“She’s weak, Kick, and she’ll burn us if anyone gets to her. I’m not willing to take a chance on that. The stakes are too fucking high and we’ve all paid a price. I won’t pay again.”

He nodded. “Consider it done.”

I’d never make this mistake again. Brittany had fucked other club members besides me, but it had been clear in her eyes just then that she wanted more from me. Sex would never be about something more for me. Not when trust was a necessary part of that equation. I trusted a handful of people in life and I wasn’t looking to add to that small group.

 

* * *

 

King’s lip curled up as he snarled at our newest patched member during Church, “Are you with us or not, Slider? Because if you’re not, you need to get up and walk out of here now.”

Slider threw him a filthy look. “I’m with you, but—”

King slammed his fist down on the heavy wooden table as anger flared in his eyes. “There’s no room for buts. We all agreed upon our course of action before last night, and I for one am fucking committed to it. Silver Hell will be decimated. Now, are you fucking with us or not?”

Slider clenched his jaw before giving King one firm nod. “I’m with you.”

King shoved his fingers through his hair and blew out a harsh breath. “Right, now that’s settled, this is where we stand at last count. Seven of their club members were taken out last night, including their VP and Sergeant-at-Arms”—he glanced at me—“and the motherfucker who has been fucking with our families.”

Conversation broke out at that news; it was what everyone had been waiting to hear. We’d all had family members suffer at the hands of Silver Hell.

“And their strip club?” Skull asked, breaking through the noise of everyone talking.

King nodded. “Hyde and Devil were successful there. It’s out of action for awhile.”

Hyde’s face lit up. “Watching it burn to the ground was the highlight of my week.”

King continued, “Next up is to hit them hard where it will hurt the most after the loss of that club. Bronze and his boys will raid their other clubs and find drugs, which should close them down. They’ll be in a world of financial hurt after that, but we need to be ready for the unexpected. Dragon will come after us with everything he has, so I want you to keep your ears to the ground and bring me anything you hear.” He lifted his chin at me, indicating that as Sergeant-at-Arms, it was my turn to take over.

Shifting so I could rest my arms on the table, I said, “Our plan hasn’t changed. I’ve given each of you the information you need to carry out the next step. You need something, you come to me.” I turned to Kick. “How did you go with that security footage from the casino?” I’d texted him the previous night asking him to take care of wiping all traces of me from the casino.

“All done,” he said.

“Thanks, brother.”

As I sat back, King asked, “Any questions before we get to work?” When none were forthcoming, he ended the meeting and everyone filed out.

Although the first round of attacks had gone to plan, the mood was anything but celebratory—we had a long way to go before that.

 

 

8

 

 

Tatum

 

 

“Sucker For Pain” by Lil Wayne, Wiz Khalifa, Imagine Dragons

 

Billy took one look at me when I entered his office the afternoon after Nitro dropped me at home and swore. “Those motherfuckers will pay for this!”

I held up my hand as I took the seat across from him at his desk. “Storm didn’t do this to me, Billy. It was the Silver Hell biker they killed who did it.”

He ran his eyes over my body, taking in the bruises that had settled into place on my arms and face. The ones on my back and legs were covered by my clothes. They were nastier and I was glad he couldn’t see them. Meeting my gaze, he said¸ “Fuck, Tatum, did you go to the hospital? Is anything broken?”

I shook my head. “Maybe a rib or two, but other than that it just looks bad. Nothing some painkillers and time won’t fix.”

He threw his pen down and leaned back in his chair. “You’re always so damn practical. It’s what I fucking love about you, but this time I’m taking charge and calling the doctor in to check on you.” At my scowl, he held up his hand and shook his head. “Don’t argue with me. I’ll have him here within the hour. In the meantime, you can start figuring out a way to get Posey off some drug charges brought against her last night. Fucking dumb bitch.”

I pursed my lips. “Don’t talk about the girls like that, Billy, they pay your fucking bills.”

“They also give me more headaches than I care for. Sort it out, Tatum, because otherwise she’s gone. I don’t need her problems on top of all the other shit we’re trying to deal with.”

I stood. “Is she here?”

He nodded. “Yes. And once you’ve fixed that, I need you to work out the scheduling issues they’re having before we go over the licencing for the new club.” Reaching for his phone, he added, “I’ll text you when the doc arrives.”

His concern meant something. It wasn’t often Billy Jones cared about someone enough to call a doctor for them. But gushing displays of emotion and thanks weren’t something either of us was good at or known for, so I simply nodded. “Thanks, Billy.”

As I turned to leave, he called out, “Six years, Tatum.”

I frowned as I glanced back at him. “Six years, what?”

Moving to where I stood, he came close and ran his finger down my cheek, so lightly I could hardly feel it. “It’s been six years since you smashed your car into mine. Six years since that day you told me to go fuck myself when I accused you of driving like an idiot.”

I had no idea where he was heading with this. “And what, Billy? You’re not going all fucking sentimental on me, are you?”

The hard glint in his eyes that he was known for remained when he spoke again, as did the hard tone he usually took, and yet there was something undeniably caring in his words. “I was fucking worried about you last night. Don’t do that shit again.”

I stared at him for a beat. “So long as no one else murders someone I love, we’re good.”