Page 28 of Lucifer's Revenge
“Thank you,” he said with a grin, and after giving her another quick kiss, he threw his arm around her shoulders and turned to the group staring at them in varying degrees of shock.
“Hey, this is Lilith Richards, she’ll be riding with me today. Lilith, this is everyone.” They laughed together as she gave a small wave, then a line formed as the men and women approached to shake her hand. It took about twenty minutes with all forty of them introducing themselves.
Instead of standing around after the last introduction, Luc turned to her. “Where is your stuff?”
“In my car.” She pointed and together they walked over and he noted the boots she wore.
“I dig the boots.”
“Thanks you. Gator said they were both fashionable and sturdy for riding.”
“He would be right. Look at what the others are wearing. I wear engineer boots myself.” He pointed to his feet, and nodded when they reached her car and she reached in to pull out a pull over sweatshirt, her brand new leather, a pair of gloves, and her new helmet.
“Gator also told me to get my jacket one size larger because of the sweatshirt.”
“Again, he steered you in the right direction.” Luc nodded as he carried her helmet and leather and laid them over the back seat on his bike. With his arm around her shoulders again, he pointed to the line of bikes. “I know this won’t make sense to you at first, but there is a method to our madness.”
“What’s that mean?”
“It means that there is a hierarchy or a pecking order in the club. How long were you here before the bikes arrived?”
“About ten minutes. Fifteen came from one direction, eight from the opposite, then the ten that included you.”
“Okay, there’s no pecking order for when they arrive. They probably hooked up with each other to ride in a pack here. Which is perfectly fine. However, when we ride as a club, that’s when the politics begin.”
“How?”
“I’m the President, that means that I’m the top dog. The guys that rode in with me, came to my house to escort me here. They don’t have to, but they took it upon themselves to ride with me to keep me safe. The number one rule of the pack, is to protect me and my rider. In this case, you. Oh, and no female rider is to ride with anyone other than who they arrived with. If the guy’s bike breaks down, then depending on the status of the guy, he can take a striker’s or prospect’s bike to ride. Those were the people that rode in with me. During a club run, they are always at the back of the pack.”
“Got it. Can I ask questions if I have them?”
“Yes. Now, when we leave here, the road captains, two of them, will lead the way. Their job is to map out our route, and lead us in the right direction. Directly behind them will be the Sargeant at Arms, and beside him will be the Vice President. We ride two to a lane. Behind the Sargeant at Arms and the VP, will be the Enforcer, and myself. I prefer to ride outside, which will take us close to the outside white line. Behind me, are the otherofficers, secretary, treasurer, then the non-office holding, but patched members. Behind them are the strikers, because they have a bottom or top rocker, just not the center patch yet, and then the prospects.”
“What are they?”
“They have voiced the desire to join our club, but have to do things to make sure if they are worthy of the patch. It takes roughly three years to be fully patched if they show an interest.” He paused and turned her so he looked directly into her eyes. “We are not like some clubs you hear about in the news or those documentary television shows. We do not require our members to kill anyone to be patched in, and we sure as hell don’t share our women. If anyone hits on you, or makes you uncomfortable, you tell me immediately. I know it sounds possessive, but today, you are mine, and though others can talk to you, they can’t touch you, nor can they make sexual comments to you.”
“I think I understand.”
“Good.” He paused and looked up when a truck and trailer pulled in. He turned to the group. “Looks like we’re all here.” He had looked at his watch when the truck arrived and nodded.
“What’s that for?”
“That’s the chase truck. If we have a club run that is more than one hour from base, which is this bar, then we bring a chase truck. It basically carries a tool box, with spare parts, and full gas cans. If something happens and someone breaks down along the side of the road, if we can’t fix it, then we load the bike on the trailer and like I said, depending on who breaks down, then they can take the prospect or striker’s bike to ride, and that owner will ride in the chase truck to keep an eye on the guy’s bike. I know I said earlier that women can’t ride with anyone else. However, the only exception is if a patch holder takes a striker’s bike, she can ride on the back with her man, but not with the striker or prospect.”
“Ah, so it’s a couple, not the bike.”
“Correct.” He nodded and looked up as another vehicle pulled in and grinned when he saw his cook park next to Lilith’s car. As he exited, he grinned, reached in and pulled out two bulging bags and several men ran over to help him. As he approached, he looked directly at Luc.
“BBQ Brisket with the trimmings at six?”
“Thank you,” Luc said, and slapped him on the shoulder. He turned back to Lilith with a grin. “He is the cook here. When we have our first run of the season, he has his first BBQ. I think he looks forward to firing up the outside pit as much as we enjoy riding.”
“That sounds wonderful. I take it he doesn’t ride?”
“No, and trust me, once you get used to being in the fresh air all day, you’ll be starving by the time we get back here, though we will have options to eat when we reach our destination.” He looked at his watch, whistled, and Lilith watched as everyone went to their bikes to put their jackets and helmets back on. She did her own, and smiled when Luc made sure she was bundled up.
He climbed on the bike, then told her how to mount, but stopped her before she did. “I don’t know if you’ve ridden before, but trust me, I know what I’m doing. Lean with me in the curves, not against me. If you need to, you can wrap your arms around my waist to hang on until you’re used to it. I won’t be offended.” He grinned and reached up to bring her face to his for a kiss.
