Chapter 16
Kevin
My crazy sister waved her hands in the air. How could she embarrass me like that? Didn’t she remember how our mom used to be? Evidently not.
I slowed my speed to make her wait longer.
As I pedaled toward her, the summer sun I missed in San Fran was hot as fuck.
A black SUV entered the parking lot. The cages shiny exterior nearly blinded me all the way over here.
In the meantime, my sister didn’t notice the SUV.
Big surprise there. Her and her friend, Dana, were gabbing as chick usually did.
Whatever. I knew my sister was the typical woman.
Had known her, barely, when she was a tomboy and I was three.
But I saw the pictures of her when she was in middle school.
She was a cool girl but not the kind dudes wanted to date, unlike now.
What was happening? The SUV stopped and blocked my view of my sister and Dana. I rode faster for some strange reason, but something had me pushing harder on my pedals.
I could be overreacting. Making something out of nothing. Maybe the heat was getting to me, but why would it? I was used to NorCal summers.
My gaze was glued on that G Wagon as I stopped at the intersection and waited for the light to turn green.
Then I heard a faint scream.
Kelly!
At the first break in traffic, I sped across, focusing on my sister. The SUV drove off and I could see her.
“Kelly!” I shouted, but of course she wouldn’t be able to hear me. I made it where my sister had been but there wasn’t anything to show there’d been a struggle. Maybe she’d gone inside and I only imagined her scream.
No. She said she would wait for me in the parking lot.
I took out my phone and called GQ.
“My man, Kevin. How’s it go?”
“Kelly’s been taken! A black G Wagon just left the hospital parking lot with her. I heard her scream!” I yelled.
“Slow down, Kevin. Are you sure it was Kelly?” His truck roared to life in the background, and I could tell I was on speaker now.
“Yes, it’s her.” I saw something sparkling on the ground.
I flew off my bike and picked it up. “It’s her.
I found her lucky dime on the ground.” I reached into my pocket and took out the one I carried with a purple heart painted on it.
Kelly made them for us to each carry so we would know our mom was with us every day.
I’d thought it was corny at the time, but I never left home without it and neither did Kelly.
“Did you see which way they went. Give me all the details.”
Tears blurred my vision as I stared at the two times. She’d dropped it on purpose, leaving a clue for me to find.
“Kevin,” GQ said in firm voice. “You gotta stick with me here. Which way did they go? Give me all the details.”
I inhaled a deep breath. “East on Greenwood Street. I heard her scream. Her friend Dana might be with her. I assume she is because she was in the parking lot, too.” I tried to recall if there was anything else.
“What about Corcoran? He was supposed to be there.”
“I haven’t seen him.”
“Fuck! That irresponsible son of a bitch!”
“You don’t know if he left,” someone said. It could have been Slay.
I scanned the area but there wasn’t any sign of Corcoran.
“Listen, me and Slay are on our way to get you. Hold tight.”
“What if—”
“Don’t go there. We’re going to get her back.”
“But she’s the only family I have.” The same kind of emotion I felt when my parents died in the car accident, but I lived, threatened to bring me to my knees. Why did I lose everyone I loved? Why couldn’t the bad stuff happen to me instead?
“I’m your family, too. The Kings are your family. You won’t be alone, but believe me when I say, we are getting Kelly back. Because I can’t live without her.”
“Neither can I.” I put the dimes in my pocket and made my way to the parking lot entrance with my bike to save time.
“I’m almost there. Two minutes out,” he said. I couldn’t believe how calm he sounded. Maybe he was falling apart but hid it better than me. He was a lot older and should manage his emotions better like a King would do.
There was a lot of chatter going on in the background. I wanted to know what they were doing, but I didn’t question anything. It wasn’t my place. I was just a kid and they were grownups.
“I’m turning the corner. Throw your bike in the back and hop in.”
I saw him coming and the second he screeched to a stop; I did as he said. Once in the truck, he slammed on the gas.
Looking back at me in the rearview mirror, he asked, “You okay?”
“No.”
“Neither am I. It’s okay to admit your feelings. Just don’t let them control you during an emergency or a dangerous situation.”
“Good advice,” I replied.
They both looked cool as cucumbers. How was that possible? Clearly, I had some growing up and maturing to do.
“How long did it take you to call us when they took her?” Slay asked. “It took us six minutes to get to you. Did you call us the second they drove off?”
“Every second counts in these types of situations.” GQ flicked his gaze at me.
“I wasn’t sure if they took her at first.” I shook my head. “It must have been like two minutes. Did I mess up? I was on my bike and couldn’t call while pedaling so fast.”
“You didn’t mess up,” GQ replied.
“I’m just figuring out the timeline. That’s all,” Slay said, then he got on his phone.
“Eight minutes total isn’t bad, right?” I asked GQ, looking at him from the backseat. “We should be able to catch up to them.”
“Yep, not bad at all.”
“I wish Kel would let me drive my dad’s old Mustang. I couldn’t been on their tail from the get-go.”
Something flashed in GQ’s eyes. “That son of a pitch couldn’t have been so close.”
“Huh?” I had no idea what he was talking about.
“Which storage facility is the Mustang at?”
I stared at him in the rearview mirror for a long second. “The one off of Greenwood Street, I think.” My eyes bulged. “We’re on the right track!”
“I’m calling it in,” Slay said.
“Listen to me very carefully, Kevin. When we get there, you stay in the truck. If anything happens to you, Kelly will kill me and if that happens, I can’t marry her.”
“You want to marry her? Isn’t that a little fast? You’ve only been seeing each other for a week. Two at the most.” Dang, what was this guy thinking?
“Hey, you know when you know. When you get to be our age, nothing is too fast. Besides, I’ve known her since I was your age.”
“That’s funny.” I snorted. Man, if GQ married my sister, I would have the coolest older brother.
“Up ahead,” Slay said. “Stay in the truck or you will never be a King. You get me.” He narrowed his eyes, putting the fear of God in me.
“I get you.”
“Good.”
“Don’t ever do this unless I give you permission,” GQ said.
“Do what?”
“Drive through a gate. Hold on.” He plowed through the metal, which wasn’t as sturdy as the one at the compound.
The roar of motorcycles came down the road.
“Is that the Kings of Anarchy?” I asked.
“Who else would it be?” Slay pfft, pulling guns out of a black bag. “Do you know how to shoot a gun?”
“No.”
“Do not give him one,” GQ said in a warning tone. “He needs proper training and his sister’s approval.”
“Oh, jeez. She’s not my mother.” I groaned.
“I won’t do anything to lose her trust,” GQ said. “Just keep out of sight. Understand?”
“Yes.” These two were acting like my father, but I wasn’t about to piss them off and ruin my chance of getting patched into the club.
“There.” Slay pointed at the black G Wagon. There was a second vehicle there. A white van. “I only count five men.”
“There’s got to be more,” GQ said, parking behind a row of units at the end. “When we get done here, you’re both moving onto the compound.”
“Cool, but good luck convincing my sister.”
“I’m not worried.” GQ opened his door and pointed at me to stay put.
“I’ll run ahead,” Slay said. “You come up behind me.”
GQ nodded. I liked how everyone worked together in the club. The members were a team. A brotherhood loyal to each other and their code. They would take a bullet for their brother. Get retribution for their fallen. I wanted to be a part of that kind of family.
Two members passed me on their hogs.
Guns went off. One guy fell near the G Wagon.
I ducked, then remembered I was in a truck with bulletproof windows, a little detail GQ had told me when he brought Mama Virgie’s enchiladas to the apartment.
A hefty guy charged at GQ.
My muscles went tight like I wanted to help him.
The dude swung his massive arm, and GQ shot him in the chest without blinking an eye. The man dropped like a ton of bricks.
Two of the bad guys were down. That left three unless more came or there were some we couldn’t see.
What kind of people snatched women off the street in broad daylight and took them to a self-storage facility?
I lost sight of GQ and Slay. More KOAMC members arrived. It seemed really quiet after those two guys went down.
Suddenly, I saw Kelly helping two women, who looked pretty bad off. She put them in the shade and Dana did the same, assisting two more women.
Was it over just like that?
Dang, I was hoping for a little more action. I jumped out of the truck and ran to my sister.
“Kel! Are you okay?”
“Kevvy!” She opened her arms and I went right into her embrace. “I’m fine. I’m really good, seeing you.”
“I saw them take you and I called GQ.”
“You did good. I’m proud of you.” She squeezed me tightly. “You helped rescue four other women.”
“I did.” I pulled back.
“You sure did, my man.” GQ approached, tucking his gun in his holster. “Come here, you two.” He tugged us into a big hug.
“You’re just a big teddy bear, aren’t you?” Kelly said, laying a wet one on him. But I didn’t mind. It was nice to see my sister happy again.
“Shh, don’t tell anyone,” GQ replied.
“I gotta say, I’m a little disappointed.” I removed myself from the group hug, leaving the lovebirds clinging to each other.
“Why?” Kelly asked.
“I just thought there would be more danger. Bullets flying. Blood everywhere. You know, like in the movie.”
GQ chuckled. “Kev, this is real life. We just rescued six women.”
“Excuse me, babe.” Kelly put her hand on his chest. “I rescued five women, plus myself.”
“Do you have to be a Sassy Girl, right now?”
“I’m just telling it like it is. I stopped the leader.” She kissed his lips. “But you all did help with the others.”
“Okay, how did you stop the leader?” I asked my sister. This was one of the moments I felt honored to have her for a sister.
“It’s a story for another time, Kevvy. The important part is we all are alive and well.”
“And I’m fine giving you all the credit, baby.” GQ took Kel back into his arms. “I love you, Sassy Girl.”
“You do?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
The sound of sirens stole my attention. “I thought the Kings don’t deal with law enforcement?”
“Only when it has to do with sex trafficking.”
“Holy shit!” I shouted.
“Language,” Kelly said, firmly. “There come the medics. I’m gonna help where I can, then we can leave.”
“Always working, that one.” I pointed at my sister. “What can I do to help so we can get gone as soon as possible?”
She smiled and laughed. “How about you go free the Mustang from her confinement. I’m sure Gideon would love to teach you to drive it.”
“Hell yeah!” GQ and I said at the same time.
“The code is Mom’s birthday,” Kel said.
“Oh! That reminds me.” I took out the dimes and gave her one back. “Mom saved you.”
“My dime! I thought it might be lost forever.” She kissed it and slipped it into her pocket. “Okay, enough of all this schmaltz as dad would say. Let’s get to work.”