Eight

Skip

T he bike skids to a halt and Jep rushes over, obedient as ever, waiting for his next instruction.

“Do you need me for anything, boss? Joel says you might want me and Felix to go out: keep eyes on the Blackhawks compound.”

“Not tonight. Even the Blackhawks wouldn’t be stupid enough to look for trouble on a night when practically every Viking chapter in northern Europe is gathering here. Stay put. Enjoy the party.”

“Thanks, Skip.”

“Is Kasper around?”

“He went into town about an hour ago. Said he was meeting someone.”

“He’s left the compound? Now? Jesus Christ… I need him here. What the fuck’s he playing at?”

“He said he’d only be about an hour. Said he was picking some girl up, bringing her back here.”

“What girl? He’s got plenty of girls here, what’s wrong with him?” I throw Jep my helmet and keys. “Park this up and get inside. Go see if anyone needs any help with anything.”

I head into the clubhouse and find Joel at the bar laying his Nordic charm on Paula, a seasoned club girl from Poland who’s been here forever, and still looks about twenty. Her mother must’ve had some damn good genes. “Hey. People are starting to arrive, quit enjoying yourself.”

Joel tears his attention away from Paula and looks at me. “You been out?”

“I needed a break from you assholes. Did you know Kasper’s left the compound?”

“Security’s sorted, Skip. We’ve got weapons stashed exactly where we need them. Should we need them. We’re covered.”

“Yeah, well, I’m not expecting any shit to kick off, but there’ve been whispers that the Hawks might suspect we know more about their weapons deal than they want us to. And if they think we might try to muscle in, it’s possible trouble could be brewing. So, we can’t afford to drop our guard, even on nights like this. Are Dag and Alver here?”

“Never missed a club gathering like this before. They’re not gonna start now.”

Dag and Alver. Two of our life members. Brothers who’ve been a part of this club for decades. Their loyalty, knowledge and wisdom is something we all depend on around here, and no fucker disrespects either of them, or their old ladies. Elise and Freja are as much a part of the Vikings as their old men. They look after the club girls. They look after all of us. Without their cooking we’d probably all starve.

Joel starts sliding his hand up Paula’s ridiculously short skirt – she might as well not be wearing one – and I take that as my sign to leave.

“I’ve got a couple of things to finish up out back. Keep your eye on this place, alright? Kasper might have things covered but let’s not get lax. Oh, and if Rik comes calling, don’t take any shit, okay? He’s trying to assert an authority ’round here he got no place showing. He knows the rules. Make sure he keeps to them.”

“Is he gonna be a problem?”

“Not if I can help it.”

I grab a beer from the bar and head to the back of the clubhouse, to the meeting room, and I contemplate calling Sofia. I wanted her to be here tonight, but I’m not surprised she’s giving it a miss. I’m guessing – like me – that she’s still unsure where we are, exactly. What we are. And I don’t do all that talking about my feelings crap, ’cause I don’t know what I really want from her. I don’t know what she wants from me , I just know that the sex – man, it’s good! When I’m fucking her she puts up no fight, she’s all in… Jesus! She’s got my head in a freaking mess, and I’m not used to fighting for women, I’ve never had to do that. I wasn’t intending to ever start, but this one, she’s got me. And I’m not done with her yet. Not by a long way.

Joel

I’m locking up the workshop when I see her, climbing off the back of Kasper’s bike.

Ana.

Sofia’s kid.

Does her mother know she’s here? I doubt it.

Lighting up a cigarette, I walk back across the compound toward the clubhouse. I can hear her, talking to Kasper, although I can’t make out exactly what they’re saying above the roar of Harleys entering the yard, people drifting outside; heavy rock music. The party’s really getting started now.

Reaching the clubhouse entrance, I glance over at Ana and Kasper. She’s leaning back against his bike, takes the cigarette he offers her and draws deeply, blowing smoke up into the air before she hands it back to him. I back up against the wall and watch her for a few seconds more. Did Kasper mention this party to her, when she was last here? I’m guessing so. I’m guessing that’s the reason she’s here again. I’m just not sure this kid’s really ready for the kind of crazy shit that goes on at these club parties. And this one – this one’s a big one. The Vikings have eight chapters all across northern Europe, and a great many brothers from every one of those chapters has made the trip here, to Denmark, for this gathering. And this girl, she may be a little too green for all this, ’cause if she thinks Kasper is some kind of knight on a Harley, she might want to think again. He’s no knight. And he’s definitely no saint. I’m not sure any of us are.

I finally go inside, and the clubhouse is already crowded, the music loud, a thick fog of smoke hanging heavy in the air. People are starting to spill outside, into the yard, as they always do, and any second now someone’ll light a fire, start a makeshift barbecue, and Elise’ll come out with steak and sausages and homemade pork and beef burgers, it’s the way these things always turn out. The way we like them.

I grab a beer from the bar and look for Skip.

“Hey, Wade, you seen the boss?”

Wade looks up from the stacked red-head he’s attached to. “Still out back, I think.” He takes a drag on a joint the red-head hands him and resumes his position.

I push my way through the crowd, finally finding Skip on his way back to the party.

“Did you know Ana was going to be here?”

Skip frowns. “Ana?”

“Our new accountant’s daughter.”

“She’s here?”

“Outside. With Kasper.”

Skip shrugs. “She’ll be fine. She seems like a sensible kid.”

“’Cause you’ve known her all of, what? Five minutes? You gonna let her mother know she’s here? Didn’t seem like she wanted her daughter hanging ’round this place last I saw.”

“The kid’s twenty-two years old, Joel. She’s old enough to look after herself. Just, y’know, maybe keep an eye on her, that’s all.”

“Now I’m a fucking babysitter?”

He shrugs again. He’s pissing me off now. “Okay. Don’t keep an eye on her. You’re the one who seems concerned about her welfare.”

“I don’t give a fuck whether she’s here or not, I just thought you might like to know, seeing as you’re so keen to help her mama. You think she wouldn’t want to know where her daughter is?”

“Like I said, Joel, the kid’s twenty-two. And I need a fucking drink.”

He heads toward the bar, but I wait a second or two before I follow him.

Ana’s leaning against the pool table now, swigging beer from the bottle, talking to Kasper, until he’s called over by Skip, leaving Ana alone, although I can see Kai lurking close by, about to make a second attempt at a move on her. Not fast enough. I get to her first.

“You okay?”

She turns her head to look at me, frowning slightly. “I’m fine.”

“Something going on with you and our sergeant-at-arms?”

She leaves a beat or two before she answers me. “No. He called me, told me there was a party here tonight and asked if I wanted to come hang out for a few hours, that’s all. Not that it’s any of your business.”

I raise an eyebrow. She’s got a smart mouth on her, this one. Just like her mama. “You exchanged numbers, huh?”

She doesn’t respond to that.

“And you don’t think he’ll want something in return?”

Her clear blue eyes lock on mine. She’s got guts, I’ll give her that much. She doesn’t seem fazed by any of this – any of us , and I don’t know if that’s a good thing or not.

“He knows the score.”

“You told him that, have you?”

“He knows the score,” she repeats.

I light up a cigarette. “Yeah, well, for your sake, sweetheart, I hope he does.” I take a long drag, keeping my eyes fixed on her as she turns her head away from me. “Anyone know you’re here?”

Her head shoots back around, her eyes burning into mine. “Don’t talk to me like I’m a child.”

“Then stop acting like one.” I start to walk away. She’s pretty, but she’s way too na?ve for this.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” She shouts after me.

I stop, and slowly turn back around. She really is one beautiful pain-in-the-ass. “You like a bad boy, huh?”

“I like men who challenge me.”

“Is that right?”

“Who the fuck are you, anyway?”

“Anything from your best friend to your worst nightmare, kid. That’s why you should know what you’re walking into, we aren’t bad boys, baby girl. We’re evil bastards.”

She narrows her eyes, but she doesn’t break the stare.

“You want to end up as one of them, huh? A club girl? ’Cause the women who hang out here, that’s usually what they are. And you don’t look like one of them.”

“You know nothing about me.”

“I know your mama doesn’t want you anywhere near us.”

She holds my gaze for a second or two more, shakes her head, and walks away. Over to Kasper.

I turn around and grasp the edge of the pool table, bow my head and smile to myself.

She likes men who challenges her? Man, she’s gonna learn the hard way.

Sofia

I can’t believe she’s done this. Put herself in danger, like this, after everything I asked her not to do. For an intelligent young woman she’s suddenly acting incredibly stupid.

My heart’s banging hard against my ribs as I pull the car into the compound and try to find a space to park in between the bikes and the trucks already here. There seems to be some kind of party going on, and that only serves to increase my anxiety. I swear to God, if anything’s happened to her: if she’s gone anywhere, with any of these men…

I slam the car door shut and make my way across the yard, I’m terrified of what my daughter might be doing now. What she might be involved in.

Weaving my way through the crowd of bikers and people who like to hang around them, I finally reach the clubhouse. It’s just as busy inside, the air thick with smoke and the smell of alcohol and cannabis. My stomach tightens as I crane my neck: try to see through the mass of people, I can’t find Ana anywhere. But I see him . Skip. And I start to push my way toward him, but he sees me before I get to him: says something to a tall, bearded man beside him who nods and heads off into the back of the clubhouse.

“Where is she, Skip? Is she here?” I can’t keep the panic out of my voice.

He reaches out and lays a hand on my hip, which I quickly brush away. I’m slowly beginning to regret ever getting involved with him, physically. If I want my daughter to stay away from these men then surely I shouldn’t be seen to be involved with one of them so, yeah. I really am going to have to take a step back from it. From him . But tonight isn’t the time to have that conversation.

“She’s fine. Quit worrying.”

“You knew she was here, and you didn’t tell me?” Now I’m angry. I’m fucking angry.

“Hey, sweetheart, it’s not my job to watch over your kid. You’re worried about where she is? Maybe you need to keep a closer eye on her.”

I’ve turned away before he finishes the sentence, but he grabs hold of my hand and swings me back around, and I’m this close to slapping his smug face. This fucking close.

“She’s fine. Okay? She’s not stupid, and that’s probably got a lot to do with you, so just quit worrying about her and calm the fuck down. I won’t let anything happen to her, no fucker’s gonna do shit with me here. You got that?”

I take a deep breath, I’m so out of my depth here. I don’t know what I was thinking, agreeing to work for this club. Sleeping with their president. I guess, sometimes, we all do things we wouldn’t normally dream of doing, when pushed. When desperate.

Skip’s hand on the small of my back seems to push the calm forward. I can breathe again without it burning the back of my throat.

“Where she is?” I ask, my voice slightly less panicked than it was a moment ago, but I’m far from being okay with this situation.

“She’s over there. By the pool table. See? Skimming my men like a pro. Sofia, she’s fine.”

I follow Skip’s gaze, but seeing her – my daughter – laughing with these men, the way they’re looking at her, it doesn’t ease my fears, it makes them worse. And I don’t even realize I’ve taken hold of Skip’s hand until I feel him squeeze it, and I look down. See his fingers wrapped around mine. And I don’t pull my hand from his, I leave it there. And I don’t want to admit it, but he makes me feel safe. Even here, in this place I still consider to be slightly sinister, he makes me feel safe.

He leans into me, his breath warm on my neck and I close my eyes, I fall back against him as he angles my head around: kisses my mouth. He tastes of whiskey and beer, and I cling onto his hand, fall deeper into his kiss. So deep I don’t even feel the sudden, sharp pain in my chest. I don’t feel it. I don’t… feel it…