Painted Lines

Painted
Lines

By

Brei
Betzold

Painted Lines

Copyright © 2013 by Brei Betzold

Published June, 18 2013

Publisher Brei Betzold

This is a work of fiction. All characters,
organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s
imagination or are used fictitiously.

All rights reserved. This edition is
copyrighted by Brei Betzold and any portion thereof may not be reproduced or
used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the
author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review. January 2013.

Edited by Tanya Keetch

Cover Design by Robin Harper

Warning:

This is not a
fluffy love story - it contains and alludes to violence, torture, and rape – a
heroine broken in mind but not spirit – a hero with his own past regrets

Dedication:

This book is
dedicated to every person who has helped me along the way, my family, my
readers, my friends, thank you.

Chapter
1

I
walked into the garage and took a deep breath inhaling the familiar scents of
oil, gasoline, and oranges. It smelled the same as any other shop I had ever
been in; it smelled like home.  I’ve grown up in motorcycle shops, garages, and
custom paint shops, following my father around his shop and later my grandpa,
Saul, learning the trade as well as picking up one of my own.  Which is what
led me here, joining a team of misfits to compete for a cash prize. We hoped to
win and use the money to open our own custom bike shop.  We didn’t have big
plans, just a small shop where we could perform our own forms of artistry out
of, creating one of a kind motorcycles for people who could afford them.  I
looked over at the other three members of my team, one being my best friend. 
We both grew up playing in grease instead of dirt, getting in the way, learning
from the men in our lives.  The other two were relatively unknown, but geniuses
we had found along the way, kindred spirits in wanting to pursue this dream
with us.  We had all come together and created our own nonconformist family,
and now we had finally found a means to an end, or so we hoped.

I
looked around the shop we would be creating in for the next six weeks, there
were seven stalls; one for each team to work in and an extra for storage
holding everything we would need to create works of art.  I could build a bike,
growing up in a shop had its advantages, but my particular specialty was
paint.  Simon, my best friend, could do a bit of everything including running a
shop's business side.  Kale was an engine expert; he could build or fix almost
anything with moving parts.  Then there was Liam, he’s a miracle worker with
metal, he can mold it in ways I had never seen before.  I hoped that with all
of our combined strengths, knowledge, and luck we would be able to win this
competition and the $500k the winner would receive.

I
heard shuffling behind me and peeked over my shoulder, I couldn’t help the grin
that spread across my face.  In walked a man who I had known since birth, and
still called Uncle.  He returned my grin and held his arms open for me, which I
instantly ran into.

“Scout,”
he breathed out hugging me tight.

“Uncle
Matt,” I replied.

“What
are you doing here, Seraph?” He asked using the name he had called me for as
long as I can remember.

I
shrugged. “Same as you would be my guess.”

“Why
didn’t you tell me you were planning on entering?”

“Probably
the same reason you didn’t tell us you were.” I replied with an arched eyebrow.

He
finally let me go only to wrap his arm around my shoulder. “Simon,” he said
giving a nod.

“Dad,”
Simon replied.

“So
I take it Saul still refuses to help,” he stated. We both knew he would never
help me; he was of the old school mindset.  If you wanted something bad enough,
you went out and made it happen by yourself so you appreciated it more once you
had it.  Not that I could find any fault in his logic, and preferred it this
way.

“Yep,
but that’s okay, I would rather do it on my own.”

“Oh
I know that Seraph, you’ve always wanted to do things yourself.”

I
looked over at the other five guys that had walked in with Matt, smiled and
waved at the guys I had also known a long time, they all returned it as they
passed by me.

“Heard
anything from Cas?” asked Matt.

“Yeah,
yesterday actually.”

“How
is he?”

“Doing
well, ready to come home though.”

“Yeah,
I am sure you’re ready for him to come home.”

I
swallowed and nodded, my brother, Cas, was currently in Afghanistan on his
third tour with the Marines, and was supposed to be home in a month.  I was
beyond ready for him to come home, especially since this would be his last
tour; he had decided not to reenlist.

“He
still plan on not reenlisting?”

“Told
him if he did, he had better beg to be sent back over because it would be
better off than having to face me.”

“That’s
my girl, since he’s smart and knows you, he won’t test you on this.”

“Let’s
hope,” I muttered.

“I
would be more afraid of you, Seraph, even with all his training,” Uncle Matt
chuckled giving me another one armed hug before letting go to look around.

I
looked over at my team and smiled, they all looked a little shell shocked
looking around at who all was there, and I couldn’t blame them.  Other than
Simon, my team was newer and didn’t know Matt and his team well, only their hard-earned
reputation.  I knew that we could beat them.  They tended to stick to the old
school ways, where we tended to pull inspiration from everything.

We
continued to stand around and talk amongst ourselves as we watched more groups
of competitors walk in, most of which I knew personally or knew of.  I noticed
Uncle Matt staying near our group, as if to protect me, who knew from what. As
far as I knew he wouldn’t be competing with us.  He would never lower himself
to competing for money on a television show, and in all reality he didn’t need the
money like most of us did.

I
noticed many of the known shops were here with only their not as well-known
builders showing up to represent them.  I could understand that, wanting to
make a name for yourself outside of the shop you worked for; this would be the
way to go about it.  As we stood around waiting for everyone to show up, I said
hellos, and listened to how everyone’s families were doing.  All the while
checking out the competition and meeting those I didn’t already know.   With
one team still not here, we were called into a meeting with the production
crew.  They quickly corralled us into a group and began listing the rules, the
way it all worked, and all the other info we had already been told.

I
looked around wondering who the last team was. Simon elbowed me in the ribs
causing me to look up, finding the producer of the show staring at me.  I
decided to focus up front and look around when we were finished.

Two
hours later, we were released after signing all the contracts, agreeing to the
rules again, and listening to more people who I didn’t really care about talk. 
They still weren’t telling us who the judges would be, which was fine with me,
I wasn’t really worried about it at this point.  My biggest concern was getting
to the motel so I could shower and sleep since I had been awake for over
twenty-four hours.  I made my way to my brand new Ducati Diavel Dark, Cas
bought me for my twenty-first birthday.  While I loved this bike and its speed,
I still preferred my 2009 Sportster Iron 883, that Saul, bought me for my
eighteenth birthday.  I was ready to be reunited with my Harley, it would be
brought to the house we were renting while in Sturgis, Wyoming for the
competition.  We had then planned to stay for the bike rally that was two
months away.

I
hated motels but I could handle it for one night while we waited to move into
our rental.  I was not looking forward to living with three guys though.  I had
lived with Simon, Kale, and Liam before, and knew for a fact that they are all
slobs.  I don’t think it was something Simon’s wife would ever break him of. 
However, I was looking forward to his wife, Cameron, coming soon with their
infant son.  I missed them both, and I am sure it would help Simon’s mood once
they got here as well.  I was reaching for my helmet when I heard someone
clearing their throat behind me. I glanced over my shoulder and found my Uncle
Matt watching me.

“What’s
up?”

“Want
to go get some dinner?”

“No,
not really, I want a hot shower and some sleep.”

“Come
on, Seraph, let's go get a burger,” he wheedled.

“Uncle
Matt, I’m tired. I got here just before we had to meet up for this, now all I
want to do is check in and get some sleep.”

He
nodded rubbing his hand against his beard that was greyer than the red I was
used to.  “Come on, Scout, get some food with me.”

I
sighed, he wasn’t going to let this go.  “Fine, but let’s make it quick.”

“Okay,
follow me?”

I
nodded and grabbed my helmet, pulling my hair up, and tucked it in, as I swung
my leg over. Starting my bike, its low purr vibrating throughout my body. 
Damn, I loved this bike.  I followed Matt out of the parking lot and through
the city streets, pacing myself with him and his chopper.

Once
we pulled up in front of a well-known bar and grill, I parked beside him
turning off the bike and taking off my helmet.

“So
where’d ya get that?” He asked, gesturing to the bike.

I
smiled.  “Cas got her for me for my birthday.”

“What’d
ya name her?”

“Angel,”
I replied smiling over at him as I stroked her tank affectionately, I had plans
for her.

“She’s
all stock?”

I
nodded.  “Yeah, she’s stock, haven’t had her long.”

He
shook his head mumbling, probably something derogatory about my bike. Damn old
school bikers.  We walked towards the restaurant in companionable silence.  I
knew he wanted to talk to me about something, but he wouldn’t get around to it
until he was damn good and ready.

After
we were seated and done looking over menus, I couldn’t stand the quiet anymore.
I was either going to fall asleep where I sat or throw something at him.  I was
currently leaning more towards sleep. After riding non-stop from San Diego to
here, I really needed the sleep.  Cas and I shared a townhouse in San Diego,
but since he was hardly home it was more my house that he happened to pay half
the rent on.  It worked out well for us since it gave me my privacy, as well as
a place for Cas to crash when he was Stateside.  Though I think the main reason
he wanted me to move into the townhouse was to make sure I was living somewhere
safe.  My eyes were doing the slow blink, as if they weren’t sure if they would
have the energy to reopen. When someone cleared their throat beside me I nearly
jumped from the booth.

Looking
up I found an irritated server snapping her gum in my direction. I stole a
quick glance over at Matt who was staring back at me expectantly.

“What?”

“Your
drink order, ma'am?” She asked, clearly annoyed.

I
cleared my throat, ordering a cup of coffee, in desperate need of caffeine. 
When I looked over at Matt again, I found him smirking at me. That all-knowing
smirk of his that used to get me to fess up to whatever I had done, without him
ever having to say a thing.

“What?”
I grumbled.

“How
long since you last slept?”

I
squinted in his direction doing the math.  “Thirty-six hours or so, I think.”

He
shook his head at me.  “Why?”

“Had
things to do before I left, then there was the ride up.” I responded around a
yawn.

“What
was so important you couldn’t stop to sleep, Seraph?”

“Had
to get things ready for Cam to drive up, stuff around the house for when Cas
comes home, and then there was a couple of things at the shop I’ve been working
on.” I said giving the waitress a grateful smile when she plunked the coffee
cup down in front of me.  I took a long drink, scalding the inside of my mouth,
it burned but the pain seemed to help wake me up.

I
waved her off after Matt ordered, not really in the mood for food.  All I
really wanted was to find out why Matt had asked me to come out with him
instead of letting me go to bed.

“When’s
Cas coming home?”

“Next
month, he’s taking leave and then it will be time for his reenlistment.”

“What’s
he going to do when he gets out?”

“We’ve
talked about him helping me get the shop open then working there, but honestly,
I don’t think he really wants to.”

Matt
nodded.  “Then what does he want to do?’

“I
have no idea but I don’t think he does either.”

“Well,
maybe he will help out until he decides what he does want to do.  You two
always did work well together.”

I
simply shrugged and looked away. Of course we worked well together, we both knew
the only reason my dad had taught me anything was because of Cas.

“So
what did you want, Uncle Matt?”

“Ace
and Lace are competing.”

“Ah,
fuck me,” I muttered gulping down the rest of my coffee. Without another word I
stood up and walked away.