Page 80 of Minus

“Aw, come on Minus, you know it. It’s the one where the dumbass hero biker tells the scary guy with the big knife where Cutter’s book is,” he said, pulling a giant Bowie knife from a sheath on his belt. It was the same kind Viper used on Loro, from its size to the style of the handle.

“You and your b… boyfriend Viiiper get those as a mmmatching set or something?”

“You have a good eye for knives Minus,” he said, taking a theatrical step backward. “I’m impressed, I really am. Viper’s knife is, in fact, an exact match to mine. It was a gift from me to him. From teacher, to student,” he smiled proudly.

“Yoga?” I asked. “You teachin’ him how to sssuck his own dick?”

He dropped his smile.

“Getting back to story time. Let’s recap; the one I want to hear involves the whereabouts of a book, and a blonde.”

A blonde? He doesn’t know where Cricket is. That means she’s alive, and if that’s the case, this prick has got no leverage on me. Bring it on.

“She give you the slip?” I asked, starting to feel my strength return, and my speech become easier.

“Only momentarily, because you’re gonna tell me where she’s gonna be next. Her and the book.”

“Book?” I asked, continuing to play dumb.

“I’m betting she had it with her in that panic room. Is that right Minus?”

Fuck. He knows about the panic room. What the hell went down in the house?

“I figure with the cops on the way, she’s gonna want to get that book to a second location before they find it, right? So, where’s she gonna take it?”

“I’m embarrassed to say,” I said sheepishly. “We stillhadn’t decided if we were gonna meet up at your mom’s place, or your sister’s.”

He grabbed my hair and snapped my head back, coming within inches of my face.

“You’re gonna run out of jokes soon enough. The laughs are gonna dry up quickly around here unless you tell me where I can find Cutter’s book.”

“Sorry, still doesn’t ring a bell.” I smiled.

I saw something catch his attention from inside the kitchen. He sheathed his knife, walked away, and then returned with a dusty phonebook.

“Maybethiswill help ring a few bells.” He grinned, before blowing the layer of dust into my face.

* * *

Cricket

Once the creep was gone, I opened the door and began dragging Duke and Pearl back out to the bedroom. If the policewereon the way, the last thing I needed was for them to find me with two old people knocked out in a safe room, next to an actual safe, which contained super top-secret biker club information. In fact, the less the authorities knew about the nature of this break-in, or my involvement in it, the better. The ledger would remain secure so long as the cops didn’t know about the safe. I didn’t know the safe’s combination, so it’s not like I could have removed it anyway.

I went to close the panic room door, and something caught my eye through the glass door of the gun case. I opened the case, removed one of the rifles and slung it over my shoulder. I also found ammunition and filled my shorts pockets. I exited the room and closed the hidden door. Once again, concealing its location from the naked eye. I felt horrible about leaving Duke and Pearl lying there on the floor, but I knew that help was on the way. I also knew that before anything else, I needed to find Minus.

I quickly made my way downstairs and back to Minus’s room. There was still no sign of him, and his phone was stillon his nightstand. There’s no way he would have left without his phone and his gun. That sicko must have drugged him and had him in the car when he drove off.

The tracker.

I picked up Minus’ phone and punched in his security code. He’d used the same four-digit code for everything for as long as I’d known him 1903: the year Harley Davidson was founded. I clicked on the Gunnach Technologies Tracker app, and bingo; the GPS signal was pinging away. They were currently heading North on Highway 95. I found my pants and quickly dressed. I put Minus’s pistol in my pocket, grabbed the keys and the rifle, and ran to the barn where Minus had parked our rental car. I started it, turned on the running lights, and pulled out of the barn. I drove onto an access road that led all the way from the trailhead to the main highway. Minus had showed it to me on our ride. Via this route, I was fairly sure I could find my way to Minus’ signal without running into the cops, who were now pulling into the drive. Once I was out of their line of sight, I turned on the headlights and floored it.

I had no idea what I was going to do if I caught up with this psycho or if I had the ability to stop him, but I prayed for a chance to try.

* * *

Minus

“Let’s try this thing out. Testing… 1… 2… 3,” my rent-a-torturer said, speaking into the phonebook as if it were a microphone, while moving behind me. “Where is Cutter’s book?”

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