The mother hugged her daughter tighter. “I know, baby. You’re so brave. But I can’t let you sell your bike. Your daddy bought you that bike. It’s all we have left of him.”
I looked at my brothers. Saw the same fire in their eyes that I felt in my chest. We didn’t need to speak. We’d been riding together for twenty years. We knew.
“Sarah. Sarah Mitchell.”
“Sarah, I’m going to ask you a question and I need you to answer honestly. Do you have a bank account? Something we can send money to?”
Her eyes went wide. “What? No. I mean yes, I have an account, but I can’t take your money. I wasn’t asking for charity. Lily just—”
“Sarah.” I knelt down in front of her wheelchair. “My brothers and I ride for a club called the Iron Brotherhood. We’re veterans. Blue-collar workers. Fathers and grandfathers. And we have a saying: we don’t leave people behind.”
I pulled out my phone. “Right now, I’m going to call our club president. And I’m going to tell him about a five-year-old girl who was willing to sell her most precious possession to help her sick mother. And a mother who’s fighting an impossible battle alone.”
“And then, Sarah, we’re going to help you. Whether you like it or not.”
She started crying again. “Why? You don’t know us. Why would you help?”
Robert spoke up. His voice was thick. “Because your husband was a rider, ma’am. Your daughter told us. That means you’re family. And we take care of family.”
“What’s the name of your pharmacy?” Marcus asked. “The one where your medication is?”
Sarah told him. Marcus walked outside to make a call.Continue reading…
