Page 66 of Scar

She got a variety of smells, both about their location and the two men they were approaching. To her surprise, the strongest scent was baby lotion. Bikers who smelled like baby lotion?

She did not get a hint of metal from either of them, leading her to believe that they were not armed. However, that did not mean they weren’t dangerous. Both men were over six feet and well-muscled. The one with the baby strapped to his chest also had a whiff of sugar coming off of him, like cotton candy.

“Hello,” one of them said. His voice was older and had a gruffness to it, reminding her of her father’s. A closer sniff and Tally caught the scent of cigar tobacco. “I’m Steel, President of theVia Daemonia. This is Lucky, my VP. The message we got was that you were here about Scar. What is it we can help you with?”

Tally deliberately held her hand out too far to the right. “Thank you for seeing us.” Simone took her wrist and guided her hand to the left. A large, calloused palm took it. Though his grip was gentle, it held a note of power. This was not a man she wanted to mess with. “I’m Tally and this is my best friend, Simone. I have some questions about Scar that I’m hoping you can help answer.”

The hand dropped hers. “I have some questions of my own,” Steel said. His tone implied concern and skepticism. “Would you like to come inside? I have to warn you. We were in the middle of a meeting when you rang through, so my officers are also inside. But word travels around here like wildfire. No doubt others will come when they hear you’re here about Scar.”

“Please,” Tally said, adding a bit of eagerness to her voice. “We’ve been driving for hours. Could I trouble you for a glass of water and a bathroom?”

“Of course,” Steel answered.

Tally felt the other guy, Lucky, head inside. Simone gently pulled Tally’s arm, indicating for them to walk forward. Tally heard the creak of a glass door and felt Steel at their back. Air conditioning blew at them. Simone stepped back to let Tally through the door first and then quickly reclaimed her arm.

The moment her cane hit the hardwood floor of the interior, Tally’s surprise went up. A few more taps and she started to get a more complete picture. To their right was a lot of wood and a half counter. A bar, she realized. The smell of alcohol was present but not overwhelming like one would expect inside a biker clubhouse.

Furniture was to their left. Like a seating area. There was a larger piece, likely a couch, and some medium size pieces. A loveseat, maybe? And several individual seats.

The room itself was big with an extremely tall ceiling. Metal stairs were directly in front of them, maybe twenty feet or so. The further inside they walked, the further her sense of the building extended. There were doors on the wall under the stairs and a hallway in the way back to the right that led somewhere.

A door swung open on their right, closer to the bar, and Tally got the immediate impression of a kitchen. The distinctive smell of the stainless steel gave her a sense of nostalgia and sadness for what she’d lost.

“Ladies, the bathroom is this way.”

Simone guided her to the left, past the seating area. Two doors faced them and the smell of disinfectant and soap hinted at the bathrooms beyond.

“Do you need anything else? We have sandwiches already made from our meeting, but we keep a fully stocked kitchen.”

Tally shook her head. “I’m good. Simone?”

“Just the water,” her friend answered. “Thank you.”

Simone stepped forward, opening a door for Tally. She walked inside, her cane touching tile instead of hardwood. She knew immediately that it was a ladies’ room with stalls and not an individual bathroom. That was good.

As soon as the door closed behind them, Simone lowered her voice. “Why did you want to come in here? We stopped an hour ago so we were ready when we got here.”

Tally handed Simone her cane. “I need to get this off of me. I feel like an imposter wearing it here.”

Simone gasped when Tally raised her shirt to reveal the cut. “Why are you wearing that?” Simone hissed. “Clubs take their cuts very seriously, Tally. Wearing that is like a serious offense in their world.”

“We have no idea what ‘their world’ is like,” Tally snapped back. She stripped off her t-shirt and tucked it between her knees so she could take off the cut. Handing that to Simone too, she said, “Put it in your purse.”

Quickly, Tally put her shirt back on, feeling for the tag to know the front from the back. Simone was a mom and carried a massive purse with everything from a first aid kit to a flashlight to toddler’s shoes to snack bags filled withCheerios. She heard the zipper open and then close as Simone put Scar’s cut inside.

Despite being fully dressed, Tally felt naked without it. But Simone was right. She had no right to wear it, not here at least.

Simone walked into one of the stalls and flushed the toilet before coming out to turn on the sink to simulate the sounds that one of them had used the facilities. After turning on the hand dryer, she asked, “Ready?”

Tally wasn’t but she said, “Yes,” anyway.

Together, they headed back out into the main room.

* * *

More peoplethan Steel and Lucky now filled the large area. Tally was still counting voices and footsteps when Simone whispered, “There’s eight men and two women—sorry, five women. Three more just came through the front doors. Besides the baby strapped to Lucky’s chest, another woman is also holding a baby.”

Someone approached them and the smell of tobacco told Tally it was Steel before he spoke. “I apologize for the additional people. I did try to warn you that news spreads around here like wildfire. Thankfully, we were able to keep the club kids away. I don’t want them a part of this conversation. Please,” Tally felt a breeze of air, indicating that Steel had swept his hand in front of himself, “there is seating this way.”

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