Chapter 6-Two new prospects rescued from the Satan's Riders
After we left Rooster's office, I went to find Jullian. She was in our room laying down reading. When I came in she smiled at me and I tried to smile back but I guess I didn't really pull it off very well because she asked "What's wrong?"
I sat down on the side of the bed and looked at her, thinking "What am I going to do if I can't do this tomorrow?" I want to give her everything I can but without a job, we'd be homeless and on the street. I have to do it. It'll be only this once, I hope.
I took a deep breath and told her what was going on. She gasped and said "You don't have to do this Rudy. We can leave and go somewhere else."
"Where, Jullian? Where would we go? Back to my Uncle's camper? We'd be homeless. The little bit of money I've earned here so far won't get us very far and we have a baby coming. You need to be seen by the doctor every month and you remember how much they charge for just one visit and what about the hospital? We'd be in debt up to our eyeballs for the rest of our lives, even if I manage to find a job.
I have to make sure we have a safe place to sleep, food to eat, clothes for not only us but the baby. Diapers and all kinds of stuff. No. I can do this. Once it's over, Rooster says I can work as a painter on the construction crew, in fact I would basically be the lead painter since I'm the only one that likes to paint. I find it very relaxing and soothing.
I'm not going to have to participate in what they are doing and hopefully those guys will talk and then they will take them back to jail but if not, I'll do what I have to do to prove my loyalty to the club, become a patched member and then we will be set. I love you, Jullian and I will do whatever it takes to make sure you have everything I can give you and the MSMC is my best chance at that." I told her.
"Oh, Rudy! I love you so much. I wish we had another alternative but you're right. I don't know what else we can do. I wish I could help and I'm sorry I'm being such a burden." Jullian said and I could see the tears filling her eyes.
"Baby, you are not a burden to me. Our plans have just kind of taken a turn and while it's not what we imagined it would be, I think God has led us here for a reason. We just have to trust that he will show us the reason someday. You and our baby are my reason for living at all and I will do whatever it takes to provide all I can for you. I love you." I told her as I pulled her into my lap and held her close. I put my hand on her stomach and felt the baby move for the first time.
"Wow! Was that the baby?" I asked in amazement and Jullian nodded with a big smile on her face.
"He's been rather active today. He's also been kicking the heck out of my bladder. I have to go pee again." She said as she slipped off my lap and headed for the bathroom.
When she came back, we laid on the bed and talked about baby names and what we needed to get for the baby. "I wish there was something I could do to earn money too. I hate that I'm having to dump this all on you. Do we have enough money that I might be able to buy some yarn and a crochet hook? My grandmother taught me how to crochet before she died. I can find patterns online but I need the materials and then I could make some of the things we'll need." Jullian said.
"How much does stuff like that cost?" I asked.
"A skein of yarn is about $3.oo and a set of hooks might be maybe $5.00. They will probably have it down at the craft shop in town." She told me.
"Well, it's still kind of early. Want to go to town now? We've got over an hour before dinner will be ready." I asked.
"Sure. Do you think they will mind if we borrow one of the SUVs?" She asked.
"Nope. I hope not at least. Come on, let's go ask." I said and waited while she put on her shoes.
Hand in hand we went downstairs and Rooster was just coming out of his office and we met him at the foot of the stairs. "Prez, can we borrow one of the SUVs for a little while? Jullian wants to go to the craft store for some yarn and stuff."
"Sure. Fill it up if it's less than 3/4 tank while you are in town too." Rooster told them.
We thanked him and grabbed a set of keys then headed out the door.
Rooster's POV
I'd spent most of the past couple of hours going over expenses and it brought me some concern. I hated that part of my job as the president of such a large MC. Our expansion was great but not the bills that come with it. We have been extending our clubhouse and crew but not our levels of income and the expenses were quickly eating up the savings we had built up to the point I was having to draw on it almost every month.
I had just decided to take a break and go find something to drink and to see what Dixie is up to when I ran into Rudy and Jullian. They asked to borrow one of the vehicles to go to the craft store and I told them to go ahead.
The next morning, we went to take care of the Satan's Riders prisoners, Rudy and Kevin were both so nervous all the way there that they both felt like puking when they pulled up outside the back of the jail like they had been told to do. Rudy told Kevin "Just keep thinking about Marley and little Scotty and what bastards like this did to them." Thinking about that seemed to calm them both down and gave them the resolve to do whatever was necessary.
We walked inside to talk to Captain Russell and he led us down to the cells. When one of the men saw me and Hulk coming towards them, they both began babbling that they would tell us anything we wanted to know. We entered the first cell that held a young man, who looked like he was barely old enough to even be called a man.
"Hell, our club has been wiped out and no one has answered our calls for help so we are pretty much on our own here and I didn't want to join this damn MC to begin with and I, for one, am not going down for this. All I want at this point is protection from the people who are running the trafficking ring. If not, do your worst because I'm pretty sure their punishment is going to be just as bad if not worse." The one with "Spoons" on the cut laying next to him on the bed said. He looked to be really young and from the wear on his cut, he couldn't have been patched in for very long.
"We just want to know who's running it, where the "storage houses" are and where the auction is being held and when."
"205 Stompers, a street gang slash mafia, are in charge of it and contacted the Prez to pick up women to be taken back to Mexico or shipped overseas for their whore houses. We had the first auction in Lubbock about 3 months ago. We can't tell you where the storage houses will be because we honestly don't know where they are until Scout rides ahead and finds secluded abandoned houses or barns or whatever. That's what they've been using to hold the women. Scout and I were taken together along with 2 of our friends. All we know is that the next auction is in a small town called Newcastle about 20 minutes outside of Oklahoma City and it's supposed to be July 10th." He filled us in.
"Was "Scout" caught when we captured you?" I asked and "Spoons" hooked his thumb over his shoulder "He's in the next cell over. He's lucky that he doesn't have to participate in this bullshit. His job was just to look for safe places to keep them and report back.
Look, neither one of us wanted to be involved with this but they kind of didn't leave us any choice. There were four of us in the beginning of this and we just got caught in the wrong place at the wrong time and were told to join or die. None of us were ready to die so we joined. I've seen these bastards do some really bad stuff and all I want is out.
Both Scout and I and two of our friends including one that got killed when we were captured were just singing and playing music one night and having a few beers when they surrounded us and forced us to join. They threatened to do some really perverted stuff to us and then we would be killed, if we didn't. Scout and I were going to try to "get lost" in Oklahoma City while their attention was focused on the auction but it looks like that plan went right out the window when you captured us."
"What happened to the fourth person?" I asked.
"He refused to rape one of the first girls we captured that had already lost her V card when they grabbed her. They cut off his dick and the a couple of them fucked him while he bled to death. They shoved his cut off dick in his ass and threw him away like he was trash." Spoons said as his eyes filled with tears. "Like I said, We've seen these guys do some really sick stuff. They made us watch while they did that to one of my best friends, a kid I had grown up most of my life with."
"Son, why didn't you tell us any of this while we were questioning you?" Captain Russell asked.
"Let's just say that all the cops we have known in the past have not exactly been real stand up citizens and can be just as bad as the Satan's Riders or worse. Hell, I just got out of high school a year ago. All four of us had just graduated. None of us had great home lives and we were working hard to get out of that small one horse town.
We all had jobs but they barely managed to pay minimum wage so we were sharing a tiny little house and barely making the rent most months. Before this, none of us had ever been in trouble with the law other than a few speeding tickets but the cops would hassle us all the time because we were from the "wrong side of the tracks" but hell most of the town is barely above the poverty level. What's going to happen to us now?" Spoons asked.
"Well, first of all we are going to talk to your friend and then Captain Russell and I are going to have a meeting and then we'll come back and talk some more. Just hang in there kid." I said and patted him on the shoulder and it didn't escape anyone's attention when "Spoons" reacted with a hiss and he dropped his shoulder down to escape my touch.
"Did I hurt you, son?" I asked.
"Spoons" pulled his shirt off and showed us his back. He was covered in bruises. A couple of them you could tell had been made by a billy club and very recently.
"Who did this to you?" Captain Russell asked with concern when he recognized those bruises.
"Some by Satan's Riders, but the more recent ones were done by one of the guards here. Like I said, we don't have a lot of respect for some cops for a good reason." Spoons asked after eyeing up Captain Russell, trying to figure out if he could trust him or not. He found out his trust was not going to be misplaced.
"Did you see his name badge?" Captain Russell asked through clenched teeth, barely keeping his anger in check.
"Yes, sir. Nelson is what his name badge said. Big guy, bright red hair, seriously overweight. He hit me with his nightstick to "wake me up" this morning." Spoons said.
Captain Russell turned to me and said "When we are done here, can I please borrow Hulk and Bruiser for a little while before you go?"
I turned and looked at both Hulk and Bruiser who had big smiles on their faces and together, cracked their knuckles and asked "Please?"
Spoons brightened up and asked "Can I watch?"
"Sure, kid. One more thing. How did they come up with the road name "Spoons" for you? Are you a cook?" I asked.
"No. I mean I can cook some but that's not the reason." He had a couple of plastic spoons that he had kept back from his meals and he picked them up and after positioning them between his fingers, he began to give us a small taste of the amazing sounds he could produce with them. He was very talented with them and after a minute or so, he stopped and said "I also play drums and most any percussion instrument you put in front of me."
"What about Scout? Does he play an instrument?" I asked.
"Yeah. He can make a grown man cry with some of the stuff he plays. He's horns but if you ask me, his best instrument is the clarinet. Kenny G is his hero and he's always wanted to go to one of his live concerts and to meet him. He's also a very talented singer but he's shy about singing in front of a lot of people." Spoons told us.
"Okay. Well, hang in there kid. We'll be back in a little while. Lay down and try to get some rest." I told him and then we left the cell and walked over to the next one and let ourselves in. This kid was even smaller than his friend and he had also removed his cut and had it folded on the bed next to him. He jumped to attention when we stepped into the room and took a step back towards the back of the cell.
"Hey, calm down kid. We're not here to hurt you. We just need some answers." I said.
The kid moved back to his bunk but sat down near the pillow instead of at the foot where he had been sitting. We could all tell that he was very nervous and looked like he was about to shit himself.
"Son, we understand that you were the one the Satan's Riders sent out to find safe houses to put the girls they were kidnapping to be taken to the auction we've heard about. Can you tell us where the next house was located?" I asked.
"Yes, sir, it's an old abandoned farm with a big barn on the other side of Wichita Falls, about 20 minutes outside the city limits near the highway to Newcastle, where the next auction is to be held. If it hadn't been for the old mailbox on the almost nonexistent dirt driveway, I would have missed it all together. It's set back way off the road behind a small rise. Did Mitch tell you about how we got caught up in all of this?" he asked.
"Yeah. He also told us that you are a good horn player?" I asked.
"Yeah. That jackass, Griz, broke my clarinet the night they snatched us. I'd had that thing since I first learned to play. It wasn't the best but I could still get her to sing for me." Scout said with a gentle smile on his face. He had soft blonde hair that lay flat against his head except it curled at the ends all the way around. He has pale blue eyes, a small nose and almost girlish features but his body shape told you he was definitely male. He had broad strong looking shoulders and muscular arms and strong looking hands like he was used to hard work. When he had stood up, he couldn't have been more than 5'9" and he had moved like he was sore and rather stiff.
"Son, have any of the guards hit you while you've been here?"
Captain Russell asked.
"Yes, sir. That guard, Nelson, seems to take pleasure in hitting me. Caught me a good one in the middle of my back this morning when he came in to wake us up." He replied.
"Would you mind removing your shirt please?" Captain Russell asked.
Scout removed his shirt and his bruisers were even worse than Spoons had been. His entire back was black and blue and one of the bruises was particularly dark.
"Captain, I don't mean to tell you your business, but you need to have him looked at. That bruise does not look good. He could have internal bleeding." I said softly to the Captain.
"I think you are right. Son, sit down and I'm going to have a doctor come in and take a look at that. Rooster, we have a gym downstairs. I think that would be a good place for Nelson to learn his lesson? I'm going to be in my office making out termination papers after I arrange for a doctor to come take a look at these boys. Then I would like to have a discussion with you, if you have the time?" Captain Russell said.
"Sounds good to me." I smiled at him. "Hang tight, Scout. We'll be back. By the way, what is your real name?"
"Owen. Owen Jameson." He replied.
"My name is Rooster. We've got some business to take care of with officer Nelson and then I'm going to meet with Captain
Russell and then we'll be back to talk to you and your friend. Okay?"
"Sure. I'm not going anywhere. Can I ask if your business with Nelson includes him getting back some of what he's been dishing out?" He asked and I nodded. "Can I come watch?"
I turned and looked at Captain Russell, who chuckled and said "Sure. I guess the doctor can wait a bit. Might take him a while to get here anyway."
Captain Russell let them both out of their cells and they "bro hugged" and then followed Captain Russell, me and Hulk down the hall to where Nelson was sitting at the guards desk, playing solitaire.
"Nelson, come with me." Captain Russell said and the fat man slowly stood up and glanced at all of us and we just smiled at him. The two prisoners were standing behind Hulk so he didn't see them right away.
He followed Captain Russell down to the entrance to the gym in the basement and told him, "Please show Rooster and his men where the gym is and if anyone is down there, tell them to come back upstairs immediately."
Nelson gave him a confused look and that's when he saw Spoons and Scout and thought that they were the ones who were going to get "worked over". With a smile on his face, he replied, "Yes sir!" and almost bounced down the stairs to the underground gym. There was no one down there at this time of the day and the minute we were all in the room, Jailer locked the door behind us.
"Going to teach these punks a lesson they won't forget?" Nelson asked gleefully.
"Well, someone is about to get a lesson in how to treat people but it's not them." I answered him. The look of surprise on Nelson's face was priceless as Hulk suddenly grabbed him from behind, trapping his arms and lifting him off the floor. Jailer stepped forward and removed his gun belt which held not only his gun but his nightstick and a taser.
Once he was unarmed, Hulk sat him down and I said "Now, I understand you like to beat on unarmed prisoners who are smaller and weaker than you are for no reason. Well, we're going to show you just what it's like to be on the other end of that." Rooster said and took the first punch, hitting the man hard in the stomach, causing him to bend over to catch his breath.
He straightened up a few moments later and started to say "You are going to regret this. Striking an officer of the law is a prosecutable offense."
"Yeah, it would be except since we found out what you've been doing, Captain Russell has decided that he doesn't want or need a bully like you working for him. He's upstairs right now filling out your dismissal paperwork. You abused your position of authority over two young men who had no way to defend themselves. You are no better than the scum we go after every day. The only difference is you used to wear a badge.
You are supposed to be above this kind of thing but no, you just had to lower yourself to a criminal level. You are only an arresting officer, not a judge and certainly had no right to prosecute these boys before they've even been found guilty of anything.
We are authorized to remove victims from their abusers and you just won them a ride out of here and this is what we do to assholes like you." I said and then nodded at Bruiser who started to pound on the cop while I went to sit down next to the two young men who watched with fascination as the men took turns "teaching" Nelson a lesson.
They sat and watched Nelson get his just desserts for a good 10 minutes. "Okay, guys. Enough. Have you learned your lesson, Nelson?" I called out and saw Nelson nod.
I stood up and walked over to where Hulk and Bruiser sat Nelson down on a chair and knelt down in front of him. "Nelson, I'm only going to say this once. Let me find out anything about your bullying ways with anyone, ever again, this will seem like a walk in the park for you. If that boy ends up in the hospital because of what you did to him, I'm going to make sure you get the bill and you had better pay it or we'll be back to collect it out of your hide. Do you understand me?" I said.
"Yeah, I understand." Nelson nodded.
"Good. Stay here and catch your breath while we go talk to Captain Russell. I mean it, Nelson. Step out of line again and I will find you." I said. And Nelson nodded.
They all went upstairs and found Captain Russell waiting for them. "Is he still breathing?" He asked, with a sly grin.
"Just barely. He's having a rather hard time catching his breath." I grinned back at him.
"Serves him right. I don't need men like that. Had enough of that bullshit in the big city. Cops who thought they were above the law and tried to play judge and jury for people they arrested. Anyway, the doc is waiting for them in the interrogation room. Could one of your guys take them down there? Second door on the right. Rooster, can I talk to you in private for a minute?" Captain Russell said.
"Sure." I said as Hulk and Bruiser led the two young men down the hall where the doctor was waiting. I then followed the captain back to his office.
As soon as they were inside and the door was closed, Captain Russell said "Have a seat, Rooster." As soon as we were both sitting, facing each other, Captain Russell said "So what do you think we should do about these two? They don't really seem like hardened criminals to me and I hate to send such young men to prison for something they had no control over."
"I was hoping you were going to feel that way. I don't really think they deserve to be prosecuted after all they've been through. Even though neither of them have admitted it, I've got a feeling that they've been subjected to a lot more than they are saying. Besides, from what I understand, the minute Nelson hit them, it kind of killed your right to hold them. Police brutality and all of that." I said, with a slightly smirking grin on my face.
"How about this? I take them with me and allow them to prospect for my club. We'll show them that not all biker clubs are like the Satan's Riders and give them a chance to voluntarily do some good to balance out what they were forced to do. I've got someone at my place that can really sing and I'd like to introduce them to each other. I'll keep them out of trouble and hopefully give them a chance to follow their music if they decide that's what they want to do. If not, from now on they will be rescuing young people and children instead of kidnapping them."
"Sounds good to me. If I get called up on it, I'll just let Nelson take the fall. He abused his authority and all of our chances to hold them any longer sailed right out the window, so I'm going to have to release them anyway." Captain Russell said, with a relieved note to his voice and a slight grin back at me.
"Okay. I'll let you know if they come up with anything else that you need to know and thanks." I said. We both stood up and shook hands and then left the room. We started to walk down the hall to where Hulk and the others were waiting and then I thought about something. "Hey, Captain, what happened to all of the Satan's Riders bikes?"
"We confiscated them. Not sure what I'm going to do with them yet. They are not really the type of bikes that are useful as police motors. Why? Think you can take them off my hands and remove one more of my headaches?" The Captain asked hopefully.
"We sure can. In fact, I'll take three of them with me and send some men back to get the rest. How many do you have in total?" I asked.
"Right now, 14 bikes and the panel van, which I have no use for." Captain Russell said. "Just give me a heads up when you are coming. I've got the keys in my office."
"Okay, I'll have some of my men come by in the next day or two and pick up the rest of them but for now, I'm taking 2 of them off your hands." I said as they reached the end of the hall.
Just then the doctor came walking down the hall and greeted Captain Russell. "Dr. Phillips, this is Rooster from the Monster Slayers MC. How are our young men?"
"Someone has beaten them both up pretty badly but other than being badly bruised, they'll be alright. I would keep an eye on that dark bruise on Owen's lower back but otherwise, he should be fine. If he has any dizziness, loss of appetite or sees blood in his urine or stool, get him to the hospital right away." Dr. Phillips said, looking Rooster up and down, the same way he had Hulk and Bruiser.
"Well, if it wasn't for Rooster and his men, they might not even be walking around right now. They are rescues from a human trafficking ring that Rooster and his men stopped a few weeks ago." Captain Russell informed him and the Doctor said. "I've heard about you from Joe Crankston. You men do good work!"
"Dr. Phillips, will it hurt them to ride a motorbike?" I asked.
"Well, an hour or two of sticking to the roads probably won't hurt them but I would say dirt biking would be a really bad idea. If it could be avoided, it would be better if they waited until the bruising was closer to being gone, especially Owen. Really keep an eye on that black bruise." Dr. Phillips said.
"We will Doc. Thanks." I said and the two men shook hands.
"Well, Captain Russell. I think I'm going to collect my new prospects and head on out. If you don't mind, I'm going to take the van with us today too. Owen can drive one and Mitch can drive the one we brought with us and two of our guys can ride the bikes. I'll send men back to get the rest of the bikes in a day or two." Rooster said.
Captain Russell retrieved the keys from his office and handed them to Rooster. "Take the ones you need and give the others back. I want to keep them on hand in case we have to move them before you get back."
"Sure. Can you show us where they are?" Rooster asked.
"Sure, come on." He replied. They stopped by the interrogation room and told them all that they were ready to leave. They all followed Captain Russell outside where Rudy and Kevin were waiting.
"Rudy, Kevin, this is Mitch and this is Owen. They are going to be your new prospect brothers. They are going to drive this and another van back to the compound. You two go pick out two bikes you can handle and drive them back to the compound. We'll be in front and behind you. Mind the speed limit, we're in no rush." I said.
Rudy and Kevin found bikes by using the keys and pulled them forward while Owen and Mitch got behind the wheels of the vans. Hulk and I rode up front followed by the vans, with Jailer and Bruiser riding guard on the front van and Kevin and Rudy riding guard on the second. Razor and Blades brought up the rear.
As soon as we pulled up in front of the clubhouse, I directed Mitch and Owen to park by the shed. Kevin and Rudy followed them and parked the new bikes inside, then they joined Owen and Mitch.
"What's it like being part of this MC?" Mitch asked.
"They rescued me and my old lady from some Cobra bikers a few weeks ago. They've given us a safe place to live, great food and they don't mistreat us. Keep your nose clean and do as you're told and never ever betray the club and it won't be long before they will let you patch in too, if this is what you want. Come on. It's already past lunchtime and I'm starving, plus I want to check on Jullian." Rudy told them.
They all walked up to the clubhouse and Jullian was waiting for Rudy on the porch. "Wow. Is she one of the benefits?" Mitch asked.
"No! She's my old lady. Put a hand on her and I'll cut your heart out. Understand? One thing should be made perfectly clear here. We don't disrespect women the way a lot of other clubs do so watch your mouth and keep your comments and your hands to yourself or you won't last long here." Rudy said.
"Understood. Sorry, man. Your woman is very pretty." Mitch apologized.
"She's also pregnant with my child." Rudy said as he hurried towards Jullian. He caught her in his arms and spun her around as she giggled that magical giggle that he loves so much. He sat her down just as the others stepped up on the porch and made introductions.
"Jullian, this is Mitch and Owen. Guys, this is my old lady, Jullian. Did Claire serve lunch yet?" Rudy said followed by his stomach growling loudly.
"Yeah but she saved some for all of you." Jullian said and looped her hand in his arm as they led the others inside. They all walked into the dining room and found the others lined up at the buffet table. "Go wash your hands and then come eat." I told them.
All of the guys trooped off to the bathroom and came back a few minutes later and now they were the only ones in line. They quickly made their plates and since everyone else was done eating and the other prospects were busy cleaning up from lunch, I called them over to sit with them. "Come sit with us so the guys can finish cleaning up the rest of the tables."
To Mitch and Owen, it was no big deal but to Rudy and Kevin it was. They were being asked to sit at the executive table! Jullian went and got everyone drinks and then sat next to Rudy while he ate his lunch.