by Kara Hart
“Well aren’t you just a regular old badass.” she sighed. And then the rage built inside of her like I knew it would. “You know what? I’d like for you to just be on my side for once. Is that too much to ask for? It’s like ever since we met, things have gone completely wrong. Can you just shut up and be nice for once?”
“Me? What about you? I don’t know what planet you’ve been on, but I kind of saved your life back there. I think you owe me an apology and a thank you.” I said, taking in a long, hard drag. “Listen, honey, and listen good. Death is all around us. You ain’t special just ‘cause it finally caught up to one of your own.” In the near distance was the hospital where Johnny was being taken care of. Sure, he was my best friend. But I wasn’t about to cry like a little girl about it.
“Fine. I guess we can agree to disagree then. Give me that.” She reached and grabbed my cigarette, tossing it out the window.
“Hey! What the hell?” I hit the steering wheel out of frustration. If I could just get this broad off my back, everything would be fine. Because right now, it felt like she was the start to all my problems.
“Finally. We’re here.” she said, looking back at Ralphie’s dead body. “Why the hell did you pick him up? There are cops everywhere.”
“Part of the plan. You know how you said I’m never on your side? Well here’s one time I am.” I stepped out of the truck, making sure his body was on the floor and covered with a large blanket I found in the back.
“What do you mean?” she asked me.
“This is the man who shot Johnny. For now, Don the commando chief, or whatever he wants to call himself, doesn’t exist. We can’t let him know about that just yet. If he were to find out, he’d kill you right in that hospital. So I’m going to need you to play along. Got it?”
“You’d do that for me? After everything I said?” she asked in disbelief.
“I’m not just a bad guy, Jackie. If you catch me in the right light, you can see just how good I really am.” I winked, knowing full well I was as bad as they came. Well, almost. From what I could tell, that Don character wasn’t so nice either.
We made our way into the hospital, walking past the checkout area with haste. A nurse working yelled at us, “Excuse me! You have to check in!”
“Piss off.” I said, pushing past the emergency room doors. “We’re here for Johnny.”
When Bruce saw us, his face lit up. “Rust! There you are, dammit. The whole gang is here. Come on, sit down.”
I ignored him, looking in each room for Johnny. “Where is he? Where’s Johnny?” I asked. “Bruce, where the hell is he?”
“Settle down, brother. He’s in that room over there. Doctors are doing an emergency surgery as we speak.” He grabbed at his cigarette pack and sighed. “Always forget you can’t smoke these things in here.”
“How’s he doing?” Jackie interjected, looking concerned as ever.
“My guess is that you’re Lane’s daughter?” he asked, barely even facing her.
“I was Lane’s daughter. He passed not too long ago.”
Bruce finally gave her some respect and looked her in the eye. “Shit. Lane too? My condolences, darlin’. Lane was as good as they come. A real stand up guy.”
Jackie looked at the sterile ground of the hospital and took a deep breath. “Yeah, well. This is the life we chose, right?”
“Right as ever.” he said. “Anyway, we’ll grieve later. Tonight we need to stay strong for Johnny. He ain’t doin’ too good. That’s just between us, got it? I don’t want word getting out that The Hell’s Wheels are attacking our men. We gotta’ make sure we don’t start a war.” he said. This had me pretty concerned. On the one hand, I wanted him to know we should be on guard from now on. On the other, I didn’t want him to go crazy and kill Jackie for her men’s crimes. It was a tough dilemma. I chose to keep my mouth shut.
“We think we got the guy who did this.” I said. “Only thing is, he opened fire on us. I couldn’t help it. I had to kill the son of a bitch. He’s downstairs, hidden in a truck, right now.”
He threw his pack on the ground and stomped down loudly. “God dammit, Rust. You serious right now? I told you I wanted him alive!”
“It couldn’t be helped.” I simply stated.
Bruce looked at the rest of the guys and laughed. “You always were a trigger happy son of a bitch. Well, shit. Anyone else from Hell’s Wheels see you? Do I need to be worried?”
“There was one guy, but we’ll find him. Don’t you worry about that.” Jackie looked worried. She knew the truth and the truth was one scary reality. Still, I believed we could win this. It would just take some time.
“You got one week to find him. You hear me? One week. And if you don’t complete this job, I’ll demote you.” he was speaking so close to me, he was practically spitting on me.
“Yes, sir. I expect no less.” I said, looking him straight in the eye.
“Good. Have one of the guys grab the body for me. I want to see him for my own eyes.” He walked away. He was too angry and distraught to listen to any more of this.
We followed suit, joining the rest of the Courage men. But when we sat down, they scowled in our direction. “What’s the matter with you?” I said, looking at one of our runners. “Aren’t you gonna’ show me some respect? I’m your captain.”
The young man had a thing of dip inside his lip. He spat in his cup and clenched his fist. “Since when do captains fraternize with the enemy?” he asked me.
Was he really talking back to me? That was a fuckin’ first. No subordinates talked back to captains. Not in the Courage MC. “I’d suggest you watch your tone, boy.” I said, knocking his cup out of his hand.
We both immediately jumped out of our seats, fists ready to punch. “You want to fucking go?” he asked.
“Give me your worst.” I said through clenched teeth. “I’ll knock your lights out, kid.”
“BOYS! BOYS!” Bruce broke us up. “Settle down.”
The kid was fuming, tryin’ to grab at me. “He’s a traitor!” he cried out. “We oughta put him on trial! Look at him. He’s with the god damn enemy!”
That was it. I wasn’t about to let some young punk ruin my reputation like that. He didn’t know me. He didn’t know my struggle and he sure as hell didn’t know how much I loved Johnny, how I’d die for him.
“Boy, you listen up and you listen good. Johnny was a brother to me. He’s saved my ass more than once and I’ll be damned if you try and take that away from me.” Unable to contain myself, I punched him in the face. “While you were sitting here and cryin’ about what happened, me and Jackie here went out and found the shooter. We blew him to bits. You go downstairs and look for yourself if you need to.”
The kid felt his nose. It was bleeding pretty bad. He looked up at me with rage. But instead of fighting back, he simply ran out of the building. The doors shut behind him with a heavy thud, and all of a sudden a loud beeping sound went off in Johnny’s room.
“What the hell is going on?” Bruce yelled.
A nurse walked out of the room as the doctor closed the curtains and locked the door. “Sir, I’m going to need you to step back, we’re taking care of the situation.” she said.
“Like hell you are! Let me in there, god dammit!” he screamed. And for the first time, I saw Bruce’s eyes fill with pain and sorrow.
“Security! I need security!” the nurse yelled. Four security guards came running in to subdue Bruce.
“No!” Bruce swung at one of them, knocking the guy down and shattering his own hand in the process. “Fuck!” That’s when all hell broke out. Our whole gang was up and ready, fighting off the security.
“Let’s get out of here.” I said, pulling her outside. “I know of a good burger place not too far from here.”
“What about Johnny? And Ralphie?” she asked, hesitating to leave. “Let the boys get their anger out. There’s more pressing matters to take care of, like how we’re going to end this war within a week. The
doctors will take care of Johnny.”
“And if they can’t?” she asked me.
“Then Hell’s Wheels are in for a load of pain.” I admitted.
Jackie
“Here, help me with the body.” He said, struggling to pick up Ralphie. “Let’s at least cover him better. Jesus.” He covered his nose, disgusted by the mess.
“What’re you going to do with him?” I asked. Ralphie wasn’t my best friend or anything, but he was an old acquaintance. We at least had to treat him with some respect.
“I know a guy. We’ll meet him later. He’ll take care of things, don’t worry.”
“So I guess this is my life now? Lugging around bodies, fraternizing with the enemy, fights in hospital waiting rooms.” I couldn’t help but feel a little disillusioned about everything. First my father dies, then my crew goes haywire. Nothing seemed to be going my way. And then there’s the fact that I’m coupled with this pig. All this pain makes a girl want to pack up and leave. I could start a different life somewhere, with a different guy. Shit, I could get a couple of cats and be real happy being a waitress somewhere. Those were the kinds of thoughts that went through my head.
“Baby, this was always your life. You gotta stop denying who you are.” he laughed, getting into the truck.
“Baby?” I asked him.
“Slip of the tongue. Sorry, darlin’.” We peeled out of the parking lot and headed north.
As great as it sounds, I was getting real sick of being in a truck with a dead body of one of my dad’s associates. “Can we skip the burger and you take me home?” I asked him.
He looked at me like I was crazy. “No can do, honey.”
“What? You’re joking, right? Take me home, Rust. We’ll deal with everything tomorrow.”
“Think about what you’re saying for a second. We have half of Hell’s Wheels gearin’ up for a fucking war and you’re talking about going home and sleeping in your bed? Shit, Jackie. You must have a death warrant out on yourself. The man had a gun to our heads!” He pulled into a parking lot and I quickly realized where we were.
“Your club? Really?” I got out of the truck and walked toward the door, leaving him with the body.
“Well, thanks for all the help, doll.” he said, dragging Ralphie.
“Can you quit calling me doll for once and open the damn door?” He looked around for anyone, but the city was silent. No cars were in sight. I looked at my phone. It read: 4 AM.
“It’s early.” he said, opening the door to his club. “Might as well stay up until sunrise. Safer that way.” We walked inside. It was huge, empty, and desolate. He set Ralphie’s body at the bar and asked me, “Want a drink?”
“Sure. Why not.” I said. “I could use a good pick-me-up.” I could’ve used more than a drink, if I was being honest.
He poured two tall glasses of whisky and threw in a couple of ice cubes. “Cheers.” he said.
“Cheers.” I took a sip of my drink and looked at him awkwardly. “So. We’re stuck here.”
“Yeah, I guess it’s just me and you.” He jumped up and ran into the back, pressing a button on the mixing board. All of a sudden, music came pounding on the speakers. “Nothing like a good R&B song to set the mood, right?” He put his arm around Ralphie’s body.
“You’re sick.” I said. He simply laughed and lit up a cigarette. “Seriously. You probably need help.”
“You think?” he said. “Maybe I just need a woman.”
“A woman? Please. You couldn’t handle taking care of a woman.” I sighed. This was typical of a guy like him. Bikers were always saying they wanted to settle down with a nice woman. Someone who will take care of them. But when it came down to it, they were never faithful.
“Sure I could. It’s me they couldn’t handle. I’m too rough and tough. I see a woman’s ass pass me by on the streets and you just know I’m salivating. I’m hungry, Jackie. There’s no stopping me.” It was just like I said.
He got up from the bar and said, “Come on. Let’s take a load off. Dance with me, sugar.” He grabbed my hand and pulled me onto the dance floor as the sound of reverberated bass pounded against our bodies.
“Come on.” I protested. “I don’t dance, Rust.”
“What’s the matter? You afraid to shake your hips a little?” He was smiling, big–probably, bigger than I’d ever seen him smile so far. It was hard not to play along.
“Baby, you have to feel the music.” He was saying.
“I am, I am.” He twirled my body and pulled me in close. “You’re not too bad at dancing. Where the hell did you learn these moves?” I asked him, shocked by this new display of his.
“I got that southern blood in me, woman. I’m good at wooing the ladies.” He grabbed my hips and moved with me in perfect time. He picked me up and held me in his arms and, soon enough, we fell to the floor in laughter.
I fell right on top of his chest, butt slamming against his abs. “You see,” he began, “I ain’t too great at dancin’. ‘Specially if I’m drunk.”
“Me neither…” I said, suddenly realizing how this looked. Here I was, on his body, again.
He reached up and brushed the hair out of my eyes, gently. I bit my bottom lip and swallowed down hard. “Maybe we should turn the music off.” he said. “You know, so people don’t get suspicious.”
“Yeah. Maybe…” I said. Still, I wasn’t moving, not an inch. And then, as if it were meant to be, he pushed his head up and locked his lips against mine. Sparks went off. Fireworks. The sounds inside the club echoed against us. Was this the whisky making me feel this way or was it him?
Wait, a second. Him? It couldn’t be. This guy was an asshole, remember? Even still, there was something about him now that kept me near him. No, it wasn’t our deal. It wasn’t the fact that our two crews were nearly at war with one another. It was something else. Love? No. It couldn’t be. I wouldn’t allow it.
“What’s going on?” I asked him.
“What do you mean?” He kissed my cheek, my lips, my ears, and neck. “Oh, you mean this?” I felt his tongue slip inside my mouth, quickly wrapping around my own like two slithering snakes. There was lust in the air and I couldn't help myself. He was bad and I needed him because of it.
Still, I needed answers more than sexual satisfaction. I pushed him off. “Ah, what's the matter?” He scowled as the music pumped through the ceiling. He got up and turned it off.
“This isn't good, Rust. Me and you, we don't work together. Our families are like polar opposites. It would never work.” I said, practically begging for him to keep his cool. I hated to admit it, but I couldn't resist him. Even though he was a total prick, there was just something about him I couldn't rid myself of.
“It's just fun and games, baby. You need to relax.” He ran his rugged hands through my silky hair and leaned in close, smelling my perfume. “Come on, admit it. You love messin’ around with a guy like me. It turns you on to the core. It gets your panties all wet, like a little school girl fantasizing about her daddy’s best friend.” He took his fingers and ran them up the smooth skin of my thigh, right up to the edges of my cotton panties. I felt my body tingle and I soon grew wet, closing my eyes and moaning subtly.
“No.” I moaned, feeling my body grow loose. My legs opened like a flower soaking in the sun’s rays. I didn’t want to, but I eventually gave in to him. I had to. I needed to. Fuck, this wasn't good.
“Yes.” he said, smiling coyly at me. He grabbed the thick of my hair and pulled it back. “You'll do whatever I say, won't you?” he said.
“Yes.” I found myself whispering. I was surprised by my answer. It was as if it came out on its own accord. He picked me up and pinned me against one of the speakers of the club, turning it on. The bass of the speaker pulsated against my dripping pussy. “Oh God.” I moaned.
He pushed my ass harder onto the speaker, moving my hips from side to side. It felt incredible. My pussy was soaking. The vibrations smoothed against my clit, This was not good!
He said, “We need to work together. We can win this if we’re a team.” He put his forehead against mine and kissed my lips tenderly. I closed my eyes and breathed in deeply.
“You believe in me? This isn't some weird trick you and Bruce are cooking up?” How could I trust him? Since I had met him, only darkness and despair followed. Was this a turning point? Could we fix this together?
“I believe in you.” he said. The magic words. The music from the speakers was still pounding against my wetness, massaging my clit and working me up to a frenzy. I couldn't believe it. I was so close to exploding.
“Fuck.” I purred, wrapping my arms around his strong body.
“Now, I want you to fuck yourself. And the whole time you do, I want you to stare into my eyes.” he said, stepping back and smiling to himself.
“You like playing games, don't you?” I said, placing my hands between my legs. He nodded and pulled his cock out. “Okay. Let's play.” I moaned, staring at him.
God, he was huge. So huge, it made me salivate. Truth was, I wanted a guy like him. When you were with a guy as tough as Rust, you knew he was going to treat you wrong in all the most wonderful ways.
“We’re in this together.” he repeated, sliding his hand up and down. The bass kept rubbing my tight hole as I massaged my clit. Almost immediately, I felt that tingling sensation between my legs rise to an unimaginable degree. My face grew warm and my palms were sweaty. I grew weak in the knees. And all the while, Rust was staring directly into my eyes. No, he was staring into my soul, knowing full well that he had me. Well, I had him too. I had him by his thick shaft and huge balls. Together. We were in this together.
“I'm cumming!” I moaned.
