Free, the word clanged in J."s mind like a bell. He felt ten pounds lighter as he stepped across the threshold of Sayers" dingy office and out into the warm spring air. It was perfect riding weather, and there was no better way J. could think of celebrating. Free free free.
J. swung his long leg over his custom Harley. It was the shiniest and cleanest thing on the entire block. He had been customizing for ages, adding parts as the money trickled in. It had been hard to sc.r.a.pe together while he was still paying his rest.i.tution to his victims, but now he was done. His money was his to do with as he pleased.
He kicked the bike to life and slowly made his way out of the narrow streets of North Philly The entrance to I-95 was clear, the early morning traffic snarl having cleared up a while ago. He roared onto the highway, heading north, away from the skyline, away from the congestion. J. wanted to ride on hills, he wanted to see trees and smell spring in the air.
Ride to live. Live to Ride. It was the unofficial motto of the Sons of Steel M.C. J. could see his brand new patch out of the corner of his eye as his cut fluttered in wind. Road Captain - it was a phrase that filled him with more pride than he had ever felt before. The position of Road Captain meant that he rode in the rear of the pack when the club went for long distance rides.
It was up to him to watch for signs of trouble.
When a brother fell out of the pack with mechanical problems, J. was right there with his toolbox, ready to fix things on the side of the road. Being Road Captain meant he kept the brotherhood of bikers together. Anytime they rode together, he was there blocking traffic in the pa.s.sing lane until everyone in the pack could get over, antic.i.p.ating lane changes and spotting problems before they happened. He watched out for them, and the brotherhood knew that he had their backs.
Prison had taught him how to keep an eye out for trouble. Six years of ducking both the COs and his fellow inmates had sharpened his senses to hyper awareness. Six years of fear had reshaped him. He was tuned for fighting, like a radio that only broadcast one station.
J. gunned the bike faster, hoping the wind in his face would blow away the bad memories that threatened to overtake him. Faster and faster he wound in and out of traffic, but his pain was even faster. The anger hit him like a punch to the gut, forcing him to relive it all.
The low points where he wasn"t sure if he"d make it out alive.
The courtroom, the anxiety, his sister"s anxious face. Waking up in a steel bunk every morning. The depression that threatened to swallow him whole. Red rage that made him ball his fists and blinded his sight.
Motorcycles saved his life.
It was a complete fluke that led him to sign up for the motorcycle repair course. J. had never had much use for school. He and his best friend Randall had skipped more days of school than they had attended, but the chaos of Strawberry Mansion High School meant that he was pa.s.sed from grade to grade regardless. But once he was behind bars, his boredom led to curiosity, which led him right into the vocational cla.s.sroom of Teach Jones, philosopher-mechanic.
J. had never met a man like Teach. He had been working as a votech instructor at the correctional facility in Perkiomen for nearly twenty years and he had seen it all. Nothing fl.u.s.tered him. Nothing set him off. Instead, the older man radiated calm authority. He commanded respect as his due.
One day in cla.s.s, one of the inmates, a squirrelly little wannabe skinhead, gave Teach s.h.i.t. He stood up at his worktable, screaming out slurs and complaining that Teach"s long gray dreads stank too badly for him to stay in the room. J. watched, waiting for Teach to respond with anger when the little punk called him the worst names there were. In fact, J. was ready to beat the punk down himself, right there in front of everyone.
But instead, Teach had folded a socket wrench into his huge hand and crossed his arms. He waited impa.s.sively for the loudmouth white kid to shut his face. The silence lasted so long, J. started to squirm uncomfortably. He had never seen a man so still, so immovable. The punk kid slowly trailed off in the face of his calm and meekly sat back down. Teach stood in the prison cla.s.sroom as if he was planted there and nothing could move him from that spot.
J. was fascinated.
As his sentence dragged on, he learned everything he could from Teach. Mostly about motorcycle repair, but also about religions and history and Teach"s favorite subject, philosophy. J. went to the prison library and picked up the teachings of the Roman philosopher Seneca, Teach"s personal hero. He spent many nights in his cell, laboriously picking through the dense words.
"The point is not how long you live, but how n.o.bly you live." He memorized the word and took them to heart. The teachings of the Stoic philosopher calmed the red rage in his mind almost as much as the intricate work of dismantling a 1200cc, 74 cubic inch, horizontally opposed V-Twin engine and rebuilding it from scratch.
J. slowed his bike, hugging the curve of the off ramp. The road along the Delaware River wound among the rolling, gra.s.sy lawns of mansions as he made his way up to the bridge at Lawrenceville. Riding led him further out of Philadelphia than he ever would be without it. Riding cleared his head and soothed the riot of anger that sometimes threatened to consume him. Riding let him see the country. Riding had given his life purpose. He had a job now, a place to live and brothers who would die for him if asked. Ride to live, Live to Ride.
The sun peeked out from behind a cloud, warming the black leather of his jacket. The wind was in his face, the roar of the engine filled his ears. He could do whatever he wanted, he was free. For the first time since that stupid f.u.c.k-up six year ago, he was his own man. "Keep your head down," Officer Sayers had warned him, and he intended to listen to that advice. No more prison, no more screw-ups, no more red rage getting the best of him. No getting mixed up in other peoples" drama, And no more fighting. That was going to be the hardest part.
Chapter 6.
J.
It was late in the morning when J. got back from his ride. Crash and MacDougal were still dead asleep in the clubhouse in back of the shop, sleeping off lethal hangovers no doubt. J. wasn"t surprised to see Teach already behind the shop"s counter, leafing through parts catalogs he still insisted on ordering from, no matter how many times J. reminded him of the existence of the Internet.
When Teach heard J."s key in the lock he looked up quizzically and punched the volume down on the news show blaring out of his old boombox. Since retiring after twenty-five years at the prison, he had nothing to do but putter around his shop full-time. Despite that, it still looked like it was 1992 in there.
Teach raised his bushy eyebrows, but said nothing.
J. nodded in reply to the unasked question. "Yep. I"m done."
Teach"s mouth twitched.
"Don"t tell me I made you smile, old man," J. growled in mock anger.
"Don"t get full of yourself, you little s.h.i.t," Teach growled back. But he was stepping out from behind the counter, his arm already extended. J. grasped the proffered hand firmly, and looked into the older man"s watery, but still sharp eyes and saw the pride there. "Congratulations, kid, you did good. Now keep your head down."
J. nodded. "Plan on it."
"You gonna work today?"
"Yeah I gotta deliver that job tomorrow."
Teach chuckled and shook his head, his long gray dreads swinging across his chest. "Weekend warriors. Gotta love them."
J. grinned. "Long as they pay me."
Teach nodded and wandered back to his catalogs. J. dropped his riding leathers into a heap behind the counter and stepped through the back doorway and into the garage.
The bike he was building for the doctor in Rittenhouse was nearly complete. The weekend warrior had wanted all the bells and whistles J. offered him. J. wondered if he really was interested or if he was just intimidated by the color of his skin.
J. had seen it a billion times. Teach"s shop was famous throughout the Philly biker world as the best place to go to get custom work done. Rich suburbanites ventured nervously into the no-man"s land under the Frankford El, and then were startled when they met an old black biker behind the counter. They were doubly startled when the head mechanic was a tall, broad-shouldered, bare-chested young black man in a patch covered cut.
"Hey a.s.shole, what"re you doing trying to sneak off to work like that?"
J. grinned at the voice booming over his shoulder. "Some of us actually work for a living, you lazy piece of s.h.i.t."
"Ha!" J. grunted when the impact of Case"s bear hug nearly knocked him to the floor. Before he could react, his best friend had his arms pinned at his sides.
"Put me down you Viking-looking motherf.u.c.ker!" J. yelled, kicking his feet as Case lifted him off the ground.
"Or what, you think you could take me?"
"You snuck up on me."
Case dropped him unceremoniously onto the floor of the shop and struck a fighting stance. His pale cheeks were flushed under his blond beard. He quickly tied back his dirty blond ponytail and raised his fists. "Go ahead, I"ll even let you have first hit."
J. balled his fists threateningly, then burst out laughing. Case yanked him into another bear hug and clapped him on the back with his huge hands so hard J. started to cough. "You"re done right? Free man as of today?"
J. coughed again, trying to catch his breath. "Yup, I"m done. Official parole doc.u.ments filed with the county and all that s.h.i.t."
"You"re done?" Crash"s sleepy voice floated out into the shop from the bunk area. "For real?"
"Way to pay attention, a.s.shole," Case grumbled.
"I pay attention. I just forgot!" Crash whined. "You know I can"t remember s.h.i.t, a.s.shole."
They heard the creak of springs as Crash heaved himself painfully out of his bunk. He appeared in the doorway rubbing his stubbled head blearily and squinting his pale blue eyes at the sunlit glare of the shop. "We gotta celebrate!"
"You look like you did enough celebrating last night," Teach rumbled, taking in Crash"s pale, puffy face and squinting eyes.
"Just because you forgot how to have a good time, old man."
"Don"t look like you"re having such a good time now," Teach shot back. He rifled through the drawer under the counter and came out with a flashlight, which he promptly shone in Crash"s eyes.
"Ow, f.u.c.k!" J. and Case laughed as Crash flailed his arms trying to escape the beam of light.
"That idiot does have a point." Case poked J. in the ribs. "We need to celebrate. How long has it been since you had a drink anyway?"
J. gulped and thought for a second. Imprisoned at eighteen, six years behind the walls, and then a year of parole. "I"ve never had one legally."
Case whistled softly. "Yeah, that needs to change."
Crash managed to dunk behind a wall of accessories, hiding from Teach"s persistent flashlight.
"Ya wanna go down to the Dog?" he called from his hiding place.
The Black Dog Saloon was their normal hangout, a place to grab cheap whiskey, cheaper women and the cheapest beer.
"Nah that place is a s.h.i.thole. This is an occasion," Case scoffed. J. looked at his tall, blond friend and ducked when he saw the pride in his blue eyes. "We"re going somewhere posh tonight."
Case flung his beefy arm around J."s shoulders. "Mister Jeremiah Johnson is now a fully rehabilitated member of society. He needs to be reintroduced properly." Case grinned. "Let"s go tear up this town."
"Yeah!" Crash shouted from behind the accessories wall. He bounded out from his hiding place and instantly dropped to the ground when Teach shot him with the flashlight.
"Stop that s.h.i.t! I yield!" he cried, covering his eyes with his hands.
"Go drink some water," Teach called, switching off the beam of light. Crash jumped up from the floor and bounced back into the clubhouse, banging his b.u.m leg against MacDougal"s bunk on the way to the bathroom. The old man swore in his sleep and immediately started snoring again.
"To be young again," Teach proclaimed, listening to the cacophony of bangs and crashes coming from the bathroom. "Drowning in p.u.s.s.y and bourbon."
"Yeah, but then you"d have to be Crash," Case pointed out.
J. whistled softly through his teeth and Case grinned.
"Don"t insult the man when he isn"t here to defend himself," Teach said. Case bent his head, chastened.
The air in the room suddenly thickened as Teach spread his palms out flat on the counter. "What is it?" J. asked, the skin on the back of his neck p.r.i.c.kling.
Teach inhaled deeply. J. could tell he was weighing his words. "It"s a good day, and I don"t want to be the one to ruin it."
J. felt a chill go through him. "What?" he pressed. Teach was freaking him out.
Teach rounded the counter and stood before him. His weathered face seemed to sag even further. "Your sister called, Jeremiah."
Case sucked in his breath and stepped back instinctively, stepping out of range as J."s fists instantly balled at his side. J. took several deep breaths, willing back the red rage that threatened to overtake him right then and there.
"You don"t need that s.h.i.t," Case muttered, reaching a tentative hand for J."s shoulder.
"Don"t touch me," J. snapped, and Case pulled his hand back, looking wounded.
"Jeremiah, hey." Teach"s voice was both authoritative and soft at the same time. It cut through the blinding anger that clouded his sight. "Remember, Seneca. "There is no battle unless there are two." You can move on."
"How am I supposed to when that s.h.i.t keeps dragging me back?"
J. hadn"t been back to the neighborhood since he left for prison seven years ago.
At first he had pined for the comfort of his family and the camaraderie of his friends. But as he did his time and kept his head down, he noticed more and more that the people from his past only weighed him down.
Janelle, his mother...and Randall. The whole reason he ended up in prison in the first place. That fateful day when they walked into the convenience store. J. didn"t know Randall had the gun. Randall never told him the plan. He just pointed it at the clerk and shouted at J. to grab the money from the open till. When the other clerk walked out of the storeroom, J. had acted on instinct, knocking him to the floor before he could press the alarm b.u.t.ton.
This elevated his charge from robbery to a.s.sault. And since his birthday was the week before, he had been tried as an adult. No amount of pleading had worked to get the sentence dropped, especially not when the clerk had showed up to testify with his jaw wired shut. Meanwhile Randall"s lawyer had managed to cop a plea, claiming there were no bullets in the gun Randall used.
And Randall was only seventeen when it had happened. He spent three months in juvie and then had his records expunged. He had been living free all this time.
And now he was dating J."s sister. Living in J."s old bedroom. Sitting down to eat with J."s mother.
When Janelle had told him this during one of her visits, J. flew into a rage that landed him three weeks solitary. Janelle claimed Randall wanted to make amends, to do right by his family while J. did his time.
But J. couldn"t accept it. He told Janelle to get out of his life. He cut off his mother, his sister and never told them that he had been released early. He moved right into the clubhouse when he got out and hadn"t contacted them at all.
Somehow Janelle had found him. The past had found him. Everything he had been running from for seven long years was catching up, no matter how fast he rode.
"Hey, J. You"re scaring me, man." Case"s voice sounded far away. J. took another deep breath, counting backwards from ten like he had learned in anger management cla.s.s.
"You want us to take care of that piece of s.h.i.t?" Crash"s voice caught him by surprised. He hadn"t realized he had reappeared at the doorway. MacDougal was looming behind him, his angry expression saying everything that needed to be said.
J. knew if he said the word, Randall would be history. His brothers had his back. "This isn"t your fight," J. exhaled.
"Yeah it is," Crash declared. "That coward ruins your life and now he"s moved in on your sister? Sc.u.m like that needs to be wiped from the earth."
"J.?" Case"s voice was calm but concerned. "You tell us what to do. But you have to do something."
"But not today," Crash protested. "Today we drink."
Chapter 7.