Page 31 of Until Mayhem

My body had settled into the mattress like it was perfectly made for me, but my mind wasn’t shutting down the same way.

“What’s your name?” I asked suddenly, realizing he’d never told me.

“Judge Hawkins.”

“Not much better than Psycho,” I muttered.

“What?”

“I said, I’ll let you get back to sleep.”

“Wasn’t sleepin’ yet.”

Since I wasn’t sure if that was the truth or a white lie, I didn’t respond for a few minutes. But, again, my curiosity got the better of me, and I quietly called, “Judge?”

A soft groan came from the floor, but I wasn’t sure if it was him snoring or a noise of frustration because I kept talking while he was trying to sleep.

Deciding in either case I should just shut up, I pressed my lips together.

“What d’ya need?” he prompted, his voice rough but not sharp or irritated.

“Is Judge your biker gang—”

“Not a gang,” he interrupted.

“So you never break the law?” I shot back.

“Never said that.”

“Then why…” I shook my head even though he couldn’t see me. “I’m not getting into classification semantics with you. Is Judge your… motorcycle enthusiast nickname?”

Choked back laughter rumbled through his voice as he asked, “My road name?”

“Sure that, too.”

“No, it’s my real name.”

I rolled to face the side he was on. “Like, it’s who you are, so now it’s your real name?”

“No, it’s the name on my birth certificate and license, so it’s my real name.”

“Your parents named you Judge?” Realizing how rude that sounded, I amended, “It’s not a bad name, just unusual. And, I mean, my parents named me Ophelia, so I’ve got no room to talk.”

“Know Jury’s my brother, right?”

“I figured that.”

“My folks met because Ma was my dad’s lawyer back in the day. It became a… thing for them, so they named us Judge and Jury.”

Once again, I was surprised by how much he shared. I wanted to grill him for more, but my brain was finally starting to get that heavy, foggy feeling of sleepiness, and chances were I’d miss any answer he gave.

“They’re good names,” I muttered, curling up.

“And Ophelia’s the prettiest fuckin’ name I’ve ever heard,” he whispered back.

Closing my eyes, I fell asleep trying to ignore the warmth that spread through me at his words.

Trying, but failing.

---