Ridge Creek (18 page)

“Jake and Luke,” I mumble again as I start scrubbing at my
face with the palm of my hands.  “There’s been a misunderstanding.  Jake
appeared in my room this morning. I thought it was you.  I said something about
Luke and last night and he got the wrong idea.”

I watch as she raises her eyebrows in a confused look. 
“Bloody hell woman.  Why didn’t you set him straight?”  She quickly gears down,
takes a fast corner and slams back up through the gears again.

“I didn’t get a chance to.  I was too busy musing over the
fact that he was so upset about it that he got the jump on me.  He was on his
bike and gone before I could stop him.”

One minute.

“Well that’s a pickle,” she chuckles, seemingly unconcerned
about the whole situation.  “I love your work Arianna.   Waking up on a Sunday
morning to see two
very
hot biker boys punch on over a woman.  I
love
it!  Hot!  Hot!  Hot!  Can’t wait.”  I stare at her dumbfounded that she is
clearly enjoying this so much.  Slamming through the gears as we finally enter
Luke’s street she continues, “This could even be better than what I was
dreaming about doing to Zane last night.  That particular fantasy involved
handcuffs and a blindfold but this,
this
could be
hotter.
  You
are legend.  I couldn’t have dreamed up a better start to a day…”

“There’s his bike!” I yell as I cut her off mid rant.  The
fact that my best friend is so excited about a fistfight between two men, we
may need to discuss later.  Now is not the time. 

Revving her engine loudly, Emma slams back down through the
gears as I stare at the bike that is now getting closer and closer at an
alarmingly fast rate.  Grabbing hold of the arm rest next to me, I stare in
horror at the bike and yelp at Emma, “Slow the fuck down!”

 Laughing like a madwoman, Emma ignores me as she continues
her fast approach before finally hitting the brakes and skidding to a stop a
few meters behind Jake’s bike.  I briefly thank the Gods she didn’t
underestimate her stopping skills and hit his bike.  I don’t know that much
about bikers but one fact I do know from reading books and watching Sons Of
Anarchy is that you don’t fuck with a man’s bike.  That could have ended
badly.

Still focusing on the bike, we both rock forward in our
seats from the abrupt stop.  Emma is still laughing. 

Crazy bitch.

Flicking her a quick annoyed glance, I click my seat belt
lock open and grab for the car door.  Flinging it open, my feet have barely hit
the ground when I look up at the house and freeze.  Standing on the front
verandah, holding coffee mugs and staring at us are Luke and Jake.  They both have
huge shit eating grins on their faces.

And they both look
fine. 
With the small exception
that Luke is holding a bag of frozen peas to his jaw with one hand while he
holds his coffee cup with the other.

Staring openmouthed at the two of them looking so cheerful,
I realize two things.  One, I’m too late, Jake’s already planted one on Luke. 
Two, it seems to be over. 

Is that really it? 

More to the point, is that all I’m worth?  One poxy punch? 
What the hell?  One little tap and then they have
coffee?  
I don’t
exactly call that beating the shit out of your friend.  Is Jake a big pussy
biker or something?

Confused, I stall and slump back into the car seat.  Perhaps
I read him wrong
again? 

It’s then that I hear mumbling behind me.  She seems to be
cursing inaudibly before she finally speaks up to announce.  “Well that’s just
fucking disappointing.  All that excitement and this is what we arrive to
find.  They look fine to me.  Jesus Arianna, you had me going there, I thought
something
big
was going down.  Fuck it.  Fantasy blown.  Goddamn woman.”

Turning my head to look at her I shrug.  “I think I
overreacted.”

“Well, yeah.”  She agrees as she looks back up towards the
house.  “Oh well, it’s still funny and it’s been an exciting drive.  And I
still have the back-up amusement of watching your face as you finally realise
that you’ve locked yourself out of the Harley shop and you’re only wearing a
singlet and undies.”

What the fuck?

“And there it is…” she swings her eyes back to me, a huge
grin on her face.

Oh my god.

“Yep, priceless love.  The boys are enjoying the view too.” 
Then just to top it off, she adds, “Lucky I managed to get my dressing gown on
before you dragged me out the door, yeah?”

Holy shit.

Not only am I hanging out the side of a car with barely any
clothes on, but Emma is butt naked under that dressing gown.    Jolting back to
life, I swing my feet back in the car and slam the door.

Emma starts laughing.

Loudly.

Swinging my attention back to the boys on the verandah I see
they are still grinning broadly.  I watch as Luke mumbles something before he
heads back inside.  Jake stays standing on the verandah staring at me, still
highly amused.

“Well, it’s clear he’s got coffee so I’m going in,” Emma
announces and I hear her door click as she starts to get out the car.

“Don’t fucking leave me here on my own,” I snap angrily. 
“You need to take me home.”

“Sorry love, we can’t get in.  With that in mind, I’m gunna
have some coffee while you talk to Jake.  You need to explain this morning and
get some keys.  I’ll be back after my coffee, unless of course you want Jake to
give you a ride back on his bike.  By the looks of it, I reckon he’d be happy
to take you back, but you might get a bit cold…”  She chuckles to herself,
shuts the door and sashays off in her dressing gown.

Fuck.

I suppose she’s right.  What choices do I have?

It is then that I see movement on the verandah again and
watch as Luke hands Jake a hoody and a pair of tracksuit pants.   Clothes in
hand, Jake starts wandering over towards the car.  Greeting Emma with a quick
grin and a chin nod, he passes her by and walks straight to the driver’s side
door.   Opening the door slowly, he slides into the driver’s seat awkwardly as
he struggles to fit into the seat.  Tossing the clothes to me, he sets his
coffee cup on the dashboard and then leans down to fiddle with the seat
adjusters.  Pushing the seat back as far as it will go, he then reclines the
top half backwards so he can fit in.  Deciding he has given himself enough
space, he swings his legs in and shuts the door behind him.

“Nice car,” he mutters as he reclaims his coffee cup and
drinks a sip.  Looking at me with his tired, puffy eyes, I see they still hold
an amused sparkle and the tips of his mouth are twitching slightly.  “You gunna
put those on?”

Realizing that I’m once again, in some stupid, frozen state,
I nod and start getting dressed.

Watching me quietly as I struggle to maneuver the clothes on
while sitting in the car, he sips his coffee.  “It’s nice to see your blue
eyes, the green are nice but your blues are nicer.”

“Shit, forgot about my eyes,” I mumble as I finally manage
to haul the pants up under my bottom.

“You forgot a bit more than your contacts babe,” he chuckles
again.

“Don’t fucking laugh at me,” I snap angrily at him.  “If you
hadn’t have gone off half-cocked I wouldn’t be in this pickle.  And what. The.
Fuck.  I’m only worth one punch then you have a coffee to make up?  What’s with
that?  Then again, strike that, I didn’t want you to hit him in the first
place.  Fuck it.  Now
I’m
confused.”

I watch as his face straightens and he looks remorseful.  “I
hit Luke.”

“I can see that.  How’d he stop you hitting him again?” I
ask.

“He didn’t fight back.  He looked genuinely shocked.  Thank
fuck.  I had planned on beating him to a pulp.”

“Thank God,” I sigh as I slump back into the seat of the
car.  “And
yay…
”

“Yay?” I watch as he shakes his head at me, “What’s the yay
about?”

“You thought me worthy of beating him to a pulp for,” I
explain softly.  Now even more embarrassed about the whole drama.

“You’re worth it,” he rumbles peering into his cup before he
hands it to me.  “Luke makes good coffee.”

“You don’t look like you need coffee.  You look like you
need sleep.”

Nodding he agrees.  “True that.”

“I take it Luke explained we were playing
pool
last
night and that we had dinner at Holders?”

“Yeah.”

Sipping at my coffee, I look out the window and finally take
notice of Luke’s house.  It’s a wide set brick veneer, close to the road that
is flanked by two small paddocks of pasture.  There’s some sheep with lambs and
an alpaca grazing quietly in one of the paddocks.  Having never seen an alpaca
outside of the Royal Melbourne Show farm animal display before, I find the
scene calming.  Country living is a far cry from city life.  Even the street is
quiet.  At this time of day in Melbourne, there would still be cars coming and
going as people went to work, walked their dogs or jogged.  In the country,
people don’t need to walk their dogs, they just let them outside and to take
care of their own business.

Swinging my attention back to Jake, I see his eyelids
drooping as he leans back against the headrest on the seat.  “We need to get
you to bed.”

“Yeah,” he mumbles softly then yawns widely.

“Off you go, I won’t be far behind.  I just have to wait for
Emma.  Please leave the shop front unlocked, I need a key.”

“Yeah, a key.  We’ll sort that out later,” he announces as
he opens the car door and slides out.  “See you soon.”

Then with a click, he closes the door softly.  I watch as he
wanders slowly to his bike, climbs on, starts the engine with a roar and then
pulls away.

Hearing the sound of pipes, Emma and Luke appear in the
doorway at the front of the house again.    Emma is now holding her own cup of
coffee.   Taking the last swig of Jake’s coffee, I climb out of the car and
wander on my bare feet over to the house to hand Luke his mug.  He is still
holding the frozen peas to his jaw in one hand.

Frowning apologetically, I ask him to let me see the
damage.  Lifting the peas from his face, he grins and I wince.  He has a dark
purple bruise forming and a split to his lip.

“Shit…” I mumble and put my hand out to touch the bruise. 

“Ah, ah!”  He growls as he avoids my hand.  “I’ve taken
enough pain for you this morning, keep your mitts to your yourself.”

“God, I’m sorry.”

“No major harm done.  I’m a big boy. He’s hit me harder than
that before.  Although those times, I probably earned it.”  He grins at me
again and I see his blue eyes flash dangerously.  “I think we have plenty of
evidence you need to talk to Jake, yeah?”

“Yeah,” I agree slowly chewing at my lip and flicking a
glance to Emma who is giving me an ‘I told you so’ look.  “He’s hit you
before?”

“Don’t ask,” Luke mumbles as he pushes the frozen peas back
against his jaw and reaches for Emma’s mug.  “You might want to go and put some
clothes on.”

“That would depend on what
your
plans are for the
day.  I can stay if you want,” Emma says cheekily, lifting an eyebrow to Luke.

“Jesus fucking Christ,” Luke mutters as he steps back
through his front door.  “Then I’d have Zane on my doorstep as well.  Give a
man a break.”  Closing the door behind him, Emma and I are left standing on his
veranda, apparently we have been dismissed.

“Right then,” Emma announces, “it would appear that I will
have to shop elsewhere to get me some biker booty.”

Shaking my head at her, we both head back to her car and
drive home.  The drive is far more sedate this time.  Arriving back at the
shop, we lock the front door behind us and both head back to our rooms.  Emma
advising she plans get changed and go for a run.  I decide to return to my room
and talk to Jake.

Stepping into the room, I find it is still greyed out with
the curtains drawn.  Even in the dim light I can see Jake however.  His huge
hulking body spread across the bed, he looks peaceful and is snoring softly. 
He has only managed to take his boots off before falling asleep exhausted. 

Smiling softly, I head to the far side of the bed and watch
him sleeping for a few moments.  Sighing that we won’t be able to talk for a
while, I grab the doona and sheet, roll it back over his body to keep him warm,
grab some clothes and leave him to rest.

Towball

I’m sitting at a table in the communal room sharing a cold
chicken salad with Emma.  It’s early afternoon and Jake is still out cold so
Emma and I have spent the last hour chatting to a guy called Towball.  Jambo is
sitting on the back of a chair next to her happily eating a chunk of banana.

Towball is typical of the biker guys we have met so far.  By
this I mean that he spent his first ten minutes in the communal room ignoring
us as if we didn’t exist.  It was only with considerable coaching from Emma
that he finally gave in to her charm and joined as at the table for a lunch
time chat.

Towball, aptly named for his bald head, works his bald head
look
well.
  With icy blue eyes, a strong square jaw and a neatly trimmed
goatee, he is another guy we can add to the hot list of men we have met in
recent times.  I can see that he has clearly caught Emma’s eye, because right
now she has dragged her chair close up to his and she’s leaning
right
in
to show him some photo’s on her IPhone.  

Not that he hasn’t caught my eye as well.  It’s just that
after this morning, I am sworn off looking at
anyone.
  I need to have my
talk with Jake and clarify exactly what is going on between us before it gets
us both into any more trouble.

Chewing on a chunk of lettuce, I break into their intense
study of her phone to ask Towball a question that has been bugging me for a few
days.

“Why isn’t there a television in the communal room?”

Tensing slightly, I watch as his eyes become even more icy
and intense (wow) as he takes on a guarded look.  “Jake took it out a few weeks
ago.”

I should have seen that coming.

Go figure.  He hid my face from me for a week to make sure
the worst of it was over before I saw it.  No doubt he thinks that keeping me
from the television will achieve the same result.  As time goes by, the news of
my disappearance will eventually become old news.  He also mentioned that Tony
has been making some bullshit pleas to the public to help find me.  I guess I
don’t need to see that.

Or do I?

What can it hurt now?  I’m moving on.  I’ve already resigned
myself to never going back to my old life and the strongest feeling I now have
for Tony is pure disgust.  The fear is slowly receding every day that I spend
creating my new life and learning to live it. 

What could it hurt to see what the world thinks of my
disappearance?

“Do you know where he put it?” I ask casually, still chewing
on my lettuce as if it is of no importance. 

“I’m not stupid woman,” Towball warns me gently, his face
still guarded.

Damn, no use trying to play down my sudden interest in the
television, Jake’s already made some sort of ruling on television viewing too.

“I know you’re not stupid,” I try to calm him slightly, “but
I was just wondering if you knew
where
it went.  I’m not asking you to
go
get
it or anything.”

“You need to talk to
Jake
about the television.  Not
me,” he says dismissively, giving me a warning look.

Of course I do.

I have a
lot
to talk to Jake about but he’s not here
right now is he?  He’s sleeping and because he’s sleeping, he’s not talking. 
“Noted,” I mumble as I grab for some more salad and chew thoughtfully.  “Out of
interest – you’d know all about my… past – too?  Wouldn’t you?”

I watch as he stares at me thoughtfully for a few beats and
then swings his attention back to the IPhone and Emma.

“Not gunna answer that one either huh?” I tease gently.

“You ask too many questions woman,” he growls flicking me an
annoyed glance from under his eyebrows as he leans in closer to Emma’s phone.

I watch as Emma pretends to fan her face and mouths the word
‘hot’ at me.  I have to agree.  That growl of his just sent a shiver down my
spine.

Jesus.

Wondering if I should let the whole thing go, I stab a small
piece of chicken with my fork.  Staring at the small piece of meat for a few
seconds, I put my fork down and decide to plow on.  “I’ll take that as a yes. 
In that case – perhaps you could just answer me
one
question.”

I watch as he shakes his head and flicks me another annoyed
glance.  Seemingly resigned to my interrogation, he sighs and draws his
interest away from Emma’s phone and leans back in his chair.  Pinning me with
an annoyed stare, I briefly consider not asking.  But what the hell, you only
live once?  (Or twice in my case obviously.)

“Why does Jake trust all you guys so unconditionally?  How
is it that you know who I am but no one is worried, or – rather, seems to
care
about it too much?”

Running his tongue around his teeth, I watch as he reaches
into a front pocket on his jacket to pull out a packet of tobacco.  Sitting it
in his lap, he pulls out a filter paper and deftly rolls himself a cigarette. 
I stare mesmerized, there’s a lot of skill in rolling a cigarette by hand.   A
skill that I have never had.

Putting the cigarette to his mouth, he then reaches into
another pocket, produces a lighter and lights his cigarette.  Taking a long
drag, I watch as his eyes resume their intensive study of my face.

Yowzers.

“I’m gunna answer that one.  The rest, you talk to Jake
yeah?”

Sure!

At least it’s a start I suppose.  Everyone is so cagey
around here.

“We all
owe
Jake… and to a certain degree, Zane
something.  Those two brothers have done something for each and every one of
us.  They’ve earned our respect and they’ve earned our loyalty. We all have
different reasons, but I can tell you there is not a man around here who
wouldn’t do
anything
either of them asked us to do. And I mean
anything.
 He’s also made it clear you’re part of his package now so we keep our
mouths shut and do as he asks.  Unconditionally.  No questions asked.  There’s
also the fact that most, if not all of us, have our own pasts.  Some even have
current situations they don’t want anyone to know about so you are no different
than any of the brothers who spend their time in this room.”

I watch as he pauses for a moment to take another long drag
of his cigarette.  The tip burning a dark orange as he sucks in heavily.  
Keeping his eyes on mine while he does so, he cocks his head to the side and
seems to be deciding what to say to next.

Blowing the smoke back out slowly, he moves his attention
back to Emma who has been sitting there silently the whole time.  “The thing
is,” he pauses again, and I start to think he has decided not to say anything
before to my relief, he continues.  “She looks and acts like she belongs here,”
moving his eyes back to mine, “You don’t.  I’m not sure you’re cut out for it.”

Huh?

What does that mean?  Instantly offended, I no longer feel
relieved that he kept talking.  Instead I think I am now regretting hearing
what he had to say.

Shit.

What the hell did he mean by that?  If he’s referencing our
backgrounds he could be in for a rude shock to find out that it’s quite the
opposite.  Trust fund Emma verses shit for nothing family Arianna.  If either
of us was more likely to end up living with bikers, it was always going to be
me.

I think I’ve subconsciously always known this.  It was the
number one reason I stuck with Tony for so long.  I’ve never held a huge
opinion of myself, based on my mother and lack of father.  Being with Tony felt
like a safety net and no matter what he was getting up to behind my back, I
always just assumed he was the best I was going to get and that was how it
would be.  If he hadn’t hurt me so bad and then tried to kill me I’d probably
still be with him now.  Even after finding out he made his living off women and
guns.

Seeing the shock and irritation on my face, Emma enters the
conversation.  “She’s more cut out for it than you realize,” she murmurs
smiling softly at me.  “She’s tough.  And ballsier than you think.  She’s also
capable of understanding and accepting more about a person than you think.”

Moving her attention back to Towball, I watch as her eyes
harden to a dark silvery gray before she continues icily, “Her worst enemy
however, is a lack of knowledge.  People keeping
secrets
from her is
what landed her here in the first place.  You and your
brothers
might
like to think about
that.
”

Holy shit.

Watching Towball closely, I hold my breath as I wait for
it.  The inevitable biker
meltdown.
  Brief images of him grabbing her by
the throat and head butting her flash through my mind. 

Jesus Emma.  You can’t poke a biker bear and not expect
him to bite.

Instead, to my disbelief, he does almost the opposite. 

He grins.

Then he nods slowly.

Then he slowly takes another drag of his cigarette as he
stares at Emma thoughtfully for a while before he moves his attention back to
me.  Blowing his smoke out again and leaning forward, he moves his face closer
to mine.  I find myself staring without blinking into his ice blue eyes.  His
breath is whispering against my face and I can smell the strong scent of
tobacco.  I find myself experiencing a rare and sudden cigarette craving as he
says, “If what’s she saying is true, one day, I might tell you my story.  Until
then, I’ll watch how you deal with Jake before I make any decisions.”

With that statement, he shoves his cigarette back in his
mouth, pushes his chair back and stands.  Moving his eyes away from mine
dismissively he swings his attention back to Emma.  “You.  I’ve got a wife. 
She’s a cunt.  She’s also the mother of my beautiful daughter so I’m stuck with
her for my kid’s sake.  If you’re ever looking for some action and you can keep
your mouth shut, track me down.”

What the fuck?

He’s asking her to be his bit on the side? 

Well that’s as straight up as it comes from a man.   At
first mortified that he would be so blunt and disrespectful to his wife, I
quickly find myself softening slightly.  At least he was honest about the
situation and he cares enough about his daughter not to have an affair in front
of her face.

Emma on the other hand is a lot more liberated than I am. 
“Sure,” she smirks up at him thoughtfully.  “I’d be interested to meet the
cunt
first however.   Work out whether I care or not if you know what I mean?”

“I’ll bring her in one Friday night,” he nods in
acknowledgment, a hint of a smirk on his face.  “You meet her, I reckon you’ll
agree.” 

With that said, his face breaks into a huge grin and he
turns and heads for the door to the garage.  “Gotta go find Pops.”

Emma and I both stare at the empty doorway for a few beats
before she moves her attention back to me.  “Well that was an interesting
chat.”

“You could say that,” I agree as I grab some more salad and
start chewing again.  “I guess I’m gunna need to harden the fuck up, yeah?”

“Yep,” Emma agrees as she too continues eating.  “Does it
bother you?”

“Not in the least,” I answer without hesitation.  “New life,
new rules.  As long as I get the full story and I know that I can trust these
people, I don’t give a fuck what they’ve done.  Or do.”

“I figured that,” Emma smiles at me again before she
continues eating her meal in silence.  It’s not until we are both finished that
she finally speaks again.  “Time to find the television.”

Jumping up from my seat, I immediately agree.  “I thought
you’d never ask.”

*****

“Jesus, how many rooms has this place got?” Emma asks
exasperated as we open another door to yet another room.  We’ve already looked
in six other small rooms.  One turned out to be another bedroom (maybe Zane’s
crash room) and the other five were all storage.  All filled with locked
cabinets and boxes.  We have yet to lay eyes on a television.  The place is a
real live rabbit warren.

Both leaning through the door at the same time, our eyes hit
an enormous flat screen television sitting on a low timber stand.  Grinning, we
both glance towards each and high five.  “At least they’ve got a decent
television,” I squeal with excitement.  “I was expecting a ten inch, black and
white portable with a set top box.  I had already resigned myself to adding
another item to my ever growing shopping list.”

“I don’t suppose there’s any point in us trying to find one
of the men to help us carry it out is there?” Emma muses.  I think she is
right.  I doubt anyone is going to go against Jake’s orders by helping us set
it up. 

“How’s your back?” She asks thoughtfully.

“Pretty good, this won’t even be heavy will it?  It’s just a
flat screen and small stand.  We’ll take the flat screen first and come back
for the cabinet, yeah?”

Famous last words. 

Getting the huge screen around all the corners as we
negotiated the rabbit warren back to the communal room wasn’t as easy as first
thought.  Not that it was heavy.  It was just awkward.  After quite a bit of
cussing and laughing, we finally wrestle both the television and its stand back
into the communal room.  After a brief search, we also find the power and
aerial points to one side of the room. 

While I plug it in and power it up, Emma drags a couch that
is against a wall on the other side of the room across so that it is facing
front and center to the screen.  Throwing herself into a seat, she lets out a
huge, “Aah.”

“It’s got heaps of USB points,” I comment as I sit down next
to her and start fiddling with the remote.  “We can run our lappies through it
and watch movies.”

“Cool,” she mumbles as she snatches the remote and starts
flicking through stations.