Page 4 of The Fire and the Roar

“Let me up, Stew!” I climbed on Stewart’s back, and he hitched me up to see over the crowd. A couple other Flames closed in on Teddy and kicked at him as he lay prone. Yells, shouts. Grunts and foul curses. The crowd swelled around Teddy and the Flames of Hell. Top entertainment for the masses.

“They’re pounding on Teddy. We have to stop them.” I slid down off Stew’s back.

“I’m not leaving you, not with this shit going on.”

“You go, I’m fine.”

“Get in your room and lock the door.”

“Just goooooo!”

“Dammit, Is.” Stewart charged off toward the fight, scowling at me over his shoulder. “Go to your room!”

Oh. Hell. No.

I had to do something.

Fists were one thing, but once the inevitable concealed weapons were pulled, things got crazy. This needed to be stopped, not only before lines were crossed with weapons, but before the motel owner called the police. Before someone innocent got hurt, getting in between them.

“Watch it, he’s got a knife!” someone shouted.

I clambered up on the roof of the Chevy pickup in front of me and tore off my coat. My heart pounded wildly, and I ignored it as I raised my arms in the air. “Hey, hey, you motherfuckers!” Faces turned in my direction. “Can’t a girl get a little attention tonight?” I ripped off my blouse and stood there, in my new see-through demi-bra for the whole entire crowd.

Everyone’s eyes plastered on me.Hell yes.No point in choking now.

“What’s a girl got to do to get laid around here? Or did ya’ll come here to be all macho and show off your muscles to each other? That’s just plain boring. Flame boys, don’t you have any other moves? Show me what you got, and I’ll pick one of you.”

Everything stopped.

Everyone stopped.

The air crackled.

My bare flesh burned in the icy wind. A roar rose up again, the crowd surged, but this time, it came for me.

My mouth dried. “Oh shit.”

“Isi! Isi, what the hell you doing? Jesus, get down!” Eric stood below me, his hands stretched out as if he were prepping to catch a baby from a rooftop.

My gaze stayed intent on where Teddy was. Stewart and Rick pulled a bloodied Teddy out of the bikers’ grips, moving him through the crowd.

Thank God.

“Get down, or I’ll pull you down, darlin’,” a deep, growly voice said, pulling my attention. One of the Flame bikers stood before me, his fierce eyes grazing over me, a sneer on his deeply scarred face. “And then we can get to it.”

“Ah shit,” Eric’s voice broke.

“Get to it?” I muttered.

“Getting you laid, babe,” said the scarred Flame. “I know who you are. I’ve seen you perform a few times. And woman, I sure could use that silver tongue of yours right the fuck now.”

My breath cut. He knew who I was. His hand settled between his legs to emphasize thenow. He was missing his middle finger. No, he was missing both his middle fingers.

“Uh…” I shrank in the icy gust of my own fear.

He smirked. “Unless, of course, you’d prefer my bros take advantage of your offer. All of ‘em at the same time. They like that shit a lot.”

“Do they?”

---