by J. M. Walker
“Excuse me?” Her voice. So strong and sure. Not weak like a moment before. I went to ask what the hell was going on when a sharp pain erupted at the back of my head. My vision faded, but not before I saw the evil sneer on the woman’s face.
HOLY HELL, my head hurt. An intense shooting pain forced my eyes open. I gasped, swallowing some dust, and coughed. Rolling over onto my stomach, I realized I was still by the cliff but by that time I was alone.
That woman. Her eyes. Bright blue, but they showcased an unexplainable amount of evil I had never seen before. The satisfaction that adorned her face when someone hit me made me sick to my stomach. Why knock me out and leave? Were they making a point? Was it the same bastards who had been taking the girls?
I needed to get home. Pushing to my feet, I slowly made my way around the cliff to find my bike—missing. My stomach sunk. It had been a gift from my grandfather. Oh, that meant fucking war.
Pulling out my phone, I sent up a silent thank you that I remembered to put it in my pocket. I called Max. No answer. I frowned, knowing she had her phone attached to her hip. I called Brogan and then Meeka. Again, no answer. What the hell?
My head spun, the bright sun making me squint. Fuck. Me. Sitting on the ground, I placed my head in my hands, breathing through the sudden pain. My sisters were supposed to answer their phone. It was a rule, in case of an emergency. We had made sure to set up a special ring tone, and it usually worked. Not that we had to use it often, but right then, I could have used them.
Bracing myself against the rocky cliff, I dialed Angel’s number.
“Hey, princess,” he answered a moment later.
“Angel,” I groaned, rubbing my temple. When I pulled my hand away, blood appeared on my fingertips. “Shit.”
“What’s wrong?” he barked, his voice hardening.
“I need you.” I told him where I was and that my bike was stolen.
“I’m on my way.”
I sighed when he hung up the phone, knowing I would be safe in a matter of minutes. I tried wrapping my mind around what had happened. It was a set-up. The woman’s eyes stuck in my mind. Wild. Raging. Dark with an evil so powerful it took my breath away.
“Jay.”
My eyes snapped open at the abrupt use of my name, landing on Angel standing over me.
“What the hell happened to you?” he asked, helping me to my feet.
“I got hit in the head,” I said, wavering on my feet.
“You’re bleeding.” Angel picked me up, cradling me to his chest.
At that moment, I felt safe. Truly safe. “I hurt too.”
“I want every detail. From the beginning,” he demanded. “Tell me.” He placed me in his SUV, buckling the seatbelt around my waist. He kissed my forehead, letting his lips linger before he shut the door.
I let out a heavy sigh, wishing I had just called him first. I didn’t want to call my sisters out. I didn’t want to make them feel guilty or be mad at them. I didn’t want any of it. But when I couldn’t rely on the three women who I had spent every day with for the past several years, especially when I was lying on the side of the road, what good were they?
“Now, tell me what happened.” Angel grabbed my hand, holding it tight in his.
“I needed to clear my head so I went for a ride.” I curled on my side, leaning my head against his shoulder to stop the painful pressure behind my eyes. “I started thinking of my sister and pulled over. A woman called out for help.” My stomach twisted, remembering the evil smirk on her face. “She was on the ground behind the cliff. She said that she knew I would go to her. And then everything went dark.”
“Fuck. You didn’t see anything else?”
“No.” I shook my head. “She was in on it. Whatever it was, she set me up. Someone hit me, Angel. Someone is trying to make a point.”
“They’re trying to scare you.” He brought our joined hands up to his mouth, kissing the back of my knuckles. “It sounds to me like they want you to stop doing what the police should be doing.”
“I think so too,” I grumbled. “Please, take me back to the clubhouse. I have some shit to deal with, and then I am going to bed.”
“You need to go to the hospital.” He held my hand tight in his. “I’m taking you there.”
“I’m fine,” I insisted.
“No, you are not.” His gaze darkened. “You’re fucking bleeding, and it will be over my dead body before I let you fall asleep without knowing if you have a concussion or not.”
“Angel.”
“Woman, I am taking you to the hospital, and then after, I will take you home,” he said, his voice final.
“Fine.”
***
When we arrived at the clubhouse, the anger in my belly simmered. I shouldn’t be mad at my sisters. They probably had a good reason for not answering the emergency line. I bit back a scoff. Yeah-fucking-right.
Angel had taken me to the hospital much to my dismay. Thankfully, I didn’t have a concussion, just a huge-ass headache.
“How are you doing?” he asked, squeezing my hand.
“My head hurts. I’m so fucking confused. And my sisters weren’t there when I needed them most.” There. I said it. But the truth leaving my mouth didn’t sit well with me.
“I’m sure they had good excuses.” Angel shrugged, shutting off his SUV.
“Tell me something, Angel.” I turned to him. “What would you have done if something happened to you and your brothers weren’t there for you?”
“We’re trained to be a unit. A team. We fight together. We die together,” he said without hesitation. “But…” he thought a moment, cupping my cheek. “I will be honest with you. If one of us got hurt and we couldn’t be there for each other, if we had some excuse, what would be the point? They would need to have a good reason as to why they weren’t there.”
“I know Vice-One is different than King’s Harlots. I get that,” I told him. “But Vice-One is a brotherhood just like King’s Harlots is a sisterhood. If I can’t have the people I trust the most at my back, then how can I count on them being at my front?”
He nodded. “Do you trust them?”
My jaw clenched. “I trust Max. I trust Brogan, but I know she would do anything to save her own ass first. Meeka? Something is going on. She won’t tell me what. No one will tell me. But I know I can count on her. All of them. Or I thought I did.”
“Would you like me to tell you what I would do?”
“Yes.”
Angel gripped the steering wheel, his knuckles going white. “My brothers mean everything to me. Vice-One is my life. I will be a part of it until the day I die and they lower my cold body into the ground. But if one of them stepped out, after all of the shit we have to deal with on a daily basis, I would call them on it.”
“In the motorcycle club life, we would be killed first and asked questions later. I don’t want my club to be like that. I don’t want to be a part of the life my father’s club is and the others. I’ve seen what it does to them.” I was rambling. God, this is odd for me. To find that person I could talk to. Besides Violet, I had never been able to talk to anyone. “I’m sorry. I’m chatting your ear off.”
He smiled and placed a soft kiss on my mouth. “I enjoy when you talk to me but you need rest. Talk to your girls, and then you’re going to get your beautiful ass to bed.”
“Yes, Sir,” I saluted him.
Something flashed in his gaze. His mouth pressed firm against mine.
I sighed, leaning into him. “Thank you.”
“No thanks needed, princess.” He kissed me again before leaving the vehicle.
Taking a couple of deep, cleansing breaths, I waited. For what, I wasn’t sure. My head hurt. My body ached. I knew I needed to go to bed, but the urge to find out what the hell happened took over.
“Jay, what’s going on?” Max called out, rushing to my side when I slowly slid from the vehicle.
Angel kept a firm hold on my arm, stopping me from stumbling.
“If you would have answered your phone, you would already know,” I bit out through clenched teeth.
“What are you talking about?” Max asked, frowning.
“I was in trouble. I called you,” I cried.
“No.” She shook her head. “You didn’t.”
“Yes, I did. I called all of you,” I said, my voice raising.
“Let’s get you inside, beautiful,” Angel whispered in my ear.
“Jay, I’m sorry.” Max’s voice was small. She quickly headed back inside the clubhouse.
“I called them,” I insisted, holding onto Angel’s arm for support.
“I believe you.” He whistled, rounding up the rest of Vice-One and we made our way into the meeting room. Why the guys were there was beyond me. “We’ll be here until you no longer need us,” Angel told me, pulling the thought from my mind.
“We like having you around,” I said, answering for my sisters. “It’s nice to have some testosterone up in this place.”
“We like being here.” Angel nodded. “And I know someone else feels the same way.”
I followed his gaze. Dale was quietly speaking to Max. His hand reached out to cup her face. She leaned in, her lips parting. When her gaze moved back to his, I could see the love in her eyes. Had I been so oblivious the past couple of weeks to not even notice my best friend had fallen in love? Was I so selfish that I didn’t even know my sisters anymore?
Dale kissed her softly on the mouth and held her hand, leading her into the meeting room. The rest of Vice-One joined us, followed by a man I hadn’t seen before. He was large. Built like a tank. Hollywood movie star good looks but a dark shadow hid behind his eyes. His gaze met mine, no emotion showed on his face. He nodded once and walked away.
“Who is that?” I asked Angel softly.
“Vincent Stone. He’s our newest squad member,” he kissed my head. “I’ll introduce you properly at a more appropriate time.”
I nodded, taking a deep breath. Knowing I had to get the meeting done and over with, I squeezed the bridge of my nose and took my spot at the head of the table. Angel stood behind me, leaning against the window ledge, and crossed his arms under his chest.
“Tell us what happened,” Max pleaded. “Please.”
“I was stranded at the side of the road,” I explained. “I called you. Each of you.”
“My phone never rang,” Brogan placed her phone on the table in front of her. “Please believe me.”
“I don’t understand.” I pulled out my phone, checked the activity and saw the attempts of calling out.
“None of us got your calls,” Meeka placed her phone on the table as well. “What happened?”
“There has to be an explanation,” Dale said, squeezing Max’s shoulder.
“It doesn’t make sense. I know I called you, each of you, but your phones are saying I didn’t?” I looked at Angel. “Is that possible?”
He rubbed his chin. “Yes. I’ll have a guy I know find out how.”
“Tell us what happened, at least.” Max grabbed my hand. “You have a bandage on your head.”
I touched the spot and brought my hand down, expecting to see blood on my fingertips like before. But when I didn’t, a part of me thought I was hallucinating. That I imagined the whole thing.
“Tell them,” Angel said, his voice firm.
“I went for a ride to clear my head,” I explained. I told them about the woman, the evil in her eyes and the blow to the back of my head.
“Someone is trying to leave a message,” Stone said, his deep voice booming around the small room. “They’re warning you to stay away or they’re trying to make a point.”
“How do you know that?” I asked him, invested in every word he had to say.
“These girls that are going missing, whoever is running it clearly doesn’t want their organization to stop. Whatever this shit is, whether it be just girls, sex slavery, weapons, drugs… Either way, they’re making it known that they mean business. They’re trying to scare you.” He took a step toward me. “I also know about your sister.”
WHEN I got the call from Jay that she had been stranded on the side of the road, my stomach sunk to my feet. I refused to lose her over some bastards that got their rocks off on hurting women. But those girls were not the weaker sex like some thought. They were the minority in a world run by men, but I bet my life they would do anything to protect what belonged to them. I didn’t come across a lot of women who could kick my ass but Jay’s sister, Brogan, could put me flat on my back. I bet there wasn’t an ounce of fat on her. She was ripped in a healthy way. Not having the masculinity that most women thought would happen if you lifted weights. No. She was strong. Powerful.
Holding Jay’s hand tight in mine, I braced for the news Stone had to give her. Before I got her call, he had met with me to tell me that he knew of her sister disappearing. I didn’t know how. He made it clear that he needed to tell her first, but I refused to allow him to do it alone. Especially since she got attacked by God knew who.
“You… You know my sister?” Jay asked, her voice small.
“No.” Stone pulled up a chair in front of her. “Not personally.”
“What do you mean?” Her chin trembled, haunted by memories that no longer existed.
“I…” He looked at me before continuing. “Before my squad got attacked, we were searching for the missing girls but came across nothing until we stumbled upon a shed.”
“Is that a normal thing for you guys?” Max asked, sitting forward.
“No, it’s not,” I answered. “But these fuckers have multiple compounds all over so anyone can come across them.”
“I need to know why me. Why was I targeted? The woman knew I would be there.” Jay scrubbed a hand down her face. “But I didn’t tell anyone. I just left.”
That was when I caught Meeka reaching into her pocket for her phone. I saw the shadow of guilt pass over her face. She knew something. She caught my gaze, her eyebrow raising, challenging me.
Oh, little girl, if you are the reason Jay ended up stranded on the side of the road, I will end you without her knowing. Rubbing my chin, I gave her a curt nod.
Meeka glanced down at her lap.
Something was up, but being a nice guy and all, I wouldn’t call her out on it until we were alone.
“Jay,” Stone said, his voice firm. “I knew I recognized you. I thought I had seen a ghost.” He pulled a picture out of his leather jacket and paused before giving it to her.
Jay gasped, clapping a hand to her mouth.
I knew beforehand what I would see. An image of a woman who mirrored Jay stared up at her. At a quick glance you’d think it was the same person, but taking a closer look, you could see her eyes were further apart than Jay’s. Her nose smaller. And a light freckle sat just above her lip. Where her skin had many marks, Jay’s was pure. Untouched. Except for the marks I adorned her body with.
“Violet,” Jay whispered, grazing her fingers down the black and white image of her sister. “Where did you get this? How did… Have you seen her?”
Stone hesitated.
“Please,” Jay pressed. “I’m sick of secrets. These people are my family.”
My heart swelled at that.
“Fine.” Stone squared his shoulders, rolling his head on his neck much like I did when I was about to hit something. “I’ve seen your sister with some people. Men. My squad was working on finding out exactly who they were before we got attacked. I don’t know if your sister is working with them or if she’s a victim.”
“Excuse me?” Jay shook her head. “Violet would have nothing to do with this. These men—she’s there against her will. Doing whatever shit they make her do.”
“Jay,” I cupped her shoulder. “You need rest.”
“Angel,” her eyes met mine. “I can’t believe she would be in on this. I can’t. There’s no fucking way.”
I nodded, giving her the reassurance I knew she needed even though I felt like
a liar. It made sense. I had seen the pictures. Why else would Violet still be alive?
***
(Jay)
I sat there. Alone. My heart broken. My mind shattered into a million pieces because I had no idea what was going on. I appreciated Stone’s honesty but there was no way I could even begin to fathom that Violet would be working with these bastards. I was so confused. My thoughts were jumbled, breaking apart like a jigsaw puzzle. The wrong pieces didn’t fit, but I tried so desperately to force them.
Oh, Violet. What have you done to yourself?
There had to be an explanation.
With my arms crossed on the table in front of me, I leaned my forehead against them. Taking deep breaths to calm my racing nerves, I tried so hard to fight the pain. Angel had insisted I rest but I needed some time alone. Some time to gather whatever thoughts I had left. Whatever hope I had regarding my sister.
“Nugget?”
Tears welled in my eyes. My head slowly lifted, finding my father standing in the doorway to my office. “Daddy.”
“Come here, baby girl.” He held his arms out for me and needing the moment of protection, I ran into his arms. “Talk to me,” he said, rubbing my back in small, soothing circles.
“I’m so confused. I don’t know what’s going on,” I sobbed, my voice muffled by the cut of his leather. “I feel so alone.”
“Hey.” He cupped my cheeks, kissing my forehead. “You are not alone.” My old man led me to the couch, pulling me into his arms. “Now talk to me.”
I told him everything I could. Everything I knew about Violet and what Stone had told me. How I thought someone was leaking information. How I got left at the side of the road…
“Why the hell didn’t you call me?” he demanded, his voice booming.
“You have enough shit going on, Daddy,” I told him, wiping the tears from under my eyes. “You have Tyler to worry about, remember?”
“Fuck him. You are my daughter. I’m not the one who wants your club to end.”
“Wait.” I shook my head. “What?”
“Listen.” My father sighed, holding my hands in his. “Be careful. That’s all I can say. I know you have a good head on your shoulders and I trust that you will use it.”
