Tanner
Tanner pulled up at the clubhouse and parked his bike next to the crew's bikes. At a glance, he could tell most of the patched members were there. Hopefully, with all their heads together, they could come up with a plan.
Blade was waiting for him just inside the large steel building, half-seated on one of the bigger industrial folding tables set out in the front entrance. “Morning,” Blade drawled, cup of coffee in hand.
“Yeah,” Tanner replied. “Morning. Guys all here?”
Blade nodded, solemnly. “Yessir. As many of 'em as could get away on short notice.”
Tanner gave a curt nod. “Good. This shit's getting out of hand, and we need to deal with it. I'm sick of those Roaming Wolves bastards using Brendon as some kind of fucking pawn.”
Blade nodded again. “Your ol' lady holding up through this? She getting scared off yet?”
Tanner glanced down at his boots before looking away. He still wasn't sure how he felt about her involvement in all this, or about being in a relationship. On the one hand, the whole thing felt right, like the way her arms clung to him when they were out riding. But, on the other hand, he knew he wasn't good enough for her. She didn't want a man like him, a man wrapped up in the honor of his club. A guy who'd be out drinking all night with his buddies. She deserved better.
“Ain't ready to call her my ol' lady,” he mumbled. “Not yet.”
The old president smiled a little behind his mug of steaming coffee, his big mustache pointing up at the edges. “Well, ain't just you needs to agree, anyhow. Right? We all come eventually to the roads we're meant to ride down.”
He was right, to a degree. But, it was easy for him to say. Blade didn't have to find that road, or ride down it.
Tanner snorted. “Yeah. Right. You ready?”
Blade nodded and stood up from the edge of the table. He led Tanner back into the packed meeting room. Surly, salty voices overflowed past the double-doors, rolling over them as they pushed inside.
“Alright, alright,” Blade boomed as they entered the room and circled around to the head of the table. “Good on y'all for coming so quick.”
Tanner stalked along at his side, his arms crossed. They stopped at the head of the table and took their seats.
“I'm giving Tanner the floor here,” Blade explained. “Even though it's his family, it's still club business. In fact, they made it that way, not us. Tanner?”
Tanner took a deep breath. “This isn't about me, or my dad. It's about my brother, Brendon. Most of you know him. He used to be patched, but then he left. Well, we've been looking for him since he was spotted a while back, and a few days ago I managed to find him.”
Without any more preface, he launched into the story of Brendon, about finding him, about the drugs, about everything.
“Now,” he said, “I'm getting text messages from the Roaming Wolves. Motherfuckers are taunting us, talking about how they're trying to get Brendon to overdose.”
There was murmuring around the table. The words bullshit, motherfuckers, and cocksuckers were tossed around. Tanner gave a grim smile, despite himself, satisfied at their reaction.
“Think they're somehow angling on us here?” Tyke asked from up on the left.
“Don't know,” Blade replied with a shrug. “Maybe? Who knows? I mean, you ask me, this shit sounds like there's a hint of a personal nature to it.”
Tanner nodded at the president's comment. “Yeah, I was thinking the same thing. But, that doesn't mean the rest of the gang isn't trying to leverage it, too. Wolves are some mean motherfuckers.”
A dozen or so biker heads nodded in agreement.
“Whatever the case,” Blade said to Tanner, “you need to get your brother back. Besides it being your brother and all, it won't look good for the club to leave one of our own out in the cold, even if he's not wearing a patch anymore.”
Tyke pounded his fist on the meeting room table. “Agreed. We gotta show these shitbags they can't pick on none of us. Motherfucking cocksuckers!” A chorus of agreement and nods went around the room.
Tanner found himself frowning on the outside, trying to keep his demeanor, but inwardly relieved that the Blood Warriors were with him.
“Well, whoever's doing this shit, we got your back,” Blade said, voicing the opinion of the whole club. “We gotta make sure these asshole don't take anything we do as a sign of weakness. Tanner, you gotta go out there and grab your brother, bring him back. Keep it small, so you don't spook him. But, if I see you tomorrow and he ain't back at your mom's, I'm gonna be fucking pissed.”
Tanner nodded. “Got it. Need to make sure they don't spot us right off the bat, though. I better take one of the newer guys. Tyke or you, they're gonna know you're with me, if they're as involved as they claim.”
“He's got a point,” Blade said to Tyke when a hurt look crossed his face. “Take one of the recruits that ain't patched yet.”
“Which one?”
“I dunno, just pick one.”
“Cam,” Tanner said, turning to one of the freshest. “You ready to step up, man?”
Cam, one of their newest recruits, a tall, lean guy with a crazy mop of curly brown hair, looked around from side to side. “Me?” he asked.
“Yeah, you dude,” Tyke said with a laugh as one of the guys beside Cam smacked him in the shoulder.
“Shit, Tanner. I'd be fucking honored.”
“Good,” Blade said. “We drive out there, after this. We find our prodigal. We bring him home.” Blade turned his attention to the rest of the club. “Anyone got anything else?”
Heads shook. There may have been other business to be raised, but the whole club recognized that this was priority one for Tanner and Blade.
“We'll have a cold one waiting for you,” Tyke said as the whole crew broke and exited the meeting room.
Tanner went to leave with them, but Blade touched his shoulder and told him to stay behind for a minute.
“What's up?” Tanner asked him as the room finished thinning out.
“Didn't wanna say this in front of the others, cause I didn't wanna put you on the spot. But, we've all seen you hanging around a lot with Star -”
“Said earlier, she ain't my ol' lady,” Tanner interrupted.
Blade held up a hand, calling for peace. “Ain't what I was gonna say. My point is, if we've seen you hanging out with her, the Roaming Wolves may have, too. Ol' lady or not, that might not matter to 'em.”
Tanner gritted his teeth. “Think they'd do something like that?”
“Normally? No. But, man, they got your brother hooked on smack. Think they wouldn't come after Star, too?”
Tanner looked away for a moment and thought about his words. “Nah,” he said, turning back to Blade, “you're probably right. I'll ride out and take care of her, get her situated. Then, meet you guys here.”
“We'll take my truck,” Blade nodded. “Got plenty of seating.”
Tanner nodded. “Sounds good. Meet you here in an hour or so.”
Blade clapped him on the shoulder and shook it. “Cam and I'll be waiting.”