Railed (Courage MC #2) (35 page)

“
A
lright
, let’s move!” Adam called out. We ran as fast as we could toward the door to the back, but out of the corner of my eye there was movement of some kind. I turned around to see a barrel in my face.

M
y
.

Heart.

Dropped.

T
ime had slowed down
. Adam turned and screamed, “No!” But all I heard was garbled sound. This was it. The end of my story.

C
hapter
29

I
wasn’t going
to give up that easy. I put up my hands in a futile attempt to block the bullet. Of course it wouldn’t work, but I had no other options. Suddenly, I felt Adam’s familiar hands against my shoulder. And suddenly I was falling to the floor.

B
ANG
!

T
ime sped up
. I looked to my right and Adam was on the floor, hardly moving. There was blood. I aimed the gun at the man and did what I had to do. I fired at his leg and he fell to the floor next to Adam. I ran over to him and hit him with the back of my pistol. He was out for the time being. “SHIT!” I cried. “Uh, EVERYBODY STAY ON THE FUCKING GROUND!” With what strength I had, I lifted Adam up.

“
O
h Adam
…” I cried, tears streaming down my face. I felt his warm blood spill out onto my shoulder.

“
5
0 seconds
…” I heard him mumble.
He’s alive!
I practically screamed. I grabbed his face and slapped his cheeks. He woke up and smiled.

“
A
m I dead
, kid?”

I
lifted
his shirt up and examined him. There was a bullet hole in his bicep, right through the words “COURAGE.”

“
Y
ou’re not dead yet
. Get up. We gotta’ move! The cops will get here any second!” I screamed. He pushed himself off of me, regaining his balance.

“
S
hit
!
I haven’t got shot in years.” He said. We rushed past the tellers, making our way into the back. Through the hall and down the stairs, we ran until we found it. “The vault.” Adam whispered. “Alright. Let’s do it. Detonation time.” He winked.

I
reached into his bag
, pulling out the C4. I looked him in the eyes with hesitation. It was now or never. Police sirens could be heard in the distance. In a minute, we would be surrounded. “Once they’re placed, we gotta’ move into the other room. The explosion will be big enough to kill anyone in here.” I nodded.

“
A
lright
. I’m ready.” I breathed in deep and placed the explosives on each corner of the wall, right at the foundations. “Other room, let’s go!” I screamed. Sirens were everywhere now. My heart felt as if it would explode.

W
e made
our way into the hallway and ducked down, underneath a desk. A man was shivering underneath, scared as ever. “Don’t shoot!” He said. Adam took one look at him and hit him with the side of his gun, effectively knocking him out. “I won’t.” He smiled.

I
grabbed
the detonator and turned it on. I waited for the green light to activate. Once it did, I looked up at Adam for confirmation. “Kiss me.” I said. He grabbed the back of my head and pressed his lips against mine. His 5 o’clock shadow scratched against my face and I breathed in his scent. Before he let go, I pressed the “Detonate” button.
BOOM!

F
ire shot
up all around us. Screaming filled the building. People were panicking upstairs. Adam wrapped his arms around me, shielding me from the blast. “We gotta’ move, kid.” He picked me up and ran through the smoke. I could see sunlight shining through the rubble. The vault remained virtually in tact, a feat we never got a chance to conquer.

U
pstairs I heard
doors crashing open.
The cops!
Outside was a brand new motorcycle, shining brightly in the sunlight. “Our saving grace. Well, hallelujah!” Adam screamed, hopping on with me. “Hold on tight, kid!” He revved the engine loudly as I ripped the wire from my body. Brianna would now know her plan had been foiled. This was the real test.

W
e took off
. I had one arm wrapped around Adam, while the other was wrapped around the steel of my gun. Adam’s semi-automatic was placed over the handlebar. “Adam! At the next light will be a delivery truck parked with its back open. That’s where we’re going. Hurry!” The cops had yet to see us, but time was running out.

“
G
ot it
! I see one in the distance.” Sure enough, in front of us sat a white delivery truck. The truck was wide open with a big plank coming out the back. “Brace yourself…” He muttered. He drove the bike straight into the back, jumping up the plank, and landing safely inside. The bike fell over and so did we.

A
dam slid
and closed the door. We had made it. “YES!” I screamed. Adam punched at the walls, screaming and hollering. His cries were untranslatable, simply sounds from a massive rush of adrenaline. We threw our masks onto the floor and grabbed each other. In a heat of passion, we wrapped tongues excitedly.

“
Y
ou two need some privacy
, or what?” The driver called out, smiling. “Congrats, you two! You did it. Should be smooth sailing from here.” Behind us were the sounds of the police sirens and helicopters. An intercom echoed: “You are surrounded, come out with your hands behind your head…” And little by little, the sounds disappeared. We were free.
We were free!
The meaning of that reverberated throughout my mind. I placed my head against Adam’s chest and felt his rapid beating heart. “The name’s Jonathan.” The driver said. “I’m with Avery.”

A
dam’s eyes widened
. “Well, I’ll be damned.” The driver saluted. “You did it, Rose.” He kissed the top of my head, breathing in my scent. “We did it.”

S
econds turned to hours
. We were leaning against the inside of the truck, smiling in a heavenly daze. Our bodies were flooded with a hundred different endorphins. I couldn’t believe I had just robbed a bank. I guess I’ll check that off my list of things to do before I die. Adam coughed and looked over at me. “What?” I asked him.

“
Y
ou never did tell
me what happened when you left. It’s Brianna, right?” I nodded my head. “Shit, Rose. How the hell did you figure out how to get out of that one?”

“
I
learned from the best
.” I said, smiling wide.

“
T
rue
. You did. Ain’t gonna’ fight you on that.” He winked.

C
hapter
29

“
W
e got
a long drive ahead of us. Just stay cool and we’ll make it.” The driver said.

“
W
here we headed to
?” Adam asked cautiously.

“
B
eautiful
, luscious Idaho!” He called out, slapping at the ceiling.

“
I
daho
, huh. Yipikaye.” Adam muttered. The driver nodded.

“
Y
eah
, we got a little collective down there. You know, a house and shelter. A place where you can lie low for a little bit. Just until things smooth over.

A
dam fell over
, exhausted. He checked his arm. “Shit this thing hurts!” He said, wincing at the pain. He smiled after he wiped some blood away. “Ever done surgery before?” he asked me. The look on my face must’ve told him everything.

“
O
kay
, well. I’m gonna’ need you to stitch me up, Rose. I’ll take out the bullet, but you need to close me up. I’m counting on you.” Blood was seeping out of his wound. It wasn’t bad, but he’d need medical attention soon.

“
A
re you kidding me
? You have Jonathan here. Why can’t he do it?” I winced at the sight of his blood dropping onto the floor.

J
onathan turned around
. He looked annoyed. “I’m driving. Can’t do two things at once. What, does the sight of blood freak you out?”

“
A
lright
, give me the tools.” I said with a strange confidence in my voice.

“
T
hat’s my girl
.” Adam said. He reached into his bag and pulled out a small first aid kit. “I’m always glad I keep this thing with me. Here you go.” He gave me the kit and I opened it up. I must’ve looked confused. Before I could say anything, he grabbed a needle from inside and a roll of thread.

“
Y
ou ever sew anything before
? You just gotta’ feed the thread through the needle. Like this.” He tied the thread through and knotted it carefully. “Now’s the fun part.” He laughed. “Hey Jonny boy! You got any vodka up there or something?”

J
onathan smiled
and reached to his side. “Do I ever. Here. Drink up.” He tossed a half empty bottle to us in the back and Adam unscrewed the top, taking a sip before pouring it all over his arm.

“
G
otta disinfect the wound first
. I forgot the other stuff, so this’ll have to do. Fuckin’ stings though!” He smiled and took another swig. “Here.” He handed the bottle to me.

I
took
a drink for myself and felt the strong burning sensation and awful taste hit the back of my throat. “Ugh…” Adam laughed loudly, slapping his leg.

A
dam grabbed
a pair of what looked like pliers from the case. He poured some vodka on them and simply went for it. He pushed it against his open wound and dug deeply. Blood spilled out all over his shirt, dripping against his thigh. “Fuck, this hurts!” He cried out. “Wait, I think I got it…” Sure enough, he pulled his hand back to reveal a mashed up piece of bullet.

“
Y
ou did it
!” I screamed.

“
I
t ain’t over yet
, kid.” He was now sweating profusely. His eyes looked tired and pained. He wiped the sweat off his forehead and took a few deep breaths, regaining his strength.

A
dam held
up the thread into the light and sighed. “Alright, now watch carefully…” He held the needle steady and pressed against the soft flesh. “Son of a bitch…” He whispered. “1-2…3!” He pressed it against his wound. Slowly, but surely, the needle pushed through with a popping like sensation. I jumped back. “One down. Now for the other side…” He threaded it through and pressed against the other side. It went through tight, though I could tell this hurt Adam more than the first time. He gave me half of a smile. “Now it’s your turn…” He breathed deeply, handing me the bloody needle.

H
e poured
some more vodka on it and sighed. “Okay…” I muttered. My hand was shaking. This was by far the easiest thing I had done this whole trip, and yet it was easily the most repulsive and unsettling.

“
Y
ou’ll be okay
. You just shot a man in his leg! Remember that? This is nothing.” He smiled and gave me a kiss.

I
bent
down and breathed in slowly, bringing my heart down to a normal rate. “Okay. I got this.” I pressed the needle against the skin and felt it pop through. Adam winced and nodded his head as if to say, “You’re doing good. Keep going.” I threaded it through to the other side, pulling the wound tight. “Just a few more…” I whispered.

“
W
ell
, hurry it up. I wanna’ kiss you again.” He smiled.

“
Y
ou can kiss
me any time you want now. We’re free now.” I smiled.

H
e looked at me solemnly
. “It ain’t over yet, kid.”

I
avoided having this discussion
. I wanted to bathe in the illusion that all this was over now. But it wasn’t. I knew it wasn’t. Brianna and Jorge were still out there, waiting on the sidelines, watching for any inconsistencies in our movement. “Alright. Last one.” I said, puncturing his thick skin. I tied it tight, holding the other side of the string with the pliers. “Voila!” I smiled. He poured some more vodka on the wound and wrapped it in gauze.

“
T
hat really hurt you
? I thought you were a tough guy.” I said, about to break out in laughter. He grabbed me in his arms and held me tight, kissing my face all over.

“
Y
ou try getting shot
.” He said. “I saved your life back there. I think I deserve a thank you.”

“
M
y knight in shining armor
…” I joked around. Then I turned serious, “Adam, I’m glad I met you.” I said. He told me that the first time I told him I wanted to be a part of his crew. ‘The Family,’ as he called it. It was time I told him just how glad I was. “If I lost you back there…I don’t know what I’d do. I’d probably go ahead and die.”