Free Seth by Sandy Kline Page A

taught you manners I’d love to buy you
dinner.” He says.
    I down my drink. “Lead the way.”
    I’m not sure what to expect from having dinner with an
outlaw biker but I’m pretty damn sure it won’t be boring.
    “So what’ll it be?” He asks after we’ve had some time
looking at the menus.
    “I’ll take the kids happy meal.” I reply with a smile.
    He laughs. An outlaw biker actually laughs at my lame
attempt at humor. This is refreshing.
    We manage to banter back and forth for the next fifteen
minutes until the waiter comes. I order a pasta dish with a name I can’t
pronounce and he orders a giant steak with baked potatoes. By the time we get
our food I’m ready to start gnawing on the table cloth. I am used to
conversation while eating but the way Seth attacks his steak I know
interrupting him would be akin to treason. I decide to follow his example and I
really enjoy my dish as well. By the time we’re done my belly’s full and my
head is spinning along pleasantly. I get finished before he does so I use the
time to study him. He appears to approach everything in life much like the
steak; with great intensity and focus. I would truly hate to get on his bad
side which is exactly why we shouldn’t go any further than this tonight. I
always end up on men’s bad sides sooner or later. But before he adds me to his
list of people he’d like to rub out I need some information about my brother.
    “So about the other night...” I begin.
    “What other night?”
    “The one where you awarded my brother membership into
your club for killing someone; that night.”
    “You really think that’s all you have to do to become a
Soul Eater?”
    “That’s not enough?” I ask incredulously.
    “That’s not even a requirement!”
    “Then why’d you give him the vest after he killed the
guy?”
    “Iron Skull was a loyal and honorable prospect for nearly
two years before the fight. He was awarded membership because of his years of
loyalty and it had nothing to do with the fight. We were set to patch him in
and decided to do it the night of the fight if he won as an extra reward
basically. But I refuse to feel bad about some guy who steps in the ring and
gets paid to pummel someone. He knew the risks and was happy to take the money
for the last twenty-six fights that he did win. He was a capable competitor and
it’s too bad he lost his life doing what he loved. But, you play in the kitchen
long enough and you’re bound to get burned.”
    Time to turn the heat up on mister nice outlaw guy.
    “You seem to have a bit of empathy for the guy and I
don’t get it.”
    “What don’t you get?”
    “You’re a gun runner and drug dealer which means you
don’t care one bit for the lives of the young men and women you destroy.”
    “I’m not sure where you’re getting your information but
if that was the case do you really think your brother would have spent two
years of his life trying to become a member?”
    “I have no idea. Obviously I don’t know my brother
anymore. The Caleb I grew up with would not have dreamed of getting involved
with anyone who was into drugs so something certainly has changed. How’d you do
it?”
    “How’d I do what?”
    “How did you get my brother to compromise all his beliefs
and principles and join an outlaw organization? What could you possibly have to
offer that his family doesn’t?”
    “If we’re being honest here…I didn’t even know he had a
family.”
    “Everyone has a family Seth.”
    “If that were the case we wouldn’t be the largest and
most powerful club in the state of California. Men come to us for family. We
take care of our own. We give them what they weren’t getting from their
families. We give them honor, loyalty, a sense of belonging, a place to go to
when everyone else is against you. We give them a sense of purpose so they’re
no longer spinning their wheels trying to find a reason for existence in the
world. You can’t put a price on those