THE WEEK WAS halfway over and Kyle’s training class went better than expected. His students listened and watched diligently, following his every move. Kyle was at peace in the ring; it was where he belonged. I couldn’t imagine him doing anything else in life. Tyler’s dad, Steven, stopped by a couple of times but since Kyle and I had everything handled he didn’t see the need to stay.
“Any prank calls today?” Kyle asked, sweat dripping down his face.
“Not yet. Hopefully, the wanker’s done with me.”
He grabbed a towel and wiped off his face. “He better not try coming in here. He won’t be able to walk out.”
“And he won’t be able to reproduce,” I said, holding up the letter opener.
He cringed. “Just keep that thing away from me.” It was almost time to close and there were only a couple of people left in the gym. Kyle noticed me looking at the clock and grinned. “You in a hurry to get out of here?”
“Actually I am. I’m getting hungry.”
“As soon as everyone leaves, we’ll get something to eat. Do you want to stay at my place again?”
“Sure deal. We just need to stop by my house so I can get some clean clothes. I hadn’t planned on basically living with you this week.”
He winked. “It’s been nice though. I can’t believe how easy it’s been to add you to my life. It’s like you’ve always belonged with me.”
If he kept talking like that, we wouldn’t make it to dinner.
The night was comfortable, the perfect weather for a late night motorcycle ride. I held on tight as we cruised down side streets, leading away from the big city. When we came to a stop, I didn’t realize trouble had followed us until I heard the roar of an engine right on our tail.
“What the fuck?” Kyle shouted. His words were muffled, but he was pissed. I looked over my shoulder, but I couldn’t see the driver’s face. The only thing I could see were the white sunglasses covering his eyes and the hood over his head. The guy revved his engine and tapped his front bumper to Kyle’s back wheel. We sailed forward a few feet and I shrieked. Kyle tensed and started to get off his bike, but I didn’t want an altercation. Not with us being alone on a deserted street.
I grabbed his arm as hard as I could. “Kyle, please, let’s just go,” I yelled desperately. I was scared of what would happen if there were more than one person in the car. Kyle got back into position and I held onto him for dear life. The guy revved his engine and the second I heard his tires squeal, I knew he was coming for us.
“Hold on tight,” Kyle shouted above the noise.
I squeezed him hard and he took off, the front wheel lifting off the ground. Tears streamed down my cheeks. I didn’t want to look back, but I could see the car right on our tail. Kyle squeezed my hand achingly tight and pressed it into his body. I took it as a warning and held on as hard as I could. Closing my eyes, I waited for whatever was going to happen.
We tilted to the side as he made a very fast, sharp turn. I thought we were about to wipe out but Kyle put his foot down as a pivot. The back of the bike kicked out and he straightened us out. We were upright again, and going in the opposite direction on the road. Tires screeched and when I opened my eyes, I looked back to see the car turning around, but also losing distance in the process.
We zipped down the road, back to the city. My whole body shook with fear. Instead of going home, we ended up at the police station. The second Kyle brought his bike to a stop, he ripped off his helmet and helped me down. My hands shook so bad, he had to take my helmet off for me, then clutched me tight in his arms.
“We’re safe now.”
“No,” I cried. “We could’ve been killed.”
His muscles tensed. “I know. If you weren’t with me I would’ve dragged that fucker out of his car and beat the shit out of him.”
He probably would’ve done more than that. “I know you’ve pissed people off, but I didn’t think they’d go as far as to try and kill you.”
“Or you,” he added.
Then the reality set in. “Oh my God. What could you have possibly done to someone where they’d do this?”
“You’d be surprised. Let’s talk to the police and see what they can do. Whoever it is, they fucked up big time bringing you into it.”
Taking my hand, he started for the door, but I stopped him. He tried to play it off, but I could see the rage in his eyes; it scared me. “Promise me, whatever happens you won’t do anything stupid. I don’t want you going after them on your own.”
His jaw clenched and he sighed. “I’m sorry, love, but I can’t. If I find out who did it, nothing’s going to stop me from fucking them up.”