DARK EDGE (A Devil Call MC Book) (Talon & Everly Book Seven) (Devil Call MC - Talon & Everly 7)

by Ana W. Fawkes

  We didn’t speak for a little bit. We just remained there. Everly put a hand over my hand at her leg. Her other hand reached up and back at me, touching my wet hair, playfully digging her nails at my cheek. I turned my head a little and kissed her fingers.

  I never do shit like this… I really fucking love this woman…

  Everly turned her head and looked up at me. Dammit if we both didn’t smile at the same time.

  “It’s going to be okay,” I whispered.

  She nodded. “Can you tell me everything now?”

  I gave the story to her as we stood there naked under the hot water. I gave it all. Right down to the nitty gritty details of what Mutt did, how he did it, and the way he felt. Even telling her about the notebook that Mutt looked at as a snack.

  She never took her eyes from me as I spoke. A couple times she looked ready to burst into tears, but she held herself steady, proving herself to be the strongest woman I ever met.

  “Is he going to get in trouble?” she asked.

  “Who?”

  “Your friend. The guy that likes paper.”

  “Mutt? I don’t know. Depends on if and when they do an autopsy. If they see Jony was suffocated…”

  “You’ll need that, right? I mean, will his club assume natural causes?”

  “No,” I said. “No, beautiful. They’ll point the finger right at us. And I’ll be ready to nod and smile. To say fuck you to Rilen Lost and make sure they know I have the power.”

  “Layne…”

  I gritted my teeth. “Beautiful, I can promise you that I will be the rightful President of this MC. That’s a whole other topic though.”

  Everly nodded. “So what happens next?”

  “Next? You get some sleep. You relax and rest. We’re going to figure this out. Layne is calling a meeting with Vaughn. We’re going to have to bust into the Rilen Lost clubhouse and go from there. They have her, Everly. I know they do. She called you and goddamn her for still being alive.”

  “Well, I hate that bitch,” Everly said. “So much. But at least if you save her, then she and her brother will owe you…”

  I grinned. I kissed her soft lips. I rubbed my nose against hers. And then I said, “No, beautiful. They won’t owe me a thing. Because I’m going to fucking kill them. Just like I said… there’s no stopping it. I’m greedy with this, beautiful. I have to do this myself, when I want to do it. And I have to make sure their people to attack us.”

  I slipped my hands to Everly’s curvy hips and turned, giving her a chance to have the water alone. Now that was an amazing sight for me. Standing there and watching that beautiful body of hers as she washed herself. There were a few times I actually was jealous of a fucking washcloth. I was completely pathetic, but it was kind of worth it. Just to feel the way I did.

  She faced me as she washed her hair. Putting her head back into the water, arms up, the way her body stretched. Just… damn… it was worth fighting to stay alive. It was worth planning to be safer and smarter. It was life changing.

  I washed myself after Everly got out of the shower. Being a guy and all, it took me two minutes, if that. I got out of the shower, grabbed a towel, and went to the room. Everly sat on the edge of the bed, naked, her back toward me.

  “Hey,” I said.

  She looked back at me. “Yeah?”

  “I love you, beautiful.”

  She smiled. “I love you, Talon.”

  And my mind had one other thought…

  Bring on the hell.

  __

  9.

  (Talon)

  “You smell like a woman,” Buzzy said with a little bit of a growling lisp thanks to his fat lip from Layne’s punch.

  “You look like shit,” I said. “How’s your mouth?”

  “Great. At least he didn't break my fucking jaw.”

  I laughed. “Yeah. You guys voted in the right President for sure.”

  I went back to my beer, finished it off, and then stood up. As I spun from the barstool, Layne appeared from the meeting room door and gave me a nod.

  “Talon, Buzzy, Drave, let’s talk for a second.”

  I looked around and saw the rest of the guys staring at us. It wasn’t necessarily a smart move to divide the club up right now. But desperate times and all, right? Plus, it wasn’t me wearing the President’s patch.

  We walked into the room and Layne set the tone by leaning against the table, arms crossed. That meant we weren’t going to sit and talk.

  Fair enough.

  “Did you talk to Vaughn?” I asked.

  “Yeah,” Layne said. “He’s… he’s going to take us down. That’s what he said.”

  “So he’s not listening then.”

  “Nope.”

  “I’ll keep my mouth shut,” Buzzy said. “I’ll just stand here and wait for direction.”

  “And what direction would you like?” Layne asked with his lip curled.

  “You’re the President,” Buzzy said. He looked away.

  “What do you need, Layne?” Drave asked.

  Christ, even with just four people in the meeting room we were split in half.

  “He’s coming,” Layne said. “That much he admitted. He’s drunk, high, tired, depressed. I don’t know. In his heart he really feels that we took her. That Jade is somewhere in this clubhouse. So when he gets here, prepare for hell. And also prepare to let him and his guys go through the clubhouse.”

  “Christ,” I growled.

  “I know,” Layne said. “But it’s simple, Talon. We have to get him to calm down enough to trust us. Let him dig through here to prove we don’t have her.”

  “Don’t have her here,” Buzzy said.

  “What’s that, asshole?” Layne asked.

  “Are you fucking joking? He’ll just say we moved her. Come on…”

  I put a hand out to Buzzy. “Layne is right. We have to convince him. When that happens, I can go break into the Rilen Lost bar and find Jade.”

  “Not alone, man,” Layne said.

  “Yes,” I said. “Alone. You guys need to stand guard here in case Vaughn slips again. Or in case Jack goes nuts. He’s VP over there for Rilen Lost. That means he’s in charge right now. So…”

  “Fuck,” Drave said. “It’s like we’re getting it on all sides here.”

  “Welcome to the life,” I said.

  Layne nodded and rubbed his chin. “Let’s get everyone outside right now. Set up and make it known we’re not afraid and not backing down.”

  “Jesus Christ, Layne,” Drave said. “They killed two of us…”

  Layne looked at Drave. “Problem? Do you want that leather cut or not?”

  Drave stood down. He nodded. “I’m ready to die then.”

  “I’ll take a bullet for this MC,” Buzzy said.

  “Drave and Buzzy… round up the guys. Get them drinks and get them rowdy. Get all the prospects too.” They left and Layne stared me down. “Everly okay?”

  “Yeah. She’s sleeping. Long day for her. Long nights. This is pretty rough, even for us, man.”

  “Yeah. But these storms come and go. Remember the last one?”

  I grinned. “Yeah. The President of Devil Call ended up on the floor, bloody and dead. My foot on his lifeless chest, holding the President’s patch in my bloody hand.”

  “Let’s hope that doesn’t happen again,” Layne said.

  We had a moment right then. Staring each other down but not thinking any real bad thoughts. I could tell by the look in his eyes. We were going way back in time. When we were young assholes. Trying to get laid. Trying to steal whiskey drunk. Stealing cars just because we could. Running our first missions for Devil Call MC. So young and so stupid. But so fucking worth it.

  Layne made a fist and put it forward.

  I looked at his fist, then at him. I made a fist and touched it to his.

  “I want death,” Layne said. “But not you. Not me. Not anyone wearing the patch.”

  “Agreed,” I said. “I want these kil
ls, Layne. So fucking bad. It’s all tied together, man. All tied to fucking drugs, prison, murder.”

  Layne nodded. “Then get your kills.”

  We left the meeting room and went to the bar, side by side. A shot of whiskey later, we were ready to go.

  Outside, we were lined up looking ready for a serious fucking war. Prospects lined up front, trusting them with shotguns. They were crouched down, guns up, ready to pull their triggers when called upon. Behind them were the patched in members. Some leaned against their rides, sharing bottles of whiskey. Some stood with their guns out. Layne and myself hung back a little, looking to the sky, wondering if it was going to rain bullets.

  We were all getting annoyed and rowdy, which was good. Nothing like a group of angry, drunk bikers to kick off some good violence. By the time I saw the car approaching the open gates, I was pacing back and forth like a hungry lion plotting his escape.

  The car came into the lot and stopped. All the doors opened at once and out came four massive looking guys. Black suits, black sunglasses, jacked with muscle. They were as big as the guys from Los Ahn I had to fight. Remember the outcome of that? Me beating the fuck out of them until Acey put bullets in their heads for being too weak.

  I cracked my knuckles, suddenly in the mood to fight.

  And then came Vaughn. Sliding out of the car, tie halfway undone, half his shirt untucked. He was smoking a cigarette and when he tried to take a drag the damn thing fell from his mouth and he just stepped on it like he forgot he had been smoking.

  Layne and I walked through the group of our guys.

  Two seconds later one of the big guys took out a gun and shot one of our prospects. The young guy fell back, dropped his shotgun, and started howling in pain.

  “Fuck this,” I said. I walked up behind a prospect and kicked him in the ass. “Do it. Shoot him.”

  The shotgun started to shake, but the prospect listened. He shot and hit the big guy in the leg, spraying him with a shotgun shell.

  “Keep going?” I called out to Vaughn.

  “You motherfucker,” he said.

  “No,” I said. “I’m the sisterfucker, remember?”

  Vaughn pointed at me. “I’ll…”

  “Stop shooting,” I warned. “You take a shot, we take a shot. I don’t care anymore.”

  “She’s here,” Vaughn said. “I can… I can smell her…”

  “No,” I said. “That’s your own pussy you smell.”

  Vaughn came at me. I knew he was going to punch me and I fucking let him. I don’t know why; maybe I just felt that bad for him.

  He hit me and I cracked him once in the face, sending him to his ass.

  Layne clamped a hand on my shoulder. “That’s good enough. Can we fucking talk now?”

  Vaughn wiped blood from his nose and Layne helped him up.

  “Just give me Jade,” Vaughn said.

  “We don’t have her, man,” Layne said.

  “You fucking liars. You said Jony would be out…”

  “I couldn’t stop the hit,” I said. “What’s done is done. Now I need to bust into Rilen Lost and get your sister. But you need to back the fuck away.”

  “I’m not,” Vaughn said. “No way. Not anymore. Fuck you all. It’s been… I’m counting the days. She needs me. She can’t… without me…”

  “This guy’s gone,” I said to Layne.

  “Search the clubhouse,” Layne said. “There’s nothing to find. We don’t even have to fucking help you, man. You want a fucking war, you’ve got it.” Layne bumped himself into Vaughn. Vaughn stumbled back and Layne went right with him. “You fucking got that? We aren’t your fucking bitch. You listen to what we say…”

  “Fuck you,” Vaughn said. “I know what’s happening here. And I’m going to make it fair. It’s the only thing right.”

  “Kill another member?” I asked. “Is that going to make it fair?”

  Vaughn looked at me. “You think you can make it all work, Talon. Then make it all work. I’m giving you twenty four hours. If not… it comes to an end. This MC. This clubhouse. And…”

  Vaughn smiled.

  It was the sickest smile I ever saw in my life.

  My brain started to run wild… and as I started to make some kind of connection, I felt like I was going fucking puke my guts out. The worse thing that could possibly happen… the innocence taken and hell rushing in…

  __

  10.

  (Everly)

  I’m standing at the gates to the clubhouse. It doesn’t make sense that I’m on the outside of the gates and not inside. I belong inside, right? It’s been long enough. I’ve seen enough and helped enough.

  I look down at myself and I’m wearing pink. Everything pink. Shoes, pants, shirt. Different shades of pink, nothing really matching. I feel girlish and weird. I touch my face and then my hair. My hair is in pigtails. I followed the tight pigtails, one in each hand, and find the bottoms are tied with pink hair ties.

  Nothing is right. Nothing feels right.

  I touch the gates and a jolt goes through my body. I scream and jump back. The sound of a BLIP! comes and I look over my shoulder. Detective John is standing there in a pink suit. His hair slicked back and that horrible smile is on his face.

  I face the gates again and this time… they’re not the Devil Call MC gates, nope. They’re the cemetery gates. I push at them and they open with a loud creaking sound. It’s like they haven’t been opened in a long time.

  I rush through the open gates and they freely swing shut. They don’t squeak now, they clank together and slam shut. I look back again and Detective John is in an all black suit now. And he’s crying. Tears are streaming down his face.

  I walk along the lot, feeling so alone and confused. The motorcycles are all lined up, but there are cobwebs all over them. Spreading from motorcycle to motorcycle.

  When I get to the clubhouse door, I open it… and it smells old. Dusty. Musty. Everything is like a skeleton of what used to be. The pool tables are old, worn out. Sunlight cuts through the windows, the dust so thick it’s like a blanket of dirty snow. I’m horrified and saddened.

  I walk along the bar and turn to go toward what should be the hallway. So I can get to Talon’s room. So I can find Talon. I can’t remember the last time I saw him.

  When I turn, there’s nothing. Nothing, as in no hallway, but there’s a wall. It’s about three feet from me. A black wall. There’s pictures on the wall. All of them upside down. Each one of a bloody face, each one a member of Devil Call MC. When I see Layne’s face, I gasp. When I see Talon’s face, I back up, ready to collapse.

  They are all dead.

  Everything… everyone is dead.

  That’s the reality of it.

  “Told you,” a voice says.

  I spin around and Detective John is there. Smiling. A toothpick in his mouth. Sunglasses on his face.

  “Now you can be with me.”

  Before I can scream, a hand touches my mouth.

  I opened my eyes and sat up in bed. I felt sticky, gross, and I looked around the room. I knew it was just a dream, even when I was having the damn thing. But sometimes dreams could be so… fuck.

  I let out a sigh and tried to relax back in the bed. Before I could close my eyes I thought I saw something out of the corner of my eye move. I looked and the room was completely dark. But I didn’t feel completely alone.

  “Hello?” I asked. “Talon? Are you fucking with me?”

  There was no response, but I could feel something there. Someone there.

  I threw the covers off me and swung my legs from the bed. Common sense should have told me to stay in the bed and wait. To calm down. Or maybe even just start screaming for Talon. For someone. Godammit, I was Everly. I was Talon’s woman. All those prospects would have to protect me, right?

  But none of that occurred to me.

  I stepped from the bed and balled my hands into fists. I walked three steps before the lights in the room turned on. I swore I saw T
alon standing there, but then I saw a black mask. That meant I couldn’t be sure if it was Talon.

  “Get out,” I managed to say, which was useless.

  The man in the black mask jumped forward and grabbed me. Arms around me, lifting me.

  “Don’t move, sweet thing,” a rough voice said.

  Whoever it was, he had power. Straight up muscle and power. I started to scream, tried to thrash, but had nothing to offer. My damn heart was still racing from the damn dream. And now I was being… kidnapped?

  I was carried from the room. When I screamed, the guy squeezed tighter. When I tried to bite at him he slammed me against the wall. That knocked the wind out of me and shut me up for a minute or so.

  I blinked fast as the room spun around. I saw walls, then a hall, and then the clubhouse. But nobody was there. It had the eerie feel of my dream. I didn’t have time to think about the dream because I was now living in a nightmare.

  We left the clubhouse, I was still in the air. I saw the group of Devil Call MC guys and I saw Vaughn. It wasn’t until I saw Talon that I started to scream again. There was no stopping me this time and the second Talon saw me, all hell started to break loose. Everyone was on the move, everyone drawing weapons.

  “Put her the fuck down,” Talon screamed. He put a gun right to Vaughn.

  Vaughn’s other guys had their guns pointed seemingly everywhere.

  “Take your chance,” Vaughn called out. “Kill me Talon and Everly is dead.”

  “We have nothing to do with this,” Layne bellowed.

  “I don’t believe you,” Vaughn said. “But you can prove it… and Everly is my insurance policy right now.”

  “Over my dead body,” Talon said.

  “So be it then,” Vaughn said.

  With that, the other big guys pointed their guns at Talon. They closed in on him, putting a gun to each side of his head.

  I screamed again. “No! I’ll… I’ll go!”

  “Fuck you won’t,” Talon yelled.

  “Yes!” I yelled. “Just put me the fuck down.”