Chapter 22
Ace
Fuck. Trouble was going down at the Cabbage Patch Bar, and Tanner wanted us out there like ten fucking minutes ago. I'd thrown on my clothes and gotten the hell out of there, leaving Emerson in the shower with a brief explanation to stay locked in and that I'd be back. I hadn't liked leaving her, especially with the shit that was going down, but it couldn't be helped. My brothers needed me.
I rode like the fucking devil was on my tail, zigzagging, aggressive, and dangerously fast. Cabbage Patch was about fifteen miles from where I was, and I was racing through the streets, planning to turn a twenty minute ride into ten. Fuck the cops. If one managed to get on my tail he wouldn't be able to keep up with me anyway.
Tomoka Farms Road was a back road of sorts that was lightly traveled, and one that I knew like the back of my hand. As I drew closer to the famous biker bar I could see my brothers up ahead on the side of the road. I pulled over next to Tanner and Gabe.
"You got here fast, brother," Gabe grinned around his smoke.
"Where are the others?" We were missing about five brothers.
"On their way," Tanner responded. "Hock, Jigger, and Dawson are still inside, but shit is starting to get wild. Dawson's last text to me was cut off, so I'm not sure if they've been found out."
Shit, if that was the case then someone on the inside may have betrayed us. I didn't question my brothers' loyalty, which led me to the next logical explanation, had one of Callahan's officers snitched? "What did he say?"
"Said they were out of control. High and drunk on shit, accosting the few dumb ass patrons who'd been fucking stupid enough to hang around."
I couldn't blame Tanner for the disgust in his voice. Too many times civilians did stupid shit around bikers that got them into trouble. "Shit." I pulled out a cigarette and lit it. "Don't like this kind of shit going down in daylight."
"None of us do, brother, but it can't be helped. Dawson's last words were, ’Trouble, come—‘the rest of it was cut off." Gabe reached for my smoke so he could light the new one he'd slipped between his lips. "We’ll be going in blind."
I locked eyes with Tanner. "Fast and hot?" I wanted to make sure the plans that we'd discussed were still in place. He acknowledged me with a nod.
The sound of approaching bikes drew our attention to the small group of riders that were heading in our direction. The rest of my brothers had arrived. I took a last draw on my smoke and flicked it to the ground. I was ready. Fuck, we all were. We were outnumbered as fuck, but all we had to do to get control was get our hands on Maniac and Boomer. I was looking forward to that.
Tanner held up his hand to get everyone's attention. Once it grew quiet and all eyes were on him he spoke. "Don't know what we're riding into," he began, his expression hard. "Dawson's last message was cut off. They'll hear us coming. Best case scenario, they think we're some of their brothers coming to join in on the fun."
"And if they don't?" Heath asked with a grim expression.
"If they shoot at us when we ride in, you'll have your fucking answer," Skipper snorted. He got the finger for his smart ass remark.
"Are Charlie and Rod in position?" Joker grumbled around a thick cigar.
Tanner nodded. "Rod said the campgrounds are quiet right now, just a few men wandering around. But sure as hell once the fight begins some of these assholes will make a run for their bikes. Charlie and Rod will make sure no one goes anywhere. If we want our plan to work, we need as many of their MC around for the grand finale."
Nods of agreement went around. We were an ominous looking bunch, a band of brothers about to go to war with an enemy who had almost three times our numbers. We could have upped our odds by joining up with Callahan's task force, but there was no way in hell they'd do things our way, and we couldn't afford to waste the time that it would take to do shit the legal way.
"We still gonna cook the fuckers?"
All eyes were suddenly on me. "Unless we take them out before we get the chance, that's the plan. I want to make sure the rest of their club knows how dead serious we are about them leaving."
"And dangerous," Tanner added. "They need to understand that the Sentinels aren't afraid to do what it takes to protect our town, our families." His gaze made a quick sweep over us. "We go in shooting but only long enough to gain control. You identify any civilians; get them the fuck out of there. Are we ready to do this?"
"Fuck yeahs" and fists pumps were their fervent reactions. No one wanted to mention that this could end up being a fight that we wouldn't win, that some of us might die. It didn't matter to men like us. This war was no different from the ones that we'd faced in the military. Tanner gave the signal, and we revved our bikes and took off. The bar was about a quarter mile down the road.
The image of Emerson's sweet face and tight-as-fuck body came into mind as I rode along side Gabe. I was glad I'd fucked her. If I didn't make it, at least I'd meet the devil having had a taste of heaven. I pushed her from my mind and reached for the back of my pants where I kept my piece. I noticed several other brothers do the same. We were ready, braced for whatever came our fucking way.
I didn't expect to see many bikes parked at the bar, not with the campgrounds right across the street. A quick glance toward the campground showed that there were tents and campers set up. A fuck ton of bikes were present, too, which was a good indication of the numbers that we could expect to see inside the bar. As anticipated, when we got close, several men wearing Hellraisers cuts stumbled through the doorway outside to see who we were.
Mike, Heath, and Coffee had silencers on their guns and took them out quickly and quietly. We pulled up close to the entrance, cut our engines, and dismounted. We wasted no time in rushing toward the door and kicking it open. Chaos erupted when the fuckers inside got a look at our cuts and the weapons in our hands and began to scatter. Shouting and cursing shattered the air, women screamed.
I shot toward the ceiling. "No one fucking move!" I bellowed loudly, searching the faces for the three brothers we'd sent in earlier. A shot rang out, and a man who'd pulled his gun fell backwards into the seat he'd been vacating. I gave Sid a chin lift for being on the ball. I made eye contact with the bartender, who rapidly disappeared to the back somewhere. The servers did the same thing. They'd been around bikers long enough to understand what was about to go down, and what they needed to do when there was trouble.
In the space of a minute, a handful of us were holding a room full of Hellraisers frozen where they were. It was clear that most of them were fucking drunk or high and unable to do much more than blink with confusion as they wobbled unsteadily on their feet.
"Hands where we can see them!" Tanner shouted, moving further into the room. "Civilians, raise your hands!"
Half a dozen hands, all women’s, slowly rose at his sharp command, and it was easy to understand why they hadn't left earlier. They were sitting on the laps of some of the Hellraisers, but I could tell that it was against their will. They looked terrified, with tear tracks lining their cheeks, their hair messed up. Their clothes looked disheveled and slightly dirty, too. Buttons were undone. They were young and scared shitless. They didn't deserve to be in the hands of these bastards.
"Can we trust you ladies to just go home and not say a word to anyone?" Tanner asked. They didn't hesitate to assure him by nodding, their eyes turning bright with silent relief. "Then go." They scampered to their feet and rushed to the front door without looking back. "Now it looks like it's just you assholes and us," he smirked. "Coffee, Mike, gather up their weapons." Tanner moved to the table closest to him, glaring at the occupants. "You fuckers, move!"
They took their time scraping their chairs back, glaring back at Tanner with eyes dulled by some sort of substance. Their expressions revealed that they'd have liked nothing better than to take our president down. I smirked as they stumbled away to stand with some of their brothers against the bar, their fingers inching close to their guns.
"Go ahead and reach for those guns," I snarled, drawing their attention. "I haven't killed anyone yet today."
Tanner tilted the table until everything on the top slid off onto the floor. Then he dragged the table into the center of the room. He didn't need to say why. Coffee and Mike automatically set down the weapons they were gathering there.
"There's a fuck lot more of us than you," someone found the courage to say.
"And yet look who's got the upper hand," Gabe taunted smugly. "Where the fuck is your president?"
And where the fuck were our three brothers?
I'd already been looking around for Maniac, but I hadn't spotted him. Hadn't spotted Dawson, Jigger, or Hock either. Where the fuck were they? "We're missing some brothers." A sarcastic laugh drew my attention to a fat motherfucker with tattoos and piercings all over his round, ugly face. I walked over to where he was sitting. "You got something to say, asshole?"
He glared up at me. "Fuck you!"
I pistol whipped him across the face, satisfied to see the open gash on his cheek when he swung back to me. I knew that he'd never follow up with the threat that I saw in his eyes. Keeping his gaze on me, he turned his head slightly and spit on the floor. It was then that I heard gunfire from somewhere outside.
Pop! Pop! Pop!
I glanced over at Tanner.
"Everyone but Gabe and Ace stay here!" he bellowed, moving towards the door. "Once you have all their guns, bring them over!"
The three of us ran outside the bar and toward the campgrounds where the gunfire had come from. By the sound of it, there were two shooters. Charlie and Rod were somewhere positioned nearby, but we didn't know where. Their location became clear as we reached the campground and saw that a small crowd of Hellraisers had gathered at the base of a tree. It looked like a standoff of sorts.
We were cautious as we made our way there. There had to have been at least thirty Hellraisers in the bar, and now I could make out around eight or nine more standing under the tree. No telling where the others were, and so far there’d been no sign of Maniac, Boomer, or our three missing brothers. I didn't like the prickly feeling I was getting at the back of my neck.
They were so intent on the conversation that they had going with one of my brothers who was positioned in the tree with his rifle that we were practically upon them before they noticed. Once they did they swung our way, and suddenly we were all facing each other with our weapons drawn.
"What the fuck?" one of them swore. His eyes darted around wildly as if he expected to see more of us. "You fucking Sentinels have some balls, coming into our camp and—"
"Hold on, asshole!" Tanner ordered sharply. "This is a public campground, you don't fucking own it. We're not here to shoot the place up."
"Then what was that fucking gunfire we heard earlier?" a grizzled old coot demanded between tobacco stained lips.
Tanner shrugged, and said, as if it weren’t a big deal, "Just a few warning shots to get everyone's attention."
They didn't know about the brothers that we'd already taken out. "Yeah, we're here for a little friendly powwow." I smirked.
"That's a load of bullshit," one of them said.
I glanced up in the tree to see Rod perched on a branch, his rifle pointing down at the other club members. There was no sign of Charlie, which meant he was somewhere else and hadn't been detected yet. I realized that that could work out in our favor.
"You sightseeing up there, brother?" I asked with a smirk.
Rod grinned back. "I've seen some interesting things."
No one mentioned Charlie.
"We're looking for your president and VP." Gabe made a show of scanning the campgrounds. "They around somewhere?"
Someone snorted, a cocky dude who was more boy than man. "Maybe they're off somewhere having a powwow with some of your spies."
Fuck. I didn't like the sound of that, and judging from their expressions neither did Tanner or Gabe, though we were all very careful about what we divulged to the other club. We had eight guns pointing in our direction against our four, and any sign of weakness or worry could be just enough incentive for one of the Hellraisers to get the courage to start shooting. Once the shooting began, it would turn into a one-for-all.
"Where?" I demanded.
Laughter followed from the same old coot. "Be our guests and look around if you like." He made a wide sweep with his gun arm, indicating the park.
Yeah, that wasn't going to happen. There had to be twenty campers there, and just as many tents. If Maniac and Boomer had Dawson, Hock, and Jigger, they could be fucking anywhere. One thing was obvious, though--if they were still at the camp, they were hiding out like the fucking cowards that they were. Maniac was good at dishing out orders and getting other men to do his dirty work, but when it came to facing trouble, he was known for being scarce.
"Must suck to know that your president is a weak coward," I said. "If he's here and hiding out because he's afraid, not standing with his brothers and willing to let them get killed." The old coot flushed red, because he knew it was the truth. He wanted to deny it but couldn't.
"Looks like the rest of your brothers are going to join this little party," Tanner quipped.
I looked over to see the Hellraisers making their way toward us, our brothers bringing up the rear with their guns on them. It was almost comical, watching the Hellraisers stumble and sway their way to us.
"Fuck," I heard someone mutter under their breath when the situation dawned on him.
The Hellraisers with their guns on us began to look to each other for direction, but no one seemed to want to take the lead.
"You can't shoot us all," someone with guts and no sense commented. Figured it was the young kid.
"No, but I can shoot you," I countered with a smirk. He paled. Good. I didn't want to shoot a kid.
"I suggest you boys hand over your guns. Your brothers aren’t here to help you, and since your president and VP aren't here, all we want to do right now is talk." I could hear the sincerity in Tanner's tone.
"Do it." I was surprised to find that that command had come from the old coot.
"What about the others? They didn't give Larry, Toad, or Creeper a chance to talk before they gunned them down!"
"Which assholes were they?" Tanner snarled, turning on the man who'd stepped forward to cause trouble. "The fuckers who attacked the women at my bar? Or the drunks we took out at Cabbage Patch?" It grew silent. Tanner stared the man down, no doubt giving him a minute to think about whether he wanted to continue causing trouble or not.
"So, what's it going to be?" Apparently Gabe had had enough. "We going to kill as many of you as we can before you get us, or you going to listen to what we have to say?"
Slowly, one-by-one, the Hellraisers who were brandishing guns tossed them to the ground, but it was clear from their expressions that they weren’t happy about it. Unintelligible muttering swept through their other club members who stood by watching. Some shook their heads in disagreement, and probably disgust, but really, what choice did they have? Their only other option was to jump us and take the chance that they wouldn't end up dead, and no one seemed eager to make that move.
"So talk," the old coot demanded with a scowl.
I wondered what Tanner was going to say. Our plan hadn't exactly gone the way that we'd wanted it to. We didn't have Maniac and Boomer for leverage, and actions sure as hell spoke louder than words. We also had to get our brothers from Tennessee back. It was times like this when we had to remind ourselves that we weren't one percenters. The urge to start shooting until they were all gone, as we had done when we’d faced the enemy at war, was strong.
"We want you to give Maniac a fucking message," Tanner began, straightening his already tall form. "We want you fuckers gone from our town. We came here today to make sure that happens, either willingly or with help, if need be. We know we're outnumbered, but after what just went down today, you can see that didn't make a whole lot of fucking difference."
"You won't get the drop on us again," someone hidden in the middle of the crowd shouted.
Tanner turned in that direction. "That may be. But know this--we have three times your numbers coming in from other chapters. If you want to turn this into a fucking bloodbath that will be on you."
"We want our brothers back, too!" Joker snarled loudly.
"That it?" a tall, heavily-tattooed biker asked. His arms were crossed over his chest and he wasn’t wearing a shirt beneath his cut. He was built like a wrestler.
"No. We keep your guns."
There were plenty of vocal protests over Gabe's comment.
"Fucking assholes!"
"I'm sure you've got a few hidden somewhere around here that we didn't get," Tanner growled angrily. "We want the trouble in our town stopped. You have two days to pack up and leave, or we'll be back. You've been warned."
I made eye contact with Rod and gave him the motion to come down. Before moving, he looked across the grounds and gave a signal, which I assumed was to Charlie.
"What about our brothers?" Coffee inquired with a firm jaw.
Tanner locked eyes on the old coot. He shrugged. "Don't know where they are. No one does ‘cept the prez and VP." Tanner continued to stare him down. He shrugged again. "Go ahead; check the whole fucking place. They aint here."
"Where would Maniac take them?"
He snorted as if Tanner's question were funny. "Fuck if I know, and if I did, I wouldn't tell ya."
I made a step toward him, fists clenched. I knew ways to make him talk. Right now Maniac could be doing anything to our brothers. But as I got closer to the old shit, Tanner stuck his arm out to stop me from going any further.
"You tell your prez that we want our brothers back before morning."
"Or what?"
"Or your MC leaves here in body bags."
It couldn't get any plainer than that.