Cupcake Explosion

by Bethany Lopez

  We passed the local bank, diner, courthouse, and a couple of shops, all of which were also closed. I looked down all of the side streets until I saw lights and cars parked along the street.

  I flipped the car around again and drove toward the only action in Copper Creek County.

  “It’s a bar,” I muttered.

  We drove past slowly, but not too slowly, since there were people sitting outside on a covered patio, drinking and hanging out, and I didn’t want to draw attention to us.

  “Look,” Carmen said, and I looked out her window to see a row of motorcycles lined up on the side of the bar.

  “Bingo.”

  I drove a little farther down, then pulled into a parking space.

  “What’s the plan?” Bran asked.

  “We’ll go in and scope the place out, see if it’s the Diablos’ hangout. Hopefully we’ll hear something about where they’re keeping Cade,” I replied.

  “All right, let’s go,” he said.

  “You should stay here.”

  “What? I’m not letting you two go into a biker bar by yourselves,” Bran argued.

  “Bran,” I said patiently, my gaze going out the window to see if anyone had noticed us. It looked clear for now. “This is a biker bar and you look like a yuppie. They would definitely notice us if we walked in together, and they would be suspicious of a yuppie stranger in their bar. We’ll do better if they think we’re alone.”

  I could see Bran wanted to argue, but Carmen put her hand on his arm and stopped him.

  “We need to do this, Bran, for Cade. We won’t do anything stupid, and if things look like they’re going bad, we’ll come to you.”

  “And, if you can’t get to me, go to the bathroom and text me.”

  Carmen shot him a grateful smile.

  “We will.”

  “Okay, let’s go,” I said, in a hurry now that we were close to finding something out.

  We got out of the van and I looked Carmen over. She was wearing one of her maxi skirts with a tank top and a pretty sweater. I motioned for her to take off the sweater and threw it inside to Bran, then I took her hair down and told her to fluff it out.

  I thought I heard Bran growl but ignored it and checked out myself.

  I was wearing a pair of ripped jeans, that, thankfully, made my butt look good, and a V-neck T-shirt. Not great, but if I pulled it down a bit, you could make out the top of my lace bra.

  “This will have to work,” I said, then looked to Bran and ordered, “Stay in there, out of sight.”

  Bran gave me a scowly-faced nod.

  “Ready?” I asked Carmen.

  “As I’ll ever be.”

  WE COULD HEAR the music as we walked down the street, but when we opened the door, it was like being blasted in the face with heavy metal.

  I tried to look cool, like a woman on a night out with her friend, maybe looking to get lucky.

  I blanched for a minute, when the memory of another night at another bar hit me, and how angry Cade was at me for pretending to pimp myself out for information. I knew he wouldn’t be any happier about it now, but I meant what I’d said earlier. I’d rather have him with me and pissed, than never get him back.

  We strode to the bar first, cause that’s what people normally did upon entering a bar, and ordered a couple beers.

  While the bartender was tapping the keg for our drinks, I turned and leaned against the bar and looked around casually. Carmen was chattering in my ear to keep up pretense, and I mostly tuned her out, although it sounded like she was reciting her to-do list for the week.

  My scan of the place confirmed the place was seedy, that the bikers were Diablos, and that Carmen and I had not entered undetected.

  A tall white biker with a bald head and handsome face was watching me watch him, and I hoped the name on his patch was Cueball. I shot him a friendly smile, then turned back around to face the bar and wait.

  A few seconds later, the bartender placed our beers in front of us, his gaze going over my shoulder, and I heard, “What you doin’ here, pretty lady?”

  I turned my head to the right and looked the biker over.

  Yup, his name was Cueball.

  “Just havin’ a drink with my friend,” I replied.

  Cueball looked past me to Carmen, who lifted her beer in greeting.

  “Haven’t seen you in here before,” Cueball said.

  “Nope, it’s our first time. We’re staying in town and thought we’d check it out,” I lied, hoping there was actually a hotel somewhere nearby.

  “Well, if you ladies are looking for a good time, my brothers and I can show it to you.”

  Gag.

  I batted my eyelashes and smiled again.

  “We’ll keep that in mind,” I said, and luckily, he nodded and wandered back over to his friends.

  “He’s cute, but a little scary,” Carmen whispered.

  I agreed, but I guess the same thing could be said about Cade. Hell, if I wasn’t with Cade and I didn’t know that guy had something to do with his disappearance, I’d probably think he was hot.

  “Let’s go closer, over by the darts or pool table, see if we can hear anything?” I suggested.

  When she nodded, I led the way.

  Carmen and I took a high-top table in the back corner and talked about nothing as we listened to the conversations happening around us. After about an hour of what could only be described as come hither looks from Cueball, and just your basic bar room chatter, I started to lose hope that we’d learn anything more that night.

  Maybe we needed to come back when the towing company was open and talk to the people there . . .

  Or, we could hang around and follow the bikers back to their compound and hope Cade was being kept inside . . .

  Finally, I could take Cueball up on his offer, go back to the compound with him, and hope I could keep him off me and distracted until I found Cade . . .

  I quickly eliminated the final option, and I didn’t want to wait until tomorrow, so . . . option two it was.

  I told Carmen my plan, and she agreed.

  We nursed our beers until they were gone, and we felt we’d been there enough time to not come across as suspicious, then went outside to check on Bran and wait for some Diablos to leave.

  “What took you guys so long?” Bran asked from the back when we got into the van. He had the seat laid all the way back. “I almost fell asleep.”

  “Just doing a little recon,” I said, looking at him in the rearview mirror. “The Diablos are in there, Cueball included. They’re just hanging out and drinking. We tried to get close, without getting too close, but nobody said anything important. We’re going to wait for a couple of them to leave and follow them home.”

  “Are you sure that’s a good idea?” he asked.

  We both turned and glared at him.

  “Just asking,” Bran said, holding up his hands in surrender. “I’m in this with you guys, so whatever you decide, I’ve got your back.”

  Carmen’s face softened and she said, “Thanks, Bran.”

  We sat in the van long enough for me to get Carmen and Bran hooked on Words with Friends, when I heard the sound of tail pipes and turned on the van.

  I stayed a good distance behind, not wanting them to pick up my tail, which was difficult since it was dark and the town was pretty dead. It wouldn’t be too hard for them to clock my headlights and I just prayed they didn’t think anything of it.

  When they turned left onto a gravel road, I waited a few breaths before turning down it myself and following behind. There was a large fence surrounding the property, with a huge rollaway gate, which was, luckily, open.

  I pulled off onto the grass and tried to hide my van off of the road so people coming in wouldn’t see it, then we got out and ran to the entrance. After we were sure it was clear, we went inside and crept along the fence line, being careful to stay in the shadows.

  We went in the opposite direction of the entrance, running along the building
until we came to a set of basement windows.

  I was about to get on the ground to peer inside when I heard the sound of a gun cocking, and a gravelly voice ask, “Now, what the hell do we have here?”

  WE WERE USHERED inside the compound at gunpoint.

  We didn’t have our hands behind our heads, or anything too dramatic, but it was still not great.

  “Well, if it isn’t the two broads from the bar,” Cueball said as he walked toward us.

  His gaze went to Bran, then back to me.

  “You didn’t have the stiff with you then, though, did you? What’s your game here?”

  When I didn’t answer right away, I felt the tip of the gun in between my shoulder blades.

  “We followed you out here,” I tried, hoping like hell he’d buy it. “My friend had to bring her man along, but I was hoping to find you.”

  Cueball watched me closely, not saying anything, and I couldn’t tell whether he believed me or not.

  “Scam, take those two to the bar, get them a drink,” Cueball said over his shoulder. “You come with me and we’ll find a place where we can talk . . . in private.”

  My stomach clenched and I still wasn’t sure if he thought I wanted to go somewhere and sleep with him, or if he was suspicious of why we were here, but I had to go with him and see this through.

  I have to find Cade. No matter what.

  I watched, uneasy, as Bran and Carmen were taken into the back, then followed Cueball with what I hoped was a look of anticipation.

  I almost cried with relief when he led me into the kitchen and not a bedroom.

  “Have a seat,” he said, then opened the refrigerator and looked back at me. “You want anything? Beer, food?”

  “You have any cupcakes in there?” I joked.

  “Got chocolate cake,” Cueball replied, pulling out a round cake with only two pieces missing.

  “That sounds good, thanks.”

  I knew I probably shouldn’t eat or drink anything from any of the Diablos, but I was stressed, dammit, and could really use some of that cake.

  “Why don’t you tell me what you’re really doing here?” Cueball asked as he took out a plate, fork, and got a knife out of the rack. He pointed the knife at me and said, “Cause I know a woman on the prowl, and you ain’t it.”

  I looked warily at the knife, then back at him, knowing that I couldn’t continue with the ruse of being here to hook up with him, since he obviously didn’t believe it.

  Unsure of how truthful I should be, I knew whatever I said or did next could not just endanger me, Bran, and Carmen, but could blow back on Cade as well.

  “My friends and I are in need of a little . . . security and were told your MC might be able to help,” I said, hoping the lie sounded true to his ears.

  “Oh yeah, who told you that?”

  Cueball slid the plate with a large piece of cake across the counter to me.

  “A few people outside of Greenswood. They said you guys have been talking to people about weapons and security, and such. We’re in a bit of situation and could use some weapons.”

  I really needed the chocolate, like now . . . my nerves were going haywire as I waited for his reaction to my request. But, he’d given me the cake with no fork.

  “Hey, Cue . . .”

  I looked over as a guy entered the kitchen and pulled Cueball to the side, whispering in his ear while they both watched me.

  Fuck, what is that guy telling him . . . and where did he put that fork?

  Cueball crossed over to me, and the guy turned and left.

  “Is there a fork?” I asked as he sidled up next to me, close enough so I had to look up.

  “Trot said you’re the old lady who’s been talking to Junior and his old man,” Cueball said, his expression menacing.

  Before I could reply, he reached out, grabbed me by the back of the hair, and slammed my face down into the cake.

  Shit, that hurt.

  I sputtered as he lifted me back up by my hair.

  “How ‘bout you tell me the truth.”

  I licked the crumbs from my mouth, desperate, I know . . .

  “I’m Cade’s old lady, and I’m here for my man,” I said, my voice so loud and strong that I surprised myself, because inside I was shaking like a leaf.

  Cueball tugged on my hair so I was forced to stand up, then he led me out of the kitchen.

  “Hey, let her go!” I heard Carmen yell, and my eyes swiveled in search of her.

  She and Bran were walking in front of two bikers, and I could tell by their stiff stance, that they were once again at gunpoint.

  “Take ‘em to the basement,” Cueball ordered, then dragged me behind them.

  We went down the steep stairs in the dark, then a door opened into a dimly lit room. As we walked through it I saw an old man slumped in a chair in the corner, his wrist chained to keep him in place.

  I gasped when I realized it was Bubba, Junior’s dad.

  That must have been why Junior gave us the wrong time of the tow and had acted so weird when I confronted him about it. They’d taken his father, and no doubt told him to keep quiet about what they were doing, or they’d hurt him.

  I heard the sound of a deadbolt being unlocked, then the turn of another lock, and I looked over to see the guy up front putting the key in and unlocking it as well.

  There was only one person I could think of who would need three locks on one door, even when he was in chains, and the people holding him had weapons.

  I looked eagerly into the room as they shoved us inside, my heart pounding painfully as I worried what state I might find Cade in.

  I heard the door slam behind us and the locks being engaged, but I didn’t care about that. All I cared about was the large man in the corner who was chained to the wall. His hair was long, stringy and unclean, and he had almost three weeks’ worth of beard, which was actually a full beard.

  His eyes opened and he took in the three of us.

  I wanted to rush to him and throw my arms around him, but before I could he asked, “Lila, what the fuck are you doing here?”

  “WELL, HOW’S THAT for a greeting?” I asked hands on my hips. “No, ‘Hi, Lila, I’ve missed you,’ or ‘Sorry to put you through so much over the last few weeks,’ or, how about, ‘Hey, thanks for coming to save my savage ass’?”

  “Kind of hard to save me when you’re locked in the same cell I am, darlin’,” Cade replied wryly. “Now, what are you doing here?”

  “Isn’t it obvious? We came here for you!” I shouted, throwing my hands up in the air.

  “Why?” Cade asked, and I swear, I was seconds away from pulling his hair.

  “Why?” I screeched. I know, not my finest moment, but I could not believe him. “Maybe because we’re getting married in five days. Because I watched a video of you getting hit by a car and saw your motorcycle after it had been blown up.”

  “What did I tell you, Lila?” he asked, his tone kinda scary.

  “What do you mean?” I asked meekly, even though I knew the answer to that question.

  “I told you that I was going to be off the grid, but that I’d be back for the wedding. I told you I was on club business and I wouldn’t be able to talk to you. Do you remember all that?”

  I nodded.

  “Then, I’ll ask again, what in the fuck are you doing here?”

  I really don’t like his tone.

  “What was I supposed to do, Cade? Pretend I didn’t see the video? Ignore the explosion? Play wedding planner while you were being kept hostage by a rival MC?”

  “Yes, Lila. Yes.” He sounded really exasperated. “What you were not supposed to do was enlist your buddies on a goddamn suicide mission.”

  “I wouldn’t call it a suicide mission . . .” I protested weakly.

  “And you, Braswell, what the fuck were you thinking? Bringing them out here?” he asked Bran with a glare.

  “Hey, I told them to let the cops handle it,” Bran said.

  Cade
swore under his breath.

  “Of course, you did.”

  “Leave Bran out of it,” I said, stepping closer to Cade.

  I took in his disheveled and dirty appearance, and how the restraints on his wrists had rubbed his skin raw. My eyes filled and my stomach clenched.

  He looked at me, his eyes narrowing on my forehead.

  “What the hell is on your face?” he growled.

  “There was an incident with chocolate cake,” I muttered.

  “And they were pulling her around by her hair,” Carmen offered, and I spun around to give her a what the hell look.

  She shrugged.

  Just then, we heard the locks being disengaged.

  Cade looked at each of us and said, “Get against the wall.”

  I wanted to argue, but figured it best to follow Cade’s direction, so Bran, Carmen, and I put our backs up against the wall and waited to see what happened yet.

  Cueball, Trot, and Scam walked in. Seriously, these guys needed to up their street names, cause the ones they had kinda sucked.

  One second, I was watching them warily, wondering what they were going to do, then all hell broke loose.

  Cade let out a long rumble, followed by a shout. His biceps bulged and he yanked his arms, hard. The chains broke free from the wall and he rushed forward, taking Cueball by surprise and head-butting him so hard, I got a headache.

  Trot tried to circle behind Cade, but Cade’s leg shot out and he kicked him into the wall.

  Carmen and I gasped, then watched as Bran intercepted Scam before he could join the fray. We huddled together as we watched Cade and Bran kick Diablo ass. It was over within minutes and the men were grabbing us and pulling us out of the room.

  Cade shut the door behind us and engaged the locks, leaving the three men inside, then turned to us and said, “Let’s go.”

  “Wait, we have to get Bubba,” I said, pointing at the old man in the corner.

  Cade gave me a frustrated look, then hurried to check the old man’s restraints, his own chains hanging off of his wrists.

  Bubba looked at all of us, eyes wide, then his gaze landed on me and recognition registered on his face.