by Snow, Nicole
“I already told you,” she said sourly, struggling out of my grip. “I don't remember anything!”
“And I don't totally believe that,” I growled. “I'm not a pro like Em and I don't know how shit works inside your head. But I've seen plenty of guys in the past who took a beating and lost their brains for a while. Couldn't remember much more than their names – just like you. But it always came back after a few days...”
“You're calling me a liar? Great.” She sniffed and turned her head, long black hair flapping on her shoulders.
Shit. A different burn circled around and around my dick. The damned thing was sick but it wasn't dead. She looked better than ever after being cleaned up and rested for a few days. Sure didn't act like she felt it, though.
“I'm saying you're gonna remember something sooner or later, baby. And I'm hoping like hell it'll be today, when you can get off easy telling me. I'm the good cop here. This is as low pressure as it's gonna get. Come on, girl. Think.”
She paused, beaming those icy brown eyes at mine. “You can't keep me here forever. I don't have to tell you or anybody else anything. How's what happened to me any of your club's fucking business?”
“Because your business turned into club business the minute we found you holed up with Mickey James' dead body.”
Alice blinked, and then looked down, her wildcat anger softening. His name. Something about it struck a bell. I saw my chance and pushed the chair closer to her, reaching for her shoulder and giving it a squeeze. This time, she didn't move away.
“I'm trying to help you and help my club, Alice. Yeah, you're right to be pissed off. I wouldn't like being made to hang out here if I couldn't remember much beyond my own damned name. We're not in the habit of bringing in strays just for fun. You're here for your own damned safety and because you're the only one who rode in with Mickey, the only person who can tell us what the fuck happened there.”
“I...I don't know...I'll try...”
Without thinking, I let my fingers wind down her arm, slow, almost sensual. Had to get off her before I went too far.
Fuck, the girl was like a magnet. Even when my dick was broke and she looked at me like I was the last asshole in the world she ever wanted to see, I couldn't stay away.
Wasn't just about fucking her either. After Beth, I had to protect her, and the best way to do that was making sure the bastards who'd fucked her over were six feet under.
“Stinger?” Alice was looking at me, both her small hands circling mine.
I blinked. Shit, something about her was bringing back bad fucking memories I'd been able to keep boxed up for years. This wasn't like Beth. No fucking way was this gonna be a bad re-run...
“I'm listening,” I said.
“It's all mush in my brain. I remember him...the dead man, I mean. I don't know who he was or why I was with him. Just got these little flashes of being around him, but it's not clear why. I don't know if they're dreams or memories or just my own imagination.” Her turn to squeeze my hand. “Give me another day. I'll try to come up with something.”
Fucking finally. I laced my fingers with hers and gave her the biggest damned smile I could manage. No guarantees she wouldn't go cold. At least it was a start, and that meant there was a chance Tank's ass was saved too.
“Take the evening. Whatever happens tomorrow, I'll be there with you. Won't leave you alone to face anybody. I know how Blaze can be...” I clenched my jaw. Pissed me off just thinking about our Prez getting wound up and snarling in her face.
Not gonna happen, I vowed.
“I'll tell you whatever I can in the morning, and then I'm leaving.” She looked up, the chill returning to her eyes, reluctant determination in her grip.
“What're you talking about?” I shook my head, wondering if I heard her right. “You've got no place to go. Can't let you loose if you give us something useful and the Rams are still out there. Hell, Alice, they've already been jerking Blaze around behind the scenes to get you back. Fuckers claim they never agreed to turn you over for good. Having you here's gonna start a war even if we don't decide to put a bullet through their fucking heads and save us all some trouble.”
“I'll deal with all that on my own. I'm a big girl and I can figure it out, even if I'm trying to sort out all this crap in my head. I know I can survive. Look, I appreciate the way you've helped me, Sting. I know I've been nothing but a bitch until now...”
I shook my head, denying the bitterness. Yeah, some truth was starting to spill outta her, but not anything I wanted to hear. Definitely didn't want to hear about how eager she was to get up and go neither.
“You'll go when it's safe.” I looked her right in the eye, feeling my arms flex. “Not my call. It's Blaze's. He'll let you out as soon as he's satisfied with what you have to say, and we can guarantee you're gonna go wherever in one piece.”
That was only half-true.
As Prez, Blaze needed to approve her taking flight after he had her information. But the only man here who really cared about seeing her off safe was me. Shit, the other brothers would probably be glad to see her go, especially when she was just one more thing to deal with in an avalanche of shit this club had to clean up over the last few months.
“Whatever,” she said, jerking away from me and turning her head. “I don't belong here and you know it. Whenever you decide I'm not fit to be your prisoner anymore, call me a cab and send me on my way. I'll pay back every dime it takes to get out of here.”
What the fuck? Was it really so bad here with me and the brothers? Despite trying to keep a lid on it, now I was starting to feel my blood warm.
“You're not leaving with nothing except the clothes on your back. You wanna do a few chores around here for some money, we'll figure it out. This fucking place always has shit to do that the prospects never get around to.”
That was an understatement. With all the endless drama and battling other clubs, our two prospects, Smokey and Stone, rarely got a second to ease into the club life cleaning the place and keeping our beers cold like most initiates did.
“Wow,” she said with a sarcastic laugh. “Thanks, dad. Never knew losing my memory meant I'd get treated like a dumbass kid. Or is that the way all you bikers treat grown women around here?”
Fuck this shit. I jumped to my feet and let the chair fall. Had to blow this room before I went ballistic. Alice jumped when my seat hit the floor, and I was almost out the door before she called to me.
“Stinger! Wait!”
I stopped, one hand on the doorknob, looking back. Couldn't fucking tell if she was done bullshitting, or just winding up something else.
“I never asked for any of this. I just want some distance...I don't need you to watch me like I'm going to fall and wreck what's left of my mind. Don't need you bringing me food or tucking me in. I can handle basic day-to-day crap, and I can handle this too.”
Fuck. I wasn't sure she was aware of me laying next to her that night, pulling her close. She sure hadn't acted like it was a chore then.
“You helped me and I'm grateful, Stinger. I really am. But I don't need you –“
“Just fucking stop, baby,” I growled. “I'll see you here tomorrow when Blaze is ready to talk. You can use me as your damned punching bag all you want, I don't give a fuck. But you better try to swallow some of that shit when you're dealing with Tank and Em tomorrow. They won't be as forgiving or as patient as me.”
I was gone without another word, heading for the bar. Doctor Jack would do me some good, and Saffron served it up real nice. I tried not to wince as I climbed on the bar stool.
God damn. I regretted not asking for several shots from the get-go. Tonight, Jack was all I had to blow off steam with my nuts acting up. If it wasn't for that, I would've been heading straight to the whores' room, taking one rough fuck for every needle the little ice queen in my room just jammed in my fucking heart.
I hounded Blaze all morning, trying to convince him to stay outta Alice's interrogation and leave
it to Em and me. At last, he relented. The Prez was plenty distracted dealing with the Feds and Tank's homecoming tomorrow, and he seemed glad to have one less thing to deal with.
As 'glad' as fire breathing Blaze could ever be, anyway.
A little later, I pounded on the door to her room. Alice came out without saying a word. She wouldn't look at me as I led her to his office, where Em and the Prez were waiting.
“Need you to try to get something useful out of her, Em,” Blaze said, barely holding in the storm welling up inside. “The Rams are riding our asses. They can smell the shit that's about to come down with Tank and the Feds. The assholes spotted our prospects when I sent them out to move Mickey's corpse to a safer place. The fucks have been laying off the meth and booze long enough to do more spying than I gave 'em credit for. Bigger balls too since they're giving us shit about the girl.”
“Fuck the Rams.” I stared the Prez down first, then gave the same evil look to Em and Alice. “If those bastards want her brought back to their ratty little clubhouse, they'll have to come here and take her.”
There was a second of silence. Then Blaze broke, hissing through his teeth and shaking his head. “Christ, Sting. Get some fucking pussy that's used to taking dick and stop worrying. Like I said in church, she's not going anywhere. She's too valuable.”
Alice looked at me nervously. The bitch gaze she'd had yesterday was missing – dormant, maybe. I held her gaze as Blaze told Emma to get something juicy one more time before he left to do other shit.
Em started out asking the usual crap, circling around the chair where Alice was sitting like a shark, asking her every little detail she could remember about that night. I warned her to go easy.
Tank's situation had the nurse pretty shaken up. He'd been hauled into jail right after they patched things up, thrown in the slammer because he was helping to keep her safe from the piece of shit cousin blackmailing her ass. Now, the soft, shy nurse we all knew was melting away with her man's freedom on the line.
Em cracked a little more by the second, letting out her inner bitch. She asked my girl about the dead man.
“I don't remember anyone named Mickey,” Alice insisted.
My heart sank. If she'd truly given remembering all her focus last night, it hadn't turned up shit. Still, she looked so disappointed, so sad, so fragile I couldn't get pissed. Emma, on the other hand...
Didn't like the way she was looking at Alice one bit.
“Don't understand what the fuck Blaze expects you to do. Alice doesn't know shit,” I growled. “Whatever the hell happened with the Rams, it was bad enough to make her forget, just like you said.”
Em kept her eyes fixed on Alice the whole time, even when she was speaking to me. “No. She can't give us the big picture, but she might remember some details. There's got to be somebody home in there.”
That did it. Alice looked up, frost shining in her eyes, sharp and angry as ever.
“Stop talking about me like that. I didn't ask to be here. I don't understand why you and these bikers are keeping me here...”
“Easy, baby.” I put a hand on Alice's shoulder. “We're just trying to help a friend, and help you too.”
Fuck, how many times do I have to remind her? I wondered. Why can't she just believe me? We wouldn't need to pump her like this if a brother's ass wasn't on the line.
Em's attitude wasn't making this shit any easier. They locked eyes. Then Alice jerked, throwing my arm off her and shooting me a look that said back the fuck off.
No, nothing much had changed since yesterday evening. Despite her cold fucking shoulder, I still wasn't gonna let Em ride right over her. The nurse paced a little more quickly around her now. I expected more harsh words, more vinegar, whatever she needed to say to free her old man.
But I never expected Em to grab my girl's beautiful black ponytail and twist her head back. Alice jerked, whining as Em lifted her face up close.
“Emma, what the fuck?” I had my hands on her shoulders in a second, trying to jerk her off Alice without dislocating her bones.
Fuck, she was holding on tight, begging me to hurt her if I truly wanted her gone. “You guys are too scared to get tough with a girl unless she's being a real bitch. I get it, you don't rough up girls. Thing is, I'm not bound by your club charter. This bitch is hiding something, Sting, and I want to know what.”
Bitch or not, Em had no fucking right to talk to her like that – and she sure as fuck didn't have any need to grab her like a stray cat!
“Let go!” I roared. “Stop hurting her!”
I was seriously contemplating throwing the nurse across the room. Only problem was I'd have Tank crush my skull tomorrow if he came home and found out I bruised the girl he was ready to claim.
Fuck!
“Oh, please,” Em hissed. “She's had worse. If she'd tell us what, then I wouldn't have to keep doing this.”
“Dammit, Em! I'm fucking warning you...”
Alice squealed as Emma's pull tightened. Harsh words, I'd allow, but I couldn't let this fucking torture continue. I shifted my hands to Emma's waist, ready to send her flying across the room, consequences be damned.
Em saw the bluff in my pissed off eyes and called it. She practically tore that sweet black hair out in fistfuls, pulling so hard Alice came off her chair and hit the floor.
My brain snapped. Something primal and vicious underneath my skin broke out. I saw red as I hauled Emma off her feet, running to the nearest wall and crashing her up against it.
“Everybody's losing their fucking mind around here!” I snarled, trying to talk to calm the bloodlust surging through me. “Look, nurse, I know you're upset as all hell about Tank's situation. That's still no excuse for you to treat this poor girl like a piece of fucking –“
Emma was about to open her mouth when Alice spoke behind us. “Okay! I'll...I'll talk...”
All the rage deflated. I dropped Em, too fucking shocked, turning around to face her as the nurse wiped herself off and crossed the room.
Alice said she'd talk, said she'd tell us everything, as long as we let her go. Shit, I told her for the thousandth time that was all in the cards, even though every part of me was howling for the opposite.
She told us about riding with a big man in a truck stuffed with cargo. Had to be Mickey, and if my time in the club taught me anything, she'd been taking a cruise with him in a full blown weapon's shipment.
“Did you guys see a truck when you visited their clubhouse?” Em asked.
I shook my head, still digesting Alice's confession. My heart was hammering against my ribs. She'd finally given us something useful, and I hoped like hell it was true.
“Fuck no. That shit had to have gone somewhere if it was really the kinda shipment she's talking about. Fuck, I have to tell Blaze. If we can find this damned thing or make the Rams cough up what they did with it...”
I took off before I could finish the sentence. The Prez had to know, and he had to know right now. The Rams were probably covering that shit up right that second, if they hadn't gotten to it after our little visit.
Harsh words followed me, more insult and anger flying back and forth as Em and Alice came to terms. The clubhouse was so damned quiet the shit followed me all the way to the garages, where I expected to find Blaze. Before I left, Alice dropped one last bomb, and its explosion was still resonating in my fucking skull hours later.
“I can't remember who I am or what I'm supposed to be. All I can do is start a new life, get my shit together, and figure things out. None of that involves you, Stinger, or anything remotely attached to the Prairie Devils MC...”
Alice's words made me stop in mid-step, hand on the door leading outside. The excitement throttling my blood at finally having something to save Tank's ass flamed out. Fuck, she was really serious, dead set on leaving this club and everybody in it behind for good.
And everybody included me.
It shouldn't have bothered me so fucking much. Hell, if it wasn't for the promi
se I made after Beth, it wouldn't have. I'd let myself get too close to this weird girl, let her turn my whole fucking world topsy-turvy. All because I couldn't let the past be the past and I wanted to play hero!
The urge to beat my own ass was overwhelming. Fucking idiot.
My damned eyes were on her as she angrily stormed outta Blaze's office, stomping right past me, heading back to my room. The door slammed a second later.
My turn. I threw the door open and smashed it in the frame so hard the chrome on every bike outside rattled like thunder.
Outside, Blaze jerked up from the bench, eyes wide, and then narrowing when they landed on me. I was walking over to him, feeling fucking stupid, ready to deliver my report all business like. Too bad I'd blown that chance the minute my piss and vinegar followed me.
The Prez looked tired, exasperated. Didn't blame him. Tank and Emma's endless dance had caused enough fucking drama around the clubhouse for the last few seasons.
Now, it was my turn, and it wasn't about to get better when happiness wasn't in the cards with Alice. Shit, happy with her wasn't even in the same deck.
What-fucking-ever. The beauty with the glass tongue in my room wasn't getting shit from me anymore. I was in control.
I didn't fucking need her. And I sure as hell didn't need an old lady when I couldn't even get my lips on this girl without feeling her flak bursting my eardrums.
I kept the report to the Prez short and sweet, giving him Alice's words verbatim, grinding my damned teeth the whole time. On the way back, Em passed by me, slapping a slip of paper in my hands.
“What's this?”
“Test results. You're clean, VP. Near as I can tell, you took a hard turn and twisted your testicles just enough to cause discomfort. You should be more careful riding on these mountain roads.” Emma frowned. “I hope you'll be wise about where you stick your –“
