Jack of Hearts (Desert Sons MC Book 1) (2 page)

She pulled the .38 out of the console and discretely slipped the concealed carry holster into the small of her back before she started the pump working. She fluffed her shirt to hide the slight bulge of the gun and entered the store. She had never carried a gun before, and didn’t like carrying one now, but with no way to unlock the car if she locked it, she didn’t want to leave the weapon in the car either.

She was browsing the snack aisle for road food when she watched an Albuquerque Police prowler ooze to a stop next to her stolen Chevy. It was possible the cop was there for gas, just as she was, but she couldn't take that chance. Without appearing to hurry, Tina exited the mini-mart opposite the two cars and casually strolled away so to not attract attention.

Frustrated that she couldn't catch a break, she stopped several times and discreetly checked for an open car. People in Albuquerque must not be as trusting as those in Santa Fe, because every car she tried was locked. Frustrated almost beyond tolerance, she decided enough was enough.

She lurked in the parking lot of a busy grocery store and waited for her opportunity. She looked for a soft target, an older person or a woman with a small child perhaps, someone that would be easy to intimidate. It didn't take long before a harried woman with a toddler in a loaded shopping trolley with a small whiny girl walking alongside her appeared.

Tina dropped in behind them and followed at a discreet distance until the woman stopped at a newish SUV. Tina quickened her pace and arrived just as the mom was pulling junior out of the trolley.

"Give me your keys and cell phone," Tina hissed, trying to sound as menacing as possible. She had been in trouble with the law a lot, but she had never actually held anyone up before.

"What?" the woman asked, not comprehending that she was being robbed.

"I said give me your keys and phone," Tina repeated, trying to sound threatening but actually quaking in her shoes. This was why she stole cars or did breaking and entering. With B&E, you didn’t have to confront anyone.

"No! I'm not giving you my keys!" the woman said as she glared at Tina.

Tina gritted her teeth in frustration. She didn't want to pull the gun out, because this would go from grand theft auto to armed robbery, and that brought with it a whole new level of shit, but she was committed now. After a moment of wrestling, Tina freed the weapon from the holster and brought it around to the front, holding it near her body and pointed at the ground so only the woman could see it. The woman's eyes went wide with fright and understanding as the color drained from her face.

"Wait! Wait!" the woman whispered harshly. "You can have them! Just don't hurt my children! They're in my purse!"

Tina tucked the weapon back into the holster, then rummaged through the woman's purse and pulled out the keys, wallet and cell, leaving the rest in the trolley. She unlocked the truck with a press of her thumb and threw the wallet and cell onto the passenger seat as she slipped inside. As she pulled away, she saw the woman running toward a man, babe still in her arms.

She was hammering down and hauling ass on I-40 as she tried to put as much distance between her and the grocery store as possible when a cruiser going in the opposite direction flipped on its lights. The concrete center barrier gave her a moment before the cop would be able to get to the next exit and turn to pursue. While she might outrun the Dodge, there was no way she could outrun the Motorola.

With a shriek of tortured tires and a cacophony of horn blasts, Tina hauled the thundering SUV across three lanes of traffic and down a ramp, just missing the exit sign. She barely slowed as she blew through the stop light at the bottom, the truck on the edge of control as she skidded through a left turn. She whipped the vehicle into the first parking lot she could find and jumped out the moment the truck rocked to a stop. She took the wallet for what money she might find inside, but she left everything else and ran, leaving the door open.
Maybe someone else will steal the damn thing and lead the cops on a merry chase,
she thought as she pounded away.

CHAPTER TWO

Tina was tired, hungry, and miserable. She had no watch and no cell, but she guessed the time to be around 2:30, maybe three o’clock, in the morning. All she knew was she had been walking for hours. The bright lights of Albuquerque were just a glow on the horizon as she plodded along the back road that paralleled I-40, head down in dejection and fatigue. She had tried to boost a car several times, but with no tools she had come up empty. Her plan was to turn off highway 333 onto Mountain Valley Road and walk toward the thrum of I-40. Mountain Valley had to cross I-40 somewhere not far from her current location and that meant a bridge … and a place to crash for the night. Across the road, a collection of squat buildings loomed in security lights. She couldn’t be certain, but they looked like small warehouses or something similar. With a sigh, she crossed the road to check it out. Maybe there would be a delivery truck or something she could hotwire, or at least sleep in. It would have to be more comfortable than sleeping under a bridge in the dirt.

She had no luck finding an open vehicle, but when she peeked through the narrow window of one of the buildings, she could make out the glowing numbers on a clock: 2:18. It was hard to tell in the dark, but it
might
be a break room of some kind. Tina turned sideways and compared her profile to the window’s width. It would be a tight squeeze, but she had gotten through tighter before.

Prepared to run if she sat off an alarm, she turned her face away and rammed her elbow into the glass. The shock of the impact traveled all the way to her shoulder and she hissed in pain. She should have known it wouldn’t be that easy. She picked up one of the large stones used in the landscaping, turning the rock until she had the best grip and weight balance. She once again turned her face away and gave the glass a hearty smack.

The glass may have stood up to her elbow, but it was no match for the rock. The glass shattered but didn’t break out. It took another blow with the rock, and a push from her foot, before the glass began to crumble and fall away. She cleaned the glass from the edges, and then slipped into the room.

What a break room! Easily the size of her entire trailer, the break room had a pool table, microwave, refrigerator, the biggest television she had ever seen, and a few video games and pinball machines. But most importantly, it had a huge couch that looked perfect for sleeping.

She rummaged in the fridge before pulling out a package of hotdogs and a beer to wash them down with. The dogs would be better heated in the microwave, but before that, she needed to make sure she was alone. Eating two of the weenies cold, she slipped out of the break room and began to explore the rest of the warehouse.

She didn’t know what was going on here, but she had finally hit the jackpot. There were three cars, all unlocked: an almost new Audi A6, an equally new BMW M5, and a new Jaguar F-Type! She ran her hand along the flanks of the Jag as she admired its sleek lines. Farther back was a collection of motorcycles, all Harleys as best she could tell in the dim light. Next to them were a car lift and a huge rolling tool box. Farther back still was another room, probably an office or another break room, and a large trailer of some type.

She smiled. She had stumbled onto a breaker, someone who dismantled cars and sold the parts. She had been in places such as this many times as she stole and dumped cars. She was going to take one of these cars and they couldn’t even report it stolen! She did a little happy dance at her sudden good fortune. But first, food! As she walked back to the break room to nuke some weenies, she noticed a bike set off to the side. She wasn’t an expert on Harleys by any means, but this bike was obviously old—very old—and perfect in every detail. She could ride a bike … and this one called to her. But not as much as her stomach did.

She quickly heated the remaining six dogs and devoured them one after the other, washing them down with a Lowenbrau. She would like another beer—it wasn’t often she could afford a
good
beer—but if she was going to be driving, she needed to be sharp. She all but skipped out of the break room. The food and her change in fortune had jazzed her up and pushed fatigue and sleep away. She was headed to the office at the back, intending to look for the keys for the cars, but she paused at the antique Harley again. She turned her back on the machine, but made it only two steps before turning back.
This is so stupid!
She raged at herself. Any of the three cars, but especially the Audi or the BMW, would be a much better choice. But the bike … it spoke to her, and she wanted it.

She licked her lips, trying to talk herself out of doing something stupid. Finally, her lips pursed in annoyance, she levered the bike off its side stand and began to push it toward the big roll up door.

“Going somewhere?” a deep voice asked behind her.

The voice grabbed her attention, but not as much as the sound of a gun being cocked did. Closing her eyes, Tina slowly lowered the bike back onto its stand and raised her hands to ear level.

“First smart thing you have done tonight,” the voice said.

“Are you going to kill me?” Tina squeaked out. She had been in some tight spots before, but never this tight.

“Sister, the only reason you aren’t dead already is because I don’t want to have to clean up the mess,” the man said, his voice cold enough to freeze water. When she didn’t say anything, he continued. “What are you doing in here, besides the obvious?”

Tina swallowed hard. “I just needed a place to sleep, and something to eat, so…”

“So you aren’t trying to steal my hog?” he interrupted, his disbelief clear in his tone.

“No. I broke in, and ate some stuff out of the ‘fridge. And I was going to sleep on the couch. But…”

“But what?”

“But … never mind,” she said as she sagged against the Harley. She was beaten and she knew it. “Just shoot me, or call the cops, or do whatever it is you’re going to do. I just don’t care anymore.”

There was a long pause. Then the voice said,
“Turn around.”

Tina turned and faced a man dressed only in a pair of denim jeans and nothing else. Tall, at least 6’2”, and finely muscled with dark hair, the man had a roguish handsomeness about him. At the moment, he looked sleep tossed and pissed, but she was just too tired to notice more. In three more hours, she would have been up for twenty-four hours straight, not to mentioned stressed out for the last nine.

“Can’t shoot me in the back and claim you felt threatened, is that it?” Tina asked.

“If all you wanted was food, why were you pushing the bike?”

“It’s a long story.”

“I’ve got all night.”

Tina sighed. “I’m on parole after pulling a year for B&E. Some chick was hassling me tonight and I punched her out. What I didn’t know at the time was her daddy was a deputy sheriff. Anyway, I stole a car, and … well … here I am. I don’t have any money, and I’ve been up since six this morning. I’m trying to get to Texas, trying to start my life over again. I just needed a place to sleep and something to eat. I ate all the hotdogs in your fridge. I was going to sleep on the couch and leave in the morning.”

“And the bike?”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t know it belonged to you. I thought this place was a breaker and the bike was already stolen. I just needed some wheels.”

“You expect me to believe that if you knew the bike belonged to someone, you wouldn’t have stolen it?”

“No, I guess not. You have no reason to believe me.”

He stared at her for a moment. “Let’s go.”

“Where are we going?” Tina asked, afraid to know the answer as the man took her by the shoulder and pushed her along.

“We’re going to check out your story.” He steered her into the lounge and walked her past the trash. On top was an empty hotdog package. “You came in through that window?” he asked in surprise as he eyed the opening. The window is so narrow, he wouldn’t have thought anyone other than a kid could squeeze through it.

“Yeah. It was a tight squeeze, but I have been in tighter.”

“What’s your name?”