Eddy shot so fast out of his chair that it went slamming back against the wall. “This isn’t about me and the Diablos. This is about you running guns to wetbacks across my territory without giving me and my boys any compensation.”

“We’re not running guns. The Rodriguez cartel is,” Deacon said with a smirk.

“But you let it happen.”

Rambo banged his gavel on the table. “Enough! Pipe the fuck down, Eddy.”

“But I—”

Jabbing his finger in the air, Rambo growled, “I don’t give two shits about what else you have to say! Take a fucking seat and respect the members of this table, or you’ll be going home without a patch!”

Eddy’s beady eyes widened at the suggestion of his cut being taken. After heaving out several frustrated breaths and shooting a death glare at us, he finally retrieved his chair and had a seat.

Rambo reached into his patch for a pack of cigarettes. After lighting one up and taking a drag, he said, “I would caution all of you to remember that what is done in your territory is your business. When it affects the territory of other brothers, then it becomes an issue. Right now I see nothing wrong with the Rodriguez cartel running guns across Louisiana. At the very least, other clubs will assume all of the Raiders chapters have an alliance with the cartel, which makes us look powerful.”

Rev and Deacon exchanged a glance. I was sure neither of them had thought that the Rodriguez deal would actually have some benefit for the other Raiders.

Mississippi’s president nodded. “I agree with Rambo. I also don’t see any reason for Rev to owe anything to Eddy. We’re along the same route, and he don’t owe me a damn thing.”

Rev grinned as the other states chimed in their agreement. “I appreciate that sentiment, boys.”

“Total bullshit,” Eddy muttered under his breath.

If Rambo heard him, he chose to ignore him. “Since we’re in agreement on that, I make a motion to vote on whether to recognize the legitimacy of the north Georgia chapter.”

When I found myself leaning forward on my feet, I couldn’t help holding my breath in anticipation. One by one, the men around the table began to vote. Once the “yeas” started ringing out, the breath I’d been holding whooshed out of me.

Not too surprisingly, the only nay came from Eddy and his vice president. “Motion carried. Meeting adjourned until next year,” Rambo said. He brought his gavel down hard to make it official.

As the men rose to their feet, we started shaking hands and thumping backs. When we were the only ones left in the room, we did some hugging of our own. “After all that fucking worry, I can’t believe it all went down so easy,” Deacon remarked as he lit up a cigarette.

“Considering what happened with Eddy, I wouldn’t say it went down easy,” Rev argued.

Deacon rolled his eyes. “Screw Eddy. His days as a Raider are numbered after he pulled that stunt.”

Boone nodded. “Deacon’s right. You don’t go after your brothers or run your mouth like a fucking fool, especially not in a closed-door meeting with all the chapters present. You might as well be signing your fucking death warrant in the club.”

“I don’t know about you guys, but I’m hungry as hell. Let’s head down to the dining hall and get some grub,” Deacon suggested.

“Sounds like a plan,” I said.

After Rev nodded, we fell in line with him down the hallway. Just as we rounded the corner to the dining room, Eddy stepped out in front of us. He gave Rev a menacing glare. “This ain’t over.”

Rev held up his hand. “Look, Eddy, I don’t want any trouble—”

“It’s too late for all that. I ain’t gonna sit by and let this pass. I don’t care what Rambo and the others think.”

Standing toe-to-toe with Eddy, Rev towered over him. “Are you threatening me?”

Eddy’s lips curled into a smirk. “And what if I am? You gonna sic your cartel boys on me?”

“Take your threats and get out of my fucking face before I hunt down Rambo and have him drag your ass in to take your patch.”

“Pussy,” Eddy taunted.

Rev shook his head. “I won’t fight you, old man. No matter what bullshit you throw at me.” After giving Eddy one final “fuck you” look, he sidestepped away from him and started down the hall.

“What a prick,” Deacon muttered as we entered the dining room.

“Has he always been that way at meetings?” I asked as I grabbed a tray.

Rev shrugged. “I’m not sure, since I’ve only been president at the last two. I can’t remember if Preacher Man or Case ever mentioned him.”

“He probably had someone proxy for him at the meetings when he was in jail,” Deacon said.

“They should have voted his ass out a long time ago,” Mac remarked.

Deacon grinned. “Amen to that one.”

Rev exhaled a long, somewhat troubled breath. “All right. Enough about that fucker. Let’s focus on the positives.”

“Yes, sir,” Deacon replied, with a mock salute.

“Ass,” Rev grumbled.

After lunch, we headed down the hill to where the party was gearing up around a towering bonfire. Now that the business aspect was over, the rest of the day would be another free-for-all into the early-morning hours. Then after breakfast on Sunday, everyone would pack up to head home.

I was hoping that Eddy and his assholes would leave early so they didn’t kill anyone else’s buzz. Although Rev had tried changing the subject off Eddy, it was all anyone could talk about in the dining room. Apparently, all the others had heard about Eddy’s threat, and no one seemed to be taking it as lightly as we had initially. We soon learned from some of the older men that Eddy always carried through on a threat. It left a dark cloud hanging over what should have been a banner fucking day for us.