by Colbie Kay
I finish off my beer, get up, and go grab another from the bar. I spend the rest of the evening drinking until I go to my room to call Daphne.
We walk into the Oklahoma Chapter's clubhouse. Bones, the president, is already waiting. "Hey, brothers, thanks for coming."
Hanger replies, "We’re happy to help out if you need us."
Bones waves his hand for us to follow him. "My guys are already in chapel waiting. Let's get to business."
Once the door shuts and we’re all piled into the room, Bones takes his seat at the head of his table. They leave a chair open for Hanger and the rest of us stand, circling both the table and the filled chairs. "I'll get you updated on what's happening, then we can discuss the plan of action. We have two separate suppliers. One has moved into our territory and started selling bad batches to us and the good shit to our customers. They’ve pretty well cut us out of being the middleman, so we’ve lost business with our customers and we’ve lost money with their shit dealings. Also, the last batch we got, people started fuckin' ODin' like it was some kinda fuckin' epidemic. We tested the shit and they laced it with fuckin' battery acid. Had people foamin' at the mouth and bleedin' from their eyes like zombies or some shit. Has junkies runnin' scared from us. We’re sittin’ on pounds of heroin and can’t fuckin’ sell the shit."
Hanger slams his fist on the table. "Fuck!"
Bones nods and continues, "The other supplier in the gun trade shorted us this last shipment. We’ve used them several times and have always had a good stock with them, but this time we didn’t check all the crates, and some were empty of ammo and guns. I got in touch with the leader and he’s bullshittin’ not wantin’ to make the deal right. It’s time for us to handle it the Sinners way and take the fuckers out."
Hanger rubs his forehead. "So, all the way around you're gettin' fucked?"
Bones replies, "Right up the ass." He runs his hand over his shaved tattooed head.
"What's the plan?" Bear questions with his arms crossed over his chest and a stoic expression.
Bones turns his attention to Bear. "We’ve set up a drop location for both suppliers. You’ll meet with one at the old barn, west of the city. We’ll meet with the other on the south end. We’ll give you exact location tomorrow, and we’ll give you the duffle bags of fake money. Once both parties are at said locations, you act like the deal is goin’ down and then kill the motherfuckers."
Hanger stands. "We'll have church before we head out tomorrow." We follow in Hanger's footsteps, leaving our Oklahoma brothers in the room. Hanger yells in the middle of the smoke-filled bar, which is much like ours when it's in full party mode. It’s filled with naked women, drunk bikers, loud as fuck music, sex, and games of pool. "Where's our fuckin' rooms?"
Some prospects come over with some of their whores. Our single brothers go with the whores, while the rest of us go with the prospects.
Once I'm in my room with plain walls and nothing more than a bed and dresser, I drop my bag in the corner. Pulling my phone out of my pocket, I shoot Chayser a text.
Watch Daphne while I'm gone
His reply is instant.
You got it brother
Daphne sent a text saying she’ll be with her friend tonight, so I decide to let her be. I'll call tomorrow when this shit is done. Setting my phone on the dresser, I get undressed down to my boxer briefs and climb onto the hard as hell mattress. I try to rest the best I can.
"Damn, Daphne!" Makayla turns her leg and hip from side to side, checking out her finished dragon tattoo. "This is beyond what I expected. It's gorgeous and so detailed."
I beam proudly. "I'm glad you like it."
"I fucking love it!" She walks back over for me to bandage it up. While she’s putting her yoga pants back on, I check my phone. There's a text from Emery.
It's our last night in town. Wanna hang out at the studio?
I type my one-word response and send.
Sure
I have nothing better to do since Devon is away on club business, Audrey is at the compound, and I don't really want to hang out at my parents’ house. I shake my head. I need more friends.
I send Devon a text letting him know where I'll be if he tries to call later.
Walking Makayla up front, I take her money for the tattoo and then flip the open sign to closed. I gather my belongings from my office then lock up for the night.
"Daphne!" Emery runs up hugging me as I walk into JR Recordings. She releases me from her death grip and hugs Zane. "Hey, Z!"
"Where's Sis?" He asks hugging her back.
"She's downstairs in the play area. Now that you guys are here, we can head down with everyone else."
We follow Emery’s footfalls to a closed door at the end of the hallway. When she opens it, we have to take the stairs down to where the guys are behind the glass already playing songs from their new album.
Zane runs over, opens the half door, and joins Sicily while I sit at the table with Emery to listen to the rock music.
They finish a few songs, which sound amazing. Emery pushes a button, talking into a microphone. "Sounds good guys. I'm going to silence it out here."
"Alright, babe," Dawson replies into his microphone.
All four of them give me their sexy smirks and in sync say, “Hey, Daphne." They have no issues getting women in bed.
I wave and tell them, “Hey.” I miss these guys. I went on tour with them a while back when Dawson had some shit going on with his psycho ex-girlfriend. She was literally batshit fucking crazy and will be in jail or a psycho ward for many years to come.
Emery pushes another button on the sound table. It grows quiet in our room, even though they have started up another song. Her chair swivels toward me. "I'm really happy you came tonight. What's been going on?"
"Me too." I smile, but dip my head down for a moment and bite my bottom lip.
"Ohh!" She points at me and laughs. "You're biting your lip. This is going to be good." Damn it why do I have to be so transparent?
"Devon's been coming around."
"Really?" Her eyes widen, mouth gaping open. "Like, how much?"
"Like every day. And we've been talking on the phone at night."
Butterflies swarm in my belly just thinking about it. He has me feeling like we’re in high school all over again.
"So, what's going on with you two?"
I shrug my shoulder. "We're taking things slow." My eyes light up and I grin. "We've kissed a few times. Well, more than a few, but we haven't taken it further than that. I swear, Em, he makes me feel like a teenager again." I laugh at how true that statement is.
She smiles. "I'm happy for you. As long as he treats you right and doesn't fuck you over again."
My brows knit. "I'm starting to wonder if there wasn't more to him leaving."
Her expression turns to confusion. "What do you mean?"
Shaking my head, I reply, "I don't know. My mom mentioned something about it, and then Devon's mom said some stuff."
"Have you asked him?"
"No, I don't want to mess up what we have going on. I figure he'll tell me eventually."
Her brow arches. "Daphne, it's been eleven years. Don't you think if he was going to tell you, he would have? You deserve answers. So maybe, you should start asking for them. After everything, he owes you that much."
I sigh heavily. "I know, but I'm enjoying having him back in my life for now, and I don't want anything to ruin it."
Her hand lands on mine, and she gives it a comforting squeeze. "Whatever you want, I'll be here for you. I just don’t want you to get hurt."
"Thanks, Em."
"You're welcome. I love ya, girl." Her smile returns.
"I love you too."
She turns back to the sound table, pushes the button, and music fills the room again. I sit back and enjoy the sound of the guitars, drums, and Dawson's haunting melodic voice.
Later into the night, I take a sleepy Zane home, tuck him into bed, and check my phone, but have
no missed calls or texts. I’m taken back by how it makes me uneasy not hearing from Devon, but maybe he’s busy too.
I change into my pajama pants and t-shirt, wash away my makeup, and climb into bed.
Day fifteen of mending has come to a close.
Following the van on our bikes, we pull up to the old red wooden barn in the middle of nowhere, and then park our bikes and the van on the right side of the dirt path leading up to the barn’s entrance. I survey the area noticing the big oak trees and whispering willows that surround the barn. Off to the right is a field no one has bothered to take care of for quite some time since the grass is as tall as I am. The barn itself is old with holes in the shingled roof and some of the red paint has disappeared with wear and tear over the years. A silo sits back in the distance, but I imagine no one is using it either. We have thirty minutes to check the perimeter and barn before the supplier is supposed to show.
Bear, Romeo, Hacker, and I walk inside the open entrance of the barn. A few rusted tools hang on the thick planks of wood. A tractor sits in the middle covered in dust and dirt. This place hasn’t been used in years. I find a ladder to my left by a small broken window that leads to the second level. Walking over, I climb up to look around. There's nothing up here except hay covering the wooden floor and a couple old bales. We have enough places to take cover in case shit goes south. I climb back down, exit the barn, and meet up with everyone outside.
"Remember the plan. We wait until the deal is done, and when they turn their backs on us, we take ‘em out." Hanger reminds us once again not to fire too soon. He orders, "Take position."
Romeo quickly strides over to the van, opens the side door, and grabs the black duffle bag of cash. He rushes into the barn, drops it onto the dirt covered ground, then takes his place with the rest of us. We stand in a single file line, Hanger front and center, while we wait. Only minutes later, we listen closely, hearing the gravel being stirred from tires coming in our direction.
"They're coming," I announce quietly.
Hanger nods. "Get ready."
Each of us stands stock still with bated breath, and wait for the three white vans to come to a stop one in front of the other blocking our bikes and van from being able to leave. My fists clench at my sides, my adrenaline kicks in, making my heart rate intensify. My pulse pounds and my hands shake uncontrollably. I suck in a deep breath of oxygen and release it to steel myself. They should have gotten out by now, but they haven’t. Something’s not right, I can sense it. I can feel it deep down inside of me.
The passenger side windows roll down on all three vans, guns aim at us. The side doors open, more guns point in our direction. "Take cover!" I yell out as the first round of shots are fired. A line of men charges out of the vans, coming right for us with guns blazing.
We scramble, dodging bullets. All of my brothers run to take cover, me included. I can’t see where everyone went. I can’t see Mullins. I run to the left and hide behind one of the big oak trees twenty feet away. My mind begins to cloud, flashes of my past start to invade my reality. I shake my head, trying to clear it the best I can. Gunfire is coming in every direction. I pull my pistol, returning shots at our enemies. I quickly scan the area, trying to see where Mullins is, but I still can’t find him. Maybe he ran to the other side of the barn, inside, or behind it. I can’t see any of those places. My focus goes back to what’s in front of me. I pull the trigger, hitting my target in the side of his head.
We’re outnumbered by at least ten. My eyes drift to the white vans. The supplier’s men are still stepping out, holding their machine guns in front of them, and steadily reigning down shots. Their steps become longer, faster, as they quickly approach us. I take one, two, three of the men out. My pistol’s clip is now empty and I don’t have an extra. I survey my surroundings for a clearing. When I think I have one, I race to the van. “I need a gun!” I yell over the loud noise.
Men are falling left and right. Bear throws me an Ak-47. Pretty Boy screams out in pain right beside me. He slides down the van holding his stomach. Ready to run back to the tree, I spot Hunter and Romeo. Both have been hit and are down against the barn.
Fuck!
A couple more of these cunts go down to my right. As I run back to the tree, I spot Hanger on the left side of the barn. He has the leader against the wood, gun pointed at the man's forehead. Hanger fires a single bullet right between his eyes, dropping him to the ground. We take out the remaining men and gunfire ceases. I run over to check on Romeo first. "Where’re you hit?"
"My shoulder." He winces, holding his palm to the wound. I pull my blade out, cut his shirt, wad it up, and hand it to him. "Hold this against it and keep applying pressure."
I rush over to Hunter, blood seeping out of his jeans. "You good, brother?"
He pants, "Yeah." I remove my cut and shirt, hand him the cotton material, and tell him the same as I did Romeo as I put my cut back on.
I rush back to the van. "Pretty Boy doing okay?" He’s now inside with Bear and Hacker.
Bear answers, "He’s alive but tell Hanger we gotta get the fuck outta here."
I nod and rush over to Hanger. "We gotta go."
"Fuck yeah we do! Let's gather up everyone." He runs in the opposite direction, going behind the barn.
I race around the perimeter until I find Mullins on the right side of the barn with a few dead men. "Let's go!"
He turns his attention to me and nods. Together we walk back toward the van when suddenly I'm pushed to the ground. I hear a single shot fired from inside the barn, then another shot. Mullins falls beside me with eyes wide open. "Mullins?"
He doesn't move.
"Mullins!" I yell louder and shake him.
Nothing.
I scramble up. Blood coats the outside of his shirt and cut. He was hit in the chest. I kneel beside him, covering the wound with my hand. "Mullins!" I scream. “You’re going to be fine! Don’t you dare die on me, asshole!” Tears brim my lids. He coughs, blood fills his open mouth. "No!” I shake my head frantically. He coughs more but can't reply. A stream of red begins running from the side of his opened mouth, down his chin. His eyes find mine, they slowly begin to dim. "No!" I scream louder, tears falling freely. “Why did you do it? Why did you take the fucking bullet? It was meant for me. I should be the one dying, not you!” I cry harder.
He takes his final breath. This is all my fucking fault! I was supposed to protect him. He saved my fucking life again, and it should have been me saving his. I wrap him in my arms, holding him close to my chest, and rock. “I’m sorry!” I wail. “I’m so fucking sorry!”
"Doc?" Hanger questions behind me.
"What the hell happened, Prez?" I ask through my sobs.
"I don't know. I want you to ride behind Ghost and get our wounded brothers to the hospital. Then go home. The rest of us are staying to find out what happened here." He lays his hand on my shoulder. "I'm sorry, brother." I swipe away the falling tears, stand, and grab Mullins arms while Hanger grabs his legs. We carry his lifeless body to the van and put him inside with the others.
Hanger walks away. I shut the door of the van, and when I turn around, my eyes drift to the scene before me. Bodies are spread out in every direction, pools of blood soak into the ground, and guns lay next to the lifeless men.
Why the fuck did we get ambushed?
As I’m heading to my Harley, I decide to check the barn one more time because that’s where the stray bullets that killed my best friend came from. I step inside to find one dead body with a bullet hole in his forehead positioned to my left. I follow the trail of blood from his body that ends at the back of the barn where there’s another entrance leading outside. My brows furrow, but I don’t have time to wrap my head around what happened right now. I run to my bike, get on, and follow Ghost to the hospital.
The van comes to a screeching halt. I quickly climb off my bike and rush over to the van, opening the side door and checking on our brothers. I climb inside and hold Mullins while Gho
st runs inside to get help. Nurses and doctors come running out of the emergency room entrance with stretchers and wheelchairs.
One look at our cuts and no questions are asked. "We have three wounded get them in rooms," One doctor orders.
A nurse kneels beside me and Mullins. She checks for a pulse but doesn't find one. Her sorrowful eyes look at me and she’s wearing a kind smile. "I'm sorry." Her attention moves to someone outside of the van. "We have a DOA." They pull Mullins out of my arms and out of the van laying his body on the stretcher. I climb out behind them and walk over to Ghost. "I’m heading home to give the news to his wife."
He pulls me in for a hug and we slap each other’s backs. “Alright, brother.”
I walk back over to my Harley, climb on, and start my ride back to Wichita.
The dark thoughts and depression have begun to consume me as I pull into the compound. My best friend is dead because of me, and now, I have to go in there and tell his wife. It should have been me. I'm fucking worthless. I couldn't protect them. I couldn't protect Mullins. How do I expect to protect Daphne and my son?
I push through the bar door and everyone stops what they’re doing. They are all focused on me. Their eyes widen, mouths drop open, and hands cover their mouths. Some drop down in seats. I shift my eyes around the room until I spot Christy watching me and the door. Her gaze finally halts on me, her head begins to shake, and tears cascade down her cheeks. I step closer to her. "No!" She screams at me.
"I'm sorry." I drop my head and realize I'm covered in his blood.
"You promised me." Her fists pound against my chest, but it doesn't faze me one bit. I deserve it all: her anger, her hate, her aggression.
"The bullet came out of nowhere. He pushed me out of the way and took it himself."
She freezes. "He died because of you? It's your fault my husband..." She points to her kids. "Their father is dead." She spits the last word like venom. "He saved you once and you couldn't even repay him? You let him die! You promised me." Her cries become louder, sobs wreaking havoc on her body. I step closer, wanting to comfort her, but she slaps at me. "Don’t touch me!" She angrily swipes at her tears. "Where is he? Where is his body?"
