I was just some girl, just another dumb girl getting sucked up into their violent, dangerous wake.
We rode for a while, and I couldn’t help but think about everything. As soon as we got closer, though, my mind began to drift toward the topic at hand.
Rod lived in a beat-up trailer in the middle of a trailer park. I’d been there once back when he was trying to teach me how to ride. We’d met at his place and then he took me out to an abandoned parking lot half a mile away.
Poor Rod. I couldn’t imagine it was his idea to try to rip off the Snakes. He just didn’t seem like he had that kind of thing in him. He was sweet, maybe a little dumb, but he was nice to me and I liked being around him.
We rode through the park slowly. There weren’t many people around, which seemed a little odd. Then again, I couldn’t remember if there were any the last time, either.
I nudged Ford’s back and pointed. Rod’s trailer was just ahead, looking exactly the way I remembered it.
We pulled up and parked right out front.
“Stay here,” he said.
“No way. You’ll need help looking.”
“It’s dangerous.”
“It’s dangerous out here, too.”
He grunted. “Fine. Stay close.”
He pulled his gun from his jeans and moved up to the door. He knocked twice, got no answer, and then tried the handle. It was locked. He took a half step back and then kicked the door just above the handle. It took him a few tries, but finally the door snapped open, flinging inside.
“Come on,” he said. We walked into the trailer.
I frowned at the space. It had been completely torn apart, just like my apartment.
“I guess they were already here,” he said.
“I guess so.”
The place was an absolute wreck. Trash was strewn about, the covers and padding on the chairs were torn to shreds, dishes and glasses were smashed, and the bedroom was torn to pieces. I picked through it, bit by bit.
“You do the bedroom,” he said. “I’ll stay out here.”
I nodded and went into the back. I began to go through the drawers and storage spaces, but it was just full of Rod’s stuff. All of it junk, crap, garbage, but all that was left of my friend.
I felt a lump in my throat and had to swallow hard against it. I wasn’t going to cry for him, not again. He knew what he was getting himself into, knew that dying was a real possibility. Maybe he never thought it would happen, but it did, and he’d dragged me into this mess.
It was hard to go through his stuff, but I did it anyway. Because I had to. Because Ford was trying hard to protect me, and I needed to help him as best I could.
As I continued shifting through the stuff, I noticed a window on the back wall. I brushed the shade aside slightly and had to quickly stifle a gasp.
Two men stood out there, creeping up along the back. Two men in leather jackets with snake patches on the back.
I quickly backed up and went into the main room.
“Ford,” I whispered.
He looked at me, grinning. “Porno playing cards.” He held up some playing cards with naked ladies on them.
“Ford,” I said again. “Outside.”
He cocked his head at me, but quickly his face got serious. He nodded once, drawing his gun.
He moved to the window and peered out. He gestured for me to get back, and I walked back into the bedroom, watching from the open door. I watched as he kept looking out the window. He pressed his heavy gun up against the wall and waited for a second.
Then he pulled the trigger. There was a loud boom and a shout from outside.
Ford didn’t wait. He burst out the front door. I couldn’t see what happened, but I heard the gunshots. Fear gripping my chest, I stood up, but I couldn’t make myself leave the trailer. I was so terrified, so horribly terrified. What if Ford was dead? What if I had gotten him killed?
A minute later, Ford came back in through the door.
I ran to him, throwing my arms around him.
“I thought you got hurt,” I said.
“Nah,” he said. “I surprised them.”
“Ford,” I said, pressing my face against his chest.
“It’s okay,” he said softly. “I shouldn’t have brought you.”
He held me that way for a quiet minute, but soon he had to peel me away.
“Come on,” he said. “We have to go before the cops come.”
I nodded. We moved outside the trailer. I didn’t want to look, but I had to see. Two men were lying on the ground, not moving. There was a lot of blood.
“Come on,” he said again, moving me away. We got onto his bike. He started the engine and we pulled off.