by Amiee Louise
I swallow hard, trying to divert my gaze elsewhere as she straightens and heads back behind the counter. As soon as her back is turned Kev reaches across the table in a lightning quick move to give me what I came here to collect. I pass him a roll of notes in exchange and tuck it inside the pocket of my leather jacket, satisfied that the deal is done. I take a long gulp of my coffee, the hot black liquid burning my throat as I swallow. I shift my chair back, nodding curtly to Kev. I slap a handful of notes onto the counter and leave without saying goodbye to make the journey home. All I’m focused on is getting so high I reach that rapturous void I have been craving for so long.
I make it back home in record time and as I lean against the wall in the garage, I rub the delicious cocaine around my gums, I feel the euphoric high enter my system almost instantly. I laugh hysterically at the ridiculousness of it all, my shitty fucking life, the fame, and the fact that I’m going to be someone’s fucking dad! I'm high because when I'm high, I can't feel anything and right now, I don't want to feel anything. I don’t want to think about becoming a dad, I don’t want to think about the look in Raleigh’s eyes, as I fucking left her sobbing.
I need to get my head on straight and the only way I can do that, is to go for a ride, I know I have to be as far away from her as I can get, I need to ride. I straddle my bike, pull on my helmet and push a button on the handlebar to open the garage door. I kick the kickstand, twist the throttle, and rev the engine. I signal for Jace to open the gates and manage to salute my thanks, and I pull out onto the open roads of Chislehurst with a roar. Even at this hour it is busy and there’s nothing like the rush of adrenaline, as I zoom down the street. The blur of the quaint village zipping past, as I manoeuvre my bike down the narrow roads. I feel free, like nothing else exists. Like the conversation I had with Raleigh before I left the house didn’t happen. It’s just me, the open road, and the invigorating, heady feeling, as the rumble of the engine grows louder. My mind grows clearer, with each mile that I travel, riding is the ultimate escape for me, and has been ever since I passed my test when I turned seventeen.
Suddenly, as I head from Orchard Road onto Sundridge Avenue, I take the corner a little too fast and a car travelling in the opposite direction hurtles towards me. I hit the brakes and both of them lock up. Time immediately slows down and all but stops. It proceeds to provide me with a frame-by-frame record of me facing my own mortality. In a last attempt to prevent the inevitable accident, I grab a fist full of brake, pump down hard with my foot, and hold on for dear fucking life. The car doesn’t quite stop in time, and I crash head on into the car. I’m flung forwards into the air, I hit the asphalt with a bone-crunching thud and my whole world becomes dark.
Brody’s Story will continue in Book 2 - Absolution!