Gidget gnawed on the inside of her lip in the dingy two-stall bathroom. She’d pissed on the stick a few minutes ago, but wanted it to really set before she looked at it. Just in case there was a mistake, or it needed time to decide. She paced the jewel-tone tiled floor, counting to ten one more time in her head before looking at it. I already know what it says. Why bother looking?
She sighed, rubbing at her eyes. This wasn’t how she’d envisioned it. Hell, she’d never even envisioned it to begin with. Alone at a diner somewhere between Shreveport and Home. No phone, almost no money. A slew of people probably now wondering where the fuck she’d run off to.
Anxiety clawed at her, made her feel like she was running impossibly late. What was she even doing here? She needed to get on the bike and keep driving. But where would Butch be? She wanted to go where he’d be. And maybe by now that really was the clubhouse.
Gidget swallowed a knot in her throat and walked over to the countertop. Two blue lines stared up at her. She blinked a few times, staring at it until the lines blurred together and then she had to double check again. Pregnant.
Her mouth parted and she looked up at her reflection in the mirror, trying to find something on her face that made sense. But all she could see was the same dense cocktail that swirled inside her: shock, confusion, worry, and…very deep down, the tremble of excitement.
The door swung open and she snatched up the test, wrapping it in paper towels to throw away. She avoided the gaze of the newcomer before stepping out into the diner hallway, the news still swirling strangely inside her. You’re pregnant. It’s Butch’s baby. What are you gonna do now?
Gidget was halfway around the corner when the first biker walked into the diner. She spotted him the second he crossed the threshold. Something about the way the air got heavy in the diner, like last minute before a big test or presentation for which she was totally unprepared. She plastered herself to the wall, trying to avoid being seen while also checking out the new arrival. Just in case it was someone she didn’t want to be seen by.
A few more entered the diner after the first, and that’s when she noticed it: the familiar dark hair and scowl, the Skull that had chased after her the day she met Butch.
Those were Skulls. Her heart thumped. Four of them. And she was just one, really one and a half now, by herself. With Butch’s bike. And no Butch.
Fuck fuck fuck. She kept herself just out of sight, tears choking her throat. She didn’t even have a phone for an emergency SOS call. She was screwed. Her waitress sidled up to the newcomers and asked them if they needed anything. The lead guy said something that made the waitress squint, then look around.
Gidget darted back into the hallway, considering just escaping out the emergency back door. The alarm would go off though—that would be a definite attention draw. The Skulls would see her, because they had to be her for her. There was no other reason they’d be this far into Louisiana.
And Butch’s bike is out front. Of course they recognize that. Gidget squeezed her eyes shut, sent up a small prayer, and then peered around the corner again. The waitress was at the far end of the restaurant, by Gidget’s half-eaten plate of pancakes, gesturing while she spoke to the Skulls who were gathered around her. Fuck.
Her chest heaved as she watched the waitress. The four Skulls plopped down into her booth. Gidget’s stomach shrank to a knot. When the waitress headed back down the aisle toward the bar area, Gidget waved her down.
The waitress hurried her way, her face wrought with worry. “Honey, do you know those men?”
“I don’t,” Gidget said, her legs going weak. She finally noticed the name tag on her blouse: Karen. “I mean, I do. I don’t know them well, but they’re chasing me.” She swallowed hard, glancing over Karen’s shoulder. “I can’t go back over there. They’ll kidnap me if I do.”
Her own words resonated harshly between her ears. That was terrifying enough on its own. But now, with the secret bundle forming in her belly? The threat was more serious than ever. She had to protect herself and her baby. And if she hadn’t been such an idiot, she would have told her baby’s father—the man she was desperate to be with, the man she had stupidly fallen for without even telling him—what she was doing and what was going on.
The immensity of her stupidity bore down on her like a steamroller. Jesus, Gidget. It’s time to wake the fuck up. She wiped away a tear that had fallen and Karen squeezed the sides of her arms.
“Honey, you can escape out the back door of the kitchen. Don’t try this one because it’ll sound an alarm.” She jerked her head toward the emergency door at the end of the hall. “Once you’re out, I’ll keep ‘em occupied, tell ‘em you just waltzed into the bathroom or something.”
“What did they say to you?”
“Asked for a girl that sounded exactly like you,” she said, shaking her head. “Now you listen to me, I ain’t never seen these men before but they look like bad news from a mile away. You need to run, as fast as you can.” Karen paused, her honey brown eyes raking her up and down. “I seen what you tossed in the bathroom too. I know there’s something else along for the ride too.”
Gidget’s eyes watered and then the dam broke. Tears flowed down her cheeks and the waitress wrapped her in a tight hug. Gidget struggled to control her sobs as she let the emotion spill out of her, dampening the shoulder of Karen’s cream blouse.
“Did you come into the bathroom after me?” She sniffed, wiping at her eyes. “I didn’t even look at who came in.”
“I did. Your secret’s safe with me, but we need to get your tush outta here.” Karen peered back into the diner. “I’ll lead the way into the kitchen. You stay close behind me, honey.”
Gidget nodded, wiping away the last of her spilt tears, and took a deep breath. Questions swelled inside her mind but she couldn’t focus on the how or why of it all right now. She just needed to get safe, and back to Butch.
She kept her head down as Karen headed back toward the diner, slipping behind the counter of the bar to enter an open doorway leading to the kitchen. The air was clamorous and bright, smelling of fry oil and eggs. Karen grabbed her by the hand, leading her through tight aisles of grills and double-decker fridges.
“She’s with me,” Karen said as some line cooks sent curious looks their way. Toward the back of the kitchen, near industrial-sized sinks and a conveyor-belt dishwasher, Karen gripped her by the shoulders.
“Go out this door and run around to your car or bike or whatever you got. I’ll make sure I keep ‘em occupied enough long enough for you to get a head start. And don’t take the conventional route, whatever you do. I don’t know where you headin’, but you should take the back roads. At least for a little while.”
Gidget nodded, searching Karen’s face for something else, for one last question or reassurance or promise. Something to let her know that everything was gonna be all right. All she could squeak out was, “Thank you.”
Karen nodded and wrapped her in a hug again. “I just want to see you two safe. Now git.” She pushed her toward the back door, sending a pointed look her way. Gidget pulled open the heavy door, feet crunching against gravel as she tore around the brick building heading toward the parking lot where the bike sat. The only downside: she’d parked in a perfect line of vision from where she’d been sitting. No doubt the Skulls would see her mount and ride off. They’d be on her tail in seconds.
She just had to be fast. Faster than she’d ever been in her life.
I just want to see you two safe. Karen’s word ricocheted through her skull, sending pangs of guilt and desperation and longing through her. Yes, Gidget wanted that too. And so much more. She wanted this baby, and Butch, and stability, and her own happiness. She wanted to go back to the creative life she’d led, she wanted to delve into those territories she’d avoided like the plague with romantic partners, she wanted to open herself up to loving Butch and loving this baby and taking on a brand new chapter with brand new challenges.
The truth rang startlingly clear while the adrenaline pumped, urging her faster to crest the corner. The bike was in sight. But so was she. She pushed herself as hard as she could, keeping her eyes on the motorcycle, not allowing even a glance through the diner window to the Skulls inside. If she saw them now she might falter.
She slung her leg over the bike, forcing the key into the ignition with trembling hands. The motorcycle rumbled to life, the power between her legs calming her briefly, a reminder of Butch. Help me get out of here Butch. She backed the bike up as fast as she could, her legs like jelly. Though the window of the diner, she saw the four Skulls stand up and take notice. All eyes on her. Spotted.
Heart in her throat, she revved the bike. A plume of gravel dust flamed behind her as the bike tore off, and when the rubber of tire met road she allowed herself to breathe. She glanced back within the first half mile. All four Skulls were in the parking lot mounting bikes. Panic sliced through her, urging her faster.
She had a good lead on them—but who knew if they’d catch up? Driving this fast on a bike was not her favorite activity. The buffeting wind and heightened sensitivities of the steering made her feel like she could blow or tumble off at any second. She glanced down at the speedometer, wincing against the fierce wind. Ninety miles per hour. She could handle a smooth sixty or seventy. But this was insane.
She glanced behind her, nearly veering into the oncoming traffic as she did so. Fuck. She righted herself, sticking to the white line of the lane, sending up a fervent prayer every few minutes.
Her palms sweat as she contemplated her next move. She had to lose them, like Karen said. But how? She didn’t know where she was going really; just knew that east and north was best. She needed back roads, but didn’t have enough of a lead to safely turn off somewhere and not be spotted. So what choice did she have—drive north as fast as she could until she ran out of gas or her bladder burst?
Think, Gidget. She glanced behind her, swearing. Seemed like these Skulls were getting closer. Still blips on the horizon, but approaching blips nonetheless. She needed to act fast if she was going to make it back to the clubhouse in one piece.
As she roared along, the wind buffeting her helmet, the highway split off to encompass a median. Trees dotted the grass infrequently. Each side of opposing traffic swelled to two lanes. Gidget swerved into the fast lane, dodging a slow sedan in the right lane. Luckily the highway had been relatively sparse. Fewer cars meant fewer obstacles. And hopefully fewer cops.
She kept her fists tight around the handles as she took a gentle curve in the highway, making sure the needle never dropped below ninety. Everything was on the line now. Trees filled the median, reducing the oncoming traffic lane to sporadic bursts of color as cars whizzed behind the trees. She squinted, trying to gauge the tree line.
Gidget drove for another few minutes. The oncoming lanes were almost totally obscured behind the dividing median of trees. She’d passed an emergency turn around point a few miles back. There had to be another one soon. And if these trees kept up, taking a U-turn might be the only chance she had at escaping the Skulls. Even though slowing down put her within closer viewing distance of the rival gang.
She swallowed hard, tongue sticking to the roof of her mouth as she compulsively scanned the upcoming shoulder for signs of an emergency road that bridged the divided lanes of traffic. The more she rode, the more this seemed like her only option.
Another few miles went by until she saw the telltale sweep of concrete leading to an emergency turnaround. No cop in sight, either. She slowed, keeping to the fast lane, until she got close enough to the turnaround to slam the brakes. She took the turn as fast and hard as she could without losing her grip. Her stomach jumped into her throat but within seconds she had righted and rejoined the opposing flow of traffic.
Gidget could barely breathe as she scanned the eastbound traffic through the dense line of trees, struggling to discern where the Skulls were, if they’d passed…or if they’d caught on to her ruse and pulled a U-turn.
Minutes dragged by. No bikes appeared behind her, roaring angrily to catch up, as she kept a cool sixty in the slow lane. And as the trees in the median begin to thin, meaning she’d gone several miles back toward where she’d been coming from, she realized with a jolt that she’d done it.
She was in the clear.
Gidget let a whoop, the wind carrying it off into the bleary day.