AllFreeNovel
Share Us
No other signs the Steel Kings are after me have emerged. It’s safe to say it’s the former; Velma happened to be in the local area. Mason’s kept his word and hasn’t come after me and won’t so long as I never show my face in Pulsboro.
Rusty’s Tavern is deader than a cemetery most nights. Only a handful of regulars patronize the establishment, mostly pot-bellied middle-aged and retired men who seem like relics from the ’80s. They’re friendly enough but have a habit of wanting to haggle on the prices of their beers.
My nights at this bar pale in comparison to the Steel Saloon. At the saloon I thrived on the excitement in the air, and the entertaining personalities of the guys in the MC. I laughed, chit-chatted, joked around, flirted, and even danced if the occasion felt right.
It became more than a casual job; it became moments of bonding with others in the same exclusive club I was in. Maybe not as an official member, but there’s no denying the Kings—even Mason in due time—welcomed me with open arms.
They accepted me as one of their own.
A guy at Rusty’s bar counter hacks up a phlegmy cough and draws me out of my reverie. I blink out of my fond memories as a barmaid at the Steel Saloon and tune into my drab, smoke-hazed reality at Rusty’s.
The guy with the phlegmy cough swears at me and slams his hand on the counter, demanding I hurry up and get him another drink.
If this were the saloon, one of the guys would see to it he checks his tone. He’d even be thrown out the front doors if he refused to show the barmaids some respect.
I sigh and plod over to the beer tap to fill up his stein.
The sooner I earn some extra cash, the sooner I can ditch Wheaton and start over somewhere else. It’ll be without the revenge and justice I swore I’d get on Pop’s behalf, but what other option do I have considering what happened with the Kings?
I’m one woman. I’ve learned I’m not equipped to go up against a violent motorcycle club.
For the rest of the night, I’m stuck at the counter serving phlegm guy and watching the old box TV mounted in the far corner. Reruns of ’90s sitcoms like Roseanne play; no one really pays enough attention to care or notice. The handful of patrons we have are either too drunk to know whether they’re coming or going, or too invested in quietly moping, drowning themselves in their sorrows.
As if the depressing atmosphere couldn’t get any worse, another infamous Texas summer storm unleashes itself in a deluge of heavy rain.
My entire body locks up at the first clap of thunder. It’s aggressive and resonant, traveling across the land for miles to come, and making my heart race. I go from wiping down the sticky bar countertop to swallowing against the panic lodged in my throat.
“It’s okay,” I whisper under my breath. “It’s… it’s okay, Syd.”
“HELLO!” hacks the phlegm guy. He smacks his germy hand on the counter. “I’m talking to you!”
But I barely register what’s happening.
I’m in a tailspin of old trauma, falling deep down a hole of bad memories that have left me so scarred, I often forgo thinking of them altogether.
“Kurtis!” Mommy cries out. “Please… don’t do it. They’re getting a rise out of you!”
Daddy sits behind the wheel. I’m in the back, strapped into a carseat. I can barely make out his expression… but by the slashed angle of his face, he’s clenching his jaw in disagreement.
He thinks Mommy’s wrong.
“Then what should I do?” he grinds out. “Let them intimidate us?”
“Syd’s in the car.”
“That’s why I gotta do what I gotta do. Sit tight. I’ll handle it.”
I kick my legs out as if wanting to do the opposite of what Daddy says. I want to jump out of the carseat and crawl up front to beg him to take us home.
The car windows streak with raindrops and it’s so dark out… too dark out…
Thunder roars and I hug my doll baby to my chest, on the verge of tears.
Daddy gets out the car in the heavy rain and approaches the group of men. Mom promptly locks the car doors and lets out a stifled cry of her own.
“Mommy,” I mumble. “Where’s Daddy going?”
“Shhh, Sydney!” she hushes from the front, distress in her voice. “Just shhh. Close your eyes and cover your ears.”
