day,” said Chopper. “Get some fresh air into your lungs.”
“Who are you now? Dr. Oz?” asked Hoss.
“Very funny. You won’t be laughing when your accounts get hacked because you’re not playing it safe on the internet.”
Hoss ignored him.
“Your stubbornness is your worst enemy,” said Chopper.
“No, his dick is,” said Raptor. “And he’s thinking with it.”
“I’m not going to let her swindle me,” said Hoss, looking up. “So just chill out.”
“Whatever you do, don’t send her any money,” warned Raptor, walking away with Chopper. “You’ll never see it again.”
“Don’t worry. I won’t,” said Hoss, pulling the cigarette out of his pocket again. This time, he took out his lighter too.
“Don’t do it,” I said, nodding toward the cigarette.
“Fuck,” he growled, shoving them back into his pockets.
“I’d better go and fix the disposal. Don’t forget, the meeting is at two,” I told him.
“I know. How did you hear about it,” he asked, typing again.
“Tank asked me to be there.”
Hoss looked up. “ You ? Why?”
I shrugged. “I don’t know.”
He looked perplexed. “You’re just a Prospect.”
“I know.”
He sat back in his chair. “You’ve only been here two months.”
“Yeah. Maybe he’s allowing Prospects into the meetings now.”
As if on cue, one of the other Prospects, Dover, walked into the clubhouse, carrying two buckets of paint.
“Tank invite you to the meeting, Dover?” Hoss asked him.
“What meeting?” replied Dover.
“Forget about it,” mumbled Hoss. He didn’t say another word and went back to his typing.
“What meeting?” repeated Dover, this time looking at me.
“Don’t worry about it,” I said, leaving the room. I went into the small kitchen in the clubhouse and began to fix the garbage disposal.
You’re just a Prospect…
Obviously, Hoss had forgotten that they’d all been one of those at one time or another. Yeah, I was a Prospect and damn good at it, too. Hell, I’d pretty much hit the ground running when Tank announced he was sponsoring me, wanting to not only make up for the shit that had happened, but also prove how committed I was to club. The grunt work, midnight errands, and wild goose chases were bad enough, but now they had me scrubbing toilets, mowing lawns, and feeding killer dogs. And hell, I did everything without batting an eye, but there were times that I wondered if they’d ever patch me.
Hoss.
I respected the guy but it was obvious that he was having a hard time accepting the turn of events. Sometimes I’d see him watching me silently, his eyes stormy and his jaw tight. He and Slammer had been best friends, from what I’d learned. Closer than any other brothers in the club. A loss like that would be felt for the rest of your days. And then there was Tank. Although he was sponsoring me as a new Prospect for the Gold Vipers, and was about to marry my sister, there was still an awkward tension between us. The reason was obvious… I’d driven his father’s killer, my sister, Raina, to-and-from the crime scene. He’d found it in his heart to forgive her for killing his old man, because she’d believed he’d been the one responsible for ordering the drive-by that had almost killed her two-year old son. Pulling the trigger on Slammer had been a crime of passion. She’d been a grieving mother, her heart and spirit broken. A woman completely undone. Although his pain had been deep, Tank had found a way to forgive her. Me, on the other hand, he owed me nothing. I’d had every chance to turn the van around and stop Slammer’s death. The truth was, deep down I didn’t think she was going to do it, but she’d surprised the hell out of me. Thinking back now, it almost made me a bigger asshole. Slammer could have wrestled the gun away from Raina, leaving Billy motherless. She was my sister. I should have never let her face him alone.
Shouldn’t have.
Could have.
Didn’t.
I’d heard