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I gritted my teeth. Of course, anyone who’d seen us riding through town together would probably put two and two together. There was just something about the way a club rode together compared to when motorcycle enthusiasts or friends went out riding for fun. We were more in sync with each other, we knew our space, we usually rode beside the same person, and we stuck together like fucking glue.
“Yeah. Athens, Alabama,” I answered, not willing to deny the fact only to be caught out as a liar if they decided to really get dirty.
“And your club name?”
“Brothers by Blood.”
I watched his face carefully. I’d know pretty damn soon if I was in trouble or not. The tattoos that covered his arms and the few across his neck, they weren’t all for decorative purposes. I knew the trophies of a hitman. He wasn’t the first I’d met, and each one of them somehow found a way to celebrate their kills. The tattoo on the back of his hand told me almost everything I needed to know about his skill, his technique—the crosshairs down the scope of a gun, the silhouette of a deer, unaware, and probably the reason behind his name.
He was a hunter.
He went looking for those people who were running, who were in hiding, or who had just seemed to disappear. And I bet he found them every damn time.
Right now, he was looking at me as if I was his next target. Watching me, assessing me.
Finally, after a few tense moments, he nodded. “I know Digger from down in Texas. The hell are you doing around here?”
I relaxed a little now I could feel the tension in the air calming a little. It was always touch and go with other clubs. I had no idea what other chapters of the Brothers by Blood had a beef with, or who didn’t like them. I could meet a club that had had one run in with a brother from another chapter, and they could kill me on the spot just for that. We had to be careful when we were away from home, and this time, we hadn’t been careful enough. This time we were lucky that Romeo knew this guy, and he had a good relationship with one of our club presidents.
“Got a phone call a couple of days ago to say this asshole had the shit beaten out of him out in High Desert,” I explained, nodding to Romeo who frowned and brushed his thumb across his split lip. “Wanted to make sure whoever did it, didn’t get the chance to have another round.”
Huntsman immediately turned his attention to Romeo with a raised eyebrow. “Since when does anyone come at you?” Those few words gave me a small insight into just how well known and respected my little brother was around these parts.
“Like I said, I ain’t seen my brother or sister since we were put into foster care six years ago. Decided I was going to head out with them for a while.Someonedidn’t appreciate I was leaving.” The emphasis on that one word and the dark flash in Huntsman’s eyes told me everything I needed to know. This guy Romeo was running from was important around here. He was well known, and neither Romeo nor the club liked that.
Huntsman tried to keep a straight face, but I saw the way his lip twitched in anger. “Get the hell out of here,” he ordered before turning to me. “You’re lucky it was your brother that got out of the car. I don’t take too kindly to you and your boys sneaking around on my turf. We could have taken you out fucking five exits ago, but I wanted to bring you here… lot of special shit in there… shit that could easily dismember a body in a few minutes. And coincidently, on a day where we planned to lay concrete.” Huntsman was dead serious, the men around us still not cracking a smile.
I didn’t take the threat lightly and showed him the respect he deserved, and he’d no doubt earned. “Yes, sir,” I responded through gritted teeth.
“We better get moving,” Romeo noted, dipping his head with a smirk. “Hamlet here has a prom to get to.”
Roaring laughter came from Huntsman’s mouth, the boys around us all joining in as Romeo and I headed back to the front of the car, their deep chuckles lighting up the construction site.
“Just had to do it, didn’t you,” I hissed as we jumped in.
Romeo smirked. “I hope she’s worth the shit I’m gonna give you.”
My response was instant. “And fucking more.”
His smirk slowly transformed into a genuine smile. As if he was almost happy I’d found someone who I would do something as embarrassing—at nearly twenty-five—as to go to prom with. “Good. You’re gonna need to hold onto that over the next twenty-six hours because I’ve been storing them in my head since we left the prison.”
It’ll be a miracle if we make it back to Athens alive.
