Vicious (Salvation's Bane MC 1): A Bones MC Romance

by Marteeka Karland

  “Where in Kentucky were you supposed to go?”

  “Does it matter?”

  “Yes. Because I have a feeling you were supposed to go to a little place called Somerset. A club called Bones. Am I right?” He could tell by the way those exotic eyes widened he was.

  “How’d you know?”

  “When you refused to leave your sister, did he tell you to come to us?” She nodded. “Bones is our sister club. Little far apart, but it works for us. Now, tell me who it was who told you to come here. Then I want you to tell me why.”

  She sighed, obviously realizing she’d lost this round. “Doesn’t matter anyway,” she muttered. “His name is El Diablo. He’s president of Black Reign in Lake Worth. He and Rycks told me, if I wanted to live, I’d go to Bones. When I refused to leave Florida without my sister, he told me to come to Salvation’s Bane. He said I might talk you into helping me. I had no intention of asking anyone for help, but I decided holing up in an MC clubhouse would be safer than hiding on my own.”

  “Where’s your sister?”

  “She was taken by enemies of Black Reign. More accurately, by enemies of El Diablo and the men he brought with him to Black Reign. Apparently, she was supposed to be leverage. While El Diablo doesn’t much care, Rycks apparently does.”

  “Never thought it would make a difference to El Diablo if one of his officers did care. He’s not exactly the compassionate soul.”

  “No. He’s not. He’s the scariest man I’ve ever met. But he’s fiercely loyal to his inner circle, and apparently Rycks wants my sister back.”

  “She his woman?” This was going to get complicated.

  “No. But I think he wants her to be. If not that, I have no idea. He’s hell-bent on getting her back, and they wanted me out of the way.”

  “Afraid you’d get hurt?”

  She shrugged. “No. I was just in the way. A liability, I guess.”

  Vicious was silent a long time, mulling this over. Even if he could convince Thorn to help this girl find her sister, if Black Reign had a claim to her, she’d never be able to leave their compound. Where did that leave her?

  “I need your name. Can’t do nothing without knowing that.”

  “Lucrecia Stephens. My sister’s name is Mae.”

  He blinked. “Your name’s a fuckin’ mouthful.”

  “Most everyone calls me Lucy.” She shrugged, looking for all the world like she could care less he’d just insulted her. Vicious knew better. He could see hurt in her expressive eyes.

  “Sorry,” he muttered. “It’s an unusual name.” He tilted his head, using the opportunity to check her out once more. “I think it suits you.”

  “Cause I’m a freak?” The little laugh she gave him was anything but humorous. “Never liked it, but I guess it does suit me.”

  “Look at me,” he snapped. Just like he knew she would, her gaze snapped to his tone of authority. “I was an ass. There’s nothing wrong with you other than you ate my fuckin’ pizza and drank my fuckin’ beer.”

  She managed a small giggle, which warmed Vicious’s chest more than was good for him. He was so fucked.”

  “You know why they have your sister?” He needed to get the subject back on track.

  “From what I could gather, El Diablo has something these guys want. He’s not giving it to them, and they’ve threatened to start sending Mae back in pieces.” There was a little quiver to her voice and her lower lip trembled slightly, but she quickly swallowed and gritted her teeth.

  “Bloody hell.” Vicious pulled out his phone and called Thorn. His president answered on the first ring. “We may have a situation.”

  “Don’t we always.” Thorn sounded bored, but Vicious knew his brother well enough to know that was his calm before the storm.

  “We have a stowaway. And she’s linked to Black Reign.”

  There was a long pause, then a heavy sigh. “It was bound to happen sooner or later. She OK?”

  “Fine. I’d like to call Data with Bones. Put him on it. See if he can dig up something we can’t find. Said Black Reign sent her here. Anyone call you with the details?”

  “No. It’s past fuckin’ time to do something about this fucker El Diablo. If he’s sendin’ trouble, the least the bastard could do is give me a heads up.” Thorn heaved a sigh into the phone. “Good idea to get Bones involved. Even better, see if he can get Sword to find out what’s going on. Being El Diablo’s son-in-law ought to have some perks.”

  Vicious ended the call, then gave Lucrecia his most intimidating stare. “You got anything else in here?” She shook her head. “Come with me.”

  “Where’re we going?”

  “To put you in a room where you can sleep somewhere other than under the fuckin’ sink.”

  Chapter Two

  Lucrecia knew she was in a world of trouble. The men of Black Reign hadn’t been unkind, but it had been clear they cared more about protecting whatever their enemies wanted than anyone in the clubhouse. She and Mae had only been with them a couple of weeks. The enforcer, Rycks, had allowed them to stay. Lucrecia had no idea why. The man seemed to hate everyone. The only people he showed respect to were El Diablo and a man they called El Segador. The Reaper.

  Rycks sought out Mae every day and taunted her mercilessly. He wasn’t exactly mean, but he let her know she didn’t belong there. Only seventeen, Mae tried to look and dress older than she was because she was a dancer. She and Lucrecia both had made more money exotic dancing than either had first thought possible. It hadn’t bought them a home, but it had helped pay off their father’s debts. She’d finally paid the guy off and had hoped to start saving for a home for her and Mae. Rycks had no idea how old she or Mae were. None of them did. At first.

  Rycks had spotted them in the club one night and strong-armed Lucy and Mae into a private performance for Black Reign that promised to pay double what they could have made at the club. At first, Lucrecia refused. There was no way either of them was prostituting herself. At least, Mae wasn’t going to. Lucrecia would do what she had to in order to protect her little sister. But, given the attention Rycks was giving Mae, Lucrecia doubted he would let her substitute for Mae.

  Finally, Mae talked Lucy into it. It would finish their payments to Tubs, the mob guy her dad owed. Being out from under that shadow was more of a relief than Lucy had been willing to admit at the time. She only agreed to going with Rycks with the understanding neither of them was turning tricks. It was an exotic dance only. Rycks had hastily agreed and taken them to the Black Reign clubhouse. Where he’d kept them. Every time Lucrecia mentioned leaving, Rycks would intimidate her into staying. He didn’t lay a hand on Mae the whole time they were there. Didn’t even allow her to fully strip. In fact, he’d insisted she dance for him the way she wanted to dance, to Mae’s delight. She’d studied ballet and contemporary dance and readily gave performances to anyone who wanted to watch. Rycks had encouraged her to dance regularly. Soon, she had a crowd gathering the second she entered the common room. The pay had been outstanding. She’d danced in skimpy outfits, but had never completely stripped, which relieved Lucy to no end.

  Lucrecia had danced every night for the club. An hour. Two if they had a party with other clubs. A few men -- and women -- had pawed her, but no worse than any other night at work. More than one had tried to coax her into their beds. When she’d said no, they’d looked crestfallen, but had only tipped her extra and grinned. They were a rowdy bunch, but pleasant enough.

  Though there were several club girls, none of them seemed to be claimed by any one man. No one latched on to any single man, and the men simply took what was offered. All but two young women.

  Serilda and Winter were sisters who kept mostly to themselves. Sometimes Rycks would coax them out into the common room if there was a less rambunctious gathering of the club. They were timid and anti-social, but Lucrecia could see they wanted to be part of the group. They just didn’t seem to know how. Though Rycks had taken on the role of protector, the rest
of the club took special care to make sure the two women felt safe. None of them approached the girls too suddenly and they never touched them. They were always kind and took care to include them if they could, but it was obvious they weren’t ready to join normal society for whatever reason. Had the men treated them differently than what Lucy had observed, she’d have done everything she could to get them out. Instead, the girls looked to Rycks and a few other members of the club as if they were the last line of defense between them and the rest of the world.

  Everything changed when Mae had been taken. Every single one of them to the man had turned deadly. Serilda and Winter had been taken away with four of the club members sent to guard them. The rest had prepared for war. She could see it in their eyes. When they looked at her, that is. Mostly they avoided her, as if she were a distraction.

  That was when El Diablo and Rycks had insisted she leave. They’d said they had no place for her anymore, and they’d do their best to find her sister and gave Lucy a bus ticked to Somerset, Kentucky. When she’d refused, not wanting to leave without Mae, Rycks had rolled his eyes, dumped her in a pick-up truck, and taken her to Palm Beach. He’d handed her written instructions on how to find the Salvation’s Bane clubhouse. Told her to get in and stay there. As long as she was with either Salvation’s Bane or Bones, she’d be safe.

  Yeah, the jury was still out on that one.

  Instead of approaching the club, she’d watched a couple of days, camping in an abandoned shop. Finally, she’d found her way in. The woman who’d recently left the club had a room she barely stayed in. Apparently, she went from man to man in the club. Not Lucy’s taste, but to each her own. Lucy had stayed hidden in Mercedes’s room. Mostly, she’d slept in the closet, but occasionally, she’d had to find other alternatives. Which is how she’d ended up under the sink. Cramped, but she was small.

  Her attention was drawn back to Vicious when he stopped in front of a door and opened it.

  “Here,” he growled. Mr. Personality he was not. “Inside until we decide what the fuck to do with you.”

  Had he not been such an asshole, Lucy would have gravitated toward him. It wasn’t that he was handsome -- at least, not in the conventional way. Tattoos covered him wherever there was skin except for his face. Scars crisscrossed over him at random. Some looked like knife wounds, others more like bullet wounds. But, hell, she wasn’t a medical person. All she knew was this man was a warrior.

  “How about I just leave. You don’t have to worry about it then.”

  “Unless you’re a plant by El Diablo.”

  “Ouch.” She mock-winced. “You really know how to hit a girl where it hurts.”

  “I do, but I don’t make a habit of it. Unless she betrays my brothers.” His dark eyes held death. That much was certain. She had no idea how he’d come by the name Vicious, but she could definitely tell he had a mean streak.

  “Look, I told you everything I know. El Diablo did send me, but not to spy or anything. He just wanted me out of the way.”

  “Then why not just kick you out? Why send you to Bones or here?”

  “I don’t know. I think it was because of Rycks. And before you ask, I have no idea what his motivations are. He’s just… protective. At least, he is with Mae.”

  “Stay here.”

  “Wait!” He’d turned to go, but Lucy didn’t like not knowing where she was or what to expect. She’d been there two weeks, but she hadn’t explored. Sure, she’d scavenged the girls’ clothing, but it had all been in the laundry room. Sitting there. Waiting for someone to wash. She had, then, helped herself. She’d always returned anything she’d borrowed to the dirty pile. The only room she’d ventured into had been Mercedes’s. The woman was never there, so why not? Though she’d been in the clubhouse, she’d kept to herself, only venturing out when the club as a collective was gone. Which happened only three times a week.

  “Whose room am I in? I don’t want someone thinking I broke in or some shit.”

  He leveled a look at her. Now, she already knew Vicious could be a scary man. She’d seen it in the way he looked at her in the beginning. She’d heard him with his brothers more than once over the days she’d been here, but she’d never seen this particular look in those fathomless dark eyes. “Mine.”

  She sucked in a breath and backed up one defensive step. There was something in his gaze. He let it travel over her from top to bottom. Lucy was almost certain it was a reflex on his part. As if sizing up potential prey. That look was at once hot and possessive. Lucy had seen the possessive looks Rycks gave Mae, but they were nothing like this. Vicious looked… primal. Even more than that. This was the side she’d always expected to see from the men she’d been around since Rycks had taken her and Mae in months earlier. Now, she knew she was right to fear it.

  “I’m not sure that’s a good idea.”

  “Don’t much care about your opinion. It’s my decision. You’re staying here until Thorn gives me further instruction.”

  “Right. He tells you to let me go, you gonna do it?”

  He smirked at her. “Baby, he ain’t gonna tell me to let you go.”

  “You can’t know that!” Lucy clenched her fists at her side, knowing deep down in her gut that, if she didn’t get out of here now, this man -- Vicious -- would never let her leave. How she knew it, she couldn’t say. But it was there between them. In the air around them.

  “I can. I do. You’re here until I say otherwise.”

  “I thought Thorn was the president.”

  Vicious shrugged. “He is. But all it takes is one of us to suggest there might be reason for him to rethink a decision, especially one like this. Holding you a few days while we look into Black Reign isn’t unreasonable. Even knowing that, I know my president. Thorn ain’t lettin’ you go until he’s satisfied you’re not here for more sinister reasons.” He grinned. “You keep that sweet little ass parked right here, baby. I’ll send up food and be back later.”

  * * *

  Vicious tried his best to take care of business as usual. He’d done as he promised and had food delivered and had one of the prospects take it to her. He had no idea what she liked or disliked, so he played it safe with a good-quality pizza. His has been pepperoni, so he’d gotten her the same. After that, he’d put her out of his mind. There were other things for him to worry about.

  Like fucking El Diablo. The man was up to something. No way would a man like him back down from anything. It wouldn’t matter who his enemies had taken. That man wouldn’t budge. He might fight back, might attack, but if push came to shove, he’d leave that girl in the tender hands of her captors to protect whatever they wanted. Not necessarily because it was valuable, but because it was his. If he traded for the girl, it would show weakness. They’d have something on El Diablo and Black Reign they could exploit, and they would never stop. No. If Mae were going to be rescued, it wouldn’t be by Black Reign. The question was, could Vicious convince Thorn to get involved?

  And why the fuck was he even considering asking Thorn in the first Goddamned place?

  “Tell me, Vicious.” Thorn and Havoc approached him. Which meant it was on. His brothers were taking this very seriously.

  “Our stowaway was sent here by El Diablo’s man, Rycks. Apparently, he tried to send her to Bones, but the girl refused to leave her sister behind. And that’s where the problem is.”

  “Why is it always a sister or brother or mother?” Havoc mused. He was genuinely giving the question thought.

  “Really, Havoc? That’s what you’re focused on?” Vicious loved his levelheaded brother, but the man was too… logical sometimes. He was an academic genius, and sometimes it took his thought process places they didn’t have the time or inclination to share.

  Havoc shrugged. “Just pointing it out.”

  “No, you weren’t. You were thinking of all the times we’ve been pulled into a problem because of someone’s family. Did it ever occur to you it’s just coincidence? Or maybe that people just care ab
out family?”

  “Vicious,” Thorn snapped. “Focus on the fuckin’ problem, will you?”

  When Havoc smirked, Vicious realized his mistake. Havoc had intentionally baited him, and he’d swallowed it hook, line, and sinker. He promptly flipped off his brother.

  “Data from Bones is working on finding out exactly who we’re dealing with, but it looks like El Diablo has some mean mother fuckers on him.”

  “Like that was unexpected,” Havoc muttered.

  “Not like you might think. Once I understood, it surprised the fuck outa me.” Vicious meant it too. “The last thing I expected when dealing with a man like El Diablo was to trace trouble back to some swanky investment banker, but that’s exactly where Data ended up.”

  “Insider trading? Are you fucking kiddin’ me?” Havoc’s eyes were wide, and he looked like he was about to break out in peals of laughter. “Knew from the beginnin’ that bastard wasn’t a hard ass. He’s playing at being rough. Probably to scare his white-collar buddies to keep ‘em in line. Oh, this is rich!”

  “Don’t kid yourself, Havoc. Man’s still dangerous as fuck.” Thorn stroked his beard with one hand, pondering what Vicious was telling him. “You said the trail ended there. Who’s in the middle?”

  It was Vicious’s turn to smirk at Havoc. “I didn’t say it ended there, just that Data traced him back there. Investment banker is the person in the middle of it all. Apparently, a company called Rush Developments is owned by someone who knows someone who works for someone else who uses Independent Banking who just happens to be where this investment banker works. Rush Developments is a tech company on the rise, directly competing with a company you might recognize. Ever hear of Argent Tech?”

  “Well, fuck me raw,” Havoc said. “Why do I get the feeling there is something about El Diablo we’re missing?”