Page 79 of Wrench
time to fall asleep with the woman he warned me to stay away from.
After another moment of self-loathing, I jumped from my truck and trudged inside,
ready to own up for being a shitty Vice President.
I cracked the door open and the Tavern was dark and empty, aside from the one table
in the middle where the club sat. Tank had lit a couple of lanterns around the table to not
create any attention from outside from the bright lights. Rooster, Maverick, Crow, and
Ripper looked worn down and on the brink of sleep as they sipped their beer.
Archer and the rest of the club must have gone home or weren¡¯t involved, but these
guys stuck it out. Guilt filled me, realizing how much I let my brotherhood down.
¡°Hey¡¡± With one hand rubbing the back of my neck and the other in the jacket's
pocket, head hung low, I made my entrance known.
¡°Well, well, well,¡± Tank grunted with a cigarette between his teeth. ¡°Look who decided
to bless us with his presence.¡±
The rest of the guys glared at me and I didn¡¯t bother protecting my ego. ¡°I fucked up.¡±
Crow pursed his lips together. ¡°One way to put it.¡±
¡°Just¡ just tell me what happened,¡± I said. ¡°I¡¯ll make up for it. Whatever it takes.¡±
¡°Talk is cheap, Wrench,¡± Tank said. ¡°I don¡¯t give a fuck about what you tell me you¡¯re
gonna do. I care about what you do.¡±
¡°I know,¡± I said. ¡°It¡ it won¡¯t happen again.¡±
¡°I¡¯m warning you, Wrench,¡± he said. ¡°You¡¯ve always been on my good side, but that¡¯s a
privilege, not a right. I need a right-hand man, not some kid who¡¯s thinking with the
wrong head.¡±
¡°I¡ It was an¡¡± I looked into Tank¡¯s cold dark eyes, trying to make an excuse, but
instead sighed. ¡°You¡¯re right. I¡¯m sorry, Tank. All of you.¡± I thought back to earlier in the
night, telling Samantha about them. ¡°We¡¯re more than a motorcycle club, we¡¯re a
brotherhood. I should be there for you guys, back you up.¡±
All their eyes were on me, their minds clearly brimming with thoughts, but no one
dared to speak. Mine stayed on Tank¡¯s, knowing his verdict was all that mattered. His eyes
were zeroed in on me, searching for a hint that maybe I wasn¡¯t being genuine, and I
gulped under the pressure.
