Chapter 5
“Breakfast!”
Michelle sat up groggily, her heart lurching. Had she overslept? Alan liked to have his breakfast at 5am sharp, before he left for work.
But when she opened her eyes, the unfamiliar interior of what used to be Snake’s room jogged her memory. She hadn’t slept at home with Alan that night. She had stayed overnight at the MC, too terrified to go back home and face what would ultimately be the beating of her life.
“Come on, Sleeping Beauty!”
“I’m up,” Michelle called weakly. She was tired and a little bit embarrassed about facing the next day. Her father had been laid to rest and now, here she was, lingering in a club full of rowdy men and women. She wasn’t up for seeing too many people. But the MC had a shared kitchen and living space upstairs, and most of the usual patrons knew better than to disturb the VP in his quarters. It would probably be fine.
Michelle showered quickly and pulled on another fresh, white shirt pulled from the drawers at the MC. Snake had apparently left a lot of clothes behind when he’d moved, luckily for her. The idea of wearing the same dress every day was daunting. It was tied to the memories of her father’s funeral and to Alan. She’d just as soon burn it than wear it again.
“About time, kid,” Blade mumbled when Michelle walked into the kitchen, where the smell of pancakes and eggs wafted tantalizingly in the air. She’d forgotten what it was like to have someone cook for her. It was nice. Really nice.
“Come on then, don’t just stand there. Sit down and eat.”
Blade stood and pulled a chair out for her and Michelle sat down, looking down at the table in awe. It was the same hand-crafted wooden table that she remembered watching her father and Blade build together when she was just a little girl. The seats were the same orange chairs that looked like they belonged in a different time, though now they were worn with age. Still, they’d been treated well, and as she sat down in the seat, she closed her eyes at the familiar feeling of the soft cushion. She was home.
“So I thought today maybe we could go and get you some clothes, you know?” Blade said, striding to the refrigerator and bringing back a pitcher of orange juice. “That way you don’t have to keep wearing Snake’s old cast offs.”
“I don’t mind the cast offs,” Michelle said with a small laugh.
“Still, it would be better for you to have a few changes of clothes, you know?”
“Yeah,” Michelle said, watching Blade’s strong hands as he poured her a glass of orange juice. She felt warm inside suddenly and all of the anxiety she’d been feeling the night before, and the worry about disappointing Alan when she woke up, had melted away. She was where she belonged and she felt fucking good there. How could she have stayed away for so long?
“How did you sleep?” Blade asked, sitting down at the table across from her and digging into the food on his plate.
“I don’t know,” Michelle admitted. “It was really strange to wake up here. I thought…”
Blade stopped chewing for a moment and studied her closely. It made her feel nervous.
“It’s not important,” Michelle said with a small laugh. “It’s just strange.”
Blade nodded and resumed his meal. “It’s a big adjustment for sure,” he said. “It’s going to take some time for everybody. But I swear to god, the first guy who gets wise with you, you remember what your dad and I used to say.”
Michelle laughed.
“You told me to kick him in the dick and run,” she said. “But that never did me much good.”
“Right, because you forgot the last part. We told you to kick him in the dick and run upstairs so your dad or I could take care of the rest. You left home and got with a shitty guy, too far away from us to protect you. It’s not your fault that this bad shit happened to you but from now on you’re going to have to shape up and start making smart choices about the way you spend your time.”
Michelle looked sulkily down at her plate. It didn’t feel great to be lectured but she knew that Blade was right. She had to be better about looking out for herself from now on. It was important for everybody involved. If she didn’t and the MC had to risk its neck to protect her, then it could be seriously dangerous.
“Anyway, I have a bunch of business to tend to up here today, so I thought maybe you and Snake’s old lady could go to town together. She’s a tough broad, man. Keeps a switchblade up her sleeve. Don’t want to tick her off.”
Blade chuckled and shook his head and Michelle felt a twinge of nervousness.
“I thought you were going to come with me,” she said, her heart tremoring. Blade had promised to protect her. But how was he going to do that sitting all the way back at the MC while he had her run to town?
“You can’t live with this kind of fear in your life, kid,” Blade said, shaking his head. “Besides, shopping is girl stuff. I’m not going to know what to do with myself in there! Spare me.”
Michelle sighed nervously and Blade pursed his lips.
“Look, if it makes you feel any better, Snake’s old lady doesn’t go anywhere Snake ain’t there to protect her, you know what I mean? We take care of our women here. He’ll probably be out in the truck smokin’ a cigarette the whole time. Can’t get much safer than an escort by the president of the MC, you know what I’m saying?”
“Fine,” Michelle mumbled. Still, she was disappointed somehow. The idea of shopping with Blade had somehow gotten her hopes up. Spending the day with him, doing something as innocent as clothes shopping…it was adorably domestic in a way.
“Look, it’s going to be fine,” Blade assured her, smiling in that charming way he had that made her want to forget her troubles and laugh despite herself. “Jo is really good with that knife. And I think the two of you will get along pretty nicely.”
“All right,” Michelle sighed. She was done being irritated about it. “But I don’t have any money.”
Blade laughed heartily at the declaration and Michelle frowned.
“What?” she asked. “What’s so funny?”
“The thing about being a Python is you don’t need much money,” Blade said, stressing the sentence meaningfully. “The club’s got you. Jo will tell them how it is.”
“You mean we’re stealing?” Michelle asked, a little nauseated by the thought.
“Fuck no we’re not stealing,” Blade exclaimed, looking at her as if she were stupid. “It’s an exchange, princess. We take care of the riffraff coming through here that the cops ignore. You know, the real sleazebags. Organized crime lords trying to get all the little rebellious babies hooked on hard drugs. We get rid of them and the people in town take care of us. It’s an arrangement.”
Michelle considered this briefly. It was true. She had heard Alan speaking to his friends on several occasions about the money they received from the crime lords to overlook their shady activities in the area. He spoke in front of her about all kinds of horrible things, knowing that even if she tried to report him, he would be able to discredit her with a single word. It was infuriating. If the police couldn’t be counted on to protect the vulnerable people in the community, then the MC could. It gave her a sudden surge of pride and she smiled at Blade.
“When are we leaving?” she asked.
“As soon as you’re done with your damn breakfast,” Blade said. “Jo and Snake are waiting outside.”