Max!Her heart raced but she was yanked back toward the door into the bar. In the surreal chaos of flying glass and the motorcycle, Brad had managed to grab her arm, spinning her so that her back was to him, and she faced the back door. He stood behind her, his gun at her head.
She watched in a daze as Max got off his bike and stepped across the wreckage of the door holding a gun while Rafe rushed into the room through the broken door. The garbage can rolled to a stop on the floor, and a man crawled out of it. It was Slash, wielding a knife. Rafe and Max were armed with guns while Slash held his blade, as they started circling closer.
Brad pressed his gun barrel hard against her temple. His grip on her arm was surprisingly steady. “I’ll blow this bitch’s brains out if you fucking move!” he screamed.
She came out of her stupor. This was the crisis point. Brad was cornered and desperate—even more than before. The men held their guns steady, but Brad crouched behind her. Slash had no opening either. She had one chance. She flicked her eyes downward, and she saw recognition in Rafe and Max’s eyes. They gave an almost indiscernible nod of their heads in unison.
Summoning all her strength, she drove her elbow into Brad’s gut and bent forward, as if bowing. Two deafening roars that left her ears ringing echoed through the room, and she felt the warm splatter of blood on her back. Brad’s grip tightened, vise-like on her arm, and he fell, dragging her down, falling on her.
Then Rafe and Max were there, peeling the man’s fingers from her arm, rolling him off her, pulling her up and then putting their arms around her. She almost blacked out as she sank into their embrace.
She decidedshe must’ve fainted for a moment. She was slumped against Rafe’s strong body, with Max’s arm around her back, feeling the aftermath of the adrenaline rush. Several bikers had come into the room and now stood around.
Brad lay on the floor. Simone didn’t have to touch him to tell that he was stone-cold dead—brain tissue covered the door into the bar, and the man’s head was a mess. His chest was equally bloody, and he’d taken two rounds, both at the same time if her hearing was accurate. She had what she had hoped for, and it was awful.
“Everybody but Rafe and Max clear out,” Slash said commandingly. “Get your asses somewhere where you will be seen by people the cops will believe.” Without a word, the room cleared, with the bikers who had come as backup scattering to the winds.
Simone felt her head clearing. She had begun getting her bearings, but her knees were weak, and she leaned against Rafe and Max, allowing them to support her weight. Slash stood beside them looking in control of the situation. That was reassuring.
“Simone, are you okay?” asked Slash.
What a question. “Alive and kicking.”
Slash nodded. “The cops are on their way. We have to leave.”
She thought she understood. “What do I do?”
Max squeezed her shoulder as Slash spoke. “Tell them you have no idea who shot Brad. He was trying to rape you, and that had your attention. Someone threw the garbage can through the window, then smashed in the door with a bike and shot him.”
“Okay.”
“Will they believe that?” Rafe asked.
“Probably not, but there won’t be much they can do about it. They can’t prosecute her for not seeing who saved her.” He turned to Simone. “Beg them to find the man so you can thank him. He just busted in the back door, shot Brad, and rode off. Can you do that?”
Rafe and Max still had their arm around her, but she trembled. Slash’s plan made sense. Even if they thought she was telling the truth, they’d arrest Rafe, Max, and Slash and give them a hard time. And that wouldn’t gain anyone anything. “I probably got a glimpse of him. What did the guy look like?”
Slash grinned. “Good girl. Keep it vague. I think he was a big sonofabitch, wearing a felt hat. It happened so fast, and you were so fucking scared that’s all you got. Besides, you had blood in your eyes—your own.”
She wanted to laugh, but she hurt all over. “What a guy. I hope they find him.” She leaned against Rafe and Max even more heavily. “The room is pretty damn blurry, so it won’t be much of a lie. I sure as hell couldn’t give an accurate description of any of you based on what I see right now.”
“Right. Rafe and Max, tell me about your guns.”
“We bought them from a retired cop in another state. He had a couple of unregistered weapons in case he was ever involved in a shooting gone bad.” Max shared the information as Rafe nodded his agreement.
“Okay, so as far as anything official goes, it will be untraceable. They’ll probably wonder why the mysterious savior had two different guns, so you might want to say you think you saw him shooting with both hands at the same time, Simone.”
She nodded her understanding and immediately regretted it from the way it made the room spin.
He looked at Max and Rafe. “Disassemble them as much as possible and start ditching the pieces in separate dumpsters at least ten blocks from here.” He looked at Simone. “The cops are on their way. As soon as we’re gone, unlock the door and let Sam in. Can you get to the door?”
She nodded. “Put me in the office chair. I can roll myself over to it.”
Slash grabbed the desk chair and Rafe and Max lowered her into it, then Rafe kissed her on top of the head before Max kissed her cheek. “Thank you,” Rafe said.
“Yeah, you don’t have to do this for us,” said Max, sounding anxious.
“Of course I do. I love you, you damn idiot.” She looked at Rafe. “You too, dumbass. Now get the hell out of here.”