Vexed

by Phoenyx Slaughter

  “Pamela Parker casts a lot of other shows, Athena. She was impressed with you. I bet she’ll call you next time she’s looking for someone. We need to find you a manager.”

  “What would I have done if you didn’t take me under your wing?”

  He chuckles. “I guess you’d be taking it up the ass out in Beachwood.”

  “Jerk.” I slap his shoulder. “I never should have told you about that.”

  “No. It’s mandatory you tell me these things. I need it as a cautionary tale for the next young starlet who stumbles into town.”

  I hadn’t thought of it like that.

  “You don’t know how many girls would have gone through with it. I’m really proud of you for sticking to your guns.”

  A sad sniffle escapes me. “Thanks.”

  He walks me home, but ever since Roxy’s friends hassled him, he’s refused to come upstairs. I don’t blame him and I still burn with shame every time I remember the incident.

  For the first time since I moved here, I seem to be alone in the apartment.

  After a few seconds of unnatural silence, my gaze skips around the room. Television, dvd player, speakers—all gone. The one working lamp in the living room is also missing. I flick on the weak overhead light to get a better look.

  Were we robbed?

  Is Roxy hurt? I hurry into her bedroom and find everything personal missing. Right down to the sheets. Photographs, clothes, shoes, all of it—gone.

  She ditched me?

  Panic turns my stomach inside out. What the fuck am I going to do? There’s no way I can afford this place by myself. I yank out my phone to call Elliot when the front door slams open.

  “Roxy?” I yell as I run out to the living room. I’m so gonna kick her skinny ass—

  Not Roxy.

  Snake struts through the door like he owns the place. Two of his friends follow him. I’ve only met them one other time and never bothered to learn their names since they creeped me out so much.

  This is bad. Why doesn’t this apartment have a back door? Or a fire escape? Why did I have to find my roommate on Craigslist for fuck’s sake?

  “Uh hey, Snake. Roxy’s gone. Looks like she took off and stuck me with the apartment,” I explain, hoping he’ll leave.

  Instead he turns his fiery eyes my way. I don’t know what he’s so pissed about, but I have a feeling I’m about to find out.

  “She skipped town because she stole a package and a lotta cash from me,” he says slowly, lacing each word with venom.

  “I, uh, don’t know anything about that.”

  “Mind if we search your place?” he asks as he stalks closer. I don’t get the impression saying no is one of my options, so I bob my head up and down. His friends are already busy tearing apart the living room. So much for getting our security deposit back. Maybe if they search and see nothing’s here, they’ll give up and go away.

  And maybe while they’re busy searching, I can slip out the door.

  No such luck. Snake wraps his hand around my arm and asks me to “help” him.

  Those drunk little bees start buzzing in my stomach, telling me it’s time to get the hell out of here. Except, I can’t seem to shake his iron grip on my arm.

  The prick even insists on searching my room.

  “Roxy never comes in here.”

  He snorts. “That’s what you think.”

  That little bitch.

  He stops at the cardboard box I’ve been using as a nightstand and picks up a picture of Karina and I before prom. “Who’s this?”

  His sharp tone makes me flinch and I really don’t like the unnatural interest he’s taking in the photo. “That’s my friend from back home.”

  He raises one dark eyebrow. “The ol’ lady?”

  God that sounds silly. “Yes.”

  His beady eyes run over the photograph for a moment longer. Why, I have no clue. “How much you think you’re worth to her?” he asks as he shoves me on my bed.

  I bounce right up into a sitting position. “What?”

  He blocks my escape with his body. Looming over me, but not touching, thank God. “Seems like you got a connection to the Iron Bulls. Think their prez will pay for you?”

  He won’t even take a phone call from me. “No.”

  “Why? You a bad lay?”

  We’re moving into territory I don’t want to discuss with this creep.

  When I don’t answer, he laughs again. “I hope not. Now that Roxy’s gone, I’m gonna need someone to replace her.”

  “I’m sure plenty of women will be happy to…take care of you.”

  He grins as if I paid him a compliment. “What’s wrong, baby? You ain’t interested? Roxy said you’re real uptight. Maybe my snake can help you with that.”

  Eww.

  My lips press into a thin line and my refusal to take the bait seems to piss him off. His fingers wrap into my hair and he yanks me off the bed, forcing me to the floor. Every inch of me trembles in fear. I swear, if he puts his little snake anywhere near my mouth, I’m biting it.

  Dammit. Instead of all the acting classes, I should have signed up for a self-defense class.

  “Where’s your phone?” he asks.

  It’s in my back pocket and I’d kind of been hoping he’d leave so I could pull it out and call for help.

  But I guess he’d be one hell of a lousy bad guy if he let that happen.

  “Listen, bitch. You can either hand it to me so I can call your boyfriend—”

  “He’s not my boyfriend and he won’t answer if it’s me.”

  Doubt flashes over his face, then anger. His hold on my hair tightens and he gives me a shake. “Don’t interrupt, bitch. Give me your phone.” He raises his eyebrows like a cartoon perv, “Or I’ll call my friends in and the three of us will search your body until we find it.”

  Somehow I’d managed to forget all about the two goons searching the rest of the apartment. My hand slides into my back pocket and I reluctantly hand over my phone.

  He immediately starts scrolling through it. “Ka-ree-nah,” he mumbles and his face lights up in a disgusting smirk. “Hot little bitch,” he mutters.

  I’d hate myself for possibly endangering my best friend, but Dante will keep her safe. It’s obvious he’d murder anyone who hurt her. It reminds me of how fiercely Romeo protected me from the guard he thought was a threat at the music festival.

  After the thoughtless way I left him, there’s no way he’s going to cough up a dime to rescue me. And I don’t blame him. Snake will make his demands. Romeo will laugh and hang up. Then I’ll be at the mercy of Snake and his friends. A fitting ending for a girl whose list of stupid things she’s done keeps growing and growing.

  Snake pockets my phone then glances up and catches me trying to crawl away. It’s a pitiful effort, really. I mean, where the hell am I supposed to go? His boot lands on my chest. Not a kick, but a forceful nudge back into place.

  He whips out a bunch of zip ties. Figures this lowlife carries a stash of kidnapping supplies hidden in his cargo pants pockets. When he secures me to the metal frame of the bed, I’m ashamed to say, I’m too scared to fight hard. Afraid he’ll hurt me worse if I don’t cooperate.

  “Stay put.” He snickers on his way out. The door slams shut behind him, leaving me in my dimly lit bedroom. While I’m distressed about my predicament, I’m also relieved that he left me alone.

  A few minutes later he returns. Damn.

  “Yeah. She’s fine for now.” He flips on a light and points my phone to snap a photo of my pathetic self, helplessly tied to the bed frame. The light goes off and the doors shuts again.

  I catch bits and pieces of the phone call. The phrase “skull fuck your bitch” comes through the thin door, clear enough that I’m properly frightened.

  Did Romeo actually answer the phone? A small glimmer of hope flutters in my chest. Maybe he doesn’t hate me so much that he’ll leave me to get raped and murdered by this psycho.

  What seems like ho
urs later, Snake pokes his head in the door. “You must be a better fuck than you think. President Romeo’s on his way and gave his word he’s bringing a rack of dead presidents to buy your sweet ass.”

  I’ll need a month to unpack that sentence. My takeaway—Romeo’s coming to save me, and I weep with relief.

  15

  “Motherfucker!”

  Everyone in the clubhouse turns and stares.

  I jab my finger in the direction of the open chapel door. “Chapel. Now. Everyone.”

  Dante walks in the clubhouse as brothers hustle into the other room.

  It doesn’t take a genius to see how tightly wound I am. “What’s wrong, Prez?” he asks.

  “I know you just got back, but I need you.”

  “Yeah. Okay. Right behind you.”

  That’s how this club, our brotherhood, works. Not because I’m the president. It would be this way for any of us. One brother says he needs something, we have each other’s backs.

  And right now I really appreciate that loyalty. I’m gonna need it when I explain this fucked-up situation.

  I barely make it inside the room without losing it. I can’t sit. “I got a call from some nomad motherfucker who’s got Athena. Says he’s gonna hurt her if I don’t bring him money.”

  Dante explodes out of his chair, ready to leave right now. “Jesus, fuck. Are you serious? Is she okay?”

  “Are you sure this isn’t a setup?” Wolf asks.

  Just because we have each other’s backs, doesn’t mean the fuckers won’t ask some pointed questions. “No,” I answer evenly before sending the picture of Athena tied to a bed to everyone at the table. Thinking about the slimy piece of shit I spoke to on the phone touching Athena, has me shaking with rage.

  “Yeah, but she could be in on it,” Stryker says.

  “This the bitch who up and left you?” Whip asks.

  “It doesn’t fucking matter,” I snap. “They snatched her because of her connection to me. This isn’t club business. It’s personal, so if you don’t want to get involved, that’s fine.”

  Whip and Stryker exchange a glance.

  “Athena wouldn’t do that,” Cricket pipes up. “I’ll ride with you, Prez.”

  Dante’s already pulling cash out of the safe, so I think it’s pretty clear where he stands. Since he’s got the personality of a pissed off polar bear most of the time, and doesn’t give two fucks about many people, my brothers start treating this as more than my own personal piece-of-ass-problem. Since there’s a six-hour ride ahead of us, I ain’t got time to waste being offended.

  Our treasurer, Stryker, helps Dante count and package the money.

  “Wolf, Stryker, I need you two to stay here and hold things down.”

  Whip seems to be more on board now. “I’ll go plan the route. Got an address?”

  “Yeah.”

  “How many in his crew?” Luck asks.

  “Don’t know. Heard at least one other guy in the background.”

  “Karina said Athena mentioned three guys regularly hanging around there,” he offers.

  Whip barely glances away from his laptop. “Makes sense. He’s a nomad, he ain’t gonna be rolling with too many.”

  Fifteen minutes later I’m on the road with five of my brothers. In case one of us breaks down or we need to cart a body back, two prospects follow behind us in a van. Whip leads us on what he says is the quickest route and even though he pissed me off back at the table, I trust his judgment.

  We make one stop outside Los Angeles, so I can call the little punk holding Athena and let him know we’re close.

  “Yeah, man. Me and your girl are just chillin’. She’s a sweet little thing. Seems sort of shy, but maybe I can work that out of her if you don’t get here soon.”

  Even though I’m seething inside, I don’t react to his taunt. “We’ll be there in about an hour.”

  I lied. We’re there in twenty minutes. I want the extra time to map out the area. See how busy it is. Assess if it’s the type of neighborhood where folks call the cops every time they hear a gunshot.

  It’s not a South Central ghetto. But it sure as fuck ain’t the sort of place a girl like Athena should be living.

  It burns my ass she left me to live in a dump like this, when I would have given her anything and everything she needed.

  Not that she had any reason to know that, since in the short time we spent together, all I did was find new and inventive ways to stick my dick in her.

  Fuck it. All I care about now is getting her out of here safely and then getting the fuck away from her.

  The door that corresponds to the number Snake gave me sits busted open. I assume he did that. The thought of him terrorizing Athena heats my blood to the point I’m liable to snap and kill this motherfucker the minute I see him.

  Dante and Nero follow behind me.

  The two pansies pretending to guard the living room almost piss themselves when we enter.

  “Snake?”

  One of the pansies points to the hallway.

  Dante steps up. “You got two seconds to get the fuck out of here.”

  They don’t need two seconds.

  So much for loyalty and brotherhood. Dante glances at me and smirks.

  “You got this?” I ask and he nods.

  The apartment’s silent. What if they moved her somewhere else?

  Then Snake calls out for one of his guys. When no one answers, he steps into the living room. The cocky smirk on his face falters when he gets a good look at me and my crew. Not one of my brothers will leave me to fend for myself.

  “Your friends left,” Dante says, answering Snake’s unspoken question.

  “Where’s Athena?” I ask.

  Snake slides his arrogant smile back on. “Chill, Prez. She’s fine.” He waves his hands around in a thuggish calm down, bro gesture. This motherfucker better enjoy his last few moments of having four fully functioning limbs.

  “Where’s my money?” Snake asks.

  Dante glances at me and I nod. Even though I haven’t spotted a weapon on Snake yet, I want to do this as clean as possible.

  Dante throws the duffle bag of cash at the prick, who digs through it like a fat kid with his sack of Halloween candy. Too stupid to realize he’s outnumbered and we’ve got no reason to keep him alive, Snake points down the hallway. “Your girl’s down there, Prez. Waitin’ for ya.”

  I trust Dante to take care of the situation and leave to go find my girl.

  The first door I encounter is open a crack and I push it wider, hand on my weapon in case of surprises. But all I find is my girl huddled on the floor, hands laced tight together and then tied to the bed restraining her from moving far.

  She lifts her head and the tear tracks all over her face push me forward.

  Down on both knees, I whip out the pocketknife I carry at all times, and cut her loose.

  I take her face between my hands, checking for any damage. Shit, she’s more beautiful than I remember. Even all dirty and teary.

  She throws her arms around me, almost knocking me over.

  A rush of air leaves my lungs. “You’re okay, sweetheart.”

  “Thank you. Thank you,” she says over and over. “I’m so sorry. I can’t believe you came.”

  Now isn’t the time to talk about how this doesn’t mean there’s anything between us, so I don’t.

  She scrunches her face and wriggles around. “I need to pee. He wouldn’t let me up. Told me to piss myself.”

  I help her up and to the bathroom and then join Dante and the others in the living room, where Dante’s working Snake over with his massive fists.

  “Save something for me, brother.”

  Dante glances up and all but snarls at me. He’s way into kill mode here. “Snake. One Tucker hired.” He barely sounds human uttering the words, but I get what he’s saying.

  I hold up a hand to stop Dante for a second. “You’re on the run from the Red Storm, right?” I ask Snake.

  Behind
me, the bathroom door opens. “Go back in the bedroom and stay there, Athena.”

  Thankfully, she doesn’t argue. After she’s safely shut inside the bedroom, I nod at Snake who thrusts his defiant chin up. “I ain’t on the run from no one.”

  “That’s not what I heard.”

  He shakes his head and drops of blood splatter on the already filthy carpet. “Your bitch’s roommate stole from me. Just gettin’ my money back. Leave my club out of it.”

  The angrier I am inside, the calmer I appear outside. I lean back against the wall and cross my arms over my chest. “You know Athena had nothing to do with that. And maybe you haven’t heard, but there’s a nice fat reward for your half-dead carcass.”

  His eyes widen because he knows I’m speaking the truth.

  I glance at Dante. “Athena doesn’t need to see this. Take him to the back bedroom. Do what you gotta do. But don’t kill him. Deacon wants him alive.”

  While Dante drags Snake to the back of the apartment, Nero cleans things up in the living room. I leave to get Athena.

  She’s busy jamming things into a backpack when I walk in the bedroom, but stops as soon as she sees me.

  Rushing over, she throws her arms around me. “Thank you so much. I’m so—”

  I cut her off because I don’t want to talk about it. “I’ll take you home.”

  She looks around her room sadly. “I don’t want—”

  I cut off her protest. “It’s not safe for you to stay here right now. You’ll be safer at home.”

  “Okay. Thank you.”

  It’s just a ride. Doesn’t mean a thing.

  Romeo rescued me.

  I’m so grateful.

  I also feel terrible.

  “Romeo, I need to—”

  “Don’t wanna talk about it, Athena.”

  “I know. Please let me explain—”

  His head snaps up and he glares at me so fierce, my heart thumps. “So were you fuckin’ Snake or one of his buddies?” he snarls at me.

  “What?” How can he ask me that?

  He drops down onto my bed and stares at me. “Well, since you used me to pop your cherry and all, figured you’d be makin’ up for lost time.”

  I have to take a second and process that so I don’t smack him. “First, can we stop with the whole popping cherry thing, it’s so gross.”