“Okay. I love you too. Please be careful and keep calling me with updates.”
“No doubt. Hang in there, this will all be over soon.”
I fumbled with my phone, nearly dropping it. I managed to not let it fall. I rang Palo and it went to voicemail.
Ayy, you’ve called Palo I’m not available right now but leave your name and number clearly and I’ll hit you back.
TWENTY-THREE
DIEGO
The warehouse was a hive of activity. Guns were being locked and loaded. Click. Click. I squinted as I checked the ammo rounds in my Smith and Wesson. Showtime. Ryder had a silencer on the table, and he was twisting on the extension with a cigarette hanging out of his mouth. His dark eyes held no fear, only rock-hard resolve. Smoke hung over the table like the fog of death. Moves threw me a bulletproof vest. I put it on over the top of my black T-shirt. Vlad was already strapped and cracking his neck back and forth. Yoda had the garbage bag on the table with stacks of fake paper that he was concentrating on putting in. Stack by stack. Rick was testing out the walkie-talkies.
Testing, one, two, three, four… He handed one to Ryder to test. Rick walked to the other end of the warehouse. Ryder put down his silencer and spoke to him by pressing the side of the radio.
“Can you hear me?”
“Yup, loud and clear.” Ryder’s voice came through the other end of the radio.
Vlad found the on button for the radio and turned it on. Bon Jovi streamed through the warehouse and Ryder and Yoda bobbed their heads to the beat. This was where the blood in my veins turned to ice. When I went to war, my mentality changed to numb out the situation I was facing.
“Listen up. Here’s what’s going to happen,” Ryder said as he stroked his lion’s beard. “I’m heading over to Merced now. Vlad and Moves are going to flank me. It’s do or die.”
I held my hand up. “Ryder, man, don’t do this! You can’t just roll up to their chapter talking crazy. I’m telling you. Misty told me the truth. Palo doesn’t have nothing to do with this. You gotta trust me. She wouldn’t put her brother in danger like that.”
Ryder balked. “Fucking prove it!” He slammed his wiry hand flat on the table, making it shake.
Yoda, who had been silent most of the time, spoke up. “He’s got a point, Ryder. Why don’t you let me go in there? I'm more unassuming. Chill out. You can wait.”
“If you think for one minute I’m just going to let you walk up in there unassisted, you’re kidding yourself.” Ryder eyeballed Yoda.
Yoda laughed at him. “Ah, Padre would be proud of you. Don’t let your pride get in the way. If Palo isn’t involved, he might be a useful ally. So let’s put this to vote here among men. All those in favor of me walking in, put your hand up.” Ryder glared at everyone in the warehouse, but all hands went flying up. Nobody wanted to die.
Ryder blew out cigarette smoke from his nose. “Okay, okay. Dammit.”
“No time to waste. We need to know the truth. Let’s ride out.” Yoda signaled, and the chairs scraped as the crew got up from the table, ready for whatever. Ryder came over to me and stood close enough to my ear. “Your girl better be telling the truth.”
“Ryder, back up from me. What I told you, I told you. She’s legit,” I lashed out at him. I felt my fists bunch up involuntarily and my jaw lock into place.
“Ooooh, okay then. You really like this one. I see.” Ryder smoothed his beard out and nodded. He looked me in the eye. “You better check where your loyalties lie.”
He dropped his cigarette to the ground and stamped it out with his scruffy black biker boots. He spat to the side. Heat flashed through my body and Ryder’s eyes dared me to act on the emotional impulse running through me. I moved past him out to the open. All the others were on their bikes, mounted and ready to ride out. Yoda signaled to follow him as the collective engine noise of the Outlaws revved, sounding like a small circus. We weaved in a single file right into the war zone. Misty’s cat eyes flashed in my mind’s eye. I love you. I let the Cali air singe my lungs. Today wasn’t the day to die. We arrived, rolling eight deep, our engines idling outside the chapter house. A flag representing Las Balas swung in the wind. The chapter house was a small cry from our warehouse. A small, rinky-dink timber shed was more like it. Two beefy guys with full sleeves of tattoos and bald heads guarded the entry point. Both of them were packing heat. My stomach was tight. I wanted this shit to end. Yoda took his helmet off and looked at the boys.
“Stay right here. Don’t move. Let me deal with them.”
I flinched. Yoda was about to walk into the trap of death and I had the urge to run in with him. But instead, we waited.
Yoda got smaller and smaller as he approached the chapter house. Las Balas versus Outlaw Souls.
TWENTY-FOUR
MISTY
I ran out of the cafeteria like the wind. I heard Celine and Shauna calling me, but I kept moving to my car. It felt like I was being drawn to Diego like a magnet. I had to get in touch with Palo. If I couldn’t reach him by phone, I would go to the chapter house myself. I reached the car, my lungs burning from running so hard. My phone buzzed.
“Palo. Palo!” The urgency in my voice nearly stopped me from getting the words out.
“What the hell is going on? Talk to me!” He reacted from my voice.
