You knew where you stood with a woman like her. No games. Just raw honesty. Maybe that was too much for some guys. It turned him on.
Gunfire sounded from outside. Half the patrons in the bar ran for the door. The other half looked around in confusion. Bonnie stood from her stool. She didn’t scream or ask silly questions. Her face showed concern and readiness. LB and Mother emerged from the back office.
“Bunny,” LB yelled. His face was red as a beet as he stormed through the crowd. The man was beyond pissed. “What the fuck is going on, Huffy?”
“No idea, sir. Just heard what sounds like gunfire.”
Cracker Jack came running inside, his hand covering his shoulder, blood seeping between his fingers. Cherry ran to him with a bar towel. She pressed it to his wound. Huffy was too far away to see if it was a through and through.
He cried out, “Preacher!”
Preacher was a longtime member of the club. He was best friends with the former president, Geronimo. Huffy knew he needed to get outside to see if Preacher was hit and how badly. The front door was jammed with people; it would be easier to go out the back door. He made his way toward the back. Stopping before he entered the hall, he wondered, maybe he should bring Bonnie with him? Get her out of here before the police arrived. He turned back to go get her as Preacher came through the front door. Huffy was relieved he was all right. He took one step before watching Preacher raise a Smith & Wesson revolver. He shot Cracker Jack in the back of the head. Another bullet hit Cherry. She fell to the floor. Huffy couldn’t tell where she was hit or if she was alive.
Huffy rushed to Bonnie. She was standing behind her father. He needed to get her out of here. Preacher may not be acting alone. More likely than not, he wasn’t alone. He had no idea who could be trusted. Bonnie screamed as a bullet hit her father. His body jolted on impact. Not once, not twice, but three times. Huffy got there in time to catch LB before he hit the ground. He had two bullets hit his shoulder and another in his gut. This was bad.
“Get her out!” LB growled.
Mother drew a Ruger from his waist band. “Take him with you. Get the fuck out of here.”
“You’re not coming?”
“Someone needs to stay here. I got this. Keep my goddaughter safe at all costs.”
It would only take a minute for Preacher to reload if he wasn’t packing another piece. He slipped his arms under LB’s and began to drag him backwards. Mother flipped a table up to use as cover. He fired back at Preacher. Two guys Huffy didn’t know entered the bar, firing rounds into whoever happened to be in their way.
They wore Potomac Brotherhood colors. Fucking Preacher sold out the Angels. They needed to move quicker. If the back door wasn’t covered already, it would be any minute.
Bonnie screamed as he continued to drag her father toward the hallway. “Dad. Dad, hold on.” His eyes rolled back in his head. She put her fingers to his neck. “He’s just unconscious. He’s losing a lot of blood, Huffy. We need to get him out of here.”
Huffy needed to be able to cover them, but LB would be too heavy for her to carry on her own. The man was knocked out and nothing but dead weight. He was stuck between a rock and a hard place. They only had one hope.
“Can you shoot?”
“Yeah, Dad made sure. I work late at night.”
“In my boot. It’s loaded.”
They stopped at the back door. Bonnie grabbed his throwaway piece from his ankle holster. She immediately pointed the weapon at the floor and checked the rounds. She flipped the safety off, nodding she was ready. Huffy was impressed. She wasn’t shaking or melting down. She was calm and ready for whatever came next. This should not be a turn on. He maneuvered LB so he had a better grip.
He really didn’t like her covering for him. “I don’t like you going first. I can leave you both here while I check things out, then come back to get you.”
“So then someone can shoot us from the hallway while we wait? No thanks. I’ll hold the door open and keep my eyes on the yard. You get him to my truck. It’s the silver Chevrolet Colorado. I’ll be right behind you.”
It wasn’t ideal, but she was right. He nodded his agreement. “Be careful. Don’t trust anyone you see.”
Bonnie used her hip to open the door. The gun pointed down in front of her, she exited the building, holding the door open for them to get out. They had to cover close to fifty feet with nothing to conceal their movements. Bonnie scanned the yard as he picked her father up in a fireman’s carry.
He still needed both hands; LB was a solid son of a bitch. He couldn’t believe the series of events that went down. Preacher murdered Cracker Jack and who knew how many other guys. Cracker Jack was patched two weeks ago. The poor kid wasn’t even legal to drink yet.
He reached the truck, sliding LB’s body off his shoulder, leaning him against the side. Suddenly yelling came from the side of the building. Huffy opened the back door of her truck, heaving LB’s limp body inside. Bonnie fired off a round. He didn’t know if she hit anything, nor did he have time to look around and check. The opposite door opened, she climbed in.
“I have some first aid in here, but it may not be enough. You drive.”
Bonnie tossed him the keys. Pushing LB’s legs in the truck, he slammed the door. He scurried into the driver seat. Turning the engine over, he peeled out of the spot. He glanced in the rear view. Preacher barreled through the door, shooting before he was all the way out. The back window of the truck shattered.
Bonnie screamed but never stopped tending to her father. He could hear her rustling through her bag and tearing packages open. LB moaned as she pressed something into his gut wound.
“Disable any tracking on your phone. LB’s too. Power them both off.”
“Do you think that’s necessary?”
“The Fallen Angels have friends everywhere, and we don’t know which ones are on LB’s side.”
They made it to the highway without further confrontation. He got off and back on at one point, always watching the rearview to make sure they weren’t being followed. Once he was certain they were clear, he headed north. It was a long ride. He hoped LB could hold out.
The cabin was tucked away in the middle of the woods. There wasn’t another cabin around for five miles at least. They would be safe here. No one in the club knew about this place, not even LB.
Bonnie sounded completely exhausted. “Where are we?”
“My cabin. Don’t worry. The guys don’t know about this place. It’s my private retreat. How’s your dad?”
“Alive.”
“Let me unlock the door and I’ll come back to carry him in.”
She ran her fingers through her hair. She didn’t say anything. She nodded before laying her head against the back of the seat, closing her eyes. Her face was taut with worry and exhaustion. Unfortunately, there would be no rest yet. They had to patch LB up and figure out what’s next.
Once inside, Huffy pushed everything off the dining room table with one swoop of his arm. He ran to Bonnie where he left them, leaning on the door frame for support. Slipping his arm around LB, they maneuvered him to the table.
“He’s lost so much blood. I don’t know…I just don’t, Huffy.” Her voice was barely over a whisper.