Page 76 of Smitty

“What do you need?” Grim asked.

“I need a roster or some kind of list of members. Something I can use to differentiate the living from the dead.”

“I’ll see what I can do,” Grim replied. “I’ve got some calls I can make.”

Creed nodded. “I’ll make some, too.”

“Hell, everybody make some damn calls. We started this mess.” Prez looked around the room, his voice steady as he said, “We gotta finish it, and to do that, we gotta quit making assumptions. We need every rumor chased down. Every loose end dealt with. If somebody’s out there coordinating attacks on Fury chapters, it’s up to us to find them.”

The room came alive with brothers splitting off into conversations, deciding who was contacting who. I stood there for a second, trying to figure out the best way I could help, and I had nothing. I had no contacts. I had no one to call for help.

Twenty-four hours ago, my biggest concern was meeting my daughter for the first time and whether Brooke would let me into her life again. Now, the entire Fury family had a target on its back. If the Coyotes were really coming for us, they’d made the mistake of a lifetime.

Fury didn’t back down.

If they wanted a war, we’d give it to them.

I overheard Memphis tell Goose, “These Coyote fuckers are smarter than I thought… Separate chapters. Separate states. Same timeframe. It took time to sort all that out.”

“And some brains, too.”

“Which means someone was smart enough not to be standing in that clubhouse when we hit it.”

“Exactly. And that means he won’t be easy to find.”

“And that’s why we have Shep.”

He was right. Shep was our ticket to figuring out who was behind the hits. It would take him some time, but at least now he knew who he was dealing with. And once he got the list of members, he could look for obituaries, arrests, hospital visits, and even family connections to each and every member to figure out who was still breathing.

It was going to take time though.

“Let’s wrap it. We’ve got shit to do,” Prez announced. “I want you boys on high alert. If something feels off, call it in. I’d rather answer ten false alarms than bury another brother.”

“Understood.”

“And if you hear something, I want to be the first to know about it.”

A chorus of agreement rolled through the room. The meeting broke apart almost as quickly as it had started. Brothers paired off to make calls and compare notes while others left to start their shift at the Vault.

I had some time to kill, so I decided to stop by the kitchen for a cup of coffee. I’d just started down the hall when I spotted Duggar in the family room, sweeping up a mess I had no doubt he didn’t make. The second I started walking over to him, he looked up and grinned. “Hey, man. How’s it shaking?”

“I was about to ask you the same.”

“I’m not even worth asking about. I’m not the one sportin’ a new patch.”

“I’ve had it all of five minutes.”

“Long enough to start giving us orders.”

“Got no orders to give.”

“But you will.”

He was frustrated. It was understandable. He and I had prospected together for the past eleven months, and now, I had a patch, and he still had a broom in his hand. But his time was coming. He just had to be a little patient.

I glanced around the room as I said, “Looks like you’re about done in here.”

“Give it five minutes,” he chuckled. “Somebody’ll make another mess.”