“You can’t force somebody to marry you, LoneStar,” he reasons.
“If she’s carrying my child, watch me,” I challenge.
“Brother, it’s intervention time,” Slayer says, his face turning serious. “If you try to trap a mouse, they’re going to run in the other direction. You cannot, under any circumstances, hold a gun to somebody’s head and bend them to your will. That’s not a good start to any marriage.”
I peer at him out of the corner of my eye and say, “Don’t care. If she’s carrying my seed in her womb, her fate is sealed. End of motherfucking story.”
“You hardheaded bastard,” Slayer lambasts. “No matter what, we’ll have your back but I want you to think about it before you act. Once you shoot that arrow, there’s no bringing it back. Gravity doesn’t work that way.”
His critique of me and my plan has me feeling betrayed. The best part of being in the brotherhood is knowing that your back is always covered. Now, I need him to watch mine and help me cement Britton to me if she is carrying my kid. Why is it so hard for him to see things from my point of view? I will not let any child I spawn feel abandoned, no matter what I have to do tokeep them from feeling that way, I will. Even if that means I have to handcuff their mother to me, willing or otherwise.
“I’ll do whatever is necessary for my kid to have my last name and legally bind him or her to me. Britton has already proved she’s a runner, and she won’t be taking off with my kid, Slayer. That’s a guaranteed fact. I will have rights when it comes to my blood. I need a leg to stand on if she gets a wild hair up her ass and needs to hit the road.”
“When you put it that way, I see where you’re coming from,” he remarks. “Can’t say I envy the position you find yourself in, brother. What a shitshow.”
“I’m knee deep in it,” I comment. “But, Slayer, I’m telling you right here and right now, if she is expecting, Iwillmake her mine… one way or another.”
“Guess right now you’re at a standstill. There’s nothing to be done until you know one way or the other if there’s consequences to that night, LoneStar.”
“Yeah, but I’m still gonna get eyes on the streets and find her. I’ll give her a chance to do the right thing, Slayer. But once I have confirmation and she doesn’t rectify things, I’ll be going after her.”
“And we’ll go with you,” he promises. “We won’t let you stand alone, brother. That’s not the way we do things.”
“Even if what I’m doing isn’t something you support?” I ask, needing him to confirm that he will.
“Even if,” he says, nodding his head.
Slayer and I stare at the window where the curtain keeps getting drawn back and Patrick continues sticking his nose out of. “Think he’s feeling trapped?” I ask, thinking back to his mouse comment when we were talking about Britton.
“Sure ‘nuff,” he laughs. “He’s acting like a caged animal.”
“We definitely have him cornered,” I observe. “He’s awfully twitchy, isn’t he?”
“Good. He needs to be, the twitchier the better if you were to ask me. It’ll cause him to make a mistake. Hopefully, that means he’ll lead us to that fuckwit Jerome.”
“There’s a reason he’s still hiding like a coward,” I point out, my eyes never straying from the window. “They’re planning something.”
“A hit on the clubhouse most likely,” Slayer says, voicing my thoughts out loud.
“I’m surprised they haven’t struck yet,” I mention, mentally mulling over and cataloguing what could have them stalling.
What are they waiting for?
What’s their agenda?
Are they trying to make us antsy thinking we’d let our guard down?
Picking up my earlier statement, I add, “They’ve sworn to attack us often enough that it makes one wonder what they’re playing at.”
“If you were them, what would have you holding off?” Slayer asks, and the way he does so has this feeling like a teaching moment. He always does this, wanting us to think outside of the box and get in the minds of our enemy.
“New variables,” I conclude.
“Such as what?” he continues his probing.
“New residents and construction with unknowns entering the property,” I respond.
“And if your enemy had a company coming on and off the land all hours of the day, what would you do, LoneStar?”
