Maverick: Demented Souls #10 Read online

  MAVERICK

  DEMENTED SOULS

  BOOK TEN

  MELISSA STEVENS

  Copyright © 2022 by Melissa Stevens

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  Created with Vellum

  CONTENTS

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  This Demented Souls book, like all the Souls books, is dedicated to my dad, Wilmer ‘Billy’ Stephens.

  When I started the series I used him as a major resource, as he’d been a police officer, machinist, gun smith, Harley rider, mechanic and so much more.

  Now that he’s gone, I write them in his memory.

  * * *

  Thanks Dad.

  * * *

  While I was growing up my father had two of the best friends I’ve ever known of. They are the ones who taught me that family is more than just who you’re related to. As I was working on Maverick we lost the last of them. Now that all three are gone, I miss the others nearly as much as I miss Dad.

  * * *

  From here on out, the Demented Souls books are dedicated to the men who taught me all about brothers by choice.

  Frank Edwards (1950-2006)

  Wilmer Stephens (Dad) (1952-2017)

  George Claridge (1955-2022)

  CHAPTER 1

  Maverick strode into the Demented Souls clubhouse for the first time in nearly two years. Damn, it felt good to be home. He couldn’t wait to get a beer and kick back without having to worry about his every move and who might be watching.

  As his eyes adjusted from the glare outside, the sweat dripping down his face gelled as the refreshingly cool air washed over him. He noted a face he didn’t recognize behind the bar and a couple of hot new whores on stools nearby. Without a second thought, he closed the distance and slid onto the stool nearest the one with the lighter colored hair. He’d always had a thing for blondes. He motioned to the kid behind the bar for a drink then turned to the chick on the stool beside him.

  “Why don’t you come over here and suck my cock for a few then climb on and ride hard?”

  She spun around on her stool and stared at him with large, rounded eyes as if she couldn’t believe what she’d heard. The piece of ass on the other stool leaned over the bar and met his gaze.

  “I don’t know who you are, but I suggest you get lost. If I have to get down and kick your ass, Ruger will be right behind me, then Sadist will take a turn once he hears what you said to Beth, and he will hear.”

  Maverick blinked and looked at both women again. Now that he paid more attention, neither woman dressed like most of the club whores dressed – to show off their assets and tempt the men, any of the men. The closer one, the blonde, wore a t-shirt and cut offs, but the shorts ran almost to her knees. The other woman’s shorts weren’t as long and she wore a tank top that clung to an obviously pregnant belly, but he didn’t know enough to guess how far along. Fuck – he’d stepped in something here.

  “I didn’t mean to offend anyone. It’s been a while since I was here. I guess things have changed. I just assumed you were club girls.”

  He glanced around the room looking for a familiar face, eventually he spotted Wally, an older member of the club who was mostly retired, but the club was his family, so he spent a lot of time here, in the corner. Wally’s attention was on one of the TVs mounted on the wall. The kid behind the bar set his drink on the counter. Maverick picked it up and went to see his old friend. He’d almost made it when the door opened, and Snake stepped inside. The door closed with a thump as the blast of hot air hit Mav, making his skin feel hot and itchy. Snake headed for the bar and Maverick thought about warning him off the women, but decided he wanted to see what happened more, and continued to the couch where Wally sat. He took a seat and remained silent. For several minutes, watching Snake across the room and listening to the news playing on the TV. He didn’t know what his confrontation with the woman had looked like, but he would guess it was much like what he was watching now.

  From this perspective, he got a better idea of the women. They were close in age. He would guess mid to late twenties. The pregnant one looked tired until she smiled at something the other woman said.

  “Who are the women?” Maverick glanced at Wally.

  “That’s Krissi and Beth. They’re Ruger and Sadist’s old ladies,” Wally answered without looking away from the screen, then looked to see who he was talking to. “When did you get back to town?” Wally frowned as he glanced over at the women and Snake.

  Maverick watched as the pregnant woman reached around behind the one she’d called Beth and grabbed a fist full of Snake’s shirt. She pulled him until she was nose to nose with him. Maverick couldn’t hear what was being said, but he had to admit he liked the fire in her. Krissi, he guessed her name was from what Wally said.

  “Looks like Krissi is about to eat Snake for lunch,” Wally’s voice was filled with amusement.

  “She told me if she had to get down then Ruger would take the second round.”

  “She wasn’t lying. He’s always been protective of her – it hasn’t improved since she got knocked up.”

  “And the other one belongs to Sadist?”

  “She does, but she’s not the ball buster Krissi is. Not that you’ll get away with more with her, because when Sadist finds out and he will, you’ll be walking funny for a week as you try to pry his boot from your ass.”

  Maverick lifted one brow as he looked back to where Krissi had released Snake, who now held both hands up in front of him in surrender. Krissi dismissed him, turning back to the food on the counter in front of her. It took Beth a moment longer to turn away from Snake, as if there was something about him she didn’t entirely trust.

  That made Maverick wonder what Snake had said. Snake wasn’t always the most tactful, but he usually wasn’t as crude as Maverick had been when talking to the women. Maverick watched as Snake did much the same as he had, scan the room, take his beer off the counter, and head this way.

  “I like the scenery, but it looks like a lot of things have changed. I don’t see any of the girls who were here when we left,” Snake said as he pulled up a chair and spun it around so he could straddle the back. He faced Maverick and Wally, leaving his back to the room. Maverick wondered how the other man could stand to do that, especially after the last two years. Personally, he had to find a corner, at very least a wall, he hated leaving his back unprotected.

  “Linda and Double D are still around, but it’s early in the day to see them. They usually don’t make an appearance until three or four, sometimes later. There’s rarely much going on around here until after then anyway.”

  “Looks like we’ve missed a lot. Fill us in on what’s been happening.”

  Maverick stared at Wally wide eyed as he filled them in on at lea
st the highlights of the time they’d been absent from Tucson. They had been almost as busy here as he and the others had been in Texas, though not with the constant danger levels. Though it seemed they had their fair share of danger at times.

  “You’re telling me half the club is paired up, and Tuck is MIA for a year?” Snake blinked at the retired president in disbelief.

  “Not half, but several of the brothers. All the women know about the club, but only a couple know everything. The ones that do are trustworthy. Some may suspect something more, but only know about the public face of the Souls. As for Tuck, he’s not MIA, just out of pocket. There are some things going on up there, I’m not going into all that right now.” He glanced around the room as if making sure there was no one nearby listening in on them. It was something they all did whether they were in the club house or in public. In the clubhouse they all knew it was only secure when they were in the back room with the door closed and locked. Otherwise they all knew to be careful what you said and who you said it around.

  “How did things go?” Wally asked. Maverick knew he was asking about the assignment that had kept him gone for the last two years.

  “It went. We’ll give a report at the next meeting.” Maverick wasn’t willing to say more – not here What he didn’t say was that they wouldn’t be saying much more during the meeting either. Only Tuck, Sadist, Ruger, and Gizmo were in on all the details of the assignment, and only they would get the full report. The rest would get a high-level overview with few of the gritty details.

  “I take it you haven’t been home yet?” Wally didn’t comment on the non-answer. He knew how things worked, better than Maverick did, he was sure.

  Maverick shook his head. “It’s still rented out. The lease doesn’t expire for three more months. I was hoping to get a room here I can crash in until I can get my house back.”

  “I don’t know if there is one, the club is getting bigger, but check with Gizmo to get a key.”

  Maverick nodded. “Any idea where I would find him?”

  “No clue. Best bet is to call or text him. He’s got so much going on he’s impossible to keep track of. For all I know he’s passed out upstairs or maybe up there playing some online game.”

  Maverick frowned and looked at the ceiling. “You really think so?”

  Wally shook, his head. “Six months ago, maybe. Now he’s more likely to be at Jill’s place or at home, if not at that shop of his.”

  Maverick pulled out his phone and texted the tech sergeant about getting a room, then turned his attention back to the news where a talking head prattled on about Wall Street, the economy and inflation. He gave the screen a long blink then turned to Wally. “Why are you watching this shit?”

  “This is the channel it was on when I turned it on, and I can’t find the remote.”

  He closed his eyes and resisted the urge to laugh. No matter how much had changed around here, there were some things that were the same. He thought about getting up to look for the remote, but the vibrating of his phone distracted him. He pulled it out and found Gizmo had replied.

  Gizmo: Krissi is in charge of the clubhouse management now. You’ll have to contact her 520-555-1623

  “Well, fuck,” he muttered as he looked across the room at where the two women still sat at the bar. “Krissi is the pregnant one, right?”

  “Yeah, why?” Wally frowned.

  “Seems she’s in charge of the keep these days.” His gaze never left the women, who never glanced this way, as if they had no question that they were safe here. And they were – none of the Souls would hurt them. The Souls were rough, crude and not always completely within the limits of the law, but they weren’t rapists or abusers.

  There was no other choice, he was going to have to approach her sooner or later. He might as well get it over with. Maverick stood, shoved his phone back into his pocket, took a deep breath and went back to the bar.

  “Excuse me, I understand you’re Krissi?” He was careful to stay polite and not let his gaze stray to the tempting V of her cleavage or the long expanse of leg farther down.

  “What if I am?” Krissi eyed him with undisguised suspicion.

  “Gizmo said you’re in charge of the Clubhouse and I need to talk to you to see if there are any rooms available and if I can get a key for one of them.”

  She narrowed her eyes but picked up a phone from next to her plate on the bar and dialed with only a glance at the screen.

  “Hey Babe,” she said after a moment. “I’ve got a guy I don’t recognize asking for a room upstairs.” She fell quiet a moment then looked back at him. “What’s your name?”

  “Maverick.”

  She repeated it then looked him up and down a moment. “He looks like a younger version of that actor from those movies you like,” she paused a second then spoke again, “the spy ones. But he’s a lot taller… Yeah, that’s the one.”

  He fought the urge to roll his eyes. He knew exactly who she was talking about. He’d heard it all before and had long since gotten used to it since the resemblance was where he’d gotten his name, at least the one he went by now.

  She looked him up and down again and he couldn’t help but wonder what was being said on the other end of the line. Her gaze flicked over to where Snake and Wally sat then back to him. “Who’s that?” She tilted her head toward the other men.

  “Snake.” He didn’t see any reason not to tell her.

  “We’ve got two so far. I’ll keep an eye out and let you know if or when the other two show. When will you be back?” She paused again. “Okay. Stay safe…Will do.” She disconnected the call and turned her attention back to him. “Yeah, I can get you a room. Give me a second to get a key. Do you have a preference on the room?” She clambered down off the stool and headed for the back room.

  Maverick followed. “Closer to the end of the hall, the better.”

  “Is he gonna want one too?” She tipped her head toward Snake again.

  “Snake!” he called out. “Want a room?”

  “If there’s an extra.”

  “Okay. I’ll grab two keys. Wait here.” She closed the door into the back room in his face. He stood blinking at the door in surprise for a long moment, barely registering the soft click of the lock sliding into place. That click could only mean one thing.

  Who was this woman who had gained enough trust to not only know about, but have unrestricted access to the secret room hidden off the private members only room? He was still frowning at the door when he heard the lock click open and barely had time to step back before she opened the door. She shot him a frown before stepping past him and toward the stairs.

  “Snake?” she called as she reached the base of the utilitarian metal staircase leading to the second floor. “If you want a room, come on.” She started up the steps.

  “If you’ll just tell me which one, I can get it,” he spoke up.

  “I can do it. I’m not helpless, just a little awkward. Besides, it’s good for me.” She continued up the steps as if he hadn’t spoken.

  He reached the second floor a few steps behind her, but she stood to one side and waited for Snake. Once they were all at the top she turned and led the way without another word. She stopped about three doors from the stairs and used a key to open the door.

  “Snake, this one’s for you. If you leave the door unlocked, someone will retrieve dishes and sweep a couple times a week. You’re responsible to maintain your bed. You’re welcome to change your sheets as often as you would like. Dirty bedding goes in the laundry chute at the end of the hall. We have a service that handles them for us. Clean bedding is in the supply closet to the left of the stairs. The door is unlocked.” She handed Snake the key she’d used on the door. “There have been some other changes too. Ask if you have any questions, either me or any of the others. Not huge changes, but things that make things either easier or more secure.” She stepped back out of the room and continued down the line of doors. She was almost to the end of the hall w
hen she stopped and opened another door.

  “Do I need to go through it all again?”

  “No, I got it.”

  “Good. What about the other two? Will they be back soon, and do you know if they’ll want rooms?”

  “Havoc is a couple days behind us. He said he was going to take his time on the road. Bubba won’t be back for about a week, maybe a little longer. He said he had some business to wrap up before coming back.”

  “Bubba? Do I want to know why?” Krissi lifted one brow at him.

  “I’m not saying a word. You’ve got to meet him to understand it.”

  Krissi frowned. “No one stayed to back him up?”

  “We offered, but he said no need. It was personal and not business.”

  She handed over his key, shrugged and turned away. The expression on her face saying clearly that she thought someone should have stayed with Bubba.

  “At least I’ve got a little time before I’ve got to do the room thing again.”

  “Are there enough rooms?” He couldn’t help but ask.

  “Normally, probably not. But we’ve had some rooms come open recently, so I can accommodate everyone – for now.”

  She turned to leave again and this time he didn’t stop her. Instead, he turned back to the room and gave it a once over. Other than the bed being stripped to the mattress, it was much like he’d left his room here two years ago. He would get his bags and add a few things to make the space his own. He’d have no problem living here for the next few months.