by Hope Stone
I walked in the door and headed to the kitchen. I could hear Palo talking in the den. The door was cracked and I saw a shadow of his bald head. He was tapping something on the desk.
“What did you do? Are they gone now?” Palo asked in an exasperated tone. I flattened myself against the wall so I could hear what he was saying and who he was talking to. “You don’t know what happened to them? I told you to scare them enough to get rid of them. Now we got a situation, right? I can’t take the chapter forward if we have this situation.” The daggers of anger were sharply directed to the person at the other end of the line. “I got to go check out this Diego guy.” I felt my chest rise and fall from anxiety. Why the hell was he talking about Diego? “He needs a warning. I’m about to go find out. I know my sister, she gave up too quickly. She’ll find a way to see him.”
I wrinkled up my nose in disgust. Another vote for leaving my brother’s house. I didn’t want him tracking my whereabouts. I tiptoed on the balls of my feet to the kitchen and picked out some cheese and crackers from the pantry. A red wine was sitting on the counter and I poured myself a glass. It would help while I studied bacterias. I made myself the plate and headed to my room. I wanted to warn Diego about my brother. If he wanted something, he would be ruthless enough to go after it. I texted him as soon as I sat my evening snack down on my desk.
“Heads up my brother might pop up to talk to you. I overheard.”
The phone vibrated with a blue screen, Diego was calling me.
“Hey, what the hell?” His exasperated tone made me nervous. “I thought he didn't know about us?”
“He doesn’t, he’s going based off when I saw you in Santa Cruz.”
“Tell me again he has nothing to do with those fucking peasants from his club. If this is a set-up it ain’t a good idea. Outlaw Souls will stitch this up real quick so you need to tell me now. It will turn into a full-blown turf war and there’s no turning back from that. Bloodshed will be what’s up next on the menu.”
I sighed, taking a sip of my wine to calm my nerves. “Diego, stop thinking like that. It’s not a set-up. My brother wants to talk to you because he is overbearing. He’s protective. He wants to talk to you because you’re dating me.”
Diego paused for a minute. “So you have two men standing over you.”
“It’s not like that, Diego.”
“I know. I’m just frustrated. I want to be with you, out in the open. I want to spend time with you and not have this bullshit hanging over our heads.”
The back and forth of hiding and sneaking was starting to grate at me as well. “How do you think I feel? I have classes, I’m trying to become a doctor and I’m dating an Outlaw! You see why I didn’t want to talk to you?”
He laughed. “Dating an outlaw? Not quite, baby doll. But hey, sounds badass doesn’t it?”
“It does. Hang on a minute.” I crept to the door and opened it. Nobody was there. I wanted to check that Palo wasn’t listening in on my conversation. Then I heard the sound of high-speed cars and knew he was playing a video game in the main lounge.
“What happened?”
“Umm. I was checking for Palo. He’s playing video games, the coast is clear.”
“Okay. I know you gotta study but I will be ready. Has your brother got a cool head? Is he coming at me with a few people or not? Let me know now so I know what I’m up against.”
“Papi! He’s not coming at you that way. He will approach you man to man. That’s not his style. He’s old school. I wanna say something else…”
“What now, Misty? Please, between the two punks that tried to bum-rush my warehouse and your brother, what else could there be?”
“I don’t know. Misunderstanding between you and me about that friend of yours. Crystal was it? He was mad because I was crying about it.”
“You really thought I was with her? Oh, man.”
I cringed a little. “See, that’s why I didn’t want to tell you,” I said as I grabbed a piece of cheese and put it on a cracker.
“Crystal and I ran our course. She came to see me to close the door I guess.”
A pang of jealousy hit me. “I guess I can’t compete with that.”
“There’s nothing to compete with. I want you and only you. I wouldn’t be jumping through all the hoops I am right now. We just need to tread lightly. I’ll go easy on your brother when he gets here. I won’t rough him up too bad.” Diego laughed wholeheartedly on the other end.
“Stop!” I responded playfully.
“It will work out,” he said simply.
“Okay. I trust you.”
“That means a lot. I know you gotta study, so I will let you study to save the world. You wanna come here later in the week?”
“Yes, if I can swing it.”
“We’ll figure it out. Bye, baby.”
“Bye.”
I planned to put a stop to the situation. I just had to broach the subject from a different angle with my brother. I had a day off the next day. Well, not technically, just a lecture I didn’t feel like going to. I wanted to give myself a break from things and to talk to Palo. We met like we always did in the kitchen for breakfast. He looked bleary-eyed as he got ready to head out the door for his day job. I had a coffee in my hand. I turned to face him.
“Morning, Palo.” I was still in my PJs and he hadn’t even seen me.
“You’re still here? I thought you would be at school.”
“No. I have a day off.” I sipped some of my coffee and continued, “I know you’re going to speak to Diego.”
Palo froze and glanced over at me. “How do you know that?” He blindly reached for the coffee pot.
“I heard you. Don’t do it, Palo. He’s not doing anything sinister. I told you that. You’re literally trying to ruin things for me.”
Palo poured his coffee into the cup. “This has nothing to do with that. Besides, if you’re dating the guy, I’m going to need to see him at some stage. He has a new chapter operation. I need to check the temperature. If he’s feeling a certain kind of way then we may need to rectify that. Plus the guy had you in tears.”
“Stay out of it, Palo. It wasn’t what I thought it was.” I opened the refrigerator, looking for the juice.
“I could say the same to you. This is about the chapter. You didn’t want to be involved, remember? Why couldn’t you just date someone in your league? Like a med school student or a normal guy that works a day job from the suburbs or something?” He flipped his hand up at me.
“Do I tell you to stop dating strippers? How about that? Don’t you work for a computer company? Please, Palo. Save me the judgment from you of all people.” I turned and walked back to my room, slamming the door. I fell back on my bed and stared at the ceiling. How did I get to this place? Once Palo made up his mind to do something, then that was what he did. My brother might have appeared calm, but that didn’t mean anything with him.
Diego
Two weeks passed and the men in black hanging around the front of the warehouse were nowhere to be seen. Still left me triple-checking the warehouse locks and resetting the alarm code several times.
It was mid-morning in the office and my legs were up on the counter. I had the phone in my hand talking to Ryder.
“Hey, Ryder, you good down there?”
Ryder’s barreling tone came through the line like a freight train. “Diego. We are good down here. Business as usual. What about you at that end? You moved on from that Las Balas situation, right?”
“You’ve got nothing to worry about. Things are running right here.” I broke out into a sweat on the back of my neck. I rubbed it with my free hand to ease the tension. “Listen, I called because we have two new potential members. Derek and Rick.”
“Oh yeah? Tell me about them, what's their MO?”
“Rick mainly, Derek seems a little shaky, but I think he might join up once Rick does. Not that I’m trying to rush the numbers. We want quality over quantity, right?”
“Right.
Keep going.”
“Rick would be handy to us. He has a background in security.”
Ryder grunted. “Huh. We could use him. Give him my number and let me talk to him. Set something up. You got another vest up there?”
“Yeah. I think I do.”
“Has it got all the patches on it already or we gotta sew them on?”
“Nope. All the patches are already on it.”
“Okay. Keep an eye out for this Palo guy. I want you to be vigilant up there. Let us know how we can help you, all right?”
“Done deal.”
“Oh, and Diego. Don’t think we won’t hesitate to hit Las Balas if we think we need to.”
“I know.” I set the phone down and ran a hand through my hair. There were a few tangles at the bottom so I pulled them out. I slammed my fist on the table out of frustration. I was kicking myself for telling Ryder about Misty at all.
I flashed my old life through my eyes, sleeping with a gun on my bedside table and Crystal coming home from the strip club at two in the morning smelling like the whole liquor cabinet.
“Why you gotta drink so much?” I’d ask. She would stumble and her hair would be a complete mess. Her legs would cross and she would trip over her own feet while clutching the bedsheets to stop her from falling.
“Oh, you don’t love me anymore, do you?” she would slur and start to cry.
I would lie to her. “Yes, I do. I just wish you would stop killing yourself with the drinking. If you don’t like the strip club, stop working there.”
“Shuddup. You don’t pay my bills. You don’t know what it’s like!”
I closed my eyes, shaking off the memory. She looked a lot different when I’d seen her. She’d cleaned up a lot. I was proud of her.
That life was not something I wanted a repeat of here in Merced. I got up to stretch my legs and peruse the parking lot. I walked back and forth, checking the perimeter. I peeped out on the street just for good measure. Nothing. This part of the street had barely any businesses around it. It was me and two other warehouses tucked away in an avenue. Good for biker association business, but not necessarily for motorcycle repairs. I strolled back and thought about why those bozos would have wanted to case out the warehouse. My mind drifted back to what Misty said about them propositioning her. Seemed like the move of a pimp. Especially with two of them flanking her either side of a bar. The two-for-one special. My blood ran hot thinking about what I would do if Misty was harmed.
I checked the ground, looking for clues. There were none, just smooth asphalt. I sighed as I entered the warehouse and suited up with my coveralls, ready to get down to the business of bikes. I had new parts coming in for one of the two bikes I had left to work on. Turned out one of the Hondas needed more than just a service. It had a little vibration issue going on. Nothing worse than having a bike with a jarring motion underneath you. I test-ran it in the parking lot and knew then I couldn’t give it back without fixing that issue.
I walked to the back of the warehouse and picked up my cell phone, making the call. I paced the warehouse while I did. I didn’t feel like sitting down.
“Hi, I want to ring in for compression and rebound adjusters. Have you got any in stock?”
“Uhh, lemme check. Just hold the line for a minute.”
“Okay, no problem.” The lady on the line came back a few minutes later.
“Yep, we have them in stock. Were you looking to place an order?”
“Yes, I want to place an order. I think I already have an account with you. It’s under Diego Christopher.”
“Let’s see here. I’m just checking my computer… Diego… Okay. Yep. Here we go. I see it. No problem. We’ll add these parts to the account and bill you at the end of the month.”
“Okay, great.”
“Is there anything else I can do for you today?”
“Yeah, how long will that take to come in?”
“We can get it to you this afternoon. When do you need it?”
“This afternoon would be great.”
“Anything else, sir?”
“No. That’s it. Thank you.”
I hung up. Another one down.
I rang Rick next.
“Hey, Rick, how are you, man?” I kicked some annoying piece of dust up from the ground as I noted the grime on the warehouse windows. I needed to get that cleaned asap.
“Hey, Diego! Nice to hear from you, man. Any news?”
“Yeah, I have some. I wanted to connect you to the club president, Ryder. He wants to talk to you. You know, just to get to know you and see where your head is at. I told him about your security background and that’s a real bonus for us.”
“For sure, pass my number through to him and we can talk. I got a few guys that can, you know, step in if times get rough. You get a look at those two goons that came past your warehouse?”
I grimaced as I looked down at my unlaced boots. “No. They did another lap, but that was two weeks ago. I haven’t seen them since then. I’m keeping an eye out. I have you in mind, so thanks for the back-up.”
“Any time. I look forward to the call from Ryder.”
“Bike running all right?”
“Incredible. I feel like a new man.”
I laughed at the familiarity of what he said. The freedom that riding brings is addictive to the soul.
“Thought as much. Listen, give me a call after you speak to Ryder and we’ll get that vest for you. Just some formalities to go through with getting you sworn in. But unofficially, welcome to the family of Outlaw Souls.”
“Thanks, man. Don’t forget what I said though.”
“I won’t.” I hung up the phone. All the phone calls I wanted to make for the day were out of the way, except for one that was most important to me. I had a few other things to do in the warehouse and Misty’s voice was the one I wanted to end the night with.
I turned the music up loud and drowned everything out as I scanned the Honda on the platform. I ran an engine check with a compression test and checked out the oil pressure. I topped it up and ran the engine again. I listened to the beautiful hum. Satisfied, I moved to the aesthetics of the bike. The fender had a crack in it. Nothing major. I had the right glue to put a hold in it. I repaired bikes but I didn’t do the aesthetics unless it was banging out the lumps and bumps. I’d found a contact who did it in Merced and I thought I would pass it onto the bike owner. I put my hands on the tires and tested them, observing the tread. Not bad, in good condition. Looked like the rider hadn’t taken the bike out for a while. Next, I tugged at the cables and checked their inputs and they were in good condition too. Aside from a couple issues, this Honda was an easy service to work with. I made good time and when I looked up at the warehouse clock it was twelve p.m. I worked steadily until four. No excitement jumped off in the warehouse. It was eerily quiet. I flicked off the radio and stepped out of my coveralls. The weather was a little muggy, triggering a memory of riding twenty-deep with my brothers and engines, purring down the highway to Tijuana. I chuckled as I thought about it.
I mounted my bike and headed over to The Partition, the same place Misty had ended up at. Looked different in the light of day, not so glamorous. Not so many cars in the parking lot either. I dismounted from my bike and headed into the bar. A dude with spiky hair came to me.
“Hey, man, how are you doing? What can I get for you?”
“I’ll take a Jack and Coke.” He winked and doubled back. “You want ice in that?”
“Yes please.” I looked around with interest. Weird music. Some trance-like beat. A couple in the back who should have gotten a hotel room and another lady who looked like she’d had some surgery done. She caught my eye and winked. I glanced at her. Her dark auburn hair looked like a weave. Big breasts, definitely enhanced; they didn’t move as she walked. She was wearing a green skin-tight dress that stopped at the bottom of her coochie. She had it all hanging out. Big brown eyes and large plump lips. I smiled a little as I found it amusing. I watched
as she made her way to me.
“Hey there, Mr. Biker Boy. How you doing?” She ran her finger across the back of my neck and it made goosebumps stand up on my neck. I flicked her off.
“What can I do for you?” I asked in an irritated voice.
“Well, it’s the other way round. I wanted to know what I can do for you.” She slid in the barstool next to me and perched her face in her hand.
“Not a goddamn thing.” The bartender looked at me and then looked at the frisky woman and sat my Jack down in front of me. I picked it up with my thumb and index finger and let the black liquid slide down my throat. I gave her the side-eye.
She laughed with a husky tone and touched my forearm. I drew it back.
“Oh stop it, you’re flattering me. It’s too much,” she giggled. I gave her a flat-out glare. “Look, I gotta make my money somehow. Plus I saw your patches on the back of your vest. I thought you might be up for it. Most of you are up here.” She’d piqued my interest now.
“Okay, so you got a few on a roster, do you?”
“Yes, I do, honey. They love them some Mimi.”
I laughed then and loosened up. “Mimi, can I buy you a drink? I don’t wanna fuck you, though. I got a girl. But I’m sure you get a lot of work.” I looked her over once more.
She beamed. “Sure, I wouldn’t mind a drink and thanks for not sending me away.”
“You’re welcome.”
I put up one finger to the bartender and whispered to Mimi, “What you drinking?”
“I’m having what you’re having…” She licked her lips and ogled me some more. I sat still. The bartender didn’t have much to do. He was busy wiping down the bar and headed our way.
“Hey, Mimi, what are you sippin’ on?” She pointed to my drink. He saluted her and smiled. “Got it.”
“You know him?” I asked. She repositioned herself on the stool.
“Yep. I come here a lot. My customers are here.”
“Okay.”
“Here you go, Mimi.” Mimi took her drink and rocked to the beat in the club.
“So you were talking about bikers. Are a lot of them in here and where are they from?” I waited for her answer patiently.