I glance around the table and notice that all of my brothers have found something interesting to look at, the ceiling and floor are the top two places their eyes have veered to. When Kodiak and I go toe-to-toe everyone scatters if possible. But when they’re confined like they are now, they look everywhere but at us.
My brother and I, we’re passionate and temperamental.
Neither of us like backing down.
We’re both strong-willed and we’ll argue with a brick wall if necessary and will stay at it until the drywall ages and begins to crumble.
“Your request is still denied, Conan,” Kodiak says through a clenched jaw. “Trust your brothers, and give us time to get all of the facts straight and targets located before you go charging in.”
“We know where all of the targets are! We have our facts straight. For fuck’s sake, we got it straight from the horse’smouth! Demi told us everything that happened to her that night at the bar,” I thunder, tired of playing the waiting game. “What exactly are we waiting for?”
I’ve done plenty of research into her attackers.
Joey, David, Liam, and Niles are dead men walking, they just don’t know it yet since they think they have a noose around Demi’s neck, keeping her silent. However, they don’t know that she has the Deviant Knights in her corner.
“Listen,” I begin but am cut off when Kodiak raises his hand in the air and slices it across his neck. Angrily, I slam my fist on the table and turn my head so I don’t piss him off more than I already have.
“Enough, brother,” he berates. “It won’t be long before we make our move, but you know, Conan, you know that we can’t go charging in. We have to ensure that when we take them out there aren’t any witnesses. They’re never alone, and I don’t know about you, brother, but I don’t want their wives and children to see what we have planned for these men.”
“Of course I don’t,” I grind out, then reason, “but they leave their offices at some point and they’ve been traveling. That’s when we need to strike.”
“But they haven’t been together on their road trips, Conan. We need them in a group so we can take them out at the same time. Don’t you think they’d find it suspicious that they’re disappearing one at a time and start guarding themselves?”
“Dammit,” I grumble. “This is why I think we should split up into groups of four and take them out simultaneously.”
“We’re stronger together,” Kodiak presses. “We don’t separate on missions for a reason, brother. Haven’t we learned from past mistakes?”
“That was one time,” I argue.
“One time too many!” Kodiak roars. “We lost not one, buttwobrothers. That’s a lesson I learned and a mistake I will never make again. We stick together. End of motherfucking story.”
“Fine,” I say, huffing out a heated breath. “But, Kodiak, I’ll hand in my patch if things don’t progress.”
“Is that a warning?” Kodiak asks, looking ready to throttle my neck.
“It’s a promise,” I counter. “I will lay Demi’s demons to rest one way or the other. With or without the support of my brothers and club.”
“Understood,” Kodiak spits. “But, brother, do not threaten me. You do it again, and I’ll strip you of your rocker, get me?”
“If you feel froggy, brother.” I don’t like being threatened. I joined my brother on the road because he was the only family I had left. Now, however, there’s somebody else in my life who’s more important than he is. Demi will now and forevermore come first. She far surpasses his ranking in my life. In her, I’ve found the peace I’ve been longing for my whole life. Simply put, she’s my home.
If I have to drop my patch and disown the club I helped found, then I will without any quarrels. I’ll always love my brother and be there for him if he needs me, but he needs to understand the placement he now holds, and that is at the bottom along with the club. They are my brothers and I’d take a bullet for each andevery one of them, but for her, for my demoness, I’d slay every dragon and put them before her as her shield if she were under attack.
“We’ll meet up this time next week and formulate a plan. One more week, brother. Give me that time and we’ll go after these dipshits,” Kodiak vows.
“One week, brother, and not a day longer,” I spit out.
“That’s church,” Kodiak announces, his eyes staying leveled on me as he bangs the gavel on the table.
“I’d die for you,” Kodiak tells me as he slips in beside me, close enough that our knees touch, at the booth I’ve commandeered in the back corner of the main room. It’s my usual place, it’s where I sit so I can watch over the happenings of the clubhouse.
“Same,” I announce, taking a sip of the beer that’s been clutched in my hand since the end of that disastrous church session. It’s warm to the touch now, since I’ve been stuck in my head since walking up to the bar and grabbing a bottle.
“I don’t like fighting with you,” he continues, sipping on his own beer. “I also won’t be disrespected in front of our brothers. You and I, we’re supposed to be on the same page with things. From now on, I’d prefer it if you and I aired our grievances in private.”
“Then I’d suggest you start telling me shit like you did in private, Kodiak.”
“I can agree to that,” he mumbles. “If the shoes were on the other foot, I’d want that same respect from you too.”
