OPEN SCARS (A Devil Call MC Book) (Talon & Everly Book Three) (Devil Call MC Talon & Everly 3)

by Ana W. Fawkes

  ~*~

  Ana W. Fawkes is the author of several bestselling series including:

  The billionaire erotic romance serial - BY HIS COMMAND

  The paranormal romance series featuring bikers who are werewolves - FULL MOON MERCY

  The edgy and gritty erotic romance series - WITH THE ROCKSTAR

  The intense and wild MC romance - DEVIL CALL MC

  Don’t miss out on *new releases* *excerpts* *cover reveals* and some great *contests* … sign up for the *official* Ana W. Fawkes newsletter RIGHT NOW: http://eepurl.com/ADM0j

  ~*~

  OPEN SCARS (A Devil Call MC Book) (Talon & Everly Book Three)

  ~*~

  The life he has to live is weighing more on Talon every day as he sees what it is doing to the only woman he’s ever cared about. Yet Everly’s addiction to Talon doesn’t seem to fade… even if her eyes keep looking at Layne.

  Talon takes the fall for his mistakes, vowing to make things right both inside and outside the MC, no matter what.

  But with a snooping detective making life more difficult– by setting up a Devil Call member to be murdered – all lines begin to blur… and even more devastating secrets are revealed…

  1.

  (Everly)

  “Don’t go looking for trouble, because sure as hell, you’ll find it.”

  I giggle when she tells me that. Her crooked finger and saggy left eye, still a beautiful blue. A little smile on her face, a gold cross hanging from her shirt. I remember once asking her if the cross meant anything and she told me that she liked gold. But time and age made her find more value in the cross than just the gold it was made from.

  I kiss her head, her hair so thin, smelly, and crusty from the half of can of hairspray she used each day. Still trying to put out a vibrant sense of style for the world.

  I turn and she grabs my hand tighter. With her other hand, shaky, she reaches down and grabs her cigarette purse. Who the hell has a cigarette purse? She does. She doesn’t smoke anymore, doctors and facility orders, but she keeps them because she says it’s cool. She opens the purse and pulls out a five dollar bill. To her, it’s a lifetime of cash. To me, it’s something I’d find in a random pair of pants.

  I take it, kiss her again, and tell her I love her.

  Within the hour she’ll be dead.

  Within two hours, I’ll be snooping around after I hear a few voices yelling at each other. Always looking for trouble, that’s kind of my thing. I can’t help it. I never ended up in jail, but I always end up in trouble.

  The second I see the massive biker standing there, I know I should run. I tell myself to run. There are plenty of wild and sexy guys all around who aren’t like this. They can look it, but they can’t act it.

  I feel empty as I stroll toward the action, like someone punched me in the gut. Later, I’ll convince myself that was someone close to being taken away from me.

  Before I can have another rational thought, there’s hands on me. I’m screaming as guns go off, and silence falls. That’s when he grabs me and lifts me to my feet. He’s saved me. Right? He takes me away, my hands trying to reach around his wide and strong body.

  I’m wet. Tears on my cheeks. Wetness elsewhere. I’m terrified and turned on at the same time.

  The first day I ever met Layne.

  The story kept replaying in my mind over and over. I told myself in that precious moment that love at first sight did exist. That I was in love with Layne. That the big, bad biker would take my heart, mend it back together, and then I could do the same for him. It took me all of a few hours to understand how the clubhouse worked and I eased myself right into the fold. But when eyes and hands came upon me, over and over, I looked to my sexy biker to save me.

  And he didn’t.

  He cared for me by leaving me in the fire.

  That fire burned for a long time as I waited for Talon to get out of prison.

  Don’t go looking for trouble.

  That’s what I did. I traded my attraction for Layne with an addiction for Talon.

  And goddammit, it was worth every day I had to suffer and wait.

  I stood at the end of the hospital bed, my fingertips on the soft blanket that covered Talon’s beautiful and muscular body. It didn’t seem right that only three bullets would take him down. Hell, I knew better though - one bullet between the eyes could kill even the strongest of men. The ironic part was it wasn’t the bullet injuries that were all that bad, it was the fall that hurt him more. When Talon dropped the motorcycle, he skid against the ground, ripping up his pants and legs. The bullets came out easily in surgery and luckily, there was no threat of permanent damage. No arteries were hit. No organs punctured. The doctor shook his head with condescending eyes and explained to Layne and myself that it was a wonder how Talon managed to get that lucky.

  I didn’t quite consider luck when the man I cared about was in a hospital bed. Sure, he was going to survive, but someone tried to kill him. Someone wanted him dead… and even that I wasn’t sure of the truth. Layne made a drunk passing comment last night that if someone wanted Talon dead, they wouldn’t have missed.

  That made me shiver.

  I wasn't sure what to say to Talon right now. I wanted him alive. I wanted him to jump out of the bed and grab me. Hold me. Touch my body in a way nobody else ever did.

  But the questions were still burning inside me.

  The most important question was why he killed Layne’s girlfriend. I couldn’t get it off my mind, I couldn’t let it go. It was the reason why Devil Call MC was such a big mess right now. Yes, it wasn’t my club to take care of and care for, but it was pretty damn obvious that without a President leading the MC, there was chaos. And not just from the inside of the club either. The outside was closing in, and fast.

  “I’m sorry,” I managed to whisper, feeling feeble. “I want you to wake up and come home. I’m afraid of the answers, Talon. You have them and I desperately want them. You protect those answers and it really pisses me off. But I get why you do it.”

  The hospital room door opened slowly and Layne’s heavy boots hit the ground. The chains hanging off the left side of his waist dangled and hit together creating a metal sound. My eyes went to the chains (like they’d done before) and I wondered if Layne would ever finally give in and chain me to his bed with those chains.

  My face burned red.

  What was wrong with me?

  Talon couldn’t even defend himself right now, not that he could read my mind.

  “Hey,” Layne said. The door shut behind him. “Anything?”

  “No,” I said. “So quiet. I don’t like it. It’s like that moment in a scary movie when you know something bad is going to happen and the character is just walking aimlessly around…”

  “It’s okay, Everly,” Layne said. “It’ll be okay.”

  “Bullshit,” I said. “You know that’s a fucking lie, Layne.”

  “Talon is going to get out of here.”

  “Then what? Who did this? Are they coming again? What about Detective John? He was looking for me when all this happened…”

  Layne let out a sigh. He touched his face, fingering that scruffy beard. I wanted to dig my fingers into it too. Pull on that fucking beard and make him give it all up. Break down that mile high wall Layne lived behind. But part of me wondered if Layne wasn’t over what happened between him and Talon. I wanted to know it all, but nobody would give me the answers. And I was too afraid to push at Layne because if I pushe
d him away into the arms of memories of a woman that wasn’t alive, then any chance with him was lost.

  Did that make me a horrible person?

  Yeah, probably.

  I looked down at the ugly checkered floor. I grabbed at the railing on Talon’s bed.

  “Come on,” Layne said. “Let’s go for a walk. Get some fresh air. Then we’ll come back and see if we can wake him up.”

  “Do you love him?” I asked.

  “What?”

  “Talon. Do you love him?”

  Layne curled his lip. “Do you?”

  “Would that matter?”

  “Christ, Everly.” Layne shook his head. “Let’s just go for a walk together.”

  Layne put his hand out for me to take. Something about the gesture and sight made my heart jump a little. How badly I wanted Layne to grab my small hand and just pull me in. Once and for all. Maybe even for good. The almost saint to the sinner behind me, it tore my heart into pieces.

  I reached for Layne’s hand and when he wrapped it around mine, I felt something touch my other hand. I gasped and turned my head to see Talon’s fingers caressing down my fingers.

  Holyhell…

  “Talon moved,” I whispered. “Layne…”

  I looked again at Talon and his hand was back to where it had been.

  Had I really seen his hand move? Had I really felt it?

  Or maybe it was just my inner desire teasing me. Wanting both Talon and Layne.

  “Come on,” Layne whispered. “Let him rest.”

  I followed Layne from the hospital room. I looked back one last time, wishing Talon would be sitting up, tearing the IV’s and other stuff off his body. He could then climb out of the bed and come get me. He and Layne, together, holding me, protecting me from the mess I put myself into with this MC and this life.

  Outside the hospital room, some of the guys were waiting. Buzzy, Kade, Austin, and Maxen. The MC was taking shifts to watch over Talon’s hospital room. They believed there was always a threat, but this was more or less out of respect to an injured brother.

  Layne gave a wave and kept walking. I didn’t wave, I didn’t give a shit about them. None of them. Most of them hurt me. Most of them took advantage of me when I drank too much. Most of them saw me for what I had between my legs and nothing more.

  But they were Layne’s brothers and they were Talon’s brothers. They were part of the MC. And under the command of Talon, those men who once used me for my pussy would have no choice but to protect me with their lives.

  It gave me a sense of power and I liked it.

  Layne didn’t speak a word as we rode the elevator down to the ground floor. We were close but not close enough. It drove me nuts that he wouldn’t just put his arm around me. That he wouldn’t pull me close. Fuck, that he wouldn’t tell me why he wouldn’t. What was so wrong with me? Talon seemed to love my body and everything that came with it. Why not Layne?

  “Look,” Layne finally said as the elevator came to a stop. “I’m sorry for how things are going right now. The mess in the club. I knew Talon getting out of prison would make things hard, but I never imagined this. He’s out of control. Half of me wants him to take the President’s patch because it was his. But I’m worried of what he’ll do with it.”

  “Then why don’t you take it?”

  Layne looked me dead in the eyes. “You see what needs to be done with the club. Who the fuck wants that job?”

  “Then just give it up, Layne. Please.”

  In more than one way.

  We were walking, and suddenly Layne grabbed my hand. I jumped and smiled, not really meaning to do so. I must have looked like a fool.

  “Sorry,” he said. “But you’re about to walk into a window there.”

  Sure enough, the large glass in front of me wasn’t a door. At all.

  Layne opened the door and held it for me.

  We left the hospital and took our walk down the sidewalk.

  “I just don’t understand any of it,” I admitted. “You. Him. The situations…”

  “Let that shit go,” Layne said. “When the past comes back, it brings darkness. We already have enough of that in this club.”

  I hurried to get in front of Layne. I put my hand out and stopped him. “What about you? How do you feel in it all? Do you have…”

  “Everly…”

  Tires squealed and when I looked, I saw a black car and guns. Guns sticking out of every goddamn window. I wasn’t sure if I saw the guns before they went off or not, but one thing was for sure.

  Chaos was back and in full swing.

  “Fuck!” Layne managed to scream.

  He jumped at me, tackling me to the ground.

  The car wasn't sticking around to survey if they had done any damage. They flew through the parking lot, tires squealing, and they were gone a few seconds later.

  “Are you okay?” Layne asked me.

  His big body was against mine, leaving me tingling and shaking. I stared up into his eyes and started to nod.

  “I’m fine. You saved me.”

  “Fuck,” he whispered. “Are you sure you’re not hit?”

  “You can… check…”

  I bit the bottom of my lip. I was holding back so hard not to thrust my hips at him. But he was right there. Right on top of me. We were never so close before.

  He stared at me like he had something else to say. Or something to do.

  Instead, Layne put his hands to the ground and pushed. He looked down at me body, sending my desire into a deeper rage of need.

  He then jumped to his feet and pulled me up. I tumbled forward and hugged him. It was at least something.

  And Layne hugged me back.

  2.

  (Talon)

  I was done with this shit. Done with everything. Done with Gabel and his wired jaw. Done with Hollis and his druggie ass sitting in prison, where he had been rightfully transferred thanks to Detective John really trying to put the screws to the MC. I was fucking sick of Detective John and his bullshit. Coming around like he did. And then, of course, someone has to try and kill me.

  I was sick to my stomach that someone had tried to take out Everly and I wasn’t there to stop it. Layne had saved her, jumping on her, but what if she smacked her head on the ground when he took her down? He could have fucking killed her. And he didn’t even get a look at the car, and didn’t get a shot at it.

  At least I was on my motorcycle when I was shot at. And I was hit.

  Fuck.

  My body was sore. My legs were throbbing with a scratchy pain as skin and scabs tried to work together to heal me. That I could do at the clubhouse. I feared for my club and the clubhouse. I didn’t know who was running what through the front door and out the back. The thing with Hollis wasn’t just about making a statement, it was about stopping a bigger problem. I had no idea how he scored his shit and how he paid for it. But something told me I would soon find out.

  I sat on the edge of the bed and fought with my jeans. They were like sandpaper on my legs, but I didn’t care. Once I had them on, I stood up and went for my boots. Then a shirt. And finally, my leather cut. I held the old thing up and looked a it. It had fresh wounds in it now too. I stuck one of my fingers into the bullet holes and nodded.

  This was war. This was a fucking war. And I’m not going to lose it. I’m not going to lose my club either.

  Chances were whoever shot me was looking for revenge for killing Tommy. It wasn’t Rilen Lost or Los Ahn, which came with both good and bad.

  I put my leather cut on just in time for a visitor to enter my room. Before I could turn around, I heard someone clapping. A slow, dickhead kind of clap, and I knew who it was. Because I had heard that clap before. Many times.

  “Look at you,” Detective John said. “Standing tall after taking three bullets. Dropping your bicycle. That’s pretty tough. I guess all those years of me riding you are paying off. Right, Talon?”

  I turned and looked at Detective John. He stood on the o
ther side of the hospital bed. He peeled his sunglasses off his face. He rolled a toothpick between his lips. In his hand he had a white to-go food container.

  “Brought you some lunch,” he said. “Figure the shit here is horrible.”

  “What the fuck do you want?” I asked. “I’m getting ready to go.”

  “I see that. Impressive. Just wanted to pay a visit. Sorry I wasn’t able to drop by sooner. I was tied up with all the legal bullshit of getting your buddy transferred to prison. Poor Hollis. He cried. And he’s starting to go through withdrawal.”

  “What am I suppose to say to that?”

  “Nothing. Just a friendly reminder that the law out there does exist, Talon. And nobody is above it. I mean, you of all people should know that. You just got out. Then again…” Detective John took the toothpick from his mouth and poked at his gums, pulling out a small piece of what looked like lettuce. “Then again you murdered someone and barely did any time.”

  I pushed at the bed, letting it crash into his legs. He jumped back, dropping his toothpick.

  He nodded. “Okay then. I’m going to take my leftover lunch and go back to the office and eat. You can go fuck yourself, Talon.”

  “Tough guy,” I said. “Where were you when I was getting shot? You look into it yet? Find out who did it? What about the drive-by that almost took out Layne and Everly?”

  “Oh, that, right. Yeah, we haven’t found much on it. We’re working really hard, Talon. Really hard.” Detective John grinned.

  “You’re a real piece of shit,” I said. “It wasn’t someone we know. There’s danger in this town.”

  “You’re the danger,” Detective John said. “Get that right, Talon. You’re the fucking danger. And I should have taken you out when I had the fucking chance. Right in my hands…”

  I started to walk around the bed now. If I had my fucking gun I would have shot him dead right on the spot.