Page 40 of Towles

“Fuck you,” the man in the middle said.

I dove to the left as the three men opened up on the car. Glass shattered, and the tires deflated. They paused momentarily to reload. Mistake. I watched Beast, Big Kentucky, and the two Prospects move forward, shooting over the car.

When the shooting stopped, I looked over the car’s hood, careful not to take a bullet in the head. All three lay dead on the porch. I stood in time to see Watcher and Texmex coming around the house with the other three Punishers. The men looked terrified. I’m sure my parents did as well before they were murdered.

“They tried to run out the back,” Watcher said. “Fatasses didn’t make it very far.” He smiled and kicked one of the men in the ass. I recognized two of the men.

Beast approached the three men and shot one in the head, leaving behind the two I wanted. Ashtray drove the van to the front porch and got out. He opened the back of the van and dragged out the chains.

If we didn’t meet brutality with brutality, Pine Bluff would be overrun with assholes like the Street Punishers.

“On your knees, assholes,” I said, and they did, whining and pleading the whole time. My parents hadn’t had time to plead for their lives.

“Look, we’re sorry about your parents. We were doing what that asshole wanted the club to do.” The man started crying. His partner stared at the ground.

“Keep an eye on them, Ashtray,” Beast said, and we returned to the trees to get our bikes.

“Are you sure you want it to go down like this?” Beast asked.

“I am. And Pine Bluff isn’t big enough for a second club. We took care of that problem once. This’ll send a message to any other assholes wanting to move in on our territory.” I climbed on my bike and led the way back to the house. I was becoming increasingly entrenched in the MC life with every man I killed. I felt obligated to give April another chance to get out of town. What we were about to do showed just how brutal life could be in an MC.

“You first,” Beast said, pointing at the Punisher, who still stared at the ground. The man said nothing.

We watched two prospects attach chains to the man’s wrists and ankles. The prospects fanned the chains out in a large X. Me, Beast, Big Kentucky, and Watcher backed our bikes up to the free ends of the chains.

“What the fuck?” The other Punisher said. It was hardest on him because he would have to witness the first guy’s demise.

The Prospects attached the chains to our bikes. Ashtray pointed his gun toward the sky. I nodded, and he fired a single shot.

Hearing the shot, Beast, Big Kentucky, Watcher, and I gunned our bikes in different directions, pulling the man apart.

The remaining Punisher screamed like a little bitch and tried to run. I shot him in the leg, and he dropped.

“Do you remember the look in my father’s eyes when you shot him?”

“Fuck you, Towles.”

I hit the man once, but not hard enough to kill him. “Do me a favor when you get to hell. Tell Paul Summers that Ethan Towles says hello.” I walked away from the man and climbed on my bike.

The Prospects attached the now free ends of the chains to the Punisher's wrists and ankles. For those who think we’re filthy animals, that may be true. But we also made sure wrongs were paid for. The two men had executed my parents. The two men were lucky death came so quickly. Other clubs would gut the men and leave them somewhere to die over several days. We were doing them a favor.

We revved our engines again and went in opposite directions. The man tore apart like a wet piece of toilet paper.

The Prospects disconnected the chains and placed them back inside the van. We left the bloodied mess right where we made it. Yeah, the Punishers would know who did it, but the message was significant enough to send them packing.

“We still need to deal with this other prick,” Beast said. “Has he contacted Rose since she got to Pine Bluff?”

I shook my head. “Not that I know of. I definitely want him on my own. No guns. No weapons. Just me and him.”

“We’ll make sure you get that chance,” Big Kentucky said.

“You and April are serious.” Beast started his bike again. “You going to make her your old lady?”

“Looks that way.” I crossed my arms and gave Beast a serious look. “How’d Skittles handle the brutality of what we do when you and her hooked up? Brother, I’m not sure I want to introduce that to April.”

“I explained to her.” He shrugged. His years of experience made explaining a hell of a lot easier than the few years I had. “She’s experienced the worst of the club and the best. I’ve never kept anything a secret. If you trust April, then you have to be upfront and honest about all this shit. If not, you’re asking for trouble down the road.”

“She watched me shoot her old man in the head,” I said. “That’s some fucked up shit to watch, but she acts like it never happened.”

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