Wheelie’s Challenge

by Chiah Wilder

  “And?” Hawk said.

  “A brother was turning in phony receipts and had even faked vendors who supposedly fixed shit like leaky pipes, sinks, and other things.” He paused and took another drink of water.

  “Did you find out who’s doing this?” Banger asked.

  Nodding slowly, Hubcap put the bottled water on the table and pressed his lips together.

  “He’s always gone in for drama,” Animal said to Wheelie. “I wish he’d just fuckin’ tell us.” Wheelie chuckled.

  Frustration and tension filled the room as all eyes were on Hubcap, waiting for him to tell the members who’d dared to steal from them.

  Hawk threw up his hands. “Hubcap … who the fuck is it?”

  The biker leaned back and rocked on the heel of his boots then bent forward. “Tigger.”

  Cussing and yelling filled the room, and a slow, satisfied grin spread across Hubcap’s lips. Wheelie glanced over at Skeet and saw him whip out his phone and watched his fingers fly. I bet he’s telling the sonofabitch the club’s onto him. Wheelie nudged Throttle and jerked his head toward Skeet. “He’s texting the asshole for sure.”

  Throttle tilted his head. “If Tigger knows what’s good for him, he’ll already be hauling ass outta town.”

  “Get Tigger’s ass back over here. He’s got some money he’s gotta pay back to the club, and we owe him a beatdown,” Banger said.

  “There’s no fuckin’ way he’s coming back,” Wheelie said, but he knew Tigger couldn’t leave Sofia that easily. He’d be crazed with power and control over her, and retribution for what she and Wheelie did.

  Later that night, Wheelie tried to see Sofia, but Belle told him that under Doc’s and Banger’s orders, she was to rest. It drove him crazy that only a wooden door kept them apart, but that door happened to belong to the president, and Wheelie’s ass had been saved earlier that day, so he didn’t want to test the waters with Banger.

  “Tell her I came by,” he said to Belle.

  She smiled. “I’ll tell her. Sofia’s going to be just fine. When she’s stronger, I’ll let you know, and you can come by and see her.”

  Wheelie walked back to his bike and looked up at the windows, wondering which of them led into Sofia’s room. He wanted to see her real bad; he wanted to hold her close and tell her was sorry for not protecting her. The craving for her overwhelmed him, and it was like there was a hole in his chest that only Sofia could fill.

  Wheelie threw his head back and stared at the dark sky. It seemed like the stars were hung above him by invisible strings, resembling the bright lanterns the club girls had put up around the club’s yard. The subtle scent of wisteria and tall grass danced on the warm breeze, conjuring up memories of the afternoon he’d spent with Sofia at Hanging Lake.

  I need you, babe. Be strong and get better real soon.

  Wheelie swung a leg over his bike and rode away into the darkness.

  Chapter Seventeen

  Russ Elmore smacked the ass of the cheap whore he picked up on El Cajon Boulevard an hour before. Mascara was smeared under her eyes, making her look like a raccoon, as she sat up and reached for her clothes.

  “Do you got the pills you promised me for fuckin’ me in the ass?” The woman pulled her tube top over her bare tits.

  Russ laughed and tossed her a small baggie with two white pills in it. “If your pimp finds out he’s gonna beat your ass.”

  “He ain’t gonna find out.” She straightened out her miniskirt then slipped on patent-leather red stilettos. “You ain’t gonna tell him, right?” Fear whispered on her face.

  “No worries. I don’t like pimps. You ladies do all the work, and they collect the money. Doesn’t seem right.” Russ stretched his arms above his head and yawned. “Close the door behind you.”

  After splashing cold water on his face, Elmore sat on the tattered chair and lit up a joint. He looked around the dilapidated motel room and cursed himself for blowing it with Mallory. She was his goose-that-laid-the-golden-egg, but he’d let his temper get the better of him when she’d kept nagging him one Saturday afternoon. Russ had been hungover, and all he wanted was to watch TV, but Mallory had kept asking him if he was cheating on her. He’d told her no, but she wasn’t satisfied with the answer so she kept it up, and it fucking pissed him off. He snapped, and an hour later, he was stroking Mallory’s battered face and telling her how sorry he was.

  Mallory hadn’t been too keen on forgiving him, and he supposed the fact she’d found a lacy blue thong under the carseat the next day hadn’t helped. She’d thrown his ass out, and here he was in a dump with a stained mattress, a busted AC, mold growing in the shower, and roaches to keep him company. He shook his head in disgust. A week ago I was watching the goddamn sun setting over the ocean, driving the Mustang convertible, and eating at steakhouses in La Jolla. Fuck!

  Russ went over to the Styrofoam ice chest he’d stolen at Walmart and dug out his last can of Bud. He only had a few bucks left from the money he’d scammed out of Mallory several weeks before. Tucker hadn’t returned any of Elmore’s texts or calls in over two weeks. Part of him thought Wheelie had somehow got wind that Tucker was aiming for him, and another part blistered with rage on being double-crossed by the felon. Either way, Wheelie was still alive and most likely on his way to San Diego to cut off Russ’ balls before Wheelie killed him.

  “I gotta get outta town. I can tell my parole officer that I can’t find a job and need to go inland to work on the farms.” After he threatened Mallory with all sorts of awful things that he and some of his friends from prison would do to her if she squealed on him to the cops or to parole, she’d told him all she wanted was for Russ to get the hell out of her life. Yeah … I fuckin’ blew that.

  Russ had contacted everyone he knew, but they were all tapped out—just like him. He took out his phone and stared at it for a long moment while he guzzled down the beer. I fuckin’ wish I had another one. He’d have to steal some later that night. Sucking in a deep breath then slowly exhaling, he tapped in his mother’s phone number. It’d been years since he’d last spoken with her.

  “Hello?” Suspicion laced her voice.

  “Mom, how are you?” He pulled out a cigarette from the pack on the table and lit it.

  “Russ? Are you calling me from prison?”

  “No, I’m out. Just today,” he lied.

  “Thank God. Why didn’t you let me come visit you all these years?” Her whining voice grated his nerves.

  “No mother should see her son in prison. You still living in Colorado Springs?”

  “Yes, your father and I are still here.”

  Russ snorted. “You’re still with him?”

  “Of course. Why wouldn’t I be? He’s my husband. Your dad’s in the garage. Do you want to talk to him?”

  “No. We never got along, and I don’t wanna lecture right now.”

  “It’s been so many years since I heard from you. Did they treat you well in prison?”

  She doesn’t have a fuckin’ clue. “It was all right.”

  “You never should’ve gone there. It was just an accident. You couldn’t help it if she fell and hit her head. I still don’t understand why you took the plea agreement.”

  “’Cause I knew how crooked the system was, and I didn’t want to spend the rest of my life behind bars. Let’s not talk about this, okay? How’re Josh and Sofia?”

  “Josh is still in prison. Canon City is close, so I go to see him a lot. I don’t know when he’ll get out. They keep adding time to his sentence because he gets in so many fights.”

  “Yeah … well … he was always a dumbass. If he played it straight, he’d probably be out by now.”

  “I don’t know. They got him on second-degree murder. Remember, I told you years ago when I called you?”

  Russ hated the small talk and pretending that he gave a shit about his brother and sister, or his mom for that matter, but he needed the money, so he kept listening.

  “Sofia’s in Pinewood
Springs.”

  Elmore’s ears pricked up. “Pinewood Springs? How’d she end up there?”

  “She married that man I told you about. I don’t like him at all. He belongs to one of those motorcycle gangs.”

  Well, I’ll be damned. “The Insurgents?”

  “I don’t remember. Anyway, I got a call from her a couple of weeks ago. It really surprised me because I haven’t heard from her in a few years. I know Scott was behind that. Anyway, she told me she’s filed for divorce.”

  “The dude’s name is Scott what?”

  “Eskridge, but he goes by a real silly name—Tigger. When I heard it, I remember telling Sofia it was a name from Winnie the Pooh. Very silly.”

  “I should call Sofia and reconnect.”

  “That would be wonderful! You haven’t seen or spoken to her since you moved to San Diego after you married Kendra. When you left and ignored her, she was real hurt. Don’t tell her I said that, but she was. She really missed you.”

  “It’s time that I make it up to my little sister. So, she’s this Tigger dude’s old lady. Interesting. Maybe I’ll head to Colorado Springs and pay you a visit, and then go see Sofia. I’ve never been to Pinewood Springs.”

  “I’d love it, and I know she would too.” He could hear the smile in his mother’s voice, and for reasons he couldn’t explain, it pissed the shit out of him.

  “I really wanna come, but money is an issue. I just got out so I barely have enough for a roof over my head. Finding a job is gonna be a pain in the ass since I’m a felon.” Take the bait.

  “I can send you some,” she whispered. “It won’t be very much because your father controls the money, but I’ve saved a little here and there.”

  Good ol’ thrifty Mom. “Are you sure?”

  “Yes. Would two thousand help you?”

  It’s a drop in the piss bucket, but I’ll fuckin’ take it. “That’d be great. A little more would be better, but I know things are tight.”

  A pause.

  “I can maybe get another five hundred or a thousand. Don’t tell Sofia I gave you the money. I don’t want her thinking I’m a bank or anything. She’s a pretty girl. I think she already found someone new. She kept talking about a man named Wheelie and how nice he’s been to her. Another man with a crazy name.”

  Bingo. I just won the fuckin’ jackpot. “Can you send the money to me Western Union?”

  “Who the fuck are you talking to?” his dad’s voice boomed. “Where’s my fuckin’ lunch, you stupid cunt?”

  “I have to go. I’ll text you when I send it.”

  The phone went dead.

  “You didn’t give me Sofia’s number, bitch,” Russ said out loud. “Dammit!” He slammed his fist on the table and sat there brooding. A couple of minutes later, his phone pinged with a phone number. A grin spread over his face as he tapped in the number.

  “Hello?” a soft voice said.

  “Sofia? Guess who.”

  Several seconds passed and Russ was afraid she was going to hang up. “It’s your brother Russ. Mom gave me your number.”

  “Russ? Is that really you? I can’t believe it. How are you? Where are you? What have you been doing? Are you still married? Do you have any kids? Do—”

  “Enough questions. I’m doing okay. I’m working at a farm in Campo, California. I love being outdoors.” He lit another cigarette. “We don’t have any kids.”

  “When did you get out of prison?”

  His hand froze mid-air, the cigarette dangling from it. “I didn’t know Mom told you about me going to prison. What’d she say?”

  “Not much. I don’t think she knew why you or Josh were locked up. I just spoke to her not that long ago, but you and Josh didn’t come up in the conversation. It’d been a really long time since I’d spoken to her, so we just talked about me and her. What’s your wife’s name again?”

  “Kendra. She’s doing good. So what the hell are you doing in Pinewood Springs? Mom said you married a badass biker. I think she said his name was Wheelie.” He brought the cigarette to his lips and inhaled.

  “Tigger was my husband, but I left him a few weeks ago. I filed for divorce and it should be finalized in a couple of months. Wheelie’s my friend. He’s been helping me through all this.”

  Russ could hear the love in her voice and it nauseated him. “You sound happy. Are you sure he’s just a friend?”

  “Well … maybe a little more than that.” Sofia giggled.

  “How does your ex feel about you dating one of his fellow bikers?” Another puff.

  “I’m sure he’s super pissed, but there’s nothing he can do about it. Anyway, I think he left town. No one’s seen or heard from him. Why all the questions about him?”

  “I just wanna make sure you’re safe. Mom said he was bad news and she never liked him.” He stubbed the butt in the ashtray and lit another cig.

  “I’m safe. Wheelie and the other brothers watch out for me. So when are you going to make me an aunt?”

  Stop the shit about the brats. “Soon. I want to be able to show your ex that you’ve got a big brother who won’t stand for any shit from him. I haven’t been around for years. It’s important that I do this.”

  “Uh … okay, but you don’t have to.”

  “I want to. It’s a male thing.” The smoke curled around him as Russ looked out the window to see what the latest ruckus was in the parking lot: A pimp was kicking the shit out of his whore. Russ let the dirty blinds fall back down.

  “So how are you going to do that? You’re so far away.”

  “Give me his number and if he starts shit up, I’ll set him straight.”

  “You don’t really have to do this. I don’t think he’ll mess with me since Wheelie and the other brothers are backing me up. I mean they threw him out of the club because he beat the crap out of me so bad. I couldn’t believe that they did that.” Sofia’s voice hitched.

  Just give me the fuckin’ number! “Just humor me. Chances are real high I’ll never have to talk to the sonofabitch. I wish I would’ve been there. I would’ve kicked his ass real good.” You were probably annoying him like you are me.

  “I’m glad you called, Russ. It feels so good for us to be back in contact. I missed you.”

  “Me too.” Give me the fuckin’ number, bitch.

  “Maybe you and Kendra can come to Pinewood Springs some time. I’d love to see you and meet your wife.”

  “It’s real hard for me … uh … us to get away. We’d love to have you visit us. You’ve never been to San Diego, have you?”

  “No. I’d love to see the ocean.”

  “Maybe I’ll surprise you and send you a ticket. I hate to go, but the old lady’s calling me. I’ll call you again soon. What’s your ex’s number?”

  “Oh … 9705550163. What’s your number? It didn’t register on my phone.”

  “Shit! A minor mishap in the kitchen. I gotta go. I’ll call you soon.” Russ put the phone down on the table and drummed his fingers against his jean-clad thigh. There was no doubt in his mind that his sister had been whoring around with Wheelie behind her husband’s back, and he was equally sure that Tigger was just dying to kill Wheelie and punish Sofia for having him kicked out of the club and filing for divorce. A plan began to take shape and it’d be a win-win for him: have Tigger pay him for bringing both Wheelie and Sofia to the biker. Russ would use some of the money his mom sent him to send a plane ticket to Sofia. Once Tigger had her, Russ would make her contact Wheelie to bring him to San Diego and save her then Tigger could get rid of the sonofabitch for him and do what the hell he wanted with Sofia.

  Yeah … things are definitely looking up.

  Elmore picked up his phone and plugged in Tigger’s number.

  Chapter Eighteen

  Three weeks later

  Sofia stared at the dark pink line on the pregnancy test and wondered if she did it right. She was pretty sure she had especially since her period had been absent for at least five weeks. What’s Whee
lie going to think? He hasn’t even told me he loves me. She stood up from the toilet and went over to the sink, splashing cool water over her face. Sofia examined the scar above her lip and thought that it looked better than it had the week before. She’d been diligently following Doc’s instructions and applied the Silicone Gel he’d prescribed twice a day.

  “Are you okay, babe?” Wheelie asked through the door.

  Sofia quickly wrapped the kit in several tissues and threw it in the trash. “I’m good. I’ll be out in a sec.” Swiping berry-tinted balm on her lips, she brushed her hair then opened the door. Wheelie snagged her around the waist then enfolded her in his embrace. His mouth captured hers, hot and demanding, his tongue parting her lips, entering her. Sofia moaned as his tongue found hers, twisting and dancing with it as he pushed in deeper. She raked her nails up and down his back, loving the grunts he made inside her mouth.

  “Damn, woman. I can’t ever get enough of you.” His words were smothered on her lips.

  A shiver of sheer pleasure rushed through her and she gasped in delight when his hand cupped her breast, the palm easing over and over her nipple. Wheelie’s other hand slid down, cupping her ass cheek and squeezing it firmly while he still kissed her, swallowing her gasps.

  Sofia slipped her hands under his shirt and ran her fingertips over the corded muscles in his back, loving the way they flexed and rippled under her touch. She trailed her hands down, gliding them under the waistband of his jeans then digging her nails into his tempting firm ass.

  Wheelie pulled away slightly. “Fuck, babe,” he rasped. He grabbed the hem of her top and tugged at it. Sofia moved her hands from him and raised her arms above her head, yanking off her top and exposing her bare breasts. Wheelie dipped his head down and sucked one of the beaded nipples in his mouth, and she threw back her head, a low moan escaping from her parted lips.