“Damn, you’re gonna make a biker chick of that woman yet.” Slash laughed.
As they closed the broken door as much as it would close, she wearily rolled the chair over to the door and unbolted it. “Sam,” she said. “Just you, please.”
Sam came through the door and saw the body. “Motherfucker. He’s dead.”
“Yeah.”
He knelt by Simone. “You’re a fucking mess. What happened in here?”
“Are the cops on their way?”
“Yeah, my phone is still connected to nine-one-one, and one of the guys is advising them of the situation.” He cocked his head. “I hear the sirens now.”
She put a hand on his shoulder. “Can you wait a few minutes to hear the story? I’m kind of dizzy right now. If I can I’d like to tell this just one time.”
Sam grabbed a blanket and wrapped it around her, then dampened a paper towel and dabbed at the blood on her face. “Sure thing, Simone.” The open wounds stung when he touched them, but weirdly it felt good. Maybe because she trusted Sam. Maybe because she was at the beginning of the end of this nightmare. The imminent threat was gone—he was dead on the floor.
“He went nuts, Sam.”
Sam stared at the body. “Sure did. A madness came over that man.” Then he sighed. “You don’t intend to tell the cops the whole truth, do you?”
“The whole truth and nothing but the truth?” She shook her head. “No. What fucking good would that do, Sam?”
Sam kissed her cheek. “No damn good at all. Just give a bunch of people more to be all uptight about, I imagine. Can’t try to sell people on a world where bikers are the heroes. It goes against common sense.”
Police cars swarmed noisily into the back lot. She could see the flashing lights, and the swirl of bodies as men in armor swarmed through the door, armed to the teeth. It was chaotic, and when she looked back at Sam, she saw that two officers had him pinned face-down on the concrete floor, putting cuffs on him. “Sam helped rescue me, you morons!” she shouted at them.
They ignored her, and Sam grinned up at her through a bloodied lip. If she’d had any doubt about the wisdom of Slash’s plan, she didn’t any longer.
Chapter 14
Long after the excitement ended,the day continued. A female detective arrived to take her statement. In theory, having a woman to talk to seemed like a good idea, but this particular officer seemed intent on discovering what Simone had done to provoke Brad. The line of questioning pissed her off, and finally she leaned close.
“I admit it, detective. I lured Brad in the office and then hit his pistol with my face.”
The woman changed tack then, and her questions had more to do with where Simone had hidden the gun after killing the man.
“What gun?”
“The one you shot him with.”
It seemed bizarre, but Simone was woozy. “You think I shot him?”
The woman shrugged. “I don’t believe the story about the fellow on the bike.”
“So, you’d rather think I locked myself in a room with Brad, shot him, broke down the back door, and threw a garbage can through the window and then spent my time beating myself up so it would look like he attacked me?”
“No. But…” Eventually, the detective gave up. With nothing to else to follow up on, she had the cops scour the neighborhood for a large man in a felt hat, who was carrying two guns and riding a motorcycle but was a good Samaritan. The detective was obviously rather unhappy with what she was going to have to put in her report.
“You aren’t being very helpful,” she said.
“Because I had my brain scrambled and can’t recall enough to help you capture the man who saved my life? Sorry, but life’s a bitch.”
Even going home had been strange. Once she’d convinced the paramedics that she wasn’t seriously hurt, the police had insisted on taking her home. The detective rode with her in the back of the squad car, looking at her oddly from time to time. “What?” she asked finally.
“This case. I believe that someone came to your rescue, but usually when people rescue a fellow human being from a nasty situation, they hang around and make sure they get credit for it.”
“So, it’s a crime to be shy.”