Seize Control

Silas got out of his car and slowly walked past the gates into the parking lot of Teller-Morrow. The three men standing just inside the garage stared at him as he walked up nervously. He was well aware that no one with any relation to the Sons liked him. "What do you want, kid?" Tig asked him, already annoyed with his presence.

"Is Juliette here?"

"Who wants to know?" Piney asked, crossing his arms over his broad chest.

"I'm Silas. I'm her friend. I tried to call but couldn't get her."

"Maybe that means she don't wanna talk to you," Juice offered, glaring at the boy.

Silas didn't like Juice already, but his over-protective attitude made Silas like him even less. "Look, I know she's here, okay.? Her car is right there," he said, motioning to the black camaro behind him. "Could someone just go tell her I'm here and that I need to talk to her?"

"Sure," Juice replied with an unreadable expression somewhere between angry and threatening. He grabbed an old rag and wiped the grease off his hands then headed into the clubhouse.

Juliette was sitting curled up on the sofa with a book in her lap, chewing on her thumbnail. "Hey, Jules. Whatcha reading?" he asked as he walked inside.

"I can't tell you."

"Why not?"

"Because you'll laugh at me."

"Aw, come on. I'd never laugh at you."

"Whatever. You do it all the time."

"I promise I won't this time. Let me see," he said, taking the book from her lap and closing it to read the cover. He raised an eyebrow as he looked back up at her. "You're reading a book about motorcycles?"

"Yeah, so?"

"Why exactly?"

"Because I always seem to end up around here and I hate not knowing what you guys are talking about when you're out there in the garage."

He shook his head as a grin spread across his features. "You're something else, you know."

She grinned back at him. "Yeah, I know. Now what do you want? I'm kind of busy here, Ortiz," she informed him, taking the book out of his hands.

"Come outside."

"Why?"

"Because."

She furrowed her eyebrows at him but he just rolled his eyes. Finally, she stood up, tossing the book onto the sofa behind her and following him out of the clubhouse. As soon as she took her first step outside, she realized she forgot her shoes. Being too lazy to go back into her brother's old room, she stopped and turned to Juice. "You have to carry me."

"What for?" he asked, looking at her as if she were crazy.

"Because the cement is hot and I'm too lazy to go back in and get my shoes!"

He laughed and crouched down in front of her. "Hop on," he commanded.

She jumped onto his back and wrapped her arms around his neck as he grabbed the backs of her thighs to hold her up. "Don't drop me," she pleaded.

"I'm not gonna drop you. Jesus." He began walking toward the garage, holding onto her thighs tightly to keep her from slipping.

"You know, you're pretty good at this, Juicey. I'm gonna make you carry me everywhere from now on."

"In your dreams, Julie." She laughed, resting her forehead against the back of his neck, and he chuckled to himself, shaking his head at her.

She lifted her head just as they rounded the corner and she saw Silas standing next to Tig and Piney, looking nervous but angry at the same time. Juice set her down on her feet when they reached the others and she looked over to Silas. "What are you doing here?"

"You didn't answer my calls."

Juliette glanced at the three men standing next to her, listening to the conversation. She sighed as she wrapped her fingers around Silas's forearm and pulled him away from the others. Instead of going back to work, the three men just stared at them.

"They really hate me," he observed, glancing at the men before finally looking down at her.

"Yeah, they do," she agreed.

"Look, I'm really sorry about the other day."

"I told you it was nothing, Silas."

"I know you did. But it didn't look like nothing. And it still doesn't," he added.

She rolled her eyes at him. "I'm not having this conversation with you again," she told him as she turned to walk back toward the shop.

"Wait, please," he begged, wrapping his hand around her arm to turn her around.

"What?"

"I'm sorry, okay?"

"I just don't get it, Silas. I told you it was nothing! And even if it was, I don't know why you got so mad!"

"Are you really that blind?" he sighed, exasperated.

"What?"

He groaned, running his hands down his face. "This is so screwed up."

"What the hell are you talking about?"

He scoffed. "Just forget it!"

"Fine," she huffed as she turned on her heel and quickly made her way back up to the garage, leaving him standing there alone. All three men began asking questions as soon as she was close enough to hear them but she ignored them all and walked straight past them to the clubhouse.

The three of them all looked at each other before Juice shook his head. "I'll go," he said, patting them both on the back. Tig and Piney shot each other a look as the younger man followed her into the clubhouse. She was sitting on the end of the couch, her knees pulled up to her chest and her face in her hands.

He sat down on the arm of the chair across from her. "You okay?"

"No," was her muffled reply.

"You wanna talk about it?"

"No."

"Anything I can do?"

"No."

"You're being such a teenager right now."

"Yeah, well I kind of am a teenager."

"How could I forget?" he muttered under his breath.

"What?" she asked, dropping her hands from her face to look at him.

"Nothing."

She shot him a glare. "Boys are such asses."

"Yeah, we are. Sorry."

She sighed, picking up her book from the cushion next to her. "Go on back to work now. I have a book to finish."

"Right. Good luck with that," he replied, standing to his feet. He turned to leave the clubhouse but she called his name, causing him to stop in his tracks and turn back to look at her. "Yeah?"

"Thanks."

"For what?"

She just shook her head with a small smile and looked back down at the book in her hands, ignoring him until he finally went back to the garage.