by Blue Remy
* * * *
Romeo drove them to the clubhouse, giving Mace ample time to think, which was a bad thing. After the shit Amy said, Mace could barely think straight. He felt bad about shooting his cousin, and would probably have killed himself if he had harmed a single hair on his head.
He called Tony to set up the stop after Romeo called and he was alone. Their first call had been interrupted by Amy, but the cards fell into perfect place when Romeo wanted to go out. He was supposed to stop them on the bikes, not in front of the damn club. Mace wasn’t sure if it was Tony or not, since the lights had been blinding him. He was left little choice with how the officer was reacting to the situation; the only option was shoot or be shot.
To his relief, it was Tony, but that still did not get rid of the knot that had grown in his gut. He had harmed a family member. Tony called and let him know he broke three ribs and was out of work for two weeks, but it was better than being dead, like the news reported.
The two made their way in, Mace figuring they were going to end up in the Chapel Room, but Stone had everyone in the main den area, seated on the couches. After everyone greeted each other, drinks were poured and they all sat.
Stone called the meeting to order. “I have everyone here, including the prospect, because of the incident last night. The news is reporting there were no witnesses, when in fact, there were two.”
Mace’s stomach sank. If there were witnesses that could place them at the scene, they might know Tony was alive. He was going to be royally fucked. Shifting in his seat, he took a sip of his coffee to hide his worry. These guys would kill him if they found out.
“The two said that they saw two bikers, one shot the cop, and then took off. The two witnesses ran after that. Luckily, they happened to be supporters of ours and took the time to call me and let me know.” Stone looked around the room.
Okay, he could breathe again. No one knew. If the PD did it right, they would have had the meat wagon scoop Tony up and take him to the hospital, roll him into the body bag, and release him in a government blacked out vehicle. He was glad the news wasn’t allowed to release the name of the officer, though it was unlikely the club would make a connection to him.
“If any of you know anything about what happened, start running your mouths, because if it wasn’t any of us, then it had to be Temer Gallo.”
Romeo cleared his throat, motioning for Mace to keep quiet. “It was me and Mace.” He held up his hand to stop Stone from going off on them. The rest of the group burst out in hysterics.
“What the hell happened?”
“Who shot the cop?”
“Why?”
Stone let out a shrill whistle, shutting everyone up. “Let him speak.” He glared at Romeo, warning clear as day in his voice. “You better have a damn good explanation.”
Romeo nodded while letting out a breath. “Mace was trying to protect me. I had two girls on my arm, and enough pot to put me in prison for a couple years. I panicked. Mace saw it and reacted as a true brother would. He kept my ass out of lock up.”
Stone’s face grew hard while Romeo spoke. Mace knew murder wasn’t exactly the way he could have done it. He could have allowed Tony to arrest him instead of Romeo, or he could have just brawled with his cousin, but he figured this way was better and more consistent with his past.
“We do not start shooting cops!” Stone roared at the two of them. He pointed at Romeo, shaking his finger at him. “You need to fucking learn to keep your dick in your fucking pants. No more drugs. You two have put this club in jeopardy or do you not realize that?”
Romeo hung his head, right alongside Mace. Damn, that was a great way to make someone feel bad. Mace knew not to utter a word or he’d lose the cut and be kicked out the door.
“He was doing what he thought was best, Stone. A fucking prospect saved my ass. This cop was going to shoot us. He had a gun on us. He had to have been a rookie or scared shitless because of the cuts.” Romeo pleaded in their defense.
“Is this true?” Stone looked at Mace.
“Yes, sir. We were standing there when the cop arrived, he got out with his gun drawn. He ordered us to freeze, we did. I moved to shield Romeo from him, when he threatened to shoot. If either of us would have twitched the wrong way, we would have had a clip emptied into us. I had no choice.” Mace told the truth, to an extent.
Stone drew in a deep breath, looking between the two of them. The rest of the crew remained silent as Stone sat in thought. “No one is to ever talk about this outside this room. We can make it look like those vato fucks did it. We don’t need attention on us right now, not with this run in a little over a week.”
Mace relaxed some. This was going a bit better than he thought. Now, he just needed to make sure Amy never found out.
Stone got up and looked directly at Mace. “Thank you for placing yourself in front of your brother and my son. You may bleed these colors after all.”
CHAPTER 14
All morning, Amy had been at the clubhouse getting ready for the party. Everyone was excited and ready for the action to happen. The band was setting up, Romeo had a pig in the pit out back, the girls had decorated the inside with club colors; it was turning out much better than expected.
Amy was surprised at the attentiveness Demon showed Maggie as they decorated, though she had caught him staring harshly at her a few times. Amy brushed it off, not allowing him to ruin it with his jealousy or whatever had crawled up his ass and died.
She checked the bar to make sure it was fully stocked as she liked it, plenty of chilled Patron Silver tequila, the club’s favorite shot. God forbid if anyone brought Jose. That would start a fight. The only time she ever saw anyone drink another brand was when they were getting patched in. For some reason afterward, they handed a bottle of mezcal off to the new brother, who enthusiastically drank it down, worm and all.
When the clubhouse was properly decorated and finished, the girls left to get ready. Amy dropped Maggie off at her place and raced home. She didn’t have much time, but it wasn’t like she had a lot to do. She just had to figure out what to do. She wanted to look good for Mace, to turn his head, but she didn’t own anything to put her in that category.
Tearing through her closet and drawers, her room ended up looking like World War III took place and Amy lost. She finally decided on a pair of frayed pale blue Daisy Duke’s, a black leather bikini top with a black mesh style long sleeved shirt to go over it, and a pair of black harness boots she liked for riding.
Hair left down, make up a tad darker than she normally wore it, Amy was ready to surprise everyone. She hoped her dad didn’t have a heart attack in the meantime. Hearing Maggie’s arrival, she raced down stairs to meet her in the living room.
“Holy amazeballs!” Maggie gasped as Amy entered the room.
Amy froze. “Oh no. It’s not good enough? I can go put on jeans.”
“No!” Maggie cried out, waving her hands at Amy. “You look amazing. I’d go lesbian for you.”
Amy erupted into a fit of giggles at her friend’s antics to make her feel better. “Thank you, I think?”
Maggie was all dolled up herself. Short red leather miniskirt, thigh high stiletto boots and a backless halter top showed off her figure to its full beauty. Demon was going to like it, that was for sure.
Taking her friend’s hand, they rushed to the Jeep, giggling like schoolgirls the whole way. Once they got in, which was difficult for Maggie with the tight skirt, Amy headed toward the clubhouse, praying they weren’t too fashionably late.
The party was in full swing when they arrived. The cage girls were already in position, dancing their hearts out. A new girl Amy hadn’t met danced on the bike near the band. A few of the pass arounds had found men for the night, Tasha and Shae hung on Demon.
Amy looked at Maggie to see how she was handling it, and the look of disappointment was all it took to flare Amy’s temper. Clenching her jaw, Amy had to remind herself of her promise to Maggie. “Fucking gross
. You know that you could have any man in this club, if you wanted them, Maggie. Don’t let those two get in your head.” She gave Maggie a little push toward Demon, loathing herself for doing so. Amy would rather kick his ass and find Maggie someone better.
Maggie looked back at Amy with a grateful nod. She took a deep breath, threw back her shoulders and marched over to the trio.
Amy ventured to the kitchen area to find Mace. She knew he’d be by the pit. Several times, brothers had stopped her, along with other chapter brothers’ wives to say hello. She thanked each one individually for their help with rebuilding her shop as quick as they had.
Escaping the chaos, Amy found Mace and Romeo pulling the pig off the pit. Smiling, she walked over to the two.
Mace happened to look up when she neared, almost dropping the pig. Recovering from the fumble, he wiped his hands on a towel, then set the pig on the large wooden cutting board.
Romeo tried not to laugh at Mace’s reaction to Amy. “You’re acting like a teen on his first date, bro.” He clapped a hand on Mace’s shoulder, giving it a squeeze. “Try not to bust a nut in your pants.” Patting his back, he stepped past Mace, “Be easy on him Amy. Don’t hurt the boy.”
Amy bit her lip to keep from laughing when Romeo left. Stepping closer to Mace, she cleared her throat before she spoke. “So … I take it the outfit works?”
Mace picked up a carving knife to start in on the pig. “No, I nearly got my ass beat by twenty hungry men because I almost dropped the pig.”
Smirking, Amy would have sucker punched Mace, but since he was using a knife, she thought better of it. “Thank you.”
“Welcome.”
Leaning her hip against the table, she glanced around, looking out to the party through the windows. “I’m surprised at the turn out.”
Mace looked up with a brow raised. “Why? This is you we’re talking about here, Ames. People will drop whatever they’re doing for you.”
She rolled her eyes and sighed. “Yeah, yeah, because I am the National president’s daughter. Big whoop.”
Mace stopped carving to look directly at her. “Are you serious? You honestly think that is why people flock to you?”
Amy crinkled her nose at being chastised. “Yes, I do.”
Mace laid down the knife to stare at her. “You really are blind. Amy,” he stepped toward her, taking her hand in his. “People adore you because you’re real. You don’t play games with them. You mean exactly what you say when you say it, and you’re never are afraid to give it straight. You’re one of the very few people left alive that will actually put others before herself.”
Amy felt her cheeks heat up. She couldn’t meet his gaze when he spoke like she was some angelic female. Feeling the curve of his finger under her chin, he lifted her head, forcing her to look at him.
“Don’t doubt yourself, Amy. Never.”
She smiled, pushing away from the table. “Okay, enough of the mushy stuff.” She wasn’t one to have someone praise her like he just did. It made her feel funny, almost shy.
“Oh yeah, I forgot you’re not a girly girl.” Mace flipped his hair with exaggerated expression.
“That’s right, Antonia.” That got Amy a quick swat to the ass, making her yelp and jump in surprise. Turning to return the favor, she saw Mace focused on something through the window. Frowning, she stepped next to him to see what he was looking at.
Stone, Romeo and Demon were off to the side talking to one another, occasionally looking over at Mace through the window.
The way they were talking and looking at Mace worried her. What the hell did he do? Looking up, she had to ask. “What is going on, Mace?”
“I’m not sure.”
Amy looked back to the window, but the three were gone. Something wasn’t right. Saber came through the back door, followed by Axe. Amy stiffened and stepped closer to Mace, not quite sure of why the boys were coming in like they were. Talon and Hawkeye came up from behind them, and the moment Mace tensed next to her, her stomach sank.
“The pig isn’t done yet guys.” Amy pushed herself between Mace and the table. She knew she was breaking all sorts of rules, but that the moment, she didn’t care.
Demon came through the door, his black eyes cold and flat, an emotionless void. “Move out of the way, Amy.” His voice was laced with venom as he stared down Mace.
She looked back at Mace, who gave the barest hint of a nod. What the hell? Taking in a deep breath through her nose, she obeyed. There was no other word for what she did. This was a man’s world and this was obviously club business. Women took a back seat to that, so she stepped out of the way.
CHAPTER 15
“You got some fucking explaining to do.” Demon growled at Mace as Talon and Hawkeye grabbed Mace’s arms.
He tried not to fight. Survival mode kicked in and it screamed at him to put down the men that had grabbed him. Mace could easily do it, but he knew better. He had to have been discovered. There was no other explanation for why they were manhandling him.
Amy’s look of fear slammed into him as they dragged his ass to the Chapel Room, every brother looking at him when he was thrown to the floor. Her look had been enough to get his blood boiling and he was going to fight his way out of this situation or die trying.
That was all there was to it.
Mace righted himself from the stumbling mess he had become when they threw him into the room. Head held high, he looked right into every pair of eyes with a defiance he felt to his very core. They wanted to take his ass down; it would take every one of them to do it.
There was a round table, made of dark cherrywood, toward the right center of the room. In the middle of the table, was the center patch branded into the wood, a thick laminate covering to protect it from harm. Next to the table was an ornate wood desk that housed a laptop and removable hard drive for the secretary’s use. To the other side of the room was a safe cracked open. From previous Intel the informant gave them, it housed guns, ammo and cash the club procured.
Stone sat at what seemed to be the head of the round table, in a chair that was larger than the others, looking like someone pissed in his beer. “Why the fuck does he still have that cut on?” Stone barked in anger at the brothers in the room. “He’s not fucking worthy of wearing that cut.”
Mace felt like someone donkey punched him. Not worthy? How in God’s green earth was he not worthy to wear that patch? He committed a fucking felony for the club. They knew; there was no other plausible reason for their reactions. Somehow, one of them found out he was an agent and he was about to die.
Demon was the first to move toward him, forcing Mace into a defensive stance. “What the hell is going on? I’ve proved my worth.”
Demon faked a smile while closing the distance between him and Mace. “Take off the cut, unless you want me to take it off for you.”
“This is bullshit, Stone.” Mace looked back to Stone, who returned the hard glare. Jaw clenched as he removed the vest with angry, jerking movements. Mace crumpled the cut in his fist and blatantly threw it at Demon’s chest. He wanted to aim for the face, but he wasn’t going to fight unless provoked.
Talon and Hawkeye grabbed Mace once more, sending him nearly over the edge. He struggled against them to see just how strong the two were, when he noticed Romeo heading over to the safe. That movement caused stillness in Mace he hadn’t felt in quite some time. He was a dead man. He heard Romeo’s movement behind him, the clicking of an unlocking safety.
Scenarios ran through his mind on how to get out of the room alive, but with that many men in there, the odds were not in his favor. He might get lucky if any of the women heard a commotion and decided to come running in to see what was up, but that was doubtful. The room was soundproofed.
He was fucked.
The hairs stood up on the back of his neck when he heard Romeo nearing him. As Romeo rounded him, he knew Saber was behind him, Demon was to his right, but it was what Romeo was holding. It was a Colt 1911 and it was po
inted directly at his head.
“You think you’re fucking worthy to wear a prospect cut?” Romeo asked like he was shocked at Mace’s indignation of thinking that much about himself.
Mace’s mind reeled at what was happening. He could only glare at Romeo. May as well go out with a bang. Go big or go home, right? “You tell these fuckers to let me go and I’ll show you just how worthy I am with my boot shoved up your ass.”
Romeo visibly balked at the verbal attack by Mace, waving the gun in his face as he looked around at the other club members. “Can you believe this dumbass?” He looked back to Mace, cocking his head from one side to the other. “I thought you were better than a piece of shit prospect, Mace. I thought maybe that cut wasn’t for you. Guess I was wrong. Maybe you don’t bleed these colors.”
Saber moved out from behind him, the large man proudly holding a new leather cut. It was all three patches. When Saber turned the cut around, it had the road name Maverick on it. Under the name patch was a Harley Davidson insignia pin. Toward the bottom of the cut was a Vet patch for the Marine Corps. The diamond that said it all was on the right side chest piece, declaring he was an outlaw.
Mace eyeballed Saber then looked to Romeo, Stone, and back to Romeo. What the fuck game were they playing? No, this wasn’t supposed to happen. Not yet. He wasn’t supposed to get patched in. “Are you fucking with me?”
He knew he sounded in shock, and well, he was. He hadn’t expected this. It wasn’t in the plan or the timeline that was set up. He was supposed to get out before they vested him.
Stone rose up off his throne and walked toward him, the brothers parting for him to get through the crowded space. “No, we’re not. You’ve proven yourself time and time again, brother.” He came to a stop in front of Mace with a wide grin. “And you’re one crazy asshole, which is why you got the name Maverick. It means lone wolf, unconventional and a crazy fucker.”
Demon stepped to the door, opening up a crack, said something to Dalton, then quietly shut the door once more.
