by Brook Wilder
“What should we do?” I asked as we sipped coffee at my tiny kitchen table.
“Honestly, I’m not sure,” Emmett replied. “Part of me says hide here until this whole thing blows over, but it also wouldn’t be a terrible idea to get some money and supplies and get out of town.”
“I’m going to vote for the out of town part,” I said. Some of the fog of the morning was lifting, thanks to the coffee and plans were starting to form in my mind. “Unless we want to be under house arrest, it’s only a matter of time before the wrong person spots us. We are supposed to be dead, after all.”
“Good point. We'll need a few things before we take off, though. How much money do you think you can get your hands on?”
“A couple thousand, but that’s only if I can get to the bank.”
"I have some cash in savings, but most of it’s in my trailer.”
“I don’t know if we can risk going over there,” I said hesitantly. “That’s like wandering right into the hornet's nest.”
Just as Emmett had opened his mouth to respond, a roar of engines interrupted him. Fear made my throat clench as I jumped to the worst conclusion. We both dashed to the window to see a horde of bikers cruising down the street toward my apartment. I spotted Wendell at the front along with a couple other faces I recognized from Knox’s trailer. I calmed a little when they didn’t slow down and eventually passed my apartment. It wasn’t until they disappeared over the horizon that I turned to Emmett.
“Where do you think they're going?” I asked.
“I’m not sure, but that was a good chunk of the membership,” he replied. “But if we had any chance of going to my place, now's the best time.”
“But what if someone spots us?” I asked, my voice shrill with fear. “You said ‘a good chunk’, that doesn’t sound like the complex will be deserted.”
“If someone does see us, it’ll take hours for the word to get to Wendell. I'm guessing from the way the bikes were loaded that they're planning on being out for most of the day.”
“I don’t know if I like this plan…”
“It’s the only one I’ve got, Liv,” Emmett snapped. “You said it yourself, we’re sitting ducks in your apartment. Unless I can get back to my place and grab my cash and some weapons, we won’t stand a chance no matter where we run.”
“Fine," I said. Let’s go.”
We finished getting ready quickly, both throwing on whatever means of disguise I could find in my place. Once we both had our hair tucked into baseball hats pulled low over large sunglasses, we scurried out the front door of my apartment. After a minute of arguing, we opted to take my truck out to his place. It would offer us the most protection driving through town, and while the bikers knew I had a black truck, Emmett’s bike would be much more recognizable.
“We’re taking my bike when we leave,” he grumbled as my truck lurched and threatened to stall.
“Should we try getting it on the way back from your place?” I asked. I didn’t need to argue as he had a valid point. My truck was unreliable and, knowing my luck, it would die the second we decided to leave.
“Yeah,” he replied. “I’m betting that it’s parked in the club’s communal lot at the edge of our complex. It’ll be guarded, but with most everyone out on a ride, I’ll have a slightly easier time breaking in.”
I ignored the uneasy feeling in my stomach as we approached the dirt road that led to Emmett’s trailer. It was finally hitting me how stupid this whole plan was. We were supposed to be dead at the hands of the Martyrs and here we were, potentially blowing our cover by driving right into the center of their territory. It was too late to turn back now, though, and I said a silent and continuous prayer that now one would notice us.
“Cut the engine and park here,” Emmett said, pointing to an outcropping of rock that sat about half a mile from the first of the Martyr’s buildings. “We can walk the rest of the way.”
I did so, cruising the truck into what I hoped was a good hiding spot. We climbed out silently and started walking down the dusty road. I suddenly felt very exposed and every cell in my body was screaming at me to turn around. A thousand different thoughts were buzzing around in my brain. Why was I still with Emmett, anyway? Wouldn’t it be better for both of us to split up? Hell, I could easily just run by the bank and be on a greyhound out to my parent's house. The distance and the fact that I was technically dead would make it that much harder for them to find me. Sure, that would leave Emmett alone, but he was a big boy who could definitely handle himself. He’s the one who had gotten me into this mess in the first place. My blood was starting to boil as I stared ahead. Deep down I knew why I was still here by Emmett’s side, why I hadn’t bailed on him yet. Was I right to love this man? This tough guy who had dragged me into this quagmire?
I pushed the thoughts out of my mind and tried to focus on the present as we finally stepped past the first building. For right now, I had to focus on staying unnoticed until Emmett had what we needed to get out of Black Rock. As we passed each building and trailer, I noticed that, unlike the last two times I visited, there were no eyes spying on me from parted curtains. The place seemed truly deserted, though we did have to quickly duck behind a tree to avoid a lone guy cruising down the street on a motorcycle.
When we finally made it to Emmett’s trailer, my panic only doubled. Instead of the tidy double wide, a smouldering heap sat before us. It looked as if the Martyrs had burned the place down sometime last night.
“Shit,” Emmett breathed as we looked at the wreckage. The Martyrs had been thorough, making sure everything was completely turned to ash. All was not lost, though. A small safe sat surrounded by blackened siding and Emmett was able to get it open. There was a handgun inside along with Emmett’s cash.
“Well, at least this wasn’t a total waste,” I said as we picked our way out of the wreckage.
Emmett grunted in reply and we began another silent and thankfully uneventful journey back to my truck. Once we hopped back in, I let out a breath that I’d been holding since we left my apartment. Instead of directing me back toward town, though, Emmett pointed down the dirt road ahead of us.
“The communal lot is up there,” he said. “Let’s drive up slow and see if there’s even anyone there.”
I drove on, slowing down to a crawl when a chain link fence topped with razor wire came into view. It looked as if there was one guard on duty at the entrance. Emmett motioned for me to stay where I was and hopped out of the car, taking one of my floor mats with him. He was down to the fence in a flash and used the mat to cover the razor wire as he climbed over. Once he was in, he snuck up behind the guard and used the handgun to knock him out. After that, he found his bike and was soon roaring up the road toward me.
He motioned for me to follow as he approached my truck. When we got back on the highway, he surprised me by turning away from the direction of my apartment and, instead, led me around the edge of the town to a row of ramshackle housing projects. I stopped when he did, pulling my truck to the curb behind his bike.
“Where the hell are we?” I ask after I’d climbed out of the truck.
“This is Charles’ place,” he said, pointing to a dingy looking apartment. “We can lay low here for a bit while we figure things out.”
“What’s wrong with my apartment?” I asked, irritation creeping into my voice. “And what about stopping by the bank?”
“We have plenty of money,” he said impatiently. “I also realized as we were walking back from the complex that the Martyrs probably got your address when they hit Jon’s firm. We wouldn’t be safe there. In fact, I’m willing to bet that anyone who wasn’t riding out with Wendell was told to hit your place.”
Logically, he was right and I couldn’t deny that. What was really grinding on me, though, was the way he was starting to call all the shots without talking with me first.
“Whatever,” I mumbled as I followed him up to Charles’ front door. “Wait a second, why doesn’t he live i
n the same complex you do? I thought all the Martyrs lived together.”
“There are a couple brothers that live off property,” Emmett said as he knocked. “We’re certainly not required to all live in the complex, most just choose to for the convenience.”
The door suddenly opened and Charles poked his head out. When he saw it was us, he shoved the door opened wider and quickly latched it behind us the second we stepped in the door.
“Thanks for taking us in, Charles,” Emmett said as the men shook hands. “I know you’re risking a lot for us.”
“No problem, brother,” Charles said. “It’s only a one bedroom place, so we’ll be a bit crowded, but I figured you two weren’t planning on being here long.”
“No, but thank you for having us,” I said.
Charles took a second to get us set up in the living room before leaving us alone in his house. He thankfully had a sleeper sofa so we wouldn’t be sleeping on the floor. Once we were as settled as we could get, I pulled out my phone to make a quick call to the hospital to check on Jon.
“St. Mary’s Hospital, how can I help you?” a chipper voice asked.
“Hello! I was calling to check up on a patient, Jon Fulbright. I just want to know how he’s doing.”
“Of course, let me put you on hold for a second,” she said. I listened to the awful elevator music for a few minutes before a click told me she’d returned. “Ma’am, I’m so sorry, but Mr. Fulbright passed away this morning.”
The world started to spin around me as I realized the meaning of her words. Jon was dead. All because of me. It was too much to process.
“Ma’am?” the voice asked and I realized I’d been silent for too long.
“Sorry, that wasn’t really the news I was expecting. Thank you,” I said before I hung up. I put my phone next to me on the couch seconds before a waterfall of tears started pouring down my face.
“What’s wrong?” Emmett said.
“Jon’s… dead…” I replied as sobs racked my body.
I shoved Emmett away when he tried to place a comforting hand on my back. The logical part of me knew he was only trying to help, but I truthfully wanted nothing to do with him at the moment. I just sat there and cried, alone in my grief.
Chapter 26
Eventually, I stopped crying but the overwhelming feeling of loss stayed with me through the afternoon. Jon and I had known each other for such a short amount of time, but the sadness I felt for his death made it seem like I had known him my entire life. Emmett and I barely spoke five words to each other, and I think he was catching on to the fact that part of me blamed him not only for Jon’s death but for this mess we were now stuck in. I knew we should talk it through, but instead, we sat on the couch and tried to distract ourselves with the television. I just didn’t have the emotional strength right now to hash anything out and I knew the conversation would only devolve into petty insults.
We killed time the best we could for the rest of the day and scrounged up meals from the meager supply in Charles’ kitchen. As we ate frozen burritos for dinner, I wondered how long we were planning on staying here. If it was going to be more than a few days, someone would need to make a run to the grocery store. The sky was growing dark when Charles returned, and the worried look on his face told me none of what he was about to tell us was good. I braced myself for the worst, though I was unsure of what that could be at this point.
“Emmett, Olivia,” he said. “Things have taken a bit of a turn, you should probably sit down for this.”
He paused and looked like he was carefully trying to find his words. I wondered what could possibly have gone wrong now. It was like the whole universe was set against us now rather than a group of bloodthirsty bikers.
“Knox might be dead,” he continued with an uneasy voice.
I gasped in surprise but Emmett remained stoic. I didn’t want to assume the worst, but after learning about Jon’s death, it was almost impossible not to.
“What do you mean, might?” I asked.
“All I have to work with is what the Martyrs found out today on their ride. I wasn’t actually there for any of this, so I got the news second hand from a couple of brothers. Some of the details might be a bit fuzzy.”
“Go on,” Emmett said. Charles took a deep breath before continuing.
“Wendell took a most of the brothers out with him today to look for Knox,” he said. “As far as I know, they didn’t mean to hurt him or anything, Wendell just wanted to bring him in before he did anything stupid. They scanned the highways for hours and were about to give up when they spotted what looked like Knox’s bike by the side of the road. It looked like he had swerved to avoid something and had fallen off the bike. There was a big patch of blood on the shoulder with footprints and a blood trail that led off the highway, out into the desert. The guys followed them as far as they could but they had to turn back once it was dark. Personally, I won’t believe he’s really dead until I see a body, and I think most of the membership thinks the same way. Unfortunately, Wendell doesn’t see it like that and is now convinced that Knox is dead.”
“What does that mean for us?” Emmett asked. His face was a blank, unreadable mask and I had a hard time telling what was going on in his mind.
“You know as well as I do that Knox was the golden child to Wendell, so, naturally, he won’t stop until Knox’s ‘death’ is avenged. I don’t know exactly what he’s thinking, but given the events of the last few days, I wouldn’t put it past Wendell to come up with some story that puts the blame on you two.”
“Ok,” I said slowly, trying to work through the possibilities in my mind, “we’ll definitely have to be careful to stay hidden, but to Wendell, we’re dead. Jon is too, now. Surely that removes any avenging abilities.”
Charles said nothing, only looking toward Emmett with a look of regret.
“He can still go after Lizzy,” Emmett said quietly. “It doesn’t matter that we’re dead, he’ll go after everyone we know and love until he’s satisfied.”
With that, Emmett stood suddenly and strode over to the kitchen table, his face now set in determined lines. He picked up his jacket and the gun, and silently started toward the door. Charles and I stared at him in confusion as he walked out into the night. Just as he closed the door behind him, I jumped up from the couch and followed him outside.
“What the hell are you doing?” I asked as he straddled his bike.
“I’m going to find Knox,” He said, his gaze pointedly focused on the dials of his bike. “I need to know that my brother’s alive, and he might have some ideas on how to get Wendell to back off.”
“Let me get my coat then,” I said as I turned back to the house.
“You’re not coming with me, Liv,” he said. I stopped in my tracks and whipped back around.
“Excuse me?”
“I’m going to find Knox alone,” he said, his voice slowly rising in volume. “It’ll be easier that way.”
“What, so I’m dead weight now?” I said. My temper was flaring up high with every second.
“No, Liv, not at all,” he said with a sigh. “I just don’t think I could stand seeing you get hurt, not with all the damage and loss that’s happened already.”
“Oh, so now you’re mister white knight all of a sudden?” I asked. “Where was that philosophy today when you dragged me into the middle of enemy territory?”
“That was before…” he started.
“Before what?” I was practically yelling by now. Charles was at the door, calmly calling to me to try and get me back inside, but I was dead set on finishing this conversation.
“Before Jon died!” Emmett yelled back. “Before I knew how much danger Lizzy was in. I need to keep you safe, Liv, and staying here is the only way. You can yell all you want, but I’m not backing down. I’m the one who got us into this mess, and I’m the only one who can get us out safely.”
I tried to form a counter argument, but my voice was drowned out by the roar of Emmett
’s bike engine. He sped out of the driveway and down the road without looking back once, and I stood there gaping after him, my mouth hanging open. I didn’t move until I realized Charles was beside me and tugging on my arm.
“Olivia, we need to get back inside,” he hissed. “I know you’re pissed off, but the Martyrs have eyes everywhere. I’ll be surprised as hell if no one heard you two yelling your heads off.”
I shut my mouth and darted back inside with Charles following close at my heels. He didn’t say another word to me and, instead, started pulling all the blinds closed around the apartment. I sat back down on the couch, curling my feet up under me. Emmett was right in a way. I would probably be safest here, hiding behind closed doors and curtains. Besides, what would I offer him out there? I was just some stuck up, Ivy League lawyer who knew nothing about fighting or self-defense.
