Feeling like I’ve given them enough to think about and knowing both of them need time to work out their thoughts, I stand up. “Let’s go to Lefty’s. I want a burger. Whatcha say? I’ll buy as athank you for helping me.” I know they’re both gonna hop on that invitation. They may drive me crazy, but stupid they ain’t.
Erik
Looking around the room that has been mine for more than twenty years, I feel nothing but relief. Relief that I’m not going to have to hide out anymore. Relief that I finally got the nerve and followed through with filing for divorce. I know I stayed for my boys, but realistically, I could have done this at least five or six years ago, but was too stuck to do anything.
There are only a half dozen or so boxes left, as well as the bed and headboard. I thought about leaving it, but Jonah reminded me I was giving her the fucking house. I can take the stuff in the room. He’s here supervising and has even taken a couple of loads to the truck.
I hear steps behind me, but I don’t turn around.
“You doin’ okay with all of this?” Grant asks just above a whisper from behind me.
I turn around and look at him, seeing concern in his eyes. “Yeah, I am. I was just questioning why I hadn’t done this a few years ago. I’m definitely okay with all this. I’m ready to move on and be happy for once.”
He starts to say something, but Jeremiah comes through the door. “You have enough space for Leif and me to add a coupleof boxes of our stuff? We don’t trust that Mom won’t toss everything when she finds out, and we both want to hold on to a few things we haven’t taken yet.” Jonah’s right behind him.
“Son, if he doesn’t have room, we do. Take whatever you two want and we’ll find someplace for them.”
Grant nods. “I’m sure there’s room in the spare room for some more boxes. Your dad ain’t bringing much.”
Leif pops his head in the room. “I still think you should try and take more. You’re giving Mom too much.”
I shake my head. “No, I got what matters most, and you two. That’s everything I need.” Having had enough of the emotions swirling in my mind, I just want to get this done. “Let’s finish this shit up. We get everything out and unloaded, and I’ll order pizza for everyone.” Time to say goodbye to this house.
*********
I’m a chicken shit. I know you’d agree. I’ve been living at Grant’s for almost a week now and have slept in the guest room the whole time. The first few nights are all down to my being a complete chicken when it comes to initiating things with him. I know, I know. He told me to tell him when I was ready. I know I’m ready. I am. Just taking that step seems so big and daunting. I need to find my balls and just do it.
To be fair, the last couple of days weren’t my fault. Asher and Logan’s wedding itself wasn’t eventful enough, but some fuckers thought it would be a good idea to come and take our little one, Madison. I was so glad that we found her after only a few hours. Not only was she pretty much unhurt, but she brought some other girls back with her.
Fucking Joseph. I thought, after all these years, people would have realized just how crazy he was and not follow him around blindly. Unfortunately, I was wrong. We’re about to have church to figure out how to deal with Joseph and his idiotic goons. You better fucking believe that I’m going to be a part of that. He should’ve stopped breathing air back in the eighties. You can be assured I’m going to help see that he doesn’t see next week.
I walk into the clubhouse, and it’s chaotic. Apparently, Anna, Madison, and the new girls decided to take matters into their own hands and are heading up the mountain as we speak. It’s a rush to the trucks, and Juan hands me a radio.
I hand it to Saxon as he hops in the front seat of my truck. I’ve got Jeremiah, Leif, and Ben in my truck. I see Grant in Jonah’s truck with Pres and Jonah. Ry is driving. In all my time going up the mountain, I don’t think we have ever gone this way. In fact, this seems like a roundabout way to get there. I’m about to have Saxon radio to see where the fuck Grant’s leading us when Wyatt’s voice crackles over the radio. “Where the fuck are we,Grant? Are we going so fucking out of the way that we’re not gonna get there in time to help?”
A few other clicks and voices chime in with the same worry. Grant must take the radio in the truck he’s in. “Yes, we’re goin’ the right fucking way. In about three miles up, we’ll be back on the highway and only a couple of miles from the turnoff to the compound.”
The road winds back and forth again, not letting us keep up the same speed. The radio crackles with voices again. “Are you fucking sure we’re gonna come up on the highway here soon, ’cause we fucking haven’t yet?”
Grant responds, “Yeah. Trust me. Rabbit is good. Rabbit is wise.”
Fuck me.
Luckily, only a few minutes later, we meet back up with the highway, and I can tell we aren’t far from the turnoff for the compound. I never imagined being up here again, let alone twice this week. The flood of memories hits me as we turn onto the gravel road that leads to the compound. Memories of Mamma, her cooking, and her wisdom that she would always seem to drop at the right time. Memories of Father and his rules and demands. Memories of nights by candle ‘cause we had no fucking power up here.
Wyatt has Anna’s phone location, so that’s the direction we head in, parking a ways away from buildings, so we have somewhat ofan advantage of surprise and to not put the girls in danger. We approach the top of the little hill and reach a clearing. I speak without thinking, “Well, shit.”
Mick, who’s standing next to me asks, “What is it? You think they’re in there?”
I nod at him. “Yeah, I do. We should go around to the back and enter through the kitchen. They can’t see it from the front room.”
Pres is on my other side. “How the fuck do you know that?”
I answer him as I start walking. “‘Cause that’s the house that my father built. It’s the last one we lived in on this mountain.”
The next ten minutes are pure chaos, with Madison coming out of the house and running down Joseph, who was trying to escape, and Anna and the girls coming out of the house looking like extras from a horror flick.
Mick, Wyatt and Jackson try to talk some sense into Anna, Mads and the two new girls. They remind them that we can handle the clean up since they took care of everything already. Mick agrees to drive the girls back, and Jon directs the prospects and some brothers to start the cleanup process. It’s gonna be a bonfire night for some of these guys.
