Minus

The moment the ladies left the room, Duke turned to me. “Buy you a drink?”

“It’s a little early, isn’t it?” I replied.

“Yup. That’s what the coffee’s for, but that ain’t ready yet, so we’ll just have to make due,” he said smiling.

“Well, when you put it that way. Two fingers over ice, please.”

We walked to Duke’s den and I took a seat on the sofa as he poured our drinks.

“I take it from the fact that you and Cricket were smiling, despite having just experienced gunplay, that you two are on good terms again?” he asked.

“For now, I guess,” I replied, still unsure of where we stood.

“Well, son, the way I see it, us men are always floatin’ around in some sort of state of grace when it comes to women. I suppose, the trick is to extend the periods in between those times they’re hoppin’ mad at us.”

“To grace periods,” I said, and raised my glass. I took a sip and allowed myself a moment of peace and pleasure before digging back in with Duke. “Let me ask you a question,” I said.

Duke nodded. “Fire away.”

“In all the time I’ve been here, you never thought to mention that you knew Cutter?”

“You never asked,” Duke said plainly.

“We’ve had a hundred conversations about the man, and you never once brought up a story from your past, or said, ‘one thing about Cutter is...,’ or anything! You’d just tell me some old story about a Greek fisherman, or quote Beckett.”

“Well, I don’t know what you’d call that, son, but where I come from, that right there is a conversation.”

“So, the fact that you’re affiliated with the Saints goes beyond Savannah, not to mention leads all the way back to Cutter, simply never came up?”

“Look, Minus, you’d take a load off your mind about your president, and I’d try to give you a little perspective about the situation. Maybe show you a few examples of how other folks throughout history had dealt with similar predicaments.”

“Why never mention you knew him?”

“I suppose it never seemed relevant,” he replied. “Your relationship with Cutter is very different than mine. He sent you here for you to work on you, not for me to talk about him. You get me?”

“Not entirely, being as I never recall enrolling in a self-help ranch program. You’ll have to forgive me, if the fact that y’all have been playing with me like some goddamned chess piece is still a bit unsettling to me.”

“Aw, grow the fuck up, boy. Cutter saw something in you, so he sent you to me so’s I could see if he was right. It’s as plain as that. I may never have patched in with the Saints, but I rode with them for years as a friend back in the day. This place has always served as a safe haven for any Saint that needed a place to lay low, and from time-to-time, Cutter’s called on me for a favor. If he saw potential in someone, he’d sometimes send ’em up my way. I’d work ’em hard, try to knock a few lessons into their heads, and send ’em back home when I felt it was time.”

“Our hero is sent to Dagobah to receive further training,” I muttered softly.

“I’m old, but my hearing is just fine. Besides, Cutter’s no Obi-Wan, and I sure as shit ain’t no Yoda,” Cutter snapped back.

I looked at him, shocked.

“What? I’ve got a fuckin’ DVD player,” Duke said, before continuing. “Look, Minus, you’ve got to understand something. Just because we’re old dogs, don’t mean we’re completely out of touch, and I ain’t just talkin’ about movies, ya understand?” Duke looked at me with a softness in his eyes.

“Yes, sir.”

“Cutter may be a tough bastard, but he loves his club. He probably loves it more than anything, so if he’s askin’ you to run it, you can bet he’s given it plenty of thought.”

“So, you know about what’s goin’ on?” I asked.

“Cutter filled me in. I didn’t know you’d be comin’ back so soon, though,” he replied.

“We’ve run into some trouble with a local club, and I had to get outta town as quickly, and silently, as possible.”

“If you’re having local trouble, what are you doing here, and why all the cloak and dagger?”

“We appear to have some holes in our security. These pricks have been a step ahead of us everywhere we go lately.”

“Your leaks tech or personnel related?” Duke asked.

“I’m not sure yet, so I didn’t want to take any chances with this.” I pulled Cutter’s ledger from my duffel and set in on the coffee table in front of us.

Duke glanced at the leather-bound book and then looked back at me blankly. “Thanks, Minus, but I’ve already got a Bible, and I can’t say I spend much time readin’ that one.”

“You know it’s never too late to pursue that dream of being a standup comic.”

He grinned. “Duke the Cable Guy’s gotta a ring to it, doesn’t it?”

“Sure, your catch phrase would be ‘Get ‘r done or I’ll put a boot in your fuckin’ ass.’”

“Perfect, we’ll call Carnegie Hall as soon as we’re done with this,” he said picking up the book. “Now, what the hell am I lookin’ at?”

“A ledger containing current club financials, business contacts, and laundering sources.”

“Jesus, Minus. There a specific reason such a hot item is currently in my home?”

“I had to get it as far away from home as possible and I couldn’t think of a better place than your safe. I plan on talking to Zaius about posting a couple of patches here until all of this blows over. I’m going to need you to get some more of the younger guys around here up to speed. I’ll need all the allies on my side I can get both in Savannah and Portland.”

“So, does that mean you’re gonna do it? You’re taking over when Cutter retires?”

“I was hoping to get your advice on that,” I admitted.

“What the hell can I say at this point? You either think it’s the right thing to do, and you take the position, or you don’t, and Cutter finds someone else to become President.”

“What do you mean, ‘someone else’?” I asked.

Oddly enough, the thought had never occurred to me, as to who might become President should I turn Cutter down.

“The club has to have a president, and if it’s not you, it’ll be someone else.”

“What if it was me?” I asked.

“Then we’d have our work cut out for us, wouldn’t we?”

* * *

Cricket

After putting a pot of coffee on to brew, Pearl led me to the back of the gigantic ranch house, where she pushed on a wall panel and a door popped open.

“Oh, my word, you have a Scooby Doo door?” I breathed out.

Pearl chuckled. “I’ve never heard them called that, but that’s what I’m calling them from now on.”

“Them? There are more than just this one?”

“I have six Scooby Doo doors. Never know when we gotta hide a Saint from a sinner.”

I followed Pearl into the ‘first-aid’ room and tried to keep my mouth from dropping open. This was a glorified hospital room, complete with lights, a rolling IV bag stand, and an official hospital bed. Pearl patted the mattress and smiled. “Hop on up, honey.”

I sat up on the end of the bed and Pearl leaned down and frowned. “I’m gonna need you to get those jeans off, so I can dress it,” she said. “You feel comfortable with that?”

“Is the door locked?”

“Yeah, honey, it’s locked.”

I nodded and pushed my jeans down past my knee. “I love your dress, Pearl.”

She grinned. “Thank you. Duke loves me in dresses, so I’ve worn one every day since we started going steady.”

“Really?”

She nodded while she tended to my knee. “Yep. I’ve pretty much worn the same thing, since our first date. A pretty dress, heels... and no panties.”

I choked on a laugh, so surprised she’d offered up that unnecessary piece of information.

“It’s important you please your man,” she continued.

“Isn’t it important he please you, too?” I asked.

“Of course, honey. If you’re with a good man, he will. And, if you’re with the right man, he’ll please you without you asking.” She washed her hands and pulled on gloves. “They risk their lives, you know.”

“I know,” I said quietly.

“Some men’ll go to hell and back for their woman. You find a man like that, you don’t let him go.”

“Did Duke go to hell and back for you?”

“On more than a couple of occasions.” She met my eyes. “Minus has done the same for you.”

“I’m not sure―”

“Honey child, that boy has loved you for as long as I’ve known him. He ain’t never looked at another woman like he looks at you, and since I love him like a son, I hope you won’t take that for granted.”

I bit my lip. “I won’t... I don’t.”

I wasn’t prepared to go into detail about my insecurities when it came to Jase, but I liked hearing that this lovely woman saw his love for me even though I’d never met her before. It solidified several things for me and I knew my future included Jase... and Minus... and whatever other side of his personality might appear.

“Glad to hear it, honey,” Pearl said, then took a few minutes to flush my wound, making sure any gravel that burrowed into my skin was gone. Then she put some antibiotic cream on it and bandaged me good and tight.

I pulled my (now stylishly torn) jeans back up while Pearl cleaned up, then she led me through another door (a regular one this time) and into a bunk room of sorts. I mean, it was definitely a bunk room, but it was kind of... well... fancy.

“This is where we stash bikers who need to stay hidden for a while,” she said.

“It’s really nice, especially considering your usual guests.” I glanced around the room. “I’ve always figured anyone who needed to disappear would be relegated to some remote cave somewhere. This is way better.”

Pearl nodded. “We take care of our boys.”

“I can see that.” I smiled at her. “Thank you for doing that.”

“My pleasure, honey.” She patted my arm. “Let’s go find the boys. I’d imagine yours is already pining for you.”

I giggled. “I doubt it, but that’s sweet to imagine.”

Pearl led me back the way we came, and we ended up in the kitchen where Duke and Jase were making coffee.

Minus handed me a cup and then wrapped his arm around me and kissed my temple. “How’s your knee?”

“It’s all good,” I said, giving him a squeeze.

“Well, Pearl and I got some shit to do,” Duke said. “You comin’ back for dinner?”

“We’d love to come back for dinner,” Jase said.

“Right. We’ll see you at six,” Duke said. “Sharp.”

“Sounds good. I’m gonna give Cricket the fifty-cent tour of the property. Then we’ll get cleaned up and meet you back here.”

“It was lovely to meet you both,” I said.

Pearl grinned, taking Duke’s hand. “You too, honey.”

We finished up our coffee, then headed back to the truck.