Motorcycle clubs have always been a boys club. It makes sense: the violence, the hierarchy, the fact that they haven't exactly met the women's movement. Now, there's a new club in Northern Cali, looking to make a name for itself. It's already allied...
Tiki cursed and pushed her bike for more speed as she flew down an old dirt highway ahead of two black SUVs. She had noticed the tail about ten miles out of Charming but hadn't said anything until they pulled over at a truck stop three hours later. T.O. had immediately wanted to head back to Charming, but Tiki wasn't sure how well Clay would take them bringing a potential problem to his front door, so she had convinced T.O. and Duke to go back and she would continue on by herself until the cavalry could arrive.
Now, she was wishing she had gone along with T.O.'s plan because she was running low on gas and was nowhere near anything that even looked like a town. She looked behind herself and cursed as the SUVs seemed to be gaining on her. She shook her head in denial as her bike started sputtering and losing speed. Suddenly, it died and she lost control as the lead car knicked her back wheel. The last thing she remembered was two sets of Italian loafers running toward her as she blacked out.
The roar of motorcycles storming onto the lot brought Jax and Happy outside to see what was going on. Happy cursed under his breath as he saw T.O. and Duke climbing off their bikes and hurrying their way.
"Where the fuck is Tiki?"
T.O. shook his head. "Don't really know, man. The last we saw of her, we were all leaving a truck stop going in different directions."
As the other Sons came out to see what was going on, Happy shook his head. He was beyond furious. He just wasn't sure at the moment who he was more furious at: T.O. and Duke for deserting her or Tiki for obviously talking them into it. "I swear to god, I'm gonna put a leash on that bitch."
Tig snickered before laying a calming hand on Happy's shoulder. "Look, why don't you start at the beginning. We're all a bit confused."
T.O. shook his head. "Look, Tiki caught the tail a few miles out of Charming but didn't say anything until hours later at the truck stop. Two black SUVs. I wanted all of us to come back here and face off with them, but she didn't think SAMCRO would appreciate us bringing that into town." He looked at Clay who was now standing beside a steaming Happy. "I let her talk me into splitting up. I know it was the wrong play but honestly, she would have just ditched us anyway."
Clay looked at Happy, silently telling him to cool down, before turning back to T.O. "One of you should have stayed with her and one came back if you had to split up at all." He shook his head as he looked at Tony. "You know of anyone who has it in for Tiki?"
Tony blew out a sigh as Chibs put an arm around her. "Yeah, her ex, Gino Morelli. He's an underboss for Cacuzza. He just got out of Stockton. I'd lay money on it being him."
Happy shook his head. "She rat him out or something? Why would he be after her?"
Tony glared at him. "Of course, she didn't! Tiki's no rat. It's not anything like that. She broke up with him a day before he got pinched for B&E. It was just a coincidence, but Gino was pissed. Said if he couldn't have her, nobody would, the usual possessive bullshit. Cacuzza was actually the one that pushed Tiki to break it off with him after he hit her one too many times." Tony grinned. "Cacuzza's an asshole, but he doesn't like abusers. I'm pretty sure Gino took a beatdown over Tiki as well, so he's probably pissed."
Clay shook his head as Happy cursed quietly beside him. "This is just great. Ok, any idea where he would take her? Obviously, he's not gonna tell Jimmy of his romantic plans."
Tony grinned as she pulled out her phone. "I'll call Jimmy anyway, see if he knows anything. He might know where he'd take her if nothing else. Besides, giving him a heads up that Gino's off the leash will come in handy. More people looking, ya know?"
Happy shook his head. "So we're just gonna sit on our hands and wait for someone to point us in the right direction?"
Clay nodded, holding his hands up in defense. "Hey, you got a better idea? We don't even know where she took off to, so we don't even have a starting point to search. As much as I hate the idea, we're just going to have to wait and see what pops."
Happy shook his head as he glared at T.O. and Duke. "Fine, but when this is over, I owe these two a beatdown for leaving her alone."
T.O. shook his head as Duke scoffed. "Hey, you try telling her what to do, man. She doesn't listen to us."
Happy pointed at himself. "I told her I didn't want her going with you two, that I didn't trust it, but she went anyway and look what happened. I was fucking right!" He shook his head and walked toward his bike. "I can't just sit here." He pointed at T.O. "I'm gonna go looking for her. You two are coming along since you deserted her. You were the last ones to see her. That will give me a starting point at least." He looked at Tony. "Call me when you find out something."
Happy gritted his teeth as they left the truck stop in the direction that Tiki had taken off in. He was going to beat the living shit out of her when he caught up with her. She had to learn to play by the same rules that the rest of them did, and the number one rule was no renegade bullshit. He felt his heart drop into his stomach when they found her bike laying on the side of the road that they had been on for what seemed like forever. He stopped beside the motorcycle laying on its side and got off to walk around, looking for any clues that he could find.
He'd been looking for a few minutes when he head Duke yell from a few feet down the road. "Shit! Got blood here, boys. A lot of it."
