Chapter Thirty Four
On Saturday, Riley drove to Kara’s family farm. She barely stopped the truck when Tara jumped out and raced to hug her new best friend.
Amy smiled as she approached. “They’re two peas in a pod.
I’m glad you changed your mind about helping.
We can have Kara show Tara around the farm stand while I show you my goats.
There’s enough cheese and butter for this week, but we’ll need to start making more.
There’s a farmer’s market in a few weeks, and I’d love to sell our products there. ”
“I’m happy to help,” Riley said, yawning. “Making cheese and butter relaxes me.”
Amy chuckled. “You look exhausted already. Did you sleep at all last night?”
“I got a few hours. One of the greenhorns volunteered to take a shift at dawn with one of the cowboys I haven’t met. Jay’s not experienced to work a herd alone. We did it together,” Riley explained.
“Don’t you trust the men on the ranch?” Amy asked.
“I know they go through a difficult vetting system before they’re hired.
It’s taken us a long time to trust anyone around Kara again.
But Rebecca and Kara went through something together that no one should experience.
It’s the only reason I allow Kara to visit there.
The men may appear rough around the edges, with a few scars on their souls.
When they bring new survivors to the cabins, those cowboys turn into mush.
They risked their lives to bring Kara back to me, and I’ll never feel as if I can do enough to repay them. ”
Riley swallowed the lump forming in her throat.
Her sister seemed to spend more time in her room since they moved.
She knew Tara blamed her for leaving Garrett, but she refused to explain the pain she felt every time she relived the scene in her head.
Not wanting to paint Garrett a villain, she glossed over the details of why they moved out.
After listening to Amy, Riley felt torn.
Both girls suffered traumatic experiences and came out on the other side. It didn’t seem fair to drag them apart.
“Hi, Riley,” Kara greeted her.
“Hi, Kara. Do you think you and my sister can sell all this goat cheese and butter? It seems like we’ll be busy this week,” Riley said, trying to engage with the girls.
“It always goes fast. People come from the next town over to get Mom’s cheese,” Kara answered.
“After we finish, may Kara come home with us and hang out?” Tara asked hopefully.
“Sure, I don’t see why not. Why don’t we order pizza?” she suggested before the girls carried the product to the small farm stand, and she followed Amy to the nearby barn.
Tara’s eyes lit up for the first time over the last couple of weeks. “Awesome. What do you like on yours?” she asked Kara. They walked away, discussing toppings, and squealed when they discovered they liked the same things.
Amy smiled and shook her head. “Two peas…”
“Oh, how nice,” Riley exclaimed as she saw the walk-in refrigerator attached to the barn. “I’ve dreamed of owning one of these.”
“It’s very nice. I have everything listed in alphabetical order,” she explained to her as they went through the products. Riley barely heard her as she listened to the cars stopping by the roadside for the fresh produce and goat items.
She heard the rumble of motorcycles and went outside to check on the girls.
An older couple got off and waved to another group to pull over.
It seemed they decided to take a motorcycle ride with friends and stopped by the humble little stand.
Returning to the barn, she entered the goat pen with Amy.
“Next year, I want to get the milking machines,” Amy told her. “It’ll save me time.”
“It does,” Riley agreed “Have you given any thought about raising chickens? You have the space,” she suggested, gazing over the ample yard. “People love farm fresh eggs.”
Another rumble of a couple of motorcycles, most likely from the touring group, stopped at the stand.
“I thought about it. Everyone around here owns a farm or ranch and has their own chickens. I don’t know if eggs will sell here,” Amy said, contemplating the idea.
“Then start out with a couple, enough to feed your family and place some out at the stand. Then you can gauge their interest,” Riley advised. “Plus, it makes good fertilizer for the garden.”
A blood-curdling scream from the farm stand sent Riley running.
Her heart raced as she watched two bikers place a fighting Tara on the back of a bike with her hands tied.
Amy picked up Kara from the ground, holding a cloth to a head wound.
Riley jumped into Rachel’s truck, flooring the gas pedal and sending rocks flying from the driveway as she spun out onto the road.
While they weaved in and out of traffic, she passed cars in no passing zones to keep up with the bikers.
Recognizing they headed toward their club, Riley gassed it, trying to get ahead of them.
It’d be easier to take out two bikers instead of twenty.
She needed to stop them before they reached the gate.
Giving the steering wheel a hard jerk to the right, she watched as the first biker swerved to avoid hitting her and went off the road.
The other biker, holding Tara, sped up and went around her.
She yanked the steering wheel and followed, terrified if she tried the stunt again, it might kill her sister.
“Shit, shit, shit,” She muttered as they turned into the club entrance. Instead of making her stop, they waved her through as if expecting her. Riley jumped down and pulled Tara from her kidnapper’s grasp.
Tara screamed behind the handkerchief tied around her mouth as more bikers appeared from all sides, boxing them in with the truck.
She kicked them away, avoiding their attempts to tear her away from her sister.
Even if Riley made it to the vehicle, they wouldn’t succeed in getting out by themselves.
Kenny sauntered out, smoking a cigarette, and a slow grin spread across his face. “Hello, girls. It’s good to have you back.”
“Let us go,” Riley demanded. “I’ve already paid you the money, and we have nothing to do with Garrett Johnson.”
“Oh, but you do,” Kenny insisted. “He gets mighty upset when we talk about you. It appears you might be worth something after all.” He turned toward Stitch. “Take them into the clubhouse and get their old man.”
Riley glanced at Tara, whose eyes widened at the mention of her father. Shaking her head, Riley tried to convey to her sister she’d handle their dad.
Shoving them inside the clubhouse, they made them sit in chairs. Riley untied the gag from her sister’s mouth. “It’s all right. Amy will alert Matthew and Julio,” she whispered. “They’ll come for us like the last time.”
But it wasn’t like the last time. Garrett rescued her.
After the way she dismissed him, she doubted he’d risk himself again to save her.
Her feelings seemed trivial now as she stared at the gang of bikers.
She yearned for the protective safety of his arms as she scanned the area, searching for a way out of the clubhouse.
Her dad entered, smelling of alcohol. Nothing new there, but she wondered about his sanity. He made a deal with a biker gang to gain his daughters, and what did he have to offer them?
“Hello, Riley. You resemble your mom more every time I see you,” he slurred.
“Dad, whatever deal you made with them, take it back,” she growled. “They broke my arm,” she appealed to his fatherly side.
His eyes narrowed as he glanced at Tara, then back to Riley. “I tried to convince you to return home. You refused to listen,” he shouted at her. “You took her side. She killed my wife, your mother, and it’s time she paid the price.”
Riley shook her head firmly, having gone down this road before with him.
“You know accidents happen all the time on a ranch. Do you think she meant to fall into a grain bin full of corn? You’re not thinking straight.
Tell them the deal’s off, and we’ll get you some help.
Mom doesn’t want you to hurt our family anymore,” she implored.
“She’s dead, Riley,” he screeched and pointed at Tara. “All because she didn’t do as she was told.”
“I…I didn’t mean it. It happened so—”
Her father slapped Tara, sending her head reeling. Riley jumped up and covered her sister’s body, refusing for him to inflict more pain.
“Don’t listen to him, Tara,” she insisted as two bikers peeled her off her sister and shoved her back into her seat.
Kenny chuckled as he watched the scene. “You, my beautiful flower, will learn to remain seated. Since you don’t know the rules of the club, let me give you a rundown.
Everything I say goes. When I snap my fingers, you’ll come running.
If I order a beer, you’ll get it and bring it to me on your knees. ”
One of the bikers came behind her, placing a dog collar around her neck. Riley struggled, thinking he meant to strangle her, but stopped when another held a knife to Tara’s throat.
Kenny continued, “You’ll be wearing my collar because you’re my bitch. You see, your father struck a deal with me. I get to keep you, and he gets to take your sister.”
Riley panicked and held on to Tara for dear life. “Dad, don’t do this. I’ll go wherever you want, tell Kenny you changed your mind,” she begged.
“It’s too late,” her father said as he weaved his way over to Tara and jerked her mother’s necklace from her throat, making her cry out.
“I put a tracker on this to keep tabs on you. When you started getting rid of things, I knew you’d never part with this.
Your mom loved it more than anything I gave her.
Then, you gave it to this bitch to wear.
She doesn’t deserve to even touch it,” he yelled as he shoved the necklace in his pants’ pocket.
“Did you know I heard her screaming from the field? It still haunts me at night how she called my name. When I got to her, the cowboys pulled you out, and they dug your mother’s body from the corn.
I want you to know how she suffered, how she used her last dying breath to say my name before she died.
I don’t want you to scream for me. I want you to feel the weight of the corn crushing you little by little until you can’t breathe, can’t cry out for help, and I’ll watch from above to ensure you feel what your mom felt when she died. ”
“No,” Riley screamed as one of the bikers held her down as her dad dragged Tara from the clubhouse. She fought and twisted, screaming Tara’s name.
“Shut her up,” Kenny commanded, and one of the bikers punched her, sending her to the floor.
Riley saw stars as she tried to sit up. Kenny knelt in front of her and held her chin.
“We’re gonna have a little fun tonight. My buddies will film it and send it to Garrett.
Make sure you scream as you did now because I want him to hear the pain.
Maybe then, he’ll change his mind about the money.
” Kenny rose and turned toward Stitch and Blade.
“Take her to my room. Get the camera set up—”
Bam. Bam. Two shots were fired from a darkened corner, and Kenny clutched his gut as blood poured from his stomach.
The scent in the air turned coppery as the red fluid leaked between his fingers.
Riley’s ears rang, and everything went in slow motion.
Kenny’s gaze went to the back of the room, where Bernice held a gun.
She waved it back and forth, threatening to shoot anyone who came near her.
The men backed up, disgusting Kenny as he bled on the floor.
“You fucking bitch,” he muttered as he fell to his knees. “Kill her,” he ordered.
Pandemonium broke out as Bernice shot another biker who tried to stop her. Kenny grabbed at Riley, but she shoved him backward onto the floor.
“Get her,” he called weakly. Nobody heard him due to Bernice’s screeching.
Seeing a chance to escape, Riley raced to Rachel’s truck and started the engine as two of the bikers held guns on her.
She ducked, put the truck in gear, and stepped on the gas as they fired at her.
She felt the thud of their bodies under the wheels as she dashed toward the entrance.
More gunfire erupted, blowing out the windshield and barely missing her.
Riley glanced behind her before turning onto the main road. Where did her dad take Tara? Her heart thudded in her chest as she racked her brains, recalling his rambling speech.
She took several breaths, trying to calm down as she trembled.
Then, an idea hit her. Her father must’ve taken Tara to the new grain mill.
She recalled the ad announcing it would open soon.
They ran a demonstration on grain bin rescues for the local ranchers, using the latest equipment.
She pressed harder on the pedal, praying she made it on time.