Gunn

Just walking out of the room felt like thunder going off in my heart. It happened quick. It happened hard. But this woman had worked her way into my damn blood. I ran a hand through my hair and straightened my cut as I closed the door behind me.

Mo and Scarlett would take care of her. I knew I needed to leave them to it. It’s just ... Brenna was different. I was different when it came to her. More than anything, I just wanted to get her on the back of my bike and take her someplace where I could have her all to myself. Club business would get in the way of that. I yelled down to Sly to let him know I was on my way.

I had to edge my way through the growing crowd in the main bar. Staying closed for business would hurt everyone’s bottom line this month. It was the same down at the bike shop. The lust I felt for Brenna twisted and turned, becoming rage at whoever or whatever was trying to mess with the G.W.M.C.

“’Bout time,” Sly said as I walked into the conference room. The full membership was already seated. He caught my eye and I knew he knew. Sly Cullinan never missed a trick. He was onto me about Brenna. This was more than just some hookup.

“Let’s get right to it,” he said. “We’ve got a full house out there and Mo’s gonna start getting antsy. What’s the word on Josh?”

Switch leaned forward. “I’ve got Judd and Teague keeping eyes on him at the hospital. He’s gonna be okay. Tough bastard. He was lucky. A witness said the van tearing out of Hurley’s fucking broadsided him.”

“You have a chance to take inventory?” Sly asked me.

“No,” I answered. Along with Brenna, getting back to the shop had me jumpy as hell. “Angel told me to come straight here.”

“Okay.” Sly sat back. “After this, you, Curtis, Angel, and me are going back there. I want to go through that place with a damn magnifying glass. Check your tapes. Check everything. Josh gave a statement to the police. But I need to know if this was just some random punks looking for cash or if it’s something else.”

“What’s your gut telling you?” Charlie asked from across the table. It might have been a rhetorical question. As O.G., he’d been through this shit probably a dozen times over the last fifty or so years.

I didn’t like the look on Sly’s face. He rubbed his thumb across his chin. Dex sat like a stone wall beside him. The stakes were higher for both of them now. Dex had a wife and kid. Sly was just getting ready to settle down with Scarlett. Everyone else at this table except for me, Switch, and Angel had done the same. Those were our families out there. If the Great Wolves M.C. was about to get dragged down into the dirt, it would impact a hell of a lot more than the men at this table.

“I don’t know,” he said. “I don’t like where my gut is on this right now. But I want to get out to Hurley’s get a feel.”

“What about the Hawks?” Dex said. “We know Kagan’s brother got sworn in as prez last year. They’re making a big show out of trying to go legit, but, you know, I don’t buy it. I don’t like what I’m hearing downtown. Word is, Brian Kagan’s got people trying to line the pockets of the leadership down near Sacramento. We need better intel on who’s connected to who. There’s an election coming up here in just a few months. It doesn’t feel right to me. There’s new blood coming in.”

“Yeah,” Sly said. “We had enough trouble with the old blood. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves just yet. What about shit down at the gym?” He turned to Curtis.

“No trouble,” he said. “Talked to the managers this morning. Nobody new has been hanging around. I checked with Grand City and the other charters. Nobody’s been messing with their fighters. Things are quiet.”

Sly pounded the table. “Fuck if I know if that’s good or bad. Let’s just ... stick with the plan for now. Keep everybody here this weekend. I’m not calling for a full lockdown. If anybody’s got shit to do, go do it. That goes for your families too. We’re cautious, not fucking scared. So keep your people close, but do what you gotta do.”

“You got it, Prez,” Angel said.

Sly closed the meeting. He shot a look to Angel and me. I felt a little torn. Brenna was alone upstairs. I didn’t want to spook her, but I damn sure didn’t want her going out without me or one of the probies right beside her. With this current shit, I knew Sly couldn’t afford to keep eyes on her old man. I’d have to rely on Susan’s neighbors to call something in if he showed up there. All I could do was make sure Brenna understood to watch her back.

“Come on,” Sly said. “Let’s get over to the shop and see what’s what.”

“Let me just …”

He put up a hand. “No,” he said. “There’s no time for that. Let Mo and Scarlett handle her. Ava’s on her way in from the hospital. Hopefully, she’ll have even more of an update on Josh. I’ll tell Scarlett to introduce her. You’ve got nothing to worry about.”

Dammit. Once again, my prez knew right where my mind was. I opened my mouth to say something, but thought the better of it. He was right about something else. I needed to see what had happened to my bike shop.