Chapter 35 –Blaze
I am not sure what she was thinking or dreaming about that night but, I could tell by her mumblings and her lack of eye contact that it was not about what she told me. I can’t figure out why she was lying to me about her dreams? If they are about Tank, that fucker left her to be raped, but he will have his day before the brothers. She has had the same type of dream every night that I have slept with her this week, which is the last three nights. Once Church is done on Thursday, we will talk about her lying to me.
As we awake on Thursday, Pearl is slowly getting ready for her last day at work while I am slipping on my clothing to make my way back to Chicago. I have made the drive both ways each day this week, not wanting Pearl to be alone at night with these dreams.
Trip and the prospects did a great job cleaning up and getting rid of the evidence of our visitors on Tuesday, and I have heard no more from Tank regarding our Church which is set for tonight.
She still has not confessed about the nightmares she is having, so I am not sure how she will deal with the knowledge that Tank is going before the brothers tonight. I have let Pearl know about Church, but she is not aware that Tank’s punishment will be our main topic of discussion and does not need to be aware.
She will pack up the girls and come to Chicago to spend Spring Break with me. The clubhouse will be hopping with a party for most of the weekend so I am not sure that I will have her come with me. We will get to spend some time with the girls and just have some fun, which will be a good distraction for us all.
Making the drive to Chicago, I reach the Clubhouse around noon. Looking over some work that I have pushed aside for the past few days I quickly fill my time with mundane tasks. Hearing the noises of the brothers starting to fill into the room, I look up to see that the time is approaching 7pm and it is time to head into the meet.
Placing my cell in my desk I make my way towards the meeting room and take my place at the head of the table. Trip is next to enter, and he sits down on my left side as Tank pauses just inside of the doorway and looks around the room. The other brothers all file in and even the prospects make their way into the room. Nodding at Tank he shuts the door and makes his way to his former seat at the table and waits.
Looking towards me asking if this is where he will still be sitting, I nod my head and again look around to meet the eyes of each member.
I close my eyes take a deep breath and start, “We are here for two reasons, let’s begin with the good first. Everyone needs to vote on the two prospects who we’ve had under our asses for the last year. First up is Bull, Yea or Nay is all we need from each brother. Trip will start.”
Yeas are heard the whole way around. Standing and making my way over to Bull, I extend a hand as I say “Congratulations Bull. You have shown us that you truly fit with us and are one of us. Welcome to the Devil’s Iron, brother.”
“Next, we need to vote on Country, and then we will get to the real matter of this meeting. Trip, begin the vote again.”
Again yeas are heard from every brother. Making the few steps I find myself in front of Country extending my arm yet again. “Congratulations Country. Welcome to the Devil’s Iron, brother. You have proven yourself to me and more importantly every brother in this room.”
Stepping back to the table I once again take my seat as I look around to the table, “let’s move on to the real reason for us being here today, the transgressions and disappearance of Tank.”
“First I will speak and then we will hear from any brother who would like to speak on this and lastly we will hear from Tank. Judgment will be handed out swiftly after the final decision is made.”
“Tank, you left the club without giving any warning, no clue as to where you were or when you were coming back. You have a job in this brotherhood and that job was fucking abandoned to be covered by brothers who are not as familiar with our security as you are, seeing that you fucking built most of it. Your disregard for our policies is something that is not becoming of a Devil’s Iron Vice-President, let alone a brother in general. You didn’t even request to go Nomad so that you would still be a part of the brotherhood in some way. You were just fucking gone. I hope to fucking hell that the least that comes from your transgressions is the loss of your VP patch, because I sure as hell don’t think I could trust you in that position any longer.”
Turning to look around the room, I take a deep breath to calm down and continue on, “Not to mention your treatment of Pearl. Disrespecting her by leaving her to be raped and tortured, whatever your reasons may be. That was the woman that you were about to claim and you just fucking walked in on that and then just fucking walked out on her and left her to deal with the two fuckwits that drugged her and decided to take her against her will. She fucking saw you! Saw you standing there and saw you leave her to be brutalized. You fucking broke her you stupid fucking piece of shit. Not to mention how you left the club to deal with the aftermath. You left us to pick up the pieces of the whole situation without a fucking thought. I hope that the brothers decide to end you! If not for walking away from the club, but for the hell you have put her through.”
“You have proven to me that you are too fucking young and stupid to hold the VP title. You didn’t stick around to see what was happening or to protect and stand up for what was supposedly yours. You just fucking walked out without so much as a fucking word to explain yourself or your thoughts on the matter.”
Looking around the room I see many brothers nodding their heads in agreement. When I ask for others who might want to speak there are only two, Doc and Quake. As I turn to Doc I nod my head at him signaling that he may begin.
“Seeing Pearl over the past four months trying to deal with the effects of that night has been a struggle for all of us. I wish that you could be forced to go through her pain each and every fucking day because you need to suffer like she has, with the fucking decision that you made. Having to sit on her and watch over her with Trip and occasionally the prospects,” nodding towards each man he has just mentioned he continues, ”is something that would have been unnecessary if you had used your fucking brain instead of letting your jealousy get the best of you. You knew Pearl better than any of us and not one of us thought she had it in her to do that to you. Not a fucking one of us Tank. You decided to leave her there, you alone decided her fate that night and that shit will never be forgiven.”
As Doc looks around the room he slowly adds, “Tank you will never know the pain and hurt you have caused by this childish fucking act you so callously let happen. The life you have had previously here is definitely about to change. You let what you thought was happening affect your brothers, which is the biggest fucking mistake you can make in this life. We are here for each other and when you turned and fucking ran away with your tail between your fucking legs, it is not something that will ever be forgiven or forgotten.”
Looking around the room, I nod towards Quake and he begins. “Brothers, he did leave without a word, which is something that a beat down would do nicely as a reminder about the way this brotherhood deals with people who cannot follow our rules. He needs to be reminded that we live by a code and if that code is not followed then there are penalties that need to be paid.” Looking to me he continues, “Let’s also remember that at the time that this all occurred Pearl wasn’t claimed by Tank as his old lady. Was it going to happen, yes, but it had not happened yet. She was nothing more than a piece of ass-”
“Dad, shut the fuck up. That is not the truth and you know it as well as everyone else in this fucking room. Pearl was mine, and I will not sit here and listen to you bad mouth and talk trash about her, no matter what the outcome for me is.”
Tank continues, “I understand that the outcome of this meeting will end in something not pleasing for me, but I need to get a few things out there before a vote comes down. I know that leaving without a word is something punishable and I will take that punishment without batting an eye. I never should have left without talking to someone about where I was going, when I would be returning, and let alone leaving my work to be pushed off onto others.”
Running his hands through his hair and dropping his head down slightly he goes on, “Pearl, is another story entirely. I wrongly thought that she was there having consensual sex with those men as a way to get back at me. I should have used my fucking brain instead of letting my jealousy get the best of me. I will have to live with the regret of leaving her to those fucking men that night, to be brutalized and raped. That is something that has not left my mind since my father told me the truth. Knowing that I am the reason that Pearl was raped and tortured is something between her and I and will be dealt with shortly.”
Growling at those words, I slowly stand and look towards Tank placing my fists down flat on the table. “No, you will not be seeing her to address that night with her, Tank, ever. She is not yours and you will not be allowed to be that close to her again. She still has nightmares reliving that night and it will not help her to talk with you about what has happened. That is what her psychologist is for.”
“Blaze, I understand that you were there to pick up the pieces and protect her after I left her alone and hurting, but she needs to deal with the situation and the fact that I am back. I am not sure why she has been coming here to the clubhouse, or why she has had protection twenty-four hours a day since I have been gone, seeing that she was not club property. Now that I am back, that protection can be stopped because she will soon be under my supervision again.”
“No, she will not Tank, and stop fucking talking about her. If you are done with your ramblings, it’s time to take the vote.”
“Yea or Nay on the question brothers, and the vote needs to be majority to pass.” As I look around the table I start with the first question, “For his transgressions against the Devil’s Iron should Tank still be a part of this MC?”As I go around the table ten out of the twelve brothers say yea.
“Due to these transgressions should Tank still hold the VP spot within the Devil’s Iron MC?” As I go around the table I hear only four yeas to this question. Knowing that his VP patch is getting pulled makes a smile come to my face.
As I ask the next question, I think of Pearl, “Is the taking of his VP patch a sufficient enough punishment to pay for his transgressions against both this club and Pearl?” Nays are heard from ten brothers, so I ask one last question.
“Would a group beating along with pulling the VP patch be adequate payback from Tank in respect to those transgressions?” Again ten of the brothers agree and the decision is made.
“Tank, take the VP patch off your cut and lay it on the table. You are still a member of the Devil’s Iron, but you are no longer its VP. You have shown yourself to be untrustworthy, especially when following the rules of the brotherhood.”
Looking around to the brothers “We will go over to the shop to finish up the rest of his sentence.” Leaving the room we walk out to the shop and slowly circle around Tank as he enters. Stepping forward I am first to connect my fist to his fucking face. I land a few more shots to his abdomen before stepping back and letting each brother in turn take what he is owed.
Chapter 36 – Tank
After hearing Blaze stand up for Pearl so quickly, I am wondering more and more about what the fuck has been going on since I was away. Especially when he mentioned her nightmares, how the fuck does he know if she has nightmares. I know that my father wanted to talk to me about something, but I just ignored his repeated attempts.
While the brothers are voting I am happy to know that I still have a place here with the MC, seeing that it is a second family to me. I am shocked however, that they have voted to take my VP patch away. This is the first time that anyone has ever had that happen to them, as far as I know.
This beating, however, is not a surprise, it is something that I have been expecting and anticipating since the day I left. As we walk into the shop I am surrounded by the men I call brothers. Starting with Prez and going one by one I am treated to some fucking fists of fury. After the last man has gone, even my father got in a few good shots, I fall to the ground for the third time and stay there for a while having a hard time breathing through what I am sure is a few broken ribs and maybe even a punctured lung.
I am suddenly helped up by my dad and Bull, taken over to a table and handed a beer. After a few swallows, Blaze walks up to me and speaks in a very low tone, “Heal up Tank, and in a few days we will talk.” Turning abruptly after finishing he quickly leaves the shop and heads back towards the clubhouse.
It is only then that I notice that the club pussy has started to roll in for the evening. There are girls outside in clothes much too skimpy for the weather, and not a fucking one of them does anything for me. Quake quickly points to the whores, “Son, you should go grab one of them, they might be able to help the bruises hurt less.”
“No, dad, there is only one woman that I want and it seems that she is off limits, for some reason. We need to talk about that Dad. Give me a few days to heal before we discuss what has been going on with Pearl and the brothers while I have been away.”
“Ok son, I think that is probably a good idea. Give yourself a few days to heal up and we can talk.” Walking away he makes his way inside the clubhouse.
My mind again wanders to Pearl. What is it about her? I still have yet to see her and I cannot stop my mind from thinking of her. What the fuck did Blaze think he was doing by saying that I cannot see her? She is mine, or will be again soon.