which one I liked most. A slinky nightie or the top and short set she wore the first night we met and every night since.
I held open the bedding so she could slide in next to me. She did and rolled to face me. Her head landed on my chest, and she rubbed her hand along my chest hair. I put my arm around her to hold her against me. I kissed the top of her head.
“Jalisa, babe, we need to talk about tonight. I know you might want to wait, but it’s better to get it out than to let it fester. I know what your dad did hurts and made you angry. It pissed me off, too.”
“Lucian, you don’t want to see me get upset,” she answered.
“Yes, I do. I want to know all sides of you. Do you think it’ll scare me off? My road name is Wrath. I didn’t get it for being sweet. There’s an ugly side to me. Do you want me to hide it from you?”
She raised her head to look at me. “No, I want to know Wrath and Lucian.”
“And I want the same.”
She sighed wearily. Her head went back to my chest. “I’ve always known my dad has a side that scares people.
He’s not an angel. There’s a reason he’s called Psycho.
A lot of it is due to his need to protect, which gets triggered.
No matter our differences or how we argued, I always knew he loved me, wanted to protect me, and was fighting to ensure my happiness.
Tonight is the first time I’ve seen him purposefully do something to wreck it.
It infuriates me, Lucian, but it hurts more.
I would’ve never thought he’d be underhanded and do anything like that.
“What makes it worse is that he used a bunny. He knows how they know the rules and abide by them. If they don’t, they have to deal with me.
They’re scared shitless of me. I’ve made sure they are.
I can tolerate a lot from them. I don’t automatically hate them or judge them.
But if they go after a man in a way he doesn’t want, like trying to get a property cut when he only wants sex.
Or they make any kind of move on a claimed man.
They know I will kick their asses and more.
Dad knows that, yet he risked poor Pebbles enduring that. That was fucking low.”