Seizing Control

by Kylie Hillman

  “Well I should have guessed it was too good to be true when you said you were over how this Club was run,” Shadow muses, acting as if we are all sitting around sharing a beer and a few stories. I don't know if he even realises that I have my gun to his fried head.

  “It never sat right with my boss so he told me to keep you two occupied tonight so it could all go down without you fucking it up.”

  “Is that right is it?” I growl at him.

  He shakes his head in pity at me.

  “What exactly has gone down?” I ask him, knowing I'm probably not going to get a straight answer from him. I hate being played and this asshole has played me like a violin. My only consolation is that I have two brothers I trust protecting Lainey and I've hidden her right under their noses at our house when everyone else thinks she's gone to Emerald with her brothers and Wendy.

  “Well since there's nothing you can fuck up now, it would be wrong of me not to share.” Shadow smirks, winking at me like we are good mates. I push my forearm harder across his throat making him wheeze and cough, “You see right about now, Connor will be dealing with Murray’s dead body and my boss will be tucked up somewhere safe with your Old Lady. It was pretty smart of you to not send her to Emerald but you fucked up thinking you could trust Connor. Sherri here, has a golden snatch and she's been using it to woo Connor for months.”

  I shake my head to clear it. Everything makes sense now. Fucking Brendan is the boss that Shadow keeps going on about. Lainey told me months ago that she didn't trust Shadow or Connor and I brushed her off. I thought she was judging them for sharing Sherri. If I'd listened, I might have been able to avoid this.

  “You fucking bitch,” Timber rasps before he brings his gun down on the back of Sherri’s head, rendering her unconscious. She hits the floor and stays there. I've never hit a woman before but I would make an exception for her so I'm not holding his sudden violence against him. She's an evil bitch who played a big part in this plan.

  “We need to get out of here, Mad Dog. Get to your house and stop him.”

  “Don’t you two fuckwits get it? She'll be long gone. Beast and anyone stupid enough to put up a fight against the Mavericks at the Emerald Clubhouse will be dead and they'll be on their way here to deal with you two. You've lost! It's over!”

  Tears of rage and sorrow prick behind my eyelids at his words but I blink them away. Fucking Benji, Beast and most of my Club went to Emerald for the weekend and walked right into a trap. It's our smallest and least protected Clubhouse since most of the brothers moved back here when Beast relocated four years ago. It's the perfect spot for an ambush.

  Shaking my head, I put my growing grief on the back burner. I can't blindly settle for this rat’s word. I need to get out of here and find the truth for myself. I'll call our other chapters in to fight if needed.

  “It's not over until I say it's over!” I tell Shadow tightly, taking my arm off of his throat and walking away from him. My voice is strangled and it's hard to get the words out past the lump that's taken up residence in my throat but he appears to understand where I'm heading with my statement since his eyes widen in shock.

  “Come on, Timber. Let's get the fuck out of here.”

  I beckon him to follow me. We reach the door before he nudges me. “What are we going to do with the rat?”

  “Give him what he deserves,” I grunt matter-of-factly as I turn back to Shadow, who is clumsily pulling his handgun from his holster so he can shoot me in the back, and shoot him straight between the eyes.

  He hits the ground next to his unconscious whore as the door slams shut behind Timber and I.

  It's time to find my Old Lady and fix this shit.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO

  Lainey

  Present Day

  “Have a good night, Murray.”

  Locking my front door behind me, I head into the kitchen. Grabbing my phone from the dining table, I check half-heartedly for any new messages or calls I might have missed while I was out the front chatting with Murray.

  In my heart, I know there won't be any. Mik hasn’t replied to my texts since he sent me home over two weeks ago, let alone return my calls. It's breaking my heart but I'm trying not to read too much into it. We were on good terms when I left and he did tell me that he needed space to concentrate on finding the rat. Try as I might, I don't really buy his excuses but I have nothing else to go on until I can speak to him again. And as stupid as it may be, I refuse to call him again until he returns my other calls.

  It’s only eight o'clock according to the time on our antique grandfather clock but I'm ready for bed. I'm exhausted from worrying constantly. Reading in bed with a nice hot chamomile tea sounds like a good way to relax since I doubt I'll get much sleep no matter how tired I am. Sleep has been eluding me and will continue to do so until Mik comes home.

  Leaving the small light on over the stove so Connor or Murray can see when they complete their rounds of my house during the night, I head to bed. I'm not sure where Connor was when I said goodnight to Murray but he’ll be somewhere close. The two men have been my constant shadows since Mik sent them home with me.

  After spending the last two weeks together, I’ve grown to adore Murray even more but I still haven't warmed to Connor. Based purely on instinct, I can't bring myself to trust him so I don't feel comfortable around him. Hopefully he's not on inside duty tonight, I relax more when Murray is inside with me.

  Juggling my hot tea with my phone and kindle, I push the door to my bedroom open with my foot. Placing everything on my bedside table, I quickly strip down to my underwear and singlet before noticing blown up photos and red rose petals scattered over my side of the bed. My heart jumps in fear at their presence since nobody else has been in my house. Anger trumps my fear when I recognize the subjects of the pictures.

  I gather them together and start looking at them, one at a time. Mik is in each of them with Sherri naked on his lap. It looks like she's giving him a lap dance as he drinks and smokes. My ire reaches boiling point when I get to the last few photos and see that Mik has his head buried in her fake chest and his hands on her bony arse. How dare he? Especially with her!

  Throwing the photos on the bed, I pick up my discarded clothes from the floor. I hop on one foot as I push my legs into my jeans. I storm from my room, intent on making Murray drive me to the Clubhouse so I can confront Mik. I finally have both legs in my pants and I'm attempting to button them when I run into a solid object, standing just inside my front door. I fall on my butt from the impact.

  “Going somewhere, Lainey?” Brendan asks me, his voice honeyed and his eyes crinkled with amusement at my predicament.

  “Murray! Connor!” I scream loudly as I scramble backwards, determined to get away from him. I have handguns planted in each room of this house and I need to get to one. If I had any sense I would have one on me but I don't.

  “Help me! Murray! Help me!”

  “Oh hush, darling girl,” Brendan interrupts my pleas for help. “Connor will be busy disposing of Murray’s body for me so it's just you and I, all alone once again.”

  “No way.”

  My heart skips a beat at his statement. I don't like Connor but he wouldn't betray the Club like this, would he?

  "Yes way," Brendan mimics me, following me as I move away from him. "How do you think I got in here? How do you think I left my present on your bed for you?”

  His reminder of the vile pictures I just found cause me to momentarily still and he seizes the opportunity my inattention provides, grabbing me by the upper arms and dragging me to my feet. I lash out but he subdues me with a hard punch to temple. Black spots and white stars invade my eyesight and I sag against his large form.

  “Up you come, my Angel.”

  He lifts me with ease and cradles my stunned frame to his chest, walking quickly to my bedroom. He appears to be pretty much healed from the gunshot wounds I inflicted and the beatings he received, which is disappointing.

  Placing
me on the bed, he organizes the photos together neatly and flicks through them. Satisfaction beams from him as he takes a seat facing me on my bed and throws the pictures on the floor. I lift my head to test my vision and I'm pleasantly surprised to see it has returned. I'm obviously getting better at taking a punch to the head.

  “I was very surprised by how easily he threw you away when his precious Club was threatened. Cherishing you as I do, I expected a bit more of a fight from him but he simply sent you away and walked straight into my trap. He doesn't love you as much as you think he does, baby girl. Not half as much as I do.”

  Based on what I've seen tonight, I can't dispute Brendan’s words so I stay quiet. My most pressing concern is my need to get to my gun so I can even this playing field. I had resolved numerous times to kill Brendan the next time I saw him but seeing his huge frame again makes me doubt that I have the strength to pull it off without getting myself killed instead.

  "I'm here to take you away from your worthless existence, away from the trash you associate with. But before we leave this all behind, we have a few small issues to sort out.”

  I pretend I didn’t hear him as I push myself away from him. Stretching my limbs one by one to make sure they are still working, I slide myself away from him and into a sitting position against the headboard and next to my bedside table. I nonchalantly grab my cup of chamomile tea and start sipping it. I don't want to show him how close to home his words regarding Mik are hitting.

  “What trap was that?” I ponder aloud before taking another sip.

  I'm curious so I might as well keep him talking. The more he talks the more time I have to arm myself.

  “Oh just the one where I forced him to fuck my informant’s trashy girlfriend to prove his loyalty to the faction trying to take down his Club.”

  I choke slightly on my tea and he grins, happy that he's provoked a reaction out of me.

  "I knew what he was doing. Trying to find his ‘rat’, so I threw down challenges to see where his loyalties lay. You or his Club? And Lainey, you came second by a long way.”

  He crawls up the bed and straddles my hips. He takes my tea away from me and places it gently on the bedside table. His gentleness is not fooling me, I know I'm going to pay painfully for shooting him and running away.

  He kisses me as he runs his hands up and down my arms. Holding still, I let him plunder my mouth as he wishes. I need to bide my time. When he moves his weight off of me and kisses my forehead with tenderness, I expect him to resume kissing my mouth but he doesn't. Instead he stands and after staring down at me for a moment, he backhands me hard across the face. I’m thrown into the wall at the head of our bed before he pulls me back to him with a handful of my hair.

  “That's for playing with my feelings so you could get free,” he informs me.

  I scratch at the hand he has in my hair, drawing blood, to force him to let go but he doesn't. He pulls me to my feet with my hair, hanks tearing from scalp, before he punches me three times in the stomach.

  “One punch for each time you shot me, Lainey.”

  I’m winded from his attack and in absolute agony. I think I'm going to vomit and I can't breathe because it feels if I am inhaling fire. Doubling over in pain, the room spins and my legs become too weak to hold me. He throws me to the floor. I can hear him undoing his belt buckle and removing his clothing but I don't have the ability to move away. It takes every ounce of willpower I possess to pull myself into a sitting position on the floor with my back resting against my bedside table. In spite of my best efforts, I can't keep my eyes open.

  Squatting until he is eyeball level with me, he slaps my face arrogantly.

  “Stay with me, Lainey.”

  He tilts my head back with my chin and stares at me, wrath written all over his face.

  “It's time for your punishment for letting him take your purity. You let him take the innocence that was meant for me, you dirty slut. I waited for you to be ready, I treated you like a Queen! I was willing to take you away from your trashy family and you let him take my reward.”

  My stomach drops as his words and his naked form registers. I knew he would make me pay if he ever found out about Mik and I. It was stupid to think I could get away with throwing it in his face. Adrenaline flows through my body as I realise that I may not survive this punishment. I need to find a way to defend myself.

  Pulling my chin from his hand, I reach above me and attempt to open the top drawer of my bedside table. Brendan snatches my arm away from the drawer and hot tea splashes everywhere. He heaves me to my feet.

  As I’m finding my balance, he rips my singlet straight down the middle and exposes me. Blindly throwing punches, I use every fragment of energy I possess to try to stop him from unzipping my jeans but he over powers me.

  Throwing me on to the bed, he tugs my jeans and underwear down my legs and throws them behind him. He seizes me by the throat and squeezes. I can't breathe, my eyes bulge from the pressure and I'm sure I am about to die.

  Just as the light fades, he loosens his grip and presses me to the bed with his heavy frame. His erection probes at my junction, reminding me of what he is about to do to me. I muster all of my energy, willpower, and desire to live and make one last, desperate attempt to get into my top drawer.

  Lunging for my bedside table, I yank the drawer open and feel around for my handgun. As I wrap my hand around it, Brendan wrestles me towards him and thrusts his cock into me. He grunts in pleasure and I scream with pain.

  “Not again. Please God, not again,” I plead, moaning as he thrusts into me with all his might. Pain that I thought I would never experience ever again floods my body and my mind shuts down in shock. I can't move or think.

  "Oh yes! I've missed this. I've missed you.” Brendan pants as he drives himself to his release. He slaps me forcefully as he drives himself into me.

  Again.

  And again.

  And again.

  “Scream for me, Lainey. Let me know you've missed me too,” he demands.

  He bites down on my shoulder, not once but three times. Before I can move he bites my breast. The excruciating pain that blooms through my body rouses me from my shock and I realise that I have my gun in my hand.

  “Fuck you!” I screech at him, bringing the butt of my gun down hard on the back of his head.

  His eyes widen with surprise and he stills, reaching around to feel the back of his head. When he brings his hand in front of his face, I can see blood on his fingers. I hit him with my gun again, harder.

  “Stop it,” he commands me as he wrestles me for my weapon.

  I bring it down on his head as many times as I can until he manages to roll over on his back and squeeze me to his chest. His cock slips from me when we roll and his violation of my body ceases. I urgently fight his attempts to control my gun with a flurry of jabs, bites and punches. I have no idea where I find the strength from—it's as if I've been possessed—but I refuse to let him get the better of me ever again. I'd rather die.

  I head butt him viciously and he grunts in pain. I'm seeing black spots but I can see that he is wilting also. This is my chance. Biting his arm until I draw blood forces him to loosens his grip on me just enough that I can lift my upper body. I bring the gun forward and point it at his chest.

  Everything feels as if it is moving in slow motion, as I pull the trigger and the bullet slams into his heart at close range. His face slackens immediately and a crater appears in his chest as his body jerks from the impact and warm blood splatters over my face. He gurgles so I panic and pull the trigger a second time and he stops making the horrifying sound. The room falls silent until deafening screams begin. They hurt my ears so I cover them with my bloody hands until I realize that the sound is coming from me and I force myself to shut my mouth.

  Scrambling from his body, I stand on wobbly legs. I throw the gun on the floor, my mind spinning in circles.

  I can't believe I killed him.

  I can't believe this is fina
lly over.

  I don't know what to do?

  I don't know where to go?

  I slump to the floor, my head still spinning as I try to work out what to do.

  My adrenaline fades and exhaustion overtakes me. My body feels like lead, every part of me exhausted and hurting. I can feel myself succumbing to the warm embrace of unconsciousness when the solutions to the questions circling my head appear.

  I need Mik. I need to go to Mik.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE

  Mik

  Present Day

  “Angel, wake up. Please wake up!” I plead with Lainey, my voice barely audible from the stress I'm about to collapse under.

  The second I found her, I gathered her unconscious body into my arms. Now I'm trying to rouse her but she isn't responding. I don't know why she’s staying unconscious because I've checked her pulse and breathing and they are strong and regular.

  The last twenty minutes have been some of the most frantic in my life. After shooting Shadow dead, Timber and I ran through the deserted Clubhouse and to our bikes. I had my phone to my ear, urgently calling Lainey’s mobile over and over but not getting any answer. Timber was running beside me attempting to contact Beast or any of the brothers who travelled to Emerald with him.

  He'd cursed loudly as he left messages for someone to contact us as soon as fucking possible. As we'd hurriedly thrown a leg over our bikes, I'd yelled at him to follow me to my house.

  We had broken every speed limit and road rule to get to my house, only to find an unfamiliar SUV and Murray’s bike in my driveway. Finding Murray’s dead body on my front deck had caused us to pause and slowly creep through the unlocked front door and into the house where we had been fucking surprised to find Brendan shot dead on my bed and a battered and unconscious Lainey slumped on the floor next to her gun.