Claimed by the Claws

by Laura Wylde

By some people she meant Greg and that made me like him a little bit better. Anyone that had a Greg as an enemy, was a friend of mine. Especially after what happened today. Greg had always had a temper before but he would never have put his hands on me like that. Not in front of everybody. I couldn't believe it had happened and I was still mortified by it. I wish sometimes I would be like Sandra. I would've decked him like she would've if he had put his hands on her. If she wouldn't been in the bathroom, she may have done it for me.

  “Wow, he doesn't look like the type.”

  I was referring to the fact that he was wearing leather and had a motorcycle. I don't know why but that wasn't what I thought of when I thought of an American soldier. For the military. He looked like a criminal, someone that had no problem doing some illegal stuff. So why was I so attracted to him?

  Even though she was starting the car and I made eye contact with Greg, I was still thinking about Daxton. He was so tall and he had this devilish look on his face. In the few moments that I was around him, I had gravitated towards his lips and wondering what they could do for me. While I hadn't been with any man fully, I knew that men had a way of making me feel good. Greg used to make me feel good, but I had a feeling that a man like Daxton could do things that Greg never could. I had never given it up to Greg when he had begged and pleaded for more. I had a feeling that my answer would be different if a man like Daxton asked the right way.

  “It's good to see you at least put yourself out there.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “I mean, I see saw the way that you were looking at him. What was going on when I walked up?”

  In the midst of all of it, I'd forgotten what had happened with Greg. I told her what he did and how he put his hands on me and she looked like she wanted to get out and go pummel him. I just told her to calm down because Sandra had been known to do things like that. I didn't want to cause a fuss, I just want to get out of there and away from Greg. I knew that going here wouldn’t end well.

  “Son of a bitch!”

  “It's done now. Daxton told him to let me go and after a minute he did. Even though it was just him there, and Greg had so many people with him, I have to say it seemed like Greg was a little afraid of him. He had this look in his eyes and I don't know why, but I really liked it. I think Greg was really afraid and I don't think I've ever seen him that way before. Who the hell is this guy, Sandra?”

  Sandra told me that she wasn't really sure all of the details. She just knew that they didn't get along very well, but she didn't know why. Sandra had very little details about him and that bothered me. It felt like she was holding back, at the same time I was trying to figure out why I was so interested.

  I wanted to ask her more questions about Daxton, but I didn't want to bring any more attention to it. She had already seen that I was attracted to him and I didn't want to hear about it later. More than that, I didn't want to put something in her mind about trying this fix me up with him.

  We were starting to pull out of the bar and I was happy to be rid of the place. As soon as I knew we were going to Doc’s, I knew that I was going to see Greg. I just felt it and of course I had. He showed up everywhere I went, but it was stupid to go to one of the places I knew he frequented. I had known that it was a bad idea from the start.

  “I'm sorry that this happened with Greg. I didn't really think about it Meatloaf suggested coming here to meet.”

  I waved her off and told her that it's no big deal. It didn't really matter where I went, he always showed up. Sometimes I got the real feeling that he was following me, but I couldn't prove it and I had no one to tell anyways. His gang had several cops on their payroll, so I didn't think it would matter anyways.

  “I told you that Greg just doesn't give up. He's never put his hands on me before like that, and it makes me nervous. It makes me think that he's going to just get worse now.”

  “We need to take care of him.”

  I just shook my head and looked out the window. Sandra's answer to everything was violence in the end. While she tried to work things out one way, as soon as she realized that it wasn't working, she went to the next step. I think sometimes that Sandra liked when a situation went there. Then she could get rowdy. She really did live for confrontation.

  Just because you know karate, doesn't mean I do. I've never been that way and you know it.”

  She really did know because I had met her in the midst of being bullied in college. I've always been a shy person and it just got worse the older I got. I always stuck out and girls especially seemed to be mean to me. There was something about me that really bothered some and it was Sandra that stood up for me one day. If it would've bothered me, I tell myself that I would have done something about it, but there is not much that people can say to bother me anymore. Sandra wasn't going to let it happen and in the end, she had saved me in a way. I feel like in some ways she never stopped trying. She is always trying to get me out of my shell and make me a stronger person.

  “I wish you would come to the gym with me. I know you think that it's just work and pain, but it's actually kind of fun.”

  “Nowhere in the world is that ever going to be fun. The only way you’re going to find me running, is if there is a clown chasing me.”

  That made her giggle and for a moment we stopped worrying about Greg and the ugly scene that he had made a few minutes ago. Nothing mattered and it was good to get out. It felt like we were back in college and for a minute, I felt free. This is what summer was supposed to be about and I was starting to get what Sandra was talking about. I almost hadn’t come out tonight and I'm glad I did, considering everything.

  “What are those guys doing back there?”

  “Who?”

  “These guys behind us. I wonder if Meatloaf and his friends circled back.”

  I looked behind us and I could see several by coming up and fast. In particular, I thought they were going to hit us as it went around to pass us.

  “I don't think that's Meatloaf.”

  The bike looked different and the jackets looked different as well. It didn't make sense that they would leave five minutes before and then suddenly come up behind this like they were. There was also two of them and now there was about ten bikes coming up behind us. I started to get a sickening feeling that it wasn’t Meatloaf at all. Coming around my side, I knew who it was.

  “That's not Meatloaf, Sandra. It's Greg.”

  She cursed out loud and started to push down on the gas pedal. The last thing I wanted to do was to start accelerating, but she was about as bad driving with her temper as she was in general. I just put my seat belt on, because I knew it was going to be a long ride. I wasn't sure what was going on, I was scared, but I knew that there was a damn good driver behind the wheel if nothing else.

  I had nothing but faith in her until a few more bikes got around us and started to slow down in front of us. Sandra wasn't letting going to let them box us in and she kept on going. Several times I thought she was going to clip one of them. Before long, it wasn’t like they were going to box us in, but they seemed like they were trying to run us off the road. No matter how good of a driver Sandra, she was not that good. There were too many of them and I knew that something bad was going to happen. How could it not?

  Sandra looked over at me and told me to be careful.

  “What do you mean?”

  “Brace yourself Bree, this is going to hurt.”

  I didn't know what she was talking about until I looked ahead of us and I let out a little bit of a scream. There was a bridge ahead and it was clear that we weren’t going to make the turn.

  Chapter 8

  Daxton

  They were at the old warehouse that used to be Buck’s. He had sold it right before I left, but I knew that it was still being used for the club to meet. It was far enough out of the way, but not too far out of the way that we could go frequently and talk about things and do things that weren’t quite legal.

  I cut the engine
on my bike and got off. Meatloaf stopped right next to me and he had a look at his face that I did not like.

  “So what the hell is going on man? Greg just had some shit to say and I really hope that he wasn’t telling the truth.”

  He just kind of shook his head and told me that he didn't know where to start. It was not going to be good. Greg was right and I was lost.

  “How about starting with the fact of why I didn’t hear from anyone the whole time I was locked up?”

  “A lot happened while you were gone.”

  “Yeah, I can see that. From what Greg said, this was all his turf now. Lost Hills is the Valley Kings? What the hell is going on and where is Buck?”

  Meatloaf looked away and something told me that it was worse than I could have imagined. I had never known Meatloaf to not look me in the eyes, but he wasn't able to now. It made me wonder what was going on and the more I thought about it, the more I knew I wasn’t going to like the answer.

  “Buck is gone, Daxton.”

  His words hit me like a ton of bricks and I didn't want to believe him. I knew that Meatloaf would never lie about something like that. I knew it had to be true, but that didn't mean that it made it any easier to process. Buck had been there for me in so many ways and without him, I literally would be dead.

  “What do you mean?!”

  “Just what I said. Buck died a little over a year ago. Nobody had the heart to tell you what was going on and I didn't think that you needed to know in there. The last thing that you need when you are over there serving your country is to know about problems that you couldn’t solve. It would just haunt you. You had to keep your head in the game when you are away from home like that, especially when you're out there in danger every day. You had to keep it together.”

  I couldn't believe what he was telling me, but it was starting to make sense. It didn't take much to glean from that the club was no more. If Buck died, then there was no more Scorpions. He had started it and I couldn't see anyone else wanting to take his place. It just would've been the same and I was always supposed to take over when he retired. The plan was I would take over when I came back. He sent me away to better myself and I felt like I was coming back a better man. Now he would never see it.

  “So how the hell did Doc’s place get taken over with Valley Kings? Don’t tell me that he took on with Greg?”

  “No, it's nothing like that. Doc will always be a Scorpion, but he still has to make a living. They have some kind of truce that I don't really understand and it seems to work for them. The crew comes in and he servers his liquor, but at the end of the day, he will always be loyal to us. Buck may be gone, but we were just waiting on someone else to come in and lead.”

  I could tell that he was talking about me, but I really didn't know what to say. I had come home with every expectation of getting back into the club and making my way, but I had never imagined it without Buck. He had always been the fearless leader and I wasn't sure if I was up for the task. While I liked to think that I was ready to be the Alpha, now I wasn’t so sure. I knew that I was going to rely on Buck’s guidance and now that wouldn’t be there.

  “I don't know man. This is a lot of shit to take in. I wish to hell somebody would have told me what was going on. I could've taken a leave, I don't know, something. Maybe I could have at least came to the funeral.”

  My voice trailed off because I felt guilty. I felt like if I wouldn’t have left, nothing would have happened to Buck.

  “How did he die?”

  I didn't even have to have Meatloaf tell me how, because I already knew. He had died with the violence.

  Meatloaf told me all that I needed to know. He had died by the hands of Greg. He had pulled the trigger. It just have me another reason to hate the man and I wished now that I would have known. Then I would've been able to take care of him back at the bar. I was convinced that he didn't deserve to keep breathing.

  “I know that look, Daxton. Can't do that here, not right now. We don't even have a crew together and Greg has gotten stronger while you were gone. The Valley Kings are huge and they have another chapter in Tuscon.”

  “What happened to Buck’s crew? I mean where the fuck did they go?”

  He just kind of shook his head and shrugged a little bit.

  “I don't know what to say really, it just stopped being. You know, Buck was the man with the plan and once he was gone, everyone just kind of drifted off. Doc is still here, I don't think he's going anywhere kind, but most of the old crew is gone. A couple died.

  I just shook my head a little and stared down at the floor. There was a lot of litter of the ground. and it was clear it had been awhile since anybody had been out here and a lot longer that somebody cared enough to clean up.

  “So the Valley Kings have all the work here?”

  Meatloaf agreed and I was stunned into silence. I'd been thinking about coming home for a long time, getting back in the club and spending some time with Buck. Now everything was different and I don't think it was ever going to be the same again. I came back to a nightmare and I refused to let it stay that way. For a long time, I didn't know how I got to the city. I was here now and this place was mine. I couldn't leave a person like Greg to run things.

  We talked a little bit about what else happened while I was gone and there wasn't a whole lot of good. Seemed like a lot of bad things had happened since I’ve been gone. I never should have left. I don't know what I would've been able to do, but I feel like I would've been able to do something. Somebody needed to do something. and I knew that I was someone to do it. I was just a little late.

  He stopped mid-sentence and had a strange look on his face. I felt something too, but I wasn't sure what it was. It had been awhile since I've been so close to my kind and an even longer time since I had felt a distress signal.

  Meatloaf wasn’t new to the game and he immediately knew what was going on. He looked at me and said his sister's name, as well as the name of the woman that I wanted to get to know. Something had happened to Sandra and Bree and we had to go save them. I didn’t know what it was we were saving them from, but it didn’t matter. Whatever they needed, I was going to be there. That was what the MC had always been about, being there for each other.

  We jumped on our bikes and I followed Meatloaf. He had a better sense and it wasn't long before we were on our way. I had a sick feeling in my stomach and I wondered how I could feel this way about a woman that I didn't even know? It didn’t make sense to me and I felt disoriented. It was different being out of the military and back in my old element. I was different.

  Chapter 9

  Bree

  My eyes opened and the first thing I saw was the side of the car. I was in it at some point, but now I was out and everything hurt. I tried to lift my head and I had to put it back down after a moment because it just hurt too much. Closing my eyes back up, seemed like the only relief I got while it took me a minute to replay what I remembered. After a few minutes of remembering, I really didn't want to. I looked back at the car and realized that I must've went through the passenger window. There was broken glass everywhere and I didn't have to look to see that there was going to be blood on my body. I would imagine that the cuts were from that, and that must be what was burning at the moment.

  Instead of trying to lift my head up this time, I just turned it so that I could see into the car. I was sort of an inside and sort of not. I could see into the driver’s seat and I could see that Sandra was hurt. She had to be because she was still out and I called her name a couple of times but she didn't look at me.

  I could hear the engines of all the motorcycles as they surrounded us and ran us off the road. I remember going over the metal barriers at the side of the road to the bridge and then I just remember falling. At some point I know that we had to have stopped because we were crash now. I did remember that moment.

  “Sandra!”

  She still didn't answer me and I was worried that she was even worse off than I was. I kn
ew that I had to get up and see to her, make sure that she was okay. Only problem was that I wasn’t okay myself and it hurt a lot to get up enough to raise my head. Every bone and muscle in my body hurt and I had to close my eyes for about a minute from the start. Tears were streaming down the side of my face.

  I was scared that something had happened to Sandra and she wasn’t going to be okay. She had always been there for me and I wanted to be there for her now. I just knew in the back of my mind that all I had to do was figure it out.

  I struggled, but this time I got up into a sitting position. I was still wobbly as hell and I was able to look down at my hand after I touched the throbbing spot on my head. I was bleeding. I had known that, but it was strange to see the red stuff on my hands. I don’t know why, but I knew that it was a lot.

  Starting to pull myself up onto the car, I called to Sandra again. I was almost standing up when I heard a rustling in the bushes not too far from where I was half-standing. Whatever it was, was coming towards me and it was coming in fast. I was scared all of a sudden and when I saw what finally broke through the brush, I about passed out. There was a big ass bear in front of me and it was huge.

  I’d never seen a bear this big in my life, though there hadn’t been too many occasions where I had seen one before. This was like something out of my nightmare and I couldn’t believe what was in front of me.

  What was stranger still, was the fact that the bear just stopped in front of me. It looked right at me and if it was possible, it felt like our eyes connected. I’d never been that close to such a large beast and it was hard to think about anything else but those eyes. They were dark brown, soulful and I could have sworn that I’d seen them before.

  Why wasn’t this bear trying to attack me? I was curious, while I was scared half to death. It was a strange feeling to have and I kept thinking of the age-old adage about curiosity killing the cat. At the moment, I was feeling a little too feline.