Chapter 25

I step outsideinto the brisk winter air and wait for the others to join me. By now, darkness has fallen, providing us with cover as we stand by the shed. Not that anyone will be outside this time of night, anyway. Tonight's party is well underway, keeping everyone's attention.

"We need a plan. Storming in there and grabbing ain't gonna work. I have no problem with the club witnessin' their last breath, but I want answers first. Why did they turn on the club and what does that have to do with Iggie?"

I know the two are connected and I'm the tie that binds them together. The only thing I can't figure out is why, and those two bastards are going to tell me.

"I got an idea," Viper announces, his eyes bouncing between us all. "We could go in and announce that Kiki was attacked and didn't make it. Then ask Pepper and Combo to step into the office with us. We wanna talk to them about bein' in charge of findin' new pussy. They'll eat that shit up and when we get em' alone, we drag their asses out here to play."

I nod my head, thinking about what he's proposed. Running through the possibilities that could throw the whole thing out the window. We need this done and over with, so it's worth the risk. "Okay. We need to tell Marni and Gabe to stay with Kiki and not to come out or mention shit to anyone else. Doc should have been here by now, but he knows better than to say shit to anyone other than officers."

"I can do that. I'll go in through the back and let them know to stay put and quiet." Zero raises his hand.

"Go ahead," I tell him, watching as he takes off toward the back door of the clubhouse.

"The rest of you follow my lead and we let them ask questions. Not a doubt in my mind they'll ask about fresh pussy as soon as they hear we lost a whore."

I turn and lead the way to the clubhouse, the sound of fresh, powdered snow crunching under our boots. Tomorrow we'll have to get the prospects out here to shovel.

When we get to the door, I pause to take a deep breath. Inside, the music is blasting, filling the air with a pulsating rhythm. I must remain calm and collected, refraining from losing my temper. Lzzy Hale's voice fills the room as we step inside. Just as the chorus ends, I grab the remote from the bar and pause the music.

"What the hell?" Milking a beer, Rubble sits in one of the recliners and hollers, the sound echoing in the room. He looks to see who cut the music and when his eyes land on mine, he nods once in my direction. "Sorry, Prez."

All eyes turn to me and I will my heart to slow down. "We have an announcement and it's not good. I'm sure you've noticed we've been MIA most of the day. Kiki was attacked, and we have been by her side, offering support and comfort. Unfortunately, she didn"t make it."

The room erupts with a cacophony of grunts, growls, and the occasional gasp. Glancing around, I observe that the news has taken its toll on everyone, except for two people who maintain an air of indifference.

"Where's Gabe? He's been gone all day. Was he attacked, too? Same with Cody. Are we under attack, Prez?" Tex questions.

Clearing my throat after shaking my head. "Gabe knows about Kiki and is taking a few days to deal with the news. Kiki asked for him before shit went south. Cody should be here as far as I know."

"Who did it?" Chad asks, his eyes searching for an answer.

While I don't normally like the prospects getting involved in business like this, it's important they know the story we're spinning. After all, when this shit is over, they'll know what happens to rats and how far I'm willing to go to protect this club.

"We don't know yet. She wasn't on Hell's Mayhem's property, so the police are investigating," I tell him. "We will be doin' our own research and will handle whoever fucked with us accordingly."

"Now we're missing three out of four whores. Not that I cared about two of them, but Daria can't keep up with all of us. So when can we expect new pussy?" Combo asks.

"Real fuckin' sympathetic, asshole," Rubble barks.

"Fuck you, Rubble. She was a whore. I'll miss her warm mouth and tight pussy. God rest those." He gestures the sign of the cross. "But we got needs. If you're too busy, Prez, dealing with the investigation and the funeral shit, Pepper and I can recruit new pussy."

Bingo. Like attracting a bear with honey.

"Yeah, that sounds good, Combo. Thank you for volunteerin'. Let's go to my office and we'll go over what we're lookin' for." I smile, motioning for them to follow me and head to my office.

Glancing over my shoulder, I see both men trailing behind me, with Pistol and Viper hot on their heels. So far, so good. We just need to get to the office, where Viper and Pistol will incapacitate them before we transport them to the shed.

Slowly, I unlock my office door and step inside. Viper forcefully pushes past the others to stand on the other side of the door.

"Learn some manners, you psycho," Pepper grunts, his voice filled with venom and disdain. He steps into my office and looks around, surveying the place, Combo close behind him. Pistol shuts the door, the click prompting Viper to quickly take action. True to his name, he strikes like a snake, swiftly wrapping an arm around Combo"s neck. Combo desperately tries to pry the arm off, but his efforts are in vain.

Pepper barely has time to utter a word before Pistol swiftly brandishes his gun, striking Pepper"s skull with a forceful blow that instantly renders him unconscious. With a heavy thud, he collapses to the ground, and Pistol wears a satisfied smirk as he puts away his weapon.

Viper gently lowers Combo to the floor, his body now limp. I think that chokehold would have been powerful enough to render Steve Austin unconscious.

"Alright, let's get them to the shed before anyone sees us and starts askin' questions," I tell them. "Trucker," I call as he rounds the corner in the hall to my office. "Keep watch and signal if anyone is coming. I'll help lug Combo out with Viper. Pistol, get Hawk to help with Pepper."

Trucker nods and stands in the hall, playing on his phone as he leans against the wall. Pistol grabs his phone and holds it to his ear. "It's done. Come help me."

Seconds later, Hawk emerges, his footsteps echoing through the air as we join forces to transport the two slimeballs to the shed. Trucker follows behind as we leave through the backdoor, making sure we're not followed.

Once inside the shed, I help Viper get Combo chained up beside Cody and we put Pepper against a support beam, his arms behind his back and a chain around his waist.

Combo is the older, more seasoned member of the group, so he gets the privilege of having the better seat in the house. We take our spots, preparing to watch the show Viper is about to put on just like he did with Cody.

Speaking of Cody, he stirs ever so slightly, his gasping growing louder as he shudders in the unforgiving restraints. "Please," he whispers.

"Is that what Kiki said when you were smacking her around?" I ask. He's not in good shape; I'm surprised he could even utter the word, please. He'll be dead long before Viper is done playing.

He says nothing in return, knowing that his pleas are falling on deaf ears. "You're not leaving here alive, Cody. You sold your soul to the devil and can burn in hell waiting for salvation." I shrug. "If you stay alive for a while longer, you'll be able to take your buddies with you."

Viper grabs the smelling salts, opens them, and runs them under Combo's nose. As the older Robert Pattinson look-alike wakes up, he groans. The realization of his location dawns on him, and his movements immediately become frantic.

"Welcome to the shed, Combo. Is this your first time visiting? I hope the accommodations are to your liking and you'll consider leaving us a five-star review." Viper cackles, grabbing a hammer and flipping it in his hand.

"Fuck you. You crazy son of a bitch!" Combo shouts.

"That's not very nice. You didn't even know my mother. She was a nice lady, a little rough around the edges, and had a mean left hook, but a nice lady nonetheless."

This is why everyone thinks Viper is batshit crazy. He makes light of the fucked up shit that happens in the shed and has no issues taking a life. He likes to play and tease before he ends his prey like a cat with a mouse.

"Now the reason you've found yourself here is that your boy Cody here roughed up Kiki, and after a few nursery rhymes, he sang like a birdie, telling us all about your guys' deal." Viper jerks his head in Cody's direction.

Combo turns and gags when he sees Cody's almost lifeless body hanging next to him. "God dammit! I'm a long-time member of this club. You can't do this." He twists and swings his body, trying to get free, but it's useless.

"I can and I did. I am the fucking president of Hell's Mayhem and you seem to have forgotten that. You betrayed me and this club, and we caught you. Time to come clean, so maybe the devil will spare you." I step forward, informing him his fate's been signed, sealed, and delivered the moment he ended up here.

Viper chuckles. "You've made Daddy President angry. It's time for a spankin'." He draws back and swings, the hammer landing square on Combo's kneecap. He screams as the audible crack echoes off the walls.

"What the hell's goin' on?" Pepper murmurs, looking around disoriented. He tries to move his hands, but they're locked behind his back. "The fuck are you playin' at?"

Viper turns around. "Pepper! I'm so glad you joined us. We are playin' a game called Mousetrap. You played before, right? It seems you three fell into our trap."

The accused struggles against his chains once more. "I ain't done nothin'! I've only been in the club for a few years. Combo vouched for me. I have to do what he says!"

"Shut up, Arthur!" Combo yells at his buddy.

"Oh, no, Arthur, tell us more. We wanna know why you've been telling the Hellhounds our business. Why fuck with the shipment?" Vipers asks.

Pepper looks over at Combo and then back at Viper before shaking his head. "I'm not saying anything."

"Well then, let's get back to our game." Viper turns to Combo. "Let's try again. Why did you rat us out to the Hounds?"

"Fuck you," he spits.

Viper winds up and cracks the hammer against the other kneecap. Shit, the sound gives me shivers and I know it has to hurt like a motherfucker.

"Fuuuck!" Combo screams.

"I'm asking one more time before I bring out the stabby toys. Why did you do it?"

Combo hocks a loogie and spits, it landing on the toe of Viper's boot.

"Wrong." Viper grabs a hunting knife and waves it in Combo's direction. "Why did you do it?"

Combo turns his head to the side, meeting Pepper"s gaze without speaking. Viper plunges the knife into his abdomen, Combo's body tensing instinctively in response. His agonized screams fill the room as Viper mercilessly stabs him, until eventually, he leaves the knife embedded in his shoulder.

"Okay! Okay! I joined this club ‘cause it was powerful. ‘Cause the people were my people. Then Steel got voted as Prez and shit went south. I won't be part of a club like that. I"ll be damned if some dick sucker is going to strip me of my patch. So I was sinking the ship from the inside so I could step in as the new president to fix it," he tells us, breathing heavily from the pain.

"What is your deal with gay men?" Viper asks. "I know you've enjoyed a two-girl show; it's just men. Why? They ain't tryin' to fuck you, so what's it matter?"

"They ain't real men and shouldn't be in power! It's disgusting."

Viper grabs the knife and twists it as Combo howls in agony. "I don't much like how you're talkin' about people I like. Fuck you and your close-minded ass. You're in timeout while I go talk to your boyfriend here."

Viper steps over to Pepper, grabbing a croquet mallet as he passes his area of goodies. "Arthur, can I call you that? Actually, I don't care. Why did you go along with him?"

Silence.

"Have you ever played croquet? I used to be pretty good at it, but sometimes my sister would get pissed and crack me with her mallet. Savage little thing, she was. Let me demonstrate." He winds up. "Four!" he shouts, and the mallet sinks into the soft flesh of Pepper's cock.

Tears stream down Pepper"s face, accompanied by fits of coughing and dry heaving.

"Now tell me, why did you follow this asshole's plan?"

"I told you. He vouched for me, I owed him my loyalty," Pepper wheezes.

I kick off the wall I'm leaning against. "No! You owed this fuckin' club your loyalty!"

Viper walks behind the beam he's secured to, gripping the mallet. A series of cracks reverberates in the room and when I peek around to the back of the man in question, his fingers are all at odd angles.

"I had to! I didn't have nothin' to do with the Hounds, though. That was all him. I only helped with Kiki and the papers. I couldn"t turn down the money."

"I'll fuckin' kill you, Pepper!" Combo screams.

"Shut it, asshole. You're both dyin' anyway, so might as well tell the truth. I might make it fast and easy then," Viper scolds.

Papers? Is he talking about the ones that were dropped off to Iggie? If that's the case, then why? I know he wanted to ruin the club and me, but where does Iggie fit into all of it? I could fail as president and still be with Iggie. He'd just go with me wherever I went. It makes no sense to add that layer to their club takeover goals.

"What money?" I ask.

"I don't know who it's from, but Combo had someone who didn't want you near Iggie. They'd communicate. I wasn't allowed to be part of it. But I was paid to get those papers and pick the lock to your room to get the pictures of you and him together. I gave them to Combo, and he dealt with them from there. I got ten grand for it. And I was gettin" paid to handle Kiki, but had to split it with Cody." He looks over at the dead whore. "Not that it matters now."

My body is shaking with pure white hot rage. Who the fuck would pay them to keep me from Iggie? So, the thing with Iggie isn"t about me? It"s him, and I just happened to fall for a man with a stalker. He didn't have any exes that he was on bad terms with, as far as I know. Iggie also only has one friend, and I doubt he's paying people to keep me away. He's straight and, according to Iggie, is the one who sent me that first text from the bar all those nights ago.

"Take him outside." I look at Hawk and Zero. "Tie him up to a tree for a bit before it's time. We need to talk in private to Combo here."

Hawk and Zero move toward Pepper, undoing his bindings and dragging him out the shed door.

I cross the room to Combo. "Who was paying you, Frank, and why?"

"Blood ain't always thicker than water, is it, Ashton? Your little cock boy is gonna find that out the hard way."

"This mouth sure talks a lot of shit." I look at Viper. "Why don't you spruce it up a bit?"

Viper rubs his hands together. "Oh, Steel, you naughty little thing." He heads to his table of items, grabbing what he needs. "Hold his head still."

I step behind Combo, feeling the warmth of his head in my hands. Viper forcefully inserts a dental mouth gag into Combo"s mouth, spreading it open by pulling the handles apart.

"When I was little, I thought bein' a dentist would be cool. Now it looks like I can practice." He wags his eyebrows at Combo before he inserts the dental forceps into his mouth and chooses a tooth.

With controlled movements and intermittent grunts, he focuses on his task. When he jerks his hand back forcefully, he holds up the forceps, revealing one of Combo"s teeth. "I did it! Now, did you wanna tell us who's paying you to fuck with Ignatius?"

He tries to talk, but it's unintelligible with the gag in. Viper pulls it from his mouth. "Okay, go ahead."

"I don't know who it is. She got my number from someone and refers to herself as The Manager. We only text and she electronically sends my money. I only know she's a lady cause she paid me three hundred bucks to do a video sex session with her. Wrinkly ol' pussy with a huge gray bush, but whatever, it was just some videos, and I got paid."

"You're fuckin' sick. You know that, right?" Viper questions.

"I've heard enough. Take him outside with his buddy. Trucker, get the rest of the club. I want everyone out back. Prospects, whores, all of them!" I shout to my road captain and he winks before quickly making his exit.

Thirty minutes later, everyone is outside minus Marni and Kiki, who Trucker gave a pass to, but Gabe is here in the front row. "Where's Cody?" he asks.

"Gone," I tell him and he smiles at me.

"Thank you."

"No need to thank me. Kiki is Hell's Mayhem family and we protect our own." It's time to end this and figure out who the fuck this Manager is that was texting Combo. I need to talk to Iggie about this when I see him. He might know who it is.

"Everyone!" I shout before putting my fingers in my mouth and blowing, the shrill whistle shutting everyone up. "It's cold out here, so let's make this fast. Earlier I told you a lie and for that, I apologize, but it was a means to an end. Today, someone attacked Kiki, and she is in rough shape. But she's alive and inside. I'm sure when she's recovered she'll be back givin' us all hell."

"Who did it?" someone calls from the group but I can't see who.

"Cody. And before you ask, we handled Cody. We will be looking for a new male whore, but that's not why you were called here. As you know, we've had a rat in the club. Someone has been feeding information to the Hellhounds about our comings and goings. It was Pepper and Combo. They're also the ones who paid Cody to attack Kiki. It seems they didn't like how progressive Mayhem has become. So let this be a fuckin' lesson to the rest of you. We won"t tolerate hatred and close-mindedness. You don't have to like it, but we will not be hateful to our members based on their sexuality, gender, hell, their fucking skin color. Are we clear?"

"Yes, Prez," rings out in the chilly night air, causing a grin to form on my face.

"Alright then, we need to take out the trash and then I have more work to do. Viper if you would do the honors."

"With pleasure, Prez," he replies, stepping up between the two trees where Pepper and Combo are tied. He pulls his gun, putting the barrel against Pepper's temple. "May the devil have mercy on your asshole." He pulls the trigger, the sound of the gunshot pierces the air and just like that, we are down to one rat.

He looks over at Combo. "You won't get it so easy, you fucking hateful cunt. May the devil fuck your asshole every night." He holsters his weapon, exchanging it for a blade, and slowly slides it across Combo's throat.

Combo"s eyes widen in horror as blood spurts from his throat. As life slowly drains from him, he coughs and gurgles, each breath becoming more labored.

"You can return to the clubhouse. Let this be a lesson to you all. I will not tolerate rats in my fuckin' club!"

A round of cheers goes up before the group turns and heads back to the clubhouse.

I look at my officers. "You guys got this?" I motion to the two shitbags. "It's almost dawn and I want to get cleaned up before I see Iggie. Hopin' he can shine some light on this Manager situation."

"We got you, Steel. Go talk to Iggie." Pistol waves me away.