Page 42 of Wire
What they don’t know is that I’ve spent the last two months with the Devil’s Rose MC. The Remy that left the Death Riders is different from the Remy that they kidnapped. This Remy isn’t invisible anymore. This Remy has a group of friends that she loves and shares her dreams with. This Remy believes she can do whatever she wants. This Remy is pissed that this is happening to her and the sweetest little girl in the world. This Remy also seems to talk in third person. I blame the adrenaline.
I let Snake drag me behind him. He uses his booted foot to kick open a door to a dark storeroom with a filthy mattress in the corner. Jovie’s dad shoves her into the room, growling at her to shut up as she cries harder. Snake leans close, licking up my neck, stopping to breathe a “good girl” in my ear, causing me to shudder. He too shoves me hard into the room and I have to stop myself landing on Jovie.
“Stay put, don’t make a fucking sound, and we’ll be back with a little surprise. Good girls get surprises.” Snake leers and Jovie’s dad guffaws like it’s the funniest thing he’s ever heard.
They slam the door behind them and both me and Jovie hear the ominous click of the lock.
Wire
Swiveling my head left and right, I take in the trailer park where my sisters and I would spend weekends with my dad. When he remembered to pick us up, that is. It’s not like he was a terrible father. He was just young and with a woman who was so focussed and driven that I think he struggled to find his place. Add to that his shit show relationship with Sandra, who introduced him to harder things than the gambling and drink he was used to and, well, let’s say that my sisters and I haven’t seen him for a while.
A whistle from behind me has me looking over my shoulder at Rider, who slows his bike, tips his head to us to follow, and turns down a side alley. We meander through the park, looking for Jayla’s trailer.
I have to admit, the park itself hasn’t changed all that much. Everything is still a little run down, although you can see pockets of pride, where people have at least tried to make what they have more like a home rather than a place to crash. A small veggie garden here, some nice deck furniture there. Following Rider, we pull up outside a tidy trailer with a bright yellow door. There are flower boxes sitting on the porch that look like they’ve seen better days and an overflowing trash can, but even through that, you can tell this was a home that someone looked after.
I kick down the stand on my girl, throw my leg over and tip my chin at Rhodie to follow while Rider stays with our bikes. I wouldn’t trust any of the fuckers around here. There may be some good folk, but they’re outnumbered. I should know.
My heavy footsteps stomp on the porch. Curling my hand into a fist, I bang on the door, Rhodie beside me, peering through the windows.
“It’s a fucking mess in there, and there’s kid stuff everywhere. The kid is a girl, yeah?”
I nod at him and bang again.
“What do you want?” A gruff voice growls.
Turning, Rhodie and I come face to face with a man peering over the trellis that separates Jayla’s place from his. His eyes widen as he takes in our cuts, darting to Rider with our bikes before settling his gaze back on us. He squints at me a moment before recognition lights his eyes.
“Saint?”
In my periphery, Rhodie’s head swings to look at me, but I’m busy studying the man on the other side of the trellis. The last time I saw him was before I deployed. At least ten years ago. Back then, he was thin, greasy, unkempt. Now? Now he’s healthy, his skin a couple of shades lighter than mine, tanned, but from working outdoors rather than naturally. His blonde hair cut short instead of long and greasy.
“Dad?”
He exhales and blinks a couple of times before giving me a soft smile. “Hey, son. You look good, kid.”
“You do too.” A smile tugs at my lips. He does look good. In fact, probably the best I’ve ever seen him.
“Yeah. I, um, remember Sandra?” I nod at him. “Well, we broke up a while back. I hit rock bottom and have been working my way back up. Got clean, got a job.”
My eyes flick behind him. “Got a better trailer.”
He smiles, the signs of his hard life showing on some of his teeth. Even so, he looks more like the dad I remember.
“Yeah. Sure did. Got a little garden even. You should, um, come visit sometime.” He rubs the back of his neck, looking uncomfortable.
I could cut him off. Tell him I’ll never visit him because he was a shitty father, a shitty husband and sometimes a shitty person. But then my mind drifts to what the two women in my life would say. Remy and Retta would say that he’s clearly trying to change, and that I should give him a chance.
Instead of letting him down, I give him a chin lift. “Yeah. Um, that sounds good.”
He beams at me, then realizes that what is happening here isn’t a family reunion. His eyes flick to Jayla’s door before coming back to me and Rhodie.
“Why are you knocking on that door, son?”
“We’re looking for our friend. Around 5’5ish, blonde hair, librarian. Seen her round?”
Even before Rhodie finishes the description, dad is shaking his head.
“Nah. The woman that lives there, I haven’t seen around for a while now. Sweet girl, reminds me a little of your mom when we were younger,” he smiles at me. “Her loser boyfriend lives there with their little girl. He said she took off on them, but I don’t believe it. She was a good girl. Always trying to make this place a little better. Helped some of the older folks with their shopping, that sort of thing. The little girl, Jovie, is a sweetheart too, but I think she’s been struggling to live with her dad. He leaves her alone at night. A couple of times I’ve overheard her crying, so I’ve come over to sit with her.” He says, shaking his head in disgust, his expression mirroring that of me and my brothers.