Unfixable: An Unacceptables MC Standalone Romance

by Kristen Hope Mazzola

  We rushed for the house on foot, all of our provisions slung over our shoulders in duffle bags. With my Springfield XD-S trained on the back door, Maccon broke out the single pane glass and unlocked it.

  “Here goes nothing,” he whispered as the door slowly opened.

  We checked every room in the house in complete silence. The kitchen was dated but spotless. The two bedrooms felt like no one lived in them, and the one bathroom smelled like bleach and looked as if you could eat off the floor. There weren’t even clothes in the closets or a towel in sight, not one speck of dirt or stray dust bunny in a corner. The house was immaculate. All of the furniture was dated but not worn out at all. It felt like I was scoping out a well-preserved time capsule, not a sociopath’s hideout.

  Of course it wasn’t going to be this easy.

  My jaw churned as I followed Maccon back out of the house.

  “What the fuck,” I growled, kicking at a small rock on the ground.

  Maccon’s wide shoulders sagged as he leaned against the wood siding. “I’m sorry, man. We tried.”

  “Not hard enough.”

  As Maccon moved a little, I noticed a small window next to his foot.

  “Did you see a basement door?” I asked.

  He shook his head. “We opened every damn door in that entire place. If there was a basement, we would have found the stairs.”

  “Not necessarily,” I remarked, darting around the side of the house.

  Maccon was hot on my trail as I sprinted around until I found the cellar entrance on the outside of the house, well hidden under thick, thorny bushes. I ripped them straight out of the ground, tossing them to the side.

  “Well, look at you being all detective-like,” Maccon goaded as he pulled the bolt cutters out of the duffle he was carrying. “Want to do the honors?”

  I gladly took the tool from his hand, cutting the padlock off of the wooden door.

  Taking a deep breath, I descended the stairs slowly. The basement eerily resembled Jett’s except for a locked metal door on the far side of the space.

  I pointed over to it. “She has to be in there.”

  Maccon demolished the lock and ripped open the door while I held my breath.

  A woman was lying down in the tiny room, chained to the bed and motionless. Her long hair was matted into a frenzied mess, her fair skin covered in dirt, scars and bruises.

  “Katherine?” I called out as I rushed to her side.

  She didn’t move.

  “Katherine,” I yelled louder as my fingers instinctively went to her neck to check for a pulse.

  As soon as my skin touched hers, she started to scream and thrash around.

  “Help! Stop! Get away!” she howled, cowering away from me as much as she could.

  “Katherine, we’re here to rescue you,” I explained as Maccon went to work on her shackle.

  “He’ll kill you. You need to leave before he gets mad and uses the device again.” Katherine started to hysterically cry. “Get out!”

  I wasn’t going to take no for an answer. Once her leg was free from the chain, I scooped her frail body into my arms and started to run for my truck. The entire time she was fighting, screaming, scratching, biting.

  I shoved her into the back seat of my pickup, climbing in behind her. Maccon hopped in the front, grabbing the keys from me. As he sped away, I wrapped the scared, panic-stricken woman in a blanket I kept under the seat and hugged her to my chest. I didn’t care that she was calling me every name in the book, didn’t care that she was trying to fend me off—none of it mattered. We had rescued her, and sooner or later she was going to realize it.

  Maccon flew off down the highway toward the safe house Bear and King had set up for us.

  “We got her and are on our way to you,” Maccon roared quickly into his phone before throwing it into the passenger’s seat.

  “I don’t know why you’re doing this,” Katherine cried out as she tried for the hundredth time to push me away.

  “Your brother sent me to find you. He’s been looking for you for a long time,” I explained, completely at a loss as to how to calm her down.

  “My brother?” she asked, bewilderment filling her pale, filthy face.

  “Jett,” I offered, hoping the sound of his name would register and finally give her a little comfort.

  She pulled the blanket tighter around her. “I don’t remember having a brother. I don’t have anyone other than Alastor. Please take me back before he gets mad. It’s bad when he’s angry.”

  Her light green eyes pleaded with me as it sank in how much the years of captivity had truly fucked her up.

  “I don’t know how, but I will get you to remember, Katherine. I promise.” I tried to hug her again, but she started to freak out even more.

  “Dude, what are we going to do?” Maccon glanced back at me through the rearview mirror.

  “Fuck if I know, man. This is my first rescue-slash-kidnapping,” I seethed through gritted teeth.

  “I knew you were lying to me!” Katherine wailed. “Let me out!”

  She lunged for the door handle, but thankfully Maccon was quick with the child safety locks.

  I grabbed her hand. “I am not lying to you. We’re the good guys. You are never going to have to see that house or your tiny cell ever again. Alastor will never be able to hurt you ever again. We’re rescuing you.”

  She was practically hyperventilating.

  “Should we take her to a hospital or something?” Maccon asked.

  “Jett would have told me to do that if that were what he wanted. He said to keep her safe. What if that douchebag found her at a hospital? We can’t risk losing her again.”

  “We just fucking kidnapped a hostage. How fucked is that?” Maccon rubbed the back of his neck. “This whole situation is completely fucking.”

  “Yeah, man. It really is.” I stared at Katherine as she hysterically cried, her face buried between her knees. “We did the right thing though.”

  Finally we made it to the safe house deep in the Georgia woods. It felt like it took years to navigate the winding dirt roads, but we made it.

  Bear and King were waiting for us on the front porch smoking cigarettes.

  “I am going to carry you into the house now,” I explained as Katherine scooted as close to the far door as possible, frantically shaking her head.

  “We need to get you cleaned up and get some food in you,” I continued.

  Maccon came around the side, opening the door behind her.

  At the first sight of freedom, Katherine tried to bolt away from us, only making it a few steps before she tumbled down on the gravel drive. I leapt out after her, pulling her up into my arms as the blanket started to fall off of her body.

  Bear trotted down the steps to help me, but I shook my head before he got too close. Katherine was still screaming and shaking uncontrollably.

  “Fuck, gents. Y’all weren’t kidding when you said you needed some help,” King scoffed as we all entered the hunting cabin the Atlanta Unacceptables had had for as long as I could remember.

  “We honestly didn’t know what to expect. Thanks for coming on such short notice.” Maccon greeted our brothers as I rushed Katherine into the bathroom.

  “I am going to get you cleaned up,” I explained, setting her down on the floor.

  She cowered in the corner as I started to draw a bath.

  “I don’t understand,” she muttered.

  The hot water poured into the tub as I yanked open the medicine cabinet, looking for anything that might calm her nerves a bit. After finding an expired bottle of Xanax on the top shelf, I sank down next to her.

  “This will help you calm down. I know everything seems scary right now, but I promise you’re safe and I am going to protect you from anyone hurting you ever again.”

  “I don’t want them,” she whimpered, turning her face away from me.

  “You don’t have to take them, but they will help.” I reached up to set the tiny whit
e pills on the counter. “Will you at least take a bath?”

  She didn’t move. For the first time since we had rescued her, Katherine was silent.

  “Please?” I begged.

  After a few seconds, she unfurled her bony body and sank into the tub. I did my best not to look at her, but I didn’t feel like I could leave her alone either.

  Maccon tapped on the door, yelling through it, “How’s it going in there?”

  “Better,” I hollered back. “Can you get her some clothes from the back room? Someone must have left something there.”

  “On it.”

  “Where are we?” Katherine mumbled as she used the washcloth to wipe away the layer of grime from her freckled skin. I watched from the corner of my eye. As the dirt washed away, scar after scar was revealed. It was heart breaking.

  “Somewhere safe,” I offered, staring down at my feet.

  “Do I really have a brother?”

  I glanced up quickly, nodding. “Y-Yes,” I stammered. “He is a good friend of mine, and we have been worried about you for years.”

  “Why can’t I remember?” she sniffled.

  I shifted a little closer to her. “You’ve been through a lot. I bet it will all come back to you in time. Your mind and body just need a break.”

  “Who are you?” she asked before dipping her head back to get her tangled, deep auburn locks wet.

  “I’m Reese. I was in the Army with your brother a long time ago. Maccon is my friend who helped me get you. The other two guys are Bear and King. They’re here to help you too.”

  “Why do you guys care about what happens to me?”

  The frailness in her voice broke my heart as her words twisted the knife deeper.

  “Because your brother saved my life and you’re special to him.”

  “How?” she asked while the lathered shampoo dripped down the side of her neck.

  “How are you special?”

  She pursed her lips. “How did he save your life?”

  I cleared my throat. “We were overseas and someone tried to hurt me. Your brother stopped him.”

  “Is he coming here?”

  I chewed on the inside of my cheek. The last thing I wanted to do was lie to her, but I didn’t want her to lose hope either. “As soon as he can.”

  “Where is he?” she asked, looking directly at me for the first time.

  “He’s been detained but should be able to make his way here soon.”

  CHAPTER 5

  KATHERINE

  As I sat in the warm bathwater, I tried to make sense of everything that was happening. All I had known for so long was pain, suffering, and a tiny room. I felt like I was completely messing up, like I was disobeying in the worst of ways. It was jarring. I felt I should have fought harder, yelled louder—something. I was sure Alastor would figure out I was taken, and the thought of what he might do when he found me was terrifying.

  Reese sat on the floor, doing his best to be patient with my confusion. I wanted to trust him, wanted to thank him for pulling me out of that pit, but it felt way too wrong.

  It was nice to bathe. It had been a while since I was afforded that privilege.

  I love the feeling of suds coating my body and hair. It smelled like lilacs, a scent I remembered loving all those years ago, and there was more comfort in that memory trigger than I could express. Something as simple as the fresh scent of flowers was everything to me in that moment.

  “I’m finished,” I muttered while raking my fingers through my soaking mane.

  “Oh, okay. Here.” Reese scrambled to his feet, holding a towel out for me. “I’ll get you those clothes. Be right back.”

  Toweling off, I eyed the small pills on the counter. The numbness they offered was alluring, but I didn’t want to slip off or lose control. I was too scared.

  It only took Reese seconds to return with a clean shirt and a pair of boxers.

  “Sorry,” he muttered, handing the garments to me. “This is all we have in the house. They’re mine. I promise they are clean. We’ll get you something more appropriate soon.”

  It had been years since I’d had anything other than the old robe Alastor only gave me when I was being good.

  Tears cascaded down my cheeks as I clutched the soft fabric in my hands. “Thank you.”

  Reese steadied me as I got dressed. “Don’t mention it. It’s the least we can do.”

  “Why are you being so nice to me?” I couldn’t for the life of me understand what I had done to deserve this kind of caring.

  Reese tucked me into his side, wrapping his arms around me tightly. “It’s only a minuscule amount of what you have deserved all this time.”

  I started to cry harder. “I know what you’re saying, but I just don’t feel it.”

  He glanced down at me. “You will start to. It’ll take time, but you will heal from all of this crap.”

  “Can I trust you?”

  “Yes, yes you really can.”

  “I want to. Is that okay for now?”

  “That is more than okay for now. Are you hungry?”

  My stomach churned instantly as I nodded.

  “How does pizza sound?”

  Pizza—oh, how I had missed pizza.

  I forced myself to smile a real smile for the first time in ages. “Absolutely Wonderful.”

  CHAPTER 6

  REESE

  After eating her weight in pepperoni pizza and chugging about a gallon of water, Katherine was sleeping soundly on the couch in the living room.

  Keeping a watchful eye on her, I sat with my brothers at the kitchen table.

  “We can’t keep her here for long. We need to get her out of the state for protection,” King remarked as he swigged from his Budweiser can, the graying bristles of his mustache drenched from the beers he’d already consumed.

  I rubbed the back of my neck. “Should we head up to Vilas?”

  Bear leaned back, crossing his arms over his chest. “Abel and Rave are probably your best bet for this one. That isn’t a bad idea. They have a good doc up that way, too. She needs to be seen as soon as possible.”

  “Do we really need to implicate more of the charters in this rescue mission?” Maccon coughed out, crushing his half-smoked cigarette in the ashtray in the middle of the table.

  “Vilas is the closest safe haven to us. The less time you have to drive with her, the better,” King argued. “Besides, we’re all in this now. If one of us is in it, we all are. You fucking know what, Maccon.”

  I knew it had been for the best to bring my fellow club members in on this with me, but there was a nagging feeling in my gut. This was my cross to bear; Jett didn’t know anyone else in the organization. I hated that my men were sticking their necks out on this one with me.

  “Is there any other option?” I glanced around the table, and all I saw was dead stares. “That’s what I figured. I’ll make the call.”

  Stepping out onto the porch, I dialed Ravage’s number. Rave was known as the Butcher in most circles—for good reason. He was one hell of a man who always showed up for any and all of us, and he’d know exactly what to do.

  “Yeah?” Rave’s voice was low as he answered.

  “It’s Reese. I need your help.” There wasn’t any point in pleasantries.

  I heard a door shut before he asked, “What’s going on?”

  “I need a safe house for a few days and a doc to meet us there. We can be up your way in just under five hours.”

  “Pretty short notice, Reese.”

  “You know I wouldn’t be calling if we didn’t need it.”

  “How many of you are wounded?”

  “Just one—a chick. Look, man, we need this. I have the girl and Maccon with me.”

  “See y’all soon.”

  “Thanks, brother.”

  “You know the address to my place, right?”

  “I’m with Bear. I’ll grab it from him.”

  “Bring that giant prick with you. If you’re coming all
this way for safekeeping, it’s best to have him along for the ride, anyway.”

  “Aye, brother.”

  I walked back inside after ending the call and nodded to the group at the table. “Let’s get this show on the road. Bear, you’ve been requested.”

  King slapped him on the shoulder. “Have fun getting your balls busted by The Butcher for that slipup last June. That SOB has a memory like a damn elephant.”

  Bear chuckled. “I knew I would never hear the end of that fucking crap. You forget one stupid magazine one time and shit hits the damn fan and sticks up there for years.”

  Leaning down, I rested my hand gently on Katherine’s bony shoulder. “Time to wake up. We need to head out of here,” I whispered.

  Her wide eyes shot open as she screamed bloody murder.

  “Katherine, you’re safe. Remember, I’m Reese. My friend Maccon and I rescued you this morning,” I cooed to her.

  She scrambled into a ball, rocking back and forth on the far side of the worn leather couch.

  “You need to take me home,” she cried.

  “Jesus fucking Christ,” King exclaimed before marching over to her. “Look, little lady, I know this is fucking scary, but we are trying to help you here.”

  “Get away!” Katherine yelled.

  Straightening up, I motioned for the three of them to follow me out onto the front porch.

  “Let me see if I can calm her down with y’all out here,” I offered. “I am at a fucking loss with this one.

  Bear ran his hand over his face. “This is going to be a fucking terrible drive.”

  Maccon snorted a forced laugh. “You should have seen how crazy she was on the way over here. Five hours in the truck with her might be the death of me.”

  “Are you sure this broad is worth all of this damn trouble?” King looked me right in the eye.

  I could have punched him right then and there, but I wasn’t going to bite the hand that was feeding us and punching a old-timer in the organization was not allowed—especially an Unacceptables president.

  “Look,” I growled, “I don’t give a flying fuck if you all bail on this one, but there is a hurting girl in there and I owe this to her brother. Just stay the fuck outside and let me try to get her calm.”