Otis Read Free

seeing a huge presence of 1%ers in their cuts was intimidated. Subconsciously, they would probably lean toward a not guilty verdict for fear of retaliation alone.
    “Slice, I’ve got to agree with Biscuit on this one,” I breathed.
    “If we’re in the courtroom thirty or so deep, the jury is going to be as nervous as a bunch of whores in church. They may find him not guilty for fear of retaliation alone. Let’s use the massacre in Texas to our advantage.”
    Axton stared down at the floor for a long moment. As he looked up, he crossed his arms and gazed blankly into the crowd.
    “Trial starts Monday, and begins with jury selection. How many can attend? I understand if you’ve got to work, but we’re talking about that case with the ATF setting this fella up on murder, and he’s the brother of the Sergeant-At-Arms Ol’ Lady. Jackson Shephard with Hells’ Fury, road name is Killer . Now, by a show of hands, who can attend?” Axton asked.
    Arms shot into the air. I gazed around the room. Every man I could see had his arm raised. I glanced toward Toad and patted him on the shoulder.
    “Well fuck. If we’re going to show up, I say we show up. I’ll call the other chapters and see who else can attend. I hope the courtroom is a big fucker,” Axton chuckled.
    Toad smiled and nodded in apparent appreciation as he glanced around the room. Sydney’s brother was the only family she had, and having him taken away had taken a toll on her emotionally, and left her feeling alone for the majority of her adult life. If he could be freed from prison, not only would it allow her to have her family back in place, it would set a legal precedent regarding the ATF and entrapment of members of a MC. A win in this case would be huge for MC’s across the nation.
    Axton sighed as he studied the group, “Avery’s going to be there, and Sydney will be as well, so if for some reason you want to bring your Ol’ Ladies, that’ll be fine. And remember, we’re not only there for Killer, we’re there to show support for Sydney. This is going to be a tough one for her if he’s found guilty again .”
    I viewed Avery and Sydney as if they were my younger sisters. Seeing harm come to them in any way was beyond comprehension, regardless of whether or not it was physical or emotional. A large showing in court would not only show support Sydney’s brother, but Sydney and Avery as well. Avery spent long hours assembling the paperwork to receive a new trial for him, and obtaining it was a victory in itself. Citing law and recent applicable federal cases to the appellate court, she was instrumental in the trial being awarded. Sitting in the courtroom would not only be interesting, it would pay respect to her for all the hard work she did in requesting a new trial.
    Personally, attending the trial wasn’t something I felt I needed to do; it was something I had to do.
    As a matter of respect.

 
     
     
     
    OTIS
    Having a woman fit me was near impossible, as I had some pretty serious issues trusting people. I would never describe myself as paranoid, and in fact, I was quite the opposite. I was more of a realist, and realistically speaking, people seemed to always press their noses into cracks and crevices of a person’s life where they just didn’t belong. For me to get to know a woman would require exposing myself to her, and in doing so, I took a tremendous risk. My life, lifestyle, and day to day activities weren’t something I could trust anyone with, male or female. Even spending short periods of time with people I didn’t know exposed me, the club, and my club brothers to potential scrutiny. And, for the Selected Sinners, something as simple as a very shallow examination would certainly reveal more than we were prepared to allow outsiders to see or attempt to try and understand. Placing me under a microscope was one thing, but potentially placing my MC Brothers in harm’s way was something I wasn’t ever willing to ever