Page 36 of Gypsy's Lady
Rumors and lies
Gypsy
“Yeah,” he said into the phone, balancing it against his shoulder as he shoved dishes into the washer. He’d left Kelsey sleeping when he’d rolled out of bed a while agoandhe missed being curled around her. “I’m still thinking about it, boss.”
“Well, think faster.” Mason sounded sleep deprived and gruff. “Grapevine sources told Myron the challengesBlue Line is facing might have more to do with Rebel business than the man let on.” That meant Myron had tapped into his vast network of information to dig deeper at Mason’s demand.
“You think Blue Line lied?” If he were already asking for help, it wouldn’t make sense. Unless the battle was larger than he wanted them to know. “How is it tied to RWMC?”
“Couple of summers ago, Juanita took Watcher’sgirls out to San Diego for a vacation. They stayed with Blue Line.” Mason paused, and Gypsy knew it was from the pain he carried for the man’s death. His voice was more graveled than usual when he continued. “Southern Soldiers were facing a lot of shit. This was before Bella came to us in Chi-town.” That helped pinpoint the timeline, at least. “Watcher needed to get his girls out of town, butwe were in deep with the Outriders up here, so he asked the Malcontents to watch his treasures.” Made sense while still not saying anything negative about how much trust there’d been between Southern Soldiers and Rebels, something everyone knew had gone bone-deep on both sides.
“What does that have to do with now? Bella’s with Tater in Chicago when they’re not with Juanita and Mela in LasCruces,and Hurley’s permanently assigned to the LC chapter, because of Mela. What do Watcher’s girls have to do with Cali these days?”
“Man out there saw them, liked the look of them, got shut down by Blue Line. Now, even if he no longer specifically wantsthem, Myron believes the fact he’s ready to wage war against Malcontents is tied back to that. Watcher’s girls are Rebels now, and we accept theweight of that fully. They don’t just belong to us in the now, we take on whatever’s in the past, too.” Mason pausedanda baby cried in the background. “Dolly’s up, I need to see to my girl. I just wanted to let you know the latest, brother.”
“What’s the man’s name? The one who is tied up with Blue Line?” Gypsy stared at the kitchen counter.
“Pending the intel.Myron’llhave it for me today.”
“Gotcha. Lemme know when you have it?” The doorbell rang,andGypsy looked towards the front of the house, wondering who it was. “Boss, did you send anyone my way?”
“Nope. Whatcha got?”
“Probably cookie sales.” Gypsy laughed softly. “I should buy one of each kind, see what Kelsey likes best.”
“She okay after last night? Hard as fuck to watch, Gypsy. I don’t know how you do it. It was so fuckin’hard to watch her try and fight through that kind of fear.” Mason cleared his throat. “She good?”
She was still sleeping, curled into a ball after having tossed and turned all night, fighting in her sleep. He wouldn’t tell Mason that, though, because Kelsey wouldn’t want him to. “Yeah, she’s good. I told her about the possibility of a trip in our future and left the ball in her court. If she’sokay with it, I’ll do it, butotherwise,we’re going to have to find a different solution.”
“Understood, and after last night, I can’t find it in myself to fuckin’ blame you.”
The doorbell rang againandGypsy headed that direction, not wanting the chimes to wake Kelsey. Dolly stopped crying, the angry sound turned into a soft snuffling close to the phone and Gypsy knew Mason had picked up hisbaby girl.
“Later, bossman.” Disconnecting the call, he shoved the phone into his pocket and peered through the peephole, expecting to find a uniformed tween girl with a wagon of goodies. Instead what he found was a man with dark hair and a grim expression on his face. That expression didn’t mean anything; it was just how Bulldog carried himself.
The doctor was someone Gypsy had known in hisold life before the Rebels, but somehow through the years, the man had become a friend of the club on a track parallel toGypsy’s. It had been a surprise when they’d finally seen each other at a party, but since then, Bulldog had been to Gypsy’s more than once to watch a game. They were friends, but he didn’t think Bulldog had ever come over without an invitation before.
“Hey, man,” Gypsy greetedas he pulled the door open, stepping to the side when Bulldog shoved past him, headed directly into the kitchen. “Why don’t you come on in.” He salted his words with amusement as he followed his unexpected guest, so the man knew he wasn’t pissed.
“Bloody hell, when were you gonna tell a bloke you’ve been to his home?” Bulldog swung to face him, and Gypsy laughed at the aggrieved expression onhis face. “That’smemotherland, and if I’d known you were headed Down Under, I’d have at least asked you to bring me back some grub.” His accent was thicker than ever, and Gypsy grinned to hear it. “I can’t stay but a minute, but we gotta plan a get-to. I wanna hear everything.”
“I was down by Melbourne. Is that where you’re from?” He turned to the coffee machine, pouring a mug for Bulldog andrefilling his own cup. “And if I’d had any warning, I would have. It was a quick trip.”
“Fuck you, it was not.” Bulldog accepted the mug, blowing across the surface as he scowled at Gypsy. “It’s not like you was just gone for anarvo, ya know. Nearly a month, from what I heard.”
“About right,” Gypsy conceded, taking a sip from his own mug. “It’s pretty down there.”
“Fuck yeah, it is. Best placeon this planet. What was your business?” Bulldog took a big drink, sputtering when the too-hot coffee scalded the roof of his mouth. “Fucking hell, do you set your pot to boil flesh from bones?”
Gypsy grinned, glad their easy back-and-forth was as comfortable as ever. “Slow and steady—” He took another slow sip to prove his point. “—wins the race.”
“Fuck winning your race, I’d be happy withjust placing.” A thud signaled Bulldog setting the mug on the counter. “Tell me straight, Rebels opening the Aussie door?”
“You know I can’t say anything about something like that, man. Not to confirm or deny. Business is—”
Bulldog cut him off, “Business. I know. I was wondering, because if I had matesthereI trusted, maybe you could help me with something.”
“I made friends there. Tell mewhat you need, maybe I can source some help.” If Bulldog was looking for the kind of assistance the Rebels could bring to the table, Gypsy knew it was likely the Hawks would fit the bill, too. “If there’s a cost, I’d let you know.”
