Page 6 of Rattlin' Bones

Fuck. “I had to.”

“I’m still waiting for the reason, not to mention an apology.”

Apology? “For what?”

“Breaking my heart,” she whispered before shoving me away and closing the door in my fucking face.

Fuck! I had to make this right.

Spinning on my heel, I stomped to the elevators. Lacey didn’t understand. I wasn’t going anywhere.

“WHAT DID YOU FIND,Skel?” Maddog asked as we gathered around the table in church, as serious as a sermon on the Sabbath. No, we didn’t pray to any higher being, but we were just as strict and uncompromising about our beliefs. We lived by a code of brotherhood and loyalty, and the club took first place over every other relationship each member had. Only family trumped that and the few ol’ ladies claimed by officers.

“I did a deep dive on the web,” I reminded them, continuing the conversation we’d had last week. “I found information about a hit ordered by the Bladed Serpents.” They were our biggest rival. “It was issued when Creature’s father was V.P.”

Creature pounded a fist on the table. “I need to know more about how his own club called a hit on my family. Those motherfuckers plotted to kill my mother.”

Creature’s mother was murdered right in front of him when he was only thirteen. Fucked him up good. Back then, I had been a prospect for the Bladed Serpents. Young and stupid, I didn’t know the shit they were involved in or how deep the animosity ran toward Tinman. That day changed everything.

Now, over a decade later, there were still secrets. Creature took out Mateo Ruiz, but his business associates, Luis Diego, and Angel Mackenzie, were still out there, causing chaos. They had a deal with the Bladed Serpents and Ratchet, their president, who trafficked women in and out of the U.S. at various checkpoints, including Las Vegas.

He needed put down, preferably six feet deep. The Feral Rebels MC, a brother chapter to ours and the Tonopah RBMC, had already declared war on the Bladed Serpents. We were the next to add our vote.

“Ratchet was the treasurer when Tinman was V.P.,” Creature reminded us. “If he didn’t order the hit on my mother, he has to know something about it.”

“I’ve found some shady shit with the club’s books online,” I divulged. “There’s a connection that’s mentioned multiple times. Luis Diego. But someone isn’t as good with accounting as they think. If they get audited, shit will go down with the feds.”

“We should look into making that happen,” Creature decided. He turned to Maddog. “Pres?”

“Yeah, that’s the first angle we dig around. Do it,” Maddog ordered.

I was the best tech person we had until Snapshot joined us. He wouldn’t arrive for another month. It was up to me to help put pressure on Ratchet and the Bladed Serpents. Maybe that would draw out Luis, too. I had a bullet with his name on it. Thecocksucker. He messed with the RBMC, the Feral Rebels, and Lacey. He was fucking done.

Our enemies were growing bold and plotting against us. Ratchet. Luis Diego. And fucking Angel Mackenzie, the nephew of cartel boss Salazar Guerrero. Salazar failed to control his nephew. That meant Angel was fair game now. They were all connected and about to face judgment.

Creature cleared his throat. “After all this time, I’m finally gonna find the motherfucker who ordered my mother’s murder. There’s not gonna be any mercy once I do, pres.”

“Wouldn’t think otherwise,” Maddog replied, lifting the gavel and slamming it down on the table. “Church is dismissed.”

Manic and Creature left the chapel as I lit up a smoke. “What are you thinkin’?”

“Can’t ever keep shit from you, can I?” he asked with a laugh.

“No,” I agreed. “Tell me what’s on your mind.”

“I need an honest opinion on the strip club we just purchased. Something is up. I bought out the old management, but they’re still hanging around the place. Need you to figure out why.”

That was odd. “The girls? Money? Or you think illegal shit is goin’ down?”

“It’s Vegas,” he deadpanned.

Right. “We’ll go with illegal.”

A dark chuckle followed. “I got a weird feelin’ in my gut. I hate that shit. You goin’ in means no one checkin’ out the club has seen you yet. You’ve not been here long. It works to our advantage. You can pretend to be a payin’ customer.”

“Pretend?” I laughed.

“Fine. Get a lap dance or a blowie. I don’t give a fuck. Just find out what the hell is goin’ down there. Bouncers aren’t sayin’ shit. I need to hire new staff.”