I take the lighter out of his shaking hand and pass it to one of the other trainees, a young gun who’s been around for longer. He’s part of Ryan’s legion, so I know he’s more up to this type of job. His wicked grin before walking fast towards the garage proves my theory to be correct.
But as I watch him click the lighter on, something dawns on me. I run towards him, holding his arm as he attempts to throw the flame inside. “Wait a minute kid, there’s something I need to get.”
I run back into the garage, the heavy scent of gasoline filling my nostrils, causing me to gag. I eye the cars one by one till I see it, tucked under the back of one of a red Chevy truck lowered to the ground without its wheels. I duck down and grab the black metal case, the one I saw Chris hide before he went off. Whatever he was trying to keep from us was in this box, and I’m not going to let this burn down with the rest of his building.
Once I’m safely out with the box in my hand, the enforcer throws the lighter into the garage. Within seconds, there’s a whoosh sound followed by a storm of heat. From a distance, I watch as a skeleton of a car bursts into flames, taking the same red truck with it. It only takes a minute or so before the entire place is crashing to the ground in a heap of ashes, rubble, and fire.
Chapter 15: More Than You Know
MICHELLE
“I still don’t understand why I need to know this damn stuff, Miss Springer.” Maddie is twirling her curly brown hair with the ends of her pencil as she chomps down on a piece of gum she won from my purse. She looks up at me, totally uninterested, “It’s just a bunch of dead guys.”
“Yeah, it’s a bunch of dead guys -- a bunch of dead guys who fought for our country.” I hold out my hand in front of her mouth. It’s our signal. The new rule is that for every time she curses, I get to take away the gum. Go five minutes without a bad word uttered, I give her another piece. I even have my phone’s timer set up for it.
“Oh come on, Miss Springer! It’s just ‘damn.’ I’ve said much worse than that!” She throws her arms around her chest in a dramatic pout.
I know she’s heard worse. I have no doubt that the expressive vocabulary that she uses is all inherited from her surroundings. Looking around the kitchen with the black garbage bags and plywood boards covering the windows and the floor tiles literally peeling up at its edges, this place is a breeding ground for low class.
But still, this is Maddie’s home. And in the few weeks I’ve been stopping by to help tutor her, I have seen her more at ease than ever. As much as I hate it, she’s comfortable here. She even feels safe here regardless of the gunfire, strange women, and men carrying around knives and drugs.
I reach out my hand towards her mouth, still insisting she follow my rule. She looks at me, rolls her eyes, and spits it into the palm of my hand. She returns to her books for a brief second before being interrupted by one of the club members passing through for a beer.
He tussles Maddie’s hair as he says, “How’s it going Maddie? Where’ your dad at?”
I’m asking myself the same question. Since I turned Cal down, I haven’t seen him or heard from him. He hasn’t stopped by to see me tutor Maddie. He hasn’t even made it into the classroom to talk about her progress despite my notes and letters. But, secretly, I’m grateful. The less I see him, the less I think of him and his body pressed against mine. Without him around, I can actually be the professional teacher I know I can be.
“Ah, he’s on a run somewhere. I think it’s to Chris’ repair shop or something. He took Ryan, Isaac, Blue Eye, and Softie with him a couple hours ago. I thought he was supposed to be back by now, though.”
I clear my throat as I turn to the man at the refrigerator, “What’s a ‘run’?” I shouldn’t ask. I know better. Getting myself involved in this motorcycle club stuff feels like a death sentence. The more I know, the deeper I get in, but any insight into Maddie’s world is becoming more and more important to me as I become attached to her.
The man pulls back the tab on the gold can of his beer, sending the frothy liquid down his hand. He eyes me as he licks the remains off. And then, he smiles widely. “You’re a curious one, aren’t ya? Most girls around here are an ‘ask no questions’ type.”
I turn back to Maddie who is laughing, too. Both are in on this joke that I’m clearly not getting. Maddie fist pumps the guy as he walks past her back into the living room where I can hear the other men hollering and crying out over their never ending card game.
“What was that about? What was he talking about?”
“Oh, Miss Springer,” She puts her hand on mine as if she were the teacher in this situation, “He’s saying that the dumb broads that come over here aren’t here because they’re interested in being in a motorcycle club. They don’t give a shit what’s going on.”
“Maddie, come on…” I press the reset on the timer again as she sighs, clearly annoyed with me.