“Uh-oh.” Bobby chuckles, and I flip him the bird and head into the chapel.
“Shut the door, son,” Bull orders. I do as told and sit in a chair. “Cherry, how is she?” he asks.
“Good. Why?” I ask.
“She’s from Golds Trailer park. Keep her away from there.” I try to think of where the fuck that is; if it’s the place I’m thinking, it’s miles from here. That place is trash, and dangerous. Jeez, no wonder Cherry is the way she is.
“How come?”
Bull raises an eyebrow. I know I’m a prospect and not supposed to ask questions, but I did anyway.
“Got some rival gangs from there, and we don’t need the trouble.”
I nod.
“You’re a good prospect, Lip. I see a patch coming your way soon,” Bull states. I smile; the thought of belonging to this club is an accomplishment I can’t wait to achieve.
“The Devil is in my blood. I’d wear the colors with pride.”
“I’m going to look at an SUV for the club today, so why don’t you ride along. We have a local club meeting us before. You do well, you can come with us when we go on our big run in a few weeks.”
“You mean the one near Nevada?” The boys have been talking about it for weeks. Potential suppliers for AK-47s.
“That’s the one.”
“Yeah, I’m in.” I stand, my palms sweating.
“Good.”
CHERRY
I look at the phone, debating on calling my brother. I bite my lip, unsure. Maybe I can call and see if there’s been any suspicious activity. If there has been, I won’t call him again. That’s it, that’s what I’ll do.
“Hello?”
“Hey, Tyler.”
“Lindsay! Where have you been?” His frantic voice makes tears prick my eyes.
“Things have gotten out of control with Eric and the lawyers. You know how I told you that I found the judge being paid off?”
“Yeah?”
“Well, he has people in his pockets, and they tried to kill me. I’ve been living in my car.” I’m crying now.
“Fuck, Lindsay, why didn’t you come to me?”
“‘Cause I didn’t want to lead them to you.”
“Nobody has been here. Are you sure you’re not overreacting?”
I growl into the phone. “I’m sure.”
“Wait-how do you have a cell phone?”
“This guy, he picked me up on the side of the road. He’s really nice—too nice, maybe. He asked me to stay with him, so I’m laying low here.”
“Too nice, huh. You know when they say that, that means something is wrong.”
“Yeah, he is really persistent.” I laugh. “Don’t worry, he has a flaw: he really doesn’t like kids.” My head falls with the thought.
“Um, that’s a problem, right?” His tone comes out low.
“Not really. I mean, as much as I don’t want to admit it, I’ve lost Piper, and I can’t do anything about it. If I do, I’ll be killed.” Saying those words, my heart literally feels like it’s being torn in two. I hate myself for not being able to do more with my current situation; being backed into a corner without a safe move forward is a feeling of helplessness I can’t overcome.
The phone goes silent.
“You’re probably right, Lindsay. I know you love your daughter, and I’m not saying give up on her. I love her, too. But if you really think someone is after you, you should let this shit blow over before you try to get her back.”
I nod because I know he’s right. It’s just hard to accept.
“We should meet up,” he suggests.
“You think it’s safe?” My eyebrows rise.
“What part of town are you staying in?”
“I’m near the docks, I know that. I can hear and smell the ocean.”
“Yeah, I think you’re far enough away that nobody would recognize you, and that’s if anyone is even after you,” Tyler ensures. “I think maybe they were sent to spook you more than anything, make you keep quiet about the judge and all.”
“Well, it worked. I’m scared to death,” I mutter.
“You want me to come get you? You can stay with me, ya know.”
I look down at my hands and sigh. “I know,” I whisper.
“You’re not going to, are you?”
I don’t reply. I don’t know what this is between Lip and me, but I want to find out. Not only that but if Tyler’s wrong and the judge is after me, he’ll find me quickly if I’m around that area.
“This guy you’re with, be careful, yeah?”
“Yeah.”
“Love you, shithead.” He laughs, breaking me from my thoughts.
“Love you, turd licker.”
LIP