by L. Wilder
“No idea, brother, but we’ll find him.”
“Dammit.”
I turned to Viper as I said, “We’re gonna find ‘em and make them pay for fucking with the Sinners. And when I say make them pay, I mean make them burn. Every last fucking one of them.”
“Oh, there’s no doubt about that. These motherfuckers just bought themselves a fucking war like they’ve never seen.”
“I should’ve better prepared him for shit like this.” Lynch was Badger’s sponsor, and he took his role seriously. Knowing him like I did, I had no doubt that he was holding himself responsible for what had happened. “Poor kid didn’t stand a chance.”
“Don’t.” Viper turned to face him, looking him dead in the eye. “None of us would’ve been prepared for something like this.”
“Maybe, but I can’t help but feel partly responsible.” His voice was riddled with anguish as he asked, “What are we going to do with him?”
“The kid doesn’t have any family to contact, so we’ll take him in and clean him up. Once we get him ready, I’ll give Gary a call down at the funeral home to set up the cremation.” Sadly, this wasn’t the first time we’d found ourselves in this kind of situation, so we’d already established a protocol. Whenever a brother was killed and had no family or burial request, we called Gary. He owned the local funeral home. We’d made it worth his while to tend to our deceased. Once he’d cremated the body, we’d have a ceremony on the grounds and a last ride to spread the ashes. It was our way of paying tribute to those who rode alongside us, celebrating the life they’d dedicated to the club. Viper glanced down at Badger and shook his head. “Under the circumstances, we can’t do a last ride until we’ve dealt with the assholes who did this.”
“Understood.”
We carried Badger’s body into the infirmary and laid him down on one of the beds. Doc came over and emotion filled his eyes as he looked down at our young prospect. “Damn shame. The kid was gonna make a hell of a brother.”
“Yes, he was.”
Doc started cutting away at his charred leather cut and blood-soaked clothes, and when he pulled it back, my stomach sank at the sight of all the cuts and stab wounds that covered his burnt chest. From the looks of it, they’d been torturing the poor kid for days. Like the rest of us, Viper was distraught by the sight and grabbed a container from the counter, slamming it against the wall. “Damn it!”
“We’ll get ‘em, Prez,” Lynch assured.
“You’re damn straight we will.” Looking more eager than ever, Viper looked to me as he said, “We need to see if Shotgun’s made any progress with Grant.”
I nodded, then followed him out the door and down to the holding room. When we walked up to the window, Shotgun was towering over Grant as he sat in a chair with his hands bound behind his back. With his bruised and swollen face, he looked like he was on his last leg. Shotgun’s voice was low and threatening as he warned, “You’re not gonna be able to hold out forever. You might as well save yourself the trouble and tell us what we need to know.”
“I can’t...Casey...Sadie....I just can’t.”
Viper was looking straight ahead as he asked, “Who’s Casey and Sadie?”
“Got no idea.”
“It’s time to find out.”
Viper opened the door, and I followed him inside. I stood back as Viper went over to Shotgun. They spoke for a moment, and Shotgun filled him in on the fact that Casey and Sadie were Grant’s daughters. As soon as he had all the information, Viper went over and grabbed a blowtorch off the counter. He took it over and lit it in front of Grant. “Your buddies did a real number on one of my prospects, and they still have another. Got no idea what they’re doing to him, but I got a feeling it’s more of the same. So, my patience is running thin.”
Viper took the torch and lowered it to Grant’s knee causing him to bellow out in agony. “Please, for the love of God, stop!”
“You want me to stop, then tell me what I want to know!”
“I can’t!”
“You can and you will!” Viper growled, still holding the flame against Grant’s leg. The smell of burnt flesh filled the room, making it difficult to breathe, but Viper wasn’t letting up. “You want your daughters to make it out of all this alive, then you better get to talking cause we’re the only chance they’ve got.”
“He’ll kill them just like he killed Donavan’s kids...burned them alive when he tried to walk away.”
“He won’t get the chance.” Viper turned off the torch as he told him, “Not if we get to him first.”
“Don’t you see, you won’t win...not against him. He won’t let you.” Grant seemed completely sincere as he cried, “He’s crazy, and he’s set on vengeance!”
“Vengeance for what?”
“Said you forced him to take the fall for something that wasn’t his fault, and it ruined his life.”
“Take the fall for what?”
“Never really got the full story, but he was always talking about how you guys thought you ruled the world, and he couldn’t wait to be the one who brought you to your knees.” Grant’s eyes were wide with worry as he said, “This guy’s not right in the head. He won’t quit until this thing is done.”
“And neither will I.” Viper pulled a chair over and sat down in front of Grant. He kept his voice low and steady as he said, “You tell me where he is, and I’ll kill him. I’ll kill all of them. They’ll never have a chance to get to your girls.”
“But...”
“I’m gonna get him, one way or another,” Viper pressed. “So, just make this thing easier on yourself and tell me how to do it.”
“You swear it?”
“You tell us what we need to know, and yes, I’ll end him. You have my word on that.”
“Okay. I’ll tell you everything. Where do you want me to start?”
Viper stood, reached into his pocket, and pulled out his pocketknife. After he cut Grant’s restraints, he offered him a bottle of water and sat back down in front of him. After he took a long drink, Grant let out a deep breath, then said, “It wasn’t supposed to be like this. I never wanted any of it. Just wanted to get back at the guy who’d been screwing around with my wife, but once you’re in, there’s no gettin’ out. Skitz won’t let you. I don’t care what he does to my wife, but my girls… they’re all I got. I can’t lose them.”
“Who the fuck is Skitz?”
“He’s the one running the show. Says Skitz is his road name, but he’s the only one who has one. We all go by our last names.”
“Road name? So, you’re an MC?”
“No.”
“Then, are you a gang or what?”
“I don’t even know how to answer that. It started with some guys who wanted to get back at assholes who’d wronged them. It was just bullshit talk at first, but eventually it turned into something more.” Grant lowered his head as he admitted, “It got out of hand.”
“How so?”
“He made it where we couldn’t be traced. Got us new names and fake ids. He had us doing things that many of us didn’t want to do, but we didn’t have a choice. We couldn’t tell him no. We’d all seen what he’d done to Donavan and his family when he tried to walk away. We knew he’d do the same to us.” Clearly disturbed, Grant’s voice trembled as he explained, “At first, it was just beatin’ up a couple of guys here and there, but then, Skitz set a house on fire. Killed everyone in it. That was just the beginning.”
“I get the picture.” Viper crossed his arms as he leaned back in the chair. None of us had any idea who the fuck this Skitz guy was. Not that it really mattered. The guy was as good as dead. Hell, they all were. “How many are we dealing with here?”
“Fifteen or so, but you should know...They are all heavily trained. They live for this kind of shit.”
Viper exhaled a frustrated breath, then leaned forward, his face just inches from Grant’s. “Tell me where to find them.”
“They got an old house just outside of down
town. It’s in the Brookshire area next to the river, but don’t waste your time rushing over there to get ‘em. He’s been planning this attack for months...He’s coming here.” Grant shook his head as he told Viper, “After what you told me about him gettin’ to your boys, I’d say he’ll be coming soon. Very soon.”
“Let the motherfuckers come. It’ll be the last mistake they ever fucking make!” Viper stood, then went over to Shotgun. “Get the exact address of their house and anything else you think will help us get these motherfuckers.”
“You got it, Prez.”
As we started out of the room, Viper turned to me and said, “I’m calling church. Go down and let Lynch and Doc know.”
I nodded, then started down the hallway. When I walked into the infirmary, Doc and Lynch had already finished cleaning Badger up and had him dressed. They were working together to put on a new prospect jacket, one he could carry with him to the grave. I went over and gave them a hand. My chest tightened as I took one last look at Badger. While Doc and Lynch had done what they could, they hadn’t been able to hide the fact he’d been tortured. Once we had the jacket on, Lynch asked, “Any idea when we’re gonna hold the service?”
“That’s gonna have to be put on hold for now,” I answered. “Viper’s called church. We have a war to prepare for.”
“That mean Grant talked?”
“That he did.” I looked down at Badger and told him, “The tables have officially turned.”
“That’s what I wanted to hear.”
Doc and Lynch followed me down to the conference room. As I sat down, I looked over to Country’s empty seat. It just wasn’t the same without him there to spur us all on, but it helped knowing he was getting stronger every day, and it wouldn’t be long before he was back here with us.
As soon as everyone was seated, Viper announced, “We still don’t have all the information we need, but we’re close. Seems we’ve got ourselves a live wire looking to get his revenge—only we don’t know who the asshole is or why he’s seeking revenge. Doesn’t fucking matter. We know his location, and we’re gonna stop him in his tracks.”
“How much time to do we have?”
“Can’t be sure,” Viper answered without hesitation. “We have no idea what Badger or Danny told ‘em. After the shit they put Badger through, I don’t want to take any chances. We need to get the women and kids over to my place in case they are stupid enough to show up here. Country’s in no shape for war, so have him and a couple prospects go along with them.”
“When?”
“Now!” Viper lowered his head with a growl. “We need to move, and we need to move now!”
“You heard the man. Move it.” Axel stood as he said, “Lynch, Doc, and Rafe, you’re with me. Gonna need to get all the weapons and artillery out of the safe.”
We’d already gone to the storage lot’s vault and pulled out all our artillery when Danny and Badger came up missing. We wanted them on hand in case something like this came up, so we’d put them in the safe in the garage. “You got it.”
“Widow and Menace, you’re with me. We need to get everyone’s vests and prep the SUVs,” Hawk volunteered. “Anything else you need us to do?”
“Get with Shotgun. Make sure we have the exact address. I want every patched member and prospect in on this.”
We wasted no time dispersing into different groups. Once we’d gotten the families packed back up and sent over to Viper’s, Hawk and I went to grab the vests from storage and took them into the conference room where Viper and Axel were busy passing out weapons. Hawk and I were just about to head over to see Shotgun when the clubhouse alarm went off. The alarm was a way for our guards at the gate to signal us that someone was attempting to invade the grounds. As soon as it was engaged, all exterior locks would engage, preventing anyone from getting inside. We were all standing in the conference room, stunned by the bone-chilling shrill of the alarm. In all my years as a member, I’d never heard it, and I found it doubtful any of the other brothers had either. Until then, no one had ever dared to attack us on our grounds, but that was about to change.
Viper’s burner started ringing, but he didn’t have a chance to answer before a loud explosion erupted from the bar. Hell, the whole damn clubhouse shook like there’d been a fucking earthquake. A mix of panic and rage filled Viper’s voice as he roared, “Move!”
We each grabbed what weapons we could carry and raced towards the sound of the explosion. Dust and smoke filled the hallway as we made our way to the bar, and when we reached the door, we were all completely stunned by the sight that laid before us. A set of headlights glared at us from where the back wall of the bar had once been. Brick and mortar toppled down over the city dump truck that had crashed through our clubhouse. We all watched with disbelief as the truck backed up and left a gaping hole in the exterior of the building. It was dark outside, but we could see the shadowy figures jumping out of the rear of the truck, then quickly disappearing out of view. When several of the men dressed in all black came slipping through the busted brick and mortar, my brothers quickly dispersed, searching the best place to fire upon our unwelcomed guests.
I didn’t move. I just stood there watching as they inched closer through the haze of dust. When Lynch spotted me in the doorway, he shouted, “Widow! Move your ass, brother!”
I should’ve heeded his warning. I should’ve moved, or at the very least, ducked for cover, but that’s what a rational man would’ve done. At that moment, I was too fueled by rage to be rational. With chaos erupting around me, I lifted my Glock and aimed its barrel at one of the men. I pulled back on the trigger and the bullet pierced right through his head. I watched with utter satisfaction as his lifeless body dropped to the floor, but that feeling of gratification didn’t last long. My shot had drawn the attention of the others, but I’d expected it. I wanted them to see that I’d taken out one of their own. I wanted those motherfuckers to come for me, so I could kill them—every last one of them. I was about to aim at the next guy when Lynch grabbed me and pulled me into the hall.
“What the fuck, man?” Lynch roared as he crouched down with the others. “You trying to get yourself killed out there?”
“I had it handled.”
Before he had a chance to argue, Viper whispered, “If they make it past the bar, we’re as good as done.”
We fired off several rounds, slowing their advance. Knowing there were others outside, I leaned over to Viper and said, “If we stay here, we’re sittin’ ducks. It’s only a matter of time before the others make their way inside.”
“He’s right.” Hawk thought a moment, then said, “What about the roof?”
Viper was quick to ask, “What about it?”
“It would give us the vantage point we need to take these motherfuckers out before they can get inside,” Hawk explained.
“Go,” Viper ordered. “Take Rafe, Menace, and Widow with you. We’ll stay here and try to hold them off.”
Hawk nodded, then without further delay, he led Rafe and me down the hall and up to the dropdown stairway. Menace had installed it a few years back, thinking it would be beneficial for us to have access to the roof. None of us found it truly necessary, believing a moment like this would never occur, but thankfully, we went along with his suggestion and had it installed. When we got up on the roof, Hawk motioned his hand, instructing us to spread out. The roof was relatively flat, making it easier to maneuver as I eased over to the south side of the building. Being careful not to be seen, I leaned over the edge of the roof and found two guys standing at our back door. My chest tightened as I watched them prepare to mount an explosive device to the door. Knowing time wasn’t on our side, I stepped back and rushed over to Hawk. “We gotta move! They’re setting up explosives on the exterior doors.”
“Fuck! If they get inside, we’re done.”
Hawk signaled for Rafe and Menace to follow as we positioned ourselves above the two men. Hawk pulled out his M9 Berretta and attached the silencer, hopi
ng to keep our whereabouts under wraps. He shot off three rounds, quickly killing two of the men below. We immediately moved to the second entryway, and Hawk was preparing to take his shot when bullets started whipping around us. Menace ducked for cover as he shouted, “Down on your right.”
Rafe aimed his pistol and shot off several rounds, and within seconds, mayhem ensued. While we had the advantage of being overhead, it was dark and extremely difficult to see where these assholes were hiding until they actually fired their weapons, and we could see the small explosion of light emit from their weapons. Even though it wasn’t easy, we remained calm and did our best to remain patient, knowing it was the only way we could draw them out. Just as I’d hoped, the assholes were eager to take us out and fired round after round in our direction, but their efforts were in vain. We had the perfect cover and were able to take them out, one by one.
We’d wiped out over half their crew when the roof shook and a billow of smoke came rising up from below. I rushed over to see what had happened and discovered that one of the explosives they’d placed on the exterior door had blown, giving them full access to inside of the clubhouse. “Fuck!”
When I saw a couple of them rushing towards the building, I quickly aimed my gun at the first guy’s chest and fired, killing him instantly. I was about to take a second shot when someone came hobbling around the corner with a shotgun in hand. Without stopping, he aimed and shot the second guy before he’d made it inside. I leaned down for a better look, and when I saw it was Country, I shouted, “What the fuck are you doing here, brother?”
