His lip was split.
Sarah had begged him to visit the hospital.
He refused.
They couldn't afford it.
They had no meaningful health insurance.
Rent was due.
The electricity bill was waiting.
Caleb couldn't spend hundreds of dollars getting X-rays when every dollar already had a destination.
So he taped his ribs, swallowed cheap painkillers, and went back to work.
He went to class.
He washed dishes.
He studied late into the night.
He pretended everything was normal.
But Troy Dawson hadn't forgotten.
At Bakersfield Community College, Caleb began seeing him everywhere.
A hallway.
A cafeteria.
Outside the library.
Troy never attacked him in front of professors.
He didn't need to.
His stare was enough.
It said:
This isn't finished.
Caleb tried to avoid him.
For several days, it worked.
Then Thursday evening came.
Classes were over.
The campus parking lot was nearly empty.
Caleb walked toward his bicycle.
The bicycle was old, but it was essential.
It was his transportation to school and work.
Without it, his entire schedule became impossible.
He was unlocking it when a hand grabbed his collar.
Caleb was lifted from the ground.
His back slammed against a brick wall.
Pain shot through his injured ribs.
Troy stood in front of him.
Greg and Liam were nearby.
"Thought you were a hero?" Troy whispered.
Caleb struggled to breathe.
"I didn't do anything."
"You embarrassed me."
"You attacked him."
Troy smiled.
"You protected biker trash."
Caleb looked at the ground.
"He's a person."
That answer seemed to anger Troy more than anything else.
Troy shoved him harder.
"You don't understand how this town works."
He nodded toward Greg.
Greg picked up Caleb's bicycle.
Caleb's eyes widened.
"No."
Greg lifted it above his head.
"Please."
The bicycle crashed against the curb.
Metal twisted.
The front wheel folded.
Greg stomped on it until the spokes snapped.
Troy watched with satisfaction.
"Walk home, hero."
They left.
Caleb slid down the brick wall.
He stared at the ruined bicycle.
Five miles.
That was how far he had to walk.
Five miles to the trailer.
Five miles back to the diner.
Five miles to school.
His eyes filled with tears.
Not because of the bicycle.
Because he knew what it represented.
The fragile structure of his life had just been damaged again.
He sat there for several minutes.
Then he stood.
He picked up the broken bicycle.
And started walking.
Across town, Bear Callan was leaving Bakersfield Memorial Hospital.
He had spent several days recovering.
Doctors had told him he had been dangerously close to death.
He already knew that.
What he couldn't stop thinking about was the kid.
The skinny kid.
The kid who had stood between him and three attackers.
The kid who had known nothing about him.
The kid who had risked his own life.
Outside the hospital waited twenty-four motorcycles.
The engines were silent.
Their riders stood beside them.
At the center was Michael Henderson.
Iron Mike.
President of the Bakersfield charter.
Bear walked toward him.
Mike embraced him.
"Good to have you back."
Bear nodded.
"I almost didn't make it."
Mike's expression darkened.
"What happened?"
Bear explained.
When he described the attack, the mood changed.
But then Bear raised a hand.
"There's something else."
Mike waited.
"There was a kid."
"What kid?"
"The one who saved me."
Bear told them everything.
A skinny diner worker.
Eighteen years old.
He had taken the beating meant for Bear.
The group fell silent.
Mike looked at Bear.
"Name?"
"Caleb Mitchell."
Mike nodded.
"We'll find him."
Bear shook his head.
"No."
He looked toward his motorcycle.
"I'll find him."
Twenty Engines at Sunset
Caleb was walking home when he heard the motorcycles.
At first, it was only a vibration.