Page 14 of Phantom
“What?” I asked.
Suddenly, my dad raised his hand. “I’m entering a motion to make Colin an immediate member of the Steel Knights.”
“What!” Taylor barked. “Under what circumstances would we make someone animmediatemember?”
I didn’t say as much out loud, but even I was confused. Something like that had never happened before. Our current prospects had been pledged for close to a year.
What was he suddenly seeing in Colin?
“The Unchained Dogs could strike at any time. Currently, we have four prospects pledged, and based on the previous listed criteria of strength and stealth,”—he set a hand on Colin’s shoulder—“he’s the best choice. Traditions be damned. If the Dogs come tomorrow, we need to be ready.” The room sat in tense silence in the wake of the sudden decision. “Are there any opposed?”
Taylor’s hand shot in the air. “Opposed.”
My dad ignored him. “All in favor?”
Every member’s stare drifted to me, but despite the prevalent irritation on all of their faces, their hands slowly climbed into the air. I lifted mine, as well, and my dad held up his. He counted the raised hands as if it was even necessary. “That’s five out of six.” He smiled down at Colin. “Looks like you just became a Steel Knight, son.”
Chapter Six
Phantom
The leers of the Steel Knights members wouldn’t bother me so much if they didn’t shift to Tess once they realized they weren’t landing with me. Tess brought me to prospect for the Steel Knights, but I was a grown man who made my own decisions, and the same was true for Nick. The fact that he was willing to make me a member straight out of the gate because the other prospects couldn’t control their tempers wasn’t Tess’ fault, nor was it mine. I hated people like them—those who couldn’t just worry about themselves. As much as I hated working with Luther and the Unchained Dogs, that was one thing they had going for them. Minding your own business was in the bylaws. I’d seen Luther take off more than one man’s head because they thought that it was somehow their business to help decide who he chose to add to their ranks. At least Nick allowed it to be a traditional vote. Luther was a wild boar and did what he wanted.
No wonder the Steel Knights had fallen to the Unchained Dogs in the past. Their minds were in the wrong place. That was no doubt why Nick’s desires for his prospects had changed. He wasn’t a dumb man. Evidently, he’d learned a valuable lesson during the Unchained Dogs’ last raid—if his members were more worried about other people’s shit than their own, they wouldn’t do good work. I wouldn’t be with the Steel Knights long, but if I could change their nosy dispositions even a little, I would consider my time here beneficial to someone other than myself.
“What the hell happened in here?”
I looked over to the door of Hoppa’s Taphouse, and three men were making their way through the doorway. The man who spoke was incredibly tall and broad-shouldered, and he had a scruffy goatee encircling his mouth. He was looking at the three prospects that I’d made short work of. The other two men had already made their way over to the big one, Aaron, who’d started all the trouble, and were looking down at him.
Nick laughed, leaning over the bar. He nodded his head toward me. “Our newest member happened to ’em.”
All three men’s heads shot in Nick’s direction. “New member?” the tall one asked.
“Yeah. Guys, this is CJ. CJ, that tall one’s Paulie, but we call him Texas. The short one is Derek, or Small Fry.” One of the other guys standing near Aaron stood at maybe five and a half feet tall, but he had enough scrapes to let me know that he wasn’t afraid to fight. “And that’s Jonathan Jones. We call him Jonsie.”
The last of the men had brown hair falling down his back in a long braid, and he nodded as Nick introduced him. Derek and Jonathan both seemed to be fighting back comments, but Paulie’s knitted eyebrows and pursed lips had already relaxed. He stepped over the unconscious bodies and held out a hand to me. “Nice to meet you.”
I shook it. “You, too.” Someone with a little more respect for Nick’s authority was someone I could see myself liking amongst these guys.
Paulie walked up to Tess next and held out a fist, which she eagerly bumped hers against. “What’s goin’ on, Val? Did you get a good night’s rest after ditching the rematch last night?”
Tess snickered. “Yeah, I stacked up all your money I’d already taken and slept like a goddamn newborn.”
Paulie seemed to be one of the few who actually treated Tess like an equal. That was nice, at least. I imagined trying to pass a woman as a member back with the Unchained Dogs. They’d have emptied their clips into me before I even got her name out.
“Where’s Stag?” Nick asked.
“Who knows,” Jonathan grumbled back. “He was off his ass last night.”
“You didn’t let him drive, did you?” Tess asked.
Unlike Paulie, who had a kind demeanor, Jonathan sent a scathing look at Tess before he responded. “I’m not his fucking babysitter.”
Tess looked at her dad. “So he could be wrapped around a tree.”
“Call him, Jonsie. Tell him if he ain’t here in an hour, that’s his ass,” Nick spat.
“All right, Nicky,” Jonathan replied, throwing Tess another disgusted look before turning and walking back out of the bar.
