Lane
Ihated that I left Angela in something of a hurry, but the truth was if I didn’t leave her then, I was never going to leave her side.
I could tell she at least had a vague idea of what had happened. It wasn’t exactly private property where the shootout had taken place. Carter’s Automotive Repair was on the tail end of the busy parts of Springsville, and while the shop was closed at that time of day, it wasn’t like there weren’t other businesses in the area with clients and customers. News would have spread quickly of the shootout.
She could have easily slid into public official mode, separated herself from me, and told me that for the sake of her professional career, she couldn’t be seen with me. It would have been painful but understandable. I didn’t know if it would have spelled the end of what we had, but it definitely would not have helped matters.
The fact she had sought me out in a public space... that was incredible. It was unbelievable in the best way possible. I never would have expected any woman to do that for me, let alone a public official like Angela. Though I didn’t consider myself a terrible person, I wasn’t in the Black Reapers because I was a socially normal person.
I had to pull her into the chapel for that very reason, to avoid us being seen together. I supposed I was overthinking it, but I definitely wasn’t overthinking how much I liked her. I wasn’t overthinking the fact that I had to pull away from her to do what I had to do.
That, I thought, was the biggest difference between me now and me a year ago. Lane, one year before, put Shannon over the club, and while that might have been the right choice then, it made issues with the club that much more difficult and had made life hell. Lane, now, knew how to balance the two and when to give attention to one over the other.
It meant I was smarter, more balanced, and a healthier man than I had been before.
In any case, I let myself think of Angela up to the point where I saw Patriot in the hallway. I told him to follow me and did the same with Father Marcellus. I walked in silence outside the hospital, the two of them in tow behind me.
“What’s going on, man?” Patriot said, a little bit of nerves in his voice.
I didn’t blame him. I was nervous, too.
“We need to strike back at the Saints,” I said. “But we need to keep our group small. Just the three of us.”
“Wait, why?” Father Marcellus said. “Are you sure—”
“Yes,” I said.
I wished I could explain why. But Angela’s comments, though unbelievably harsh and hopefully not true, had told me something that I had to acknowledge as possible. Until I truly eliminated an individual from being the mole, I had to consider that everyone could be that.
Including my brother, Patriot.
“We need to keep this small, so we don’t attract a lot of attention,” I said. “The Saints are probably celebrating their ‘victory’ with some cheap-ass champagne and beer at their shop. They won’t think we’ll be in the mood to strike tonight. We can land a few bullets on them, speed back home, and then reconvene in the morning.”
“Are you sure—”
“Look, Marcellus, are you in or are you out?” I said. “I don’t care either way. I’m going to do this. I just want enough backup to feel like I’m protected, but not so much that I announce my presence to the Saints.”
I hadn’t planned on pinning Father Marcellus in such a spot, but I realized there might be benefits to his answer. If he said no, that was a major red flag. If he was in, it’d be all but impossible for him to alert the Saints something was going on.
“Okay, I’ve got your back,” he said.
So maybe he’s not the rat after all.
“Likewise,” Patriot said.
Maybe we’re in the clear. Maybe they’re good.
“Good,” I said with a smile. “Let’s make a run back to the clubhouse, grab our rifles, and then we roll out immediately. Is there any reason either of you needs to go back inside?”
Both shook their heads no. That was just as well—it would have been too obvious I was suspecting a rat if I just followed them around the entire time.
“Then let’s roll.”
I got on my bike and watched the two of them doing the same, checking to see if either got on their phone. Neither did.So... could it have been one of the injured ones? Or Red Raven?
Or maybe this isn’t something you should worry about right now. Get your retaliation in and then head back. Be the leader. The more distracted you are, the worse off you’ll be.
Admittedly, it didn’t feel very leader-like to have suspicions about someone being a rat and keeping that hidden from everyone. But from the perspective of putting the club first, above all else, that felt like being a good leader. I had put myself first for so long, it would take me time to learn how to put others first properly.In due time.
