Page 98 of Wrath

“Come on, we gotta go wait down there. Raze and the girls, here, got ya covered.” Ruckus pats me on the back and moves me forward and as I make my journey down the stairs toward the top of the aisle, I feel my stomach tying in knots.

“Hey, kid?” Vex stands up from where he’s patiently waiting to play his role. We ain’t had too much time to talk since he’s been here. I guess I could be accused of avoiding him, I’m sure I wouldn’t be his first choice of son-in-law. “I need to say somethin’ to you before ya put that ring on my daughter's finger, and I know I ain’t got much right to be sayin’ it, but I'm gonna say it anyway.”

I hold my breath and wait for his threat.

“You're makin’ a commitment today, one that I was never man enough to make myself. When ya get to my age, you live to regret the things ya never did. So, I admire ya for what ya doin’ here. I judged ya wrong. I see that now, and I apologize for it. It won’t be the first time that I’ve misjudged a situation.” His head hangs low, and both me and Ruckus know he’s thinking about that boy he trained who went rogue. “That bein’ said, you saw what I’m capable of last week, and I can assure ya that everythin’ you’ve heard about me is true. I may have been absent from Eden’s life, but I never stopped carin’ about her. I’m only gonna get a short shot at bein’ her dad and I’m gonna make the verybest of it. That means that while I’m livin’ if you so much as make my daughter cry, boy, I will come down on ya so hard, that what I did to your father will look like a picnic in the fuckin’ park. Ya hear me?” He narrows his eyes in the exact same way that Raze does.

“I hear ya, sir.” I nod my head.

“Glad we got that covered.” He holds out his hand for me to shake and when I take it the old man’s grip crushes so hard I have to shake it out after.

“Did your balls just shrivel up a little?” Ruckus whispers as we continue heading to the top of the aisle

“Just me then?”

I smile at the minister as I take my spot and go over all the last details in my head.

“Ya got the rings?” I check with Ruck.

“‘Course, I got the fuckin’ rings.” He pats down the pocket on his suit, then smiles at me nervously as he quickly tries the opposite one.

“Ruck, you better be fuckin’—”

“I had ya.” He points at me, strolling over to Polly and taking the double-ring box from her hand. “I wasn’t gonna trust myself with these bad boys until the last minute.”

He opens the box to check they're still in there and when I see that the one I picked out for myself has been replaced, I get a lump in my throat.

“That’s a?—”

“An original Dirty Dozen founder’s ring?” Ruckus looks back at me with a clever grin on his face.

“It’s tradition for a founder to pass it down to his son,” he reminds me.

“How did ya get it?” I don’t remember it being on my dad’s finger when we had him captured, if it had been I would havemade a point of cutting it off. That asshole doesn’t deserve the respect that comes with that ring.

“Raze found it packed in the bag your old man had with him when they took him from the whorehouse. He switched the rings this mornin’. I guess he figures it belongs to you now.”

“I don’t want anythin’ that belonged to my father.” I look at the ring and shake my head.

“Wrath, this ring never really belonged to Cliff. It was given to twelve men who wanted to build somethin’ special, outta loyalty. Your father was only ever out for himself. This is a new start, not just for Long Beach, but for the whole club. Raze could have asked for anyone to come here and be his second, he chose you.” My best friend smiles as he snatches the box shut and when I look up at the balcony and see my president leaning over the rails looking down on us, I nod back my appreciation and smile because, for the first time in my life, I really like where the future is heading.

The club seems far too quiet when Rocco drives through the gates. Aaron couldn’t wait to get me off the phone when I called him, and Rocco’s been acting strange all morning. The way he keeps smiling at me is odd and he seems nervous. Anyone would think it was him who had to do a presentation in front of one of Hollywood's biggest producers.

“Where is everyone?” I ask, following him into the yard. Outside, the clubhouse is empty. Trinity and her crew aren’t hanging out where they usually do either.

“I don’t know. How would I? I’m just a prospect.” He spits his words out far too fast.

“Rocco, are you okay?” I check.

“Me? I’m fine. Areyouokay?” He starts scratching the back of his neck and looking all kinds of freaked out. “Laura.” He looks up past my shoulder, toward the door to my room. “Your friend, she’s here. You should head on up and ask her why she came.” He spins on his feet and races off through the clubhouse door, leaving me confused as hell.

I look up at the balcony and, sure enough, Laura is standing there outside my door. I have no idea why, we haven’t spoken since I found out about her father’s agreement with mine, and I have to admit it feels good to see her. Aaron’s clearly busy withclub stuff, so I guess it’ll be good to celebrate the success of my day with someone. I climb the stairs and when I get to the top and see the big, red box she’s holding, I’m curious as to what she’s brought with her.

“I know you probably don’t want to see me right now, but I’ve got something for you.” She smiles at me cautiously, stepping out of the way so I can unlock the door. I’m a little ashamed of the mess inside, the place is crammed full of mine and Aaron’s stuff. I told him I wouldn’t move onto the houseboat until I knew what was happening with my dad. If he’s only gonna be here for a few weeks I want to stay close to him. This past week I’ve spent getting to know Vex has been incredible, and although we haven’t spoken much about the decisions he made for me, I’m starting to understand his actions a little better.

“You coming in or standing out there?” I hold the door open for her, and she smiles with relief as she scurries inside and places the box on the bed.

“What's that?” I stare at it.

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