by Bella Jewel
“Are you sayin’ you don’t like our company?”
“I’m saying if I hear another bitch moaning because you stallions are pounding her against the wall, I’m going to cut my own ears off.”
Mykel bursts out laughing and shakes his head. “C’mon. You’ll be glad to know I got permission to take you out, now you’re in the clear. Tell me what you wanna do.”
I eye him suspiciously. “You’re going to take me out?”
“Fuck yeah I am. I got shit to do anyway.”
I’m not going to say no. Other than attending Magnolia’s funeral, which was followed by a shit load of questions I mostly lied to the police about, I haven’t been out of this club. I’ve gone back to Cohen’s, been to Alarick’s, but other than that I spend most of my time here because Alarick is always busy and it’s the only way I can be near him.
I’ve spent a few hours at the tattoo shop, but for reasons unknown to me, the tattoo needle agitated me, and I couldn’t be around it too long.
So, I got stuck listening to the club whores moaning as they were ridden like a train through the station.
Nasty.
“I’m happy to go out, let’s go.”
I grab a coat and look to Mykel, who just chuckles. “No holdin’ you back is there?”
“You try sitting in here as long as I have. Where are we going first?”
“Get some lunch, then I’ve got a few errands to run. Then, we can do whatever you want.”
“Whatever I want?” I say, pursing my lips.
“Nothing illegal, or against club rules,” he throws in.
“You’re so boring.”
Chuckling, he takes my hand and tugs, and we both walk out of the club and to his truck. I get in the passenger seat, and when Mykel climbs in, we hit the road.
We make our way to a local diner where I order a burger, fries, and a chocolate shake because my god, I’ve been a healthy little eater in the last few weeks. You know, trying to be kind to my body after having Rupert and all, but man, I need this more than I probably need Alarick right about now.
“You eat like a man, and I love it,” Mykel tells me when my food is put in front of me.
I snort. “You’re not going to catch me eating like a mouse, hell no. Food was made to be enjoyed, and I’m going to enjoy it.”
“That’s my girl.”
I grin at him and pop a fry into my mouth. “Can I ask you something?”
He nods, taking a bite of his burger. Even eating like a starving caveman, he’s still so gorgeous. Whatever woman gets to lie in Mykel’s bed every night, is going to be a lucky one.
Though the amount of women he’s ploughed through in the last few weeks, I’m guessing he is still a man whore and isn’t yet ready to settle down.
Can’t say I blame him.
Being a taken girl is hard.
“What happened to King?”
For a moment, Mykel looks confused. Like why the hell wouldn’t I know the answer to that question?
I go on before he can get suspicious. “You know I didn’t live here when he died. I never asked Alarick about it because I didn’t want to upset him but, you know ... I want to know all of it. Not just the basics.”
Mykel swallows his mouthful and thinks on it for a moment, before answering. “He got beat up real bad. Was drivin’ home and his car went off the edge of some big fuckin’ bridge. Found the car, never found his body.”
“They never found his body?” I question. “How is that so?”
“Heard he must have gotten washed out of the car, and fuck knows where he ended up.”
“How do they know he got beat up?”
“Said there was blood everywhere in the car, and it was his. Looked like it must have been that he was in a bad way.”
“Oh, I never realized,” I whisper.
“We figured if he made it out, he would have come home. He didn’t. So, we knew he was dead.”
Oh god.
If only they knew.
“What was he looking for?”
“The person who killed your momma, same as Mags.”
I glance down at my burger and say softly, “Do you think their fate is my fate?”
“Fuck no,” Mykel says. “You have the club on your side, and we’re not goin’ to let you get hurt lookin’ for that son-of-a-bitch. You gotta know that.”
Right.
“You’re not goin’ to go and look into this without us, are you?”
His voice is stern, and his face is hard. He knows me, well enough to know I’m thinking about it. I’m thinking about all the ways I can get this ball rolling, of all the ways I can track down this man who has brought on so much pain and horror in my family. He knows that I’m thinking about it, and I’m going over every way I can to figure this out.
“Briella,” he urges. “You don’t want their fate, then you gotta use your fuckin’ brain. You know that. You go in without us, you’re goin’ to end up hurtin’ yourself, or worse. Don’t be stupid.”
I look at him, and then nod. “I’m not going to be stupid.”
And I’m not, at least, not intentionally.
I’m not going to get myself hurt, but I am going to keep hunting this beast, this demon, this person who ruined my entire life. I’m going to do that with the club’s help, but I’m also not going to wait around for them to decide what the best method is. I’m going to dig deeper, on my own, until we can find a way around this.
“Good,” Mykel says, his voice firm. “We don’t need another dead body on our hands.”
He’s right about that.
We don’t.
Which is why I don’t plan on dying.
Not yet, at least.
“HOW ARE YOU FEELING?” Karen asks as we walk toward the club house a few days later.
“Better now I’m allowed out. I feel good, glad I can finally get my life back on track.”
“Have you all found out any more about Magnolia’s murder?”
“No, but they’re dragging their feet with it. I know Alarick didn’t want to get into too much while I was healing, but sometimes I think he’s purposefully trying to keep me away from all this.”
“You can’t blame him for that,” Karen points out. “After all, he has seen some pretty horrible things at the hands of whoever it is that’s doing this. He doesn’t want to see you in the same boat.”
“I know,” I sigh. “I just feel like the longer I leave this, the further and further it slips away from me.”
She reaches over and squeezes my shoulder, giving me an understanding smile before we step into the clubhouse. We walk through the main living area, saying hello to a few members, before rounding the corner to the pool room. There, on the pool table, is Cohen. Balls deep in someone, I can’t see who, because he has her bent over the table and is fucking her so hard it’s scraping across the floor angrily.
I stop, my mouth dropping open.
Karen gasps, and her hands fly up to her mouth.
We both stand there, watching for a little longer than we probably should, but it’s super hard to look away.
It’s hard not to stare at Cohen’s strong, rippled body and the way his ass clenches as he drives his cock into the woman on the table. It’s hard not to be almost fascinated by her whimpers of pleasure and occasional screams of joy.
It’s super hard to do anything but stare.
“Didn’t think you were into watchin’ other people.”
A low, husky voice trickles into my ear, and I jump backward, slamming into Alarick’s hard body. He puts a hand over my mouth, to muffle the screech of shock, and then drags me backward and out of the room. Karen trails behind us, her cheeks red. When we’re in safe distance, Alarick lets me go and I gasp. “God, you could have done something other than sneak up on me, Flick!”
He grins, and then glances at Karen who is staring at the ground, her cheeks so red I can almost feel the heat radiating off them.
“Didn’t want you to interrupt Cohe
n’s fuck.”
“Cohen has a room, he could fuck in there,” I point out.
“Wouldn’t be fun then, would it?”
I bite my lip, because, well, it did look fun. I have never been fucked in such an open and public place, but I imagine it would feel super amazing. Thrilling, even. Knowing someone could walk in at any second. I shiver and Alarick notices, and his eyes grow incredibly lusty. I know what he’s thinking—he’s thinking that maybe we’re going to try that later.
I wouldn’t say no.
“I, ah, should get going then,” Karen says, her voice a little shaky. “I’ll call you later, Bri.”
She turns and rushes out before I can stop her, and with an exhale I look to Alarick. “You scared her off.”
“Cohen’s cock scared her off.”
I laugh softly. “That certainly wasn’t what I expected to walk in on today.”
“You spend more time at the club, you’ll see a lot more pussy. It’s how it works.”
“Right,” I murmur. “So long as that pussy isn’t anywhere near you, I don’t care.”
He grins. “Only one pussy for me, and if you’re lucky, I might bend you over that pool table later and show you how fuckin’ good it feels to be fucked up against it.”
My cheeks burn and I give him a small smile.
“I’d like that,” I say, softly.
“Yeah?” he growls, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear.
“Yeah.”
“I’ll keep that in mind,” he murmurs, staring at my lips. “For now, need you to come and talk with me about somethin’.”
“Is that something good or bad?” I ask him.
He gives me an uncertain expression. “Don’t know yet.”
I don’t like the sound of that.
I follow him to his office and, when we’re inside, he closes the door. Kendric and Samson are both sitting on the sofa, kicked back, boots on the coffee table.
“Get your boots off my fuckin’ table,” Alarick orders.
Both men grin and take their feet down.
I wave to them both and then sit down beside Samson. Then I wait. I wait for whatever it is Alarick is about to tell me. Have they found the guy? Have they worked out what’s going on? Is there something I’m missing? Something I don’t know? I have a thousand questions running around my brain.
“We got a tip off from someone, won’t say who, that we were right all along about Constable Bennett bein’ on the scene. Got word that he is workin’ with this Dax fella, and that they’ve got somethin’ runnin’. Somethin’ dangerous and far beyond anythin’ I’ve seen.”
“The cult?” I ask.
“Not sure it’s a cult, but in a sense you could call it that because it’s clear it involves a fuckin’ lot of brainwashing. The only thing I know right now is that whatever they’re doin’, they’re takin’ a fuckin’ lot of lives. Willingly and not.”
“How do we find them, then?”
“Steady on, sweetheart,” Kendric murmurs. “This ain’t about rushin’ in and blowin’ up somethin’ we don’t even understand. We need all the information before we even think about steppin’ in there.”
“So many more girls will get hurt, or worse, if we wait,” I protest. “So many more families will be torn apart. They’re dangerous, whatever they’re doing is dangerous. I don’t like this!”
“You don’t have to like it,” Flick says, his voice firm. “But we’re playin’ this my way, not yours. Know how I feel about you, Briella, but you gotta know I have a whole club to protect, and I have you to keep safe. I’m not goin’ to charge in there without knowin’ absolutely everythin’ I can.”
I see his point, I really do.
I also hate the idea that other girls are there, getting hurt, because nobody is stopping him.
“What’s the plan, then?” I question.
“We’ve got sources, we’re goin’ to dig deeper and find out everythin’ we need to know.”
“Who?”
Alarick looks to me, his eyes narrowed.
“What?”
“Who? Who are your sources?”
“That’s none of your concern.”
Frustration bubbles in my chest. I know what he’s doing and, to be honest, I’d probably do the same if the roles were reversed, but protecting me isn’t helping anyone. I want to help. I need to help. I need to fix this, and the only way I can do that is to be right there beside them as they figure out what the hell is going on.
“Know this is hard on you,” he goes on. “But I’m doin’ right by you here, you need to let me.”
I swallow and take a deep breath, then ask. “Have you figured out anything more about Aviana?”
“Actually, yeah. We got word she don’t have anything to do with this, and that she went off on her own. Not sure where. Not sure how. But it’s lookin’ like her disappearance isn’t related.”
“How can you possibly know that?” I argue.
“Because I tracked down someone who knows where she is.”
My eyes get wide. “You know where she is?” I whisper.
“Yeah, I know where she is. Her uncle on the other hand, most certainly has somethin’ to do with all of this. Probably for money. Either way we’ll find out.”
I don’t care about her damned uncle. I care about her.
“Where is she?” I ask, ignoring the last part. “Can I talk to her?”
“Far as I know, the person who knows where she is isn’t willin’ to give us her location, but we have received evidence via photography that she is alive and well. That’s all you need to know. That’s all we need to know. Aviana can do as she wishes from this point forward.”
“She’s missing because of us,” I whisper. “She was my best friend.”
“Know that,” Alarick goes on, his voice still stony and firm. “But right now we have bigger matters. Down the track, you want to find her, we’ll look into it. For now, we need to find who killed your momma and your sister and finish this.”
I swallow back the pain in my chest and nod. He’s right. For the moment, we can only pick one thing to fix and right now, that’s the monster lurking in the shadows out there.
“I won’t go ahead and get involved in this,” I say. “But I want you to promise me you’ll keep me in the loop. Don’t keep things from me. If you want me to follow your orders, I want to know you’re going to share everything with me. Can you do that?”
Alarick nods. “I’ll tell you anythin’ you need to know, but understand that if anythin’ is goin’ to cause any kind of danger, I ain’t riskin’ it.”
I nod.
Then I look to Kendric and Samson, who are both just leaning back and listening. “I’m sure you boys are looking forward to this drama.”
Kendric snorts. “Rather stick to ridin’, but hey, do what you gotta do.”
“I’m always up for an adventure,” Samson grins.
I could say the same.
Only thing is adventure is proving to be a whole lot riskier than the ones I’m used to.
Things are about to enter a world I can’t even begin to understand.
I’m terrified.
2
FLICK
“You’re not tellin’ her everythin’ you know,” Cohen says, leaning back in the chair and lighting a cigarette, throwing his booted feet on my coffee table.
I reach forward and shove his feet off, growling low. “You fuckers seem to think my furniture is for your fuckin’ feet.”
Cohen grins and passes me a cigarette, which I gladly take.
Everything right now is fucked.
Dramatic? Fucking sure.
True?
Absolutely.
The shit we’re about to get involved in is risky, and it’s deadly, and I know fuck all about it. Run drugs? I can do that with my eyes closed. Sell weapons? Fuck yeah. Deal with someone double crossing me? Fucking don’t doubt it.
Handling a sick fucker who brainwashes and sells girls overseas for
money? Fuck me. I don’t even know where to start with that.
“Quit avoidin’ my question, Pres. You’re keepin’ shit from Briella, and she’s goin’ to figure it out. When she does, she’s goin’ to be pissed and likely do something stupid.”
I glare at him. “I’m keeping that shit from her so she won’t do anything fuckin’ stupid. She just had her brain operated on. You think she’s goin’ to handle the deep ugly truth about what’s goin’ on out there? To find out what really happened to her sister? To find out the gruesome details that we know?”
“She’s goin’ to find out eventually.”
“Know that,” I mutter, inhaling the cigarette, feeling the smoke burn my lungs. “But right now, I also know it’s for the best to keep her as far away from it as I can. At least until she’s fully healed. It hasn’t been long enough. If she gets hurt ...”
“Get that, I’m just warnin’ you that she ain’t goin’ to like it.”
I know she won’t fucking like it.
But right now, I’m doing what I have to do.
“You find out more about the cop? See if she’s got any more info?”
“Samson is checkin’ in with her. She’s not overly fond of the club.”
“Don’t give a fuck about that, I only care what she knows.”
“Chances are she’s goin’ to get the info and take the investigation for herself.”
“Doubtful. From what I know, she’s treated like a fuckin’ joke because she’s a woman. Not to mention there is a crooked cop she’s tryin’ to expose. She has no reason to touch us, and if we don’t give her one, she’s a good ally to have on our side.”
Cohen frowns. “Risky business, havin’ a cop on our side.”
“Better with us than against us.”
“Hmmm,” he murmurs.
“Anyway, I got a job this afternoon. Six hours. Won’t be back until dark. You see Briella, you tell her I’m at the shop.”
Cohen nods, and I stand, crushing out my cigarette and leaving the clubhouse.
I make my way to King’s Ink and unlock the doors, flicking on the lights and setting up my workstation. Ten minutes later, Jo rolls in. She looks flustered, like she’s just been for a jog, but from what I know of Jo, she doesn’t fuckin’ jog.
