by Adair Rymer
Thank you. I let myself be led without a fight. Gloria watched me go with a great sadness etched on her features. She replaced it with a sternness and ran off in the opposite direction. Gloria, bless her heart, was probably running to Muse, for all the good that was bound to do. Remy's words floated through my head. “Simple economics.” I'm the product, they're the customers and, “The customer always gets what he wants.”
With the sheer volume of people in the bar, it was noticeably hotter. Passing through that door, I was being dragged into the maw of a giant beast. Swallowed whole. Rio threw me in a booth and told me if I moved, he'd kill me. Where could I possibly go now, anyways? I was one booth over from where Top took me last night night. It figured. I just sat there and waited for the inevitable.
I imagined Gloria storming into Muse's office and demanding that I be released or she was quitting. Then the fantasy part kicked in. Muse, terrified of losing her best worker, buckled immediately and ran down here in those black three inch heels and forced everyone to let me go. Why her? Why not Superman? It was about as probable.
My heart jumped a beat when I saw Remy across the room. He was talking with a grizzled bald man. The quintessential old guard biker. The way everyone was shaking his hand and hanging on his words, I could tell he was a big deal in their community. I didn't care about him, my eyes followed only Remy.
Remy looked to be in his late twenties or early thirties. I didn't know what Remy's status in the gang was but almost everyone looked older than him. He spoke and moved with such surety that he stood out among the rabble almost to the degree of Top and the old guy. I've always been perceptive, it was easy for me to pick out the decision-makers in a crowd and Remy was certainly one of those men.
I don't know if he felt my gaze on him, I kinda hope he did, but he casually scanned the room and found me. When he did, that roughly, handsome face sunk a bit. Remy let his gaze drift to the ceiling in subdued exasperation. I'm sure he was asking himself the question, “How many times would he have to pull this silly girl out of the fire?”
I've learned so much in the time I've been here that I would completely understand if he just stayed over there and decided that he couldn't help me anymore. He should give up on me, I don't think I would fault him. Was I really worth it? I couldn't fathom why he had risked so much for me already. Our roles being reversed, I probably would have stayed over there, too.
No I wouldn't.
He stood there so long that I thought he actually had finally wised up and decided to ignore me. Then he looked back at me with these half-set eyes and a light smile that said, “Hold on.” The look was that of willful resignation, like even he could barely believe what he was going to do next. I was never happier to be wrong in my entire life. Jesus, I could've cried. Seeing him part the crowd for me pulled a smile from the depths of my soul that I didn't know existed. I had to cover my face.
He didn't come to me, though. He was too smart for that. “Rio, the fuck are you thinking?”
“Woah, easy, Poe,” Rio said. Poe? Like the author, Edgar Allan Poe? I guess Remy's penchant for literature was widely known.
“Did you not see the uniform?” Remy pointed at me. “Are you retarded? Top sent you to Muse to get the girls, not the staff.”
“I'm the fucking Vice, I get who the fuck I want.” Rio rose up off the bar and got in Remy's face.
“Remember whose house you're in, boy.” Rio did look young, maybe mid twenties. Remy didn't give him an inch, if anything, he pushed in closer. “Deadeye has rules in place for a reason. I don't mind telling him why his kid is missing a few teeth.”
The radius of men taking notice of the argument grew exponentially, and it looked like they were siding with Remy. Rio probably could've argued the fact that I said I didn't work there yet, but he picked up the vibe from his peers and just sat back down.
Rio put his hands up and frowned in reluctant agreement. “S'fine, you're right. My bad.”
“Glasses, get the fuck outta here.” Remy shot me a quick glance then sat down next to Rio. “What are you drinking?”
“Whiskey and coke,” Rio said, calming down. Remy gave him an amiable way out that didn't cause him to lose too much face.
I shot up and headed for the door. God, I hoped Remy would find a way to me tonight. There were a thousand ways I wanted to thank him. None of them involved me wearing this outfit. Remy ordered two Jack and Cokes and purposefully kept his vision stapled elsewhere until I was gone. That creep, Rio, drank in every step I took.
“Hey, Glasses,” Rio called to me just as I reached the door. I stopped and acknowledged him. I had to, no matter how much it felt like someone just dropped a slimy blanket on top of me. I didn't respond but I turned to at least face him. “Apologize to Muse for me—”
Almost as if on cue, the door to the hall was pushed open. Muse, followed by ten working girls, filed in. After the initial cheers died down Muse regarded me with a sly wink, that fluster from earlier was completely gone.
“Oooh, my ears are burnin'! Hello, Rio,” she purred, sailing him a kiss. He smirked, got up and gave her a hug. “Don't worry boys, I have more friends coming!”
Through the renewed round of cheers, Remy paid for the drinks and decidedly sat this conversation out. He pretended to be watching the football game on one of the TVs but I knew he was listening intently, gauging the rapidly changing situation.
“I was just telling your girl here,” Rio resumed, “to apologize to you for the misunderstanding.”
“Sugar, there's no misunderstanding. The shining Star is a free agent. She doesn't work for me. Silly girl got herself all wet, so I gave her something dry to slip into, is all.”
She wasn't just cutting me loose she was serving me up! That bitch! Ugh, I hated myself for trusting her this morning. I wasn't waiting around for her to strip me in front of everyone, I needed to get the hell out of there. Not even two steps before Rio's boney hand snatched my arm.
“Is that so? Looks like mommy will let you stay out past your bedtime.” Rio pulled me in close.
Past him, I could see Remy turn and visually take us in. His deadly gaze at the back of Rio's head then on to Muse sent a shiver up my spine that rivaled earlier, when he had his hand to my throat. Catching Remy's glare, Muse's smile lost its luster and she unconsciously took a small step backward.
“I didn't mean to be so rough earlier, I just get excited. How's about a kiss?”
“No. Get off!” I twisted away from him.
The skin on my neck crawled at the touch of Rio's breath. He was hideous, and when I couldn't stand it any longer, it stopped. I pried open my eyes to find Rio's face painfully contorted. Remy had his hand wrapped so tightly around Rio's wrist that the man's whole arm was turning white.
“Let go,” Remy said. Rio immediately complied and I wrenched myself free. Remy then turned to Muse. “You and I are going to have words later. Leave.”
“What for?” Muse asked coyly. “Little bird found her way here all by herself and this is my bar, Remy. No one tells me what I can or—”
“Fucking goddammit!” Rio sharply growled at Remy's tightened grip.
Remy stared at Muse, his eyes narrowed slightly. They were full to bursting with hellish promises. Muse looked around to see who was watching. By this point, everyone was more interested in her girls and booze than her. She swallowed, tugged at the bottom of her shirt and curtly walked out. Remy released Rio.
“What the fuck, Remy?!” Rio was fuming. He struck me as an entitled brat who was used to getting his way. “If the bitch was your Ol' Lady, fucking say so!”
“Her name is Star.”
“Who gives a fuck? Is she or isn't she?”
Despite all the other distractions, somehow Top had noticed the situation and was walking over. Remy saw the worried look on my face or maybe it was the way I tried to push myself backwards through the wall I was up against. Either way, when he saw Top and the old bald guy coming over, I could see the gears turni
ng in his head.
“Answer his question, Remy. Is she your Ol' Lady?” Top waited expectantly.
Remy stayed quiet. Top put two fingers in his mouth and whistled, the music cut out and everyone quieted to hear what the big man had to say.
“Brothers, we got ourselves a sticky situation here. This girl was at the gas station when Bren was killed. In fact, her boyfriend is the one who killed Bren.” There was a wave of growing hatred that rolled off the crowd. It didn't take much to agitate these bikers and even less for them to become fully enraged. “Not only that, but she saw my brother, Remy, pull the trigger on the fucker.”
I'm about to be lynched.
“I say we put it to a vote. All in favor of putting a bullet in this pretty, little piece-of-ass, say Aye!” When Top finished, the overwhelming Ayes that roared through would've put the Big Bad Wolf to shame. There were so many angry men. It was staggering. “All opposed?”
“Nay!” Remy defiantly stood between me and fifty of the scariest men I'd ever seen. His lone, startlingly loud cry rang out like a hammer striking an anvil.
I'd never heard his voice that loud before. In the face of so much anger, Remy's nerve was that of fire-tempered steel. He felt larger than life in that golden moment. Everyone was as shocked as I was. It was a testament to how much respect he commanded that they didn't just brush by him and tear me to shreds. He stood there and dared them. No one moved.
“The Nays have it. Leave her be,” Deadeye declared calmly. Just like that, the crowd began breaking off into smaller groups, the music was turned back on and things generally resumed. Jesus, how important was this Deadeye guy if he could enforce that kind of ruling? Top and Rio notably disapproved but it honestly looked like that didn't matter. Biker justice had been meted out. It was over.
Fuck, I felt like I'd just walked through a hurricane. My heart was beating so fast that I was light-headed. My vision blurred, I had to sit down. I must have looked so pitiful when Remy finally turned to check on me. There was even the slightest flash of hesitance in his eyes when Deadeye called him away. Remy didn't want to go.
More than anything I didn't want Remy to leave either, but I guess Deadeye wasn't a man to be argued with. Before he left, Remy gently touched my hand. I felt like I’d been struck by lightning and throughout the whole trial, it was trapped within me, agonizingly arcing between my extremities. His touch was so grounding. He stole away all my nervousness and electric anxiety. I could breathe again. I slumped into the booth and watched him walk off, I was exhausted.
I did get a bit nervous when I couldn't see him any more. Where did Top and Deadeye take him? I hoped he was alright, then I reminded myself that if he made it this far he could probably take care of himself. I was the one that needed to worry.
I didn't see Rio creep around behind me. I should've been more careful. He had a hand over my mouth and was dragging me outside in plain view. This was probably Top's back up plan. If he couldn't get rid of me publicly he'd have Rio do it behind the gang's back. Fuck, where was Remy?
Once we were outside Rio slapped me. I didn't cry out. He threw me against the side of a truck on the far end of the parking lot and slapped me again. “Taking out some of that impotent rage, Rio? Remy's going to fucking kill you,” I spat at him.
“Fuck you, cunt. I'll show you who's impotent!”
I slapped away his hands as best I could but he punched all the air from me with a blow to my stomach. I collapsed. My shoes and pants were ripped off while I wheezed. I kicked feebly and scratched at his face. He was on top of me, squeezing my tits through the thin work shirt.
“Remy...” I cried out weakly. The air was only now starting to return to my lungs. Rio had my hands pinned up and was fondling my tits. He started slobbering on me and chewing my nipples. His face wasn't uniformly stubbly like Remy's, it was a scraggly mustache and sporadic tufts of hair in between bald flesh. It felt like my chest was being scrubbed with worn-through sandpaper. “Remy!” I screamed.
“Shut the fuck up, bitch. The only thing he's going to hear is the gunshot when I'm done.” He reached into his pants and pulled out his hairy, uncircumcised penis. It had a weird bend to it. I couldn't imagine a more horrible looking dick. He had me bound so much that I could only squirm. “Who the fuck does he think he is? Next year, I'm gonna be running the show.”
“Remy.” My voice was little more than a whisper.
“I fucking told you! He can't h—”
“I'm here.” I didn't think it was real. There was no way Remy could've heard me.
He kicked Rio in the ribs with such force that the man lifted off the ground. Remy knelt down beside me to see how badly I was hurt. Wordlessly, he stood back up and walked over to Rio who was just getting back up.
“My fucking ribs...” Rio started protesting, but was abruptly cut off when Remy grabbed the back of his head and smashed his face into the driver's side window of the truck. Rio's nose broke with the first hit. I shuddered as wet, red flecks sprinkled my face and shoulder. The second smash spider-webbed the whole window. When Rio's face was ripped out, it was a horror show.
I almost felt bad for him. Almost. Although there were no large chunks of glass in him, the skin on his face and neck was shredded. One eyelid had been torn off completely, the mutilated orb beneath was just pulp. I felt nauseous and had to look away for a moment.
Remy took a long hard look at me. I was doubled over, lying on the ground, near naked, wet, filthy and shivering. My face was bloody where Rio had slapped me. I was a wretched sight. I could see the rage that bubbled within him. Of course, he wasn't mad at me, I was just the catalyst. My pain and anguish gave Remy the hammer. Rio was the nail.
“Do you see me?” Remy opened Rio's other eye wide with his fingers. “Do you see me, little Deadeye?”
Rio gargled blood and spat a wet wad of gore onto the ground. None of the words that escaped this face wreckage were intelligible.
“Rio?”
“...Yes.” Rio started sobbing.
“Do you see me?”
“Yes, fuck. Yes! I see you.”
“I did this to you. Say it.” Remy demanded.
“Yes... please... sorry...” Rio's limp form was shaking. He was just saying things
It wasn't what Remy wanted to hear so he stuck his thumb into the mutilated, milky hole where Rio's eye was a few minutes before. Rio screamed and thrashed. I screamed too but clasped my hands over my mouth. I will never forget the sight of an eyeball popping like a pimple or that hideous sound! It was like someone dropped a tablespoon of yogurt on the ground.
Even more frightening was that Remy had the capacity to do that. I kept trying to look away. Normal people don't do these things, nor do they watch them happen, but I needed to see it. I needed to see a man like Rio taken apart for what he'd done to me. Remy was vengeance given form.
“Say. It,” Remy growled softly in his ear.
“You did it! Youdidityoudidityoudidit!” Remy released him. He took a minute to clean his hands on Rio's shirt then stood the man up and pushed him toward the bar. I thought he was going to drop dead right there, but aside from the grotesque disfiguring, he really only had some broken bones, a bunch of cuts and, well, only one working eye now. He would survive.
Remy put down the tailgate of the truck and helped me up into it. I had put most of my clothes back on at that point. I could see genuine compassion in his eyes before I looked away. After all that, I wasn't ready to meet his gaze fully. The button-up he wore was pulled off so that he could use it to wipe the blood from my face and shoulders. He was a bundle of scars and tattoos. It was the road map of a life hard lived.
“How am I still alive?” I traced the ragged line I put on his chest with my finger. The cut I'd given him this morning had been cleaned but wasn't deep enough to merit stitches, probably just bandages, not that he'd bothered. I wasn't sorry. We were different people back then and at this breakneck speed who knew what kind of person I'd be in another six hours.
“Turns out you're stronger than you thought.” His words, still tinged with residual violence, were soothing.
“No, back inside. Your vote, it was so out numbered...”
“Motorcycle Clubs are a true democracy. In matters of life and death, if just one person says Nay then the Nays have it. Granted, that also depends on how the President feels that day. Top would've overturned it. We were lucky Deadeye showed up.”
“I don't understand,” I said. “Who was that? Isn't Top in charge?”
“Of our chapter, yes, but Deadeye's the national president. He runs all of the chapters in the US. His word is law.” Remy was distinctly deliberate when he said this. This was obviously something that was taken very seriously.
“Did you know that he'd side with you?”
Remy looked off and didn't say anything. He didn't know. He put himself on the line, not having any idea how it would turn out. His reputation, his aspirations, maybe even his life. He risked everything for me. When those dark, endless eyes finally found me again, I broke down and just started crying. It was the gravity of everything finally pulling me back to earth. I mean, fuck! I couldn't even begin to deal with this!
His fingers slid across my scalp and instantly I started to feel better. I actually got embarrassed at the display and wiped my eyes as quickly as possible. For some reason I didn't want him to see me as this spoiled, weak girl. But in all honesty, that was exactly what I was a little over twenty-four hours ago. God, I felt terrible.
To my utter amazement, he pulled me gently to his stomach. I could feel his breath and heartbeat through his rigid abs. I didn't think he was even capable of tenderness. The man still terrified the shit out of me but somehow made me feel safe at the same time.
“Holy shit! Is Rio Deadeye's son?” The realization slapped me like a wet fish. “Did you just blind the national president's son?!” I felt Remy chuckle.
“The little fucker deserved it.”
I slid off the truck and gazed up at him. His hair was a mess. “What's going to happen to you?”
