“What’s your real name? Besides Reaper, I mean,” Amber asked quickly, trying to stall for time. She wasn’t ready to be alone or maybe just wasn’t ready for him to leave her.
“Zander,” he cleared his throat. “My real name is Zander Evans,” he said with a smile that could melt the panties off a nun. If Amber didn’t know any better, she would think he was just as nervous as she was, but that couldn’t be right. Zander was a walking Sex God. A sinfully yummy Sex God.
While Amber was just the girl next door, nothing special. Ms. Plain Jane.
“I like it,” Amber confessed. “It suits you.”
“Thanks,” he chuckled. “My mom will be happy to know that at least someone likes her name choice.”
“You don’t like it?” she asked him, puzzled because the name really did fit him. Strong and unique.
“It’s a name,” Reaper said with a shrug of his wide shoulders.
“So how long have you known my brother?” Amber asked. The moment the question left her mouth, she saw the smile drop from his face. She didn’t know why the question upset him, but for whatever reason, she regretted asking it.
“Never mind,” she quickly said. “I didn’t mean to pry.”
When Reaper just stood there looking at her, she had no idea what else to say. What could bring back the easy conversation between them again? Coming up with nothing, Amber quickly told him, “Well. Thank you for walking me over. Goodnight Reaper.”
Chapter Three
Reaper
Standing there, watching the sadness sweep across Amber’s face, Reaper knew he was in trouble. He never liked to talk about his life before the Henchmen. At thirty-three, it hadn’t been anything like he thought it would.
He always wanted to be a career military officer. Elite Special Forces, a US Navy SEAL, that’s how he met her brother. He and Sledge were on the same team. Sledge was his Commander. But after their last mission, all of that ended. The career he wanted so badly turned in only twelve years. It felt like a lifetime ago, but his leg was a constant reminder of everything he lost.
Reaper blew out a sigh. “Devin and I were on the same SEALs team. He was my Commander,” he finally said, drawing Amber’s attention from the floor.
“So y’all have known each other for a long time?” she asked.
Reaper nodded yes and continued, “Almost fifteen years. We met in basic training and then ran into each other again during SEAL training in Coronado and became fast friends. We were lucky when we were placed in the same unit,” he relayed as if he was talking about the weather.
He hated talking about that part of his life, but for some reason, he wanted to let her in. Let her see the real him and not just the Enforcer and VP of the Devil’s Henchmen. But he had no idea how.
There were some parts he would rather not speak about - the ambush, Rebecca, months of rehab - all of it destroyed a part of his soul. How do you tell someone that? And what was it about this woman that made him even want to tell her?
Telling himself to calm down, Reaper leaned against the doorframe.
Amber continued watching him, waiting for him to continue. “There isn’t much I can tell you. Our missions were Top Secret, classified shit,” Reaper said.
“So is your limp part of that classified shit?” Amber asked. “I noticed it when we were walking over. Did you get injured overseas?”
Reaper looked down at his leg. He hadn’t noticed himself limping. He knew his leg hurt like a motherfucker tonight, but didn’t think anyone else had noticed.
He worked really hard to keep that from everyone. Taking a bullet to the thigh during a firefight, three and a half years ago, definitely left a lasting mark and not just on his leg. It ended everything he worked so hard to accomplish, ruined the only serious relationship he ever had.
“No, that isn’t classified,” he said in an irritated voice. “That was blasted all over the news before the Nightstalker could even land the Black Hawk to pick up our SEAL team.”
“Nightstalker?” Amber asked.
“That’s a military term for a stealth helicopter,” Reaper explained.
Wanting to end this entire line of questioning he turned back to the door. “Goodnight Amber, sleep well,” he said and he walked out of the room, closing the door quietly behind him.
Walking back down the hall to his own room, Reaper wondered what the fuck his problem was. He had no clue why he was being such an ass to her, all she did was ask a few questions.
But Reaper already knew the answer. He was a prick because he had to protect himself. If there was one thing he learned from having to see the psychologist at Walter Reed, it was that his shitty attitude manifested when he felt the need to defend or protect himself.
Yeah he hated talking about his bum leg, it pissed him off really, but still, Reaper knew, it didn’t justify being rude to Amber. He would have to apologize to her tomorrow, he thought in frustration.
Just as he was entering his room, his cell phone buzzed letting him know he had a text message.
It was Sledge. “My office,” was all it said.
Turning around he made his way back to the clubhouse and walked into Sledge’s office without knocking. He was tired, and not in the mood for club shit tonight.
“What’s up?” Reaper asked as he sat in the chair across from Sledge. His friend looked at him with a half-smile.
“Amber get settled in?” he asked.
“Yep,” Reaper replied, “Is that what you called me back over here for? Because if it is, you could have just sent me a text to ask that shit.”
Sledge raised an eyebrow at Reaper’s tone. “No, as a matter of fact, that’s not why I told you to come here asshole. What the fuck is your problem?” Sledge demanded.
“Nothing man, I’m just tired and my damn leg is kicking my ass tonight,” Reaper grumbled. Sledge was one of the few people who knew how much Reaper’s leg still bothered him.
“Okay, well get some ice or something on it later. For now, I found some info on the goop chute my sister was dating. Turns out Joe Stephens is actually Ratchet, as in - the founder of the Velvet Blood.”
Velvet Blood was a bunch of fucknuts that ran drugs and guns for the Mexican Cartel. Headquartered in Dallas, they carried out business for the Cartel throughout the entire southern United States. They also had their hands in human trafficking and prostitution. Last month, the Henchmen had to chase a group of their guys out of Tank’s bar. They were giving some of the waitresses shit and causing trouble.
“Damn! Man, this shit is going to get nasty,” Reaper said. The Bloods were a messy organization.
“Very,” replied Sledge. “Fuck dude, my sister couldn’t have picked a worse bastard to get mixed up with. This isn’t just going to go away. He’ll look for her, Zander,” Sledge sighed, scrubbing a hand down his face.
“I think that’s a good possibility,” Reaper agreed.
“I know I said that he probably wouldn’t, but we know how this group operates. That asshole isn’t going to let her go without a fight. I can’t believe she didn’t tell me he was a fuckin’ drug dealer!” Sledge fumed. He stood up and started to pace the room. With each step, Reaper could see him getting angrier.
“Calm down Devin, maybe she didn’t know. Your sister seems to have a good head on her shoulders. Talk to her in the morning. Then we’ll call the club members in for a meeting. We have to prepare for what may come.” Both nodding their heads in agreement, Reaper stood up and headed to bed. Tomorrow was going to be a long damn day.
Chapter Four
Amber
The next morning Amber woke up feeling like she’d been hit by a truck. Her body hurt and she had a horrible headache. Rolling away from the sun glaring through the window, she groaned out loud.
“There’s a glass of water and Tylenol on the nightstand,” Devin told her.
Amber rolled over, to see her brother lying on a bedroll on the floor. “Why are you sleeping on the floor? You could have slept in y
our bed,” she told him. Not like it wasn’t big enough. It was a king size bed and she was tiny.
“I haven’t been sleeping and I didn’t want to disrupt you. Not a big deal. But Amber, we need to talk,” Sledge said, standing up and climb into the bed to sit beside his sister.
“What about Dev?” she asked. The look on his face was making her nervous. Whatever he was going to say, Amber knew she wasn’t going to like it.
“I went digging last night, pulled favors from a few contacts,” he started. Sighing, he continued, “Why didn’t you tell me Joe was a drug dealer?” he asked so nonchalant.
Amber’s head whipped around. “What do you mean he’s a drug dealer? Devin, no he’s not. He sells real estate,” she replied, thinking her brother really needed different contacts because they were completely wrong!
“Oh, he does that too, but it’s only a front for the illegal operation he is trying to hide,” Devin explained. But Amber just continued to shake her head.
“Amber, Joe Stephens goes by the street name Ratchet. He is the founder and leader of the Velvet Blood. They are the biggest drug organization in the south - and not just drugs. They’re also involved in guns, prostitution, you name it. He also runs all of the illegal operations for the Mexican Cartel that cross the Texas border,” Sledge said, placing a file on her lap.
“What is this?” she asked.
“Open it,” Devin demanded.
Amber sat there flipping through the pages. Image after image. Drug deals. Police Reports. FBI. ATF. There were also surveillance photos of her in the file. Her at home. Her at work. Her and Joe eating dinner at their favorite restaurant. Amber felt sick to her stomach.
“How did I not know?” she wondered out loud.
“How did I not know?” she yelled, panic settling in her chest. “This isn’t the guy I know. You have to believe me Devin! He seemed so normal. Treated me like a queen,” she said tapering to a whisper.
Amber sat on the bed, next to her brother thinking about how it used to be before everything went wrong. Thinking of how she honestly thought she knew Joe and as it turns out, it was all a lie. A total fuckin’ lie! How could she have been such a fool? She felt her heart clench, her stomach threatened to empty itself.
“Amber, he didn’t treat you well - he beat the shit out of you!” Devin yelled before getting off the bed to pace the room.
“He wasn’t always-,” she started to say, but Devin interrupted her.
“Don’t!” he commanded. “Don’t you dare defend him! If he treated you so well, why did I have to come get you? Why did I find you with a busted lip and bruised face?” Sledge demanded.
Amber knew he was getting upset. But there was no way she was going to let him speak to her like that. She didn’t give a shit if he was some biker group President. No man would talk down to her.
“Devin! Stop!” she yelled back. “One, don’t you dare fucking talk to me like that! I will dislocate your damn balls! Two, it wasn’t always like this. Before yesterday, Joe never hurt me. Never put his hands on me in a violent manner,” Amber said, feeling the blood in her body boil.
“I’m sorry, Amber.” Devin blew out a frustrated breath. “You’re right, I should have never spoken to you like that.”
“Apology accepted,” she told him, “But don’t let it happen again.”
“What exactly happened yesterday?” Devin questioned.
“Before, he used to spoil me. But yesterday, I don’t know. Yesterday, he came to my apartment and everything was different. He was different. He was so angry. He just lost it. I don’t know why. I was in the middle of cooking dinner. One minute everything was good. The next, it seemed like all hell broke loose. I honestly don’t know what could have happened,” Amber confessed. “Fuck! I don’t even know who he really is apparently,” Amber said.
“You do now,” Devin said tapping the file that had slide off her lap during their heated exchange. Hundreds of pictures laid across the mattress, taunting her.
Amber felt like a complete idiot. She had been lied to, beaten, and abused by a man she thought she knew. Someone she thought she could trust. This was the story of her damn life. First her father, then her step-father, then Paul, and now Joe.
“Fuck me,” she grumbled.
Sledge stood up from the bed and reached out his hand to her. “Come on little sister, we have a meeting to attend. We aren’t going to get answers sitting in this room. Plus, all the boys should be there by now waiting for us. We have to come up with a plan. I have a feeling Ratchet will come looking for you and I need to prepare my guys,” he said.
She knew that no matter what, her brother would always keep her safe, he would always protect her. But honestly, she was tired of always relying on him. Amber grabbed Sledge’s hand and let him pull her off the bed.
“Do you think I could go see Lo later? Maybe taking one of her self-defense classes would be a good idea,” she asked.
“I think that can be arranged,” Devin replied. “But you know how to fight. Any particular reason you want a self-defense class?”
“Yeah, because I can beat the crap out of K and he can’t do anything about it,” she admitted with a grin.
“I think that’s a great idea,” Devin laughed.
“Okay cool! Give me a minute to get ready?” she asked, and Devin nodded his head.
Walking into the bathroom, Amber’s mind kept spinning. This was all a huge cluster fuck. In a matter of thirty minutes, she learned everything she knew about her life for the last ten months, was a lie. What a damn mess, she thought, as she changed clothes, brushed her teeth and hair, and headed out to meet her brother.
“Let’s get this show started!” she said in an exciting voice that even her brother knew was fake. He just chuckled and rolled his eyes at her. Throwing his arm over her shoulder, they walked out the door and to the meeting room.
Chapter Five
Reaper
Reaper was running late for the morning meeting. He hadn’t slept worth a shit last night. He kept thinking about the woman sleeping in the room next to his and how he had been a total dick to her. After he got back to his room last night, he could hear the shower running in Sledge’s room and knew Amber was in there. That thought alone played tricks on his mind. Thinking of Amber wet, with soap dripping from her flesh, had him harder than he had ever been in his life. Reaper ended the night by having to take himself in his hand. There was no way to sleep with a raging hard-on.
In the light of day, nothing had changed. Reaper wasn’t looking for a relationship. He didn’t do serious. Casual sex, now that was his thing; but, he knew Amber wasn’t that type of girl. She deserved better than that. She needed a man that would open up his world to her. However, Reaper’s world would scare the shit out of her. There was no way he could allow her to see all of his demons.
Back at Walter Reed, the fuckin’ shrink he had to see tried to tell him that talking about the night his life turned to shit, would help, but that was a lie. It didn’t help. It made the flashbacks come more often. So why bother? If he didn’t have to relive that night and the shit storm that followed, then he could keep the nightmares at bay.
“But is that really what I want?” he asked him out loud, running a frustrated hand over his face.
Realizing he wasn’t going to solve his problems by standing there in his room, Reaper walked out of the door, he had a meeting to get to. He knew the meeting wouldn’t start without him, being VP did have its perks, he thought with an internal grin. Plus, he would get to see Amber again, which caused him to walk a little faster.
Entering the meeting room, Reaper’s eyes landed on her. She was sitting in a seat directly behind Sledge’s and his own. She looked tired, but managed to give him a half smile. Maybe she didn’t sleep so well either, he thought.
It was weird to see a woman in the room and looking around, Reaper could see others were thinking the same thing. Normally, these meetings were members only, meaning no women. Period. But, this
was a special case. Amber knew Ratchet’s movements. She knew his hang outs. Amber had information that they would all need; even if she didn’t realize it yet.
Reaper took his spot to the right of Sledge. Turning around he smiled at Amber and gave her a wink.
“Good morning,” she whispered.
“Morning Peaches,” he replied. “Sleep well?”
“Not even close,” she mumbled.
“Me either,” he responded with another wink.
Clearing his throat, Sledge called the meeting to order. “Brothers, first of all I want to say thank you for coming in so early. Also, as you can tell,” he said, “this is not an ordinary meeting; which brings me to my second point. I would like to introduce you to my sister, Amber. We have had an issue come up that needs to be handled quickly and with care. As y’all know, yesterday I left the house for a while. I received a call from Amber because she needed help. You can see, the call was justified,” Sledge said as he raised his hand to point to Amber’s face.
Reaper looked behind him again and noticed the blush filling her face. Yeah, she was not liking this. Too much attention. He wanted to pull her against him, to protect her from the looks all the guys were giving her.
The fuck, he thought. Not his place, not his job, he told himself.
“After getting back here, I called in some favors. Which leads us to my third point, and the reason we are here this morning,” Sledge said.
The screen on the far wall lit up. A photo of Ratchet popped up on the screen. Every few seconds, a new picture would take its place.
“The dumbass who thought it was a smart idea to touch my sister, is Ratchet from Velvet Blood.” Sledge relayed.
Reaper looked around the room watching different expressions cross the faces of his fellow brothers. Some were angry, some showed shock and disbelief. Slowly, Viper stood up in the back of the room.
The Enforcer (Devil's Henchmen MC Book 1) Page 2
