Page 17 of Last Mile

“I never would have fucked up with a motorcycle,” I grumbled.

“That’s probably true, considering what a hard-on you have for bikes, but I guarantee you’ll never miss a transmission issue ever again.”

“Fuck no.” I held out my hand to him. “Thanks, man. I owe you one.”

He pumped my hand up and down. “You’re welcome.” After dropping my hand, he started back to the car he had been working on. Staring at his back, I thought about what kind of man he was and couldn’t help thinking he would make a great member of the Raiders one day.

After everything that had gone down with Mendoza, we were actively looking to bring in a few new guys to steady things until the heat wore off.

All it had taken was a call to my brother during my next break. Rev had answered on the third ring. “What’s up, B?” he’d asked.

“I wanted to run something by you.”

“Shoot.”

“I think I got a lead on a good hang-around.”

“Really?”

“Yeah.” Then I’d given Rev the lowdown on Marley. “Think it’d be okay to invite him to a party so we can feel him out?”

“Sure. Why not? We’ll put Deacon on his ass pronto. You know how he thinks he can sniff out rats.”

I laughed. “Okay. Sounds good.”

After I’d hung up with Rev, I put my phone back in my pocket and went inside. Marley was underneath a car that was up on the hydraulics.

“Hey, you ever think about joining a motorcycle club?” I asked.

Marley had glanced at me over his shoulder. “Maybe. Why?”

“I just happened to be part of one. Actually, I’m a little more than a part of one. I’m an officer in the Hells Raiders.”

“I think I might’ve heard of them.”

“You probably didn’t hear anything too good about them.”

Turning around, Marley had said, “Heard a bit.”

My eyebrows rose at his summation. “Yeah, well, maybe everything you heard wasn’t true.”

“I’m listening.”

I’d walked over to him so I could lower my voice. “It’s a long process to join. You have to start at the very bottom as a hang- around. Then if everyone agrees, we could let you prospect. That’s the hardest part of joining because you basically get treated like everyone’s bitch.”

Marley had smiled and shrugged. “Yeah, I’ve heard some shit about the prospecting period. To be honest, I’ve never really given the whole club scene a lot of thought. I just love to ride.”

“That’s what the club is really all about.”

Marley had appeared thoughtful for a couple of minutes.

“Maybe I could give it a try.”

“I’m glad to hear you say that.” I’d made sure we were completely alone before saying anything further.” Look, we’re having a party this Saturday night. Why don’t you come and see what you think?”

Marley had seemed to weigh my words for a few moments before he nodded. “Okay. That sounds good.”

From his table across the room in the clubhouse, Marley worked on draining another beer. I’d found him the table earlier and insisted on buying him a pitcher. I owed him at least that much for saving my ass.