Page 3 of Devil Inside: Green

“Danni?” Aja says. She has her long, thick dark hair pulled up in a high ponytail. I envy that hair. I pretty much envy everything about Aja. She’s Filipino by ancestry. I don’t know if it’s because of those good genes or just the luck of family traits, but she has the longest eyelashes and this gorgeous golden skin that positively glows in that maternity way. All those prenatal vitamins have awesome benefits. “What are you doing here?” she asks.

“Not getting any help from Vlad, that’s for sure.”

“We’ve had some stuff happen with the club.”

“I’m sorry to hear that. I really am, but I can’t wait any longer. He struck again in Missouri. He’s either in Kentucky or Tennessee if he keeps to the pattern. It was good to see you. Congratulations on the expansion of your family.”

“Thank you—but don’t go.”

“What?”

“You’re going out alone. I see it written all over your face.”

“I’m always alone, Aja.”

“No. Not with this. Please stay. Come back to my place, and we’ll talk to Cutter. See what we can do.”

“He’s under the rules of Vlad, and Vlad is sitting on his ass doing nothing. No offense, but I don’t have time to wait.”

“Please,” she begs. “Come back to my house. Let me talk to Cut. We’ll figure this thing out. I promise.”

“One day, Aja. I’ll give you one day, and then I’m gone.”

“Fair enough. Follow me.”

Aja turns to leave out of the clubhouse, and I follow close behind. For a little thing, she sure is agile. I’m impressed with the way she hefts herself up into the cab of that shiny, black pickup truck. The top of the wheelbase equals mid-thigh on her. Even in my annoyance, part of me can’t help but acknowledge how badass she looks driving it.

I follow behind in my not-so-badass silver sedan as we drive back down the mountain. She heads out of Bentley towards a town called Middlesboro, which keeping with the planning of the towns here in Kentucky, has an older, original downtown area and a newer area full of fast food and strip malls on the outskirts. It’s much bigger than Bentley, the town closest to the Horde compound. The area is beautiful. If I’d come here as a tourist, their Cumberland Gap and Falls would have definitely been on my list of sights to see.

But I’m not here as a tourist so I swear on my mother’s grave if Aja’s giving me the runaround, she’ll be sorry. Pregnant or not.

Who am I kidding? I’ll wait until the baby is born.

I’m not an animal.

2

GREEN

Swear to Christ, they rig these doors to slide extra slow just to see who loses it and ends back in lockup. The bars on rollers clank until the door opens all the way and I step out into freedom for the first time in six months. Vlad and Sarge stand next to their bikes while Horace sits in his mud-coated, rusted pickup truck.

“You guys showed?” I ask, rather shocked. Vlad tore me a new asshole when I got arrested for the DUI that almost cost an innocent guy his life. The guy made a miraculous recovery, which is the only thing that kept me from doing hard time. Six months is a drop in the bucket compared to what I could’ve gotten. But I was so pissed at the world for everything that happened with Dela and everything following that led me to being locked up, that I took it out on my brothers and refused to see them if they visited and refused to talk to them if they called.

“I’m your president,” Vlad responds. “Brother gets out of jail, your president and vice president are gonna show to collect you.”

“You mean I still got a club to go home to?”

“You’re patched in, brother. Not taking your cut for a six-month lockup. But you keep this shit up, then we’ll be having a very different chat.”

It’s on the tip of my tongue to flip off and say something to the man that I can’t take back. For one time in my life, I show restraint, keeping my damn mouth shut as I jog over to the truck. Vlad and Sarge both approach, giving genuine back pats.

“Glad you’re out, brother,” Sarge says. “Women got a party waiting on you.” I’m glad to see him, but I’m surprised he was able to pull himself off his wife long enough to be here. The man’s a trip. Tall, military-built. He’s been out over a decade but wears his hair like he’s still a Raider. His wife must like it. She keeps popping out kids, and he’s there for all of it.

I nod. “Horace. Keys.”

Horace, a prospect, darts his eyes to Vlad and then back to me. He’s not overly tall, but he’s got that intimidating biker stance down. He’s growing a beard. New since I’ve been locked up. He’s a prospect. Prospects do what the brothers tell them to do. No matter what.

“Don’t even think of it,” Vlad says. “You know you’ve got a suspended license. Horace is driving. Give him shit, and I’ll knock your ass out.”

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