Page 83 of Chains
Chapter Seventeen
The cars bounceddown the rough dirt street before turning onto Yellow Feather Road. Diablo and Paco killed the headlights on their cages, and the cars slowed down to almost a crawl as they approached the adobe.
Chains held the assault rifle in his hands as he scanned the area for any movement other than black-tail bobcats, lizards, and cactus mice. The adobe was on flat ground, but mountain lions were known to wander down from the nearby mesas and San Juan Mountain range when looking for food.
Diablo stopped, and Chains jumped out to pull open a large door, then the two cars drove into the garage. The bikers slid out of the cars and walked out of the garage after having shut the door. The wind—a biting, icy one—nudged them forward. Chains listened to the rhythm of boots on the gravel and to his breathing.Eagle’s right—something feels off.Chains felt his gut tighten, and a sixth sense whispered across his skin, raising the hair on the back of his neck. Darting his eyes around for the umpteenth time, he fell in beside Aztec.
“Do you feel it?” he asked in a low voice.
“Fuck yeah—something’s not right,” Aztec replied. “The others have gotta sense it too.”
Paco gestured for Chains, Aztec, Eagle, and Knuckles to go around back as he pointed to the others to cover the sides and front of the adobe.
The house, the yards, the surroundings… everything was seeped in darkness. Chains carried the assault rifle over his right shoulder and the Kill Light—a large industrial flashlight—in his left hand as he trudged gingerly over the small rocks and sand.
Slowly, Eagle opened the back door, hinges creaking loudly in the inky quiet. Adrenaline surged through Chains as he followed his friend into the house; Aztec and Knuckles were so close behind him, he could feel their breath on his neck.
Once inside, the men paused and listened for movements in the adobe—the click of a gun, shuffling footsteps, low whispers—but they heard only silence. Chains motioned with his light that he was going to check out the room to the left. Eagle gestured that he’d join him; Chains nodded, then ventured into the space.
Fuck, it’s dark in here.He wished he could use his flashlight, but Chains didn’t want to risk it. Something about this transaction was off kilter. His gut—rarely wrong—told him that this deal would go very bad. No matter how hard he tried to shake that thought, it stuck like fly paper.
“I’m gonna clear the closet,” Chains whispered to Eagle, who softly clucked his tongue.
Standing to the side of the door, his rifle pointing toward it, Chains raised his foot and kicked it open. Eagle switched on the flashlight, illuminating the empty closet.
“Clear,” Chains said in a low voice.
From the sound of heavy boots on the floor and against the wood, Chains knew the other members were simultaneously checking the nooks and crannies of the house.
“Nothing’s fucked up here.” Paco’s voice echoed through the adobe.
The men gathered in the main room, and Diablo and Knuckles stood sentry by the front windows that looked out at the road.
“Tats, Crow, Brick, and Shotgun are gonna stay hidden in the brush to watch the outside. I want Diablo, Chains, and Eagle with me in this room.” Then, Paco directed Army and Knuckles, “Take the back room”—he pointed to Muerto, Goldie, Sangre, and Aztec—“and two of you in each of the other rooms. I got a feeling shit isn’t gonna go down the way it should.”
The men mumbled their agreement, then dispersed to the positions the vice president had assigned. Fifteen minutes later, the crunch of tires on gravel rang out.
“The fuckers are early and driving without headlights,” Diablo said as he stared out the window.
“Definitely planning to rip us off,” Chains said.
“Damn straight,” Paco replied as he stood by the side of the window. “We’ll check ’em for weapons when they get inside. I’m not takin’ any fucking chances.” He looked over his shoulder at Chains. “These assholes checked out okay?”
Chains blew out a breath. “Yeah. The only snag was that the old man has a son.” He snapped his fingers as he tried to remember the guy’s name, then it hit him. “Eric, that’s it. Anyway, the take on Eric is that he’s a greedy fucker who doesn’t negotiate straight. I brought this up at church, and Steel said that the old man was gonna be the one making the deal tonight.”
“I got a feeling the old man pussied out and sent in the heavy,” Eagle said.
“If it’s this asshole Eric, he’s gonna be in for a big surprise,” Diablo replied. “There’re three more cages coming. Fuck, they’re looking for a fight.”
Every muscle in Chains’ body stiffened as he walked over to the window and peeked out. Four SUVs approached the adobe.
“Fuck, we shoulda brought more brothers,” he said.
“We can handle them. No doubt the fuckers got strong firearms, but I brought some grenades just in case we have to use them,” Paco said. “We can’t check all of them for weapons since we’re outnumbered, so we only let three people in. The others will have to wait in the car. If they don’t want to, I’ll give the signal to Crow and Shotgun to nuke them. I don’t want to lose any brothers.”
The doors to one of the SUVs opened, and three men filed out and walked right up the steps to the front porch.
“Are they that fuckin’ stupid? Maybe this is gonna be real easy,” Eagle said.
