Paradise MC were out on another ride through one of the more sketchy areas of New York. Tess normally wouldn’t feel safe here, she was surrounded by her family and she knew she would be okay. They were talking in their headsets as they rode and the chatter was light and fun. Tess navigated them through the city.
There were abandoned buildings and apartments. Some flames were still rising in the corner where a recent bonfire had been, Tess hoped.
Rachel and Tess were rounding a corner with the group close behind when Tess braked fast. Rachel pulled right in front of her and they took in the scene. A school bus had somehow ran itself off the road and was crashed into a pile of rocks that were still burning.
“What the hell?” Tess asked into the mic from the headset.
“What’s up?” Nitro asked as he then pulled up close beside them. “Woah, holy shit!” He exclaimed as he saw the bus.
Abe rode up to them and called over, “Everyone hold up. Nitro, call it into the cops. Tess, Rachel, back up from the bus now.”
They obeyed and then Nitro took out his phone to call the police. It wasn’t long before the NYPD car drove up and two officers got out. The male officer walked over to Abe and asked, “What’s the story, Abe?” It was clear that the two men knew each other well.
“Hey, Ken,” Abe replied. “We were just out on a weekly ride and came across this. We’re worried it may explode at any moment.”
“The fire department is on its way. We’ll have to get a search of the bus going. Let’s pray no kids were in there.”
Tess meanwhile had moved towards Nitro’s bike. She was doing her best to stay calm, but the site of the bus, the flames, the thought that there might be children inside…
Nitro reached over to take her hand as Turbo rode closer to Rachel. Looking at Abe, Nitro asked, “Sir, permission to take the girls back to the clubhouse?”
Abe looked from Nitro to Ken and asked, “It okay if my crew heads out? We literally just rode up to the scene. I don’t want our girls here much longer. This isn’t the safest area.”
“Yes, for sure,” Ken nodded. “I have your number if I need you. Thanks for calling it in.”
The female officer was meanwhile, on her radio and announced, “Fire department is five minutes out. Medics too.”
“Keep us posted, please,” Abe insisted to Ken and at his nod, stepped back. Looking at the crew, he called out, “Let’s go home!”
With strength she didn’t have, Tess led the crew away from the scene and back to the clubhouse. The feed was quiet as the bikers processed what they had just seen. When they’d arrived back home, they stood around in the parking lot. None of them wanting to disperse. Tess leaned against Nitro, doing her best to keep in her tears. Nitro held strong arms around her and kissed her gently as he rubbed her back.
It wasn’t long before Abe’s phone rang into the silence. He answered it and talked with Ken and then hung up the phone, looking around at the group. “That was Ken. The good news is that there were no children on board when the bus crashed. The bad news is that the driver’s body was incarcerated.” He paused, letting them process the news. “This isn’t easy, and no one will think less of anyone if you need to talk to someone. I’m here, Madison is here… let’s be here for one another.”
The group slowly departed and Nitro looked at Tess with concern. “Come over tonight, baby. I don’t think you should be alone tonight.”
“Yeah, please. I just… Kris, when I saw those flames…”
“Shh, I know,” he kissed her forehead. “Come on, let’s go.” He then took her hand and led her to his apartment where she spent the night in his arms.