“Yes, B; everyone knows it,” she reassures me, her statement full of finality making me believe her.
“So, what now?”
“Now, we settle in, maybe get some dinner going because the guys will get hungry. They’ll take care of everything else.”
“Just like that? You sit back and let them?”
“Yes. This is their club. While we’re a part of it, they run things in this lifestyle. We show them support and love them fiercely. In return, they do the same for us.”
Taking a deep breath, I nod and send her a smile. “Then lead me to the kitchen. I need something to do, preferably with chocolate involved.”
She returns my smile. “Follow me, this kitchen setup is perfect for cooking a ton of food.”
“Spidey and Chaos should be there already,” Viking mutters, busily texting someone. “Your shirt’s soaked. 2 Piece is already here waiting in case any of you need medical care. Now that I see you were shot, I’m glad I’d called him after all.”
“I’m fine. It was just a shoulder graze. Nothing I can’t handle.”
“Look, I don’t give a fuck if you’re fine. You have a kid and a woman now, suck it the fuck up and get stitched up,” he glowers and I roll my eyes like a petulant child. Last thing I feel like doing is having 2 poking around my shoulder with a damn needle.
“Fine, fuck it. 2 Piece?” I gesture, and he brings his glass and a small tote with him.
“Where did it hit you?” he questions, eyes raking over me quickly.
“My shoulder.” I yank my shirt over my head. It’s pretty bloody, and I just changed before we left. Good thing my shirt’s black. It sucks ass trying to get blood out of clothes.
“Damn.” He cringes and pulls a few bottles and other supplies from his bag. “It went straight through, luckily. You’ll be tender here for some time, though, and the shoulder’s an easy spot to rip stiches out for us. Careful riding, fighting, lifting, fucking, that sort of stuff.”
“So, basically, everything then.” Grumbling, I get situated. Fucker should’ve gone to medical school, not joined a biker club. “Appreciate you fixing me up,” I acknowledge and he waves me off, getting to work. Bad enough he had to ride over here with shit hitting the fan.
I turn back to Viking, ignoring the pain from 2 Piece cleaning and digging into my flesh while he sews my wound up. “I told Bethany that Chaos and Spider needed to come by to help me redo the floors.”
“Good. You having them use that deep pit out back of your place to burn the body?”
“Yeah. I figured they’d look him over for any more information as well. Spider can snap a pic for the photo search he’s been doing this week too. May help us find some more answers.”
“Bet. I’m sorry this happened to your family, brother, but it may end up being a blessing in disguise.”
“I thought the same thing, actually. We need to find these motherfuckers and snuff them all out. Put an end to whatever future plans they may be up to.”
“Agreed. I’m talkin’ to Ares right now, working on keepin’ him up to speed.”
“’Kay. If you’re straight here, then I’m heading back to my place to help them clean up.”
2 Piece grabs the bloody gauze and other supplies, heading for the bathroom and I pull my shirt back on. The shoulder area’s a bit stiff from the blood drying, but it’ll do for now. I can grab another back at the house and burn all my bloody clothes with Shadow’s body. No body, no blood, no evidence, no murder is the way I see it. That motto hasn’t let me down yet.
“We’ve got it handled. If I find out anything, I’ll hit you up. You three keep a lookout for any more joiners coming to the party late, and hit me back if you see any Iron Fists period. I’ll see about getting the other club here by the time y’all are back for church.”
I nod and bump his knuckles. I know he’ll make sure Bethany and Maverick are safe here while I go take care of business. I hate leaving them at all after what they just went through. At least B has Princess here to help her process it all. Probably no one better for that job anyhow.
Shadow coming around shakes everything up. It went from us looking out for the other club to a direct threat against us as well. The other club, they aren’t as … how do I put it? Not as savage as we are. I think that’s the best way to explain them.
They’re hard, sure, but we were Nomads before turning over our patch to a home charter. We dealt with the worst of the worst and prospered. That Nomad brand of crazy still pumps through our veins, and this is giving us a prime excuse to cash in on it.
Before I leave, I search Bethany out. She needs to realize that not only was Shadow a game changer for the club, he was for me as well. I’m done fooling with her. I flat out want her. Yes, she fucked up, and, yes, it will forever be in my mind, but I’m moving past it. I’m putting what matters most in perspective—her and my son. Nothing is more important to me than the two of them.
“I’m taking off.” I find her and Princess in the midst of a huge mess in the kitchen. I can’t help but grin, thinking about how this’ll piss the club sluts off something fierce having to do cleanup duty. I know Princess, though, and she’ll give zero fucks. My girl need P right now to show her how to cope; I’m glad she has her.
“You have to go?” Her gaze flicks to the floor, and I can tell she’s biting the inside of her cheek. She’s still shook up. Can’t say I blame her.