DARK FALL(52)
Everyone looked around at each other. This was a big vote right now. A vote to extend this war. A vote for bloodshed and death. Erik looked around the table and wondered if this was the war that would kill one of his brothers. There could be an empty chair at the end of it.
“We vote,” Gaige said. “Show of hands…”
“We show up to the fight,” Miller said. “We take care of our business.”
Miller’s hand went up. Gaige next. Then Blaine. Jace, Griffin, and Nate all put their hands up. When it came to Erik, he hesitated for a second while he let everything play back in his mind. The MC may not have chosen this war, but he'd be damned if he was going to let someone else win it. Erik put his hand up.
Not a single person objected to the idea.
“It’s settled,” Miller said. “Me and Gaige will make the plans with Strokner. And tomorrow night we are going to take our step forward with this mess.”
“Hey,” Blaine said. “For the kill… when the opportunity comes…”
Miller glanced around the table and stopped at Erik. Their eyes met and Erik slowly rose.
“I’ll do it,” Erik said. “If this is one of the guys that had something to do with that bomb…”
“I agree,” Nate said. “This is Erik’s.”
The rest of the table agreed. They all stood one by one, nodding.
With the main table standing, Back Down Devil was stronger than ever. They would not fold up and die in this fight.
“Mark my words,” Miller said, “there will be honor in this fight.”
Everyone cheered and Miller pointed to the door. The orders were pretty simple now. Prepare to fight and enjoy the day and night. Tomorrow could be the last day.
The room cleared out and Erik found himself standing at the table. Miller grabbed his shoulder.
“What’s wrong?”
“Too much to think about,” Erik said. “My mind seems to be clearing.”
“Or is it just your cock?” Miller asked with a smile.
“Maybe both.” Erik looked at Miller. “She should have died today.”
“I’m sorry, brother. But that’s our life. That’s why it’s hard to let people in.”
“Yeah, it is.”
“Hey, are you okay with this? The fight? The kill?”
“I’m ready,” Erik said. “The club is ready for this. We need a victory to move on.”
Erik left the room and skipped the bar. He stormed down the hallway to his room. On his bedroom floor he saw a pile of clothes. Then he heard the rushing water in the bathroom. When he peeked in, it was steamy, but the silhouette of Kaity’s body made his mind go blank.
“How good were you at your job?” Erik asked.
Kaity screamed and opened the shower door. “What the… you scared me.”
“Answer the fucking question.”
“My job?”
“As a rat.”
Kaity’s face tensed. “I wasn’t…”
“If the club finds out who you were… or are… what do you think they’re going to do?”
Kaity swallowed. “I don’t know.”
“This isn’t some fucking honeymoon, babe. I wanted to fuck you, so I did. You have my heart and mind torn to pieces. Remember when I said I don’t care about a thing? That was a lie. I care about you, Kaity. But to think of you as a rat really pisses me off.”
“What do you want from me then, Erik? I can’t go back and change things. I’ll do anything you want to prove it. If that’s what you want. Name it. I’ll fucking stand on the bar and tell everyone out there. I’ll… I’ll kill someone. Is that want you want?”
Erik’s heart was pumping so fast. He walked to the shower and took Kaity’s right hand. It was wet and slippery. Erik looked at Kaity’s naked body and felt himself getting hard again. He made Kaity’s hand into a fist.
“Punch me,” he said.
“What?”
“Punch me in the face.”
“No.”
“I gave you a fucking order.”
Kaity threw her fist and smacked Erik in the nose. It stung for a second but didn’t hurt.
“Is that the best you can do?” Erik asked.
“What are you talking about?”
Erik grabbed Kaity’s wrist. “You want to be a rat? You want to be undercover?”
“No,” Kaity said. “I never…”
“This is your chance then. Prove it to the club, Kaity. I need you to fight someone for me, for us.”
“Fight?”
Erik felt the regret already. He just swore to himself ten minutes ago he would keep Kaity safe. But he didn’t know what that meant. This woman had been a rat. This woman worked undercover for a detective. She couldn’t just step into the clubhouse and belong here. That’s not how it worked.