Always (Next Generation The Skulls 1)

Simon vaguely remembered the guy from the Chaos Bleeds Nomad chapter. Each of the clubs, even The Skulls, had a chapter that didn’t live in any one area. They traveled. Lucius had been part of it, and so had Roxy. She’d been a club whore, a dearly loved woman, but she’d died. Afterward, Lucius hadn’t been able to cope and had left. There was no sign of him, not even a dead body, unless Devil didn’t want to tell him what had happened.

“Is that why you don’t want to travel? What it would do to Mom?”

“No,” Devil said. “The reason I don’t want to travel is that I don’t need to. I’ve done it all. I was reminding you of the Nomads, in case that’s what you want to try. There’s something freeing about being on the open road. You learn a lot about yourself.”

Simon thought about it. “Right now, it’s not something I want.”

“Tabby?”

“I don’t feel the need to be away from her any longer than I have to. Unless she wants to go with me.”

Devil laughed. “I told your mom I’d give you the option. She was the one to tell me you wouldn’t take it. She’s right. Get some sleep, son. You’re going to need it. There’s no way you’re going into that place without all of your senses focused.” Devil got to his feet and escaped to the bathroom.

After kicking off his shoes and jeans, and removing his jacket and shirt, he lay down on the bed. He pulled out his cell phone and brought up the pictures. There were several Tabitha had sent him from Halloween. She looked so pretty dressed the way she was. Stunning even. He wished he’d been there. He would have danced the whole night away and had something to do with those bastards from the other club.

Scrolling past, he went to some of them together. Her lips were pursed, kissing his cheek as he smiled in the camera. Of course he had so many of Tabitha and Daisy. They were close and had been since they were kids. Anthony was there as well, looking mightily cute.

“That’s not sleeping,” Devil said.

“I’m just…”

“Looking at pictures of your girlfriend.” He chuckled. “Don’t go making me a grandpa before my time.”

He rolled his eyes. “I won’t.”

“Do I need to have the sex talk with you again?”

“Please, don’t. I like to not vomit in my mouth.”

Devil chuckled, but it sounded evil and happy at the same time. This was what he loved about being with his dad. They were close, and he felt like he could talk to him about anything and there would never be judgment. Devil’s cell phone buzzed. “It’s your mother.”

“You’ve got to rest as well, old man. You’re not getting any younger.”

“Cheeky little fucker.” Silence passed. “Huh.”

“What’s huh?”

“It’s nothing.”

“Come on, Dad, what is it?”

“Lexie got a call from Eva. It seems Daisy’s real dad, not Whizz, the one who sold her to The Skulls, was found dead this morning. It looked like he was cleaning out his gun, and shot himself right in the neck.”

****

Tabitha climbed up the wall outside of Anthony’s bedroom window. The moment she’d heard her parents talking, she just knew. Climbing wasn’t something she enjoyed doing and if her parents thought to check on her, she was going to be grounded again, but there was no way she was going to be able to hold off until the morning to ask him.

Getting to the window, she knocked on it. Anthony sat at his desk.

He glanced over at her and she pointed at the window. “Open it,” she said, whispering.

Anthony looked like he was going to tell her no. If he did, she was going to beat his ass with a bat. She’d make Daisy kiss him and that would give her the leverage she needed to beat the shit out of him.

He opened the window and she climbed on through.

Again, no words.

“You did it.”

Anthony sat at his desk and Tabitha started to pace the room.

“Parents are home,” he said.

She stopped. “You killed him.”

He didn’t look up. His head was bowed over his books, a pencil in his hand. There was no real sign that he’d killed a man, but there was no way Daisy’s father was miraculously cleaning a gun he didn’t own.

“Damn it, Anthony, look at me.”

He sighed, lowered his pencil, and turned toward her.

“You killed him.”

Nothing.

“You’re not going to say anything? You’re just going to keep giving me the creeps with the stares.”

“What do you want me to say? You want me to lie to you, Tabs? Is that it? No, I didn’t kill him. He clearly was a drunk and I’m so sorry that he’s dead.”

“You’re fucking lying,” she said. “You heard what Daisy said at Halloween and it has been less than a week and he suddenly turns up dead. Don’t lie to me. You owe me more than that.”