by Andi Rhodes
This is the photo my father’s best friend chooses to keep on his nightstand? What story does he give when people ask about it? What do they think? If I had seen it yesterday, before I knew what I know now, I would have thought it odd but shrugged it off.
Now I can’t. Now my stomach turns as I stare at my younger self, full of innocence, and wonder how old I was when he started thinking of me as his.
I wiggle my wrists and cringe at the sting it causes.
“You should stop struggling. You’re gonna cut yourself, and then Leal’s gonna fucking pummel me.”
Donovan’s voice is like gravel crushing my ear drums, and I tell myself that’s what’s causing me to wince. Not the blood running down my wrists from the too-tight zip tie. I’ve been working it for hours according to the clock on Leal’s bedroom wall, and it hasn’t loosened any. Maybe Donovan is right. Maybe it is pointless. Maybe I need to figure out a different tactic.
“Why would Leal pummel you when he’s the one who had you tie me up?”
“He just doesn’t want you running to your boyfriend and fucking everything up. He’s made it clear to everyone that you’re untouchable.”
“Why do you think that is, Donovan?” I ask, careful with the accusation that tinges my words. I don’t want to come out and accuse Leal of anything. I’d rather Donovan figure out what Leal is doing on his own.
He doesn’t say anything, and that makes me question if he already knows.
Does he think the picture’s weird?
Finally, I’m able to drag my eyes from the frame to him. He isn’t looking at me though. His phone is in his hand and he stares down at it.
“What are you looking at?” I ask, and he glances up at me briefly.
“How the fuck did you do it?” he grits through his teeth. He stands abruptly and fists the phone tightly in his hand, never taking his eyes from it. He walks to me, and when we lock eyes, the fury in his sends confusion clouding my mind.
“Huh? How the fuck did you tip him off?”
He grabs my hair and yanks my head back as he stands over me.
My eyes narrow, and I jerk my head to get out of his hold, but I only manage to make my scalp burn. “What the fuck are you—”
The answer hits me before I even finish the question.
Fender.
He’s here.
Oh thank fuck.
Donovan’s phone buzzes and he releases me to answer the call.
“How much time do we fuckin’ have?” he barks into the cell, turning away from me.
His volume is turned down low enough that I can’t hear the answer, but I strain to try anyway. All I can make out is a muffled voice.
“No, I swear to God the bitch has been in my sights this entire time. There’s no way—”
Donovan pauses and his head tilts to look up at the ceiling as the person on the other line speaks. He nods like he agrees with what they’re saying, but the muffling hasn’t stopped. When it finally does, he gives a more forceful nod as if they’re here. “Yeah, all right. We’re leaving now.”
He clicks off and turns to me.
“Uh oh. Someone spoil your plans?”
“Shut the fuck up,” he mutters. He walks to Leal’s nightstand and ruffles through a drawer, searching for something.
My momentary relief that Sylvia must’ve gotten to Fender and warned him fades as the seconds tick by. What did she tell him? What do they have planned?
I don’t want a fucking war. Not on Soulless Kings’ property and not here.
“Donovan, listen to me.” He finds what he was looking for and holds up the knife before nudging the drawer shut. My heart stops for a brief moment, but I push on as he walks over to me.
“They don’t want a war. Trust me, they don’t and they never did. They didn’t take me to send a message to the Black Savages. They took me because—”
“Shut the fuck up already!” Donovan yells, spittle flying from his mouth. He steps around me and jerks my arms up, straining my muscles. My face contorts with pain, but I don’t allow myself to groan. “No one gives a shit about you except for Leal. I don’t care why they took you. They’re bastards and they deserve what’s coming to them.”
“What’s coming to them?” I ask as he cuts the zip tie around my wrist. Panic spreads through every inch of me. “What’s going on? I can’t do anything about it, so just fucking tell me!”
He jerks me from the chair, and I stumble with my ankles still bound. “I’m taking you someplace else in case our location has been compromised. After the fuckers dropped you off, Leal set up sensors a few miles down the road, so we have plenty of time before your little boyfriend gets here on foot.” He comes around to my front, and a deviant smile slowly fades from his face. “How the fuck did you get Snow on your side?”
“What?” My eyebrows crease and he dips his head so close to me I want to spit.
“Snow left hours ago and no one knows where he went. Now all of a sudden we’re picking up more bodies coming this way. How the hell did you get him to betray his own brothers? You fuck him or something?”
Snow. I have to think hard to even remember who that is, and when I do I realize what happened. His real name is Steven, and he’s Sylvia’s age. He was a prospect when I left and didn’t have a road name. She must have called him.
Did he know about the sensors? Do they know they’ll be walking into a trap?
Shit.
“No, I didn’t fuck him. I’m in love with the Soulless Kings’ president.”
He rolls his eyes and crouches to cut the zip tie around my ankles. “Whatever.”
“Think about that for a second, Donovan. Think about Leal’s motivation in all this. You said it yourself, he’s the only one who cares about me, so what’s the point in all this?”
“They’re coming to attack us right now, you dumb bitch!” He flails the hand with the knife, and I wonder if he realizes how vulnerable he is crouched in front of me while my hands are free.
“No, they’re coming to save me from Leal! Look at what you’re doing, you idiot! Leal tells you to seek revenge for them holding me hostage, and now you’re doing the same thing.”
“Because you're Dyno’s daughter, and Leal is sentimental.”
“No, it’s because Leal is a sick fuck and wants to eliminate his competition.”
“You’re a fucking liar, now shut the fuck up!”
I stare at the vein popping on his forehead and wonder if I look the same. This is going nowhere.
He works at the zip tie, and I wait with my muscles coiling. All I need is for him to drop the knife and then…
And then what?
I’m not killing another one of my father’s brothers.
But what if I have to?
The zip tie comes loose, and I choke, holding still instead of jerking my knee forward like I intended.
I won’t kill again.
Donovan stands and my moment is gone. My heart falls into the pit of my stomach, and I close my eyes.
He tries to usher me forward, but I jerk away from him and take a step back.
“Hey, we’re leaving whether you fucking want to or not.”
I step behind the chair and shake my head. My hands tremble at my sides. “I don’t want anyone else to die. I can’t be the reason for it.”
“Then choose your boyfriends more wisely. Let’s go.”
I continue to back away until I hit the wall. Donovan tucks the knife into his jeans and growls as he advances on me. I feel pathetic as he does, like I’m a cornered animal. He looks at me like I’m one too. But like any animal backed into a corner, as soon as his hand touches me, I strike.
My knee lifts and connects with his groin without me having to think about it. His eyes grow comically round, and I’m not sure if it’s out of pain or surprise, but I don’t waste time trying to figure out which.
My fight instincts kick in, and I clench my jaw as I jab him in the neck just like Uncle Leal taught me when I was younger,
and I laugh maniacally at the irony of it as he falls to the ground. I kick at him a few times to make sure he’ll stay down, and then I snatch the knife from his jeans, and then his gun. I empty the clip and let the bullets rain down on his body before shoving the gun into my waistband.
“No one else is gonna die,” I say, although I’m not sure if I’m actually talking to him. I turn and go to leave the room before he recovers and chases after me, but that picture comes into my view again, and I can’t force myself to leave without it. It feels too wrong here.
I go to the frame and yank off the back of it, tossing it to the floor. I go to grab the picture, but my brow furrows when I notice there’s two in the frame. I peel back the photo behind the one of me on my bike and flip it around so I can see it.
My stomach bottoms out, and then the nausea follows a second later.
My lips part and my hand flies to cover my mouth as the image of the sleeping girl has a chance to register fully. The sleeping girl is me, around the same age as I am in the first picture, only in this one I’m not smiling at the camera. I don’t know it’s being taken, and I have no memory of how I could’ve ended up naked on the familiar couch I recognize from Leal’s living room.
I wanted to know at what age he saw me as something other than his niece.
Now I have my answer.
Disgust turns to rage, and as much as I want to rip the photo to shreds, I clutch it tightly in my hand and storm back over to Donovan. He’s standing up by the time I get there and he’s pissed as hell, but he also looks confused that I’m coming back toward him.
He goes to open his mouth, but stops as I shove the photo at his chest.
“You fucking believe me now?”
Chapter Twenty-Six
The Soulless Kings might not be the most respectable humans on the planet, but none of us would dare stoop to the level that Leal did.
Fender
“Ya need to hurry it up.”
Snow is whispering, and while it’s infuriating because it doesn’t match the tension swirling around us, I get it. Sound travels and voices carry so we can’t take any chance that our position will be determined by our talking.
“Are you sure about this?” I demand, louder than I intended.
“‘Course I’m sure.” Snow twists to glance over his shoulder at Sylvia. “I hope you’re right about all this.”
“I am,” Sylvia snaps.
We’d tried to force her to stay behind at our compound, but she’d refused. Turns out she not only looks like her sister and has an attitude to match, but she’s also just as stubborn and at times infuriating.
When Snow arrived, we’d given him ten minutes to get us up to speed on the layout of Black Savages’ property and buildings. Surprisingly, he also gave us information about the security system and where different guards would be posted.
I hold my arm out to stop everyone from continuing. We decided to bring as few people as possible because our focus is to get Charlie out, not bring down the entire MC. That’ll be next. Piston, Joker, and Riker are the only brothers I brought with me, but the four of us are a hell of a team.
“Listen up,” I start, whispering this time, although it’s gruff. “We’re here to get Charlie. We do what we have to do, but we don’t forget the mission. Got it?”
“As long as I’ve got your permission to kill a motherfucker if necessary, I’m good,” Joker grates out.
Piston and Riker look at each other and then back to me before nodding.
“Can we cut the bull? Let’s go.”
Snow steps around me, and it takes every ounce of self-control I possess to not grab his arm and yank him back. I may be an MC president, but I’m not his.
“We better get goin’ boys,” Sylvia chortles as she follows Snow, slapping my back as she passes.
“Jesus Christ,” I mumble.
We follow the two through a gap in the fence line. It’s shocking to me that the gap even exists because we’ve passed plenty of fence that seems to have been reinforced recently. This shit would never happen on Soulless Kings’ property. Think Fort Knox, MC style. If you don’t protect what’s yours, you have no business getting pissed when the enemy strikes.
We silently weave through the trees, and I can’t help but wonder why Leal’s house is so hidden. My own cabin isn’t exactly out in the open, but I didn’t make a point to close myself off like Leal seems to have done. What’s the point? You’re the president, you’re supposed to be accessible, unless you’re doing something shady.
Snow stops in his tracks right at the edge of a line of trees and turns to face us. “This is the end of the line for me. That’s Leal’s place.” He hitches a thumb over his shoulder to indicate the structure about a hundred yards behind him. “I’d say you’ll have two minutes max once you move past me. He’s got a silent alarm that’s triggered whenever anyone steps foot within a certain distance of his place.”
“What?” Sylvia sounds worried, and I wonder why. Has she done more snooping around than just listening in on church?
“Leal’s paranoid and controlling. Your dad never would have pulled this shit.”
With those parting words, Snow takes off at a jog and doesn’t look back.
I take a deep breath and stare at the windows of the structure ahead of us. The place is lit up like a goddamn Christmas tree which isn’t necessarily a good thing, despite it providing us with a clear path. I eject the clip from my weapon and assure myself that it’s full, for what feels like the millionth time since we left our clubhouse. The others do the same and within seconds, we’re off to finish this.
“I wouldn’t go any further if I were you.”
I whirl around at the sound of the voice and stare at the shadowy figure standing thirty yards or so behind us.
“Yeah, why’s that?”
Leal raises the gun in his hand and slowly walks toward us. Piston, Joker and Riker all raise their weapons and point them at his head. I leave mine at my side, although I’m itching to point it and pull the trigger. Leal would look really fucking good with a blood dripping hole between his eyes.
“Because if you take another step, it’ll be the last you ever take.” Leal glances at Sylvia and smiles. “Sweetheart, why don’t you go inside? Donovan will—”
“Donovan ain’t gonna do shit, you sick fuck.”
I turn around at the addition of a new voice, and standing on the porch, with a man I’ve never seen, is Charlie. It’s hard to tell if she’s hurt, but her head is held high and the smirk on her face tells me enough. She may not be free from injuries, but she’s fucking pissed.
“Well, isn’t this turnin’ into quite the party?” I don’t let my gaze waver from Charlie, even though my words are not directed at her. “You hurt, babe?”
“Nothing a little of your TLC can’t fix,” she purrs and pride swells in my chest. Even with guns drawn, she’s pushing buttons like the MC badass she is.
“What the fuck is going on, Donovan?” Leal demands. “Get her back inside and tie her back up!”
Apparently, ‘tie her back up’ are the words it takes to make me get this party started. I look from Charlie to Donovan, quickly gauging the situation and when Donovan gives a curt nod, I turn around, raising my weapon at the same time, and pull the trigger.
Charlie’s scream pierces the air, and she races from the porch to Leal’s side. He’s not dead, but he won’t be walking anytime soon. Blood blooms from his knee and stains his jeans. He’s writhing in pain while simultaneously cussing at me, and all I can think is how pathetic he is.
Charlie seems to assure herself that Leal will live before she stands up and advances on me with a scowl on her face. My boys move out of her way, almost mimicking Moses parting the goddamn Red Sea. Sylvia is laughing beside me, and if I hadn’t seen her determination earlier, I’d think she was losing her mind.
“What the hell did you do that for?” Charlie demands, stabbing a finger at my chest.
“He was pissing me
off,” I say casually as I shrug. Too casually judging by the frown on her face.
“He was… Are you fucking kidding me?”
“Ah, no.”
“How many more people have to die before this craziness stops? One, five, fifty? How many lives need to be taken before you all realize that you don’t have to be enemies?”
“Char, calm down,” Sylvia says.
“I will not calm down.” Charlie starts to pace back and forth in front of me. “This all started because of me, so I’m putting a stop to it. Right here, right now.”
“Babe, you know that’s not how this works.” I reach out and grab her hand to stop her. “You’re mine, and I fight for what’s mine.”
“That’s funny because that’s not exactly how I remember it. Or are you forgetting that you dumped me here when you got the answers you wanted?”
“I didn’t dump you here,” I growl.
“Oh no? What would—”
“While this is entertaining as hell,” Joker interrupts. “Can you two save your lovers’ spat until later? I’d kinda like to get outta here before we’ve got more than we can handle on our hands.”
“Agreed.” Piston turns in a circle, taking in the darkness surrounding us. “Although, I thought we’d have had more company by now. Your club really sucks.” He directs that last statement at Leal.
“Shut up!” Leal yells from the ground.
“No one else is coming.” Donovan shoves his hand in his pocket and pulls out what appears to be a piece of paper. He walks down the steps and thrusts it at me. “I sent out a mass text of a picture of this.” He looks over his shoulder at Leal. “You’ve got no one in this with you anymore.”
I take the paper from his hands and realize it’s a photo. It’s dark as hell out, but the light shining from the windows lets me make out enough of the image and when I do, my fury builds to an almost intolerable level.
“What is that?” Leal demands from behind me.
My body stiffens, and I shove the photo in my back pocket. I glance at Charlie, and her face has lost some of its color. When I don’t respond to Leal, Donovan stomps past me and bends to lift his president up by his cut.
