by Evelyn Glass
“How many were there?”
“The same four as last time. The guy that girl pointed out is the one who did all the talking. Making all these big promises how the Firechrome were going to take over the town and how he knew I would want to be on the side of the winners, not the losers. He’s a sycophantic bastard.”
“A what?” Cale chuckled.
“Sycophantic. A butt-kisser, an ingrate. He tells you what you want to hear.”
“Oh, a brown-noser. Why didn’t you say so?”
Randy snickered. “I did. Anyway, I told him I would think about it and offered him the tour, but I must not be a very good actor because it didn’t take him long to get nervous and get out of here.”
Cale unconsciously scratched at his helmet. “I don’t guess there’s anything we can do right now, since we missed them.”
“One thing, Cale,” Randy said. “He didn’t make any direct threats, nothing like, ‘If you don’t play ball, were going to kill you.’ Nothing like that. But he made it pretty clear if I didn’t get in bed with the Firechrome, things were going to start happening.”
“What did he say?”
“He used that line about making sure my insurance was paid up again. He also said having a partner would allow me to spend more time with my family because you never knew when something could happen to them.”
Cale nodded. “Okay. We’ll talk about getting some protection on you and your family.”
“I’m not selling to these cock-suckers, but I need to know my family is safe.”
“Hang in there, Randy. We’ve got your back.”
“I’m depending on you, Cale.”
Cale nodded. “We’ll take care of it, but do me a favor.”
“What?”
“Give Steve and Greg a call and tell them what went down. It’ll be better coming from you than us. Let them know if the Chromes show up there, to try to hold them if they can and to contact me. We may have to put a couple of guys on them, too. That will stretch us pretty thin, and I’m not sure how we can cover all this, but we’ll figure something out.”
Randy nodded. “I’ll take care of it.”
“Thanks, Randy,” Cale said as his bike barked to life. “We’ll make this happen. Just hang in there with us.”
***
“How are we going to cover Randy and his family?” Cale asked the men assemble in their room at Dunes.
The eighteen men who just returned from WCP looked at each other. “We all have jobs, Cale. The day is going to be tough.”
“I can cover the day,” Cale said, the only one in club retired. “But we need night coverage.”
“How about two hour shifts, six to six?” Thad asked. “We each pull a shift then it rotates back around and starts over. Our old ladies will probably be glad to have us out from underfoot for a couple of hours.”
Cale snorted. “So I pull a twelve, every day, and you lazy bastards pull two hours once a week?”
The men chuckled. “At least yours is during the day so you can sit inside and watch television or something. We’re going to be stuck standing outside in the rain,” Thad pointed out.
“I can probably spell you for a couple of hours during the day,” Dix offered. “We should also ask Randy if he wants or needs us during the day on the weekend. Well, maybe Saturday since he works that day, but maybe not Sunday.”
“Thanks, Dix. That’ll be helpful, and good idea on the weekend. How are we going to cover Steve and Greg if we have to?”
The men groaned. “I don’t know what we’ll do about the day, but I guess we can cover the nights the same way. We need to get a handle on this before it comes to that. Marla isn’t going to be happy with me being out in the middle of the night, even on club business,” Thad said then grinned. “I have certain husbandly responsibilities, you know.”
The room groaned and rolled their eyes.
“Agreed. Anyone have anything else? Try to stay loose and available. I hope we’re going to get a call from a motel or someone letting us know the Chromes are trying to check in.” Cale waited a moment. “Okay. Let’s get to it. Dix, hang around a moment and let’s work out the who and when.”
***
“Where’s Daisy?” Dix asked. “Her car is gone.”
“I sent her to the store,” James replied. “She was hanging around, nervous as a cat, and needed something to take her mind off it.”
“I’m surprised you were able to get her to leave.”
James grinned. “It wasn’t easy, I tell you. But I finally convinced her if you hadn’t called by now, you weren’t going to.”
“Yeah. We completely missed them. Maybe I should have taken her with us because we think we rode right past them. If she’d been with us, she may have recognized them.” He shook his head. “I know what kind of bike he rides and I should have noticed him.”
“If you passed them. But how would you know? There are motorcycles everywhere now. Is Leo’s so unique you could be sure?”
“No. In fact we saw one Saturday Daisy first thought was his, but wasn’t.”
James nodded. “See? The last thing you want to do is swarm over some poor unsuspecting guy just out for a ride. That will really endear you to the community.”
Dix chuckled. “Yeah, I know.”
***
Dix was fitting some junk wheels to the Pontiac so it would roll, having removed all the sellable parts from the car, when he heard Daisy’s Beetle straining hard. As he watched, she skidded to a stop in front of James’s house and stomped around the car. As she started yanking bags out of the car, he could tell she was pissed about something.
“What’s wrong?” he asked, bringing the last of the food into the kitchen.
“I saw them! I was on the way back from the store when I passed Leo on the bridge. I turned around as soon as I could, but I couldn’t find them again. They must have pulled off somewhere,” she explained as she put away the refrigerated items.
“Shit! We’re getting you one of those cheap prepaid phones so you can call the next time. Did he recognize you?”
“I don’t think so. The car looks completely different than it used to and he didn’t pay any attention to me as we passed.”
Dix pulled her into a hug then kissed her on the forehead. “Don’t feel bad. We missed him at WCP this morning, too.”
“Yeah. I figured as much when you didn’t call.”
“Don’t worry. He can’t avoid us forever.”
“Maybe, but he was right there! All I had to do was follow him to where he was going. Riley might have even been there.” She placed her head on his shoulder as a single tear trickling down her cheek, drawing strength from his embrace.
He was still holding her when James stepped into the kitchen and saw the distress on Daisy’s face. “Uh-oh. What happened?”
“She passed Leo on the bridge, but by the time she could turn around, she’d lost him,” Dix said as she pulled out of his embrace and wiped her cheek.
“Tough break,” he muttered, not sure what to say.
“Yeah,” she said softly, turning away. “That’s all I seem to get.”
Dix took her arm and turned her to face him. “Stop. That won’t help anything. We’ll get Riley back to you. You have to believe that.”
She looked at him then smiled sadly. “I try, but it’s hard sometimes.”
Dix looked at James, unsure of how to respond. “Hang in there, Daisy. You have thirty-four good guys on your side. As soon as they get a break, Leo won’t stand a chance,” James said, his voice full of confidence.
Daisy nodded, wanting to believe, but it was hard. It was so hard sometimes.
***
“You doing okay?” Dix asked as they undressed. Daisy has been subdued all night, her bubbling personality buried under worry.
“I guess. I feel like I let Riley down.”
“Don’t! Don’t even go there! You haven’t let anyone down. You’ve been in there clawing and biting for him the entire w
ay. I don’t think he could ask for a better mom.
She snorted. “Some mom.” She didn’t know why she was beating up on herself so much, but she couldn’t stop, the guilt over losing Riley then coming this close to finding him making her angry with herself.
“You need to stop!” he barked. “I know you’re worried. Hell, I’m worried and he’s not even my kid. But feeling sorry for yourself accomplishes nothing. Nothing! You need to believe you’re going to get him back because before this is over, there may be a time when you have to believe in yourself.”
“I do!”
“Do you? Do you really?”
She thought about it. “I know I’ll do anything for him.”
“That’s not what I asked. I asked do you believe in yourself?”
“I don’t know what you mean!” she cried, throwing her shirt into the floor.
“When I race, I believe I’m the fastest man there and I’m the guy everyone else has to beat. So when I get on the track, I race with confidence. No hesitation, no holding back, no second-guessing. As far as I’m concerned, so long as I run my race, I’ll win. I don’t care what everyone else is doing.” He paused, looking into her eyes, trying to make her understand. “This isn’t a race, but it’s the same thing. I need you to believe you’re going to get your son back so when the opportunity arises, you can do what you have to with no hesitation and no second-guessing. I need you to believe it because I believe it.”
She nodded. She wanted to believe in herself. She wanted to believe she’d get Riley back safe and sound, and she knew she’d do anything, make any sacrifice, to make that happen. “I do.”
“Are you sure?”
She nodded. “Yes. I’m sure.” He kissed her on the forehead again. “Will you just hold me tonight?”
He smiled. “I would be delighted.”
CHAPTER TWENTY ONE
“Hello?” Dix mumbled into the phone.
“Dix, Cale. WCP has been torched.”
He slipped his arm out from under Daisy and moved quietly to the front of the trailer. “When?” he asked softly.
“Now. They’re just putting out the last of the flames now. No way this is a coincidence.”
“No. What do you want me to do?”
“I want you to ride out there with me. Randy is pissed. I don’t blame him but we don’t have the manpower to cover every possible situation. He respects you, more than anyone, and I can use the backup.”
Dix chuckled. “Gee, thanks. Okay, give me thirty minutes and I’ll meet you there.”
“Thanks, Dix. I owe you.”
***
“You told me you could protect us!” Randy snarled, the red strobes of the firetrucks making him appear even angrier than he already did.
Cale nodded. “Randy, I’m sorry about WCP. I really am, but I had to make some choices. There was a man at your house tonight, and will be every night, to protect your family. Would you rather me have put the man on WCP and have something happen to Donna or your kids? The building can be replaced; your family can’t.”
“I put my life into this business,” Randy growled. “I’ll be down for months, not to mention missing out on the…special…event in a few of weeks.”
“Randy,” Dix said softly. “I understand you’re upset, but did you expect this? Why would they burn you out if they wanted to buy a stake? And why so soon? They didn’t give you much time to think about it, did they?”
“No,” Randy admitted, deflating slightly.
“This is pure terror tactics,” Dix continued. “I predict they’ll be back after your doors open again and make you another offer with the expectation you might be a little more reasonable the next time. What we have to do is protect what’s important. That’s your family.”
Randy glanced between Cale and Dix. “You’re right, but it still pisses me off. Some of my people are going to have a lot of extra time on their hands. If you can use them to catch these bastards, they’re yours.”
“Thanks, Randy. That’s what I want to hear,” Cale said. “We need to rally the town to shut these fucks down.”
Randy nodded again. “You can count on me. I’ll start spreading the word what happened. The Chief told me there’s no way this place could have gone up as fast as it did unless an accelerant was used.”
Cale nodded. “Go home, Randy. Help Chisholm keep your family safe.”
“If you catch them, I want to be there.”
Cale shook his head. “No, Randy, you don’t. You don’t get mixed up in this, okay? It’s better that way.”
Dix smiled and put a hand on Randy’s shoulder. “I already have an ax to grind with Leo. After I get done kicking the shit out of him, I’ll do it again for you. How’s that sound?”
Randy smiled slightly and nodded. “Will you at least send me a picture?”
Dix slapped the man on the back. “Consider it done.”
***
“Wouldn’t someone have called?” Daisy asked as they puttered along in her Beetle. It was likely the Firechrome were still in Douglas, and Dix and Daisy were hitting motels looking for Leo’s Harley. They were in her car because it would be less obvious than his hog and he didn’t want to take the yard truck and leave James with no wheels all day.
“If they know. There are a lot of bikes pouring into town now that the weather is warming up. All we told people was to watch for men with the Firechrome patch. If they aren’t showing their colors…” he let the thought drop.
Daisy yawned. It was just before sunup and they had been on the road for an hour, ducking into motel after motel to cruise slowly through parking lots, and she could feel her eyes getting heavy again. She shook her head, trying to wake up. How he could be so alert was beyond her, especially considering she was still sleeping when he left to meet with Cale.
He turned into another motel and began the slow circuit of the building. “Wait! That looks like it!” Daisy cried, pointing to an off-white Softail Deluxe.
He stopped and backed up. “Are you sure?”
“No, but it looks like it. See, it doesn’t have the backrest thing like the other bike did.”
He drummed his fingers on the wheel a moment. There were three other Harleys with it, the hogs lined up like soldiers at attention.
“Okay,” he decided, driving away to find a spot where they could park and watch. “Let’s roll the dice.”
***
“Daisy! Wake up!” Dix said, giving her a shake.
“What?” she asked, sitting up and looking toward the bikes. “That’s him! And Riley!” she cried as she started to open her door.
“No! Sit tight.”
“But this is our chance!”
“No! There are six of them and only two of us.” He pulled out his cell and dialed, his eyes never leaving Leo. “Cale. Dix. I’ve got them, but they’re about to go on the move. There are six of them, four men and two women. Daisy’s little boy is with them. I’m going to follow them, but I’m going to need some backup.”
“Got it!” Cale said. “Steph! Wake up!” he continued, his voice much fainter. “Call Thad and have him start rounding up the brothers. Just do it! I’m back,” he added, his voice once again strong and clear. “How did you make them?”
“Faith, brother,” he said winking at Daisy. “I’m going to hand the phone to Daisy. She’s going to give you directions.”
She took it but said nothing, her entire world focused down to Leo and Riley. As she watched, Leo kissed the buxom blonde then mounted up, the woman getting on the back and Riley crawling up to sit between his legs.
“Oh hell no!” she said once again starting to open the door.
Dix reached over and slammed it shut again. “Not yet.”
“He’s not riding my son on a motorcycle! He’s only five!” she snarled as she tried to open the door against his grip. “Let me out!”
“Stop it!” he snarled, jerk her hands off the door. “You’re going to get us spotted!”
“But my—�
�� she began.
“And if they spot us and run, then what?” he snapped. “We won’t be able to keep up in this thing. The best we can hope for is we lose them, but what if he crashes? You need to chill the fuck out a minute.”
She fumed, angry with Dix and the way she spoke to her, but she knew he was right. Her VW was no match for the much faster motorcycles. “So we’re just going to sit here while they ride away?”