Chapter Seventeen: Escape
Bear
Dear Sweet Bear:
I didn’t want to leave this way. But I had to. The thought of him killing you to get to me had become more than I could take. I know you would protect me, but that is why I am leaving. I cannot lose someone else. If I did, I might not be able to put myself back together again.
Just know that you have meant so much to me and I will never forget you. Please don’t look for me. I will be safe.
Delphia
Delphia was in serious trouble. I put the note down with my heart hammering and called Keys. “Hey, you guys far?” My question came out in a quick snap, but this was urgent. I had to get to Delphia.
“Cool it man. We are not far away. Are you okay this morning?” Keys asked.
Frustration built on the inside and I wasn’t okay, not by a long shot. “Sorry, Keys. I’m going to need you guys to help me out with something. I have a situation with a young lady who is being targeted by a murder suspect. The guy’s name is Rocky and he’s affiliated with the Road Warriors. Are you stopped somewhere?”
“Yep. You called at the right time. The guys are on the inside grabbing burgers. I ate mine already, but we’re about to get back on the road. Aren’t the Road Warriors the same gang from the casino that you guys were having problems with earlier?”
“Those are the same pricks. I’m pretty sure they’re bidding against us for the casino as well. We’re going to eliminate them.”
“A tangled mess. So how is the girl involved?” Road traffic was surrounding Keys in the background which made it hard to hear him.
“The guy that showed up missing in the Mississippi river was her brother.”
“That’s heavy.” Keys sighed over the phone. “How did you get involved in it?”
“Same gas station I go to a lot of the time and the reporter that ran the casino story on us is tracking the story. I told you it was a long, complicated one.” A dejected sigh escaped my lips. “I promised I would protect her, so I have to hold up my end of the bargain. Something’s up. There’s more to the story, but I’ll save you the details.”
“Cool man, we got your back. We know it’s been hard for you after Murphy. You think she’s a runner? If she goes missing, we’re going to get her back. I need to flex my muscles a little bit.”
Hesitating, I replied, “She’d been held up in an armed robbery by this same guy recently, so yeah, she already ran.”
“Sheesh. Who is this girl? That this guy wants a piece of her?” Wind cut up part of Key’s words but I caught the majority of what he had to say.
“You’re breaking up, and I’ll fill you in when you get here, man. This might not be the trip you originally planned, but it will be a trip to remember, that’s for sure,” I promised wryly.
“No doubt. Ten minutes away. See you soon, Bear.” He hung up.
I tried Delphia’s phone again. All I got was the deafening sound of a dead ringtone in my ear and her phone ringing out as it went to voicemail.
I dropped the phone down and got dressed. Then slid my feet into my boots. I needed to head out and quick. In the meantime, the guys were on their way to me. I let my legs carry me as I propelled myself to my bike, expelling the air from my lungs. I hoped I could extinguish the image of shooting Rocky right between the eyes from my mind.
Pulling my Harley out front, I waited for the guys to arrive.
It didn’t take the crew too long to appear in grand fashion. One by one, the grunt machines rolled down my street with their horns honking as all six of the guys lined their bikes up out front.
“Hey! My brothers. Welcome to Holbeck,” I called out, trying to give them the greeting they deserved, despite my overwhelming anxiety.
Keys got off his bike first and gave me a man hug.
I dropped back a bit to take him in. “Looking good, man. You haven’t changed a bit.” And he hadn’t. He still had that cocky, playboy smile that all women loved.
The familiar scar under his chin he didn’t speak on too often unless you knew him. He’d been kidnapped in the Gulf and the ordeal had taken him years to get over. If there was anyone you wanted in your back pocket when the heat was on, Keys was your man.
Andy was next. He greeted me with a smile, his salt and pepper beard hidden by a bandana around his neck. “Hey man. Good to see you. Bear, you’re looking like a beast! You’re putting me to shame.” Andy shook his head at me.
I gave him a hug. “I might be, but I guarantee you can still hit a bullseye so you don’t have to work out,” I told him. Andy was known affectionately to us as ‘Trigger’ because he really knew how to pull one. He had an amazing handle on guns and was one of the best sharpshooters in our unit.