Page 15 of Viper

King arches a brow. “If you want to lie to me, you need to do a better job. So, might as well tell us or we’re going to ride your ass until you do.”

I smirk at him. “Sage know you’re threatening people like that? I knew you two were into some kinky shit, but?—”

“Fuck off,” King laughs.

“Rumor has it that Viper found a woman and she’s not giving him the time of day,” Torque, Bullet and Rose’s middle son, chimes in. He gives me a smug smile. He’s the exact image of his father, right down to the six-two height, dark hair, beard, and blue eyes. However, you get a flash of his mother when he smirks. I glare at him, and he continues, “Women talk, brother, and when you’re not using the club girls like you normally do…” He trails off, and lets that hang.

I sigh. I was hoping that it would escape notice, but the women around here are worse than damn bloodhounds. They sniff out anything and everything. “Look, it’s no big deal. I had a one-night stand a month ago, and I ran into her again yesterday. Went to see her today, and now I’ll wait and see how things go.”

“I thought you and Peyton were seeing each other,” Medic says in confusion. A former medic in the military, he’s our club’s doctor of sorts, and he also does shifts at the hospital to keep his license current. He’s an easy-going brother, with sea-green eyes, a handsome face, and a calm demeanor.

I shake my head. “Nah, we’re just friends. Thought we could, but felt like kissing my sister instantly, so we agreed that we’re nothing more than friends.” And wasn’t that an eye-opener.

“Thank fuck,” Shadow groans. “I did not want to see your ugly ass across from me at the table all the damn time. Or having to deal with whatever she drags everyone into.”

I grin at him. “You’d love to have me as a brother-in-law and you know it.”

Before he can retort, in walks Bullet, Sniper, and Stone. Stone is Bullet and Rose’s oldest son, and he’s also the most serious of the three, though he has loosened up a bit since he claimed his Old Lady. He’s as tall as father, but his features are all his mother’s, other than his blue eyes. He wears his beard longer and thicker than his brothers, and most of his body is covered in ink.

Sniper is our VP, and he is one badass motherfucker. At six-three, with thick dark hair that he keeps slicked back, a long thick, dark beard, and dark eyes that can go from happy to dangerous in the flash of an eye, he has a reputation as being a brother you don’t fuck with. He keeps himself in shape, and while he doesn’t work with us in the security business, he’s a damn good manager of the club’s bar, the Devil’s Corner.

Finally is Bullet, our President. The man is a damn good President, and he’s the final original member of the Devil’s Soldiers from back in the day. He and our former brother, Hammer, who was our VP before Sniper, pulled our club out from the 1%er way of life and into the legal one. And since then, he has been working damn hard to keep us there, despite everything. He’s a force to be reckoned with, and even now with the whole mafia problem, I wouldn’t want anyone else running the show.

All three men take their seats, and Bullet bangs his gavel. “Alright, let’s get to it. I have shit to do,” he grumbles. “Let’s get the reports going and then we’ll get down to the other shit.”

Being Treasurer, I give a report at every meeting, and pull out my notes to do so now. “We’re doing well. All businesses are turning record profits, and it looks like we’re steadily growing. At this point, we may need to look at expanding a few of the businesses if we want to keep up with demand. Namely the bar, and construction company. The garage and the security business are also doing well, but Shadow and I aren’t ready for that kind of expansion. Torque, not sure how you feel.”

Torque looks thoughtful. “I’m open to the idea, but it’s going to require us to hire more people and would mean either Titan or Timber will need to run the other location. I don’t want anyone other than a brother running it. We have the business, but I don’t want to spread us too thin just for the sake of opening a second location.”

There are murmurs of agreement. “I don’t think we want to give Vlad and his band of fuckwits anymore targets to hit,” Stone chimes in darkly. “As nice as it would be to focus on doing these kinds of things, do we really want to give them something else to use against us or destroy?” More noises of agreement.

“I agree, I think we should hold off on any more expansions for now, but once we get these mafia bastards under control, we should look at this again, and start planning on expanding,” Bullet announces, looking around the table for agreement. Everyone else agrees, and he smiles at me. “I’ll leave it up to you to see if we have the funds and what needs to be done to expand?”

I nod. “I’ll have it figured out for when we’re ready.”

More reports continue, until finally we circle back to Bullet when he says, “Alright, I know you’re all wondering where we’re at with Vlad and the rest of the mafia. Where we’re at is they haven’t been up to much in the last few weeks, which is concerning on its own. There’s been no word on the street, and there has been no further show of the Yakuza.”

“Nothing on my end either,” Cryos says grimly. “Which doesn’t bode well. It sounds to me like they’re probably laying low until they can figure their shit out. I mean, Vlad’s probably got to do some damage control with Misha’s betrayal and the Yakuza showing up.”

I have to agree. Nothing shocked us more than when a Yakuza member attacked Syn and Crypt at Syn’s place a month ago, working with Vlad’s right hand man, Misha. Not to mention, Misha was arranging this little merger without Vlad’s approval. Now, we’re dealing with not only the Russians, but also the Japanese, and that’s another worry on top of everything else. It also worries me a war is coming, and one larger than we’re ready for. Especially if both sides team up against us. We have allies, but it may be soon time to call them in.

“I don’t think we should bring in anyone else right now,” Sniper pipes in. “Not saying we don’t give them a heads up we might be calling on them, but if we all of a sudden have other clubs showing up, they might take it as an invitation to start something.”

He definitely has a point. “Alright, I agree we give a heads up, just to be safe,” I suggest. “After all, if shit goes down we’re going to need them here fast, and we don’t want them coming in blind.”

“Maybe we should see if any of them have heard anything about what’s going on?” Hulk suggests. “Vlad isn’t the only boss around, and I’m sure there are going to be other rumors in other parts of the country that might trickle down about what’s going on here.”

“There’s nothing online, but you’re right, Hulk, that there might be something going around word of mouth,” Cryos agrees.

“I don’t think we should talk to too many people, or else that might get back to them too,” Timber cautions. Louisiana born, he’s the only other Black member of the MC, and is a damn good mechanic. He’s also a well known ladies man, since most of them like that damn accent of his. Hell, the club girls melt as soon as he starts talking. And I’ve heard them all say he’s damn good looking. Not as good looking as me, of course, but enough that I see the appeal. He’s got dark eyes, keeps his hair military short, and never lets more than a little bit of scruff grow on his face.

“I agree,” Titan says with a nod. He and Timber have always been close, so it doesn’t surprise me that they’re on the same page. Titan is the complete opposite of Timber, but somehow those two became fast friends. Titan is a transfer from an allied club out in Northern California, the Golden Skulls MC, and spent some time as an MMA fighter before he gave it up and joined the MC way of life. He tops out at six feet, with blonde hair and dark eyes, so he’s also no stranger to women throwing themselves at him. He has a bit of a harder edge to him when it comes to club business, and he’s not afraid to get his hands dirty; a bi-product of him being part of the Golden Skulls for a while, who are a 1%er club. Sometimes it comes in handy too when I can call him for a quick job that requires some extra muscle and skill.

“Yeah, we definitely don’t want anything getting back to the wrong people,” King agrees. “I mean, as much as we like to think our allies would never spill shit they shouldn’t, people talk, or someone overhears and shit goes wild. Then we’ve given ourselves away and could send Vlad and his band of minions back into hiding. Or it could instigate something we aren’t ready for.”

“Then who do you think would be the best to talk to?” Bowie asks quietly. Bowie is one of the other brothers that works with us. Between him and Frost, Shadow and I never have to worry about anything going awry. Bowie is a former tracker in the military, and the man is like a bloodhound, and I know it’s bothering him more than anyone else that he can’t find out where Vlad is operating from. He stands at six feet, keeps his hair almost completely shaved, and keeps himself clean shaven, but add in tattoos that cover most of his arms and legs.

Frost, who is sitting beside him, is the complete opposite in looks, but he’s known for being cool under pressure, and is the other Enforcer in the club, opposite Shadow. He has the same tracking skills as Bowie from his own time in the military, but where Bowie has never quite left the military mindset and routine, Frost has fully embraced civilian life. He grew out his hair to a normal length, keeps a cropped beard, and has gotten many more tattoos. The only part of him that really reminds you of his past career is when those blue eyes of his go icy. He goes from an easy going, to a hardened warrior that could freeze you with a single look. Certainly helps when we need him for tougher jobs with entitled clients. Most times, one look from him, and they’ll settle right down and let us do our jobs.

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