Eight
1772 Words
Glowering at the young woman sitting at the table with the Mafia heir, a few of the men chattered among themselves. She’d come out of nowhere, a perfect firestorm of power, grace, and strength once she decided to take her rightful place. She was their Queen, but they had almost no respect for the young redhead.
“She’s not good enough to lead us,” someone muttered darkly.
Another nodded, “She’s got a temper, but she’s too young to be Pres.”
“You pissy because she’s young or because she’s a girl?” A woman asked hotly.
One of the men scoffed at the curvy Black woman sitting across from him. “Go knit or somethin’, Bells.”
“Don’t be a twatwaffle, Leo. That girl is the type that gets s**t done.” The woman replied.
Someone cleared their throat, and Leo looked up. Shock and fear held him in an icy grip as he looked up to see Kennedy with her gun trained steadily on his son. “Hey, now. No need, right?”
“From where I’m standing, it looks like I gotta clean house again. I was just dealing with Mr. I-Can’t-Take-No-For-An-Answer, and I overhear you backwoods bitches badmouthing me? Do you want to live to see another sunrise or are you just itching for an early grave?” Kennedy snapped, shoving the guy she was angry with into the booth on top of the other men. Beers toppled, but no one said a peep as she glowered dangerously, leaning forward slightly with the safety of her weapon flicked off.
Buster chuckled, crossing his arms. “You need us to make a place for you, Queen?”
Leo paled, his eyes pleading. “C’mon, won’t you have a little mercy?”
“I’m going to give you five seconds to make up my mind. That’s the extent of my so-called mercy. Any longer than that, and I’m going to light it up like Discovery Day,” the young woman said darkly.
One of the other teens from the Club gently touched her forearm. “Easy, Queen. Five-Oh just walked in, the Mafia’s got eyes and ears all over this place, and your friends look ready to kill. If you like, the other boys and I can teach Gavin a lesson in Consent 101.”
“You think that s**t worries me, Keith?” She argued back. “The mob pays those assholes to look the other way, so it’s no skin off my ass.”
“Me and the others loyal to you can handle a small fry like him. By the way, word in the street is that you and Slade are a thing. Is he your Old Man?” Keith asked cautiously, hoping against hope he could placate her temperament.
Once word was out that her boyfriend was one of the teammates she grew up with, he would be a walking target. Not that he didn’t already know that bit of information. Deciding to make the news official, she nodded. “Yeah, he’s mine, but if you mess with by man or my friends, you will end up dead.”
Shivering under the intensity of her blue gaze, the other men slowly backed down. The tension was thicker now that they were faced with the fact the members her age already pledged their loyalty to her. The women smirked, knowing that the chauvinist era of the gang had reached an unavoidable end. This was the one they new would change everything for the better, a hope they clung to since the loss of Kennedy’s mother, Melody Rubin.
“My uncle, Ryland Rubin, will be taking over as Regent until I come of age and graduate high school. If anyone has an issue, they can kiss my ass. Uncle Ry, are we good?” Kennedy asked, turning to the older man.
He smirked as he nodded, “Yeah, Baby Girl. We’re good.”
She grinned at the reference to the contracts she was months away from signing with Callum and Phoenix. Her terms were simple. Callum would utilize the Scorpions until Phoenix took over for him. At that point, Phoenix would take over. She would run the MC, but she would continue answering to the people who raised her: the Veiðimenn Mafia.
Keith snickered as he looked at the shocked faces of the adult bikers. “Did you guys seriously think she wasn’t going to continue to answer to the Mafia? They raised her, and the heir is her best friend.”
“Kenni, how are you holding up, chérie?”
Turning her eyes to the dark-skinned woman sitting at the table, Kennedy shrugged. “Not too bad, Bella. Thomas helped me get back on my feet, and I’m dating Memphis now. My exams were a cinch; I got all nineties and hundreds.”
Bella frowned. “You don’t mean Thomas Slade?”
“The one and only,” Kennedy confirmed. Suddenly confused, she asked, “You know him?”
Laughing, Bella stood up, “Oui. Thomas and his boy are my cousins.”
Shaking her head, Kennedy called Memphis over to the group. He frowned at her as his honey brown gaze landed on the crew. If they had a chance in hell at making their relationship work, he had to come to terms with the fact that she was an heiress. Reaching her side, he swallowed tightly. “Yeah?”
“Just told the MC that we were dating,” Kennedy replied.
Memphis paled slightly at the news. He didn’t really want to get too close to the MC, but she was taking over the club once she came of age. He licked his lips, nodding as his eyes scanned the group. “Hey, guys.”
“Hey yourself,” Henry replied before Keith smacked him in the head.
“Dude, he’s the Queen’s Old Man. You can’t talk to him like that,” the older teen snapped.
Raising a brow, Memphis glanced at Kennedy. “Um, what?”
“There’s a hierarchy that has to be followed inside the gang. You’re basically untouchable unless you turn on me, which I really can’t see happening.” She explained.
His arm snaked around her waist. “Hell, nah. I’m not letting you go that easily. Bells, I didn’t know you were here.”
“Here, Sugar?” She shook her head, hugging him tightly. “I help keep the clubhouse running smoother than a baby’s bottom. Mon Cher, you need anything at all, and you just let Cousin Bella know. I’ll hook you up, honey. So long as you take care of our Queen, you've got the Scorpions at your back.”
He laughed. Sensing someone behind him, he turned his head to smirk at Phoenix. “Hey, Boss.”
“Thought we came out to have a date, not work our asses off, Ken.” The heir said with a frown. Andromeda snuggled into his side as Kennedy grinned.
“I was just having a quick chat with some of my crew. After all, when we take over our positions, there’s no doubt that if they screw up, the Mafia will hunt them down to the last member.” She replied.
Phoenix nodded, “That’s exactly how it’s going to go. Keith, nice to see you out.”
Kennedy learned about what happened a while ago, but she said nothing. She eyed Henry, her fingers splayed over the tabletop. “Keep in mind that he’s my nephew by marriage. Don’t forget that I’m all that’s standing between you jokes and total annihilation. I only need to give the word, and the entire Chapter will be delivered to Death. If I say jump, you assholes better ask me how f*****g high. Do you understand me now?”
Smirking at his girlfriend, Memphis nodded as he put his hands on her hips. “Way to keep these guys in line, babe.”
“We’ll see if they actually have a few brain cells to rub together by the time I turn eighteen,” she replied. “Let’s go finish our date. Bells, if they say anything else, tell me so I can really set them straight.”
As Memphis led her back to their table, his favourite slow song started playing over the system. Grabbing her hand, he led her to the dance floor. Though she wasted no time in whining about it, he chuckled as he drew her into his arms.
“Relax, Kenni,” he whispered, swaying to the beat with her.
Nervous, she remained stiff. “I don’t know how to dance. I never learned.”
“Luckily, I do,” he replied. “Just let me guide you. Relax for once, Kennedy. You earned tonight after everything you do for everyone else. I mean, don’t you think you deserve some down time?”
Her eyes lowered as his words sunk in. She’d never allowed herself to really relax before, and it hurt that he was able to read her so easily. “Please, please don’t make me regret letting you in, Memphis. Please don’t make me regret giving you a chance.”
Wincing at the complete loss in her voice, he realized that she’d never really behaved like a child. She was always more mature than the adults around them gave her credit for. Holding her closer, he felt her shoulders sag a little as she rested her head against his chest.
“Memphis, what if we don’t work out?” She asked softly.
Licking his lips, he shook his head. “Don’t think about that right now. Let’s not think about the future at all when we’re out like this. I want right now is to have a bit of fun, just be a teenager for a bit, just for a while.”
Nodding against him, she sighed. “That sounds nice.”
His lips touched the top of her head. “Ken, listen, I won’t pretend that I know how to act in a relationship. Neither of us do. As you said earlier, we’re learning as we go, but I promise I will never cheat, lie or abuse you. If we wanna stay together, then we need to respect, trust, and communicate, right?”
She nodded, “Well, yeah. Those are the basic foundations of a good relationship, be it work or personal. Memphis, I don’t… I don’t want this to end. I want to stay with you.”
As she laid her head on his chest again, his arms tightening slightly. “Me, too, Kenni. Me, too.”
- Writer
