Turning to see what she held, he gave her a lopsided grin, “It’s busted. You can ‘ave it if ya want it.”
“Thanks,” Tori did not elaborate or argue on the bargain, and carried her new toy out to drop it into one of the saddlebags on Geek’s bike.
Spying the short stick of wood, he eyed it dubiously, but said nothing, suspecting it had a purpose he would at some point ascertain. If they had time, he thought he might ask her to teach him a thing or two about fighting. And guns. She knows a lot o’ shit, he considered her and what she had shared with him. Not like other girls, that’s for sure.
Party Boys
By the time the two of them met up with the main group, the couple were good friends. Tori secretly wished he really were her lost little brother, and not Brian. The rally point the guys chose turned out to be a bar right off the strip, and she found herself livid when she and Geek pulled up on the side and parked his bike in the late afternoon heat.
Removing her glasses as they entered the front door, she did her best to hold a straight face. The tall man at the podium immediately asked for some ID, looking the two of them up and down. Giving him a blank stare, she opened her wallet and peeled a fifty off the stack of bills and handed it to him. Giving her a half grin, he waved the two of them inside. A quick look around, she spotted her crew, such as they were, living it up at a couple of tables along the far wall.
What the fuck? Bunch of damn party boys! Doing her best to suppress her seething anger, Tori marched up next to the group and placed her hands on her hips, left heel cocked at ninety degrees to the right.
Dan, seeing her looking fit to be tied spouted, “Wha’s the matter sunshine? Think you’re the only girl we can fuck?” He had his arm around some blonde bimbo, a beer in his hand.
Giving him an icy stare, she made no reply. I’m not jealous, dumbass, she thought to herself, but in truth the sight of them wasting their last paycheck on the group of women made her blood boil. Giving Brett a dagger sharp stare, she spat out in German, “Job’s done?”
Picking up on her displeased vibe, he only nodded, then shifted to stand. “I think it’s time to move out, guys,” he called to the rest. He could tell she was pissed and didn’t dare offer her a drink.
Turning on her heel, she stomped past the tall man at the door, who stared after her in wide eyed wonder. The rest took a few minutes to convince, but eventually they joined her and Geek at the side of the building.
“Wha’ th’ fuck’s goin’ on here?” Buck demanded, poking Tori in the chest, “I got news for ya sweetheart, you ain’ in charge here!”
Slapping his hand away from her, she stepped up, matching his height toe to toe. “Get on your bike, asshole,” she growled through clenched teeth. Neither of them moved for a moment, staring each other down.
Spinning around, Tori swung on behind Brett, sliding her arms to encircle him. Revving the motor, he waited for everyone to mount up and they rode out in a line, taking the highway headed south out of town.
A few miles out lay a dirt road that veered to the left. Making the turn, the group snaked onto the back trail for a couple of miles before Brett pulled over in the pre-dark grey. They would make camp there for the night, leave any bodies behind in the morning. Bitch pushing her luck acting like this; Buck’s a big boy, won’t stand for it long. He shook his head, hoping he could avoid losing either of them in the darkness.
Parking their bikes, most of the guys started to set about making their camp, grumbling at having been pulled away from the night’s entertainment. A few insinuated Tori would put out for the group like old times, as soon as Buck had finished with her.
She just leaned against Geek’s ride, watching and waiting. Directly, a small fire was lit, the light licking at her face. Tori could still feel her pulse in her neck, her heart thumping from the rush of adrenaline. She kept it at a low simmer, knowing the fight was coming.
Brett had jumped off his bike first thing, headed over to try and delay the inevitable. He had always been the leader of the group on brains; everyone knew Buck was the brawn. At close to an hour of bickering, things were coming to a head.
“Jus’ calm down, Buck! Ya know she’s right. We got no business hangin’ out like that right after pullin’ a big job such as it was. Lookin’ t’ get busted like a bunch o’ fools.” He attempted to stick up for her, his accent growing thicker as he spluttered along in his excited state, but Buck refused to listen.
Tori stood tapping her foot, waiting.
“I don’ give a fuck, she’s got no bidness actin’ like she’s in charge! She even tellin’ you what t’ do now! But ya got yur head shove’ so far up ‘er cunt ya don’ even see it!”
Tori glanced down at the handle poking out the edge of Geek’s saddle bag, almost able to hear it calling to her.
“You take that back, ya son of a bitch. Ya know God damned good an’ well who runs this outfit!” stomping his boot to punctuate his words, Brett had lost his temper, being insulted by the man who claimed to be his right hand and best friend.
Tori lay her fingers lightly onto the stick.
Buck only sneered at him, a deep laugh rolling out of his throat. “You’ve lost it, man. It’s all over! We all work for th’ whore, now!”
As if that were the phrase she had been waiting to hear, Tori snatched up the wooden handle and sprang onto the oversized man, hitting him in the back of the neck with her weapon of choice and sending him reeling. She intended to teach him if she could, kill him if she had to.
Not going down, Buck spun around, eyes on fire as he stumbled away from her. “I’m special forces ya fuckin’ bitch, ya think ya kin get th’ better o’ me?”
Tori exhaled slowly, in the zone and ready to do battle. “You’re an old man, you fat prick. Best let it lie, before you get hurt.” She laid her threat on him smoothly, pointing the end of her baton at him and knowing he wasn’t about to let it go yet.
Tired of tossing insults, Buck dove at her, Tori using the small club to the best of her ability. The girl being much lighter, younger, and far more agile, he never stood a chance. A few seconds later, he lay sprawled on the sand, blood pouring from his nose and mouth while she stood over him, choking her short stick.
“Anyone else wanna show me what a fucking badass they are?” she called out loudly, the rest standing around watching the all too familiar scene. Dan shifted uncomfortably as she glared at him, recalling how close he had come to tasting the sting of her blade in Florida the first time they met.
A low murmur went up from the group, each professing their version of surrender, Brett stepping forward enough to make his case. “I guess that puts you in charge now, or do we need t’ fight first?” He toyed with her, no real intention of putting up any resistance if she wanted the lead.
Tori felt an odd tightness in her chest as she realized what lay within her grasp, knowing she couldn’t take it. “I don’t want your place,” she sneered at him, “This is your crew.” She thumped her chest with her fist. “I got your back.”
Turning, her hand running through her long dark mane, Tori strutted down the dirt path they had parked next to. Walking until she was a good two hundred yards away, she then stopped, looking over her shoulder to see if anyone had followed her. No one was that stupid.
Back at the Ranch
The sun sank low in the sky as Michael swung off his bike, another long day behind him. Turning to the house, it surprised him to hear the garage was silent, and he opened the door of his home to find the band lounging about his living room, waiting for his return. “Hey, guys; what’s up?” He tried to sound casual, well aware something was going on.
“We’re bored. That’s what’s up. Where the fuck do you go every day, leavin’ us here alone? Some bodyguard you turned out to be,” Cody voiced the sentiments of the group.
Michael nodded slowly, a quick glance around confirming that to be the consensus. “Let’s go have some dinner, and we can discuss it.”
The group wal
ked the two short blocks to the diner. Making their way over to the tables in the center of the right half, they pushed two together so they would all have a seat, two chairs set to the side empty. Michael smiled at the arrangement fondly, recalling the wedding cake that had stood on such a set up only a few short months ago. Glancing at his charges, he sank into the chair at the far end, closest to the back wall and facing the door.
Trish had come right over to help with the tables, and stood ready to take their orders, chattering away about the local news. She didn’t like how tired Michael appeared, Tori’s bein’ away must be wearin’ on him somethin’ awful.
He only gave her a small smile, seeing her look of concern, and feeling a bit guilty he kept Marge’s secret from her.
The group ordered steaks and burgers and sent her on her way, turning their attention to the true leader of their group as of late. Folding his hands on the flat surface in front of him, Michael cast his eyes slowly around the small gathering. “I’ve been working on something,” he finally relented. “Something for Tori, more or less.”
“More or less,” Brian cut in, “Either you are or you’re not. Which is it?”
Michael glared at him, too tired to debate the issue. “I am. I’m making repairs to an old house as a surprise for her when she gets home.”
“Yeah, that’s what we wanted to talk about,” Cody again took the role of spokesmen for the group. “We’ve been here four weeks. Hidin’. Nothin’ to do. This town’s got shit to do in it, and you won’t even let us do that. We wanna go home.”
Michael continued to stare, shuffling his hands for a moment. “You can’t go home. Not until we receive word that you’ll be safe.”
“Safe?” Collin spoke up, “What makes this place so fuckin’ safe? You aren’t even around us, if anyone were to come after us.”
“Well, I could always let you paint the house,” Michael laughed, joking about putting the band to work on his massive project. The group fell quiet as their food arrived and everyone dug in. Looking around at the circle of overgrown boys, he felt a little guilty about the circumstances, wishing in earnest there was something he could do about it.
Taking the time to order some apple pie a la mode for dessert, the group began to talk again, the mood having lightened a bit after the meal.
Cody grinned at him, “Hey, Mike; you really gonna let us paint the house? Or at least see it?”
Michael only stared at him, taken off guard by the offer, “I was just joking about the painting,” he shifted aimlessly, “I know you guys aren’t really up for that.” He let the four of them carry on without him, rising to head home for a shower and bed. He knew Brian would be down later, having taken up residence in the smaller bedroom, being the one they were mostly concerned about.
The other three had been allowed to get rooms over at the small motel, a huge boom in the small town boarding industry he was certain. I guess I could let the three of them go home, he considered as he trudged along. After all, it’s Brian that would matter, if anyone was looking. Not ready to make the call on that yet, he wanted to give his wife a few more weeks to finish the job.
Thinking about her as he lay in bed, her tree swaying in the breeze, he wondered if she even had time to think about the men living in hiding, back at the ranch so to speak.
Just How It Is
Tori woke up before the sun, and leaned against a large rock, still a fair distance from the group. Making her way back to them, she still felt angry at what had transpired the night before. She was tired of being there, tired of being back in that rootless existence. She missed her house, she missed her friends, and she missed her husband. The time had come to get things underway.
Picking her way back down the dirt road, she found the group sprawled out here and there, sound asleep. Her gaze swinging over the group of bodies, she briefly considered the idea of whipping out her knife and taking care of them in the same fashion she had the Dragons.
She quickly realized she had dismissed the idea several times already as pure folly; they lay close enough that any struggle would awaken the others, and there would be no way to take them all out. She allowed herself a disgusted pout as she searched for the group’s leader.
Finding Brett, wrapped in his sleeping bag, she dropped to her knees next to him. With a shove to the chest, she woke him with a start. Giving her a wide eyed stare, Tori shushed him with a single finger to her lips, and indicated for him to follow her. Pulling on his boots, he obeyed.
When they had enough distance between them and their still slumbering cronies, she ploughed into the conversation head first. “I’ve been thinking. There’s some things we need to get straight around here if we’re all gonna get along.”
Brett only nodded, relieved she seemed so calm after the previous night’s display.
“I don’t wanna fight with you guys,” she continued. “But I can’t just stand back and let things be wrong either. You guys are way too loose for me, and I know you get what I mean. This is serious shit. We get pinched, we go to prison, or worse, and I can’t take the sloppy bullshit, the party attitude. Your guys are a bunch of fuck-ups, man. Why the hell did you pick them?” Her waving hand indicated her displeasure at the sleeping men.
Brett only stared at her, feeling like he had let her down somehow. “They’re just guys, Tori,” he stammered, giving her a shrug. “We can’t all be th’ Dragons. I know you really looked up to those guys,” she winced at his choice of words, “But they’re gone, baby girl. This’s what ya got now. And they get th’ job done. So they ain’t as smart, and they’re a bit free spirited at times, but they’ll follow orders if ya give ‘em to ‘em.”
Tori shook her head adamantly, waving off the offer. “I told you, that’s your crew,” she pointed back down the road with her thumb. “I’ll be your second. I can do that pretty good; but we both know no one outside this group is gonna respect me. Not your fault, not my fault. Just how it is.” She looked him dead in the eye, as if she were making a pledge to him.
Brett considered her words carefully. “You’re pretty amazing, ya know that?” he gave her a large grin; I bet that guy Michael misses her perdy good.
Making their way back to the slumber party, they began kicking the bags and stirring the pot. Poking their heads up, everyone moved to get up and get dressed, a fair amount of grumbling taking place.
Looking around at the lot, Tori realized there may be some hurt feelings at her taking second and deposing Buck after all these years. She could see him off to the side, gargling with salt water and spitting it onto a patch of cactus.
Sauntering over to have a closer look, she could see the blood as it clung to the wide pads of prickly-pair. Standing over him, she waited for him to rise, knowing it would be crucial to her taking on her new position.
When he finally stood, she could see he only had three teeth left in the front of his mouth. Squinting her eyes and wrinkling her nose in a show of mock compassion, “Ohh, that looks like it hurts.”
“Yeah,” he nodded, “Don’ feel too good. Shoulda known Eddie trained ya up right. Guess I had it comin’, thinkin’ I could outsmart th’ bitch who outsmarted him.” He gave her a knowing glare; she may have won this time, but he had his eye on her just the same.
Tori nodded and looked away, off into the distance. She had the upper hand, and they both knew it.
With everyone packed and ready to roll a short time later, Tori swung onto the back of Brett’s bike, and stroked his chest as she gripped him. She knew their time was growing short, and she hoped the opportunity to finish this job would come sooner rather than later.
They rode across to Florida from there, a long ride that gave the girl lots of time to think. She briefly considered how she essentially owned the group, as Brett would run them however she saw fit. The realization of this took her breath away, and for a short time she toyed with the idea of turning their strength against The Organization itself and eliminating them once and for all.
&n
bsp; However, she quickly decided the act would be suicide, as the leaders were locked away in their web of protection. Besides the fact that this group, although skilled enough to pull off mundane tasks, was far below the caliber of the Dragons in many ways. If anyone would have stood a chance against that strong hold, it would have been them.
She thought about Enrique and Brett, and even Geek. They all held a great deal of loyalty towards her, the latter because he hoped she would help him escape, which she fully intended to do if she’s able. He was no more meant to be with this group than herself, and if he were willing to help her, she would be willing to cut him a deal.
The former two were a bit more of a mystery. It could be because of her strength, but she suspected more than likely what lay between her legs kept them at her side. She pondered this for a couple of hundred miles, not really sure how she felt about being wanted for her assets rather than her personality, then caught a fit of giggles over her own private joke.
In the end, she longed to return to her tiny home and the man who loved her for who she was, not what she did to him in the dark. Coming to terms with that fact, she realized it would be hard for her to lay with him again. It may take some time, but I’m going to make all of this up to him, she promised herself genuinely. He deserves better than this.
Tori knew she would watch in earnest for the opportunity that would allow her to send these men on their way to join her former group mates in hell. Surely that’s where they’ll be headed when I’m finished with them.
It only took a few days, in fact, for the situation to present itself. Brett received the manila folder from the representative of The Organization in Miami, while Tori watched her first meeting taking place before her.
A New Life Series - Finisher Set Page 12
