“Yeah, apparently those did me in,” the biker admitted with a weak smile. She could always count on her aunts to make her feel guilty about being a Bastard in one way or another.
“Don’t party too hard tonight. We have brunch tomorrow, my house. Ten o’clock. Your official welcome home party from the family,” Kristy informed her.
Destiny had been to more of Kristy and Stella’s family affairs than she had been on bike rides. The women liked to remind the club of their role. The glue that kept the family that was the club together. The brunch would be calm and Kristy’s huge dining room and the outdoor patio would be full up.
The six of them that made up the immediate “family”—Alec, Kristy, Stella, Eric, Destiny, and Fabio—would all be automatic attendants. The rest of the patch members of Sweetwater and maybe the prospects were all invited. Rarely did one miss a family meal. Doing so without a proper excuse was more dangerous than doing time in Huntsville labeled a rat. Only excuse was club business. Then Alec took the heat if Kristy found it unimportant that they be gone.
With just the family and the patch members alone, the total was thirteen. Those who had old ladies would bring them. Vince, Bryant, and Jay were all married so their wives would be present. As well as Jay, Bryant, Charlie, and Riccardo’s kids most likely would be added to the mix, making their numbers push twenty-five.
But there were almost always thirty people at least. Good thing Alec had a generous income and a large, accommodating home.
But there was no expense spared for family. Above all else, the club was supposed to be a family first and MC second. And family was the most important thing.
****
Business picked up and the afternoon flew by. Soon Destiny was forgetting that pounding in her head. Shop closed up at six today but Stella and Kristy took off around five to get their grocery shopping done.
At ten till six, Fabio waltzed through the front door.
“If you’re here to order parts, you’re closing up yourself,” Destiny told him as she started to shut down the computers.
“Nah. Just here to see how things are going and to check up on you,” he replied, leaning on the counter.
“I don’t need checked up on. But you can take out the trash.” She put him to work.
When the work was all done and Destiny was locking up, she turned to Fabio. “And the real reason you came?”
“Talked to Bryant and Jay. They are all for you joining. Bryant will back Alec, seems he thinks standing united is better than divided on any issues. The both can see the good you bring to the table: lifetime committer, family, military, damn good with an arsenal, dealing with all that bullshit back in Fort Worth.
“They will vote yes. Charlie I haven’t gotten to talk to. Drew same deal. Though Bryant says he has been touchy about the idea of bringing a girl into the ranks here. Everything to do with gender, I suppose. No personal beef?”
“I hardly know the guy. Besides, if it was personal beef, we would settle it with our fists. Not a vote. You know that.”
“Now we both know I’d have no problem getting in the ring with you, except I might lose. But there are still a few in this patch that would think twice before hitting a girl. It’s not in most of the Bastard’s code.”
“True but I’m not a normal girl, am I?” Destiny asked with a smile.
“Vixen to a fault.”
“Always.”
“Hope you saved up some energy. Just because you’re on your mini vacation from Fort Worth waiting on transfer doesn’t mean you’re getting out of your duties. We got security to run tonight. But of course since you’re all manly, maybe you won’t mind working at the club so much.”
Destiny rolled her eyes. “I’m strictly dickly. Besides, I think first order of business when Fort Worth is replaced with Sweetwater”—she pointed to the patch that read her charter—“is to suggest some diversity in our business portfolio.”
Fabio laughed hysterically.
“I’m just saying. They’re a lot of horny housewives in the area who would pay the big bucks while the kiddies are at school for some fresh entertainment.”
“And who would you get onstage?”
“I think a real tough-ass Harley rider with ink could make bank up there. Why not give it a shot, Fabio?” She laughed.
“I’ll get on that pole when you do, Double D.”
Destiny punched him in the arm. “Let’s ride, cowboy.”
4
Not quite time to hit the club for the night, Fabio and Destiny decided to swing by the local Mexican restaurant for fajitas and margaritas.
“So fill me in on what’s been going on since I’ve been gone,” Destiny said once they had placed their order.
“Since you left seven years ago? Damn, I was just prospecting then,” Fabio started with a smartass grin.
“Don’t remind me how long it’s been, jackass. But I meant since I left the last time. Before Fort Worth, especially this new security detail.”
“Bryant did six months in the Fed Correctional in Bastrop last year,” Fabio began.
“Yeah, battery, right? Got caught beating the shit out of that kiddie coke pusher?”
“Yeah. Well, thing is, there’s a lot of BPs up there, you know how it is. Black Pride ain’t never taken to a Bastard. There’s a few color gangs we can deal with on a low trust level but…” Fabio trailed off. No need to recite history. Fabio was four years older than Destiny, making him seven when the Black Pride members gunned down her mother in their front yard.
Stella had picked the boys up from school: Houston in first grade, Fabio in second grade, Austin in fourth. They were the first on the scene just moments after the black Mercedes raced away. Stella had tried to keep them from seeing. It damn near drove her brothers insane. Seeing their mother lying on the ground, riddled in bullets, and covered in blood. Their little sister much safer beneath her mother’s protective body.
“Anyway. There’s no Bastards up in Bastrop. A few associative friends but no one we could really trust. Alec reached out to Cochise for some more… racial friendly protection for him inside. The Warriors in exchange said they were looking to expand their market all the way across the board.”
“This is news to anyone in Fort Worth. I mean we have few Warriors but still… new product?”
“Yeah but we’re really not sure what. Apparently Cochise’s brother-in-law is one of the Warriors doing time in Bastrop. Buddied up with Bryant pretty good. Had his back. Rumor mill says the brother-in-law will be Cochise’s new second when he gets free in a year. But for now they’re working from distant terms.
“The Warriors waited until Bryant got out before they called their favor in, going on three months ago. The first run was a favor, we all figured we would be in and out and done with it. For keeping Bryant alive, ya know? Two weeks after the first drop, Alec calls church. Says we got the opportunity to run protection for these semi-trucks they got running into Arizona, Houston, Dallas, and all kinds of other places. Seems the Warriors have been making some new friends. They offered good money and the chance to bring in the other charters who will be on the designated routes.”
“Not all the other charters have as fat of pocket books as we do. Fort Worth is holding its own but nothing in comparison to Sweetwater.”
“Exactly. Arizona and Fort Worth will definitely be dealt in, and the Four Corner boys, if this goes through. Putting at least three other chapters to work. Not everyone can hold down decent paying day jobs with some of their records. Alec says we can’t be selfish about the chance to help our brothers earn.”
“What are we protecting though?”
“No idea. It’s under a ‘don’t ask don’t tell’ policy.”
“And Alec and your dad’s okay with this?”
“The way I figure, they’re not too excited about it but hell, maybe knowing what’s in them trucks would only make things worse.”
Their food came and the waitress refilled their margaritas. Destiny
was quiet for a moment.
“What about the BPs?”
“We’ve seen no resistance from them on the runs. In fact, most of the BPs in these parts have been silent.”
“It’s the silence that’s most deadly. It’s usually followed by a shit storm.”
“I know. I figure it’s going to hit either us or Fort Worth hard here shortly. I got information saying that hood block is emptied out. Best I can tell, they’re waiting for a war to start. My guess is it’s with the Warriors. It’s been a long time since we had any real beef with them,” Fabio informed her.
“Maybe in Sweetwater, but the tensions been escalating in Fort Worth lately. We’re in the small arms and protection business as usual, but the Pride members are getting antsy. Making more noise than normal. Stirring up trouble where there is none.”
“You think that’s where the Sweetwater boys went?”
“I hope not. If it is, I’m in the wrong place.”
“Or the right, you don’t need to be tied up in that mess.”
“I’m a damned Bastard; it’s my business to get messy when I need to!”
“But you and your brothers have more beef with the BP than anyone else! It’s what drives Houston insane. It killed Austin. You have to put your own problems with them aside. The Pride that killed your mother twenty-two years ago died twenty-two years ago. Your father, mine, and Alec made sure of that,” Fabio said, staring her in the eye. “Your mother gave her life shielding you. To what? Go off the deep end all these years later and get yourself killed?”
“Eat your damned food. We have to get to the club.”
****
Unlike the clubhouse, The Devil’s Stomping Ground or The Club as it was referred to, wasn’t a place that Destiny had childhood memories of. Stella and Kristy made sure to it that the kids never were near the place, especially the four of them: Austin, Houston, Fabio, and Destiny.
This was held true until one of two things happened. You turned eighteen and were legal to be in the place as long as the women didn’t find out, or two, and the most popular choice, you began prospecting.
As a child and a teenager, not even Destiny’s extreme curiosity could tempt her into sneaking through the back doors and into the strip joint. There was simply nothing that enticed her about it.
In fact, she was on her first leave from the Marines before she stepped foot into the place. Even now she could count how many times she had been inside the mirrored building.
This business wasn’t kept separate from the Bastard name. Given the fact its name gave reference to the club was a clear clue. The strip joint was the Sweetwater Bastards’ number one income. It employed, on average, fifteen to twenty half-witted bimbo girls who used their bodies to make money, a few accountants that typically wore a cut themselves, a few older women who had been retired from the poles and used as bartenders, and a couple of extra men for body guards when the Bastards found themselves other pressing obligations.
Destiny and Fabio parked in the back lot and left their helmets on the handlebars of their bikes and climbed the back ramp and into the large rectangular two-story building.
The club doors opened at eight and closed at five in the morning and Destiny figured it was already going to be a long night.
She wasn’t in the mood for this.
“Who wants camera duty?” Riccardo asked as they walked into the security office.
“Me!” Destiny was the first to shout out like a child claiming candy.
“Alright, you go on at say… one?” Riccardo replied.
“One? Oh hell nah, I’m not going out there with those horny little men trying to get me naked. I’ll kill one of them,” Destiny called out.
“What’s wrong with that?” Jay laughed from where he sat on a table, eating chips and drinking a Bud Light.
“Easy now. That’s Alec and Eric’s niece,” Riccardo replied.
“So? They ain’t coming in tonight,” Jay replied. “What about you, Fabio? Pulling to see Double D on stage?”
“Hell no. Not with her itchy trigger finger,” Fabio replied.
“Besides, we have a deal. If I get on stage, he has to too. Draw in some of those housewives maybe?” Destiny wiggled her eyebrows and caused a riot of laughter.
“No, but seriously. Destiny has to be in early tonight. Ma and Kristy’s having that brunch in the morning in her honor. They want her in a good mood and bright-eyed and bushy-tailed. She’s got to be out of here by two. Kristy’s orders,” Fabio said in Destiny’s defense and she wished he hadn’t.
“When are they going to stop treating you like a baby?” Charlie asked.
“Bite me, Charlie. Your grandma still comes down every time your nose runs to baby your ass,” Destiny shot down. “Besides I’m the only daughter.”
“Who all’s on duty tonight?” Fabio asked Riccardo.
“Us five and Vat, wherever he is. The regular hired hands have the night off. Speaking of Vat, will someone go find his freak show ass? He scares the girls,” Riccardo replied.
“I’m on it,” Charlie said and headed out of the room.
“Destiny. Go see if the girls are ready. We got to get this show on the road,” Riccardo ordered and Destiny rolled her eyes and headed for the “locker room.”
“Shirt, Destiny,” Fabio said as he tossed her a black T-shirt that had neon red lettering of Security on the front and Devil’s Bastard on the back. “I took the privilege of getting one made in your size today. You’re welcome.”
“Thanks!” Destiny replied with a hint of sarcasm and tossed her cut on the chair with the rest of the cuts.
It’s not that she detested the club. It was honest… well, legal work. And her father’s share in it had built her a good college fund from the time the club purchased it when she was five till the time he died when she was ten. A college fund that sat still drawing interest in a Sweetwater bank.
Some of the girls were real nice. Most of them were down on their luck, needing a quick way to make some cash. College students, single moms, and just tough luck girls doing it for themselves. Others were just horrible, vindictive sluts.
Destiny walked out of the security office and into the show room. Bar in the middle, four stages and poles set up around the area in a circle. Mirrors lining the walls and black lights everywhere, including the DJ booth in the back right corner.
The doors hadn’t opened yet so the place was relatively empty. The house DJ was in the corner setting up and two of the bartenders in various stages of undress leered at her from behind the bar.
To them, she was poaching on their turf. Most of them wanted to be club old ladies, she knew. And while the boys sampled their wares from time to time, she knew none of them were fit to be old ladies to the club. They had seen her around before probably. Especially those who had been here for six months or so, as Fort Worth had been down for various reasons. They knew who she was and if they didn’t, the Bastard logo on her back would tell it all.
Even old ladies didn’t get to wear the full patch logo. Some had various tattoos resembling it and their dedication to the club, but none wore it. She did.
Destiny straightened herself to walk tall, tough, and proud. She pushed her way through the doors of the locker room and glanced at the girls preparing for work.
“Ready?” she asked.
“And who the hell are you?” a blonde with more attitude than respect asked.
“I’m one of your employers,” Destiny said, turning to face her square on. She was ready to face her first challenge of the night.
“Bitch, please. I don’t work for anyone here but Fabio,” the blonde said as she lit a cigarette.
“Shut up, Kari,” a voice said from the back. “We’re employed by the Devil’s Bastards of Sweetwater. We answer first to Riccardo or Alec and Bryant, you know that. I’d respect her too. Destiny is liable to sit at the head of the table long before Fabio will. She also happens to be the only Bastard who can morally beat the hell out of you.”
“Anastasia?”
“Heard a rumor you were coming home, Double D. Wanted to make your party but I was held up here,” the black-haired beauty said, pushing her way to the front of the girls as the blonde bimbo, Kari, rolled her eyes.
“What the hell you doing here?” Destiny said, wrapping her old friend in a hug despite the fact she wore very little material.
“Got myself in a money jam a few months back. I had to leave Dallas on a run with a five-month-old baby. Houston brought me back here. I wouldn’t take club charity so here I am.”
Anastasia had been the daughter of a patch member who had been killed during the mess with the Black Pride just a few months after Destiny’s own mother. Raised under the watchful eye of the club, she had been one of Destiny’s only girlfriends throughout school.
“Whatever happened to those big plans of going to L.A.?” Destiny asked.
“Oh I did. I stayed in L.A. for three years after high school. Just before you got shot I came home to see mama for a spell. Eventually I wound up like she did, on the back of a Harley. A patch member of the Duro Ochos, pregnant less than a year into it. Abandoned in Dallas two months after that. I held on as long as I could. But the Duro Ochos don’t look out for their own the way the Bastards do.
“My amour”—she pronounced the word with a hint of obvious sarcasm—“was caught in a drug bust, sent to prison in Texarkana, and shanked dead within a month.”
“Sorry to hear that,” Destiny told her.
“I’m not. He was a bastard and the bad kind, not the good,” Anastasia smiled. “Besides, I’m home now. Looks like everyone else is coming back too.”
A rap came on the door. “Five minutes!” Fabio called and the girls who had gathered to stare at Destiny when she walked in scattered back to their chore of getting ready.
Kari made of show of flaunting herself out the door and toward Fabio.
“She’s a heartless bitch. Watch out for her. She has Fabio in her sights and the way she destroys men…” Anastasia told her old friend.
“Don’t worry. I’ll take care of it,” Destiny said and followed after Kari.
The Devils Bastards MC: Destiny Dallas Callaghan Page 3
