Page 55 of Bounty
“Who are you?” Saw asked my brother. “Portion?”
“Segment?” Ziggy supplied. “Half? Cake? Pie? Pizza?”
“All right, fuckheads,” Cash said, joining in the laughter. “That’s his twin. Drifter.”
Another concession. Formal introductions.
Once we all bumped fists, Cash brought Saw and Ziggy up to speed on the video and that last call with Stretch. It was well past Cash’s allotted three hours and there’d not been another update. I’m not sure what I would’ve done had I remained alone outside.
But the distraction only lasted so long. The lull in conversation brought my helplessness and desperation back. I just wanted to know Effie was alive. I wanted to look into her eyes again and tell her…tell her that I loved her.
“Hold your shit together, Slice,” Cash said.
“Give me my fucking keys so I can search for her myself.”
In the distance, the unmistakable sound of Harleys broke the stillness of the morning.
“No. I’ll give you the keys when it’s time to leave,” Cash said. “You’ll get you and her killed. You want a chance at your happily-ever-after with babies and puppy dogs, you’re doing this my way.”
“There’ll be no HEA for her and me. I can’t live a double life. I’ll always be a biker. Riker will send me on missions that endanger me. If we’re together, she’s in danger, too.”
“Then Riker must want you dead,” Cash said.
Drifter stiffened. “That’smyPrez.”
“Don’t give a fuck. Just like Slice can be Bugs Bunny for all I care, Riker could be your little old granny. Why the fuck would he order you to steal another club’s drugs without the resources to fix that shit when it goes sideways? Theft of that magnitude takes months of fucking planning and strategizing so your identity will remain unknown, you stupid motherfucker.”
“I didn’t steal! I intercepted.”
“No, you fucked up,” Cash barked. “Call it what the fuck it is.”
“Riker wanted the drugs for an infusion of money,” Drifter said. “It was to benefit our entire organization.”
“It’s baby steps, fuckhead. Two hundred fifty grand worth of narcotics with a fucking street value ten times that amount? All you motherfuckers are insane.”
Saw and Ziggy nodded in agreement.
The roar of bikes drowned out any more conversation. Long before I became a biker, I loved motorcycles. Nothing like such a powerful machine vibrating between my thighs as I ate up the miles. And this show of force was the type of drama Drifter and I imagined when we’d first joined Red Rum.
Stretch dismounted from his bike, walked up to us, and greeted Saw and Ziggy. Once he introduced himself to Drifter, he looked at Cash.
“Well?”
“I have her location, Cash,” Stretch confirmed. “It isn’t far from the hotel.”
So it wasn’t far from the club.
“Drifter, let Striker know we’re heading out,” Cash said. “Ziggy, Saw, you let anything happen to Fee and I’ll gut you.”
“That’s Outlaw’s sister and John Boy’s cousin,” Saw said. “We don’t want to disappoint any of you.”
Ziggy nodded. “Yeah, we value our lives too much.”
“Striker isn’t coming?” I asked.
“Nope.” Cash dug into his pocket. “Don’t want him with me. He’s casting blame for bringing attention to his quiet club. Let his quiet fucking ass stay here and help to protect Fee, Daria, and your club girls.” He nodded to his brothers. “We got this.”
He tossed my keys to me. I caught them on reflex.
