Sexy Bastards Anthology: Bad Boy, Biker, Alpha, Motorcycle Club, Contemporary Romance Collection

by Lexy Timms

"What kind of trouble?"

  "Yeah, I'm close, me and Rams. Yeah, we got Crystal with us."

  "Which rest stop?"

  "No, that's Briar Hill. The one with the pond is Fisher's Grove."

  "Ok, I'll be there in ten, no five. You guys come on as quickly as you can. What about Crystal?"

  "Ok, got it."

  Talon hung up and pointed at Rams. "Get her to the clubhouse. Now. Then call Whitey."

  Without waiting for an answer, Talon started his bike and was gone.

  I stiffened. No way was I going to the clubhouse to sit and wait. I hopped off the bike and began to run towards the main street. I knew Rams wouldn't take me to the rest stop, so I would hitchhike.

  "Crystal, come on, what are you doing?" Rams yelled.

  I didn't bother to answer, just ran faster.

  Rams pulled up next to me. "Crystal, get on the bike."

  "No," I said simply, saving my energy for running.

  "Shit, Crystal, I can't leave you alone. Talon'll kill me if something happens to you. So will your dad. So will everybody. Don't do this to me."

  I slowed slightly. "I'm going to hitchhike to the rest stop, Rams. You can follow the car that picks me up."

  "Aw fuck. Crystal, we don't even know what's going on there. What if there's fighting, or shooting, or people are being stabbed. You just going to walk into the middle of that?"

  "Well I'm not going to go wait to hear what happened twenty miles across town!" I shouted, desperation leaking through my body.

  "Fuck. Crystal, get on my bike. I'll take you if, IF you promise to stay back, to do what I tell you to. To not just run into the place until we know what's going on."

  I slowed. I could promise that. I could probably even do it. As long as my dad and Talon were ok.

  I stopped and pointed my finger at him. "Rams, I swear, if you try to fool me, if you take me towards the clubhouse, I will jump off your bike while it's moving."

  Rams shook his head and held up his hand. "Scout's honor."

  I made a face at him, then climbed on his bike. "You were never a boy scout."

  "I was. Fifth grade. I went to two meetings but got kicked out for saying I didn't believe in God."

  Rams took off, not giving me a chance to ask about that one. He was just as much of a puzzle as Talon.

  I held on tight, urging him to go faster, but he stayed a good ten miles under the speed limit, even when we got on the highway. I couldn't complain though, I was still going to get there faster than if I had hitchhiked.

  We approached the rest stop and I sat up straighter, looking around for my dad or Talon. Rams slowed to an intolerable speed and I contemplated jumping off, but knew it wasn't a good idea, no matter what I had threatened. He drove slowly through the parking lot of the rest stop, all the way to the far end.

  "I'm going up to that hill," he called back to me, pointing ahead. "We'll be able to see everything up there. Remember your promise."

  I tapped him on the chest to let him know I agreed and swiveled my head, trying to find Talon's bike. The plaza building and several towering evergreen trees blocked my view of the back of the rest stop, but we would be clear of them shortly. The rest stop itself was surrounded by trees, looking almost like a small park. The very back, away from the highway was bordered by a larger hill. If you climbed the hill you would find a tiny pond the city stocked with fish in the summertime.

  People walked around and cars drove through the area, bent on getting back on the highway, just like always. There was no sign of a fight or shooting, or even my father.

  Rams reached the edge of the parking lot, jogged left to get on a service road, and drove us up the hill. He stopped at a small leveling and parked his bike. I got off, my eyes scanning the area.

  I saw him. Talon's bike was parked on the far end of the back side of the rest area. He stood a few feet away talking to a man in a white coverall who looked like he was emptying the garbage cans. The man shook his head and Talon turned in a circle, looking for something. I could read his frustration even from as far away as I was.

  Talon said something to the man, then walked to his bike and threw a leg over. He pulled out his phone and held it up to his ear.

  "Looks like it was a bust," Rams said. "Good," but his voice held confusion too. Maybe dad was in trouble at a different rest stop?

  I put my hand in my pocket to retrieve my own phone when it happened. My worst nightmare. A shot boomed over the hill, sounding much louder than the gunshots had yesterday, but still completely unmistakable. I crouched instinctively, even as I knew I wasn't the one being shot at. Across the parking lot, Talon dropped to the ground so quickly, I couldn't tell if he'd been hit or was diving for cover. My heart squeezed painfully into my throat as the sound of two more shots rolled down the hill, echoing in the dip we were all in. I saw dirt kick up just to the side of Talon's bike, and heard the sound of a bullet pinging off metal.

  "Holy Jesus!" Rams yelled, grabbing me by my jacket and pitching me behind a tree. People screamed and ran for their cars. Engines revved and vehicles sped out of the area.

  Talon didn't move.

  Rams pinned me against the tree with his body, sheltering me, hiding me. "Can you tell where the shots are coming from?"

  I trembled, unable to tear my eyes away from Talon. We were far enough away that I still couldn't tell if he was using his bike for cover, or had been shot and was unconscious. My legs felt weak. Two more shots ripped through the air and I turned my head, trying to listen. "Maybe from up the hill?" I said, my eyes on the spot where I'd last seen Talon. A large truck sped through the back road of the rest stop, blocking my line of sight.

  "Of course," Rams said. "Swear to me you won't go anywhere?"

  I nodded frantically.

  Rams disappeared. Talon came back into view, and I thought he had moved. Yes! He was peeking around his bike, looking up the hill, his gun in his hand.

  I looked around for Rams and saw him running up the hill, sprinting from tree to tree.

  As I watched, another boom rocketed through the area, and Rams went down. "No!" I shouted, then clapped my hands over my mouth. Rams landed on his back, then his legs flipped over his head and momentum carried him a good way down the hill.

  I pulled my phone out of my pocket and called 911, unable to tear my eyes away from Rams' body.

  No! Not his body. He's still alive. He has to be.

  I heard sirens in the distance, but I didn't know if they would make it in time to save us.

  Chapter 23

  Crystal

  I stayed by Rams' side as they loaded him into the ambulance. "Can I go with him?" I asked the lead paramedic with the kind eyes.

  She nodded. "Go sit up front."

  "Call someone to come get my bike," Rams whispered, then coughed hard. Blood appeared on his lips.

  "Lean back, don't talk," the paramedic told him as she climbed in next to him. A firefighter handed her Rams' IV bag, then slammed the doors. I ran around the front to climb in before the ambulance pulled away. I knew it was bad. Shots to the chest were always bad. Too many vital things in there to be hit.

  I pulled my phone out of my pocket, but twisted in my seat to see behind us. I had no idea where Talon was. I hadn't seen him since we'd first heard the sirens. The shooting had stopped and Talon had torn up the hill, his gun out in front of him. When the cops showed up, I told them what had happened, and they all went that way too. Now it was just us and the fire trucks, but we were leaving, lights on and siren blaring.

  ***

  Crystal

  At the hospital, the paramedics wheeled Rams into the emergency room, but a harsh-faced nurse steered me right into the waiting room, saying it would be a while before I was allowed back with Rams.

  I sat down in one of the cruddy plastic chairs, feeling completely numb, but quickly realized there was no way I could sit still. I stood and paced, saying a silent prayer for Rams to be ok. I never felt more helpless in my entire life.
>
  Phone calls! I had to start calling people. Glad for something to do, I walked outside the emergency room and tried Talon first. No answer. When Whitey and my dad didn't answer either, I tried the clubhouse but there was no answer there either. How could that even happen? There was always somebody at the club. I rubbed my eyes and scanned my contacts for any other club member. I had Rams' phone number but that wasn't going to help me much. The thought made my throat close and hateful tears burn in my eyes.

  I paced in front of the emergency room, avoiding the traffic and people. A motorcycle that looked just like my dad's caught my eye and I jogged over to see it. It was parked just inside the parking garage but as I got closer I could tell it wasn't my dad's. The body style was the same but it was missing his saddlebags and was dirty and beat up. My eyes checked the license plate automatically but there wasn't one. Just a tiny replica like you might get in a greeting card shop. It read Beat. I puzzled over this for a long minute, before my attention was pulled away by a shout.

  I lifted my head and scanned the dark parking garage. The shout had sounded like it came from a kid but I couldn't see anyone. I looked the other way, toward the entrance to the emergency room, unsure.

  I heard another shout, and then a yelp of pain and a child started crying.

  "Hey," I called. "You ok?"

  The crying got louder. I walked towards the sound, then ran a little. The cry echoed off the cement walls and ceiling, then cut off, like someone had put a hand over the child's mouth. I could feel my muscles tensing, like I was headed into a fight. What was going on? Where was the child?

  I slowed, thinking I had reached the spot I had heard the crying coming from. It was a far corner of the garage, and there was only one car parked this far away. I bent and looked under it, then sensed something coming behind me.

  A large form hit me from behind, causing panic to leap to the forefront of my mind. I had already gone through this! I beat my hands at the person behind me and tried to pull out of his grasp, but he was too strong. I plunged my hand in my pocket, remembering what had worked before, but my fingers couldn't grasp well.

  "Not this time, bitch," a voice growled in my ear and I felt my muscles grow heavy. My head fell to the side and something caught my eye. A syringe, sticking out of my arm.

  Oh fuck.

  With the last of my strength, I pulled my hand out of my pocket, spilling what had been in it to the ground. I heard it clink on the concrete and wondered if it would make any difference.

  Probably not.

  Strong arms lifted me, then spilled me into a tiny compartment. The trunk of a car.

  A man loomed over me. A man with a bandage over his eye. He watched me as I struggled to breathe, then his head disappeared. When it reappeared he was holding my challenge coin that I had dropped, hoping to leave someone a clue. An evil smile crossed his lips as he put it in his shirt pocket.

  "Your father's almost done," the man said. I struggled to make sense of the words. Done? Done with what? "And we didn't even need you, imagine that. I would have let you go if you hadn't taken my eye, but now I have to take something of yours."

  My vision faded to a pinprick as I saw him lift the bandage covering his eye.

  My sight went completely black and I had a moment to feel grateful for that before my mind went too.

  Chapter 24

  Talon

  I stared out of the back of the cop car, watching the cops crawl all over the place. Guaranteed they were going to take me to the station, even though I'd already told my story three times. Thank God Crystal was ok. One of the firefighters had told me she'd gotten in the ambulance with Rams.

  I wanted to be pissed that she'd been there, but who could I be pissed at except myself? I should have known she wouldn't let Rams take her to the clubhouse. She must have pulled something pretty crazy to convince him to bring her here though.

  What's done is done, time to move forward.

  I hadn't found any sign of who had been shooting at us. My bike was hit and I still didn't know if it would ride or not. Rams was more important, but the cops had taken my cell so I didn't even know how he was.

  The young officer whose car I was in walked over and opened the door, motioning for me to get out. I stood and stretched my legs then stared at him, waiting.

  "You're free to go," he said, handing me my phone and my keys.

  I hadn't expected that.

  "My bike?"

  "You can take it. We photographed it."

  "The gun you took from me?"

  He gave me a look that said don't be stupid, and I dropped it. I was lucky I wasn't being arrested just for having it on me.

  I walked across the grass island that separated the back road of the rest stop from the front parking lot, where they'd pushed my bike.

  I gave it a quick once over and found a scraped exhaust pipe and a long furrow in the seat. The gas tank was fine. I needed to get to the hospital quickly. I needed to know that Rams was ok, but I also needed to talk to Crystal. I'd been a dick to her, and if she had gotten hurt, that would have weighed on me for eternity.

  But first, I had to figure out what in the hell had happened here. Whitey had called and said Whip was in trouble at the rest area. Four guys had jumped him and he was hiding in the bathroom. But Whip hadn't been there, and Whitey had never shown up with the cavalry. It had been a setup. But just who in the hell was doing the setting up? It had to be Whip or Whitey, or both, but that didn't make any sense. And why me? Someone had been after Crystal yesterday, but Whitey had told me to send her to the clubhouse, that he would leave someone behind to watch her. I had already puzzled over the scenario a dozen times, and it made less sense each time. Now to get some answers.

  I called Whitey but his phone just rang. I called the clubhouse.

  "MMMC," Rush's voice said.

  "Rush, is Whitey there?"

  "Nah, Talon, it's just me here."

  "Why didn't you guys show up at the rest stop?"

  "For what?"

  "What the fuck, Rush, Rams was shot at the Fisher's Grove rest stop and you guys don't even know about it?"

  "What? When?"

  "Like three hours ago. He's at the hospital now. Didn't Crystal call?"

  "Talon, I only got here an hour ago and the phone ain't rung since. Whitey was here but he left. Didn't say where he was going. Ain't nobody else been here all day, as far as I can tell."

  I didn't know what to make of any of it. The whole damn world seemed to have lost its mind.

  "Thanks, Rush. I'm heading to the hospital now. Call me if you see Whitey, Whip, or Crystal."

  "I'm coming to the hospital."

  "No, man, stay there. I need eyes there. I gotta talk to them. Something dodgey is going on."

  "Yeah, fine, but call me and tell me how Rams is."

  "Will do."

  ***

  Talon

  A helpful volunteer directed me up to a recovery ward in the hospital where she said Rams would be in a few short minutes. I rode the elevator up, expecting to find Crystal in the waiting room, but it was empty. While I was asking about her at the nurse's desk, Rams was wheeled by on a bed, his eyes closed.

  I looked questioningly at the nurse. She nodded. "You can go in to see him."

  I followed them into the room and waited while the aide set Rams' bed up, then left.

  "Rams, you ok?"

  He opened his eyes and smiled at me. I could tell immediately that he was high as the sky on something. His pupils were constricted to tiny pinpoints, even though the room was dark.

  "Talon! Fucker shot me, huh?"

  I approached the bed and looked him over. "Where?"

  Rams moved his left arm slowly and pulled open his gown to show me a small, seemingly unimportant bandage on his right pec. "Nicked my lung but doctor says I'm gonna be fun. No, fine." His words were slurred and his eyes kept drifting closed.

  "That's good to hear, Rams. I'm going to get out of here. Let you sleep. Wher
e's Crystal?"

  Rams shook his head and fought to keep his eyes open. "She never came to see me once in the ER. I sent the nurse to look for her and the nurse said she was gone."

  I grabbed on hard to the bedrail, not trusting myself to speak. He got her. I knew it, deep down in my being. It was my fault. Somehow, it was my fault, and now I had to find her or die trying.

  "Rams, get some sleep. I'll check in with you later."

  Rams grabbed my arm. "Call Ginnia, tell her."

  "I will," I said, uncurling his fingers from my wrist and laying his hand down next to his body. His eyes were closed already. I turned and burst out of the room, then ran down the hallway. For all I knew, every minute, every second counted, and I didn't even know where to start looking.

  I pounded down the stairs to the emergency room entrance, going over my options, knowing I didn't have any. One thing became semi-clear to me though, I had to find Whitey, had to get ahold of Whip. They both knew something they weren't telling me. If I had to force it out of them, I would, but I couldn't even try until I found them.

  I ran outside, dodging people, trying to figure out how he could have gotten her. Whoever he was. She had come in the ambulance. I could start there, call the ambulance company, talk to the paramedic. Ask if they had seen anything. What Crystal had done when they arrived at the hospital. I walked out into the parking lot, then turned around and looked at the hospital. There were cameras. That was good. But would I be able to convince security to let me playback the last three or four hours? Would that even help me?

  I wracked my brain, trying to think of someone who could help. No club members worked at the hospital, but a few might know people here. I didn't have any cop friends, except Cormic, but he was just out of training, would he be able to help me? He could at least talk to security here. My eyes scanned the hospital and I seemed to hear a clock ticking in my ears, counting down the seconds to something. It had been hours. Crystal could already be dead, and if she was, I was too.

  Something caught my eye. A motorcycle in the first stall of the parking garage. It looked just like Whip's even though I could tell it wasn't. But it gave me an idea.