by London Casey
She watched Erik take a step toward Jack and reach for his shirt. “What were you planning on doing with that woman?”
“Helping her,” Jack said. “She has her damn doors locked though. I can’t help her.”
The bikers, who she knew now were named Erik and Blaine, walked up to the car. Blaine pulled on the handle and Kaity jumped.
“Whoa, beautiful,” Blaine said. “We’re not going to hurt you. What’s going on around here?”
“Come on. Get out.” Erik said.
“No,” Kaity said.
“What the fuck do you want then?” Erik asked. “We don’t have time for this shit.”
“I’m not opening my door for four strange men,” Kaity said.
“You came here for help!” Erik yelled.
“Easy now,” Blaine said. “We ain’t gonna hurt you. I mean, you spend a little time with me and I’ll make everything better. Let these two greasy assholes work on your car… and let me work on you.”
Kaity couldn’t stand this Blaine guy. He looked dirty and talked like a jackass. She slowly unlocked her door, never looking away from Blaine. Thanks to her one time assignment she learned how to move to protect herself. That was, until she got lost in a little town like this and ended up in a lot with four men eye humping her.
Kaity threw the door open and it hit Blaine. He doubled over and stumbled. She quickly closed the door and locked it again.
“Fuck, baby,” Blaine said. “You’re going to hurt me…”
“Get out of the car or get out of here,” Erik said. “We’ve got business to do.”
“Take your time,” Willy yelled.
Erik looked back and grabbed a gun from a holster under his leather cut. That’s when Kaity realized things had just gotten more serious. Erik pointed the gun at Willy and he put his hands up.
“Is this your set up?” Erik asked.
“I swear, man,” Willy said. “She just pulled in. We were having a smoke. Talking.”
Erik looked at Kaity. “Open the door.”
“No,” Kaity said.
“Bro, wait a second,” Blaine said.
Kaity saw Erik lift the gun. It wasn’t the first time she had a gun pointed at her, but it still made her uneasy. Erik swung the gun and Kaity winced. She heard the sound of glass shattering but didn’t feel anything. She turned and saw that Erik had smashed the back driver’s side window out.
“You fucking asshole,” Kaity growled.
“That’s right,” Erik said.
He reached through the broken back window toward the front of the car. Kaity couldn’t believe how bold this guy was. She saw his hand moving toward the lock button and she panicked. She started to punch and claw at Erik’s arm. He quickly turned his hand and grabbed her wrist.
“Look at me,” he ordered. “Right now.”
Kaity looked at Erik, her heart racing.
It wasn’t the fear making her heart race… it was because he was touching her…
“Look at my face,” Erik said. “You see that?”
“Yes,” Kaity said.
“You think I give a fuck about you clawing at my arm? You think I give a fuck about your car? You think I give a fuck about you?”
“No.”
“Then open the fucking door before I take out the rest of the windows.”
Erik opened his hand. Kaity unlocked the door and pushed it open. She climbed from the car and stood, not sure what to look at first. Erik stood with the gun at his side. His face was a mess, but it was sexy to Kaity. He obviously feared nothing. A man who would just take out a gun and bust up a window was the kind of man that could protect a woman.
Blaine had a hand between his legs, covering himself. “Easy, beautiful,” he said. “Don’t go hurting my dick anymore. Unless you plan on kissing it and making it all better.”
“Fuck off,” Kaity said. “Filthy biker.”
Erik laughed for a second. Jake and Willy laughed too. Blaine turned and punched Jack square in the face. Jack’s head flew back and his cigarette flew from his mouth. Jack put his hands out but had nothing to grab onto. He toppled down to his ass and stayed there in shock.
Kaity felt something grab her wrist and she jumped. It was Erik.
“What are you doing here?” he asked.
“Passing through,” Kaity said. “My car started acting funny so I stopped. Okay?”
“I don’t buy that for a second.”
“The car is broken,” Kaity said. “What am I supposed to do?”
Erik curled his lip. “You’re going to sit on the trunk of the car with Blaine. He’s going to talk about how big his cock is and how bad he wants to fuck you. But he’s all talk. He won’t make a move because I said so. Got it?”
“No, I don’t got it,” Kaity said.
She had no idea why she was being so fierce with a strong man with a gun. This was stupid.
“If you don’t listen to me, you’ll end up dead. Is that a little more clear?”
“Yeah,” Kaity said.
“Good.” Erik pushed away from Kaity and grabbed Blaine by his shoulder. “Don’t fuck around.”
“You know me,” Blaine said. “I’ll keep her warm for you.”
“She’s not for me,” Erik said. He looked back at Kaity. “She’s just in the way right now.”
Erik walked away and Kaity felt cold and numb. She didn’t want Erik to walk away, but she had no idea why. Blaine hooked his thumbs into the pockets of his jeans and stared at her.
“What in the good hell are you doing here?” Blaine asked.
“Trying to enjoy my freedom,” Kaity whispered.
“Well… you’ve definitely come to the right place,” Blaine said. “But good luck earning Erik’s trust.”
Kaity stared at Erik. He put an arm around Willy and then pushed him toward the garage.
“Hop up, beautiful,” Blaine said as he jumped on the trunk of the car.
Kaity climbed up on the trunk of her car and started to shake. She had been trying to escape hell. Now she found a new version of it.
four.
Erik wasn’t sure when the last time he actually slept was. Last night the booze kept flowing, the ladies were willing, and for whatever reason, Erik couldn’t miss a shot in a game of pool. He cleared out the clubhouse, beating everyone there, made three hundred dollars, and took two women to his bed. When he woke that morning, the two women were sleeping on top of each other, still naked, and Erik sat up and reveled at the amazing sight.
That’s when Nate came to the door and said Miller wanted an emergency meeting. Erik should have taken a few minutes to himself and enjoyed the two women before leaving, but the urge disappeared. He climbed from the bed, dressed, and slapped the top woman on the ass, waking her. He told the two women to get the fuck out.
In the meeting, Miller and Gaige were tense and pissed off. They had received confirmation that the car Shay had purchased with the bomb in it came from an auction company twenty miles north. They were also informed that two scumbag cousins that ran a back alley auto garage had been there the same day. That meant they could have - and should have - seen something at the auction. Someone suspicious. Someone fucking around with Shay’s car. Something that would point the club in the right direction to resolve this problem.
Erik and Blaine were the ones who wanted to go. Miller was reluctant to send Erik out without himself or Gaige, but they were already tied up for the morning. As club rules went, Erik had to ride with at least one other member, for backup. Seeing as Erik wanted to be alone, he knew he could handle Blaine because that meant mostly just ignoring the guy.
The last thing Erik expected to see was a woman in the parking lot of the shitty auto garage. The second Erik saw the woman’s face, he saw fear. And when she looked back, she didn’t look away.
Is she fucking blind?
That was the first thought that went through Erik’s mind.
Didn’t this woman see the scars on his face? Didn’t it bother her?
Why the fuck did she keep staring without a look of disgust on her face?
It really bothered Erik.
Of course the woman wouldn’t open the door to her car. Erik couldn’t blame her. She was surrounded by two bikers and two greasy mechanics. But Erik wasn’t in the business of harming women. He was in the business of getting answers as to who tried to kill him.
He didn't need to, but it felt damn good busting out the back window to the car. And it felt even better watching the woman climb out of the car, still staring at him. Erik couldn’t figure out what the hell it meant, but the woman was very good looking. Beautiful, in fact.
And that pissed Erik off, too.
He wasn’t there to flirt with anyone, yet he made damn sure that Blaine wasn’t going to make a move on her. Erik took his frustrations out on Willy as he threw the mechanic into the side of the building. Willy stumbled back and Erik grabbed him again and threw him one more time. When Willy fell back, he waved his hands.
“Fuck, man,” he cried out. “What did I do?”
“Get in the garage,” Erik said. He turned and looked at Jack. “Come on, get up, asshole. Let’s move.”
Erik showed his gun and Jack hurried to his feet. He wiped the blood from his nose and face. The two men stood side by side and Erik wanted nothing more than to fight both of them. He’d put his gun down right now and go fist for fist with both of them. Whether they deserved it for the bombing or not, he did not care, because their intentions toward this woman were obvious and it pissed him off.
“I have a few questions,” Erik said.
“Yeah, sure,” Jack said. “Christ, man, we’re all good here. You don’t need to come in swinging at us.”
“We weren’t going to hurt that woman,” Willy said. “I swear on it. We were trying to help her and she locked the door.”
“Look at you two,” Erik said. “I’d lock my door too.”
“Can I have a smoke?” Willy asked. “I feel like I’m going to have a heart attack.”
“Sure,” Erik said. “Smoke up.”
The two men lit fresh cigarettes and Willy leaned against a car. Jack touched his nose and winced.
“If you don’t want trouble, then don’t lie to me,” Erik said.
“Why would we lie?” Willy asked. He laughed. “Fuck, man, I used to ride back in my day. Before I hurt my back.”
“Ride?” Erik asked. He stepped forward, lumbering over Willy. “See my face? You think that’s from riding?”
“Shit. No.”
“That’s from living. Now, tell me about the last auction you were at.”
“Auction?” Jack asked. “That was… why?”
“You’re going to question me?” Erik asked.
“Shit. Sorry. I mean, uh, we bought two junkers.”
“Cleaned them up and sold them,” Willy said. “We made a few bucks. Didn’t do… much wrong.”
“I don’t give a fuck about the cars you sell,” Erik said. “I want to know if you saw someone there.”
“There’s a lot of people at those auctions,” Jack said.
“You know what happened over where I work?” Erik asked. “Why my face got fucked up?”
“Bomb,” Willy said. Jack looked at Willy. “Heard some guys talking about it at a bar.”
“Yeah, a bomb,” Erik said. “I need to know who put that bomb in the car. My good friend picked the car up that day. I think someone from the auction did it.”
“How would we…” Jack started to say.
“Did you know the car?” Erik asked Willy.
“Black beauty,” Willy said. “I remember her. Was wondering what she was doing at an auction. I figured something was wrong with it. Sometimes those cars can be big projects, you know?”
“Who was looking at it?”
“Lots of people.”
“Who?”
Willy swallowed. He took a deep drag and dropped his cigarette. He stepped on it and crossed his arms, deep in thought.
“Suit and tie,” Jack said. “Shit, I got it now.”
“Got what?” Erik asked.
“I, uh, I was busy with something… but there was a black car with a guy…”
“What were you doing?” Willy asked.
“Nothing.”
Erik grabbed Jack by the shirt and he screamed. “I want every detail.”
“Fuck,” Jack said. “I was with Wanda.”
“Wanda?” Willy asked. “My…”
“Who is Wanda?” Erik asked.
“My fucking ex-wife,” Willy yelled.
“What were you doing with Wanda?” Erik asked.
“Fuck,” Jack said again. “Look, I’m sorry, man. She was… she was going down on me. Behind the bathrooms. It’s a thing we have.”
“A thing you have?” Willy asked. “You sorry son of a bitch.”
Willy lunged at Jack and hit him right in the nose. Jack cried out as his nose opened once again, bleeding everywhere. Erik stepped back and watched the two idiot cousins wrestle around for a few seconds before they broke apart, both out of breath.
“I hate you,” Willy said.
“I’m sorry,” Jack said. “We don't do it all the time. Just once in a while. She misses you, man. She tells me by doing that to me it's like doing it to you. She thinks of you when she does it. I swear.”
“That's fucked up,” Erik said.
“Does she still do the tongue thing?” Willy asked. “With the swirl…”
Jack nodded. “Yeah. And then with her hand…”
“Shut up!” Erik yelled. “You two can deal with this family mess later. Tell me about the black car.”
“Right,” Jack said. “Okay. So Wanda was… you know… and this car came up. I turned my head, wondering if we were going to get caught. This guy got out of the car in a suit and tie. Looked too fancy to be at a car auction. Then it dawned on me that maybe he was there for that black car. He made a phone call and I heard him ask if the 'present was sent' and then he smiled and said 'terrific.' But there was a way he said it that stuck with me, okay? And when he smiled… he had a gold tooth off to the side…” Jack hooked his own cheek with his pointer finger and pulled. He then said, “Riihheerrr.”
“Then what happened?”
“He left. Got in the car and sped away.”
“Did you get the plates?”
“No,” Jack said. “I looked down and Wanda was looking up at me with those brown eyes of hers…”
Willy came at Jack again and punched him in the side of the head. The two started wrestling again and Erik couldn’t handle anymore. He shot the tires on the car in the garage, flattening two of them. He then pointed the gun at Willy.
“Come on, man,” Willy said.
“Calm down.” Erik looked at Jack. “Think hard, Jack. What else did you see about the man?”
Jack stared at the ground for a few seconds and then his eyes went wide. He slowly lifted his right hand and pointed to the side of his neck.
“What?” Erik asked.
“His neck,” Jack said. “He had a mark… no… uh…” Jack looked at Erik and pointed. “Like your face.”
“Scars?” Erik asked with gritted teeth.
“Yeah,” Jack yelled. “He had a scar on his neck. On the side. That’s all I remember, I swear. I mean, you can’t kill me for that, right? It wasn’t like I had complete focus.”
Jack smiled.
Willy tried to move, but Erik put a hand out and stopped him. Erik held Willy at bay with his left arm as he put his gun away and then made a fist.
“Fuck,” Jack whispered.
Erik threw a hard right and knocked Jack out cold. Jack spun and hit the ground.
“Jack!” Willy cried out. “That’s my fucking cousin.”
“Hope he wakes up,” Erik said.
He turned and walked from the garage.
He had a mark… like your face…
Erik made fists. He wanted to hurt someone. He wanted to kill someone.
Then Erik
caught sight of the woman on the trunk of the car with Blaine. She was looking back at him. Her eyes were big, bright, curious, but not judging. She was actually looking at him, seeing Erik.
Blaine had his hand on the trunk of the car but his fingers were pointed toward the woman. Even from this distance Erik could see that Blaine was trying to make a cheap move at her. Whether he meant to do it or it was just part of his instinctive nature to want pussy, Erik didn’t know or care. It just bothered him to see it. Of course beautiful women would flock to someone without scars and a dark recent history. It only made sense. Erik knew he was a loose canon. After what happened last night with the guy in the pickup truck, he was surprised Miller didn’t lock him in his room.
Erik walked to the car and grabbed Blaine by the shoulder and pulled.
“We’re done here now,” Erik said. “I got some information.”
Blaine stumbled but didn’t fall. “Yeah, you got it, bro. You good?”
“Walk for a second. I need to figure this situation out.”
“Hey, hey,” Blaine said. “Before we do anything harsh, I can take care of her. Just offering. She can ride back with me and then ride…” Blaine looked at the woman and winked. “my face…”
“Blaine, fuck off,” Erik said.
Blaine smiled and walked to his motorcycle. Erik crossed his arms and stared at the woman as she slowly slid down from the trunk of the car. She swallowed once, fear coursing through her body. But she kept a tough demeanor.
“What’s the plan?” he asked.
“You’re asking me that? After you just pulled a gun, broke my window, and shot a car in the garage?”
“That’s bullshit stuff,” Erik said. “What’s your plan? Who the fuck are you?”
“My name is Kaity,” she said. “If that’s what you mean.”
Kaity…
She looked like a Kaity. Thick, dirty blonde hair that was long and messy, yet it looked good. She wore a t-shirt that clung to her tight body and ample chest. Ripped jeans and a spunky attitude made it seem as though she could slip right into the MC life and not look back.
“I don’t pick up hitchhikers,” Erik said. “You have someone to call?”
“No.”
“So what were you going to do?”
“See what was wrong with my car and take it from there. Crash wherever I could.”