Chapter 8 – Runaway Train

Instead of going to a job after school, Nelly hurried home to make sure supper was ready when her father got home from a busy day of scheming and gambling. As luck would have it, he was already there and he wasn't alone. He sat at their small kitchen table, across from a huge muscled man with a bold head and covered in Aryan tattoos. The stranger was definitely a skinhead, dressed in a white wife-beater, a pair of black jeans and tall, lace up Dr. Martens. His strong features, big meaty mouth and nose, large hands and a mean look in his eye, made Nelly's blood run cold. She slumped her shoulders and averted her eyes as she rushed to the kitchen to start cooking.

While Nelly was busy preparing dinner, the men were discussing some drug deal, moving meth, and the name of Sam Crow kept coming up, tweaking her interest.

"Now, Sam Crow will probably do everything possible to kill this deal." The man her father called Darby said, "You know how much these fucking bikers enjoy messing with our business."

"Fucking John Teller and his crew, they think they own this town."

"There was a time when they did. But times are a-changing."

Both men chuckled darkly at that. They were hushing out the details of the deal, but all awhile Nelly felt Darby's eyes on her, crawling over her like cockroaches.

After a short lull in the conversation, she heard the skinhead say, his voice thick and slow. "Your old lady must have been a beauty, cause sure as hell the girl didn't get her good looks from you."

"Take a picture, it'll last you longer." Her father growled, but stopped at that.

"You dirty old man," Darby smirked at Troy, "You want this sweet little peach all to yourself, just don't have the balls to take a bite and run off anyone who'd try."

Nelly sneaked a shocked glance at the pair of them. Darby spoke aloud her own suspicions. She watched Troy's shamed expression turn into rage, and had to get out of there. She grabbed a half-full bag of garbage and left the two arguing men behind.

Nel threw the bag into a bin and stood there waiting, hoping Darby would leave soon. He did, but as Nelly was trying to sneak back inside through the side door, he stepped in front of her, his huge tattooed arm blocking her way. "How old are you, sweetheart?"

Nelly's stomach churned with fear, but she cast down her eyes and refused to answer. Darby's strong hand pulled up her chin firmly until her eyes met his. "I figure in a few months you'll be ready for me, and then I'll give you a roll in the hay you'll never forget."

Nelly couldn't be more glad to see her father appear in the doorway. "You still here, Darby?"

The big bold man gave them both a nasty, cunning smile, then walked away leisurely. Nelly let out the breath she's been holding. She hoped and prayed that what Darby said was a cruel joke, but her skin crawled at a possibility that one day he might do good on that promise.

She went back into the house and set a plate of food in front of her father. She lost her appetite and felt like she needed a shower. Instead, she locked herself in her room and reached out for the phone, speed-dialling Donna's number. "Hello, Parker's residence," Donna's voice echoed down the wire. It sounded so far away, it might as well have been coming from China.

"Hey Donna, it's Nelly." She tried hard to keep tears out of her voice, still shaken by the confrontation with Darby. "How was your first day at school?"

"All right, I guess," Donna answered in her usual, relaxed way. "But it wasn't the same with you gone."

"I'm sorry." That's all Nelly could think of. "I wish we were still going to school together."

"I know. How about you? Tell me about your day." Nelly could picture Donna stretching out on her stomach on the pink carpet next to her bed, preparing for a chat.

"It was interesting. I've run into some old acquaintances."

"Oh yeah?" Donna's curiosity was stirred. "Do tell."

"Remember that girl Tara I told you about? The one I met at the course at St. Thomas?"

"The biker chick?"
That made Nelly giggle, "No, she's not a biker chick, just dating a son of an MC biker. And by son I mean blood relation."

"What about her?" She asked impatiently.

"It turns out she's in my new school and we share a class. And I got to meet her biker boyfriend and his buddy."
"Oh my god, Nelly, what were they like?" Donna had cultivated a healthy fear of the MC thanks to Linda's stories and her own mother, who couldn't help being apprehensive, and a very keen curiosity.

"Surprisingly normal. Actually, regular dudes." Then her thoughts turned to silent Harry, the image of his face making her feel less afraid. She let her mind wander. "The boyfriend seemed like a pretty boy player type, but his friend was very different. Kind of quiet. I don't know... There was just something about him."
"Wow, you really noticed the friend." Donna giggled. "What was his name?"
"Harry. Harry Winston." Nelly replied, and shrugged. "Well, it was hard not to notice him, the dude is seriously tall."

"You mean taller than you?"

"Yes! Imagine that!" They both laughed, but Nelly's mood changed quickly as she added, "It's nothing, Donna. You know my aunt would kill me if I expressed any interest in anyone remotely related to the club. And besides, I'm really not interested."

"Well, if anything changes, you let me know, Nel." Donna's laughter died out and she asked. "How are things at home?"

"The usual." Nel gave a big sigh, for a moment weighing whether to tell Donna about Darby. Almost instantly she decided against it. "So far no trouble."

"You know you're always welcome here, Nel. I miss you so much, and I think my mom does too. It's been ages since we've had our chick flick night. It's just not the same without you."

"Tell her I miss all of you." Nelly's eyes watered again. "I really do, Donna."

"Listen, we'll come pick you up on Friday, have a sleep-over weekend."

"That would be awesome." Nelly was grateful for the invitation. "I'll be in touch."

She put down the receiver and felt the urge to get on the bus, to go to her best friend's house right away. Instead, she pick up the phone again, spoke with her aunt, and within minutes had her duffel bag packed. On her way out, Nel called out to her father, barely lucid in front of a TV. "Dad, I'm going over to aunt Linda's house for the night. She needs my help at the shop tomorrow." That was a lie - Linda never let her work at the nail salon, as it was a hang out for the women of MC. Still, she needed a cover, and most of all, she wanted to get out. Troy only gave her a grunt and a wave of a hand, while he drank his beer. She took it for a sign of consent and left through the side door.