by Erin Osborne
When I met Natasha, she captured my attention from the second our eyes met. She’s tall for a woman, well over five feet tall. Natasha is skinny but toned and her skin is tan. She has long strawberry blonde hair with big, light blue eyes. When she smiles, the entire room lights up. I’ve heard guys talk about a woman being the air they need to breathe and the light to their darkness. I never understood that until I spent one minute in Natasha’s presence. Now, I know what they’re talking about. I’m just not ready to let anyone in like I did with Saralyn.
As sleep begins to claim me, I let thoughts of her go and try to find peace. It’s not something I find too often these days and I know tonight will be another restless night. Too much is on my mind.
I’ve just managed to fall asleep when a pounding begins to sound on my door. I jump from bed and answer, not bothering to get dressed in case something’s happened to Kora. Standing on the other side of the door is Bear.
“Pres, Hawk just called. Cass went into labor and they’re on the way to the hospital with her,” he says, turning away from me to go wake up the next person.
Turning around, I get dressed in the clothes I just threw on my floor. I’ll have to call my mom to come get Kora from the hospital. I don’t want to wake her up, but I’m sure Bear has already managed to do that for me with his loud ass.
Knocking on my daughter’s door, I tell her it’s me and I need her to get up. She opens the door, rumpled and still half asleep.
“Dad, what’s wrong?” she asks.
“Cass is havin’ the baby. We need to go to the hospital. I’ll call gram to come get you so you can go back to bed. Just don’t want to leave you here now,” I tell her.
“Okay,” she says, all traces of sleep instantly vanishing. “Let me grab clothes and I’ll change at grandma’s later on.”
Kora is ready to go in less than a minute. I lead her outside to the club’s SUV. I’m not ready to have her on the back of a bike just yet. Especially not when I’ve just woken her up. So, we jump in and I leave knowing the rest of the guys will show up as soon as they’re awake and sober enough to do so.
We get to the hospital and mom is already there waiting for us. She ushers Kora into her car and tells me to let her know what’s going on. I give my daughter a kiss on the top of her head before making my way inside to wait for the newest family member to be born. The waiting room is already half-filled with guys. Hadliegh and Callie are lying on two of the couches as they wait.
Sitting down, Bishop returns with coffees for everyone. I gladly accept mine and begin to nurse it. It’s going to be a long night and I don’t want to drink it down in a few sips. No one else in the room appears to be in any hurry to drink theirs either.
I’m not sure how long we’ve been here, but I know I’ve been dozing on and off. Most everyone in the room has been. Before I can lean my head back against the wall again, Chains comes down the hall. A huge smile is on the man’s face and he doesn’t look tired at all. I know he hasn’t gotten any sleep.
“We’ve got a baby girl,” he says proudly as we all stand up.
“What’s her name?” Hadliegh asks as she stretches on the couch.
Chains shakes his head and I know they’re going to make us wait until we’re all in the room with them. Cass is good at surprises and she’s going to want us all to hear it at the same time. Looks like I better call mom for her and Kora to get back here. We won’t find anything out until they’re here.
Walking into the hallway, I call Ma and tell her to get back to the hospital. She lets me know they’ll be on their way in a few minutes. I walk back and let Chains know Mom will be here in less than ten if I know her. She loves being here when a new member of the family is born. If Kora wasn’t here, she would’ve been at the hospital waiting with us. But, her granddaughter comes first. She always will.
Bishop brings us more coffee just as Mom and Kora arrive in the waiting room. We all take a cup and murmur our thanks as Hawk comes out to get us. Kora is right by my side as we fill the hospital room.
Cassidy is lying in bed, a baby in her arms. She looks exhausted and I know we’ll only be in here a minute before the nurses kick us out so they can all get some rest and bond as a family. I’m fine with that because I’m ready to head to bed myself.
“Everyone, I’d like you to meet Sloane Harper Sampson-Carter,” Cass says, looking down at their daughter.
Pride and love are shining from the three parents’ eyes as we all look on. Callie, Hadliegh, and Mom rush to the bedside and force Hawk and Chains back out of the way. We all laugh at their excitement over the baby and wanting to be the first one to hold her.
“No, you guys can wait your turn. Kora, will you please come here?” Cass asks.
Kora looks to me and I nod my head at her. She slowly walks up to Cass while the women move out of her way. Cass scoots over and pats the bed next to her. Once Kora is sitting on the bed at her side, she places Sloane in her arms. The women are all taking pictures as my daughter looks down at the newest member of the family.
I’ve seen her with Knox, Jasmine, Axle, and Trinity when they’re at the clubhouse. Axle and Trinity are her only biological cousins, but she loves all the younger children and tries to spend time with them whenever they’re around. It’s one of the few times she’s allowed herself to be open and free to act like a child herself.
As expected, a nurse enters the room and comes to a stop when she sees all of us standing around. It takes her a minute to regain her composure, but she does it quicker than I expected.
“You’ll all have to leave,” she says. “And not all of you can be in here at one time again.”
“You don’t tell us who can be in this room. This is our family and they’ll visit whenever the fuck they want to,” Hawk says, his exhaustion making him snap at the woman.
I nod my head for everyone to leave before this bitch calls security on us. The last thing we need is for Hawk to get kicked out and miss out on time with his wife and daughter. It’s easier just to get everyone out.
Chapter Four
Natasha
I’VE BEEN SITTING in the corner of the couch for hours. Every shadow and noise make me jump. I can’t stand the thought of food even though my stomach is rumbling every now and then. Slowly, I pull myself off the couch and head to the kitchen. Whiskey will shut up my stomach hopefully. Maybe it will make my nerves settle down as well as shut off my brain from seeing all the scenarios that could happen.
I’m a bit surprised Hadliegh didn’t show up at my house after not taking her call, but if she saw me like this then everyone would be here, and my nerves can’t take that. Finally finding the whiskey in the back of the last cabinet, I pull it down and take a long drink straight from the bottle. While enjoying the burn as it trails down my throat, I grab a glass and pour a very healthy shot before pouring some soda in.
Once the drink’s about half gone, I feel like taking a shower would be okay. I make my way through the house double-checking the doors and windows in each room. No one has been by my house since getting home today or they would have been heard. But, I’m still gonna double-check everything. This is where Hadliegh and her bat would come in handy.
Stepping into my bedroom, something feels off. Slowly looking around the room, I don’t see anything wrong, but the hair on the back of my neck is standing up. I go to my closet to pull out my robe and something to wear to bed when someone hits me from behind.
There isn’t time to scream before I feel the heaviness of a man’s body weight on me. The man hits me again in the back of the head, and along my entire back and legs, before he turns me over. Once I am facing him, my terror grows even more. It’s the scary guy who was at the office this morning. He’s laughing as he hits me over and over. There’s not a single spot on my body he hasn’t hit or slapped multiple times. He slows down his attack for a moment waiting to see what I’m going to do.
“What have you said about the weekend?” he growls at me.
&
nbsp; “Nothing. I didn’t speak to anyone at all,” I try to get the words out of my swollen mouth.
Why do men hit you in the face and then expect you to talk after?
“Your boss was kind enough to give me your address,” he smirks at me, fueling my fear even more. “He said we needed to make sure no one could talk about anything they had seen.”
Tears are pouring down my face as it hits me that I may actually die today. Without another word he begins to hit me again. I feel my ribs crack after the third or fourth hit, breathing is getting harder and hopes of passing out so that I can escape this torment seem to be getting closer to reality. After what seems to be hours of him punching me everywhere, I notice from the small slit opening of my eye that he’s pulling out a knife. This is it. He is gonna kill me know.
I feel the knife as it cuts down my arms and as it slices across my stomach. The blood flowing in trickles is the last thing I take in as blackness surrounds me. My last thought is of how handsome Renegade is and I wonder how he kisses as I pass out.
Coming awake, it seems I’m alone. Slowly wiggling my fingers and toes, I know moving is going to hurt like hell. I’m unable to take a deep breath but staying on the floor is not really an option. Before I attempt to get up, I listen to figure out if he’s still here. Silence is the only sound in the house.
Did that asshole leave? Or is he waiting for me to move so he can finish what he started?
Taking a few minutes to build up the strength needed to move, I think about what to do next. They know where I live, obviously so staying here isn’t really an option. But if I go to Hadliegh, then the club may want to help me and then they could be in trouble. This is so scary and overwhelming thinking is making my brain hurt.
First thing to do is get off the floor. Taking as deep a breath as possible, I roll to my side and push up on my knees. The scream tearing from my throat at the pain startles me. Carefully, I crawl to my bed to use it to pull myself up. I’m so dizzy once I’m standing next to my bed. Taking a few minutes to get control of the dizziness, I finally pull myself onto the bed. Sitting there panting for breath, I look around the room.
The glass in the window is gone. It looks as though someone cut it out of the frame after cutting the screen. I don’t know if they were just getting into the house quietly or if I dozed off for a few minutes, but it cost me dearly.
Glancing down at my arms, the cuts he placed with this knife seem to be superficial. Did he think he killed me, or is he planning on coming back with his friends? I need to get out of here before they figure out what their next move is.
There’s a little hotel on the outskirts of town I could hide at, just long enough to heal some. Tears run down my face as I move around the room grabbing a few changes of clothes and my bathroom stuff as well as my phone and charger. Each step is excruciating, but staying here isn’t an option.
After what seems like hours, I’m finally in my car, heading away from my house. I don’t see anyone around or following me, but still I’m gonna drive around before heading to the hotel. My mind is fuzzy with all the things floating around in there. Do I call the police? Since my boss is their attorney, God knows he’ll have them out of jail and after me before the ink dries on the warrant.
Plus, right now they may think I’m dead. I need to get some sleep and heal a bit, then I can decide what to do. I’m gonna have to say goodbye to Hadliegh before leaving town or she’ll hunt me down. The bruises and swelling need to be hidden behind makeup and that’s gonna take a few days.
Hiding my car behind the hotel, I go in to get the keys to a room. The clerk asks me if I want to call the police or an ambulance, but I beg him to not tell anyone I’m here and quickly head to my room. Sleep doesn’t come easy as every noise makes me jump. When the exhaustion is overwhelming and I’m unable to fight any longer, nightmares take over.
After a few days, my mouth is not as swollen and since I’m able to speak easier, I call Hadliegh this morning instead of texting her. Right now, I’m still not ready to see her, but if she doesn’t hear from me soon, she’ll go to the house. The last thing I need is for her to go by the house and see I’m not there. Or for Psycho to see the window that’s been broken out.
“Hey, girl,” Hadliegh says instead of ‘hello’. “You wanna grab lunch today?”
“Not today,” I tell her. “I have a migraine today. Wanted to let you know I’ll be sleeping the day away. You know how the meds hit me hard”
“That’s true,” she laughs, probably remembering when she practically tore my door down the first time I took the meds, “Guess you know to let me know every time you take them. Call me when you get up or first thing tomorrow if you sleep all night. If I haven’t heard from you before Psycho brings me to work, we’ll be stopping by.”
“Girl, you don’t need to do that,” I begin trying to keep her from going by my house. “I promise to call okay. Gotta go, the meds are starting to work. Bye.”
“Bye,” she says softly as if she knows I am lying to her.
I’m sure that is just my guilty conscience, there is no way she knows what’s really going on.
Chapter Five
Renegade
I’VE BEEN IN the office for a few hours trying to get caught up on paperwork. It’s an area I constantly slack in and I need to figure something out. I don’t want to do it, but no one else has wanted to take it over either. They all want to be out partying and fucking instead of being stuck at a desk.
The music from the common room is breaching the quietness of my office. I stand and stretch debating going out for a beer. If I do, I know I won’t make it back in the office to finish the mound of paperwork in front of me. So, I plant my ass back in my chair and get back to work.
I’m finishing up with the small stack in front of me for Satan’s Den when there’s a knock on my door.
“Enter,” I holler out.
My brother comes into the room and places his ass in the chair in front of my desk. For a minute, he just looks at me. I’m exhausted and ready to go to bed, or lose myself in pussy. Instead, I’m sitting in the office alone and going through several stacks of paperwork. What a fucking life I lead.
“Got what you were lookin’ for,” Psycho says, handing over a slip of paper. “Hawk’s on his way home to be with Cass and the baby so I told him I’d bring the info to you.”
Looking down at the paper in my hand, I have Saralyn’s number and address. What I wouldn’t give to get on my bike and ride to her house right now. I want to pound the shit out of the man she’s shacked up with and then chew her a new ass for the way my daughter acts.
Kora still hasn’t talked to me about what hell she’s been through. I don’t know if the day will ever come when she’ll be ready to open up about her life before coming here. I’m not going to push her to talk, but I know Hadliegh won’t be as kind about it. She’s getting pissed as fuck the more we find out about Kora and how she’s been treated.
Hadliegh will find out one way or another what’s happened to her. If I’m there when it happens, I know I’ll lose my shit. Hell, Saralyn will be lucky if I don’t sic Hadliegh on her ass. Or if she doesn’t decide to go pay her a visit herself.
“You’re not lettin’ Hadliegh know about this, right?” I ask my brother.
“Not a chance in hell. She’s already half in love with Kora and if she finds Saralyn’s address out, no one will stop her from goin’ there. I’m not stupid, I’ve already warned the rest of the guys from talkin’ about you havin’ it. Hadliegh won’t hesitate to take you on when it comes to Kora,” Psycho tells me, a smile on his face thinking about his wife.
Like I said, she scares me sometimes.
Before I can respond to him, my daughter’s screams break through the room and the music playing in the common room. I jump up from my desk and make my way to the bathroom at the end of the hallway. The door’s locked and I’m ready to break down the fucking thing to find out who’s hurting my girl.
“Kor
a, It’s Uncle Psycho. Are you okay, honey?” my brother asks, placing a hand on my chest.
“No,” she answers, her voice breaking on a sob. “I need Callie or Aunt Hadliegh.”
“They’re not here right now,” I tell her, frantic to get into her. “What can I do to help?”
“I need them, Dad. You’re not the right person to talk to about this,” she says.
Looking at my brother, confusion is all over my face. I have no idea what can be going on with Kora that I can’t help with. Maybe Psycho can help her out until I can get the girls here.
“Ren, I think we need to let one of them handle this,” Psycho says, lifting his brows because he’s figured out what’s going on with my daughter.
“Why?” I ask, still not getting the hint.
“I’m thinkin’ she just got her first period,” Psycho answers in hushed tones.
I look at him and feel the color drain from my face. I’m definitely not prepared to deal with that. Pulling my phone free, I pull up Hadliegh’s number and call her. Once I’ve explained the situation, she tells me she’s on her way and already has the supplies they’ll need. Thank fucking God!
Psycho and I stand guard outside the door while we wait for Hadliegh to get here. It’s not long before she’s running through the door with Axel and Trinity in her arms, along with a bag. Psycho and I are each handed a kid as she pushes us out of the way and knocks on the door.
“Kora, it’s Aunt Hadliegh,” she says, waiting for my girl to let her in.
Once she’s in the bathroom with my daughter, we make our way back to my office. They’ll obviously need some time to talk and sort things out, so we’ll stay away from them. I let Bishop know no one’s to come down the hallway or try to use that bathroom. He stands guard at the end of the hallway and folds his arms over his chest. He’s going to take my daughter’s privacy seriously. Yeah, every person here heard my daughter screaming her head off a little while ago.
