by Brook Wilder
It was going to be heartbreaking but it offered the best chance for the most brothers and their families to get out with their lives. I really couldn’t wait to tell them all.
We had joined the I5, heading back towards the bar. I was playing out the announcement I would have to make in my head, almost lost in a dream, when Piper started thumping me urgently on the back.
“What is it?” I yelled back to her.
“Look!” she screamed.
I craned my neck to see what she was pointing at. I couldn’t believe my eyes. It was Vinnie, back in his Lamborghini, driving along right beside us in the outside lane, back just far enough to be about level with Piper. He was still grinning insanely and, when he realized I’d seen him, he made an obscene gesture with his tongue at Piper and swerved dramatically, trying to clip my back wheel with the sharp, pointed snout of his supercar. He missed, but had no trouble lining up for another try.
“Hold on!” I shouted to Piper, before changing down two gears and accelerating as fast as Frost’s bike would go.
Unfortunately for us, it became quickly obvious that a late seventies Harley was going to be no match for a new Lamborghini. That car could move. I saw my speedo creep past one hundred miles per hour but Vinnie was barely having to try, and was easily able to match our speed. There wasn’t even any traffic I could weave through to try and lose him that way. I needed to come up with a new plan.
He swerved again, this time bumping the back of the bike. The handlebars shook violently in my hands but the heavy bike managed to remain mostly stable. Piper was screaming and swearing over my shoulder as Vinnie swerved to hit us one more time. He hit us so hard this time, he almost took the bike out from under me. I gassed the Harley again and was able to power through the wobble, but enough was enough. I had to do something to save us before Vinnie crushed us under his wheels.
I hit the brakes hard, this time causing the car to swerve in front of us. I took my hand off the throttle and pulled my SIG out. I fired six shots at the back of Vinnie’s car. At least one bullet hit the fat rear tire and it exploded into a mess of sticky black pieces of rubber. The car swerved again, this time out of Vinnie’s control, the backend veering wildly as he fought to keep it straight. The machine began to spin, turning side on to us, and I got a glimpse of Vinnie’s face as it careered off the road. I smiled to myself because, for once, he actually looked scared.
The big Lamborghini slid onto the grass verge that lined the highway. I watched it tear across the scrub, cutting great swathes through the scenery, throwing up mud and plant life as it ploughed off the road. It kept spinning, not seeming to slow down at all until, suddenly and brutally, it slammed nose first into a tree.
“YES!” I heard Piper scream as we slowed to a stop, just off the side of the road. Smoke drifted back towards us from the stricken vehicle, and we could see no sign of life. “Is it over?” she almost pleaded. I wasn’t certain if she was asking me or the heavens above. I didn’t want to say anything. I didn’t want to say it was over and be wrong.
There were still no other cars around, but it was getting lighter every minute and the chances of a good Samaritan spotting the wreck and calling an ambulance were getting higher all the time.
“We’ve got to go and check,” I said.
“Yeah, I guess we do,” Piper confirmed. Only, neither of us wanted to get off the bike and go down there.
“Come on,” I said at last. “Even if he’s not dead, I can put a bullet in his head and we’ll be free.”
Piper smiled at that last word and swung her leg over the bike to dismount. I followed, and we started walking the fifty yards or so to the busted supercar. The was still no movement, but the smell of tortured rubber, gasoline, and smoke grew stronger with every step we took.
Eventually reaching the car, I could see the windshield was cracked but not smashed. The front of the car was wrapped pretty good around the tree it had hit, mangling and buckling the metal until it was almost unrecognizable. He must have still been doing nearly a hundred miles per hour when he hit. Smoke plumed out of the engine bay behind the cockpit but, inside, the figure of Vinnie lay still, slumped forward over the steering wheel.
“He looks dead,” Piper said, evenly.
“I think we owe it to ourselves to be sure.” I looked seriously at her.
I edged closer to the driver’s door and tried the handle. It was unlocked, and I was able to open it far enough to gain access to the cabin.
“Fuck, Theo, be careful!” Piper nearly wailed. I could tell the suspense was killing her. Me too, if I was honest.
I pulled out my SIG again but Vinnie still just lay there. His arms were dangling uselessly down from his shoulders and his head lay against the steering wheel. I could see blood, some of it old and dried, from the gunfight back at the ranch, some of it fresh from him, right now. I guessed he must have just jumped into a shirt, pants, and shoes and come after us. Crazy motherfucker.
I leaned in closer, reaching down to try and find his pulse. I really didn’t enjoy being this close to him. Blood was leaking down from a wound on his head that I couldn’t see, staining the jacket and pants of the white linen suit he was wearing. I put my left hand on his wrist, holding my gun on him with the other. I slid my fingers along, looking for a heartbeat.
In a flash, Vinnie’s arm broke from my grip. So fast I couldn’t see, he wrapped his hand around my gun and pushed it away from him as I fired. Sparks flew from the bullet hitting the chassis of the car and Piper screamed in surprise.
His face jerked towards me. He still wore that crazed rictus grin and I had time to see that the blood was running from one cut he had on the bridge of his nose and another on his lip, before he lunged at me aggressively, slamming his forehead into my face.
***
My vision blurred and all I could hear was a sharp blast of white noise for a second or two, while I fell back. I felt Vinnie twist the SIG out of my hand as I fell and my eye’s refocused in time to see him step out the wrecked car and punch Piper sharply in the face. She fell too. I tried to move my body to catch her but it wasn’t responding. For a long moment, I couldn’t get my arms or legs to do anything I wanted. All I could do was watch as Vinnie casually tossed my gun away and kicked me in the chest. I felt a sharp pain in my ribs. I was sure at least one was cracked now. Then I saw him wind up again and kick me in the face this time. I could already taste blood from my nose but now I felt it trickle into my mouth from a burning hole on my lips.
I just needed a second. A moment to collect myself, breathe, and devise a new plan of attack. Vinnie was bigger than me, sure, and more powerful. Plus, he didn’t seem to care much about pain but I had always been pretty confident that I could take him, if I had to. All I needed to do was dance around him, keep him off balance, and get him down on the ground. Only, I was finding it tough to get up and start fighting him. He was keeping me down and I was getting pummeled to death as I tried to stand.
He’d got behind me and I felt another stinging sensation as he grabbed a fistful of my hair, lifted my head back. He curled his bicep under my chin but, somehow, I was able to slip my forearm between him and my neck, just about preventing him from finishing his chokehold or trying to break my neck. Thank fuck for that. He kept his grip, though, and lifted me up to standing. I tried elbowing him in the stomach, the ribs, and kicking back to scrape his shin, but I just couldn’t get the leverage to really hurt him. I was running out of options. Ignoring my feeble attacks, he walked me to the back of the wreck, right around until I was staring at the engine mounted under its transparent hood and was facing the low, rear lights.
Using all of his bodyweight, he smashed my head against the back of the car once, leaving my head went fuzzy again. He quickly repeated his assault, and everything in my world went black.
CHAPTER 29: Piper
My emotions were totally shot. I didn’t think I could handle much more stress at this level. When Vinnie’s car appeared and he started smas
hing it into the bike, I was more terrified than I’d ever been. We were under attack, helpless, and I was sure I was going to die. Worse than that, I was terrified because we were both going to die. Vinnie was here to kill Theo and I, and that was all. I didn’t want Theo to die. I really didn’t want Theo to die because of me.
I held on for dear life and when Theo shot out Vinnie’s tires and sent him spinning of the road, I felt nothing but elation. I watched his expensive sports car hit the tree and I was just willing it to burst into flames. But this wasn’t a movie, so we had to stop and go make sure he was dead.
We dismounted and headed over to the wreck. Theo drew his gun and I went for mine, before I remembered I’d emptied it and then flung it at the ranch house in a fit of agonizing frustration. Theo opened the door of the crashed car and we saw Vinnie, slumped, unmoving, and I dared to dream that he might actually be gone. He was bleeding. I couldn’t tell if he was breathing. I hoped he wasn’t.
I held my breath, though, as Theo went to check if he was alive. I can’t explain it but, a second before Theo touched him, I knew he was alive. Worse, I knew he was waiting for us. I don’t know how, but I knew. I tried to yell a warning to Theo but my voice gave out. With unbelievable speed, Vinnie grabbed Theo’s gun and knocked him backward onto the ground. I turned to Vinnie. I wasn’t sure what I was going to do, I’d never tried to physically stand up to him before, but I figured kicking him in the balls would be a good place to start.
I thought Vinnie might shoot us, now he had Theo’s gun, but he just tossed it aside. I guessed he decided he’d enjoy beating us to death much more, instead.
“Well, hello, beautiful,” he said in a low, mocking tone. His voice just tapped into my fear, freezing me in place. I wanted to attack him but I couldn’t move. My eyes flicked to Theo, laying bleeding on the ground, and when they returned to Vinnie, I caught a blur of movement before something crashed into my face, knocking me down.
The back of my head hit the hard-packed dirt and my eyes closed for a little while. I could still hear the sickening sounds of bone and flesh smacking into each other, and I in my mind I could see Theo happily kicking Vinnie’s ass. But, when I could open my eyes again, I saw Vinnie holding Theo from behind, shoving him around like some giant puppet, then beating him to a pulp against the side of the car.
I hauled myself up. My face didn’t hurt but I could taste blood. I figured I was in shock. Vinnie slammed Theo into the metal a couple more times, then stopped to take a look. Examining his work, he saw that Theo seemed to be unconscious. At least, I prayed he was only unconscious. Vinnie turned back to face me. He smiled widely and dumped Theo’s body on the ground, just where he was standing.
I swallowed nervously and looked desperately around for a weapon as Vinnie started advancing towards me. My heart was racing until I spotted Theo’s gun laying on the ground by the open driver’s door. I lunged for it as Vinnie picked up speed. I landed hard but was able to grab it.
I fumbled, trying to get a grip on it as I turned. I was shaking. I looked up, though, and there was Vinnie, not two feet from me. I raised the gun but he just grabbed it out of my hands.
“You don’t need that,” he hissed, still smiling, and tucked it into the back of his pants.
My legs turned to jelly. I still wasn’t afraid to die, but I was just scared that he would keep me alive, torture me and force me to watch him kill Theo. I just wanted him to spare the man I loved.
“Vinnie, baby,” I pleaded. I didn’t have anything left. Just please, I wanted to save Theo, more than anything. “Baby? Let me stay with you? I’ll do anything you want.” I reached up to caress his cheek. “Please, just take me away from here. Leave Theo, let’s you and me just go. We can forget all about these bikers.”
Vinnie kept smiling. He seemed to be enjoying hearing me beg, which was no surprise.
“I’ll make you a deal,” he grinned, his big hand coming up to cup mine against his face. “How about we stay, just long enough for your boyfriend to wake up, you watch me open his head with the tire iron I have back there, and then we go.”
I didn’t know what to say. “Baby, please,” was all I could manage. Tears were running freely down my cheeks and I couldn’t help sobbing.
Vinnie leaned in, putting his mouth right by my ear. “I love it when you cry,” he whispered, then shoved me, hard.
I must have flown six feet, the hard earth jarring my back as I hit it. Vinnie strode purposefully towards me. I couldn’t get up, I could only try and crawl away. I half flipped over, trying to crawl through the sharp scrub, knowing he was going to be on me any minute. “Where do you think you’re going?” Vinnie taunted me from close behind. “A moment ago you were begging me to take you away.” I just kept crawling back towards the interstate, hopping there would be someone there to help me.
Finally, he put his foot on my back, stopping me completely. He bent down to turn me over. “I still love you, beautiful,” he said, he almost sounded sad and his mad smile looked pained for just an instant. He brought my hand up to touch his cheek again. “We could still be together, just as soon as I kill that biker, okay?”
I don’t know what came over me. I stopped being scared for a second and got angry. Maybe I just needed some small revenge for everything he’d done to us. Maybe there was just no point holding back anymore. My hand was on his cheek, right near his ear. I hooked my finger through the large gold hoop he wore there and yanked it.
Vinnie screamed. Blood jetted out of his ear, dousing his linen jacket even redder and splashing me in the face. I spat the toxic fluid straight out just in time to receive another fist to the face. The blow stunned me and, before I knew it, Vinnie had me flipped onto my front again.
“You shouldn’t have done that,” he spat, forcing my face into the dirt. I felt him standing over me and pulling at my jeans. I tried to wriggle free but he jabbed something really hard and metal into the back of my head. I heard the hammer of Theo’s gun pull back. “Stay fucking still,” he growled. He stripped my jeans down to my ankles and with almost no effort, ripped my panties right off me.
“Fuck you, Vinnie!” I snarled. I had nothing left he could take from me. All I could think of was that maybe, if I tried hard enough, I might just be able to snap his dick off when he stuck it in me.
“I’ve never fucked a corpse before,” he hissed, stabbing the barrel into the back of my head again. “I thought it would be fun to keep you around, to make you please me after I’d made you watch me kill you boyfriend. But I’m going to try a little experiment. I’m going to fuck your ass and shoot you in the head. I want to see if, dead, you can make up for the lousy lay you were when you were alive.”
“Really, Vinnie?” said Theo. “You really need to learn how to talk to women better.”
I felt the pressure of the gun against my head relax a little as Vinnie and I both turned our heads to the side. I saw Theo, bloodied and battered, but standing over us, the tire iron in his hand.
“What the fuck…?” manage Vinnie, before I kicked my legs back hard, catching his balls with the heel of my boot. He gasped, suddenly breathless, helpless for a second, giving Theo the chance to smack him with the iron.
CHAPTER 30: Theo
I took both hands and swung the tire iron right a Vinnie’s head. He did get part of his hand in the way and deflected it slightly into only a glancing blow, but I still connected with his head hard enough to carrying him up and off his feet.
When I came to, all I could hear was muffled struggling sounds from far away. I managed to get my ass up off the ground and found that everything hurt. But, when I saw that asshole standing over Piper, holding a gun to her head, I found the strength to move. Running on pure adrenaline, I heaved myself back around the car. I saw the tire iron and decided that it was just what I needed to finish this.
The look of relief on Piper’s face when she saw me standing over them made my spirit leap. Then the look of anger she showed when she kicked Vinnie in the jew
els made my blood run cold. I hoped she never found a reason to be that angry with me.
I helped her up, now that Vinnie was on the ground, and she pulled her pants back up. “Do me a favor and stay here, this time?” I said to her. She nodded and I headed off towards Vinnie, who was already trying to lift himself off the floor again.
Vinnie rounded on me, holding a gun, my gun, ahead of him. I was ready, this time, and smacked him on the wrist with the iron, aiming to break it. I don’t know if I did or not, but my gun flew out of his hand.
Unfortunately, my move to disarm him left me completely open. I didn’t think he’d recover as quickly as he did so, when he caught me on the chin with a fast left hook, it drove me down to my knees. The guy hit like a freight train. I dropped the tire iron but, when he threw another punch, I was able to block him and turn his wrist over, trapping his arm between us. It’s a basic aikido technique that uses the attacker’s momentum against them. Now, side on, he couldn’t punch me or release his arm.
Vinnie liked to fight dirty, though. He threw his head into my face again, knocking me back and forcing me to break my grip. Staggering away from him, Piper must have decided she’d had enough. She screamed and launched herself at Vinnie, jumping on his back and trying to punch, kick, and scratch him. I made a grab for the M&P that was still in my boot while he was occupied. Piper’s light weight was ineffectual against his great bulk, though, so before I could actually draw down on Vinnie, he spun and shook her off, hurling her right at me. She crashed into me and I lost my hold on the gun as I was knocked over again. I turned to look for it but suddenly felt a grip like steel around my throat.