Revival Read online

  “What about Zeus?” Seamus asks.

  “Haven’t given him much thought. Don’t think I’ve heard from him in years, but I know he keeps good communication with Fist. He’s mentioned Zeus the last few times I’ve spoken to him” Mind you, it’s been a couple years, but the friend of a friend is an ally. There are a few MC’s who I know we can trust. The Reapers from Montana, The Raiders from Los Angeles, and the Sons of Gods from Birmingham, Alabama. We also know who the fuck to stay away from, I’d say the Demons of Hell are the biggest shit stirrers, then you’ve got Iron Vex but don’t even get me started on Fallen Mayhem.

  “He said he was goin’ to the Brotherhood” Seamus laughs. The Brotherhood isn’t an enemy of our club, per say. Although, I think it’s safe to admit that we keep our distance from one another. It’s just best for us to both act like the other doesn’t exist, otherwise chaos could break out.

  “Mhm. Roman will take anyone these days it seems” I add, looking out into the front parking lot of the club. There aren’t many bikes parked out front, and after today our numbers have taken a hit. I can only hope that they’ll slowly begin to grow after I’ve gotten settled. First order of business is dealing with Dwayne’s irritating ass, then I can worry about getting fresh meet in our club.

  I keep having to remind myself, quality over quantity.

  “Hey there hot stuff!” Celine’s voice is music to my ears, I turn around, taking my legs over the wood and set them on the other side. She slides her ass onto my lap and wraps her arms around my neck. “I heard you’re the big boss now, should I be worried?”

  “Only if you misbehave”

  “Oh…well that means I’m screwed” She giggles into my neck as I pull her close. This beautiful being right here, she’s the only reason I can sleep at night, the only thing that brings me peace. I bury my face in her deep red locks, smelling the peppermint body wash she uses every morning.

  “What’re you gonna be doing today?”

  “Dealing with Dwayne” I tell her casually, there’s no need for her to worry. Celine knows all about Dwayne, as do all of the women here. We tell them whatever we can in order for them to keep their guard up. After all, we never know when someone could decide to strike. It’s happened before and it’s best that we’re all prepared.

  “How are y’all doin’ that?” I don’t hide anything from Celine, there are things that I should keep from her, but I’ve never been able to.

  “We’re gonna pay him a visit downtown and remind him of a few things”

  “Well, while you all get pumped up to bash Dwayne’s face in, I have to get to work before Sharon decides to actually fire me this time” I nod at her statement and help her get up, chastely giving her a kiss on the lips before she turns back and gives me a wink as she slides onto her bike and peels out of the parking lot.

  I guess its time to rally the troops and prepare for our joyous afternoon.

  Chapter 5

  Reed

  I’ve never been the kind of guy who just sits back and let’s shit hit the fan. It’d be a lie if I said that I didn’t do it a time or two when I was younger, or let my father handle shit so I wouldn’t have to step up to the plate. There is a time and a place to watch from afar, and another to act. Today is a call for action, a day where the law needs to be set into the sand so that everyone knows their place, and their roles.

  Max comes walking straight through my office door, I’m sitting on the couch, scrolling through my phone pondering who I should call first and make aware of our hierarchy change. My first thought goes to Fist, he’s the strongest ally that we have. Yeah, I’m gonna call him when I get a moment.

  “Didn’t you say you were wantin’ to deal with Dwayne today?” Max asks me, catching my attention.

  “I did” I nod.

  “Well, word on the street has it that he’s held up at some boat right on the Cumberland River. If you wanna surprise em, that is” I do, there’s no way in hell that I want Dwayne to know we’re coming. By us showing up it will show him that we’re always watching, that we know where he is at all times. He’ll think twice about trying to make the Skulls his little bitch boy drug runners.

  I stand up, walk through the door of my office down the hall until I’m standing in the main area. Not too many are here, but the few that are will do. “Listen up, we’re takin’ a ride into Nashville and payin’ Dwayne a visit. Pack up, and make sure you’ve got plenty of heat. We don’t know how this is gonna go, but I doubt there won’t be any bloodshed”

  “You want us to come along, Prez?” A young man asks from the back, his arms are crossed over his chest. He’s one of those new prospects. I take a couple steps towards him and see his cut reads ‘Pain’.

  “Yep, you and your brother come along for the ride. We need as many hands as we can get.” I order him, he walks out through the front door of the club to I assume collect his brother. I turn my attention back to Max, “Call Slasher and see if the Nomad’s are around. Need all hands on deck, and tell those lazy fuckers to stay at the club so we’re not defenseless.” Max gives me a slight head nod, and disappears into the back.

  I don’t waste any time. I gather my rounds, make sure my glock is loaded and slide it in the back of my jeans. Before I even hit the front door, I see all of my brothers standing around, ready to follow me. In this moment, I can’t help but take it in. I’m no longer a follower. I’m a leader. The men who stand before me are ready to walk into the unknown, possibly losing their lives doing so, all for me. Honored isn’t even close to how I feel. I’ve seen my father rule as Prez, and even my brother for the brief time that he did, but right now…this is when I truly realize how I was born to lead this club.

  “Slasher’s on the way. He can meet us here in an hour and he’ll send two of the older guys to the club. Couldn’t promise they wouldn’t be drunk when we got back, but at least we’ll have the clubhouse manned” Max tells me, and I nod. Having a presence here is all that I care about. It might be useless if they’re both going to be as drunk as a skunk, but at least they’ll be here. We don’t have many enemies who are local, but given the right opportunity anyone will strike.

  “C’mon, brothers.” I call out to them, busting through the front doors we all reach our bikes, mounting them and riding towards Nashville. Dwayne wouldn’t know what hit him when the lot of us showed up.

  Chapter 6

  Reed

  We swarmed the highway and rode into Nashville in record time. The normal trip was cut in half, and thankfully for us, we didn’t spot one cop on the way in. It worked out better that way. The only thing a cop would have done is put a dent in our time, and ultimately it would have affected us getting to that fuckin’ boat before Dwayne left or not.

  We rode into Nashville, and I had half of us split up. Max was fortunate enough to get the name of the boat Dwayne has been frequenting, The Lucky Guppy. I’m not exactly sure how lucky that guppy is, but hopefully luck reins down on our side today. We split up, half of us taking the north side of the dock, while the other half took the south side. These were the only two entrances and exits, giving us the ultimate advantage.

  I signal my hand up in the air for the boys to follow me, and lead us behind a storage shed where we park our bikes. The last thing I want is for Dwayne or his men to hear us before they see us. After all, what kind of advantage would that really give us?

  I leave Pain at the entrance, standing guard and gave Chaos instructions to do the same on the opposite end. If Dwayne tried to escape, they were both told to make sure he didn’t. I didn’t give a fuck what they did, as long as he is still breathing when I get there.

  We make our way down the dock, observing our surroundings and looking for the boat that reads The Lucky Guppy. Needless to say, when I see it, I’m not shocked in the slightest. There are plenty of vessels in this area, but none of them look as dingey and shitty as this piece of junk. It’s rusting out on almost every surface, some pieces are e
ven gone. Isn’t there some sort of boat police or something that should confiscate this thing off of the water?

  Shaking my head, I turn back and see the guys sticking close behind me. Enzo walks in front of me over to the stairs that lead up onto the boat, and heads up first. At that moment, I see Seamus and the rest of the guys coming up from the opposite direction. Enzo pops his head over, looking down at us and waves his hand up as the all clear.

  I grab onto the metal, warm to the touch and climb up, wondering if it’s going to break. This has to be some sort of old fisherman’s boat, but why something this big is in Nashville and not out in the Atlantic I have no idea. I mean, besides the fact it’s a damn rust bucket.

  I glance around the boat, not seeing a soul in sight, nor do I hear even the slightest whisper. Once Seamus and Kyle board at the stern, I have Enzo stick with me and the other two head down the opposite side where we’ll all meet at the bow. We need to clear the boat, and see just what we’re dealing with. Once the outside perimeter is cleared, I’ll authorize us venturing inside.

  The sun blazes down overhead of us, causing me to sweat profusely. The longer I’m here, the more eerie I’m beginning to feel. I see something move quickly out of my peripheral, and when I glance back I see that it’s just Max.

  “Almost shot your ass” I comment, taking in a quick breath before turning around to see Seamus and Kyle.

  I turn back, opening the door to the boat and enter. It creaks loudly as I push it open, obviously needing good bit of WD40.

  “We in some horror movie shit right now?” Enzo asks, and I can’t help but wonder the same thing.

  We’re in some sort of equivalent to a living area, there’s a bench on one side, a few cabinets for a small kitchenette and a set of stairs that lead above us. Off to the back there is a set of doors. “Kyle, Seamus, go check out upstairs. Max, stay here. Enzo come with me” I walk to the door, placing my hand on the knob and turn it. When it opens before me, a set of stairs going down is revealed to us. I flick on the light switch with my index finger and head down the stairwell, and when I do…I notice the built-in beds attached to the boat before I see her.

  Her neck is pulled back with what looks to be cable, red hair falling behind her. Her eyes aren’t shimmering with light, or any reflection of the woman I know.

  There’s just one thing – nothingness.

  An empty void.

  A shell.

  I can’t make a sound, or speak. I can only stare at the woman I love, tied up like an animal with her neck broken. I think about every single thing I’ve ever said to her…about my last words. What did I even say? Fuck!

  I rush over to her, kneel down against her body and pull my knife free, cutting her from these fucking restraints. I wrap my arms around Celine, holding her close to my body, and as the familiarity of peppermint doesn’t hit my senses…my reality hits me full force.

  Celine is dead.

  My perfect fucking Celine is dead.

  “Holy fuck” Is the last thing I remember, coming from my own brother’s voice. After that, I don’t remember a fuckin’ thing.

  Epilogue

  Kyle

  I’ve never seen Reed like this. Depressed doesn’t quite cut it. Instead, it’s like a piece of him died and to be honest, I don’t know if we’ll ever get it back. It’s been three months since Celine was murdered, and each day since then he’s become more and more driven and focused. I suppose it’s not a bad thing, but not once have I seen him smile. He hasn’t laughed, or cracked a joke.

  He may have lost Celine, but what if we’ve lost Reed?

  I’ve had enough, and I’ll be the dick if I have to be. I fit the part so well. Reed is playing pool with Seamus, and just as Seamus get’s a point, Reed grumbles.

  “Nice to see you up and about today, brother” I comment, iciness laced through my tone. He needs to know somethings up, so he can get back to being the man we all respect. It’s time for grieving time to be over. Dwayne fled the fucking country and Reed hasn’t been able to pinpoint where he is, but there’s no time for sulking, not when we’ve got other shit to be worrying about. I made a shit Prez, but I’d like to think I’m a good brother.

  “Have something to say to me, Kyle?” Reed turns around to face me, eyes as dark as midnight. I wonder when’s the last time that he got some good sleep, and then I remember…probably when he finished that bottle of Jack Daniels two days ago.

  I’m not gonna be preachin’ to him. We’ve all got our own demons. But you don’t get to have demons when you’re the Prez, I fuckin’ knew it and it’s why I decided that the role wasn’t the best for me. If Reed wants to keep doin’ the shit he’s doin’, drinkin’ himself into the ground…by all means, keep doin’ it. Just don’t wear that Prez patch.

  “You’re damn right I do, and you’d best listen to me, brother.” Reed raises an eyebrow at me, doin’ that shit he always did to rile me up when we were kids. I pay it no mind, though. I don’t give a fuck if he doesn’t want to hear it, he’s gonna listen to me. “Celine has been dead for three months, and while we’re all here for you. You need to move on. She’s dead, bro. You can’t do a damn thing to save her now, and all you can do is gain revenge as soon as you’re able to do so. Stop pickin’ up the damn bottle to drown your sorrows and start actin’ like a man –“ I keep moving my lips and don’t even realize it when his fist comes flying straight into my face. I’m knocked back, head spinning as I look back to him.

  “I don’t give a fuck who you are. You never talk about her ever again!” He roars at me, in a voice I’ve never heard come from his lips. Reed glances around, whistling loudly, ordering the attention of every brother in this club. “None of you will ever bring up my Celine again. Do you understand?”

  Mumbled words fill the room as I look to Seamus, who’s expression is filled with just as much concern as mine. I’m not the only one worried, and at this rate…who knows what’s going to happen.

  “I’ll be back tomorrow. Don’t let anything happen while I’m away” Reed growls over to Max before he exits the front door and slams it shut.

  “…Well…that’s new” Seamus mutters to me, and all I can do is nod, hoping that when he comes back tomorrow, he might be a changed man.