Page 77 of Chaos & Carnage
“I don’t want her wandering round here by herself,” Cade answered.
“Agreed, brother. I don’t want her alone here either.”
I didn’t think Alice could have glared at me any harder, yet I was wrong. The anger on her delicate features was intense, the narrowing of her eyes, her lips pushing together, a wrinkle on her forehead. Even in the vets, she hadn’t looked at me like that. She’d looked terrified that night as Cade led her away, leaving me behind as the fire built. And now she looked like she might just toss me in that fire herself. In the vets, there’d been hope. The slightest sign she might forgive what I had done to her, that she might remember how much she’d enjoyed it, even though I hadn’t been what she thought I was. But today, watching her shivering in the middle of a freezing cold Cumbrian field, that last little ebb of hope was slowly dwindling.
“I’ll go with her,” Suzy offered.
“Don’t really want Suzy wandering around here either,” Magnet complained.
None of us missed the look the petite blonde woman shot her husband, and all of us except Magnet laughed. Instead, he grumbled something into his beard, and we all watched Suzy lead Alice away.
My eyes trailed after her for ages, watching the way the leather hugged her body, exaggerating hips that were normally hidden under the hideous green scrubs she wore every day. The last time I’d seen her look like this was the night I rode her into Kings’ territory to parade in front of my brother. The night that I’d burned any trust in me, she’d had. The night I wished I’d done something different.
“Brother, take your eyes off my lass,” Cade’s voice was low and intimidating behind me.
“I wasn’t watching…. no, aye, I was watching her ass. Not gonna lie.”
He scowled, the slight movement of something at his thigh. A fist. Quietly rolled ready. I doubt he’d give me another warning. But I felt like pushing my luck, anyway. Or I would have done, but luck had other ideas.
The sound of the exhaust was hideously loud, growing louder as the bike climbed the hill. It didn’t climb slowly and carefully like we did. It fired up, the thick back wheel kicking mud and grass into the air, splattering tents and bikes, shouts and yells following it.
We all stopped. Every single one of us. All heads turning, all beer hands slowing.
“Who the fuck is that?” Indie grumbled, shooting a look at Magnet.
Everyone watched on, stunned, as the screaming angry Japanese racing bike kept coming towards us. Everyone except Fury, who stood, his arms crossed across his chest, with Heidi watching him with interest.
“Who is that?” Reap asked from behind us.
“Can’t tell. Don’t think I’ve seen him before,” Magnet responded. “And he’s asking for fucking trouble approaching us like that.”
“Can you see a cut?” I squinted at the black and red leathers he was wearing.
The bike underneath gleamed. All black other than the silver Japanese decal on the fairing.
“Nah. And if I’m not mistaken, that isn’t a man either.” Magnet smiled, as if he suddenly knew something we didn’t.
Fury still stood with his arms folded, Heidi shaking her head and moving away from him as he continued to stare, growing angrier and angrier.
“Oh,” Cade spoke next to me, a laugh teasing at the edge of his voice.
The person clad in black and red leather kicked the stand out and swung long, lean legs over the back of the bike. They were tall. And slim. And now they stood on the grass in front of us. I could tell they were every bit a woman. She pulled her helmet off. Large, dark, wide eyes and long hair falling to her waist.
“What the fuck, Jazz?” Fury groaned.
“Thought I’d look in and see what was happening.”
“And where’s your kit?”
She tucked her helmet under her arm, smirking.
“What about a tent? Huh?”
“Someone will let me stay in theirs,” she shrugged, a smile replacing the smirk as she looked around at the four encampments, nearly every biker with their eyes on her.
Fury shook his head. “You know The Notorious are here, don’t you?”
Jazz smiled and shrugged. “Aren’t they always?”