by K E Osborn
“Why do you think you’ve earned the right to know what’s goin’ on when you’ve been here fuckin’ minutes? Knucklehead over there, has been here nearly a year and he knows jack shit about nothin’?” I yell trying to put Doug in his place.
“I’m sorry. I’m just getting used to how all this works. I like to be in the loop—”
“Well, you’re goin’ the wrong way about it. Don’t be a nosey snatch! Stickin’ your beak in will more than likely end up with it bein’ cut off.”
He tenses and nods emphatically.
“Just pull your head in, or the Prez will toss you out on your arse. If not him, then I sure as shit will.”
“He won’t fuck up again will you Doug?” FIM says defending his brother like a good brother should.
“No,” he says firmly.
I nod. “Good.”
Bringing my beer glass up to my mouth, I drink down the remnants of the refreshing amber liquid. The cold fluid flowing with ease down my throat relieving my tension as it descends further down. I honestly need to shower and get this cunt’s blood off me, so I stand and walk off leaving them to mull over what’s been said. Making my way down the hall toward my room, I feel heavy. I’m pissed that I killed Jackson’s father. Not because he didn’t deserve to die, he did, but now Jackson will grow up without a dad. I did that to him. I’m not sure how I feel about that. I’m not proud of myself that’s for sure. He’s definitely better off without him, but what will he think happened to his father? Of that, I have no idea, and I just hope that it doesn’t affect him too much growing up. Hopefully, he’s too young to be traumatised by his father leaving him at such a young age.
Making my way into my room, I close the door behind me and strip off as quickly as possible on my way to the shower. The cool temperature of the tiles beneath my feet as they hit the bathroom floor makes me take in a deep breath as I stand adjusting the hot water. The rivulets of water flow down the drain, and as I step in they turn red washing away the blood of Tyrell Jones. The man I just killed. My forehead hurts as I bang it against the wall leaving it there and letting the water flow over my body. I never like killing. Tyrell is not my first, probably not my last, but it still affects me every single time I take a life. Even if the guy is a scumbag. I need to ease some of this tension. I wish I could see Willow, but she’d know straight away something was wrong, and if she asked I’m not sure I could lie to her tonight. So I’m going to head to Strapless, have some beer, a burger, watch Lunar and get bevvied up and shitfaced!
As I was walking out of the clubhouse to go to Strapless, Ryder had the box in his hand. I knew it was Tyrell, and it relieved me to know he was finally being taken off-site. The quicker, the better. I don’t want Dad finding out about our little side action. Especially with how it turned out. So having Tyrell off club premises now, is a good thing all round.
I’m now at Strapless sitting in a booth waiting for my burger. Vinnie fries up the best burgers in town. I’m in front of Lunar’s stage as always. I like to keep an eye on her, some of the patrons can be scum and if I need to step in to protect her then I will.
I’m feeling slightly more relaxed as I sit in the booth leaning back into the seat drinking my beer as a guy walks into the club. He’s tall, obviously drunk from the way he’s stumbling, but his arms are decked out in coloured tattoos that go all the way up his neck. He kind of looks familiar, but I’m not sure where I’ve seen him before. He staggers up to Lunar’s stage and starts whistling and throwing random bills at her. Scrunching my eyebrows together, I sit up taller watching him. Lunar laughs as she bends down picking up his cash. The guy seems like a complete dick to me, but Lunar’s making googly eyes at him and seems to be enjoying his ogling.
“You’re beautiful,” he calls out in an American accent and she giggles which surprises me as she bends down and grinds her arse cheeks in his face. He grins from ear to ear and then suddenly falls over flat on his back. I stand up in the booth as Lunar jumps up and looks at me. I rush over to the guy who’s laying on the floor and laughing at himself.
Shaking my head, I bend down and offer him my hand. “Here dude, grab my hand.”
He looks at me and his eyes roll around in his head, but then focus on me. Grabbing my hand, I pull him up and he stumbles slightly but I steady him against myself.
“You okay, mate?” I ask and he exhales and shakes his head.
“Think I’ve drunk a bit too much,” he says and then hiccups.
I huff and look over to Vinnie, who’s watching me with this guy, and I tilt my head toward the coffee pot.
“Coffee, Vin. Black and strong.”
Vin nods as I pull the guy over to the booth to sit us both down.
“You look familiar. Do I know you?”
The drunken guy laughs and throws his hands in the air. “I’m a rock star! Or I was when I played on tour with Staked and Slayed.”
I open my eyes wide. “You played with Colter fuckin’ Slade?”
“Yeah, yeah, Colter fucking Slade. Fuck my chest hurts.”
I furrow my brows as he falls into the seat clutching at his chest and clenching his eyes shut while breathing harshly.
“Fuck man, are you all right?”
“She broke my fucking heart!” he yells at the top of his lungs and everyone turns looking at us.
I slide into the booth and wince. Poor guy, he’s in a bad way.
“Girl troubles, hey?” He opens his eyes and his head bobs up and down as he tries to focus on me.
“I love her, man. Fucking love her. I gave up my life for her. Moved to England. I even wanted to marry her. I was a player, you know? A downright fucking bastard to women and she changed me, she fucking changed me, and then she broke me. The fucking whore!” he says and then rests his head in his hands.
I tense up looking around the room wondering what the fuck to do. “Well man, maybe you’re better off?”
His head flies up and he glares at me. “Better off? Better off! She’s off and in love with Chad fucking Everly, and I’m in Australia with no band and a fucking broken heart. She’s a fucking bitch. No, she’s a fucking whore… She’s the fucking love of my life, man. And I lost her to the fuckwit, Chad!”
“Well, if you want my advice—”
“Yes, please help me!”
I chuckle slightly. “You need to let her go, mate. Get back on the horse. You’re obviously American by the accent, Aussie chicks will dig that. Get balls deep in some Aussie pussy and forget all about… what’s her name?”
“Ella.”
“Forget all about this Ella! And as for your band… What’s it called? And what happened to it?”
“Maybe you’re right. I came to Australia to get away from England. I went back to America for a while, but I just needed to travel. Get as far away from her as possible. That’s why the band is broken. Because I’m in Oz and they’re in the States. We’re called Recoil, and my name’s Danger by the way.”
I open my mouth a little, I do know him! “Oh, shit dude! I do know you. I’ve heard a couple of your songs on the alternative stations. You guys are fuckin’ good. Why don’t you get your band mates to come Down Under, and you guys can gig in our clubs?”
He opens his eyes wide and smiles. “Our clubs?” he asks.
“Yeah! The name’s Steel. VP of the Satan’s Savages MC. We have patched members who own a few clubs and bars around town and we can get you guys playin’ in them if you want?”
He takes in a deep breath and nods his head. “Well, shit, dude, I don’t know what to say.”
I smile and nod. “Talk it over with your band mates. See if they want to come over to Oz. And if they do here’s my card, we can hook you guys up to play the club scene here in this state. Maybe get you goin’ interstate too, with our other clubs. Techie is in tune with the music biz, he might know a few people in the Australian music industry. I’m sure he can help you guys.”
He runs his fingers through his dark hair and shakes his head. �
��Fuck, man. You’re like a biker guardian fucken angel.”
I smirk and hand him my card with my number. This guy seems cool, and with a name like Danger he’s already in my good books.
I’ve spent the last few hours with Danger, getting to know him and hearing all about the love triangle between him, Ella, and Chad. To me, the warning signs were there all along, and I think he knew it too. He’s better off letting her be happy with her man. He needs to fuck a few chicks and get over the bitch. I noticed Lunar watching us all night as he sobered up. She seemed to take a liking to him, which is strange. I’ve never seen her like anyone, besides me. I’m not jealous, not at all, just a little shocked. She sat down with us at the end of her shift and they spoke for a little while and seemed to hit it off, but I wasn’t paying a whole lot of attention. My mind is still on Willow and how disappointed she’d be with how everything went down with Tyrell today.
Eventually, Danger left to go back to his hotel, and Lunar rode on the back of my bike to the clubhouse. As we walk toward the clubhouse doors after parking my bike, Lunar seems awfully upbeat.
“So have you ever met a rock star before?” she asks looping her arm with mine.
I chuckle and shake my head. “No, not really. But he’s not really an established rock star, is he?”
She scoffs and rolls her eyes. “Still, he’s played with Slayed. That’s gotta count for something.”
Pulling back the black door, I lead her inside and nod. “Yeah, s’pose it does.”
“So you wanna good fucking tonight?” she asks leaning in and kissing my neck.
I tense up and flare my nostrils. Normally after a day like today, a stress relief like a good hard fuck would be everything I’d need. But I made a promise to Willow, and I’m gonna keep it.
“Not tonight, darlin’.”
Lunar looks at me and raises an eyebrow. “Is this because of your Flame?”
I can’t help but notice the slight lift in her voice, and higher pitch in her throat that tells me she’s slightly jealous. I don’t want to lie to Lunar, there’d be no point in that, so I tell her the truth. “Yeah, we kinda made a pact that while we’re datin’, we wouldn’t sleep with anyone else.”
Lunar stops walking and turns to look at me with her mouth open wide. “Are you serious?”
I huff and rub the back of my neck to ease the awkward tension. “Yeah, I wanna do right by her.”
“So you’d sleep with only her… for her, and make her sleep only with you. But with me, it was still okay for me to be used by the other brothers?”
Shit!
“Lunar, it’s not like that—”
“Not like what?” She tilts her hip to the side placing her hand on it.
“Willow, she’s—”
“If you say different, I’m going to kick your pussy-whipped motherfucking arse, Steel.”
I smirk and decide not to say anything more. She huffs and shakes her head.
“Fine, I didn’t want to sleep with you anyway.” She turns from me and storms away.
I exhale and crack my neck to the sides. I don’t want to hurt Lunar, but she’s right. Willow is different. And I might be pussy-whipped, but I’d rather see where that takes me than wonder what if, if I never took the chance.
Going to bed thinking of Willow left me dreaming of her, which has left me waking up with a raging hard boner. Turning on my side, I grab my phone and unplug it from the charger, bringing the screen up into view. She’s on my mind again, and I just want to talk to her. Being a Tuesday I know she’ll be at work, but I’ll message her anyway and see if she writes back.
Me: Hey babe, I’m really sorry about everythin’ that went down at the club when you were here. I just hope everythin’ is okay with us?
I hit send and even though I know I sound a little weak in the message, I need to know we’re okay. The thought of her drifting away already is doing my head in. My phone beeps and I smile as I and open her reply.
Willow: We’re good. I look forward to seeing you again, but I can’t chat right now. Jackson thinks it’s fun to throw Lego at another kid. xo
I chuckle as the imagery comes into my mind and decide not to text her back. I don’t want to distract her while she’s working, especially if Jackson is misbehaving. I’m concerned he could be acting out and reacting to his father being away already. I just hope he’ll be okay in the long run.
Shit!
Right, enough of that pussy crap. I’d better get up for the day. After getting dressed, I head out to the wafting smell of fried bacon. The greasy smell invades my senses, and suddenly everything feels right in the world.
Bacon makes everything better!
As I clear the hallway and enter the clubroom, I see Knucklehead with one of those giant chef hats on, that I always think looks more like a mushroom cloud. He looks ridiculous, and it instantly makes me chuckle as I continue to Techie, who’s sitting down already eating. I lean over the top of him and steal a piece of his bacon, and he looks up at me and thumps me in the thigh as I chuckle and sit down next to him chomping on the delicious crispy pig.
“Bit late for breakfast, isn’t it?” I ask looking up at the giant clock above the bar to see it’s eleven in the morning.
“Brunch is just as good,” Techie says shovelling in a mouthful of sausage.
I smile as FIM walks over and places a large plate of breakfast in front of me. “Thanks, FIM. Whose idea was this?”
FIM smiles and shrugs. “Was mine and Doug’s. We wanted to do something for you guys.”
I huff and open my eyes wide to Techie, who smiles and continues to chew away on a piece of hash brown, as FIM walks over to the bar and starts to eat his breakfast with Knucklehead and Doug.
Since this has put me in a good mood and they’re being so friendly and shit, why don’t I change things up a bit and make an effort for them like they've done for us.
“Oi, prospects. Come eat with us.”
The room shifts to silence as my brothers all look at me, and Knucklehead raises his eyebrows at me. FIM and Doug casually walk over with their plates evidently not knowing what a privilege this is, as Knucklehead stands back cautiously.
“It’s not a test, Knucklehead. I’m in a good mood, come eat with us.”
“Steel, Mad Dog won’t like this,” Techie whispers to me.
I shrug shovelling bacon into my mouth. “Is he here?” Techie swallows and shakes his head. “Then it’s all good then, eh? Knucklehead get your arse over here before I think you don’t want to sit with us.”
His lips turn up into a smile as he grabs his plate and strides over to us. I pat the free seat next to me, and he sits down placing his plate on the table. He looks at me furrowing his brows like he still isn’t convinced this isn’t some sort of a test. I wrap my arm around his shoulders and pull him to me. He winces as I chuckle.
“Relax kid, just have brunch with us.”
He chuckles and nods his head and starts to eat his food. It’s actually nice to not have a rank system while we’re eating for once and to just have my brothers all eating together. The guys start to chat among themselves, and it’s great to see FIM and Doug settling into their new environment as we all welcome them in.
Suddenly, the roar of a vast number of motorbikes invades all my senses. I stand up and watch Knucklehead as he races over to turn the music down—the noise and rumble of the bikes now clearly evident. Everyone else stands up looking around the room for guidance.
Shit, this is not a drill!
I pull out my weapon and lock and load it. The rest of my brothers follow suit, all bringing out their pieces and loading them. The clicking of the bullets slipping into place is the only sound, other than the roaring of the bikes in the background. We aren’t expecting visitors, and by the sheer volume of bikes approaching, we’re in for something big.
“Techie, get on the cameras,” I call out. He pulls out his tablet and brings up the feed.
My heart is racing outside of my ches
t. I’m not in the mood for a fight, and it sounds like one is headed straight for us.
“Weapons down, guys. It’s the Aldinga Chapter pulling up at the gates. A lot of them too, Steel,” Techie declares as everyone slumps their bodies, including me.
The Aldinga Chapter is an offset of the Virginia Chapter, we’re up north of Adelaide, and they’re down south.
“Behemoth, go tell Gatekeeper to let ‘em in,” I say and Behemoth nods and races outside toward the gates.
Dad and Chops rush out of the assembly room holding rifles, just as we’re all putting our guns away.
“Get your weapons up and ready you fucking idiots!” Dad yells out to us all.
“No need, Prez. It’s Gator from Aldinga.”
Dad furrows his brows huffing and rests his rifle on the pool table and walks toward the back door. I decide to follow. I really want to know why Gator is here too. He’s a strange character—a rebel without a cause type of guy. He got his name Gator as in Road Gator—the slang meaning for the bits of shredded tyres littering a road after a semi truck’s tyres blow out or, in this case, are blown out. Gator was a prospect and doing a job for the Aldinga Chapter. A truck was getting away with their shipment, so Gator pulled out his sawed-off shotgun and blew the tyres out on the semi. The truck went over with their shipment in it, and the truck they had following was able to pick up the load and leave before the cops arrived. That’s how he earned his patch, and from there he worked his way up to become the president.
Walking outside into the compound, I watch as bike after bike file into the club. There’s gotta be around twenty. Looking at Dad, he’s frowning and I know he’s gotta be wondering what the hell is going on, just like I am. Gator pulls up and we pace over to him as he leaps off his Hog. He stands up and we walk right up to him. It’s been a while since I’ve seen him, and with his shoulder length blond hair and beard, he hasn’t changed at all.
