Page 48 of Consequences

“He wasn’t going to kill her,” VP says. “This is getting blown completely out of proportion.”

“Considering your reaction to the little show your crotch goblin put on the other day at your own fucking wedding, I think we can all agree you have no fucking clue what color the goddamn sky is at this point,” Venom growls. “What. The. Fuck. Happened?”

Clenching his fists so tightly that the gavel snaps, Colt recounts what happened the day he got the frantic call from Noah to get home. How he knew his uncle was hurting his mom.

“We showed up, and she was on the ground, Zane on her chest. His hands were wrapped around her throat as she tried to claw and hit and fight him. He threatened to kill her,” Colt finishes. “And I almost killed him for it.”

“All because she wouldn’t let him take his daughter on his bike because he was drunk as shit,” Ky says.

Undertaker waves a hand in the air. “He also hit Lucas?”

“Twice,” Colt says. “Cut his cheek and busted his lip. Said some fucked-up shit to him, too.”

“I think we can all agree that the only person in this room who believes Zane wouldn’t kill his own sister is the delusional asshole who fathered him,” Diesel says.

Face red, VP shakes in his seat. “Zane’s lost his way, and I’m not denying that. But I know for a fact he isn’t capable of killing his sister.”

“You weren’t fucking there!” Colt screams and jumps up. “You didn’t see the look on his face. The way his eyes glazed over. The way Lex rolled with us when I tackled him because of how fucking tight his hands gripped her throat. And you sure as fuck didn’t hear the loud gasps of air she took when she could finally fucking breathe again.”

Sitting back down, he decides it best not to contribute more to the conversation. He knew he couldn’t be the one to bring this to the table without looking like he had an agenda, but the truth is, anyone who agrees with VP will be on the short list of men Colt can no longer trust.

“Look, he was wrong, okay? Again, I’m not arguing that, but he has a lot of shit going on. He just lost his wife. How many of you think you’d be perfectly fine after losing your woman?”

“I’m pretty fucking confident I wouldn’t try and drive my kids home while drunk,” Ky says. “But, you know, that’s just me.”

“That asshole has been given every excuse you can pull out of your ass, and he always has a lot going on, Nash,” TK says. “His mom died when he was kid, so that automatically gives him the right to destroy our clubhouse because you were going to get married over thirty years later? Come on, even you can’t defend that.”

He looks at Colt’s father with such betrayal it nearly makes Colt laugh. His mouth hangs open slightly, and he lets out a short breath of air in disbelief. “Weren’t you the guy who got drunk and spent days on end fucking two blonde women afteryour wife cheated on you? That was after we stopped you from killing Rush, but you’re different, right?”

“Uh, correct me if I’m wrong here,” Diesel says, “but TK didn’t go on a rampage and smash the clubhouse to pieces with every minor frustration. You’re kind of comparing apples to oranges.”

“He will never have to pay for anything he says or does as long as you’re around to cover his ass, will he?” TK asks.

“Fuck you.”

Glancing at him, Undertaker shakes his head. “You seem more upset that we’re considering stripping your son of his leather than you did at losing the woman you were going to marry days ago. Do you even care that he cost you Emma?”

“Of course,” he shouts. “But you’re asking me to choose between my son and the woman I love!”

“And what about your daughter?” Jennings says. “You always choose your son over your daughter, but the truth is, Zane needs to be held accountable for his actions. The excuses you make is the reason only you seem to be surprised that we’re having this conversation now.”

Letting out another deep breath, VP glares at the former President. “You don’t understand. You never will.”

“What I understand is how you’ve stripped him of being a man. At some point, someone needs to show him that his feelings aren’t important to the rest of us. And it doesn’t mean he has any right to lash out when he’s upset.”

Hunter Fontaine folds his hands on the table and locks eyes with the fellow Original Ten. “It’s a hard pill to swallow when you realize you’ve allowed someone in your family and your club to mistreat your daughter. Trust me, I’ve been there, but the actions of our sons reflect on us as fathers. We’ve failed. The sooner you come to grips with that, the quicker the healing begins.”

“I have not failed my son the way you failed Elliot. Who’s only your nephew, by the way. He’s not your son.”

“Fuck you, man,” Elliot calls. “I made mistakes and had an ego. But I only slapped Lily once, which sounds terrible to say, but I never tried to kill her. I figured my shit out, but your son has been told it’s acceptable to treat the women in his life like shit by you.”

“That’s fucking bullshit,” VP snaps. “He treats Margaret like a princess. And Lane was his queen.”

Colt laughs and shakes his head. “Tell me, which fairy tale is it that the princess gets chauffeured around by her drunk father? And if he cares so much about hisprincess, then why the fuck has she not left my house since his wife died? Yeah, real king-like behavior there. Great fucking father just like his old man.”

“At this point, I think it’s safe to say that VP is just as responsible for what’s happened as Zane is. He’s trying to defend and condone his behavior when it’s not defendable,” Shep says.

“Says another fucking stray,” VP snaps.

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