I shuddered. I hadn't thought of that. “So now what?”
Rafe shrugged. “Don't know for sure,” he answered. “I had a plan, but that fucked it up. I'm gonna have to make a few calls before I can come up with a new one.”
“But what about me?” I demanded. “When do I get to go home?”
“Sweetheart, I swear to God I have no idea right now,” he said. “I'll do what I can to make that happen for you, but until then, it looks like you're along for the ride.”
Chapter 16
Rafe
I was looking for highway signs for department stores, and when I found one, I pulled us off the road and into the parking lot.
“Okay,” I said to Jewel, “I need to stay out here and keep an eye out for anyone who might be after us. So I'll need you to go inside and buy a burner phone I can use. Can you do that?”
Jewel nodded shakily.
“Good,” I said. “Get in and out as fast as possible, and remember to keep your cool. Don't freak out or draw any attention. The last thing we need is more people getting involved with this shit show. If I see anything weird, I'll give the horn a loud blast so you can come running and we can blow out of here in a hurry.”
I watched Jewel go to the store's entrance. Even with everything going on, I couldn't help but admire the way her full, curvy hips moved from side to side when she walked.
I was feeling restless and fidgety. I suddenly realized I hadn't had a cigarette since right before the shit with Angelo went down in the alley. I hadn't had time to pick up a pack of my own since then.
Just as I was debating whether I was desperate enough to start looking on the ground for a butt that could be re-lit, I saw a large man a few cars away, walking toward me. He had broad shoulders and a scar over his eye, and he wore a brown leather bomber jacket. It looked like his dark, intense eyes were focused on me.
Goddamn it, I thought. How did they send someone else after us so fast?
I reached over and rested a hand on my bike's horn, preparing to push on it. It occurred to me that I'd never even used the horn that came with Rosie before. Bikers aren't big on honking horns. When we almost get hit by assholes in cars, we're usually too busy grabbing the front brakes, pulling the clutch in, and swerving away. Hell, I didn't even know what the horn sounded like, or whether it'd be loud enough to get Jewel's attention in the store. I should have tested it before she went in.
Too late now, though.
The man reached into his bomber jacket and I reached behind me, wrapping my other hand around my pistol. Before he could take his hand out of his jacket, I leaned on the horn. It sounded oddly high-pitched and muted, like a whining teenager. I highly doubted Jewel would hear that and I told myself if I got out of this alive, I'd have to upgrade it to something more useful.
The man paused for a moment, looking confused. Then he nodded toward me, taking his hand out of his jacket to reveal a pack of cigarettes.
I took my hand off the horn.
“Hey, pal,” the man said, “got a light?”
I took my other hand off the gun.
Christ, I thought. That was a close call.
“Sure,” I said, “if you've got a smoke you can spare.”
“Oh, hell yes,” the man replied with a shaky sigh of relief. He shook out a cigarette, handing it to me. “Here.”
“Thanks,” I said. “Sorry about the horn. Just realized I'd never tested it before, and I figured, hey, now's as good a time as any.”
“Yeah, I figured it was something like that,” he said, putting the cigarette between his lips. “You're a fucking lifesaver. The only times I can sneak a puff are when she's in there looking at shoes, and I was looking forward to it all day and then I got here and realized I forgot my lighter like some kind of putz.”
I laughed, leaning over to light his cigarette before doing the same to mine. “Yeah, I feel you. I just got out of a seven-year...” I paused, then continued, “relationship with no cigarettes. Man, they sure do get their hooks into you, huh?”
“Fuck, tell me about it,” he agreed, taking a drag. “I used to be addicted to coke, you know? Kicked that when we had our first kid. It wasn't that hard. I mean, I still get the odd craving, but overall, it was a lot easier than I'd have thought.” He took another deep drag, relishing it. “But these, man. Jesus. I've tried to quit six fucking times. For her, for the baby. Six times, and I've come running back to it every time. Can you believe that?”
I nodded, thinking about all the different ways convicts had tried to smuggle cigarettes into Potawatomi because of the smoking ban. They'd been a more precious commodity than drugs or weapons. I'd seen guys do violent things, humiliating things, just for a single hit off a mostly-smoked butt.
It brought back the memory of the snitch and the syrup packets. People will do bloody and crazy things just to feel something normal and familiar for a few seconds. I wondered if I'd ever be able to forget the things I'd done that had made me feel so much less than human while I'd been inside.
Mostly, I wondered if I was even supposed to forget.
I glanced at the store entrance and saw Jewel walking back to the bike with a shopping bag. I waved at her. She looked in my direction, and her face went pale and slack with fright.
Oh, hell.
I whipped back around just in time to see the man pulling a gun from his jacket pocket. I instinctively knew I wouldn't have time to draw my own gun, so I swung my fist down at his hand, knocking the gun loose. It fell to the ground and the man snarled with rage.
I wrapped both hands around the man's throat and kicked him hard in the left shin, causing his leg to go out from under him. He sagged to the pavement, beating at my arms with his hands and trying to pry my fingers away from his neck.
I squeezed tighter, feeling his windpipe buckle under my thumbs. His face was turning purple and his eyes were bulging. He was thrashing, and it took all of my weight on his chest to keep him from getting free.
I heard Jewel's heavy breathing behind me and continued to throttle the man until he went limp, his tongue hanging out the side of his mouth.
I stood up, brushed the dirt off the knees of my jeans, and rummaged in the inner pocket of the man's jacket until I found his wallet and his pack of cigarettes. I pocketed them along with the gun he'd been carrying, then kicked the body under the nearest car and turned to Jewel. She was trembling.
“We'd better go,” I said, handing her the helmet.
Jewel put it on and buckled it under her chin. We both hopped on my bike and I gunned the engine, riding us out of the parking lot and hitting the highway.
I'd wanted to get to Milwaukee as soon as possible, which meant sticking to the main roads. But since it looked like Jester's people were being methodical in searching the highway stops from Chicago to Wisconsin, I figured we'd better take our chances on the back roads for a while. The first chance I got, I took an exit and veered onto a country road, with nothing but farms and fields on both sides for miles and miles.
Even then, though, I knew we'd have giant targets on our backs as long as we were so easy to identify. Jester and the Mancusos wouldn't even have to put eyes on us directly. They could just ask people if they'd seen a biker and a woman in a skirt riding a red and black bike with a rose pattern on it. That'd be the kind of thing most folks would probably remember.
I felt Jewel's shaking body pressed against my back, and I had an idea. I snuck a peek behind me, looking at her outfit. “Hey, quick question,” I asked. “Do you shop at outlet malls?”
“What?” Jewel asked incredulously. “Are you kidding me? Why would you ask me that right now? Jesus, you just killed a man with your bare hands right in front of me, and now you want to know where I buy my clothes?”
“Yes,” I said, “and if you want to help me so I don't have to kill anyone else today, please just answer the fucking question, okay? So, outlet malls: Do you shop in them? Yes or no?”
There was a long pause. When she answered, it was in a small, scared voice. “Yes.”
“So do you know where one is around here?” I pressed.
“Yes,” she said quietly. I almost couldn't hear her over the wind in my ears.
“Good. Tell me how to get there.”
“Go back on the highway at the next on-ramp,” she replied. “Go about six miles, then take the Zion exit. There's an outlet there.”
“Thank you,” I said.
We rode in silence for a long time before I realized why she was acting so terrified. “Hey, when I said I needed your help or I might have to kill someone else today, I didn't mean you,” I said, trying to sound gentle. I hadn't realized she might take it that way. “I'm not gonna hurt you. I hope you know that.”
“I know,” Jewel answered.
“And I'm doing everything I can to keep you safe and make sure you get to go home,” I continued.
“I know,” she said again.
This time, she sounded a little less sure.
Chapter 17
Jewel
I didn't think anything could shake me up inside more than the bullets that had been flying in my direction, but standing by as Rafe choked the life out of someone gave me a sick, ugly, squirming feeling in the pit of my stomach.