Page 21 of Chrome Poppies

My outburst caused two men to laugh. They stopped when I aimed my pistol in their direction. “Boss, if you keep killing everyone, you’re going to end up working alone,” Braeden said with a snarky tone. He used to be a cool guy and would do anything for me until I started fucking his dear, sweet Tatiana.

“These men have been with me long enough to know I hate being the laughing stock,” I peered over my shoulder to see Diamond was gone. “And look what happened. This bitch ran off with an easy $500 and didn’t even work for it.” Today was going to shit. There was no sign of Jensen. The food was lousy. My tire was slashed, and my pussy ran away. What else could happen?

“I am heading back to Tehachapi.” Braeden announced as he tossed his vest at me. “Once upon a time I loved being in this club, but it’s become nothing but a shit show.”

I had a mind to put a bullet in his skull as he climbed on his bike, but he had a good point. I was trigger-happy lately and needed the men that remained loyal to me. Not to mention, I came between him and his old lady. So, Braeden had every right to hate me with every fiber of his being.

***

Drowning in a bottle of Jack did nothing to take away the pain of my humiliation away, though my injured leg was numb. Bear was the only one willing to share a room with me. Hell, I was thinking he was the only one still a hundred percent loyal to me now.

“Bear?”

“Yeah, Levi?” He asked, though distracted by the game on the television.

“When did I become such a total dick?” I was nearly three sheets to the wind, hearing my speech was slurred.

“At birth,” he didn’t hesitate to answer and chuckled. “Come on Levi, we’ve been friends since kindergarten, so I know you better than you even know yourself. You’ve always been volatile and a bossy asshole, but I am used to you and how you are with people.”

“I remember when we first made the club with Domino—you remember he picked that name because it was cooler than Delbert?” Bear laughed. “It’s a shame I had to kill him after I caught him with my old lady.” Domino made me a monster; the death of my old lady only exasperated it. I heavily sighed, took another swig and asked, “Do you think I can change? And be honest.”

“If I was honest, I’d get shot—but, you don’t scare me. You’re nothing but a bag of hot air to me. But, Levi, you’re too far gone down the path of self-destruction that there’s no room for you to change. Also, if you turned into a nice guy, people would know you’re up to no good.”

Bear was right. I would be the devil’s bitch when I die, so why change? I looked forward to being fucked up the ass with a fire poker. Once he caught a glimpse at how twisted my mind was, the devil would see all the nasty things I did over the last decade, and he’d shove a whole, burning log in my ass as opposed to the poker.

“Yup. I am fucked either way, Bear. I. Am. Fucked.”

The thought of burning in hell didn’t frighten me, I welcomed the chance to serve the devil and his disciples. I looked forward to the constant, painful orgies, and I was especially excited about feeling the pain I administered to all of my victims. Surely, I wouldn’t be the worst case the devil had seen, but I’d come pretty damned close to it.

EIGHTEEN

EZEKIEL

The night shift was normally Franklin’s, but I gave her a reprieve when her overindulgence of the taco bar didn’t sit well with her. I barely sat down with my cup of chamomile tea and plate of shortbread cookies when an alarm went off on the security system.

I saw footage of one man arguing with Levi and tossing his vest. However, what was interesting, albeit rare, is Levi let the man go without taking potshots at him. Though now this meant I had to stop the man and have him help safely escort Jensen. He also needed to see Jensen, not a Franklin clone. I haven’t done that spell in years, not since I taught Franklin how to alter what a person sees.

So much for my tea and cookies, I needed to take an unplanned trip to California and stop this man from heading further down south. I flew like a bullet from heaven to Interstate 5, looking for a solo bike rider and sure enough, the man I saw on the monitor was speeding on the empty highway.

Deer mode on, meaning I stupidly shifted into a deer while flying at full speed and crashed into the ravine. I will never do that again. My body ached all over and fumbled to stand on all four legs. Sacrificing the deer’s life was something I didn’t want to do. Well, in essence, I was risking my eternal life too, so I didn’t really think this through. Although, I loved deer. They were graceful and pure, but deadly to drivers, whether in an automobile or motorcycle.

From the sounds of it, the man’s engine was about two miles away and it was a cue to meander slowly onto the highway.

He raced up, and I screamed, panicking to get out of the way. The impact threw me up in the air a few feet, and pain coursed through every appendage on my body. I didn’t have time to dwell on the pain. Holding up my hand, I froze time to shift back into my natural form and cast a shield around the bike and the rider. I needed to ensure he was unscathed and that he’d still be able to make the trip to the Sequoia National Forest.

I plodded up the ravine and shouted, “Sir, are you okay?”

The rider jumped to his feet, “What in the fuck were you thinking, dude? Don’t you know it’s not safe to walk around a busy interstate? And at night, for that matter?” I locked my eyes with him, and his facial expression changed from angry to euphoric. Okay, it wasn’t the emotion I was going for, but he was euphoric that he was alive. “Wow! You saved my life. That deer could’ve killed me if you hadn’t been here.”

“I live to serve, Mister …?” I held my outstretched hand to shake his, which he obliged.

“I’m Braeden Collins and do I call you my hero or what?”

“I’m Ezekiel and I am no hero. But you can be.” I told Braeden and half expected the confusion. “Braeden Collins, I need you to be the hero of a little girl.”

Braeden snapped his fingers and pointed, “Emilie Dillon, right? I heard the detective say her name. Her family was killed or something and she’s orphaned. Look dude, I will do anything it takes, I’m your man.”

I told him of Jensen and Emilie’s whereabouts and made him swear to me he wouldn’t leak a word of this to Levi Shields or he’d be sent an engraved invitation to the gates of hell. Somehow, when you threaten anyone with that, they comply. “You will offer your help to Mr. Grimes during the road trip and when Levi catches up with them, because I have a feeling your paths will cross. Now you need to scoot, find a hotel and check in under Zeke Franklin, in case one of the Chrome Poppies have followed you.”

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