Harm's Way: Riot MC Biloxi

didn’t bother me. Losing the money to Har bugged me. Of all the damn people, why him?
And why did I care?
“What are you gonna do for the next two weeks, Steph?”
I shrugged a shoulder. “Well, I got enough food for the week. Won’t be good food exactly, but I’ll survive. And I’ll have my tips each day, so, I can get by.”
“‘You’ll survive!’ I thought you were moving out there to make more money so you could dig out of the hole that asshole put you in.”
I sighed. “I don’t want to talk about that.”
“Believe me, neither do I. We’ve beaten that dead horse plenty! What if he finds you? If you need help, I’m eight hours away.”
I chuckled. “Like you could help me with that.”
Her sigh sounded almost like a groan. “What that asshole did put you in physical danger, Steph. What’s going to stop him from—”
“He’s not going to find me out here. Besides, it was two years ago. He got as much out of me as he could and he isn’t getting any more, Suze. I’ve frozen my credit, and taken every precaution I can to protect myself.”
“You don’t have the pictures, though,” she whispered.
I closed my eyes, wishing I could blink this problem away, but that was impossible. My live-in boyfriend of three years, Wycliffe, or at least that’s the name he’d used, had not only stolen my identity, he’d taken naked pictures of me without my knowledge or consent. Being the scum of the earth, he shared those photos far and wide, posting them to a ‘revenge pornography’ site. I didn’t know such a thing existed. And when he forwarded them to my boss, I lost my job.
To add to my problems, ‘Wycliffe’ then opened an online dating account in my name, listing my address and cell number. The account blew up since he used one of those naked pictures. I was forced to move from my apartment when a man responded to my ‘dating profile’ by showing up at my door.
The misery, the shame, and the violation knew no bounds.
And Suzy was right, I didn’t have the pictures. The problem was, even if I had the originals, there was no telling how many other pervs out there had downloaded the pics. Authorities could do little for me since Wycliffe had used a false identity (for three years!), and sadly, many authorities acted as if I let him take those pictures. If I didn’t sleep like the dead, maybe I’d have heard the sound of his phone taking the pictures or reacted to the flash, but I’ve always been a heavy sleeper. Facing people who looked at me like it was my fault added to the overall suck factor of the ordeal.
I opened my eyes. “No, I don’t have the originals, but like I told you before – even if I did, I don’t think it would help. I’m doing the best I can, Suzy.”
“I can send you money, if you need it.”
I shook my head. “No way, Suze. You pinch pennies to within an inch of their life, so you deserve every thing you work for and more.”
“So do you, honey.”
“Mom wouldn’t say that.”
“If she were still alive, I think she would say you deserve nothing but the best life has to offer.”
My eyebrow cocked because I did not believe any of that. Thinking about mom, I blurted, “Saw Sammy last night.”
“Sammy,” she whispered. Then, “You mean our former stepbrother?”
“Yep.”
“Wow. I thought he’d get out of Biloxi the first chance he got.”
“He’s part of the Riot MC.”
“What? I thought they were only in Jacksonville.”
I grinned. “Honey, they have multiple chapters. There’s one in Biloxi and he’s a member.”
Susan made a ‘hmph’ sound. “Well, how is he?”
“He’s all right I guess. We didn’t have time for a ton of chit-chat.”
“He still a husky guy or did he fill out?”
I chuckled. “Oh, he not only filled out but he’s seriously bulked-up, Suzy.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. I mean, his road name is Brute and based on how he hugged me, I’d say he’s stronger than his dad.”
“That’s saying something. Remember how stepdad used to throw that humongous tire around the backyard?”
I laughed. “Vaguely. I just remember how pissed he was when I painted it with my pink nail polish.”
“Not that it should’ve mattered,” Susan muttered.
“Good grief. Are you channeling Mom? She said something similar at the time.”
She made a humming noise before she asked, “What about that friend of Sam’s? They were practically joined at the hip...”
“Yeah. He’s still around.”
“Sounds like there’s a story there. Did you run into him too?”
I chuckled. “You could say that. My chip stack went to him and he didn’t even know who I was until Sammy showed up.”
“So, insult to injury.”
“Yep,” I said, grabbing my water for a sip.
“Geez. When you step in it, you really step in it, Stephie.”
“Thanks, sis.”
She chuckled. “But seriously. We’ve eaten more than our lifetime requirement of Ramen. I can...”
Her trailing off into silence lasted so long, I thought she hung up. “Are you there?”
“I’m here. I’ve ordered you some food. It’ll arrive tomorrow or the next day.”
“Suzy! I told you I didn’t need help.”
“And I told you, I could help you out. This works even better.”
I bit back my groan. “I’ll pay you back, Suze.”
“Don’t sweat it. You work tonight?”
“Yeah. The way my luck’s going, I’ll be at a tournament table and dealers split one huge tip instead of earning a tip with every hand.”
“Stop. Be positive, Stephie. At least you’ll have tip money, after tonight.”
“Yeah,” I sighed.
“It’s better than nothing. So, on that note, I’ll let you go. Love you.”
“Love you too.”
Har
“WHAT ARE YOU GONNA do with your winnings from last night, man?” Brute asked from the open doorway of the garage bay.
Traffic flowed by steadily on Division Street. From the dimming sunlight outside the shop, Har suspected it was well after four in the afternoon.
Har continued buffing the bike he’d finished the day before.
“You wanna hit New Orleans? Go to a strip club over