Edge of Ashes (Sons of Ash Motorcycle Club) (2 page)

“It’s not about flaunting anything. It
carries a great responsibility, wearing that patch and new people have the intestinal
fortitude to ‘flaunt’ one as you put it. If you’re going to wear a 1%’er patch
you’d better be ready to back it up.

“Whatever...”

Well his little speech did one thing. It
also reminded me why I don’t date bikers and that I am a professional here and
I’m not going to fall for my patient. Fifteen minutes later he’s cleaned out,
patched up, and I even got to stick him in the ass with a sharp stick; well it
was a needle but it was fun making him jump.

“Jeez Doc, couldn’t you have warned me
first?” He complains, rubbing the spot where I’d just given him an injection of
antibiotics.

“Really, are you actually going to whine
about that? You really do live up to your name Adam Whiner.”

“Adam.”

“Okay whatever…bye.”

I force myself to pretend to write in his chart
as he gets up from the table and begins to get dressed. I will not look, I will
not look… I keep my face glued to the papers in front of me until I can no
longer hear his motorcycle boots tromping down the hallway. I give him enough
time to retrieve his knife from the security guard at the triage station before
I leave the room. I really hope that’s the last time I see him in here. At
least that’s what I keep telling myself. I look at my watch. It’s nearly three
in the morning. That means I have four more hours till freedom and three whole
days off; yippee!

With Adam Whiner’s ass still fresh in my
mind I take a seat at Denny’s and sip bad coffee while I wait for my best
friend in the world, Jenny to get here. She’s a nurse as well but she works
across town at Piedmont Medical Center. We both work the same shift so whenever
we can which is a lot, we meet up for breakfast when we get off. It actually
doesn’t happen as often as you’d expect though. When you’re a trauma nurse just
because the clock says quitting time it doesn’t mean you can stop your chest
compressions on the old man on the table in front of you and leave to meet your
best friend for brunch. People and their emergencies have a way of getting in
the way of my social life so I am particularly pleased that we actually will
have breakfast together.

For the past three weeks she has been going
on and on about some guy she met who seems to be mister right and she has been
insufferable. I try to be polite and a good listener and a supportive friend
but one can only take so much, ‘he’s so this, he’s so that, and blah blah
blah…. It’s like she’s the only one in the world to have gone gaga over a guy
and yet I still have not met him. Today that’s all supposed to change. After we
eat we’re going to drop by his work and say hello; kind of an impromptu meet
and greet. She hasn’t always had the best luck in finding guys that are decent
so I really hope this one’s not some colossal ass like the last one turned out
to be.

I’ve also learned to mistrust Jenny’s
assessment when it comes to men and relationships. She can be clingy and
sometimes her relationships tend to be pretty one-sided. She has this bad habit
of falling for guys that are just not all that into her or they’re just using
her. It’s the one time that her fabulous good looks are a detriment, She is
tall, model thin with a chest that’s usually only seen on girls forty pounds
heavier. Of course she’s a real blond, has a bubbly personality and is very
smart in just about everything but relationships. I’m just hoping this time the
new guy in her life is as into her as she is in to him. But who am I kidding, no
guy is that obsessive. It’s gonna end badly.

“Kari…so good to see you!”

Miss bubbly gives me a peck on the cheek
and plops herself down in the seat across me and begins to gush. No hi, how’re
you doing, how was work last night; nothing like that. When every sentence
begins with my boyfriend and follows with did this, and my honey said that, my
brain automatically tunes her out. I can’t help it. When she gets on a roll she
gets on a roll, and she makes me suffer through a blow by blow account of the
last three hours she spent with her mister right.

“And then Adam said le-”

“What?” I can’t help but interrupt her. I
knew she was dating a biker, and to tell you the truth before today I’m not
even sure she has mentioned his name. But now that I know his name I’m getting
a funny feeling about this. So Adam is her version of mister right and I
wonder, how many bikers in this town are named Adam?”

“What’d I say?” She asks.

“Your new guy,” I begin. “His name is
Adam?”

“Yes, that’s what I said. Haven’t you been
listening?”

“Adam Whiner?” I reply.

Her mouth drops open. “How’d you know his
last name?”

“I kinda treated him in my ER last night.”

Her face is a mask of concern. “Oh my god,
is he alright?” She asks.

“Yeah…it was minor really. It seems someone
doesn’t like your new beau too much and took a shot at him.”

Her mouth drops open. “Oh no! Is he still
in the hospital? Why didn’t you call me?”

“How was I supposed to know he’s your new
boyfriend?” I complain.

“Oh…guess not. So what happened? Spill it
Kari.”

“I don’t really know. He came in with a
gunshot to the back of his upper thigh. It was minor really. A .22 caliber
bullet passed through the back of his leg just below his…his butt. It was maybe
a quarter of an inch deep if even that. I just cleaned it out, gave him an
injection and sent him on his way.”

Of course I couldn’t tell her I’d secretly
already married him in my daydreams and that I’d drooled over his fine ass or
that I’d actually seen the man’s ding dong. TMI…too much information.

“I wonder why he didn’t tell me?” She asks
as she pulls out her cell phone.

“What are you doing?”

“Well I have to call him don’t I? I mean
he’s just gone through a traumatic shooting and he needs me. I can’t believe
he’s all alone out there suffering from a gunshot and I’m sitting here with you
drinking coffee. The poor-”

“Whiner?” I say, emphasizing the long I
sound.

She’s about to retort then stops
mid-sentence and then listens intently into her phone.

“Adam honey sweet baby I can’t believe what
happened. Are you okay? No of course you’re not okay, you’ve been brutally
shot! But don’t worry I’m coming right now so you just stay put-”

Then her face changes and the color drains.
She listens intently as her mouth slowly forms an O in shock.

“But honey… no I don’t under-. What do you
mean you met someone? I thought what we ha-”

Tears are beginning to form in the corners
of her eyes. This is not going well at all. She listens for a few more seconds
then quietly hangs up her phone.

“What happened?” I whisper.

“I think he just broke up with me.” Jenny
replies.

“What do you mean think? Did he or did he
not break up with you? I ask, in a bit sterner tone than I intended.

“You know how relationships are…it takes
two to tango. He wants to break up but if I don’t agree-”

“Sweetie,” I begin. “I love how you’re so
smart about some things and so naïve about others…but you’re not married so
it’s not up for a vote here. If he said it’s over it’s over. He doesn’t need
your consent to end it with you.”

“Of course I know that,” she replies. “But
I don’t accept it. If he’s gonna break up with me he has to do it in person or
it doesn’t count; at least for me it doesn’t!”

‘What exactly did he say to you?”

“He just said he’s not that into me. Who
says that? Not that much into me? I can’t believe it. He must be in shock;
that’s it. I bet he’s never been shot before and he’s just in shock.”

“Did he say why he wants to break up? I
mean other than he’s not that into you?” I ask.

“Apparently he’s already found someone
else.” She replies through her tears.

“I’m so sorry Jenny, I really am. You
seemed so happy with this guy…”

“And here’s the kicker,” Jenny continues.
“He thinks he’s fallen for another nurse. Can you believe that? Then he asked me
if I believe in love at first sight. Apparently he does and he thinks he found
his match. I can’t wait to find out who this bimbo is that he thinks he’s
fallen for.”

Oh shit!

“And if you meet her,” I begin. What are
you going to do?”

“Kick her ass, for starters.” She begins.
“Well first I’ll talk to her. I wanna find out what’s so special about her that
he thinks he’s in love, and then I’ll kick her ass!”

“What makes you think you’ll ever meet
her?”

“I’ll figure it out. She’s an ER nurse
Kari. That means she most likely works either in my hospital or yours so one of
us knows her; we just don’t know we know her.”

This is getting sticky. I have to turn her
attention away from thinking we know who this mystery nurse is.

“Jenny, she could be in anyone of the other
hospitals in the area, not just the ones in Cave Junction.”

“Really? Then why would he have gone out of
town to a hospital a long ways away after being shot instead of going to one
five minutes away? Oh no. One of us knows her and you’re going to help me find
out who this home wrecker is and-”

“Home wrecker? Aren’t you getting a little
ahead of yourself here Jenny?”

“Whose side are you on Kari?”

Do I dare tell her I’m on the home
wrecker’s side? But I’m no home wrecker. I didn’t even encourage the guy. What
a freakin’ ego he has.

“Choose.”

“What? Oh… uh, your side of course
sweetie.”

“Then you’ll help me find her?”

I try my best to appear enthusiastic about
it but I’m not sure I’m doing such a good job of it. “Of course I’ll help you
find her. What are friends for right?” And like a good friend who’s ruining her
best friend’s love life, I’ll do my best to not find the home wrecker.

That rest of breakfast pretty much went
like the first part with Jenny obsessing about who this ‘other’ woman is and
she forced me to write down every nurse I know at my work. Then we had to
analyze each and every one until she came to the conclusion that it wasn’t
anyone on my list. I didn’t have the heart to tell her that half the people on
the list were made up. This is really getting bad and I hope I never see Adam
again.

It’s nearly ten when we finish our extended
breakfast/brunch and prepare to go our separate ways. I just about slip out
without any real harm being done when she turns and drops a bomb on me.

“Kari, I’m going to go confront him right
now and I need your support.”

Oh shit!

“So… you want me to like….say a prayer
then?” I ask hopefully.

“Funny, no. I want you to go with me of
course then maybe you can help sniff out this other bitch he’s seeing. I’m too
close to it but you, you’re just an innocent bystander and you’ll probably be
able to tell if he’s lying or trying to hide something.”

Whoo hoo, great idea. Just what I was
hoping to do with my afternoon.

“Sure,” I reply. “I’d be happy to come
along.”

I suggest we take separate cars and I’m
glad she agrees. After this little meeting of ours I’m pretty sure us riding in
the same car will be dangerous. And then for the hundredth time I think about
telling her that I’m the home wrecker but I know my best friend. She is so
worked up she’ll never believe in my innocence.  She will be sure to
believe I am involved; especially if Adam is standing here professing his
undying love for me. What a mess.

Twenty minutes later were pulling into
Cycle Gear, the motorcycle shop that Adam works at. The minute we pull up I can
tell this is more than just a place where he works. Above the door to the main
shop area is a giant replica of the patch on Adam’s jacket. This is also the
clubhouse for the Sons of Ash; just great. Reluctantly I get out and follow
Jenny to the front door praying that Adam is out for lunch; for the rest of his
life.

Behind the counter is another biker
sporting a Sons of Ash cut. He is also a looker and I can tell even Jenny with
her current level of bloodlust has taken notice. The guy is about the same
height as Adam but about fifteen years older. For a man who is probably in his
mid- forties, he is hot. He has short black hair and several day’s stubble on
his chin. The man has guns, and not on his hips. They dude’s biceps are nearly
as big as my thighs! How does this guy find the time to work? He must spend
hours at the gym maintaining those arms of his, not to mention the rest of him.

Jenny interrupts my slavering. “Is Adam
in?” She asks.

The man’s face brightens. “Oh you must be
K-”

“There he is!” I shout over the man. I’m
not positive but I think he was about to say my name and that would have been a
disaster!

“Actually he’s around back,” the man replies,
looking a bit startled. “I’ll tell him you’re here K-”

“Hi biker guy…” I shout out. I pretend to
see someone I know standing back in the shop area behind the counter.

Both biker guy and Jenny are looking at me
like I’ve completely lost my mind; and maybe I have.

“Sorry,” I explain. “Thought I saw someone
I know.”

Jenny gives me a weird look but lets it
drop. Biker guy walks back into the shop area to fetch my love sick biker Adam.
It takes just about everything I have to not just bolt for my car right now. I
just don’t know any way this can end any way but badly. I just hope that when
Adam sees us both he’ll realize there’s a problem and play it cool.