Beautiful Outlaw by Emily Minton
I’m President
Bowie
I walk into the main room and look around until I spot Rollo. I lift a finger in the air, letting him know to round up the boys. “Time for church.”
Not waiting to see if he followed my order, I head to the chapel. When I step inside, I see the empty table. I look to the head of the table and see my chair, the chair I have wanted to sit in my entire life. I walk over to it and finally take my place as President of the Savage Outlaws MC, fulfilling the destiny my grandfather laid out for me.
A few minutes pass before my brothers join me. Tin-Man takes his seat in the VP chair, and Toke attempts to sit to my left in the Sargent at Arms spot. I shake my head and say, “I’m willing to give you a chance, seeing you voted to out Cash, but I’m going to have my own men by my side.”
“I can understand that,” he says, leaning toward me. “But choose wisely, brother. These men may call you President now, but that doesn’t mean they have your back.”
I can tell by the look in his eyes that he knows more shit is headed my way, and that’s something we’ll have to talk about soon. There’s something else we need to talk about first. “What the fuck is going on between you and Nina?”
“It’s not the time to talk about that.”
“Maybe not, but I still want an answer,” Tin says, entering the conversation.
I swear I can feel the anger flying off him. I try to ignore it and focus on Toke. “I’m telling you right now, if you hurt her, I’ll kill you.”
“That’s not gonna happen. She’s mine, and now that Cash is out, I’m gonna make sure everyone knows it.” Toke’s eyes move to Tin. “I’ve spent the last ten years taking shit from your dad just to keep your mom safe. I promise you, I’d give my life for hers.”
He waits for a response from Tin, one that never comes, then looks back to me. “Now, let’s get church started. You got some shit that needs to be handled.”
For some reason, I get the feeling he’ll be by my side every step of the way. Taking a chance, one that I hope doesn’t come back to bite me in the ass, I make a decision. “Take the Road Captain’s seat. Trade patches with Rollo when the meeting is over.”
Something in his eyes shift, letting me know that I made the right choice. “Appreciate it.”
I lift my chin, acknowledging his words, then look to the room. “Some of you were on the road yesterday, so you may not know what the fuck is going on. Just to get a few things straight, I’m your President now. You answer to me and only me. Anyone got a problem with that?”
“About fuckin’ time, as far as I’m concerned. That bastard was gonna get us killed if shit kept going on like it has been.” One of the boys that wasn’t here for yesterday’s church says before asking, “Who’s gonna be sitting beside you.”
“Rollo is now your new Sergeant at Arms.” I motion for Rollo to step forward and point to the chair beside me. I give that a second to sink in and say, “You can see Tin’s already in the VP’s chair, and that’s where he’s staying.”
A few grumbles come from the boys, but I put a stop to that shit right away. “If you have a problem with the color of my brother’s skin, then take off your cut and hit the fuckin’ door. Tin-Man’s my VP, and he’s gonna get the respect he deserves.”
The room quiets down, not one brother walking out the door. “Now, we got a problem with Cash. I know Tin and Rollo filled y’all in, but I need you all to understand I’m not pussy footing around. This time, the old man has gone too far. When I find him, I’m gonna take his ass out.”
“What the fuck did he do that justifies us killing him? I’ll respect your place as our President, but I ain’t voting to take one of my brothers out on your say alone,” comes from one of the boys that voted against me.
“The bastard went after my woman. Not sure how he found out, but he discovered she was running from some shit in her past. He brought that shit to our front door,” I say, doing my best not to jump over the table and knock the fucker’s teeth down his throat.
“Cash needs to go down. If not, he’ll never stop trying to get the gavel back,” Homer says, then looks to Topper. “I know you didn’t want shit to go this way, but Cash fucked up going after Bowie’s Old Lady. If we don’t put a stop to this shit right now, he could move on to our families next.”
I wait for his response, hoping he sides with me. Topper may not hold an office in the club, but he holds a lot of power with the boys. He’s our oldest active member. He’s worn a cut longer than any other man here, and the brothers respect the hell out of him for that fact alone. Either way, with or without his agreement, I’m going after Cash. Still, I hope I have him by my side.
Topper leans back in his chair before he replies, “I’ve been here for a long damn time. Now, I’ve seen three generations of Baileys hold the gavel. I kept waiting for Cash to be the man that Tobias raised him to be.”
Hearing him talk about Grandpa causes a spark to light inside me. I know my grandfather would be rolling in his grave if he could see what a piece of shit his son turned out to be. “Cash is never gonna be the man Grandpa was.”
He nods in agreement. “I know he isn’t. Just still can’t wrap my head around putting a bullet in the head of my friend’s only child.”
I lean forward, placing my hands flat against the top of the table. “Well, you better get used to the idea, because I’m gonna be the one putting it there.”