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  Austin and Forrest hop up and begin tossing the sacks to the ground.

  “Looks like we lost one,” Brooks says, toeing the motionless bag with his leather boot.

  “Lucky fuck.” I shrug. I cut the bag open and stare down at the lifeless body in front of me, curled up in the fetal position. “Looks like he just fell asleep.”

  “Let’s see what we’re working with,” my dad says.

  We take turns cutting open bags of bodies—their mouths bound with duct tape, arms and legs hogtied tight—and prop them up the against the edge of the delivery truck.

  This shouldn’t be so thrilling for me. I know enough about morals and ethics and how the world works, and am perfectly aware of how wretched this love for revenge is, but I also know how we do things on this mountain, and if you ask me, there’s not much better than the scene laid out before me.

  Sloan

  My heart is pounding in my chest. Clutch is escorting us into the clubhouse but I can’t help but look over my shoulder. That man has me all sorts of mixed-up and horny. The way he towered over me made me feel scared and safe at the same time. The way he kissed me washed away any hope that I had that this was going to be a fling.

  The way he’s currently cutting open what looks like potato sacks filled with men bound with rope should be more concerning to me, but I’m more worried about the throbbing between my legs and the butterflies in my stomach that just being near him gives me.

  “Sloan, seriously, don’t look,” Olive scolds in a loud whisper. “You’re gonna get yourself in trouble.”

  I put my head down and follow her through the big barn door off the side of the mansion. The inside of the clubhouse looks like an ornate hunting lodge, the walls covered in mounted animals and the smell of cedar permeating the air. I’m shocked at how clean it is, especially after meeting the boys.

  A giant Rottweiler comes charging at me as I round the bar, her little nub wagging a million miles a minute. She’s wearing a pink collar with a bow on it and I kneel down to pet her.

  “Who is this beautiful princess?” I ask, baby talking her as she rolls over on her back to show me her tummy.

  “Don’t mind her,” Olive says to Clutch. “She’s always had a thing for dogs.”

  “That thing fucking scares me,” Clutch says. She’s rolling around on the ground, her tongue hanging out without a care in the world.

  “That’s ’cause you’re a pussy,” a gruff voice bellows from above me. A woman dressed in denim overalls and wearing a train conductor’s hat lets out a booming roar of laughter as she slaps him on the back. She’s built like a linebacker and her frizzy brown hair is piled on top of her head in a sloppy ponytail.

  “Aunt Trixie!” Olive says, bringing her in for a warm hug.

  “Girl, you need to put some clothes on. What’re you thinking running around here looking like that?” She’s eyeing Olive’s little leather minidress.

  “This old thing?” She winks.

  “I’m glad you’re ok,” Trixie says, wrapping Clutch in a bear hug. “I hate hearing about shit like this. If I wasn’t in the middle of fixing the homecoming feast, I’d be right out there with them hunting down Sabers and hacking ’em up while…”

  “Heyyyyy…” Clutch says, stopping her from finishing her sentence. He motions to me and puts his finger to his lips.

  “She ain’t the law, is she?”

  “No!” I insist. “I’m Sloan. I was Hank’s surgeon.”

  “Hon, I know exactly who you are. And I’m glad I finally get to meet ya.” She gives me a warm hug, and I don’t know why, but something about this woman makes me feel like I’m safe here, I’m welcome here, almost like I belong here. “You’re skinnier than I thought you’d be though. I’m gonna go get ya something to eat.”

  “Me too please?” Olive asks.

  “Do you want a hand?” I offer.

  “Nah, you just stay here and hang out with Tootsie. She really loves the attention.”

  This dog hadn’t left my side since I walked in the door, and now she is nudging my hand with her big nose, urging me to pet her more. It makes me miss old Bender so much. Or even just having the “stability” to be able to have a dog in general.

  Trixie exits through a swinging door, leaving the three of us alone in the barroom. Olive walks behind the bar and fishes out two bottles of beer.

  “I’m feeling a little rough,” Clutch says. “I’m gonna go take a nap. Sorry to leave you guys alone. It’s been fun.”

  “I don’t blame you at all,” I tell him. “You lost a lot of blood. Let me look at that in the morning to make sure it’s clean and healing right.”

  He shakes his head at me. “I figured you’d make a run for it while you had the chance. You don’t have to stay, you know.”

  “I want to,” I insist. Things are just starting to get interesting. “I mean it.”

  His face looks worried, the same kind of worry Olive has been directing at me since the day Gavin and I met.

  “I’m glad,” Clutch says. “He’s a good man. But you have to finish school. You can’t let our shit get in the way of that.”

  “Did she pay you to say that?” I laugh.

  “She does pretty much have it drilled in all our heads. She can be kind of a scary bitch, you know?”

  Olive flicks him right in the bandage and he shudders. “Get out of here before I show you how scary of a bitch I actually am.”

  As he wanders off, I take a long pull off the cold beer. It goes down a lot faster than I expected, but my stomach is growling and I need sustenance. Hops and barley will have to hold me over for a minute.

  “What is this place?” I ask, looking around the giant barroom.

  “This is the clubhouse. It’s where the guys hang out when they’re not fishing, hunting, or riding their bikes. It gets pretty crazy at night. Even by my standards. You wouldn’t believe the kind of hookers that hang around looking to screw a Misfit.”

  “Hey, I resemble that comment,” a gorgeous redhead slinging two giant bags of ice in her arms says, dropping them to the floor. She’s out of breath, her face bright red, and her green eyes burn right through me. She’s dressed modestly in a flowing blouse and a pair of jeans. She’s that kind of pretty that makes you instantly jealous, automatically assuming that your man is, at the very least, thinking about her when he’s sleeping with you.

  “You’re Sloan, aren’t you?” she asks. Jesus, word does travel fast on this mountain.

  I nod.

  “I’m Esther. Esther Boden. The redheaded stepchild.” She smiles.

  “Let me help you,” Olive says. “I have a feeling it’s gonna be a rough night. You got enough girls?”

  “If you want to pick up some hours, by all means. These morons love you.”

  The two work together getting the area behind the bar all stocked and ready to go for the night’s upcoming festivities. Olive chops up lemons and limes and Esther takes bottles of liquor and lines them up on the shelves.

  “I’m really sorry to hear about what happened at your place today, Ollie. That fucking sucks. And how scary for you, Sloan. I’m sorry you had to see that,” Esther says in the most sincere and convincing way possible. Something about this woman is pure goodness. I feel myself instantly liking her.

  “You should’ve seen her, Esther. She handled it like a pro. Everyone else was shaking in their boots and she just walked right over and started giving orders.”

  “I was talking about my brother’s hairy ass,” she giggles. She opens another beer and slides it across the bar to me. “I’m just teasing, Sloan. Seriously, thank you for taking care of Clutch today, and Goob, too. I swear it’s not like this all the time.”

  “You’re really nice,” I tell her.

  Trixie returns with a couple of platters and Esther smiles. “What do you got there, Auntie?”

  “Sandwiches and cookies. Does that work for you, Sloan?”

  “Thank you so much, Trixie. This looks amazing. You
didn’t have to do this.” I grab a sandwich and start scarfing it down with reckless abandon. Three bites is all it takes before I’m shoveling cookies into my mouth.

  “I’ve never seen anything like that before,” Trixie laughs. “It’s slightly repulsive but also intriguing.”

  “Not the first time I’ve heard that.” I shrug and forge ahead. Something about this just feels so good. I’m surrounded by a kind group of women. In my career, I rarely get to feel this. I’m isolated from a lot of day-to-day normal interaction with other girls my age.

  “Why are you guys being so kind to me?” I ask.

  Esther smiles, her eyes growing narrow.

  “There are two kinds of women who walk through that door. There are the kind that will only be happy if her fellow sister is suffering, the kind who will go to any lengths to try and fuck their way to the top of the food chain, even if it means dragging all women and everything we’ve worked so hard for through the dirt in the process. The only loyalty they have is to their desire to become an old lady. Then there’s us. We don’t ask for anything. We don’t expect anything. We just treat people like we want to be treated. I hate to break it to ya, but you’re like us. And women like us need to stick together.”

  I’m touched by how she has so much faith in me without even really knowing me.

  “Thanks for talking me up, Olive,” I say. “I feel like I have some pretty high standards to live up to, though.”

  “It’s not that hard. Just be honest. Be yourself. And if you ever hurt my brother, make sure you tell me first so I can be there to point and laugh at him.

  “I’m just going to warn you, though, if you plan on sticking around tonight you’ll probably meet a lot of the other kind of girls. Take what they say with a grain of salt. They’re going to do whatever they can to try and tear you down, and Olive and I might not be handy to look after you. It’s going to suck, but you’ll get used to it.”

  “You just stick with me, Sloan,” Trixie says. “I’ll make sure nobody fucks with you.” I trust her word. I know I wouldn’t fuck with this lady before I met her personally, and especially not after.

  I hear the barn door swing open, and in walks three scantily clad girls in high heels, their hair immaculately curled, makeup heavy. I begin to feel really self-conscious about my current state of dress. I realize the only people I have to impress are the ones who aren’t going to care, though, and it makes me feel strong, powerful, relaxed. I feel like I’m in a place where I’m meant to be.

  “Oh shit,” Esther mutters. “Is it seven already? Come on, girls, put away the phones and make sure your stations are set up. Tammy, what in the world are you wearing?”

  The petite blonde giggles and throws off her trench coat, exposing a black mesh dress that leaves nothing to the imagination.

  “It was chilly out!”

  “That’ll work,” Esther sighs. “Alright, ladies. Should be pretty dark soon. I’d expect this place to fill up any minute now.”

  I admit, I’m starting to get nervous for what’s to come. From Esther’s warning, it sounds like I might be subjecting myself to something terrible. I don’t know how I’m going to feel about these girls she told me about. Even worse, the thought that they probably slept with Gavin makes my stomach kind of turn. I realize what’s in the past is in the past, but seeing it with my own two eyes, up close and personal, is going to take some getting used to.

  “Why don’t you come help me for a minute,” Trixie suggests. “We gotta get this food put out before the men get back. I’m sure they’re going to be starving after a day of hunting.”

  I follow her to the kitchen, and Tootsie chases at our heels. It’s probably better I keep myself busy helping her than busy pouring beer down my throat.

  We carry out big trays of pulled pork, nachos, cupcakes, and soft pretzels.

  “Are you a chef?” I ask her.

  “Not by trade,” she says. “But it’s my way of helping the club. I keep everyone fed. These guys took me in when I was just a little one. I had nothing and nobody. My mom dumped me here and took off with a rival gang. Best thing that ever happened to me. And that was forty years ago.”

  I can’t imagine the life she’s had. I want to hug her, but she’s busy getting everything organized on the table. The barroom is definitely starting to fill up, mostly with girls dressed in less than I would wear to the swimming pool and a few older men caped in the leather Mountain Misfits cut.

  “Do you care if I just hang out with you tonight?” I ask her, nervously eyeing the crowd of strangers.

  “Not at all. Let’s get some beers and take a load off.”

  As I make my way to the bar, I spot a familiar girl out of the corner of my eye. Her bleached blonde mane is shiny and straight, hanging longer than her midriff leather halter top, and I’m thinking if I had abs like hers, I’d probably never wear clothes at all.

  “Oh look, it’s doctor bitchy!” Morgan croons. “Just kidding, love.”

  I’m sure she is.

  “What are you doing up here? The hospital send you to spy on us? You trying to get Hank in trouble?”

  “Honey, I perform surgery and help patients recover from it. That’s it. Hank’s not my patient anymore, so what the fuck do I care?”

  “You better not be lying. We’re watching you. Moses told us you’re trouble.”

  “Hey!” Trixie bellows. “What kind of surgery do you do to fix a badly botched Mexican boob job?”

  Morgan’s face twists up into a sour pout.

  “I don’t know, Trix. Not my area of expertise. I’m a trauma surgeon.”

  “Well I’ve seen ’em, and I’m traumatized,” she cackles.

  Morgan begins prancing away, her knee-high boots clicking on the hardwood.

  “You’re ugly, both of you,” she calls out, pouting, “and you’re like literally dirty.”

  I shake my head and laugh.

  “At least she knows how to use the word literally correctly,” I say, pointing at my shirt caked in dirt and mud.

  “Oh honey, you’re fine. Nobody here cares about what anyone looks like, except the girls. It’s not what you’re wearing. It’s what’s between your legs that matters,” she chuckles.

  “I’ll toast to that.” We snag the two barstools in front of us. Trixie and I, two Mountain Misfits in our own right. I watch in wonder as the biker bar scene comes to life in front of me.

  I wonder what Morgan meant when she said Gavin’s father told them I was trouble.

  Does he know something about me or is he just mad about our meeting at the hospital? Do I need to be worried? He’s probably just not used to women standing up to him. I take a long swig off the cold bottle and Trixie taps my shoulder and points.

  “Would ya look at that? Not something you see every day.”

  There’s what looks like a heated game of strip pool going on in the corner and I’m fairly certain some miseducated young girl is confused with what body part you’re supposed to use to hold your cue stick, although she looks like she’s really enjoying herself.

  I can’t help but stare in shocked amazement.

  “You’re way out of your element aren’t ya, doctor bitchy?” she teases.

  “Way.”

  Chapter 16

  Gavin:

  Living up on this mountain provides us with a wealth of resources. Clean spring water, fresh air, plenty of cherry and maple for building things, lots of great hiding spots for moonshine stills, and the fishing and hunting are some of the best in the state.

  Most importantly, though, out in this forest, these fields, these hills, nobody can hear you scream. And even if they do, they’ll likely just look the other way, or jump in and lend a brother a hand.

  Revenge is a pillar of the Mountain Misfits MC way. Not only does it help keep other clubs in check and assert our position as those crazy fuckers up on the hill, but it satisfies one of the most basic urges of my brothers and I. Fucking and fighting will only get you so far. Every
once in a while, a good old-fashioned killing spree is somewhat of a necessary evil. Keeps us from killing each other at the very least.

  The five surviving Sabers are lined up before us, backs up against the side of the delivery truck, hands and feet bound, duct tape on their mouths, sheer terror in their eyes.

  “What’s wrong, guys?” my father taunts. “Bumpy ride?”

  Brooks begins pulling the duct tape from their mouths as they gasp for lungfuls of air.

  “Which one of you fucks shot up my bar?” I ask. “And don’t say Jimmy.” I nudge the dead body on the ground with my boot. “Jimmy can’t speak for himself right now.”

  My gang closes in around them, a tight circle, clenching their weapons of choice, staring them down as the Sabers plead for their lives.

  “You’re a bunch of sickos,” one cries out. “Sick fucking weirdos.”

  “And?” my father laughs. He pulls out his cellphone and snaps a picture of them. “I want to make sure your president sees how much fun you’re having on your hunting trip!”

  “It was me,” the youngest of the lot pleads. “I did it. Jaso told me to. Please, just let these guys go and I’ll take you right to him. We’ll get it straightened out.”

  “Well, he made a huge mistake, because you can’t shoot for shit,” Austin says. “Neither can I though; that’s why I don’t use a gun.” He’s holding a lead pipe in his hand and he cracks it off the guy’s knee. He screams in agony.

  “Take it easy,” I say to Austin. “I’m in the mood for a challenge today. It’s not as much fun when they’re already injured.”

  “You’re right, boss.”

  “He’s just getting him warmed up for me,” Heat laughs, flicking his switchblade in the kid’s face. “My old body can’t run like it used to, but damn, my knife skills get better and better every year.”

  “I’m sure you’ve heard the rumors about how this works, men,” my father addresses them. “The rules are actually very fair and clear, no surprises like your little stunt earlier today. Once we cut you loose, you’re free to go. You get a fifteen-minute head start, and after that, we will track you down and find you, even if it takes all night. Good luck to you, boys. Make that president of yours proud.”