Page 27 of Wildcard's Wager

My question has Preacher sitting up straighter. His mood darkening. “Come here.” He reaches his hand out to me. I take it and sit in the chair next to his bed. “I never told you why I joined the club. You know I grew up in the system, right?”

I nod. He had told me about my grandparents dying in a car accident when he was young. How he grew up bouncing from one foster home to another before he joined the Demon Dawgs.

“My parents didn’t die in a car accident,” he says. “They died in prison.”

“What? But you said…”

“I did. You were too young to hear the truth. So, I told you a lie that wouldn’t give you nightmares. They hurt us. Me, my brother, and my sister. I was the youngest. They were our pimps. They’d rent us out to sick fucks who got a kick out of abusing kids. The cops arrested them in a sting operation and rescued us. We were all sent into the system. I lost track of my siblings, but I checked on my parents once I turned eighteen. They died when I was twelve. I tried searching for my siblings, but they both disappeared after they aged out. So, I don’t know if they’re alive or not.”

“Oh Dad, I’m so sorry.”

“Thanks, sweet girl. I survived. I had some good foster homes and not so good ones. At eighteen, my last home handed me my stuff in a trash bag and gave me twenty bucks. That’s the day I met Squiggy. I stopped at a diner and bought myself breakfast. The club showed up riding their motorcycles. I still remember the deafening noise of their bikes shaking the windows. The people already eating ate faster or just left their uneaten food as they rushed to leave. I stayed where I was and finished my breakfast. No way was I going to waste the food. Squiggy came over to talk to me. I told him about my situation, and he offeredme a place to stay. I became a prospect and thought my life was finally turning around. Being a prospect sucked, but I got my patch a year later and built a life. I had brothers. Then I met your mom, and we had you. Thought my life was perfect.”

“Until Mom left.” He tries to hide the flinch, but I see it. “You still miss her?”

He shrugs, but gives me a small smile. “I do. She was the love of my life. I just wasn’t hers. We shouldn’t have gotten married, but we did. She hated the club life. Wanted me to quit. I couldn’t do it, not even for her. So maybe she wasn’t the love of my life after all. I couldn’t risk losing the club. But I also knew if I left, Squiggy would hunt me down and kill me. Back then, you made a life commitment to the club. When I explained this to your mother, she thought I was choosing the club over here. She took off with some guy she met while dealing blackjack.”

“Her loss,” I tell him, squeezing his hand.

He shrugs. “It no longer matters. I couldn’t leave the club while Squiggy was President. But prison changed everything. I got out and never planned on coming back.”

“Is that what happened here? Puma won’t let you leave? He branded you because he sees you as his property? I thought he was a good guy. I need to take Colt and leave. Come with us. We’ll go somewhere where they can’t find us.” I stand, intending to pack and be ready to leave, when Alisa brings Colt back.

“Shit, I’m not explaining this right. I joined the club because I wanted a family. Losing your mom made me need the club more than ever. I was loyal to the club until Squiggy turned on me. That’s why I didn’t come back here after my release. When I met Viper, I discovered how much the club changed. Being back here, even under the circumstances, I realize how much I’ve missed it. I wanted back in. I thought I’d blown it by shooting Wildcard. But they gave me a chance to get back what I’d lost.The brotherhood. However, I had to pay the price. This was the price.”

“How can you think it’s worth it?”

“Because I found my family. This is what I always wanted. A club just like this one. I’m not an idiot. I know the club under Squiggy wasn’t ideal. But we had some good men joining. Like Wildcard. I thought maybe one day, this would be the club I always thought it could be. And it is. Under Puma.”

“If you say so.” I step over to the window and look out at the backyard where the play area sits empty. I can’t deny that the place has changed from what I remember. Squiggy wouldn’t have built a play area for kids. I shudder as I consider Squiggy around a child. The child would not be safe.

“He gave me a choice.”

I turn to look at him. “What?”

“Puma gave me a choice. He said I could take the brand and regain my spot with the club. Or I could leave. If I left, I’d have to stay away from the club’s territory. That wouldn’t have been hard. I have a cabin in Red Rock Canyon. I could have returned there.”

“Why didn’t you? Because of Colt and me? We could have gone with you.”

He chuckles. “I wouldn’t have lost you. Puma assured me you and Colt could visit any time you wanted. My life would have been exactly as it was before I shot Wildcard.”

“Then why didn’t you take that deal?”

“Because I wanted to belong to the club. I missed it. I missed the life. This is exactly the type of club I always hoped it would become.”

“Why did Puma make the offer?”

“Because Wildcard asked him to give me the choice. He wanted it to be my decision. He didn’t want to lose you. So, he asked the club to let me choose.”

I roll around what my father has said as I make my way back to the common room. Colt and the others should be returning soon. Hopefully, he will have worn himself out and be ready to sleep. I don’t want him to see his grandfather suffering. Dad assured me he’ll be up and around tomorrow.

The cacophony of children’s voices precedes their arrival. Colt spots me and runs over. “We had the best time. Desdemona let us swim in her pool. It was huge! They had a slide and a diving board plus a big bouncy thing that we could lie on. It had a table in the middle, so we got to eat snacks on it. They even had this toy that sprayed us. I can’t wait to go back. Desdemona said we could come back any time.”

“Sounds like you had fun. Did you thank her?”

“We did. Alisa’s dad had a barbecue. We had hotdogs and potato salad. It was so good.”

“Thank you for taking him,” I say to Alisa.

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