Prodigal Son (19 page)

I’d been afraid that some of the members wouldn’t be thrilled about all of the hoops we were going to have to jump through to get a legitimate business off the ground. “Wait a minute, Bug. I’m not changing anything except the fact that you’re all broke.”

J.C. looked at Bug, and I was afraid for a second that they were going to pick a fight.

I held my hands out, hoping to defuse the situation. “Listen, guys, it sounds like you were making an assload of money before Moses died and you had to cool it. I’m not saying you don’t know how to bring in cash. What I’m saying is that you have to get some legal things in order if you’re going to run a legitimate business, especially one that’s licensed and regulated by the state. We can’t just half-ass this stuff.”

Bug looked at J.C. and nodded, indicating that he should back off. “So who’s this lawyer?”

“He’s a guy I went to school with, and he’s also one of the guys I used to grow and sell weed with in college. He lives in Colorado now, so he’ll be up on the licenses and permits we’ll need.”

“So I got a question, man,” J.C. asked. “You got this money, and you got a job, right? Why would you invest in this new business with a bunch of guys you don’t even know?”

I laughed. “You know, I’ve asked myself the same question. Two reasons. One, I’ve discovered that I fuckin’ love riding bikes, and two, I’ve never really been part of a group that’s this tight. I like it, and I like knowing that there are people who’d have my back.”

Bug looked around, and I figured he was checking to make sure Joker couldn’t overhear what he was about to say. “You know, we don’t usually vote a brother in before we really know him. I did what the Pres told me to, but I’m gonna be keeping an eye on you, Luke. You can’t just expect to walk in here and take over just because your old man’s the President.”

“I hear you,” I answered. “I’m not trying to take over anything. I’m happy to be a brother, and I’m making a business investment. My plan is for all of us to get rich as shit off this deal.”

“I hope it works out that way, man,” Bug answered. “Hey, I was talking to J. C. earlier. What do you think about setting up the grow operation to have enough to sell outside the store?”

“What do you mean?” I asked.

J.C. spoke up. “There’s no reason why we can’t sell it legally and kinda off the books as well. The weed for sale in dispensaries is expensive, so it hasn’t hurt the illegal biz at all, from what I hear.”

I shook my head. “I don’t know. From what I hear, the DEA had their eye on Moses. I don’t think we should risk it. That’s the beauty of a legal dispensary. It’s all above board.”

“Yeah, I guess.” J.C. didn’t look like I’d convinced him.

“The other thing is that if we can grow a strain that’s in high demand, we’ll be selling all we can produce. Whether we sell it directly, or to other dispensaries, I think we’ll manage just fine all legal and aboveboard.”

Bug gave J.C. a look that clearly meant something to the two of them, but puzzled me. “If we run out of weed to sell, I’m sure we could get some from our amigos south of the border.”

Something about his expression troubled me, but I couldn’t put my finger on what it was. “South of the border?” I asked, confused. “Mexico?”

I could see that Joker was headed our way, and Bug could see it, too.

“Never mind, man, that’s all history. See you around. I’m watching you,” he said, before walking away.

J.C. followed, of course, and I knew that I’d have to be careful about the tension that Bug seemed to create within the club. Joker had told me that Bug and Moses hadn’t seen eye to eye, and I suspected that Bug probably saw me as a rival and suspected that I’d try to take his place.

“Luke,” Joker called as he approached. “Come talk to Sally about getting this ride to Arizona scheduled.”

I’d met Sally, the Road Captain, briefly, and I’d liked him right away. He was soft-spoken, but had asked several pointed questions about the dispensary proposal that revealed that he must have some history in business.

After ordering yet another round of shots from the bartender, Joker led me over to a table in the corner occupied by Sally and one of the young women who were always hanging around the club. I tried not to stare when I realized that Sally actually had his hand up beneath the skirt of the woman who sat on his lap.

“Take a walk, Angel,” Joker said as we sat down with Sally.

She stood up, much to Sally’s disappointment, and sauntered off, the sway in her hips no accident.

“That your old lady?” I asked, wanting to make sure that I knew which girls were single, so I didn’t make any mistakes.

“Nah, man. She’s just one of the girls who hangs around. Mighty handy, if you know what I mean.”

I wasn’t entirely comfortable with the idea of women who just slept with anyone in the MC, and I didn’t really get the appeal of sharing your sex partner with the guys you hung around with. I wasn’t going to rock the boat, though. Just because my brothers slept with all the same women didn’t mean that I had to.

Joker tossed back his shot and slammed the glass on the table. “So when we riding to Arizona?”

“Well, the guy’s going to harvest in about a week, and then it’ll need about a month to dry and cure,” I answered, eyeing up my shot and trying to decide if I wanted to drink it.

“We have Sturgis at the beginning of August, so end of June, beginning of July should work for most of us,” Sally said, looking at the calendar on his phone. “You’re going to Sturgis, right?” he asked me.

“Wouldn’t miss it for the world, man. I’ve heard some wild tales, and I’m ready.”

“Arizona will get you ready for a long ride, too,” Joker added. “And you’ll get to spend some quality time with your bike and your brothers.”

“Can’t wait.” I was curious about when I might see Krystal again. I wanted to be prepared in case things were awkward. “So do the guys bring their old ladies on these long rides?”

“Sometimes,” Sally answered. “We usually have one of the guys drive behind us in a van in case something goes wrong along the way. Sometimes an old lady or two will tag along. Why?” he asked. “You got an old lady?”

“Nowhere even close, man. Just curious.”

“Well, there won’t be a shortage of company on the road. We know folks along the way, and I’ll have us scheduled for stops in some friendly places, if you know what I mean.”

To be perfectly honest, I wasn’t sure exactly what he meant, but I wasn’t going to tell him that. Was he talking about prostitutes? More MC girls? Thinking about girls made me remember Krystal from two nights before — how gorgeous she’d looked naked in my bed, how sexy her tattoo was. Maybe I should text her. What if Bug had killed her or something crazy? I didn’t actually think he would, but I didn’t know for sure.

“Excuse me,” I said, as I stood up from the table. “Need to see a man about a horse.”

I pulled my phone from my pocket in the men’s room and sent a text to Krystal before I could change my mind.

You okay? Just want to make sure you’re alive and safe.

I took another leak and checked my phone, surprised to see that she’d answered.

I’m fine. Can you talk?

Call you in five.

I walked back out to the table, where Joker and Sally sat, poring over a map.

“Wow. Still do things old-school, I see?”

“Google Maps don’t know where the pretty girls are,” Joker said with a laugh. “Have a seat and you can help us plan the trip.”

“I’ll be right back. I have to step outside and make a phone call.”

Joker put his hand on my arm. “Time you started to learn, son. Don’t say anything on your cell phone that you don’t want the police to hear. We’ll get you hooked up with a couple of our pre-paids, in case you need to talk business.”

“Thanks, man, but this is personal. Nothing I need to worry about.”

I walked outside and dialed Krystal’s number.

“Hello?” she answered.

“Hey.” I wasn’t sure exactly what to say, and then I figured that since she’d wanted to talk, she could break the ice.

“Hey, I’m really sorry about the other night. I shouldn’t have said what I did to you, and your joining the Savage Sons is none of my business.”

“You’re right. It’s not.”

There was a moment of silence. I figured that she hadn’t expected me to be so blunt, but I was done kissing people’s asses.

I decided to break the silence. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah,” she answered. “I was scared to go home, so I’m staying with a friend from school.”

“You’re that afraid of Bug?”

“Yeah. Luke, you don’t know how out of control he can get. He’s one giant mean streak, and I was afraid he’d kill me.”

“Have you talked to him?”

“That’s part of why I wanted to talk to you. We talked this afternoon, and he told me that if I come back and agree to move in with him, he’ll forget about the whole thing.”

“What?”

“He said he’s sorry for having taken my money, and he wants to get back together.”

“What do you want, Krystal?”

“Well, I want to be alive this time next week. I’m afraid if I don’t take him up on his offer, that he’ll hurt me.”

“If I had some way to threaten him, I would, but I don’t.” I wondered if Krystal was fishing for me to offer to step in and save the day. “Krystal, I’m not gonna get involved. This is between you and Bug.”

“I know.”

I could hear the disappointment in her voice, and part of me wanted to go inside and pound Bug into the ground. That wasn’t how I dealt with my problems, though, and I wasn’t gonna start just because I was a Savage Son.

“If you need anything, you can call me, but I’m not going to say a word to Bug. And he’s not going to know that we’ve been together.”

“Good. He’d lose his mind if he knew I’d slept with you.”

“So what are you going to do?”

“I guess I’ll get back together with him. I don’t feel like I have any other choice.”

“Well, if that’s what you want, then I wish you the best.”

“It’s not what I want, Luke. I want to be with someone who doesn’t treat me like I’m just a hole to fuck, someone who will actually talk to me. Someone like…” Her voice trailed off.

“Someone like who, Krystal?”

I wanted her to say someone like me. I wanted to be with her, but I wasn’t going to be the one who stepped in between a brother and his old lady. She was going to have to say the words. I wasn’t going to do it.

“Never mind,” she said in a soft voice, full of regret.

I remembered how much I’d enjoyed her — not just the amazing sex, but being with her, and I was so tempted to take her from Bug and damn the consequences, but I couldn’t do it. Maybe I was weak, but I couldn’t do it.

“Well, then, you take care of yourself. Call me if you need me,” I said, feeling like a shit for leaving her in a horrible situation, even if it was her fault.

“Yeah. I guess I’ll see you around.”

She hung up, and I stood outside the clubhouse, trying to get a handle on what I was feeling. After a few minutes, I decided to do what the other Savage Sons would do. I went back inside and ordered a shot of whiskey.

Saturday, June 29, 2013

A
s soon as I heard Bug’s motorcycle pull away, I breathed a huge sigh of relief. He’d be gone for five whole days, and I couldn’t be happier. I poured myself a cup of coffee and sat down at the dining room table — the half of it that I kept clean — and tried to decide how to spend my five delicious days of freedom.

I’d been living with Bug for a couple of weeks so far, and while it hadn’t been unicorns and rainbows, it hadn’t been awful, either. He was kind of like a pet — if I kept him fed and cleaned up after him, then he didn’t whine too much. I’d been trying to keep a low profile while I figured out my long-term plan. I was not going to live with Bug forever.

Reaching into my purse, I pulled out the little notebook that I used for grocery lists and things I wanted to remember. Maybe if I made myself a list — wrote things down — I’d be able to figure out a plan and stick to it.

* Six more classes

* Job

* Apartment

I’d looked at the college’s course catalogue, and I figured that if I could save enough money to take three classes in the fall and three in the spring, that I’d have my degree in about a year. What I wasn’t sure about was whether I could stand to live with Bug for that long. Part of me worried, too, that he was only biding his time and had every intention of getting back at me for taking my money back from him.

“When you least expect it,” I said, repeating his promise from the enraged phone call.

I hoped that he’d gotten over being angry, but I didn’t know for sure. I knew for certain that I couldn’t keep my job and finish school if I moved out. He’d make my life hell, and clearly no one was gonna do a thing about it. Not Luke, anyway. I sighed as I thought about the evening we’d spent together, and I wished that I was a different kind of girl, one who deserved to be with a man like him.

My problem was that I wanted a bad boy. As much as I liked Luke, I was afraid that even if — by some miracle — we did get together that I would find him wishy-washy, too preppy for my taste. A nice body only went so far. If a man wasn’t going to stand up for himself and the people he cared about, I wasn’t sure he deserved the time of day.

Realizing that I really wanted to be the kind of girl who could stand up for herself, I decided right then that I was going to come up with a time frame and an exit strategy for my relationship with Bug. Even if I had to wait a whole, year, one way or another, I was going to shake free of him and make it on my own. I could be strong, and I could be independent. I could — maybe — with a whole lot of work, become the kind of woman who would deserve a man like Luke.

Luke.

The last few weeks had been awkward, hoping that Bug wouldn’t somehow magically figure out that we’d been together, but so far, he didn’t seem to suspect anything. He had been a little more vulgar in public than he typically was, and I was pretty sure that every single member of the Sons had seen my tits the night before when he’d unbuttoned my shirt in the clubhouse. I think he’d been contemplating making me strip completely, but Luke and Joker had started a dart tournament that distracted everyone. I suspected that Luke may have done it on purpose.