Steel ground his teeth. “I’m not rehashing this shit again. You always take the focus off yourself. I’m outta here.” He swung around and marched out the door, his breathing heavy. He was pissed at Mika and at himself for not seeing the signs of Chenoa’s drug use. As he thought back, he should’ve wondered why she’d started wearing long sleeves all the time.
Maybe Mika has a point. Maybe I was too consumed with the club that I let Chenoa stand by the sidelines. I’m gonna fucking fix that.
The chill of the night air felt good as he made his way across the parking lot to his Harley. He swung his leg and settled on the leather seat, starting the ignition and letting the iron horse roar to life. Whenever shit got to be too much, he’d jump on his bike and ride, loving the way the wind wrapped around him, the way his body moved with his motorcycle like they were one fusing with the road.
He sped past the closed businesses on Main Street. Alina was a small town of only eight thousand people, nestled in the southwestern part of Colorado and surrounded by the high and rugged San Juan and La Plata mountain ranges. The town rested on that imaginary border between mountain and desert: close enough for high elevation views, low enough for the arid environment of the high desert. Alina was about forty miles away from the Four Corners, where the borders of Colorado, Utah, Arizona, and New Mexico meet. He grew up in the area with his three siblings. His mother was Navajo and his father—the bastard—was Irish. He grew up in poverty on the Navajo reservation that was about thirty miles from Alina. Except for him, his whole family still lived on the reservation.
His Harley blasted around curves as he rode farther away from town. He ached to feel the wind around him, to banish all thoughts and to be one with Mother Earth. He made his way to Mount Hesperus, one of the Navajo people’s sacred mountains. He’d been going there since he was a kid. His mother had explained how her people believed that the sacred mountains were integral to their worldview. They respected them and believed that they had spiritual power. Steel often went to Mount Hesperus, where he would open himself up and let the spiritual power that surrounded the peaks interact with him.
Steel believed that everything in life was a balance; if there was a communion of order and disorder, the universe would be good. At that moment, his life was out of balance. His daughter had ODed on heroin, and he knew she was fucking lucky to be alive.What about the next time? She doesn’t even think she’s an addict. Fuck! How did things get so out of hand?
A maelstrom of emotions came over him. He had to bring the chaos under control.
He stopped his bike and hiked up a steep path until he made it to the top. Without the obstruction of streetlights, the stars filled the inky sky, shining like a million fireflies. They seemed so close that Steel felt like he could reach out and touch their blazing heat. He breathed in deeply, the chilled air icing his lungs. Quiet surrounded him, and he welcomed it. Calmness began to seep through him, abating the turmoil within him. He turned his head skyward and whispered to the wind, “Give me wisdom to help my little girl.” Wet streaks ran down his face. It was there, on that sacred mountain, that he could let the tears no one ever saw flow freely. After a moment, he wiped his face. “Mother Earth, watch over Chenoa. Hold your hand before her in protection.”
After several more minutes of quietude, he made his way to his bike and headed back.
He pulled into the lot of the Night Rebels’ clubhouse. It was about fifteen miles from Alina, and it sat so far back from the road that, unless someone knew it was there, it would never be spotted. The club was a two-story stucco building that had been used as a warehouse back in the day. The brothers who lived at the club had rooms in the basement or second floor. The first floor was reserved for communal living: kitchen; large room where the brothers drank, argued, played pool, and fucked; meeting room; smaller rooms for visiting brothers. There were seventeen members, seven club girls, two prospects, and a whole lot of hang-arounds during parties.
About half of the brothers lived at the club. A couple of them, Rooster and Tattoo Mike, had old ladies and lived with their families in town. The rest of the members preferred the freedom of easy sex and booze every night of the week. Steel was no exception. He liked having women at his disposal twenty-four seven, and for the past three months, Alma—one of the club girls—had been his favorite. Steel had no intention of settling down with any woman, but Alma was a good listener and he loved the way she sucked him. When he wasn’t with her, she played with the other brothers and it didn’t bother him in the least. In time, he’d tire of her and go back to the variety pack. They were all one happy family.
The moment Steel entered the large room, several of his brothers came up to him, drawing him into a bear hug.
“How’s Chenoa?” Paco asked. Vice president of the club, Paco was a six-foot-tall, well-muscled heartbreaker.
“Good for now.”
“We’re here for you if you need us,” Goldie said. The blond road captain turned to his brothers. “Am I right?”
They all voiced their agreement as they raised their fists in the air.
Warmth filled Steel as he surveyed the wave of raised arms.This is my family. Mika just doesn’t fucking get it.Since he’d started the Night Rebels twelve years ago, he knew he could always count on his brothers to be there 100 percent. They were a group of men who stayed together out of loyalty and love for each other and the club. They were more family to him than his blood siblings who couldn’t give a damn about him. “Thanks. I got some bad shit going on with my little girl, but I’m gonna take care of it.”
Paco gripped his shoulder. “Like Goldie said, we’re with you, brother.”
Steel nodded. “We gotta find who the fuck’s supplying the shit in our county. That’s for tomorrow’s church. Go ahead with the party.” He pulled away and threw back a few shots of tequila that his brothers had brought to him. The sharp taste burned all the way down.Fuck, that’s good.
“Wanna get in on a game of pool?” Shotgun asked. “We can pair against Skull and Sangre. We’ll beat their sorry asses.”
Steel laughed for the first time since his mother had called him about Chenoa. “It’s tempting, but I’m pretty worn out. Another time.” He went over to the long bar that filled one corner of the room. Across from the bar, a couple of pool tables and a poker table were in use. A large-screened television filled the back wall opposite the bar, several southwest-patterned couches and chairs in front of it. Instead of watching the images on the screen, the brothers and the club girls were curled around, pleasuring each other.
The prospect tending the bar nodded at Steel. “Another shot?” Patches asked.
“The whole fucking bottle.” Patches placed a bottle of Patrón in front of him. Gripping it, Steel ambled out and climbed the stairs to his large corner room on the second floor. Inside, he placed the bottle on his dresser and then kicked off his boots, shrugged off his cut, and sank down into an overstuffed chair, placing his feet on the small table in front of him. He opened the bottle and drank deeply from it, his goal to get good and drunk. As he took another swig, he heard a faint knock on his door. “Come in.”
The door slowly opened and a petite woman with long brown hair and a plunging neckline showing off her ample cleavage came in. “Hey. How are you? I heard about your daughter. Is she okay?” She draped her arms around his shoulders. The faint scent of patchouli wafted around him.
“Hey, Alma. Yeah, she’s good. Thanks for asking.”
She leaned down and kissed his jawline, her fingernails scratching his bare chest. A shiver ran through him for a few seconds but then died away. He gently moved her hands away. “Sorry, but I’m not feeling it tonight. I’m beat.”
Her face fell. “Do you want someone else?”
“Nah. You know right now, you’re my favorite. I just wanna finish drinking and crash. Go back down to the party. Sangre’s had a boner for you for the last several nights.”
“But I was busy with you.” She grinned.
“Yeah.” He raised his eyebrows, which made her laugh. “Why don’t you give him a good surprise?”
