Page 24 of S is for SEX

Frantically, I searched the line for Brad and saw no one I recognized. My eyes darted from one side to the other and back. Again, nothing.

I began to sob at the thought of not reacting quick enough. Not knowing where to find Brad, and of Bradley not making it. His heart was weak, and I knew it.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Crip.

He was standing with some men I didn’t recognize, and he was laughing.

I ran to his side. Tears were streaming down my cheeks. Embarrassed, I wiped them on my biceps. He glanced over his shoulder, noticed me, and went right back to talking.

I tapped him on the arm.

“Just a minute.”

I cleared my throat. “I don’t have a minute. Pee Bee’s father had a heart attack. He’s at Scripps Mercy. His mother just called.” I paused, swallowed hard, and gulped a breath. “And, I can’t find him.”

“Bamma, Blake,” he said to the two men he was talking to. “Keep an eye on her. Don’t let her move an inch.”

“Got it Crip,” the bigger of the two said.

I felt incapable. Weak. Small. I was surrounded by men I didn’t know, and the one man I had allowed myself to love was in the hospital.

“Your Old Man’s Pop’s in the hospital, huh?” Bamma asked.

I fought not to burst into tears, and nodded.

“Who’s your Old Man?”

He was as big as Brad, but looked much meaner. Covered in shitty tattoos, and wearing a foot-long beard, he looked like an old-school biker. I noticed his kutte had the letters AFFA on the front, and wondered what it meant. I swallowed heavily. “Pee Bee.”

“Pee Bee’s good people.” He reached out, wrapped his arm round me, and hugged me. “We’ll get him found, don’t worry.”

I had no idea who he was, but that moment, he was all I had.

In a few seconds, Brad and Crip came running up to me.

Brad was frantic. “What happened?”

“Your dad. Heart attack. We need to go. He’s in an ambulance.”

He turned toward Crip. “Gotta go, Boss.”

Crip nodded. “Take escorts, you ain’t going alone.”

“Will do.” He glanced at me, and then looked at Crip. “Boss, I’m gonna be haulin’ ass. She should probably get a ride back with someone.”

“Excuse me?” I snapped.

He looked at me. “I’m going to be going as fast as that sled’ll go. If we wreck, it’s all over.”

“Then it’ll be all over for both of us. I’m going.”

The man who hugged me looked at Brad. “Need escorts?”

Pee Bee nodded. “Yeah, but it’s gotta be quick. We need to get now.”

“People see our colors, they move the fuck over,” the man said. “We’ll get you there in one piece.”

My heart swelled.

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