Page 70 of Final Ride

“Casey,” said Travis. He was lying in a pool of bloody gravel on the side of the highway. “Hey, Blacky.”

“Jesus Christ, Travis. This is one fucking mess.”

Travis smiled. “Virgie is my designated shooter.”

“Nice job, Virge,” said Blacky.

“Thanks. Those fuckers were bent on killing my Dad.”

Blacky grinned. “They have been for a while now. This was a pretty close one, by the looks of it.”

The ambulance came next, and the paramedics loaded Travis and took him and Corb to the hospital. I was glad Corb was gone with Dad because he was close to puking or crying or some of both. Don’t think the kid was used to being deputy sheriff’s like me and Harlan were.

Ranger Blackmore was nice and so was Casey, his brother—looked like his brother. I told them what happened, and they didn’t seem surprised.

“The Breed knows Travis is back in Texas,” said Casey. “This won’t be the end of it.”

“They hate him from when he was Dale Burden,” I said.

“Yep. The club has a long memory,” said Ranger Blackmore. “They’ll make an effort every now and again to settle the score.”

“Think that’s enough for now?” I asked.

Blaine shook his long black hair. “Doubt it.”

“Shit,” said Virge. “Now they’ll be pissed at me.”

Smithville General Hospital.

The GPS found the hospital for me, then inside I was on my own to find Travis. He was in one of the emergency treatment rooms being sewn up and the nurse with him sent me to the waiting area.

Corb was curled up in a chair in the corner looking scared and pale. I sat down next to him and pulled out my wallet. “I checked on Dad and the doc is sewing him up. You want a Coke and a candy bar?”

“I could use a drink.”

I gave him five bucks and sent him off in search of a vending machine. “Don’t get lost. I’ll be right here waiting for you. I have to call Harlan and let him know about Travis.”

“Okay. I’ll be right back.”

Harlan answered on the first ring and snapped at me. “Why the hell aren’t you and Dad back yet?”

“Them Black Breed assholes caught us on the highway and I’m at the hospital in Smithville—wherever the hell that is—and a doctor is sewing Dad up. Had to wait for the Rangers n’all to come for the guys I had to shoot.”

“Jesus H., Virgil. I want to hear every fuckin’ detail. Why did I have to miss that?”

“Soon as they let Dad go, we’ll be home. Corb is getting us Cokes out of a machine, but he was kind of shaken up and scared shitless.”

“Okay. Waiting for you on the porch.”

“Copy that.”

Trauma Unit. Watertown. New York.

On one of her frequent trips to the bathroom, Tammy wandered out the door of her room and slipped unnoticed into the room next door.

Two women were sleeping or unconscious and they were almost completely covered by blankets. Tammy couldn’t see their bodies to gauge what size they wore.

She opened the closet and grabbed the first bag she saw. Walked a few steps down the corridor and went into the ladies’ room.

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