Page 3 of Towles

Towles

Tragedy changes a man. It turns a good guy into a man on a mission for revenge and destruction. That’s who I became in an instant. It took one phone call, and I was no longer Ethan “Brainiac” Towles. I’d simply become Towles.

Beast and Diesel followed a few steps behind, bodyguards to protect me from me and what they figured I was about to do. We filled the hospital lobby with what locals called biker filth. They could say what they wanted as long as we couldn’t hear it when said. Don’t get me wrong. I respected the people of Pine Bluff. They were good people for the most part. However, respect is only given when it is earned.

I stopped at the small crowd of police officers talking about last night’s sports events instead of finding a killer. They thought it more important to protect the hospital from the bikers they knew were coming. Six police officers were no match for even two Brothers of Chaos, much less three. They turned and saw us; fear filled their eyes—respect earned by our presence.

“Ethan,” Sheriff Manning’s voice cut through the tension-laden lobby. The male doctors and male nurses scattered. The female doctors and female nurses stood their ground, watching. It was no secret in the biker world that most women, especially those bored with home life and men who didn’t know how to treat them right, wanted to ride more than on the back of our Harleys. Hell, many of them had said as much to us personally. We saw the stares in parking lots. On the road. At schools, when we dropped off or picked up our kids.

Manning had assumed the sheriff role a week ago, stepping into the shoes of our murdered sheriff. His words, a mix of promises and uncertainties, didn’t impress. He had spoken with Beast this morning, promising to work alongside the Brothers. But could we trust him? None of us thought so. Like respect, trust could only be earned, not freely given.

“You’ve got about one hour to bring in the motherfuckers who did this before I tear this town a new asshole. That’s not a threat, Manning.” The sheriff’s shoulders slumped like a child who had his candy taken away. He knew it wasn’t a threat. He also knew he didn’t have the manpower to stop me.

Manning cleared his throat, and the phlegm from smoking gurgled up. They called us filth? I didn’t touch the fucking things, preferring the smell of leather to the nastiness of cigarettes.

“We’ve taken footage from a local ATM.” He glanced at his deputies. It shows two men on Harleys stopping next to your parents’ car.” He shook his head, stalling. I put my hand on his shoulder and squeezed. Beast stepped forward and stood between us, understanding Manning’s neck was next.

“Who were the bikers?” Beast had Diesel move behind me. “Towles. I need you to back down. We need to find out which club did this.”

“They were wearing cuts,” Manning said. His continued stalling was wearing thin on my patience. Diesel put both hands on my shoulders. Shit was about to get real, and everyone in the lobby prepared. I didn’t care where my actions landed me. The female doctors and nurses moved down the hall. The Deputies flanked Manning’s side. Manning nodded at me. “I’ll take him in, Beast. And fucking keep him.”

“Towles.” Beast’s voice again. “Fucking come on, Manning.”

“The bikers belong to the Street Punishers MC. They just recently came to town. The main chapter is out in Cali.”

Life moved in slow motion—those left in the lobby scattered but not nearly quickly enough. I didn’t care. When a club had to take care of business, collateral damage occurred.

I grabbed the closest chair and tossed it across the information desk, shattering a screen on the wall. The damn thing flickered, and smoke billowed from the back side.

Diesel and Beast tried their best to contain the oncoming catastrophe, but Manning’s deputies hit them from behind while I tore up the lobby. They came at me next, but I was on the wings of rage, and a bad landing was inevitable.

I tossed a deputy through the front windows and sent another into a row of chairs in a waiting area. Manning barked orders to the three deputies entering the lobby from outside. Moments later, everything went black.

“Wake the fuck up, Towles.” The phlegm-filled voice cleared, and I opened my eyes, rubbing the two-inch lump on the back of my head. One of those assholes was going to pay.

“What the fuck is going on?” Handcuffs secured one of my hands to a hospital bed. Zip ties secured both feet. An IV dripped into a line and disappeared at the end of a needle in my hand. A cute nurse, her outfit tight, nipples pointed, watched from the far corner of the room. She smiled, and I smiled back.

“It’s a sedative, asshole,” Manning said. I jerked on the handcuff, and Manning jumped back. “Can we give him more?”

The doctor at the end of the bed shook his head. He was a little man with wire-rimmed glasses and a mousy face that said, “I’m a doctor.” He swallowed hard, scared to fucking death. “We’ve already given him enough for five people. Any more, and it’ll kill him.”

“Do it,” Manning said. “I need to take his big ass down to the morgue so he can ID his parents.” He raised an eyebrow at the doctor. “You want him tearing up the rest of the hospital?”

The doctor called in another nurse, a hot body with a thick ass and big tits. She smiled with full, youthful lips. I noticed a skull tattoo on her hip when her shirt rose as she checked the IV. She’d been on the back of a Harley before. She winked and pretended to inject more sedatives into the line while Manning and the doctor spoke to each other. She “accidentally” rubbed her left ass cheek against my hand as she left the bedside. Bikers had no problem getting pussy. Keeping it was another story.

I’d fucked a nurse or two in the few short years I’d been in Pine Bluff and with the MC. I even fell in love with one. Long work hours and her demanding parents quickly ended that feeling. Her bedside manner had been exemplary.

The second nurse winked before closing the door. I was sorry to see her go.

“Where’s Diesel and Beast?” I prayed they were cuffed in the next room. That wasn’t the case.

“Already pissing in a jail cell. All because you couldn’t keep your shit together. The hospital is still trying to decide whether they’ll press charges.” Manning opened the door, and four deputies came in. After last year’s fundraiser, where the MC raised nearly a hundred grand for the hospital, I doubted I’d have any charges. “This is a peace offering, Towles. I will take you downstairs, let you see your parents, and then let you leave. I’ll release Beast and Diesel this evening.”

“That’s very kind of you, Manning, considering your ass should be out there trying to find out who killed them.” I held up a hand. “Fine.”

One of the deputies removed the zip ties. The man didn’t want to remove the cuff.

“You’re safe,” I said. “If I wanted you hurt, I would’ve done it earlier. Trust me.”

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