Obsessed (18 page)

The Executioner’s Guard Clubhouse wasn’t exactly down a well-beaten path.  To get there, we had to traverse long, windy roads that led far from civilization.  A cold shiver ran the length of my spine when I realized the eerie similarities between this place and the one of my earlier captivity.

We were gonna blow it up.  It was simple as an idea, but would, without question, be nearly impossible in execution.  I brought it up first.  I told him we needed to hurt them.  We needed to cause a big scene...to do something extreme.  It was the only way we would be able to get enough of a head start.

Going on the run didn’t seem to faze James.  He wanted to take off.  And when I told him I was willing to go with him, I could see his whole body relax.  It was the source of his worry.  He always knew he would have to leave, but he was conflicted over me.

Taking out members of the EG was another story.  I could sense they had been the only ones to care about him, maybe in his whole life.  But he couldn’t be a part of them any longer, and deep down he knew that.  I didn’t have to convince him, it just took some time for him to come around.  It was the only way.  If he didn’t make a drastic move, they would.  It was either kill, or be killed.

James waved me forward, his motorcycle slowing to a turtle’s pace.  I pulled up next to him on the deserted road.

“There’s the turnout,” he said.  “Are you sure you want to go through with this?”

“It’s the only thing that will give us a chance.  Don’t ask me again.”

***

James stole one last look over his shoulder as he walked the dirt path toward the entrance.  She was young, but she was determined.  There was little doubt in his mind she could handle her end of the plan.  But the sheer numbers game they were playing made him grind his teeth.  Even if they did it perfectly, there was still a good chance a wildcard would pop up.  You could never account for everything.

This would be the last time he walked by that flag at the front door.  That was the only certainty he had.  No matter how it turned out, he would either never leave, or never come back.

As he approached, he wondered if he should knock, or just walk in like he had always done.  The decision was made for him, as the door swung open with an ominous creak.  It was dark in there.  They were expecting him.

“Good to see you’re still man enough to come take your medicine,” said Hayes.  His voice came from somewhere in the back of the room.  James made his way inside.  The whole gang was there.  He figured they were putting together a crew together to go look for him.

“I’m here,” said James.

He could see now.  Hayes leaned against the wall with a cigarette bobbing in the corner of his mouth.  Roads was at his side.  The hoard of bikers,
his former brothers
, narrowed their eyes on him.

“Why’d you do it, Icy?” asked Roads.  “We told you not to bother with that bitch.”

“Doesn’t matter,” said Hayes.  “He went against his family.  He’s got no explanation for that.”

“The man has been around for a long time,” said Roads.  “Just thought he could enlighten us as to what was going through his head.”

James wouldn’t answer.  He could only think about how they failed him...what they did to Charlie.  They hadn’t acted like his family.  They didn’t back him up when he needed them.

James glared across the room.  “Are we gonna do this, or not?”

“Shit,” chuckled Hayes.  “Same old Icy.  Always wantin’ to get down to business.  No time for fun.”

He let the cigarette drop from his mouth.  His smile disappeared.  “You heard ‘em.  Get his ass outside.”

A boot slammed into James’s lower back and sent him sprawling forward.  Everyone seemed to grab him at once.  He didn’t fight, as they dragged him outside.

***

Five minutes
.  That’s what he said.  I watched as the number on my phone flipped from seven to eight.  It was now or never.

The propane tanks were heavy.  I can’t remember how many gallons James said they were, but they were heavy.  There were six in total, some in my back seat, a couple more in the trunk.  I toted the first two to the same door I had seen James disappear through.  When I was watching from the road, I thought someone would have come out to meet him.  But that’s not how it happened.  He just walked in like they were expecting him.  I hope it wasn’t a trap.

He told me to go fast.  He said that there would be nobody left in the building...that they would all be out back with him.  It was a leap of blind faith.  Not that I didn’t trust him, but walking into the lion’s den would make anyone question their own intentions.

I took a deep breath and walked through the door.  It was as quiet as a church.  I didn’t take much time to survey the scene.  My brain seemed to go on autopilot.  I placed the first two tanks where he told me to, then ran out the door for two more.

The third tank went in the hallway, the fourth under the east window.  He gave precise directions.  The idea was to create a chain reaction, that would first draw them in, and then block off the all the exits.  The last pair of tanks were to flank the front door.

The propane was in place.  Now, I had to douse the place with gas.  James had given me one large gas can, and told me to pay special attention to the areas surrounding the tanks.  He said to leave a trail of fluid following me outside, so that I could light it and be out of harms way.

Everything was done.  The last instruction he gave was that I was forbidden to look outside.  Get in and get out as quickly as possible, just don’t look out the window.  As I stood in the middle of the room, lighter in hand, I felt like I was being pulled in two different directions.  My common sense screamed at me to do as I was told.  That I should go wait by his motorcycle, like he said, and not take any chances.  It was the safest way.  But my heart was telling me to check on him...to see if he was okay.

I knew which one would win, so I decided not to fight it.  There was a wooden chair near one of the round tables in the center of the room.  I grabbed it and dragged it to the high window above the back door.  Standing on the chair, I could reach just high enough to see outside.

They had him surrounded.  Like a prisoner of war, they kicked and punched him.  He took the punishment without resistance.  There must have been thirty of them.  They all screamed and spit angry words.  Each time they knocked him down, he would stand to take more.  He looked toward the house.  Our eyes met.

***

“I want this one, boss,” said Roads as he drew a long blade from the sheath on his belt.

James wiped the blood from his eyes and wobbled back to his feet.  The VP of the Executioner’s Guard stood in front of him, glaring.  They had all taken turns beating him.  His eyes stung from all of the dust in the air.

“You had a lot of potential, Icy,” said Hayes.  “But you know why this has to be done.”  He nodded toward Roads.  The rest of the bikers took a step back, widening the circle around James.

“You’re about a dumb motherfucker, aren’t you?” said Roads.  He leaned in close.  James could smell the tobacco on his breath.

“And you’re a coward.”

Roads sent his left fist crashing into the side of James’s head, dropping him to his knees.

“I never did like you,” Roads said as he held the knife high above his head.  James stared back into his eyes.

“Oh shit!  Something’s wrong!” yelled one of the bikers.  It could have been Joseph, or maybe Brant.  “The clubhouse is on fire!”

As a thick plume of smoke bellowed from the back of the building, a little smile appeared on James’s lips.  Roads’s anger turned to confusion as he lowered the knife to his side and turned to see about the commotion.

“Get the hell in there,” screamed Hayes.  “See what it is.”

They all moved together, like one big, dumb, monster.  All of them ran to the back door, and filed in, one after the other.  An explosion rocked the building.  James could feel the heat from the growing flames on his face.

“What the fuck is happening?” yelled Hayes.

He and Roads looked at each other in disbelief.  Roads didn’t have a chance to turn back around before James hit him with the rock.  He brought it down on the top of his head with as much force as he could muster.

Roads went down in a heap on the dirt.  Hayes’s eyes widened as he looked at James.

“You did this, you piece of-”

“Shut your mouth and get on the ground.”

Another of the propane tanks exploded, and it sent Hayes reeling.

“On the ground, Prez, or I’ll put you on the ground,” said James.

:Hayes knelt down and then flattened himself in the dirt.

“You just turned your life into a living hell,” said Hayes.  “I was gonna make it quick, but not now.”

James yanked the laces free from the president’s boots.

“By tomorrow morning, I’ll have a hundred more men down here.  They’ll find you before you can eat your breakfast.”

James used the laces to fasten Hayes’s hands behind his back.

“And they’ll make you
and
that bitch beg for death.”

***

This is taking to long.  Where is he?

The flames were licking the trees on the front side of the building.  The smoke was so thick and acrid, nobody would be able to survive more than a few minutes in there.

If I’m not back within five minutes of you setting the fire, get out of here.

His words rang in my head.

Leave town, and get yourself to a safe place.  They’ll be looking for you.

It had been eight minutes.

Each passing second was excruciating.  My car was just down the road.  I could run back to it, take off, and never look back.  I couldn’t stand the thought of leaving him, but he said it could go like this.  He said there was a good chance he wouldn’t make it out.

I crouched by his motorcycle, trying to delay the inevitable.  My heart sank when I realized another two minutes had ticked by.  Another explosion sent a shockwave through the air.  That was the fifth tank to blow, by my count.

Tears streamed down my face as I gathered myself to make the run to my car.  In my mind, I had already committed to my new life with him.  We would never have been able to live normally, but we would have had each other.  I wanted it more than-

“Let’s go!  Let’s go!  Are you okay?”

“James!” I cried.  “You’re-”

“I’m fine, but we gotta go, now!”

He picked me up by the waist and set me on the back of the bike.  Dirt and gravel clouded around us as his tires spun.  When they grabbed traction, we rocketed forward, leaving the chaos behind.

***

We rode for almost two hours without speaking a word to each other.  James bent forward and maneuvered us with expertise and determination.  I clutched him close, not caring where we were going, and not ever wanting to let go.

As the sun began to set, he turned down a secluded road, off the main highway.  For a few seconds after he shut it off, he just sat and stared ahead.  His shoulders were tight and pulled up toward his ears.

I slid my hands up his arms and over his biceps.

“Are we safe?” I whispered.

“We are for now,” he said.  “But we’ll have to keep moving.”

I nestled my head against him and he turned to kiss me.  His mouth felt sweet and soft against mine.  It was the first time he had kissed me without the aggression.