by Joy Blood
“Yeah, and I will again if you say that shit one more time. That is some bullshit. Yeah, you might be my president, but you are my fucking brother first and foremost. I got your back no matter what, no matter if you want me there or not. Now, get on your fucking bike. We got road to ride.” He stands there for a few moments, waiting to see if I’ll disagree. I let out a huff and shake my head, then start for my bike. “Besides, I got an idea, and it’s a good one.” Wick lets out a chuckle that I drown out with the roar of my bike.
We ride out of town, and before I know it, we are joined by two more of my brothers. O rides past me on to the right, then Badger takes up the left flank. It doesn’t surprise me that they have joined in on this mission to bring my Vera home. What does surprise me are the two police cruisers that follow behind us the rest of the way.
Fifty
I’m in hell. White tulle hell. Mom has picked out every princess gown in the store, and I have had to force myself not to vomit on every one of them. “Really, Ally, you need get some sun. You are so pale, I can hardly tell where you end and the gown begins,” she admonishes yet again. Maybe the reason I’m so pale is because I’m on the verge of passing out. This dress is pinched so tight, I can hardly breathe.
“This really isn’t what I was thinking, Mother,” I explain, taking in the dress.
“This is on the list you have to choose from. You either pick one or talk to Rodrick about it,” she huffs, then takes off from the dressing room, probably to have them bring in more dresses from “the list.” He’s even dressing me. I don’t know why he told me to start planning the wedding since he already has everything decided. All he wants me to do is know how much I won’t have a say in the whole thing. Just like our marriage-to-be. I haven’t seen him since the day he told me to start planning, and I’m grateful for it too. Apparently, he’ll be on the campaign trail for the next few weeks, giving me time to figure out what I am going to do. I could run away. This time will be different. Then, like I always do, I think about Nate and the club and how Dad threatened them if I didn’t come home. What if he follows through with that threat? Even if they can’t find me, they will most likely go for the club—for Nate. I can’t let that happen.
“I think I found the one. Get her out of that dreadful thing.” Mother is back, barking orders to the poor woman who was selected to help us today. I’m ushered into a changing room and strapped into another hideous dress.
The delightful day of trying on wedding dresses finally comes to an end with an even wonderful meal at some pretentious restaurant where we are joined by my father. It takes everything in me to force down my food, my stomach protesting with every bite. I use the queasiness to excuse myself from the table and head straight toward the bathroom where I make a quick right. When I find I’m out of sight of the table, I go outside. The cool breeze is welcome as it hits my face, and I instantly feel much better. No longer being verbally suffocated by my parents and their “plans” for me and Rodrick.
Strong arms reach out and pull me tight to a thick muscled chest, while a gloved hand goes to cover my mouth. My gasp is swallowed when he squeezes me tight and pulls me away from the sidewalk and to the ally next to the restaurant. The hand relaxes, and just as I’m about to scream, the scent of leather and motor oil assaults my senses. “Vera, it’s me, baby.” I suck in a sharp breath at the sound of his voice and brace myself before turning around. It doesn’t even matter how much I thought I had missed him. When I come face-to-face with Nate, I collapse into his arms, my tears pouring down my face, probably ruining the masterpiece of makeup my mother insisted I cake on before leaving the house this morning to cover the bruise on my cheek. “Jesus, baby, it’s so fucking good to see you.” His hot breath wafts along my forehead, and his beard scratches my skin in the most delectable way. Then, he’s kissing me, telling me how much he’s missed me.
“I’m so sorry, Nate. I’m so sorry,” I tell him over and over, our bodies moving together as close as they possibly can. It’s all happening so fast, his hands roaming along my body, turning us both so my back is against the wall. “Please, Nate. I need you,” I plead to him, tugging at his jeans, noticing he’s wearing something else along with them. He must catch my pause, because he lets out a soft chuckle and starts helping me.
“Got my leathers on. Was a long ride getting here to you.” My ears prickle with the jingle of metal on metal, then the zip of his jeans, before I’m lifted into the air and braced against the wall, my legs wrapping wound his waist. It doesn’t even cross my mind that we are in a spot where anyone could walk by and see us. That my parents could come out looking for me and find us together. All that matters right now is Nate is here. With me. Inside me. “Fuck.” He lets out a long groan that matches my own as he pulls my panties to the side and plunges his length all the way in. “Sorry, baby, this is going to be quick and dirty,” he warns, making me even wetter.
“I wouldn’t have it any other way,” I tell him, causing another groan to fall from his throat. Then he slams his mouth down onto mine, muting any sound that could come from us as he pushes in and out of me, fucking me hard and fast like he promised, before both of us are coming apart in the dark alleyway.
Our breath mingles for only a few short minutes as the high we were riding fades, then it all comes crashing down. “Nate, I can’t do this. I’m so sorry. Please, you have to go home. It—” He lifts me off him, and the loss of his body against mine makes me want to weep.
“Shhh, Vera. Shhh.” I catch the jingle of the metal once again, then he pulls me into his arms. “Did he threaten you, baby? Is that why you left with them?” he asks, and I don’t want to lie to him, but I do, only shaking my head. “Okay.” He pauses for a moment to give my forehead a swift kiss. “I have a plan. It could work, if you really wanted it to. I came here for you, Vera. I don’t want to leave without you, but if you tell me now this is what you want, that you want to stay here and marry that judge, I will let you go.” His hand comes to my chin to tip my head back. “Tell me, V. What do you want?”
Fifty-One
My nerves are frayed on the ride back to the place where I grew up. I can’t even call it home. Maybe it once was my home when I was a child, young and naive, believing my parents cared for me and wanted me to be happy in life. Now, I know better. After I left Nate in the alley and went back inside, my parents didn’t even bat an eye at me having been gone for so long, still engrossed in the conversation they were having with another high-powered couple who joined them after I left. I paid them no mind, not even caring if any of them could smell the scent of sex on me. It didn’t matter, even now, riding in the car so close to them both, Nate’s release inside me, soaking through my panties, it still doesn’t. It almost makes me want to laugh out loud.
“What in the world?” My mother’s shocked gasp comes fluttering to my ears in the backseat. Then my father joins in, only sounding even more mad than her.
“What the hell is all this?” The car comes to a stop, and we all exit it. Three police cruisers are parked in the driveway in front of my parents’ house. Six officers stand outside the cruisers, one I recognize, along with the writing on two of the cruisers. Hill County. Larrmier Idaho.
“We’re looking for a Miss Vera Smith, also known as Alavera Santiago,” the officer says, holding out a piece of paper.
“What is the meaning of this!” my father barks out.
“This is a warrant for the arrest of Miss Smith.” The talking officer extends his hand toward me, but my dad snatches the paper.
“You have no jurisdiction here. You would need—”
“Mr. Santiago, your daughter has some serious charges against her,” the officer I recognize starts talking, coming closer to the officer who served my father the warrant. “We will be taking her into custody. I would rather we didn’t have to take you too.” He steps forward, and just like in the TV shows and movies, starts reading me my rights.
“Dad?” I question my father, who is reading over
the warrant, but pauses to look up at me.
“Don’t worry, Ally. We will get you out of this,” he promises, and just like every other promise he’s made, I hope he breaks this one too.
The cuffs are slapped on, and I’m gently maneuvered into the back of a cruiser. My mom’s blubbering face is the last thing I see as we drive away.
We drive for some time. Long enough to get us out of California and then some. That’s when we’re joined by the rumbling sound of motorcycles. The car slows to a stop on the side of the road, and the officer gets out to open the back door to help me out. “Sorry about that, Vera. Had to look convincing.” He smiles at me and unhooks the cuffs just in time for Nate to pull me into his arms. I hadn’t even realized he was off his bike.
“Son of a bitch, that fucking worked!” he shouts, and is joined by hoots and hollers from the other guys on their bikes. “Shit, baby, sorry you had to go through all that.”
“No. God, it’s—this is—I can’t believe you did this.” I’m so stunned his plan actually worked, I don’t even have words.
“No shit. Got to hand it to Wick. Asshole had a good card up his sleeve.” I want to go thank him, but I’m stopped by the officer. Fergus, I remember him being called.
“Now, I know this is a run-on of sorts, but we’ve got to get back on the road, with her in the backseat. Still got to take her in for booking. That daddy lawyer of hers will most likely be there with all the bells and whistles trying to get her out. We got us a long, drawn-out process ahead of us. You still sure you’re up for this? This will stay on your record, fake charges or not, jail time doesn’t go away,” he warns me, much like Nate had, but I’m willing to take the stain. Going to jail as opposed to marrying a psychopath sounds like a Hawaiian vacation.
Fifty-Two
Reluctantly, I watch her get into the cruiser, then walk back to my bike. My eyes don’t waver as I sling my leg over the seat and start the engine back up on a roar; they stay locked to the back window where I can just vaguely see the top of Vera’s head. The next few days are going to be a bitch, but the plan we concocted—if it works—will ensure she’ll never go back to those people she once called Mom and Dad. I still don’t know the whole story and probably never will; the only thing that matters is she will be rid of them. All of them.
Fifty-Three
I’m booked. Fingerprinted and photographed, then put in a cell. Alone. There are three other cells, each with one or two people in them, but Fergus promised me one all to myself. He offered an interrogation room, but I insisted we keep this as real as possible. I know my parents. They will be here as soon as they are able. Probably with Rodrick too. I shake away thoughts of seeing him, reminding myself I’m in a cell and surrounded by cops, all in my corner. Well…at least one is.
I got to know Fergus on the long drive here to the county jail. He shared stories about himself and his brother, Wick, along with their little sister, Belle, who Wick had custody of up until she turned eighteen. He seemed very proud of them both. He also had a story or two to tell about Premo, who unlike everyone else, he referred to as Nate.
“Miss Smith, your attorney is here.” One of the officers comes to my cell, pulling me away from my thoughts. I nod and stand to my feet. The small cell offers a bench on all sides of the walls, one of which I was perched on waiting to be called away. The heavy barred door swings open, and I’m led down a maze of halls until we reach a room where my father and Rodrick are already in, waiting for me. Rodrick comes toward me for a hug, but thankfully, the officer puts a stop to it, claiming we weren’t allowed to touch. Thank you, Fergus.
“Are they treating you well?” my father asks as the officer stands in the corner watching over us. “You don’t need to stay in here. She hasn’t been charged with murder, for Christ’s sake. It’s petty theft!” my father all but shouts at the guard, who only shrugs and still stands there, not listening to the rants of a madman. “This is absolutely absurd,” my father grumbles, nearly making me tug a smile one my lips, which I quickly tamper down. I can’t be bursting into fits of laughter in here. I have to act like the scared little mouse they expect me to be. But the truth is, I feel safer in this county jail than I have with either of the men sitting in front of me.
“If this is some kind of game you are playing, Ally, so help me—”
“Rod,” my father admonishes, surprising me. “We aren’t alone,” he offers, flicking a brow over to the guard.
“I’m in jail. How could this be a game?” I defend myself, but Rodrick can see through me.
“This town, along with everyone who works in this jail, is in the pocket of the MC. You think I’m stupid, Ally Cat?” he whispers across the table, leaning over enough so neither my father nor the guard can hear him. “You go ahead and enjoy your vacation. But know you will be getting out of here soon. They can’t keep you locked away forever. Sooner or later, the princess needs to leave her tower, or in this case, her jail cell,” Rodrick shoots me his death-laced smile that promises horrible things to come when I step out of the safety of this jail. This plan is backfiring.
They don’t say anything more, only stand to leave me to be returned to my cell where I have a visitor waiting for me. “Nate. Oh God, what are you doing here?” I rush over to him, taking in the back-eye darkening on his face by the second.
“Assaulted a police officer. Apparently they don’t like that.” He laughs and pulls me into his big, strong arms. “God, you smell good, even in jail. Hottest cellmate I’ve ever had too.” He laughs and pulls back just enough to kiss me before continuing the hug.
“You are insane,” I say, backing away to look him over. The deep purple along the bridge of his nose trails down underneath his left eye. “Who did this?”
“Fergus. Fucker has one hell of a right hook,” he laughs again, as if this is all one big joke.
“Nate, this won’t work. Rod—”
“It’ll work, baby. One way or another, we got this shit handled,” he sounds so convinced, but still I can’t share his confidence.
“What about Ha—”
“Got that covered too, V. Shit, I’m so sorry all this is happening, baby. This is all my fault. I should have known something was up. Fuck, deep down, I did, but I didn’t want to believe one of my own—”
“I know,” I tell him, stroking along his cheek, then through his long beard. It’s grown out so much in our time together, I only wish this would last a little longer, that we didn’t have an audience, but some things are worth waiting for.
“All right, Nate. Time to go. I decided not to press any charges. You are one lucky fucker today.” Fergus’ booming voice comes up to the jail cell. He turns the key in the lock before pulling it open. I catch the light red mark along the bottom of his jaw and smile a little knowing Nate actually did hit the man to get in here to see me.
Nate reluctantly lets me go, and again, assures me things will turn out, then he’s gone, leaving me in the cold jail cell calmer than he found me.
Fifty-Four
Getting my woman arrested in order to protect her from her asshole ex might just be the most brilliant thing Wick has ever thought of—or the stupidest thing I’ve ever agreed to. I’m borderline both when I step out of the county jail, Vera’s taste still on my lips.
“She good?” Wick asks as I step to my bike. Like a scolded dog the fucker hasn’t left my side. At first, I wasn’t sure I could trust him, what with my own crew turning on me, but I should have known better. He’s more than just my childhood friend and VP. He’s my damn brother.
“Yeah.” I nod and slide onto my seat, then turn to him before starting it up. “Call everyone in for church. It’s time to get this shit handled.” He grins, already knowing where my mind is. I bring my bike to life and get onto the road, remembering the pitstop we made on the way to California.
“Someone is working against us in the club,” I confide. “Think he’s maybe the reason Rike took a bullet, and the reason Vera’s parents were called.”
Wick raises his brows, clearly surprised I’m letting him off the hook for Vera being taken away.
“Just a few hours ago, you were bitin’ my damn head off for rattin’ her out, and now you’re saying someone else is to blame and it’s connected to Rike? How the—?”
“She told me,” I stress, rubbing at my chin, still pissed I missed the whole fucking thing. “She remembered who tried to kill her and stuck her in the bag.”
“Shit.”
“Yeah. And worst damn thing is he’s one of our brothers,” I growl.
“Who?”
“I’m going to call in some of the Riders for this one.” I inform the room, “Vera will be safe with them after she’s released. She’ll stay there ‘til shit cools off here and that prick of an ex moves on.” As I explain the plan, I look over to O, Badger, and Wick who sit closest to me at the table. Their sturdy faces don’t give away a thing.
“Might not move on, Pres. Hear he’s been lookin’ for her for some time.” This comes from O, who winks at me. Fucker. I shake my head and continue.
“Maybe, but we’ll hold him off. Riders will meet up with us out of town, small closed rest stop about ten miles out. Shouldn’t have a damn problem.” I look at the faces of my brothers, missing one of them. Nixon. He’s still sitting his ass in jail rotting away while we get fuck all progress. One goddamn clusterfuck at a time. Nixon, I can’t do a damn thing about but right now, but I can help Vera and extinguish the member, or members, against me and this club.
Fifty-Five
“You’re being released, Miss Smith. Congratulations, all charges have been dropped. Clean slate,” Fergus says, pulling open the cell door, making me nearly trip on my own tongue. I don’t know what to say. I thought he said this would be on my permanent record and I would spend more than just two days in this place.
