in the morning and Rudy had just come home. Esmé was still out the Moon knew where.
âWhy him? He hasnât won the Ordeal yet.â She had decided not to keep quiet if she saw things going wrong again, but she hadnât expected to tell Gabriel.
Rudy paced the living room. His sturdy compact form and firm stride should have been comforting. âAnd what did you expect
me
to do?â
âTalk to Astrid. Make her stop.â
Rudy laughed bitterly. âThatâll be the day.â
âSo why would she listen to Gabriel, then?â Vivian asked.
âBecause she respects him.â
âBecause she wants to screw him, you mean.â
Rudy stared her down with piercing gray eyes that made her feel ashamed. âShe respects him because sheâs afraid of him. Powerâs the only thing Astrid understands. She isnât sure how far heâll go.â He paused. âAnd neither am I.â
âThen why tell him?â
âAs far as I can see, heâs the only option weâve got right now. We canât use a leader who wants to rule with his brains but not his teeth.â
Vivian rose to her feet. âMy father led with his brains; you mean he wasnât a good leader?â
Rudy ran a callused hand through his hair. His eyes looked sad. âYour father was the best leader we could have had for the time we had him, but this is a time of unrest. We need a leader who understands the power of his jaws.â
âIâm tired of violence.â
Rudy nodded. âBut it doesnât matter what weâre tired of, weâve got it all the same. You would have never moved the Five so quietly out of West Virginia if Gabriel hadnât beat the sass out of them.â
Yeah,
thought Vivian. Heâd taken them on in the charred ruins of the inn yard when they were set on waging a stupid, hopeless war against the town. Rafe was knocked silly and the others bloodied, but not a scratch on Gabriel. Heâd threatened to kill any one of them that moved three paces from the convoy going to Maryland. Smeared with ashes, heâd strutted afterward and sheâd hated him for it, even though sheâd have beaten the Five herself if she could have. Her father was barely dead, and Gabriel was taking control. He wasnât a leader; her father was a leader. Her father had dignity.
âAnd when you all arrived,â Rudy continued, âGabriel was one of the first to get a job and put all his money toward getting others settled while he crashed on peopleâs floors or in the woods.â
And boy did he smell like it,
she thought.
Nothing like a welder with no place to bathe.
âSo youâre gonna support Gabriel at the Ordeal and not go for it yourself,â she said.
âYeah, guess so. Now, time for bed, babe. Too late to do anything tonight.â
Gabrielâs black-and-silver motorcycle was in the parking lot of Tooleyâs bar the next night, exactly as Rudy had guessed. Rudy went in to find him while Vivian waited outside, her arms folded, her foot tapping.
A pair of bikers in cut-off denim jackets over bare chests came out of the bar. The tall one did a double take on her. He grabbed his crotch and issued her a very specific invitation. The other one laughed as if that was the funniest joke heâd ever heard, and his gut jiggled.
She gave them the finger.
âHey, youâre not too friendly,â the tall biker complained, changing direction to walk slowly toward her. The smile had left his face. âAinât you got no respect?â
His buddy trailed him. His grin was mean.
Oh, shit,
Vivian thought.
âBut tell you what, maybe we could kiss and make up,â said the tall biker.
âIâd rather kiss a slug,â she said, her temper flaring. She regretted her words when she saw his hands ball into fists. His skull ring glittered ominously.
She felt her legs knot with the first stage of the change.
Control
Mark Blake
Terry Brooks
John C. Dalglish
Addison Fox
Laurie Mackenzie
Kelli Maine
E.J. Robinson
Joy Nash
James Rouch
Vicki Lockwood