Page 48 of Paladin's Hell

“Nah. Place was closed up. Time stamp was six am.”

I start looking around. Nothing immediately obvious. I glance at the camera in question, my brow furrowing as I notice while it’s not static, its arc only moves from left to right, its focus is on the window and not on… Hmm. I place my hands on the top of the dumpster which would be out of range of the camera and pull myself up, looking in. Oh shit… “Fuck, Taser. Oh fuck.” Hoisting up fully I place my foot on the edge, then gingerly turn and lower myself in.

Taser’s face appears. “What…? Oh, fuckin’ hell.” He notices fast. “He dead?”

I turn the body over to check, my fingers touching cold skin, then I make the mistake of breathing deep and immediately cover my mouth and nose with my hand. “No question of that. Any idea who he is?”

Taser’s gone white as he answers. “Nah. Fuck Pal. I need to call Prez.”

I’ve seen dead bodies before. Killed people too. But I’ve never literally stumbled across one. There’s nothing for me to do now and the smell of the rotting garbage is becoming overpowering. Quickly I get myself out of the dumpster and am brushing myself off when Taser ends his call.

“Prez and VP are on their way over. We’re to make sure there’s no prying eyes.”

He leans over, breathing shallow breaths. “Fuck, Pal. Who would kill someone and leave him behind our club?”

“Presumably he was killed and left here. Looks to me like someone is sending us a message.”

Taser looks around as though expecting to see the culprit standing around waiting. But there’s no one here, of course. The perp who did this will be long gone. Suddenly his eyes narrow. “This got anything to do with you?”

Me? What the fuck?“What the fuck you talking about?”

“You.” He advances, his finger prodding at my chest. “We’ve never had trouble before. You arrive in town, and this shit happens. Unidentified fucker snooping around Tits Up and someone ending up dead.”

“I fuckin’ arrived yesterday,” I begin through gritted teeth. “Last night I was at the clubhouse. Ask the prospect on the gate if you want, I didn’t go off the compound. How the fuck would I have been able to kill the fucker, even if I’d had any inclination. And for your future information, I don’t kill people without good reason. Never. You’re looking in the wrong direction.”

I’m so angry. My cheeks are blazing. It doesn’t get any easier when Taser won’t give up. “You knew exactly where to look. First thing you headed for was the dumpster. Didn’t even wait to check anything else. And if not you personally, you could be in contact with someone. You’ve been using your phone a fucking lot. Maybe I’ll get Cad to look at it.”

Now it’s me, drawing myself up to my full height and pushing him back. Not an easy task when he must have fifty pounds plus on me, but my rage gives me strength. “Who I’m texting is none of your fuckin’ business. And I checked the dumpster first as I’ve got some fuckin’ brains in my head.”

“Hey! What the fuck’s going on?” Both of us so engrossed in our altercation, we hadn’t heard Hellfire arrive. He’s here now. One hand on my chest, one on Taser’s, and he’s forcing himself in the middle of us.

Taser tosses a glare to the prez. “He turns up and so does a dead body. He knew exactly where to look…”

“Paladin had nothing to do with it.” I’m pleased as Hellfire jumps to my defence.

“Hold up a minute, Prez. How can we say that? Taser’s got a point.” Thunder’s standing, his arms crossed over his chest. “Leastwise we can get some questions answered. What d’you mean he knew where to look, Tase?”

Hell. Things are going downhill pretty damn fast. I’m a Satan’s Devils member. I’m only too aware what form the club’s questioning might take. Carefully, with slow movements, I ease my phone out of my pocket and slap it in Hellfire’s hand. “Check the calls and texts. I’ve got nothing to fucking hide.”

Hellfire’s eyes are on mine. He doesn’t even look at my phone, simply passes it back. He lifts his chin slightly. “Paladin’s a Satan’s Devil. Might not be from here. Might still have to earn our trust. But he’s not responsible for this. Has no fuckin’ reason to bite the hand that’s going to feed him.” When he finishes, he looks first at Taser, then at Thunder, then finally, at me. “Get yourself back to the compound, Pal. We’ll discuss everything in church later.”

I’m dismissed. Probably to give Taser and I a chance to cool down. I don’t bother arguing, just take myself off, still angry. I kick up the stand and twist the throttle making my pipes roar as I depart, fast. It’s only a moment before I realise I’m going the wrong way up the strange road, heading away from the club, not back to it. As I do a U-turn, I start to wonder whether going in the wrong direction was an unconscious indication that coming here with Jayden had been a wrong move.

Drawing up to the clubhouse and walking inside, I have a strong feeling of being among strangers. When you’re a prospect, it’s par for the course not to be trusted, and you accept you’ve got an uphill struggle ahead. It’s the reason people aren’t immediately taken on as full members. A wave of homesickness washes over me. None of my brothers in Tucson would have questioned me, picked on me. Here I’m the outsider. Seems I’ve got to gain the confidence of the men around me all over again.

Is Jayden worth it?

Of course she is. I’ve already been waiting for her for over two-and-a-half years. But today’s shown me, stepping into this new life I’d had such hopes for, is going to be harder than I expected.

The atmosphere in the clubhouse is sombre. Someone’s been killed. It could be the dumpster was a convenient place to hide a body, but the ownership of Tits Up is no secret. Far more likely it’s a message for the club. But why, what for, by whom and what do they mean by it, no one knows. Mace and Buzzard are at the bar discussing it when I turn up.

“You found him?”

“Yeah,” I tell the enforcer, knowing there’s only one thing he can be alluding to. “Didn’t expect to. Thought to check in the dumpster, and there he was.”

“How did he die?” Buzzard asks.

I shrug. I’m no medical examiner. “From the way he was lying I couldn’t tell.” As I speak, I shudder. Those dead, wide-open eyes I’ll dream of for a long time.

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