Page 3 of Raven (Sinners Revenge MC- Rapid City, SD #6)

Raven

Six weeks later

F or the first time in over a month, I was getting off work on time.

Hiring Sydney had been the best thing I’d ever done for the shop.

She and the guys got along without issue, she was fast and precise with her work, and she worked almost as many hours as I did.

Today was payday, and the last full day after the Rally ended tomorrow.

I wanted to get to the Sin Den and have a drink and smoke before the chaos started. The Rally was one of my favorite weeks of the year, and thanks to Sydney working so hard, we were able to handle whatever came at us over the past week or so.

At lunch, I gave everyone their checks and told them to take off for the weekend when they finished up their current projects. Since last Monday morning, we were swamped with repairs, people wanting their rides customized, and the countless old friends who pulled through to say hi.

We had caught up on all the mechanical issues, and Joel, my head mechanic and life-long friend,teamed up with Sydney to rewire a custom bike for me so I could start on the fabrication of another. When they finished earlier this afternoon, I offered them the same half-day off as everyone else.

Joel jumped at the chance and took off to spend some time with his girlfriend. Sydney, on the other hand, shook her head and got back to installing new taillights on an almost finished customization.

Sydney and I were alone for the first time in a few weeks, and for some reason, I was anxious.

Countless times, I’d caught myself glancing at her while I worked.

She was focused on what she was doing, and a few times, I’d swear I heard her humming as she worked.

Every little thing about her piqued my interest, but I’d yet to make a move on her.

She was an employee, and she didn’t need me or anyone else drooling over her.

Even if her coveralls hugged her in all the right spots.

As she washed her hands, I turned off the back lights and made sure everything was turned off and secured for the night.

A simple rag setting on a powered-up piece of machinery could cause a fire and cost me everything I’d busted my ass for over the last decade.

After double-checking the shop, I walked to Sydney as she hung her coveralls up on a hook and unclipped her brown hair, allowing it to cascade down her back.

“You ready?” I asked, and she gave me a smile.

“I guess,” she replied and turned to walk out of the shop. I followed beside her as she asked, “Big plans for the evening?”

“Nope. I’m going to meet a few of my brothers for a drink at the Sin Den, then I’m going home to catch up on some sleep. Tomorrow is the last club ride of the Rally, and I have to be at the clubhouse early.” I punched the alarm code into the keypad and pulled the door closed behind us.

“Well, have fun,” she remarked casually as she walked across the parking lot to her older truck.

It looked like crap, but it purred like a kitten as she cranked the motor and backed out of the parking space.

I watched as she turned down the road, throwing her hand out the window before she disappeared from sight.

I sighed to myself and walked to my bike parked near the open gate surrounding the shop.

After closing the gate and locking the giant padlock securing it closed, I turned left and pulled down the road.

As I got to the first stoplight, I remembered I had cash to deposit into the bank, so I switched lanes and put my blinker on.

Once the light turned green, I made my turn and saw the bank’s sign up ahead.

Pulling into the lot, I noticed Sydney’s truck turning into the drive-through.

I opted to go inside, and from my place at the counter, I could see her sitting in the cab of her truck through the window as the cashier got her money and put it into the little tray to send out to her.

“Will there be anything else, Mr. Asher?” the teller asked, and I shook my head as I watched Sydney pull away from the window, and someone else pull up.

I left the bank and saw Sydney turn her truck away from town. On a whim, I turned and followed her. Instinct was pushing my need to find out about her, but for the life of me, I didn’t understand why.

Maybe it was the evasive answers when anyone questioned her. She had been vague about what brought her to Rapid City, and when she filled out her paperwork when I hired her, she used an address in Oregon as her home of record. I thought that was strange, but it wasn’t my business.

As I maintained a safe distance behind her, I wondered why she was heading to the bad part of town, if you could call any part of Rapid City bad. Our community had its issues, just like every other, but the thought of a woman being over here alone made me worry.

She turned the blinker on and, a moment later, turned into a shitty trailer park on the edge of town.

I didn’t know anything about the place, but from the condition of the trailer homes lining the single road going in and out, they weren’t in the best conditions.

Confused why she was here, and fearing the worst, I turned into the park and followed behind her to the very end of the single road.

There, I watched as she backed her truck alongside a tiny travel-trailer and got out.

She heard the loud pipes of my bike approaching, and she shook her head and crossed her arms as I pulled up and turned the motor off.

“Following me, Raven?” she asked with a ton of sass.

“No, but when I see someone who I know makes enough to live in a better place pulling into this shithole, I’m going to investigate,” I replied, lifting my leg off the bike and approaching her.

“What the hell gives you the right to call my home a shithole?” she asked with a hint of anger in her voice.

“I’m not calling your home a shithole. I said this place is a shithole, but that’s beside the point. Why are you living here?” I asked in a softer tone, but she was still defensive.

I guess I would be too, but she was a hard-headed woman who insisted on doing things for herself. I admired that about her, but it also frustrated the hell out of me.

Sydney pinched her lips tightly without answering, so I took a step closer, trying to relay calm as I asked again. “Sydney, why are you staying in this tiny travel-trailer? Do I not pay you enough, or is there another reason?”

“Why is it your business?” she asked, slightly deflating.

I needed to be open if I was going to get her to trust me enough to tell me why she was making enough money to live in a nice apartment or house, but stays here, surrounded by crappy trailers and loud assholes.

“It’s not, but I want to help,” I offered, seeing the anger begin to bleed out of her as she exhaled deeply.

“I owe some people back home, and until they’re paid off, I have to do what I need to survive.”

“Let me help,” I blurted out, and she shook her head.

“I can take care of this on my own, Raven. Please don’t get involved,” she requested.

“At least tell me who you owe,” I asked nicely, and once again, she shook her head. “Then at least let me help get you into a better place.”

She closed her eyes briefly, and when she looked back at me, I saw pain, fear, and uncertainty. Sydney shook her head and dropped her arms from across her chest, and in that instant, I saw her building walls as she responded.

“There’s always a catch to someone helping, so thank you, but no thank you. I can handle this on my own. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to go inside my shithole trailer and get some rest.”

Without another word, she spun on her heels, walked to the cinder block step, and opened the squeaky door. Giving me one last look, she went inside and closed the door behind her, leaving me wondering what just happened.

I needed to figure out who was taking money from her, causing her to survive on scraps, just to pay them back. Angry, and a little offended she wouldn’t let me help, I got back on my bike and cranked the loud motor.

Giving the trailer a glance, I saw a figure step up behind a curtain and look outside as I put the bike into gear and pulled away. I hated the thought of leaving her alone here, but she wasn’t going to let me help.

The entire drive out to the Sin Den, I thought about her words and the situation she was in.

I didn’t know a lot about Sydney, but what I did know intrigued me.

She was a hell of a mechanic, her fabrication skills were going to be amazing once she got a handle on welding, and honestly, she was sexy as hell.

I loved the little spitfire attitude she gave the guys around the shop, and something about her seemed familiar.

By the time I got to the clubhouse and pulled around back, my temper was flaring. I turned off the motor and climbed off my bike. As I approached the back door to the clubhouse, my phone dinged, and I stopped to pull it from my pocket.

Sydney: I’m not a charity case, so please don’t interfere with my life again.

Me: I won’t let anyone suffer if I can help, so stop being stubborn.

I waited for a response, and when none came, I got pissed. All I wanted to do was help her, the same as I would any of the people in my life, but she was obstinate.

“Fuck,” I said aloud and walked over to the side of the little building we’d built for employees and brothers to take a break.

The toolbox I brought over for the Rally was sitting on the table, and the more I thought about Sydney’s words and refusal of my help, the madder I got.

I don’t know why I picked up the pipe and began to smash it into the lid of the toolbox, but with each hit, I felt slightly better.

I was envisioning the asshole who made her struggle to repay some debt, and with each swing, I saw his faceless body being beaten to a bloody pulp.

I felt someone’s eyes on me, and I turned to see Jigsaw leaning against the side of the building, watching my unusual outburst. Tossing the pipe down, I stepped away and ran my hands through my hair as I tried to find a way to explain my anger without sounding like a weird stalker.

Turing back to him, I explained, “Sorry, man. I didn’t mean to cause a ruckus.” I paused then added, “She’s just so infuriating.”

“She?” Jigsaw asked.

“It’s too much to get into right now,” I said, then added, “I’ve got to get back to the shop. I have eight custom bikes to get finished and shipped out before the end of October.”

I went to walk away, and Jigsaw asked across the empty parking lot, “Is there anything I can do to help?”

I turned and looked at him. “Do you have a remedy for how to make a stubborn woman be reasonable?”

He laughed and replied, “I wish. If you figure it out, tell me the secret.”

I couldn’t help but chuckle as I got back on my bike and cranked the motor. Any plans I had for relaxing tonight went out the window the minute I saw where she was living, and now, I felt bad for blowing off my brothers. But I did have bikes to finish, and I wouldn’t be very good company tonight.

Glancing in the rear-view mirror, I saw Jigsaw watching me with a concerned look on his face. I was sure my outburst would be the gossip of the club, but right now, I needed to find out who Sydney owed and why, so I could get her out of the crappy trailer and into a better place.

Someplace like my bed.