Page 41 of Fighting a Riot

He gave her a half-nod. “Yeah, but you can’t really see them unless you take a train, so we’re out of luck.”

Back at his bike, Nora fastened the helmet on her head. “I take it we’re headed straight home. No side trip to the biker bar.”

“Not a fuckin’ chance, princess,” he said, just before his cell rang. “Let me take this.”

He saw Volt’s name on the screen before he answered. “Hey, Volt.”

“Hey. Know you got the night off. Any chance you can hit that biker bar on the Northside?”

“Sure, in about an hour. That cool?”

Volt sighed. “Called you for a reason. You live closer than any other brother. This time of evening, you should be able to get there in twenty minutes.”

“Yeah, but I need to take someone home and then I can swing by there.”

“Can’t she take an Uber? Avondale’s pretty central.”

“I’m not at home, man, and I don’t want her taking an Uber from… where we are.”

“Then take her with you. In fact, that’s even better.”

He gave a short shake of his head, not understanding how taking a woman with him would make anything better about visiting that dive. “She’s not…” Yak hesitated, then looked at what Nora wore. That fuckin’ dress from earlier had been imprinted on his brain, so he hadn’t appreciated her more casual clothes. Her jeans were faded and fit her like a second skin. His eyes trailed up her torso and he realized her long-sleeve shirt left little to the imagination. If it weren’t for the innocence she gave off like a light, she’d look like a complete biker babe.

“She’s not what?” Volt asked.

“All due respect, Prez, but why do I need to hit that place?”

“Got word the Lancers are there. By the time you get there, Roll should be there too.”

“Then why not just send him?”

“Power in numbers, Yak. You know that. Wouldn’t put it past them to attack one of us – especially if a brother is there alone.”

Yak blew out a breath. “Okay. I’ll meet him there.”

Volt chuckled. “Don’t worry. He’ll have Trixie with him.”

Yak’s head swiveled in a slow, circular nod. “Yeah, I was afraid of that.”

Nora stared at him expectantly as she adjusted the helmet. He tucked his phone back on his hip. “You’re getting your wish, princess. We’re headed to the biker dive just down the road.”

“Really?” she asked with bright eyes.

Fuck. He wished this wouldn’t disappoint her, but… then again, maybe it would change her mind about him.

“Yeah, really. I mean it when I say it’s a dive, Nora. And, the crowd is rough. You stay by my side the entire fuckin’ time, got it? Right by my side.”

She saluted him with two fingers to her forehead. “Got it, sir. Good thing we went to the bathroom before we left.”

He nodded. “Yeah. That’s another thing. Trixie and Roll will probably be there. Don’t do anything Trixie says. If you get anything to drink, it’ll be beer and it’ll be bottled.”

She shook her head. “Trixie’s not crazy, Yak.” Her eyes gazed up toward her brows as though she heard what she’d said. “I mean, she’s crazy, but not that crazy.”

Yak dipped his chin. “You ain’t seen her in this kind of environment, princess. She’s off the fuckin’ charts crazy, and places like this bring it out of her. You stick by my side, it won’t be an issue.”

Nora

My mind waffled between whether Yak was exaggerating about this biker bar to scare me straight or whether he was serious and I should be scared outright. The moment he’d mentioned Trixie would be there, I felt relief, but then his insistence I stick with him made me think he wasn’t joking.

---