Page 65 of His Road Dog

Chapter 26

Priest

––––––––

PACO PUSHED INSIDEthe meeting room at the clubhouse. "Got it, Prez."

Priest took the map from him and spread it out on the table. "Tell me what I'm seeing."

"The X is where you left Nicole. I've put a circle around the area where you said she could've gone." Paco pointed his finger on the paper.

"Right. Twenty minutes," he mumbled, studying the area.

Nicole had told him she'd only be driving alone for twenty minutes when she'd left him standing in the gravel parking spot next to the freeway.

The map would allow him to narrow an area where she could be staying with her parents. Hell, if he had to, he'd ask all around the nearest town where he could find the nearest commune. It couldn't be that fucking common to have a bunch of hippies living together nowadays that someone couldn't point him in the right direction. California was steaming with hippies left over for the sixties and seventies, but most of the granola crunchers had moved away from living in communes and hanging out in the desert.

Nicole was in Northern California. Somewhere within the circle.

"What about the town here." Paco slid his finger on the map. "It's a small place. The census shows a little over twelve hundred people live there."

"No, she doesn't live there." He mulled over the reasons why he was confident of his answer.

Nicole had told him the locals would make fun of those living on the commune. It was a gut feeling that her life hadn't blended with others, that she kept sheltered with her own kind and hadn't lived in the town.

He tapped the map. "What about this area? You have it marked off, and it's within the radius."

"That's state land. A forestry area open to the public. Nobody lives there," said Paco.

He looked up. He'd gone past the area before. It was dense woodlands, towering trees, greenness, and vast amounts of land, ungoverned by the state.

"That's where she's at." Filled with adrenaline, he folded the map. "I'm riding out in two hours. Give me six riders who want some road time. I'll be gone anywhere from four to six days. Curley is in charge until I get back."

It would take him two days of hard and fast travel to reach Northern California. He shoved the map in his vest pocket.

"Make sure the crew that goes with me doesn't have any warrants or will break probation by leaving the state. We need to make a clean trip." He left the room, knowing the Tarkio members would do what he ordered.

Bolstered with hope he could find Nicole, he went outside and started his Harley. All he needed to do was go home and pack.

The first week after Nicole had left, he'd given up hope that she'd call and ask if it was safe to come back. Knowing her, she was probably enjoying her time with her parents and hanging out with the community she called family. Hell, she probably decided it was safer to live on the commune—and she wasn't wrong.

But he could keep her safe. Safer than any hippy cult without adequate weapons and all their free-love attitude.

By the time he arrived home, the urge to get to Nicole had him hustling to pack. For a woman like Nicole, who needed attention and craved pleasure, some man had probably already tried to wiggle his way into her life, the way Roy had.

He shoved the spare rounds of ammo in his duffle. Not knowing what he'd face once he arrived, he wanted to go prepared for anything. The territory where Nicole was located was covered by Lagsturns Motorcycle Club. He'd dealt with them before.

If he were found riding in Northern California by a member of Lagsturns, he'd be taken to a location to face their president. That's if they let him live without shooting him on sight.

Whatever happened, he'd have a Tarkio crew with him, and Lagsturns MC better think twice before starting something they were unprepared to finish. Tarkio members lived their life ready for war.

He carried his bag through the house. The phone rang as he entered the entryway. He dropped his duffle and strode to the kitchen in the hope it was Nicole finally calling him.

He picked the receiver off the phone on the wall. "Yeah?"

"Crews ready. What kind of cover are you expecting per member?" asked Curley.

"At least three pieces, three rounds. Who's coming?" He wanted everyone armed.

"Shifter, Chrischris, Palmer, North, and Rio. I told Roddy to mount up, figuring you'd want someone that knew what you were planning to do before you spoke. Everyone is out filling their tanks now."

"I'm heading that way myself. I'll be at the clubhouse in a half hour. Gather everyone around. I'll speak to them before I go." He hung up.

Checking his wallet, he thumbed through the bills, checking how much money he had to cover everyone's gas and food for the trip. He needed to make sure there was enough for Nicole. She'd need to drive the car back. The ride was too long for her to sit on the back of his Harley.

Anxious to set his eyes on her, he left the house. It was time to roll.

---