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Reaper (Kings of Korruption MC Book 4)

Page 7

by Geri Glenn


  Her words rip me back to the present and I drop her arm instantly. Anna’s eyes hold mine as she cradles it to her chest, her hands holding the place I’d squeezed her. Fuck.

  “I’d like you to call Ryker now, please.” Her voice is weak, but steady, her gaze unwavering.

  “Anna…”

  “It’s fine,” she says, taking a step back. “I just…I think I should go home and talk to my sister now.”

  I can’t explain the sudden knot in my gut as I stare into her sad, surprisingly brave eyes, but it almost cripples me. I swallow past the thick lump in my throat and pull out my phone. I don’t know if I can talk to Ryk right now, so I shoot him a text, letting him know Anna’s here and needs a ride.

  I clip it back onto my belt and feel it vibrate with his response, but I keep my eyes on Anna. “Let me see your arm,” I say as gently as I can manage.

  “It’s okay, Reaper. Really.”

  “Anna, let me see your fuckin’ arm.”

  Her eyes widen as I take a step. She shakes her head fiercely. “No, okay? Just no. Let me know when Ryker gets here.”

  With that, she spins and practically runs back to the bathroom. She’s just disappeared around the corner when I hear the crash, followed by a scream that’s cut short. The noise has me moving. As fast as I can manage, I rush toward the noise and end up in the living room, where I find Anna, once again, on the floor. Only this time, her hands are clutched to her face, and I can see a small trail of blood sliding down her arm.

  “Jesus,” I hiss as I hurry to her. My hands grasp at hers, trying to pull them away and see where she’s hurt.

  “The table,” she says, her voice filled with more embarrassment than pain. “I wasn’t watching where I was going and I sort of…tripped, I guess. My face hit the table.”

  Sure enough, a large blue bruise is already forming on her cheekbone, a small cut running right through the centre of it. “It doesn’t look like it’ll need stitches,” I say, tilting her head toward the light so I can get a better look.

  Anna pulls her face from my fingers and stands slowly, her legs wobbly and weak. “I’ll just go clean it up,” she whispers, retreating from me once more.

  I want to help her, but I know damn well she won’t accept it. Nor should she. I can’t believe I’d laid my fucking hands on her. I might not like her, but she’s a woman, and I never thought I’d hurt a woman. It’s best if I just stay the hell away from her.

  I right the coffee table that had ended up on its side, suddenly hating the damn thing for being so sharp at the edges. Time to go shopping for a new one.

  I go to the kitchen and grab an ice pack, wrapping it in a dark grey dishtowel. At the bathroom door, I knock softly, not having a clue what to say.

  “Yeah?” Anna calls from inside.

  “Got ice for your cheek.” God, I’m an asshole.

  The door opens just enough for her to stick her arm through and take the cloth from me. Her eyes meet mine, and my heart stops in my chest. Even through the crack in that door, I can see her pain. Not the physical pain of her cheek, or where I’d grabbed her arm, but the emotional pain that I myself know all too well. The kind of pain that eats away at you from the inside out and leaves you with raw, gaping holes that no one else can see, but you struggle to conceal anyway.

  “Thank you,” she says softly and pulls her hand back inside. The door closes with a soft click, then I’m alone in the hall, feeling like shit for hurting the one woman I’d sworn I’d ruin.

  Anna

  I feel like such an idiot. I can’t believe I tripped over that damn table. I’d been doing my best to hold onto my tears until I could lock myself away in the bathroom to wait for Ryker, but the tears practically blinded me, and I’d made a total ass of myself.

  Reaper’s words play over and over in my head. He was right. I had started something way back when I’d made that deal with Krueger. He’d been supplying my drug habit for about a year at that point, and I’d owed him more money than I could possibly pay back. The result had been total chaos.

  I do my best to wipe the blood away from my skin and squint at the bruise growing darker by the second. There’ll be no covering this one with makeup, no matter how hard I try. The ice Reaper brought me helps a little with the swelling, but what I really want now is a couple of Tylenol and my own bed.

  I hear the doorbell ring and do a quick clean up of my first aid supplies before leaving the safety of the bathroom. I’m not particularly looking forward to seeing Ryker either, but for now, he’s the only safe place I really have. Him and my sister.

  Their muffled voices are hushed as I approach the door, but I can’t make out what their saying. Ryker’s chuckle drifts through the air, just as I turn the corner. As my eyes meet his, the smile falls from his face and I watch in horror as rage takes over, his fist coming up and plowing into the side of Reaper’s nose.

  “You son of a bitch,” he roars, his shoulders heaving as he pulls his arm back for another hit.

  Awareness of what this must look like to him washes over me, and I scream, jumping between the two of them, my hands up in the air. “Ryker, no! Stop!”

  “Get out of the way, Anna,” he snarls, his eyes narrowed on Reaper who stands behind me with his own fists clenched.

  “Stop,” I cry as he lunges again.

  “One hit, Prez,” Reaper says. “I’ll allow that one fuckin’ hit. You come at me again, I’ll put you on your ass.”

  “Bring it, asshole.”

  “No!” I say again, pushing my hands against Ryker’s chest, trying in vain to get him to stop. “It’s not what it looks like!” Ryker shoves against me, and I feel Reaper at my back, but he’s not pushing.

  “Listen to Anna, man. You’re over-fuckin’-reacting.”

  Ryker’s nostrils flare, and I know I’m about to lose him any second. “I fell!” I cry, jumping up and down in front of him, trying to put my face in his sight. “I was walking to the bathroom and I fell, okay? I hit my face on Reaper’s coffee table.”

  That settles him… a little. His eyes slide down to me and he stares at my cheek. “The coffee table?”

  I nod and lower my arms, sighing in relief. He’s finally listening to me. Taking a step back, my body comes up against Reaper’s chest, but he doesn’t move. His hands come to my waist and he holds my trembling body steady, somehow knowing I’m about ready to come out of my own skin.

  His touch both calms me and sets a whole new set of nerves on edge. The heat of his hands on my body ignites a flame deep inside me, a flame I haven’t felt in a long time. “I’ve had a really shit day, Ryker. I just want to go home, crawl into bed, and sleep for the rest of my life. Okay?”

  His jaw is set, but he nods and slides his gaze to Reaper. A deep sigh puffs out his chest. “I’m sorry, brother. I saw her face and fuckin’ lost it. We good?”

  I can’t see Reaper from behind me, but his hands squeeze my waist and I hear his gruff, “We’re good.”

  I don’t know if he’s actually good, or just saying that because Ryker is the prez, but I’m just thankful it’s over.

  “Let’s go,” Ryker says, turning for the door.

  I grab his elbow to get his attention. “I’ll be right out,” I say. “I just need a moment alone with Reaper.”

  His eyes scan mine for a moment, before he finally nods and heads outside. Turning, I face Reaper and my heart aches when I catch sight of his bloody lip. “I’m so sorry,” I whisper.

  He just shakes his head. “It’s cool. Go home and put more ice on your cheek, yeah?”

  I nod, and I’m about to leave when the urge to tell him something I’ve never told anyone stops me in my tracks. “He was going to kill me, you know.” Reaper’s eyes narrow on mine, and I can tell he’s not sure what I’m talking about. “Krueger. I did promise him Charlotte in exchange for paying my debt, but he was going to kill me.”

  Reaper opens his mouth to argue, but I force out the rest before I lose my courage. Taking a step
closer, I place my fingers against my throat, showing him the thin scar there. It’s about half an inch long, and was never very deep, but I’d feared for my life the night Krueger had put it there. Reaper’s eyes lock onto my throat as I speak.

  “He had a knife to my throat. He was going to slice me open, right then and there. He said he’d let me go if I promised him Charlotte.” Reaper’s jaw flexes, but he says nothing. “I did it, but I hated myself for it. I still do. I ran with Charlotte that very same night. I didn’t think he’d ever find us.”

  A tear slides down my cheek and still, Reaper doesn’t say a word. “Anyway,” I say, my voice soft and quivering. “I just wanted you to know.”

  I offer him a sad smile as I turn to follow Ryker. I feel Reaper’s eyes on me the entire way, only losing them when we finally turn off his street.

  Reaper

  The second I walk into Jase’s garage, I regret it. I’d had a shit sleep and wasn’t ready to deal with Jase and his smart-ass bullshit today. Since she walked out of my house last night, my head has been filled with nothing but Anna and that scar on her otherwise creamy smooth skin. The fact that there was more to her story than I’d thought, makes me wonder what else there is to it. I’ve been blaming her all along for every heavy thing this club has gone through since we met her, but maybe I was wrong. Maybe Anna’s been a victim in this the whole time. These thoughts had made sleep an impossible feat.

  Jase’s eyes widen when he sees me, his deep laughter echoing throughout the massive building. “Jesus Christ, Reap. Who the hell used your face as a battering ram?”

  I don’t even get a chance to answer when Ryker steps out of from behind the stocked shelves, looks at my face and winces. “Yeah,” he says. “That would be me.”

  Jase’s shocked face is priceless as he looks from me to Ryker. “You hit Reaper? You feelin’ suicidal or somethin’?”

  “Somethin’ like that,” he says with a smirk in my direction, and I can only shake my head.

  Suddenly, a loud bang fills the space around us, and men wearing Kevlar vests with Drug Enforcement Division emblazoned on the back charge in, guns drawn. All around me is total chaos.

  As one, Ryker, Jase, and I lift our hands as multiple men point guns in our faces, screaming at us to get down on the ground. Out of the corner of my eye, I see three of Jase’s staff members getting the same treatment.

  My belly on the ground, like a goddamn dog in the dirt, I breathe deep, calming breaths, trying to beat back the panic and anger, trying to figure out what the fuck is going on. Handcuffs are snapped onto our wrists as the men continue to shout. Metal clanks against concrete as more men start tossing boxes of motorcycle parts off the shelves and onto the floor. There are more men through the window, ripping apart the showroom, and likely Jase’s office.

  A shiny pair of black boots come to a stop in front of me and I tip my head back to get a better look. The man is dressed in a pair of black cargo pants and Kevlar, a brutal grin on his face. “So, we meet again, Mr. Landry. I told you we’d be getting to know each other better.”

  I’d remember that voice anywhere. What is this guy’s fucking deal?

  “Friend of yours, Reap?” Jase asks from his place on the floor beside me.

  I don’t take my eyes away from the man as I smirk and shake my head. “Nah, just a fan.”

  The man crouches before me, his gun coming out to touch my chin. Using the barrel of it, he forces my head back, his face lowering even more. “You’d be smart to watch your mouth, Landry. I’ve been watching you assholes for months now, and the shitstorm I’m about to rain down on you is just the beginning.”

  He’s lucky my hands are cuffed behind my back, because gun or no gun, if they weren’t, I’d be stomping his head into the ground for even looking at me the way he is right now.

  “On what basis?” Ryker yells above the noise of the officers destroying Jase’s shop.

  The cop smirks at me, pulls the gun away from my chin and stands. Slowly, he walks toward Ryker and crouches down in front of him. He keeps the gun in Ryker’s line of sight, but doesn’t point it at him. “Mr. Cole,” he says, as if greeting an old friend.

  “Belanger,” Ryker replies, his face giving away zero emotion. That’s one thing I’ve always admired about Ryker. Fucker should play professional poker.

  “We received an anonymous tip from a reliable source that Korrupted Custom Choppers was being used as the hub for your MC’s drug business. That tip was all we needed to get a search warrant.”

  Ryker raises a skeptical brow. “Is this tip from the same guy that gave you the tip that the King’s clubhouse had drugs in it?”

  The question doesn’t faze Belanger in the slightest. “As a matter of fact, it is.”

  “This’s bullshit!” Jase yells, struggling with the cuffs, his eyes filled with rage as another one of his shelves is turned on its side.

  I lay on the floor, taking it all in. The cops, the guns, Belanger’s attitude. His answering grin isn’t the grin of a man who’s looking for justice. It’s the grin of a man with an axe to grind. One that has something to prove.

  “There was no tip, was there?” I say, keeping my voice calm and my posture relaxed. Belanger’s head turns in my direction, and I know I’m right. He’s making it up. He lied about the tip to get the warrant because he has an agenda all his own.

  Before I know it, he’s standing over me, his hands grasping my arms as he attempts to pull me to my feet. “Take him in for resisting arrest,” he snarls at one of the officers standing nearby.

  The officer stiffens, his eyes wide. “But sir, he’s already cuffed.”

  “I don’t give a fuck!” Belanger screams and shoves me toward the man. “Get him outta here.”

  Oh, this guy is losing it. The officer reluctantly takes my shoulder and shoves me toward the door. Behind me, I can hear Jase and Ryker screaming at Belanger, but I don’t fight. In fact, I’m not worried at all. They can’t keep me. I haven’t done a damn thing for them to hold me, but I may just find out what the hell Belanger’s really after if I let him question me.

  Anna

  “Are you going to tell me what happened now?” Charlotte asks from the doorway to the kitchen. It’s my day off, and I’d slept a good part of it away, partly because I’d needed the rest, and partly to avoid this very conversation.

  I take a fortifying sip of my coffee and finally meet her eyes. “It’s uh… kind of a long story,” I say, praying that she’ll just drop it, but knowing damn well she isn’t going to.

  Charlotte snags a bottle of water from the fridge and sits across from me at the kitchen table. “Well, lucky for you, neither of us have anywhere else to be today.”

  I sigh and pick at my toast, looking anywhere but at my sister.

  “Did you really smack your face on that table, Anna?” Her question is soft, and maybe even a little nervous.

  That’s when I finally dig up what little courage I have to meet her eyes. “Reaper didn’t hit me, Char. I was upset about something he said, and I was running to the bathroom and tripped.”

  Charlotte nibbles on her lip for a moment, her eyes locked on mine. My heart breaks as I watch tears build in her soft eyes, threatening to spill over the edges, but she doesn’t let them fall. “Then who bit your lip, honey?”

  I can’t tell you that, not without telling you everything. Henry’s words to me from the NA meeting float through my mind, making me reconsider the answer I’d been about to give her. ‘If you have someone you love, someone who loves you, talk to them. You can’t fight this battle on your own, honey.’

  I want to tell her everything, I do. But, I’ve worked for years to keep the entire truth from my sister, if not for any other reason than to protect her from it. But maybe I can tell her a little, enough for her to understand. To have some insight into how hard I’m trying.

  I sigh heavily and pick at the cotton tablecloth, gathering my courage. How much information will be too much? Will telling her some
of it just lead to her demanding to know more?

  “I’m an addict,” I whisper, unable to look up from my hands which are now fisted tightly in my lap.

  Silence follows my confession, but still, I don’t look at her. “What do you mean, an addict?” she finally asks, her voice wavering with emotion.

  That’s when I finally look at her. The tears in her eyes have made their escape and are trailing down her cheeks, one at a time, like suicide jumpers, desperate to leave Charlotte and her pain behind. I envy them. But I can’t escape. I’d caused this pain.

  “I’ve been addicted to opiates, Char, for a long time. Since I was a teenager, to be honest.”

  Charlotte blinks back at me, then she blinks again. “But…how? How is that possible? Up until last year, we’ve lived together. How could I not know?” The more she speaks, the more distraught she sounds.

  My chair scrapes across the floor as I stand, rushing to her side where I kneel before her and grasp her hands in mine. “You didn’t know because I didn’t want you to know. I love you, Char, and I thought I had a handle on it. I thought I could do it on my own. To be honest, I didn’t even think I had a problem until I went to Montreal and met Knox.”

  Her sensitive brown eyes are red-rimmed and alert as she surveyed my face. “What does this have to do with the teeth marks in your lip?” she asks, her voice stronger now. Demanding.

  I stare down at her lap, where my hands are tangled with hers. “I met this guy when we first moved here, a dealer. He kept me supplied in drugs until the day Ryker had to send me to Montreal. He came in last night, and when I told him I was clean… well, let’s just say he didn’t like that too much. Reaper came along right after he left and took me to his house to clean me up.” I lift my gaze to hers. “He didn’t hurt me, Char. He was trying to help me.”

  “So that’s why you were at Reaper’s house,” she says, the pieces falling into place. “I’ll have to thank him for being so kind to you.”

 

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