Again, his head dips up and down.
I place my empty cup on the counter. “Now, what’s the score with Paladin?”
When he indicates a chair, I expect this to be a long conversation. I put more coffee on to brew, then sit opposite, elbows on the table, my head resting on my hands.
Slick doesn’t disappoint, starting immediately. “He got his handle as Jayden seemed to think the sun shone out of his ass, that he was her knight in shining armour. Saw his interest in her right from that time. Drummer and I read him the riot act, he’d risk his patch if he made one wrong move toward her.”
“Which, clearly, he hasn’t done.”
“Nah. I’ve got a lot of respect for the brother. He’s been her friend, her protector. I don’t think his feelin’s have changed. Done nothing but show he’d wait for her.”
“And now?”
Slick shrugs. “In Arizona the age of consent is eighteen.”
“Here, it’s a year earlier.” Not that a designated age made much difference to most teens. “You want me to enforce your original boundary?” I hope he doesn’t, I’ve already got enough on my plate. Don’t want to include babysitting a horny teenager.
“Fuck, I don’t know.” Slick looks confused. “I’ve interfered in their lives about as much as I want to. They were still under my roof? Then, yes, what I said still goes. But I can’t put that on you. It’s not fair. Think Ella and I knew we might be pushin’ them together by lettin’ them both come here. But fuck, didn’t want to take away her lifeline.”
“You said his feelin’s haven’t changed. What about hers?”
Slick snorts. “No fuckin’ idea. Not something I’ve spoken about with her.”
“Ella?”
“Again, I don’t know. She hasn’t said anything. Guess it’s just as hard to talk about some things with your little sister. Can understand she wouldn’t want to poke the sleepin’ bear.”
“And risk wakin’ it.”
“You’ve got it.” Slick grins quickly, then his brow creases. “There was a kid back at the clubhouse. A stray adopted by Mouse. He’s a year or so younger than Jayden. Kids naturally drifted together. Made me wonder whether being cooped up with Paladin hasn’t been healthy, she hasn’t had any freedom to explore her options.”
I can see his point. “Demon’s suggested she gets some independence, learns to drive.”
“I know. Already agreed to buy her a car. Something she couldn’t have considered in Tucson. We’d never have let her out of our sight.”
I stare at him. “Seems she needs to have the ties loosened. Be allowed to make decisions and mistakes for herself.”
Slick gazes into the distance. “You’re right, Brother. Might not like it. But I think you’re right. If, in the end, it brings her back to Paladin, all well and good. If not, he’ll have to accept it.”
Glancing up at the clock, I startle. I hadn’t realised how long we’d been chewing the fat. I stand, pouring another cup of coffee. “I’ve got to get going, Slick. I’ll take this up to Moira, she’ll get you some breakfast.”
“Thanks, Hellfire. I need to go wake Ella myself. We’ve got to get a move on if we’re going to make our flight.”
“One of the prospects will be here to take you to the airport. I’d stay, but…”
“Yeah, no worries. You go and do your stuff. And, thank you, Brother.”
I wave off his gratitude, slap his back, tell him I’ll keep in touch, then we go to wake our respective wives.
Arriving at the clubhouse I find although it’s early, there are a number of members around, mainly in the big kitchen where Jeannie is directing two of the whores, Bella and Titsy, in making breakfast for the men who are eagerly waiting. Kicking out a chair, I take a seat, preparing to get a plate when food’s ready to be served.
“You stayed home last night?” Demon has taken the seat beside me. As he bends to sit, he speaks quietly into my ear.
“Yeah, had words with your mom,” I reply, my own voice mimicking his low tone. “Got things straight.”
“I’ll believe that when I see it,” he mumbles.
Yeah. He’s right to have doubts. I’d let the situation deteriorate for far too long, just because I hadn’t wanted to admit to my problem.
“Met the new brother, yet?” He changes the subject.
“Not yet, no. You?”
“Yeah.” Demon’s eyes flick around. “Hey, Paladin. Here.”
Responding more like a prospect, the new guy leaps into action, crossing the room fast. When he draws to a halt, I almost expect him to salute.
“Take a load off, Brother.” Using my foot under the table, I push out the chair opposite. When he takes it, I enquire. “How are you settlin’ in?”
“Good.” He nods. “Got everything I could want here.”
“It must be strange,” Demon commiserates with him. “But you’ll soon find your place. Got any skills we should know of?”
“Willing to go wherever there’s a need.”
“Strip club.” It takes me no more than a split second to make a decision, remembering my conversation with Slick. Yeah, let’s front him with naked women, see how long he resists temptation. Test the lad. His self-claimed girl’s going to be living under my roof, I need to see what he’s made of.
“Fine.” Paladin’s hard to read. He certainly doesn’t leap with excitement, but his pleased nod shows he’s happy to be given a job. A role. A place. Kid will be looking for that.
“Hey, Taser. Take Paladin here to Tits Up. Show him the ropes.”
“Sure boss.” Taser, who manages the place, is quick to reply. “Could use another hand.”
It’s not usual that I get personal service, but Jeannie’s crossing the room bearing two plates. When she places them in front of me and Demon, I thank her. Turning my head, I notice a frown on my VP’s face. She knows his story. She’s kept the secret so long, I’m confident she’ll never say anything, but it must be affecting him deep inside. Not every day you learn your father’s actually your brother. Fuck, I’ve no idea how I’d start to deal with that myself.
The bacon and eggs go down well. Finished, I stand, take my plate over to Jeannie who relieves me of it, then walk to my office. The day starts well. I manage to get a couple of hours’ work done before I have an interruption.
“Prez?”
“Cad. Come in. Everything okay?”
For an answer, he hands me a USB. I plug it into my laptop, pausing while it does its stuff. Before I press play, I ask. “What am I lookin’ at?”
“Footage from behind Tits Up. From last night.”
On my laptop appears a view of the rear of our strip club. Certainly looks like someone’s casing the joint to me. Whoever it is wears a hoodie pulled up over his head, his face virtually concealed by a bandana. In the dim light, it’s impossible to make out anything useful at all. But the fact he’s there is what’s got our security guy worried.
“Have you told Taser?”
“Yeah, warned him before him and the new brother headed out. Young Pal seems to have a good head on his shoulders. Offered to check it out when he gets there. Immediately asked what security is on the girls.”
“You think someone’s planning something?”
Cad shrugs. “Can’t rule it out. I’m going to go back over all the recordings, see if there’s anything I’ve missed before. Pal’s right. We need to keep an eye on the girls, and check nothing’s been tampered with.”
Could be someone planning a robbery, but whoever it is must have balls if they’re considering going up against the Satan’s Devils. “Let me know if you dig anything else up. We’ll discuss it at church later. Beef up the security in the meantime.”
Dismissed, Cad leaves my office, my eyes linger on the empty doorway, my nose twitching. I’ve learned to trust it. After a moment, I pull my laptop toward me, and go back to the spreadsheet I was looking at before.
But I’m not to have long to myself. Another knock, this time it�
�s Demon. As he enters, I close the lid of my laptop, my attention one hundred percent on my son, my brother. Fuck, I don’t know what to call him, how to treat him. This man I saw birthed, held his hand as he took his first steps, bought him his first bike and showed him how to ride it, taught him how to grow into a man. Yeah, he’s my son for all intents and purposes.
From the way his brow’s creased there’s something on his mind, whether personal or business I can’t be sure. “What’s up, VP?”
“Lizard says someone’s been messing around the shop.”
My eyes sharpen. Another of our businesses? This time, the tattoo parlour. I press my lips together. “Cad’s just been in here. Someone was at the back of the strip club last night.”
Demon’s face darkens. He reaches into his cut and takes out his phone. “Rusty. Take a careful look around the bowling alley, yeah? Someone’s been eyeing up some of our businesses. See if anyone’s noticed anything strange. Yeah. Great.” He looks at me and shakes his head, then places another call. “Pyro. You were just going to call me? What’s…? Fuck. What’s missing? Who the fuck? Yeah. Keep me posted, and yeah, talk to Cad.” This time when he ends the call, he answers the question in my eyes.
“Pyro said someone broke into the auto-shop last night. Only just found out. Not sure whether anything else was taken yet, but a few new spare parts that were on special order are definitely missin’. Parts that took an age to come in as well. He hasn’t yet found out where or how they got in.”
“Inside job?” Last thing I want to think about. We trust our employees, but there’s always a chance.
“He’s considering it, but fuck, Prez, he doesn’t want to go there. And linked with the other reports? Got to wonder whether there’s anyone fucking with us. Too much of a coincidence to be isolated attacks.”
My thoughts echoed from earlier.
“I’ll get over to the auto-shop, help Pyro see what’s what. Don’t like this, Prez.”
Me either. “Pyro said he thought shit might have been taken before.”
“Yeah. But Pyro said boxes had been torn open. No attempt to hide a theft. Not a chance this could be accidental.” Demon stands. “Oh, and what you suggested? If you’re thinkin’ of steppin’ down because you can’t take the heat any longer, if the brothers want me, I’m willin’ to take over. But if you think I’m seeing it as my right to sit in that chair, you couldn’t be more fuckin’ wrong, you hear me, old man?”
I pick up a piece of paper, wad it, and chuck it at him. “Less of the ol’ fuckin’ man, you hear me, son.”
The door closes on the sound of him chuckling. Do I take it that he’s bearing no grudge for me keeping that immense secret from him? Sounds like we might be finding a way forward. Doing what we do best, putting our heads together on club business seems to have removed the last of the awkwardness that had come between us.
That’s one weight off my mind. One thing going my way. Now just got to find out who’s messing with the club. I don’t believe in coincidences.
I’ve also got to find some way to make shit right with Moira.
Stress? Well, I’ve just got to deal with it.
Chapter Seventeen
Paladin
In Tucson everyone knew my main job was watching out for Jayden. Most days I’d take her to school, bring her home. In between times I’d turn my hand to whatever needed doing. Part of me would welcome having a real job, a place where I could make a contribution by working alongside my brothers.
Naively, having expected little would change, that I’d still have a job looking out for the girl I’d had responsibility for, for so long, I’d promised to see Jay today. But my plans went awry when first thing this morning, Hellfire had teamed me up with Taser, and directed me to the strip club. I could hardly fuck off and see my girl, not when the prez had assigned me a task. When I pick up my phone to send a quick text, I notice I’d missed one from her sent last night.
Jay: Can we talk?
Shit. She’ll think I’m ignoring her. Not much I can do about that. I send the message of explanation.
Pal: Got shit to do. Will try and see you later
Jay: Fine
I might not have a lot of experience with women, but even I know when a female says things are fine, they’re likely to be anything but. There’s nothing I can do about it. Whether she likes it or not, Jay’s got to learn the club comes first. Always. I frown, realising while she might know that on an intellectual level, she hasn’t experienced that before. Previously keeping her out of trouble had been club business. Now she’s in Pueblo, she no longer takes priority, or not in my new brothers’ eyes.
“Alright?”
Taser’s waiting by his bike. He must have seen the expression on my face when I read the text. I just nod and go to my ride.
Taser’s about ten years my senior, he’s heavily tattooed and sports a thick beard, maybe to make up for the thinning of the hair on his head. He’s got chiselled features though, large eyes with eyelashes girls would probably lust over. I hadn’t been introduced to him last night, maybe he was working all evening. I’ll have to check what my hours are going to be, might make it hard to see Jay when she starts school during the day, and I’m working at night. Still, got some time yet to figure that out.
We pull up outside a brick building, it’s down a side street off the main drag. An unlit neon sign above it, pictures outside leaving no doubt of the scantily clad, or naked women, customers will find inside. I stand back as Taser opens up the building. He gives his version of a tour as we enter.
“Bar over there, stage, private rooms and girls’ changing facilities down that way.” A wave of his hand punctuates each word. “Manager’s office over here.”
As Taser flicks on overhead lights, the place looks seedy. As if he reads my mind, he laughs. “Might not look much now, but the low-level lighting is all that they need at night, and covers a multitude of sins. I’ve mentioned to Prez I’d like to spruce it up a bit. Could do with a lick of fresh paint. But I doubt the customers will care. It’s what’s on the stage people come here for.”
I raise my chin. Much like Angels back in Tucson.
“I want to do a stock check of the liquor today. That will be your job, so I’ll show you how to do that. Ever done it before?”
“Helped out,” I say truthfully. “But not had the responsibility.”
He swings around, his head tilted to one side. “Were you really a full-time babysitter?”
“Pretty much,” I respond, though my teeth are gritted. Looking after my girl was no chore.
“Prez won’t let you get away with that here.”
“Hopefully there’ll be no need for it.”
He nods. “Right. Doors open at eight pm, we stay open until five in the morning. You okay with being nocturnal?”
Not what I was hoping for, but I’ll do whatever I have to. Somehow I’ll make it work. “Sure.”
“We’re open Tuesday through Saturday. We can alternate. Be easier on both of us, but Prez likes someone to be here. Of course, brothers are always popping in, so you won’t be lonely. I usually use the daytime to get shit done. Place gets busy at night.”
He’s given me the details, but I’m wondering whether I should prompt him we need to investigate what Cad had seen on the security footage. But what do I know about which things take precedence? In Tucson, we’d have leapt on any threat immediately. Taser is obviously not giving it such importance. Maybe they don’t have to be so on edge here.
At that moment, his phone rings. I give him privacy, wandering over to check the place out. Wondering whether there’s a redecorating budget, there are improvements needed I can already tell. And, a cleaner to have a word with if I’m not mistaken. I decide to ask for a rundown of the staff just as Taser comes over.
“Right. That was Demon asking if we’d checked out back yet.” He frowns. “VP seems a bit agitated, sounds like it’s urgent for some reason. Better get on with what he wants. You comin’?�
�
It’s a rhetorical question, what else would I be doing? I follow him down the corridor he’d pointed out earlier, past bathrooms emitting a predictable odour of disinfectant, then a storeroom, and out through a back door. He leads me around the corner where there’s a dumpster. “Cad picked up an asshole on the security recordings from last night right here. Need to see if we can spot what he was doing.” He points up above my head. “That’s the camera that picked him up.”
“Was he waiting for one of the girls to come out?”
“Nah. Place was closed up. Time stamp was six am.”
I start looking around. Nothing immediately obvious. I glance at the camera in question, my brow furrowing as I notice while it’s not static, its arc only moves from left to right, its focus is on the window and not on… Hmm. I place my hands on the top of the dumpster which would be out of range of the camera and pull myself up, looking in. Oh shit… “Fuck, Taser. Oh fuck.” Hoisting up fully I place my foot on the edge, then gingerly turn and lower myself in.
Taser’s face appears. “What…? Oh, fuckin’ hell.” He notices fast. “He dead?”
I turn the body over to check, my fingers touching cold skin, then I make the mistake of breathing deep and immediately cover my mouth and nose with my hand. “No question of that. Any idea who he is?”
Taser’s gone white as he answers. “Nah. Fuck Pal. I need to call Prez.”
I’ve seen dead bodies before. Killed people too. But I’ve never literally stumbled across one. There’s nothing for me to do now and the smell of the rotting garbage is becoming overpowering. Quickly I get myself out of the dumpster and am brushing myself off when Taser ends his call.
“Prez and VP are on their way over. We’re to make sure there’s no prying eyes.”
He leans over, breathing shallow breaths. “Fuck, Pal. Who would kill someone and leave him behind our club?”
“Presumably he was killed and left here. Looks to me like someone is sending us a message.”
Satan's Devils MC Colorado Boxset 1 Books 1 - 3 Page 15
