Royally Broken by Elle Boon Page 0,14
don’t you want to take any of that with you as a memento?”
His heart clenched. Nobody had ever called him son. Son-of-a-bitch. Lowlifesonsofbitch. And other forms with son thrown in, but they were all derogatory in nature.
“I don’t need a piece of paper or fabric to remind me about my past. From today forward, I make a future for myself.”
The recruiter nodded, looked at the garbage, and nodded again. “That’s a good attitude to have. Come on, it’s a long trip ahead of us.”
“Am I the only one enlisting?” Silas hoped like hell he was. None of the guys in his class were ones he’d call friends. Although the office was outside the town he’d grown up in, he was sure this man probably knew the Langleys, especially since he’d seen Blaine cruising through only moments ago. He wondered why the asshole had driven thirty minutes away from home, especially since he’d been drinking. None of his business anymore.
“Yep. It’s just you and me.”
Chapter Two
Keys shook thoughts of the past away. The eighteen-year-old kid he’d been was gone and buried. He’d vowed to never go back to that hell hole, to the place that tried to kill him. Shit, the only good memories that was there, had been at the school. Once the administration had realized he was half-starved, they’d seen to it he’d had one square meal a day. During Holidays he wasn’t as lucky. And Palmer. Although he’d made sure she was at a six foot or more distance. After she played Good Samaritan his body was in a constant state of need. Something no little fifteen-year-old needed to see or experience. He was older not only in years, but life. She was another huge factor in his decision to leave. If he’d have stayed, his little sunshine girl would’ve been the temptation that he couldn’t have denied for much longer. If there was one thing Keys had known about himself and the town, it was that you didn’t try crossing the tracks when you were the dirty little bastard and sully the princess. Not without some major consequences. And for all his faults, he liked breathing.
“King, is he breathing?” Duke snapped his fingers too close to Keys’ face, making him react before he could catch himself. He moved on automaton, snatching the VP’s hand in his right hand, slamming him onto the table face first, his fight or flight mode kicking in with a vengeance. He’d learned how to kill from Uncle Sam, honing those skills under the tutelage of men who didn’t give you their last names.
“Motherfuck, Keys, what the hell?” Duke snarled.
Keys released his friend, flashes of red leaving his vision. He stepped back, raising his hands as he did so. “Sorry, brother. I—shit, I gotta go.” He bent to grab his bag. “I’ll check in with you every Friday. If I don’t...then something is FUBAR.”
King was on his feet, planting his large form in front of the door. “What, you think because you put some Kungfu shit move on my brother you’re walking out without more of an explanation? Not happening. Sit your ass down and let’s hash some shit out. I assume you’re riding there?”
Keys looked at his friend, who he admired and trusted. “That’s my plan, yeah. Look, seeing that email from a person I knew, marginally, it’s got me fucked up. I need some open road to clear my head.”
“I get that, truly, brother, I do. Duke and I have lost everyone from our past that meant something to us. We built our family, our brotherhood with those we trust and care about. You’re one of them. Our women, they might think we’re overbearing and well”—he paused as Duke snorted—“well he’s an asshole, and I’m a controlling prick. At the end of it all, we look out for each other. It’s how we stay level and alive. You’re running off half-cocked, man. That’s not how we do shit. That’s not how a Royal works. When we were just the Royal Sons it was easier, but now we got a fuckton of others we can tap into with the Royal Bastards from East to West and everywhere in-between.”
“What do you suggest? You want to send a group of brothers out with me on a run? Listen, I need to do this alone. I’ll stop in Oklahoma at the Royal Bastards Chapter there. I won’t go in without some kind of backup, but I need to do this by myself, to an extent.”
Traeger