“PLEASE PRETEND YOU’RE MY GRANDSON…” THE TERRIFIED OLD WOMAN WHISPERED TO THE BIKER SIT NEXT TO HER. JUST SECOND, HE SAVE HER LIFE!

ByCuongB Mr
“Pour it black, Linda,” I said.
 
“You got it, Marcus,” Linda replied, lifting the glass pot.
 
“Do you want anything to eat? We have fresh pie.”
 
“No,” I answered.
 
“Just the coffee.”
 
“You look like you rode through a hurricane out there.”
 
“It felt exactly like it,” I said.
 
“The wind was fighting me the entire way from Barstow. I can barely feel my hands.”
 
“Is this the memorial run you told me about?” Linda asked, wiping the counter with a rag.
 
“Yes,” I confirmed.
 
“We are riding up to Reno for Jax. He went down on the highway last week. We are gathering the whole club together.”
 
“I am very sorry for your loss, Marcus.”
 
“Thank you, Linda. I just need ten minutes of absolute quiet before I get back on the road.”
 
“I can give you that,” she smiled.
 
“It is a very slow night. You are the only one in here besides the truck driver.”
 
I took a slow sip of my coffee. The front door of the diner chimed loudly. An elderly woman rushed inside. She was completely soaked.
 
She did not look at Linda. She walked directly toward my booth in the back corner. She gripped the edge of my table with violently shaking hands.
 
“Please,” the old woman whispered frantically.
 
“Please pretend you are my grandson.”
 
“Excuse me?” I asked.
 
“Please,” she begged, tears spilling down her cheeks.
 
“He is going to kill me.”
 
“Lady, I am six foot three, I am covered in tattoos, and I am wearing an Iron Reapers motorcycle vest,” I said calmly.
 
“I do not exactly scream family reunion.”
 
“I do not care what you look like,” she cried.
 
“You are the biggest person in this room. You are my only hope. He killed Arthur.”
 
“Who is Arthur?” I asked.
 
“My husband,” she gasped, her breathing erratic.
 
“He was an accountant. They murdered him. Please, just let me sit right here next to you.”
 
“Sit down,” I ordered firmly.
 
“What is your name?”
 
“Eleanor,” she whispered, sliding quickly into the booth beside me.
 
“Breathe, Eleanor,” I instructed.
 
“I will not let absolutely anyone touch you. Do you understand me?”
 
“I understand,” she nodded.
 
“Who exactly is trying to kill you?” I asked.
 
“The man in the suit,” she replied, pointing a trembling finger toward the front window.
 
“He followed me from the motel. He knows I have the evidence.”
 
The diner door chimed again. A tall man in a highly expensive gray suit stepped inside. He looked completely out of place. He scanned the room analytically.
 
His eyes locked directly onto Eleanor. He smiled a very cold, fake smile. He walked straight toward our booth.
 
“I apologize for the interruption, sir,” the suited man said smoothly.
 
“I believe there has been a massive misunderstanding here.”
 
“I do not like misunderstandings,” I said, leaning back in the booth.
 
“Explain it to me.”
 
“That woman sitting next to you is my mother,” the man lied effortlessly.
 
“She suffers from severe dementia. She wandered away from her care facility this evening.”
 
“Is that true, Grandma?” I asked Eleanor.
 
“I have never seen this man before in my entire life,” Eleanor whispered to me.
 
“She is highly confused,” the man stated, keeping his polite smile.
 
“My name is Victor. I am just trying to take her safely back home.”
 
“She does not look confused to me,” I countered.
 
“She looks terrified out of her mind.”
 
“Sir, I am trying to be polite,” Victor said, his tone dropping slightly.
 
“Please step aside.”
 
“I am not moving an inch,” I replied.
 
Victor reached into his tailored jacket. He pulled out an expensive smartphone. He tapped the screen and held it out toward me.
 
“Look at this photograph,” Victor demanded.
 
“It is a picture of me and my mother standing together outside my home. This proves I am telling the truth.”
 
I took the phone from his hand. I stared at the image closely.
 
“This is completely fake,” I said, handing the phone back to him.
 
“Excuse me?” Victor scoffed.
 
“The lighting is completely wrong on her face,” I explained analytically.
 
“Your shadow is facing the entirely wrong direction. Plus, she is wearing a solid gold necklace in this digital picture. She has a cheap silver locket on her neck right now. You altered this photo on a computer.”
 
Victor lost his fake smile immediately.
 
“You are a very observant biker.”
 
“I notice things,” I said. “Now, tell me the absolute truth.”
 
“The truth is absolutely none of your business,” Victor warned.
 
“Walk away from this table right now.”
 
“I am not walking anywhere, Victor.”
 
“Let us be reasonable,” Victor said, switching his tactics.
 
“I am a very wealthy man. I can make this heavily worth your time.”
 
“I do not want your dirty money.”
 
“Everyone wants money,” Victor laughed arrogantly.
 
“I will give you five thousand dollars in cash right now. Just get up, walk out that front door, and forget you ever saw us.”
 
“Keep your money in your pocket,” I said firmly.
 
“Ten thousand dollars,” Victor offered, raising his voice.
 
“That is more cash than you make in an entire year, I am sure.”
 
“You are highly insulting me, Victor.”
 
“Twenty thousand dollars!” Victor demanded angrily.
 
“Do not be incredibly stupid. Take the massive pile of cash and go buy yourself a brand new motorcycle.”
 
“I like my motorcycle just fine,” I replied.
 
“And Eleanor is not for sale.”
 
“Listen to me, biker,” Victor hissed, leaning over the table.
 
“You have absolutely no idea who you are dealing with today.”
 
“Enlighten me.”
 
“I am the chief executive officer of Vanguard Development,” Victor bragged.
 
“I own half the commercial real estate in this state. I have ruthless corporate lawyers on speed dial who can completely bury you in legal trouble. I can ruin your entire life with a single phone call.”
 
“I do not care about your lawyers,” I laughed deeply.
 
“I do not care about your real estate. You have zero power in this diner.”
 
Victor gritted his teeth.
 
“You are forcing my hand. I tried to do this the easy way.”
 
Victor turned his head toward the front door. He whistled sharply.
 
Two massive, heavily muscled men stepped into the diner. They wore dark tactical jackets and carried themselves like professional enforcers.
 
“Mickey, Cole, get over here,” Victor ordered.
 
The two thugs walked over to our booth. They cracked their knuckles aggressively.

“We got a problem, boss?” the man named Mickey asked.

“This biker is refusing to hand over the old lady,” Victor explained.

Mickey looked down at me. “Hey, leather jacket. Get out of the booth right now.”

“Make me,” I challenged him.

“There are two of us and only one of you,” Cole added, trying to sound intimidating.

“I really like those odds,” I smiled confidently.

“We will break your jaw,” Mickey threatened.

I did not break eye contact with Mickey. I spoke very slowly and very clearly.

“Listen to me very carefully, Mickey. If you take one single step closer to this table, I will take this hot coffee mug and smash it directly across your nose. While you are blinded by the burning liquid, I will use the jagged ceramic edge to open your friend Cole’s throat. I will do absolutely all of that before your wealthy boss over there even blinks his eyes. So, are we doing this?”

Mickey swallowed hard. He looked at Cole. Cole took a tiny step backward.

“You are completely insane,” Mickey muttered.

“I am highly trained,” I corrected him.

Victor slammed his fist on the table.

“Do not let him scare you! Grab the old woman!”

Before Mickey could move, a low, mechanical rumble began to vibrate through the diner floorboards. The sound grew exponentially louder by the second. The coffee in my mug started to shake.

“What is that loud noise?” Victor asked, looking around the diner in confusion.

“That is the sound of you losing,” I smiled widely.

Outside the window, dozens of incredibly bright headlights illuminated the dark parking lot. The deafening roar of forty heavy motorcycle engines completely drowned out the rain.

Victor looked out the window in absolute terror. His face turned completely pale.

The front door of the diner swung wide open. My club brothers poured inside.

Bear, the massive sergeant at arms, walked in first. He was followed closely by Ryder and Doc. Their heavy boots echoed loudly on the linoleum floor.

“Marcus!” Bear yelled across the room with a giant grin.

“We thought you got completely lost in the storm!”

“I just made some new friends, Bear,” I called back.

Bear walked over to our booth. He looked at Mickey and Cole, who were now visibly shaking with fear. Then he looked at Victor.

“Who is the guy in the cheap suit?” Bear asked me.

“He claims he is taking my sweet grandma back home,” I explained.

Bear looked at Eleanor.

“She does not look like she wants to go anywhere with him.”

“This is strictly private business,” Victor said, his voice trembling noticeably.

“It looks like a public diner to me,” Bear laughed deeply.

“And Marcus is my brother. That means his grandma is my grandma. And nobody messes with my grandma.”

Ryder stepped up right next to Victor. He looked down at Victor’s shoes.

“You got very nice shoes,” Ryder observed mockingly.

“Italian leather? It would be a massive shame to scuff them up tonight.”

“I demand you let me pass!” Victor shouted, trying to regain his lost authority.

“Demand?” Ryder chuckled, looking at Bear.

“Did you hear that, Bear? The suit demands things from us.”

“I heard him,” Bear smiled dangerously.

“I do not think he understands the current situation.”

Doc walked over and stood behind Mickey and Cole.

“You boys look very tense. Do you need a doctor? Because I can easily arrange a trip to the hospital for both of you.”

Victor pulled out his phone frantically.

“I am calling the local police right now! You are all violently harassing me!”

“You do not need to call them,” I said calmly.

“Linda the waitress already called them ten minutes ago.”

Flashing red and blue lights cut through the rain outside. A county sheriff cruiser pulled aggressively into the parking lot. Sheriff Davis stepped out of the vehicle and walked into the diner.

“Sheriff Davis, it is very good to see you,” I called out.

Sheriff Davis looked at the crowd of bikers, then at Victor, and finally at me.

“Marcus,” Sheriff Davis sighed heavily.

“What exactly is the major problem here tonight?”

“You need to ask Eleanor, Sheriff,” I suggested, pointing to the trembling woman beside me.

Sheriff Davis walked over to our booth. He took out a small notepad.

“Ma’am, what exactly is going on here?”

Eleanor took a very deep breath. She looked at Victor, then looked directly at the Sheriff.

“My husband Arthur worked as a senior accountant for Vanguard Development,” Eleanor stated clearly. Her voice was no longer shaking.

“He found their secret offshore bank accounts. He found the massive cash bribes they illegally paid to the city council members.”

“This is completely absurd!” Victor yelled.

“She is a senile old bat! Do not listen to a single word she says!”

“Keep your mouth entirely shut, Victor,” Bear commanded, placing a massive hand heavily on Victor’s shoulder.

“Go on, Eleanor,” Sheriff Davis instructed.

“Victor found out that Arthur knew about the massive fraud,” Eleanor continued, tears welling in her eyes.

“Victor personally cut the brake lines on Arthur’s car. The local police said it was a tragic accident. It was absolutely not an accident. Arthur knew they were coming for him.”

“What evidence do you have of this?” the Sheriff asked.

“Arthur printed out absolutely all the secret bank statements,” Eleanor explained.

“He hid them securely inside the inner lining of this heavy wool coat I am wearing.”

“This is pure slander!” Victor panicked.

“Sheriff, arrest this woman for defamation!”

“Sheriff, rip the bottom lining of my coat,” Eleanor demanded.

Sheriff Davis reached down and pulled firmly on the seam of Eleanor’s wool coat. The stitching ripped open. A thick stack of folded, highly detailed financial documents fell directly onto the diner table.

Sheriff Davis picked up the papers. He scanned the top document closely. His eyes widened in absolute shock.

“Well, Victor,” Sheriff Davis said coldly.

“It looks like we have a very serious problem here.”

Victor realized he was completely trapped. He frantically tried to change his entire strategy.

“Sheriff, let us be highly reasonable,” Victor pleaded desperately.

“You make what, maybe sixty thousand dollars a year in this dusty town? I can easily double your entire pension right now. I will give you two hundred thousand dollars in cash tomorrow morning to burn those papers completely.”

“Did you just try to illegally bribe a sworn law enforcement officer in front of forty witnesses?” Sheriff Davis asked, completely stunned by the audacity.

“I am just offering a mutually beneficial business transaction!” Victor begged.

“Put your hands completely behind your back, Victor,” Sheriff Davis ordered, pulling out his steel handcuffs.

“You cannot do this to me!” Victor screamed as the Sheriff roughly cuffed his wrists.

“I am a highly powerful man! I own this entire county!”

“You own absolutely nothing anymore,” I said, standing up from the booth.

Sheriff Davis looked at Mickey and Cole.

“You two boys want to end up in federal prison too, or are you going to cooperate fully?”

Mickey immediately raised his hands in surrender.

“We will tell you absolutely everything you want to know! He paid us to intimidate the old lady! We did not kill the accountant!”

“Get outside and get into the back of my cruiser,” Sheriff Davis commanded the thugs.

Victor was aggressively marched out the front door of the diner. He was screaming loud, pathetic threats the entire way to the police car.

The diner went completely quiet again. The heavy rain continued to hit the windows.

Bear looked at me and laughed loudly.

“You sure know how to pick a quiet spot for coffee, Marcus.”

“It was very quiet until she walked in,” I smiled.

Eleanor stood up slowly from the booth. She looked at me with deep, genuine gratitude in her tired eyes.

“Thank you, Marcus,” Eleanor said softly.

“You absolutely did not have to help me today. You risked your own safety.”

“I did not risk anything,” I assured her.

“I was perfectly safe.”

“You are a very good grandson,” she smiled warmly.

“I try my absolute best, Grandma.”

Sheriff Davis walked back inside to collect the financial documents from the table.

“I will make absolutely sure these documents get directly to the federal prosecutors in the morning,” Sheriff Davis promised Eleanor.

“Victor is going to spend the rest of his miserable life behind thick iron bars.”

“Thank you, Sheriff,” Eleanor said.

“Come on, Eleanor,” Linda the waitress said gently, coming out from behind the counter.

“I will make you a fresh cup of hot tea while we wait for the federal transport.”

I walked out of the diner with my club brothers. The freezing rain had finally stopped falling. The dark clouds were slowly breaking apart, revealing a bright, full moon over the Nevada desert.

“Are you ready to ride, Marcus?” Ryder asked, tossing me my helmet.

“I am completely ready,” I replied, catching the helmet easily.

“Jax would have loved what happened in there tonight,” Bear said fondly.

“He always hated arrogant guys in expensive suits.”

“Yes, he did,” I agreed.

“Let us go honor him properly.”

I climbed onto my heavy motorcycle. I kicked the engine into gear. The massive roar of forty bikes completely shattered the peaceful desert silence.

We rode out of the parking lot in perfect formation. I looked back at the glowing neon sign of the Desert Star Diner one last time. Sometimes the universe puts you in the exact right place at the exact right time.

I twisted the throttle aggressively. The cold wind hit my face as we sped down the empty highway. The dark night was finally over, and justice had been completely served.

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