Page 32 of Ripper
“Good. We’re gonna have a meeting then anyway. I’ve got Claymore out patrolling this morning. He’s looking for prospects. We need to amp up our own damn cavalry too.”
“And we fucking will.”
Tank hung up the phone, and I groaned, feeling the burn on the side of my torso start to ache. I remembered what it felt like skidding across the hot tar and the more I thought about it, the angrier I got. But that’s what I got for taking a turn too hard. It wasn’t like it was my first time anyway. I made myself a cup of coffee while I waited for Tank’s doctor friend to roll right on up to my front porch. I scrolled through my text messages to see that I had one from Ronnie asking to meet. I texted her back quickly to meet at the Tavern in an hour, feeling my stomach turn at the thought of what she might want to talk to me about. I downed the rest of the hot liquid, rinsing the cup, and placing it on the drying rack next to the sink right as the doorbell rang.
“At least you’re on your feet. That’s gotta be a good sign.”
I held the door open for him while he plopped the black duffel bag down on my coffee table.
“Hello, Will. I told Tank he didn’t have to send you. I’m fine,” I said, but he shook his head at me.
“You see that gnarly burn of yours? That shit’s gonna get infected and start oozing if I don’t deal with it. Sit your ass down,” he said, pointing to my shirtless torso.
I did what he said, and after nearly a half hour of bandages, wound cleaning solution, and rubbing alcohol, I was good to go. I could already feel him itching to tell me to take it easy, and I was prepared to tell him what he wanted to hear so he could leave because I had somewhere to be.
“Tank said to rest up. If you don’t, I’m just gonna have to pay you another visit. You and I both ain’t got time for that if you ain’t dying. So, fucking listen this time, okay?”
“You got it.”
I shot him a bright smile, watching him walk down my driveway and get back into his car. I rushed back inside for a fresh shirt before heading out the door myself to meet Ronnie.
***
I entered the Tavern, feeling a cool gust of air-conditioned breeze hit me. I spotted her sitting alone at the bar with a glass of water in front of her. I took in how worried she looked, with her chin resting in the palm of her hands. There was something clearly on her mind and when I approached her, it took her a minute to realize I was even standing there.
“Hey, sweet pea. Everything okay?”
“Yeah, of course it is,” she said, trying to force a smile.
I saw right through it because her eyes were telling a completely different story. I sat down next to her as she cleared her throat, turning to look right at me.
“I’ve been doing a lot of thinking and I wanted to ask you what it would take to join the Blazing Rebels. You’ve seen me ride. I may not be perfect, but I’m a fast learner, and I really think it would be good for me to be a part of something like that,” she said.
I stared blankly at her. I narrowed my eyes taking a deep breath.
“Why the sudden interest in joining a club, Ronnie?”
She didn’t break my gaze for a moment, and it was right then that I realized just how serious she was about this.
“Ever since I’ve been home I’ve felt like there’s been something missing. I’ve heard Uncle Axle go on and on about his life out on the open road and how riding with my father was the best time in his life. I want to experience that. I want to know what that feels like,” she said.
“As much as we’d all like it to be about going on a bunch of joy rides and drowning ourselves in beer, most of the time it isn’t like that. It’s hard work. It’s trouble, and I don’t want you getting mixed up in all of that,” I said, but she immediately shook her head.
“This is what I want, Ripper. This is what I feel like I was meant to do. It’s time to reconnect with my roots, and I’m not worried about things getting messy. I’ll do whatever it takes,” she murmured.
Ronnie looked at me with a tight-lipped smile, and I looked down to see that her hand was clutching her knee, going white at the knuckles. There was something strange about her behavior, but I couldn’t quite put my finger on it. As much as I would hate for something bad to happen to Ronnie, it seemed to me that she’d already made up her mind. I knew now that it was either I introduced her to Tank to make the final decision, or she’d just probably find herself in trouble elsewhere. I felt a bit better knowing that at least if she was close by, I could keep her safe.
“All right, sweet pea. Turns out the Blazing Rebels are looking for prospects too. I’ll talk to Tank about letting you join. Cool?”
“Thank you, Ripper. Thank you.”
***
I felt the heat on my back, practically burning a hole in my leather jacket when I arrived back at the little house out in the middle of the desert. There was a patch of small greenery and a single cactus in the front yard. The door and screen were tattered, and the white paint was peeling right off. From the looks of the damn place, it seemed like an abandoned two-bedroom lot, but to us, it was the perfect training ground in case things were to ever go south with one of our prospects. I spotted Claymore lining up the four that we were training today, all looking real fucking hopeful, and I was just glad we managed to find these fuckers. It was good to know that Ray didn’t snatch ’em all up.
Claymore ran his fingers through his dirty blond hair, barking orders, and waiting patiently for a reply. I studied each and every one of them, looking for any signs of suspicious behavior, any chance that they could be here to fuck with us instead of becoming part of the team. I felt a hand press firmly against my shoulder, and I glanced behind to see Ink standing there with a smirk. He had a fresh tattoo wrapped in plastic on his left arm, and I nodded at the new piece of work.
“Damn. Nice one.”
