Page 4 of Ashes’ Addiction

“Something hot. Fried chicken sounds amazing if you can get it, but I’m not picky. I’ll eat anything you get me.” She turned her gaze to the cabin. “Except oatmeal. Please, no oatmeal.” She looked at Ashes again.

He frowned as he looked at her, then turned back to the other men. “All right, whatever you can find that’s hot and not oatmeal. Sparrow, can we trade vehicles? I don’t think Miranda is ready for the bike, she’s certainly not dressed for one and I want to stay with her for now. When you’re done, head to the gas station just down from the Safeway, we’ll meet there,” he checked his watch, “in an hour and a half. That should be plenty of time.”

Sparrow nodded. “I’ll hit the store, you get a room?”

Doc nodded, then together they turned and headed to where three motorcycles were parked in front of a pickup.

“One room for all of us?” Miranda asked, her voice soft enough she hoped only Ashes would hear her.

“We’re not getting a room to sleep in, little one,” the fourth man said. He was even bigger than Ashes, and though she hadn’t been told his name, his vest said Goliath, in the same place Ashes’ vest said his name, so she assumed that was what he was called.

Miranda frowned. If they weren’t going to sleep, why bother with a room?

“The room’s so you can bathe, Tiny Warrior. We’ll let you shower, put on something clean that will hopefully fit a little better, and eat, then we’ll head back to the clubhouse. It’s a couple of hours away and I didn’t think you’d want to wait that long.”

Miranda shrugged. She wasn’t used to getting a say about what happened. She’d spent God knew how long surviving. She could deal with a lot, she knew that now, but she wasn’t sure how to react to this. The kindness of men she didn’t even know.

“When will we leave?” Now that there was hope she could get out of here and never see this hellhole again, she was eager to get gone.

“Soon. I want to make sure there’s nothing here that could lead anyone back to us, then we’ll go. Do you want to get in the truck and wait? This won’t take Goliath and I long.”

She turned and looked at the truck then back to him. If she was in the truck, they wouldn’t be able to leave her behind, at least not without her knowing it.

“Where is he? Is he going to come for me?” She glanced around the yard, half afraid Kevin would come around the corner any minute, laugh, and tell her it was all a joke.

“He’s gone, little one,” Goliath said. “He’ll never bother you or anyone else again.”

Miranda frowned. Did that mean he was dead? Or in jail? She wanted to ask but this didn’t seem like the time.

“You’re safe,” Ashes said. “You can stay with one of us or you can wait in the truck. Either way, no one will hurt you. We’ll finish what we need to do here, then pull out. You’ll never have to see this place again.”

She stared at Ashes, trying to decide what he wasn’t telling her because she got the feeling there was more that he wasn’t saying than what he was. He gave nothing away but for some reason she couldn’t explain, she trusted him.

“I’ll wait in the truck.” She went to the truck, opening the door and climbing into the back seat without looking back. Not knowing how long they might be or what the men were going to do, she laid down across the rear seat, pulled her arms tight against her chest, and tried to figure out what was going on and what she would do next.

Chapter Five

Ashes finished setting the time delay in the house, a lit cigarette folded into a matchbook. It would give them a couple of minutes to get away from the house before the fire started to really catch. Goliath would find a pay phone and call it in as soon as he could. They didn’t want the forest to burn. He didn’t even care if the house was salvageable, as long as the evidence of what Miranda had been through here was eliminated.

He got into the truck and frowned. Where was she? Twisting around he found her lying in the back seat, watching him.

“Why are you back there?”

“I didn’t know if the other guy wanted that seat.”

“Nope. He’s taking his bike.” As if to punctuate his statement, Goliath’s bike started. “Come on up here. You can talk to me or control the radio. I have a few questions. You don’t have to answer, but I don’t want to hurt you.”

Miranda sat up, then instead of opening the door and getting out, she climbed between the seats. Ashes waited until she’d settled in, then started the truck, turning down the blasting music to a level they could hear but still easily talk. By the time she’d buckled her seat belt, they were already moving. He wanted to be away from here as quickly as possible. The fire would catch soon and he didn’t want her to see it. It would be better if she didn’t know what had happened, then she could never testify about it.

He waited until they’d gone far enough that the cabin was out of sight before he spoke.

“You said you don’t have any family. Can I ask why not?”

She lifted one shoulder and let it fall. “Why not? I used to have a family. Parents, as well as a younger brother and sister. But they died last year. At least I think it was last year. I don’t even know what day it is.”

“It’s Thursday, but I’m not sure that’s the answer you’re looking for. It’s mid-November. I’m assuming the same year you disappeared.” He gave her the year and she confirmed, meaning she’d been held captive for half a year. He couldn’t imagine what she had to be feeling.

“So yeah, last year my family was in a small plane, headed home from a funeral in northern Arizona when the plane went down.” She turned and stared out the window. They were all killed instantly, or at least that’s what the police had told her after they’d found the accident site.