Hot on her heels, Carlita dropped to her knees. “Are you okay?”
“Got the wind knocked out of me.” Elvira leaned forward, propping up on one elbow. “The wheelie didn’t work out as planned.”
“Loose gravel,” Luigi said. “You never want to do a wheelie on loose gravel.”
“Why didn’t you warn me?” Elvira, with a hand up from her sister, slowly stood.
“Maybe because I didn’t know you were going to pull a dumb stunt like a wheelie, especially on a chopper.”
Wide-eyed panic replaced her grimace of pain. “The chopper. Did I scratch it?”
Luigi lifted it upright. “Looks okay to me.”
“Thank goodness. The rental shop charges an arm and a leg for damage.”
“You should save the chopper stunts until you have your own motorcycle,” Mercedes said.
“Believe me, I learned my lesson and won’t try it again.” Elvira swiped at her backside. “While we’re here, has anyone noticed the wings and heart tattoo on any of the women?”
“Nope, but I have an idea.” Carlita shared her plan.
“I’ll do it,” Mercedes volunteered. “How far are we from Breakers Biker Bar?”
“Not far.” Dernice tapped her sister’s shoulder. “No more showing off.”
“You won’t see me doing anymore wheelies. That chopper is a death trap.”
“Which is why you should know your limitations.”
Elvira cut her off. “Save the lecture.”
Mercedes made a timeout with her hands. “You two can snip and snipe at each other later. For now, we need to focus on figuring out who has a tattoo. My money is on Reyna. She fits the bill.”
“Mine too,” Carlita said. “The others are probably wondering what happened to us.”
Elvira, at a much slower cruising speed, took the lead. Thankfully, the bar was only a few blocks away. They arrived to find that the others had gone inside and were seated at a long table in the center of the bar.
A server with purple hair, a nose ring, and a neck full of tattoos hurried over and placed menus in front of them. “Hey, Luigi, Dernice.”
“Hey, Ellie.” Dernice greeted her. “How’s it going?”
“I kicked my old man out again.”
“I’m sorry to hear that.”
“It’s all good. Got a new roommate.” Ellie shared a few more tidbits, personal information Carlita would never in a million years share with others. “What can I get you?”
“I’ll have the triple chocolate milkshake,” Mercedes said. “Along with a BLT and French fries.”
“Gotcha.” Ellie winked. “A downright healthy meal, if I ever heard of one.”
She took the rest of the orders and sauntered off.
Carlita waited until she was gone. “To think I thoughtIhad problems.”
“Ellie is a sweet soul, but to be honest, she makes some poor decisions.” Dernice shot her sister a sly side glance. “Not unlike someone else I know.”
“I make good decisions. Starting my own businesses, investing in real estate.”
