HARDCORE: Storm MC(108)
Hunter's cell phone rang, and he looked at the caller ID.
It said “Bones.”
Hunter hit the Accept button. “Bones? Where the fuck are you?”
The voice that answered was a nasal drawl with a slight Mexican accent. “Not to worry, ese. Your friend is quite close to you. In fact, he's on his way right now.”
A pair of headlights flashed twice outside and Hunter ran out of the house, peering up the street. A black car with no license plates was approaching. As it sped past, the rear window glided open and something round was tossed out. It bounced once on the pavement before rolling to a stop at Hunter's feet.
It was Bones' severed head, wrapped in clear plastic.
Hunter tried to say Bones' name, but all that came out was a choked cry of grief. Keith and the other Eagles were at his side in a flash. Arnie drew a massive pistol from his shoulder holster and aimed it at the retreating car, but Missy called out, “No, don't shoot! You won't hit anything, and you'll spook the neighbors into calling the cops again.”
Slowly, Arnie holstered his weapon again, a stricken look on his face as he examined the head on the ground.
Hunter heard the voice on the phone again and lifted it to his ear, his hand trembling with fury. He'd only heard it a couple of times before in his life, but he still knew who it belonged to.
“You can all hide out at the Knife, or in that house, or on fucking Mars for all the good it'll do you, maricon,” Gaspar said. “It don't matter. Soon, every member of your club is gonna be dead and buried.”
Chapter 26
Missy
Arnie and Tallboy left to establish safe houses and choose who would go with them. Keith stayed behind, watching solemnly as Hunter carefully wrapped Bones' head in a towel, wincing as he did it. Missy and Cain looked on as well.
“What are you going to do with it?” Cain asked.
“I dunno,” Hunter said. He stared down at the swaddled package in his arms, shaking his head sadly. “He deserves a proper fuckin' burial, or...somethin', y'know? But with just his head...I mean...oh, Jesus fuckin' Christ...”
Hunter's voice hitched in his throat and he looked away for a moment. Missy realized he was trying not to cry. She hadn't seen him weep since they were little kids. She averted her eyes awkwardly, not knowing what else to do. After a moment, she saw that Cain was doing the same.
Keith reached up to put a hand on Hunter's shoulder, then thought better of it and clasped his hands in front of his belt buckle, looking down.
Hunter sniffed and faced forward again, regaining his composure. “Anyway, it ain't like we can just leave 'im here, an' we ain't throwin' him away like he's garbage. So I guess he comes with me until we figure somethin' out. Meanwhile, I gotta get back to the Knife an' get the guys together, fill 'em in on what's happenin'. Might scare the hell outta some of 'em, what we're up against. Hope they stick around, but given the circumstances...”
“They're Eagles, boss,” Keith said quietly. “They ain't goin' nowhere, 'cept where you tell 'em to go.”
Hunter nodded. “Yeah. Thanks. Missy, you take Cain back inside. Keith, you hang out here an' call your guys to come join you. Like I said, you stay in the garage, okay? You keep the garage door up so you can see what's goin' on out here, an' two of you are gonna patrol the perimeter of the property once every thirty minutes. Whatever happens, from now on, every Eagle will constantly remain in the sight line of at least one other Eagle. Understand? No more of this divide-an'-conquer shit. These fuckin' cowards wanna come at us, we give 'em more than one target.”
“You got it, boss,” Keith said. He flipped his phone open and walked a few steps away, calling the other Eagles.
Hunter went to his bike, opened his saddlebag, and carefully, reverently lowered the wrapped head into it. He muttered a few words under his breath that sounded like they might have been a prayer, then closed the bag slowly and walked back to Cain and Missy, putting a hand on each of their shoulders.
Hunter put one rough hand on Missy's shoulder, and another on Cain's. “If you ain't never listened to nothin' I've said before, either of you, I want you to listen to this: You gotta take care of each other. Both of you are too fuckin' important for me to lose over this bullshit, and I trust each of you more than I've ever trusted anyone in my life. I wish I could stay here an' look after you instead of Keith, but...”
“A captain's place is on the bridge of his ship,” Missy said, forcing a smile. When she and Hunter had been children, he'd been obsessed with ships and the ocean. For a while, he'd even considered joining the Navy, but he eventually abandoned that dream to help their father run the Eagles.