I had no idea why it never hit me before, but it hit me right then.
I looked in the mirror and my face was bright red.
For weeks now I had been letting Knox inside me. Unprotected. Bare. Beautiful. Coming. Filling…
I ran out of the bathroom and to the calendar on the fridge. I put a little red x on the date when I’d get my monthly friend. I peeled back to the previous month and let out a gasp.
Not only had I had lots of unprotected sex with Knox and not only had I felt sick… I was late - like really late.
twenty-three
(knox)
NOW
“Anthony and Tony work side by side,” Uncle Jakey said. “Tony has a thing for little tits on strippers and me and Hammer used to set up dates for him. Anthony is a hard-nosed prick who will get a blow job while counting cash and sucking on a fat cigar. They both report up to Vinny. Vinny is straight out of Reno. Bounced back and forth between California and Nevada with a few hideouts in Arizona, Colorado, and even Kansas, if shit got really bad. He set up a little house for his aunt with dementia. She was a nice woman, made a hell of a chocolate chip cookie. Not so much anymore.”
“What’s the point?” I asked.
Yeah, I know, I had gotten my dick sucked before leaving, good for me. But I wanted more than that with Ana. I wanted to surprise her with some flowers and a ride to the coast for something to eat and a night to ourselves. I looked like a damn fool with flowers on the back of my ride and all the guys made sure to break my balls about it.
“The point,” Uncle Jakey said, “is that when we meet Vinny, know who this guy is. He buries people. Literally.”
I reached into my leather cut and pulled out the piece of paper the old man had given me. “And we have this. The locations of a few of the biggest names in the family who went missing on Vinny’s rise to power. This would cause a major shit storm for them. This is our leverage.”
“Shit,” Matteo said. He sipped whiskey. “Shit, brother. This is wild.”
“Won’t they just dig up the bodies and move them?” Slam asked.
“Can’t,” I said. “There’s stuff built over the bodies. That means if we kick the can over… we’re talking major press in town.”
“That’s not good for us, Knoxville,” Uncle Jakey said.
“We won’t kick the can over,” I said. “This is just us showing our stance. That’s all. Reminding those around us that the Reap is alive and well. Which is why I want to do this alone.”
“What?” Uncle Jakey asked.
I put my hand up. “Give me a second here. Fuck. If we all show up, it’s going to cause issues. I want a one on one with this guy.”
“You know who I am?” Uncle Jakey asked.
He was a thick, worn out flannel shirt. His hands were permanently black from working on cars, trucks, and motorcycles for years. His hair was pulled back, grey. His beard to match. His was worn but his eyes were still a blue color.
I stood up, taking another defiant stance. “I’m wearing a Reaper’s Bastards cut. You’re not.”
“I’m acting President,” he said to me.
“You want to do this?”
“You want to find out about the guy that was hitting your old lady.”
I made a fist. I was ready to clock Uncle Jakey in the mouth. The son of a bitch would have taken out his gun and put a bullet in my head without thinking twice if I did that.
“I think Knox is right,” Slam said. “He’s the son of the President in prison. The former President, whatever the fuck Hammer is. You’re a background guy, Uncle Jakey. If Knox rolls up on his motorcycle, in his cut, with his fucking attitude and his blackmail, I think a clear message will be sent.”
“Is this what we all think?” Uncle Jakey asked as he addressed the table.
Man, we were a thin table for a full running MC. Too many empty chairs. Shit, all we needed was a case of cold beer, some room temperature whiskey, and a deck of cards and you’d never know the difference of it being a chapel meeting.
I guess you could have called it Uncle Jakey’s first vote with the gavel. Nobody gave a yay or nay, but everyone nodded in agreement.
“Fine,” Uncle Jakey said. “Ari, you ride with Knox. We always stick with two. That’s standard rule.”
“Fair enough,” I said. I looked to Ari and nodded.
He nodded back. He and I had our beefs in the past but we were tight like brothers. Fuck, what brothers didn’t throw down with some hard fists once in a while. We always joked and called it an Irish hug.
“There’s more,” Uncle Jakey said. He lifted the gavel and looked at it. Then he placed it down. “I’m not hitting this gavel on anything right now. As far as I’m concerned, you guys are nothing but crazed outlaws looking for action. Knox, you get yourself into trouble out there and I won’t back you up. Hear that loud. You’re going to kick up dust for some old pussy, that’s your deal.”
“I can live with that,” I said. “But this goes beyond Ana. Way beyond Ana.”