MAYANS MC - EZ REYES/OC
REDEMPTION
SEASON 2 - EPISODE 1&2
Obispo Losa was in a foul mood.
"Miss that smile, manito." Elena Losa teased gently as she set a freshly uncapped beer before her older brother on the bar. She tossed her deep caramel waves over her shoulder, giving him a pretty pout.
Bishop's only answer was a ghost of the smile she loved so dearly. She returned the gesture and covered his hand that rested on the bar with hers briefly. She looked up to see Marguerite sashaying her way across the crowded room to Bishop. Her brother's night was about to get a hell of a lot better.
The last few days had proven to be quite trying. The MC banded together with Potter's Mercs to take out a perceived Los Olvidados safe house. The trick was that the MC had set the whole thing up with Galindo's help. The house was actually a human trafficking safe house full of cold blooded killers and scumbags, not Los Olivdados sympathizers like the Mercs and Potter had been led to believe.
36 hours earlier
Elena Losa caught eyes with EZ Reyes in the school bus rear view mirror. He gave her a lopsided grin and continued to steer the bus towards the little shack where their drug operation was held in the basement. Things between them were better than that fateful night about seven months ago. Wheels came crashing back into her life and EZ discovered who his mother's killer was. They'd come to an understanding, but left Angel out of the loop. He'd yet to really give EZ a chance to explain why he'd chosen to stick around. It wasn't just his relationship with Elena. He wanted to build a life for himself and being a part of the club helped him do that.
Bishop had yet to make a big deal of Elena getting more involved with the drug runs as of late. She'd proven her ability to step up when needed and stay the hell out of the way when she wasn't. Plus, with Alvarez stepping away from the MC, he'd encouraged Bishop to bring Elena closer, deeper into the fold. It'd done wonders for morale. Even with the Cartel still somewhat breathing down their necks, everyone seemed to have a renewed sense of purpose now that they were aiding the rebels instead of hunting them.
The tiny school bus pulled to a stop and Elena jumped to her feet, gathering the children so they could go inside the building and begin their school work. As she passed EZ, he watched her, and gave her a nod, totally checking out her backside as she descended the steps of the school bus. He shook his head a little as she disappeared into the building. Sometimes he couldn't believe this was his life now.
"What about Rico, eh?" EZ questioned, nodding to said biker who sat at the bar.
"What about him?" Elena scoffed, eyes on fire. She crossed her arms. "He's a lying, cheating, murderous son of a bitch."
EZ's head hung a little, "The same thing can be said of me, El."
"You're not a murderer." Elena shook her head. "You may be a killer, but a cold blooded murderer?" She waved him away, "that's different."
They'd had a similar conversation at least half a dozen times. Elena only lost her cool once. The other five times she'd just simply reassured him of her choice. She wasn't going anywhere except forward. If he wanted to go forward with her, then she welcomed him to join her. If he wanted to wallow in self pity, she gave him a moment, but after that, insisted he move on.
Rico still hadn't fit back into the club. The fact that he cheated on his woman then killed the other woman and her man to cover it up didn't sit well with the men at the table. They might be killers, drug dealers and have serious PTSD, but they weren't cold blooded murderers and cheats. There was a rumor of Rico transfering to Stockton. Bishop outwardly encouraged it. They were set to vote on it once they flushed out the rat in their heroin operation first.
The operation went smooth, EZ was able to see each package as it went into each backpack and was sent on its way to the different distributors. Coco got a call from Hank, saying it was time to go get Bishop in the Bronco. He emerged back into the main school house room, locking eyes with Elena for a moment.
Elena swallowed the sudden rush of desire at the sudden sight of EZ. She gave him a shy smile, and turned back to the child she was tending to.
EZ pursed his lips to keep from smiling like an idiot. Seeing Elena with children did silly things to his brain. After Emily, he never imagined he'd be seriously considering having a family with someone. "Bishop called." EZ murmured, nodding towards the door.
Elena returned his nod and helped gather the kiddos together, redistributing the now loaded backpacks. As much as it made her stomach turn that they were using school children as drug mules, it provided a way for them to do business under the radar. It had actually been her idea and Bishop gladly ran with it.
Before they met with the Kings and the charters, they had business to take care of with Galindo.
Elena scanned the scrubby landscape, watching through her binoculars as the MC entered the target house, Minnie stood a few yards from her, an AK tucked away in her backpack. The only giveaway about who they were was the sat phone clutched in her hands.
A flurry of fire erupted, the crew taking control of the structure in one sweep. Elena swallowed hard as she watched EZ take out targets fleeing out the back door. She prayed the target's bullets missed and EZ's were true.
The shooting stopped and Elena released the breath she didn't realize she'd been holding. A few minutes later, the mercs emerged to do a perimeter sweep.
Elena's phone buzzed. Bishop also sent her a single text.
Secure.
Elena pocketed her phone and waved Minnie over. "Call Adelita and tell her the mission is complete."
Minnie nodded and made the call. When Adelita picked up, the cock of a gun made Elena's breath catch as the cold metal barrel pressed into her shoulder blade.
"Nice and easy, Senorita." A gruff male voice ordered. The man reached for the sat phone and disinfected the call. He grabbed a fistful of Minnie's sweatshirt. "You come with me and the little bird doesn't get hurt."
Elena swallowed hard against the gag in her mouth. One of the Mercs returned to the main room looking spooked. He quickly put two and two together and turned to Alvarez, gun raised. EZ sprung into action, knocking him to the ground. They struggled, but EZ gained the upper hand. He wrapped a discarded cord around the man's neck and before strangling him to death, looked up at Bishop for guidance. Bishop nodded his approval and EZ set to work.
EZ felt the life leave the man's body and looked up at Elena. Her eyes were focused on him, a look of approval dwelling in their depths. She nodded once, and he tightened his grip, finishing the job.
Once the man was dead, Bishop rushed to Elena, gently undoing the gag around her head while Coco undid the tie around her hands. Coco moved to Minnie and quickly untied her hands and ankles, helping the young girl to her feet.
"Are you alright?" Bishop asked, helping her get to her feet. Elena nodded, not trusting her voice to speak yet.
EZ let go of the cord, only to realize it had cut into his palm. He looked up to see Bishop offering him his hand. He let go of the breath he'd been holding and took it, getting back to his feet. Bishop stepped back revealing Elena's trembling form. EZ stepped forward and wrapped her up in his arms.
Elena gripped the front of his shirt and buried her face in it for a moment. "Gracias." She whispered brokenly, a sob welling up in her chest.
EZ couldn't speak. It'd been the hardest thing he'd ever done to leave the house when the Mercs brought in Elena and Minnie.
Bishop looked like he was going to completely lose it. The crew gathered together just out of sight of the house, back by their vehicle. "Elena is strong." EZ murmured to him. "She can do this."
Bishop ripped off his sunglasses, revealing the tears in his eyes. "I know." He nodded.
"We can't leave 'em." Coco spoke up. "These mother fuckers kill women and children, man."
Bishop nodded, signaling to Hank while sliding his glasses back into place. "Let's get 'em back."
Present Time
EZ caught eyes with Elena across the room and heaved a sigh of relief. She looked better, less shell shocked than when she'd stood up from the chair inside that dirty shack surrounded by dead mercs.
Rico was currently trying to sweet talk her and from the fiery look in her eyes, she wasn't having any of it.
"C'mon, princess." Rico crooned. "I know you miss it." He chuckled lowly, reaching for her hair.
Elena struck hard and fast, practically knocking Rico off his stool. She reached out and gripped his arm, twisting it so his shoulder was turned in a very unnatural position. "You touch me again and I won't just twist your arm, estúpido." Asshole Elena murmured in a deadly voice, twisting his arm a little further. Rico cried out and Elena released him, returning to her post behind the bar.
EZ hid his smirk of appreciation of Elena's strength behind a closed fist and a forced cough. From the way Bishop's lips twitched, he had seen the whole exchange too. EZ crossed the room and joined Elena behind the bar, assisting in passing our drinks to the newly adjourned crew.
Once things died down, Elena kissed EZ's cheek and headed for the door, stopping to kiss her brother's cheek before leaving the clubhouse. EZ finished wiping down the bar and headed towards the door to follow her home.
"Sit." Bishop ordered for EZ to join them at the table. He nodded to Elena as she slipped out the door.
Elena emerged from the clubhouse and settled on the steps, pulling out her vape pen. She knew that EZ would be a few minutes, Bishop was fed up with the "beef" between the Reyes brothers. Hopefully after tailing her home, EZ would finally go talk with his brother. She also knew that things were about to heat up between her and Happy's old lady, Stevie Vale Lowman. Whatever EZ decided to do about Happy killing his mom, she knew there would be fall out. She knew EZ could handle Happy man to man, but she was mostly worried about what would happen between her and Stevie. Stevie was an assassin for hire just like Happy. As much as they were friends, loyalty to the patch would win, every time.
A few minutes later, EZ settled on the steps next to her. He looked at her, opened his mouth to speak, but closed it and looked away for a moment before taking her hand into his.
"Just text me." Elena offered, tucking away her vape pen. She knew where EZ was headed.
"How do you do that?" EZ smirked, shaking his head. "You know I'd rather be with home with you, but I gotta handle this, Bish-"
"Is right," Elena snickered. "You need to share what you've been doing with Angel." She sighed, "I'm sure he'll have a way to get it into motion."
EZ sighed. "If he doesn't call me crazy, first." He chuckled softly.
They were silent for a beat. Elena's lips twitched with amusement, "You said, 'home'." She glanced up at him through her lashes.
EZ bit his lip. He had said that, it had kinda slipped out when he'd been in a rush to explain how he felt. "Yeah." He murmured. "Wherever you are." He turned a little to cup her cheek. "That's home." Then he pressed his lips to hers.
The next morning, Elena smirked as EZ and Angel pulled up to Vicki's together. As much as she liked spending her nights wrapped up with EZ, this was a good thing. Evidently they had talked deep into the night, EZ had sent her a quick text saying he was crashing at Angel's around 2am.
EZ settled at the table while Angel headed upstairs to see Adelita. Elena set a steaming plate of eggs and potatoes before him and pressed a kiss to his temple before returning to the kitchen to get a carafe of coffee to refill the various takers in the room.
After filling the carafe, Elena paused at the door to the main room, as she heard Bishop talking to EZ.
"Rode here together." Bishop observed. "That's good." Elena took that as her cue to enter the room.
"Yeah." EZ confirmed. "We're working shit out."
Bishop smiled at Elena as she filled his cup. Before she could move away, he leaned in and pressed a kiss to her temple. "Gracias, Elena." He was definitely in a better mood than last night.
Elena moved about the room refilling coffee cups, but kept her ears tuned on what EZ and Bishop were discussing. EZ told Bishop he'd received a letter from Corrections. He needed to go wrap up some paperwork and thought that Angel could tag along. An eight hour ride would be the perfect time to keep working through shit. Bishop suggested he take Coco and Gilly with them.
"I can follow them." Elena offered, setting the now empty carafe down on the table. "I can keep a couple of spares in my trunk and some tools in case anything goes wrong." She bit her lip. "Besides, I haven't seen Stevie in awhile, so once they boys are settled in Stockton, I might head over to Charming for a bit."
Bishop's eyes darted between them. EZ seemed genuinely surprised by her offer. "Yeah." He agreed. EZ and Angel would still be able to talk in private, but they would have back up if they needed it, "Makes sense." He nodded. "Clubhouse in Stockton will be your first stop. INSERT NAME will get you set up."
"I'll make the ride through calls." Taza offered.
"Eat." Bishop smirked, taking a sip of his coffee.
EZ caught eyes with Elena for a moment. "Gracias." He nodded to her before sitting back down and getting back to his breakfast.
Elena loved the open road. Of course she would have loved to have spent the eight hours to Stockton on the back of EZ's bike, but following the brothers in her Challenger was the next best thing.
She first noticed the crotch rockets a few miles south of San Bernardino. It seemed as if they were patrolling the highway, like this area was their territory. Elena knew better, this was Sons country. She flicked her headlights to signal to Angel that they had company.
The motorcycles approached and after giving the three of them a once over, they sped on ahead. The riders did wear vests that indicated they were a part of some organized group. After they passed, Angel waved to signal they were getting off at the next exit. Probably needed gas and smokes.
Once she used the facilities, Elena emerged from the convenience store, fresh vape pen in hand to find Angel brandishing his weapon at the same riders that had passed then earlier. Evidently, there was a new club in the area that had failed to assert itself.
"So get back on your homocycles and get the fuck outta here!" Angel ordered, pointing his gun between the two opposing men.
Thankfully, they did as they were told. They shook their heads, popped on their full face helmets, slid on their bikes, and peeled out of the lot.
"Nice job negotiating with the locals." Elena scoffed, leaning against her driver's door.
Angel smirked. "You like that, querida?" Dear. "¿Necesitas una mano dura?" Do you need a rough hand?
"No hay necesidad de ser asqueroso, hermano." No need to be gross, brother. Elena smirked back, giving EZ a wink. She knew it drove EZ nuts when Angel flirted with her. "Las manos de EZ son perfectamente ásperas" EZ's hands are perfectly rough.
EZ's cheeks turned a twinge red and he palmed the back of his neck before sliding on his bike. Angel laughed and shook his head before following suit. Elena shook her head and slid inside her car to continue their trek to Stockton.
Angel had the ingenious idea to stop at a funland just off the highway and play putt-putt and some arcade games. EZ went along with it and Elena brought up the rear, not really sure how to still give the boys their space, but also kick their ass.
After a quick bite of pizza, Elena purposely played terribly so the boys could shine. Usually she'd take immense pleasure in whipping their butts, but something told her to just be background noise so they could keep bonding. It was important to her that things heal between Angel and EZ, not just for the sake of EZ's looming patch vote.
She didn't have the chance to patch things up with her sister, Alma. Alma was killed by a drunk driver five years ago. Alma had believed that Elena needed to remain loyal to Rico and ultimately, the club. She resented the idea that Elena could move on and leave Rico behind, even if he had betrayed her and the club by cheating then committing murder. Loyalty meant everything to Alma. She didn't approve of Elena's friendship with Stevie Vale-Lowman either. Either it was jealousy, or the fact that Stevie openly encouraged Elena to move on and blaze her own trail. Alma just couldn't let come to terms with the idea that Elena hadn't done anything to push Rico to his betrayal.
Bishop had even questioned Elena's involvement when the betrayal had first come to light. It was completely normal for the woman to take responsibility for a man straying on her. Club culture had its fair share of toxic masculinity. After Rico went to jail, Bishop vowed to change things for her sake. Most of the men had a very high respect for women and femininity. Sometimes there could just be an undertone of male superiority that could wreak havoc on even their most revered old ladies.
Elena's skin prickled as they got ready to make the final leg of their journey. The Swole Boys had assembled some more of their crew in the parking lot. Apparently, they didn't get Angel's message earlier, or their lack of cognitive energy was worse than she originally thought. This was Son's territory, who the hell did these punks think they were?
Shit hit the fan when Angel fired a few rounds into a car next to their bikes. It gave them the window they needed to get on the road. Elena also knew it would draw 5-0 and pretty much guarantee their escape if they could stay mounted until the cavalry arrived.
The minutes clicked by as they wound their way along the surface streets to the highway. Suddenly, the police arrived and it sent the bikers in pursuit, scattering away. Elena could tell Angel said something to one of the bikers, probably something along the lines of "patches before badges." Whatever he said, it worked. A few Swole Boys laid down some tire smoke at an intersection, Elena joined it, giving a brief burnout to allow the brothers to speed out ahead of her. She gunned it to keep up with them, and left the Swole Boys behind, turning out onto the highway.
EZ breathed a sigh of relief, glancing back at Elena's Challenger in his side mirror. He made a mental note that they needed to steer clear of Berdoo the next time they headed to Northern Cali. He knew Elena could take care of herself just fine, she'd been proving that to him a lot more lately. He also knew that this life could be cruel and he didn't want to see her hurt or crushed by it, not if he could do anything about it.
Stockton clubhouse even smelled the same way it did the last time she'd entered it, three years ago. Each charter had been busy lately with the H trade, and she didn't get around much to see everyone, not like she had with Rico was her old man. Shaking her head a little to clear her jumble of thoughts, Elena stepped up to the bar to wait for EZ to finish with the bikes. She settled on a stool next to Medina.
Medina nodded to the newly arrived princess of Santo Padre. He always thought she was damn fine. From the way the SP Prospect had been eyeing her earlier, he agreed. Rumor had it they were an item. Rumor also had it that her newly released former old man, Rico Nunez, was trying to transfer up to Stockton. If Elena and the Prospect were fucking, no wonder Rico wanted out.
Years ago, Bishop had made it clear that Elena had been released from her old lady status by a vote at the table. Medina had agreed with the sentiment. Rico was a cold blooded killer and a cheat. It was one thing to have a few moments of indiscretion on the road from time to time. He felt it was a completely different story to carry on an affair behind a woman's back who he was supposed to be loyal to. He wasn't too keen on accepting Rico into the Stockton charter, but they were a little more rough around the edges in Northern Cali.
"How was the ride?" Medina asked, trying to get Elena to relax. He could tell she was a little on edge still from the encounter with Stockton's finest on the sidewalk outside the clubhouse.
Elena sniffed before knocking back her shot of tequila, "Eventful." She licked her lips and looked at him sideways before turning to face him fully. She'd always found Medina handsome, Obispo spoke very well of him.
Medina just cocked an eyebrow and sipped his beer.
Elena barked a laugh. "I did ride with two brothers." She shrugged once. "Just a little shit, nothing major."
Medina nodded, considering her reaction. He had always admired her ability to roll with the punches that this life could dish out. He looked up as EZ entered the clubhouse. Oh yeah, they were definitely an item.
Angel appeared, slinging his arm over EZ's shoulders. "Perfect timing, Prospect." Angel smiled. "Let's go get some food."
Dearest Readers,
We're on our way to finding out how Elena fits deeper into the MC and how EZ digests finally earning a place at the table. I most likely will not finish Season 2 before the premier of Season 3. Honestly, I was pretty upset about that, however, I'm trying to look at it as an advantage. Once Season 3 premiers, I think it will help me further solidify a few things about Elena and the MC that I'm still on the fence about.
Thanks for joining me on the journey.
xoxo
Lumora The White