At some point I took the directions into my hands and guided him back into the alley I first took shelter in. The three-hour ride has been killer, the vibration of the engine has turned my muscles to an overstimulated mess. Walking around should be fun. Cobra shuts off the bike and we both remove our helmets, I kick my leg over the bike. Vibrations resonate through my muscles as I wait for him. "Do you have a game plan?" Since this is the club's business, I've figured it's best to let him take lead, I'm not sure how well this will play out.
"Not really, do you have anything?" As I stand I look out the mouth of the alley, darkness has descended over the marina, that doesn't mean its workers have gone home for the day.
"We have to be careful, the workers don't fuck off till after eleven. I say we camp out, mark cameras." I shrug and pass off my helmet to him, this is going to be one hell of a night. Cobra attaches the helmet to the bars before he stands with a slow nod.
"There has to be more cameras, maybe one got what we are looking for." I nod and stare out into the night, erotic sounds echo from adjoining alleys. At least someone is having a good time.
"Do you have any idea what path he had taken?" I glance back at Cobra as he dismounts, the dark leather jacket glimmers in the pale silver moonlight.
"No, we only learned where he was because Shovelhead passed his bike on the way into the club. Called in we searched for him before we found his body." Cobra gets choked up, he stills, his back straightens as a shaky breath leaves his form. My heart aches for him, this has to be hard, devastating for him. I place a hand on his shoulder and squeeze.
"I'm sorry Cobra, you aren't going to like the questions I have, but I need to ask them. I can have Rubble do this. I ain't gonna make you sit through this shit." That's beyond cruel and insensitive.
"Fuck that." He chokes out as he stands straight and gives his head a shake. "I'm going to see this to the end - Dad deserved that." I nod as he looks at me, his eyes bloodshot with fresh tears.
"He was an amazing man; remember no matter what is found, he had his reasons. All good intentions." I want him to be prepared for anything we find. I'd hate to accuse someone in the club of getting Bear killed, or being a traitor. But between the things I was given and found, shit is going to go down hill and quickly.
"How bad is it going to get?"
"I'll be honest, right now I think the leak in the club is connected to Bear's death." I turn away from him, I'm not proud to admit to this gut wrenching feeling; I'm not proud of the doubt I've been given either. This weariness weighs heavy, it'll mount to a point of insanity.
"How could the leak be connected?" An engine can be heard in the distances as it's revved, it screams in the quiet night. Lights illuminate the street and I step back against the wall; I doubt they'll peer down the alley, hell I doubt they aren't high.
"You saw how close Bear rode to that bike, he knew - trusted them. You don't ride double otherwise Cobra, even you know that." I look at him as he sinks back into the shadows, grabbing my arm to pull me down to a crouch.
"Son of a bitch. Maybe it was Kado, they would've ridden together." I glance his way as a Cadillac rides by slowly, large rims, sparkling chrome with a deep plum paint job. I've seen that car around town, normally hanging out around this area. I'd bet my bottom dollar they aren't working a legal nine-to-five to pay for that thing.
"For your sake, I sure as hell hope so." My gut says otherwise, I hate to be the downer in this scenario, but fuck's sake. Bear's killer will pay for his crimes; I'll enjoy nailing their ass for this. Or killing them. I'm not opposed to that idea, sadly Cobra is. I respect his wishes, not happily.
"Where do you want to start?" We stand and he pulls me towards the mouth of the alley, my arm held hostage by him.
"Let's see if we can spot any more cameras, there has to be something we can use. Maybe by the time we finish we can round back and evade the workers. The police shouldn't be an issue after that." They rarely come out after employees have left, no one gives a damn then. Everyone who lives in the apartment complexes around the marina have grown numb to the night life.
"I don't know how we'll find where they went." That's an excellent question.
"We'll have to make our best guesses, you know where he was found, we can backtrack. If need be, we'll just access every damn camera until we find the path he took." Bear was meticulous in everything he did, I don't doubt that he thought this out. There has to be meaning, even if it's road names, roads missing something. He'll give us the answers we need, I just worry it won't be soon enough.
"You saw Dad that night, didn't you?" I can only offer him a stiff nod, I never imagined that would be the last time.
"Yeah, I walked up and surprised him." The last greeting he gave me was to level his pistol at my head, damn near gave me a third eye. It was my fault, I should've given him more of a heads up; not that Rubble didn't.
"What do you know about that night? What did you see?" I shrug as we work towards the outskirts of the marina, keeping a slow and steady pace.
"By the time I arrived, there wasn't much to see. Rubble was injured, it was a five in laceration, Bear and him were arguing. Rubble called Kado, he was ten minutes out, we left after that." I take a deep breath as my eyes scan the mostly vacant streets, we aren't alone, not out here. "I didn't know shit went down, not until you lot showed up at my place." If only I had known of Bear's passing, I would've been here sooner.
That small head start might've saved me my land and a headache. "Rubble said that he had to deliver that envelope three weeks to the day. I didn't realize it when I insisted on meeting you. He just said that he wanted to come because you'd have questions I wouldn't be able to answer." I give a slow nod, he was right.
"Bear said that for a reason. He knew I was being watched, hell maybe it's always been like that. Did Bear have something to do every three weeks, like clockwork?" It's a theory I have to look into, maybe that is the reason behind the three week mark.
"Yeah, he always went out for a ride, Gears normally went with him; it was their thing. It was two months ago that Mom ended up in the hospital, that was the only time he missed his ride with Gears." Bingo. That's the straw that broke the camel's back. The literal finger that pulled the trigger. "Why?"
"Two people who went on 'rides' every three weeks end up dead, three weeks after that, there was a hit for me. Cobra, I'm in the center of this." What Bear gave me, that contract, will hold more answers to this meeting than I originally thought. My worst fear is coming true, this all started with me. This is a terrible time to be gifted this; what a piss poor gift.
"How is Dad's meeting connected to you?" I shake my head angrily, this is all biting me in the ass. I should've fought harder to stop this back then.
"It wasn't free to rescue me. Cobra, there's more to this storm that you can't comprehend yet. My knowledge will be combated unless I have proof to give you - concrete proof." I don't know how to tell them that the man who built the Archangel's is a monster, a monster that has deep secrets hard to expose. Unless you've seen them in action. This is horrific.
"Hellion, why are you talking in riddles again?" Because that is the easiest thing to do right about now. We get to the exit, the way Bear and friend had left. I use the term friend loosely, this friend is an enemy we should've kept at a distance.
"You'll understand soon enough. Have you been in the area at all?" If he has, that just might be the first clue we need to get started.
"On a field trip when I was young, I must've been in middle school." I stare down the dimly lit streets; there's only a few get away options he has.
"Did he have a preferable get away strategy?" Every person has their method to the madness. If only I can pinpoint his method.
"Not that I know of." More help would've been nice. The three streets all lead into different ways: Shovelhead.
"Where did Shovel find his bike?" I don't know the area fully, but I have a decent enough of an idea to make somewhat of an estimation.
"He found it down by the LKQ Junkyard, down in the back alley. Looked wrecked, the paint job was fucked." Was it laid down by him or someone else? Probably someone else.
"That's almost four miles from here, headed down elm street, unless you take the back grids." I mumble to myself as I recall the back grids streets. I have little experience down on the grid complexes for the lower-income families. What I know is that it makes for a great evasion route.
"The back grids sound promising, do you think they'll have cameras?"
"Business and busy intersections might, few options. Bear would've wanted to be on camera, to catch evidence. We might have better luck down Plano street, they're more busy intersections and businesses." My gut is leading me away from the back grids, Bear left me too much to throw care to the wind at this point.
"That's out in the open, you think he'd risk it that much?" I shrug, I can't be certain.
"I say we start there, see where that leads us." My hope for this having a happy ending continues to dwindle. Shit rolls downhill. And it's coming fast, especially if this nightmare runs on a three week schedule, the deadline approaches quickly. There's a car alarm that sounds in the distance. The continuous piercing alert squalls shatter the eerie silence efficiently. It's easy to forget where we are; the dead of night offers a deceiving calm.
"It's a start." The soft drone of an engine sounds, water splashes as it drives through a still standing puddle. The sidewalk is illuminated as the car heads towards us. My heart skips a beat, we should've been paying closer attention. An arm is wrapped around my waist pulling me back as I'm pushed back against the large concrete wall. I'm stunned into silence as Cobra covers my lips with his. His body presses me further into the wall; coaxing my response.