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“Where you goin’?” I call after him.
“To pack a bag. Prez is back and I’m headin’ to Oak Creek for some fuckin’ action.”
I leave my half-finished beer on the bar and head out to my bike, making my way toward home to see what the hell’s got my VP lookin’ so worried.
“Hello,” I call through the house as I open the door. Thankfully, the kitchen is still the same color it was when I left it, and when I see my wife sitting on the couch reading a book, she quickly gets up and races toward me.
“I didn’t think you’d be back until tomorrow.” She squeals as I lift her off her feet.
“I wanted to surprise you. Something happened which means we didn’t need the approval of the last two Charters. Prez was pretty sure we had their vote anyway but…”
“What happened to you?” Her expression changes when she sees the state of my face, and her hand grips my jaw so she can examine my face.
“It ain’t nothin’. Just got into a little scuffle.”
“And you let him get a swing on you?” Even she can’t hide her shock.
“Yes, Shan, he got a swing on me.” I place her back on her feet and slide my hand over my bruised face.
“Well, I’m glad you're home.” She smiles at me warmly, then as she takes a step back and pulls in a breath I watch that smile start to drop off her face. She’s suddenly become real tense, and it reminds me of Jessie’s warning. If the kitchen ain’t fuckin’ green, what the hell am I supposed to be worried about?
“What’s up?” I ask, doing my best to keep calm.
“We need to talk about something.” She twists on her heels, the way she always does when she assumes I’m not gonna like something.
“Troj, I need you to promise that you won’t yell, or freak out.”
“Shan, you're scarin’ me,” I warn her, my body getting tenser every second that I have to wait for her to tell me.
“Okay.” She releases a nervous breath before she takes my hand and leads me toward the guest room, then quietly she opens the door and steps aside so I can look through it.
The curtains are closed and there's a soft light coming from the tiny lamp in the corner of the room, enough light for me to see the kid that's sound asleep in the spare bed.
I turn my head and go to speak but she silences me with her finger.
“Please don't shout, it took me so long to settle him last night,” she whispers.
“Shaniya, why is there a kid in our spare room?” I take her wrist and use it to drag her finger away.
“He got left at the drop-in center yesterday.” She stares up at me with those stunning wolf-like eyes that are so blue you could fuckin’ drown in ‘em.
“Did ya call the police?”
“No, I didn’t call the police, nor child services either, and I think you should be reminded of the fact that no one here called them when Mel dumped Faith at the clubhouse door either.”
“That's because we knew Faith belonged to one of us,” I remind her, wondering what the hell is goin’ through her head.
“Don’t look at me like I’m crazy, Troj. I’m not fuckin’ crazy.” I know she’s angry when she swears at me. Shan never swears.
“Hey, hey… I don’t think you’re crazy.” I wrap her up in my arms and grip her thick black hair in my hand. “I don’t even know why I’m surprised, of course, you brought the poor kid home.” I laugh to myself as I kiss the top of her head.
“So you understand?” She snuffles back her tears.
“Yeah, I understand, but that don’t solve the problem, darlin’,” I look down at my beautiful, naive wife, and love how she tries to change the world.
“I’ve heard too many stories about foster homes, Troj, I can’t hand him over and let him be taken to one. He’s so young and tiny. He smiled at me earlier, after I’d bathed him. I put him in some of Gabriel’s pajamas and told him a story, and he actually smiled. He trusts me, even though he must be so scared.”
“Well, he seems pretty comfortable to me.” I look back toward the door that he’s sleepin’ behind and smile. It makes my split lip sting, but it’s worth it when she smiles back at me.
