Monday afternoon arrived quickly after a busy week. The events and meetings seemed to be picking up now that the weather was getting warmer and spring had finally arrived after a long winter.
It was time for another ride and Tess had planned a great one for this week. She and Nitro had driven around the area looking for places to ride. They’d used the private rides as time for themselves, and Tess loved to be able to get to know him away from the club. When they were alone, she called him by his real name: Kris. But around the MC, she called him Nitro like everyone else.
The group was gathering in the parking lot and getting their bikes into position. Everyone was joking about the latest prank the prospects had played on the President. Abe was being good-natured about the room where they held Church. It was obvious he was planning some sort of revenge.
“Alright everyone, let’s get started,” Tess spoke into the headset. “Today we’re going to head out to Iron Mountain, which is about a half an hour ride from here. It’s an absolutely gorgeous spot and there’s lots of trails for hiking once we get up there too. So if you’re all ready, Road Runner, if you could be our Tail Gunner and help us along the way?”
“I sure can,” he replied in his headset.
“Thanks! So let’s get out there and have a good ride!”
Tess led the way into the street and they followed in formation. Chatter was lively as they drove and it was a great time of laughter and fellowship. As they neared the mountains, Tess was again taken aback by their beauty. She’d had no idea there were so many mountains in New York until she’d arrived here months ago, and she had to remind herself to keep her eyes on the road ahead of her.
When they arrived at the top of the mountain, everyone dismounted their bikes and took in the view. While they were looking out over the horizon, Nitro’s phone rang and he answered it. Tess could tell immediately that something was wrong and put a hand on his lower back in support.
After the call, he hung up and swore, clipping it back to his belt.
“What’s wrong?” Tess asked with concern, and both Abe and Turbo were quickly by his side.
“That was Butch, at the front gate. He just received a letter from Lost Knights MC.”
“Your cousin’s MC, right?” Turbo clarified.
“Yeah,” Nitro nodded with frustration. “They’re pissed about us not inviting them to the last Bike Night. They think it’s in retaliation for their oversight last year in not telling us about their rally.”
“That’s ridiculous! We sent out a blanket invite to all the MC’s in the area!” Madison stated as she came to stand beside her husband Abe.
“I guess they wanted an engraved invitation,” Nitro rolled his eyes. “We need to head back and deal with this. Sorry babygirl,” Nitro looked over at Tess. “No hiking today.”
“I understand,” Tess insisted and then said into the headset, “Alright everyone, let’s head back.”
The group got back on their bikes and drove home. There was a different atmosphere as the group talked about the latest news. Tess knew she wasn’t the only one wondering if they were about to have a war on their hands.