Crazy // Gnarls Barkley

Jackson

"Are you about set?" I ask Holly as I carry one more shoebox of photos to the front door. As soon as I get the word, I'll start loading my truck.

"Just about," she says from the back bedroom. "I'm looking through the last one now."

"Let me know." Last time we had to pack and run, we grabbed essentials in a rush. Just enough to get by for a few days. But this time I've given Holly the green light to get it all. Anything she wants she should take because we don't know what's going on with the house or with Judge. Even if the deed to the house she found in the garage is forged, and a shitty one at that, who knows if he's improved since then and will try to evict her and her mom or lock them out and take possession of all their stuff. I'd rather not have to deal with him as a slum lord in addition to the other shit he's already done.

When is enough, enough, for God's sake?

Before I can contemplate the dastardly deeds of her sperm donor any longer, I hear Grinder's raised voice. I can't make out what he's saying but his tone puts my feet in motion toward him.

"Stay in here," I call out to Holly. "I'll be right back."

"Okay," she replies calmly. I must have shuttered my concern effectively if she isn't asking questions. I decide against moving out the front door on a gut feeling, instead rushing to the back door through the kitchen. It creaks as I pull it open causing me to slow down in case the sound can be heard from the driveway. Every nerve ending in me is on alert as I scan the grassy back yard next to the garage. I no longer hear Grinder's voice. The entire backyard is silent and still but there's an unmistakable tension I can't decide if it's coming from me or if I'm sensing it in general. The air is thick with it, so I decide I'm reading the room rather than exaggerating it in my mind.

The atmosphere is motionless as I take a step onto the grass. My heart pounds in my chest so hard it's all I can hear. I can smell the dirt and motor oil that surrounds the shed out here. Then Grinder shouts something else. This I can make out.

"What the fuck are you doing?"

My muscles tense to break into a sprint but the sound of a popping balloon stops me in my tracks. My mouth drops open as the engine of a motorcycle starts up and seconds later guns out of the garage and down the driveway. I watch completely dumbstruck as Judge drives away, his black leather vest unmistakable even from thirty feet away.

Oh fuck. Grinder was with him in there.

I shake myself back into the present and rush into the garage only to find Grinder on the ground, blood pouring from his thigh. Running to him, I kneel next to his waist and check for a pulse. At least, that's what I'm attempting to do. I have no fucking clue how to help him. My brain can't process what my eyes are seeing fast enough to decide on a plan of action. Holly's voice rings out from behind me.

"Oh my God! What happened? I heard the gunshot and then my dad's bike. Was he here?"

Gunshot? Holy fuck, was that what I heard? The popping balloon was a bullet.

"Yeah, he road away before I could stop him." I feel like an ass for letting him go.

"Thank goodness. He'd have shot you too." Holly is now kneeling opposite of me next to Grinder and doing a better job of assessing the situation. Her fingers gently pull at the hole in Grinder's pants.

"It looks like the outer thigh. There's a major vessel in the leg by the groin so it could be a serious injury. Do you have your phone on you? We need to call emergency."

"Fuck." I pull my phone out of my pocket and call 911. It connects immediately and the voice on the other line asks what the emergency is. I open my mouth to answer but nothing comes out.

"I-,"

Holly grabs the phone from me and starts rattling off Grinder's information. I hear her say he's been knocked unconscious. My head registers her words to mean that he's still alive. Only a minute or two later we hear the sound of sirens down the street.

"Go," Holly shouts at me as she applies direct pressure to Grinder's wound, "Flag them down so they know where to find us."

I nod silently and rush down the driveway, happy to finally be doing something helpful. As I wave the paramedics down the dirt path to the open garage door, I take in the sight of Holly leaning over Grinder actively helping him on the ground. She's the picture of calm and I just lost my shit. I feel like a bumbling fool. How the hell am I supposed to protect her from her fucking dad if I can't even deal with what's happened to Grind?

The paramedics grab their gear and take over for Holly. She stands nearby giving whatever information she can. I run my fingers through my hair trying to figure out what to do. Call my dad. Call Julia. I move to pull my phone out of my pocket when I begin to wonder how Judge got here if he drove away on his bike. Instead of making a call immediately, I head back out to the street to look for his red cab. My eyes scan the area but see nothing.

My phone rings in my pocket as I'm still straining to look as far down the street as I can. Absently, I pull it out and glance at the screen to tap the answer button.

"Hello?" I turn my head to strain my eyes in the other direction, still trying to find some kind of clue.

"Did he leave already?" My mom's voice grates through the speaker.

"What?" I blocked her after the last shitty call. I pull the phone away from my ear and see an unknown number on my caller ID.

"Jay. I know you know. I know you're there. I just wanna know if he's already gone. Won't answer my calls and I need to know if he's got his own ride now."

"What!"

"Jeezus. Keep up, Jackson. Jay came to pick up his Harley. Did. He. Get. It." She huffs into the phone. "I have shit to do and a long ass drive back home."

I hang up. I fucking hang up on my batshit crazy mother and growl. I growl for fuck's sake. I'm so twisted I can't even form words or coherent thoughts. An ambulance pulls down the street with lights and sirens before shutting them down and turning onto the driveway. I've got bigger issues than an unhinged set of mismatched parents, Holly's and mine. I should see if Grinder's okay and call his wife.

I follow the path of the ambulance and slide into the garage on the far side of the doorway. Grinder's being lifted onto the gurney, now conscious and cussing up a storm.

"Goddamn that hurts." He reaches to grab his thigh but the EMT pulls his hand away.

"Let's keep things as sterile as possible, sir."

Grinder grits his teeth. "I cannot believe that motherfucker shot me. Someone call Julia. Tell her to meet me at the hospital."

"On it," I say as I pull up her contact.

"I'll grab your things, Grinder." Holly offers.

"I don't have any things. Just my wallet and keys to my ride." He attempts to pull them out of his back pocket but the EMT stops him again.

"Let me, sir. We need you stabilized."

Grinder lets the guy grab the keys who then hands them to me before I can call Julia.

"Jackson, ride it back to the shop, will you? I don't want it left here."

My jaw drops for a split second. "I, um...don't ride."

"First time for everything. I trust you more than I trust this neighborhood."

What the actual fuck. I basically witnessed my first shooting and now I'm expected to hop on a motorcycle—a restored Harley at that—and drive it across town? Fine, that's an exaggeration. Grinder's shop isn't all the way across town, but still. I don't ride.

"I'll show you how," Holly says, a hint of amusement in her eyes.

Great. I've blown this whole thing to shit and my inner accountant is showing. I take a deep breath and spin the keys on my finger.

"I can do this." If I say it enough, maybe I'll believe myself.

"Of course you can." Holly's arms wrap around me. Her lips press against my ear sending shivers down my back. "I can't believe my dad pulled the trigger."

I pull Holly closer. She takes a deep breath before speaking again.

"It could have been so much worse. It could have been you. He could have aimed for Grinder's chest. He's lost it. I don't think he's ever shot anyone before."

I highly doubt that. I fully believe he has shot someone before. I don't think he was trying to kill Grinder. I think that was some kind of warning. But I don't say this to Holly. I don't want to say this to anyone, yet. Maybe to Brax. He'll be able to handle it and know what to do.

"Come on. Let's call Julia and then you can give me my first motorcycle lesson." Words I never thought I'd speak. I laugh, a sound so out of place after the afternoon's events. "My dad will be so proud."

"Silly boy. He already is." Holly kisses my cheek.

"Yeah, yeah." I brush her off, but secretly love what she said. I do want my dad to be proud of me. He's shown his pride without question since the second I showed up in town. Unconditional love for me, even after all these years apart. He really is someone to look up to, no matter his circumstances or the size of his place. He's not a raging success financially, but he's a hell of a good person. Someone I'm happy to know, to be related to.

We call Julia who is understandably worried about her man. Holly assures her that he was doing well when the ambulance took him. The paramedics and EMT's had him stabilized and on his way to the hospital in minutes after arrival. We promised to meet her there as soon as we could.

"Now for the ride of your life," Holly says, laughing.

"Oh God." I don't know if I can do this. I even admit this out loud to Holly.

"Of course you can! Now, straddle this baby and start her up." After I strap on Grinder's helmet, Holly instructs me in the proper way to start a Harley. The sound and vibrations permeate my soul as I sit astride Grinder's pride and joy.

"You drive a stick, right? This isn't that different." She points to the clutch and the accelerator, showing me how to shift gears. "Try it out on the driveway. Don't give much gas so it doesn't go too fast."

"This is so stupid."

"Come on, I'm dying to see you lay your first rubber."

"That sounds so twisted."

"Ha, ha. Just give it a try."

I squeeze the throttle and hold tight as the entire bike lurches forward.

"Lightly!" Holly shouts over the motor.

I back off the gas and keep the brake in a grip, surprised at my ability to balance on the thing already. I get to the grass at the back yard and bring the bike to a stop, having just driven half the length of the driveway.

"Shit, I did it."

"Sure did, baby. Now turn it around and drive it back the other way."

I start to slide off the seat when Holly stops me.

"Practice driving it into a turn. You'll have several between here and the shop."

"Why me?" My nerves have kicked all the way in. This is stressful.

"Because you're the one he trusts."

Right. And a huge part of me wants to live up to that trust. I stay on the bike and accelerate just enough to make a turn. It's awkward and wobbly but I get it done. Then I continue down the entire length of the driveway at a crawl.

"Well, you made it. But maybe we should look at some side street options to get you back there."

"Yeah, good plan." We find a less traveled path to the shop and get on the road. I drive like a grandma with Holly on my tail making sure I don't crash the thing. Once we make it all the way to Blue Bloods tattoo and I secure his bike in the back, I've gained some confidence behind the handlebars. Maybe I should take my dad up on his offer to fix up that old bike for me.

Maybe I will. Once Judge is dealt with and I'm not fearing for Holly's safety. Maybe then I'll feel like my real life can begin.

Ok, not the bonus chapter I thought I'd post first but, still...I DID IT! I got a chapter written in just 2 days! Although this chapter went some wacky places. Judge is on the loose and so is Jackson's mom (Velma? Verna? Apparently I've used both...let's stick with Verna. It sounds better for some reason). I'm planning on writing whatever my brain chooses when my fingers start typing so it might be the bonus chapter or it might be what happens next chronologically. Either way, I'll post as soon as its ready, Friday or not.

May your new year be filled with peace and joy. We could all use more of both.

This song is a last minute add but wasn't that what this chapter was, crazy? I used it in another playlist a while ago (My Bloody Valentine on Catrina Burgess' page) but we never finished that story so I'm stealing it back for this one, at least temporarily.

https://youtu.be/Qe500eIK1oA

Enjoy! Check me out on TikTok. I don't do that much bookish stuff but I love me some Sisterwives tok!