“Only one as far as I know. He managed to escape through that wide window in the bathroom. By the time I made it outside, he was long gone,” he explains.
“Fan out,” Rogue orders the rest of my brothers as he keeps a firm hold on my shoulder. “You stay in here with me.” He flickers his eyes to Shifter. “You fucking stay in here, too. The rest of you search this perimeter front to back and high and low. If that motherfucker left one sock, toenail, shred of hair, I want it found.”
Scanning the diner, I notice Merc is talking with the owner in an attempt to calm her down. Her staff has done all that they could to appeal to the customers, but not one is left in the building. I know he’s trying to convince her not to get the police involved but there’s no guarantee nobody else already has. Guess it’s a good thing we’ve got them in our back pocket. Of course, this little incident here will probably require some extra incentive which I know Rogue will happily pay for any inconvenience suffered.
“Let’s go check on the women,” Rogue states, patting my back. “That includes you, too, Shifter, since apparently you failed at doing it in the first place.”
I sigh my relief because that’s exactly what I want to do in this moment; console Aria. Next up will be to find whoever is responsible and decide their fate.
As we approach, Aria leaps up and into my arms before she begins to sob again. She buries her face into my chest as I wrap my arms around her and hold her close. The fury building inside me dares to take complete control and rage right out of my own skin. But, right now I know I must maintain some form of control for her sake.
The bell from the front entrance of the diner captures all of our attention and as we all turn to look, we see Briggs walk in. Oh geez just what we fucking need. A retired officer with something to prove considering he already doesn’t think too fondly of us. “Where’s Talia?” are the first words to leave his mouth.
Talia jumps up and flies into his arms. “I’m right here, Briggs.” He wraps his arms around her and relief washes over his face. “It was a man, but he wasn’t after me. He was after Aria,” she explains.
“Well, I came over prepared as soon as I heard through my police scanner. Got the Sheriff to agree to stand down until I could gather some information. We all know who runs this town around here, and it ain’t them.” He shifts his eyes to Rogue.
I refrain from questioning Aria at this time because she hasn’t been able to get a hold of her emotions just yet. Physically she looks just fine, so I find myself thankful for at least that.
My brothers trail back in one by one. “Nothing, Pres,” Edge informs Rogue. “Besides all that blood in the women’s restroom. I mean, I assume that’s the assailant’s blood considering Aria doesn’t appear to have a single scratch on her.”
Her warm breath can be felt as she begins to speak in a low tone, “I-I just don’t know how he got in there? I clammed up at first, but luck was on my side and once I accidentally had him dazed, I finished what I could to make my escape.”
Cupping the sides of her face just above her tear-soaked chin, I ask her, “Did you recognize him at all?”
Slowly and shamefully, her eyes glide upward to meet mine. “Bobby Kelson.”
My blood runs so cold as she admits this it feels like ice. “As in from high school?”
She audibly swallows before nodding her head. Grabbing my cut by the lapels, more tears slide down her cheeks before she rests her forehead into my chest again. “Make him stop. Make him go away,” her shaky voice pleads to me.
I squeeze her firmly, silently letting her know she’s safe, but say nothing. Oh, I will find this motherfucker and he will pay dearly. But that’s nothing she needs to worry or think about in this moment. The thoughts roaming at free will in my mind currently would threaten to torture the devil himself.
Outlaw steps forward. “It all happened so suddenly. One minute we were all in the bathroom celebrating Talia’s positive pregnancy tests and the next thing you know, Aria’s coming out of the bathroom stained in blood.”
“Wait! Hold the fuck up? What do you mean Talia’s pregnancy or whatever the fuck you just said?” Edge questions, looking at Outlaw before his gaze turns quickly to Talia who is still being consoled by Briggs. The look on both of their faces is priceless and the only damn thing I’m enjoying in this moment. “Excuse me.” Edge forces his way between Briggs and Aria. “You? You’re? You mean we’re?”
“You ever gonna finish that question there, big guy?” Talia teases her old man. “I’ll finish it for you, yes. This is obviously not how I wanted you to find out, but apparently Outlaw had other plans.” She gives Outlaw an unimpressed look.
“Oops. It was a vital part of the story. The entire reason we were in the bathroom in the first place.” She shrugs her shoulders.
“I’m gonna be a Grandpa?” Briggs looks surprised, but happy about the news.
“Call our cleanup crew, Stone,” Rogue orders him. “Dar, you’ll be compensated for this, you have my word. We’ll make it right and get business back to booming in here in no time. As for the rest of my men, let’s deal with one thing at a time. Revenge, babies, congratulations. Fuck, my head is spinning. Let’s ride.”
As we begin to make our way to our bikes, I can hear Outlaw and Merc bickering back and forth about Fox having Mel. Trying to ignore them, I grab Aria’s hand in my own and all but drag her the rest of the way out of the door. When I get us over to my bike, I pull out an extra T-shirt from my saddle bag and hand it over to her. “There’s nothing I can do about your jeans, but I can’t stand seeing all of that blood all over you a minute longer.” She hesitantly smiles at me as she puts it on over her other one. “That’s better,” I tell her as I help tug the bottom of the shirt down.
“Thank you,” she says before raising up on the tips of her toes and whispering in my ear, “Sandman.” Shivers race up and down my spine, how is it that she managed to make my road name sound so seductive? She swipes the tip of her tongue around the shell of my ear before lowering down onto her heels. “You’re always saving me. One day, I’d like to rescue you back.” One day, she’ll recognize that this is probably the best she’s getting from me. Something inside of me broke the day she disappeared. The abandonment I felt and the way I thought she so easily dismissed me, turned my heart into a block of ice. It’s melted a little for her since she returned, but I have a deep-seated feeling that this is the best it’s going to get. She needs to let Hawke go; he’s dead and buried as far as I’m concerned, she’ll have to learn to love Sandman just the way he is. I may be cold as a wintery storm, but she’s the sun in my life, I only allow her to thaw small pieces to see who I am away from the destruction and chaos of the club.
The rest of my brothers follow with their old ladies tucked tight to their sides. “We need to get the old ladies to the clubhouse; we have some hunting to do.” Rogue raises his arm in the air and circles his wrist letting us know it’s time to round up and hit the road.
As Merc and Edge lead Outlaw and Talia to the SUV, I grab my helmet and place it on Aria’s head. “You’re with me,” I announce. My tone leaves no room for argument. She stoically nods her head, she knows I need this, even if she’s not entirely enthusiastic about it.
“Always,” she admits, the volume low in her tone. “I’ll always be with you.” When she finishes saying this, I feel the kink in my armor give and loosen a little more. Instead of replying, I straddle my bike and hold my hand out for her. When my hand engulfs hers, I give it a tiny squeeze. She returns the gesture; this is our way of silently communicating to each other that the other is fine. Words aren’t always needed between us, never have been. We have always known when the other needs a minute.
Aria
As my head lays between his shoulder blades and my arms securely wrapped around his middle, I can’t help but think about the first time Bobby Kelson attacked me, came after me like I was nothing more than the trash he spit on. My mind drifts back to a time that was scary, my
body was wracked with uncontrollable fear, the first time a man ever made me feel so vulnerable that it placed me in a submissive role.
High School (Sophomore Year)
My friend, Sasha and I just finished running the track for gym and my legs are trying to give out on me. “Mrs. Carson is a bitch,” Sasha murmurs as she rubs her sore and achy legs.
“Shh.” I place my finger over my lips looking around for the sneaky teacher who always seems to be everywhere. “You know her ears have ears,” I remind her.
“Yeah, I know she’s a nosy bitch,” Sasha concurs.
“Ladies!” We hear hollered behind us, “hit those showers now!”
“She’s also a bossy bitch.” Sasha, who’s never worried about what others think about her loudly states. She has no shame whatsoever and I absolutely love this about her. I wish I could be as brave and bold as she is.
“I heard that, Miss Carmichael,” Mrs. Carson yells back at Sasha.
“Wasn’t hiding anything from you, Mrs. Carson,” Sasha snottily responds.
“That was your last warning. I expect to see you in my office in ten minutes. Any later and detention will turn into suspension.”
“What was the first warning?” Sasha spins around on her heels and gives Mrs. Carson a deathly look.
As Mrs. Carson makes it closer to us, she begins to wag her finger in Sasha’s direction. I see the intent clearly on my best friend’s face and grab her by the waist and pull her back. “She’ll be in your office in ten minutes,” I quickly announce. I turn around and pull Sasha with me, all the while she’s still walking backwards, her eyes never leaving our teacher.
“I hate that b-witch,” she angrily spits out, changing bitch to witch because she knows that we’re being followed.
“Keep your mouth shut. Don’t make me do this whole school thing without you.” She’s the only real friend I have and makes my days here bearable.
“You could survive a day or two without me. It’ll be worth it to teach that evil woman a lesson,” she huffs.
Finally, we make it to the showers and Sasha rushes to dress and heads out the door, leaving me alone to finish dressing. I hate being in the locker room by myself, but we were the last ones to enter, so we were the last ones to shower. Finished, I grab my backpack, purse and books then head out for my next class, English. I shudder thinking about the upcoming test that I studied hours for last night. While my mind is occupied on that, I feel a hand wrap around, cupping my mouth to soundproof my screams, and an arm band around my waist.
“Tsk, tsk, tsk,” my assailant hisses. “None of that screaming nonsense or I’ll knock you out,” the voice whispers in my ear. My skin prickles and my stomach turns with vomit threatening to expel from where my mouth is covered. He takes in a deep breath, his nose buried in my neck, “You always smell so good.” He begins to drag me backwards and I begin to squirm in his arms, kicking my feet as we make our way into a supply closet. As soon as his hand leaves my mouth, I drag in as much oxygen as I can and scream with all of my might. His hand is in slow motion as he pulls it back and I watch as it flies through the air and makes contact with my cheek. I fall to the ground with the force and cup my cheek from the stinging pain. My head instantly begins to ache and my ears begin ringing.
My eyes widen in shock when I see the hideous, alarming look he’s sending my way. It’s Bobby fucking Kelson; captain of the football team, and president of the student body. He’s always followed me with his eyes, and I’ve always been spooked by his presence. Something inside of him is evil, his eyes always look dead, his smile as fake and practiced as I’ve ever seen. I’ve never understood his popularity or why girls swarm at his feet, begging for him to pay them a shred of attention. “W-what do you want from me?” I ask, even though I’m sure I don’t want to hear his answer.
“Ha,” he chuckles like my question is the funniest thing he’s ever heard. “You walk around here all high and mighty, nose tilted up in the air like your shit don’t stink like the rest of ours. You tease the fuck out of all the boys here; with those short as fuck shorts you wear, skintight shirts where we can all see your nipples displayed. They’re always hard and standing at attention.” He licks his lips as his eyes roam to my breasts. “Someone needs to bring you down a notch or two, and I’ve elected myself as that person,” he sneers.
Oh God. No one is going to save me. I’m at his mercy. He’s built like a linebacker and as strong as an ox. This is not the way I’ve always imagined losing my virginity. I always thought I’d get dinner and a movie first, but not a slasher film like what’s being portrayed in my real life at the moment. He prowls closer to me and I scoot back until my back hits the wall behind me. When he goes to bend over I kick my foot up, making contact with his knee, which happens to piss him off even more. He hauls his fist back and punches me in the gut, stealing all of the air from me. I gasp, trying to get the much-needed ventilation back into my body. But he doesn’t stop with one punch. I feel like I’m being used as a human punching bag. The more times he hits me, the weaker my body feels and I have no energy to scream any longer. Every time my mouth opens, nothing comes out but my silent shrieks. I beg to the universe, God, a higher power, for someone to save me, but it doesn’t seem like the cosmos are on my side. As I start to lose consciousness I hear the wooden door splinter and see a boy in leather come crashing in. As I continue to dim, I hear flesh hitting flesh and pray that my savior beats the shit out of my abuser.
I woke up an hour later in the emergency room with my parents standing over my bruised and battered body.
“Hi, honey,” my mom cries over me.
“W-what happened,” I ask and it feels as if my lips are cracked wide open. It hurts to move my mouth and I feel something drip from the corner of my mouth.
“Shhh.” My father comforts me by placing his hand over my forehead. He begins rubbing his fingers back and forth, soothing the tension.
“You were attacked at school by another student. Do you remember?” As Mom asks me this question, the memories assail me and my body trembles.
“Yes. How did I get away?” I ask through sobs that are wracking my body.
“A young man saved you. He heard the commotion as he was going to class after using the restroom. His name is Hawke, and he refused to leave your side until we arrived. I think the police are questioning him. He put a whooping on that despicable excuse of a human being.” Father reaches over with his free hand and places his hand in a comforting gesture on my mom’s shoulder. “I’ll forever be grateful to that young man,” she sniffles.
I don’t know who this Hawke person is, but I plan on finding out and spending the rest of my life thanking him for saving it.
“Aria, we’re here,” he says; the bike is still idling as he holds out his hand to help me off.
“Where are you going?” I question him, even though I already know the answer.
“Club business, Aria.” His look tells me he’s not impressed with my questioning his plans. But I’m scared he’s going to go all lone wolf and kill Bobby ending up in prison for the rest of his life. A life I plan on spending the rest of with him.
“Be careful. Please,” I plead. “I need you.”
“And you’ll have me,” he says as I feel my sisters gather around me in silent support. “Be back as soon as I can.”
Fox comes outside bouncing baby Mel in his arms. “Here ya go, Momma. Gotta go be an adult now, playtime is over,” Fox tells her all the while sneering at Merc. “Let’s go hunting, boys!” he hollers as he puts on his helmet. I place my fingers at my lips and blow a kiss at my man. He doesn’t reach out and grab it tapping it to his chest like he did when we were younger, but he gives me a small, tilted smile. It’ll have to do, it’s better than nothing. He nods his head at me and Rogue does something with his hand and all the boys back out and turn around. They head out of the clubhouse leaving dirt flying around them.
“Be safe,” I whisper as the last man leaves my sight.
“I’ve been tasked with staying here along with PeeWee,” Pyro’s voice breaks free from behind me, startling me momentarily. I clutch at my chest in response. “Rogue and I discussed this through our earpieces on the ride here. So, I need all of you ladies and that includes you, little Mel...” He pauses long enough to touch her tiny hand before finishing, “to go inside the clubhouse and stay sequestered in the common area for now. Rogue’s orders not mine. So, take it up with him when they return if anyone is feeling pissy about that decision.”
6
Sandman
The open road, the wind blowing through my hair, isn’t tackling or alleviating the stress like it normally does. Riding wild and free has always been my therapy. Today, it doesn’t seem to be relaxing my tight muscles. My mind is on my sport, my prey, the singular man I’m hunting. I will find him, trap him and torture him. For months I’ll keep him alive long enough to get him to the edge of death, only to bring him back and start the game all over again. There’s not a rock on this planet that fucker can hide under from me. I will find him, and he will know once and for all exactly what it’s like to be at the mercy of someone else; only he will be shown none.
Hours pass and we’ve searched all of his last known addresses and local hangouts, yet find no sign of that filthy bastard. Frustration is beginning to get the best of me. I am growing more impatient by the second.
We pull into an empty parking lot to regroup and refocus. “Maybe we need to call it a night? Meet early in my office and have Shadow search the web for more information on this creep. Maybe some more up-to-date stuff to at least give us a better idea of where he could’ve possibly fled to,” Rogue states.
“I agree.” Fox pulls out a stick of beef jerky and takes a bite off of it. “For all we know that fucker is already across state lines. We need a solid starting point or we’re just gonna keep riding in circles.”
Sandman's Awakening: Twisted Iron MC Page 5