Hell Hounds MC: Welcome to Serenity

Chapter Four

After leaving Eleanor in Donna’s capable hands, Rubble wasted no time heading to the industrial part of town where the MC maintained their main office and compound. A Prospect opened the gate and allowed them entry without delay, and they drove the short distance to the Clubhouse.

Matchbook paused to speak with a few Brothers loitering outside while Rubble headed in to make their report. The common area shared space with a bar manned by one of the Brothers. Aside from the worn furniture, it could almost pass as a lounge and functioned as something of a waiting room for Brothers and Prospects to unwind in between jobs and club duties. As always, there were a few club girls hanging around looking for some easy action.

They shot Rubble coy glances only to be met with his glare and quickly slunk away. He frowned at the Brothers and Prospects currently lounging about, wondering which i***t allowed the girls into the compound. Technically, they weren’t welcome here. While the President didn’t mind the occasional drink, any real partying was regulated to one of several bars where the MC maintained a running tab and had preferential treatment. Some of the bars the Club owned, while others were investments.

While club girls weren’t generally welcome, they were tolerated as long as they behaved. As much as their presence irritated Rubble, he didn’t have any real reason to toss them out. With a sigh, he headed upstairs where the offices were located to find the President quietly reviewing a proposal for another investment enterprise.

The President, otherwise called the Duke, sat in his chair in a simple tee-shirt and jeans with his cut draped over the back of the chair. His auburn hair was kept trim and short as it tended to curl into ringlets when it grew out. Horn-rim glasses perched on his nose as he read over the documents in hand, idly stroking the short hair of his trim beard. He used to have it much longer, but since meeting Nailah three years ago he maintained a trimmer appearance. It suited him.

Rubble easily recalled the night he met the man he still considered his best friend almost twenty years ago. They were both quite a bit younger then.

* * *

Rubble rolled into Serenity with a chip on his shoulder. After spending several years in an MC, he finally had enough. Turning in his cut, he became a nomad. There were several small factors that led him to quit, but the major one was that the Club decided to get into running drugs and that was something he couldn’t tolerate.

He pulled into the first bar he saw with a motorcycle parked out front, intent on drowning his sorrows. There, he found another nomad already seated at the bar. As the only two bikers present, they struck up conversation and then a game of pool. When a group of young men got too insistent with one of the bartenders, Rubble and his new friend bonded, serving them a proper ass-whooping despite being outnumbered two to five.

Afterward, they laid low at the end of town, laughing at their escapade. Finally, the future President posed a question Rubble thought he would never hear, “You know, we should start our own Club.”

“Excuse me?”

“It can’t be that hard, can it?”

“Hard, no. But there are only two of us. We don’t have any jobs, let alone businesses, no Clubhouse, no funds.”

“True. But you said you were a mechanic. So we’ll look for an auto garage. We can work out of that until we find a suitable location for a clubhouse. As for the money…you let me worry about that.”

* * *

Rubble thought Duke was crazy, crazy smart. In five short years, not only did they secure and build their official compound, but they also financed numerous businesses around town, securing them plenty of funds as their small MC exploded from two members to over a hundred.

To this day, Rubble still didn’t know where Duke secured their start-up funds, but he had a few guesses. From day one, there was something about the man that stood out from everyone else; a refinement and a natural leadership quality. That certainly didn’t mean Duke didn’t know how to fight. In fact, he was brutal and unforgiving to his enemies. Yet, he possessed a natural charisma and charm that drew people in.

It all hinted at a person born to a privileged upbringing, free of the constraints of normal society. There was also Duke’s keen eye when it came to making business deals and drawing up contracts. If Rubble had to bet, the Duke was a true businessman, and a successful one, considering the amount of money he willingly invested to get their motorcycle club going.

Despite his surety, Rubble never asked Duke about what he did before taking to the road. The past was the past for a reason. He didn’t need to pry because the man before him earned his respect and loyalty through action. From the very beginning, Duke insisted all their businesses would be legitimate. There would be no gray areas when it came to money.

In addition to the auto body shop, they also owned a construction company, two bars, a security company, and a bail bondsman service. They also invested in and provided start-up loans for numerous restaurants, an electronic store and computer repair, and several other businesses. The little town of Serenity had grown considerably in the interim, giving them an immense sense of accomplishment.

There were also businesses they kept off the books for various reasons, but these too served legitimate purposes, at least on the surface, including a salvage yard; a pig farm; a crematorium and funeral home; and a recycling and compost center. No matter how deeply one tried to dig, they would never find any connection between these businesses and the MC. In addition to their investments, the Club actively sponsored charity fundraisers and events, creating a balanced portfolio anyone would appreciate.

As Rubble entered, the golden retriever that had been dozing on its pillow bed rose and eagerly approached him. Smiling, Rubble gave Diesel fond pats before sitting in a chair and waiting for Duke to acknowledge him. Signing the documents, Duke set down his reading glasses and rubbed his eyes before looking at his closest friend and second in command.

“Did you find him?”

“Slipped through our fingers,” Rubble hated to admit it.

Duke frowned.

“He’s a slippery fucker, and he’s smart.”

“And now he knows we’re on to him,” Duke mused.

“He probably figured that from the beginning. He knows you don’t forgive and forget.”

“The man stole money from kids to fund his gambling addiction,” Duke sneered. “There is no forgiveness for that. If we can’t recoup the money, I will still have the satisfaction of making him pay.”

“What do you want to do?”

“Sic Mad Dog him,” Duke said. “He’s our best tracker. He can work with Zero to flush that fucker out.”

“You know Dog hates working with Zero. Hell, he hates working with anyone.”

“I don’t care what he does or doesn’t like. I want that rat caught and strung up by his toenails.”

“I’ll let him know,” Rubble nodded and stood, hesitating.

“Something else?”

“Yeah, but it’s minor. It can probably wait.”

“I know you, Drew. If it was minor, it wouldn’t be on your mind. Out with it.”

“It’s a woman.”

“A woman?” Duke raised an eyebrow. It wasn’t like Rubble to get himself twisted up over a woman, not after Jessi.

“Matchbook and I ran into her on our way back. Her car broke down on the side of the highway.”

Duke nodded, waiting for him to continue.

“She, ah, the whole left side of her face was one big bruise,” Rubble finally admitted. “She was really nervous, skittish.”

“And you think she was running,” Duke surmised.

“I don’t think I know,” Rubble scowled. “She needed help.”

“And what did you do?”

“The car was dead, so we took her bags and gave her a ride into town. Got her settled in at Donna’s B&B.”

“Good. No cameras, no paper trail,” Duke nodded. “But you don’t think it’s enough.”

“I’m telling you the woman was terrified, looking over her shoulder as if she expected that asshole to suddenly appear behind her.”

“You get a name?”

“Not the bastard that did that to her, but her name is Eleanor, Eleanor Nolan.”

Duke nodded, “I’ll look into it. No promises, though. Meanwhile, let’s get a Prospect to watch over Donna’s place for the week or so, just to be sure.”

“I’ll pick out a few and give them eight-hour shifts,” Rubble said and received Duke’s assent. “Then I’ll scrape the kid off the bar floor or whatever bed he’s shacked up in and get him on Staple’s trail.”

“Tell him I want that bastard found yesterday,” Duke snapped as Rubble disappeared on his next task.

Duke sat, staring at the door for several minutes, mulling over their conversation. His mind kept returning to the woman Rubble mentioned. It wouldn’t be the first time they offered assistance and protection to a battered woman on the run. But this one seemed different. Ignoring the stack of proposals still waiting for his approval, he fired up his laptop instead. It wouldn’t hurt to do a little background check anyway. He got answers far more quickly than he intended.

While he worked, the golden retriever stood and stretched before coming to his side and resting its head in his lap. Duke idly stroked the canine’s head while he researched Serenity’s newest resident online. He certainly didn’t like what he saw. For the first time in twenty years, his past life and his current one seemed poised to crash head on. He didn’t like it one bit.