“Hey assholes!”
There were only seven left. They yelled up at Colt with hatred, their cries indecipherable when they saw their leader dead in his arms.
“Here’s a present!” Colt yelled as he tossed Jimmy’s body out the window, sending it falling to the ground below.
Jimmy’s corpse fell forty feet, weightless and lifeless through the air, until it crashed into the hard dirt below. Shawn watched as the body dropped from the third floor of the house and as Jimmy’s body hit the ground, he heard the crunch of his bones. Jimmy’s head fell to the side, and his dead eyes stared at Shawn with no emotion or remorse for all that he had done.
Screams bellowed from the crowd. Jax and Harlan had their fists in the air, while Shawn continued to case down a stray Devil. Suddenly, the Devils weren’t so mighty. They weren’t the only ones who had casualties, though. Will had fallen – Gunnar Rhoades caught him with a serrated knife to the stomach. Torian had been shot fatally by Trent, after kneeling to Will’s side to try to help him. Trent Myers shot him in the head sending him falling over Will’s body. There were others, too… But the true scope of the violence and blood shed would not be discovered until the sun came up.
As dawn came, a lone police cruiser traveled up the driveway, the officer staring with a bewildered look in his eyes.
Chapter Thirty-Five
“I’d say y’all are lucky to be alive…” Sheriff Wayne Nelson, as he wrote out a crime report. He’d have paperwork for weeks from this ordeal.
Colt, Tim and Shawn sat on the porch listening to the Sheriff while Shelly and Averi stood by to act as voices of reason. The guys were hot under the collar, understandably so, exhausted with their adrenaline still pulsing through their veins.
“We’ve never had much trouble in this county… The Seventy Devils tend to stick to Oakeley, so we were a little perplexed when we received a call for a disturbance at Hall Ranch.”
“We did what we had to do. They came here threatening my family…”
“There’s no doubt that it was self defense. They have a nasty reputation. Mind you, I know most motorcycle clubs aren’t gangs, but these guys… There’s no denying it. I just have to get all the details from you folks and then I’ll be on my way.”
Gunnar Rhoades, Dane Polk, Michael Malloy and four others were sitting on the front lawn, already cuffed and ready to be brought in. Colt would have loved to shoot them all in the head, to rid Oakeley of all the Devils, but a cooler head prevailed. At least he had comfort knowing that they would be locked away for a very long time.
Jimmy’s corpse lay covered with a white sheet on the lawn. Barkley, who had jumped from Averi’s arms, ran to Jimmy’s side, and decided to take a leak on his head. Averi’s eyes went wide, but Colt could do nothing but laugh.
“You know, I’m beginning to like this dog more and more…” he said.
Another squad car pulled up, followed by a police wagon.
“Let’s go!” Sergeant Castrano yelled, and one by one, he and his fellow officer loaded the Devils into the van.
Along the side of the house eight bodies were covered with sheets. These were men who were faithful to Colt, Randy, Tim and Shawn who had fallen. Averi and Shelly bent down at each man’s feet and said a prayer. Will, DJ, Paul, Chris, Greg, Brent and Torian. Averi walked down the line of fallen men, but when she came to Torian, she stopped. He had always called her Ms. Averi, and he not only fought off the Devils here, but he fought to get her to safety when Trent would have likely killed them both on the spot. A tear fell down her face as she said her goodbyes to him. With a simple gesture of kindness, Averi bent down and kissed him on his forehead, careful not to disturb his body. Colt came to the side of the house where Averi and Shelly stood, and met her sad gaze. Pulling her into a tight hug, Colt never wanted to let her go. Seeing Shelly standing at her side, Colt pulled her in, too. Shelly let out a tiny laugh as Colt kissed her on her forehead.
“Thank God you’re both okay.”
***
Randy sat with his face in his hands as he waited on news from the other side of the emergency room doors. He had sat in agonizing impatience for hours, waiting for news. A nurse came out at 2 A.M. letting him know that they had pumped her stomach and were running blood work and they would take her treatment from there. It was now 6:30 A.M., and Randy was losing his patience. Just as he was about to harass the emergency department clerk for an update, the double doors of the emergency room opened up.
“Mr. Ford?”
Randy’s head shot up. A nurse with a stern look upon her face addressed him.
“Yes?”
“Please follow me,” the nurse said turning her back on him and walking quickly through the double doors of the emergency room.
He followed the nurse, trying to keep up but she beat a quick path with her white rubber shoes. She led Randy to examination room twelve and pulled the curtain aside to let him in. Cheyenne was lying in bed resting. She looked so much worse under the examination room lights, like she had been through a war – and rightly, she had. She was hooked up to an IV and a gauze bandage covered the slash on her neck. There were several improvements, though. She was no longer shaking and she was conscious.
“The doctor will be in shortly,” the nurse said as she exited the room.
Cheyenne turned her head to face Randy. She could just make out his face through her left eye. Her scope of vision had been reduced to a sliver, her eyes were swollen, making it difficult to see anything.
“Randy…” she said with a relieved smile on her face.
Randy took a seat in the chair next to her hospital bed, allowing his head to fall back into his hands. He let out a distressed sigh, letting some of the tension that riddled his body fall off of his shoulders. Cheyenne reached her hand over to Randy, letting her palm rest on the back of Randy’s head. Her fingertips swirled through his hair, gently moving through his blond waves. It was something she used to do, back before the floor let out, and all their good intentions went crashing straight to hell.
Randy grabbed her hand and brought it to his mouth, brushing his lips across her knuckles. Softly, Cheyenne cupped Randy’s face and she was shocked when she found a tear streaking down his cheek. Quickly, he wiped it away. Emotions. In Randy’s own words, “I don’t have time for that shit.” Randy looked at Cheyenne as he let out another heavy sigh. Grabbing her hand, Randy traced the lines in her palm as he spoke.
“You’re going to have to go inpatient for a while.”
“I know. It was heroin and cocaine.”
“Chey-” Randy began with a pained look in his eyes. He was cut off by Cheyenne.
“I know. We have a lot to talk about. I need a moment to explain to you. I would never cheat on you.”
“I know what he did.”
“You do?”
“It’s the same thing he did to Christine Campbell, that girl we went to high school with. He drugged her up, raped her and threw her to the dogs.”
Cheyenne nodded.
“Look. I’m here. I’ll be here. You’re going to have to work to get my trust back, though. But I’m all you’ve got.”
“You don’t have to. I know I hurt you,” Cheyenne said looking away.
“Don’t give me that bullshit. You call my phone eight hundred times a day. If you love me you better say it. Go on… Chey. Say it. Because if you don’t, I’ll fucking scream. Every night I think about you. I’ve tried to move on… I’ve tried dating other women… It just doesn’t work. My life is empty without you.”
Cheyenne stared at Randy in shock. She had words but they just would not come out.
“Did you hear me, Chey? I fucking love you and for the last three months that fact has tortured my soul. I thought I lost you for good last night. My heart has been sitting in my throat.”
“You love me…”
“I was hurt. Bad, Chey… I couldn’t talk to you on the phone because I would crumble. I didn’t want to see you face to face because I kn
ew it was torture. I thought you cheated on me. I had an engagement ring. I went to Monument Avenue and I was going to propose. Broke my fucking heart.”
“I’m sorry, Randy. He cornered me that day, demanding money among other things. He had a gun to my back. He’s violent, you have no idea. The last thing I remember is him jabbing a needle in my arm. I didn’t want that. I had been clean for so long. That’s the last thing I wanted. You were really going to propose?”
“Yeah. I still have the ring.”
“Do you think we could make it work?”
Randy looked taken aback.
“I need you healthy first, and I need to know that I can trust you. I know Trent put you in this situation, but still. I need the old Cheyenne back. But I don’t want you worrying about that right now. Your focus should be on getting healthy.”
Just then, a doctor walked into the room with a clipboard in his hands.
“Ms. West?”
Cheyenne nodded.
“Sir, I need to ask you to step outside while I talk with Ms. West, here…”
“He can stay. Whatever you have to say, you can say it in front of him,” Cheyenne said, motioning for Randy to sit back down.
He did as she wanted, and sat back down in the armchair.
“Very well. We are going to keep you for another 24 hours for observation then we need to discuss transfer to an inpatient rehab center. One of the nurses will be in shortly to discuss options. You are very lucky. The amount of drugs they found in your system should have been lethal, but your adrenaline was up, and that could be what kept you alive. You’re fortunate that Mr. Ford got you to the hospital in time.”
With that, the doctor walked out, leaving Cheyenne and Randy alone with the weight of their future looming over their heads.
“I don’t want to go…” Cheyenne said as her emotions got the best of her.
“You have to. No rehab, no Randy.”
“You’ll forget about me while I’m gone.”
“Have you heard nothing I’ve said? I have not had a peaceful night of sleep since finding you with that asshole in my bed! You’re going!”
Cheyenne gave Randy a look of frustration.
“And Cheyenne?”
“Yeah?”
“I’ll be there waiting for you when you get out.”
Chapter Thirty-Six
Torian was buried on a hazy fall day right before Thanksgiving. Colt and Averi didn’t stay long, just enough to pay their final respects, and give their deepest condolences to his mother, who was in a state of deep despair. She had not taken his death well, and frankly, neither did Colt. He felt guilty because Torian laid his life on the line for him and his family. It was Torian’s mother who reminded Colt that Torian was a fierce friend and would go to war for any of his friends. It was Torian’s decision to go to bat for him, and with the Devils off the streets, Torian’s mother was convinced that her son did not die in vain.
The investigation into Black Horse’s murder continued, but the media was not nearly as interested as before. They were too busy reporting on the various arrests and deaths of the remaining Seventy Devils. Channel 6 had aired an exposé on Trent Myers, with a barrage of his victims coming forward to blacken his name. Channel 6 tried to contact Randy, but he declined the opportunity for an interview.
It had taken Shelly and Averi an entire week to clean up the mess from the stand-off at the Ranch, but finally, the house was back to its original glory. Colt and Tim replaced several windows, but there was no helping the lawn until the spring when it could be resodded.
Shawn had laid low after the melee, and warned Averi not to worry, but he wouldn’t be around because he had some things to take care of. She didn’t think anything of it, because her Uncle Shawn tended to be a lone wolf anyway. Averi’s pregnancy was going right as planned, and with the third trimester kicking her butt, she was spending more time relaxing, which suited Colt just fine. There was enough to worry about with their old house being demolished, and the many funerals that they had to attend for friends who came to help.
Colt was under no illusions. It was because of friends who were willing to fight against the Devils that they were all still alive.
Chapter Thirty-Seven
One Month Later
Time seemed to be going a little faster for everyone but Randy, who was counting down the hours until he picked up Cheyenne. He hadn’t heard from her at all, and he was beginning to get nervous, but he decided to follow Averi’s advice and let the professionals do their work. With just three days to go until Christmas, Randy would be meeting Cheyenne at the Hazy Oaks rehab center at nine today. He was nervous. He had dressed in a civilized manner with a button down shirt and a pair of jeans, rather than his usual t-shirt and baseball cap. As Randy wandered into the kitchen for breakfast, his family was shocked at his appearance.
Colt, who was eating a bowl of cereal, looked up and gawked at Randy. A dribble of milk fell down his chin. Shelly was reading this month’s issue of Cosmo and as she glanced up, the glossy magazine fell to the table. Tim, with a raised eyebrow, asked the obvious question.
“Court date, job interview or funeral?”
“None of the above,” Randy said as he poured himself a cup of coffee.
Averi, who was at the counter preparing a meatloaf for that night’s dinner, said without looking up, “Leave him alone, guys.”
“I’m picking Cheyenne up today,” he said as he sat down at the kitchen table. He had a nervous yet excited look on his face.
Averi patted her brother on the back. “It’ll be fine.”
“Hey, on your way back, can you pick up the ham?” Tim asked “We need it for Christmas Day.”
“Yeah, I’ll try to remember.”
“Tim, I can get it. Colt and I have to run out later, anyhow,” Averi said.
“We do?” Colt asked looking put out.
“It’s three days before Christmas! Of course we do!” Averi said as she came to Colt’s side. He tugged at her, pulling her into a hug. He placed his face on her growing belly. Baby McClain booted his father in the nose.
“Oww!”
“Honestly?”
“The baby kicked me!”
“Big tough guy, you are…” Averi said as she laughed.
“Alright, gotta go…” Randy said as he prepared to gulp down the last of his coffee. He wiped a napkin across face and sped out the door. Averi ran to the key hook by the back door and yelled after Randy.
“Keys!”
“Yeah, they would help.”
Averi tossed the keys to her brother and closed the door to keep the draft from getting in.
“What’s he so nervous for?” asked Tim.
“Shit. You know their history.”
“He really wants it to work. She’ll be staying with him in the workshop.”
“We’re going to really need soundproof walls…” Colt complained.
“I don’t know… Something tells me this time is different,” Averi said, trying to look on the brighter side of life.
***
Cheyenne inspected herself in the mirror as she prepared to leave the rehab center. She looked healthier and more radiant than ever before. She pulled a tube of shiny gloss across her pouty lips, and combed out her hair which was back to her natural dark brown hue. She wasn’t wearing anything fancy, just a pair of skinny jeans, sneakers and a black and white striped sweater, but she felt amazing. She had never felt so healthy or rejuvenated before. There was something plaguing her though. The nurse told her that they called her point of contact that they would be here at noon. She hoped like hell they called Randy and not her mother, who she had not received a single letter from since she went inpatient.
Putting the rest of her toiletries into a plastic bag, Cheyenne packed the rest of her belongings and prepared for the nurse to retrieve her. While sitting on her bed, Cheyenne pulled the photograph of Randy and her dancing together at their Senior Prom from off the wall. She had taped it up there t
o remind herself of what was waiting for her on the outside. She hoped like hell he hadn’t changed his mind. She asked him to write to her, and he did, once every week. The letters weren’t long, but he gave her the strength she needed to get through detox and rehabilitation. As Nurse Garrett entered her room, she greeted the woman with a smile and let out a deep breath. It was time.
Broken Road Page 18