Page 22

Fury

Diamond Creek, Nebraska,

Pulling up to the gate, I rolled down my window, hearing the hinges groan as a prospect emerged from the guard shack. His footsteps crunched on the gravel as he approached. Seeing the word Prospect over the name Archie on his cut, I leaned against the door and said, “Prospect. Go get Matlock”

“He’s in church.”

“Then call him.”

The young kid blinked several times, then gulped and slowly shook his head. “Can’t do that. He will kill me.”

I smirked at that.

Nice to know my former friend still hadn’t lost his touch.

“So will I if you don’t make that call.” I issued a warning while simultaneously opening my coat to show him the gun tucked into my waistband, leaving no doubt about the seriousness of my intentions. Fear choked the kid, making him gulp before he could even begin to walk back to the looming guard shack. Watching the kid fumble with his phone, I leaned back against the worn leather headrest and sighed, the scent of old upholstery filling my nostrils. Yeah, I felt awful about scaring the kid, but the constant feeling of being watched ever since we left Chicago was unnerving.

I didn’t want to upset Carly, so I kept it to myself. I had no intention of visiting any motorcycle clubs, knowing that such a visit would inevitably get back to Montana. However, given that I was positive we were being followed, I had no other option.

I would not risk Carly or the kids.

The problem was, picking a club that would keep their mouths shut.

I wasn’t stupid. I fucking knew Montana had brothers out looking for me. I knew he put the word out to all our allies to keep an eye out. I just prayed that Montana overlooked the smaller chapters. Then again, showing up out of the blue without an invitation or prior warning was cause for concern. I was hoping against hope that my former friend could convince his president that I wasn’t someone to be feared or viewed as a threat.

Archie stuck his head out of the guard shack and asked, “Name?”

“Fury.”

The prospect frowned but relayed my name.

Of course, I should have known the second he did that the warm welcome I hoped for would vanish, because in the next instant, the kid slammed the guard shack door shut and literally ducked low to the ground, believing the guard shack would protect him.

Rolling my eyes, I stayed put as I watched the front doors of the clubhouse open and out walked the Silver Shadows MC.

I watched in disbelief as my former friend leisurely walked toward me, taking his time, each step seeming to take an eternity. Despite the passage of time, the fucker remained unchanged, and when he casually leaned against my SUV to inspect it, I couldn’t resist making a snide comment. “What? No hello for a friend?”

The big fucker shrugged his shoulders and frowned. “Are we still friends?”

Rolling my eyes, I groaned. “I wasn’t the one who up and fucking left without a word, Tony.”

“But you didn’t look for me either.” The big fucker pouted.

“Didn’t know I needed to.”

“What are you doing here, Chris?”

“Need a place for the night.”

“This have anything to do with what’s going on back home?”

“You know it does.”

My friend looked over at Carly and asked, “And her?”

“She’s Golden.”

“Shit,” Tony cursed, shaking his head. “King is going to fucking lose his shit. You know something, I left the city because I couldn’t deal with all the politics, and now you bring this shit to my doorstep.”

“What can I say? I like sharing.”

Tony narrowed his eyes and growled. “Fuck you, Chris.”

“Can I come in or not?”

“Yeah, pull up to the clubhouse. I’ll make the introductions.”

Doing as he said, I drove the SUV deeper into Silver Shadows’ territory and prayed I hadn’t just made a big fucking mistake.

Parking the vehicle, I turned to Carly as she scanned the area.

“Are you sure about them?”

“No,” I admitted. “Until we make it to California, I’m not sure about anything or anyone.”

“I thought we were going to Tennessee?”

“That would be the first place everyone looked. We are safer in California. Besides, I’m hoping that Vicious is already there. In the meantime, watch what you say, and don’t give them any information you don’t want getting back to Montana.”

“So, shut up and let you do all the talking?” She smirked.

“Basically, yes,” I replied, turning off the engine, then unbuckling my seat belt.

Stepping out of the vehicle, I didn’t even make it a step when the president of the club, Kingston O’Rourke, also known as King, spoke.

“You gonna bring heat down on my club?”

“That’s not my intention.”

“Never is,” King growled, shaking his head. “How many of you?”

“Two adults and four kids.”

King nodded, then snapped his fingers as a woman rushed over.

“Amber, help the woman get the kids inside. Movie night.”

“Sure thing, King.”

“You two, come with me,” King ordered firmly.

With no choice, I followed.

“You’ve got the entire underworld looking for you, Fury,” King stated as he took his seat at the head of the table. Kingston O’Rourke started this chapter of the Silver Shadows roughly five or six years ago, taking with him a select group of men who wanted more than the life of a 1% club. Unlike their Mother Chapter in Arkansas, the Diamond Creek Chapter was legit. An honest-to-God motorcycle club that straddled the line occasionally. It also helped that Kingston O’Rourke’s big brother, Declan O’Rourke, was the town sheriff. Overall, the Diamond Creek Silver Shadows MC was a decent group of men who wanted something better in life. That was something I could get behind. “If I had half a fucking brain, I would turn you over to Montana and wash my hands of you.”

Sitting up, I glanced at Carly, who stiffened and was about to interject when King held up his hand. “But since I don’t take orders from your prez, you both are safe here. Just tell me one thing. Is what’s happening in New York gonna spill over into my territory?”

Sighing, I rubbed my hands down my face and spoke truthfully. “It might. It’s a clusterfuck back home. No other way to describe it. We just need a place to lie low for a day or two. I noticed a tail the moment we left Chicago.”

“What?” Carly gasped as my hand tightened around hers, reminding her to stay quiet.

“Any idea who?” the vice president of the club, Cash asked.

Shaking my head, I answered truthfully, “Fuck no. Could be one of my brothers, the Irish Mafia, anyone. I didn’t leave on the best of terms, if you catch my drift.”

“The Irish Mafia,” King growled, stiffening in his chair. “What the hell do they want with you?”

“I just recently learned that I’m the grandson of Casper O’Malley.”

Carly’s head whipped to mine.

Yeah, I forgot to tell her that.

“WHAT THE FUCK!” a brother roared, jumping to his feet. “You’ve got to be fucking kidding me! Is there a fucking family reunion I wasn’t aware of?”

“Blade, shut the fuck up and sit down,” King commanded, before turning to another brother and saying, “Ryder, tell Billy to go get Beck and bring her over here. Until we know who is following him, I want her inside the gates. Then get Ellie and the girls, too. Everyone stays here tonight.”

“Are you serious, King?” Blade sneered. “This isn’t a fucking coincidence, and you fucking know it.”

Looking between the two, I asked, “What’s going on?”

King took a deep breath and said, “I just learned today that Braesal O’Malley is my brother.”

“And my fucking old lady is O’Malley’s niece.”

Shaking my head, I laughed. I just couldn’t anymore. This shit was too much. No one was who they thought they were, and everyone was fucking connected. As confusing as it was, it fucking made sense, because no one knew jack shit about anything.

“You think this shit is funny!” Blade shouted. “That motherfucker killed my parents.”

Shaking my head, I took a deep breath and said, “No, this shit isn’t funny, but you have to admit, everyone’s family seems to be coming out of the woodwork fast.”

“I don’t have to admit shit,” Blade snipped, sitting back down. “It’s not my fucking family.”

“What do you mean, everyone’s family?” King asked, sitting up straighter.

Leaning back in my chair, I simply said, “It’s all connected, according to my woman. The clubs, the table, the underworld. It’s like one big fucked-up dysfunctional family, and this shit just proves it. You should also know that Carly is the daughter of Shane Keller and Angela Goldman.”

King closed his eyes and groaned, as did a few of the older brothers.

“Holy shit,” one of the club enforcers, Ghost, muttered, looking directly at her. “You’re Sandman’s sister?”

She nodded and added, “And Savage’s sister, who is currently the President of the Tennessee Chapter. So, I don’t need to tell you how important it is that no one knows where we are.”

“Does Reaper know?” King asked as his phone pinged with a text message.

Shaking my head, I spoke up. “Don’t think so, but it’s only a matter of time. We ran into a bit of trouble in Chicago with the Valentinetti’s, but they’ve assured me that our secret is safe with them.”

Reaching for his phone, King looked at it, then placed it on the table. “I’m sorry, Fury, but you know I have to call him. The Golden Skulls are one fucking club I won’t go up against.”

“You call him before I can explain everything, and you might as well sign my death warrant. Reaper knows Montana fucked up. The tree lighting ceremony was proof of that. Information is fluid right now. Montana’s back is against the wall. The Soulless Sinners are splintering. You call Reaper and tell him I’m in possession of a Golden Princess, and he won’t think twice before declaring war against your club.”

King leaned back in his chair and said nothing as he pinned me with an intense and appraising stare. I didn’t know what he was thinking, and I didn’t care, as long as he gave me and Carly sanctuary for the night. If he wanted no part of the coming war, I completely understood and would be gone by morning.

“You still wearing the brand?”

My head snapped to his, then I slowly looked around the table. None of the Silver Shadows moved. I fucking knew why King asked. I may have dropped my cut and used my marker, but the brand on my fucking back meant I was still a fucking blood brother in the Soulless Sinners. As an officer of the Mother Chapter, even I knew the only way out for me was death.

Rules were rules.

Narrowing my eyes, I looked at King and snarled, “You do this, and he will order you to kill me. He’s still the head of the Biker Federation, and you know it.”

King smirked, leaned forward, crossed his hands on the table, then tapped his phone’s screen, making a call. “Let’s test that theory.”

Shit.

Seconds later, I clearly heard Mercy say, “Not a good time, King, unless you’re calling to affirm your allegiance to Montana.”

“No,” the gruff man stated. “Staring at a Sinner, Mercy.”

“Shit,” Mercy whispered, then we all heard muffled words as a door slammed before my VP said, “Grant him sanctuary, King, and I will owe you a marker.”

“And why would I do that?” King asked as he smirked, his eyebrow raised.

“Because as of an hour ago, the table voted Montana out. Reaper is now the head of the Biker Federation,” Mercy clipped angrily before adding, “Montana is losing his shit. Fucker has declared war on any club who sides with the Golden Skulls. It’s fucking bad here. The club is fragmenting. Montana’s doing everything he can to keep what’s left together.”

“And the Sinner before me? What’s Montana’s plans for him?”

Mercy groaned. “Montana ordered the Blood of a Sinner for all three of them. As soon as they are captured and returned to the city, Montana won’t waste time punishing them.”

“Three?”

“Fury, Vicious, and Storm.”

“I see,” King said, taking a deep breath and leaning back in his chair. “And his old lady?”

“Old lady? What old lady?”

King looked at me questioning.

Shaking my head, King hit the mute button, glaring at me as I quickly admitted, “They don’t know she’s with me. That’s why we need to get to California before Reaper finds out she’s with me.”

Holding up his hand, King silenced me before unmuting the call.

“What old lady, King?”

“Sanctuary granted,” King replied, ignoring Mercy’s question before hanging up the phone. Leaning back in his chair, he added, “You can stay the night, Fury, but when you leave, Carly will stay here because, like I said, I won’t go up against Reaper. Unless you want to change the narrative.”

Fuck.

I knew what King was talking about, and there was no fucking way Carly would ever agree to that. Hell, we barely knew each other. We were veritable strangers walking along the same path. Granted, that path was leading us in the same direction, but that didn’t mean shit in the long term. She had her own life. I had my girls.

“Wait a damn minute!” Carly spoke up. “Why can’t I leave with Christian?”

“You are biker royalty, Carly,” Cash, the VP of the club, cautiously informed. “If you were any other woman, we would let you leave with Fury, but because of who you are, we can’t. I don’t know how much you know about the biker world, but there are rules.”

“I don’t care about the rules. I have nothing to do with the clubs. I wasn’t even raised in them. Christian, tell them.”

“It doesn’t matter, Carly,” I solemnly stated, shaking my head as Carly removed her hand from mine then stared at me, waiting for me to explain.

Sighing, I looked at her and said, “Because of your father, you are considered off-limits. Persona non grata. Untouchable. If it were just your dad, King could let it slide, but you have two active half-brothers. One who is the President of the Tennessee Chapter, and the other... well, your other brother is just plain fucking scary. No one wants to go up against Sandman.”

“I don’t understand.”

“Carly,” Gunner, the Sergeant at Arms for the club began. “There are rules in the biker world, and because of who you are, we don’t have a choice unless...”

“Unless what?”

“Don’t,” I growled.

“Unless Fury marries you,” King clearly said.