Riggs (The Kings of Retribution MC, Louisiana Chapter Book 1)

by Crystal Daniels

  Peering over my shoulder, I startle as Rex busts through the broken door. My determination to save Piper has me doing something I haven't done in over twenty years. "Go!" I scream, my throat feeling like I gargled nails. Using my voice seems so foreign, but I need for Piper to listen. Her eyes go wide. Whether it's from the fact I just projected my voice or because Rex is directly behind me, I don't know. Piper turns away from me and darts across the yard as fast as she can into the darkness, and I want to cry in relief.

  My relief is short-lived because the next thing I know, I'm pulled away from the window by the hair on my head, drug out of the bathroom and down the hall to the living room where Rex tosses me to the floor in a heap next to Abe's bloody motionless body. I start to cry as I crawl across the floor to check on him. Only I don't make it two feet when I feel the blunt force of a steel toe boot hit my stomach. I wrap my arms around my midsection, trying to catch my breath. Rex kneels on the floor over my body, snatches my head back and sneers. "You're going to pay for that." He punches me across my cheek, and a hot searing pain explodes across my entire face. Just as he rears back to deliver another blow, all hell breaks loose around us.

  Chapter Nineteen

  Riggs

  Two and a half hours into my watch my phone vibrates. Retrieving it, I take in the alert glowing on my screen from the security system set around the perimeter of Pop's property. At the same time, Cain bursts out the clubhouse door.

  "Alarm was tripped out at Pop's."

  "My phone just went off too," I tell him.

  "Pop would call if it were serious," Cain states. "Right?" he adds.

  My grip tightens on my phone. "He would call regardless of the situation unless for some reason he isn't able to."

  Sharing a look, Cain and I rush inside, and up the stairs, banging on the men's doors. One by one, we instruct everyone to get downstairs. Tequila's bedroom door flings open. Fully dressed in combat gear, she steps out. "I heard you barking orders. Tell me what you need me to do."

  I don't give a second thought about having her alongside us. "Fall in with the rest of the men downstairs," I instruct her. Within minutes everyone is gathered, standing, and waiting near the front door. "We're riding out to Pop's. Perimeter alarm has been tripped. It could be nothing, but my gut says otherwise."

  "He didn't call?" Wick wonders knowing the old man wouldn't let us worry if there wasn't any danger. The fact we haven't heard a word isn't a good sign.

  "Total silence, brother." My stomach falls, thinking that my family is in potential danger. "We're thirty minutes out. Once we get on the road, you open those bikes up." I look at my brothers. "Let's ride."

  As we mount our bikes, Cain stops me. "My daughter is out there, Abel." He gets choked on his words, visibly swallowing the lump in his throat. I watch his face fall as his emotions start to get the better of him. "If something happens to her," his voice cracks.

  "Focus, brother. She needs us clear headed. We have no idea what the situation is and what we are going into, but I can promise you this; I'll give my life for theirs. I won't let anything happen to Piper, Pop, or my woman." I grip his shoulder. "Got it?"

  "Yeah. Got it." Pulling from my grip, Cain mounts his bike. Engines rumble, the gate opens, and we roll out onto the street and take off down the road.

  Ignoring speed limits, we near Pop's property line along the west side in about twenty minutes. Slowing to a stop, I cut my engine, and my men follow suit. Getting off my bike, I peer off into the distance, and notice lights on in the house, but we are still too far to make out any movement within the home. Wick kneels, pointing to the gravel road.

  "Tire marks. Several." He stands and walks a few yards off into the tall grass. "They veer off the road here," he points, and we follow the treads into the tree line where we find bikes. Nine to be exact. All scattered within a few feet of each other, with large pieces of camouflage burlap draped across them. "If I had to guess they've been here for a couple of hours and waited." We all look at each other, knowing what this means. The Savage Outlaw have our family. Rex has my woman.

  Weapons drawn we cover the area around the bikes. Before getting any closer, I go back to my bike, open and reach into the survival pack I always carry with me and pull out a pair of night vision binoculars. It's dark as hell out here, with nothing but trees, tall grass, and the bayou surrounding the property. Making my way back to my men, we quietly track our route to the edge of the tree line until we've gotten closer to the house.

  Out the corner of my eye, I catch movement. "Everyone, get the fuck down." The seven of us take cover in the tall grass. Belly crawling, I position myself and look through the lens to get a clear view. Scanning I spot a tall, slender man stepping out the front door onto the porch, followed by two more men; all three with weapons. "Three men out front." I look over at Wick, who has his rifle, looking toward the house through the scope. "Can you see inside?" I ask

  "A couple of men. I don't see anyone else. Shit. Wait," Wick's voices alert us all. "One of the fuckers just raised his weapon, but I can't see who he is aiming at."

  I process the information. "You have a clean shot?"

  Wick grips his rifle, pressing the stock firmly against his shoulder. "Affirmative."

  It's time they know we're here. "Take it." Wick pulls the trigger.

  "Target?" I question.

  "Eliminated."

  All this happens in a fraction of a second; then all hell breaks loose. The men on the porch fire their weapons blindly into the night, as we stay low to the ground. I keep scanning the property for several minutes, watching the Savage Outlaw regroup. Looking out toward the old boat dock, I catch movement. A small head appears from behind Pop's fishing boat, backed up against the side of the pod shed nearest the water's edge. "Fuck." I adjust my focus to get a clearer image. My heart catches in my throat, and I glance over my shoulder, finding Cain to the left of me. "Piper is out there." Cain begins to bolt, but I yank him down. "There are three men outside with handguns. You go runnin' in blind you'll be risking Piper's life, along with your own. She's hidden at the moment." I look at my men. "Listen up. Piper is near the water. We need a distraction. Someone needs to head toward the tree lines over there." I motion to my left. "Once you get in position, fire off a shot, hopefully, that will give us enough time to get Piper to safety."

  "On it," Everest volunteers.

  "I'm going with him." Kiwi backs away, hiding amongst the cover of the trees. Pulling his piece from his side and staying low, he follows Everest.

  I turn my attention back to where Piper is and find her still hunched behind the boat. I turn to Wick. "You three stay here." I hand him the binoculars. "Keep an eye on her. If they get too close — kill them."

  Wick nods.

  "Let's move in," I gesture for my brother to follow leaving the others behind. Keeping low, we dash across the gravel road leading up to the house, then duck down again until we reach the waterline. "We have to get wet, brother. It's the only way to reach Piper without getting shot at." Without hesitating, he slips into the water, and I do the same. The growth around parts of the bank becomes too thick to maneuver through, so we have to move further out where the water becomes chest deep. We continue to move forward, trying to control our movements not to create any splashing sounds, which would draw attention to us.

  We soon reach the small broken boat dock Pop doesn't use anymore but is close enough for us to gain access to Piper. "Bean," Cain calls quietly to his daughter whose roughly twelve yards away. Her head whips around, trying to see through the darkness, so Cain calls out again. "Piper."

  "Daddy?" Piper says low, her voice shaking with fear.

  That's when gunfire rings out, and men start yelling. Both Cain and I hoist ourselves from the water, and belly crawls toward her. "Daddy." Piper whimpers and Cain wraps her in his arms the moment we reach her. "Oh my God. Daddy, they have Gampy and Luna," Piper begins to sob quietly.

  "Listen to me, sweetheart." I make Piper look at
me as more gunfire cracks like thunder not far from our location. "I need you to be brave and go with your dad. He's going to keep you safe, but you need to get in the water. Whatever happens — whatever you hear going on behind you, don't let go of your dad, and don't look back. Got it?"

  Her head nods. "Got it."

  Lowering myself to the ground, I peer under the boat trailer to get a look. Near the house, I notice an extra man hiding in the shadows. The three Savage Outlaw who are standing on the porch run, taking cover behind Pop's pickup truck parked at the far side of the porch. Rising, I press my back to the side of the boat. "Can you tell me what room they have Pop and Luna in?" I ask my niece.

  "We were in the living room before Luna helped me escape out the bathroom window," Piper whispers. With no time to get more details, I kiss my niece on the forehead, then give one final look at my brother before I watch them crawl toward the water. With Piper on his back, Cain looks back one final time, wearing a look on his face like it's the last time he'll ever see me again, then he disappears as they wade further into the water and ripples become the only evidence they were there.

  The snapping of a twig alerts me to someone's approach. Peering under the trailer again, I notice a pair of boots walking in my direction. Doing my best, I tuck back in the shadows of the boat as his footsteps get closer. The figure slowly appears near the engine of the boat. Slowing my breathing, I watch him as he pays close attention to the water in front of him; too close for my liking. He steps past the boat, never looking down. His focus is solely on the water. He steps out onto the broken dock. Fearing, he will notice my brother wading in the water, I act. Pulling a knife from the inside of my boot, I jump him from behind. He fires off a shot, hitting the water, just before I slit his throat.

  Bullets hit the boat and splinter the rotten wood beneath my feet. Tossing the body into the bayou, I duck back behind the boat, draw my pistol from inside my cut, and return fire, hitting one of the men standing at the side of the house. The gunfire continues for several minutes. Dropping to the ground, I line up my shot. Another Savage Outlaw steps into my crosshairs and I pull the trigger, watching him slump against the house before falling to the ground.

  Everything falls silent.

  Taking the opportunity, I make a run for the house. Once there, a Savage at my feet starts to move. Aiming my gun, I put a bullet in his head. Now that I have a better position, looking out in the direction I left my men, I catch sight of Wick, along with Fender as they approach the house, their weapons out in front of them. Peering around the corner of the house, I notice three bodies — one on the front porch, and two on the ground at the tailgate of Pop's truck.

  Needing to gain entrance into the house, I walk around back knowing I'll find the bathroom window broken from Piper's escape. I pull myself up. Shattered glass cuts into my skin as I hoist myself through. Getting to my feet, I pause when I hear a loud pop, then a thud.

  "Shut the hell up old man, or I'll blow your fuckin' head off."

  I don't know the voice, but I realize he's talking to Pop. Without another thought, I rush out of the bathroom, only to be met with the barrel end of a sawed-off shotgun. "Drop it, motherfucker."

  Dropping my handgun, the asshole walks backward and guides me down the hall into the living room. The moment I enter the room, I spot Pop unmoving on the floor, blood coming from a gash on the side of his head.

  "Nice of you to join us." I look across the room and see my woman, frightened, her face beaten, sitting beside a bearded man. He pulls Luna closer, and gropes her breast, before running his dirty hand up her thigh. "She's perfect, isn't she? Tits, ass, and she can't talk back." He stares me down as his hands touch my woman.

  "Rex." I don't hide the disdain in my voice.

  "Aww," he grabs Luna by the chin, making her face him. "I see my girl has told you all about me." He forces his lips on hers, and she resists. I look down at Pop when he moves a little. "Resilient old bastard," Rex kicks him. "I give him points for that."

  "I'm gonna enjoy killin' you," I smirk.

  Rex laughs. "That's a good one."

  "Are you okay?" I sign. Luna nods, and Rex yanks on her hair.

  "Why must you go and disrespect me like that?" Rex fumes, wrapping his hand around her throat and begins to squeeze. Luna coughs and pulls at his fingers, trying to free herself.

  Having watched more than enough, I quickly disarm the dipshit who has me at gunpoint. Turning the gun on him, I pull the trigger, sending his body backward. At the same time, I feel a pain rip through my chest.

  Time slows.

  I point the shotgun at Rex, who is now standing. Suddenly, I find it hard to breathe, and my arms begin to feel heavy. Losing my grip, the weapon drops to the floor, and I fall to my knees. Okay. So, this time is different. I think to myself.

  "Looks like I won." Rex hovers over me, with the gun that just put a bullet in my chest pointed at my head. With all the strength I have, I pull the knife from my boot for the second time tonight. Grabbing the barrel of his pistol, I growl. Surging upward, I bury my blade in his jugular.

  "Wrong. Motherfucker. I. Won." I pull the metal from his flesh, and blood gushes from the puncture wound. His eyes grow wide, and he stumbles backward, Rex hits the wall, and his feet slide out from under him until his ass is on the floor. I watch the life leave his eyes.

  Luna steps in front of me, her eyes frantic, as she pulls at my cut, removing it. "Baby," I gasp, trying to get her to calm down. Suddenly, I feel drained and fall to the couch. The front door bursts open, causing Luna to pick the shotgun up off the floor and stands in front of me.

  "Oh shit." I hear Wick's voice though it sounds distant. I do my best to take a deep breath but find it difficult. Luna sets the gun back on the floor, strips her shirt from her body, and presses the cloth against my chest. That's when I remember. The fucker shot me, and I glance down at my blood-soaked shirt.

  "Luna, sweetheart, I need to tend to Riggs," Wick talks calmly to my woman. Tears stream down her beautiful face. She shakes her head no and applies more pressure to my chest, the blood already soaking through her shirt. Wick gently pulls her from me, and she fights him. Ripping my shirt open, Wick gets a look at my wound.

  "Pop?" I question as he tends to me.

  "He's coming around. Fender is with him. He's going to be okay, brother." Wick hoists my big ass off the couch. "We need to get you to the hospital, but I'll have to get you there myself, brother. Too many bodies out here." He tries to walk me out the front door, but my legs give out, and I'm unable to hold myself up. "Get the truck keys. Now!" Wick orders, the tone in his voice urgent. Cain comes running up the porch steps.

  "Shit." He grabs the other side of me, and I feel my body become weightless as they carry me to the back of Pop's truck.

  "Piper."

  Cain looks down at me as they lay me down on a blanket. "She's with Tequila. I had her take her to Buck's house down the road."

  I start to shiver, which means I'm losing a good bit of blood. "Where's my woman?" Just then Luna appears and climbs into the truck. "I love you," I find the energy to sign. Leaning forward, she holds a clean towel to my chest, trying to slow the blood flow. She presses her lips to mine, and her tears drip down her cheeks onto my face.

  "I love you," she signs back.

  I feel the truck jerk forward as we take off down the driveway, then swerve. Tires squeal as we turn onto the paved road. Luna's hair whips around her face. All I can do is stare at her and think how lucky I was to have had the chance to fall in love with her, and I smile. My eyes begin to feel weighted, so I close them for a moment.

  "Wake up, Abel." I'm pulled back from the sleep I find myself chasing and crack my eyes open. "Don't you dare die on me," Cain's voice breaks.

  I feel myself slipping, and it's becoming harder to keep my eyes open. Turning my head, I look up at my woman.

  Luna signs. "Don't leave me."

  As I lay here fighting to breathe, I realize this may be the last time
I see her face. Reaching up, I caress her cheek with my knuckles. Tugging on her hair, I bring her face close to mine. If I die, I will die knowing my last breath was not wasted. Taking what feels like my final breath, I kiss the woman I love.

  Chapter Twenty

  Luna

  The moment, Riggs closes his eyes, and I no longer feel the rise and fall of his chest beneath the blood-soaked towel I have pressed against the hole in his chest, I sob. Lifting my shaky hand, I press two fingers to his throat. I desperately search for a pulse, only to find nothing.

  Swiping my hand out of the way, Cain's fingers replace the spot mine just were. I watch as the look of horror strikes his face. Riggs has stopped breathing, and he has no heartbeat. Tugging Riggs' lifeless body from my lap, Cain doesn't waste a second as he starts chest compressions. The only thing I can do is helplessly watch while Cain tries to pump life back into his brother. I count each compression Cain delivers to Riggs; thirty in total before he tilts his head back and gives two rescue breaths. Time slows to a crawl as Cain repeats the process several more times. The only thing I can focus on is the blood that continues to gush from the bullet hole in Riggs' chest.

  I can't lose him.

  When Riggs came into my life, he brought purpose; he brought strength. He made me feel alive for the first time in my existence. God wouldn't be so cruel as to take him from me. At the thought of Riggs being ripped away from me, I start to hyperventilate. The visions I have of our future together begins to evaporate with each second that ticks by; with each chest compression, and breath of life Cain tries to force into Riggs.