“Okay,” Levi said. “I think we should call this as is here. There’s nothing to vote on. Ellis, all dues paid?”
“Paid,” Ellis said.
“Zac. Anything we need to know with technology?”
“Nothing,” Zac said. “We’re secure here. I haven’t seen anything coming through the police station or anything that matters.”
Levi looked at Luca and gave a respectful head nod. Then he went to Brett and Jason.
“What do you have?”
“Just a few shakedowns,” Brett said. “Got us a few bucks.”
“Had to tangle with a prospect fromDRM,” Jason said. “Thought I saw someone following me. So, I turned and tagged him.”
“Shit,” Levi said.
“What did he want?” Reese asked.
“After a few of these…” Jason held up a fist. “He started to talk. Said he wasn’t put on me. He just followed to practice. Thought he could give something back to Sledge and get a patch.”
“Christ,” Hawk said. “Prospects are like horny teenagers.”
“This guy ain’t fucking anything anytime soon,” Jason said.
“What’d you do?” Levi asked.
“Made it so he wouldn’t be looking at me or us for a while,” Jason said. “Then I put the heel of my boot right to his balls and gave a good twist, just for effect. I have an image to keep up.”
Reese cringed. Everyone at the table shifted in their seats and casually checked between their legs, thankful that Jason wasn’t crushing their manhood.
“Hawk?” Levi asked.
“Talks with therunnersare as planned,” he said. “D.O. is looking forward to another run. He fully understands what’s been happening to the other charters. I made it seem like it was a bullshit situation on their end. Stupid mistake. Just to keep tension from forming.”
“Good,” Levi said. “Everyone’s done talking. Now get a drink and find yourself areliever.” Levi cracked the gavel on the table and everyone stood up.
Conversations instantly broke out as Reese waited for the guys to clear the room.
“You should join them,” Levi said. “There’s plenty of action out there.”
Therelieverswere women who hung around the club looking to get claimed by one of the guys. That meant doing what you were told, no matter what. If you were claimed by a patched in member, it was instant protection from anything you were dealing with in life. They were, most of the time, good women out there. Honest and hardworking, just trying to find a way out of a bad situation. Others were lost, and would forever remain lost, unable to put down the bottle or stay away from drugs, meaning they needed the club to protect them from a certain kind of hell that only an outlaw could save them from.
Either way, there were times when arelieverwas useful. Sharing a bed for a night was needed to keep things in check.
“I don’t need any of that,” Reese said. “Too much on my mind.”
“They’ll take care of that for you. You’re the VP, brother. That means take two, three, four. Drown in tits and pussy until that mind of yours settles.”
Reese raised an eyebrow. “My mind isn’t going to settle here. We have to keep our guard up, Levi.”
“I know that,” Levi said. He put a hand to Reese’s shoulder. “You can’t let on to the guys too much and too hard. They’ll panic. They’re outlaws, Reese. They fight to the end. To the death. They don’t care about the destruction around them. We’ve worked hard to keep this town clean. To keep it as safe as we can. Our balance of power and respect is always in question. Not that I give a shit what anyone thinks of us, but it’s good to have enemies act like friends.”
“Pushing guns through is risky right now,” Reese said. “And we know there’s a supply of junk in this town too.”
“We voted on and said no to that business,” Levi said. “That could be our junk.”
“Protect everyone and feed them junk?” Reese asked.