Ember

 

This night was an honest disaster.

 

I loved playing with fire, but this was simply too much. Out of Biker Boy’s hands, I was trying desperately to put out these flames. These fuckers were using my equipment to set all of this on fire, and what was worse, it was getting out of hand! They were putting lives at risk!

 

Sweat dripped down my skin in the growing heat of the flames as I tried to put the fires out. There was shouting all around and screams—people running around trying to avoid the growing, dangerous rage of the fire all around them.

 

“Ember!”

 

That biker was calling my name behind me. I ignored him; didn’t he see I was trying to help? This was his biker friends’ fault anyway. What the hell had they been trying to do? What were they thinking? What had they been trying to do?!

 

“Ember!”

 

“Fuck off—!”

 

I wheeled around to give Biker Boy a piece of my mind. Instead, I was barreled into, knocked to the ground. I saw stars when my head hit the hard ground, and blinked a few times to get my sight back in order before the rage boiled up in me.

 

“What the fuck—”

 

There was a thundering crash, and my eyes widened as a huge tree, on fire, came crashing down. Right where I had been standing.

 

My heart thudded so hard I felt the pulse thundering in my head.

 

“I-I—”

 

“Come. On!”

 

Biker Boy pulled me up and tugged me. All I could do was follow his lead, still in shock that that tree had almost fallen on me.

 

“I could have died.”

 

“Yeah, well, you didn’t, so let’s keep it that way, all right? You’re coming with me. You don’t need to stay around for this shit show.”

 

I wasn’t going to argue with him. I didn’t want anything to do with this. The one consolation was that Wanda and the girls weren’t here tonight—I knew at least they were safe.

 

Biker Boy practically dragged me from the hub of the festival. We pushed through the people that worked there and the rich fuckers that had put this festival together, all trying to flee as well. A huge line of bikes came into view and he took me to his.

 

“Get on,” he barked.

 

This was insane, but I didn’t have it in me to even think about how insane it was at the moment. I slid onto the bike, right behind Biker Boy. Without thinking I wrapped around him, because that seemed like the safe thing to do. He revved up the engine and more and more of his friends started milling out from the chaos that had been caused, joining him in sliding on their bikes. They were all loudly drunk and sloppy.

 

“Are—can they drive?” I asked nervously. Out of the fire, into the frying pan, right? Riding around with a bunch of crazy ass bikers that had just committed the biggest case of arson that I had ever seen in my entire life.

 

“They’ll be fine. Hold on tight.”

 

He didn’t have to tell me twice, and as we peeled away, my arms wrapped around him tighter. The thrill of being on the back of a bike was dampened by the fact that I had no helmet, no proper protection, no nothing. There was nothing between my fragile, exposed body and the road.

 

As we hit the highway, Biker Boy was joined by the rest of his people. They weaved in and out of formation, overzealous and loud. One of them had music playing from somewhere; loud rock music echoed out into the night air.

 

I had no idea what was going on. The only thing that kept me from freaking out was the fact that, while all these other crazy ass bikers were out of their damn minds, the one that I had been saddled with at least had some composure. He kept up with the crowd, but he drove straight, steady—almost like he was cautious of my exposed and vulnerable presence at his back.

 

I tucked my face between his shoulder blades. That one comfort didn’t stop my belly from flopping nervously.

 

For the first time in a long time, I wished that I was home.

 

“Where are we going?” I asked him.

 

“What?” He had to shout over the roar of the bikes.

 

I sucked in a breath and yelled at him a little louder.

 

“I said: where are we going? Where are you taking me?”

 

He turned his head.

 

“Back to the clubhouse. We’ll regroup there. You’ll be safe.”

 

I didn’t know how true that was. These were the same people that had just set an entire field and surrounding forest on fire. But ... He sounded like he was telling me the truth, and he had saved me, hadn’t he? But shit, I didn’t even know his name.

 

“Hey—what’s your name?” I called out to him.

 

“It’s Wheeler,” he shouted back.

 

Wheeler ...

 

Once more I wrapped myself tight about him and pressed my face between his shoulder blades. I was lost at the moment; this was the only place that felt like it had any stability as Wheeler’s companions hooted and hollered loudly as we sped along the highway. Tires squeaked and squalled, and there were several times where I was certain that someone was going to crash.

 

These people were fucking crazy.

 

What had I gotten myself into?

 

Wheeler

 

Ember tucked herself in close behind me, and it would have been nice, having the press of such a full-figured, beautiful woman behind me. If it weren’t for the circumstances, I could have said that her tight embrace was from want. She trembled, though, and I knew it was more out of fear than it was out of want.

 

I watched my brothers as we rode fast along the highway. There was a time where I would have reveled at the debauchery, but now ... It was a shameful, embarrassing, drunken display, lacking a regard for the people around them. I hadn’t thought that things would have gone so badly. Cause a little scene, send a little message to the rich shits from Silicon Valley. This was too much.

 

None of them seemed to care as they weaved dangerously in and out of each other and through the scarce oncoming traffic. There were quite a few moments where a few of the other Sons almost hit the oncoming traffic—or each other. It was something that didn’t seem to concern them as they laughed and yelled jovially about it. As if it were all a game.

 

“Quit fucking off!” I shouted over the rumble of bike engines and drunken shouting.

 

“Oh, come on, Wheeler, liven up; have some fun!”

 

“I’ll have some fun when you shits aren’t trying to kill each other!”

 

They laughed in response, but luckily, they tightened up formation after that. I wasn’t about to deal with even more bullshit just because they didn’t know how to behave on the road. They would pretend to grump and gripe about me being a killjoy, but they would still listen to me, if only for the fact that I could and would knock the shit out of them when we got back to the clubhouse.

 

It was an hour or so before we got back to base. We pulled into the gravel drive and there were a few Sons that had already returned. Among the bikes that I saw, Leech’s was there. He must have filed out faster than the others had. I hated that little fucker, and the only reason he stuck around and kept as much power as he did was because he was the boss man’s son. Fucking typical.

 

I cut the engine to the bike and looked back at Ember as the boys started filing into the club. They were still loud as all shit, but I wasn’t concerned with that now that we were back home, off the road. I looked back at her.

 

“Can you walk?”

 

“I can walk just fine.”

 

She got off the bike on shaking legs. Her outfit wasn’t ideal for riding, in all honesty. I shook my head and took her hand.

 

“Come on.”

 

“You’re getting very comfortable with leading me around places, aren’t you.”

 

“Considering I’m doing you a favor ...”

 

She didn’t fight me though, and I figured that had to do with the fact that she was still in a slight state of shellshock. It made it easy to pull her through the clubhouse without her trying to fight and argue with me over it. The boys were still rowdy as hell, and a few of them made wolf whistles and catcalls at me and Ember.

 

“Nice piece you got there, Wheeler!”

 

“Save a slice for us!”

 

“Tell us how sweet she is!”

 

I ignored them. Ember? Not so much. Not like I could blame the girl for that one.

 

“Nice crowd you have here,” Ember muttered.

 

“They’ve been better.”

 

I led her to my room. I was one of the few who had the privilege of staying here permanently. My room was set away from all the others, down the same hall that the boss’ room was. I heard a ruckus from inside.

 

“... you wouldn’t believe the looks on those rich boys’ faces!”

 

I scoffed. It was Leech. Of course.

 

“Fucking prick. Whatever.” I would deal with that after getting Ember settled and in her place in my room. I’d have to come up with a good reason for that when everything settled down … Ugh.

 

I nudged Ember into my room, ignoring the way she tripped a little over her feet at my insistence. I flicked a light on for her benefit. It was simple and clean inside. A bed, dresser, that kind of basic shit. It was a living space without a lot of personal touches, and that was fine with me.

 

“I need you to stay here until I get a few things sorted out.”

 

She looked at me incredulously.

 

“Just ... sit and stay here? Like a good little girl? I don’t even know you.”

 

I rolled my eyes. Okay, so much for her easily going along with what I wanted her to do ...

 

“For now, yes. Unless you want a bunch of drunk, horndog bikers who are ready to party trying to paw at you without me there to put a boot in their face?”

 

She sobered a little at that, but the lingering grimace on her face told me that she didn’t like the idea either way.

 

“Fine.”

 

“Bathroom’s over there,” I said, pointing. “You’re welcome to use it and change into something else.”

 

“You have women’s clothes in here?”

 

“No, but I have T-shirts and sweats, if it’ll make you a little warmer and more comfortable.”

 

“What a gentleman.”

 

I didn’t even argue with her then. After all, what she knew of me was that I had tried to get into her pants and that I had, now, stepped in twice against shit happening to her. I shrugged, and turned.

 

“Do what you want. I’ll be back.”