Page 45 of Shadow's Surrender
Chapter Ten
Forty men filledthe meeting room, some leaning against the concrete walls, some sitting on the floor with their knees bent in front of them, and others on metal chairs around the large mahogany table. Banger stood at the head while Hawk slouched down in his seat. A cacophony of cussing, fists pounding on the tables, and excited voices filled the room.
“There’s no fuckin’ way we’re gonna let Skeet get away with this shit,” Throttle said as he tipped the back of his chair against the wall. He waved his hand around the room. “We shoulda put a bullet in his head instead of giving him a beatdown last year.”
Banger hit the gavel on the wood block. “It’s what the club decided and what Metal wanted, so all this grumbling isn’t doing a damn thing to help. Skeet’s got shit for brains if he’s aiming to take us on.”
The men yelled their agreement amid guffaws and clapping. Hawk pushed back in his chair and slowly rose to his feet.
“Skeet’s the new president of the Rising Order. He got a few of his buddies to oust Sniper from that position. We made a fuckin’ mistake in not taking care of him after the situation with Tigger went down, but Skeet was a brother, and it’s never easy to think a member will betray the brotherhood.”
“He betrayed Metal by fuckin’ his old lady.” Bear shook his head. “Metal was too easy on her.”
Animal nodded. “Bones and I were ready to haul her ass back to the club when we ran into Skeet and the skank last year, but Metal didn’t want it. There’s no way I would’ve been that forgiving.”
“And the way she kept trying to convince us not to teach Skeet a lesson for fuckin’ a brother’s old lady was so damn annoying.” Bones crossed his arms over his chest. “The only reason I didn’t shut her up for good was outta respect for Metal’s wishes. The brother’s a real stand-up guy.”
Metal was an older Insurgent who’d gone inactive when a slew of health problems forced him to retire from the club. His second wife, Thea, hadn’t been too happy about being a caretaker at her young age. She was a little less than half of Metal’s fifty years, and the thrill of being his old lady began to dissipate. Skeet was twenty-eight, rugged, and exuded all kinds of alpha-male sexiness, and soon the two were carrying on a torrid affair behind Metal’s back.
The Insurgents MC had a rule that if any brother fucks another brother’s old lady or girlfriend, that member would get a beatdown and be thrown out of the club. Of course there were exceptions, like in Wheelie and Sofia’s case, but for the most part, the rule was taken seriously.
Skeet had left the club before Metal found out about the affair, and the ex-Insurgent weaseled himself into the Rising Order—a relatively new MC in Northern Colorado. Since Skeet had entered into that club, there had been rumblings over the MC grapevine that the Rising Order wanted to claim Colorado as their state—something the Insurgents would never allow. From their inception, Colorado had been Insurgents’ territory and they’d go to war to defend their claim.
“I heard Twisted Kings wanna join forces with the Rising Assholes,” Animal said as he pulled out a joint from his shirt pocket.
“They’re wannabe outlaws. They think their shit doesn’t stink because they got some affiliation with the Grim Henchmen in Oakland. What a bunch of weak-ass pussies,” Throttle said.
“Panther told me even the Henchmen can’t stand those fuckers,” Jerry said. “Kylie and I went to San Diego for a vacation last week, and I met up with the brothers in the San Diego chapter. Scratch and Demon were fucking crazy at the club party.” He laughed then stopped short.
Shadow glanced at Banger’s stony face and chuckled. He and the other brothers had been taking bets for the last few years on when Banger was going to finally chill about his daughter being Jerry’s old lady. Banger had calmed down a bit since the early years, but he still gave Jerry the evil eye whenever he talked about club parties or anything else the president didn’t think was appropriate when it came to Kylie.
“Stupid assholes trying to play at running a one-percenter club can make a ton of fuckin’ problems.” Hawk rubbed his face. “Skeet’s got some vendetta shit going on with us, so he can be dangerous. We’ll watch it closely, but at the first signs of activity, we gotta shut it down.”
“I have some buddies in independent clubs around the area up north who will keep me informed,” Rock said.
“I bet the assholes will be at the Steamboat Springs bike rally in the fall,” Cruiser said. “If they wanna start trouble, I’m all in for beating their asses. It’s been kinda boring around here anyway.”
The men laughed, some agreeing wholeheartedly with Cruiser.
“Get an old lady and a few kids and you won’t have time to be bored,” Hawk said, a smile tugging at his lips.
“That’s okay, bro, I’ll pass on that.” Cruiser laughed.
“If they start shit at the rally, we’ll kick their asses. It might be a good idea not to bring family to this one. I got a feeling shit may go down.” Banger looked pointedly at Jerry. “I don’t want any women or kids getting caught in the crossfire if things erupt.”
Jerry nodded and looked away.
“What’s going on with our real estate project in West Pinewood?” Helm asked.
Hawk’s eyes narrowed into slits as he shook his head. “That Mansfield bitch is still causing all sorts of unnecessary headaches. I’m tempted to shut her up for good,” he growled.
Smokey splayed his hands on the table and leaned forward. “Don’t do anything to the uptight bitch until I finish the damn project at her house. I gotta get my full pay.”
Hawk chuckled while nodding. “Just give me the word when you’re done, and I’ll make my move.” He glanced over at the club’s treasurer. “You’re up.” He plopped down on the chair, and Hubcap stood up and walked to the head of the table.
Placing his hands behind his head, Shadow stretched his legs in front of him. Just the mention of the Mansfields had him thinking of Scarlett. They both seemed to be avoiding each other ever since that night at Big Rocky’s Barbecue, but several times he’d caught a glimpse of her at the second-floor window before she quickly pulled out of sight behind her curtains. A smile ghosted across his lips as he recalled the few times when she hadn’t turned away and their eyes had locked: the sexual current that passed between them just sizzled. Shadow licked his lips and shifted in the chair.Damn. That woman gets me going like no other.
When he’d bumped into her at the back of the restaurant the week before, Shadow was happier than he cared to admit, and when she gave him attitude, he wanted nothing more than to pull her against him. Just the feel of her lips on his made him hard as fuck, but he also wanted to get to knowher. He knew her body and how to make her scream until she was hoarse, but he didn’t know the person inside her very well. A night with Scarlett wrapped in his arms sounded pretty damn sweet, and waking up to her ass pressed snug against him would take it over the top.
