by Jenika Snow
Venom turned around as I shoved my gun into the back of my pants. There had to be a way of getting Bryn back that didn’t force me to kill Venom.
I just couldn’t fucking think of it right now.
Chapter Three
Brynleigh
I sat in the windowsill, my knees drawn up to my chest, my head cocked to the side as I rested it on my hands and stared out the window. I thought about the phone call with Rooney just hours ago, this sick feeling in the pit of my stomach.
I was being used as a pawn, not something I was stunned to know, but the lengths they would go was clear and left a bad taste in my mouth.
In the reflection of the window I saw Vincenzo come into the room. He leaned against the doorframe, crossed his arms over his chest and watched me, not saying anything. Maybe if I ignored him he’d go away.
But as the minutes ticked by and he didn’t move, didn’t speak, I knew he wouldn’t leave me in peace.
Turning and straightening my spine, I looked over at him, this stoic expression covering his face. He was a bastard, that was clear, the mind tricks he used to get what he wanted seeming even worse than actually following through with it all.
“Why did you have me lie to Rooney on the phone?”
He didn’t speak for long seconds but then pushed away from the door and walked into the room.
He was still a few feet from me, his hands in the front pockets of his slacks, his dark gaze penetrating me.
“Would you have preferred me to make the screams real?” He said it seriously, but there was no emotion in his voice.
“I just don’t understand any of this.” They hadn’t told me anything, but I didn’t want to know, if I was being honest.
Why was I here?
What were they making Rooney do in exchange for keeping me safe?
And I knew asking would just bring up either lies or nothing at all. I stood, wanting to be at eye-level with him.
“You don’t need to understand any of it. You just need to understand that you’re here for the sole purpose of being our pawn.” He looked at me, his gaze raking over my body. I straightened my shoulders, not about to let this man intimidate me even though he scared the shit out of me.
The scent of his cologne was strong, suffocating almost.
“You clearly have the means to get what you want. Why Rooney? What’s so special about him?”
Although I knew what was special about him, but it was because I loved him, because I’d known him nearly my whole life.
I knew about the MC, even if he tried to hide it. When I realized how secretive he’d been, how he was hiding stuff, I looked into things, watched him. I needed to know what I was getting myself into, needed to know how deep in he was.
And I’d found out enough, that the MC was hardcore, they dealt with drugs, guns.
That the man I loved was part of this whole other world.
But I’d waited for him to tell me, hoping he’d trust me enough, that he’d want me to know what this other side of him was about.
I knew all of this and still here I was, being used as this chess piece because they wanted the man I loved to bend to their will.
I wanted to lash out, to hit him and demand that he let me go, let me see Rooney. But I curled my hands into tight fists, my nails digging into my palms. The pain was instant, and I wouldn’t be surprised if it left crescent shaped bloody spots, my anger becoming physical.
Our silence stretched on and I refused to break it. I said nothing, just stared at him, his dark eyes like spilled ink as they penetrated my very soul.
“As long as you listen and obey, you won’t be harmed.”
I clenched my teeth. “Rooney will do whatever it takes to ensure my safety,” I said, hating that I admitted that to him. But then again, that’s the whole reason they took me, because they knew they could break Rooney, that he would do what they said to make sure I was okay.
“For as tightly knit as the club is, and for how close they keep their loved ones, he wasn’t safe where it concerned you. Not safe enough, anyway.” He shrugged and smirked. “He didn’t make sure he wasn’t followed, that any loose ends weren’t tied up. It was easy enough to know that you’re what he held closest to his heart, and therefore that’s why we picked him. Simple as that. There’s no other reason we picked Rooney aside from the fact you were an easy target.”
He grinned, flashing straight white teeth, his smile sinister, one that told me he knew he would get what he wanted in the end.
“You’re a bastard.”
“I am.”
And then he reached out and I forced myself not to flinch away. I wanted to appear strong, that they couldn’t break me despite the situation.
He ran his finger down my cheek and I held in the shiver of disgust. And his smile grew, the fact he could read me so clearly, that he knew I loathed his touch, pleasing him.
“And how much fun it’ll be to see the look on Rooney’s face when he realizes I won’t give you up, when he understands that you’re mine now.”
Everything in me froze, dread filling me.
I felt my skin crawl when I looked into Vincenzo’s face, knowing that this wasn’t just about getting what he wanted anymore.
This was about making me break … making me his.
Chapter Four
Rooney
“What’s wrong with you?” Venom asked.
I looked at him when all I was thinking about was how best to kill him. I liked Venom, I did. He was like family, a brother. Yeah, he was a bit of a pussy at times but we all knew we could lose ourselves to a woman. I know I had with Bryn.
Fuck.
What are they doing to her right now?
I didn’t even want to think about it. Men who took innocent women were not there to make them fall in love. In Venom’s case, that was what had happened. He’d taken his enemy’s daughter. He took Rebekah and intended to break her, to hurt her. Instead, the son of a bitch fell in love.
Now, they’re happily together even though Rebekah spent a lot of time away from the clubhouse with college.
It worked for them.
Bryn … I’d never allowed her to get that close even though I wanted to. Even as I craved her smiles and wished to feel her next to me.
My feelings for Bryn had never been pure or sweet. I wanted her. I still want her.
The only reason I’d ever kept her at a distance was because I never wanted her fucking hurt, not by me or by the club. I’d stayed away for this very reason, and now because I was a fucking “good guy,” she’d been taken.
When I got her back, I wasn’t going to keep her away. Bryn would belong to me.
“Nothing’s wrong with me. You’re talking about our next drug run. So fucking what? It’s the same as it always is. We pay the cops to turn the other way, and move the dope on through. We have the necessary drop off and done. I don’t see why we have to constantly fucking talk about it.”
I was on edge and taking it out on Venom.
Venom stared at me and I hated it when he did that.
It was almost as if he saw too much.
“You got something to say to me?”
Here we go. My mind was not on dealing with this fucker. My mind was on dealing with Bryn.
“No, not a damn word. You’re going to need someone else to go with you on the drug run, to take my place.”
Silence met my request and I gritted my teeth, waiting for him to lash out.
“Why?”
“My head’s not in the game. Anyone who’s not thinking about the ride shouldn’t be on it. You know it. I know it. I’m not going with you.” It wouldn’t even create a perfect opportunity to kill him. Even now, I couldn’t kill him. I didn’t know who knew he’d come to see me.
My life was royally fucked right now and all I could think about was my girl.
I needed to get Bryn home safely.
“Are you going to give me a reason why all of a sudden you’re acting like a little bitch?”
The urge to hit him was strong. In fact, I probably should just for the fun of it.
I didn’t.
I glared at him.
“How’s Rebekah?” I asked instead.
“She’s fine. Why?”
“How’s college for her?”
“She’s doing good.”
I knew for a fact he couldn’t ignore his feelings for Rebekah. Talking about her brought this smile to his lips that was fucking creepy, but she made him feel.
I was jealous.
Not of Rebekah or even of Venom.
I didn’t want the club.
To be honest, I was more than happy with where I was in life. The only person I wanted was Bryn. I’d denied myself forever, and now I’d have to risk my club to get her back.
“You’re acting really fucking weird and me saying that is what is shocking,” Venom said.
I laughed. “Can I ask you something?”
“Sure, why not? I’m here and ready to hear what you’ve got to say.” Venom rubbed his hands.
“What would you do to keep Rebekah safe?”
This dropped the smile from Venom’s face.
“Why the fuck are you asking?”
“I’m not threatening you, for fuck sake. I want to know. What would you do to keep her safe?” I folded my arms and watched him. I waited.
“I’d do everything, anything. You know that. There’s nothing I wouldn’t do for her. She’s mine.”
I nodded and ran a hand down my face. Just as I thought.
“What is going on, Rooney?”
“Nothing.”
“Yeah, the same old bullshit. I can’t help you unless you tell me what the hell is going on.”
“I can’t. I won’t be there for the drug run. You’re going to have to find my replacement. I’m sure that’ll be easy to do.”
I walked to the door and held it open for him.
I wanted him gone.
Talking to him wouldn’t help my cause. I needed to plan and the only way to do that was with him out of here.
When I killed him, and I would because there was no other way to get Bryn back and she was my world, it would have to be when the blowback didn’t come back to me. To get Bryn back, I was going to have to do this properly.
“Just go.”
“I’ll find out what’s going on, Rooney.”
“Why don’t you spend your time holding your woman instead of thinking about helping me? She’s the only one that needs you. Me, I’m good. I’ll figure everything out.”
I closed the door before he could say anything, because looking at him, knowing what they wanted me to do to my Prez, cut me deep. I walked back to the kitchen, pulled out the cell they’d given me, and stared at it.
Bryn’s screams would forever be etched on my brain. I needed to get her to safety. To do whatever it took to get her away from that fucking monster.
First, I’d need to kill Venom.
Once that was done, I was going to have to deal with Vincenzo.
None of this was going to be easy.
I thought of Bryn’s smiling face.
Of her teasing.
Of everything that I’d missed out on. I knew I didn’t care how long it was going to take me, I was going to get her back.
After all of that, I wasn’t going to let her go. She’d belong to me.
Chapter Five
Brynleigh
The days seemed to blend together in one continuous loop. It was the same repetitious scene.
Vincenzo kept me close, never let me out of his or someone else’s sight. When I walked the house, because staying in that room—that prison that was driving me insane—there was always a man following me, a gun strapped to his side, this dead, cold look in his eyes.
I didn’t say anything, kept to myself.
They didn’t hurt me, but I knew the threat was always there, under the surface. Even now, as I walked the halls, thinking about Rooney, what he was doing, what they would make him do to get me back, tears sprung to my eyes.
I quickly brushed them away before anyone could see, before I could really feel them slide down my cheeks, a tangible, real feeling of my situation.
My friends had to be wondering where I was, worrying, maybe had gotten the cops involved. My family was states away, but surely they’d know something was up sooner rather than later? My weekly talks with my mother wouldn’t go unmissed. I had no children, not even any animals. I lived alone in my one-bedroom apartment, my spider plant the only other living thing in those four walls.
God, I missed that plant.
That’s how my situation was, longing to see my potted plant that sat in front of the window, the one thing that had been with me even longer than my relationship with Rooney.
Rooney.
The man I loved so much, the one person who I knew would go to hell to make sure I was safe. He was dangerous, violent toward others who had wronged him. I knew he would do anything and everything to get me back safely. And that worried me most of all.
What did Vincenzo want him to do?
I made my way toward a small room at the end of the hall, one I’d accidentally found one day. It had flowers and plants, a small greenhouse of sorts. There was a trickling waterfall, nothing grand or elaborate, but serene and peaceful. I found myself in that room and stopped when I was in the center of it, looking over my shoulder as the armed guard stopped in the doorway.
His focus was on me, and all I wanted to do was give him the finger. Instead, I faced forward and closed my eyes, the sun beating down through the glass ceiling and walls. It was warm, a little bit humid in the room. I hated the heat, but right now this felt like heaven.
I ignored everything else aside from the sound of the water trickling from that little waterfall, the drip, drip, drip, of that flowing stream. I didn’t know why I focused on that, but it helped to ease some of my stress, some of my anxiety. The sweet scent of flowers filled my head, and for the first time since I’d been taken, I felt myself smile.
But then the room felt colder, darker. I slowly opened my eyes and knew without turning around that he was there, watching me. Over the past few days, I felt his presence more and more each time, felt his gaze rake over my body as he took in every inch of me. Even now my skin was tight, the hairs on the back of my neck standing on end.
He watched me like he wanted me.
I turned around fully to face Vincenzo. He stared at me for long seconds before finally lifting his hand and waving off his goon. Then we were left alone, only a few feet separating us, me feeling as if he were undressing me with his gaze.
He stepped into the room and I took one back and to the side, keeping my distance from him. It didn’t matter that he’d been pleasant, friendly even, to me. He’d taken me from my home, from everything I’d ever known. He kept me prisoner because he was making Rooney do his dirty work.
He was a bastard, the very devil himself. He could rot in hell for all I cared.
And even though he said I wouldn’t be harmed, that he’d set me free when this was all said and done, I knew at the end of it my life wouldn’t be my own.
I could see it in the way he watched me, the look in his eyes. He wouldn’t let me go.
He walked over to some flowering plants and ran his fingers over the pedals, not speaking, but looking at me intermittently, this small smile on his face.
“You’re enjoying your time here?”
I didn’t say anything, although I wanted to curse him out, to tell him to fuck off. He turned and faced me then, lifting an eyebrow, clearly demanding me to say something silently.
“No, I’m not,” I said matter-of-factly, my voice hard and cold. I wasn’t going to exchange pleasantries with this man. He was an asshole, a motherfucker.
He tipped his head to the side slightly and smiled wider. “No, I assume you aren’t. But it could be worse, could it not.” He didn’t phrase that as a question, and I felt myself swallow, the lump in my throat making it almost imp
ossible. “Things could be a lot worse, couldn’t they, Bryn?” He took several steps toward me and I forced myself to stand still, refusing to retreat and show weakness. He was only inches from me now, the cloying, sick scent of his cologne making me gag.
“Yes.” That’s the only thing I said. That lone word was all he would get from me.
I watched as his jaw clenched. I felt pleasure that I was getting under his skin, pissing him off. Even if the threat of being hurt, of having pain inflicted on me was very real, I would not submit to this monster.
He reached out and I refused to move away, refused to flinch. He grabbed a strand of my hair and started rubbing it between his fingers, just focusing on that lock, this low sound leaving him. I curled my hands into tight fists at my sides, wanting to lash out, wanting to hit him. Hell, I wanted to slit his throat. He’d ruined my life, was ruining Rooney’s life.
He was a bastard.
But all I did was stand there, not provoking him, not making this any worse. Because if I did, I knew he wouldn’t take it out on me.
He’d take it out on Rooney.
He let go of my hair and looked me in the eye. For several moments we just stared at each other, not speaking, not moving.
“This was supposed to be done as soon as Rooney did what I said.” His voice was pitched low, dark. “But having you here … I don’t think I’ll let you go, Bryn. In fact…” He moved closer. “I think I’m going to make you mine.”
Chapter Six
Rooney
Time was ticking.
I knew I didn’t have long to go before I had to kill Venom or something bad was going to happen to Bryn.
I needed to see her.
The club was starting to ask questions, as well. Since I wasn’t around the clubhouse and everyone was missing me, my absence was clearly noticed and it pissed me off.
The only woman I ever wanted was Bryn.
Life at the club was too fucking dangerous for me to have what I wanted. I’d given up any thought of having her and yet, even keeping my distance, she was in the trap of a monster. Someone who was far deadlier than me. Well, that might be pushing it a bit.
