But though Kaitlyn’s presence made me happy, it was not giving me the peace I needed with the club. Only I could get that for myself. As wonderful as Kaitlyn was, she was not a goddess. She may have looked like one and acted like one, but alas, I was not about to idolize or deify her. No one in this life deserved such status.
“As much as I would like to, I’ve got to go to the club and take care of some business. And I have to do it alone.”
Kaitlyn’s smile dropped a bit, albeit more at mentioning I had to go to the club, not that I had to go alone. I didn’t think she even wanted to be a part of the club, anyways, no matter how much I showed my affection for her.
“I understand,” she said. “I don’t suppose you’ll want to talk about it.”
I chuckled. No, I did not. And that was doubly true after Lane had admitted he’d revealed club secrets to Angela. I extra cautious to make sure that I didn’t do anything as stupid as that.
“Not right now,” I said. “But maybe after the end of the day, we can hang out.”
Be careful. You may not deify or idolize her, but if you’re not careful, if you cause a lot of chaos with your words at the club, man. You might just be heading for a spot where you have to pick between her and them.
And if it comes to that, you had better truly make the right choice.
* * *
I left after eating breakfast with Kaitlyn. She didn’t fight my departure too much, as she could easily pick up on the fact that I was feeling anxious about getting back to the club, but she certainly did not hide her desire for me or her interest in me coming to her later. I couldn’t even think that far ahead right now. I just wanted to get to the club, talk to Lane, and see if I could broach the question without destroying my friendship.
When I pulled up, Lane was already waiting outside for me, arms folded, a scowl on his face. Maybe shit was going to blow up faster than I had anticipated.
“What’s going on?” I said, suddenly wondering if I was the one being accused today.
“Come to church, Patriot,” he said. “I have some things that I’m bringing to a head today.”
Shit. Am I really about to get accused here? Was this all some sort of grand plan where I’m the one revealed to be a spy?It didn’t make any sense, but Lane was taking on a type of tone that I’d never seen him have before—rigid focus and determination withme. He might have had it with club business, but with me...
I followed him, ignoring the looks that came our way. Lane did not say hello to anyone or touch anyone as we moved forward. We might as well have been two men alone in a repair shop.
Lane opened the door to church, and I stepped inside. There was only one other person inside.
Axle.
Oh, fuck.
I turned to Lane, but he was already headed to his seat. I realized now what was happening—Lane was about to bring the accusation forward. He was going to make his stand against Axle here. It may have been the three of us, but this was, for all intents and purposes, a public accusation.
I could not even begin to express how much I hated this idea. The time and place to accuse Axle was not in the heat of the aftermath of battle. It was not when either of us was hot or out of control emotionally. It was when we were so coldly objective, so rational, that a robot would have told us to lighten up.
“Good morning, Axle,” Lane said, but there was nothing polite in his voice. Axle, to his credit, kept the same serene, stoic look on his face, which was a damn good thing considering how much of a panicked expression I must have had. “Patriot and I have been having some conversations recently that we feel you need to be let in on. Patriot?”
I gulped as Axle looked my way. I shot a glance at Lane, wanting to fucking smack him for making me be the guy that suddenly had to be the one to levy the accusation. Was this just some sort of backhanded, bullshit political play so that his hands would be clean if Axle was exonerated?
My suspicions about Lane were becoming, unfortunately, more pronounced by the second.
“What is it, Patriot?” Axle said.
He sounded like he had an idea of what was coming, but he didn’t want to force himself to commit to any given outcome until he had to. Lane kept tilting his head as if waiting for me to deliver the bad news.
I took a deep breath.
“Well,” I began.
I knew my duty. I knew Lane’s expectations. I understood the President could not be the one to dirty his hands.
But...
I couldn’t pull the trigger.
