Beautiful Outlaw by Emily Minton
The Kid
Bowie
Shay is curled into my side, sleeping soundly. After driving through the night, she is dead to the world. I’m about to close my own eyes when I hear a knock at the door. A second later, Rollo yells out, “Man, we gotta talk.”
She stirs as I pull away from her but doesn’t wake fully, so I get dressed and head out the door without a word. As soon as I step into the hallway, I look at Rollo. “What the fuck is going on?”
“We got a house guest, and I need you to take care of it.”
Oh fuck! “Who the hell is it?”
My road captain shakes his head. “You gotta see it to believe it.”
With that, he turns and walks down the hall. Instead of heading toward the basement, where we normally hold people, he walks out the door. I follow behind him as he heads to an abandoned barn on the back of the property.
“Why the fuck are you holding him out here?” The barn has been on the property since the Outlaws bought the land in 1968. When I was a kid, it was used for storage. Time and weather has made it unusable, so it has been forgotten for years.
“I didn’t want Cash or Toke knowing about him, so I figured this was the best place to hide him,” he says as he steps inside.
That doesn’t sound good, but I don’t ask any questions. Instead, I follow him inside. The only light in the barn is a few rays of sunlight shining through the missing planks on the walls. I have just taken a step inside, when I see Red step out of the shadows.
“About fuckin’ time you two got here.”
Rollo shakes his head. “Not my fault, man. Bowie needed to get his rocks off before he could take care of business.”
“Don’t give me shit. Just tell me what the fuck is going on,” I demand, running my hand through my hair, tired from the road and wanting to get back to Shay.
Even though no other member would walk into my room, I don’t like leaving her there alone. Claiming her put a huge target on her back. Cash will work double time to get to her now. On the flip side, claiming her was the only thing I could do to keep her protected from the other brothers.
Rollo nods and walks over to one of the old stalls in the back of the room. A minute later, he pulls out a guy. He’s bound and gagged, covered from head to toe in filth from the barn floor. “Who the hell is that?”
Red walks over to him and grabs him by the hair, raising his head just enough so the sunlight can illuminate his features. The young face glaring at me is nothing like I expected. “It’s a damn kid.”
“I’m not a fuckin’ kid,” the punk shouts out when his gag is removed, pulling against Rollo’s hold and the hand Red still has firmly in his hair.
I reach toward him, slapping the side of his head. The blow is not brutal, but it’s enough to get him to shut his mouth. I move my eyes from him to Rollo. “What did the little ass-wipe do?”
Red snorts then answers for Rollo. “Did you see the shit all over the front of the clubhouse?”
I shake my head. “No, I was too busy dealing with Cash’s ass to pay any attention.”
“He spray painted the word ‘bastards’ on the bricks out front.”
“Got to give it to the kid. He’s gotta have balls to tag the Outlaw’s clubhouse,” Rollo adds, sounding amused.
I look back to the boy, taking in his features. My guess is he’s closing in on eighteen but pretending to be a man already. “Why the fuck would you do something so damn ignorant? You have no idea how lucky you are that Cash or Toke didn’t catch your ass.”
“Neither of those bastards scares me,” he replies with a false bravado.
Even though I agree with his opinion of my father and his henchman, I still can’t let that shit fly. Stepping forward, I send my fist into his gut. “Watch how you talk about my brothers. If shit like that comes out of your mouth again, I’ll put a bullet through your fuckin’ skull.”
Finally, terror washes over his face. Gasping for air, he nods. “I’m sorry.”
“What are you sorry for, talking trash about the Savage Outlaw President or tagging our clubhouse?”
His face turns stony, but his eyes keep that hint of fear. “Both, but you gotta know that they deserved it.”
“What the fuck are you talking about now?” I ask, confused by his words. He goes quiet, his lips drawn into a firm line. I stare at him, doing my best to intimidate him, but the kid is like fuckin’ Fort Knox.
Rollo gives him a shake, lifting the kid off his feet before tossing him to the ground. The kid lands with a thud, his face hitting the floor hard. “Boy, you better tell our VP what he wants to know. If not, that bullet he was talking about might come out and play.”
After just a second, the boy pushes up on his shoulder and spits a mixture of blood and dirt onto the ground. I shoot Rollo a look that lets him know that’s enough. I want the kid to leave here too damn scared to ever try this shit again, but I don’t want him hurt.
I cut my eyes back to him and watch as he pushes himself off the ground. Like a soldier, he stands between Rollo and Red with his feet spread and his arms stiff at his side. “They turned my mother into a whore.”
“What the hell?” Rollo mumbles, stepping closer to him.
The kid stands his ground, anger visible on his face. He looks to each of us, one by one, shooting daggers from his eyes. “Every one of you uses her as a whore.”
His words cut into me, reminding me of the nights I watched my mother with the boys. I didn’t give a shit about her, because she didn’t give a shit about me. Still, it hurt to see the woman that gave birth to me used as a cum bucket. “Who’s your mom?”
“Crystal,” he mummers, sounding slightly embarrassed.
I know the feeling. Every time I saw my mom with a brother, I was filled with shame. Shaking my head in an attempt to shake off the memories, I say, “I don’t know a Crystal.”
Both my brothers shrug, proving they are just as lost as I am.
Red hot anger covers his face as he hisses out, “You dicks call her Domino.”
I take a step back, staring at him. I search his face, trying to find a resemblance. Instead, I see something else- myself. He doesn’t look like me, but he is me. He’s not mine. I didn’t even know his mom back then, but he’s the same fucked up kid that Nina took in, the same boy pretending to be a man. “How old are you, kid?”
“Sixteen, and I’m not a fuckin’ kid.”
Red cuffs the back of his head and growls out, “Respect.”
He just shakes the pain away and keeps on. “I’ve been taking care of myself since your club took her away. I may be young, but I’m not a kid.”
Thinking back, I’m not sure how long Domino has been around. She was in my bed for months, but there was a long line of brothers ahead of me. Shit, she has probably been here for years. “Does your mom know you’re here?”
He shrugs. “How the hell would she since she hasn’t been home in over a year?”
Rollo steps forward, gaining my attention, and nods his head toward the stall the boy had been in earlier. “By the looks of it, he’s been here awhile.”
“What the fuck do you mean?”
He motions to the back again. “There’s blankets, clothes, even some shit from the commissary in there. I think he’s been taking shit from the clubhouse to get by.”
Well, fuck! “How long have you been here?”
“A few months.” He shrugs like it’s no big deal that a sixteen year old kid infiltrated one of the compounds of one of the most feared MCs in the country.
I look to Rollo then Red, my eyes asking them how the hell we should handle this. If I go to Cash, the boy will be in the ground by nightfall. If I throw him out on his ass, he will just come back. From the sound of it, he doesn’t have anywhere else to go. “What the fuck do I do with him now?”
“Let him prospect?” Rollo offers a suggestion.
I see the kid perk up at the suggestion, excitement crossing his face. I shrug. “He’s sixteen fuckin’ years old.”
“He’s too damn young,” Red adds with a shake of his head.
I see the excitement drain from his face, replaced quickly by disappointment. I stare at him, still seeing myself at that age. Finally, I come to a decision. “I need a man on my woman, 24-7. If I’m not around, she needs to be protected.”
He perks up, nodding his head. “I’ll take care of her.”
I know it’s not the best suggestion, but it’s the best thing I can come up with. It’s either my house or a grave. “You’d have to stay at my place.”
His eyes find mine. “I can do that.”
No way, no way in hell, I would let this kid be in charge of Shay’s safety, but another pair of eyes never hurt. I won’t be leaving him alone with her until I know I can trust him, though. Giving him something to do could be a good way to keep his ass out of trouble. “If you can’t, you’re out on your ass.”
I turn away, already kicking myself in the ass for taking him on, and head for the door. Just before I step outside, I look over my shoulder. “What’s your name?”
“My name is Nate.”
“Not anymore,” I say as I think of the paint covering the front of the clubhouse. Turning back to the door, I call out, “You’re Tag now.”