A New Paige: Stained Souls MC - Book 2

by Zara Teleg

  I got off the bike, taking the bottle with me. I walked around the building where an old cemetery was gated but open. I took in the air as I walked through the old crumbling headstones. A mausoleum was lit with an eerie glow. On both sides of the door were huge concrete statues. I fell to my knees as Archangel Michael and the Blessed Mother both sent disappointing stares down on me. Of all the places I could end up, I was here surrounded by the world that Maggie taught me about.

  I held my hands in the air and begged for forgiveness. “Protect my daughter from those who would want to hurt me,” I pleaded on my knees.

  My nose burned and throat closed as images of the summer of 1993 swam in my head. The smile I would never forget. The sweetest girl I broke. I would never forgive myself or stop blaming myself for driving Maggie to take her life. I finished the bottle and let the first tear I had shed since the day I found out that she took her life run its way down my cheek. I smashed the bottle to the ground and allowed myself to endure the torture of opening the vault that held all my memories of Maggie. I’d kept it closed for so long, I didn’t even know how much was still there.

  The sky was black as I lay on the ground, unable to move. My body and mind were numb. I closed my eyes, letting tequila and the night take me.

  “Leave me alone. Go away,” I groaned.

  “Sir, are you okay?” a man asked, concerned.

  I forced my eyelids open through the blinding light. My forearm shielded my eyes.

  “Sir, should I call for help? Is that your motorbike?”

  “Yes, and I’m fine.”

  “But you are bleeding. Your hand. Sir, I can help you.”

  I sat up. My head felt like it was hit by a train.

  “I said I’m okay,” I growled, my eyes focusing on the man in a long black robe.

  “Please, sir, it would be my pleasure. Let’s get you some coffee and a bandage for that. Just follow me. Sister Lucia makes the best coffee, and I can smell her fresh muffins now.”

  He held out his small hand, offering to help me up. His eyes were sincere and full of kindness.

  “You got any aspirin?” I nodded, accepting his offer.

  Poor Sister Lucia looked so frightened when she saw me. She gripped her cross, kissing it when she thought I wasn’t looking.

  Father Pete and I sat at his small table as she poured us both coffee and served her warm muffins.

  “Vincent, why were you so upset that you found yourself in our church?” He placed his cup down and studied my face like he knew if I was going to lie.

  Fuck it.

  I gave him a very abbreviated version of what led me here. Sympathy was on his face, and Sister Lucia returned, no longer looking scared. She must have been listening.

  “Vincent, you know what you have to do. It’s in your heart. She is now in your heart no matter how much you think you can control it.”

  I rubbed my temples, knowing he was right. He was kind enough to let me wash up before I set out. I wasn’t ready to face her, but I sure as shit could find her and learn all I could from afar.

  “Thank you, Father. And Sister,” I yelled, knowing she was listening.

  “Do not fear, Vincent. You didn’t end up here by accident. I will pray for you and your daughter. I know you will do the right thing.”

  As I walked to my bike, I pulled my wallet from my pocket. I pulled out a crisp hundred and dropped it in the donation box that was mounted to the wall of candles. I took out my lighter, flicking the dragon to life, lighting my smoke. I picked a stick out of the sand bucket and lit one of the candles in front of Jesus on his cross the way I remembered Maggie once did.

  I closed my eyes, knowing that if there was a God, I deserved nothing from him considering my sinful life, but Paige did.

  I was in shock when I found that Paige wasn’t just associating with the Stained Souls MC, but she was with one of the members. I couldn’t allow this. Whether it was known or not, Paige was my daughter, my blood, and a Cajun King princess.

  After much thought and consulting with my conscience, I decided to reach out to her.

  When her truck turned into the parking lot of my motel, I acted as unaffected as I could, not full of excitement to see her again. Watching her wasn’t the same as interacting with her. Her resemblance to her mother was shocking. She was the spitting image of Maggie. I asked her to walk with me, hoping the right words would come to me; instead, I fucked everything up. She hated me, resented me, and chose her little punk of a biker over her father, her blood.

  I watched her walk away, more pissed off than hurt like our last exchange. When she stopped at my bike, I thought she realized I was only trying to protect her. But then she just kept walking, hopping into her truck, and began to take off.

  A dagger plunged into my heart when I looked at the medallion she left on my bike. I held it up, knowing this was her way of saying she didn’t want any part of me.

  My phone had blown up with calls from my brothers in the Cajun Kings and especially from my real brother, Vicious, who had left several concerning messages. I guessed it was time I checked in.

  “Where the fuck have you been?” Vicious asked.

  “Glad I called you back, sounds like you missed me.”

  I held the phone away from my ear as he yelled a chain of obscenities.

  “You done?” I huffed.

  “Venom, no one has heard from you in days. You left here in a fucking rage. What was I supposed to think?”

  “I needed time, space, to think. What the fuck would you have done?”

  “Brother, I get that shit was shocking. But I was there for what went down all those years ago, and you could have talked to me,” he said in his big-brother voice.

  “Yeah, well, I had to deal my way!”

  “And how exactly did that go?”

  “Not that it is any of your business, but I spent a few days at the bottom of a bottle before I decided to evaluate the situation from afar.” I cleared my throat.

  “So, you have been spying on her.” His voice was slightly judgmental.

  “If that is what you want to call it. I would call it recon before engagement.”

  “And?”

  “And I’m not fucking happy.” I took a breath. “She is with a fucker from the Stained Souls, a fucking biker. Can you believe this shit? Fucking karma. Have a daughter, and then she ends up in a biker’s bed.”

  “If you had stuck around, I could have told you that.”

  “What?”

  “Yeah, he was turning over the city trying to find her. I reached out to Colt, told him to make sure she had an eye on her.”

  “Fuck me.” I swept a hand through my hair.

  “Well, I tried to do the fatherly thing and meet with her and demand she stay away from him.”

  “I can imagine that went well.” I could hear him rolling his eyes. Vice was in his twenties, but Vicious had a fifteen-year-old daughter at home, so I imagined he did know.

  “I don’t know what to do now, but brother, I don’t think I can just put her behind me and forget. Sooner or later, people will know. Viper will know. I wish I could just make her understand. Show her where she came from and why I’m concerned. If she knew our story, maybe she would heed my warning.”

  “You know you just answered your own question, right?”

  “What are you talking about?”

  “You should take her on a little daddy-daughter bonding trip to where it all began. She deserves to know the truth. She came looking for it, didn’t she? Then she can make a decision with all the facts.”

  “And how do you suppose I do that? Just say, ‘Hey Paige, you are going to Louisiana with me.’ I’m sure that it will be easy.”

  “Talk to him,” my brother suggested.

  “Who? Kai?”

  “Yeah. You need to tell Kai this will haunt their relationship for the rest of their lives if she doesn’t have closure.”

  “Okay, Oprah.”

  “I’m fucking serious
. Holly is always watching that shit. She constantly reminds me I have to treat Ava differently from Vice. Says a girl could get really damaged from a bad relationship with her father.” He started laughing.

  “How is this funny?” I asked, annoyed by his incessant cackling.

  “You, a dad, to a daughter. Oh my God. I never thought I would see the day.”

  “Thanks for the help, asshole.”

  “Anytime, brother,” he said through laughter.

  I clicked the phone off. I closed my eyes and thought about what Vicious said. He was right. The way to the girl was through the man. I just hoped I wouldn’t tear him apart in the process.

  I waited at the rest stop. With a call to Colt, I was able to reach out to Kai. We were set to meet. It was the longest hour of my life, trying to act like I didn’t want to kill him every time he referred to Paige as his. But I needed his support. His only saving grace was the fact that I could tell he not only loved Paige but would protect her with his life. We shook hands, and we agreed I would be by on Sunday.

  I drove down the long mountain road to Sugar Maple. The tall trees were just starting to bloom, and the mountainside was changing from winter to spring. My stomach twisted as I drove over the bridge into the small town. I was distracted by all the storefronts and people bustling about. Ten minutes later, I pulled my ‘57 Chevy into the lot.

  Kai had left the downstairs door unlocked. I hesitated before knocking. I could hear voices and music coming from inside. The scent of jambalaya rose from the bottom of the door.

  Mustering the courage, I knocked. The knot in my gut felt bigger with each second that passed, waiting for the door to open.

  Paige was laughing and still finishing her sentence when she opened the door. She froze, her smile turning to shock as she paled and began to shut the door. I placed my boot in the way before she could.

  “Paige,” I cleared my throat, “I would really like to talk to you.”

  “I think you said enough the last time we talked,” she said. “Besides, I don’t think Kai would appreciate your being here.”

  She turned to face the man who came to stand behind her. She looked from me to him as our gazes met.

  “Right?” she repeated as she came to the realization that he knew I was coming. “Kai? You knew he was coming here, didn’t you?” Her eyes filled, and her tone became one of betrayal.

  “Tink, it’s not what you think.” Kai held his finger out to me and pulled her across the room and whispered to her.

  Kai took her hand in his and gripped her chin with his other hand.

  “Babe, you need to hear him out. It took a lot for him to reach out to me. I think you should at least hear what he has to say. I promise I will be right outside. You want to kick him out, just say the word.”

  Kai glared at me, letting me know he meant every word. I would like to see him try, but I held my tongue. I straightened and watched as Paige took in his words and nodded her head. She turned to me while still squeezing his hand.

  Defeated, she blew out a breath. “Let’s hear it.”

  She folded her arms across her chest. Kai passed me and waited in the hall, closing the door behind him.

  “Paige, I’m sorry. I know I came off a little strong the last time we talked.”

  “Ya think?” She tilted her head, and her stance became more relaxed as she walked toward the sofa and waved a hand across it, inviting me to sit.

  I sat down, moving the pillow behind me so I could give her more space. Only, when I moved it, there it was. The sign that made me believe I was doing the right thing. I stood in silence and held the stuffed bunny in my hands, faded and worn by the years. As vivid as the moment I placed it in her hands at the carnival, I could see Maggie’s smile. My eyes blurred as I pulled it to my chest and looked into my daughter’s eyes.

  “How?” I held it out to her.

  “Maggie must have given it to Catherine and Paul when I was born. I’ve had it my whole life.” Her voice was soft and began to break as her own eyes filled with tears. “Everyone made fun of it, of me, for having such an unusual attachment to it.” She giggled and sniffed. “It was the only thing that ever brought me peace and comfort. Maybe somehow, my subconscious knew.”

  She reached out a trembling hand and rested it on mine. The warmth spread straight to my heart.

  “Paige, I didn’t mean to hurt you. I know I can’t make up for so many lost years. I can’t make up for what happened to your mother, but I would like to know you. I would like you to know who you are and where you came from.”

  She pressed her lips together and shook her head. “Yes, I would like that,” she whispered in a strained voice.

  “I want to take you to where it all began. I want to show you. Do you think you are up for a trip to Louisiana?”

  She just nodded and swallowed hard.

  “Well then, you better get packed and tell your man you will be gone for a few days.” I couldn’t contain my smile. It might have been the first genuine smile I’d had in twenty-three years. Paige shocked me when she threw her arms around me and cried on my shoulder.

  “Thank you, Daddy.”

  The three words that crushed me. Words that brought me to new life, a life where I knew would never let her go, never let anyone hurt my girl. I kissed her head and reached into my pocket.

  “I think you lost something that belonged to you.”

  I opened my palm, letting the medallion fall from my hand, and held the chain by my fingers as it dangled in front of her.

  She reached out, clutching it. “I won’t lose it again.”

  Paige

  I was shocked and couldn’t stop crying when Kai and I began packing my things. It felt odd to be leaving him to go on some adventure with a man who should just feel like a stranger, but for some reason, I wasn’t scared. I was excited. All my questions would be answered.

  “I don’t want to leave you. I wish you could come.” My head rested on Kai’s chest. His arms were around my back, holding me tightly.

  “You need to do this on your own.” He kissed my forehead as I looked up at him.

  “But, if anything—I mean anything—makes you uncomfortable, or you want to come home, I’m one call away and I’ll get to you as fast as I can.”

  “Do you think I should tell Juliet?”

  “Colt knows, and we will talk to Rage and Juliet. I’m so proud of you for facing this. If you didn’t, you would spend your life wondering. It is everything you’ve wanted since the moment you found out.”

  “Kai, I love you so much. I don’t know how to thank you for everything you have done for me. I can’t imagine my life without you.”

  “Tink, you are everything to me. I never want to lose you, and I’m afraid if you didn’t repair things with him,” Kai nodded to the door, “I know it would always bother you, and that is not the way to move forward in life. You taught me that.” His knuckles swept across my cheek.

  I looked into his eyes and I knew I had found everything I had been searching for. His lips crashed over mine in a claiming kiss. I loved his taste on my lips. The way his tongue moved and sparked an inferno through me was pure magic. Kai’s fingers wound through the hair at the base of my neck and squeezed, closing the little distance between us.

  His lips moved to my ear, his voice a warm whisper. “When you get back, I’m going to memorize every inch of your body with my tongue. We’re going to be locked in that room until we make up for every minute we’re apart, got it?”

  I was breathless. My knees became weak. I was quickly considering changing my mind when a knock rapped against the door, clearing the seduction from my head.

  “You almost ready?” A deep voice boomed through the door.

  “Be right down,” I yelled.

  “You promise you want to go, a hundred percent?” Kai stared at my face looking for any signs of regret.

  “I’m good. I’m just going to miss you.”

  “In a few days, we will be making up
for all lost time.” He winked and picked up the bag I had just packed.

  I turned the knob, opening more than the door to my future, but to my past as well.

  Venom was smoking a cigarette, leaning against the loud, rumbling black Chevy. He moved around, opening the back door for me to put my bag.

  It was time to say goodbye to Kai. He held my hand as we walked to the passenger side. Venom was typing something on his phone, not paying attention to us.

  I threw my arms around him, and his hand gripped my hips. “I love you,” I whispered and squeezed him tight.

  Kai opened the car door for me. “I mean it, I’m one call away.” He leaned in, kissing me one last time. “Text me when you get there.”

  “Can we go now?” Venom rolled his eyes and revved the engine.

  I blew Kai a last kiss before Venom turned onto the road.

  He looked across the seat at me and smiled. “So, you ready?”

  Nine hours later, after plenty of arguments over music and pop culture, we finally crossed into St. Genevieve. Venom refused to tell me anything until we arrived.

  He drove us through the bayou and down a long, deserted road that had me worried we were going to get stuck and eaten by the gators. When he came to a stop, he pointed out the window, but I saw nothing.

  “The path.” He pointed again. He got out and walked around the back of the vehicle, popping open the truck. My hands felt like they were shaking. I had zero bars on my phone. I jumped when he tapped on my window.

  I looked up where he held up a pair of rubber boots. I opened the door and took them. “Why do I need these?”

  “You want the whole story, I will give it to you. Now let’s go. We got to get out of here before dark.”

  I followed him down the path, which made this feel more like a swampy, terrifying horror movie in the making. Venom was two feet in front of me with a gun on his hip and a large knife in his hand as he cut away any overgrowth that got in our way.

  We finally came to a small cabin-like shack. Venom’s face was relaxed with a smile forming.

  “This is it, our spot. Maggie and I. Our secret hideaway.”