Page 49 of Kings Have No Mercy

I don’t buy it. It shows on my face. “This entire period of my life is a rough spot and that’s all you’ve done…”

“You’ve shown up out of nowhere with vague intentions and suspicious behavior. You’re an outsider and I don’t like outsiders. But I’m still not going to see you like I did earlier in the den and make it worse.”

My stomach pits, any appetite gone. “Was it that bad?”

“Syd,Iwas concerned. That should tell you enough.” He picks up his bottle of beer along with mine. I take the hint and snag mine from him. We spend a moment drinking in silence, an unfamiliar contemplative vibe developing between us. “I don’t like it when cars backfire,” he says suddenly. “If I’m out on a street and they do, I assume it’s real. Every time.”

My lips dip into a frown. “Is that from being in the MC? I guess you would get shot at a lot.”

“It’s from before my time in the Kings. From when I was a kid. I lost my mom that way.”

“Me too. My parents. It happened during a thunderstorm.”

He nods in somber understanding. Then, he taps his bottle against mine, producing achinknoise. “I figured as much. But think of it this way. We are our experiences. You are who you are ’cuz of that night. You survived that thunderstorm, and you’ll survive this one, too.”

It’s likely Mason doesn’t get just how relevant his words are. That it applies to more than the thunder and lightning outside, but to the current period of my life.

My time with the Steel Kings is its own thunderstorm. A traumatic chapter where I’ve lost someone I loved and then attempt to find peace again.

It just so happens that peace this time means finding Pop’s murderer. It means holding Mason and the Steel Kings accountable.

I go to bed later in the night with my little purple book sprawled open in my lap. I jot down everything Mason and I talked about—including his revelation about his mother—and I fall asleep to the rumble of thunder and his words in mind.

I’ve survived thunderstorms before. I can do it again.

15

MASON

When Tom was foundguilty and sentenced to ten years, he made me swear I’d take care of his club while he was gone. We hadn’t been close in years. We were a broken father and son with plenty of problems, but if there was one thing we still had in common, it was the Steel Kings.

“You come see me,” he said as bailiffs appeared on either side of him. “You owe me that much.”

I didn’t—I don’t—owe him shit.

Everything he’s done has brought pain to my life. Every choice he’s made has put the Kings before his family. Mom. Me.

Logan…

But as the sixth month mark hits, and I call him up, he reminds me I owe him a visit.

Velma was already planning on going. She makes the trip every couple weeks with one of the guys.

This time’s no different.

It turns into a group thing. Lenton State Penitentiary is five hours away and she hates driving long periods. Tito and Cash load up the truck. Velma packs a cooler with beer and ham sandwiches. I get my bike ready, needing my own set of wheels in case I need to make a break for it.

“It’s a day trip, Mace,” she says, shaking her head. “Nobody’s saying you’ve got to stay a long time.”

I polish the chrome rims on my Road King. “I like having my own means to leave if need be.”

Velma mutters something about me and Tom being hopeless, then she catches sight of Sydney approaching. I pretend not to notice her—the two of us have gone back to ignoring each other outside of our secret hookups.

We had a small moment the other night where we got along for a few hours, but it doesn’t change a damn thing. I still want the girl gone and she’s not a fan of mine either.

She’s come outside to hand over some water bottles. “You forgot to put these in the cooler, Velma.”

“Thanks, girly. What’re you up to today anyway? You’re off, right? Wanna drive up to Lenton?”