22 - Fourth of July

*I don’t care if you bring the whole fucking state. You’re coming home for the fourth. – Trigg*
Camille rode point as she led the group of riders through the streets of East Vale. Being back felt good. Being back with the men who had become such a large part of her life felt good too.
But being home with him felt great.
Tink shifted on his custom seat behind her and rested his chin on her shoulder. Every morning when they got ready to leave, whoever was driving the support vehicle offered to have him ride in the car. Camille would open the door and ask if he was ready to go and the dog would go sit beside her bike.
As they loaded up the bags in the back of the SUV this morning, Danielle did not even ask. She just accepted Camille’s bag and Tink’s dog food to put in the back of the vehicle. A rare ‘arf’ filled her ear telling her that he was excited too.
She signaled that they were turning and took the last turn before Pops Place. Two miles down she slowed as she turned into the gated lot. The shop was open, so they went to the back parking lot. Danielle parked the SUV where a man indicated and then got out to join her husband.
Trigg was walking towards them as they walked their bikes back into parking spots. As soon as Camille was off, he had his daughter wrapped up in a tight hug. She undid her chin strap and pushed her helmet off.
Just before it hit the ground, Gator caught it. Shaking his head, he sat it on the seat of her bike.
“Cher.” He grumbled and his wife laughed.
“They’ll be there for a minute.” A younger version of Trigg said as he offered a hand to Gator. “Dutch. His oldest son.”
“Gator, president of Baton Rouge Cajuns. My wife, Danielle.”
“Ma’am.” Dutch said shaking her hand also.
Gator pointed to each rider with them. “Swamp Thang, Zydeco, Odin, Darkness, Virgin and Delta. Joanne and Mary.”
A younger man joined them during the introductions.
“Critter. Son number three, child number eight.” He looked at his sister. “Hey, Worm.”
“Hi, Chris.”
He hated when she called him by his name. And as his only younger sister, she saw it as her duty to annoy him.
“Behave, children.” Sid warned.
“Hey, momma.” Camille said not even trying to move out of her father’s embrace.
“Hey, baby.” She caressed her youngest daughter’s hair and Trigg tightened his arms around her. “You realize that I carried her for forty-four weeks? And lost my uterus because of her far too stubborn ass. I still have a scar on my left tit where she tried to take my nipple off. And what did you do? Nut inside me. Nope. Hand her over.”
Trigg gave his wife a dirty look but let their daughter go. Sid opened her arms and Camille moved into them. She pressed a kiss to her daughter’s head and took in her scent, vanilla and soft spices. And chlorine.
It had only been a little over a month since she was home. But that visit was all about Camille and her graduation. Neither parent complained about her spending the entire time that weekend with her friends. But Trigg insisted that she come home for the Fourth. Insisted so much that he paid for hotel rooms for all of the Cajuns that came with her.
“You going to stay at the house or over at the Shack?” Sid asked.
“Where’s Allison staying?” Camille asked.
Sid sighed. “I’ll let Nessie know you’ll be over later.”
“Thank you.”
There was tension between the two sisters that had only grown over the years. It got so bad when Camille was in high school, she moved to the Shack and transferred to Theodore Roosevelt High School. Sid knew part of the problem, but there was no way to repair the rift as it was right now.
The best she could do was keep them apart and prevent it from becoming worse.
“Before you go over, come inside and say hi to everyone.” Sid turned to let her get Tink only to find the dog already unhooked and sitting next to his mistress. A large dark-skinned man stood by the bike, putting the gear into the saddlebags.
“You must be Darkness.”
“Yes, ma’am.” He turned and offered her a hand. Sid shook her head, and her children laughed as she pulled the larger man into a hug.
Stepping back, she looked over at her oldest son who was hugging his youngest sister. “I’m glad my little bookworm has a friend like you. Speaking of which, what are you on right now?”
“Unabridged Oxford Dictionary, E-X through G-H.”
“Unabridged?” Dutch said shaking his head. “Sweet Jesus, Worm!”
“Worm. Bookworm.” Swamp Thang said as it finally clicked.
“Uhh… Yeah.” Trigg and his sons chuckled. Sid grinned and Camille just shrugged. “Because she devours books just like a bookworm does.”
The group made their way into the clubhouse and several brothers welcomed Camille. One of the club girls came out from the shop where she worked at the front desk and hugged her.
“How’s it going, Chrissy?” Camille asked the bunny who cringed but laughed.
“Oh, God, I’d rather you call me a fucking slut rather than *that* name!” the brunette said as she returned to her job at the front desk.
“That was wrong!” Charlotte told her sister as she hugged Camille.
Two other sisters, Bambi and Claire, were also waiting inside to see her. It was obvious that she had been missed. But the mood changed when Dutch opened the door between the club and the shop.
“Allison just pulled in.”
Camille walked out of the clubhouse with Tink by her side. A moment later, they saw her roll out the gate. She was in such a rush to leave; her dog lay in front of her on the gas tank with his front paws and head resting on the Y of the handlebars.
“Let me guess, the family freak is home?” a woman with the same features of her mother and sisters sneered.
Her long hair was lighter with bright blue tips. She wore a skintight skirt and a very revealing halter top. The heels she wore were high and sexy. If you did not know better, you might mistake her for a club girl. But she was the president’s daughter.
“Allison.” Trigg warned.
“I know. She gets special treatment.”
The Cajuns could feel the anger rolling off Darkness. Gator cleared his throat and Trigg understood the silent message.
“I’m going to take them over to Shack.” Trigg said standing up.
“Don’t leave on my account.”
“Allison.” Sid said with a warning glare. “Do not start anything while your sister is home.”
“Whatever.” She walked up to Darkness and smiled. “Hi big guy.”
Two different hands grabbed her wrist from either side of the large angry man before she could place her hand on his chest.
“Not advisable.” Swamp Thang said. “He doesn’t play well with others.”
“Especially with people who upset his little Cam.” Gator added.
Darkness snarled at the woman and Dutch grabbed her by her shoulder and pulled her away. Not so kindly, he advised that she find a different cock to ride.
Sid and Trigg exchanged curious looks and they both mouthed ‘Little Cam’ to each other. Camille hated the nickname of Cam and had always gone by her full name. Trigg shrugged before kissing his wife and taking the Cajuns over to the Shack for Nessie to get them settled.