Claimed: Satan's Knights MC

by Brook Wilder

  “I’m not going to let you get yourself killed.”

  “I’m sorry, Honey. That’s not your choice to make.” Elle’s voice was hard as she spoke and he should have read the warning signs, should have backed off, but fear had him stepping forward anyways.

  “Please, Elle. You don’t have to do this. We can figure out another way. There has to be another way.”

  “There isn’t.” She shot back, still glaring at him but then she looked towards Joel, “This is our best shot, right? To stop what Damaris is planning? To save the farm? To save Carla?”

  Joel flicked his gaze towards Honey as if asking for forgiveness but that was the furthest thing from his mind as his leader spoke. He could have murdered the man then and there if it would stop him from talking.

  “It is, Elle. It’s the best chance to get out of this without anyone getting hurt.”

  “What about Elle?!” Honey shouted, throwing his hand out, unable to keep his temper bottled up any longer, “She can’t do this, Joel. What if she gives herself away, what if she says something that tips him off? Do you really think Damaris is just gonna let her walk out of there once he figures it out? No. Absolutely not. I’m not letting this happen. You’ll just have to find another way.”

  Honey was shaking by the time he’d finished his impassioned speech and he had to cross his hands over his chest to keep from reaching out and strangling someone. Preferably Joel for bringing up the dumb ass plan in the first place.

  “I’ll do it.”

  “What did you say?” Honey burst out, the words firing into the air and Elle flinched back but she didn’t look away as she spoke.

  “I said, I’ll do it.” Her words were soft and full of a confidence that he knew was misplaced and that fear inside him grew, reaching out, turning his blood to ice.

  “Elle, no. Please, don’t do this. You could get hurt, you could–.”

  “And if I don’t, the people I love will get hurt. Don’t you understand?” Elle glanced around the table, shaking her head and Honey was sure she wasn’t even aware that she’d used the word love. For a second he wondered cynically if he was included in that group but shove the thought away. It hurt too much.

  “I have to do this Honey.”

  “No, you don’t. It’s real easy. You just say, ‘sorry, Joel. I’ve just realized how completely idiotic it would be to put myself in the hands of a power hunger leader of a notorious biker gang. I think I’ll just go home and have a nice cup of tea instead.” Honey sighed as frustration filled him but he fought to moderate his tone, “So how easy that was?”

  “You are…You are an asshole, Honey.” Elle finally shot back and Honey was shocked, more at her use of profanity than the anger gleaming at him from the depths of her dark eyes. He didn’t think he’d ever heard her swear before and it took him aback. But before he could respond, she was already talking again.

  “You really think that I would just leave my friends when they needed me most? Is that what you really think of me? That I’m weak? That I’m a coward?” She took a step forward, driving her finger into his chest so hard that he knew it would leave a bruise, “I don’t desert the people I care about, and sure as heck don’t go back on my word.”

  “Well, you’re word is going to get you killed.”

  “Fine then! At least it will be my choice!” With a growl of anger she spun on her heal, barely stopping to throw the words at Joel. “I’ll do it.” And then she was shoving open the office door and moment later had disappeared outside.

  Honey looked hopelessly around the small room but only silence greeted him before he to turned to follow after her but he’d taken barely a step before a slight but strong hand pressed to his chest stopped him.

  “Sugar, just give her a minute, okay?” Hot Wheels looked at him, understanding and sympathy shining in her pale green eyes and it was almost his undoing but he took a deep breath, and then leaned back a little. Maybe Hot Wheels was right. Maybe he should calm down a little before storming after her. The others were huddled together, hashing out the details of the plan, he assumed. The knowledge was a bitter pill to swallow and he looked away quickly.

  “You really care about this girl, don’t you?” Hot Wheels asked, drawing his attention back down towards her. She was looking at him with her head tilted to one side, a sharp look in her eyes now. Honey shrugged.

  “I love her.” He answered simply and those pale green eyes widened before nodding slowly.

  “I thought so.” Hot Wheels grinned up at him, “I knew from the very first time that I saw you two together that that girl had you wrapped around her little finger. And damned if she didn’t want you there, despite all her protests. She’s different, Honey,” She said, her voice suddenly growing serious, “But that doesn’t make her weak. She’s about as strong a woman as I’ve ever met, and I’ve met my fair share. You didn’t see, but when she went up against Scorpion, she didn’t even flinch.”

  Hot Wheels shook her head, looking inward for a moment before glancing up at him again, “Just, let me talk to her, okay? You stay in here and make sure they’re not planning anything too crazy for her, alright?”

  After a long moment, Honey finally nodded, that weight still crushing him but he knew he could do more good for Elle in here than he could running all over the farm chasing after her. He had a feeling she wouldn’t exactly welcome him with open arms just then anyways.

  “Just…Just tell her to be careful, okay?” He forced out the words and they sounded hoarse even to his own ears, but Hot Wheels just nodded solemnly before turning and leaving in the direction that Elle had went. He stared at the spot for a long time, lost in his own thoughts before finally jerking himself back to the present and walking over to where Joel and Carla, Tucker and Sparkplug were make the plan.

  ***

  Elle didn’t know where she was going, she only knew that she had to get as far away from that office as she could. It had felt like the walls had been closing in on her. She couldn’t breathe, she couldn’t think. Claustrophobia had hit her like a baseball bat to the solar plexus and all she’d been able to was run away. Escape.

  The moment she was out the doors she already regretted her decision to go through with Joel’s insane plan. And it was insane, there was no doubt about that. Did he really think that she could pull this off? Make them believe that she’s some hardcore biker? She’d never even ridden on a motorcycle in her life.

  She shook her head as she leaned against the side of the greenhouse, well out of sight of the office and slowly slid down to sit on the cooler that they used as a bench when it wasn’t in use elsewhere. Sometimes the farm seemed so peaceful, so quiet. Even after what had happened there yesterday with that thug Scorpion, it still had the power to calm her. Elle didn’t know if it was the open air or the acres of land that stretched for miles out ahead of her but it did.

  Elle chuckled to herself. Who would have thought that Elle Watson would ever feel at peace at a marijuana farm? It was proof, to her at least, of just how far she’d come in the past year, and it made the mission ahead of her seem just a little bit less terrifying. A very little bit.

  That’s where Hot Wheels found her a few minutes later. Elle was still sitting there, her eyes closed as she just breathed in the fresh air, marveling at the wonder of the moment, trying desperately not to think about what she’d just gotten herself into.

  “Hey, sugar. That seat taken?” She asked, pointing to the right side of the cooler and Elle shook her head, scooting over a little bit to make room for the other woman.

  “Are you here to talk me out of it too?” Elle asked after Hot Wheels was silent for too long. But she just shook her head, her white blond bob shaking with the movement.

  “Hell no. I’m not going tell you what to do. I meant what I said. This is your choice and you have the right to make it. But I did want to tell you something.”

  “What?” Elle looked over at her curiously.

  “Just that, well, just don’t
be too hard on Honey.” Hot Wheels shrugged as she spoke, “He’s scared out of what little wits he had to begin with because the woman he loves is putting herself in danger. He’s wrong, but he’s doing it because…well, because he loves you too much not to say anything. He wants to keep you safe. That’s all.”

  “How do you know?”

  “How do I know what?”

  “How do you know,” Elle swallowed hard, “that he loves me? Did he tell you?”

  “Oh that?” Hot Wheels snorted, waving her hand in the air as if to wave away a ridiculous question, “Yes, he did. But I knew long before he said the words. I told you, remember? That you have the power to hurt him. Well, when you love someone, that power goes both ways. Just try to remember that he’s only doing it because he cares about you, he’s not just trying to be a complete asshole.”

  “Oh.” Elle said, knowing that her reply wasn’t particularly loquacious, but also not knowing what else in the world to say to Hot Wheels insights.

  “Come on,” Hot Wheels said, rising to her feet and holding out a hand for Elle to take. “They’re figuring out the details of the plan, and we’ve got other work to do. Let’s go turn you into a bad ass biker chic.”

  Elle snorted out a laugh, the first humor she’d felt since the attack yesterday and shaking her head, followed the other woman, trying to not to think too hard about what, exactly, Hot Wheels had planned for her.

  Chapter 26

  It had taken Elle an inordinately long time to pull on the skin tight leather pants that Hot Wheels had loaned her and now that she had the entire outfit on she couldn’t help but feel…exposed. She took a minute to inventory everything. Besides the black leather pants that clung to the curves of her legs she was wearing a dark gray tank top.

  At least, she was pretty sure it was a tank top. The sides of the armholes were ripped so low that the opening reached her bottom rib and the black lace bra that Hot Wheels had tossed at her was plainly visible from the side. The outfit was finished with a pair of surprisingly lightweight black boots and fingerless gloves that sat snuggly at her wrist. All in all, she felt utterly, completely ridiculous.

  Not for the first time, Elle wished there was a mirror, but she had been pushed into the broom closet turned dressing room to get changed after Hot Wheels had done her makeup and teased her hair and hadn’t had time to sneak to the bathroom upstairs to see if she looked as big of a fool as she felt.

  Who was she kidding, she couldn’t do this. She couldn’t make anyone honestly believe that she was a biker. But she also knew that this was their only chance to stop the Nomads before someone got hurt, and she wasn’t about to let that happen, not if there was even the slimmest chance of her being able to stop it.

  “Sugar are you gonna come out here anytime soon? We kind of got things to do. Places to be. Leaders of biker gangs to fool.” Hot Wheels voice was muffled by the heavy closet door but not enough to stop them from reaching her, and making her feel like a coward on top of everything. Here she was, cowering in the closet when they were all out there figuring out the plan, figuring out how to save the farm.

  Come on, Elle. You can do this. You can be brave this once. The words were enough to have her hand moving, reaching for the door knob and twisting, pulling it open. But her feet were stuck in the doorway and she couldn’t take another step.

  “Elle, are you coming out or– Well, damn girl!” Hot Wheels said as she turned around, drawing out the word in a way that had Elle shifting uncomfortably once more. “Come all the way out so I can get a good look at you.”

  Hot Wheels waved her out but she still didn’t budge.

  “Don’t worry, we’re in the back and the door is closed. Nobody else is gonna see you right now except little old me.” Hot Wheels said, then rolled her eyes, reaching forward until she grasped Elle’s wrist and physically tugging her until she was standing in the middle of the back room, which had been converted into extra storage.

  “Well?” Elle finally asked, staring down at herself, but all she could see was a stranger. It didn’t help that she had no idea what Hot Wheels had done with her hair or makeup either, except for the heavy black cat eye liner that she’d applied and the mascara that felt heavy on her usually unpainted eyelashes.

  “Sugar,” Hot Wheels stated after she’d walked around her in a circle, twice, “if I was into girls I’d be all over you in a heartbeat.”

  “Oh, um, thanks?” Elle replied faintly causing Hot Wheels to throw her head back and belt out a belly laugh.

  “Oh, you are just too sweet, sugar. It really is no wonder that Honey is head over heals for you.”

  Her words had warmth spreading through her, and that warmth chased away some of the uncertainty that had her shaking as Elle turned to face Hot Wheels.

  “Okay, so I look the part? You think I can really do this?” Elle asked the question that had been weighing on her the hardest since her decision to be a part of this plan. But Hot Wheels was already shaking her head.

  “No, sug, it’s not about how you look. We talked about this already, remember? Sure, this get up will get you through the door but if you start in on one of your school marm lectures they’re gonna see right through you like that!” Hot Wheels snapped her fingers to drive home her point and Elle flinched.

  “It’s about attitude.” Hot Wheels said, staring at her so intently it made Elle want to look away, but she couldn’t, “It’s what you perceive yourself to be.”

  “But I’m just…me.” Elle said weakly.

  “There’s no ‘just’ about it, sweetie.” Hot Wheels said, not unkindly, “you are strong. I’ve seen it in you. You just need to make other people see it too.”

  “How? How exactly am I supposed to do that?” Elle shot back, frustration filling her at the other woman’s cryptic words.

  “What made you step in between Honey and Scorpion that first day when he came here? You must have known that either of those men could squash you like a little bug. Why did you do it?”

  “I, um, I guess I–.”

  “No!” Hot Wheels interrupted, cutting her off and taking a threatening step forward. “Don’t guess. Know!”

  “I don’t know!”

  “You think you’re a coward?”

  “Well, no, I just–.”

  “You think you’re not brave enough?”

  “I am! It’s just that–.”

  “You think you’re weak? You’re not strong enough? You can’t take it? You can’t do what needs to be done because you are weak, and a coward, and–.”

  “It was because of Honey!” Elle shouted, cutting off the woman’s words. She took a deep breath when she saw Hot Wheels staring at her, waiting for her to go on, “I did it because I didn’t want Honey to get hurt and he would have.”

  “You were protecting him.” Hot Wheels nodded as she spoke, a small proud smile tugging up the corners of her mouth, “Because you weren’t thinking of yourself, or your own strength. You were as strong as you needed to be to protect someone you love.”

  “I don’t–.” Elle cut off the words at Hot Wheels’ sharp look, “Yes. In that moment, I forgot everything else, all of the reasons I wasn’t strong enough, and I just did what I had to to keep him safe. I couldn’t…I couldn’t stand there and watch him get hurt.”

  “That’s were real strength comes from.” Hot Wheels said, taking a step closer and pointing at the spot just above where her heart was, “Here. It comes from right here. Not up here.” Hot Wheels gestured to Elle’s head for a moment before letting her hand drop and taking a step back.

  “And besides, you look hot as hell. Those bastards will probably be drooling to hard to notice anything else.”

  “I hope so.” Elle said on a shaky laugh, but Hot Wheels words still echoed through her, settling somewhere in the vicinity of her chest and as she took a step forward she didn’t realize that her shoulders were thrown back, her chin up as she looked back at the other woman confidently.

  “That’s it.�
�� Hot Wheels said, looking at her like a proud mama hen, but still doubt ate at her.

  “What if…What if I can’t do this? What if I mess up?” Elle asked, letting her fears shine in her dark eyes.

  “You can do this, Elle. I believe in you. So does everybody else.”

  “Honey doesn’t.”

  “Psh. All Honey knows is that he loves you and that shadows everything else. He can’t see clearly right now.”

  “But I really need him to.” Elle admitted, her voice shaky, hating the way the words made her feel weak but a moment later Hot Wheels was there, walking close with something draped over her arms.

  “No, you don’t.” The other woman said, staring at her intently, “You don’t even need us. All you need is to believe in yourself. That is all you need, Elle. Don’t let anyone ever tell you differently.”