There was a pause, then that deep voice said, “Pleased to meet you, Cherry.”
Both Denis and Cherry laughed.
“And you, Ricky the famous PI.”
“Not as famous as you, Mr. Enforcer of the Baton Rouge IMC. You’re pretty damn famous in certain circles.”
“I try to keep my business under wraps as much as I can. Must be slacking. I’ll get right on that.”
Ricky laughed this time. “Maybe I’m just that good.”
Denis broke in and when Cherry looked at him the man seemed half pissed. “Back on track, gentlemen. Does Warner have an interest in MCs?”
“Actually, yeah. He does. He’s been hanging around the Zebra Tail with some RC guys.”
“I know that bar. For IMC it’s a halfway point between just being a rider and exploring being a member. We’ve picked up quite a few hangarounds from there. That’s interesting.” He looked at Denis. “Do you have a pic of the kid? I can tell you pretty quickly if he’s already one of our potentials.”
“Yeah, let me just”—Denis picked up the phone—“send you the details.”
A moment later, Cherry’s phone rang out the top line from an 80s love anthem. “Fuck.” He silenced it as quickly as possible but not before both Ricky and Denis were cackling like little old women. “Shut up. I’ve heard my ringtone on your phone, and it’s not something that should be shared publicly.”
“Okay, okay.” Denis was still laughing as Cherry pulled up the image.
“Yeah, this is Marcus Warner, right? The name didn’t hit me until now. We’ve had him on a couple of charity runs. He’s not a hangaround, not yet, but wouldn’t take much to bump him up. But if we need him to be disappeared, I’m planning to work on a prospect group in a few days. I’d have to clear it with my bosses, but we could maybe wrap him up in that. We keep a couple of trailers out at the clubhouse for prospects to stay at while going through the wringer. That’s what they call my section of education. Cherry’s wringer.”
***
He looked over thegroup of men standing in a half-circle around him. Out of eight men, he expected to take two to membership level over the next week. Five would stay prospects for another three months, which would be the end of their ability to stay at that level. They’d either advance or fail out. One man, kid really, would be going to membership status from barely hangaround status.
And hadn’t that been a shit conversation with Ruger and Busk?
He was lucky he’d tapped the men on a good night, or they wouldn’t have been open to even discussing his plan.
“Busk, got a minute?” His VP turned around and Cherry saw Ruger directly behind him. That sealed it, having both available was a rare occurrence these days. Cherry made a mental note to ask Busk about that little tidbit. “Ruger, it’s good you’re here. Saves me hunting you down.”
“Like you could hunt me.” The man stepped around Busk, and Cherry noticed how Busk’s hand slipped along Ruger’s hip.Well that’s an interesting development.“What’s up, Enforcer?” That was Ruger’s way of determining if this was club business or something personal.
“Prez,” he confirmed Ruger’s question. “And VP, can we talk privately about a request I have for you two? Might have to bring in Twisted to yay or nay me.” That should tell them how delicate his request was. “Figure if we have to go that high, I better have full support.”
“Back room,” Busk said with a jerk of his head. “It’s empty right now.”
Cherry closed the door behind him and started moving to his normal position, standing behind the president’s chair. Busk laughed and grabbed his arm, turning him towards a regular officer’s chair. “The better to see you, my dear. Don’t make the old man crane his neck around to have a chat.”
“Yeah. Habits die hard.” Cherry sat and forced his breathing to slow. He wanted this, more than he’d thought.Denis thought it was a great idea, and he’d asked. I just wanna...“Up front, this is something my Guy is involved in. You say no, and it’s no, and he gets that message. I wanted to put that out there first.”
“Appreciate it,” Ruger said, sliding back in his seat. His elbows hit the table with a gentle thud. “I liked Chapin. Seems a good fit for you. Glad you got him.” He cut his eyes at Busk so quickly Cherry nearly missed it. “Hard to find someone who understands the life. Good for you.”
“So what’s the ask?” Busk leaned back, arm slung over the back of the chair next to him, the one Ruger was seated in.And that’s not a question I’m gonna ask.“Get it out quick, like pulling a knife.”
Ruger laughed. “I think that’s yanking off a Band-Aid, not pulling a knife.”
“My dude, my president, my friend, we are badassed bikers, we don’t fucking mess with Band-Aids.”
Cherry chuckled at the banter, which helped relieve his nerves, something he thought they had aimed for. “My Guy has a pro bono case involving a kid who’s been on a couple of rides with us. I recognized his picture.” He pulled his phone out and navigated to the image, then slid the phone to the two men. “Marcus Warner. Seems a good kid, someone we’d want. But he’s tied up with Caine, and has been tied to LaBlanc, too. Distant cousins, and seems like the cop is blackmailing him. Looks like Warner feeds LaBlanc names, places, and times, making the rookie look good.”
“Snitch? And you think he’s a fit?” Busk blew out a thin stream of air. “Really?” He paused and looked at Cherry. “Did you hit your head recently? That might be the cause of the delusion.”
“He’s a blackmailed kid who’s scared to death. I haven’t talked to him yet, but I stopped by Zebra Tail yesterday and he was pale and jumpy as shit. LaBlanc strolled in, dressed in civies, clipped Warner in the ear and led him outside. That’s not a willing snitch who’s benefiting from his actions. That’s someone under threat to perform a particular trick.” Cherry slowed his breathing again. “I feel strongly about bringing this kid into the fold, sooner rather than later.”
