“Last chance,” Slade warned without turning.
“So what?” The Blade spat. “You think you can take all of us.” The guy laughed like it was the funniest thing he’d ever heard. “We’re going to put you in your place. Rowdy didn’t do it right, but we sure as hell will.” The idiot pulled out a knife.
“Oooh,” Spider mimicked the guy’s earlier scary noise. “A pig sticker.” Spider smirked and didn’t even give any thought to drawling his side arm.
“Too bad that’s not the way you like getting stuck.” Lita laughed at his innuendo and Spider joined him. The guy was still rolling with the gay references and Spider loved it.
“Yeah, too bad.” Spider took a step closer to the Satan’s Blade who now held a butterfly knife up in front of him. “Because I’m a sweetheart.” Spider tossed the asshole a sexy wink. “I’ll give you the first move.”
The guy smirked and Spider saw his chest move long before his arm even attempted to lash out at him. Spider side stepped into the asshole’s sloppy attempt to slice him open somewhere, grabbed his arm, and spun his body around before he planted his size twelve into the chest of the guy who was closest to him in height.
That asshole stumbled back and Spider used the knife wielding idiot he still held as a shield to block the swing that was aimed at his head from the guy’s buddy. He felt the idiot’s head take the hit, but he was already focused on the last two guys who had yet to join the fray.
Spider grinned and took the first man down with an easy leg swipe. He laughed and landed a punch into a kidney of the moron he still held. The man howled and Spider cackled. He was having fun. It had been a long time since he’d been in a brawl and he was thoroughly enjoying this one.
At least he was until a bottle of beer cracked him in the back of the head. Unlike Hollywood would have everyone believe, the bottle didn’t shatter when it slammed into his skull. Bottles were as good as bricks in a fight and being hit with a fucker hurt like hell.
Spider roared and spun both himself and the asshole whose wrist he still grasped because the Blade was still holding the knife. He pulled the guy between him and the bottle holding Blade member. He barely pulled his head back far enough to receive more than a graze from the guy he was using as a shield.
In a move that was almost too fast to follow, Spider shifted and brought the guy’s arm down across his thigh. The knife went skittering from the Satan’s Blades’ hand in the scream of agony from Spider breaking his arm to the point that bones broke the skin. It was almost enough to end the fight. Almost. Bottle boy took another swing at Spider’s head at the same time Spider noticed two of the other Blades trying to close in on him from either side.
“He always gets to have all the fun,” Lita groused and took another sip of beer while he watched Spider fight with the three remaining Blades. He had cringed inwardly when Spider got clocked with the beer bottle, but forced himself to remain seated on his stool as if this was nothing more than a bit of amusement to kill time.
Slade knew what Lita’s comment was really asking. He could only catch about half of the brawl in the mirror behind the bar. However, he still could see Spider and the man remained steady on his feet and holding his own even if he was outnumbered. Slade didn’t think Lita thought otherwise, either. If anything, his teammate and friend just wanted to get in on the action.
“He won the toss,” Slade replied casually and knew Lita would understand his answer meant Lita shouldn’t get involved.
Spider ducked the bottle that was aimed for his head again and thrust out with his palm. He connected with the man’s diaphragm and sent the asshole stumbling back. The bottle dropped from the guy’s hand and it shattered on the floor before he bent over and tried to breathe.
He didn’t even notice because he was now focused on the Blade who charged him from the left with fists swinging. Spider didn’t even need to think to counter the guy’s sloppy punches. He returned the favor and barely felt the last guy jump on his back. An arm wrapped around his throat and he felt a boot slam into his thigh right before he felt a fist to the side of his head.
Motherfucker!
Two jabs to the face of the guy in front of him dropped the biker and freed up Spider’s attention to focus on the annoyance that was clinging to his back. He raised both of his large hands over his head. Spider laced his fingers in the asshole’s hair at the nape of his neck and squeezed to get a grip. A sharp pull with his arms after he barely leaned forward sent the guy over his head to slam on the floor.
The asshole had the wind knocked out of him and wasn’t likely to be getting up anytime soon. Still, Spider stomped one of his shit kickers down on the man’s thigh. The fucker hit him in the head after all and the sound of the guy’s scream brought a smile to his face.
Spider glanced around the bar at the other Satan’s Blades’ members. His look invited anyone to come and fuck with him if they dared. He didn’t see any returned gazes that were challenging. If anything, nothing but respect shown from the eyes of the men who had watched him take out five of their own. Spider gave the room a nod, tugged his vest so that it rested on his body where it should, then gave the room a grin.
“Damn, I’m thirsty now.” Spider chuckled his words and his mood seem to signal the tension in the bar was taken care of and everyone should go back to whatever they were doing before the stupidity started.
Lita laughed and Slade shook his head like he was used to his enforcer’s behavior. All three men ignored the moans of pain and the “you broke my fucking arm” that the instigator kept repeating as if the whole bar hadn’t watched Spider snap his arm like a twig. The noises from the Blades that were the result of Spider’s beat down were still echoing in the bar when Trigger and Payne walk through the door.
“They are here,” Lita commented because he was facing the door.
“Yep,” Slade agreed while he looked in the mirror at the two men approaching them.
Payne followed Trigger into the Minions and had to school his expression at the scene behind where his teammates sat at the bar. There was obviously another confrontation between Slade and his team and the members of the Blades. Only this time it wasn’t one Blade that his teammates had fucked up. No, it was five.
Slade and Lita looked fine from what he could see while he approached. The new agent that Payne didn’t know looked like he had taken the brunt of whatever went down. It wasn’t until Payne finally reached his teammates that he realized the man only looked a little roughed up because he was the only one who’d been trading blows with the Blades. A bruise was already starting to rise around his left eye and along the right side of his jaw.
Payne didn’t know the man, yet, who was new his coworker, but he was still impressed by the skills the guy had to have to still be standing after a five to one fight.
“Shots, Sophie,” Trigger called out when he came to a stop in front of where Lita leaned on the bar. It was obvious that Trigger was ignoring the club members who were still trying to recover from the beat down they received.
Slade finally turned on his stool and faced the Satan’s Blades’ Lieutenant. He purposely frowned and allowed his gaze to display how he felt about the hospitality they were receiving from the Blades.
“We need a table,” Trigger declared and turned away without waiting for a reply before walking to the back of the bar.
“What the hell did you do now, Slade?” Payne whispered quietly when they all started to follow Trigger deeper into the bar.
“I didn’t do anything,” Slade replied just as softly with a grin.
They didn’t say anything more before they pulled out chairs and sat down at a roundtable. Payne took a seat next to Trigger as was expected of him. Slade took the seat directly across from Trigger. Lita and Spider flanked him by taking seats on each side of Slade. There remained an empty chair on each side of Lita and Spider and those empty chairs were symbolic of the lines drawn to signify they belonged to different clubs.
“Never knew t
he Knights to cause trouble with clubs.” Trigger glared at Slade and his team.
Slade didn’t alter his relaxed appearance before he spoke, “the Knights have never received such a hostile welcome before.” Slade almost growled. “If your club has a problem with the Knights, then you should have manned up earlier and just told us we weren’t welcome even if our brother is now one of yours.”
“The Blades don’t have any problems with the Knights,” Trigger spat out indignantly. “If we did, do you honestly think that we would allowed your brother to join our MC?”
“Well, from where I’m sitting, six of your members have started shit with us in the last six hours. That’s what?” Slade glanced at Lita and Spider as if he expected them to answer even though he didn’t want them to say a word. And they didn’t.
“One an hour?” Slade turned back to stare at Trigger. “If the Blades don’t officially have an issue with the Knights, it is obvious that at least some of your members do.”
“The Knights don’t just start shit, you know that Trig,” Payne joined the conversation and received glares from both Slade and Trigger for his effort.
“They’ll be dealt with,” Trigger assured.
“They already have been,” Slade countered firmly in an even tone.
Silence surrounded them for a moment while Slade and Trigger stared each other down. Trigger finally broke under the weight of Slade’s gaze.
“The probationary and junior members of the club will be reminded of their place. Their behavior is not representative of the Blades.”
“Maybe not, but it sure reflects on your reputation.” Slade knew he was taking a gamble when he pushed his chair back and stood from the table. Spider and Lita followed his lead.
“It was good seeing you again, brother, but I don’t think the Blades are the business partners we are looking for to help close a quarter mil deal.”
Slade make sure his manner was full of displeasure. There wasn’t a man at the table who heard that disappointing tone and thought it was directed anywhere other than at Payne for choosing the Blades as his new family.
“You’re missed, Payne.” Slade looked pointedly at Payne. “You’ll always be a Knight even if you’re now a Blade. Take care, brother.”
Slade didn’t wait for Payne to reply or for Trigger to say something in an attempt to keep them talking before he turned and walked out of Hell’s Minions with Lita and Spider on his heels.
##~~##
Thirteen
Knight leaned against an alley wall. He was hidden in the fading shadows and unless someone came out of the bar and looked directly where he stood, he wouldn’t be seen. Still, he wished the damn sun would set already. He would be more comfortable in thirty minutes when it did even though he was confident no one would spot him where he currently stood to watch the bar.
This was the part of undercover work that most vice cops hated. The watching and waiting. Knight wasn’t one of them. He gleaned all sorts of information about a perp from just standing around and doing nothing, but observing whatever the hell they might be up to. Being able to recall every detail later was the only bonus to his unique memory.
More bikes pulled into the Hell’s Minions parking lot and Knight noted every make, model, tag, and accessory on them. The Satan’s Blades’ members arrived in small groups of two or three, but rarely alone. Some of the members had women with them, but most didn’t. Knight hoped that was the norm because he hated having to take down women. Especially, violent women and he had no doubt that these women would get violent when the raid went down.
About a half hour after the sun went down and Knight was almost convinced none of the Satan’s Blades would be leaving anytime soon, he was proved wrong. A biker with a crewcut stepped outside and walked to what Knight figured was his bike. Knight expected the guy to climb on and leave. Instead, the biker dug around in his saddlebags and removed something too small for Knight to see.
“You see this? It’s probably nothing though,” Knight spoke to Zep and Hunt through the device Hunt pinned on him.
There was no way for either of his teammates to reply. None of them expected to need to communicate with each other so they weren’t wearing that equipment. It really wasn’t needed for this type of looksee and Knight was glad they weren’t using it because if he was discovered, that shit would totally blow the op.
Knight never took his eyes off the muscular biker and made sure that he faced the relevant bikes to ensure Hunt could get a good look at the man. He had no idea how much Hunt could zoom the small camera, but hopefully it would be enough to get a good picture of the guy. Because they would need a picture since the guy had casually strolled down the line of bikes before he stopped in front of Slade’s.
From where Knight stood, it looked like the biker was admiring Slade’s Harley, even when the guy moved between Slade and Spider’s bikes and removed his phone. The biker started taking pictures of Slade’s bike, which wasn’t as unusual as it might seem.
In fact, Knight believed that was all the guy was doing until he dropped his phone. The biker bent over to pick it up and if Knight hadn’t been watching so closely, he wouldn’t have noticed the flex of the guys arm moved in a way that indicated he didn’t just pick up his phone. The man stood and took a few more pictures of Slade, Lita, and Spider’s bikes before he put his phone away and returned inside.
Knight had to give the biker credit. If he hadn’t been watching so closely and knew what he was seeing, he wouldn’t have thought anything about what had just went down. The guy was so casual about everything he did that Knight was sure if anyone without undercover experience witnessed his behavior they probably wouldn’t think anything about it.
“Think that’s our ICE agent,” Knight muttered. “Hope you got a good picture because I’m sure he did something to Slade’s bike.
Less than twenty minutes later, Slade practically stormed out of the bar with Spider and Lita hot on his heels. His lover look pissed off and Knight could admit that he wasn’t sure if it was an act for Slade’s cover or not. Regardless, Slade being pissed off for pretend or for real couldn’t be a good thing. The three agents acting as KoV club members straddled their bikes and fired them up.
“They’re heading out, Zep.”
Knight stepped further back into the alley and was fully hidden in the shadows by the time his lover and teammates rumbled by. He was just about to step out of the alley when the sound of two bikes roared to life in front of Hell’s Minions. Knight quickly took a step back into the shadows of the alley, but not before he got a good look at both riders.
Zep had started the car when Knight told them Slade was on the move. He watched his teammates approach and it was just his shitty luck that Spider was the only one of them to notice him sitting in the car when they rode by. The ATF agent must have spotted him early because when they passed the car, Spider looked directly at him.
His breath hitched right along with his heart, but he wouldn’t let his issues with Spider interfere with the job he had to do. There was no reason he had to interact with Spider in order to deliver the surveillance equipment to Slade.
Zep was just about to turn on the street when Knight’s voice spoke softly from his cell phone. How Hunt had connected Knight’s audio recorder to the speaker of his cell, Zep would never know or understand. However, he was glad Hunt did whatever the hell he did so that he could hear Knight.
“Two Blades are following Slade. Payne isn’t one of them.”
Zep tore his gaze away from his rearview mirror. He hadn’t realized he was watching Slade’s team disappear down the road behind him until he was forced to focus back in the direction of Hell’s Minions.
The two bikers Knight warned him about approached him quickly and Zep looked down at his phone as if he were checking a map for directions. He waited until they passed him with a loud roar and were several blocks behind him before he made a U-turn and followed.
He could no longer see Slade’s group becaus
e he was tailing the two Satan’s Blades from a distance great enough that he would rather risk losing Slade than be caught tailing any of them. Hunt could always locate Slade’s team if need be through their bio tracker’s, but the sooner they got Slade the equipment, the better.
The two Satan’s Blades pulled into the parking lot of a small motel. Zep kept driving and pulled into a gas station a few blocks down. He was torn. On one hand, Zep knew he should just go back and pick up Knight now that they knew where Slade’s team was staying. On the other, Zep could pull into the parking lot and get a room. His urge to backup Slade made up his mind for him and he pulled back out into traffic.
The motel parking lot was just like every other small shithole parking lot that Zep had ever seen. The office was at the front toward the road. Zep pulled into a space and glanced down the lot before he got out of the rental.
Slade’s team’s bikes were parked spread out between two spaces. The two Satan’s Blades’ bikes parked parallel to them. All five men stood in the parking lot between the bikes and the motel. Slade, Lita, and Spider faced off with the Blades and none of them looked happy.
Zep forced himself to look away from his teammates. The Satan’s Blades might be focused on Slade’s team, but if they caught him taking too much of an interest in them it wouldn’t be a good thing. He stepped out of the car and purposely didn’t look over his shoulder at the group of bikers facing off in the parking lot.
He pushed into the motel office and was immediately assaulted with smells that he would forever associate with owners from India. He had no idea if the stench was due to incense, food, or lack of soap and water, but it seem like the only time he encountered the nose twitching smell was when he walked into these type of motels.
Zep let his palm drop on the silver bell and stared through the Plexiglas at the closed door that likely led to the owner’s apartment. He didn’t have to wait long before the door opened and an Indian man stepped through.
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