Temperance: Biker Romance (The Davis Chapter Book 2) (6 page)

“That sounds really sweet, but what does that mean for us?” We had a bounty on our heads, and Conrad was capable of just about anything.

“The first thing it means,” Kyle eased himself to his feet from the hood, “is that we aren’t heading south anymore.”

The calm shattered in that moment. If we weren’t going south, we were going north. North back to Davis. “Please tell me we’re not. Please tell me we’re not heading back.”

“I don’t want you to panic, Celeste, but we need to lay things out straight.” My knees weakened as Kyle spoke. I sank down on the hood of the muscle car, oblivious to the fact that we had just made love on it. He went on, “Water is wet, fire is hot, Conrad
will
come for us. Those are facts. Hard, icy, facts.”

I shook my head. “Then why the
hell
are we going back to Davis? Let’s just get to Bakersfield and go from there. It’ll give us a bit of time to decide what were going to do.” I tried to hang on to the good feelings that we had just rekindled. As I tapped on the hood, I said, “After the events of this morning, I think things have changed a little bit, don’t you think?”

Kyle gave me a sad smile. Nothing good ever came from a sad smile. “Things between us of changed…for the better. Things between you and Conrad, though, there’s nothing better about it.”

I urged, “Then let’s get to Bakersfield. I don’t see why we would head back into the jaws of the beast.” When I contemplated leaving Davis, I
really
contemplated leaving. In my head, once I passed the city limits, I would never set foot in the town again. I didn’t even know if I wanted to stay in California. Originally, Kyle was just a way to get out, but those feelings that we had for each other were still there, and they were still so strong. It threw a wrench into my plans, but in a good way. Good if we didn’t head back north, that is.

“Celeste,” Kyle shook his head. “If we run, we run
forever
. If everything about Conrad is true, he’s got contacts. He has people he can pay to find us no matter where we go.”

“And what do we have? The Rising Sons?” I dropped my head down into my hands, “Oh, no, no, no. We’re not just going back. Were going back end things, aren’t we?” That word. I still couldn’t say it. It was fight or flight, and Kyle did not want to fly. That only left one option. One dangerous, foolish option.

Kyle took a step forward, and he took my hands in his. He opened his mouth to speak, but the distant sound of an engine snapped us both to attention. The note was getting louder in a hurry, and my eyes widened. They had found us. I don’t know how, but they had found us, and we were going to die.

 
Kyle dropped my hands and headed around the side of the car. I was about to do the same, but I saw that he was going for the passenger’s side. There was no way in hell I was driving. After the chase in the Lexus, I was content being a passenger for the rest of my life. As the sound of the vehicle grew closer by the second, Kyle threw open the door and leaned in. When he came back up with a gun in his hand, I ducked instinctively. We weren’t going to speed away. He really was intent on fight rather than flight.

Coming back around the passenger door, Kyle grabbed me by the wrist. He was strong and powerful, but I was still surprised at how easily he yanked me to the side of the car. I knew he wasn’t trying to hurt me, though. “In the backseat. Stay low.” I didn’t need to be told twice. I knew Conrad’s men were dangerous, and they weren’t just trying to return his prize anymore. They were out for blood.

I ducked around the door and slid into the back of Kyle’s ride. The blood rushed through my veins at a furious rate. Once I was inside, I curled up in the fetal position. Kyle ducked behind the door, his eyes and the gun trained at the rise in the road.

He had the gun just out of sight, and when the minivan came into view, he kept it lowered. With its busted muffler, the small people carrier sounded a lot more menacing than it really was. I let out a sigh of relief as it trundled past. A young boy in the back seat looked out the window at me. With an evil little grin on his face, he shot finger guns at me as the minivan crept on down the road.

Jesus, I’ve never felt closer to a heart attack in my entire life. The thought of being killed, or—God forbid— innocent people getting hurt was just too much. Kyle was right. If we ran, we would always be looking over our shoulder. Conrad would always be out there. He might strike at any second, or he might bide his time. Either way, living on the run wasn’t living at all.
 

After the sick sound of the minivan was gone, I climbed from Kyle’s car. He put his arms around me, pressing the deadly metal of the gun in his hand. I was done with the constant fear.
 

My heart slowed down, but not by much. What I was going to say had me sick to my stomach. “You’re right. We’ll be on the run forever. I didn’t want to believe it, but it’s him or us. I didn’t want to have to sink to his level of depravity.”

Kyle’s head laid against my shoulder, feeling like that perfect complementary puzzle piece. His voice was soft and soothing as he said, “This isn’t his level. What we’re doing is surviving. What he’s doing? He’s killing just to kill. He’s a monster, and he needs to be put down.”

“Can we do it, though?” My voice trembled. God, I would’ve killed for another night’s sleep. “If what you say is true, I mean, he might as well have a small army behind him.”

Kyle backed away to look at me. “Don’t you worry about a thing, babe. We’ve got our own army.”

Kyle spent almost the entire drive back north on the phone. Some of the calls went down to Bakersfield, others up to Davis. Those in the know with the Rising Sons were aware of who Conrad Blythe was. His drug connections were well known in the outlaw community, which only made me feel even more stupid for having missed them. Maybe I did know somewhere deep down inside, but I chose to ignore it for the greater good. Not anymore.

In a small town an hour outside of Davis, Kyle and I grabbed a late lunch at an old-school drive up. Like nothing was wrong in our lives, the two of us ordered our chili cheese dogs and shakes. With a tray balanced on the driver’s side window, we ate as Kyle gave me the rundown on his ramshackle plan. If we could keep our heads down, in one week’s time, everything would be over.

“Romero is the key to this whole thing. He’s ex-special forces, so he’ll know just what we need.” He sighed, “If the fucker will answer his goddamn phone. The boys aren’t gonna like it, but I think we’re gonna have to go in real quiet. Romero could probably sneak in and slit Blythe’s throat before anyone even knows what’s going on. I wish I could tell you that Conrad was the only one we had to nail, but I don’t think that’s the case. His men are paid well enough to earn him a little bit of loyalty. Once he’s gone, they’re gonna be pissed that their paychecks will come to a screeching halt. You’re just as integral as Romero, you know.”

The coffee was doing nothing to help my shakes. “I can tell you the layout, how many guards, all of that stuff. Whatever you need.”

“Telling ain’t be enough, babe. We’re gonna need you on the inside.” He knew I wasn’t gonna like it. He knew damn well.

I looked up to the roof of the car. I just wanted it to end. I wanted my mind to get a minute’s peace. Going back inside there was the last thing I wanted. ”Kyle, please. I’ll draw a damn blueprint if you want. Just please don’t make me go back in there.”

“I know, I know. I don’t want you to go in there, either. I want you as far away from danger as humanly possible. But there’s no location on earth that is far enough. The only place far enough is in the future when Conrad is gone.” Kyle leaned over and ran a finger down my cheek. He always knew how to deliver bad news. “I think we both know this is the only way.”

All I could do was nod my head in acknowledgment. I didn’t want any more violence, but that meant something had to be done about Conrad. I couldn’t stand to set foot anywhere near that mansion but seeing it torn to the ground would be a gift. I wanted to see everything that Conrad stood for reduced to rubble.

His phone vibrated and Kyle dug at his pockets. A smile crept on his face as he looked at the screen. He turned it to me, and I saw the contact
Fuckwad
had come up. Despite the gravity of the situation, I had to laugh.
 

“When did you do that?” I asked.
 

He gave a casual shrug. “After the first call. I had a feeling it would be the last. He’s dangerous, sure, but he’s also an egomaniac. To him, this is sport, so he’s going to toy with us.” I wondered if Kyle was acting so calm to help me stay calm, or if he really was absolutely comfortable with this. Maybe he had the stone cold attitude to go with the rock hard muscles. He raised a finger to me. “If you’ll excuse me, I have to take this.”

I shook my head. He really was keeping me calm and under control. God, I loved him for that. I love him for a hundred things, but Kyle was my tranquility and my peace. I sucked down some more of my milkshake while Kyle toyed with Conrad.

“Hey there, Douchington.” Kyle laid the phone down in his lap. It was on speaker.

The tinny, distorted voice of Conrad filled the car. “Awfully jovial for a dead man. I hope you and that little whore of yours are having a good time, because it’s going to come to an end very soon.” Hearing Conrad call me a whore sucked every bit of good feeling from inside of me. It was replaced with the smell of rot. Kyle was right; he had to go. Conrad didn’t deserve to stay alive.

“I think by now you understand that you can’t run from me.” Conrad sounded too calm, like a big-screen serial killer. Like at any moment, he could explode with rage. “I figure you will try, anyway. The bottom line is this: you’re a dead man walking. Her, too, but I’m a busy man. I don’t have time to play Carmen fucking San Diego, so here’s what’s going to occur.”

His voice was a nightmare. The world seemed to darken and close around me. Conrad wasn’t speaking through the phone. He was in the backseat with his icy hands around my throat. I reached a hand up and almost felt him there. My mind told me to turn around to prove to myself that the backseat was empty, but I couldn’t do it. I was too afraid that I would see him there. Those painful gray eyes and that disingenuous smile would be there waiting for me.

If I could’ve gotten out of the car without making any noise, I would have. Conrad’s voice was breaking me down; cracking my foundation little bit at a time. Maybe Kyle saw the pain that I couldn’t hide, because he reached for the phone as Conrad continued. He knew I didn’t want to hear that voice anymore.

“Since you two insist on playing cat and mouse, I think I’ll be paying a visit with my favorite mother-in-law.”
 

My hand gripped Kyle’s wrist. My heart froze in my chest. Conrad’s words sent ice rippling through my body. His fingers were back at my throat.

I could almost hear the smirk in that fucker’s voice. “It would be a shame if, after all that recovery, Laurel had a relapse of some kind. And we all thought she was so strong…Are you there, Celeste? Are you listening?” The hands tightened. “I hope you are fully aware that I mean when I say. I’m giving you the choice. You or your mother. I am a benevolent man, so I’ll make you a promise. It will be fast and painless for you, but it will be slow torture for her. Hmm, you know, I think Laurel was supposed to join us for dinner this very evening, as a matter of fact. How about that? How about that?”

Click
.

Before I could say a word, Kyle fired up the car. As he backed out of the drive-in, he rolled the window down. The tray holding our food tumbled into the parking lot. The rear tires squealed in protest as Kyle pulled the car back onto the road. My hands were frantic, trying to grab the handle and a seatbelt at the same time. Just seconds before we hit a speed bump, I clicked the buckle in place.

Without enough time to go over every detail, we both knew the plans were out the window. The look on Kyle’s face was all business; eyes focused and dead ahead. “Tonight. It goes down tonight, and it ends tonight. Your mom’s gonna be fine, Celeste. I give you my word.”

Kyle tore down the highway with everything he had. We didn’t even have time on our side anymore.