Page 159 of Misrule
“In-fuckin-deed,” Outlaw agreed. “It’s the fuckin’reasonshe broke up with your fuckin’ ass.”
“What are you talking about?” Knox hedged, his brain betraying him for once. A reasonable explanation escaped him.
“I wantcha to sober your fuckin’ ass up and get the fuck gone. Your ass don’t fuckin’ belong round us. Go to your fuckin’ family e-fuckin-state. You ain’t fuckin’ welcome here no more.”
The words hit Knox like bricks. “No!” He struggled to sit up and swayed when he did so. The room spun and bile churned in his gut. He didn’t care. He had to make Outlaw understand. The situation was too important for Knox to give into his drunken ailments. He met the club president’s unyielding gaze. “This is where I belong, Outlaw. I love her. This is my home because it is hers.” Why hadn’t he realized that before he’d blown up?
“Fuckin’ fine time for your ass to figure that shit out, assfuck,” Outlaw grumbled, as if he’d read Knox’s mind.
“Tell me what to do,” he begged.
“Tell me what you done,” Outlaw countered.
Knox looked away, his voice, hiswordsto her, echoing in his head. He couldn’t bring himself to repeat them. Not only because Outlaw would execute him, but because they shamed him so much.
“You almost fuckin’ died to-fuckin-day. About three, four hours ago. You fuckin’ went to Roxanne, drunker than a motherfucker, while Mort was there.” Outlaw dragged on his cigarette. “Your woman saved your fuckin’ ass.”
“She’s not my—”
“If I was you, I’d shut the fuck up, cuz accordin’ to her, you and her just had a fuckin’ argument. She even took her fuckin’ ring back and wearin’ it a-fuckin-gain.”
“Oh, thank God.” Knox sagged in relief. The ring was safe. More important, she was his again.
Throwing the cigarette onto the concrete floor, Outlaw stomped it beneath his motorcycle boot. “Ain’t no time for fuckin’ rejoicin’, fuckhead. You want her the fuck back, you gotta lotta fuckin’ work to do.”
“You just said—”
“Knox, how you got to be a fuckin’ badge? You one motherfucker that miss the fuck outta clues.”
“I take umbrage to that!”
“Re-fuckin-mind me when I told your ass I fuckin’ gave a fuck what the fuck you ain’t likin’? You a stupid, clueless motherfucker. Case fuckin’ closed. Bet your docket went with the most un-fuckin-solved cases. Whatever fuckin’ unit you was in.”
“That isn’t true!”
“What-the-fuck ever. Any-fuckin-way, lemme say this shit a-fuckin-gain:Your ass almost fuckin’ died to-fuckin-day.”
“I heard you the first time.”
“You musta ain’t. Other-fuckin-wise, you woulda fuckin’ realizedthatmighta had some-fuckin-thing to do with Roxanne puttin’ your ring back on her finger.”
“I don’t—”
“Under-fuckin-stand,” Outlaw interrupted, and folded his arms. “You look clueless like a motherfucker, so you ain’t gotta waste your fuckin’ alcoholic breath sayin’ you don’t know what the fuck I mean.”
Knox squinted at Outlaw.
“In case you ain’t realize? Your ring on her finger? Give you fuckin’ immunity.Thatfuckin’ ring make youourfuckin’ family, and we ain’t killin’ family fuckin’ members un-fuckin-less Megan fucked with.”
As was the case with Kendall, who’d been removed from Outlaw’s No-Kill list.
“So lemme spell this shit out for your fuckin’ ass. As long as you ‘round us, Roxanne gonna have that fuckin’ ring on. From the little I fuckin’ got, your ass don’t fuckin’ deserve to fuckin’ still be breathin’.” He shrugged. “But she fuckin’ love you, and you ain’t fuckin’ hesi-fuckin-tate when you say you belong where she at. You probably love her ass, too.”
“Take the probably out of it.”
“Knox, lemme clue you the fuck in. A-fuckin-gain. I was comin’ to make peace with your ass. Mostly ig-fuckin-norin’ your lil’ jabs and shit. But let’s just put it the fuck out there: we ain’t likin’ each other.”
“That’s not true!”
