Ride Me Into Ruin: Iron Reapers MC

Quiet Day

LEXIE

The morning felt different, no shift at the drug store, no heavy boxes to move in the storage room, just a full day off stretching in front of me like an empty road.

I woke up slowly, took a long bath, and put on comfortable clothes, one of my new cheap shirts and soft jeans. I looked in the mirror and gave myself a small smile.

*Today you do nothing big, Lexie. Just breathe. Read. Pretend you're normal for a few hours.*

Mia had lent me an old book a few days earlier. It was a worn paperback with a faded cover, something about small-town secrets and forgotten stories.

I picked it up from the small table in my room and carried it downstairs, the bar was quiet in the early light. Only a few morning rays came through the windows, making the dark wood glow softly.

I sat at a corner table near the back, away from the main area. The chair creaked a little as I settled in. I opened the book and started reading. The words pulled me in slowly, the story was simple but comforting, people living ordinary lives with small secrets hidden behind closed doors.

Time passed quietly. I turned pages, losing myself in the story. My body relaxed in the chair, my shoulders dropped and my mind felt at ease for a while.

I reached the middle of the book and a small folded note slipped out from between the pages. It was old and yellowed, written in neat handwriting. I picked it up carefully and opened it.

The note read:

*"Some conflicts never really die in this town. The Iron Reapers keep their secrets close. If you're reading this, be careful who you trust. Old wounds still bleed."*

I stared at the words for a long time. My fingers tightened on the paper. Old club conflicts, secrets. The note felt heavy in my hands. It made me think about the metal box I had found in the storage room, the worn notebook with dates, names, and those strange letters "D.C." written over and over.

What did it all mean? Was it connected? Was I holding pieces of something bigger than I understood?

I folded the note carefully and slipped it back into the book. My heart beat a little faster. I looked around the empty bar, suddenly feeling exposed even though I was alone. I closed the book and set it on the table, my hands resting on top of it.

*Don't get too curious, Lexie. Curiosity has ruined better people than you.*

I sat there for a while, staring at the cover. Then I picked it back up and forced myself to keep reading. If I let every little thing unsettle me, I'd never get through a single day here.

I turned the pages slowly, more aware of them now, checking if anything else would fall out, nothing did. Just words and chapters and a story that suddenly felt a little less comforting than before.

By early afternoon I had made it through two more chapters, a guy from the club came in through the side door, glanced around, spotted me, and stopped.

"You work here?" he asked. He was young, maybe twenty, with a patchy beard he was clearly still proud of.

"Not today," I said.

He looked confused. "Then why are you sitting there?"

"Reading."

He stared at the book like I'd said I was doing surgery, then he nodded slowly and walked to the bar to pour himself a glass of water. He leaned against the counter, watching me for a second. "What's it about?"

"Small town, people with secrets."

He snorted. "Sounds like here." He drained his glass, set it down, and walked back out the way he came. I watched him leave and almost smiled.

The rest of the afternoon passed slowly. I read a few more chapters, but my mind kept returning to the note and the hidden box. When evening came, the bar started to fill with the usual crowd. Mia waved me over when she saw me.

"Sara! Come sit with me for a minute. I need a break from these thirsty bikers."

I smiled and joined her at a small table near the bar. She poured two glasses of cold soda and slid one to me.

"You look like you had a good day off," she said, leaning back in her chair, her shoulders relaxed as she stretched her arms.

"I did," I replied, taking a sip. "Mostly reading that old book you lent me. It's actually pretty good. Who knew small towns could have so many secrets?"

Mia laughed, her eyes crinkling at the corners. She rested her elbows on the table, chin in her hands. "Oh, you have no idea. Harlow looks quiet, but people here love their gossip. You should hear some of the stories."

I raised an eyebrow, leaning forward a little. "Do tell. I need entertainment after organizing Chaos's disaster of a storage room."

Mia grinned and lowered her voice like she was sharing a secret. "Okay, so last year, old Mr. Harlan at the drug store swore he saw the ghost of his first wife in the vitamin aisle. Turned out it was just Mrs. Ellis in a new coat. He still blushes when she comes in."

I laughed, covering my mouth. "No way. Mr. Harlan? The grumpy one? I can't picture him blushing."

"Exactly!" Mia said, laughing with me, her body shook a little as she leaned back. "And then there's the story about the bikers and the town fair. Someone put itching powder in the saddle blankets during the parade. Chaos was not amused. He spent the whole day trying to figure out who did it."

I shook my head, smiling. "Sounds like someone has a death wish. I would pay money to see Chaos covered in itching powder and still trying to look serious."

Mia wiped tears of laughter from her eyes. "You would fit right in here, Sara. You've got that same sharp tongue. The guys like it, even if some of them pretend they don't."

I took another sip of soda, feeling warm inside. "I'm just trying to stay out of trouble, but trouble seems to find me anyway."

Mia's expression softened. She reached across the table and squeezed my hand gently. "You're doing good here. Don't let the noise get to you. This town has a way of growing on people."

I nodded, but inside my mind went back to the note in the book and the hidden box. I wondered how much Mia knew. How much anyone knew.

I almost asked her, the question sat at the back of my throat, ready to come out. *Hey, you know anything about the Iron Reapers?* But I swallowed it. Mia was kind to me. She didn't need me dragging whatever this was toward her.

"Hey," I said instead. "How long have you been working here?"

Mia tilted her head, thinking. "Six years, give or take. Started part-time, then just never left. Happens to a lot of people in Harlow." She smiled, but it had a tired edge to it. "The town gets its hooks in you."

"Does that bother you? Not leaving?"

She was quiet for a second. She turned her glass around in her hands, looking at it. "Some days. But then I think about where I'd go and I don't have a good answer. So." She shrugged. "Here I am."

I understood that more than I could say.

We talked for a while longer. Mia told me more funny stories about town gossip and old rivalries that ended in silly ways. I added my own sarcastic comments, making her laugh again and again and for a short time, I felt normal, like I belonged just a little.

When the bar got louder and Mia had to get back to work, I sat there alone for a few minutes. I looked down at the book still sitting on the table in front of me, the cover was faded and soft at the edges.

*Be careful who you trust.*

I picked it up, tucked it under my arm, and headed back upstairs.