SEAN

 

“We got a problem. A real big fucking problem.”

Everybody in the chapel was looking around at one another. Garnet stood at the head of the table, his arms crossed as he examined each of us. Garnet was as laid back as they came, so when he got serious, you knew some shit went down.

“We just got word that Gina, the chick at Amy’s Bakery, just got found in an alley. Her system was full of drugs.”

Garnet explained the story while everybody listened closely.

“She was here last night. It’s not a good look for us. The cops are going to associate the drugs in her system and assume she got ’em here. And the cops are probably gonna be right. Did any of you talk to her last night?”

Everybody again looked around at each other but nobody said a word.

“This shit is bad,” Garnet said. “The Chinese get word that people are ODing on our property with product and they won’t hesitate to cut us out of the deal.”

“Gina was messing around with a lot of guys last night,” Needle said. “There’s no telling where she got those drugs. It could have even been a plant from another club.”

“That is a good possibility,” Ghost added. “The Chinese aren’t gonna keep secrets about who they’re making deals with in Ivory. If one of the other clubs got wind of this, they could have given something to Gina to make us look bad.”

Garnet had his hands on his hips, sighing in frustration.

I was even more frustrated. I clenched my jaw, trying to figure out how it happened.

“It was the Cobras,” I said.

Everybody turned to me.

“What’s that?” Garnet said.

“Maybe not the Cobras but Poison did it. I’m sure of it.”

“How can you be so sure?”

“I had a run-in with Poison at Finn’s the other night. He threatened me and said that he was gonna pay me back for what I did to his brother.”

“Are you fucking shitting me?” Needle barked as he jumped out of his seat. “The guy whose brother you killed threatened you and you didn’t bother to tell us.”

“The Cobras ain’t nothing to worry about,” I said. “He’s not even a Cobra. Poison’s an idiot. He lost his patch because of how volatile he is. He’s not even good enough to hang out with the rest of the Snakes.”

“Listen,” Garnet said. “I don’t like the Cobras any more than you do. They’re Snakes, through and through. But they wouldn’t do something like this and fuck up our deal. There’s too much heat on them already from the cops and the Chinese would find out about it eventually. Fucking with either one of them would paint those Snakes into a corner.”

“Poison is not a Cobra,” I said. “He’s still a Snake though. Patch or no patch, he’s fully capable of drugging some innocent girl to try to make me and the rest of the club look bad.”

I stared at the wall, trying to figure out how I was gonna get to the bottom of this.

“So, now what?” Needle said. “Some asshole is trying to get back at us through Brash. What do we do now?”

“Right now, the deal is still on,” Garnet said. “The Chinese haven’t said anything. We get the product and take it up north on schedule. Nothing changes. We just gotta be extra careful now. After what happened to Gina, the cops are gonna be up our asses.”

“This is too much of a risk,” I said.

Everybody turned to me.

“It’s a risk,” Garnet said. “It was always gonna be a risk. But what do you propose we do?”

“Back out of the deal. Tell the Chinese to look for someone else. Wait for the heat to die down until I can settle this shit with Poison.”

“And how the fuck are you gonna settle shit with Poison?” Needle said to me. “You just gonna walk into the Cobras’ clubhouse? He’s not even a patch anymore.”

“I won’t have to look for him. He’ll find me. He’s looking for me. It’s only a matter of time until I run into him again.”

“That’s just fucking great,” Needle sighed. “We sit around with our thumbs up our asses, waiting for this Poison asshole to show up, while all the other clubs in town are making money off our jobs.”

“There’s no other choice,” I said.

I glared at Needle. The arrogant prick was as cocky as ever but I wasn’t about to back down. Not when I knew I was right.

“It’s the right move,” I said. “Everybody else agrees with me… Right?”

I looked around the table at everybody. Needle shook his head. Ghost frowned. Even Brawn and Petey weren’t able to look at me.

“I don’t think even I want to deal with a man like Poison,” Brawn said.

My eyes shifted toward Garnet, who was staring back at me with his arms crossed.

“The deal goes through,” Garnet said. “The Chinese won’t be too happy if we back out of the deal. Especially this late in the game. All we have to do is lay low. It’ll be like all our other runs.”

I breathed a frustrated sigh through my nose. I was about to say something but I knew it was pointless. Garnet was the president. Changing his mind was never easy. The truth was, I didn’t even know if my answer was the solution.

“Keep your heads down,” Garnet said. “You see anybody suspicious fucking around the clubhouse, you let everybody else know. Some asshole trying to fuck with some girl. Some guy sneaking around back. Anything. We gotta be on guard. Lord knows how hard this shit is with the cops already keeping tabs on us.”

Garnet snapped his fingers to signal the end of the meeting. While everybody got up from their seats, I sat there with my hands in my lap. I glanced up at Needle and saw him glaring at me just before he left the chapel.

I stayed where I was, thinking about everything that happened. Ghost was about to leave me alone in the room before he stopped and realized I wasn’t moving.

“What are you doing?” he said.

“I’m just thinking,” I said. “Can’t a man think?”

Ghost sighed then took his seat back down next to me. I wasn’t looking at him.

“This is my fault,” I said.

“What is?”

“This. All of this. I’m the reason Gina got fucked up. Poison… That piece of shit… He used her to try and get back at me.”

“Gina will be fine. She’s a strong woman. And this Poison prick will get what’s coming to him, one way or another. You can’t go crazy in a town like Ivory. Clubs won’t respect a man who lost his patch the way he did.”

“Gina isn’t the one I’m worried about,” I said.

I shifted my eyes toward Ghost and he understood immediately.

“She was the one,” I sighed. “Lydia was the one who was going to bring meaning to all of this.”

“Hey!” Ghost barked at me. “What did I tell you? The Reapers are here. We’ll always be here. Don’t forget about your loyalty to the club.”

“I haven’t forgotten. I wear this fucking patch with honor.”

“Then what the fuck are you moping around for? Lydia knew what she was getting into when she started messing around with you.”

“No,” I said. “No, she didn’t. She thought I was just a man who committed a crime and did his time. Justice was served and now I’m back on the straight and narrow.”

I laughed at myself as I thought about what I said to her just last night.

“I told her it would be okay. I told her that this job wasn’t a big deal. Who the fuck am I kidding? I’m transporting enough drugs to get me life behind bars.”

“All right then. So what the fuck are you gonna do, Brash? You gonna break up with this chick? You gonna keep going? You’re gonna have to do something.”

“Yeah… I am gonna have to do something. I just wish I fucking knew what.”

I reached into my pocket and pulled out my phone. I saw the text messages I hadn’t responded to. I saw the phone calls I didn’t answer. Someone had told Lydia about what happened.

“Does she know?” Ghost asked.

“She knows. She works with Gina. I’m sure the cops got to her by now, considering how many of them go to that bakery.”

“She’s probably hysterical in that place right now.”

“No,” I said, shaking my head. “Not Lydia. She’s stronger than that. She might let her emotions get to her in some moments but I know she’s too level-headed to do anything dramatic. Not even with something like this.”

I sat there in silence with Ghost right next to me. I had a long day ahead of me but I knew the time was gonna go by quickly.

“I have to see her,” I said. “I have to talk to Lydia and get this all straightened out.”

“You don’t even know what the fuck you’re gonna say to her.”

“No, I don’t…”

I thought about it for a second then realized the answer was right there in front of me.

“I don’t have to say anything to her,” I said. “All I can do is listen to what she has to say.”

“I hope she can see it from your perspective.”

“She doesn’t need to see it from my perspective. She just needs to do what’s best for her.”