CAGE’S FALL: The Vulture’s MC Read online

  After all, what the President says, we do. But he knew he couldn’t take my cut without me breaking more than a moral code.

  I think they were all under the impression that I was fucking Emily. Which wasn’t the case. I was sleeping on the couch. Her welfare came first to me. Making sure she was protected was the first thing I was doing. Protected from the back lash of the club and her husband.

  EMILY

  Sitting the kids down. Autumn was demanding to know why she couldn’t play on her tablet. Jacob was quiet.

  “I need to tell you two something.” I was nervously sitting in front of them at the table. “It’s about Dad.”

  And both their eyes widened. “Can we go home?!” Autumn said delighted.

  Jacob however scoffed. At the age of thirteen, he had features of James I couldn’t ignore. But he didn’t have his father’s attitude towards abuse.

  “No Autumn, we aren’t.” I blew out, okay I can do this. “We are going to stay with Hawk for awhile. In fact, we won’t be going home at all. Your father and I are separating.”

  Autumn’s face wiped of expression.

  Jacob however looked me dead in the eyes. “Good. I’m sick of you having accidents. Can I go outside now?”

  I blinked. Good. I’m sick of you having accidents. Replayed in my head. It then occurred to me while Autumn didn’t know about her father’s abusive ways, Jacob did- and now I realised the abuse hadn’t gone unnoticed by my son.

  Chapter Four

  HAWK

  The men were throwing comments at me left right and centre. I was trying not to react but seeing James drinking at the bar after he sent me out on a endless task. Collecting rent was for rookies. Not for the STG of ARMS. However, I fucking did it slapping the money down in front of him at the bar.

  “Thanks,” James gave me a sly glare, “for that wife stealer.”

  I looked him in the eyes. “At least I’m not a wife beater.”

  Guess I was asking for the punch that followed. But I was fucking sick of walking on tippy toes around him. So getting a few punches, relieved some of the built up rage I felt towards him. Punching him square in the jaw. He was stunned, but then he came back swinging.

  Finally a gun shot, caused us to stop. Wild was standing there, gun pointed at the ceiling. As the Vice he had some rank on me, but zero on James.

  “Fucking look at ya elses. Fighting over a woman.” He shook his head picking his beer back up. “Just stay clear of each other for a bit,” he said as he walked away. That was his advice, but when James and I locked eyes again he and I both knew that this was only the beginning and not coming anywhere near the end.

  The hate for each other was mutual. He hated me for having his wife at my house. I hated him for hurting Emily and the kids— not to mention how he treats Autumn. Like she is fucking invisible.

  Yeah. The hate was mutual.

  I stormed off, knowing my fists was going to get back involved if I stayed.

  * * *

  I walked into the house, and heard Emily shouting.

  Jacob was on the couch, so that ruled him out of the cause of the argument.

  “Em you alright?” I called up the stairs. She came rushing down the stairs.

  “Autumn’s been storming around all day wanting to see James. Now, she has locked herself in the bathroom.” She then stopped mid stair case. “What the hell happened to you?”

  Right. My fight with James. He had got a few cheap shots in. “Nothing.” I replied and walked up the few stairs. Emily was at the same height as me, only steps up. “I’ll talk to Autumn, princess.” I went to walk past her, but she grabbed my hand.

  “I don’t expect you to parent her.”

  Did it hurt that she didn’t want me to be viewed as a parent in Autumn’s and Jacob’s life— yeah it did. But if it was meant to be, it would be. Regardless of whether Autumn saw me as a father figure, I still loved her. Which was why I just gave Em a half smile, and kept walking up the stairs.

  Coming to a stop at my bathroom door, I knocked. “Acorn?”

  I heard sniffles on the other side of the door. Knowing Autumn she would have worked herself up into a real state.

  “Come on Acorn open the door.” I said smoothly. Then sighed. She could be stubborn when she wanted to be. Accepting that. I slid down the door, leaning back against it.

  “Acorn, you know I’m going to wait here till you come out.” I spoke to the closed door. “I know things aren’t great right now. I know you miss ya old man. I know you just want to go home.” I ran a hand over my short cut mohawk. “But you’ve got to believe me, things will get better.”

  I heard her sniffle again. “Will things ever be normal?” She said, and I just heard it over her tears.

  “Normal Acorn is for the weak. Why live on the right side of life when the wild side is more fun?” I said, and a few minutes passed, then I heard the door unlock.

  I moved just as it opened. Autumn was always little but I was reminded how little when she was barely looking down at me, as I sat on the floor. I was against the door but I turned to face her.

  She moved forward, sitting in my lap. She always liked affection. Which she never got from her father, and he knew she was an affectionate child.

  Sitting in my lap, both her hands in her lap. “Dad never comes.” She whispered and I saw the tears in her eyes.

  “Comes where Acorn? Here?” I pushed her blonde hair off her cheek.

  “No, to fathers day at school,” she mumbled. “Each year he doesn’t come. Each year the kids say I don’t really have a dad.” Her lips started to tremor. “Mom comes. No one wants their mom there on fathers day, though.”

  I sighed. So this was the problem. Fucking James. If he was half a father like he was a President he wouldn’t have this issue. The problem with James was he was true to the club and liquor. That was it. His family never made the cut.

  Autumn’s tear filled eyes locked with mine. “Hawk will you come? It’s tomorrow. Dad won’t. He never comes. I don’t want to be that dad less kid again.” She was nervous I could hear it in her voice, also by the way she whispered the words.

  I wiped her tears away with my thumb. “Of course Acorn. I’ll be there.” And I was nervous as fuck agreeing to it considering I hadn’t ran it past Emily. Autumn then wrapped her arms around my neck, hugging me.

  I looked over her shoulder seeing Emily standing there. She had tears in her eyes, I was guessing she had heard every word. I was panicked for a second. Till she mouthed thank you to me.

  The nerves eased, till I realised come tomorrow I’d be going to a primary school, on fathers day— fuck.

  Chapter Five

  Emily

  I was cursing silently hoping Hawk hadn’t forgotten. He was late, but not by much. That wasn’t easing the nerves in my stomach. Autumn was looking up and down every few seconds. Waiting for him to walk into the classroom.

  I nervously kept giving her a reassuring smile every time she looked up. God where was he!

  Then I glanced up the hallway seeing the talk dark and handsome man walking towards us. James had always been good looking. It was his good looks that had gotten me involved with him. But Hawk. He was the type of handsome that just made your mind wander. He had this rough look to him, as if he had just got out of the cage fighting. Always sporting a cut lip, cut eyebrow or something bruised. Usually his knuckles were split up and bruised.

  I let out a breath of relief when I saw him.

  He had come.

  People were stepping out of his way.

  “Sorry. Fucking traffic.” He said when he reached me. “Where is she?”

  I nodded my head into the classroom. I saw him take an uneasy breath. Other parents were giving us room now. Though Hawk needed the room, built like a tank.

  I squeezed his hand, as he went to walk into the room. I knew this went against everything inside him.

  His eyes were on my hand on his hand, then ran up my arm, looking me in the eye. H
e gave me a wink. Like he had this covered, when we both knew he was in over his head.

  Hawk headed for Autumn. The squeal that came from my daughter when she laid eyes on Hawk couldn’t go unheard.

  I stood on the sidelines, seeing people eye him up and down as he went and knelt down beside Autumn at her table.

  He gave her a kiss on the cheek, and she was quick to tell him all about what she was working on.

  HAWK

  Just don’t swear. Was on repeat in my head in a room filled with kids and their judging parents.

  Autumn was rattling off every detail of her science experiment, and I was keeping up. Till another student sat down next to Autumn and they started talking. I took this as my break, standing up. God, kneeling for that long wasn’t great on my legs. I really needed to hit the gym more.

  My lack of exercise from just kneeling was noticeable.

  “Is that your dad?” The little girl whispered- rather loudly at Autumn.

  Fuck.

  Autumn wouldn’t know what to say. I felt immediately out of place.

  Autumn turned to the little girl. “Hawk’s like my dad. I don’t see my dad anymore. I have a Hawk instead.” And she then asked the girl if she could borrow the glue. Just like that, Autumn fucking stunned me.

  I blinked. I blinked. I fucking stood there barely able to speak.

  A hand on my shoulder, nearly made me jump.

  “Thank you.” Emily said at my side.

  I was still in shock from what Autumn said, so I just nodded my head. Emily had to know I wasn’t doing her a favour by stepping in. I’d do anything for Autumn, and as I snuck a glance at Emily who was smiling at Autumn— I’d do fucking anything for Emily as well. Same goes for Jacob.

  They weren’t my blood children. But I fucking loved them.

  As for their mother- well I had never used the word love in a sentence with a woman. But I could honestly say to myself, that Emily had my heart.

  Cage’s Fall

  When the weak fail, I shall prevail.

  By Simone Elise

  Chapter One

  Autumn

  I wasn’t perfect. I was the first one to admit that, I was a girl that had been through a lot of shit and had come out on the other side. I was the girl that people looked at with pity.

  At the age of seventeen I think I had more life experience than the average teenager.

  My father died in a motorcycle accident when I was ten. It shook my world, to the core. It changed who I was as a person.

  It shaped my adolescence with most of it spent on new antidepressant medication, till we found one that worked.

  At seventeen I took a regular medication. Depression, everyone goes through it. Mine however was worse, because of the grief of losing my father.

  Which brought me to Hawk.

  He took my mom under his wing.

  He took us kids under his protection. Hawk was the Mother Chapter President. He went to lengths— great ones, to make sure us kids wanted for nothing.

  He was the man that helped my mom get over my dad’s death. He was the man that let her cry on his shoulder for hours while us kids played with the latest gift he brought.

  He was my father's best friend.

  He was a man of pride and honour. He was the type of man that would pick me up from ballet. Even though every person near the studio was terrified of the beast known as Hawk, with his short mohawk.

  He was the man that took me to doctor’s appointments when my mom had to work because she refused to let him pay our way. Gifts were one thing, but there was a time there before mom and Hawk got in a relationship, that she wouldn’t let him pay the bills.

  But all that was changing now. And as he said, it took him a hell of a long time for him to get his princess. Which is what he called mom.

  I was nine when he stepped in as a father figure and now I was seventeen as they married each other.

  My eyes were on my mom who was chain smoking in our living room.

  “Mom come on, calm down.” I grinned— I'd never seen her this worked up before. “Hawk loves you. He isn’t going to stand you up.”

  She gave me a dry expression. “He would have been drinking last night.”

  “Yes, but I highly doubt the man who has dedicated six years to getting that ring on your finger is going to do anything to screw it up.” I placed my hands on her shoulders. “Calm down and get ready the car should be nearly here.”

  “Autumn.” Mom said my name, the emotions strong in her tone. “This doesn’t mean I don’t still love your father.”

  “I know that.” And I held back tears. “So does Jacob, and Mom...”I paused and felt my heart cracking just a tad, “we will always love him, but he is dead, and your forever with him ended then. Now you are getting another beginning and Dad would want that.”

  Her hand went to my cheek. “When did you get so wise?”

  “Maybe the same day my mom admitted she has feelings for the Mother Chapter President.” I winked at her. Her and I both knowing she had a meltdown the day it happened.

  She butted her cigarette out. “Okay, I’ve got this.”

  “Yes you do.”

  I knew it was a big deal for Mom to be marrying Hawk and not just because he had been my father’s best friend but because he was a biker and mom swore, she would never get mixed back up in that world. But here she was, about to do it and I couldn’t be prouder.

  I just hoped that Jacob had done his one job and keep Hawk semi sober for the event. But knowing my trouble making brother, he would have been the one handing Hawk drinks all night.

  * * *

  “Do you Hawk Watson, take Emily Bentley as your wife?”

  Hawk’s lips twitched up. “Fuck yes I do.” And that sent the crowd laughing, a few cheers and hell yeahs being shouted as well.

  “And do you Emily Bentley take Hawk Watson, as your husband?”

  Mom smiled. “I do.” And those two words, sent Hawk’s face into disbelief, as if he was expecting her to say no this whole time, and as I was standing close to him— I saw the tears swell in his eyes before the celebrant pronounced them as husband and wife, and then I diverted my eyes as they gave the crowd the kiss they had been chanting for.

  Jacob was standing in the front row clapping— and gave me a look as I walked down from the alter following the happy couple.

  I knew that look- it was ‘well that just happened’ because we both were thinking mom would freak out on the day. But she hadn’t and now they were married and my small family who once had lost a father to the lifestyle— was now entering the MC lifestyle again.

  Jacob was already a patched member, so he was already in the lifestyle but my connection to the biker world ended when Dad died.

  Apart from Hawk visiting all the time— that was it. We never came to the clubhouse, and now I was back in the lot that my father had brought me to when I was a child. I could lie to everyone currently around me and say the tears in my eyes were out of happiness because my mom had just got married but the reality was, they were out of complete fear because it scared me being here, back at the MC.

  * * *

  I was so busy organising the reception I hadn’t stayed still for a second. I was making sure the food got out with the club women’s help. I swore Mom had not left Hawk’s lap for a second.

  I was back in the kitchen cutting up the wedding cake, that had just been cut by the happy couple when the kitchen door spun open behind me. I didn’t turn around, expecting it to be one of the girls to help me dish out the cake.

  “You okay Acorn?”

  I paused, looking up. Hawk’s vest had clearly been washed and hand washed most likely by him for the wedding. His pants were clean, and his eyes were on me— he almost looked panicked.

  “Yeah, I’m fine.” I replied to him. He had always called me Acorn since I was little. Even before Dad passed. I arched my eyebrows at him. “Are you okay?”

  “Your mom said you wanted to talk to me, an
d I think it’s time you and I had a conversation.” He took a nervous sharp inhale. “I know I can never replace your old man. Don’t plan on doing that. But I want you to know, I see you as my daughter. And I know you coming back into this world, scares the hell out of you.”

  I didn’t say a word.

  “But you need to know Acorn, no one is going to hurt you. Cause they’ll have to get through me.” He walked towards me and my eyes followed him. “I don’t expect you to come to club parties or club events. I know it would be too hard on you.”

  “Hawk stop.” I said and put the knife down, and suddenly I was the nervous one. “Do you remember the day I fell from the tree?” I said quickly and he frowned. “When I broke my arm in three places and when we got to the ER, when they asked who my father was, and I started crying?”

  He nodded his head, and I saw his eyes go back in time for a second.

  “And I was crying because Dad had just died, and you knew I couldn’t face having my arm casted without you. So you said…”

  “I’m her dad.” He repeated what he said all those years ago. It was a bonding moment between Hawk and I.

  I smiled. “Ever since that day, I considered you like a father.” I opened my clutch. “Now, I know not everyone would see this as a present. But this is my wedding present to you, and well mom already knows about it.” I handed him an envelope.

  He frowned, but took it, opening it as I watched his eyes read over the document. A mixture of emotion going through his eyes. Then his eyes snapped off the paper on to me.

  “These are adoption papers.” He looked at me to confirm it.

  I nodded my head. “I know it’s only for a year, but I wanted you to understand that you are my father and have been for a long time.”