by Pink, Nikki
“Come here.”
Our lips met again and his hands gripped me around the waist once more. As if I weighed nothing he lifted me up and pulled me to his chest. I could feel him knocking against my thigh. I reached down and gripped him with my fingers as he lowered me down.
“Oh fuck,” he said as his head entered me.
I let out a gasp as he lowered me down and filled me up his hard burning heat. When I found him full inside me I grasped his hair and pulled our lips together again.
Sitting astride him I rocked my hips slowly and then faster and faster. Every now and then our lips parted.
“Oh shit.”
“Fuuuck.”
“Shit that feels good.”
I moaned and let out yelps. I squirmed and rocked back and forth, up and down. The bike’s suspension bounced with us as I tried to make each movement fill me more deeply than the last.
I’d always been quiet before. Holding myself in. Not ever letting go, not even realizing that I could let go. Not anymore. Out there in the desert I gave in to my desires and needs more fully than I ever had and I let myself scream when he brought me over the edge.
***
We sat by the river with his arms wrapped around my shoulder as the sun set behind us. We were on a blanket now that he’d pulled out from the panniers on the back of the motorcycle, along with a couple of cans of beer and some sandwiches.
He’d made a picnic. It wouldn’t exactly win any awards for creativity, but the chicken salad sandwich I was eating tasted better than any I could recall.
“Sorry about the other day. In your room.”
“Don’t be. It was fine.” It was better than fine. Having you hold me down, pin me so I couldn’t move? It was fantastic.
“Are you sure?”
I looked into his eyes. “I’m sure.” My voice went quiet as if I was almost ashamed. “I liked it.”
He grinned, looking a little relieved. “Better than today?”
I giggled. “No. Today was good too. Just different. I guess I’m not picky.”
We both laughed. His face turned more serious. “Can I ask you a favor?”
I gripped his warm hand. “Of course.”
“It might not happen, but it might, and so I need to tell you first.”
“What might happen? What is it?”
He sighed. “On Saturday, at the wake, me and a couple of the others are going to go out for about an hour.”
A chill ran through me. Why would you be going out? “And?”
“And if anyone asks, I need you to say you were with me.”
What are you going to do, Jase? “’Anyone?’ Do you mean the police?”
He nodded. “It’s just a maybe. They might not ask. But they might. And if they do, I need to know 100% that you can do that for me. For us.”
“It’s about Brodie, right?”
“I don’t want to tell you. I mean, I don’t want you to know. You don’t need that on you. And the less you know, the less you’ll feel guilty if the cops ask you.”
The less I know the less I can say, right? Fair enough. You’re going to get the guys who killed Brodie. Will you kill them? Of course you will. Finally I spoke again, “Okay.”
I turned things over in my mind. I thought back to the drive in the pickup truck, when Jase had explained the need for taking justice into your own hands. It made sense. The police hadn’t caught Brodie’s killers yet, and if they did? What then? Maybe Jase’s way was better.
He was staring at me when I spoke again. “I’ll do it. I’ll say you were with me.”
“Thank you. There’s a bit more to it, too.”
I ran my thumb over the back of his hand. “What?”
As we sat and sipped our beers he explained the part of the plan that involved me and Lucy. When he told me what I might have to do I felt a surge of discomfort followed by a thrill of excitement. It was something old Nicole would never even have considered. But new Nicole?
I told him I’d do it.
CHAPTER TWELVE
The sun shone down on them, glinting off the chrome of their bikes. Ahead of them the targets fixed to the old oil barrels were full of holes, scattered haphazardly all over the paper. Jase lay in the dirt, squinting forward. To his sides lay Bottle and Lonnie, each of them holding one of the four M-16s that had been delivered earlier. The other was for Gauge.
“You can’t shoot for shit. But at least you can point it in the right direction.”
Jase grinned at the words. Gauge seemed to be in his element as he taught them how to use the weapons. Their first few tries had been poor, but now they were hitting the targets quickly and with decent accuracy. They’d all fired hunting rifles before so it hadn’t been too much of a stretch, no matter how much Gauge criticized their technique.
“Let’s take a break.”
“Hey Doc. Tell us about the rest of that massage,” said Bottle.
All eyes turned to the Doctor who had a grin on his face. He was sitting in one of Gauge’s faded lawn chairs drinking a beer. He wouldn’t be participating in the assault but he’d joined them for their training session anyway. Earlier he’d started to tell them about his encounter with the soapy girl, but Gauge’s training had interrupted the story after the part about the soapy rubdown.
“So I’m on the bed, on all fours, thinking what the fuck.”
“Did she have a dick, Doc? Did she fuck you in the ass?” Bottle laughed as he spoke, and Jase couldn’t help but join him.
The Doctor looked annoyed. “Very funny. Nope, she started to jerk me off and stuck her tongue in my ass.”
“You like things in your ass, Doc?” Bottle teased again.
His smile was broad. “I like little Asian girls tongues in my ass, Bottle.” Everyone was laughing now. It was the first time Jase had seen everyone let their guard down since Brodie. It was almost like old times. Almost.
Lonnie said, “So did you ever actually fuck her, Doc? Or did you just play doctors and nurses?” He laughed at his own joke.
“Oh fuck yeah. I was the horniest I’d ever been. Or since I was thirteen at least.” More laughter. “After getting a tongueful from her I couldn’t take any more. I flipped that bitch over and I just railed her. Pussy, ass, mouth, you name it. Horniest little slut I’d ever seen.” The Doctor mimed crudely as the guys listened and watched him act out his story. “Shit, she loved it so much she couldn’t stop bawling.”
Jase laughed along with the others, though less comfortably than before. Did that sound right? Bawling? I guess some women are more emotional than others. Nicole didn’t bawl.
Gauge walked back over. He had been preparing some of his home made equipment for the upcoming assault. Jase had spent the morning driving Gauge around in the truck. First they went to the hardware store, then the supermarket and finally the gas station. Whenever Jase had asked what something was for Gauge just gave a cryptic smile and shook his head, or whispered in Jase’s ear, “Killing Mexicans.”
“Alright. The next bit is going to be important. This is how we get the rats out of the cage.” He gave his dark smile. The smile that promised violence. The men quietened down, Doc’s story forgotten, as they got back to getting ready.
They were out on Gauge’s plot of land, far from prying eyes or listening ears. It was lucky they were as the gunfire and smoke would have drawn attention if they’d been nearer civilization.
Jase looked up and saw a buzzard circling high above them. There’s nothing for you here. But follow us, little birdie. Follow us, and we’ll give you something to feast on.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Nicole
We didn’t go to the funeral of course. It was a very small affair with only his family and closest friends. That excluded both me and Lucy. I was glad, to be honest. While no one really enjoys going to funerals I think I hate them more than most.
When we arrived at the clubhouse for the wake at around 7:30 it was already busy, and there were far more people than the
re had been the week before. Lucy and I were dressed much more conservatively than last time, wearing jeans and sneakers and tops that only left our arms bare. It was a wake after all, right?
But when we entered we found that we looked very out of place. Like two preppy college girls in a motorcycle gang’s clubhouse - which is exactly what we were.
To my surprise the wake wasn’t a quiet, somber affair. We could hear the rock music pumping before we even stepped inside, and when we did get in there I could see why they called themselves the Sons of Mayhem.
With their lock-down over it seemed every hang-around, every friend of the club, and every girl with a taste for rough men and big motorcycles were using the wake as an excuse for a raucous party. I later learned that this was how wakes always are for them, but when I first saw it I was shocked.
We went inside and felt nervous. There were so many unfamiliar faces. A teenage girl in a bikini top looked at me in surprise as we entered and wrinkled her nose at me. “Are you lost, college girl?”
Before I could respond she’d hopped into the lap of a guy sitting in a chair. I looked at him and realized I recognized him from last week. It was the asshole who’d bothered us.
Red saw me and Lucy and grinned at us. He slipped one hand under the bikini top of the giggling girl and then pursed his lips and made a kissing motion at us. We both gave him the finger.
“Come on,” I shouted to Lucy over the roar of the rock music blasting through the room.
She followed me as we headed in the direction of the bar. Usually she’d be the one leading me. Everything’s upside down now.
We made our way through the throngs of men in jeans and leather and girls and women in skimpy outfits. There were people of all ages here, from some who must still have been in high school to old timers in their sixties or seventies. And all of them seemed to give off the same vibe - I don’t give a fuck.
It was a feeling I’d begun to develop too. I liked it; it represented freedom. The freedom and the courage to be able to say I’m going to do x because I want to, and I don’t give a fuck what you think. Fuck your rules and expectations. Fuck your fake personas and false fronts and faces. I am exactly who I want to be and I do exactly what I want to do. I don’t give a fuck and nor should you.
Jase was sitting at the counter talking to someone I didn’t know. I placed a hand on his shoulder and when he turned to face me I saw a brief look of confusion flash across his face as his eyes ran over my outfit. We were a little further from the speakers here so we could get by speaking in raised voices instead of actively yelling.
“Hi.” I leaned in and we kissed on the lips. He tasted of whisky instead of mint this time.
He reached out an arm and pulled Lucy in towards him and gave her a kiss on the cheek too. She smiled.
“This is Gauge.”
I looked at him. He was a bit older, maybe late forties. He had a goatee but no hair on his head. He ran his eyes over me as I held out a hand. He was clearly checking out my body, but not in a leering way. It felt like a compliment and I gave him a smile when he shook my hand.
“’evening.”
“Nice to meet you.”
Lucy also exchanged a greeting with him, and just as he’d done with me, he ran his gaze over her too. If I wasn’t mistaken I saw a glimmer of something in his eyes as he sized her up.
“Come from a business meeting?”
“What?” I was confused for a second. “Oh.” I looked down at my conservative blouse. “No. We just thought, that, y’know…”
Jase laughed but it seemed a little forced. No wonder, he had the funeral today. And then there’s the thing later.
“You should know we don’t do formal around here.”
I felt a little embarrassed, then an idea struck me. I looked at Lucy who was dressed similarly. She looked back at me. I raised an eyebrow and she grinned and nodded in response. I could swear that sometimes it seemed like we could read each other’s minds. Perhaps it comes with living together.
Simultaneously we both reached to the bottom of our blouses and pulled them over our heads. Underneath we were both wearing bright red bras. With our tight jeans on we had managed to change our look from business casual to party girl in a moment.
Jase grinned and ran a hand over my stomach. I tingled. I cast my eyes around the room; we didn’t look out of place; not really. Quite a few girls were wearing bikini tops, and in the corner I could see a girl sitting on a table completely naked from the waist up, while a guy I didn’t know sucked on one of her breasts while squeezing the other. The I don’t give a fuck attitude was in full effect.
We sat together and drank for a while. Lucy and I sipped beers, while Jase and Gauge took minuscule sips from a single glass of whisky each. They didn’t want to get drunk. Not yet, anyway.
We tried to joke around but we were all tense. Sure we laughed and smiled, but it was all a little forced. At 9:30 Bottle joined us. Jase gave me a look. I nodded.
Soon his hands were on my body and our lips were locked together. While we surely looked like we were kissing passionately his heart wasn’t it, and so nor was mine. Our tongues flicked at each other, we bit each other’s lips and he put a hand down my jeans, grabbing my ass while another slipped under my bra, squeezing my nipple.
After about a minute of our very public display of affection Jase grabbed me by the hand and dragged me through the clubhouse. A lot of people saw us.
As he was pulling me away I saw Lucy had done her part too. When I’d told her what Jase wanted us to do she’d just shrugged and said ‘sure’. She didn’t give a fuck.
Her bra was gone and Bottle was squeezing both of her breasts while she had her hand down his pants. A moment after we’d left they were following us, and we clambered up the metal stairs to Jase’s trailer together.
He swung open the door and we all entered.
“I left a couple of bottles of wine in the fridge. We’ll be back in ninety minutes.”
I held each of his hands in mine and squeezed. “Be careful.”
He nodded. His face looked strained. He leaned forward and gave me a peck on the lips before turning towards the door.
“Let’s go.”
I saw Bottle reach for Lucy’s breasts again but she stepped backwards as if she hadn’t noticed and sat down on one of the beat up old chairs. With a thunk the door closed and they were gone.
“Find me a shirt?” asked Lucy.
I nodded and went to find one.
Soon we were sitting at the rickety card table Jase used for meals with a bottle of wine between us. Lucy wore one of Jase’s plain white t-shirts - it seemed to be all he owned.
“They’re going to get them, right?” Lucy asked.
I nodded, hoping I was right, hoping they’d be alright.
“Good.”
The time dragged as we sat and waited. We didn’t want to talk about the violence they might be committing, but it was the only thing on our minds. The very idea of making smalltalk about college was too ridiculous to even consider. So we sat almost in silence, drinking the wine too fast.
Please come back, Jase. Please.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Jase
He could hardly see Bottle, despite them being just inches apart. With their dark clothes and painted faces they were almost invisible in the dark. There was no moon. Gauge had been delighted when he realized that would be the case.
This week several of the streetlights had mysteriously gone out, leaving several pools of darkness around the area. Sneaking through the darkness they headed to their first target, an unlit house. The occupants were asleep, as they had been at this time every day this week.
They crept towards the front door. Making almost no sound, Jase slipped the key Gauge had given him into the lock, and turned it. There was a click as the lock slid open, and Jase and Bottle hurried in.
“Is someone there?” The voice was male. Tough sounding. Jase and Bottle headed to the source, the main
bedroom, which was exactly where they thought it would be.
Bottle spoke in Spanish, “Do not make a sound. We mean you no harm. It’s your neighbors we are after.”
“Who the fuck are you?”
“We’re from out of town. Way out of town.” Bottle spoke to them fluently, with a southern Mexican accent. Jase didn’t say a word. He knew a few phrases, but there was no way anyone would mistake him for a Mexican. They needed this family to report to the cops later that it was Mexicans who’d barged in. Not a bunch of white bikers.
“We are going to tie you up. But we will not harm you.”
“How do we know that?”
“You don’t know that. But we have big guns. You just have a .22 pistol. If we wanted to hurt you you’d be dead already.”
There was silence for a moment. The man was probably wondering how they knew he had a .22 pistol. He wouldn’t have believed the truth if they told him: his house had been entered the previous two nights running without him hearing a peep.
“Okay. Please, don’t hurt my family.”
“We won’t. Promise.”
Jase and Bottle quickly got to work, wrapping wide swathes of tape around the wrists and ankles of the immigrant family. Although the wife remained quiet, they had to cover the mouths of the children to stop them screaming.
In a few minutes, the wide eyed family was secure. “It will be okay, I promise, as long as you don’t make a sound,” Bottle told them as he locked them into the bedroom. There was no telephone in there and their cell phones had been removed. The windows had security bars across them, and the curtains were drawn tightly closed. With the whole family tied together there would be no chance of them escaping any time soon.
“Let’s do this.”
Jase and Bottle headed out the back door of the house to the tiny yard behind. They reached the back fence, and tossed down their rifles and backpacks. They could hear their target as soon as soon as the cool outside air hit their faces. They peeked over the fence.
The house behind was where the Mexicans usually congregated on a Saturday night. They called it a business meeting, but mostly it was an excuse for the men to get drunk and talk about who they were fucking apart from their wives or girlfriends. They’d stay in there, drinking and smoking, until about 11 or midnight when they’d go for joyrides in their souped up cars, or to a club, or, rarely, home to their families. There was raucous shouting and noise, and loud Spanish rap music pouring out of the building.
