Kane/Rome
Tara shuts her eyes and I know she is sleeping but I wish she had stayed awake just a little bit longer so I could tell if she is really going to be alright. I know what the doctor told us but she looks bad. Her eyes are swollen and red. I see where they shaved part of her hair and I look closer and see part of a staple. I guess they had to staple the lacerations in her head. That must hurt like a bitch. She has a bruise on her upper chest and then on her throat. Liam must have held Tara while he choked her. How could no one have seen this or stopped it? If I had seen any man attacking any woman in front of a diner I would have stepped in. How could no one have seen it? The question keeps running through my head.
“Bud, are you staying? I need to step out to talk to Devil but I will be back. I want to go while Tara is sleeping.” I take another step towards Tara’s bed to look at her. I don’t want to leave her, something tells me to stay but I need to inform Devil of what she said.
“I’ll be here until Mildred gets back. I’ll drive her car home. She went to get her a small bag together and let her husband know she was coming back to stay the night with Tara. I need to contact the police department in the morning to find out when I can open the diner back up. I am hoping they get Tara in a room and I can open back up by tomorrow afternoon. I just don’t know how long these damn things take.” Bud is worried for more than Tara. He has a livelihood he needs to get back open. “I’m letting Mildred off to stay with Tara until she is settled in a room and then we’ll rotate checking in on her until she can come home. We’ll take care of our girl.” Bud sounds more like a dad than an employer. “My wife is not going to be too pleased with me but I’ll deal with her.” Bud looks thoughtful.
“Does your wife have a problem with Tara?” I can’t imagine anyone not liking Tara.
“Betty doesn’t dislike Tara but she doesn’t like Tara’s mom, Lena. They went to school together and never got along. Betty just doesn’t like anything or anyone that interferes with money coming her way.” I am shocked Bud would say a thing like this about his wife. He doesn’t seem the type. “Get that look off your face. Nothing wrong with Betty. She’s just high maintenance and maintenance takes money. I always wanted my woman home raising my children so she has no career and our youngest is in high school now and never around. The diner is not something Betty is interested in. Be careful what you ask for out of life sometimes you get it and a woman with time on her hands is dangerous.” Bud laughs as he says it. I nod my head at him.
“I’ll take your word on that. I don’t think any of that is in the cards for me.” I tell the man.
“Everyone is not blind, Rome. You and Tara can play that old cat and mouse game all you want but everyone sees the way the two of you are dancing around each other. Tara has had her mind set on getting an education so she can support herself so she doesn’t turn out like Lena and Sheila. I know she isn’t some innocent girl but the girl doesn’t have experience with men. Then there is you, Rome. I haven’t figured your story out yet but I see the way that you look at Tara. It’s a look of a man that is interested but doesn’t know if he can trust the woman. You two just need the right push. Maybe this is it, only time will tell.” Bud is looking at Tara as he says it but then he looks up at me.
“I just don’t want to see her hurt.” I tell Bud.
“Like I said, you keep telling yourself that.” I turn to walk out. “Watch over her when I can’t be here. Liam might kill her next time.”
“I won’t be far away.” I leave to talk to Devil. I walk out the door and down the corridor to the hall that will take me back to the emergency waiting area. I hear Crockett and Cowboy before I even get there. I walk up to them.
“What’s going on?” I ask them both.
“Tito is signing himself out. He’s anxious to get back to the clubhouse to get a look at that memory card. Oz came and picked it up and our prospect has a lot to answer for.” Cowboy says. Devil walks up beside us.
“Keep your voices down. We’ll discuss this back at the clubhouse. I’m calling church as soon as Tito has his paperwork. We need to take a vote on how to proceed. Rome, what did Tara have to say?” I look around and there are only brothers in here but I keep my voice low.
“By the time I got back to see Tara she was feeling no pain from the drugs. She was choked, has a concussion, and has some staples in the back of her head but they think that is the worst of it. She wasn’t making much sense but she said Liam was coming after you, me, and the Feral Steel. She’s back out now. I think it would be better to talk to her tomorrow when her head is clear. Tara said he is not working alone and that Lena and Sheila had something to do with it. She thought she had to warn us.” Devil is taking it all in. “What about Tito?”
“He didn’t know much more. Oz and Hacksaw finished with the fire department. Hacksaw is with Thrasher and they are keeping an eye on all our properties. Oz is back at the clubhouse looking at that camera card. The camera the guy had this in was a cheap one and he had it sitting in the wrong position and distance to get a good look but Oz thinks he can work on the images to make them clearer. Tito is determined to get out of here. They take much longer and he is going to walk. I am having Creole come over with a prospect to keep an eye on Tara until we vote on what to do. You need to start thinking about that, Rome.”
I don’t know what Devil is talking about but then I remember the talk that we had earlier when Hacksaw said that Tara was not club. I don’t know what he wants from me. “Rome, you will be expected at church.” I nod my head at him. I don’t know what he wants me to say about the rest. I go over and take a seat. My hip is bothering me. It has been one long ass day. I see Bud come running up the hall. I am on my feet. Did something happen to Tara? Bud doesn’t come over to me. He stops by Devil and I can hear him from where I am. I hear phones going off, including mine.
“You need to do something! This band of thugs are taking out our businesses!” Devil’s phone is still ringing. He looks at it and starts to answer it. “There’s no need to answer it. Your people should be informing you that my diner just blew up. Someone blew my diner up and it took out the buildings on each side of mine. You must help us. You have the men to do it.” Devil doesn’t say anything at first.
“We will investigate what happened. We can’t go off half-cocked and go all vigilante. We need to make sure who is doing it first.” Devil is too calm.
“The hard-working, honest business people are going to have nothing left by the time you help. Is that it? Are you working with these damn punks? The Feral Steel MC is the ones who have been buying up all the businesses around town? Is that your angle? Well, bring it on, asshole. My diner may be gone but I will not sell my property to you damn vultures making a damn buck off our losses.” Bud needs to calm down. He doesn’t realize he has every Feral Steel’s eyes on him.
“Calm down, old man. You’re going to have a damn coronary.” Devil tells him. I approach and grab Bud’s arm.
“Use your head, Bud. This is what Liam wants us to be doing, arguing between us. We bought properties in the thick of town so it would bring customers in, we are not your enemy.” I calmly tell him. Bud is upset, as he should be, but at the wrong people.
“Time will tell, won’t it?” Bud says. “Are you staying with Tara? I need to go and see the damage and try to contact insurance people at this hour of the night. Mildred is on the way here, should be here any time.”
“Someone will be with her shortly. Go. Is Tara still sleeping?” Bud nods his head.
“Yeah, she is.” Bud looks like he doesn’t want to leave. “Don’t let anything happen to that girl. She just lost everything she owns along with getting the hell beat out of her today. Tara doesn’t deserve this shit. Neither do any of the rest of us but it is ours to deal with.” Bud goes out the emergency room sliding doors to the parking lot he must have parked in when they brought Tara in today. Bud looks defeated. I know that look because I see it every day when I look in the mirror when I wake up from my nightmares. We can’t let this happen to these people.
“I know, Rome, but there’s too many security cameras around here to be stating our intentions. I may not like what Bud said about us but it will be what all the good people of our town will be saying. Before we cleaned up the Feral Steel we were biker scum and now they either want us to go vigilante to help them or we must be part of the bastards doing this shit. We can’t win either way. We need to sit down and have a club vote.” I know Devil is right. We’ve fought too hard to clean this club up but we are still Feral Steel and no one fucks with us. Tito walks up to us.
“Let’s blow this joint. They keep fucking around and I am not waiting any longer.” Devil nods his agreement.
“Sir, you need to wait until your paperwork is finished and you get your dismissal instructions.” All the Feral Steel are leaving to get on their bikes. I see Rix pull up in a cage by our bikes. The last thing I hear is the nurse swearing. I see Cricket and Slick ride in on their bikes right behind the cage. Devil stops beside Slick.
“Slick, you need to go in the room with Tara Blount until the other waitress gets here. Then let her know you will be in the waiting room if you are needed. Keep your eyes open until you hear from me. What was the other waitress’ name, Rome?” Devil ask me.
“Mildred.” I tell him.
“You got that, Slick?” Slick nods.
“Got it.” Slick replies. We mount our bikes and get out of there. I try to clear my head on the ride but the ride isn’t long enough.