Renegade (2013) (35 page)

But it wasn’t going anywhere. Radiator fluid pooled beneath it in a green puddle. Steam poured from under the hood. All of the windows were broken out.

Pike pulled the motorcycle to a stop, killed the engine, and stepped off. He reloaded the shotgun as he rounded the back end of the SUV and headed for the passenger side.

Yaqub sat dazed in the passenger seat. Blood trickled from a cut on his forehead.

Pike leveled the shotgun at the tango leader. “We can do this the easy way or the hard way.”

The door behind Yaqub jerked open, and a young man stepped out with a pistol clenched in his fist. Pike tried to turn, but he knew he was going to be too late. The man was as fast as anyone he’d ever seen. Two bullets hammered Pike’s body armor over his heart, and a third ricocheted from his helmet, knocking his head back. Pike pulled the trigger at the same time, though, and the double-aught buckshot lifted the tango from his feet and pitched him backward.

By that time, Yaqub had an assault rifle pointing out the window. Pike stood his ground, knowing there was no time to run—and he wasn’t going to run anymore, not even from himself. He swung the shotgun around and pulled the trigger, staring death in the face, feeling the heat of the bullet kiss his right temple, then felt the impact of the 12-gauge thudding against his shoulder.

The buckshot caught Yaqub in the head and shoulders, knocking him back inside the vehicle.

The Marine Humvee skidded to a halt as it locked down. In the next instant, Heath swung out from behind the steering wheel and Gunney Towers stepped out on the passenger side.

“Yaqub?” Heath asked.

Pike jerked a thumb over his shoulder, feeling suddenly dizzy and noticing he had double vision. “You can have what’s left of him.”

Gunney Towers took Pike by the shoulder. “Let me have a look at you, Marine.”

Pike stood still and shook his head, regretting that instantly. “I’m fine.”

Towers examined him for a moment, then took a gauze pad from his chest pack and pressed it to Pike’s head. “You are all right, Marine. Gonna be right as rain. But that there’s gonna leave a mark.”

Pike looked at the older man, meeting his warm brown gaze. “Everything I’ve gone through in my life has left a mark, Gunney.”

Smiling knowingly, Towers nodded. “I suppose it has.”

WEEKS LATER,
when the deployment ended, Pike returned to Tulsa. Carrying his duffel, the scar on his forehead still pink and shiny, he got off the bus at the street corner near his apartment. For a minute, he just stood there and breathed in, letting the city sink into him. He was surprised to discover how comfortable he felt, how much he had missed the familiar streets. Instead of going to his apartment, he headed to the garage.

Monty greeted him with a grease-smeared smile, sliding out from under a pickup up on the rack. “You’re back.”

“I am.”

Monty sat up on the creeper and wiped his hands on a red rag. “It’s good to see you, Pike. Real good.” He paused. “I got the feeling there at the end before you deployed that you thought some about not coming back.”

Feeling a little embarrassed that he could be read so easily, Pike shrugged. “I’m not much for staying.”

“I knew that. I lined up another mechanic to help me here because you’ve brought in so much business. Had to have somebody.”

Disappointment hit Pike harder than he thought it would. “It’s no sweat, Monty. I understand. You did what you had to do.” He was
surprised at how much he’d been counting on having a job when he got back. “I had a great time working with you.”

Monty stood and shook his head. “You planning on going somewhere?”

“I’ll be around.”

“Pike, you still got your job here. The mechanic I took on works at another shop. He was just moonlighting here. Another pair of hands when I needed them, and I needed them. Your job is your job, brother. For as long as you want it.”

Pike smiled. “I appreciate that, Monty. You don’t know how much.”

Monty stared at him and smiled back. “I know. Believe me, I know. My wife and kids may make me crazy every now and again, but I love knowing where I belong. And right now, you belong here too. You can get started anytime you’re ready. I got both bays full.”

Glancing at the clock on the wall, Pike saw that school would be out. “Gimme a minute to go scarf a burger and I’ll be back.”

“Sure. Whenever you’re ready.”

Pike held up his duffel. “Mind if I leave this here for a bit?”

Monty took the duffel. “Let me handle that for you. Lemme guess: you’re going to the diner.”

Pike shrugged. “Thought I’d check and see if the kid was doing his homework.”

“He is. He’ll be glad to see you.”

Pike crossed the street and walked into the diner. Hector was at one of the back tables, working diligently, but when he spotted Pike at the door, he got up and raced over as quickly as he could. He wrapped both his arms around Pike, hugging him fiercely.

“You’re home!”

“Yeah, I am.” Pike Morgan hugged the boy, and for the first time in his life, he felt like he truly was home.

MEL ODOM
is the author of the Alex Award–winning novel
The Rover
, the Christy Award runner-up
Apocalypse Dawn
, and the Called to Serve series, which includes
Deployed
and
Renegade
. Odom has been inducted into the Oklahoma Professional Writers Hall of Fame (at the age of 37—otherwise mentioning such an award makes him sound very old and retired). He lives in Moore, Oklahoma, where he coached Little League for years, and teaches professional writing classes at the University of Oklahoma. Since first being published in 1988, Mel has written more than 160 books in various fields, which he blames on his ADHD, desperation (five children), and opportunity.