Red Hot

by K. A. Merikan

  Ted glanced at him pleadingly, but Loki wasn’t even sure whether the bastard recognized him in the dark. He pushed the balding head away with his shoe, shuddering at the contact. He wished he had thicker soles so he wouldn’t sense the shape of Ted’s skull through them. “Fuck off!”

  “What goes around, comes around.” Jack pulled Ted back by the arm and slammed him against the floor face-first. He moved in the darkness as if it were his element, yet there wasn’t a hint of a smile on his face. “What is this maggot, Loki?” Jack straddled Ted’s ass and cut up the back of his T-shirt in one quick move of the switchblade.

  Loki wasn’t sure if it was just Jack’s size that made Ted seem smaller in contrast, or if Ted had never been as intimidating as Loki remembered. He still flinched when Ted looked up with recognition in his eyes. His gaze burned, so Loki looked straight at Jack, holding on to the foldable seat he was sitting on. “He’s the guy who buried me alive.”

  Jack’s lips spread into an unpleasant smile. “Therefore he is a cunt. Let’s start with that.” The moment Jack’s blade dug into the skin on Ted’s back, the guy whined through his nose and began pleading through his gag. His muffled voice was drilling its way into Loki’s mind.

  Loki swallowed hard, staring at the murderous focus on Jack’s face. In the faint light coming through the dark windows at the back, he could see the curved blade dive into flesh. Jack leaned over Ted, pressing him hard against the floor as he carved, with Ted twitching and howling into the gag like a slaughtered pig. Loki leaned forward, watching blood ooze out of the cuts that formed the first two letters.

  “Fucking scum,” he uttered through his teeth.

  Jack nodded, and worked his blade through the letters, taking deep breaths. “You know, Ted, I’m a bit of a pig myself, but I don’t fuck fifteen-year-olds,” he hissed and pushed the blade in deeper to emphasize his point.

  Loki exhaled, tightening his jaw as he watched the muscles twist on Ted’s face with more ease. He was completely safe with Jack holding this loser down. “Yeah, and he wouldn’t settle his debts with my ass either, you fuckup!”

  Jack gave Loki a quick glance as he finished with ‘SCUM’ and went lower to carve what turned out to be ‘PIMP’. Ted gave up the fight, sobbing loudly against the van floor as blood dripped down his sides. “Should have stuck to just nicely fucking your pretty boyfriend,” he said quietly, leaning over Ted.

  Loki bit his lip, staring at Jack with a smile slowly blooming on his face. With Jack always chasing after girls, he kept wondering what Jack really thought of him, a guy who was not feminine in any way, with a hard, toned body, not that much shorter than Jack himself. “You think I’m pretty?”

  Jack pulled up the bloodied knife, like the embodiment of the phrase ‘caught red-handed’. “I…”

  Loki slid off the seat and kneeled next to him, over the twitching body that didn’t scare him anymore. The coppery scent mingled with a subtle aroma of grime and gas as he leaned closer and moved his nose through Jack’s rustled beard. Its herby smell brought him right back to the safety of the large bed, of the clean sheets in Jack’s beach house.

  Jack swallowed, but gently pushed Loki away as soon as the van drove over something that felt slightly bumpy, like gravel. It stopped soon afterward. “Stop whining, you piece of shit. This is just the beginning.” He got up and put his boot on Ted’s carved-up back, making him scream into the gag.

  “We should have Cumwhore carved on his face,” muttered Loki as he watched Ted try to move away like a fat maggot. “You heard me, sicko?”

  Jack gave Loki a nod and when the backdoor opened, he grabbed Ted’s leg and pulled him out of the van, dropping him onto the gravel with a dull thud.

  Loki couldn’t help a pleasant tingle at the base of his spine when Ted moaned. Loki hoped Ted would lose more teeth tonight than he had to meth throughout the years. The scum didn’t deserve even a niceish face. He didn’t deserve a quiet death or mercy.

  “Loki, you sure you don’t want to stay in the van?” asked Sam, pulling on a pair of black rubber gloves.

  Loki jumped off the back and breathed in a big gulp of the cool night air. The smell of plaster, dust, and concrete made Loki instantly aware of the new surroundings. There was a big construction site to their right, with metal barracks close by, all completely dark. Deserted.

  Monster looked back at them, but led the way for Jack, who dragged Ted behind him by the legs. Seeing Ted cry and squeal made something dark and warm rise in Loki’s chest. He’d never thought an opportunity like this would ever arise. That he’d have a man-mountain like Jack on his side. He carried Ted with such ease, as if he were hauling a dog.

  Ted’s back was a mess, the letters barely visible with blood smeared all over, but Loki trailed behind, watching him struggle, raise his head not to have his face dragged over sharp gravel, screaming into the gag as the tiny stones scratched the flesh of his chest and stomach. Loki felt no remorse whatsoever. It was like watching a deadly spider have its legs ripped off one by one.

  “Let’s take him to the parking lot,” said Monster as they entered the bones of the building. Clear plastic sheets flopped with the breeze rushing through bare rooms, making a ghastly sound in the deep darkness around them, but with the company he had, Loki wasn’t afraid to walk in deeper. A silly smile emerged on his face. He’d never felt more confident than with these three bikers on his side. Even if two of them thought they were avenging Jack, he still felt safer than ever. None of them would let anything happen to their friend’s cousin.

  At some point, Monster insisted Ted was too cut up to be dragged over the naked concrete, as it would leave traces, and so he helped Jack carry Ted down the ramp leading to what was meant to be an underground parking lot. It was completely dark down there, and when they started to climb into the thick blackness below, Loki’s first reflex was to stop. It was only when Sam lit a handheld spotlight that the huge space dotted with concrete pillars emerged in all its creepy emptiness.

  They walked on until they reached a metal barrier. Monster opened it into another room, which had a lower ceiling and thicker pillars. Loki shuddered at the low, rhythmic rumble echoing all around, but when Sam lit up one of the corners, they saw a working cement mixer, with full bags piled around it. He had no idea whether it was Monster who switched the thing on, but it was clear it was there to fill two large cuboid gaps in the cement floor by one of the walls.

  Jack stood over Ted with a snarl. “You think you can shoot a Nail and get away with it, you cunt?”

  Ted mewled into the gag, no doubt trying to explain that it was a mistake. That he had nothing to do with that, that he never shot anyone, that they had the wrong man. Neither Jack nor Loki would go back on what they told the others so far, and as Jack kicked Ted over and onto his torn back, Loki felt satisfaction rooting itself in his heart when he saw the wet traces on Ted’s cheeks. Ted hadn’t had any mercy when Loki cried his eyes out and begged for him to stop.

  Jack pulled Ted up by the ripped T-shirt and landed punch after punch to Ted’s face as Sam and Monster watched. Sam’s frown was deepening by the second, but Monster looked on with curiosity. Jack’s hair was out of order, and blood dotted his ginger beard. Each punch packed more rage, and Loki couldn’t help the tingle of tenderness in his chest when he thought Jack did this in his name. He wanted to pull that red, fuzzy head against his naked chest and hold it there, kissing Jack’s lips over and over. He wouldn’t care if they tasted of blood.

  Jack barked out a low groan and held on to his injured side, dropping Ted to the floor after yet another hit across his face. Loki had to force himself to stay still as Jack’s handsome face twisted with discomfort from the gunshot wound. If only he could relieve that pain somehow...

  Ted wheezed, red bubbles frothing at his crooked nose as he trembled on the concrete, opening his mouth wide and trying to catch his breath through the soaked rag in his mouth. He was missing several teeth now and twitched every time someone move
d. Loki felt himself smile. He wanted to ask Ted how it felt to be so completely at someone else’s mercy, hurting so bad he couldn’t even try to resist anymore.

  “Jack, you all right?” asked Sam.

  Jack turned to his friend, looking a bit out of it. “Yeah, just strained myself. How does it feel, Ted? Should I stick something up your ass now?” he asked and gave Ted’s ribs a kick, but the movement made him hold on to his own injured side. He pulled some loose pills out of his pocket and swallowed them.

  Loki couldn’t stop staring at his flushed, focused face. Jack was doing all this for him. He was making himself hurt for Loki’s sake. It had Loki’s heart throbbing with a warmth he couldn’t even describe.

  “Whoa, since when are you into that kind of shit?” asked Sam with a hint of humor in his voice, but Loki couldn’t be fooled. Sam was surprised and worried. It was written all over his face.

  Jack groaned. “Fucker deserves it. You know you do, Ted, don’t you?” He got a moan in reply, so he bowed down to get Ted’s gag out. “Apologize to Loki for being an asswipe.”

  A string of bloodied saliva connected the gag to Ted’s bruised lips. In the light of the spotlight, his tattoos didn’t seem nearly as badass as Loki had thought them to be all those years ago. Ted was a weak piece of shit. He wasn’t a survivor like Loki.

  Ted’s eyes rolled back, but moments later, the desperate gaze settled on Loki, begging, pleading. “Wasn’t my idea... I’m sorry... I’ll be gone... I’ll leave here...”

  Loki exhaled, staring straight at the swollen meat that used to be Ted’s face. His throat choked up, but he still pushed out the words he wanted. “I’ll do anything you want. Just, please, stop,” he whispered, and from the corner of his eye, he noticed Jack’s fists clench again.

  Ted's eyes widened, and he mouthed, 'please'.

  "Do you know the names of the others?" Jack asked Loki through clenched teeth.

  Loki raised his head, rendered breathless by the rapid pulsing in his throat. Why was Jack asking that? Didn’t he think Ted was enough? The bright blue eyes locked on his own were the only thing he noticed at this point.

  “Yes,” said Loki to a deathly silence. He remembered their faces in all detail. They were imprinted on his brain, just like the scars would stay on his skin forever.

  The onslaught of Jack's fists was like a storm. Ted screamed and pleaded, bones cracked, and flesh broke apart to release its red juices.

  "Motherfucker! You're a dead man!" Jack panted as he landed blow after blow. Loki didn't even care that it wasn't him getting to hurt Ted. Watching the scum in agony was good enough. If only Jack weren’t hurting as well...

  But there was no denying that despite all the horrendous memories brought back by just looking at Ted, Loki was happy. He’d never tried to do anything about Ted or any of the other guys, but the thought that they were out there, enjoying themselves after doing what they did, made him want to cry with rage. But now, Jack was there for Loki. He had Loki’s back.

  “Isn’t that enough?” asked Sam, walking over with a scowl.

  Jack kneeled over Ted and looked up. He stayed silent for a while before getting to his feet. Ted’s battered lips trembled, not even begging for mercy anymore. “If this dipshit did to Candy what he did to Loki, you’d be cutting his dick off.”

  Loki closed his mouth and looked at the tips of his shoes, suddenly self-conscious. He didn’t want anyone’s pity. He’d rather not have anyone else know what happened. Jack was the first person he’d actually talked to about this, and he hoped there would be no questions. His stomach clenched, and he closed his eyes, willing himself to disappear.

  Sam exhaled, his voice muted, as if it were coming from behind a thick door. “Okay.”

  “You ready?” Jack asked Monster, who just nodded and went over to the cement mixer. Jack grabbed Ted and took the bloodied, moaning mess to the edge of the nearest vacant space on the floor. “You’re lucky to be going so quickly,” he said and pushed Ted into the cold cement grave. Loki couldn’t breathe. He walked up to the edge and looked into the hole. Ted’s body was just a collection of loose muscle and bones now. He kept asking for help, but he didn’t seem cohesive anymore. A cool tightness spread through Loki’s stomach when he watched him so near death.

  Sam pulled out his gun and presented it to Jack, but Jack shook his head.

  “He doesn’t deserve that,” he whispered and just nodded at Monster to start pouring the cement. Monster didn’t seem to share Sam’s sentiment and did what Jack asked him to. Loki stopped breathing when the thick, gray slush was poured between Ted’s feet, quickly spreading through the hole, enveloping the sides of his body. Ted gasped and frantically turned to his stomach, trying to pick himself up, but with his hands and legs bound, there was no chance of him succeeding. The cement was quickly rising in the hole, swallowing Ted like quicksand. His eyes and mouth were wide open, fighting for every breath, but there was no one there to help him. Loki wouldn’t. He wanted to open his pants and piss onto Ted’s face. Just like Ted had pissed on his fresh wounds way back.

  Jack stood close enough for their arms to touch, and it made Loki’s hair bristle. He looked up at Jack, so, so grateful he couldn’t find words to describe it. Nobody had ever given him a more thoughtful, sincere gift. Was this what Candy had meant when she said that a biker protects his property? Was this the significance behind the patches the old ladies of the club carried with pride? As dubious as he was about the term, now that he’d witnessed Jack avenging Loki’s pain from two years ago, his back was suddenly itching for the vest he’d never get.

  Ted was still flinching, only his mouth and nose still visible from underneath the thick liquid, when Sam walked up to Loki and put an arm around his back. It was pretty clear he wanted to put it over Loki’s shoulders, but with Sam being really short, it wasn’t an option. Still, Loki was surprised at the gesture.

  “You’ll be okay, kid,” said Sam with a tight smile.

  Seeing Sam’s touch must have encouraged Jack, because he moved closer and patted Loki’s back as well.

  “Monster said he’ll stay and wrap things up here. We can go.”

  Loki looked up from the bubble of air that made its way to the surface of the cement and nodded at Monster, who glanced at them from above his cell phone.

  “Yeah, I still have stuff to do around here. Rest, Jack,” he said calmly before transferring his gaze to Loki. “And you take care of him.”

  Loki gave a furious nod and dragged his hands down his face, overwhelmed by all that had happened tonight. Right now, what he needed most was to be alone with Jack. Touch him and talk to him, bury himself in Jack’s masculine scent.

  “Me?” Jack let out a single laugh. “I just need some ice on my hands and a cold beer.”

  Sam shook his head, and they made their way up the platform. “And what else? Pussy?”

  Jack winked at Loki behind Sam’s back. “Maybe not just yet.”

  Loki’s heart fluttered so hard it felt like it could raise him off the ground. He followed Jack on weak legs, on the leash of sweet words. Jack was such a good guy. So caring and genuine in everything he did.

  Sam looked back with a frown. “Wow, you must be fucking destroyed.”

  Jack sighed as they made their way to the nearest exit. “Well, I do have an extra hole in my body that shouldn’t be there.”

  Loki exhaled. He wanted to say how sorry he was, but it wouldn’t be safe with Sam right next to them. “Don’t worry, I’ll make sure he can rest and get better.”

  Jack looked at his bloodied knuckles with an expression Loki couldn’t read. Gaze unfocused, slight frown. He could only hope that nothing would change for the worse between them.

  Chapter 18

  Red Jack was strangely calm when Loki got on the back of his bike back at the club house. He’d taken a quick shower that also helped some of the adrenaline to wear off. If Loki was to have two or three months of living left, he did deserve to get the attention he
craved. Especially after what he’d been through.

  As soon as they left town and rode down an empty road by the beach, Loki’s arms slid around Red Jack’s body and held on gently, avoiding where the freshly sewn-up wound was. The farther they went, the closer they seemed to sit on the bike, with Loki resting his head on Red Jack’s back, his chest pressing against Red Jack. Loki didn’t say a thing, but his body language told Red Jack that he’d done the right thing getting rid of that scum, Ted Mozer. A lowlife like him didn’t deserve to breathe another day.

  It was deep into the night when they arrived at Red Jack’s house, and the dark windows had never seemed as inviting, even with the strange yet comfortable silence between him and Loki.

  They got off the bike, and the strain in Red Jack’s side was annoying him again, but he tried not to show that in his walk. He gave his chopper a longing look before entering the house. The bike was the last thing he wanted to deal with now. It had been a long night, and the sky was already showing a purple glow.

  What he couldn’t stop thinking of was Mozer and his fucking friends brutally raping and torturing Loki. If only he wanted, Loki deserved to see the rest of them kick the bucket as well. Worst of all, Red Jack wasn’t sure how to talk to Loki about the whole situation. It shed a whole new light on the way he acted, made him more real. Not just a fun person to have around and fuck. Something had changed, and Red Jack couldn’t pinpoint what. They both shared secrets that would stay between them. Maybe they were becoming friends? Dangerous territory.