by Brook Wilder
“Shit. They’re right behind us,” Lori whispered, holding on to Tex even tighter as he took a sharp turn.
It didn’t shake their pursuer loose. They were still chasing them and getting closer with every second.
Chapter 7
“Fuck!”
Lori cringed at Tex’s hard curse. She didn’t try and say anything back. The wind whipping past her and the engine of the motorcycle were too loud, and anyway, what would she say?
Oh, yeah, you know that crazed maniac who is following us? Yep, he’s getting closer. Maybe you could drive this thing a little faster if you wouldn’t mind?
Lori snorted to herself, then wondered if she was losing it. Maybe her mind had finally snapped. It was the only answer she could think of to the question of how she could find humor in this situation. It wasn’t funny. They were being chased by a gang member with a death wish for Tex and she honestly didn’t think it would bother him in the slightest if Lori got caught in the cross fire. No, not funny at all.
It was Gears behind them. Chasing them. It had to be. Who else would be gunning after them after today? All she could do was cling to the back of Tex’s bike. None of this was funny. In fact, she was so terrified she had to keep her jaw clenched tight to keep her teeth from chattering so hard she was afraid they might break.
As Tex’s drove like a madman, a million terrible things rushed through her head, all of them centered around what would happen to her if Gears caught up to them, what he would do to her, and Tex. She was sure it wouldn’t be pleasant. Especially after what had happened between Tex and Gears back at her home.
Not my home any more.
The thought stabbed through her, realizing for the first time since the moment they’d fled that she could never go back there. If she did, Gears would find her and… She cut that thought short. For better or for worse, she was tied to Tex now. And all she could do was hold on.
Tex took quick, harrowing turn as the sun finally dipped below the horizon, tinging the sky a deep indigo blue with streaks of grey. Lori bit back a shriek as the bike skidded wildly on the loose gravel on the side of the road. She aimed a curse at him, but she could feel how tense he was already from the chase. She doubted that would help. Lori doubted that there was anything she could do to help them get out of the situation.
Lori was almost too afraid to look behind her, but she knew she had to. She had to know what was behind them.
Her head turned almost of its own volition and, as she looked back, she could see the bike following them. It was farther away than she’d thought, the distance too great for her to tell if it really was Gears or not.
But who else could it be?
Lori whipped her head around, shouting to be heard over the loud noise of the bike.
“Go faster! He’s falling behind! Go faster!”
She wasn’t sure that Tex could even hear her words, but she could feel the bike jerk forward, speeding even faster than the reckless pace he’d set before.
He made a quick turn down an alley, and Lori had to hold on for dear life as the move almost tossed her off the back of the bike. She had to bite back another curse as Tex slammed on the brakes, sending her nose crashing into his hard shoulder. He killed the engine.
Lori rubbed at the tip of her nose, feeling to see that nothing was broken, and that blood wasn’t gushing from the blow. But everything seemed alright, despite the pain and the sting in her eyes. She hadn’t been prepared for the sudden stop, and she opened her mouth, ready to tell Tex to give her a warning next time. But she noticed the stiff, motionless way he sat in the saddle, his eyes locked on the end of the alley and his ears perked.
She froze, suddenly holding her breath, afraid that even that small noise would give them away.
The sound of an engine grew louder, cutting through the evening air and neither one of them breathed. But a moment later the sound of the motorcycle receded once more until it faded into silence in the distance.
It was still several minutes until she felt Tex relax a little. She leaned against him with a hoarse, humorless chuckle. With the relief came a boneless, watery feeling in her muscles, and if her arms hadn’t been locked around Tex’s waist, she was pretty sure she would be little more than a useless puddle on the ground.
Tex turned around on the bike, giving her a side-eyed look.
“You okay back there?”
He was still speaking in whispers and she did the same.
“Yeah, I think so.” Lori nodded her head, twinging at the pain in her nose. “You could have warned me that you were stopping though.”
Tex shrugged.
“Sorry. No time. I didn’t want to give us away.”
Lori grew serious, staring wide-eyed into the street. It was empty now, but she couldn’t shake the feeling of being followed.
“That was Gears, wasn’t it?” Lori finally asked, her gaze still glued open on the street.
“Honestly? I’m not sure,” Tex said on a sigh, “But it seems the most likely.”
“You’ve got more than one person that wants you dead?” Lori asked, half joking.
But the answer Tex gave was all serious.
“After today… well, we’ll see what shakes out. But I know it won’t be good.”
He shook his head and seeing him worried made Lori downright terrified. Again. She was tired of feeling scared. Tired of running.
“Where are we going to go, Tex? We can’t go to my place. We can’t go back to yours…” She trailed off, biting her lower lip as she thought. “Maybe I can call Carrie? See if we can crash with her until we figure things out.”
“No. I know a place we can go. A place that Gears wouldn’t dare to go in a million years, or anyone else from the Grim Riders for that matter.”
“Where’s that?”
“The Devils Martyrs’ safe house.”
Lori didn’t get the chance to ask him anything else. He had already gunned the engine and driven out of the alleyway.
They made the ride to the safe house in silence and, luckily, is was slightly less frantic than the flight from her house. But Lori still couldn’t shake the feeling. It was like an itch between her shoulder blades and she hated it.
Less than an hour later, Tex was driving down a narrow path that Lori was surprised he could find, now that night had fully fallen around them. She hadn’t even noticed the turn-off, but Tex’s driving was sure as he took them down the winding gravel road.
A few minutes later, the trees and shrubs opened up into a clearing to reveal an old farmhouse that had definitely seen better days. Much better days.
Lori cast a sideways glance at Tex as he parked the bike and got off, still unsure as he started walking towards it.
“Are you… sure about this place?” Lori asked hesitantly, staring at the boarded-up windows and peeling paint. It looked like the roof had caved in on one side and the rest of the place seemed in little better shape.
Tex shot her an arrogant grin.
“Come on, sweetheart. What are you afraid of? The creepy old house?”
“No,” she said firmly, sliding from the back of the bike. “I’m afraid of asbestos. And rats.”
Tex just chuckled mysteriously before walking up to the front door, leaving Lori no choice but to follow him. She paused nervously beside him as he knocked on the door, a certain pattern to the way his knuckles rapped against the wood.
Lori looked from him, to the dilapidated old house, and back again.
“Tex…Will we really be safe here?” she finally asked the question that had been worrying her since he’d driven up to the farmhouse.
“I trust Robbie.”
Robbie? Lori thought, but that’s not what she said out loud.
“You didn’t answer my question,” she muttered.
A shadow crossed over Tex’s handsome face and he let out a resigned sigh.
“We won’t be safe anywhere until we can get the hell out of here for good.”
His voice had a
hard finality to it that forestalled the million other questions she wanted to ask him. There were so many things she didn’t know. Like where the hell they really were and what they were going to do. They couldn’t just keep running.
Lori shifted impatiently on the rickety front porch, staring uneasily at the darkness that surrounded them. Out there, in the rural area, there were no street lights or any other buildings to break up the shadows. Anything could be hiding in them. Anyone.
“Come on, sweetheart.”
Tex’s words made her jump and she turned around with a flush of embarrassment heating her cheeks. Jumping at shadows. It wasn’t the shadows that were dangerous. It wasn’t the shadows that would hurt her.
She cleared her throat, about to say something to cover her jumpiness, but her words were choked off as they stepped inside.
From the outside, the place looked like a stiff wind would blow the whole thing over. But, inside, it was completely different.
The walls where clean and white and there were small houseplants hanging from the ceiling. It was immaculate, the hardwood floors mopped and polished to a high sheen. There were a couple of couches in the living room and there was even a big screen T.V. that sat on a small stand against one wall.
They walked further inside, down a long hallway with several doors and through a kitchen. It was large and gleaming. Lori glanced over at Tex in surprised confusion and he just grinned at her as if to say I told you so.
She was so distracted by the transformation of the house that she didn’t notice they weren’t alone in the room.
“Greetings, Tex,” a soft voice spoke from behind them and, for the second time in as many minutes, Lori jumped, spinning around to face the new person.
He was an older man, with lines and creases in his dark tanned skin, but it was hard for her to put an age to him. He was definitely older than any other crew member she’d seen.
He was skinny, but she could see a strength in his muscles beneath the loud blue-and-purple Hawaiian shirt he was wearing. He had a long face, made even longer by the grey beard that grew down to his chest. It seemed to make up for the lack of hair on his bald head.
He smiled at them with a genuine, warm smile that made her feel instantly relaxed.
“Hi Robbie,” Tex said, shaking the man’s hand as Lori observed them both.
Robbie’s face grew serious and intense as he stared into Tex’s eyes.
“The storm is not passed for you two. No, I’m afraid it’s just starting.”
Lori shuddered at the older man’s words, but Tex just gave a casual shrug, as if he was used to the man’s odd words.
“Hey, it’s not even raining,” Tex tried to joke, but Robbie just shook his head.
“It’s pouring, Tex.” Robbie’s intense gaze jumped to hers and Lori froze under that stare. “It’s pouring, but it’s going to get worse yet.” Suddenly his eyes cleared and the smile was back, as if he hadn’t said anything bizarre at all. “Tea?”
Robbie turned, puttering around the kitchen as he set a kettle of water on the stove and grabbed some mugs from a shelf. Lori shot a questioning look at Tex but he just grinned and shrugged.
“Robbie’s a good guy, he just… takes some getting used to.”
Lori snorted. That was an understatement.
“You can stay here, of course,” Robbie said a moment later, bringing them both hot cups of tea. Lori sipped hers, delighted at the taste. Tex just looked at the liquid dubiously. “For as long as you can, you can stay here. I can always use the extra help around the house.” Robbie paused, nodding towards her. “Don’t worry, there’s no caffeine in it. It’s fine for the baby.”
Lori’s eye’s widened in shock and she nearly choked on the sip she’d just taken.
“How do you…? How does he…?” She turned to Tex, but he looked just as mystified.
Robbie was still talking.
“I swear I won’t breathe a word,” he said, his eyes as sincere as his words. “Your secret is safe with me.”
“But how… how could you possibly know…?”
Lori trailed off, struggling to find the right words. But the older man just waved away her stuttered question.
“Come on, now. Let’s get you settled. I’ll show you the room you can stay in. Follow me, if you wouldn’t mind.”
Robbie turned and walked back down the hallway, leaving Lori and Tex to follow.
How the hell did he know about the baby?
But when he showed them the room, the question flew straight out of her head. The walls were painted a calming pale blue-grey and a large, soft bed sat in the middle covered in blankets and pillows. She hadn’t realized how exhausted she was until she saw it.
“I’ll just leave you two alone now. We’ll talk more in the morning. You need to rest,” Robbie said gently, with one last look towards Lori before shutting the door behind him.
Slowly she turned around.
“Tex, what exactly does Robbie do here?”
“He’s in charge of every shipment of all drugs that the Devil’s move in or out,” Tex said casually.
Lori sucked in a breath. And he thought it would safe here for them? For the baby? She felt uneasy at staying in a house full of drugs, but there was one silver lining. No more Gears. No more hiding like a mouse in her own home. No more dreading if the door would be pounded down in the middle of the night.
Tex stripped off his clothes and climbed into bed before holding out a hand for her. Lori gratefully shed her sweater and the dress she’d been wearing. As she held the fabric in her hand, she noticed the ripped hem for the first time. Gears must have torn it when he tried to…
She threw it as far away from her as possible, not looking at it again as she crawled under the covers next to Tex. He wrapped his arms around her, holding her tight against his warmth.
And suddenly, as if a damn had burst, all of the emotions she’d kept shoved below the surface came rushing out of her.
There was nothing she could do to stem the flood of tears that made tracks down her cheeks. Tex didn’t say a word. He just pulled her even closer, offering her a silent comfort. And for the first time in her entire life, Lori let herself rely on someone else.
The thought should have terrified her, but after the tirade she was too exhausted to feel anything else. She was completely drained and, slowly, her tears dried up as well.
Lori lay there, wrapped in Tex’s embrace in the dark as she fell asleep. Still held tight in his arms, the only place in the world she felt safe at all.
Chapter 8
Three days of hiding out at the safe house with Robbie passed slowly. Three perfectly mundane, normal ass days. And it was driving Tex absolutely insane.
He could still feel the shit storm that was coming their way like an itch that he couldn’t scratch, but he had no way of predicting when it would come. Or even if it would come at all. All he could do was sit tight and wait for his contact with Solomon to get back to him.
Tex was driving back to the safe house from a trip into town that both Robbie and Lori had told him not to take. Neither thought it was safe, but he wasn’t used to being cooped up and caged, not doing a damn thing. He had needed the fresh air and the gravel beneath his bike as he sped off into the distance. At least for a little while.
He thought of the gift he had tucked away in his saddlebags and a surge of excitement hit him, speeding him on. He couldn’t wait to show Lori.
Tex barely waited to brake his bike to a complete stop, stashing it around the back of the house where Robbie had shown him, before leaping off. He landed on his boots with a thud, rifled through the saddlebags until he found what he was looking for and quickly walked back around to the front.
“Lori? Lori, I’m back!” Tex shouted as he walked inside.
He looked around the farmhouse, but his brief glance showed him no one was there. His brows lowered. He did a hurried search of the place. But still no sign of her.
Tex walked down the hall
, through the kitchen and back out again, and stopped when he heard a loud grunting noise. His brows furrowed even more. Tex didn’t know what the hell to think as he crept closer to the closed door at the end of the hallway. More grunts and groans came from beyond and suddenly his thoughts took a dangerous turn.
Normally, he didn’t have a jealous bone in his body, but the idea of Lori with another man pushed him over the edge.