“Yeah. I got the pain pills.” He held up the backpack she’d given him. Neal didn’t own anything else to his name. Everything he wore came from Becca. The backpack was filled with all the medication he’d need for the coming weeks.
“Let me have a look at your wound. I know you like to break the rules, so I’m going to make sure you stay in line.”
He lay down on the bed, and she looked over the wound. She pressed her hands around his stomach looking concerned.
“I almost died, didn’t I?” Neal asked. There was pain in her eyes as he spoke.
“Neal, you died for two minutes on my table.” She sat beside him, ticking some points on his chart. “I don’t want to see you in this hospital again, and I’m sure your father would hate it, too.”
“Did you love him?” Neal asked.
Becca smiled. “I did. He was going to leave his wife after he dealt with her latest problems.” She shrugged. “I guess shit like that was never going to be easy.” She shook her head. “Don’t get admitted to the hospital again.”
“I don’t intend to.”
She turned to him, and he saw the seriousness on her face. “No, what happened back in that room in your house you need to forget, for your own safety.”
He frowned at her. “Someone killed my family.”
Becca took his hands. “And that someone believes you’re dead. They believe a lot of people are dead. I need you to not remember and to never go looking for that person or thinking about your past.” She looked around the room then flashed her inner arm at him. He saw the emblem of his dad’s MC. She was more than his father’s whore or lover. His father had claimed her as an old lady. Neal didn’t know how it was possible, but it apparently was. “The club is gone, Neal. I know who you are, and I’m begging you to stay alive. I’m going to keep an eye on you. I promised your father I would, but I need you to do this for me.”
“I promise.”
She touched his cheek. “The moment you leave this room, you forget everything, and there are documents in your bag as to who you are. Use them and never forget the person you’re supposed to be.”
Neal nodded. “I don’t remember anything.”
Smiling, she stood up. “If you ever need me, let me know. I’ll be around.”
“Wait, I don’t know how to get in touch with you,” he said.
Becca smiled at him, the same smile that must have won over his father. “But I’ll know when you’re looking for me.” She gave him a wink and left the room.
****
At twenty years old, Neal stared around the club in Fort Wills. The party was in full swing, and Tiny was motioning for him to come closer.
“Well, if it’s not Butch,” one of the sweet-butts said, purring.
“Butch?” Tiny asked, smirking. Hardy and Mikey were chuckling at him. He didn’t care. Neal had wanted to be part of The Skulls for a long time. No matter how much he forgot his father’s lifestyle, being part of an MC was in his blood. He was willing to do anything and everything to be patched in. Neal knew how the world of the club worked. He’d get his tag, and then he’d be part of a brotherhood once again.
“Yeah, he’s all big and butch. I like him.” The sweet-butt was caressing his shoulders, chuckling.
“You know what, you’ve got your name already, mate,” Tiny said, laughing.
“What?”
“Butch. You answer to that or nothing else, you got me?” Tiny asked.
“Yeah, I got you.”
“Good. You can be a prospect. It’ll take years for you to earn your cut, but you’ll get there. Follow the rules, don’t doubt shit I say, and be loyal to the club. Respect the patch and you’ll be a member in no time. Do you think you can do that?” Tiny asked.
“I can do that.”
“Good. Butch, the toilets need cleaning. Take Stink with you. It will be entertaining for all of us.”
Turning away from the men, Neal fell away, along with the mistakes of his past, and Butch was born. No one needed to know what happened, and the name Gonzalez fell from his thoughts.
Chapter One
Butch wiped the sweat from his brow as he dumped the latest bag of trash in with the rest around the back of the shop. Working at the coffee shop was not easy, not by a long shot. It was honest work, and he wasn’t afraid for Cheryl’s life. He’d gone from working in the front of the coffee shop serving people, to being asked to work around the back doing dishes so no one saw him. The owner told him he scared too many people with the reputation of the club. Since quitting The Skulls a month ago he’d been working odd jobs trying to find one that actually stuck. He refused to work as a mechanic as that kept him in the MC life. The Skulls were the only mechanic shop in town. Butch didn’t want to leave Fort Wills. Cheryl was here, and he wasn’t ready to leave her or her son, Matthew. It was a nice name for a nice kid. Matthew Barnes, father unknown, or at least he was to him. Cheryl knew who the father was to her kid, but no one else did.
Staring up at the blazing sun, Butch couldn’t help but think about the club. He wondered what they were doing. The last he heard Lash was still away with Angel and their son. Sophia and Nash were spending time with their daughter. Life was going on around him, and not once did he have a clue as to the dangers lurking. Blaine was still keeping up with his woman and child. Curse, from Chaos Bleeds, had brought in a new enemy or business partner. Butch didn’t know the answer as he was no longer part of their world. There was something about the name of the new possible enemy that made his gut tighten.
You walked out. Now you stay out.
The Skulls were no longer part of his business. His cell phone rang, and he saw it was Lash calling.
“Hey, man. It must be costing you some to be calling me,” Butch said, leaning against the brick wall in the shade.
“Are you f**king shitting me, man? You quit the club while I’m away. What kind of shit is that?” Lash started yelling over the line. Closing his eyes, Butch listened to his friend’s tirade. He’d tried to leave without any of the brothers finding out. Tiny had made sure everyone knew the truth. It didn’t matter. Butch wasn’t going back no matter how much he missed the club. Sweltering days like today were a nightmare. He missed the banter, the drinking, the partying, and feeling like part of something. The MC life was in his blood; it was his destiny.
“Where’s Angel?” Butch asked, cutting into all the yelling and tried to change the subject.