by London Casey
“I agree,” Trev said. “They didn’t. We fought about it.” Trev pointed to his face. “Then they did this to me.”
“Jesus Christ. They jumped you?”
Trev nodded. “Beat me senseless. Thought I was dead. Stripped my cut and took it. I’m surprised they didn’t kill me. I guess Miller doesn’t have the balls.”
Ripper chuckled. “That fucker never had balls. I’ve been watching him for years fuck shit up for this MC. Want to know something?”
“What?”
“I’ve got a deal brewing that could change everything. From Canada down to Tijuana. Along the west coast, brother, we’ll own it all.”
“Nice. Another crew?”
“Bigger. More powerful.”
“What’s more powerful?”
“Come on, asshole. Don’t fuck with me.”
“I’m afraid to say it,” Trev said with a grin. “That’s pretty hefty. Dealing with the Irish mafia and their guns.”
Ripper nodded. “That’s where Giovanni went wrong. He got spooked. Tried to talk to Jasper once but he’s all club. Which is good. I have an idea on how to run this. I’ll make Jasper President of the guys. Whoever survives your table…”
“Correction,” Trev said. “I have no fucking table. I’m outlaw.”
“Right, right. Whoever survives what I do down there, they’ll be under Jasper’s watch. I’ll oversee Jasper. Then we pay it all up. We’ll control every gang, crew, MC, every little fucking punk looking for a gun to knock off a store…”
Ripper’s eyes were wide and sick.
“I love it,” Trev said. “Want my thoughts?”
“No.”
“Okay. Just, I’ve seen this stuff before. I ran The Lost Men, Ripper. I commanded authority there and I ran it tight.”
“What’s your advice?”
“You’ve got to start the right way. Eden and Jenn. Leave your crew up here and go down into Frelen. I’ll go with you. I know the streets. I know the police. I know how to navigate around that lot. We do it.”
“No, no, too risky.”
“You trust Jasper? That motherfucker couldn’t even wake me up the right way.”
“How so?”
“He put a knife to my neck when I was mid dream, fucking some tight pussy. I woke up and grabbed his wrist. He looked ready to cry his eyes out. I could have taken that knife and slit his throat.”
“Jesus.”
“Yeah,” Trev said. “That’s your number two? Fuck, Ripper, no wonder you’re struggling up here.”
Ripper pounded a hand to the table and stood up. “Who says I’m struggling? Miller?”
Trev saw the opportunity and ran with it. “Exactly. He thinks he’d wipe you out without even trying. He thinks he has leverage with Eden and Jenn. He’s going to use Jenn to get you. Have her call you, sweet talk you, whatever it takes. Hell, he’ll even have Eden call and play the daughter.”
“I know she’s not my fucking kid!” Ripper yelled. “That fat motherfucker was riding inside Jenn for years. And then Miller patched him in? After what he did?”
Miller didn’t know…
“Exactly,” Trev said again, playing into Ripper’s anger.
“Fine,” Ripper said. “This is how we’re going to do it.”
“Talk to me.”
Ripper put his hands to the table. “What do you want out of it?”
“What do you mean?”
“You’re going to put your ass on the line for what?”
“Look at my fucking face, man. I want to see them suffer. Those two bitches need to die. Okay? Then I ride off and go where I belong. Outlaw. If I have to ask for something, I want protection. I want to be able to make one phone call and know my ass is covered.”
“Always something,” Ripper said. “Don’t fuck with me on this. I will kill you.”
Trev slowly rose up. He opened his arms. “Search me. Shoot me. I don’t give a fuck, Ripper. I’m trying to do right here. By the MC.”
That was the first part of truth Trev had said since getting to the charter.
“I want to do this today,” Ripper said.
“Today? Damn, brother.”
“Why wait?”
“What about your side deal? They need any attention?”
“You like this deal,” Ripper said. “Finally, someone shows interest. I’m actually meeting up with an associate in about three hours. Just to shake hands on a couple things. I can’t tell you what because I don’t fucking trust you. But I will let you shadow the run.”
“Are you going to shoot me and call it ambush?” Trev asked.
Ripper laughed. “You sick fucker. Don’t piss me off and you won’t end up like Giovanni.”
Trev smiled. “That’s a bold move, Ripper. Knocking off one of your own.”
“He was weak. Stupid Italian boy. I only patched him thinking his family could assist. They’re too straight, long out of the game. But the O’Nuall family… they didn’t like Giovanni…”
And there it was.
A double confession.
Trev had the confession to Giovanni’s murder and the confession to the O’Nuall family. Now he just needed to make a call to Miller and then put a bullet in the back of Ripper’s head.
“Good for you,” Trev said. “Standing your ground. It’s time for a change.”
Ripper stepped toward Trev. It felt like Ripper hadn’t blinked once or looked away from Trev.
“We’re not done yet here,” Ripper said.
“No?”
Ripper clamped a hand down on Trev’s shoulder. “How do I know you’re not digging on me? Huh? Going to run back to Miller like a bitch? How do I know Jenn hasn’t wrapped those pretty lips of hers around your dick and sucked you dry?”
“Again, look at my face.”
“Anyone could do that,” Ripper said. “I know that Jasper has been fucking Jenn. That bitch can’t keep her legs shut.”
“Damn. VP fucking your old lady. Not good.”
“It’s not. You’re going to fix it.”
“Me?”
“Yeah. Show me I can trust you, Trev.”
“What do you need?”
Ripper grinned. “You’re going to kill Jasper. If not, I’m going to kill you.”
*
Trev now had a gun. He had ammo, too. Ripper had armed the man sent to kill him. But Trev also had a mission. He had to kill Jasper.
He walked to the bar and Ripper gave a nod. Ripper butted his way into a pool game, taking a stick from Austin.
“Where the fuck is Jasper?” Ripper asked.
“In his room,” Max said.
“Jerking off again?” Ripper asked. “Or crying over Giovanni?”
Nobody responded.
Ripper leaned down and buried a ball into a pocket.
Trev climbed up to the bar and nodded at West.
“Funny to see you here,” West said. “Bloody and alone.”
“My club turned on me,” Trev said. He then winked.
“Let me get you a drink.”
West poured a drink and put a napkin next to the glass. Under it, Trev saw a pen. West then gave a quick nod. The old man wasn’t stupid. He knew something big was going to go down. West walked away to block the view of Ripper.
Trev took the pen from under the napkin and wrote a note.
Need to shoot Jasper. Won’t kill him. Taking Ripper away. Time for change. Get towels. Do not send the guys.
Trev then flicked the pen to the other side of the bar. He took a drink of his beer and put it down. He looked around and lifted his hand to his face and purposely knocked the glass over.
“Goddammit,” he growled and jumped back, putting his hand on the napkin with the note.
West rushed to Trev’s aide, slapping a towel on the bar.
“Miss your fucking mouth?” West asked.
“Fuck yourself, old man,” Trev said.
He slid the napkin to West and West took it.
Trev then turned and
walked away.
He walked toward the back and went down the hallway. Ripper had given him the directions to Jasper’s room.
Trev approached and heard a groaning sound. He rolled his eyes, knowing things always had to get more complicated. He knocked on the door.
“Fuck off!” Jasper yelled.
Trev knocked again, harder.
“I said fuck off, asshole!”
Trev had no choice but to bust in.
He opened the door and drew his gun.
Jasper had some woman bent over the bed, fucking her. He kept fucking her, getting in three more hard thrusts before the woman realized there was a gun pointed at them. She let out a scream and jumped forward.
Jasper turned and yelled, “Holy fuck.”
Trev shut the door and hurried to Jasper. The woman started to scream.
“Shut up!” Trev bellowed at her. He looked at Jasper. “Ripper wants me to kill you, brother. We need to play this out.”
“What?”
“He knows about Jenn. I have to kill you or else he’s going to kill me.” Trev nodded to the woman. “Get the whore out of here.”
“Go, baby,” Jasper said. “Now.”
The woman scrambled off the bed, picking up her pants. She hurried out of the room.
“Pick up your pants,” Trev said.
“What the fuck are you going to do?”
“I’m going to put a bullet in each shoulder,” Trev said. “You’re going to fall into the bathroom. Smash your head off the mirror. Fall into the shower and roll up in the shower curtain. Get blood everywhere. And then don’t fucking move until West comes to get you.”
“West?”
“He knows what I’m doing.”
“What the fuck…”
“Now,” Trev said. “It has to look real.”
Jasper nodded. “Okay.” He stepped into the middle of the floor.
Trev pulled the trigger and shot the wall. He then lunged to the right and pulled out two dressers and dumped the clothes on the floor. He swung the gun to the left and smashed against the mirror above the dresser.
Then he looked at Jasper and nodded.
Please don’t fuck this up, Trev… don’t shoot him in the wrong spot and actually kill him…
Trev aimed and fired.
__
twenty-seven.
“Any word from Trev yet?”
“No, ma’am,” the prospect said. “I don’t think so.”
“Where’s Blaine or Gaige?”
Eden saw Gaige appear in the doorway. Behind her came Blaine. Then Miller.
“Uh, hey,” Eden said.
“You,” Gaige said to the prospect. “Fuck off.”
The prospect put the bag on the table and left.
Miller pointed to the bag. “Tell me that’s the truth.”
“It is,” Eden said. “I guess. I think.”
“More kids in the clubhouse,” Blaine said.
“Christ,” Gaige said. “Emily is all over my ass about having a baby as it is. She’s going to rip my balls off if this is true.”
“She won’t get a kid then,” Miller said with a smile.
“Did you hear from Trev?” Eden asked.
“Not yet. He’s fine, I’m sure of it. We have scenarios all played out. If he doesn’t check in at a certain time, we send guys up north. We have meeting spots. It all depends on how fast this can go down.”
“Weeks? Days?”
Blaine winked. “How about today?”
“Today? One day?”
“If Ripper confesses, it’s over,” Gaige said. “That’s all we’re looking for. We need the evidence.”
“So the death is justified, sweetie,” Jenn said. “It’s all part of the club.”
“You know your shit, Jenn,” Blaine said.
“I’ve got more years in this than you have little pubes hanging off your sack,” Jenn said.
Everyone laughed.
Blaine’s jaw dropped.
Eden had never seen Blaine so quiet.
“Take the test,” Miller said. “We need good news.”
“Excuse me?” Eden asked.
“While we’re here,” Miller said. “Come on. Don’t let us down.”
Eden looked around. There was no arguing them. They were bigger, tougher, and they were the ones protecting her. Plus, if her pregnancy could bring some kind of good vibes to everyone, then it was worth it. It wasn’t like she had to piss in front of everyone.
“Okay,” Eden said.
She grabbed the plastic bag and walked away.
Once in the bathroom, she dropped her pants and sat on the toilet. She opened the pregnancy test and couldn’t believe this was happening. Then again, what did she think would happen? From the second she let Trev inside her body without protection, this was a possibility. She did, however, think that Trev would be here for it. To share the excitement. To share the nervousness. Instead, Eden stuck the stick down between her legs and she wondered what kind of life she was going to live as a single mother. Yeah, she’d have the MC behind her, but what would that do? Her life had been flipped around so many times since meeting Trev it was hard to figure which way was right side up.
When she finished she put the test on the sink and stood up.
Now her fate was down to just a few minutes.
Eden exited the bathroom and everyone was right there, right in the bedroom.
Blaine sniffed. “Still smells like sex.”
“Stop it,” Gaige said.
“What’s the test say?” Miller asked.
“Takes a few minutes,” Eden said.
“Don’t be nervous. He’ll be back. You’ll get a nice, round belly. Life is going to be great.”
“And your tits are going to get big and full,” Blaine said with hungry eyes.
“Fuck, bro,” Gaige said. “Give her a break. You have your own woman to deal with.”
“Right,” Blaine said. He pinched the bridge of his nose.
“Hey,” Miller said. “Why don’t we tell Eden the story of how Trev got drunk, lost a game of poker to a stripper, and then had to ride his motorcycle naked through the lot.”
Gaige and Blaine started to laugh.
Eden smiled.
It was good to have a funny story to tell. A story worth smiling for.
Eden just hoped whatever was happening with Trev at that second was worth trying to smile for…
__
twenty-eight.
Trev watched as Jasper jumped back, smashing his head against the mirror. He then moved out of sight. Trev ran forward and into the bathroom just in time to see Jasper standing there, blood all over his arms.
“Sorry, brother,” Trev said. “Make a mess.”
Jasper gritted his teeth. He crossed his arms and dug into the bullet wounds. He screamed as he did so, throwing hands out, spraying blood all over the bathroom, including all over Trev’s shirt.
“Save us,” Jasper said.
He then grabbed the shower curtain and twisted himself up. He smeared blood all over the walls and collapsed into the tub, hiding his face.
He looked good and dead. But only for a few seconds. Trev needed to get Ripper in and out.
He stepped back and turned to see the door to Jasper’s room open.
Xavier, Kye, and Cash were there.
Trev pointed the gun at them. “You want to be next?”
Ripper pushed through and instantly smiled when he saw the blood on Trev.
“Done?” Ripper asked.
“Done,” Trev said. “Two to the chest. Blood everywhere.”
“What the hell is this?” Cash asked.
“This is what happens when you turn your back on the MC,” Ripper said. “I want all you motherfuckers to go back out there think about this. Then you can all come in and see your dead VP. Next person to talk about me, question my authority, or fuck my old lady will get the same treatment from Trev.”
“Fucking right,” Trev said.
&nb
sp; Ripper shut the door when everyone was out. “Let me see him.”
Trev side stepped and nodded.
As Ripper walked by, Trev realized this was his chance to end it all. Put a bullet in the back of Ripper’s head.
Trev turned and lifted the gun as Ripper went into the bathroom.
His finger touched the trigger.
I have the proof. I have the confession. I don’t need approval.
Trev started to apply pressure to the trigger.
Ripper then grabbed his own gun and pointed it right at Jasper.
Trev had to lower his weapon and he grabbed for Ripper’s arm. “What are you doing?”
“I want to put a bullet in him myself,” Ripper said. “For what he did.”
“No,” Trev said. “Look. His foot just twitched. He might still be bleeding out. Let him suffer. He’ll suffocate or bleed. It’s torture.”
“He fucked my old lady.”
“I know, Ripper,” Trev said. “Come on, this is done. We need to finish up Frelen. I have a plan.”
Ripper turned. “What’s that?”
“I know where they meet. Their secret meetings. It’s Miller, Gaige, a couple others. We take them out first.”
Ripper nodded. “Fucking right, my man.” He grabbed Trev’s shoulder. “Consider your favor answered. When this is all done, you’ll have protection. Anywhere in the country, Trev.”
Trev put his hand to Ripper’s shoulder. “Thank you, brother. A true brother. Need me to kill anyone else up here?”
Ripper grinned. “No. Not right now. Let’s let them see this mess.”
“Good,” Trev said. “We’ve got daylight to burn. I want this done before the sun goes down. I want to stare into their eyes when they die.”
“So do I,” Ripper said.
Trev managed to get Ripper out of the bathroom.
It was strangely easy to act like such a ruthless murderer.
Out at the bar, Ripper walked through without saying a word or looking at anyone. Trev kept his face stone cold and ready to kill.
He was close.
He was really fucking close.
What he need though was a minute to himself.
He needed to warn Miller that hell was about to come to Frelen.
*
“Come with me,” Ripper said.
Trev followed and they walked from the bar to the car part business. There were several garages and vehicles parked, making it all look legit. Trev knew better. Nothing about it was legit.
