Knox leaned against the tall counter. “Mick fire her?”
“Told her to get the fuck out of his bar and not come back. Mick trusted Jenna; she had worked for him for a long time. He even rehired her when she came begging for her old job back.”
“We’re fucked. There won’t be a person in town who doesn’t know about the club by the time Jenna and Sissy get done running their mouths.” Knox shot a dirty look at Sissy, a warning to keep her trap shut.
“No, we’re not,” Lucky finally spoke up. “None of us touched her, and Mick didn’t intentionally serve her liquor. I don’t really give a fuck about anyone finding out about me using knives. I’m not a pastor anymore. The problem is Jenna told her names of women she had seen at the club.”
Marriages could be destroyed if a few of the names were dropped. Not only that, but Winter, Lily, Diamond, Beth, and Rachel would be embarrassed publicly, and the brothers didn’t want their women hurt.
Lucky wouldn’t mince words in front of the girl. They were fortunate Knox had called with the information to find her when he did. Sissy would have sneaked out and exposed several people there who sure as fuck wouldn’t want their presence made public.
“She’s going to keep her mouth shut,” Lucky promised.
“Remember, Moon promised I could join your club when I get older,” Sissy reminded the men.
Viper stiffened. No one lived after they tried to intimidate the club, but it went against club rules to harm an innocent. Despite the girl showing she was already a hardened bitch, her age held their hands.
Knox threw Viper a surprised look. “But Moon—”
Lucky imperceptibly shook his head at the brother. He knew Viper had no intention of letting Sissy join. She would be quickly disillusioned about the fun in the club. By the time the women members were done with her, she would be too frightened to look at a man wearing leather.
“What about Jenna?” Knox asked instead of finishing what he had been about to say.
“She’s decided it’s in her best interest to leave town. I gave her a week.” Lucky had been furious with Jenna, and the woman had known him well enough to agree to leave Treepoint.
“You know what you’re doing?”
Viper’s direct question had Lucky wondering the same thing. He had reacted without thinking when he had seen the Wests take the younger girls from Willa’s arms.
“When has he ever had a fucking clue?” Shade gibed.
Lucky ignored Shade. “Go inside Knox’s office and wait for him,” Lucky directed Sissy. Her resentful behavior was the last straw. “Knock it off! Change the attitude, or the closest you’ll ever get to The Last Riders’ clubhouse is the parking lot!”
“That isn’t fair,” she protested.
“Do you want fair, or do you want to join The Last Riders? Moon promised you could try to join, but Jenna told you how the club works, that you have to get the votes to be a member. You think you’ll get any of the brothers to lay a hand on you with that attitude? Why do you think Jenna never became a member?”
Her silence spoke for itself.
“Every time you piss me off, I’ll add another year to your wait. Moon told you that you could join when you’re nineteen, but if you mess up, you’ll be old and grey before you get your ass through the door.”
Sissy’s hands clenched, but her mouth snapped shut. Turning around, she went into Knox’s office and slammed the door.
“Someone please remind me she’s a kid.” Shade’s sarcasm had the brothers eyeing him cautiously.
“We’re responsible for her behavior. It’s because of us that her mother is dead.” Lucky hated to believe the girl who had just left the room was as nasty-tempered as her deceased relatives.
“You mean me, not us. I was the one who pulled the trigger that killed her mother.” Remorse had never been Shade’s strongest personality trait.
“I was the one who gave the okay. We would have all died if that fire alarm hadn’t gone off. Another five minutes and Shade and Lily would have been burned alive. When I okayed the hit, Georgia’s brother already had custody of her children. I didn’t plan on Lewis getting himself killed, too.”
“Sissy’s behavior isn’t a result of her circumstances; it’s born and bred. Georgia and Lewis were both bullies and sick fuckers. Sissy attacks Willa the same way her mother did.” Shade’s reasoning angered Lucky.
“I don’t believe that. You’re not a result of your upbringing.”
“I’m an aberration.”
“I have to agree with that,” Lucky mocked.
“Will someone tell me when Moon got the right to decide who joins the club?” Knox stared at the brothers around him, breaking up the budding argument.
“Club doesn’t have to keep any promises an original member doesn’t make. Moon didn’t have a problem deceiving the girl. After what’s she’s put Willa through, none of us do.”
“If Willa couldn’t control Sissy, what makes you think Diamond will handle her any better?” Knox questioned.
“Because Diamond isn’t responsible for her uncle’s death, and you’ll be around. Right now, her goal is to become a member. As long as she wants that, she’ll somewhat behave.”
Knox shook his head. “Teenagers expect immediate gratification. She’ll get tired of waiting.”
Lucky couldn’t blame him for his concern. The brother didn’t want his wife exposed to the same treatment from Sissy that Willa had tolerated.
“Diamond is also related to Sex Piston,” Lucky clued him in. “Her sister isn’t going to let Diamond be mistreated.”
“Sex Piston will sic Killyama on her ass.” Knox chuckled.
“That’s what Lucky’s counting on. We can’t touch the girl; however, Killyama will have no hesitation about knocking some respect into her.” Shade’s usually impassive face broke into an evil grin.
“That bitch will wring her fucking neck if she pisses her off.” Viper joined in on the laughter.
Lucky barely held back his own amusement. The Last Riders hated to deal with the biker bitches. If Sissy made the mistake of getting in their faces like she had with everyone else, the girl would be confronted by a group of women who wouldn’t let her age and circumstances affect them. They would beat the shit out of her, which is what he hated to admit he had wanted to do when Sissy had lunged for Willa. He had wanted to drop her on her ass. The only thing that held him back was the presence of the Wests and the social worker.
“Knox, can I borrow your office? I need to make a few calls.” Lucky’s mind was turning to the numerous phone calls he needed to make to resume becoming a pastor and collect the references that would keep Flora at bay until he could marry Willa.
“Help yourself.” Knox waved his hand toward his private office.
“You really going to go through with it?”
Lucky had thought Shade would be pleased with his decision; instead, he was looking grimmer by the second.
“Yeah.”
“How are you going to convince those straight-assed deacons to give you the church back?”
“That’s the easy part. They won’t turn me down, because I found out their secrets when I was their pastor. I just have to remind them that, as long as I’m no longer their pastor, I feel no obligation to keep them. If I have my job back, I would feel bound by my position to make sure their transgressions remain private.”
“The golden rule: scratch my balls, or I’ll cut off your dick.”
“Exactly. I’ll see you later at the clubhouse.”
Lucky went into Knox’s office, motioning for Sissy to go back out front then shutting the door behind her. He expected a bigger challenge at regaining his job as pastor, but none of the deacons gave him any trouble, relieved they wouldn’t have to listen to another on-call pastor. Only one broached the subject of The Last Riders.
“Your association with them may make regaining your position difficult,” Angus Berry brought for
th the fears of the other deacons.
“I understand and will be moving back into the church. My future wife and I are looking forward to serving the community.”
“You’re getting married?” Lucky could imagine Angus’s furry grey brows lifted in surprise.
“Willa and I plan to be married in two weeks.”
“You’re marrying Willa?” Angus didn’t give him time to answer. “She’s a sweet girl. She made my seventy-fifth birthday cake and didn’t even charge my wife. You couldn’t have made a better choice. Damn … Excuse me, Pastor. I’ll finally be able to look forward to a service again. The pastors who have been visiting and Merrick have been giving me a sour stomach. My ass couldn’t take another long-winded sermon.”
Lucky laughed. “I’ll keep that in mind when I’m writing mine out.”
“Do that and I’ll put an extra five in the collection plate.”
Lucky disconnected the call with a smile on his face. It didn’t take long for his smile to disappear as he punched in the next number.
The voice answering the phone was brisk and short. “What do you want?”
“Colt, I need a favor.”