The Psycho (The Soldiers of Anarchy 1)

Chapter Ten

Adam

“He’s a shady fucker. I can feel it in my balls. I say we take him out right at the prison gates. Don’t give the slimy git a chance to dodge us.” Colton was still lounging in his gamer’s chair like he’d been dropped from the ceiling and landed in that position. He grinned at us as he scanned the games room where we were all gathered and took another drag from his rolled-up cigarette. “What do you say, Dev? One single shot to the head. Is that gonna quench your thirst for blood?”

Devon grimaced back at him then turned away and started rolling his own cigarette, frowning as he did, but the concentration on his face wasn’t linked to the roll-up, Devon had something else on his mind.

“Sounds like an easy way out to me,” he said in a dull, quiet tone. “It goes against our whole ethic. Go hard or go home.” He licked the roll up paper and glanced back to where Colton sat, studying Devon like he had no idea where he’d come from.

“I was joking,” Colton replied, laughing. “I know you like to get your hands dirty. God forbid I’d ever take that away from you. You can fucking swim in his blood for all I care. Bathe in it. Have a fucking party, foam style, and paint the town red.”

Devon tutted but Colton carried on. “You know, I can see you doused in blood, getting it on with some red-blooded females. Get it? Females… red-blooded… covered in blood.”

There was a collective groan from the room, which was rightly deserved. As much as we liked to call him our joker, sometimes his sense of humour missed the mark.

“What? Don’t you like blood comedy?” he mused. “Is blood sport not your thing, Dev?”

“Your joke was shit,” I piped up from my corner of the room, and each one of them turned to face me. “Not even Tyler and Will are laughing at it.” I stepped forward, pointing to the two lads as I sauntered over to the fridge to get a cold beer. “Laughing at you maybe, but not your joke.”

Devon huffed a smile and Colton beamed, putting both hands behind his head as he focused his attention on me.

“Well, it got a rise out of you. So that’s a win in my book. I rattled the mighty Noble enough to make him bite back.”

“You’re not the only person he’s bitten back at today,” Tyler guffawed, and I glared across at him, waiting for him to dare to elaborate. “Or was that another soldier that pinned some Sandland fucker to a fence with a knife through his hand today?” The way he smirked, I felt like stabbing one right through his to wipe the smile off his face.

“I don’t need to explain myself to you,” I answered, scowling as I popped the cap off the beer and threw the bottle opener down on the counter.

“No, you don’t. But it’d be nice to hear it from someone other than Sarah fucking Pope who was gossiping on the corner of Oakdene Road this afternoon. Mate, if someone needs a reminder of who we are, we do it together. Isn’t that the deal?” Tyler added.

“It wasn’t Brinton business. You didn’t need to be involved,” I informed him in a disinteresting manner that was supposed to get him to drop it.

“Could this have something to do with a certain blonde bombshell you’ve been obsessing over lately?” Colton asked, wiggling his eyebrows.

I narrowed my eyes at him and noticed a slight flicker in his confident facade, but it was so slight no one else would’ve noticed it, only me. I knew these lads better than they knew themselves. And he knew better than to test me.

“I don’t obsess. I admire.” I smirked, trying to change tack.

“And she is very worthy of that attention,” Colton added on a chuckle, waving his mobile phone in the air. “Although, from the look on her face right now, I don’t think she appreciates your level of admiration.”

It suddenly clicked why he was holding his mobile phone up. Our CCTV system was linked to our phones, and Olivia must’ve been somewhere on our premises. That thought alone made my stomach flip. One, because I’d dropped the ball for a few hours. Last I’d checked, she was at her friend’s apartment. And two, she was here. Finally, she’d made the journey across town to come here and see me. The thought of her being here, whatever it was for, was making me nervous, anxious and excited all at once. I hadn’t had many face-to-face encounters with Olivia, but when I had, it’d been fireworks on acid, and I loved it.

The sound of the intercom buzzing broke the tension in the air, and Colton shot out of his chair to answer it using the system attached to the wall.

“And what can we do for you on this very fine evening?” he sang down the line like he didn’t have a care in the world.

“Are you fucking joking?” Even through an intercom, she sounded sexy as hell, and I felt my heart rate spike even higher. “Just open the goddamn door, will you? I don’t want to be here any longer than I have to be,” she shouted, and I couldn’t keep the smile from creeping slowly over my face as I imagined her angry and ready to start World War three, her cheeks growing redder by the second as she pushed her face closer to the camera to try to look menacing. Trying… but failing. She was too cute.

Fuck, Olivia. What are you doing to me?

“Well, that’s just rude,” Colton replied. “What’s wrong with our company? I’ll have you know there are ladies who would kill to be in your position. Fighting over themselves they are to get an audience with us.” Colton could win Oscars with his performances, but he wasn’t winning Olivia around. That’s what I loved about her. She was nobody’s fool.

“Fighting to get away from you, more like. Just cut the bullshit. Either open up or send him down here to face me.”

“And by he, I assume you mean our esteemed, self-proclaimed leader, Mr Noble,” Colton added as he turned to stare at me.

“Who else would I mean?” she snapped back impatiently.

“There are four other options up here. And some of us aren’t averse to the idea of sharing, unlike your man, Noble.” Colton’s comment made me tense up and return his stare with a warning glare.

Don’t push it, mate.

“He isn’t my man,” she growled, and then I heard the sound of her banging on the thick wooden doors, rattling them like she could force them open with her tiny hands. I’d have to watch the CCTV later. That was one image I really needed to see for myself.

“Okay, okay. Calm your tits,” Colton said with a hint of amusement in his voice. “Wouldn’t want you to break a nail now, would we? Give me two minutes and I’ll be down to let you in, princess.”

He turned to look at me as he said the last part. Then he smirked and turned the intercom off.

“Do you want to go down to her? Or shall I bring her up here?” He glanced around the room then added, “We could all do with a laugh.”

“No. Send her to my room.” I slammed my beer bottle onto the counter and then turned around slowly to face him. “And if you ever call her princess again, you’ll be wearing your balls as souvenirs around your neck.”

“Your room?” He gasped like he couldn’t believe what I was saying, totally ignoring my threat about using a pet name for her.

“Do you have a fucking hearing problem as well as personality disorder? Yes. My room.”

The others shrugged and Colton rolled his eyes before muttering under his breath, “This one must be special. And I’ll have you know I’m very proud of my personality disorder. It’s taken years to perfect.” And then he sauntered out of the door.