Page 7 of Minus

“You’re right, it’s a fuck you, Nicky. I haven’t seen or talked to her since I left, and she has no idea I’m in town,” I said, the irritation in my voice rising.

“Okay, okay. Don’t get all bent outta shape.”

“Look, I’m just as curious as you as to why Cutter’s sent for me, but I can guaran-fuckin’-tee it’s got nothing to do withher.”

“If you say so,” Clutch replied.

“You’re probably making a way bigger deal outta this whole thing. The old man probably has some business for me to take care of back in Savannah that he doesn’t want to discuss over the phone.”

“Maybe,” he replied.

“I’ll bet you five hundred dollars, Cutter’s gonna have me on the first flight out of town tomorrow.”

“After you help me with Viper,” Clutch said matter-of-factly.

“I told you you’re on your own with this bullshit. I don’t know anything about Cutter’s three million dollars, or who this Viper guy is, but this all sounds more likeyourproblem, thanmyproblem,” I said.

Clutch finally slowed the car down. He turned to me, his expression turning deadly serious. “It’s a club problem, Minus and last I checked, you still wear a Saints patch.”

I nodded but said nothing.

We drove on through the ever-present Portland drizzle until we reached the Sanctuary, the Burning Saints’ compound. The cluster of buildings used to belong to a paper company that went out of business years ago and were now owned outright by the club.

Clutch pulled out a remote control and punched in a code which opened a rolling security gate.

“Trust me, pal. As important as you maythinkyou are to Cutter, the club’s three million in cash is more important,” Clutch said as he parked. “I’m gonna have to sniff around a little and see what we can find out about Viper and his crew. Los Psychos have been making a lot of noise around town, so if they really are involved it’s gonna complicate things. For all we know Phil was lying through his rotten teeth but Cutter’s gonna want me to make sure, and honestly, I could really use some trustworthy backup. So, are you gonna help me with this or not?”

I paused for a few moments then asked, “Who’s the pile of cash from?”

“Honestly, I don’t know. Cutter’s been cagey lately. Super secretive and shit. He’s been keeping everyone at arm’s length for a while now and I don’t really know what to think. Look man, I don’t know what’s going on, but I don’t think it’s a coincidence that you’ve been summoned here, at the same time this payment was scheduled to be delivered.”

Clutch’s tone shifted. “I also don’t believe that you haven’t thought about what you might say if you see…her.”

“You can say her name, ya know. Regardless of what you may believe, Cutter is not omniscient,” I said.

“Ican say her name, butyoucan’t, my friend. According to Cutter you can’t even think about her.”

“Yeah, he made that pretty clear the night he hung me over the Burnside bridge, so why the fuck do you keep bringing her up?” I asked.

We got out of the car and made our way to the entrance of the Chapel, the Sanctuary’s main building, and our meeting hall.

“Just making sure you’ve got your head on straightshould you run into her, that’s all,” Clutch replied.

“Being as she and Cutter don’t talk, she and I don’t talk, and Cutter and I don’t talk, I can’t imagine why or how I could possibly run into Cricket Wallace.”

As we approached the Sanctuary, I could hear what sounded like a raging party going on inside. Clutch opened the door and it took me a few moments to register what I was seeing.

Standing amongst a sea of leather, denim, beer bottles, and beards was a stunning blonde. She had long legs which supported the sexiest body ever created and a face so beautiful, it made me forget what any other woman looked like.

Cricket Wallace was standing in the middle of the Chapel, mere feet away from me.

“Hi, Jase, it’s good to see you again.”

Minus

“What the fuckis this?” I growled to Clutch. Cricket stared back, clearly irritated by my reaction.

“Gee, Cricket, it’s nice to see you, too. Been a long time,” she said with the kind of sarcastic smile only she could pull off without looking cold. A smile that made me want to take her into one of the back rooms and chew her clothes off.

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