Page 3 of Wire
BJ comes in and takes his place at the head of the table. The atmosphere is somber.
“Brothers. It has been an absolute pleasure to have been your President for the last 40 odd years. I’m proud of every single one of you and am proud to be your President. However, It’s time for the next generation to take over and lead this club into the future. I’m getting to an age where I want to spend more time with Pip and my family. Therefore, I’m stepping down as President.”
The silence in the room was deafening. Each one of us takes a moment to soak in the news. BJ was leaving us. He was an amazing Prez, always fair but didn’t suffer fools either. Looked at a situation from both sides and weighed up his options. It wouldn’t be the same without him or Pip around here. I first came to the club as a broken teenager. BJ and Pip took me on as if I was their son. Pip treats each and every one of us as if she was our mom. She’s the backbone of the club. Our heart.
“You’re not sick, right?” Cass asks.
“No, I’m fine, and so is Pip, before anyone asks. I’m sixty-seven years old. I have maybe twenty years left in me. I owe Pip those last twenty years to be dedicated to her. We want to travel more. Pip is obsessed with Greece, so that is where I intend to take her.”
Pip does love Greece. She went when she was younger and fell in love with the country, its people, and its lifestyle.
“I’m not leaving the club. I want to make that very clear. I will always be a brother. Just a retired brother. Pip and I will still live on the compound. We’ll be around the clubhouse and here if anyone needs us. Now that brings me to the next subject, who will be your next President?”
Murmurs run around the room of who they all think could be next. Bull stands up.
“I have served as VP for BJ since the start. We have been through hell and back together, always having each other’s backs along the way. As the next generation takes over, I also feel It’s my time to step down. So, I will also be retiring.” He sits back down.
Wow, I’m only slightly shocked as I did think Bull would follow BJ. The pair of them, along with Reck, are best friends and have been friends since they were at school.
“Okay, let’s settle down. I know we are throwing a lot at you all at once. So, Bull and I, as per the bylaws, have discussed at length who we feel would be the best fit to take over our roles. This has also been discussed with those brothers as we don’t want to pass the roles onto someone who doesn’t want it. Now the brother we have chosen for the role of President is Joker, and he has accepted.”
All the brothers cheer and shout congratulations. My heart drops into my stomach. If it had been before I was taken, I would have been cheering and congratulating Joker, but I’m not. Joker can be a hot head and doesn’t always think before he reacts. Carrie being back has calmed him down a lot, but with the way he’s been with me recently, I’m not sure he’s right for the job. I notice BJ has caught my reaction but doesn’t say anything.
“The position of VP has been clearly thought out. Joker, as we all know, can be a bit of a hot head, so we need a VP who can rein him in when needed and be a good sounding board for him. The right choice is Tank.”
More cheers and congratulations go round. Tank for VP is definitely the right choice. He can keep Joker from going off track. He also knows Joker better than anyone else. Hopefully, with Tank at his side and Carrie at home, things won’t be as bad as I think they could be.
“As Joker and Tank already have roles, we then needed to find brothers to fill their old positions within the officers. We looked for brothers who could bring new ideas and strengths to those roles. Sarg will become SAA and Rafe, his enforcer.”
Again, more cheers and shouts go out. I just want to go hide back in my room.
Prez takes a knife and slowly removes his Presidents patch from his cut. Bull takes the knife next and does the same to his VP patch. They hand them over to Joker and Tank.
Joker and Tank next remove their patches and hand them to Sarg and Rafe.
BJ and Bull stand, move down the table and sit with Reck and Wolf.
The newly appointed brothers move into their chairs. Joker runs his hand over the gavel.
“Wire you, okay? You don’t seem happy for the brothers,” Angel comments.
All the brothers seem to stop and look at me. I hold their gazes.
“I’m happy for them,” I reply, even I can hear the disinterest in my voice.
“Funny fucking way of showing it,” Joker growls.
I turn to look him straight in the face before answering. The whole room now has gone completely silent.
“What the fuck do you want from me, Joker? Want me to do a merry fucking dance, drop to my knees and kiss your feet? I said congratulations which, to be honest, is more than I feel like giving you considering the way you’ve treated me recently. So, fucking tell me, Joker, what in the fuck do you want from me?” I’m nearly shouting by the end.
“You spineless, ungrateful fucker. I’ve done nothing but try to support you. You have been the one snipping at everyone. Your anger is getting to be an issue. We’ve all said how much you’ve changed.”
“You’ve all said? So, you all have been talking about me behind my back. Not one of you backstabbing bastards have approached me or spoken to me. Call yourselves my brothers? Backstabbing fuckers is what you are. Only interested when you need some computer shit done. Otherwise, you couldn’t give a fuck about me.”
I’ve had enough. I rise from my chair and storm out to my room.
“Wire, stop,” I hear Pandora call for me, but I ignore her and keep going.
