The Backside of Nowhere

I cruised by the little back road bar and then turned my bike around and went back. To this day, I don't know why but I did and my life changed completely. Whether it was for the better or for the worse is still up for grabs. I will let you decide.

*****

Parking my bike, I sat there waiting. For what I wasn't sure but something told me to wait. In my lifetime, I've learned to listen to such things. I pulled a crumpled up pack of cigarettes out of my vest pocket and lit one.

I'd been riding for an hour or so and the first cigarette is always the best. It gives you that lightheaded buzz. I've done all kinds of shit in my life but had left most of them behind. Cigarettes and beer were about my only vices of that nature left.

Finishing my smoke, I stood up to grind the butt out on the dirt of the parking lot with my boot heel. Two cars were in the lot, one on either side of a blocked off bike parking area. I had backed into the middle of this area.

I heard the door of the bar open behind me but didn't turn around immediately. I stretched my back and stepped off the bike. An older redheaded woman was standing on the raised porch looking down at me.

"Are you coming in or are you just taking a break?"

I looked her up and down and smiled. "I'm not sure. I have the feeling that I'm supposed to wait for something but I don't know what."

"Then come in and have a beer. Waiting can be thirsty work at times. Anyway, I'm bored to death and could use some eye candy like you."

I chuckled and shook my head. "You must have me confused with someone else. I'm far too old to be anyone's eye candy."

"You let me be the judge of that," she whispered as she leaned her elbows on the low porch rail and lifted one foot to the beer box next to it.

Standing straight she had one hell of a figure, but bent over as she was put a strain on the front of her blouse that threatened to bust buttons. That raised leg had her short skirt pulled up enough for me to see she was wearing a pair of thigh high stockings and nothing else under it. The shadow of the skirt kept me from seeing much other than a tuft of bright red hair.

I looked at her, not hiding the fact of where I had been looking, and then winked. "I like your open invitation,"

"It's not for everyone, you understand."

She shifted the knee of her raised leg out to the side more as she spoke. Now I could see that she was shaven except for a narrow strip just above her slit.

I licked my lips and sighed deeply. "You do drive a hard bargain," I said, accentuating the word hard.

"I like hard bargains from time to time. Especially ones dressed in leather and riding a motorcycle."

"I wonder . . ."

With a grin she asked, "What do you wonder?"

"I wonder what you would look like in a pair of chaps, a leather vest, and nothing else."

"If you stick around long enough you might find out."

"In that case," I said as I came up the steps, "shall we go have a beer?"

She straightened up and turned toward me. This spread her thighs even wider but my view was not nearly as good as it had been earlier. I gave her a pouting look. Her grin got bigger as her hands went to the front of the skirt and lifted it to her waist.

"Is that better?"

When I licked my lips again, she gave out with a little shuddery breath and whispered, "If my daughter wasn't here, I'd take the damned skirt off."

"Maybe later, after she leaves," I whispered back.

She nodded as she dropped the skirt and came over to stand right in front of me. "I'm Tessa."

"I'm Red, uh, I mean Rad."

She laughed and came up on her toes to brush her lips softly over mine. My arm went around her waist and pulled her tightly to me as my leg slipped between her thighs. She gave another little shuddery breath and then moaned softly.

I could feel the heat of her sex through the skirt, my Levis, and chaps. "You are one red hot woman," I lowered my head and kissed her very softly and gently.

With a whimpering moan, she melted against me. When I nibbled on her lower lip, she flexed her hips and rubbed herself on my leg, the moan getting louder and stronger. I returned to kissing her only this time it was harder and more passionate.

Her hips moved faster and she groaned. I lifted my head and looked down at her. Her eyes were closed and her lips parted. The motion of her hips slowed and with a sigh, she opened her eyes. She blinked a couple of times and then smiled.

Tessa took several deep breaths and then whispered, "I have the feeling we've done that before, but I can't remember where or when."

I nodded and replied, "I understand the feeling."

The door of the bar opened. We both turned to look that way but neither of us moved otherwise. A younger version of Tessa stared back at us, a frown on her face.

"That's an interesting breath of fresh air you have there, Mom."

Tessa giggled and nodded. "In more ways than one."

"Ralph is going to kill you both if he catches you," the redheaded young woman said and then closed the door.

"Ralph?" I asked after a moment's silence.

"Uh, that would be my maniac old man," Tessa whispered dropping her eyes to my chest.

"I see."

"No, you don't but . . ."

"Maybe I should have my beer down the road a ways," I said, relaxing my grip on her waist.

"It would be safer and saner but not nearly as much fun," she whispered back.

"I've never been accused of being sane," I replied as I tightened my grip again.

Tessa started to kiss me again but paused and cocked her head to the side listening. A few seconds later, I heard the rumble of motorcycles far up the road. With a sigh, she came down off her toes and stepped back.

"It's too late now. We'd best go inside and wait it out," she said as she took my hand. She opened the door of the bar and I followed her inside.

*****

I was sitting on a stool around the far end of the bar with a beer in front of me when the roar of scooters filled the parking lot. There was a lot of motor revving and loud shouts back and forth and then the noise slowly died as each bike was shut off. Finally, there was silence.

Tessa and her daughter were standing at the far end of the bar. "The calm before the storm," Tessa said with a sigh.

There was the sound of boots on the steps and then the porch. The door opened and a dozen bikers filed in.

The one in the lead yelled, "Who the fuck parked that piece of Jap crap in the bike area?"

I looked around the room and then back at the guy yelling. "Since I'm the only motherfucker here, I guess that would be me," I said in a calm voice.

"Then get it the hell out of the bike area. In fact, get it the hell out of the parking lot, period," he yelled as he walked over to the bar.

"And if I don't?"

I kept my voice calm and low as I spoke. A seconds later, I heard the snick of a switchblade opening as the man I assumed was Ralph turned to walk toward me. I laid a Glock 9mm on the bar and smiled.

"That would not be very healthy. Bringing a knife to a gunfight is never a good idea."

He paused and then shrugged. I heard the knife snap closed. I slipped the Glock off the bar and stuck it in the back of my belt under my vest.

"Tessa, give these boys a beer on me. They look thirsty," I said a little louder than I had been speaking before.

When I called Tessa by name, the man looked at me hard again.

"How do you know my old lady?" Ralph asked with a hard edge in his voice.

"I just met her a few minutes ago, in this lifetime, that is."

"You mess with my old lady and this lifetime will be very short."

"You know, some things never change. Sawed off runts like you always seem to have chips on their shoulders and big mouths," I said as I unsnapped the front of my vest.

"If you didn't have that gun I'd show you who was the runt around here."

I laid the Glock back on the bar. "You mean this gun," I asked as I opened my vest to reveal a double shoulder holster rig with two more Glocks. "Or these two?"

"What the fuck? Do you think you have enough firepower there or what?"

The question, yelled out from someone in the back, made me grin.

"Pretty much. Are you boys drinking or bullshitting?"

Ralph's crew moved slowly to a couple of tables in the corner. When Ralph turned that direction, I said, "Why don't you sit up here at the bar with me? I'd hate for one of your boys to get hurt because you were stupid."

"Are you telling me what to do?" Ralph asked as he turned toward me.

"Nope, just making a suggestion," I said softly. "I've known your kind all my life and sooner or later you'll get stupid. With nothing but that wall behind you, I don't have to worry about killing anyone by accident."

Ralph looked around at the bunch riding with him. They were all looking somewhere else. He turned back to me with a confused look.

"Do I know you or something?" When I shook my head he asked, "Then what's your beef with me?"

"I don't like assholes, especially ones who try to give me orders. We could possibly have been friends if you hadn't copped an attitude right off the bat. As it is now, you're high on my shit list."

"Who the fuck are you?" Ralph asked.

"I'm the guy who's going to kill you if you don't ease up on the hard guy routine. I'm the guy who's going to take your old lady away from you very shortly, if she's lucky. I'm someone who's a hell of a lot meaner than you ever thought about being. I'm the guy you should have steered clear of and left alone."

"Man, you're crazy," Ralph whispered as he stared in disbelief and anger.

"Yeah, yeah I am. I always have been and I always will be. So sit down and drink your beer."

Anger won out for a split second and then his eyes dropped to the Glock still lying on the bar. I could see the physical effort it took for him to reign himself in as he pulled out a bar stool and sat down.

Tessa sat a beer in front of him and he gave her a dirty look like it was her fault. "This is your own fault, so don't even go there." I told him.

"Who the fuck are you?" Ralph repeated his earlier question, frustration heavy in his voice.

"Most people call me Rad but you can call me Sir."

Ralph started up off his stool and someone in the back of the room said, "I wouldn't do that if I was you, Ralph."

"Why the fuck not?"

Ralph spun around on the stool and glared in the direction of the guy who spoke up. An older guy with a long gray streaked beard stood up.

"Like he said, you don't have a clue who you're messing with. But I do." The man paused and looked in my direction. "We both rode with the Valley Boys back in the day."

"Jake, if I remember correctly," I said to him.

He nodded. "This bunch calls me Old Man, but I'm still Jake." He looked back at Ralph. "He'll kill you just for the fun of it, especially now that you've pissed him off. You might want to plan a long trip if he's staying a while."

"I'm staying," I said softly.

Jake nodded. "Yep, a long trip somewhere else is a good idea. A healthy one, anyway."

Ralph's head moved back and forth, as he followed the conversation. When Jake quit talking, he stood up. "I ain't going anywhere."

"I'm sorry to hear that," I replied in a low voice.

You could have heard a pin drop as Ralph walked down the bar toward me. He reached the end of the bar and I heard the snick of the switchblade opening again. My arm deflecting the knife and a fist between his eyes met his quick step around the end of the bar.

The next sound was him hitting the floor. I picked up the knife and laid it on the bar before I reached down, and grabbed him by the front of his shirt and vest. His hundred and fifty pounds wasn't much as I picked him up and sat him on his stool. He slumped over the bar, out cold.

I returned to my stool and drained my beer. When I sat it on the bar, I turned to the two redheads watching me.

"Tessa, I think everyone needs another beer after that. I know I do and I'm pretty sure Ralph will when he wakes up."

Tessa grinned as she started hauling bottles out of the beer box. She looked around at her daughter in the far corner and waved her arm in the air.

"Connie, get your little ass over here and help me. Ralph ain't going to hurt you or me anymore."

Connie's eyes darted from her mom to Ralph and then over to me.

"Help your mom," I said with an easy smile.

"Uh, yes sir," she said just over a whisper as she moved for the first time.

*****

Connie had returned behind the bar after serving the round of beers to the two tables. Ralph groaned loudly and she backed away from him, her back again in the corner. I could see the fear in her face. Tessa frowned and shook her head at her daughter's reaction.

"It's going to be all right," I said with a smile and a wink.

"It can't get any worse," Tessa replied, still frowning.

Ralph groaned again and then sat up with a jerk. He gave Tessa a dazed and confused look and then looked down at the two beers in front of him. He picked one up and downed it in one long pull. Everyone was watching him as he did.

When the bottle was empty, he slammed it on the bar and turned his head to look at me. If looks could kill, I would have died instantly.

"This ain't over," he whispered.

"Yes, it is. You're finished here. You don't have any friends here and now you've got your worst nightmare come true, right here in front of you. Like Jake said, it's time for you to take a long trip, a one way trip."

Ralph looked over his shoulder at the men sitting at the tables behind him. No one returned his gaze.

"You chickenshit motherfuckers!" Ralph yelled.

The big man sitting next to Jake looked at Ralph and shook his head. "Nope, we're just tired of your bullshit and your asshole ways. This club used to be twice as big until you took over. With you gone we'll all be better off."

Ralph started to stand up. As he did, the men at both tables stood up, too.

"We had already decided to vote you out; we've just been waiting for the right time. This looks like it," the big man said.

"You can't vote me out, I'm president."

The big man raised his hand and looked around at the rest of the gang. Slowly, all of them put a hand up. Looking back at Ralph, the big guy smiled and said, "We just did."

"Bullshit," Ralph said and stood up.

"Club votes are the law," I said softly.

Ralph wheeled around in my direction and yelled, "Asshole!"

"Yeah, I am, but I'm a fair asshole. I don't take advantage of the weak or women. I don't beat up on young girls. I don't play cock of the walk just because I'm crazy and I can."

"You're a dead man," Ralph said menacingly.

"Some day, but it won't be from the likes of you."

Ralph's face was red with rage as he took a step toward me. Then his eyes took in the Glock and his knife on the bar in front of me. He did an about face and took two steps toward the door.

"Leave your vest on the back of the chair," Jake said from across the room.

Ralph stopped dead in his tracks and turned to face Jake. "You want my colors, Old Man, then come and take them."

The big man took a step around the table and said softly, "We all want them." There were nods all around and several more of the gang took steps in Ralph's direction.

Rage was back in his face as Ralph shrugged the vest off and let it fall to the floor. "Fuck you all," he said as he headed for the front door.

As he opened the door, the big man said, "Jake, take three or four of the boys and escort Ralph to the county line."

"I'm going to get my stuff from Tessa's place," Ralph said.

"No, you're going to the county line and if you ever cross back into this county, you're roadkill. I told you, we've had enough."

Ralph glared at me and then slung the door open and went out. Jake grinned at me and headed for the door with four guys behind him.

"Hey, Jake," I called. When he looked my way, I tossed him the Glock off the bar. "Just in case he's packing on his scooter."

He tucked the gun under the back of his vest, nodded, and went out the door. A minute or so later, there was the sound of scooters riding hard down the highway. The big man crossed the room and leaned on the corner of the bar next to me. He stuck out his hand and smiled.

"Big Mike."

I shook his hand and replied, "Good to meet you."

"It's good to meet you and your timing is perfect. You saved Ralph from a major ass whipping, although I should have done just that when he dropped his colors on the floor," Big Mike said with a frown.

I nodded. "Exile without anything but his clothes and scooter is hurting him worse than having his ass whipped. His ego is the problem but he doesn't realize that yet."

Connie came down the bar and sat two beers down, one in front of each of us.

"Mom says these are on her," the young woman said with a shy smile in my direction.

Tessa was down at the other end of the bar with a smile on her face. I lifted my beer in a salute to her and the smile turned into a grin as she nodded back.

I turned to offer the young girl in front of me an encouraging smile. "I told you things would get better."

She nodded and returned to stand next to her mother. She was not in the corner any longer.

Big Mike smiled and nodded. "She's a good kid but Ralph was not good to her or for her. If nothing else, she's a good reason for him to be gone. Sooner or later, he would have tried something and hurt her. Tessa would have killed him."

I nodded and raised my bottle in his direction. "To better times for all."

The big man grinned and clinked his bottle against mine. "To better times for all."

We drank in silence for several minutes and then Big Mike leaned out to look at the back of my vest. Crossed silver lightening bolts were center on the vest between my shoulder blades.

"Is that a club or personal?" he asked a moment later.

I looked at him for a moment trying to decide whether to tell him the truth or not. I decided on the truth.

"It's personal but it's recognized by a number of clubs. Clubs I've either been a member of or done business with."

He nodded his head and said, "I figured as much. It kind of goes with the shoulder holsters."

"I have permits to wear them but don't ask why or how," I said with a grin.

Big Mike chuckled and shook his head. "I know better than that. I also know that if I offered you a membership everyone would vote you in but you wouldn't accept."

"I like being freelance, although . . ." My gaze moved to where Tessa and Connie were standing. "I do find this area very interesting in more ways than one. I might just hang around, if you guys don't mind."

Big Mike followed my gaze and grinned. "No problem, since she seems to like you. Tessa was married to the guy who started this bar and who started our club. It was our clubhouse at first. Then he died and she kept things together by opening it up to outsiders. Then Ralph came along."

He was frowning when he quit speaking. A moment later, he added, "Ralph was smooth and easy at first. She fell under his spell and a lot of the guys in the club did, too. Just the last year or so is when he started with the attitude."

He stopped talking and sipped his beer, the frown still on his face.

"How long had he been president before that happened?" I asked.

"About six months. It went to his head, I guess."

I nodded. "That happens. A taste of power makes some people stupid."

Tessa came down to our end of the bar. "The boys are on their way," she said as she sat two more beer bottles on the bar.

I reached for my wallet but Big Mike laid money on the bar. "These are on me."

I nodded. "Thanks," I said to him and grinned at Tessa as I heard the sound of approaching motorcycles. "You have good ears."

"They're sensitive, too," she said with a wink as she turned back toward her daughter.

There was the sound of motorcycles backing in out front and Big Mike nodded in my direction. "I think I'll join the boys at the table. We have to figure out who's going to be the new president."