Page 13 of Jigsaw
“How’s that?” I asked.
“The way I see it, either she avoids you and we’re in the clear, or she comes over and we have to throw down.”
“I don’t think Ghost wants to fight,” I reasoned. “The way I did things with the Phantom Renegades meant no blowback.”
At least, I hoped it did.
Brothers and their ol’ ladies broke off and began to move through the crowd of people standing everywhere. The Rally wasn’t as big or as wild as it used to be, but there was always something entertaining to look at. Raven and I walked to one of the beer tents, and I slapped a twenty down for two beers. The girl pushed the couple bucks left over into the tip jar as I took a healthy swallow of the cold brew.
Music filtered from everywhere as we maneuvered through the crowd. We passed Jagger and Jackie speaking with Needles and his ol’ lady from the Death Hounds, and I gave them a chin lift as we passed.
Raven reached into his cut and pulled out a joint, lighting the tip. Cops didn’t say too much about weed being consumed in public as long as you weren’t brazen about it. He and I found a wall to push up against as we smoked the joint and enjoyed our beers.
“What are you going to do about her?” he asked, and I cut my eyes to him.
“There’s nothing to do about her. She’s not mine, never was, so there’s nothing to do,” I answered and handed him the roach back before blowing acrid smoke into the air.
He chuckled and responded, “I know there’s more to the story than you hooked up with your president’s daughter, but I’m not going to push for more. Not right now, at least.”
“Ass,” I remarked.
He laughed, and we pushed off the wall as he dropped the tiny remnant of the joint to the ground and stomped it into nothing before we walked away. Walking down the street, we had to step around countless people looking at all the items available for sale. Vendors had overtaken the Rally over the last few years, and there were too many people selling the same overpriced crap for my liking.
“Let’s go find Nick’s stage and get a seat,” I suggested, and he nodded as we turned and began to walk toward the area where our friend would be performing.
There was a wet T-shirt contest being held under a tent just off Main Street, and we walked over to see it. This was the part of Sturgis I enjoyed, and no, it wasn’t the half-naked women parading around. It’s the free spirit, the open road, the comradery, and the lawless attitude that I found appealing.
We watched for about twenty minutes before continuing down the sidewalk. Raven and I had been joined by Warhol and Phantom, and the four of us were laughing and cutting up when a disturbance up ahead caught our attention.
Fighting wasn’t unusual near the Rally, but it was who was being dragged into the fight that made me move closer. I couldn’t see the people’s faces, but I could tell two men were giving a woman a hard time. That kind of shit wasn’t going to happen with a Sinner around, so I immediately started pushing through the crowd of people watching instead of helping.
When I got to the front of the crowd, I saw the tattooed sleeves and blonde hair, and I knew instantly that it was Willow trying to get the two drunk bikers to leave her alone. Looking around, I didn’t see her brother or any of the Phantom Renegades, so I decided I was going to have to step in.
“Is that her?” Raven asked, and I gave him a nod as I walked out of the circle of onlookers to get involved.
“Come on, sweet thang. You know you want someone to keep you warm at night,” one of the men said as I approached behind Willow.
She was still feisty as ever as she returned, “I sleep with a blanket, so I’m warm enough.”
“Don’t be a bitch,” the other one said, and that was all I was going to take.
Giving a quick glance over my shoulder, I saw my brothers stepping into the circle as I walked up to Willow. Placing my hand onto her shoulder, she spun her head, and when she saw me, her eyes began to glisten. I knew she was trying to be strong in the face of these two assholes, but she didn’t need to be if I was here.
“The woman said no,” I said to the two men, and one of them scoffed at me.
“No one asked you, asshole. The lady and I are negotiating, and you’re not invited.”
“Do you want to go with them?” I asked her.
She sniffled and said, “No.”
Looking back at them, I replied, “There’s your answer. Leave this woman alone.”
“You have no say over her. She’s not anyone’s property, so she’s fair game,” the other one replied.
I rubbed my thumb across the back of her neck where I still had a hold on her, hoping to instill some calm into her. The two men began to list all the ways she seemingly ‘wronged’ them, and with each new addition, I got more and more pissed.
“Darlin’, will you step back with my friend, Phantom? He’ll keep you safe while I deal with this,” I told Willow, and she looked back before nodding.
