something about bikers, you know? You date these men who complain about their bosses and poke at their flat tires and then take the car to the shop. There’s something lacking in them, you know? But bikers are real men. They’re tough and fearless; they do what they want when they want. They say, ‘Fuck the Man’—and they mean it. There’s something primal about them. It’s like the whole world could crumble to dust and all them accountants and lawyers would be crying and scrambling around and these bikers would just shrug their shoulders and say, ‘Bring it on.’ There’s something in them that a woman just responds to.”
“What happened to Tommy?” Olivia asked.
“He died young in an accident. Most of them die young; it’s a dangerous world they live in, and there’s nothing we can do to protect them.”
“I don’t know where David is. I think someone is trying to make it look like he ran away, but I know that he didn’t. I know that he wouldn’t leave me like that. And I know how that sounds, I know that women say that all the time, but I mean it. I know it in my bones.”
“I believe you,” Hillary said. “I’ve seen David up and leave this town a hundred times, but he’s a different man now. He’s older and wiser; he’s more invested. I think he might be in love, too.”
“I got suspended,” Olivia said, and she forced her tears back. She couldn’t cry anymore; it wasn’t solving anything. “And now I can’t find him and I can’t use any police resources to find him. I feel so useless. What if he’s trapped somewhere and waiting for me to come and rescue him, and I’m just driving around and crying like some idiot who’s not worth a damn?”
“David’s a smart guy, maybe a little too smart. However, he has value still, and as long as he has value, no one’s going to try and kill him. Both Rick and Mike value him; that means everything in our world.”
“Do you think they would know where he is?”
“I think they would.”
“But would they kill me if I showed up? I’m a cop; my kind just arrested their kind. We’ve always been at war with each other; we’ve always been enemies. I don’t know how to prove to them how much I love David, how I just want to know that he’s safe.”
Hillary finished her drink and wiped her mouth, looking at Olivia and appraising her. She stared into Olivia’s eyes, and Olivia could see the other woman’s brain working something out. She was doing some form of mental calculus, measuring Olivia’s worth against the bikers’ values.
“There’s no way to know what might happen,” Hillary said, shaking her head. “Bikers are an unpredictable bunch. However, they value respect and honesty. If you go to them and you’re straight with them, they’ll be straight with you. That’s the only advice I can give to you.”
Olivia nodded. “Thank you,” she said. She wondered who Hillary had been before she had met Tommy and been caught up in this life. She wondered if Hillary ever regretted meeting her dashing young biker. Olivia didn’t want to end up like Hillary, but she knew that she didn’t have to. She could find David and get her job and her life back on track. Olivia wasn’t quite sure how she was going to do all of that, but she knew that there was a way. She just needed to figure it out.
Olivia wasn’t a quitter; she could figure out how to do all of those things. She loved David, but she wasn’t going to throw her life away for him. She was going to get David and her badge back. Hillary was right; there was a way to navigate the world of God’s Reapers and still keep her head. She needed to have honesty and respect, both for the Reapers and for herself. For once, she was determined to get everything she wanted.
“You are welcome and you’re always welcome here. Us girls, we gotta stick together. Plus, only someone who’s been with a biker knows what it’s
“What happened to Tommy?” Olivia asked.
“He died young in an accident. Most of them die young; it’s a dangerous world they live in, and there’s nothing we can do to protect them.”
“I don’t know where David is. I think someone is trying to make it look like he ran away, but I know that he didn’t. I know that he wouldn’t leave me like that. And I know how that sounds, I know that women say that all the time, but I mean it. I know it in my bones.”
“I believe you,” Hillary said. “I’ve seen David up and leave this town a hundred times, but he’s a different man now. He’s older and wiser; he’s more invested. I think he might be in love, too.”
“I got suspended,” Olivia said, and she forced her tears back. She couldn’t cry anymore; it wasn’t solving anything. “And now I can’t find him and I can’t use any police resources to find him. I feel so useless. What if he’s trapped somewhere and waiting for me to come and rescue him, and I’m just driving around and crying like some idiot who’s not worth a damn?”
“David’s a smart guy, maybe a little too smart. However, he has value still, and as long as he has value, no one’s going to try and kill him. Both Rick and Mike value him; that means everything in our world.”
“Do you think they would know where he is?”
“I think they would.”
“But would they kill me if I showed up? I’m a cop; my kind just arrested their kind. We’ve always been at war with each other; we’ve always been enemies. I don’t know how to prove to them how much I love David, how I just want to know that he’s safe.”
Hillary finished her drink and wiped her mouth, looking at Olivia and appraising her. She stared into Olivia’s eyes, and Olivia could see the other woman’s brain working something out. She was doing some form of mental calculus, measuring Olivia’s worth against the bikers’ values.
“There’s no way to know what might happen,” Hillary said, shaking her head. “Bikers are an unpredictable bunch. However, they value respect and honesty. If you go to them and you’re straight with them, they’ll be straight with you. That’s the only advice I can give to you.”
Olivia nodded. “Thank you,” she said. She wondered who Hillary had been before she had met Tommy and been caught up in this life. She wondered if Hillary ever regretted meeting her dashing young biker. Olivia didn’t want to end up like Hillary, but she knew that she didn’t have to. She could find David and get her job and her life back on track. Olivia wasn’t quite sure how she was going to do all of that, but she knew that there was a way. She just needed to figure it out.
Olivia wasn’t a quitter; she could figure out how to do all of those things. She loved David, but she wasn’t going to throw her life away for him. She was going to get David and her badge back. Hillary was right; there was a way to navigate the world of God’s Reapers and still keep her head. She needed to have honesty and respect, both for the Reapers and for herself. For once, she was determined to get everything she wanted.
“You are welcome and you’re always welcome here. Us girls, we gotta stick together. Plus, only someone who’s been with a biker knows what it’s
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