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CHAPTER NINE

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Hawk

He didn’t want to believe what he was seeing but it played out on the screen in front of him. The person he had thought was one of the most loyal to him and his club was not. Her betrayal bit deep as more and more facts and photos emerged tying her to an unknown man and to the Evil Disciples MC and their VP, Big Ed Morrison. She was the rat, it wasn’t one of his brothers.

“I fucking can’t believe what she’s done.” Kid bit out through clenched teeth. “The stupid bitch knows better. But she’s always been so damned greedy. Greedy for attention, greedy for your property patch, greedy for the power it would give her. I’m sure she believes this will give her power over the club, power over you.”

“What are we going to do about this?” Ice asked in a voice as cold as his name.

“Nothing. Not a fucking thing.” Hawk snarled as he watched the video of his definitely former lover being taken up the ass by Big Ed in a deserted supermarket parking lot.

He needed to get himself checked out and hope like fuck she hasn’t passed on some fucking disease.

“We let this play out. She has a man on her 24/7 and we make sure her access to information is cut off. I’ll lay it out for the brothers at church. We need to know how much she knows and how much she’s given our enemies. We need to know which brothers talked about our business while she was fucking them. I know it’s not me. I don’t discuss club business with the bitches, not while I’m fucking them, not fucking ever.”

“I’m so fucking sorry, Hawk. I had no idea she was doing this shit.”

“Not your fault, Kid. Yes, she’s your family but you’re not responsible for her actions, that’s all on her. You’ve been putting up with her shit for fucking years. This shit is because she knows I’m never going to make her my old lady and that pissed her off. If she thinks Big Ed is going to give her his patch after she betrayed our club she’s totally fucking deluded. She’s forgotten that loyalty to your club is everything. It’s the code we live by. The ED’s maybe our enemies but they live by the same damn code. And that little bastard has an old lady anyway. All Jane will ever be is easy pussy, a club whore.”

His road name might be Big Ed but the man was skinny as a rake and below average height. Despite being skinny and small he was a very dangerous man. His temper was legendary.

“Once they are done with her they will get rid of her. She’s disposable.” Ice stated the very obvious.

“She’s so far up her own ass she’s forgotten exactly who and what she really is. And that’s my fault.” Hawk growled. “I should never have started it up with her and I should never have moved the three of them into that fucking house. I told her she was never going to be my old lady. She obviously didn’t believe me and this is her fucked up plan to get my attention and payback. I have no idea how she thought this fucked up shit would get her my patch. Those bitches are out of the house by next Friday. I’m done.”

Slamming his laptop closed Hawk leant back in his chair and looked at his two best friends. The three of them had been through a lot of shit over the years. They would get through this as well.

They had been there for him when he lost his parents. Stood by him when he and Candy lost their baby. And again when Candy blamed him for their loss and left him. He still didn’t get how he had been responsible for her losing the baby. She never told him, just said he should know because it was his fault. It’s been fucking years and he still didn’t know. It was ancient history and he had thought best forgotten but now he wasn’t so sure. Maybe he needed to have a talk with Candy. Clear all that shit up.

Ice gave a sigh of relief. “About time you kicked those bitches out.”

Hawk just shrugged, he had enjoyed the women but now he was done with that shit.

Kid shook his head angrily. “My mum and dad spoiled her rotten. Anything she wanted she got. I think she never grew up, never learned that some things were just not to be. Why the fuck can’t she see how fucked up this is? She’s not only betraying the club but she’s betraying our family, betraying my mum and dad and betraying me.” Kid looked over at Hawk with a sudden frown. “Do you remember the fight she had with our dads about a week before she turned sixteen? She wanted to start prospecting when she turned seventeen and they laughed at her, told her to find herself an old man because no bitch would ever become a prospect. She started screaming abuse at them and my mum had to step in and drag her out of the room. That’s when she changed and became a club slut.” Kid shook his head angrily. “I overheard my parents talking about it, how she had thrown her life away, how she could have had her pick of the available brothers and she chose to be a club whore. I don’t think my mother has forgiven her.” Kid again shook his head. “For the longest time now I’ve had to live with the fact that my sister, my flesh and blood, totally disgusts me. And now I hate her for what she has done to my family, to my club.”

“I’m so fucking sorry, Kid. I should never have touched her.” Hawk gritted out.

“Her choices aren’t on you, Hawk. She became a club whore years before you hooked up with her.” Kid shrugged.

Ice reached over and slapped a hand over Kid’s shoulder. “None of this is a reflection on you or your folks either, Kid. This is all on her. Everyone knows how much I despise that bitch. And none of you ever had any idea why. That changes right now.”

Hawk and Kid watched as Ice paced angrily.

“She tried it on with me, several times. This was before Hawk started it up with her. Wanted me to fuck her and I said no. The bitch didn’t like that. She cornered Emmie and told her I had been fucking her for years and wouldn’t leave her alone. She was so fucking convincing, tears and everything, that my girl believed her. Emmie dumped me in front of the club and that fucking slut laughed. Her fucking lies cost me my woman. I’ve been waiting years to get my shot at taking her down, now I have it and believe me Kid, I’m going to make your sister pay for what she did to me and Emmie.”

“Why the fuck didn’t you say anything?” Hawk growled.

Ice shrugged. “You always stood up for her, believed her shit, so I knew if I told you there was a possibility it could fuck up our friendship. So I stayed silent and waited. I knew sooner or later you would get tired of her or she would fuck up and show her true colours. And I was so fucked up with losing Emmie that I trusted nobody, not even you.”

“That’s bullshit, Ice. No way would I have put pussy ahead of family.” Hawk was stunned. How the fuck could his cousin believe that shit?

Ice just looked at Hawk then sighed and shrugged. “Like I said, I was fucked up.”

“When this is over I’ll go see Emmie and explain all this shit to her.” Kid’s eyes were filled with regret.

“No.” Ice shook his head. “It’s too late. She’s got a man and she’s happy. I’m not going to fuck with that.”

Hawk saw the pain in his cousin’s eyes and knew that he could not let it go. He would make sure once their troubles were behind them that Emmie learned the truth. Make her realise how she had fucked up. Because that was what she had done. She had fucked up. How could she have ever believed that Ice would cheat on her? They had known each other virtually all their lives, she had been his since she turned eighteen and Ice had supported her while she went away to university to get her degree. He had been on the verge of giving her his patch when she ran off. Yes, he was definitely going to open her fucking eyes for her.

“Let’s put this shit to the side for now and talk about the little bird challenging Jane to a grudge match at Underground.” Ice’s smile didn’t reach his eyes.

Hawk knew Ice wanted the attention off him and let it go.

“I’ve had Ziggy looking into her and he found almost nothing. Most of it we already know. She’s a tattoo artist, works at Mainline Ink II, owns her home outright, has three fully paid for vehicles registered in her name, and pays her taxes on time, no debts at all. A couple of investments and substantial savings. It’s like she said, she lives clean and as far as she can, off the grid.” Kid shrugged. “I’ll get him to look into Underground, make some enquiries and see what we find.”

“I want everything he can find on her. Don’t care how insignificant it looks, follow it up. I don’t think she’s as harmless as she looks. Speak to Sin, he told me he saw her fight in Cape Town years ago. If she fought back then she most probably still does.” Hawk turned to Ice. “Go over everything we know about Doc Michaels and the mothers of his children, and I want a complete report on Skelly Stoddard. If he’s the one Doc has chosen as his heir we need to know more about him.”

“We’re on it.” Ice said as he and Kid left the office.

Hawk sank back into his chair and closed his eyes tiredly. What a fucking cluster fuck. Not only did he have a traitor but he had let two of his brothers down when they had needed him the most. His dad had been right when he had said that his indiscriminate fucking would get him into trouble someday.

Minutes later his door opened after a soft knock and he watched with narrowed eyes as the three bitches walked seductively towards him. Not even two weeks ago he would have been all over that. Now they needn’t have bothered. He was done with all of them.

“We’ve come to make you feel better.” Lizzy smiled sexily and was about to come to him when he silently held up a hand and the three of them stopped and leant against the front of his desk.

He didn’t make them wait or mince his words.

“I’m done. I want you out of the house by next Friday.”

Lizzy’s mouth dropped open in shock but when Jane started grinning as if she wasn’t included in that order he swiftly disabused her of that thought.

“All of you. I had an agreement with each of you when we started and I will honour it. Spider will transfer the money into your accounts tonight. We had a good time but it’s over, I’m done.”

“You have got to be shitting me.” Laney gasped.

“Are you sure this is what you want? We don’t mind sharing if you want to bring someone else into the house, Hawk.” Lizzy offered softly, tears in her eyes.

“It’s that fucking bitch, isn’t it?” Jane growled angrily.

“Shut the fuck up, Jane.” Hawk snarled, done with their shit. “There is no one else and all of you knew exactly what this was. Like I said, I’m done and moving on. Sort your shit and move out of the house. You need any help with that speak to Sin and he will take care of it.”

They stood frozen, staring at him, Laney and Lizzy looking shocked and Jane totally pissed off. Then Laney and a silently crying Lizzy moved, fast, and left the office. Jane, typical Jane, stood across from him and tried to stare him down.

“Get the fuck out of my office, Jane.”

“You’re going to regret this, Hawk. I promise you. You’re going to fucking regret this. I would have been the best fucking old lady you could have ever wished for.”

“Bitch, listen to me and take this in because this is the last fucking time I will lay it out for you. You will never be my old lady. I will never give a bitch who has fucked almost every one of my  brothers and fuck knows how many other men my patch.”

Hawk stared coldly at her until she dropped her eyes, turned and stormed out.

With a sigh he opened his laptop and went back to the information the little bird had given them. It fucking sucked. Picking up his phone he sent out a club wide message. ‘Church, Monday, 9am. Attendance mandatory, no excuses.’

Sitting back in his chair he growled in frustration, he had so much pent up anger churning in his gut that he needed to somehow release. Before he laid his damned eyes on the little bird he would have found a bitch and fucked it out of his system but that was no longer an option. That left fighting. Maybe he should give Ice or Kid the chance to get into the ring with him, beat the shit out of each other and get some clarity. With an evil grin Hawk pushed up out of his chair and went looking for his friends.

Stripped down to his jeans Hawk bounced on the balls of his feet as he watched Ice climb through the ropes with a tight grin. His cousin never pulled his punches so it was going to be a bloody but damned good fight. Boots was acting as referee and gave them the usual spiel, no biting and all that shit. The fight would continue until one of them was knocked on his ass and stayed down or until Boots called the fight.

There were no preliminaries they just got right into it. The punches flew fast and blood started flowing. After what felt like hours of standing toe to toe beating the shit out of each other Hawk realised he would have to do something or he was going to go down. That last punch of Ice’s had nearly put him on the canvas. Ice was like a damned machine and his fists like rocks. But Hawk knew his cousin, knew his one weak point.

Dancing away and swiping the blood running down his face from cuts to his eyebrow and mouth Hawk feinted to the right then let go with an enormous left hook that took Ice right on the chin. He was about to follow it up with a right when Ice swayed and went down on his ass. His eyes dazed and blinking up at Hawk.

Then Boots was there, stopping the fight. Hawk stumbled over and sat down next to his cousin and flung his arm around his heaving shoulders.

“Fuck, cuz, we need to do this more often.” Hawk laughed with a tiny wince as his split lip protested.

“Not going to be your fucking punching bag asshole.” Ice growled with a bloody grin.

Not long after they were sitting drinking cold beer with ice packs on their faces and ribs while watching Kid and Sin beating the shit out of each other. Lifting his arm Hawk held his battered fist out to Ice and they bumped fists with wide slightly pained smiles.

“Brothers until the end.” Ice growled.

“Brothers until the end.” Hawk agreed.

Hawk sat at the head of the heavily scarred table and waited for the chapel doors to be closed and locked. He waited while his men settled in their seats around the table and on the chairs against the walls. His officers sat at the table, Ice as his VP on his right and Kid his SAA on his left with Sin, Beast, Jagger, Kahn, Spider and Ziggy filling the other seats.

His uncle, their Chaplain, was at the meeting as well. Gabriel “Bulldog” Walker sat at the end of the table, his face expressionless but his eyes were never still. He had been the club VP when Bounty sat in the President’s chair and had stepped down after his death to allow Ice to take his place next to Hawk. But before he became the VP he had been the club’s Enforcer for many years. He was a very dangerous man to piss off. And he was pissed off. Very pissed off.

Looking at his men around the table and in the chairs he knew the shit he was about to reveal could cause a rift in his club if he didn’t handle it with care.

After a long discussion with Bulldog, Ice and Kid they had decided not to reveal the evidence against Jane at the start of the meeting. They needed to know who she had fucked for the information she had passed on to Big Ed. And why the fuck club business had been discussed with the bitch. This shit was undermining everything he had worked for since he took over from his dad. And it made him look fucking weak, like his club was out of his control. Fury boiled viciously in his gut and in his veins and he breathed in deep to gain control as he smacked the gleaming hammer down on the thick square of steel.

The sound of steel connecting with steel had all eyes on him and silence settling in the room.

He felt the heat of his anger burning through his eyes as he looked around the room. Taking a deep breath he started laying it out.

“After the break-in at the shipping yard all of you have to be aware that we have a problem, a problem that needs to be discussed and remedied, fucking fast. We were made to look weak and incompetent. I was made to look like an asshole with no control over my men and my club. And because of that fucking break-in there is a good chance that we will lose our business with Dom Maingarde. He went into business with us because we deliver, no matter what, we fucking deliver. We can no longer make that fucking claim. A meeting has been set to discuss the loss of his property. Losing his business won’t cripple us but we’ll feel it in our pockets. Our reputation took a heavy hit because of this shit. But that’s not the worst.” Hawk looked around the room before he continued.

“We were betrayed by one of our own. Someone we trusted and allowed to get close.”

There were hisses and rustles as his men looked around as if sizing each other up to find the traitor. He didn’t allow that shit to spread.

“One of the club whores has been gathering information and selling it to our enemies. We have solid evidence that she betrayed the club.”

Rumbles, growls and pissed off mutters erupted and Hawk slapped his hand down on the table with a loud crack.

“What I fucking need to know is how many of you she fucked to give her the information she sold to our enemies. In this room every single one of us took a vow of fucking silence, that what we discuss in here stays in here. On pain of death.”

They all started to speak at once, all denying and pointing fingers and Hawk once again slapped his hand down on the table.

“Shut-the-fuck-up! You will keep your fucking mouths shut until I tell you to speak. Listen fucking carefully to what I’m saying. And all of you need to get that this will fucking never happen again, not as long as I’m fucking alive. Only for today I’m waiving the usual punishment for talking about club business outside of this room.” Looking around the room he saw the shock on the faces of his men.

Beast immediately leant forward and slammed a fist onto the table. “No fucking way. You talk about club business to anyone but your brothers and I shut you up, permanently.”

Hawk knew he now had their undivided attention. It was time to drop the fucking bomb.

“Not this time, Beast. Stay calm and listen. Those of you who have fucked Jane raise your hands.”

Shock rippled through the men as their heads swung towards Kid. On several faces there were sudden horror and knowledge. And then hands started going up. Beast’s hand one of those in the air.

Boots was the first out of his chair against the wall, his hand still in the air. Horror and betrayal written clearly on his face.

“Fuck, Prez. It’s me. We drank together and fucked. The fucking bitch spun me a story about how you valued her input, and she knew shit she shouldn’t have. I fucking believed her. I didn’t think it through. Should have known you would never discuss club business with a bitch. I should have come to you.”

Hawk just nodded and gestured for him to sit down. “Anyone else?”

Spider groaned. “Fucking hell. She tried with me, Prez. Brought me a drink that made me feel strange and I didn’t finish it. She wanted to know about our finances. I pretended to pass out because the bitch was fucking insistent about wanting to suck my cock. That happened Friday night. I should have come to you, but you had so much going on I thought I would mention it at church today.”

Spook snarled angrily. “She got to me as well, Boss. I got drunk and strangely chatty and fucked her and I remember her asking about the containers in the yard. I’m not sure, but I might have given it to her. I passed out and didn’t remember that shit until right now. She kept asking about guard rotations. I have never talked about shit before or since. Something isn’t right about this shit.”

“What did she want from you, Beast?” Hawk turned to Beast.

“Fuck, I don’t remember. I fucked her about a year ago, maybe she did pump me for information, I don’t know. What the fuck is going on, Prez? She’s family. Why would she do this?” Beast glanced at Kid who looked about ready to explode.

Bulldog spoke for the first time. “What you should all have realised by now is that she drugged you to get the information. Then she fucked you because it gave her a thrill to know she had a hold over you. Get over it. It’s done, move on. Moan over it in your own time, we have bigger problems facing us right now.”

Hawk angrily smacked his fist down on the table. “This fuck up is partly my fault because I put her in our club, gave her the opening she needed.”

The men erupted out of their chairs all of them talking at the same time. “Not your fucking fault, Prez!” “Bitch is fucking crazy, Boss!” “Bullshit, Prez!”

Grateful for their support he waved them back into their places and turned to Kahn.

“In the minutes for today’s meeting I want you to add the following. Anyone, from the president down to the lowliest member of this club, who talks about our business to an outsider will be put in the ground with extreme prejudice. I have been lax in enforcing some of the harsher laws when I took over from Bounty. I thought that I could bring the club forward to an easier time, minimise the bloodshed and maximise our earnings, but it seems that I have been wrong. Therefore the easy times are done. As of today the blood law is back and will be enforced by me and my chosen enforcer. Anyone who is affiliated with this club, be they a brother, an old lady, a hang around or club pussy, will be subject to blood law.”

Seeing the confusion on some of the younger brothers’ faces he went on to explain.

“For those of you who don’t know, blood law means that blood will be taken for any transgressions against the club. The severity of the transgression will dictate the severity of the punishment. It might be as easy as a few cuts with a knife, a beat down or as severe as death.”

With that Hawk was done and wanted to move on so he did.

“I have taken steps to clean up my own shit. The bitches have been given until Friday to get out of the house. They no longer have my protection but will still have club protection. While we’re working on cleaning this shit up it will be business as usual until I tell you different. We can’t let on that we know Jane sold us out. You are going to zip your fucking lips. You are going to treat her exactly the same. You want to fuck her, go ahead, and just know that today, at this table, everything changed. You run your mouth while fucking her you will be facing blood law. No excuses, no second chances. Be careful who you accept drinks from.”

There were nods all around and Hawk was ready to bring the meeting to a close.

“Anything else you fuckers want to discuss?”

“What about the grudge match at Underground? Do you really fucking expect us to support the traitorous bitch?” Sin, his Road Captain snarled angrily.

“I fucking hate it as well, Sin, but we can’t let her know we’re on to her. So, yeah, we will be supporting her as a club. All of you will attend and there will be no exceptions.” Hawk was about to bring the hammer down when one of the new patches, Riker, stepped up.

“Sorry Prez, but I can’t be there. There’s no cell phone reception down there and my girl is pregnant with my baby and there’s been some complications. I can’t leave her alone right now. ”

“Why don’t we know that you have a girl, and a pregnant one at that?” Ice growled.

Riker frowned at Ice but his eyes immediately returned to Hawk, silently begging. “She’s not my old lady but she is carrying my son. She has been mine since high school. She’s good people but wants nothing to do with the club after a run in with fucking Jane while I was prospecting. So I gave her that. I’m not going to abandon her or my child just because she has issues with the club. There’s no one else, we don’t have any family. I have to be there, Prez. Her pregnancy hasn’t been easy and the doctor is worried about her blood pressure. I fucking can’t leave her alone right now.”

Hawk ran a hand over his chin as he stared at Riker. Another of his men Jane had fucked with. “So, she’s the reason you are the first out of here, never stick around on party nights and don’t bang the club whores. I wondered what was up with that.”

Leaning forward in his chair he made sure the man saw how serious he was. “Next time you have a fucking problem you come to me. The club could have helped you with this. You’re excused from attending the fight and your usual duties until she’s had the baby, but I want a daily update on your girl and when she goes into labour you call me. Use this time I’ve given you to make your girl understand she’s family and that we take care of our family. Do we understand each other, Riker?”

“Yes, Prez. You have my word.” Riker stepped back into place, his relief very clear to everyone.

“Anyone got any other business they want to discuss?” Hawk asked and when he got a lot of shaking heads smacked the steel square sharply.

“Then we’re done. Go out there and be fucking careful. Anything looks scaly, call it in. Keep your eyes open and fucking watch your backs.”

Hawk watched as his men silently filed out. They were pissed off but would do what was best for the club. Just as he would.

But first he needed to get tested.

He hoped like fuck the test came back clean.