Joker by Andi Rhodes
Chapter Twenty-Six
Death signifies an end but all I see right now is possibility.
Joker
I’m fucking sure.
Squirrel’s words filter through my brain, coming and going as quickly as the wind that whips by me. When Damian said he had the license plate number for the car that Cheryl was in, the car that he saw some chick named Leah put a suitcase in, I knew that some higher power was looking down on us. Because if we didn’t have that clue, I’m not entirely sure we would’ve found Riley, not in time anyway.
My knuckles burn from the grip I have on the handlebars. I catch sight of the old sign that used to let vacationers know about the upcoming turnoff that would lead them to an idyllic campsite. When Squirrel tracked the location of the rental car, by hacking into its GPS, he also pulled several other maps and topography reports.
Riley is being held in an abandoned cabin at a resort-like campground that shut down years ago. Families wanted the peaceful surroundings that the site provided, but once beach rentals started popping up everywhere along the coast, the owners lost renters. Year after year, fewer and fewer families booked their vacations at the resort, until staying open was no longer an option.
And when they shut down, the property became a kidnapper’s dream. Dense woods, empty cabins, no civilization for miles… the location is perfect for evil to thrive.
I make a right turn and pull over to the side of the gravel road. Fender, Greaser, Piston, and Riker pull up beside me and we all cut our engines. Then a car parks behind us and when the driver’s side door opens, Damian steps out.
“Why are we stopping?” he asks as he walks toward us.
“Because we don’t want them to hear the Harleys,” Fender snaps, his tone suggesting that he thinks Damian is an idiot for asking.
I pull my cell phone out of my pocket and tap the screen until the map that Squirrel sent me appears. My eyes focus on the blinking red dot which signifies Riley’s location.
“It looks like it’s about a mile or two that way.” I point toward the direction we need to go.
“And the tire tracks confirm that,” Greaser says, shining the flashlight from his cell onto the ground.
I take off at a run, needing to get to Riley. We’ve already wasted enough time and there’s no telling what’s already been done to her. If our suspicions are correct, she was shoved into a suitcase. That alone is horrible.
A hand on my arm stops me in my tracks and I spin around. Fender is glaring at me but he’s not nearly as angry as I am at wasting more time.
“What?” I growl.
“Do you even have a plan?” he asks, quirking a brow.
“Yeah,” I snarl. “Get Riley the fuck out of there. Maybe kill a few people in the process.”
“You know as well as I do that we can’t go charging in.” His glare softens. “Joker, we need a plan.”
“No,” I snap. “You need a plan. I need Riley.”
“He’s right, Joker,” Greaser says from his position next to Fender. “You go in there, guns blazing, and the wrong people are likely to get killed.”
They’re right but that doesn’t mean I like it.
My gaze drops to Fender’s hand, which remains on my arm. “Fine,” I spit out. “What do you suggest?”
“Brother, it’s your girl, your call,” Fender says.
“Let’s surround the cabin.” I look to Greaser. “G, you and I will cover the front. According to the plans Squirrel was able to find, there are two windows and a door, all accessible from the porch.” I shift my eyes to the others. “Fender, you’ll cover the back entrance. Riker, you’ve got the east side and Piston, the west.”
“What about me?” Damian demands.
“What about you?” Riker counters. “You’re not gonna do a damn thing but stand by and be quiet.”
“That’s not fucking happening,” Damian counters. “Riles is my family. Besides, I’m a fighter. I can help.”
“He can cover the back with me,” Fender says and then he drops my arm so he can bend down and grab his backup weapon from his boot. He shoves the pistol at Damian. “Here, you’re gonna need this.”
Damian takes the gun and stares at it.
“You know how to use that?” I ask.
He lifts his eyes to me and shakes his head.
“Point and shoot.” I start walking backward. “Ready?” I ask them all.
“Ready.”
They all answer in unison and I’m surprised to hear Damian’s determined tone.
I circle my hand in the air. “Then let’s go.”
I whirl around and resume running, all of them in step with me. We pass several cabins, all in disrepair and dark. We keep going until we reach a cabin with light glowing in the windows. My stomach ties in knots when I spot a vehicle parked next to the porch, the same vehicle Cheryl was in back at the warehouse.
Without speaking, we all move to our assigned positions. Greaser and I carefully step up onto the porch, not wanting to risk alerting the people inside of our presence.
I reach a window and peer inside. Greaser does the same with the window on the other side of the door. I look toward him and see him point and mouth the name ‘Cheryl’. I can’t see Cheryl through my window so it’s clear to me that our views are of different rooms.
That makes this whole rescue mission even more dangerous because none of us are seeing the same view. I focus my gaze on what I can see and my heart hammers in my chest and anger explodes from my pores.
Riley is tied to a chair, her face bloody and contorted in pain. A woman I recognize as the one I passed in the warehouse is standing next to her, a crowbar lifted above her head. Leah. Her lips are tipped up in a grin but there is no humor in it.
Riley says something but I can’t make out the words. Whatever it is, Leah doesn’t like it. She swings the crowbar and brings it down on Riley’s hand. Riley screams in pain and the sound practically vibrates the ground the cabin is sitting on.
“I’m going in,” I whisper harshly to Greaser.
He nods and I’m grateful he’s not questioning me. After that scream, I doubt any of them would. I step toward the door and kick it open, sending it crashing into the wall.
Leah whirls around at the sound and her eyes widen in surprise.
“You’re supposed to be dead,” she snarls. “Blown to—”
“Yeah, we found the bombs,” I say, cutting her off.
My gun is trained on Leah’s head but my attention is split between her and Riley. Greaser is now standing shoulder to shoulder with me, but he’s facing the opposite direction, no doubt waiting for Cheryl to make an appearance.
“All twelve of them. Sorry to disappoint you.”
I shift my attention to Riley. Her eyes are equally as wide as Leah’s were but under the shock and blood, I can see the lift in her lips.
“You’re alive,” she says.
“You okay, Black Bird?” I ask, knowing she’s not.
“Better now,” she responds.
I nod. “Good. I’m going to get you out of here, okay?”
Riley nods and then winces at the pain the action causes.
“You’re not taking her anywhere!” Leah shouts.
The bitch starts to pace back and forth, wearing a path on the wooden floor between Riley and me.
“This isn’t how it’s supposed to be,” she mumbles, more to herself than anyone else. As she paces, she’s swinging the crowbar erratically. “Riley and I are supposed to be together.” She stops and faces me. “You were supposed to die!”
“Shut up!” Riley shouts, crimson drops flying from her lips, and her strength waning. “It’s over, Leah.”
Leah whirls on Riley and lifts the crowbar above her head.
“Hit her again and I’ll fucking kill you,” I snarl and somehow, it startles her enough that she doesn’t swing her arm down.
“You won’t kill me,” she taunts as she turns back around to face me.
I tilt my head and it takes every ounce of self-control not to pull the trigger. But she’s right… to a degree. I will kill her if I have to, but I don’t want to do it in front of the love of my life.
Love?
The word comes to mind so easily that I know it’s true. There is no other possible explanation for how empty I felt when I found her missing from the locker room, how my heart split open when I saw her tied to the chair, bleeding. I love her. I love Riley. She’s my black bird and I want to spend the rest of my life flying high with her.
Leah takes a step toward me and smiles. “Holy shit, I’m right.” She takes another step. “You won’t kill me. You can’t kill me.”
“Do you really want to test that theory?”
Leah swings the crowbar as if it’s a toy to toss around. “Sure, why not?” She shrugs and then narrows her eyes. “Ya see, I’m pretty sure that Riley doesn’t know you. Not the real you anyway. She doesn’t know the man who is capable of taking human life. She hasn’t seen you in all your soulless glory.”
“You’re wrong,” Riley says from behind Leah. “I know Joker. I know everything I need to know.” Leah’s face contorts with rage the longer Riley speaks. “I know that he’s a good man, a strong, loyal, passionate man.” Leah whips around and lifts the crowbar as Riley continues. “I know that I—”
Chaos erupts.
Leah swings the crowbar down and I pull the trigger. Fender, Piston, and Riker come crashing into the cabin, weapons drawn. Greaser rushes the door to the room Cheryl is in.
I rush forward and step over a crumpled Leah. The hole in her forehead tells me she’s no longer a threat so I don’t give her a second thought.
Riley’s head begins to lull to the side. I quickly untie her and lift her from the chair and lay her down on the floor, being mindful of how each movement jostles her crushed hand.
“C’mon, Riley.” I lean over and cup her face. “You need to stay awake for me.”
Her lids flutter but she’s struggling.
“Someone call 911!” I shout to anyone who will listen.
“Done. They’ll be here soon.” Damian says as he drops to his knees on the other side of Riley. “Riles, I’m so sorry. I didn’t know it was Leah.” He pauses as his voice cracks. “I’m so damn sorry.”
“It’s…” Riley swallows as her eyes continue to flutter. “Not your fault.” She rolls her neck and tries to look at me. “Joker, I… my head… so tired.”
“I know, Black Bird. I know you’re tired.” I lift her into my arms and stand. “You can rest soon, I promise. But right now, I need you to stay with me.”
“Joker.”
I turn with Riley in my arms and see Greaser standing in the doorway to the other room. He’s holding a piece of paper and his face is set in stone.
“What?”
“You need to see this.”
Whatever it is, it’s not as important as the woman in my arms. It can wait. I tell Greaser as much.
“I’ll deal with it later.”
Greaser nods and shoves the paper in his pocket. He pulls the room’s door shut behind him and walks with me outside. We stand there, my brothers and I, and wait.
Within minutes, sirens pierce the air and for the first time since I saw Cheryl in the parking lot, I feel like I can breathe. Help is almost here. Riley will be okay.
The ambulance parks in front of the porch and the EMTs get Riley loaded onto a gurney. I try to step inside so I can ride with her and am stopped with an arm across my chest.
“There’s no room, sir.”
“Fucking make room,” I snarl.
The EMT shakes his head. “I’m sorry. You can meet us at the hospital.”
I glance at Riley, now unconscious on the gurney, and hop down from the ambulance. I want to argue with the guy, ask him if he knows who he’s dealing with, but I do none of that. My ego, my rage doesn’t matter. Riley does and her life depends on these assholes.
They slam the door closed and take off, the tail lights dimming the further away they get.
I stand there, watching, my feet frozen in place.
“Joker?”
I look to my left at Fender, see the solemn look on his face. “Huh?”
“She’s going to be okay.”
“You don’t know that,” I say, suddenly numb.
“Yeah, I do,” he counters and rests a hand on my shoulder. “You’ve been dealt enough pain to fill two lifetimes. You’re due for some good.”
I huff out a breath. “Right.” I glance toward the house. “What happened with Cheryl?” I ask, suddenly remembering she was a part of all of this.
Greaser steps up to me and pulls the piece of paper out of his pocket. He hands it to me and my heart sinks as I take it from him.
“It’s no secret that she was a cunt, but she was still your mother.”
My brain gets caught up on the word ‘was’ and I start to read the words on the paper.
Brian,
I know I haven’t done a lot of good in my life. But the one thing I got right was you. When Leah approached me about helping her to take down Riley, all I could think of was what that girl did to me. She beat me. But, son, I had no idea how much she meant to you. If I had, I wouldn’t have helped take her.
I lift my eyes toward the door to the cabin. I walk up the steps and inside, drawn to the room like a heat seeking missile. It takes several tries, but I’m finally able to let myself open the door to the room where Cheryl is.
I hear my brother’s footsteps behind me. I know they’re seeing what I’m seeing. I know they’re standing there, waiting for a reaction, for something. But I don’t know how to react.
Cheryl is lying on the floor, a needle sticking out of her arm. I close the distance between us and drop to my knees. I feel for a pulse at her throat and there’s nothing. No sign of life. I lift the paper and continue to read.
That’s not exactly true. I probably still would have because Leah promised me drugs. And I’m an addict and too old to change my ways. Hell, I don’t want to change. I like being high, being numb to reality.
But I know what I have to do. I’ve never thought that my road to the afterlife would be paved in gold. I’m headed straight to Hell. And I’m fine with that. But maybe, just maybe, if I push up the timeline, make it so that I can’t hurt you anymore, it won’t be quite so hot.
I know you don’t believe it. And I don’t blame you. But I love you. In my own way, I’ve loved you from the first moment I laid eyes on you.
Have a good life, Brian. After everything I’ve put you through, you deserve it.
-Cheryl
I crumble the paper in my hand and throw it across the room. I give Cheryl one last look before rising to my feet and letting my head fall back. I lift my arms and I howl.
I howl with so much force, so much agony, that I worry I’ll never stop howling. All of my pain, all of my rage and sorrow and worry and fear and hatred… everything comes out in that howl. The one that’s from the depths of my soul.
When I feel empty, my arms fall to my sides. My body seems to deflate now that there’s not all of that toxic shit I’ve been carrying around for years. I take a deep breath and turn to face my brothers.
“I need to get to the hospital,” I say with a calm I shouldn’t feel. “I need to get to Riley.
Greaser nods. “I sent Damian to get his car. You don’t need to be driving right now. He should be here any—”
A horn honks, cutting him off. I walk outside and down the steps. I open the passenger door, but before I get in, I face the four men who are still standing on the porch.
“We’ll get this place cleaned up and meet you at the hospital,” Greaser says.
“Tell Black Bird we love her,” Fender adds.
I chuckle. “Yeah, right after I tell her that I love her.”
We stare at one another for a few more seconds, so much being said without words. These men, these surly bikers have my back, no matter what. I can’t stop the smile at the thought. Cheryl was right. She didn’t do me any favors. She was a terrible mother. But her actions didn’t break me, not completely.
Death signifies an end but all I see right now is possibility.
And it’s the Soulless Kings I have to thank for that.
The Soulless Kings and Riley.
