Page 53 of Truck

“Okay, okay, if you have no problem with it, neither do I.” Rory shrugs and turns to the counter where she continues making lunch.

On Sunday morning, I guide Xero, Collins, and Mitchell into church when Pres decides it’s time to officially make them brothers and give them their road names.

“Come on, come into the meeting. Say nothing unless spoken to. Stand on the side and wait for whatever is going to happen.” I don’t give them time to ask questions as I re-enter church and take my seat.

The three of them stand on one side, arms behind them, at ease as they are told in the military. They don’t look comfortable standing there I have to admit, but they’ll be okay in a few minutes I’m sure.

Pres looks at the three and gives them his blank stare. It’s enough to make a grown man cry, but they stand firm, showing no discomfort, and I have to tell you, I’m proud of them.

“You want to be brothers?” Pres asks firmly.

“Yes, sir,” the three of them quickly responded.

“I’m not a sir, I’m Pres. We are not in the military now. But to join us you have to know it’s for life. Your club’s colors are the most important thing you’ll own, and they always remain the property of the club. You will guard your colors against anything or anyone, at all costs. You never discuss club business with anyone outside of the club. You will guard our territory along with your club brothers. You will wear your colors and any patches earned or given with pride and honor. If you cannot do any of that, you walk out of the door now and never return,” Pres is watching the three of them closely, and when they all remain stoic, he continues, “Your names have been put forward for full brother status, missing out the prospect portion of the club criteria. That is something we normally do not consider, but we have a working prospect at this time, and I will present you to the brothers today for status with the understanding you receive only seventy-five percent for the first year. How say you?”

Xero speaks for the three of them. “We are fully onboard with that Pres. We honor the code and will fulfill all criteria set out that you mentioned.”

“We actually voted last week, and you were accepted into the brotherhood, but we had to hear you say you agreed to the oath. You will go to the tattoo studio and get your left shoulder blade covered with the club colors. If you already have something on that shoulder we will accept another place on the body, but it has to be visible while wearing pants of any description. What I’m saying is upper body.” Again, the three nod agreement, and Pres once again continues. “Okay, Xero, please step forward and accept your cut. You will be known as Xero from this point forward. We will not give you a different road name as you earned the one you have in service. We honor your service name.”

“Welcome to the brotherhood, Xero,” Books firmly states as he hands the cut to Xero.

Pres speaks again once Xero has stepped back into line with his brothers. “Collins, step forward. From this moment you will be known as Echo. You have that name because you never see the shot that kills you, and you’ll understand the meaning with being a sniper.”

Echo steps forward and takes his cut, giving a nod to Books as a way of thanks. He holds the cut as if it were the jewels in someone's crown. Which tells us all how much he honors the leather.

“Mitchell, step forward.” Pres states one last time. “You will be known as Dice, and I think you know why that is…”

Dice, as we’ll call him from this moment forward throws his head back laughing, “Oh yeah, I’ll never live down those fucking dice now.”

“You will come when called. You will attend all club meetings unless they are officer meetings. You will never disgrace the club or your brothers. Now, from next Sunday you will take a seat in church alongside your brothers.” Pres is satisfied with their, “Yes, Pres,” “Okay, Pres,” “Thanks, Pres,” responses and continues, “Okay, dismissed.”

We all head out of church and slap the three of them hard as we pass. But none of our antics stopped the huge smiles on the three of their faces.

After church, I grab Rory who is with Grady in the common room, and walk her over to where our house is being built. Of course, Grady came with us and is excitedly talking a mile a minute.

“What do you think, Grady?” I point to the half-built house and wrap my arm around Rory’s neck, pulling her to my side as I kiss the side of her head.

Rory is staring at the house and looks at Grady as he asks questions so fast that nobody would even have a chance to answer them all. “Grady, stop shouting out questions. One at a time in a proper manner,” Rory sighs and rolls her eyes at Grady, who laughs at her with no sign of being upset with her comment.

“I’ll tell you what the house is going to be like, Grady.” I give Rory another kiss to let her know she’s included. “The house will have four bedrooms, all with en-suites, a guest bathroom, and a half-bath on the first floor. I’m making sure there is an enormous kitchen because I think the kitchen is the heart of the house. But we will have a dining area in the kitchen, along with a separate dining room. It will have a basement which will have a game and cinema room, and a small gym.”

Rory looks up at me with a frown. “Will it have a mudroom, or a utility room, you know, like a laundry come storeroom?”

“I hadn’t thought about that, but I’ll speak to Jeremy and see what he can do,” I reply with a frown. Goddamn, I never thought about any laundry or storerooms.

“It’s a big house,” Grady says as he walks around the side of the building.

“Don’t go inside, Grady. It’s not safe yet,” I quickly say and watch him closely. He, however, stops walking and turns as he walks back to where we are standing.

“Can I go inside when it’s finished?”

“You can, and you can have a bedroom,” Rory says as she looks at me to confirm that it’s okay.

“Yep, you can have the one that will look out over the garden. It will have its own bathroom, and you’ll be responsible for keeping it clean when you stay with us,” I say this firmly, so he knows I’m not messing with him.

“Thanks, Truck.” With that, Grady runs back to the clubhouse, screeching about having a room, and he can stay with us.

Rory giggles as we watch him run. “He’s going to be okay isn’t he, Truck?”