by Bella Knight
“Hear that, Jimmy?” Dozer asked the hyperventilating hood on the ground, “you might want to tell us who hired you before the head of a very angry motorcycle gang gets here.”
Jimmy moaned, “I tell you, he’ll kill me.”
“I would talk,” said Tank, he began taking pictures with his cell phone, “you’re going to prison, and I hear that Ace, this platinum-blonde female’s bestie, can get a favor from Leticia. You know what that means, don’t you? A shiv in the shower.”
Jimmy squealed as he accidentally moved his hand, “That bitch broke my fingers!”
“You pulled a gun on a girl that wears steel-toed motorcycle boots,” said Dozer, “what did you think would happen?”
Harry and Inola arrived before the sirens did. Inola went to Bella and Harry stood in between Ivy and Nina. His eyes were flat with rage.
The ambulance took Jimmy away to look at his hand. A tech came, took pictures, and took the gun.
Hernandez arrived and began taking statements, “Anybody see this other than you all?”
“I have two cameras in the employee lot, one over the door and one overlooking the vehicles. Do you want me to send you the digital files now?”
Hernandez relaxed fractionally, “Couldn’t hurt,” she said, “why don’t I take your statement, then we can get the files?”
Juliet Davis, her partner, showed up and helped with the interviews.
The questioning didn’t take long, as they had two off-duty police officers and two cameras to back up everyone’s version of events.
“Be nice if we can get the Stupids here to implicate Brazen Branson,” said Hernandez.
“Have to wait until the mountain there stops quivering due to the taser fire. You never know, he might have had some sense zapped into him,” said Davis. The women laughed.
“You can go now,” said Hernandez.
Henry hustled them onto the bikes. They swung by the bank to make the night deposit, then Henry led them to a waffle house.
“Twice in one day, Henry? Really?” complained Ivy.
“Sonic is out in the open,” said Henry.
“Point to Henry,” said Bella, her voice surprisingly even.
They hit up a back booth, and they ordered chicken strips and bacon cheese fries with sour cream to split, and milkshakes.
“Anyone shaking?”
Ivy held out a hand. It was rock solid. So were Bella’s and Nina’s.
“Adrenaline hasn’t hit yet,” said Henry, “you look down the barrel of a .44, you tend to get an adrenaline dump.”
“And everyone else is okay?” asked Ivy.
“Right as rain,” said Henry, “they thought the female owner of a bar was a weak link.”
“Stupid and Dumbass,” said Ivy. She sucked on her chocolate and peanut butter milkshake when it arrived.
Inola stared at Bella, “You’re not in the club.”
“Not yet,” said Bella, “can’t afford a bike. Hell, I can’t afford a bus pass.”
“Got one I’m working on,” said Inola, “you come down and help me fix her, you can ride her for a while till you catch up on your bills.”
Bella smiled like the sun, “Be nice. We close too late to catch the bus, and Adam’s already shoehorning both cocktail servers and dancers in his Jeep. Now, we got bar backs. He’d have to tie me to the roof.”
“Anybody know where I can find a place to live?” asked Bella, “my roomie’s a junkie, and she stole my rent money. I’ve started depositing my tips on the way home so she can’t get into it.”
“You’re staying with me,” said Inola, “Nina will swing by to get you on the way in until the bike is ready.”
“I am?” said Nina. Henry and Inola stared at her, “I will,” she said, snagging a fry when the server put the food on the table.
“Your tips from tonight and last night should be enough for rent,” said Ivy.
“Last month’s rent. The next rent is due in ten days.”
“Don’t pay,” said Inola, “like I said, you’re living with me.”
“Okay!”
She took a fry, “I guess this makes me a landlord. What should I charge, Henry?”
“Since it’s my barn you converted into an apartment, I’m the landlord,” said Henry, “and half of what you pay is fair.”
“He has me work with the horses,” said Inola.
“Looks like I’m your new ranch hand,” said Bella.
“Good,” said Henry, “we need enough people to keep track of all the critters. That Ghost girl is on me to adopt one of her rescued pit bulls. Haven’t yet. I’m afraid of them getting into the chickens.”
“Can’t have that,” said Inola, and she snagged another fry.
Ride
The weekend went by in a blur for everyone. The entire club was on alert, and they rotated responsibilities for guarding Ace, Lily, and Ivy.
Henry invited everyone up to his farm on the res on Sunday night after the bar closed. Bella rode behind Inola, who was teaching her how to build a bike, one scraped knuckle at a time.
Henry came up to ride with the ladies. He said hello to the Iron Knights guarding the back door. They saluted and disappeared into the night. He took them to make the night deposit first and then rode point towards Searchlight.
They pulled off to a narrow dirt road and came out onto a farm near a stream. There were several horse barns and a low, ranch house. There were solar panels on the roof, glinting in the dark. The lot was full of bikes. There were tents scattered around the south side, and there was a campfire going.
“Ivy, you’ll have to bunk with Inola and Bella.” He took off his helmet, stowed it, and smiled, “see you ladies in the morning,” he said and walked his long legs into the main house.
“That okay with you guys?” asked Ivy, stowing her helmet and taking a pack out of her saddlebags with her clothes and toiletries.
The girls smiled.
She slung the pack on her back, “I can go get a tent.”
Inola took one hand, and Bella the other, “We’d be honored,” Inola said.
They entered the barn office, sporting two desks that joined in a corner, and two computers. There was a spiral staircase in the back of the office. They climbed, and Inola opened the door. The room was spacious, with wide windows that looked out over the property, a huge bed, plenty of drawers and hanging hooks. There was a door that opened into a bathroom, and a galley kitchen against the far wall with a 3/4 size refrigerator, a two-burner stove, and cabinets.
They kicked off their boots and hung up their leathers. Inola and Bella shared a deep kiss, “Want to join us?” asked Inola.
“Are you two absolutely sure?” asked Ivy.
“You brought us together,” said Inola, “you said I’d find someone to love. I did.”
“You gave both of us one special night,” said Bella, “let us share the favor.”
They took off their clothes in a chain. Bella took off Ivy’s shirt, Ivy took off Inola’s shirt, and Inola took off Bella’s shirt. They folded the clothes and stowed them on a chair. They each unhooked their own bras and put them on the chair. Ivy took off Inola’s jeans, and Bella took hers off. Inola took off Bella’s jeans. They each took off their underwear and socks, and Inola and Ivy unstrapped the sheaths on their ankles. Ivy had two of them with knives. Inola had both the taser and a knife.
“Shit,” said Bella, “remind me not to make either one of you angry.” They all laughed.
The tub was a huge clawfoot. Inola filled it while they brushed their teeth. Bella held her hand while Inola stepped in. She sank to the bottom and sighed. Bella washed Inola’s hair while she soaked, rinsed it, then added conditioner.
“Your turn,” she said to Ivy.
She helped Ivy step in. Inola untwisted her hair, then Bella washed it and added conditioner.
“Your turn!” said Inola. They each held out an arm to get Bella in. She sunk in, sighing. Ivy washed Bella’s hair and put conditioner in it. They all rinsed their hair, the
n took turns washing each other. Ivy started with Inola’s feet, callused from walking barefoot when she wasn’t in boots.
Inola groaned as Ivy massaged them. Bella gently washed Inola’s face with a scrub, then slid around behind her and washed her back. Ivy worked her way up to her ankles, her shins, her knees, and her thighs. She stopped to kiss her. Inola kissed back, then Bella kissed her from behind. Bella scrubbed her arms, while Ivy used her fingers to make Inola gasp and buck in the water. Finally, Ivy washed her stomach and breasts while Bella scrubbed her neck and back.
Bella was next but reversed. Inola started with her feet and worked her way up, while Ivy washed her back. They took turns kissing; Bella kissing Ivy, Bella kissing Inola, and Inola kissing Ivy.
Ivy reached around and gently caressed the side of her breasts, and took them in her hands. She moved her head quickly aside when Bella found her girlfriend’s thighs. Inola arched back and moaned. Ivy pulled Inola’s hair to the side and kissed her neck while stroking her back, arms, and breasts. Inola came again and again. Finally, she hovered in the water, satisfied. Ivy drained some of the rapidly-chilling water and put more hot water in the tub.
Then, Inola and Bella ganged up on Ivy. They scrubbed her to within an inch of her life. She felt both of their fingers enter her, felt both of them touch her. They rotated her, each sucking on her breasts and kissing her neck and shoulders. She came in great waves, gasping so hard she was almost sobbing. There was a mighty push from deep inside. She cried out, and she felt herself go limp.
They were careful getting out, Bella getting out first and helping the other two. They dried each other’s bodies with fluffy sage-green towels and blow-dried each other’s hair and took turns putting lotion on each other. They made it to the bed, where they all collapsed in a heap.
“What goes around… fucking comes around!”
9
Brazen
Battle Met
“Life is a highway.”
In the morning, there were plenty of people to do chores. Horses were fed, watered, brushed, and put out to pasture. Foals kicked up their heels. The paddock water basin was filled.
Luis, Numa, Bonnie, Keisha, and Ghost cooked a huge meal that was served in the huge ranch kitchen that had a breakfast bar and an enormous table that sat sixteen.
The kitchen led into a huge room with a pool table and couches and an enormous television. People brought out card tables and chairs and set them up in the den. Huge picnic tables were filled. There was a lot of laughter and joking and tips on Harley maintenance.
Keisha actually spoke to people and suggested they come to the club if they wanted her to take a look at it. The club riders went over the route, pointing out places to stop on maps loaded on cell phones, and on several real-world ones.
Bella, Inola, and Ivy were ready to go, despite their late night, because the horses whinnying for breakfast and the people that fed them woke them up. They poured orange juice and cola down their throats and ate omelets and diced fruit. Then sausage and ham and bacon and biscuits with honey. Then, they divided up who was staying —the dads stayed to give moms a chance to ride, and someone needed to look in on their horses —and they all mounted up, with the food and water distributed amongst everyone.
The day was hot and dusty down low, but the visibility was high. They took the SR157 to Hoover Dam, enjoying the open road. Bonnie had Ghost and Keisha riding a low-rider they had bought for nearly nothing and had Ghost rebuild.
Bella rode behind Inola, whooping into the wind. They listened to ZZ Top and Tom Petty and Def Leppard and Lynyrd Skynyrd. They were all checked out at the Lake Mead area, and they all had their concealed carry permits on them, but they locked up all their weapons. They looked down at the rushing water, the sound beating at their ears. They went back to pick up the US 93 to Kingman after stopping to re-arm themselves.
They ate lunch in Kingman at a rest stop with a lot of picnic tables, and chicken salad with fruit and thick slices of artisan bread and bags of chips they split open and passed around.
They split up, some going to the Route 66 museum, some going shopping, and some going to the shooting range. Some of them went to the alpaca farm; Bonnie bought some alpaca yarn to make into winter socks and hats and mittens. Then, they rotated activities, so as not to overwhelm the locals. They got back together, bought a fortune in drinks, and headed into the Hualapai Mountains. They enjoyed the cool air. Then, they went back down and caught the 95 again back to Las Vegas after another stop in Kingman for ice cream and more sodas and waters.
They said goodbye to a less-pale Ivy and Ace at the ice cream store. Gregory met them and was riding back with them to keep watch over Ace’s brother.
Henry pounded Ace on the back, “Watch out for her,” he said.
“Working on it,” said Ace.
“I’m sorry I can’t do the books,” said Lily.
“Don’t be stupid,” said Ivy, “this will eventually blow over, and I’m going to take a vacay and make you do all the work!”
Lily snorted, “Wish it felt more like a vacay and less like running away.”
Inola had a reply to that, “The wolf and the desert fox hide. That doesn’t mean they don’t come out and fight later.”
“Girl has a point,” said Bella.
“This is Cash,” said Gregory, and a man that looked startlingly like Ace stepped forward.
“This is Mei; she’s got Lily’s coloring. Their bikes are close enough. They’re both ex-military and are wearing body armor, and their helmets are reinforced. They’ll stop and play kissy-face from time to time.” They were both sporting club jackets; Mei’s was a replica of Lily’s.
“Where the fuck did you find the jacket?” asked Lily.
“Online,” said Mei. She spoke in an approximation of Lily’s voice.
“From a distance, they’ll do,” said Numa, “a good idea. A very good idea.”
The Nighthawks embraced Ace and Lily and sent them on their way.
“Hope you’ve got cooling jackets under that armor,” said Henry to Mei and Cash, “it’s gonna be a hot ride.” They both said they did.
“Lock and load,” said Henry, “mount up.”
Guns went out of saddlebags and into ankle holsters. Ivy checked her knife and her gun. Inola checked her knife and her taser.
“Gotta get me one of those,” said Bella.
“I’ll hook you up,” said Inola. They got back on the bikes and went back to Henry’s farm.
They rode in at dusk. The horses were crowded at the barn, ready for their evening meal. They swung in, parked. Inola was as close to the horse barn as she could get, Ivy right next to her. They dismounted and were locking up the helmets as they saw the pops in the dust.
“Incoming!” yelled Inola.
The people behind them ran for cover, most to the house. First Cash, protecting Mei with his body, then Mei fell. Henry and Bella rushed to drag them to shelter.
Inola burst forward towards the barn, Ivy, and Bella on her heels.
“The horses!” she said, flinging open the barn door.
Keeping low, Ivy sprang for the gate and swung it open. The horses rushed towards the barn, safely, with dinner on their minds. One of the horses screamed, blood blooming on its left shoulder. Inola rushed forward, grabbed its neck, and swung on, guiding it into the barn. She slipped off and guided it into a stall.
“Med kit!” she yelled.
Bella was already running towards the office. Ivy swung open the stall doors, and the horses, panicked by the screams of the injured horse and the smell of blood, rushed in.
Inola talked to the horse in a soothing tone, “Let me look at it, girl,” she said.
Numa came in and showed Ivy how to use a pitchfork to put hay in the stalls, then she went to help Inola. Bella rushed back with the med kit.
Numa answered her cell phone, “Good,” she said, “is that so? I’ll tell them.”
“What?” asked Ivy in a low tone so as not to spook
the injured mare.
It was a painted pony, she was calm while using a pitchfork to get hay into the stalls as fast as she could. Bella took up another pitchfork, and clumsily imitated Ivy. Numa got the spooked horse calm, while Inola cleaned the wound.
“Henry guessed there would be an attempt tonight. He had several ex-military up on the mountain behind the ranch, Tito and Janet, and Carol and Danvers. They came upon a nest, a guy in a ghillie suit. Cash and Mei were just play-acting for whoever may be watching. They’re fine.”
Numa pointed to barrels along the wall, “One scoop each,” she said, “they have feeders just inside the door. They’re grain pellets.” Ivy and Bella rushed to scoop grain into the feeders.
“What’s a hippie suit?” asked Bella.
Numa laughed, “A ghillie suit is designed to make a person look like the surrounding territory, covered by strips of cloth in camo or white against snow or whatever. Hard to spot.”
“But our guys spotted it!” said Bella.
“They capture or kill the bastard?” asked Ivy.
“Two bastards,” said Numa, “a spotter and a shooter. Shooter’s dead, spotter’s singing like a canary.”
“Who’d he name?” asked Ivy.
“The fixer for Brazen Branson, John Beech.”
“Who the fuck is Brazen Branson?” Bella asked. Ivy stared at her, “what? I’m not from Vegas originally. From Kansas.”
“Their loss,” said Ivy. Inola huffed a laugh.
“Defense attorney, and mean as a snake,” said Numa, “has a fixer everyone suspects of getting his clients off. And disappearing or paid-off witnesses, jury tampering, all sorts of thuggery. No one has been able to prove a thing.”
“Until now,” said Ivy, “we get him, we get Brazen himself, and through him, the mom.”
“But Brazen will never admit to anything,” said Inola.
“I have a plan for that,” said Ivy.
The strong scent of Betadine filled the air, “Wound’s clean. Lucky that he just got dinged, not shot straight up,” said Inola.
Ivy agreed with a nod.