“You should have brought this to me anyway. I know I’ve spent a lot of time in Boulder, but our case was sent back to the courts in Sunshine for over a month now and this is just now being brought up? What could the Kingston’s Crew want with the small town of Sunshine? They’re a damn street gang and to make money they need a bigger town to operate in. The shit they pull in a big city won’t fly here. Everyone here knows what’s going on with everyone here. If a stranger shows up in the community then we’re going to know it. They can’t sell skin here and the only drug trade is at the high school and that leads back to Rico. Surely ten-to-fifteen thousand a week is not enough to bring a crew here. We’ve been shutting down the drug trade since the fiasco with Angus and Sunshine. Get me up to date on everything fast.” I know it’s my fault things have gotten out of hand. It’s my responsibility to know these things, but I also just want to know my son.
“The only thing we have right now is chatter in town. We can’t prove anything. If we could then we would’ve brought it to you. We don’t want any surprises, so we have all reached out to our contacts and what you just heard is what we’ve heard. We need to get a person we can trust inside the Spirit of Arms MC. They have burned every friendship they’ve had with all the clubs we know. The only way they can recruit any help is to go to a gang or one of our enemies, and since we put Angus in prison, we don’t have any enemies that we know of. Not any that hate us enough to throw in with the likes of Rico and his club.” Brass, our sergeant-at-arms, is right. We are a quiet community and we keep the law around here. “Rico knows he isn’t strong enough to take us on by himself. It makes no sense for Rico to even bother. He’s letting his hate for the Troubled Fathoms to cloud his judgment and he’s going to make a mistake. He thinks his ace in the hole is Cage, but he must know that the judge is leaning your way. After you and Jen split ways, you did your time in the military and you have nothing on your record. The social services even gave you a good report.”
“If Cassius is willing to come into Sunshine, then there has to be a bigger payoff somewhere. The thing with the crew is they are all younger people, some still minors. Cassius recruits his members within the cities and towns that he moves into,” Bandy adds to the conversation.
“How much information do you have on his crew?” I ask Bandy.
“Since the name was mentioned, I’ve been collecting information from different sheriff and police departments through contacts I have. The Kingston’s Crew is one of the largest street gangs in Colorado, and they’re branching out to surrounding states. A lot of the members are minors from troubled homes, or where it’s a family tradition to join. Once you join the crew, it’s a lifetime membership. The only way out is a body bag. Parents will kill their own children if they turn against the crew. They live in small groups and they don’t have any contact with the bigger groups until they’re needed. They don’t phone or text like normal people do. All communication is through social media, but they have their own codes and no one outside the crew knows the code. When they say they’re going to a birthday party, it could mean a hit or a beatdown. They’re under investigation for murder, gun running, slave trading, drugs, organized crime, and RICO charges but besides a few minor beefs the authorities can get nothing to stick. We don’t want these people in our territory,” Bandy informs us all.
“We need to find out what Rico has that they want and make sure he can’t deliver it, or we’ll be going to war.” I think about it for a minute. Cassius isn’t a complex person. He’s not much older than I am, but he has always been money hungry. Dad always kept the man in his place. They had a mutual respect and kept out of each other’s way.
“Set me up a meet with Cassius. The only way to find out what Rico could be offering him is to ask. This could all be rumors. Whistler, don’t you have contact with Mouth? See if he can set us a meet in a neutral territory.” Whistler nods his head. “We can’t rattle Rico’s cage just yet. I want to get Monday’s court done first and then we’ll set up a sit-down with him away from the court. He’s acting like I did him wrong instead of the other way around. It’s time to find out what the hell has crawled up his ass. Is there anything else besides Dra that needs to be handled?” I look around the table.
“We have kept everything else going without any problems. The protection runs have gone on without a hitch along with all our businesses in town. Everything is in the black.” Sanity our treasurer speaks up. I think about Dra and look at my watch. He’s over an hour late. I get up from my chair and walk to the door and open it. I look around and I see the prospect, who’s guarding the door to church, standing against the wall. His name is Rictor and he looks like he might weigh a buck fifty soaking wet. He gets his work done and he’s always ready to do more.
“Rictor, go knock on Kim’s door and if Dra is in there tell him to get his ass to church, now.” I don’t wait for the kid to say anything before I shut the door. I hope Dra isn’t there and he’s home, but I’m not holding my breath. I walk back to the chair and sit down. “Should we take Dra’s VP patch, or does he face punishment? I haven’t done my job and stayed on top of things so if you want my patch and want me to stand down then I’ll accept your decision,” I tell my brothers. I don’t know if I could change anything that I’ve done up to this point. Since I’ve heard that I have a son, my mind has been on one thing and that has been to fight to be in his life. Where does he think I’ve been all his life? Will he forgive me for not being there? They’re the same questions that have gone through my head since I learned about Cage.
“That’s plain horse shit and you know it. You have every right to think that your brothers would cover your ass while you fight for the right to be in your son’s life. Dra is the one that dropped the ball, again. You need to quit protecting Dra and let him stand on his own two feet. He knows the rules we have about wives and club girls. Your dad and I made those rules and they were made for everyone. No brother can flagrantly cheat on their wife in our club, and that’s exactly what he’s doing. He was supposed to step up and take your slack as your VP. He’s not even doing his own duties. I say punishment, a fine, and a probation period, and if he doesn’t straighten up, then take his VP patch. If all that doesn’t work then take his colors. That’s the way the law is written and that is what we are supposed to live by.” Scout bangs his fist on the table. I’ve never heard Scout talk this strongly against any brother.
“I second the motion.” This comes from Brass.
“Show of hands that are for,” I say and everyone’s hands come up, even Whistler and Bandy’s, Dra’s closest friends.
“I am abstaining from the punishment. Gunny can take my place. Raven, Brass, and Scout are the other three.” Four brothers are required for punishment. The door opens and Dra walks in. He looks like he slept in his clothes and the smell of stale liquor and cheap perfume are pouring from him. He keeps his head down but I’m not having it. “Dra, it’s nice of you to join us over an hour late. Since you weren’t here, you were brought up on a vote. You are to pay a two thousand dollar fine for not showing up for church.” Dra looks up at me and I see his bloodshot eyes and shake my head. “You are also on probation for six months and you get a punishment by four for breaking the cheating rule of the club. Punishment is right after the meeting but before that, we’ll talk. If you’re caught breaking any other rules, your VP patch will be taken and then your colors and cut—unanimous vote.” Dra stands from his chair and pushes it against the wall.