Page 38 of Finding a Melody

The back of my neck prickled as I kept walking down the street and turned down the next block.

As soon as I was out of sight, I gasped and leaned forward.

Holy shit.

Why? Why did he want me? What did he want?

An engine’s roaring made me jump and I slammed my back against the building, as if it was enough to shield me. Another roar tore through the air, getting louder and louder. A moment later the same man who was by my car sped by, leaning into his bike as he raced down the street.

But that wasn’t what made my blood run cold and my heart freeze in my chest.

The logo on the back. I didn’t need to be close to know exactly which logo it was. I saw enough of it over the last few years. A wolf skull in a hood, a scythe in the background.

The Ryders. He was one of them.

My heart thundered loud in my ears as I watched him disappear down the road.

“Cadence?” A deep voice broke through the fear.

I blinked and focused on the tall, Black man that had managed to stand before me. He was frowning hard as he looked down at me.

I licked my lips. “Davies,” I whispered, quickly remembering his name from when we were introduced at Toby’s favorite diner. Davies owned the place.

“You’re Toby’s friend.”

All I could do was nod, the fear still there. My gaze went back to the road, expecting to see the biker man come roaring back to me.

“What happened?” There was a small bark in his voice that made me jump.

“N-nothing.”

He shifted and there was a rustling. I glanced down to see a bag of groceries in his hands. We were far from his diner, so he was the last person I expected to see, but maybe he lived around here? I stared at the bag, unable to properly form coherent thoughts.

“Cadence.”

I bit my lip.

He swore under his breath. “Come on.”

I whipped my head up to look at him. He pointed to a nearby building, at the cafe doors. “Let me buy you something to drink. You’re shaking too much for nothing to have happened.” Then he turned and marched across the street. After a moment, my feet finally began moving and I followed.

He didn’t say anything until I had a cup of hot tea in my hands and was in a seat. He had the same drink in his own hands as he leaned back in his chair and stared out the window, not saying anything. The space was big, with only a couple of others sitting around us. It was open and full of light, making me feel safer.

I squeezed my cup a little, feeling the warmth settling into my palms.

“W-why?” I finally managed to ask. This was too weird and random.

“You’re Toby’s friend. He’s a good kid.”

I drew in a deep breath and held it until my lungs ached, and then slowly released it. “That isn’t much of an answer.”

“Sometimes a duck really is just a duck.”

I blinked at that response. That was too... simple.

“And sometimes that duck has a scope trained on it from a hunter.”

“What the hell?” My mouth popped open.