Sons of Flame MC - Redemption (7 page)

That was Tex, the leader of Eli's old gang, the Sons of Flame, she was sure of it. The others looked vaguely familiar, although she couldn't recall their names. And there, bringing up the rear, was Eli Flint.

Tess panicked. She had no idea what to do. They hadn’t noticed her yet, but they would as soon as she tried to go out. If she'd been thinking straight Tess would have tried to slip out the back and called the police. She knew that Tex was a wanted man, but she also knew he was a dangerous one too. The adrenaline coursing through her body had put her in a fight or flight state of panic, so Tess just acted on impulse. Before she could be seen, she scurried back into the comforting darkness of the workshop and looked for somewhere to hide. Her panic was mounting as the seconds passed, and she eventually settled on crouching behind a rusted old sedan near the back that didn't look like it had been moved in decades. Tess sat back on her haunches and tried to stay as motionless and quiet as possible, which was easier said than done considering she was damn near hyperventilating. Tess didn't even want to consider what would happen if she was caught. She'd read the reports, she knew what Tex and the Sons were capable of. And Eli...she'd gotten him all wrong. He'd gone back to them as soon as he'd gotten out of jail. He wasn't the man she thought he was, hoped he was...he was just like all the others; a liar, a cheat, a criminal. Never again would Tess give anyone the benefit of the doubt. It just got thrown back in her face, time after time.

Her train of thought was interrupted by rough voices laughing and joking as the bikers approached the workshop. Tess shrank even further down behind the car, trying to make herself as small as possible. Her heart was thumping so loud that she thought the sound of that alone might give her away. She tried her best to regulate her breathing – instead of gasping in panic, as she felt like doing, she closed her eyes and tried to take slow, soft, deep breaths.

In and out, don’t panic, and they won’t find you.

They had entered the workshop now in a group, their voices low. From the sounds of it there were five or six of them, all men. Tess couldn’t pick out Eli’s voice now, but she knew he must be with them. The ones talking all had rough, gravelly voices; the sort of voices that she imagined hard men would have, who’d spent their entire lives living out here in the desert.

She pressed herself lower to the ground as the voices got closer and the men filled the workshop. She could hear the crunch of their boots as they walked across the discarded trash that littered the workshop floor. Tess decided to take a risk, despite her fear. If the Sons of Flame were here, she knew they were up to no good. If she could get a clear view of what it was they were doing, she could report it to the police later. It was a risk, but it could end up being what finally put an end to them.

She felt a twinge of sadness as she realized that Eli would also be incriminated by whatever she saw, but she hardened her heart. He had chosen this, so it wasn’t her fault. He was the one who had decided to go back to them, and he would have to live with the consequences of his actions, for better or worse.

Tess scooted to the edge of the car and, taking one last breath and willing her hands to stop shaking, she peered around the corner.

There was Tex, and what she guessed were other members of the Sons huddled around him. One man stood at the entrance, looking out, making sure there were no witnesses to whatever it was they had or were doing.

Tex was holding a black leather suitcase, closed for now, and was talking in a low whisper to the henchmen surrounding him. Eli stood awkwardly, like he didn’t know what to do with himself, and Tess was surprised to see a look of utter sadness and....almost helplessness on his face. It was so profound, that, despite everything, she was almost tempted to feel sorry for him.

“Eli.”

Tex’s voice was suddenly loud and clear; he’d made a decision. Eli look up, his eyes and voice filled with loathing and contempt.

“What.”

Tex sneered at him.

“Where are we going to keep this? It has to sit tight for a few days until we get the deal arranged.”

Eli sagged visibly, running a hand over his day-old stubble. He looked around the workshop, resembling for all the world a man condemned. Finally his eyes fixed on a car, and Tess had to stop herself from recoiling in panic.

“That one there. It’s been here years, nobody ever touches it.”

He pointed over to the car that Tess was crouched behind, and she ducked away out of sight as she heard the men advance toward her hiding place. Tess looked around her in a panic. There was nowhere else for her to go, nowhere to hide. If they came to open the trunk, they’d see her for sure. At the last second, her heart thumping furiously in her throat, Tess took the last option available to her. She rolled under the car, and clamped her hands over her mouth to prevent any sound from escaping.

She watched at the booted feet came closer and closer, and wished, harder than she’d ever wished before, that nobody would look underneath.

The feet gathered in a group at the end of the car, and Tess listened as Tex cursed, trying to get the ancient old door open. Eventually he succeeded, the rusted metal squealing in protest as he levered it open.

There was a muffled thump as the suitcase was unceremoniously dumped inside, then a crunch as the door was slammed shut once again. The feet stood still for a moment, and there was silence.

Tex was the first to speak.

“Now, Eli. You’ve done your part now, just like I asked you. Make sure nobody comes near this old heap of junk until I come back next, and you’ll have upheld your end of the bargain.”

There was no response from Eli, and Tess saw one pair of boots shuffle impatiently.

“You got that, shit for brains? Nobody goes near this car. Nobody.”

Silence again, but Eli must have responded in some way, because the boots began moving away until they were at the entrance to the workshop.

“You did good, Eli. Just like old days, huh?”

Tex laughed, a wheezing rasp devoid of all humor.

“See you soon, then.”

And with that they were gone, trooping back out into the baking sun, returning to their waiting bikes.

Tess watched them go. There was only one pair of legs remaining now, that she assumed must have belonged to Eli. He stood, still and silent, for a long time – long enough for Tess to mourn, once more, what could have been. Why was he throwing everything away like this? His chance for a new life, a fresh start, for some money and respect from the scum of the earth.

Tess willed Eli to leave. The smell of gasoline and oil filled her nostrils, making her feel queasy and slightly faint. Finally, just as she thought she couldn’t take it anymore, he stepped out of the workshop. Tess quickly rolled out from under the car and brushed herself off. She was still dressed in her office clothes, only now they were ruined completely, covered in oil and filth and dust. She went to the corner of the car again, peering around the edge.

Only, she had forgotten to take one thing into account. She caught one final glimpse of Eli Flint as he reached up and swung closed the big heavy door, until it reached the ground with a screeching crash. The workshop was thrown into utter and complete darkness.

Tess swallowed her mounting panic and felt her way forward, cursing quietly as she hit her shin on some discarded piece of machinery. Eventually she found the door, placing her palms flat upon it and trying to heave it upwards with all her might.

Nothing. It was locked, and without the key, there was no way she was getting it open. No way at all.

Tess was trapped, and she knew it.

*****

Eli

E
li stood outside the workshop and ran his hands over his face. He had barely slept and he hadn’t shaved, his stubble sharp and his eyes sore and gritty. He took a deep breath and looked around him, his eyes very briefly coming to rest on an abandoned old house that sat across the road from Mike’s Workshop, before flickering away again. He didn’t want to draw attention to himself.

Because while the house looked like it hadn’t been lived in for years, Eli knew that it wasn’t completely abandoned, not right now. He remembered from his days in the Sons of Flame that it was a hideout for the gang, sometimes used when they needed to keep someone hidden away, or lay low if they brought too much heat on themselves.

And if Eli knew Tex, and he did, he knew that the wily old gang leader wouldn’t leave unguarded as expensive a product as whatever was sitting in the trunk of that old car in the workshop. He’d stake his life that someone was sitting in that old house, watching, making sure that nobody went into the workshop who shouldn’t be there.

Which was going to make Eli’s plan that much more difficult to pull off.

As soon as Tex and the Sons had turned up with that briefcase the previous day, Eli had known what was inside. Drugs. It wasn’t guns this time – the case was much too small. Heroin, most likely, maybe coke. Whatever it was, there was a lot of it, and it was worth a lot of money. A lot of jail time, too, if someone was caught dealing it.

Tex thought he had Eli caught, trapped. He’d promised that once he returned to collect the product, Eli would be free, his obligation finished. Eli wasn’t stupid though. What was to stop Tex from making him go to do the deal, take all the risk? With the threats to Tess and his Grandma, Eli would have no choice but to obey.

Only, this time, Eli was ready to fight back. It was a risk, a huge risk, but one that he felt he had to take. This would never end if Eli kept on giving in to Tex’s demands. They’d keep coming and coming, for as long as Tex had control over Eli.

And Eli had had enough. He’d driven home quickly the previous night after locking up the workshop, and Mike had been there waiting for him. Despite the risks involved, to Mike and to Grace, Eli had told him everything. He needed Mike’s help.

Eli had packed a case for his grandma that morning, and when he returned he’d bundled it into Mike’s car. Grace seemed puzzled at first – Eli hadn’t told her anything.

“I’ve booked you a trip for a few days, Grandma,” he’d said. “I know you get bored sitting around here all day, and my first paycheck came in, so I thought I’d do something for you. Mike’s gonna take you, and I’ll stay and take care of the shop.”

Grace had looked from Eli to Mike, eyes narrowed in suspicion.

“What are you two up to?”

Mike had laughed, an easy, practiced laugh.

“C’mon Grace,” the grizzled old mechanic had wheezed. “It’ll be just like old times, me and you. What do you say?”

Grace had smiled despite herself.

“Well...a few days away
would
be nice.”

She’d held up a finger and wagged it at Mike.

“But don’t you think you can try anything with me, Michael Wrentham. We’re both too old and too washed up for any of that romance nonsense.”

Eli had given his grandmother a kiss on the cheek as she’d climbed slowly into the car.

“Have a nice time, Grandma. I’ll see you in a few days, OK?”

Eli had watched them drive away into the fading sunlight, hoping that he’d been quick enough, that Tex hadn’t sent someone to keep watch. He didn’t think so, though. As far as Tex was concerned, he had Eli, hook line and sinker.

Eli smiled sadly to himself as he stood there the next morning, thinking about how happy Grace had looked at the surprise. Thank God she didn’t know the truth.

He took a deep breath and pulled his hands out of his pockets. It was time to go, time to put the plan into action.

Eli unlocked the shutter door and lifted it, wincing as it squealed in protest. If there
was
someone watching the workshop, they'd definitely know now that Eli was there if they somehow hadn't before.

But there was nothing to do about that now. There was no going back - he had to do this, and had to do it fast. It was the only way.

Eli stepped into the workshop and made his way over to the old rusty car where the drugs were hidden. He unlocked it and was lifting the trunk when he caught movement out of the corner of his eye. He whirled, adrenaline flaring, only for his jaw to drop when he saw who it was.

"Tess? What the hell? How long have you been in here?"

She looked dishevelled and tired as she eyed him up warily, looking from Eli to the entrance, obviously trying to gauge if she could dart past him and make an escape.

"Tess," he began, "Listen."

He saw something snap in her, then; her face went dark, like a thundercloud just before the heavens opened. She stepped towards him, all thoughts of escape temporarily forgotten.

"No, Eli Flint,
you
listen to
me
."

Each word was punctuated by a stab of her finger, poking him in the chest. She looked so fierce, so angry, that Eli had to fight the instinct to back away from her.

"I
trusted
you. I thought you were
different
. I thought you were genuinely trying to turn your life around, actually trying to work with me to put your past behind you and move on."

She deflated suddenly, looking sad and forlorn and lost.

"But you're just the same as all the others. You lied to me, over and over, and I was stupid enough to believe you. Well, I'm done. I'm fucking done."

She turned away from him, shoulders sagged, and began to trudge out of the workshop.

"Wait!" Eli hissed. "You've got it all wrong!"

He stepped towards her and tried to grab her arm. She whirled, fury in her eyes.

"Don't fucking touch me."

Eli swallowed. If she walked out of this workshop, everything was ruined.

"Look, Tess, I don't know what the hell you're doing in here, or what you saw, but you
need
to listen to me."

She stopped moving, and looked at him, hands on her hips, waiting.

"If you walk out of that door, you'll be putting your life in danger. Both of our lives, actually."

She frowned in confusion.

"But -"