Page 88 of Nuts

I looked at Smoke. “Notice two of the girls asked, and one didn’t?”

“Sandy doesn’t need to ask my permission to do shit. She’s an adult.”

“Joey’s an adult, but she asks out of respect.”

“She asks out of fear.”

“Bullshit.”

“That’s my opinion.”

“Your opinion is bullshit.”

“You’re an intimidating prick, P-Nut. You might not see it, but you are. I’m sure she asks out of fear. Fear of you doing or saying something derogatory.”

“What would she base that fear on? She’s never seen me angry. Never seen me act like a damned fool. All she knows is that I’m a 1%er.”

“You beat her dad half to death, didn’t you?”

I shrugged. “Stepdad.”

“Point made.”

“Your point is bullshit.”

“I made it nonetheless. Think about it.”

I considered what he said, but soon dismissed it. After hearing the car pull out of the driveway, I sat down on the bench. “Can we have a serious talk?”

“I thought we were.”

“We’ve been bullshitting. I want to have a serious fucking talk. Is that possible, or do I need to go talk to the Prez?”

“Speak your mind.”

“It’s off the record.”

“What the fuck does that mean?”

“This ain’t club business. It’s yours and it’s mine.”

He shrugged. “Okay.”

Remember that chicken-shit cocksucker, Tank? Prospect that ended up being a ATF agent?”

He glared at me. “He was my fucking prospect,” he snarled. “And, he ended up being a fucking fed. How the fuck would I forget about him?”

“Just asking,” I said.

“What about him?”

“Got him in a box in Temecula.”

His face contorted. “If I didn’t know better, I’d think you just said you’ve got him in a box. In Temecula.”

“Not really Temecula,” I said flatly. “More like outside of Fallbrook.”

He gazed at the floor, shook his head, and then looked up. “You know where he is?”