Page 36 of Ripper
“I’m sure that must be tough on you.”
His finger brushed against my arm comfortingly. I practically melted into him in that moment, feeling the word vomit nearly spill from my lips because I wanted nothing more than to tell him what was really going on, but I couldn’t. The threats played over and over again in my head like a Top 40 hit, and I knew I couldn’t screw this up.
A few of the Tavern’s staff members showed up to start their shift when Tank finally arrived. I took in his scruffy, dark beard, and warm eyes. He had large, bulging muscles, just like Ripper’s, but the tattoos on his bare arms were far sparser.
“This must be Veronica,” he said, with a low, deep voice.
“It’s nice to meet you, Tank.”
He outstretched his hand, and I shook it, feeling his warm, powerful grip. I felt my heart start to beat rapidly at the thought of how my day was going to go and whether he’d even think I’d be a good match for the rest of the Blazing Rebels.
“This yours?” he asked, pointing to my bike.
“Yes it is. It’s an older ride, but I gave it some much needed TLC.”
“It looks brand new. Ripper was right when he said you had talent. Now, it’s time to see if that talent of yours matches what you can do out there on the road,” he said, pointing to the street.
I gulped, trying to calm myself down, but it was tough. I listened to Tank tell me where I was expected to ride, and how closely both he and Ripper would be watching me. I reminded myself of just how much was riding on this, and I remembered how badly I’d wanted to win against Ripper when he took me out for a race in the desert. I had one shot, and I had to make it count.
“You know where the old tracks are, Veronica?”
“The one near the Mills?” I asked.
“Yeah.”
“Good. You’ll be racing Ripper and me there. I’d usually have Wrench take care of this sort of thing, but I needed to clear my head, and this is gonna do just the trick. Let’s see what you’ve got.”
Ripper patted me on the shoulder encouragingly, and I nodded at both of them. I got onto the back of my bike, slipped my helmet on, and revved my engine. We lined ourselves up by the first light on the corner, watching the streets grow busier by the minute. I heard the sound of cars honking, the smell of exhaust in the morning air, and I knew this was going to be one hell of a ride compared to the single straight dirt path in the desert. I glanced over at Tank who counted down with his fingers, and when they all disappeared into his palm, we were off.
I sped down long, winding streets, rippling through traffic as I listened to the car horns erupt through the air. I tailed Tank, managing to get right up next to him before he floored it. I hung back for a moment, keeping a good eye on my surroundings because the last thing I needed was to accidentally run myself right off the road. We were coming up on an empty road, a barren crosswalk, and the perfect long stretch that was my golden ticket to getting this done. I felt the wind roll, swell, and flutter under my leather jacket as the speed began to build. I caught Ripper’s stream first, getting ahead of him by a few feet, and I kept pushing until I was right on Tank’s tail again. We were approaching the tracks now, and I gave it one last thrust, my hands squeezing the handles so tightly it felt like they were going to break. I crossed the path, stopping right at the metal tracks in the nick of time. I shut my engine off, pulling my long brunette hair out of my helmet, and I caught sight of a smile on Ripper’s beautiful, full lips.
“Goddamn, Ronnie,” he said.
“Now that’s a fucking first,” I heard Tank say.
He seemed pleased, with his chin up and his shoulders back, nodding at me like I just made the cut. I knew it wasn’t going to be that simple, that entrance in the Blazing Rebels was going to take much more work, but it made me feel good to know that I was well on my way now.
“You did good out there, Veronica. I’m going to let Ripper handle the rest of your initiation. If all goes well with that, then you can consider yourself a prospect,” he said and I smiled.
“Thank you, Tank.”
“Don’t thank me. You earned it. Keep this shit up, and we’ll be glad to have you as a part of the team.”
Tank murmured something to Ripper that I couldn’t quite catch before he got back onto his bike, taking off into the distance. Ripper turned to face me, and I felt the heat rise between us. I took a deep breath, relishing in the scent of his cologne and the slight sweat emanating from him; it was absolutely intoxicating. I inched closer to him as his eyes lowered to my lips. I wanted to feel them press up against mine again, to taste him, to feel every inch of him, but the sound of a police siren jolted me out of my little fantasy. I pulled away quickly, glancing over at Ripper. His eyes widened, and we rushed back over to our bikes.
“Looks like your initiation is starting a little earlier than we planned, Ronnie. Now, it’s time you learn how to deal with the cops,” he said.
“Yeah? How exactly am I supposed to do that?”
“Keep up with me and don’t let ’em catch you,” he said, the sound of his engine revving drowning out the sound of his voice.
“Where the hell am I supposed to go?”
“Meet me at 168 Vine and Seaview. Go, Ronnie! Go!” he shouted.
I jumped into action, hearing the sound of police sirens drawing near as we both pulled off in separate directions. I glanced behind me for a second to see that there was a cop car tailing me. I looked around for a way out, swerving in between cars trying to get away, but they were catching up to me. My eyes averted to the left, and I spotted the narrow alleyway with nothing but a dumpster at the very end of it. My mind went straight to Anna and the job we pulled together. I tore through it like lightning, knowing the cop car would never fit. I rode it down as far as it would go until I spilled out the other end right back onto the street. I took every harsh turn I could until the sirens started to fade. My heart was pounding in my chest, my eyes starting to grow heavy, but I kept pushing because I couldn’t allow myself to freeze now. It was either I escaped or I ended up behind bars, and I couldn’t afford the latter. Uncle Axle was counting on me.
I pulled my bike into the parking lot of a small drive-in theater, waiting by the entrance to make sure the coast was clear before I pulled back out on the street. Once I was sure I wasn’t being followed or there weren’t any more sirens coming my way, I approached the little window where a woman was selling tickets.
