SAVAGE ROAD - Layne & Shelby (7 page)

“
They
had our number, obviously,
”
Rylan said.

“
Heard
you got punched to see a pair of tits?
”
I asked.

Everyone at the table laughed.

Rylan wiped his nose.
“
I like tits. I can
’
t help it.
”

“
We
all do,
”
I said.

The table got quiet again.

I slowly pulled the chair out.

“
If
I sit here, I
’
m going to
put my life on the line. I got shot at yesterday. That was a warning. If they
wanted me dead, I
’
d have
been dead. Bain got his. And the Mountain Killers will get theirs. Whatever you
think you know about me, forget it. All that matters is going forward. I
’
m not here on a vacation. I
’
m not here to just start
killing, but I will if I have to. You don
’
t
have to respect me. You don
’
t
have to honor me. But we have to trust each other.
”

Finn made a fist and slammed it
down on the table. He then jumped up.

Great
…
here we go
…

I thought something was going to go
down, Finn causing a scene. Maybe I should have killed him right then. Send
another clear message to the rest of the MC.

Finn reached into his pocket and
pulled something out.

To my surprise, it wasn
’
t a gun.

“
This
is how it
’
s meant to be,
”
he said.
“
Everyone listen to him. Our new
President.
”

Finn threw the President
’
s patch down to the table. He
then looked at me and nodded. One quick nod. He turned and stormed out of the
meeting room. The door slammed with a defeated
boom
.

It hurt Finn to do that.

I took the patch and looked around
the table.
“
We
’
re done here. I want you all out
there and ready to go soon. First line of business is to deliver the traitor
right where he wanted to be.
”

“
What
the fuck does that mean?
”
Ax asked.

I smiled.
“
We
’
re
going to take Bain
’
s body
and give it to the Mountain Killers. They wanted him. He wanted them. It
’
s perfect.
”

I pounded the gavel once and
everyone jumped up.

They filed out of the room and
stared at the patch in my hand.

It was all mine.

And that meant all the bullshit
that came with it.

I took off my leather cut and
grinned. I just needed to find someone to sew the patch on.

Then it was time to go straight to
war.

11.

(Shelby)

I finished my coffee and looked
across the shitty kitchen table at Dad. His gaze was out the window, like it
always was. Living in a permanent state of paranoia and fear, I had been left
with no choice but to just roll with it. I couldn
’
t
get him to leave Oakville. I couldn
’
t
get him to do anything. He was stubborn, and the demons in his mind and heart
took over the rest of his body a long time ago. That also included the bottle
of brandy next to his coffee cup.

“
I
have to go,
”
I said.
“
Thanks for the coffee.
”

Truth of it was that Dad made damn
good coffee. Considering he lived in a camping trailer that was held up by a
few cinderblocks. Not the life he really envisioned. Everything else in the
small place stunk of stale air, rotten food, and the faint, tangy odor of piss.
He slept with a rifle next to his bed like it was a woman.

Each time I saw the damn thing it
made me think of my mother and whatever the fuck happened between them that
made her split and made Dad so insane.

I walked around the table and
touched Dad
’
s shoulder.

“
Jesus
fuck!
”
he yelped and swung
his hand.

He punched me in the gut, sending
me flying back. I crashed into the kitchenette counter, sending a glass jar of
coffee grinds down to the floor. It shattered and spilled like dirt all over
the yellow, thin carpeting.

I grabbed my belly and groaned,
blinking away tears.

“
What
the fuck were you thinking?
”
he growled at me.
“
Fuck,
Shelby. Fuck, girl.
”

“
I
’
m sorry,
”
I whispered.
“
I
was just
…”

Dad stood and turned. I saw the gun
attached to his hip and it bothered me. I don
’
t
know why it bothered me. I was around guns all the time. But when Dad carried
…

“
I
’
m sorry,
”
Dad said. He crouched down.
“
You know, I
’
ll never understand why you
’
re out here. This place is like
the end of the world. Where all the garbage just flows and stops.
”

“
It
’
s where anyone last heard from
her,
”
I said.
“
You know that.
”

“
You
’
re going to be disappointed,
”
Dad said.
“
She
’
s a worthless person.
”

“
She
was your wife. She
’
s my
mother. How bad
…”

“
I
thought you were leaving.
”

I slowly reached out. I touched Dad
’
s collar and fixed it. That
’
s all I had been trying to do to
begin with.

Coming here was always an emotional
roller coaster. I always figured I
’
d
find Dad dead. That was maybe what I hoped for. Then everything I knew and
everything that was wrong with him, with me, it would all end.

Coming here today was even worse.
Because of Layne. I couldn
’
t
get him out of my mind. The way he stood behind me, touching, fucking. The way
I just threw my one damn rule up in the air for a little while. For him. Hell,
for me. I needed it just as bad as he did. It had been too long since someone
went at me like that.

The bad part? I wanted it again.

“
Be
safe,
”
Dad said. He stood
and stared down at me.
“
I
hate that you
’
re there. You
don
’
t have to do that
anymore. I only needed to know
…”

“
It
’
s a job,
”
I said.
“
They
know more than anyone else in town. I listen. I take notes. I
’
ll find her.
”

“
You
’
re as pretty as she was,
”
Dad said.
“
That
’
s good. Nobody needs an ugly mug like me. But
sometimes Shelby, you
’
re
just as fucking stupid as she was.
”

Dad turned and walked. He stepped
right on the coffee grinds and the rest of the glass jar, crunching under his
steps. He walked to the bed and covered up and tucked in his rifle. It was
creepy to watch.

I pulled myself up and left the
trailer. The door swung shut with a
slap
.

I then drove to the clubhouse.

One thing Dad taught me was to
check my mirrors every minute. Look for anything out of the ordinary. Anything
that seemed fucked up, probably was. And if it was fucked up, then run. Run
like hell. Go north until you were safe. Don
’
t
go west because there was the coast. South was risky. East was less risky.
North was safe.

I got to the compound and Mack
stood there, letting me in. There were a few trucks with cars on them. Mangled
wrecks that provided Devil Call MC with a front to have a salvage and junkyard.

I parked my car and walked to the
side gate to see the puppies. I knew that AJ was not a puppy, but that
’
s what they were to me. AJ stood
and stared, licking my hand after a minute. She always needed to earn your
trust, no matter what. Sugar, on the other hand, just loved to be loved. The
dogs made me smile.

Turning and facing the clubhouse, I
started the walk. The motorcycles lined up left to right told me all the guys
were inside. No surprise. A lot of them didn
’
t
function in early afternoon. Their version of morning and night were very
different from normal people.

I went through the back door and
through the kitchen. The prospects were working, all wearing black shirts and
jeans, along with white aprons, as they took care of the food and the dishes. I
went straight out to the bar.

The clubhouse was alive and
bustling. It seemed like everyone was in a good mood. Everyone except Finn. He
stood in a corner with his arms crossed. He looked let down.

I thought about going to talk to
him, but then remembered the perils of stepping out from behind the bar. So I
remained in place, grabbing a towel and starting to wipe stuff down for the
hell of it.

That
’
s
when Brett approached.

I stiffened and he quickly put his
hands up.

“
Hey,
”
he said.

“
What
are you drinking?
”

“
Nothing.
I just wanted
…”

“
What
are you drinking?
”
I asked
again.

“
Shelby,
give me a fucking second here.
”

“
Fuck
off.
”

Brett pulled out a piece of paper.
“
I have something for you. About
what you
’
re looking for.
”

“
What
the fuck are you talking about?
”

“
Come
on,
”
Brett said.
“
You
’
ve talked about it before. You
’
ve asked questions. I
’
ve listened.
”

“
Just
stay away from me.
”

“
Look,
I
’
m sorry for what
happened,
”
he said.
“
That was my fault. I was a dumb,
drunk asshole. It
’
ll never
happen again. I just wanted to apologize in person to you.
”
He put the paper on the bar.
“
I know a guy who helps with some
missing persons shit. Works the mountains. Real tough and shit job. I think she
works for him.
”

“
Who?
”

“
Your
mother. That
’
s who you
’
re looking for, right?
”

I took the piece of paper and
looked at it. It was an address. Before I could say anything else, Brett was
gone.

I looked over and Finn stared
daggers at me. I tucked the paper away.

The door to the meeting room opened
and Layne came walking from it. He held his leather cut with one hand,
something in his other hand.

The entire bar went silent.

When he looked at me, he came to
the bar and put the leather cut down. That
’
s
when I saw the President
’
s
patch.

Holy shit. He got it.

“
Do
the honor for me,
”
he said,
not asked.
“
Sew that on.
”

I stared at him.
“
Okay.
”

“
Move.
Now.
”

I took the leather cut and the
patch. My hands were shaking as I went back through the kitchen area to the
supplies closet. I knew where all the shit was thanks to experience. They kept
needles and thread for sewing up wounds on the shelf next to the bandages. If
the guys could avoid the hospital and anything that resembled normal life, they
’
d do it. Even if it meant
drinking a shit ton of whiskey and having someone else stitch up a deep cut.

I got the needle and thread. The
closet was small and had a single light bulb dangling from the ceiling. There
was a bench on the left side of the wall so I sat there and started to work.

Or I tried to work.

I didn
’
t know the first thing about sewing.

I cut some thread and then tried to
feed it through the eye of the needle. I bit my lip and squinted hard to see. I
managed to get it through a few minutes later. I sighed and couldn
’
t believe how nervous I was. It
didn
’
t make sense.

The door to the storage closet then
opened and Layne stepped inside. He stood there wearing that damn black t-shirt
that hugged his body so perfect. One side cut up from the bullet that could
have taken his life. His bandages needed to be changed soon.

“
How
’
s it going?
”
he asked.

“
I
don
’
t know how to sew,
”
I admitted.
“
I
…”

Layne reached and took everything
from me. He then tossed it from the closet and shut the door again.

He stepped toward me. I sat back
and hit the wall.

Layne kept moving at me.

He reached down and gently stroked
my hair.

My body was instantly on fire.

“
You
can
’
t sew
…
but I know you can fuck.
”

Holy. Shit.