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Ryker and Gray step inside before me, and I kick the door shut as the last in, trying like hell not to glare at the three fuckers already warming the seats in our Church. Graham sits at the opposite end of the table to Ryker, Declan to his left, and a guy with a patch that reads ‘Oakley’ to his right.
Nobody speaks a word until we’re all seated. I take my usual VP spot beside Ryker, with Gray to my left, leaving Axel to sit across from me.
Graham’s gray beard straggles down to his chest, the skull bandana wrapped around his head like it always is as his bulbous nose twitches. Declan must get his looks from his mother because he doesn’t look a thing like his father. But the sinister glimmer in his eyes is one I’m only just noticing. He looks like a fuckboy with his swept hair, chiseled jaw, and tattoos covering him from head to toe. Oakley is the only one wearing a half smile and an unfazed expression. He either doesn’t know shit, or he’s high. Maybe the latter, maybe both.
“What’s going on, Ryker?” Graham asks, cocking a brow as my best friend relaxes back in his seat. “You didn’t give much away on our call, just something about a kidnapping and retribution. Here we are.”
I’m itching to answer, but it has to be Ryker. Old schoolers like this don’t see equality in a club. Just them, their thoughts, their ideas, and everyone else falls in line or pays the price in blood.
“We’ve lost a lot of lives the past few weeks. Emmett’s dad, Eric, being one of them.”
Graham’s tongue flicks out as he assesses me. “Sorry for your loss, Brother.” I want to tell him to go fuck himself, yet I nod instead. “What happened today that made you reach out, though?”
“We lost another life, a prospect protecting Emmett’s younger sister. An attempt at kidnapping one of our women also took place, but they didn’t succeed.”
“Who didn’t?”
“The Devil’s Brutes.”
I observe all three of them for a sign, a signal, anything to hint that they are familiar with who we’re talking about. It’s a slight twitch to Declan’s left eye that gives him away.
Motherfuckers.
Inside, I want to reach across the table, tear them apart limb by limb until the anger is satiated. I wish Scarlett had never been in the same room as either of them and I wish she didn’t have to continue now, but Ryker is right. We trust her completely, and this is her call.
If we didn’t already have a president we would blindly follow into the darkness that lurks in this town, I’d be nominating her next and she’s another unpatched member.
“And the girl, is she okay?”
“She’s fine.” The bite to Axel’s tone is clear he doesn’t have his feelings under control, but I don’t glance at him. That would only draw attention to his vulnerability right now.Ourvulnerability.
“It wasn’t little Scarlett Reeves, was it? I remember her father. God forbid if anyone hurt her. She’s all alone now that the Reapers are gone.” I glare at Declan and his choice of words.
Scarlett was alone where she was, but she isn’t any longer. She isn’t little either, but that’s just another way to demean her as a woman, as a person. I keep my mouth shut though, letting them continue to underestimate her, and I’ll be sure to let her be the one to pull the trigger to end their lives.
They fucking deserve it.
“So, the Brutes. Is this an ongoing issue?” Graham asks, not waiting for a response about Scarlett. Either that, or he knows he won’t get one.
“It seems so,” Ryker grumbles, swiping a hand down his face. “We refuse to give into their demands which has put a ticking bomb on the situation.” Graham hums in understanding as Ryker leans forward and braces his elbows on the table, making eye contact with the president. “That being said, we need numbers. If you can offer your aid, it would truly be appreciated, Brother.”
Graham’s gaze slowly travels from Axel, to Ryker, over me, before glancing at Gray. I hate letting them know we need their help. Even before Scarlett’s bombshell, being vulnerable is not something I offer to anyone. Especially not another chapter.
When he’s sure he’s dragged the silence out for long enough, Graham finally sits forward in his seat, mirroring Ryker’s posture. “Then we’re at your command, President Ryker.”
I don’t like the undertone of how he said that, but I settle for clenching my hands tightly in my lap instead of lashing out. He pisses me off as much as Kincaid, the president of the Devil’s Brutes, who has his eyes now firmly set on Scarlett.
It’s official. I hate people. Anyone that isn’t a loyal Ruthless Brother, my sister, Maggie, or Scarlett—I hate them. Ruthless Bitches included. I can’tpeopleany longer, not when I hear Ryker murmur his thanks, knock the gavel on the table, and call time on the meeting.
All we’ve achieved right now is extending their unwanted stay, but there’s nothing we can do about it.Slow and steady.
“We’ll set you up in the—”
“Put us as close to the whores as possible. You know that’s where we’ll be spending most of our time anyway,” Declan interjects with a grin on his lips that I want to erase with my fists.
“Of course,” Gray replies, clapping his hands as he stands, and I follow suit.
It makes me realize that we never placed Scarlett in a room near the Ruthless Bitches. Ever. Not even from the moment she stepped through the doors. This guy knew long before the rest of us how important she would be. It may not have been intentional, but it was subconsciously pieced together.
