by Celia Loren
“You fucking bitch,” he spat at her. She tried to speak, but nothing could come out. “You think I don’t know what you’ve been up to?” She flailed her arms and legs in a panic. Naked, on a bed, there was no way for her to fight back. She could only watch as his eyes dilated and the emotion drained out of them. He was like a robot, and his hands just closed tighter and tighter around her throat.
Blackness began creeping into her peripheral vision. She was losing oxygen fast. No, she thought. I can’t go like this. I have so much to do, so much to see. Suddenly, her pinkie finger touched cool metal. Her computer. Maintaining eye contact with him, she allowed her hand to feel out the sides of the laptop. Sliding her fingers under it, she gripped the top of it with her thumb firmly. She would only have one shot.
She brought the computer up over his head in a smooth arc and slammed it as hard as she could into his head. It connected with his skull with a loud crack. She felt the computer splinter slightly in her hand, and Owen toppled off her onto his back. The white comforter under him began to stain red with blood. She coughed and gasped for air.
“You bitch!” He cried, and reached for her again. Without thinking, she raised the computer again, and this time brought it onto his face. It hit his right cheekbone and nose, and she heard a sickening crack as his nose broke and blood gushed out of it. He brought a hand to his face and watched as it was swiftly colored red. He met her gaze, his expression full of anger and disbelief. She lifted the laptop again, but his eyes rolled back in his head. He blinked quickly in a fight to regain consciousness, but his eyes finally shut, and he sank back into the pillow.
Addison remained over him, kneeling with the computer raised in her right hand. Was he dead? Without moving her eyes from him, she gingerly placed the computer down on the bed and leaned closer to him. There, she could see his chest moving up and down with his breath. He was just unconscious. That meant she had no time to lose. She had to get out, now.
She looked down at her hands. There was blood splatter on them. She ran into the bathroom and grabbed one of those white plushy towels and hastily wiped herself off. Adrenaline was rushing through her body, and she was shaking violently. Clothes, phone, wallet, keys, she thought. Get out. Get out now.
She ran back into the bedroom, keeping an eye on Owen. Still unconscious. She pulled out the drawers, threw on the first shirt and jeans she found, and grabbed a few more things for the road. With one last glance at Owen, she ran into the living room. Her wallet and phone were still on the couch in her clutch where she’d left them. She stuffed everything into her tote bag, then shoved her feet into the old pair of Chucks she always left on the doormat and ran into the elevator.
She shoved the button for the parking garage, willing the doors to shut, praying that Owen would stay passed out. After what felt like an eternity, the doors closed, and she took a deep breath, trying to compose herself. She ran out of the elevator and into the garage, scanning the rows for her car, trying to remember the last place she parked it. She finally spotted her white Jetta, and hopped in, tossing her bag on the passenger seat. Her hands were shaking so much that she couldn’t fit the keys into the ignition. Using her left hand, she steadied her right forearm and finally started the car.
She peeled out of the parking space and up the ramp. She didn’t even know where she was going. Speeding down West End Avenue, she thought about what Taylor had told her. Owen’s family was connected everywhere. The police hadn’t even really investigated Lauren’s death. And here she was, a foreigner, with no real connections in this country. If she went home to her parents, he’d track her there. The only thing that could possibly increase her level of fear right now was the thought of putting her parents in danger.
She felt her still-damp hair drip down the back of her shirt. The reality of what had just happened hit her, and she started sobbing. Just a couple of hours earlier, she had felt like she had a great life, and now everything was a mess. Tears streamed down her face, and she could barely see the road in front of her. Just in time, she realized she was pulling up to a red light, and braked hard.
She grabbed her phone out of her clutch, opened her contacts, and began scrolling through them. They were all friends from college she had lost touch with, or people she only knew through Owen. She kept scrolling until she reached one name: Salem. Her cousin on her dad’s side. She flashed back to the last time she’d seen her, at Salem’s wedding in Vegas.
Owen hadn’t gone with her. He’d had very little interest in meeting her extended family. She doubted he’d even remember her name. It had been such a casual wedding, but beautiful. The love in the room had been palpable, and Addison had gotten along so well with Salem’s new husband Kyle. She’d been taken aback by him at first: he was in a motorcycle gang, and all his groomsmen were huge, burly men. But as she’d gotten to know him that night, she’d respected how he treated Salem as his equal, and he’d ended the night by telling her that if she ever needed anything, all she had to do was call. Well, she needed them now.
The driver behind her beeped and Addison realized the light had turned green. As she accelerated through the intersection, she selected Salem’s name and put the phone on her lap on speaker. Please answer, she thought, as the phone rang.
“Hello?” Salem’s voice came through the speaker.
“Salem? Oh, God…” Addison’s voice broke, and she started sobbing again.
“Addison? Oh my God, Addison, what’s wrong?”
“It’s Owen. Owen…he attacked me, I hit him, there was blood everywhere. I don’t know what to do.”
“Wait, wait, I’m putting Kyle on.” Addison heard Salem shout away from the phone, “Kyle! Kyle! Pick up! It’s Addison. She’s in trouble!” With a click, Kyle picked up, and she heard deep breathing, as though he had run to pick up the receiver.
“Addison? What happened?”
“It’s Owen, I hurt him—he’s going to come after me.”
“You have to calm down, Addison. Take a deep breath. Start from the beginning.” Kyle’s strength came through the phone, and Addison took a deep breath.
“I didn’t tell you, I didn’t tell anyone…he’s hit me before. I never thought he would do anything serious, but tonight one of his old friends told me he murdered his high school girlfriend and his father got him off scot-free. I was researching it online, and Owen saw it, and he started choking me. I hit him back, and there so much blood, and I ran.”
“Did you call the cops?” Salem asked
“Wait,” Kyle interjected. “You said his father got him off—who’s his father?”
“Devlin. Marcus Devlin.” There was a long pause on the other end of the line.
“Where are you now?”
“In my car, driving. I don’t know exactly where.”
“OK. Listen carefully to what I’m telling you, Addison. You have to do exactly what I say. As soon as we hang up the phone, ditch your cell phone. Drive to the nearest ATM and draw out as much cash as you can from your cards and ditch them, too. Then drive to the nearest bus depot and leave your car there. Hail a cab to the airport, and get on the first flight to Vegas. I’m going to give you a number to call when you get here. Pull over so you can write it down.” Addison checked her rearview and pulled over. She grabbed a pen from her purse and wrote the number on her hand as he recited it. “You got it?”
“I got it.”
“Everything will be OK, Addison. Just get here.” She heard Salem say. “We’ll see you soon.”
“See you soon,” Addison repeated, feeling hollow.
“Now destroy the phone,” Kyle commanded, “and get moving.” She heard the phone click off.
Numbly, she opened her door and stood up. Hurrying over to the sidewalk, she threw her cell phone against the nearest building’s wall. It cracked, and she stomped on it until it shattered. Feeling a little stronger, she got back in the car and began scanning the street for the nearest ATM. There, a blue Chase sign.
She pulled in
to the parking lot and screeched to a stop. She grabbed her wallet and hustled to the outdoor ATM. She quickly pushed in her card and entered her pin. Fuck, the limit was only four hundred dollars. She pulled the cash out of the slot and stuffed it in her wallet. She had one more card, her joint account with Owen. She pushed that card in and entered her pin. The screen lit up with flashing red letters, INVALID ENTRY. She frowned and tried again, then again. She knew she was entering it correctly. She and Owen had chosen the month and day of their first kiss for their pin.
Her stomach sank. Owen must already be onto her. He was already awake and working to stop her by closing their account. Her eyes welled up with tears. No, no, she had to be strong. She had work to do. She searched the corner of the parking lot for street signs, and finding them, realized she was only a few blocks from the Greyhound station. Feeling determined, she ran back to her car and pulled out of the parking lot.
CHAPTER THREE
Addison sat on a bench outside McCarran International Airport. The air here in Vegas felt dryer than in Nashville. She stared listlessly at the families waiting together in the taxi line. She’d been able to catch a flight at the Nashville airport only forty-five minutes after she’d arrived there, but then had a three hour layover in Atlanta. The flight attendant had announced that it was 8:17AM when they landed.
A bright flash of light on the sidewalk caught her eye. It was a rainbow created by the light refracting through her engagement ring. She felt a surge of nausea. She hadn’t even realized she was still wearing it. Taking it off, she was about to throw it into the street when she realized she might need it. She didn’t have much money left. The last minute airplane fare had been expensive, and now she only had a little over a hundred dollars in cash left. She tucked the ring into an interior pocket of her tote.
A deep rumble sounded from the arriving cars. Addison, and the all the other people waiting for ground transportation looked up at the noise. She felt a deep surge of relief wash through her body as she saw two black motorcycles cutting through the cars. She jumped up and waved at them, trying to attract their attention. She saw Salem on the back of one of the bikes, looking around, then spotting Addison and waving back. She recognized Kyle on the front of that bike, but didn’t know the man driving the other one.
They pulled up at the curb, and Salem pulled off her helmet, jumped off the back of the bike, and enveloped Addison in a hug.
“Oh, honey, it’s going to be OK. We’re going to help you.” Addison closed her eyes and sunk into Salem. She didn’t have any tears left. Finally, Salem held extended her arms and held Addison out, examining her. She let her fingers softly touch Addison's neck, and Addison realized she must have bruises forming there from Owen’s hands.
“Hey, Addison,” Kyle said over Salem’s shoulder. “Thanks for dropping by.”
“Oh, jeez, Kyle.” Salem rolled her eyes. Addison smiled, glad for a little bit of levity.
“Addison, this is Cutler Remes,” Kyle said, indicating the guy that Addison didn’t know. Cutler swung a leg over his bike and took off his helmet. Addison felt an instant attraction to him. He had dark and eyes, and a smirk that told her he knew how hot he was. He looked her up and down, and nodded. “He’s not a man of many words until you get a bottle of Jack in him, so don’t expect much.”
“Got it,” said Addison.
“So we’re going to take you back to the Devil’s Reapers clubhouse for a while, until we figure out what to do,” Salem told her.
“What’s the Devils Reapers?” Addison asked.
“Who.” Cutler said.
“Excuse me?”
“Who are the Devil’s Reapers.”
“Is this Jeopardy? What’s he talking about?”
Salem laughed. “Cutler, give her a break, OK? Sorry, he’s a little protective. The Devil’s Reapers are the name of their motorcycle club.”
“Club?” Addison asked, frowning.
“Don’t worry, hon. We're mostly peaceful, only get violent if we need to.” Cutler interjected again. “We getting out of here, or what?”
“Wait,” Addison said, turning to Kyle. “When I mentioned Marcus Devlin’s name on the phone last night, it seemed like you recognized it. And not just because he’s rich. Tell me what’s going on.” Kyle and Salem exchanged worried glances, then looked around to make sure no one was standing too close to them. He leaned in to Addison.
“Marcus Devlin has ties to the Russian mob.”
“What? But the Devlins are a famous name, they’re society people. They’re not mobsters.”
“They weren’t, until Marcus’s father made some bad business decisions and almost ran the company into the ground. He started taking money from some very bad people, and now every aspect of their business is tied to the Russians.”
“Oh my God,” Addison whispered. “Do you think Owen could be using those connections?”
“Rich people think the world belongs to them, in my experience.” Cutler added. “Here.” He tossed Addison a helmet, and she caught it. “Hop on.” Addison hesitated, and Salem and Kyle smiled at each other. “What, I’ve gotta have a college degree to drive you around, princess?”
“No, just a bar of soap,” Addison replied, smiling sweetly. Salem and Kyle laughed.
“Glad you haven’t lost your spirit, Addie!” Salem said, patting her on the back. “And glad to have another girl to hang out with.”
“Aw, come on, Salem. I keep trying to braid your hair but you never let me.” Kyle said with a straight face. Salem laughed as they climbed back onto Kyle’s bike.
Addison slung her tote across her body and tightened the strap so it wouldn’t move around. She shook her hair so it fell across her back, and pushed the helmet down on her head, noticing Cutler watching her out of the corner of her eye. She walked over to him and eyed his bike. She’d never ridden on a motorcycle before, much less with a dangerous-looking biker on the front of it.
“At least you travel light,” Cutler said.
“I didn’t have much choice,” Addison countered. She swung her leg over the side of the bike, and gingerly placed her hands on the sides of Cutler’s torso, feeling the smooth butter of his leather jacket.
“You’re gonna want to hold on a little tighter than that.” Cutler told her. Addison slid her hands along his jacket, her hands slipping under the leather onto his t-shirt covered body. She could feel his ripped abs underneath her hands. She hoped that he couldn’t feel her heartbeat speed up as her breasts pushed up against his back.
Cutler smiled. He’d do anything for Kyle, but he hadn’t exactly been excited to pick up Salem’s British cousin from the airport. Sounded like just some dumb kid who’d had a spat with her boyfriend and freaked out. But those bruises on her neck were serious enough. And she wasn’t some kid—she was gorgeous. Even though she looked a little strung out, her brown eyes still glowed, and lips were a perfect pink pout. And he liked that even after a rough night, she could still give him shit. He felt a tightening in his pants and shifted slightly. Her hands felt so good against his stomach.
He saw Kyle nod back at him, and he knocked back his kick start with his foot. They both gunned their engines and pulled away from the sidewalk. Addison gripped him a little harder when the engines picked up. She could feel his every breath through her hands, and their bodies vibrated together from the roar of the bike's engine.
Kyle and Cutler expertly weaved between the waiting cars and taxis. As they cleared the airport traffic and merged onto the highway, Addison relaxed. The hum of the motorcycle beneath her was actually slightly hypnotic, and she breathed into Cutler’s wide back. Owen was just one man, and maybe he wouldn’t even try to stop her from leaving him, beyond canceling their account together. It’s not like he couldn’t find another girl. At least now she had two burly bikers protecting her—and apparently an entire gang back at their clubhouse.
She briefly thought about her parents. She hoped they weren’t trying to reach her, and worrying about
where she was. Hopefully she could get everything sorted out before they even knew she had gone anywhere.
She looked out over the Las Vegas desert passing quickly by the side of the highway. Based on what she’d seen in movies about Vegas, she’d expected to be dropped in the middle of a big city, sort of an extended Times Square. But looking around, mostly she saw sand, broken up with brush, rocks, and a cactus here and there. In the distance, she spotted bluish brown mountains framing the horizon. A few cars passed them, but in the early morning, the roads were mostly empty.
She saw Cutler glance in his side view mirrors. Was he checking her out? Wouldn’t be able to see much with this big helmet on. He looked again. Suddenly, she saw a black town car just in the corner of the mirror. Was that what he kept looking at? She turned over her shoulder to get a better look at it. It was a nice car, with windows tinted dark so she couldn’t see who was driving. It seemed to be speeding up.
With a jolt, Cutler sped up, and Addison turned back quickly, grabbing onto him more tightly. She felt him accelerating sharply, and he pulled up next to Kyle and Salem.
“Black town car!” she heard him shout. Kyle glanced in his own side view. “Been following us since we left the airport!” Kyle nodded grimly, and Cutler slowed slightly to drop back in behind them, and then they both pressed down hard on their accelerators.
Addison felt a wave of fear wash over her. How had he already tracked her down? Now she had put three more people in danger. She wished there was a way for her to fight back right now, but on the back of this stranger’s bike, there was little she could do.
Kyle and Cutler sped up, beginning to weave in and out of the few cars that were on the road. Maybe they’d be able to lose the car, Addison thought hopefully. She looked behind them. The town car had also sped up and was gaining on them.
