The Skulls Read online

  “It’s nice to see one of the men treating you nice,” Tate said.

  Angel smiled at her not knowing what to say. Tate was like her, thicker than the other girls in the club. Angel once heard that the men preferred thin women and hated old ladies who got fat.

  If that was the case what was Lash doing with her?

  She sat on his lap, and Lash grabbed a newspaper. Everything felt surreal to her. She was sat on Lash’s lap, reading a newspaper while being waited on.

  “We got a lot of work to do today, boys. I expect you all to be out to the warehouse for our meeting. No women, no old ladies, only yourself and your bike,” Tiny said.

  Fern walked back to the table, slamming down plates and glaring at her.

  Angel stayed still not wanting to draw any unnecessary attention.

  “Come on, man. When are we going to have a proper fucking party? I need to get laid by real sluts,” Butch said.

  “Shut your mouth, Butch, otherwise I’ll make sure you don’t see any action for months,” Tiny said.

  Angel saw him looking at his daughter as he spoke.

  Butch’s mouth stayed closed while Tate placed food in front of Tiny and then moved back to the kitchen.

  “Sorry.”

  “When Tate’s here, you stay quiet.” Tiny spoke while cutting into his breakfast.

  No member used his real name. She knew Tiny either picked names out, or members chose their own names. From what she heard, Tiny’s name was chosen by his late wife.

  When Tate brought her breakfast through, she saw it was on one plate and was handed to Lash.

  “I’m the one who gets to feed you.”

  “Move,” Tate said. Angel turned to see the other woman was speaking to Nash.

  “Why do I have to move?”

  “Because I said.”

  Lash chuckled. “Come on, brother, you know she’ll get what she wants.”

  His brother moved leaving room for Tate to sit next to them. “It’s archaic making her eat from your fingers, Lash.”

  “Only because you’ve never found a man strong enough to stand up to your father.”

  “That’s the truth. None of these men will have the guts to stand up to Dad and make a play for me. In fact none of the men in Fort Wills will touch me.” Tate let out a sigh and started eating.

  Angel stared at the other woman in sympathy.

  “I’m sending a Prospect with Angel today. She needs new clothes, and I’ve not got the time to go with her,” Lash said, half-way through breakfast.

  “I’ll go as well. I need new shoes,” Tate said, speaking up.

  Around her people organised her day, and Angel was left no choice other than to do what they asked.

  ****

  Lash stood with his brother and Tiny. They’d gone through the three Prospects they had and come to Prospect Steven. He was twenty years old, skinny but could fight. From what Lash knew of him, he was a good kid and loyal to the club.

  “You’re on babysitting duty. Anything happens to the girls it’s on your head,” Tiny said.

  He counted off some notes and handed them to Steven. Lash did the same.

  “Whatever Tate wants, you get it her. I don’t want to hear her moaning or anything.” Tiny gave some more instructions and then left Steven to him.

  Lash handed over plenty of cash. “I want good, designer shops. None of the shitty thrift stories they have. Make sure you take them to the mall out of town, and if you do, you pack your stuff. There’s plenty of action from other crews. If you see other tags you get out of there.”

  “I’ve got it. Take the girls shopping, make sure they spend a shit load of cash, and keep them safe,” Steven said. “I’ll keep an eye on them. Both of them will be safe with me. I promise.”

  “Good.” Lash slapped the Prospect on the shoulder and moved toward his woman. Angel was stood near the door, her arms folded while Tate did nothing but talk. Tate clearly liked his woman.

  “Here comes trouble,” Tate said.

  Angel looked, and he was caught in her green gaze. Going to her side, he pushed the hair from her face and looked down into her eyes. “You’re to have fun today. I’ve given the money to Steven, and I should be back this afternoon.”

  “You don’t have to pay for anything.”

  “My woman, my rules, Angel.” He pressed his lips against hers. “See you later, and be good.”

  Before he left the club he made sure Steven knew to get her a cell phone. He wanted to be in touch with her at all times. Nash stayed silent behind him as he instructed Steven. There were only a few years between them as brothers.

  “Man, you’ve got it bad,” Nash said.

  They stood by their bikes on the forecourt of the club.

  Each of the men was saying bye to their ladies or the women who satisfied their needs.

  “I’ve always had it bad for Angel.”

  “I know, but this is different and you know it. You’re the reason Tiny called in the debt and the reason David is not dead yet,” Nash said.

  “There are times I wish you weren’t my brother.”

  “Yeah, having someone know everything about you must suck. Does Angel know the extent of your obsession?”

  Lash glanced back at the club in time to see Tate talking with Angel as they left the building. She glanced over toward him but didn’t do anything else. Steven climbed into the car with the two women going in the back.

  “No, she doesn’t have a clue what I’ve done to keep her safe and to keep her for myself.” Since the moment she turned eighteen, Lash had done everything he could to keep her safe and to keep the problems her father brought to their life, away from her.

  Steven pulled out of the parking lot, and Lash turned his attention back to his brother. “And you’re not going to tell her. Angel doesn’t need to know everything, and I’ll tell her what I think she needs to know when I’m good and ready.”

  He put the helmet on and flung his leg over the bike, straddling the machine.

  “You better. I’ve heard shit like this has a tendency to blow up in your face.”

  “I don’t intend to have anything blow up in my face. It’s going to work.”

  Tiny pulled out onto the main road, and everyone else followed suit. The two remaining Prospects stayed behind with the others.

  Riding on his bike, Lash followed the rest of the crew through town and out onto the main road. They needed to travel a good hour to get to the warehouse that stored most of their business.

  It had once been a boxing factory, but when the recession hit, the factory went under and plenty of people lost their jobs. The club had banded together and laid claim to it. None of the old ladies ever visited the warehouse, and no one who wasn’t part of the club came close to the warehouse, not even the law. Since the death of Lash’s and Nash’s parents over turf, Tiny had done everything he could to make the town safe. No club deals went down near town, and no other crew came to Fort Wills.

  The ride was a long one, but it allowed Lash time to clear his head. There were times he struggled to think when he was right in the middle of a problem. Riding his bike gave him the freedom and the quiet to think of every problem.

  Angel was not a problem, but her father was. He hadn’t been joking when he’d told her David wouldn’t make it to the end of the year. The Skulls were trying to regroup their losses caused by David. Other than get back some money, the rest of the club wanted him dead. Lash had asked for a little more time. If they took David out of the equation too soon, Lash would lose any chance he had with Angel.

  Time was not on his side. It wouldn’t be long before the club voted against David being gone. The older man was stalling too damn much and making it hard to believe his stories. The guy was full of it. The death of Angel’s mom had left David broken in some way. Whatever the reason, it wasn’t something the club took into consideration.

  By the time he pulled up outside the warehouse Lash wasn’t any clearer as to what he wanted. Clim
bing off the bike, he lit a cigarette and waited for Nash and the others to pull up the rear.

  “Whoo,” Nash said, laughing. “There’s nothing like a ride to put the air in your lungs.”

  There was a bolt across the door along with several locks in place to keep people out.

  “I know what you mean.” Taking a long pull on his cigarette, Lash looked up at the sky. It was a hot, clear day, and his thoughts returned to Angel. He wondered if she was having fun. Tate was an amazing girl. She’d been a little toddler when Tiny took him and Nash into the fold. His old lady was still alive back then. Pain struck whenever he thought about Tiny’s woman, who’d been like a mother to him. Patricia cared for everyone, and Tiny was her whole world. It was watching and listening to the pair that made Lash know he’d never have a sweet-butt for a wife. Patricia had been an outsider, but her love for Tiny kept her by his side. Her death hit their leader hard, but Tiny finally worked his way out of the heartache. Tate was like Patricia in a lot of ways. Tiny wouldn’t let her get involved in the club even though the younger woman wanted to.

  “Thinking about Patricia?” Nash asked.

  “Yeah, she was the one who suggested this place to Tiny.” Lash looked at the warehouse. How Tiny still made it through the doors was beyond him. He couldn’t imagine losing anything so precious to him. If something was to happen to Angel, he couldn’t even breathe at the thought let alone live with it. There was never going to be a way for him to live with it.

  “I miss her, too. She was a strong woman. I could never allow myself to love someone that much and then watch her die.”

  “Is that why you fuck and take blow jobs from women you won’t keep?” Lash asked.

  “It saves being alone and in pain.” Nash slapped him on the shoulder. “Come on, let’s go so you can get your pansy fucking ass back to Angel.”

  Together they walked into the warehouse.

  David was sat at a desk typing away at the computer. Several other members of The Skulls were stood around the warehouse. They all took turns in babysitting David. When they left, whoever stayed behind was locked inside the warehouse until the next morning.

  Lash had spent two nights with the bastard, listening to him mutter on about his wife and daughter. He didn’t like the older man, but he was his woman’s father. Lash had no choice but to try to help him out.

  “Give us some good news, David. I’m growing tired of this shit, and your daughter’s ass is looking tempting,” Tiny said.

  Fisting his hands at his side, Lash knew there was nothing sinister in what Tiny said, but hearing the words was still hard to handle. The civilians didn’t need to know that The Skulls had a code. If Lash hadn’t laid claim to her to all the members, Angel would have been fucked within her first week at the club.

  They didn’t run a hotel service, and the men needed a regular supply of sex in whatever form that came.

  “I-I-I can’t g-g-get i-i-it back.”

  Rolling his eyes, Lash saw through the lies.

  “Then I guess Angel’s ass is mine.”

  “No!”

  The shout was firm. David might be an asshole, but he didn’t want anything to happen to his daughter.

  For the next two hours Lash listened to the man talk shit about the money. Lash and Nash were brothers, and together they’d worked out the holes in David’s stories. They knew where the money was and how to get it. All The Skulls wanted to know was which side David was on.

  Chapter Four

  Angel waited outside of the dressing room while Tate tried on another item of clothing. Steven stood several feet away from them, but his eyes never left where they both stood. She’d purchased some designer jeans and a few tops all at Steven’s request. He’d mumbled something to Tate, and from then on the other woman took control so that Angel now possessed clothes she would never even dream of buying, let alone wearing. There were several dresses she didn’t think were legal to wear in town.

  “Ta-da,” Tate said, opening the dressing room door. The other woman wore a tight red dress. “How do I look?” The dress moulded to every curve and highlighted the other woman’s fuller figure.

  “You look amazing.”

  “Do you really think so?” Tate asked. Her hands moved down her sides to rest on her hips.

  “There’s only one problem,” Angel said.

  “What is it?”

  “Where are you going to wear it? It’s a beautiful dress, but where could you wear something like that?” Angel glanced down at her clasped hands. She’d never been good at this. Girly shopping trips and bonding trips were never her thing.

  “Haven’t you heard of some of the parties the club has?” Tate asked, taking a seat beside Angel.

  “Yeah, I’ve seen them.”

  “No, honey, you’ve seen the tame ones. If you speak to the other old ladies you’d have a clue as to what goes on at these parties. There’s a lot more risqué shit going down. My Dad tries to keep me all sweet and innocent, but let me tell you I’m not stupid.”

  Angel listened to the other woman speak and knew in her heart that Tate spoke the truth. If the parties they’d been having were not the real deal then no wonder the men hated her. Was she the reason the parties had been downgraded?

  “Tiny’s your Dad. What makes you think he’s even going to let you attend one of these things?” Angel asked.

  “When I walk through the door he won’t stop me. Dad needs to know I’m a grown up and stop scaring guys away from me. If I don’t act now I’m going to die a virgin, and that’s pitiful.” Tate grabbed her hand. “The other girls are horrid. They only put up with me because of my Dad. You’re different. I can see that. Also, you’re not horribly underweight either.”

  Tate wrapped her arms around Angel.

  “I don’t know what to say.”

  Angel looked over at Steven to see him pressing on a load of buttons on his cell phone.

  The sound of the door opening, followed by some giggling and screaming, made Tate pause in her tracks. Angel glanced over to see what all the fuss was about.

  “We’ve got to go,” Steven said, helping them with their bags.

  “Shit, it’s the Lions,” Tate said, muttering under her breath.

  “Who are the Lions?” Angel asked. She saw the women and men in leather jackets sporting the Lion emblem.

  “They’re The Skulls’ biggest problem, and we’re in neutral ground. The cities are not claimed.” Tate made to go to the changing room.

  “We’re paying for it with you in the dress, Tate.”

  “I need to get changed.”

  “I’ve got orders from Tiny to get you back to the club. We’re paying for you in it.”

  Tate didn’t look afraid as they passed the other crews path. All of them stopped with Steven standing in front of them.

  A dark haired man stopped to look at Tate. His gaze wandered up and down her body. The heat coming from his eyes couldn’t be mistaken as anything other than predatory.

  “Tate, it’s lovely to see you again.”

  “Murphy, what brings you here?”

  Angel stayed quiet, watching the interaction.

  “Shopping,” Murphy said.

  “For the skanks of the Lions. I see that. It mustn’t cost you too much. From the looks of them you don’t really need to keep them in clothing.”

  “Tate,” Angel said, grabbing her new friend’s arm.

  “Not right now, I’ve got this.” Tate didn’t turn her attention away from the man in front of her.

  “You’re not going to let her speak to us like that?” one of the woman said.

  Angel didn’t know who spoke, but Murphy and Tate kept glaring at each other.

  “She’s Tiny’s girl. Tate says what she wants and does what she wants,” Murphy said, seconds later.

  “Exactly, and what Tate wants is to get out of here. Lions give everything a bad press.”

  Angel followed Tate and Steven to the checkout counter. She glanced behind h
er to see Murphy watching Tate.

  None of them said a word while Tate got the women to scan the dress while it was still on her body.

  Once they were out of the store, Tate refused to go home. Angel stood waiting while Tate ranted over the cell with her father.

  Angel kept looking at Steven, whose attention drifted between Tate and the designer shop they’d come from.

  “Do you know what happened in there?” Angel asked.

  “I don’t know, and I don’t make it my business to know. The Lions are a threat, and my only job is to keep you two safe.”

  Angel nodded not wanting to press him for any more details.

  Tate returned several seconds later. “I won. We can shop for a few more hours.”

  Neither of them waited for Steven. Tate took the lead and moved toward the next shop. Together they picked out a dress and headed toward the dressing room.

  “What was that about, Tate?” Angel asked. Her curiosity was getting the better of her.

  “What was what?”

  “You know, between you and that Murphy guy?” Angel tugged Lash’s shirt over her head and waited for the other woman to speak. Tate let out a sigh, which she heard between the changing room.

  “Murphy is an ass who joined the Lions because he thought The Skulls were too hard. He’s a backstabbing asshole who can’t be trusted.”

  She heard the pain in Tate’s voice.

  “Did you and he have a thing?”

  Silence met her answer. Angel finished changing into the tight black dress and cringed when she looked in the mirror. She looked like an overweight whale.

  “He was the only one who dared to have anything to do with me. He’s older than I am, but there was a time when I thought he was sweet. Murphy taught me not to let go so easily. I’m not looking for a boyfriend or a husband, Angel. I’m just looking for a man to help ease the loneliness.” The curtain opened, and Tate stood in a full blue gown. “I know we’ve never been close and I’m a few years older than you, but in time we’ll get to know each other. I do want to be your friend and share everything with you. For now, I don’t want to talk about it anymore, okay?”