Gavin stared at the drink before him. Ace had a point. Every person had demons they wished they didn’t. His just happened to be new.
“Well, to be honest, I’m having trouble sleeping.” Ace nodded his head. “Every time I close my eyes, I keep seeing that psycho’s face smiling at me.”
Ace squeezed his hand. He was just like his brother, caring and compassionate, yet able to stand his ground when needed.
“Thankfully, I have your brother around. Whenever I’m with him, I always feel so safe and protected. It’s like I don’t need to constantly be looking over my shoulder. I know he won’t let anything bad happen to me.” Gavin could feel himself smile. Just the thought of Marcus made him feel all warm and tingly.
“That’s my big bro for you. Always the protector. Always the caregiver.”
“So, what was it like growing up with Marcus? You said he is your stepbrother?”
“Yeah, he’s technically my stepbrother, but we don’t think of each other like that. We’re true brothers in every sense. Our parents were horrible. They preferred drinking and partying, and often forgot that they had kids. It was Marcus who took care of me. He always made sure I had clean clothes for school, ate, and did my homework. Heeven protected me from bullies who tried to mess with me.”
“Guess he’s been a protector his whole life.”
Ace nodded. “Yeah, I think he loves taking care of people. I know he comes across as all manly and macho, but that’s just a role he plays. Deep down, he cares about people and often puts his own needs second.”
Placing his martini down on the table, Ace looked around as if to see who might be listening.
“Marcus doesn’t know that I know this, but when I was fourteen, I got mono and had to stay indoors for the whole goddamn summer. Marcus spent every day inside, playing video games and watching movies with me. What he didn’t tell me was that he turned down a two-week ride across America with a bunch of the guys from the Shadow Vipers. They had been planning the ride for weeks, but when I got sick, he decided not to go. I found out about the trip years later, when Caden let it slip that Marcus had canceled his trip to be there for me. That is the kind of man my brother is.”
With each story that Gavin heard, his knight in shining armor became more attractive.
“Yeah, I can see how special your brother really is.”
They both continued drinking and sharing stories for the remainder of the afternoon.
11
MARCUS
The air was thick and muggy and clung to Marcus’s lungs like a thick layer of honey he just couldn’t swallow, no matter how hard he tried.
It was early afternoon, and the sun was bearing down on Marcus and the guys as they sat outside the waste management landfill, watching the New Mexico Greens drink their beers and laugh at their stupid jokes.
The New Mexico Greens was a local street gang that dealt in drugs and petty robbery. They were a smaller crew, just starting out, with maybe nine or ten neighborhoods under their thumb. They were relatively new to Marcus, having done business with them only twice so far.
Amateurs.
Sitting on his bike, Marcus watched the men as he pulled off his riding gloves one by one.
He’d been contemplating what sort of approach he should use this whole ride over.
Should he give Rowan, the leader of the New Mexico Greens, just a warning? Verbally remind him of what happens to people who disrespect and talk shit about him and his crew?
Or should he take more extreme measures and physically show the New Mexico Greens exactly what happens to leaders when they piss off the head of the Shadow Vipers motorcycle gang?
The more he thought about it, the more scenario number two made sense.
He’d shown mercy before, and look how that turned out.
It was twelve years ago when the Shadow Vipers paid a visit to one of the local drug dealers who was behind on three of his payments. Marcus met with the man to discuss the missed payments and what should be done.
The dealer had begged for an extension, saying that his kids were sick and he needed the money to pay for hospital visits, which was why he didn’t have the money he owed just yet.
Feeling sorry for the guy, Marcus decided to give the man a two-week extension, while forgiving the interest owed on the outstanding debt.
The dealer was grateful and thanked Marcus profusely.
