Page 8 of Twisted Ties

I’m feeling better than I’ve felt in a long time, and Simone has everything to do with that. My motto has always been “you can’t trust these hoes,” but she’s not giving me hoe vibes and that’s new for me. I should know—I’ve grown up around them my whole life. They would hang around the club like low-level scum trying to get anything they could. I would see my biker brothers fuck ‘em and toss ‘em away. Bull used to say,“Most women are a liability, don’t get attached, Sledge.”

I don’t know anything else but being built for this biker life. I remember my father joking around with me when I was around about seven.“Yeah, we’re a gang, bitch!”He would mimic holding a gun and turn it sideways, pretending to pull the trigger. Later on, he would pop more than a few people, and it would no longer be a mimic.

Not Simone—she’s making me see things in a different way, and now she’s opened a Pandora’s box in relation to seeing my father. I want to pull the truth out of him.

I’m dreading this club meeting right now because we haven’t got our fentanyl back. The cartel isn’t that fucking patient. I should be more worried about if we’re gonna live, not if Simone and I got something going on.

We’re in the church house and I got my Jack in hand; I’m gonna need it. I look around at the guys as Psycho gives me the head nod, along with Snatch with a salute. I’m waiting to see how Slash is gonna handle things. He’s got his hotheaded nature, and I don’t know if his approach is going to work with the guys.

I’m the sarge because I know how to talk to each one of the crew with respect, and be the voice of reason when needed. I want to make sure we run a cohesive unit. Bull is on the other side of Slash, who has the gavel in hand; he’s ready to start the meeting. From the kingly smirk on his face, I can tell he’s excited about his step up, but running the Dark Angels is a hell of a job, and he’s going to have to be on his game if he wants to do it well.

I must admit he does look good in the President’s chair, a younger, cockier, fresh-faced version of his father. Most of the guys are talking in low voices amongst themselves, but not me— my mind is drifting away to the soft, sensual curves of Simone. I want to make sure she’s happy at the club. I still don’t get the intensity of the bond between us, but it’s more than lust, it’s a feeling in my bones. One that has the potential to make me obsessed with her and that’s both scary and exciting to me.

The gavel goes down three times as Slash gets the party started. The talking stops and I gauge the temperature in the room. Most of the reactions are neutral or perplexed, and the boys are paying attention to him, but it’s Bull’s face that worries me. His expression holds another demeanor altogether. There’s a hotbed of hate in his onyx eyes and his hands are fixed in a triangle, while his jaw is so stiff it looks as if it’s about to break.

Slash is none the wiser, but I note it—it’s a smolder on the radar I want to keep an eye on before it turns into an internal war. We can’t be divided if we’re going to move forward and get our drugs back.

“All right, let’s call the meeting in session. You know the drill, there’s nothing different. I want an update out of every one of you. Sledge, you’re up first, what do you know?”

I crick out the kinks in my neck as I put my drink down. “We’ve been afforded more time by the cartel. I’m not clear on how much time we have, though. It can’t be long. We gotta make moves.”

“Well, that shit you pulled at Hogs & Tail ain't gonna help us much. What the fuck were you thinking, Sledge? Those Savages are gonna know we were out looking for them. And for what, Hunter Jackson’s daughter? What's your play here?"

My face turns red as the whole club’s eyes land on me. Did he just say Simone is Hunter Jackson’s daughter?Nope.Ain’t no chance. “There’s no way, you’re kidding me, right?”

I feel like a goddamn fool, but at the same time I’m in a state of disbelief. Hunter Jackson is complete trash and the former vice president of the Savage Outlaws. Former being that he got his tongue cut out and a nice bullet hole to the brain for being a class-A snitch bitch.

Psycho cuts in and starts clapping as his shady eyes hit mine. “You hitting that ass revenge-style. I didn’t take you for living on the edge like that my guy, nice work!”

Bull shuts him down, slamming a fist on the table, and I watch it bounce. He’s justified in being pissed about it, but hey, I wanted her, and I got her. “Shut up!This could cost us getting the shipment back, asshole! You couldn’t see the resemblance? That’s Hunter’s girl. Look at the eyes, it’s there. You gotta pay attention, Sledge. You gotta pay fucking attention.”

Bull’s voice has always been one that bounces off the walls. It’s got this deep sonic boom to it with a touch of gravel. I’ve gotten used to it over the years. He’s family, but it shuts Psycho down. Slash shakes his head as if it’s a misdemeanor on my part, but I acknowledge Bull.

“Feel you on the that one. It’s done now.” My jaw flexes. I feel as if I’ve been reprimanded by the principal or something, but it’s all good. The guys don’t say a word, but I can see a snicker on a few of the patches’ faces. I’m not trying to set a bad example, but I’m looking more like a reckless fool every minute that goes by.

Slash, on the other hand, remains steady and doesn’t miss a beat. “Which means they're probably gonna move the stash. Psycho, Snatch, take a couple of prospects and sit on the Savage Outlaws’ clubhouse."

Slash’s level head issues a pretty good directive. I can feel the anger screaming from Bull. I’m surprised he doesn’t want to throw a chair at my head or Slash’s. He’s redder than a tomato, and I wanna tell him to not raise his blood pressure too high.

"My bro, Deputy Jansen has the department crawling up the Highway Devils MC asses on some fake-ass lead.” Snatch jumps in, but my head is still racing with the news that Simone is Hunter Jackson’s girl. Why didn’t Bull tell me when we were partying together?

"For now, we sit on the clubhouse to see if we can get any leads. That’s until we find another way in. Are there any other topics that need to be addressed before we adjourn?" Slash sends his gaze around the room and his eyes sit on Bull for a minute. Bull camouflages his disgust long enough to display a neutral disposition.

There’s a beef going on, and I don’t like it. We can’t operate as a club if Bull isn’t on board. I’m the Sarge; if one cog in the wheel of the club is out of sync, it throws off everything. I have my own shitstorm brewing, so worrying about Bull is the least of my issues. Hunter Jackson’s daughter? Talk about being the worst decision. Cracking my knuckles, I can barely hear the others chopping it up as I’m too wrapped in my own head thinking about the shitty situation.

A few minutes later, the crew bails and everyone clears out of the room. Slash catches the crook of my arm and pulls me back in.

“Aye man, can you stay behind? I wanna talk to you a minute.”

I’m pinching the back of my neck; maybe I’m trying to get a grip on the fact I’ve inserted myself into Hunter Jackson’s girl. “Yeah, yeah, cool.”

“Hey, so you know, how do you think that went for a first meeting? You think the guys are cool?” Slash is up, and he’s got that same spark that his father had when he was running the club, but he and Axe pale in comparison. Slash has a lot of learning to do, but right now I can’t talk about shit. We got a shipment of drugs to get back before we get hacked to pieces.

“Ah, to be honest Slash, there’s a little birdy roaming around the club and there’s some members that aren’t happy about you assuming the seat by kin. You’re supposed to be voted in, and you coming up from being a patch is a stretch, buddy. Some of the crew are saying you haven’t paid your dues.”

I’m not a man to pussyfoot around the truth; Slash will appreciate it. His face darkens and his jaw flexes with pride. “It’s my seat. I got deals that can put us on the right track, they can take Dark Angels to the next level, and if those members can’t see it, well, it’s tough titties.”

Typical Slash with the hot head, and the vengeful mouth. I cup a hand on his shoulder, smirking at him. “Chill, my guy, if you wanna run the club, you gotta get that temper under control. Dark Angels need a cool, calm head at the helm.”

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