I felt like I’d stepped into a movie. I knew shit like this went on, but outside of having grown some amazing hydroponic weed in college, I had little experience with harder drugs. I loved booze, and I loved weed, but while I’d never admit it to Joker, anything else scared me a little. The thought of a bunch of cranked up bikers cooking meth didn’t exactly inspire my confidence that their wares wouldn’t kill me. Clearly not everyone was so discriminating.
“So, the short version of the story is that we’re all kinda fucked, to be honest,” Joker had said as we pulled into the lot. “Your mother is right that we’re gonna have to do something soon, or we’re gonna lose the house. It’s paid off, but the taxes are fuckin’ ridiculous and we need a new roof.” Joker looked at me. “I’m sorry to throw this shit on you. I’m just overwhelmed. I thought of Moses like my son, and when he died, it nearly killed me. To have you show up is the answer to my prayers … or it would be if I prayed.” Joker laughed as he got out of the Jeep. “Come in and meet my brothers,” he hollered after he’d shut the door.
I wasn’t sure what I was expecting, but I was sure it wouldn’t be boring.
The whole entrance thing was odd — like the entrances had been designed by a paranoid drug dealer, which I guess made sense. Once we got inside, I felt like I spent more time under bikers’ armpits than I’d ever thought I’d care to. I had to have endured hugs from every man in the room at least once, and Joker spent most of the evening with his arm thrown over my shoulders. Since I was a couple of inches taller than he was, it made for some uncomfortable moments.
I’ll say one thing for the Savage Sons: they were generous hosts. I never lacked for a beer, and Joker made it perfectly clear that any woman in the room was mine for the taking — with just a few exceptions. I couldn’t see around the huge group of people around us to see exactly who he’d gestured toward over by the bar, but I expected that I wasn’t interested in an “old lady” anyway.
Jimmy, a Son from someplace up north, was telling me a story about Joker and my uncle having outrun the police back when they first started the MC, and I had to admit that once the shock of the scene had worn off, I was enjoying the company. I marveled at the men — committed to backing one another up — and absolutely not giving a fuck what anyone thought about them. It felt a little dangerous and a little exciting.
“Joker, I gotta take a leak,” I said after I’d finished laughing at Jimmy’s story. “Can I get you a beer?”
“Nah, son, I’m good,” he said as he continued to laugh and light another cigarette.
So he was weirding me out a little, jumping right into the “son” thing, but he seemed like a good enough guy, and he was just so freaking happy to have me there that I couldn’t get too terribly upset. I figured I’d get through the evening and sort out my feelings and how I’d handle the Halls later. I took a couple of steps toward the hallway that Joker had directed me toward, and ran straight into Krystal.
“Krystal?” I said, stunned. “What are you doing here?”
She shook her head, as if she didn’t quite believe her eyes. “What am I doing here? Are you kidding? What are you doing here?”
I just stared at her, and I realized that she looked a lot different than she had at the bar. “Wow,” I said. “I thought you were hot before…” my voice trailed off.
“Oh, my God,” she said. “You’re Joker’s son?” Her hand flew up to cover her mouth.
“Yeah. How did you know?”
“Zeno at the door told me that Joker was here introducing his son — a tall blond guy. It never occurred to me that it could be you.”
“Why would it? Denver isn’t a small town. But seriously, what are you doing here?”
Before Krystal could answer, a man with massive shoulders pushed my shoulder, forcing me to take a step back from her.
“She’s with me.”
The man just stared at me, having to look up a bit since I was a good six inches taller than he was. He stuck his chin out, as if he was trying to intimidate m, and I nearly laughed in his face, but I realized instantly that the guy gave off a seriously unbalanced vibe — like the kind of guy who could go batshit crazy with no warning at all.
I held up my hands and took another step back. “Hey, nothing going on here, man. I was just talking to the lady.”
“What the fuck right do you think you have to come in here and start talking to another man’s old lady?”
I couldn’t help it, but something about his having referred to Krystal like she was his property just rubbed me the wrong way.