Page 17 of Wheelie's Challenge
Wheelie:I hope you’re smiling right now.
Sofia:I am!!! :)
He laughed and closed his eyes, picturing her green ones sparkling and a huge grin spread across her face. That’s what he wanted for her: happiness and peace.
Wheelie:Gotta go. If shit happens, call me. I’ll come right over.
Sofia:Thx. I’m being extra good so I should be fine. U made me so happy!
He pressed his lips together.
Wheelie:See ya.
Sofia:Bye.
The phone went silent, and he slipped it into the inner pocket of his cut then started his bike. A long, fast ride that buried him in the wind and the landscape was what he needed.
He turned left, out of the car wash’s lot, and made his way toward the two-lane road that cut through the valley.
Chapter Five
Two prison guardsled Russ Elmore down the corridors, the shackles around his wrists and ankles hampering his gait. After two hours of bureaucratic BS, the guards escorted him into a small room, keeping watch over him as he removed his light blue prison shirt and dark blue denim pants stenciled with CDCR PRISONER in large yellow print. Elmore quickly donned the clothes his girlfriend had sent him: black jeans and a red plaid button down shirt.
“Let’s get going,” one of the guards said, prodding Russ Elmore to speed it up.
They walked him back to the Receiving and Releasing desk, and the clerical guard gave him his property: two hundred dollars in gate money, which prisoners received before release, one hundred dollars earned during incarceration, and five boxes of legal paperwork he’d accumulated over the past nine years.
Still in handcuffs and ankle chains, Elmore shuffled to the mini-bus where the two men helped him inside then threw in the five boxes. The bus squeaked and groaned as it went over speed bumps until it finally came to a stop outside the prison. The guards took off the shackles and stacked the five boxes on the side of the road. The air carried the threat of rain, and sweat poured down Russ Elmore’s back as he glanced around, squinting against the hazy glare of the sun overhead.
A gleaming bronze Buick waited several feet ahead of him. The car door opened and a woman in her early thirties slipped out of the vehicle, the breeze blowing through her shoulder-length blonde hair. Elmore smiled as he ran his eyes over her slender figure encased in tight white capris and a skimpy turquoise top. A surge of lust ran through him as she walked slowly toward him.
He picked up two of the boxes and met her halfway. “Back up the car so I can put this shit in the trunk,” he said.
In less than ten minutes, he had her in his arms, his calloused hands squeezing her tits. “Let’s go to the motel first then we can go to IHOP and I can finally have some decent food.” She moaned when he pinched her nipples, then she pulled away and started up the car.
Russ had met Mallory Levin through a pen-pal site. His sister had filled out the application before telling him about it. To his amazement, he started receiving letters from women all over the country, but the photo of a cute blonde in a bikini that left little to his imagination was the one that got him to take pen to paper. He and Mallory had communicated for about a year before she told him she’d inherited some money from her parents and that she was moving to California from Rhode Island to be closer to him.
And here they were. No more two-second hugs in a visiting room. He could hold Mallory as much as he wanted and it felt damn good. After pleading guilty to voluntary manslaughter and spending nine years in prison, Elmore couldn’t really believe he was out. Everything seemed so bright and colorful despite the sky turning overcast. The noise jarred him as semi-trucks, motorcycles, and carswhizzedby them on the freeway. It would take time for him to adjust, but having Mallory by his side would make it easier. Her financial assistance while he was inside kept his ass from getting beatdowns many times, and now he could relax a little while she brought in the money from the real estate business she’d started in San Diego a few years before.
“You got a joint on you?” he asked, settling back as he stared straight ahead.
“Here you go, baby.” She handed him one, along with a lighter then ran her fingers through his hair. “I can’t wait to show you how much I love you.”
Elmore grasped her hand and kissed it. “That’s what I like to hear. Put on some music.”
As the radio played, he closed his eyes. He’d been up since four that morning, the adrenaline pushing him through, but now exhaustion had set in. They would drive for about an hour and find a motel in San Jose where they’d stop for the night, and then they’d make their way down the coast, spending nights in seaside towns until they made it to San Diego. Mallory had mapped it out. It was like she was trying to cram seven years of longing into six days, and after some good fucking and a decent meal, all Russ wanted to do was chill. Locked up inside for so long had changed him. He couldn’t just act like it was business as usual; it’d take time to get acclimated. In prison it was always loud, and he never had any peace or quiet. Now, all around him was color and freedom, and it was overwhelming.
You just remember that no matter what happens, the minute your ass is free, I’m gonna come and kill you. You’ll never have peace, you motherfucker.Elmore’s eyes snapped open and his body jerked off the seat. Wheelie’s voice was so loud and clear, he’d thought for a minute that his brother-in-law was in the car.
Mallory’s cool hand stroked the side of his face. “You okay, baby? Did you have a bad dream?”
“Yeah… something like that.” Wheelie’s hard gray eyes burned into his brain, and a cold shiver rode down his spine.He’s gonna know I’m out. The fucking system’s gonna tell him that I’ll be on parole in San Diego. I’ll have to look over my shoulder. Three years parole is gonna be damn long with that sonofabitch gunning for me.
“You sure you’re good?” Mallory threw him a quick smile, but concern laced her eyes.
“Yeah. I’m just tired. It’s been a long morning.”Just shut the fuck up. I gotta think here.
“Should we go to a motel now so you can sleep?” Her gaze darted to the freeway signs.
