“Oh, fuck,” I hear Snake say as he lays on the brakes and tries to go around.
Greasy is not so lucky. He lays his bike down on its side and impacts the driver side of the tractor’s wheels.
I sink my nails into Snake’s thigh, pinching hard, and he slows down, trying to shove my hand off. I go for his right thigh, knowing he’ll take his hand off the throttle, and he does, cursing at me.
And then we’re surrounded, and he’s forced over.
I scramble off the back and a moment later, Cody is there and I’m clutched tight to his chest. In his hand is a gun aimed at Snake.
I bury my head in his chest, and he kisses my crown. “Are you okay?”
I nod. “Is Tucker okay?”
“He’s safe, baby. Goddamn, woman, you aged me ten years.” He shoves me behind him, and then his father takes hold of me and pulls me away from the men.
There’s not a lot of traffic, but there is some, and it is not lost on Cole.
He pushes Cody’s gun toward the ground. “Not here.”
Snake is off his bike, and I realize Greasy is far down the road, his bike destroyed by the semi, his body sprawled on the pavement, motionless.
Snake is losing his mind, screaming like the devil has possessed him, and maybe he has. And then he calmly gets on his bike and laughs, then hits the throttle. He pulls out, looking over his shoulder at Cody, his focus not on the traffic, and a second later, a horn blares, and he too is hit by a vehicle. His bike and body go flying, and his body is run over by another car.
Jake covers my face, but I see the bloody mess where his head once was.
“Mount up, boys. Let’s get the fuck out of here,” Cole says, and Cody comes to me, hugging me. I climb on his bike, and the crew rides past the mess, then takes an emergency vehicle turnaround and heads the other way.
Traffic is backing up, and we take the off-ramp, heading west on Hwy 198 toward San Lucas. We ride for a mile before they pull over, and TJ calls Gigi and then passes the phone to me.
“Your son.”
I clutch it. “Tucker?”
“Mommy?”
“Yes, baby. It’s Mommy.”
“Are you coming back soon?”
“Yes, I’ll be there soon.” My throat closes. “Are you okay? Are you having fun?”
“Uh huh, everyone is playing with me, and Aunt Gigi let me have all the ice cream I wanted.”
I laugh, tears in my eyes. “Is that so?”
“Yep.”
“I love you, Tucker.”
“I love you, too, Mommy. Can I go now? We’re playing tag.”
“Sure, sweetie.” A second later, Gigi is on the phone. “Are you okay? You’re safe?”
“Yes. I’m okay.”
“He didn’t hurt you?”
“No.”
