Page 69 of Harmless
“Nah, not my thing.” Gwen accepted my embrace. “Just runs in the family.”
“Thank you again,” I whispered against her shoulder. “I just can’t thank you enough.”
“Sure you can,” she laughed. “I kind of started this whole mess for you.”
“And it’s been a hell of a ride already.”
We released each other, and Gwen looked at me for several seconds without saying anything. “May the gods watch over and provide guidance for you, Aurora.”
“To you as well, Gwen. May they guard you on your journey and keep you safe.”
She smiled. “I have a feeling we’ll be seeing each other again.”
“I’m sure we will. When this is over, my family will undoubtedly throw a party at our home in Four Corners. You should come.”
Gwen grinned and shimmied her shoulders. “I’ve heard stories of the Steel Demons parties.”
“There is nothing like experiencing them for yourself,” I promised her. “Take care until then.”
I will be seeing you soon, Aurora Wilder.Lupa gave a little yip and a wag of her tail before following Gwen into the car.
I had barely a second to think about that statement before Torr came up to stand beside me. Together, we watched the squad of trucks, SUVs, and motorcycles take off down the road until they were specks on the horizon.
“We should hold our first church meeting soon,” Torr said. “Get all the rules laid out, figure out what’s our next move.”
“Sounds good, VP.” I turned toward the houses, giving him a smack on the ass before I started walking. “Get everyone together, and let’s go to church.”
23
DEVIN
So, was I a gangbanger now? Some kind of motorcycle-riding dude in a leather vest?
Everyone seemed stoked at this spontaneous club formation with Rori at the top, but not me. This shit was so far out of my wheelhouse. I wanted to hop in a car and ride away with the others. Getting dropped off somewhere to start a new life all over sounded perfectly great to me.
But there was no way I was leaving Santos behind, and he was becoming permanently attached to Rori. Who, I’d begun to grudgingly accept, wasn’t all that bad.
While I was still annoyed that I needed her permission to have my kill in the first place, she did keep her word. She did seem to care about Santos and Torr equally, even though the fact that she was juggling both of them still weirded me out.
And she did appear to accept the mantle of MC president with a healthy dose of reluctance. She looked tense instead of happy, nor drunk on power, like I would have expected. This position wasn’t a goal of hers but an obligation, and she was trying to shoulder the weight of the responsibility as best she could.
I still wasn’t her number one fan, but she had more of my respect as time went on.
“Devin, you coming?” Santos clapped my shoulder as he slid past me, heading for the open door.
They were having church, or whatever it was called, in the house with the largest living room. From what I gathered, it was essentially a meeting. Seemed weird to call it church, but again, it wasn’t my scene.
“I dunno,” I said. “I’m not sure this club thing is really for me.”
“Come anyway,” called Rori, who stood against the door to hold it open for everyone filing in. “I’m not asking everyone for pledged membership yet, this is still new to a lot of us. But we’re going to be talking about hitting the next compound, so you might want to sit in.”
Well, I wouldn’t say no to killing more of those who enslaved us. Trying not to drag my feet, I followed Santos inside. Rori gave me a small smile and a nod as I passed her. I returned the nod but didn’t smile.
She closed the door once everyone was inside, and Torr went to stand in front of it, ever the dutiful guard.
“Welcome to our first church session everyone,” Rori greeted, standing at one end of the room. “Just so you all know, this is pretty casual for how it usually goes. Normally, it’s an enclosed room. The door is locked so no one can leave early or enter late. Attendance is mandatory for all patched-in members. Nothing that is discussed in church can be shared with prospective members or those outside the club.” She paused, scanning everyone’s faces with shrewd eyes. “It’ll be a while until we have proper protocols in place, and if you decide this isn’t for you, that’s fine. What I’m trying to get across is that church is sacred. Am I understood?”
“Yes, president,” Torr said, which was echoed softly by others in the room.
