Broken Road

by Addison Kline

  “I might not have the deed yet, but I do have this,” Jimmy said slamming a piece of paper down on the table.

  It was an official birth certificate issued from the Mexican government. Lily Hearns had done the one thing that Black Horse requested she not. She named Thomas McClain as the father on Jimmy’s birth certificate.

  “You’ve got to be shittin’ me…” Rusty Prescott choked out.

  Just then, the front door of the Pine Cress Steak House flew open and Stephanie Rogers ran in, with tears in her eyes. Gunnar saw her and immediately wanted to know what was wrong. He got up out of his seat and walked over to her with a stern look on his face.

  “Fuckin’ Randy!” she screamed as Gunnar came over to console her. He placed one hand low on her back and brought her into a hug. He had less than decent intentions for her, and Stephanie had less than honorable intentions for Randy. She knew how to play the hand she was dealt all too well. Stephanie whispered in Gunnar’s ear as the rest of the Devils eyed them precariously.

  “Oh, don’t you worry, honey. Randy will get his… Go on over to the bar. Make us a couple drinks. I’ll be right over.”

  “What was that about?” Trent asked.

  “Randy’s messing with our girls.”

  “Well we can’t have that now, can we?” Trent said, knowing exactly who he would turn his sights on.

  Chapter Five

  Evening descended quickly, leaving little time for dusk. The midnight blue sky was peppered with stars that shone clear and bright above the Texan landscape. Colt’s truck revved to life, skidding off down the dirt road with Averi in the passenger seat beside him. He’d occasionally steal glances of his wife when she wasn’t looking. As the truck pulled up to the traffic light at the corner of Monument Avenue and Parish Road, Averi caught him and laughed.

  “Why ya lookin’ at me like that?!” Averi asked playfully as she nudged Colt in his gut.

  His one-thousand watt smile lit up the dark cab of the truck. He couldn’t help it, though he played the role of the tough guy well, he was still ticklish. Not that he’d ever let anyone but Averi know that.

  As the light turned from red to green, Colt looked at Averi, his smoldering gaze piercing her eyes.

  “You look beautiful tonight,” Colt said, lifting her left hand up to kiss it.

  As his lips brushed against the soft skin of her hand, a loud and obnoxious sound echoed from outside, interrupting the peaceful early evening silence. It was Randy. He was laying on the horn and causing a ruckus. Tim and Shelly sat laughing in the truck as Randy put all his weight on the horn, trying to get a rise out of Colt. Randy stuck his head out of the driver’s side window.

  “C’mon! I’m hungry!”

  Rolling his eyes, Colt yelled out his window, “Piss off, girl scout!”

  Averi laughed while she shook her head, “I’m so glad to see you two getting along…”

  Colt added, “He’s not hungry… he’s hangry.”

  “Hangry?” Averi asked.

  “Yeah. Hungry/Angry. Hangry.”

  “That’s original…”

  “Not really,” admitted Colt. “I saw it on Facebook,” he said with a laugh.

  Colt shifted the truck into four wheel drive and winked at Averi. Before she could respond, Colt had slammed on the gas pedal, leaving Randy in a cloud of dust.

  ***

  Colt held the restaurant door open as Averi followed Shelly and Tim inside. Colt gave Randy an irritated glare, which Randy returned with an amused chuckle.

  “Cheer up, Colt!” Randy said slapping him on the back. “I gotta break ‘em for you,” Randy elaborated as he grinned from ear to ear.

  Colt’s lip snarled and as he went to backhand Randy in the back of his giant head, Colt got a reproachful look from Averi that clearly said, “Don’t make me separate you two.”

  It was a love/hate relationship. Colt and Randy loved to hate each other… and they hated to love each other. But underneath it all, buried beneath years of animosity, anger, rage and hurt feelings, Colt and Randy were as thick as thieves. Although, they weren’t ready to admit it yet. If one was in trouble, the other would be right there to back the other up.

  Colt stepped into the doorway of the restaurant with Randy on his heels, joining Averi, Shelly and Tim in the waiting area of Patton’s Steak House. The restaurant was packed and Randy hoped that they didn’t have to wait too long to get a table. Colt peered around the restaurant and knew that his arrival hadn’t gone unnoticed. People from various tables stared at him with prying eyes. They knew whose son he was. They knew the family history. They didn’t see him though, they saw his father. Colt longed for the day when people would see him for his own actions and morals and not for the actions of his father. He couldn’t hate the man more if he tried. But he was gone now. Things could return to some sense of normalcy, right? That is when the thought occurred to Colt. Had things ever been normal? No, they had not. This was the closest to normal Colt had ever experienced, and he wasn’t about to let anyone stand in his way or steal his bliss. Shrugging it off, he went to sit down next to Averi on the cracking vinyl booth. Shelly, capitalizing on the quiet moment, begged Averi once more about the gender of her baby.

  “When ya gonna tell me what color to shop for?!” Shelly asked with agitation in her voice.

  Averi laughed at her friend and gave Colt an amused look. He raised his eyebrows teasingly at Shelly. Colt knew what gender the baby was and he wasn’t telling.

  “Shell, we want it to be a surprise…” Averi said sweetly, hoping that Shelly wouldn’t push the issue.

  “I hate surprises!” Shelly pushed.

  “You hear that, Tim? Shelly hates surprises… No roses for her,” Colt said teasingly.

  “Roses… what roses?!” Shelly replied sounding excited.

  “No roses!” said Tim giving Colt a death glare, “How cheesy can you get?!”

  “Girls love roses, Tim…” Averi said trying to sway her brother.

  “Colt!” Shelly persisted. “I need to prepare! How am I supposed to spoil this child rotten, if I don’t even know if it’s a boy or a girl?! The choices aren’t very broad… yellow, green and white.”

  “Shell, I don’t even know what I am having!” admitted Averi with a laugh.

  Shelly’s eyes damn near bugged out of her head.

  “What?! What is wrong with you?!”

  Suddenly, Colt’s look turned from mildly annoyed to utterly amused.

  Colt slyly added, “But I do!” Colt said.

  Shelly looked fit to be tied. Her face was nearly as red as her hair.

  “How the hell does that work?” Tim asked.

  “The doctor gave me the results in an envelope,” said Colt smiling.

  He looked over the moon with happiness. Shelly looked irate.

  “Colton McClain, you will tell me whether to shop for a boy or a girl!” Shelly threatened as she stood up on her tippy toes and pointed her long pink fingernail in his face.

  Colt laughed and put his hands up.

  “Oh fine! You wanna know so badly. C’mere!”

  Colt whispered into Shelly’s ear, careful not to let anyone else hear the results.

  “You’re kidding!” Shelly gushed as she heard the results.

  “Shut up, Shell! I don’t want to know!”

  “Oh, my God... This is going to be fun!” Shelly gushed, unable to contain herself. She pretended to lock her lips. “My lips are sealed. You’ll know nothing…”

  Suddenly, a waitress appeared. She looked friendly with a faint smile on her face. She put on a happy front while her eyes told a different story. There was a deep, innate sadness in them. Her hair was colored in ombre style with her black hair fading into blonde tips, falling past her shoulders. Her bright print name tag read Cheyenne West. She was 27 years old and the group knew her well. Cheyenne greeted them warmly, but instead of coming out with the Texas drawl that was typical around these parts, her voice had a distinct Midwestern accent. She c
aught eyes with Randy for a moment but broke the contact as she led everyone to an empty booth on the wall. Averi had noticed the exchange and was trying to stifle her amusement. Randy was red in the face – blushing, almost. Averi shook from the laughter she was holding in. Her eyes watered and finally, she had to excuse herself to go to the bathroom where she could laugh it off. As everyone but Averi sat down at the table, Cheyenne smiled sweetly at Randy. But like a light switch, she seemed to suddenly remember something Randy said or did because just like that, her smile turned off. The appearance of a woman scorned overtook her pretty features.

  “Hey Chey…” Randy mustered as Colt, Tim and Shelly watched with curiosity.

  “Hey yourself…” Chey said with a set of pursed lips. “You haven’t called me…”

  “I know… Sorry… It’s been a crazy couple of months.”

  Cheyenne gave Randy a knowing look and shrugged nonchalantly.

  “That’s life for ya…” Cheyenne said trying to act like his distance didn’t bother her. It did. More than anything. “Alright folks, here are your menus,” Cheyenne said trying to seem unfazed as she passed out the large glossy folders.

  She read off the daily specials, highlighted her favorite dish – the chicken parm – and waited to take their orders.

  “Do you guys need a few more minutes?” asked Cheyenne, noticing that Averi was still in the bathroom.

  “No!” Randy barked. “I’m starving. We’ll just order for her. I will have the-“

  But before he could complete his sentence, Cheyenne had finished it for him, “The meatloaf with the mashed potatoes, green beans, a bowl of applesauce and a biscuit.”

  Looking surprised, Randy said, “Yeah… That’s it.”

  “It always was your favorite,” Cheyenne said with longing in her voice.

  Randy heard the need in her voice, and with her here he couldn’t act like he didn’t care. He did. She hurt him bad, though. As a distraction and a reason to continue talking to her, he asked, “A healthy serving of meatloaf, too. Please?” Randy acted as if he hadn’t eaten in about a month. He found himself smiling at her when he didn’t want to.

  “Hungry much?” Shelly asked with a perplexed look upon her face.

  “He’s hangry. Not hungry. Get it right,” Colt corrected.

  Randy gave Colt an annoyed look but didn’t back down from his hearty menu selection.

  “Alright, Colt… What can I get ya?”

  “Rib special and a baked potato. Averi will have the grilled chicken with broccoli and rice.”

  “Tim?”

  “Sirloin with whatever vegetables you have back there.”

  “And Shelly…”

  “The shrimp platter.”

  “Great. Your food will be up shortly. I’ll bring ya a pitcher of iced tea.”

  “You don’t have Coke?” Randy complained.

  “Sorry hun, the machine is busted.”

  The corners of Randy’s mouth turned down as he watched Cheyenne walk away. His frown intensified as he noticed the screen on his cell phone lit up again.

  “What the hell…” Randy complained.

  “What?” Shelly asked staring at Randy with a quizzical look upon her face. No sooner had Cheyenne got to the kitchen to put in their drink orders, she had sent Randy a text.

  “Call me later. We need to talk.”

  “Damn…”

  “Randy… You can’t ignore her forever. You need to talk to her, and explain to her why you ended it.”

  “Shell… I don’t want to get into it. She knows why I ended it.”

  “At least that makes one of us…” Colt said.

  “She’s your ex-girlfriend who you went out with for six years. You damn near married her! Even if you’re not invested, she is.”

  “Dude, you know she’s right…” Tim said.

  Shelly gave him a mushy look as she pulled his arm closer to her. Randy rolled his eyes.

  “You guys make me puke.”

  “Talk to her, Randy. I’m not kidding,” Shelly said with a worried look in her eye.

  Although Cheyenne wasn’t her favorite person on earth, she couldn’t help but wonder how she would feel if she were in her shoes. There was truth to the saying, “Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned.”

  ***

  The front door of Patton’s Steak House creaked open and Colt knew it was him before he had even walked over the threshold. There was a shift in the air, something telling Colt, “Look up.” He lifted his head and he was immediately sorry he did so. Jimmy Hearns, his half-brother, just walked in the door dressed from head to toe in black with a smug look upon his face. The greatest shock was not in seeing him, but rather in seeing the company he now kept. Right on his tail was none other than Gunnar Rhoades. He was known for his violence and for his horrible temper.

  “Look what just walked in…” Colt said nudging Randy.

  “God, is there no escaping the vermin in this town?!”

  “And look who he came in with…”

  “What the hell is Hearns doing with Gunnar Rhoades… that is a really bad combination there… You don’t think-” Randy said, but he was immediately interrupted by Colt’s hand.

  “There’s no way. That band of heathens wouldn’t give the time of day to a chicken shit like Jimmy.”

  “I don’t know Colt… He’s changed. He seems different. He doesn’t care who gets hurt as long as he gets what he wants.”

  “I agree. This don’t look good.”

  “They look awful chummy.”

  They certainly did. Gunnar and Jimmy spoke in hushed tones and Jimmy had an electric spark in his eyes. Turning around, Jimmy glanced back at Colt as a broad smile grew across his face. He waved before rejoining the conversation with Gunnar.

  “Fucking piece of shit!” Colt griped.

  Jimmy had been feeling awfully smug since the fire. No charges were brought upon him, at least not yet. After all, he wasn’t the one who set it. Everyone knows who did that. He also wasn’t one of the men who took Averi from the safe room at the Monkey Bar. That was left up to Gunnar Rhoades and Trent Myers. Not that Averi could see their faces to identify them, anyway. They were cloaked under the hood of their jackets. She had only seen one set of hands that had tattoos emblazoned on the knuckles. The tattoos on each knuckle spelled out SVNTY DEVIL.

  Everyone knew who the leader of the Seventy Devils motorcycle gang was. Black Horse. The name was like a ghost, scattering through the air, appearing in conversation and vanishing into thin air. Colt continued watching his half-brother as his blood boiled.

  “I’ll fucking break him if he so much as looks at her.”

  “Now’s your chance,” said Randy as he eyed Jimmy who was getting out of his seat and heading towards the bathroom. Averi had just turned the corner and the two bumped into each other, causing her to drop her purse to the floor.

  “Oh, sorry!” Averi said to Jimmy before she realized who had bumped into her. When she did, her eyes went wide, not with fear, but with rage.

  “Excuse me,” Jimmy said, as if he had only innocent thoughts running through his deluded mind.

  “Oh, Averi…” he said in a fake surprised tone. “How nice to see you!” Jimmy stroked his hand across her cheek.

  Without missing a beat, Averi slapped Jimmy hard across his face. “Don’t you dare touch me!”

  Jimmy rubbed his cheek where Averi’s hand had cracked across his skin. A strange smile grew across his face.

  “Feisty! I like that. You’re looking pretty tonight! Still married to my chump brother?”

  Colt was like a rabid animal. He tried to get past Randy in the booth, but Randy held him in place. Instead, Tim stood up with a cool and collected demeanor.

  “Calm down!” Randy said to Colt through his teeth. “Jesus, you’re fucking strong!”

  “Let me go,” Colt demanded through gritted teeth.

  “No. Let Tim deal with him. It’s our last night in town. Chill.”

  Ave
ri glared at Jimmy. She could feel the heat of Colt’s stare on her. While she would love nothing more than to give Jimmy a swift kick to the balls, she knew she had to act rationally. Fortunately, the coolest of heads prevailed when Tim came over and stepped between her and Jimmy.

  “Back off, Hearns… she has a restraining order.”

  “And what’s that piece of paper gonna do?”

  “The paper? Nothing. Her husband? Well... he’s dying to take a piece out of you. I wouldn’t mind either.”

  Jimmy looked Colt’s way, his eyes burning with amusement. This time Shelly had to help restrain Colt. She pressed her knee over his thighs and talked quietly in his ear, begging him to relax.

  “I’d like to see him try… I have heavy artillery behind me now…” Jimmy said with a snide look upon his face.

  Tim turned on his heel, unsure if he heard Jimmy correctly, “Heavy artillery, huh? That a threat, Hearns?”

  “Name’s McClain now… and that’s not a threat… it’s a promise.”

  Without another word, Jimmy skulked off back to his bar stool where Gunnar Rhoades was watching the scene play out. Shaking his head in disgust, Tim led Averi over to the booth where Colt, Randy and Shelly sat. You could fry an egg on Colt’s forehead. Randy seemed to be hiding his temper for once. Maybe he was actually learning how to pick his battles. Stranger things have happened. Either that, or his mind was still deciding what to do with Cheyenne.

  “You wanna go eat somewhere else?” Shelly asked Averi as she sat down.

  “No, y’all ordered right?”

  “Yeah...”

  “Let’s just salvage the evening and enjoy dinner.”

  Colt tried to brush off his rage. After a moment he pulled Averi in close to him and rested his hand on her back, protective and gentle. While they waited for their food to arrive, Colt and Randy didn’t take their eyes off of Jimmy and Gunnar. Randy sucked on his teeth just waiting for Jimmy to step one toe out of line. Then he wouldn’t be so calm.

  ***

  Monday Night Football blared from the big screen TV. It was Cowboys vs. Giants and Colt, Randy and Tim were obsessed with the gridiron mayhem that was playing out on the screen. Shelly did not see what was so exciting.