“We have let these bikers run roughshod over our town for too long. It’s time to take it back from them,” he finished, which prompted an uneasy round of clapping.
It was uneasy, Tayline informed me from my right side, because The Fallen were actually great for the town. They supported local economy, kept drugs (hardcore ones at least) out of the city proper and brought a lot of foreign business into town because of the popularity of their custom car and motorcycle outfit. The MC had been unpopular until nearly ten years before, when the President who preceded Zeus tried to get into the narcotics game and, thankfully, failed.
“And how do you propose we do that, Mayor?” Stella stood up, her back ramrod straight and her voice hard. She was the owner of the diner in town. People loved her and respected her so they all listened to her, waiting to take their cue from her tone.
“We increase funding to the police department, for one,” Mayor Lafayette said with a winning smile. He gestured towards the lineup of policemen standing to his left side on the stage. They were all relatively young and absurdly beautiful. I knew the mayor himself had probably gone down to Entrance Bay Police station to hand-pick the prettiest cops for his dog and pony show.
“We will also be urging establishments to take down their ‘biker friendly’ signs,” the mayor continued.
“That’s horseshit,” someone called from the audience.
There was a chorus of agreement.
The mayor opened his mouth to respond when the old oak doors at the back of the hall swung open with an atmospheric creak and the bikers appeared.
Zeus led the small collection of The Fallen down the central red carpet, through the rows of civilians until he stopped directly at my row. The hushed interest of the congregation was thick around us as he put a hand on my shoulder before glaring at the people sitting in the row next to Tayline and me.
Immediately, they scrambled to their feet and moved towards the edges of the hall where the overflow of people remained standing.
“Scoot over, teach,” Zeus told me in his super badass biker growl.
I immediately did as I was told.
Harleigh Rose peered around her dad’s shoulder to grin at me. “Sup, Queenie?”
“Hey honey,” I whispered as she moved onto the wood bench beside me.
She took my hand immediately between two of her own. I felt the tremor in her hold and squeezed her tighter.
King nodded at me as he took his seat beside Zeus. His eyes were perforated with unease as Nova, Bat, Buck and Priest settled in after him. I wondered if it was because, in sitting with me so publically, they were inexorably linking me to the MC and given the current climate, King was worried about what that would mean for me, or if I would be angry over the display of ownership.
I wasn’t. My righteous fury had been ignited by the mayor’s witch-hunt against The Fallen. Not only did I want everyone to know where I stood, which was interminably beside the bikers, beside King, but also that I would tear into anyone who claimed they were involved with Benny’s incident.
“Yes, good to see you taking part in the community in a legal and civil manner, Mr. Garro,” Mayor Lafayette finally said, addressing the elephants that had stomped in the room on their loud motorcycle boots. “Maybe you’d like to say something about your part in the increase of narcotics in this town.”
“Mayor, this isn’t the time or the place,” a handsome blond policeman stepped forward to say quietly.
“Danner, if I wanted your opinion, I’d ask your daddy for it,” the mayor ground out.
Ouch. That was not only unnecessary but also cruel
I really didn’t like Mayor Lafayette.
“I’m happy to talk to folks, Mayor,” Zeus spoke clearly, loud enough to reach the far sides of the auditorium and not need a microphone. “They know I’m always up at Hephaestus Auto or at Eugene’s havin’ a beer. They got somethin’ to say, I’m around.”
“Do you have anything to say now that one of our children is in the hospital recovering from a drug-related incident?” the mayor said between his teeth.
Zeus affected a hurt expression. “Well, of course I feel for the boy and his family. Queenie,” he dropped his arm around Harleigh Rose so his fingers could sweep over my shoulder, “and my boy, King, were the ones to find him. Cress stayed at the hospital all night ‘cause she’s real close to the kid.”
“And your involvement?” the mayor prompted.
Officer Danner shifted uncomfortably behind me.
The auditorium was quiet as a gravesite, watching the standoff between the two leaders of their community.
A slow, predatory smile cut through Zeus’s harsh, handsome features. Light glinted off his teeth, set fire to his pale eyes so that he seemed like the Devil sitting in a church, daring God to smite him.