Chapter Forty-Five
With Hadley tucked under one arm and Macy in the other, we stood outside the church and waited for the funeral to begin.
In great Brothers fashion, the curb down both sides of the street was lined with bikes. Deacon, the local police officer, had even closed it off to the public so we could have the time to say goodbye to our brother properly.
Almost the entire chapter from Troy had joined us, along with presidents and other members from other chapters around the country. They’d driven hours, and some even days, to say goodbye to a man that was loved by all.
“Leo,” a voice called to me through the crowd.
I smiled when I saw his face and passed Macy to Hadley, so I could embrace the man. “Hey Echo, long time no see,” I said, patting him on the back.
He pulled back with a wide grin. “Yeah man, wish it didn’t have to be under these circumstances.”
I nodded.
Echo was the president of our Maryland chapter, it was one of the largest we had.
He was a good man, had three boys that had all followed in his footsteps, the eldest, Junior, recently stepping up to take the Vice President’s role.
“Same here. But we appreciate you guys coming in to say goodbye.” I turned my body to Hadley and Macy. “This is my Old Lady, Hadley, and my little girl.”
Echo held out his hand, and Hadley shuffled Macy in her arms so she could shake it. “It’s nice to meet you,” she said with a smile.
“Likewise, darling,” Echo replied before turning his attention to Macy. “And aren’t you beautiful.”
Macy giggled and buried her face into Hadley’s neck.
“I’ll catch up with you after, brother,” Echo said with a small salute before making his way through the crowd to where Optimus was standing with Kit.
I took in a deep breath, wrapping my arm around Hadley’s shoulder and kissing the top of her head. This was never easy, saying goodbye. But it was made bearable by the show of support that surrounded us.
When I heard the roar of motorcycles coming down the street, my body tensed. All our brothers that we had been expecting had ridden in last night.
I looked over to Op, who raised his brows at me.
“Go and stand with the girls, okay,” I told Hadley, pressing on her back.
She looked up worriedly. “Is everything okay?”
“Yeah, just go.”
She nodded, hurrying with Macy toward where Harmony and Chelsea stood with the other old ladies and club girls, one of the only times it was permitted for them to mix.
Optimus joined me as I walked toward the street, Blizzard, Wrench, Kit and Tally coming up behind us.
Four bikes, two with women on the back pulled past Deacon, who was monitoring the street and slowly made their way toward us. I rolled my shoulders, folding my arms across my chest as I waited for them to pull to a stop. They parked in a line in the middle of the street, and I released a short breath of air as I read the name written on their cuts.
“Royal Rebels,” I said out loud.
It was Slider’s sister and her man.
We waited silently as they switched off their engines and climbed off their bikes. One of the women removed her helmet before walking toward us. The man she was with grabbed her arm and halted her advance, pulling her back and whispering softly in her ear. She looked down at the ground, her ash blonde hair flicking in the wind as she seemed to compose herself. When she looked back up, I could see the tears that were running down her cheeks. The others of the group stayed next to their bikes while she and her man came forward.
He spoke first.
“Switch,” he said simply, holding out his hand.
I had no idea who this man was, he had long hair that was tied back and tattoos that reminded me of Skins, covering almost every inch of visible skin. But while I didn’t know him personally, I knew the Royals.