Minus

I felt the driver’s door slam and the car change directions before hauling ass down the road. Wherever we were headed, we were headed there in a hurry. I was foggy as hell from the injection and my perception of time was “fluid” to say the least. Still, it didn’t feel like I’d been in the trunk for very long, and I hoped that meant that Cricket had hidden or gotten away. Until I knew she was okay, I didn’t give a shit about the ledger, or the club for that matter. It could all burn, along with this sick fucker for all I cared.

I heard sirens in the distance and felt a sliver of hope.

Maybe Cricket called the cops before he got to her.

I felt the car take a sharp right turn off the road and stop momentarily as what sounded like a convoy of emergency service vehicles sped past us. After a minute or so, he slowly pulled back onto the main road, and continued to drive for another twenty or thirty minutes, before once again exiting the main road. After a series of twists and turns we slowed to a stop and he parked. I heard his footsteps in the gravel moving away from the direction of the car, and then return after a few minutes.

“I’m gonna open up this trunk,” my kidnapper called out. “If you can move, and try anything funny, I’ll make you pay,” he said, before popping the trunk. Unfortunately for me, he had little to worry about. I could barely move, let alone get my hands around his neck.

“I found a place where we can be alone, but you’re gonna have to walk.” He was covered in sweat and didn’t look happy.

He threw my bound legs over the bumper, grabbed me by the shoulders, and sat me up in the trunk. “I’m gonna cut the ties on your feet, so you can walk, and I swear if you try to run, I’ll cut your Achilles tendons next. You understand?”

I nodded as best I could, and he pulled me to my feet. He supported most of my weight as he walked towards a small, rustic cabin. From what I could ascertain, we were somewhere in the woods to the northeast of the Double H, which was littered with remote hunting lodges that sat empty for most of the year. If this guy was looking for a private place to fuck me up, he likely couldn’t have found a better spot.

“You’re a big fucker,” he grunted as we finally reached the front door of the cabin. He propped me up against the wall and delivered a heavy boot to the door’s lock which failed immediately upon impact. He walked me into the cabin and sat me down on what appeared to be the only piece of furniture in the place.

“Home, sweet home,” he said, producing more zip ties from his pocket. “Now, let’s get you tucked in and I’ll tell you a bedtime story.” He bound my ankles to the chair’s legs and each of my wrists to its arms, before yanking the duct tape covering my mouth. Hair and skin were ripped from my face, and I winced involuntarily from the stinging pain.

“Oh, good. You’re waking up. This is even better,” he said excitedly. Now, you can tell me a story. My favorite is the one about Cutter’s magic book. You know that one, don’t you?”

“Can’t sssay I do,” I said, still slurring a bit.

“Awe, come on Minus, you know it. It’s the one where the dumbass hero biker tells the scary guy with the big knife where Cutter’s book is,” he said, pulling a giant Bowie knife from a sheath on his belt. It was exactly the same as the one Cutter used on Lorro, from its size to the style of the handle.

“You and your b... boyfriend Viiiper get those as a mmmatching set or something?”

“You have a good eye for knives Minus,” he said, taking a theatrical step backward. “I’m impressed, I really am. Viper’s knife is, in fact, an exact match to mine. It was a gift from me to him. From teacher, to student,” he smiled proudly.

“Yoga?” I asked. “You teachin’ him how to sssuck his own dick?”

He dropped his smile.

“Getting back to story time. Let’s recap; the one I want to hear involves the whereabouts of a book, and a blonde.”

A blonde? He doesn’t know where Cricket is. That means she’s alive, and if that’s the case, this prick has got no leverage on me. Bring it on.

“She give you the slip?” I asked, starting to feel my strength return, and my speech become easier.

“Only momentarily, because you’re gonna tell me where she’s gonna be next; her and the book.”

“Book?” I asked, continuing to play dumb.

“I’m betting she had it with her in that panic room. Is that right Minus?”

Fuck. He knows about the panic room. What the hell went down in the house?

“I figure with the cops on the way, she’s gonna want to get that book to a second location before they find it, right? So where’s she gonna take it?”

“I’m embarrassed to say,” I said sheepishly. “We still hadn’t decided if we were gonna meet up at your mom’s place, or your sister’s.”

He grabbed my hair and snapped my head back, coming within inches of my face.

“You’re gonna run out of jokes soon enough. The laughs are gonna dry up quickly around here unless you tell me where I can find Cutter’s book.”

“Sorry, still doesn’t ring a bell.” I smiled.

I saw something catch his attention from inside the kitchen. He sheathed his knife, walked away, and then returned with a dusty phonebook.

“Maybe this will help ring a few bells.” He grinned, before blowing the layer of dust into my face.

* * *

Cricket

Once the creep was gone, I opened the door and began dragging Duke and Pearl back out to the bedroom. If the police were on the way, the last thing I needed was for them to find me with two old people knocked out in a safe room, next to an actual safe, which contained super top-secret biker club information. In fact, the less the authorities knew about the nature of this break in, or my involvement in it, the better. The ledger would remain secure so long as the cops didn’t know about the safe. I didn’t know the safe’s combination, so it’s not like I could have removed it anyway.

I went to close the panic room door, and something caught my eye through the glass door of the gun case. I opened the case, removed one of the rifles and slung it over my shoulder. I also found some ammunition and filled my short pockets. I exited the room and closed the hidden door. Once again, concealing its location from the naked eye. I felt horrible about leaving Duke and Pearl laying there on the floor, but I knew that help was on the way. I also knew that before anything else, I needed to find Minus.

I quickly made my way downstairs and back to Minus’s room. There was still no sign of him, and his phone was still on his nightstand. There’s no way he would have left without his phone and his gun. That sicko must have drugged him and had him in the car when he drove off.

The tracker.

I picked up Minus’ phone and punched in his security code. He’d used the same four-digit code for everything for as long as I’d known him 1903: the year Harley Davidson was founded. I clicked on the Gunnach Technologies Tracker app, and bingo; the GPS signal was pinging away. They were currently heading North on Highway 95. I found my pants and quickly dressed. I put Minus’s pistol in my pocket, grabbed the keys and the rifle, and ran to the barn where minus had parked our rental car. I started it, turned on the running lights, and pulled out of the barn. I drove onto an access road that lead all the way from the trailhead to the main highway. Minus had showed it to me on our ride. Via this route, I was pretty sure I could find my way to Minus’ signal without running into the cops, who were now pulling into the drive. Once I was out of their line of sight, I turned on the headlights and floored it.

I had no idea what I was going to do if I caught up with this psycho or if I had the ability to stop him, but I prayed for a chance to try.

* * *

Minus

“Let’s try this thing out. Testing... 1... 2... 3,” my rent-a-torturer said, speaking into the phonebook as if it were a microphone, while moving behind me. “Where is Cutter’s book?”

“Try looking up your ass,” was clearly not the answer he was looking for.

Whack.

The crushing blow of the phonebook made the back of my head feel like it was on fire and my ears rang at maddening levels.

“That got his attentionm folks!” he said, addressing an invisible audience. “Now, let’s see if our contestant wants to try again. Where will I find the girl and the book?” He raised my chin and got right up in my face. “I strongly advise you to think hard about your answer because the points double in this round.”

“Then... go fuck yourself twice.”

Whack. Whack.

He delivered two shots to the right side of my head. This was the moment I knew I’d never make it out of this room alive.

“Okay, anything... just stop,” I said, causing him to pause and lean in. “Stop... stop fucking around and start the interrogation already.”

Whack.

* * *

Cricket

According to the GPS tracker, and the rental car’s navigation system, I was at the spot where the creep’s car had stopped. I killed the headlights lights and coasted to a roadside clearing about fifty yards from where the signal was coming from. I grabbed the rifle from the car, and slowly made my way to a trail which led to a dilapidated old shack.

Nothing creepy about this place at all.

I continued, thankful for the clear night sky and full moon. At least I wasn’t stumbling around in complete darkness. As I got closer, I could hear voices coming from inside the dwelling. I recognized one as the creep’s right away. I couldn’t make out what he was saying but could hear his sing-songy taunts.

I moved in closer, staying low and out of sight, to a window. I slowly peeked in and could see Minus tied to a chair. His head was swollen, and blood was pouring from his mouth, soaking his beard. My hand covered my mouth to hold back a gasp. My eyes flooded with tears and my jaw ached from fighting the urge to break down in sobs. I had to stop this animal before I was too late; that is, if I wasn’t already.

I composed myself as I crouched down and made my way to the front of the house where I found the splinters of the front door littering the porch. This was obviously not a planned-out location for the creep, so at least I had that going for me. This was unfamiliar territory to him, he was currently distracted, and I had the element of surprise. On the other hand, this guy was a professional killer and I was a girl with a marketing degree and a bolt-action tranquilizer rifle. It may not have been the wisest choice of all the guns I could have taken from Duke’s cabinet, but I’d never killed anybody, and I didn’t want to start today, if I could avoid it. I still had Minus’s pistol, just in case. Even though my brother’s club was clean, pretty much all the members carried guns. I grew up around them and knew how to defend myself, and was plenty handy with both handguns and rifles

I stepped into the house’s tiny entryway, crouched down below a low wall that ran all the way to the living room. The creep’s back was to me, and Minus was directly in front of him. I could hear Minus speaking; his voice low and muffled, and his words garbled. From where I was all I could hear was something about “sex with your sister,” before a loud crashing sound. I peeked over the top of the half-wall and could see Minus tied to the chair on his side with the creep standing over him, his back still to me. I used the chaos as an opportunity, popped up from my hiding place, and squeezed off a shot which went at least two feet high and right, missing him completely.

The creep spun around to face me, utterly confused at what he was looking at. I loaded another dart, and slid the bolt to chamber another round, as he reached behind him, producing a knife. I fired my second shot, this time hitting him squarely in the chest. He staggered back, tripping over Minus who lay motionless. I pulled out the pistol and ran to the two men, who lay of the floor in a twisted heap.

“Don’t move, or I swear I’ll kill you,” I said, my gun trained on the creep.

He looked down at this chest, already clearly disoriented from the tranquilizer dart.

“These things were meant for horses, but I’m pretty sure they work on assholes too,” I said.

He pawed at the bright orange end, but to no avail. He began to lose motor function and his eyes rolled back into his head.

“How does it feel, bitch?” I said and stomped his crotch with everything I had.

* * *

Minus

How was I in a car?

“Hold on, baby,” I heard Cricket’s sweet voice over the roar of the engine.

How the hell did Cricket find me?

“Jase? Can you hear me?” she asked.

I smiled, through great protest of my face, and gave her a ‘thumbs up.’ It wasn’t all the way up, but it was the best I could manage.

“We’re gonna get you to a hospital, baby, don’t worry,” she said, turning back briefly to look at me.

“What... happened?” I gurgled. Blood from biting my tongue, and lost teeth filled my mouth. Deep cuts from the cable ties stung my wrists, and I was highly concussed. I remembered only fragments of the past hour or so, thanks to my friend with the phone book, but most of his beating was, unfortunately fresh in my mind.

“I got you out of there,” Cricket said. “Try not to move or speak, I’m gonna get you to a hospital. Stay with me!”

I could tell by the tone in her voice that I was in bad shape.

“Sounds like a plan,” I replied and passed out.