Rolling Thunder

Chapter 30

She barreled down State Road 31 in her truck, gripping the steering wheel so hard, her knuckles whitened, and her hands started to go numb. She hadn’t quite decided where she was headed. She just had to find Bill. But where to even look? She didn’t know, and of course, he didn’t have a fucking phone. She simply couldn’t accept the truth now that he was gone.

First, she cruised by the AA Clubhouse, hoping again to see Bill’s motorcycle. It wasn’t there. Desperation turned to anger, and she turned toward the shitty hotel her mother stayed at. It wasn’t far. She realized belatedly that she should have told Evan. She should have asked him to drive her and not gone on this crazy mission alone. Her mother wouldn’t know where Bill was…but Kayla thought, at least she could vent her anger. Her mother had caused all of this! Just like she’d crashed through everything like a human wrecking ball, Leanne ruined Kayla’s chance at reconciliation with Canyon Bill. Kayla wanted her to pay. If she couldn’t make things right, she could have vengeance.

A traffic light turned red, and she slammed on the brakes, furious at the delay. As she sat there, drumming her fingers impatiently, she saw two women she knew from AA crossing the street. They were undoubtedly on their way to a meeting. They were having a lively conversation, and they looked happy. People with real sobriety tended to be happy, she noticed.

A horn blared, and she jumped, realizing she’d missed the light turning green. She pulled forward, and the urge to drink overcame her like a tidal wave. She pulled over in a gas station and fumbled her cell phone out of her pocket with shaking hands, dialing her sponsor, Annie. To her relief, Annie answered immediately.

“You okay?” Annie asked her.

“No,” Kayla said, her voice cracking.

“Talk to me.”

“I found my mother’s notebook from when she was a teenager. Oh, Annie, it’s a mess. I made Bill leave and now it’s too late. I really need to talk to him. I don’t know how to even find him. He doesn’t have a phone… I was on my way to see my mother, but if I go talk to her, I’m gonna drink.”

“Why don’t you come over here,” Annie responded softly. “It’ll be okay.”

And so Kayla headed over to Annie’s apartment. Annie cracked the door partly open and, seeing it was Kayla, fully opened the door without a word. There, on Annie’s couch, sat Canyon Bill.

Kayla’s mouth dropped open, and she looked from Annie to Bill. Her shock was chased quickly by overwhelming relief. Bill wasn’t gone forever. He was here, and she still had a chance.

She burst into the apartment. The memory of the love in his eyes in the childhood picture was fresh in her mind, and she almost ran across the room to throw her arms around him. But the missing years between them were like an awkward cage, holding her back.

“Oh, thank God you’re here,” she blurted.

Bill’s shocked expression was a mixture of surprise and relief.

“I need to talk to you,” she said.

He looked guarded.

She turned to Annie. Obviously, the two of them had become a bit more cozy than Kayla realized, but Kayla didn’t know whether Annie knew the whole saga with her mother, and for Bill’s sake, she didn’t want to overshare.

“She knows everything,” Bill filled in, seeing her hesitation. That was enough for Kayla. She couldn’t wait one more second to tell him.

“You didn’t do it, Bill. It’s all in her journal.”

She held out the notebook to him. He looked at it, but didn’t take it.

“These entries start before I was born. She wrote about how she made the whole thing up to blackmail you. Partly because she was angry after she tried to come on to you when you were drunk, and you yelled at her and threw your beer at her.”

Bill’s face tensed with pressure and then started to melt. He was at times jolly, at times menacing. She’d definitely never seen him cry. But now, there was moisture in his eyes and a slight quiver in his lips. She watched the weight of the worst kind of accusation lift from his shoulders with a shudder. It was like a minor earthquake tumbling an ancient rock wall.

“Goddamn,” he muttered.

Annie went to his side, and he reflexively reached for her hand.

“I’m sorry, Bill,” Kayla said, forging on. She couldn’t afford to stop now. Everything she’d bottled up since he’d gone missing, everything she’d thought she’d never have a chance to say, came tumbling out.

“I’m sorry I doubted you. I’m sorry I’ve been taking shit out on you that was never your fault. And I want you to come home.”

Bill had his head in his hands. Annie sat beside him, stoic, arm around his shoulders.

“Please, come home,” Kayla repeated.

After a moment, he finally raised his head, rubbing his face. “All right, fire ant.”

There wassteady upheaval over the next few days. Bill came riding back in on his motorcycle. Not only had she found him, but he came back when she asked. He hadn’t just disappeared into the sunset like she expected him to.

Jake was growing restless and distracted. He had a business in the Keys, although Kayla sensed there was something else. Evan and Jake had taken a few hours-long rides out to talk privately in the swamp.

This morning, Evan cleared out early to meet Dan in Fort Myers about a new house. Kayla took a long break in the middle of the day. Southwest Florida was now in the throes of fucking-hot summer. Only after the sun passed its peak did she dare get back out in the fields. Jake was rolling in just as she was heading down the driveway. He’d come back by to collect some tools that had been left scattered about behind her house when he and Evan were bonding over giving his bike a tune-up. His eyes were blue like Evan’s, but lighter. They sucked you in with dangerous charisma. He straightened up when she paused by him.

“Thanks, Jake.”

She had more to say to him, so much more. But as their eyes met, she knew he knew. He nodded slightly and scooped her into a quick hug.

“You take care of yourself, girl. And you take care of my brother.”

“I will,” she said.

He winked at her, and she knew it was her cue to get lost before tears were shed. She retreated down the driveway to the barn. A few minutes later, she heard his bike roar to life. Feeling wistful and not yet super motivated to groom horses, she looked out the window of the barn.

Her breath caught in her throat. Jake was heading up her driveway to leave. He’d put on a vest she hadn’t seen him wear before, but recognized in a heart-grabbing second. He was wearing the full patch with both rockers for the Iron Pirates MC, apparently thinking no one would see him riding off in it.

After everything, Jake was riding with the Pirates?

Her first thought was that she had to tell Evan, but once she thought that all the way through, she realized it was better to say nothing. If Evan wasn’t aware that Jake was patched in with the Pirates she could ruin their newly repaired relationship. Jake had obviously deliberately not worn his cut in front of Evan and Bill to avoid a stir. Ultimately, she decided to just try to forget she’d seen it. Jake was on his way back to the Keys now, and for all his help, she felt she owed him.

Her phone dinged a text from Evan at that moment.

Coming home with steaks. Let’s grill.

Home. He said home.

Sounds great,she replied.

Just as she finished in the barn and headed back up her driveway, the twang of country music came drifting from the house along with the smoky smell of barbecue. It set her stomach growling. Had she eaten lunch? She didn’t think so. Following her nose, she came around the back corner of the house to the sight of Bill and Evan grilling together. It was almost too much, too soon. She wanted to just love them. But nothing had ever been easy or good in her life, and she didn’t dare assume it would be now.

“Hungry?” Evan asked when she appeared.

“I am, but Annie is coming by in a few minutes…”

“I’ve got more steaks.”

“What’s the occasion?”

“We signed for season two today.”

She kissed him in congratulations, and the relief was like a cool breeze on a hot day. Trent was already behind bars, and the drama of her life hadn’t ruined his.

Annie arrived about the time they all realized that Abbey was noticeably missing from begging alongside the table.

“I thought she was with you,” Evan said to Kayla.

“She was for a bit, but I haven’t seen her in hours.”

“She’ll turn up,” Bill said.

“She wouldn’t miss out on begging for steak,” Kayla said, getting truly worried. No sooner had she said it than her phone buzzed in her pocket. When she answered, an elderly woman’s voice inquired if she was missing a dog.

“We are,” Kayla said. “Is she okay? Where is she this time?”

“She’s fine. She’s eating my cat food, so I’d appreciate it if you’d come get her.”

“Yes, ma’am, we will. Are you on Little Ranch? What number?”

“Thirty-two.”

“We’ll be right over.” She hung up and hugged Annie quickly. “I’m sorry, guys, but I’ve got to go retrieve the delinquent dog.”

“You put your phone number on my dog’s collar?” Evan inquired as he followed her to her truck.

“Well, you didn’t put yours on there, so somebody had to do the right thing.”

He laughed. “I still think you’re trying to steal her from me.”

“Trust me, I’m not. I guess we just have joint custody by default.”

Thirty-two Little Ranch was a run-down mobile home half engulfed by pepper bushes and overgrown live oaks. Kayla had almost not known there was even a house of any sort up this winding sand driveway. When she reached the end, sure enough, there was Abbey. She was unceremoniously tied to the railing of the steps leading up to the door of the trailer. She looked appropriately horrified at her predicament.

The smell of cat urine hung in the air when they got out of the truck. Abbey began wiggling in circles, winding herself up even tighter on the short rope the lady had tied her up with.

The door opened immediately, and a small, hunched woman stood at the top of the stairs.

“I don’t appreciate her eating my cat food, young lady.”

“I’m sorry, ma’am, I’ll drop some by to you,” Kayla said quickly. Then she looked sideways at Evan.

“Actually, Evan will be happy to drop some by to you.”

His eyebrows shot up, and she elbowed him slightly.

“Absolutely,” he agreed.

“I’m Kayla, your neighbor down at the horse farm,” Kayla said as Evan worked on the knot securing Abbey to the porch. The woman nodded grimly, considering her with squinty eyes.

“Irna,” the woman bleakly introduced herself.

At last, the dog was free, and they hustled her into the truck. “I used to know Miss Kay Daniels who ran that farm. You any relation to her?” Irna questioned with eyes squinted suspiciously.

“I’m her granddaughter,” Kayla replied, and Irna’s face softened a bit.

“Glad it stayed in the family.”

Kayla smiled quickly.

“I’ll be by with some cat food, sorry for the trouble!” Evan called out to Irna as they pulled away with Abbey safely contained in the cab of the truck.

“Listen, Trouble. You better not bother the crazy cat lady again. I get the feelin’ she might just as soon feed you to Crazy Jimmy’s gator.”

A belt of laughter erupted from Kayla, and it hadn’t yet evaporated by the time they rolled back into her front yard.

Still in the truck, Kayla noticed Annie and Bill were sitting at the picnic table, deep in conversation, awfully close together.

“Are we interrupting something?” Kayla asked Evan, giggling.

Evan looked at the two. “Maybe…”

“They know each other from AA, but that doesn’t look like program talk.”

“Nope. It does not.”

They were so engrossed in each other that they hardly seemed to notice Evan and Kayla returning with the dog.

She got out of the truck, and Abbey dashed over to beg for steaks just like Kayla knew she would. Evan reached for her hand as they walked back to the picnic table.

“Ladies first,” Evan announced. “Annie, bring me your plate.” She met him at the grill, and Bill stretched his long legs out in front of him, surveying the farm. Kayla followed his gaze. The fences were fixed, and contented horses grazed in the green pastures.

“You grandma would be real happy to see what you’ve done here, fire ant.”

“What we’ve done,” she said.

Before she could get truly choked up, Evan and Annie returned with steaks and began passing out plates. On the side of Evan’s plate was a tiny child-sized steak.

“What’s that?” Kayla asked.

“That’s Abbey’s steak.” Kayla laughed, and the dog wagged her tail.

“Wow, she’s really got you wrapped around her little dewclaw, huh?”

Evan winked at her and tested the steak with his finger to see if it was cool enough. Finding that it was, he handed it to the dog, who dashed off with her prize to find a secret place to enjoy it.

“What can I say? I guess I’m a sucker for a pretty girl with a big heart,” he said, grabbing her and pulling her down onto the bench beside him.

It was a glorious meal they shared at the picnic table under the setting sun.

Bill and Annie invited Kayla to the evening meeting with them, but she was exhausted. Her home had suddenly become a hub of action and people. She just wanted to be alone with Evan and be quiet.

“Oh, I forgot,” Evan said, and headed for the house. He was back a few moments later with a foil-topped bottle that Kayla thought for an instant was champagne. He cocked his head at her. “You only have Solo cups in your pantry, so…” He passed those out and opened the bottle, which, on closer appraisal, she saw was sparkling grape juice, decidedly nonalcoholic.

She felt a warmth spread through her that was so much more wholesome than the burn of harsh liquor in her throat. She glanced at Canyon Bill as Evan poured, and he winked at her in a knowing way. Evan loved her. He’d not even brought beer to his own cookout for the sake of the sober alcoholics in attendance.

On a whim, she grabbed her red plastic cup of sparkling grape juice and raised it.

“You guys…. I can’t thank you enough for everything. Bill, if you hadn’t fixed this place up, I never could have made the payments. Annie, if it wasn’t for you, I’d have drunk away any good fortune I had.” She looked at Evan. “Thanks for taking a chance on me, babe.”

The corner of his mouth quirked the way she loved. “You and your Solo cups are totally worth it.”

“Thanks for being the guy I could have only dreamed you’d be.”

“All right, enough sappy shit,” he retorted, but under the table, he grabbed her hand and squeezed it tightly. She didn’t plan on ever letting go.

THE END