Page 2 of Guardian

The gun dug into my scalp, and he bit my ear as he ordered, “Shut the fuck up, bitch!”

Blood ran down my neck, but I didn’t scream again. I clenched my teeth so hard I thought they’d crack to keep from letting out a peep. No matter what was done to me I had to make certainJackson wasn’t awakened. He had to survive even if that meant some stranger raised him.

Heavy fists pounded on the door. Our neighbor yelled, “What the hell is going on? You better shut up! I’ve called the cops! I’m not putting up with this shit!”

He wasn’t lying. I heard the sirens getting closer and knew I’d been given a reprieve. There was no way this guy would shoot us now. I was smart enough to know the gun didn’t have a silencer, so the neighbor would definitely hear the shots, and the cops probably would too.

The man swore under his breath but let me go. He pointed the gun at my forehead and commanded, “Tell him everything is fine, and you’ll be quiet from now on.”

“Harvey, we’re sorry!” I yelled. “We’ll shut up.”

“You better. The cops are coming anyway. I can’t stop them now,” he replied.

“I’m coming back, and both you lying sack of shits will pay for this. You’ll die a slow, painful death. I’ll use a dull blade to peel off your skin while you scream,” the man threatened.

He shoved me toward Mitch, causing us both to fall, then climbed out the narrow window.

The sticky blood covered my hand and shoulder as I heard the doors of the cops cars slam. They had come only moments too late.

I pushed up from my place on the ground and held in the urge to smack Mitch. It would only make things harder on me.

As blue and red lights bloomed through the crooked blinds, I ran to Jackson and scooped him up. He began to stir, but that didn't matter now. I grabbed all of his baby things and tugged a few things out of my closet shoving them into all excess space in the large duffle bag where I kept all of Jackson's bottles and diapers.

The pounding of an officer's fist on the door sent Mitch running to our bedroom closet. I ignored his wordless pleas and swung the door wide. "Could one of you please take me to a shelter? I think he has drugs in the house." I pointed to Mitch's hiding spot before marching out the door.

I didn't know what the future held, but it had to be better than this.

Chapter 2

Sweet

The serious talk ended,and we all felt the need to release the tension that had been building since the meeting had started. Discussing past actions that caused injuries to some of our club members was nerve-wracking and added dissension among us. We most often overcame these arguments and today was no different. We remained a tight-knit club, and we would die for one another. Some already gave that ultimate sacrifice.

Every last one of us had a story behind the reason for joining, but none of us cared much for talking about it. Whatever they were, tragedy or triumph, was kept secret within the Sinners. Those secrets were considered sacred.

We were all sinners, Serpent Sinners to be exact.

The tension broke when Doc and Rod, twin brothers, began to argue.

“It’s your turn to buy the damn brews,” Rod announced, bouncing a fist off Doc’s shoulder.

“No damn way! I bought last time. Your skinny ass is buying. You always try to weasel out of shit, and I’m damn tired of it,” Doc tossed back with an elbow to the gut.

“I’m the fucking baby brother. It’s your job to take care of me,” Rod declared with a smirk.

“I’m eight minutes older than you. Eight fucking minutes! That doesn’t mean shit. I served in the army. You should be honoring me,” Doc retorted.

“I was there, too. You can’t hold that up as an excuse.” Rod supplied.

“I was a medic! I saved lives while you worked on vehicles. A mechanic ain’t no hero.”

These men were in their forties, far too old to be having this argument.

I tried to appear stern and not laugh when I scolded, “Both of you shut the hell up or I’ll have to kick both your asses. If you go to our bar nobody has to pay. You’re acting worse than the kids I see at Friendship Mentors.”

“He started it!” they said as one unit.

I did laugh then.

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