Raze (Dirty Soul MC: Long Beach #1)

Chapter 2

Keep your head low and don’t draw attention to yourself. That's what Kane told me to do. And I’ve already failed. I’m tired from my brain going over what happened, and all the driving I’ve done. I’m drained from all the panicking and constant looking over my shoulder. Is it really surprising that I lost concentration for a few seconds and reversed into that guy's bike? I slam my hand into my steering wheel in frustration. Of all the people in this city who I could have crashed into, it just had to be one of them.

I may not have grown up around here, but I’ve heard plenty about The Dirty Souls. Their club is known nationwide, their members are feared just as much as they’re respected, but the Souls that reside here in Long Beach are renowned for being different. Apparently, they are feral men, who don’t even abide by their own club rules. I’ve heard the stories, but after coming into contact with the one whose bike I knocked over at the diner, I find myself questioning if all I’ve heard is true. He seemed to be a reasonable guy. Handsome as hell, but that’s beside the point. What happened today could have turned out very bad for me and I need to be more alert.

My palms are sweating and I can feel my pulse beating as I contemplate spending another night sleeping in my car. I don’t have much left of the cash my brother gave me when he insisted that I get out of town. I can’t risk using my credit card in case they have someone trying to track me and I’m fully aware that this cash isn’t going to last me very long in a city like this one.

“Come on, think.” I tap my hands against the wheel, trying to come up with a plan. I’m so tempted to turn on the cell phone and call Kane. Just hearing my big brother's voice would make me feel better. But he made me promise not to contact him, and knowing how serious all this is I can’t risk going against his word. I roll my seat back and reach onto the backseat for the sleeping bag and pillow, then attempting to make myself comfortable I try to get some sleep. Every time I close my eyes I see the blood on my hands all over again. The pain of regret twists itself in my gut and makes it impossible to get any sleep. I shouldn’t have even been at the club that night, Kane was always telling me to stay away from there. But I got spooked and chose not to listen to him.

All this is my fault, and now I have a whole gang of bikers probably wanting to hunt me down and make me pay for killing one of their members.

I’ve ruined everything for Kane. All he ever wanted was to be a Reaper and in one split-second decision, I took that dream away from him.

I feel my chest tighten and the nerves in my stomach knot when I think about the danger I’ve got us into.

The Satan’s Reapers were the club our father belonged to before he got sent to jail. I don’t know much about what happened, but I do know that he pissed off a lot of people with the way he behaved after his arrest. Kane had to work so hard to prove that he’s nothing like him for the club to even consider making him a prospect, and now because of me, all that work has been for nothing.

I toss and turn, barely getting a wink of sleep through the night, but I must drift off at some point because I get woken by the sound of a huge truck honking its horn behind me. Sitting bolt upright, I flip him the bird out my rear view window, then starting my engine I pull out of the bay I’m parked in and move on to the motel that’s a few 100 yards up the street. My stomach is rumbling so I decide to head for the reception to see if there's a vending machine I can grab something from.

The woman behind the desk has the phone pressed against her ear and smiles at me when I step inside.

I smile back and head for the vending machine to the left of her desk browsing through the options while she talks to her friend about what an asshole her boyfriend is.

“Can you believe his idea of an apology was to send me a basket of muffins? Fucking muffins! He knows I’ve got to fit into that bridesmaid dress for Cheryl's wedding next month.” She looks across at me and her expression changes. She frowns as if she’s concerned and I immediately wonder if she knows something. “Tess, I’ll call you back.” She hangs up the phone and steps out from behind her desk.

“Honey, are you okay? You look kinda pale.”

“I’m fine.” I manage to pull together another brave smile.

“You ain’t staying here, are ya?” She balances her hand on her hip and narrows her eyes.

“No. I wish I was. Lack of funds.” I shrug, continuing to look at the choice of pre-packed sandwiches behind the glass.

“Listen, sweetheart, I know a girl in trouble when I see one. Did he beat on you?” She sighs.

“No, nothing like that.” I shake my head. I may be down on my luck right now but I’m not a liar. I’m in the mess I’m in because of my own stupid fault and I won’t make excuses for it.

“You running from someone?” she asks, daring me to lie to her.

“Kinda,” I admit, she seems friendly and is the first person I’ve spoken to since what happened, other than the guy whose bike I ran into at the diner, though that wasn’t much of a conversation.

“Do you need to call someone?” She lifts her phone up from the desk and I nod my head back at her trying hard not to cry. I do need to call someone. I can’t handle this by myself. The problem is I don’t know who to call. I can’t call any of my friends back home, I won’t drag them into this, and I can’t call Kane, he made it very clear how dangerous that would be.

There’s a cell phone in the car but Kane told me only to use it in emergencies. I figure using the phone here would be smart since I don’t plan on sticking around.

“Yes. Yes, please,” I answer her, hardly able to believe that I’m even considering what I’m about to do. I reach into my back pocket and take out the scrap piece of paper with our father’s number written on it. Three years ago when he got released from prison he sent me and my brother a letter, one that told us he could never come back to Sacramento. But he did give us a number to contact him on if we ever needed him.

Kane was so mad at him for what he’d done to the club that he screwed it up in his fist and tossed it in the trash. I waited for him to storm out the house before I retrieved it. I don’t know why I felt like I wanted to keep hold of it. I’ve only ever heard bad stories about the man, but now staring at the faded numbers in my hand I figure they could be my only way out of this mess.

Hearing his voice was strange, I only ever met him once, and seeing as I was only five years old at the time I can barely remember it. He never called or wrote to us while he was in prison. And Kane always told me we were better off without him.

Naturally, he was surprised to hear from me, but he sounded happy, despite the fact I was only calling him out of desperation. He couldn’t tell me where he was and he assured me I’d be in more danger if I came looking to him for protection. What he suggested I do seems just as dangerous to me as it is stupid. But I guess if I could pull it off, it would be kinda genius. Right now, I need protection from the Reapers, and what better place to hide than behind their enemies?

“You okay? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.” The receptionist takes the phone from my hand when I step back out of the office she let me use, for some privacy.

“Much better, thanks.” I try to convince her with a smile.

I’d kept the conversation I just had with my dad as brief as possible, and made arrangements to contact him again in a few days. I didn’t have time to argue or doubt the instructions he gave me, and although they come with their risks, right now I see no other option.

“I’m just tired and I could really use a shower.” I look down at myself and feel so scummy. I left Sacramento in such a hurry I only packed three sets of clothes.

“Here, honey.” She reaches behind her and grabs a key from the hook. “The guy from Room 5 checked out an hour ago, the housekeeper doesn’t start till 11. He was a single man and that room has two doubles. Get your head down for an hour and use the shower while you're there.” She winks at me, and I could grab her face and kiss her for all her kindness.

“Thank you.” I take the key from her hand and cling to it tightly as I head for room 5. Inside is nothing special, but seeing the neatly made-up sheets makes me sigh with relief. I slip off my shoes and climb into the bed that hasn’t been slept in, enjoying the luxury of a mattress for a few minutes before I set the plastic alarm clock that’s on the nightstand to wake me in just under an hour.

After my power nap, I take a long hot shower, get dressed, and head back to the reception so I can return the key.

“Feel better, sweetie?” My fairy godmother looks up from typing on her phone when I step inside.

“So much better, I don’t know how to thank you.” I place the key on her desk and smile.

“You're very welcome. I’ve been where you are. Everyone needs a little help from time to time.”

“Do you happen to know where the Dirty Souls’ clubhouse is?” I ask, trying to sound casual.

“I do, but you should know, however bad the trouble you're in is, no good will come from going to that place.” I can tell from the look on her face that she’s worried.

“I can handle myself,” I assure her and when she pins me with a long unsure look I wonder if she’s gonna hold out on me.

“Take a left at the end of this street, follow the coastal road till you see a three-story yellow motel on your left. That’s where you’ll find them.” Her hand darts out and slams over mine. “Just be careful.” She warns, making me wonder if I should reconsider my father's advice.

I nod back at her gratefully, then just as I’m about to head out the door an idea suddenly comes to me. “Are you gonna eat those?” I look at the basket of muffins that are still on the end of her desk and can’t help think that they’d be the perfect apology gift.

“Hell, no, I’ve got six pounds to lose and a very unforgiving dress to squeeze these hips into.” She laughs.

“So, would you mind if I…”

“They’re all yours sweetie.” She smiles and I thank her one last time before I head out toward my car swinging the peace offering in my hand.