“Whoa, hold on just one minute, Hatch. Lemme explain,” Minus said, blocking Hatch’s path.
I frowned. Not a smart move on Minus’s part. I glared up at the big man, several inches taller than Sweet Pea, which made him close to seven feet, I was sure. This must be Kitty. I’d heard his name, usually said in some derogatory tone, and since it was very likely this man had something to do with Hatch getting locked up, I didn’t care how big he was. I was contemplating how hard it would hurt to head butt him in the testicles.
“Fuck you, Minus, step aside or I’ll make sure you’re separated from Cricket for good this time around,” Hatch snapped.
Minus’s jaw stiffened, and his fists balled at his side. “I’m gonna let that go, but you need to stop and let me explain why he’s here.”
Hatch continued his advance. “I mean it, Minus, there’s gonna be six feet of fresh soil between you and my sister if you don’t get out of my way right fucking now.”
“Hatch!” Crow yelled, causing him to stop in place, but his eyes remained locked on Kitty’s massive frame, which now stood only three feet from Hatch. “What the hell is going on here, Minus? You’d better have a really good explanation as to why this giant sack of shit is stinking up my clubhouse, and why you brought it here.”
“Kitty’s the reason Hatch is out of jail,” Minus said.
“Bullshit. He’s the reason he was there in the first place,” Booker snapped.
“That was Los Psychos,” Kitty said.
Los Psychos, a rival Mexican biker gang, had been gunning for the Dogs and Burning Saints for years. A few months ago, our club had rekindled an old relationship the Saints in order to help them deal with Los Psycho’s bullshit. We were more than happy to help them out, in exchange for some future services rendered... whenever called upon, of course. Apparently, our help didn’t go unnoticed by Los Psychos, and although they left town, they weren’t gone for good or done with the Burning Saints or the Dogs of Fire. To make matters worse, my sister, Cricket, was Minus’s old lady, which is likely why I had been their target.
“You shut your fucking mouth,Ben,” Crow spat out. “You have no right to be here, and I swear there’ll be nothing but a stain where you’re standing if you don’t leave.” He turned to Minus. “I don’t know what the fuck you think you’re pulling here, but you need to go with him, and I’ll think about whether or not our clubs have any kind of future together.”
“Crow, please. That’s what this is all about. That’s why Kitty is here with me.”
“You don’t know shit about Kitty or his history with my club,” Crow snapped. “Myclub, Minus. My club that I kicked him out of years ago. The guy that I just found out was trying to frame my sergeant. A man I asked you to deal with to settle up your debt to me.”
“I did deal with it,” Minus continued. “I got you every shred of information you needed and then some as a matter of fact. I held up my end of the deal, lock stock and fucking barrel, Crow.”
“He looks no worse for the wear, I notice.”
“I told you the Burning Saints are out of the hurt business. I got you what you needed, my own way, without violence,” Minus said calmly.
“By cutting some sort of deal with him? By agreeing to bring him here in exchange for the information he planted?” Crow growled.
“Yes and no. If you’d just hear him out, he can explain everything,” Minus said.
“I don’t want an explanation from him. I want an exodus from all of you. Get the fuck out, or I’ll put you out.”
Clutch took a step forward and moved his hand towards his inside cut pocket, but Minus motioned for him to stand down.
“It’s cool, I’m not here to cause trouble, Crow,” Minus said. “You know the kind of future I’m trying to build for my club, and you know how much I respect your council. You also know the intel we gave you was solid, and that we’re gonna help you until this Los Psychos shit is resolved, but right now I need you to trust me. Give us five minutes and if you don’t like what you hear, you’ll never hear from Kitty again.”
“I shouldn’t have heard from him at all, and it’s your future presence around here that you should be worried about.”
“I understand. Five minutes, that’s all I ask.”
“You’ve got three.” He crossed his arms. “Start talking.”
Hatch leaned down to kiss my temple and whispered, “Club business, baby, yeah?”
I rolled my eyes. “Bloody hell, Con—”
“I’ll fill you in later, but if this gets heated, I don’t want you gettin’ hurt.”
“Well, I don’t want you hurt, either.”
“Sunshine,” he warned.
“Fine,” I snapped. “I’ll go make you something to eat.”
