Runner

by Evie Mitchell

  "Over fifty."

  "And how many are married?"

  "Ye mean, how many have old ladies?"

  "Sure, whatever." Audrey waved a dismissive hand.

  "Ah, about half."

  Twenty-five-ish men without women.

  "And how many women you got here?"

  He shrugged, "never counted."

  "Thirty-two," a deep voice rumbled from across the table. "We got sixty-seven men here. Twenty-three got women, while nine of the women are sweet butt."

  I twisted, seeing the beautiful man rise, his gaze locked on Audrey.

  "Sweet butt?" Jo asked.

  "Sluts. Club whores," Kate answered.

  "They choose to be. Don't gotta but they choose it."

  "And we ain't complaining!" One guy yelled, chuckles following.

  Jo frowned at the beautiful man. "Audrey, what's that look like for us?"

  "How many are between twenty and forty?" Audrey asked.

  "Thirty-one," the guy answered immediately.

  "In layman's terms it's a one in two point—actually let's just round it up to a one in three chance of partnering for these guys," Audrey said, waving a hand at the room.

  "One in three is better than none," a guy muttered from behind Kate.

  I looked at my sisters, a sinking feeling settling in my gut. "Are we really doing this? Giving ourselves over to men?"

  Audrey tipped her head, her straight, gloriously black hair fell in long sheets over her shoulder. "I should like a man," she said nodding to the room at large. "And these men seem as good as any. I miss sex. Though," she frowned. "If they're sharing women, I would want an STI test before sleeping with anyone. We have enough to worry about without passing syphilis or aids around."

  God grant me the wisdom to get through this.

  Seriously, no filter.

  I looked to Kate, finding her wide eyes fixed on a man in a shadowed corner of the room. He was glowering at her, there was no other word for it. He looked like he was ready to throttle her, so much anger contained in his glare.

  "Kate?" I asked.

  She swallowed, pulling her gaze away from the man. "Thirteen p-p-percent isn't good odds. Even Ava would say th-that."

  I nodded, looking at our final vote, "Jo?"

  She rubbed a hand across her eyes. "I'm in. But I don't speak for my sisters. They'll have to determine what they want. We're an all or nothing package."

  I looked over at Gus, meeting his blue gaze. "Your word, sir, that you'll help us and provide protection. That your men won't hurt my sisters, and that we'll be allowed to assist you by using our knowledge to better us all."

  He pulled a knife free from his belt and cut the skin of his palm. He pressed it to the table, vowing, "on me life."

  The next man took out his own blade, slicing his palm and pressing it to the table declaring, "on my life."

  Around the table it went, each man in the room doing so.

  Jo leaned over, whispering, "is it just me or does this seem highly unhygienic considering the whole 'mutated virus' thing?"

  I couldn't even find it in me to nod or laugh. Uncertainty rolled my stomach, my mouth disturbingly dry. But there was nothing I could do now. We'd sealed our fate, tying ourselves to the men in this room.

  "Right." I pushed to a stand. "We've bioethanol in the trunk for you, and some fresh produce if you'll take it. But I would like to ride tonight." I glanced at my sisters, "I don't want our sisters left unprotected for longer than necessary, and we'll need to get a lot packed to transport here."

  "Ye heard the lady," Gus said, raising to a stand. "Let's ride."

  Chapter Three

  Ellie

  The ride back to the University was far different to the one leaving. For one, we were escorted by no fewer than forty men. Bikes and trucks followed our SUV through the streets, men stopping our parade to clear a path as needed.

  We arrived at the College to Ava standing at the gate, gun at the ready. She looked pale and sweaty and like she should definitely still be in bed.

  "The cavalry has arrived I see," she muttered, raising an eyebrow in question at the moving trucks.

  "The odds are against us. Thirteen percent chance of survival. New information. We need to leave." Audrey reported, wrapping an arm around Ava, and leading her down the path to the building we'd set up as our primary residence.

  "Thirteen?"

  "Mm, let's talk with the others."

  We'd asked the men to wait outside and they were abiding by our wishes, for now. We filled the women in, their expressions ranging from surprise to anger to upset.

  "There's no other way?" Beth clarified, wringing her hands in her apron. Jam stuck to the front in gooey globs.

  "None that are viable at this point," Audrey confirmed.

  "Then we're going," Ava declared, settling the issue. "We'll work things out once we get to the compound, but for now we need to take the essentials. We can come back for more but anything irreplaceable we need to take now."

  "The livestock," Ruby said.

  "And the food stores," Yana agreed.

  "The plants and the green houses."

  "The medication and the testing equipment." Blair added. "And I'll need everything in the lab."

  "Same," I agreed.

  "They have four trucks, plus what we have here. Is that enough?"

  "It'll be noticeable," Ava murmured. "A full contingency of bikers plus our vehicles and the trucks? That's like throwing a thanksgiving parade and expecting no one to care."

  "Do we have a choice?"

  Ava rubbed a hand over her face, looking exhausted. "No. We could stagger but that would be worse. Greater potential for a tail. If we travel fast and hard anyone watching is less likely to have time to organize and follow."

  "So, we go in one hit?" Jo clarified.

  "Yeah," Ava looked around the room. "How much time you need?"

  "Twelve hours," Audrey said from her corner of the room. "That allows time for us to dismantle and carefully pack, as well as hide what needs to be stored until we can return."

  "The animals?" Beth asked.

  "We're taking them. We've got the old animal mover Jo bought with her when she arrived," Lottie said, hands cupped around a mug of steaming tea. "Can you get it working?"

  The thing had been a crumbling rust bucket even before Jo had joined us, animals she'd stolen from their family's farm hollering in the back. It had sat for the last few months unused in an abandoned part of the College.

  "I'll get her working," Jo promised. "But I need someone to help pack the workshop."

  "Can the men assist?" Ruby asked.

  "I'll check," I pushed away from the table, exiting our meeting room to find three men casually leaning against the walls of the hall. One of them was the beautiful man from Church. His patch read Runner, and just above read Treasurer. On the other side of his worn kutte was the Nameless Souls MC logo and name. Below that was their chapter – Adaminaby. "Um, excuse me, Mister Runner?"

  He lifted an eyebrow and the other men beside him sniggered.

  "It's just Runner." His voice sent shivers straight to my core.

  Stop it, Ellie!

  I swallowed, my pulse fluttering at my neck, my gaze dropping to his biceps; a tattooed snake wrapped around one arm, the other was covered in something that I couldn't quite make out from this distance.

  "Are your guys okay to help us pack or do we need to factor in additional time?"

  "How much you need?"

  "Without you? Twelve hours."

  "Fuck off," he barked. "You have one."

  I sucked in a breath. "Excuse me?"

  "Ain't sticking around here waiting for Purge idiots to come try their luck. You have an hour."

  "If you guys help us then we need at least six," I ballparked, hoping Audrey would forgive me.

  "One," he replied.

  "Please, just to get the labs disassembled and properly packed is going to take at least two hours. Please, Mr
. Runner—"

  "Just Runner," he interrupted, his wide mouth flattening in displeasure.

  "Right, Runner, Sorry." I looked down, sucking in a deep breath to compose myself. "Look, if you help, we could maybe make four hours work. At a push. But we'd likely need to hide stuff and come back for it later."

  I looked up, trying not to beg but knowing I was likely failing. "We just need your assistance, please."

  He considered me for a long moment. His hair was in desperate need of a cut, the length curling at his ears and brushing his forehead. His beard was grown but not out of control. It gave him a wild, untamed look.

  "Three." Runner finally declared. "You can have twenty guys." He looked over at one of the other men in the hall, this one had a patch that read Soldier and a name that said Pope. "Help her, set 'em to work. Prioritize the fuel. I got shit to do."

  He turned on his heel and walked down the hall, leaving me with Pope and another man. The second guy was younger and had no name just a patch that read prospect.

  Unless Prospect is his name?

  "You heard him," Pope interrupted my musing. "Where you want us to start?"

  "The labs and infirmary are our priorities. But if we can get someone to help with the stores and –"

  "Swift, go round up some of the boys," Pope interrupted.

  Swift, not Prospect. What the hell is a prospect then? Is this like some kind of hazing ritual?

  The second guy headed out.

  "Follow me," I sighed, leading him back into the room. Inside, the women had used the whiteboards to prioritize our schedule.

  "We've got three hours," I said glumly. "But at least we have some help."

  "Three isn't enough time!" Yana cried, slapping a palm on the table.

  "We'll make it work," Ava looked to Audrey. "Tell me how we can make this work."

  Audrey narrowed her eyes at the board, and I marvelled once again at her brain. She rattled out a new plan and we all agreed.

  "That it?" Pope asked, his blonde hair falling across his eyes.

  We nodded and he tossed his head back, flashing a grin at Beth. "You need some help, gorgeous?"

  "Uh-uh. No way, Bucko. You can come with me," Jo told him, grabbing his arm, and dragging him out the door. "That one is off limits to you."

  He flashed Beth a wink over his shoulder, her cheeks immediately flushing. "We'll see."

  "We good?" I asked the room at large.

  "Yep, let's do it."

  We hurried to our respective areas, men finding us. I demonstrated how to clean and pack my equipment into the containers that were stored in each room. We'd prepared for an emergency before. I winced watching them handle my delicate glasses, the beakers beautiful but breakable. Glass was incredibly hard to find in the after.

  "You done?" Runner asked from the door hours later. He'd been checking in throughout the last few hours, making sure the packing was progressing and no one was fucking around.

  I looked up from where I was placing the final few items into my container. A quick glance showed a stripped room but for some final beakers. The men who had helped me were surprisingly efficient. I'd sent them off to load my containers.

  "Umm, actually yes. This is the last box." I gestured at the glassware on the final shelf. "Just these to go."

  He came in, reaching for a glass and watching as I carefully rolled it in newspaper, mimicking my movements.

  He felt larger than life in this room. Taking up the space in a way I found both intimidating and intriguing.

  "What's a prospect?"

  He glanced, up, a small smile playing at his mouth. "Think of it like a probation period. You don't become a patched member until you prove yourself."

  I tilted my head to the side, hands rolling the glass in the paper. "Patched member?"

  He paused, tapping the logo on his chest, and jerked a thumb towards his back. "A full member of the club. It requires you to prove yourself. Prove your loyalty to the club. You're gonna be our brother we gotta know you can be counted on to have our backs."

  I nodded, my hands moving once more. "So, you get the logo when you're voted in?"

  He shook his head, "shit girl, don't ever call it a logo around the brothers."

  I blinked. "Sorry, I didn't mean to offend. What's it called"

  "Call it a patch. Or if you need to, an emblem or symbol. Logos are what products slap on a brand so someone will buy their shit." He paid a hand over the patch on his chest. "This? Any one of these men would lay down their lives to protect this club. It's more than something someone's slapped together in five minutes."

  I nodded. There was a strange beauty in that sentiment. Both tragic and wonderous.

  "That's… beautiful. Thank you for sharing."

  He glanced up, his hands halting on the paper. He watched me for a moment then nodded. "You got any more questions, you come to me, Blondie. Or Kate. We'll keep you outta hot water."

  I nodded again, my gaze dropping to my hands, both of us working in the easy quiet to finish.

  "My name's Ellison, by the way." I told him, reaching for the final beaker. "Most people call me Ellie."

  He looked at me, his face unreadable. "You done?"

  I looked around. Everything of use had been stripped from the lab, leaving only bare walls and tables.

  "Yeah."

  "Great," he waited for me to close the lid before he lifted it. "Your friends done?"

  I shrugged, "not sure."

  "Better be, don't like this. This place ain't safe."

  I fell in beside him, reaching absently for a stray text book by the door, wrapping my arms around it, holding it close to my chest. Probably useless in the grand scheme of things, but the familiarity of paper and the heavy weight of it in my arms felt reassuring.

  "It's been safe for nine months. Ava made sure of that."

  He snorted, dismissive arrogance rolling off him in waves. "That woman's the only decent fighter among you. Anyone can see that you got lucky."

  I bit my tongue, choosing not to argue. We made it out to the trucks, a cacophony of sound and movement as we finalized our preparations.

  Kate pulled a cart down the walk, the man who'd watched her in the meeting shadowed her steps, his arms equally full.

  "Books!" She cried, looking frantic. "I got what I could. What I thought would be most useful and some fiction but –"

  "Just load them," Ava said looking worse than she had earlier in the evening. "But hurry, we need to go."

  We loaded the last few items, Beth, Ruby and Lottie moving the cattle onto the truck.

  "We ready?" I asked, looking around.

  All nods.

  We took a second, saying silent farewells to our home.

  "Time to go," Ava finally said, turning to make her way to the SUV.

  I went to follow but Runner took my arm, pulling me with him.

  "On my bike," he said.

  I blinked, "excuse me?"

  "No room," he nodded at the trucks and vehicles. "Some of you gotta ride."

  "You got a helmet?"

  He sniggered, "no, but don't worry, sweetheart. I'll take good care of that cute butt."

  Chapter Four

  Runner

  The curvy blonde clung to me as we rode through the silent streets, the only sound the rumble of the trucks and the echoing roar of the bikes.

  As we hit the open road, leaving the outskirts of the abandoned coastal town, I opened her up. We'd been conserving fuel for months, but with this woman's biofuel in her tank, my baby was ready to roar.

  Ellie sat behind me, huddling closer, her breasts pushing into my back, her arms locking tighter around my stomach.

  I tried to ignore the hard-on pressing against my zipper.

  Concentrate on the ride, not on who you want to ride.

  Easier said than done. I couldn't ignore the fact this woman was the first to be on the back of my bike.

  But that changes today.

  My ride rumbled under me, the b
eautiful sound another reminder of the wonders of the woman currently death-gripping my stomach.

  I slowed slightly, shifting to a cruise as around me, my brothers did the same, falling into line, shooting each other grins even while we kept watch for dangers lurking in the dark.

  Eleven women, a boon. But the one behind me, the woman who could conjure was a fucking miracle.

  She'll be in demand.

  I knew that. She had a curvy body and full lips that looked infinitely fuckable. But couple that with her knowledge? The brothers would want her. All of them. Didn't matter if she was frigid, they'd take her to get their hands on her knowledge.

  The dirt turn-off to the compound came up, and a third of our party peeled off, following the road.

  "Where are we going?" Blondie called from behind me, her words snatched away by the wind.

  "Gotta make sure we don't got a tail," I called back. She shivered, burrowing back into me and I took a moment to appreciate her braless state.

  Underwear was hard to come by in the after.

  Thank fuck.

  We rumbled down the backroads, curving through the thick woodland until we reached another milestone marker. The second group turned off, disappearing into the thick trees.

  Blondie's arms twitched around my stomach.

  Scared, Baby Girl? You should be.

  Finally, I pulled off, following the last of our pack as we travelled down the dirt road, our bikes roaring through the quiet night. Not exactly subtle, but we'd be hard to follow.

  We entered the east wing of the compound, the prospects holding the gate open and waving us through. I drove straight to the bunk house, ignoring the main gathering over at headquarters.

  I wanted this hot piece off my bike and in my bed. Now.

  I kicked out the stand, expertly parking my ride then patting Blondie's knee. "Off, Baby Girl."

  She hopped off, her legs a little unsteady as she stumbled away.

  I grinned, anticipation heating my blood as I reached for her, settling hands on either side of her ample hips. "Careful, Blondie. Don't want to hurt that pretty butt."

  She flushed, looking off towards headquarters where the other women were gathering, directing the unloading of cattle, calling for assistance, protesting arrangements, and generally making a raucous.