by Sam Crescent
Sandy went straight ahead, and did as he asked, prepping the room. There was no time to take her to theater.
Pussy stood at the window, pressing his hand to the glass. She couldn’t allow him to see what was about to happen, and lowered the blinds. Then she called Stink to come get him.
The day was not over yet, and it was killing each and every one of them.
Chapter Three
The days had all melded into one, and Paris didn’t know where she was, or what was going to happen next. She closed her eyes for sleep to come, and she dreamed. The peace of her dreams was the only thing that kept her sane.
“What are you doing? Spider asked.
“I’m dancing.” She was standing on a beach, sand between her toes. Beside Spider sat Celia, who was happily building sandcastles. Spider had kept his promise to protect them.
“I can see you’re dancing, and you look so beautiful doing it.”
“Yeah, she’s beautiful all right, but she’s not yours.” She turned in time to see Andrew approaching. Her body tightened, and she stared down at her thigh to see the brand that he’d marked her with. It was red, swollen, and it looked infected.
Suddenly, he was there, wrapping his fingers around her neck, choking her. “She stopped belonging to you when you failed her. Paris is mine now.”
Cold water washed over her, making Paris gasp as she came out of her dreams.
“We couldn’t have you sleeping right now. There’s time to sleep, and then there is time to be awake,” Andrew said. “It’s time to be awake, sweetie.”
Ever since she had learned his name, she had stopped thinking of him as Master. He wasn’t her Master.
“Sir, what are you doing?” Russell asked.
There were two of them now. Sir and Master, or Russell and Andrew. Only Russell referred to Andrew as Sir and Master as he was the one in charge, whereas Russell was just a minion.
“Well, we wait. I have to say I’m curious about Angel the most. I don’t know why.” Andrew stared at her. She didn’t have a clue what he was talking about. “It’s a shame you’re a newbie. What I really need is a woman or a man who is in the club, knowing everything. Eva, Angel, Sophia, even Kelsey could give me what I want.” He reached out, gripping her hair, and tugged her up to her feet. There was not a single bone that didn’t feel pain. Her arms were mottled with different shades of bruising. Paris didn’t know how much longer she was going to last under his abuse. Little by little he was killing her, destroying her, but she held on. The memory of Spider helped her to keep on fighting.
“You really think he’s going to come and save you?” Andrew asked.
“He will.”
Andrew slapped her across the face. “No one is going to save you until I say so.” He spat in her face, and dropped her, before landing a blow to her stomach. She curled into a ball, humiliated.
“Was that necessary?” Russell asked.
“Are you becoming soft, my little prodigy? If you are, I can find your replacement quite easily.”
Russell sighed. “If you want to play with her for any length of time, you need her to recover. How many women do you need to go through to understand this?”
Andrew nodded. “You’re right. He’s given you a reprieve for now.”
She curled into a ball and lay in the corner where he had put her. Paris didn’t have the strength to run away, and no longer needed shackles. He only fed her enough to keep her alive. Any energy she had was wasted in screaming. She tried not to scream, but she failed.
Would she ever see her sister again?
Would the pain ever cease?
She had to wonder about Spider. Was he looking for her? Did he even care that she was gone? Paris hated the fact she’d kept him at a distance, always afraid to let him in. She didn’t want to risk trusting in someone else, especially when people always let her down.
She hated this life.
“So, what is going on then?” Andrew asked.
Glancing up at the wall filled with screens, she squinted, catching sight of the hospital.
“I’m into the hospital feeds,” Lola said.
Lola was a woman that Andrew had picked up a few days ago. From what Paris had been able to understand, Lola was some kind of computer genius, and was young, only eighteen years old. Andrew had taken her off the streets and proceeded to beat and rape her until Lola had agreed to do what he wanted.
“No one knows we’re tapped into this?” he asked.
“No. We’re secure.”
Andrew placed his hand on Lola’s shoulder, and the girl tensed up.
“Relax, Lola. Do what I want, and I won’t touch you.” He gripped her face, making Lola cry out. “Betray me, and I’ll make every day of your life a living hell. I’ll even pass you around to my friends, and provided they keep you breathing, they can do whatever they want to you.”
Lola sobbed. “I won’t betray you.”
“Good girl. This will teach you to hack into government sites, Lola. You’d be surprised how many people want your many talents.”
Andrew finally released Lola, and the young woman looked like hell. She was just as bruised as Paris, only Lola had broken. Paris wasn’t broken yet, and she was going to find a way to get them both out of here.
“So, this is the hospital,” Andrew said.
“Yes. These are all the cameras in the Fort Wills hospital. The waiting room—”
“Is full of Skulls and Chaos Bleeds. Fantastic. Show me different areas.”
Lola tapped on the screens, and different parts of the hospital appeared.
“Show me the maternity ward.”
“You’re still planning on going after Angel and Lash?”
“Lash has a bit of a reputation. He loves Angel more than anything. Rumor is, they reckon he’ll be a ticking time bomb if anything was to happen to Angel. The thing about hospitals is anyone can get in there. I was thinking of introducing myself. My brother likes her, and I want to get to know the woman who everyone seems to love.”
“In a hospital covered by men who know what you look like. Whizz got your picture. He knows what you look like.”
“That may be so, but it doesn’t mean that everyone knows me. I can get in and out undetected. It’s very easy to do.”
“You’re asking to be killed.”
“You’re such a buzz kill. Gash thinks he knows what I’m going to do next. Let’s see if he knows who I’m after next.”
Whizz was the computer genius at The Skulls. If Paris could get a message to him, he might be able to help them. She had to get through to Lola, and somehow convince her that The Skulls and Chaos Bleeds would save them. It was worth a try. Anything was better than this.
****
Night had fallen, and Spider pacing up and down using the crutches he’d been given since he’d gotten out of the hospital. His leg was bandaged up, and the rage was building inside him.
He needed to get his leg better to get to Paris. There were nights when he fell asleep that he imagined her screaming for him to come and save her. Each time, he failed, and she was there covered in blood, blaming him, hating him.
“How are you holding up?” Stink asked.
“Part of my club is in the hospital, my woman is still missing, and my leg is pissing me off.” Spider turned to look at him. “How do you think I’m holding up?”
Stink held his hands up. “You’ve turned into a pussy.”
Spider paused. “What the fuck you say?”
“Oh, I’m sorry. You see, I thought you were part of the Chaos Bleeds crew, but right now, I’m seeing a fucking wimp.” Stink folded his arms, and Spider was aware of both crews standing around them.
“What the fuck is going on here?” Ripper asked.
“I’m tired of pussy-footing around this asshole. We’ve all got problems, and I know his woman is in trouble. We’re working on finding her. Instead of helping us right here, right now, he’s moaning like a little bitch.”
“She
could be dead!”
“She’s not dead. You guaranteed that by staying alive. What we know is that Andrew is unpredictable, but he hasn’t lied to us yet. Have fucking hope. I know it’s a long shot, but hope and fighting is what is going to get us through this.”
“He won.”
“Today, he won. Today we underestimated him, but one day soon, we’ll get him back. We will make him pay for what he has done.”
“As much as it grieves me to say this, he’s right, Spider,” Ripper said.
He knew they were all right.
“What the fuck is going on here?” Devil asked.
Spider looked past Stink to see his Prez near the reception desk. Beside him stood Tiny and Lash.
“They’re giving me shit that I deserve,” Spider said.
“You finally getting your head out of your ass?” Devil asked.
“Yeah, but it would have been nice if my own club had done it rather than a Skull.”
“We couldn’t do that, you’ve been a damn girl for the past week,” Snake said, coming out of another door with his arm across Jessica’s shoulders. The woman was bandaged up, and she looked pale.
“I’m sorry. You’re right. I’ve been letting fear guide me, and I won’t do that. I need to save Paris, and the only way to do that is to fight, so that’s what I’m going to do. I’m going to fight.”
“Good.”
“Any news on Simon and Tabitha?” Tate asked. She rushed to her father and threw herself into his arms. Tiny caught her easily and held her tightly.
“They’re still asleep, but that is good news. The doctor believes their bodies have dealt with a trauma, and they need the rest.”
“Get your fucking hands off me!” Pussy was pulled out of the doors by three security men. “That is my fucking wife, and you can’t keep me from her. Sasha! Sasha!”
Devil rushed toward his man, grabbing his arm. None of them wanted to get arrested, not with what was happening. They all had to stay together, having strength in numbers. “What’s going on?”
“She’s fucking dying, man. She’s got pressure in her skull. Sasha could fucking die. She can’t die.”
“Where’s Sandy?” Stink asked.
“I don’t know. She kicked me out of the room, dropped the blind so I couldn’t see. My woman could fucking die, and I’m not ready. I’m not ready to say goodbye to her.”
Spider watched as Pussy broke down.
They had all taken turns to look after Sasha. She was blind, and they had come to see that everything within the clubhouse needed to stay in a certain way. If a table was moved an inch out of place, it could harm her. Spider had even caught her before she landed on the floor.
Sasha was one of them, and had been from the moment Pussy claimed her. The very thought of her no longer being with them cut Spider to the core.
“We’re here, we’re all here,” Devil said. “Today, Andrew won. There’s no denying that. He won, and we lost.” Devil looked around at each one of them. “Fighting each other is what he wants. I don’t want to give him that. It’s easy to point fingers. I could even point a few, but I’m not going to. The Skulls and Chaos Bleeds, we’ve had our problems, and we’ll continue to have them. We’re different, but we’re the same when it comes to our battles. We fight together, to the death, and we don’t do it alone.”
Lash nodded. “We need to regroup, to think about what is going to happen next. We can’t do this here, but we also can’t leave the hospital.” He turned to Gash. “What would be his next move?”
“He’ll hit us when we’re down. Andrew will come to the hospital. It’ll be within the next twenty-four hours. He’ll come,” Gash said.
“You’re sure?”
“Yeah, it’s what he’ll do. Andrew is going for the shock factor. He’ll strike at the one we least expect.”
“Then we put men on them. No one is left alone. Do you hear me?” Lash said.
“We keep a vigil, here and at the club,” Devil said.
“We need to stick together now,” Tiny said, speaking up. “I’m not in charge anymore, but Lash wants me to help.”
“This is what we need to do together,” Lash said.
It felt good to have the clubs back together again. Spider had missed The Skulls, and coming to Fort Wills. It wasn’t right, Devil and Tiny being at each other’s throats.
“I need to get back to Sasha. I can’t be here.”
“We’ll go together, Devil said.
“Where’s Whizz?” Lash asked.
“You haven’t heard?” Gash asked.
“Heard what?”
“Sally’s going to lose her leg, from the knee down.”
Spider watched as Lash showed no sign of emotion, nothing. It was all in his eyes, and if you didn’t know him, you wouldn’t detect it.
“I’ll go and see him and Sally.”
The brother was angry, clearly consumed by his grief, but no one would know.
He watched as Lash left through the door, and Spider returned his attention toward Pussy. The brother was swearing all kinds of vengeance.
They had already lost too many. None of them wanted to lose another one.
****
Rounding the corner, Lash pressed his head against the wall and took several deep breaths. He tried to control his growing temper, but nothing had prepared him for that, nothing. Sally was going to lose her leg. Tabitha in the hospital, the rain of bullets. He hadn’t been prepared for any of it, and even now, he wasn’t.
“Fuck!” He screamed the word at the top of his voice and hit the brick wall, exerting all of his rage against the wall.
Over and over, he slammed his fist against the wall, relishing the pain.
“Enough!” Tiny grabbed his arms and pressed him against the wall. “What the fuck are you doing?”
“Dealing.”
“This is not how a leader deals, Lash.”
“Sally’s about to lose her fucking leg, Tiny. She’s been part of the club two minutes, and she’s going to be changed forever.”
“And she’ll have the club by her side, taking care of her. We’re not going to make her do this alone. None of us are. She has all of us. Remember that.”
“He’s winning.”
Tiny shook his head. “He won’t win this war.”
“Look around you.”
“I am looking around me, Lash. What I see is a bunch of men and women who are ready to take this fucker down. He wants to go to war, let him. He’s building our army for us.”
“Our women are not an army.”
“No? I’ve seen Angel with that gun. Give her a chance, and I bet she’d take him out. We’re going to have to bury Skulls and Chaos Bleeds crew. You tell me what you’d do?”
Lash stared past his shoulder and saw the nurses and doctors were looking at him. He didn’t give a shit what they were staring at.
“I’d get them to fight,” Lash said.
“Exactly. We’re only half a club without our women. They’re ours to protect, and we can protect them by making them able to fight for themselves as well.”
“I’ve got to go see Sally.”
Tiny nodded. “You’re doing good, Lash.”
Lash snorted. “I’m not doing good. I’m falling a-fucking-part.”
“No, you’re not. You’re dealing well. We’ve just been attacked. They will fall to you.”
“I’d say hitting a wall is a much better way to cope,” Devil said. “I’ve been known to go on a killing spree of all the people who’ve pissed me off. I’ve even been tempted to take out the postal lady for taking a long time to deliver a Christmas present to Lex.”
Lash laughed. He couldn’t help it.
“You were given this club for a reason, son,” Devil said. “I may not have agreed with it at the time. Tiny can still ride, and even if he is a little slow at times, he still can run this club. I see why he did it.”
“Thanks!” Sarcasm was laced in Lash’s voice.
“You
’re welcome.”
“Will you be passing Chaos Bleeds over?”
“Fuck no. That’s my club, and my men look up to me, want me for direction. Simon will get my club, and I’m teaching him the rules by which he needs to abide. He’ll be one hell of a leader. Especially if his love of that girl is anything to go by.”
“Your son is not marrying my Tab. She’s staying a virgin all of her life.”
Devil snorted. “We’ll see. This was a good chat. You’re doing good, kid. Love the club, adore and fuck your woman, respect your men, and you’ll have their loyalty. Nothing pisses me off more than a weak fucker who bullies.” Devil shook his head. “That’s not me.”
Lash watched as Devil walked off in the direction of the children’s ward.
“He’s right. You’re doing good.”
Doing good was what he was going to have settle for. There was nothing else right now that he could do.
****
They were going to take her leg. The damage was too great, and if they didn’t take it, infection, pain, and maybe even death would be her future. She’d die with her damn leg. Sally stared down at the bandage around her knee that went from mid-calf, up past her knee, to her thigh.
Lacey and Whizz, or Mom and Dad, which she liked to call them, were trying to find out if there was anything they could do. They didn’t know the pain was getting worse, and had been ever since she got out of surgery.
“You’ll still be beautiful,” Daisy said.
She smiled at the little girl who’d recently become her sister. Daisy was so sweet, so nice, and she tried to make everyone smile.
“Oh, Daisy, what did I do to deserve you?” Sally cupped Daisy’s face, trying not to show her pain as the little girl bounced on the bed.
“I think you should get off there,” Steven said, rounding the bed and picking up the little girl. Daisy squealed as Steven started to tickle her.
She rushed out of the room, going to take Whizz’s hand, and sticking her tongue out.
“They’ll figure something out for you, Sally.”
Glancing down at her leg, Sally felt tears rush to the surface. The last few months had been the best of her life. She loved Lacey and Whizz. They had given her a family.
