Page 40 of Doc
“Ready.”I held him tighter as we pulled back onto the road, the rising sun warming our backs as we headed into uncertainty.
Chapter Eleven
Savior
I slammed the gavel down harder than necessary, the crack echoing through the chapel like a gunshot.The brothers fell silent, but the tension remained thick enough to choke on.Eight hours since Doc had disappeared with Nova Treemont.Eight hours of wondering if one of my own had just fucked over the entire club for a piece of ass and a sad story.The wooden reaper carved into our table stared back at me, its empty eyes offering no guidance.The weight of the presidency pressed down on my shoulders as I surveyed the men around me -- brothers divided, loyalty tested, and all because a club doctor couldn’t keep his dick in his pants when a pretty face came calling for help.
“Let’s get the facts straight.”I kept my voice low, but it carried to every corner of the room.“Doc is gone.Bats’ niece is gone.The Prospect at the south gate admits he let Doc leave last night on a ‘medical emergency.’None of this sits right.”
Saint, the cub’s VP, leaned forward, tattooed forearms braced against the ancient wood.“Prospect says Doc wasn’t wearing his cut.I checked his house.Asshole left it on his bed like a fucking divorce note.”
“That tells us something.”I let my gaze sweep across the assembled brothers.“Man doesn’t leave his cut behind unless he’s either leaving for good or trying to distance the club from whatever shit he’s stepping in.”
Tempest snorted, his massive arms crossed over his chest.“Distance?Bullshit.Everyone in three counties knows he’s ours.Every move he makes reflects on this patch, whether he’s wearing it or not.”
A burner phone slid across the table -- Chase’s, the Prospect who’d let Doc out.I picked it up, reading the text message displayed on the screen.My jaw tightened.“They hit the county clerk’s office last night.Breaking and entering.Theft of government documents.Got spotted by security.”
“Jesus Christ,” Saint muttered, dragging a hand down his face.“That’s federal time if they’re caught.”
“That’s if the cops don’t shoot them first.”Tempest’s knuckles whitened as he gripped the edge of the table.“We got a Prospect who works part-time at the police department.He says Wallace has put out an APB, but it ain’t going through official channels.Man’s hunting them personally.”
The room erupted into chaos, voices overlapping as brothers argued across the table.I let it continue for a moment, watching the natural fault lines appear.The club was splitting before my eyes -- older members clumping together behind Venom, their faces set in grim determination, while newer patches drifted toward Tempest and Saint, wariness in their stances.
I raised my hand, and the noise subsided.“This isn’t just about Doc anymore.Yes, Bats’ niece brought hell to our doorstep, or rather news of it.Truth be told, this shit was going on behind our backs for a while now.We need to handle it, regardless of whether Doc thinks it’s for Nova or not.He’s hung up on making all her dreams come true and proving her parents were murdered.”
Venom rose from his seat, his weathered face flushed with anger.His voice still commanded respect even though he’d stepped down from his position as VP years ago.He slammed his fist against the table with surprising force for a man his age.
“Bats was one of us!”His eyes flashed with a fire I hadn’t seen in years.“His blood is out there with a target on her back!If you think that ain’t our fight, you’ve forgotten what this patch means.Yes, we need to take down the corrupt officials and the traffickers.But we also need to keep that girl safe.”
Tank leaned forward in his chair.“If we turn our backs on family, what the hell are we?We become just another group of assholes with matching leather, not brothers.”
I studied the faces around the table.Men I’d ridden with, bled with, some for decades.The division ran deeper than just this situation -- it exposed the growing rift between old-school values and new business realities.The club had grown under my leadership, becoming more cautious, more strategic.Less likely to rush headfirst into a fight without calculating the cost.Which was why we hadn’t made a move yet.
“Doc knew the rules,” Tempest insisted.“We had a plan.Nova was supposed to go to the safe house while we investigated and handled this shit.Instead, he defied direct orders, went behind our backs, and now has every badge in the county looking for him.Forthem.”
“That’s what happens when you tell a man to sit on his hands while someone he cares about is in danger.”Venom’s voice dropped to a dangerous rumble.“You don’t know what Doc’s seen, what he’s capable of.Man was a combat medic.He doesn’t spook easy, and he doesn’t ask for help unless he needs it.But that girl?She’s lit a fire in him.To Doc, Nova is worth fighting for.”
Saint shook his head.“This isn’t about Doc’s balls or his combat record.It’s about chain of command.Club discipline.He broke that, went lone wolf with an outsider.”
“Outsider?”Venom’s eyebrows shot up.“That girl is Bats’ flesh and blood.Same man who pulled a Prospect’s ass out of that burning car outside Meridian, who took a bullet for Tempest in that Southside clusterfuck, who stood next to all of us through shit that would’ve broken lesser men.”
Silence settled over Church as memories resurfaced.Bats had stood as a fixture in the club longer than most, his steady presence a foundation we all built on.His death left a hole no one managed to fill.
I caught the shifting expressions, saw the moment even the hardest brothers began to waver.Loyalty to the living stayed complicated, but debt to the dead remained absolute.
“We don’t have to send the whole damn club.”Venom’s voice softened as he sensed the tide turning.“But we owe him backup.Owe his niece protection.That’s what this patch has always meant.As one of the founding members of this chapter, are you really going to argue with me?I’ve been through more shit than most of you combined, and I’ve learned a lot over the years.”
I met Saint’s gaze, then Tempest’s, reading the reluctant acceptance there.My VP nodded slightly -- giving me the room to make the call.The Sergeant-at-Arms followed suit, his posture still rigid but no longer openly defiant.
“Doc’s smart.If he’s running, he’s got a reason.”I tapped my fingers against the weathered table, considering our options.“We don’t go in blind.We don’t expose the club unnecessarily.But we find our brother, hear what else he’s discovered, and then decide our next move.”
Relief spread across Venom’s face, matched by guarded acceptance from the others.I raised my hand before anyone could speak.
“I want a small team on standby.Four men, no more.Rest of you stay put, maintain normal operations.Last thing we need is to telegraph that something’s happening.”I looked at Venom.“You’re point on this.Find them, but don’t engage until you have a full assessment of the situation.”
“And if Wallace finds them first?”Tank asked, the question hanging heavy in the air.
I let the silence stretch, making sure every man heard and understood my next words.“Then we remind everyone why the Reapers earned their name in the first place.”
