Vice

by Callie Hart

  She clings to me, burying her face into my chest as Jamie gets closer. The grunt and snarl of his engine fills the air, drowning out the thrum of the plane’s engine when he arrives. Suddenly all is quiet as both machines are powered down. Jamie hops off his motorcycle, ice blue eyes roving over our party, studying each person in turn, assessing the situation, until finally his gaze falls on me…and the woman in my arms.

  “Cade?” he says. “What…?” He’s confused, and I don’t blame him. Fuck. I’m still confused, myself. It’s a lot to take in, even though I was there to witness everything unfold myself. Jamie steps forward, and then stops again, raising his hands, threading his fingers into his hair, interlocking them behind his head. “What the fuck?” he whispers. “I thought…”

  Laura hasn’t turned to face him yet. She’s still hiding in my shirt, but her identity must be obvious to my best friend, who has known my sister since before any of us could walk.

  “What happened?” he asks me.

  “It’s a long, weird story,” I reply. “I’ll fill you in once we’re inside.” From the very brief conversation we had on the plane, I know that Ocho turned against Fernando when he cut out his tongue. That he has been like a protective father figure to my sister ever since he helped her fake her death at the Villalobos estate. I’ll explain all of this to him and more. For the time being, Jamie just nods. He looks like he’s in shock.

  “Laura?”

  She goes still in my arms.

  “Laura, look at me,” he says.

  Slowly, she releases her death grip on my shirt and lifts her head. Her eyes are swimming with tears. I give her a quick squeeze before I let her go. “It’s going to be okay. It’s all going to be okay now. I promise.”

  She nods, giving me a weak smile. “I just feel like I’m in a dream.”

  She moves like her limbs are made of lead as she turns to face Jamie. His expression is a mixture of joy and concern as he takes in her appearance. Just like the rest of us, she’s covered in blood and dirt. She’s still Laura, though. She’s still my blood.

  “Hey,” she says softly. “Good to see you.”

  Jamie swallows, looking from Laura to me, as if he doesn’t quite know how to conduct himself in this unexpected, surprising situation. “Good to see me?” he says, repeating her words. “Are you fucking kidding me?” In a heartbeat he’s striding toward her, throwing his arms around her, pulling her fiercely to his chest. “You have no idea,” he says. “We turned the world upside down looking for you,” he rasps.

  “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.” Laura’s crying, her shoulders shaking as she weeps. She must be running on fumes, but she somehow manages to stand upright as Jamie rubs his hand up and down her back, whispering soothingly to her.

  “God, don’t apologize,” he tells her. “Do not fucking apologize. None of this is your fault.”

  “If I hadn’t left the house that night, sulking like a fucking child, none of this would have ever happened.”

  “And if I hadn’t given you cause to go running? There are too many ifs, Laura. You are not to blame.”

  She’s heard this from me already, more than once, but I think she will believe it now. Only Jamie can relieve her of her absurd guilt. It’s as though she visibly relaxes as he holds her, the weight of her remorse finally falling from her shoulders, and I know it: she’s going to be okay. She’s really going to be okay.

  EPILOGUE

  The Widow Makers have their fingers in many pies. In order to fund the work we’ve been doing to find Laura, alongside helping other victims of sex trafficking, we’ve had to become resourceful. We do run guns occasionally. We do transport weed every once in a while, though we don’t sell it ourselves. And we also have a tattoo shop in New Mexico—the Dead Man’s Ink Bar. Above the tattoo shop is an apartment I’ve been using as a base for a while now. Separate, away from the compound, I’ve always found I can think better here. Breathe better.

  As I show Natalia into the apartment, I’m wondering what she’s thinking. She’s used to luxury. She’s used to having people around her, twenty-four seven, to wait on her hand and foot. And now, she’s going to be living in a two-bedroom apartment full of guy stuff. Old plastic tubs filled with my military gear. Toolboxes, grease-covered towels, and a small mountain of shoes discarded in a heap beside the front door. At least there aren’t dirty plates and cooking utensils all over the place. She walks around the apartment, lifting up random items—a photo of Jamie and me out in the desert, arms slung around each other’s shoulders; the scratched and scuffed silver pocket watch that belonged to my grandfather; my cut—Widow Makers Vice President, New Mexico emblazoned on the back.

  I’ve never thought what another person might think of the place where I live. I’m barely here, really. I often end up sleeping at the clubhouse when shit is going down, so my bed remains unslept-in a lot of the time.

  “It smells like you,” Natalia says.

  “Ha. Sorry.”

  She shakes her head. “You smell good, Cade. You always smell good. I like it.”

  “Well I guess that’s okay then.”

  She smiles, her eyes curving into half crescents. “So what do I do here?” she asks matter of factly. “What is my role here, Cade? How do I fit into this life of yours, here in New Mexico?”

  This is the conversation I’ve been dreading. “I don’t know. I guess the first question we need to answer is, do you want to fit in here? Do you want to have a life in New Mexico?”

  “Are you staying here?” She hangs my cut over the back of the sofa, turning to face me. Her expression is open, her eyes inquisitive and clear.

  “Yes. I’m going to stay. My parents still live in Alabama, but my real family is here. Jamie. The club. I don’t want to move on any time soon.”

  “Then yes, I do want to stay here, too. I want to be where you are, Cade. I want to be with you, wherever that is. Is that all right with you?”

  I try not to smile too wide. I don’t want her thinking I’m fucking soft in the head or something. “Yeah, Natalia. That’s all right with me.” It’s more than all right. It’s fucking perfect. It’s exactly what I hoped she would decide. She smiles too, and for a moment we just watch each other—two grinning idiots, happy for the first time in a long time.

  “You can always help out in the shop,” I tell her. Her expression falters. “I mean, I know it’s not the most glamorous work. Not the most mentally challenging. But the pay is decent, and it would mean you’d be close by all the time. I know booking in appointments and doing admin stuff probably sounds really fucking boring, but it’s not too bad.” From the look on her face, I think she’s going to tell me to go fuck myself. But then she rushes me, throwing her arms around her neck.

  “A job? A real job?” she asks.

  “Haha, yeah a real job. You’d like that?”

  She beams, planting a kiss on my mouth. “I’m going to love it! My father would never have let me leave the estate to get a job. Never.”

  I kiss her on the side of her head, laughing under my breath. “There will be lots of things you can do around the compound, too, if you want that.”

  “I do. I am looking forward to staying here and being with you. But I’m also looking forward to building my own life. I want to figure out what I like and what I don’t like. I want to experience so many new things. I want to go to a bar! Will you take me to a bar, Cade?”

  She seems so excited that it seems cruel to burst her bubble by describing the dive establishments in town. They’re certainly nothing to write home about—sticky floors, peanut husks and sports on the old school TVs mounted on the walls—but she will probably love them. “Of course I will, beautiful.”

  “Good.” She crushes her tits up against my chest as she hugs me, and I’m sure she can feel the effect it has on me. My cock is getting harder by the second.

  “What about Laura?” she asks, leaning back. My dick mourns the loss of her pressed up against my body, but that can wait. I
’m going to fuck her all night long, and Natalia knows it. She keeps eyeing the door to the bedroom, like she already knows what’s about to go down and she can’t wait.

  “Laura’s going to stay, too,” I tell her. I honestly had no idea what to expect from Laura. She was a high-powered lawyer before Fernando’s men took her. She’d just been made partner at Dad’s firm. She was making a healthy six-figure salary, and she was kicking ass, winning all of her cases. In my head, it seemed reasonable that she would want to go back to that, to resume her old life, pick up where she left off. I was surprised when she said that she couldn’t. Didn’t want that life anymore. Too much has happened to her. She’s changed so much that she said she wouldn’t even know how to insert herself back into her old life. Besides, she hasn’t even told Mom and Dad she’s alive and well yet. We’re going to do that together later, and boy is there going to be fireworks. Dad’s going to be pissed that I didn’t take her straight home.

  “She’s going to be our on-site legal rep,” I tell Natalia. “And, just like you, hopefully she can have a fresh start here, too.”

  “What about your friend? She was in love with him once. Are they going to be together now?”

  I’ve thought about this. Once upon a time it would have made sense if my best friend and my sister ended up together. Now, it makes no sense at all. I shake my head, tracing my fingers down Natalia’s cheek, studying the perfect symmetry of her face as I talk. “Jamie’s heart belongs to someone else now. He doesn’t belong with my sister. He never did. He belongs with Sophia. Laura’s got a long way to go before she’s ready to be with anybody, anyway. It’s going to take a lot of time and work before she’ll want that, I’m sure.”

  Natalia nods. “You’re right. She’s been through so much.”

  I don’t think I’ll ever know exactly how much Laura’s been through. She refuses to talk about what happened to her at Fernando’s estate, and I haven’t been pushing her for information. Her nightmares are her own. If she needs to talk them out with anyone, I’ll be the first person to listen. But until that time, I aim on being the best brother I can be. Whatever she needs from me, she’s going to have.

  “So,” Natalia says. “Are you going to mind if we don’t have a half-built motorcycle in the living room from here on out?”

  “If it’s a choice between you and the bike, then it’s really no contest.”

  “I am happy to hear it.” She tucks her hair back behind her ear with one hand and shoots me a seductive, very suggestive look. “Now all of that’s out of the way, what are you waiting for, Mr. America? Don’t you have any more of those wicked vices of yours you’d like to show me?”

  I have plenty more. Countless deviancies and kinks that I think she’s going to love. Her eyes glint, and I find myself thinking that perhaps she might have one or two of her own that she might like to show me. Or at least I hope she does.

  I stoop down and pick her up in my arms, making her squeal. “If you insist,” I growl, biting roughly at her neck. I’m about to show the new head of the House of Wolves what a real animal can do with his teeth.

  FAQ WITH THE AUTHOR

  1) Why doesn’t Vice feature more from the other characters in the Dead Man’s Ink Series, or the Blood & Roses/Chaos & Ruin Series?

  While Cade Preston’s character has been featured heavily in both of the aforementioned series, I wanted to make sure new readers would be able to enjoy this story without having prior knowledge of the other books. Also, both Zeth and Sloane’s, and Rebel and Sophia’s storylines are very important to me. I didn’t want to compromise or detract from the arcs of their adventures by continuing them as B-stories in Vice. Yes, there will be new books in both of the other series. I don’t have confirmed dates or titles for those books, however both will be released in 2017.

  2) When Cade and Julio spoke in the beginning of Vice, Julio mentioned that his private escort, Alaska, was taken by the Villalobos family. Why was she never seen at the Villalobos estate?

  Alaska is an intriguing character to me. I wanted to be able to tell her story separately, and as such I have avoided featuring her in this novel.

  3) Cade left his motorcycle in Mexico! How’s he gonna get it back??

  Sadly, he’s not. In his mind, the loss of his new scrambler is a price worth paying to ensure both Natalia and his sister are safe. He’s also VP of a motorcycle club, as well. He’ll have another badass bike in no time.

  4) Is there going to be more from Cade and Natalia?

  Yes! They will definitely either have cameo appearances in future books, or they will have their own stories.

  5) When is Michael getting his own book?

  Definitely in 2017! I have no confirmed dates just yet, but please keep an eye on my website and my social media platforms, and I will make sure I post updates as and when I have them.

  6) What about Tribeca and Bleeker Street, the books after Hells Kitchen? When can we expect those?

  Lili Saint Germain and I have been very busy bees over the past 12 months, so it’s been tough to schedule a time when we’re both free to complete these books. Fear not, though. We have both locked in time to complete the stories, and we’ll be working on more Theo and Sal Barbieri madness in the new year. Rest assured, we haven’t forgotten about the books, and we’re SO excited to be working on them together soon.

  7) Why wasn’t Vice cover-to-cover with sex??

  Cade’s story is more than just a physical attraction between him and Natalia. Cade’s sister has been missing for an awfully long time, and I felt it would be very remiss of me to not make Laura his primary focus in the first part of Vice. Also, Cade and Natalia have just met, and insta-love is a pet peeve of mine. While my books are obviously always works of fiction, where unimaginably dangerous and thrilling things occur on every other page, I do think that romantic connections between characters have to be built and nurtured, not fabricated out of nothing. I thought it better to build a connection with them in the first instance, and then allow their physical relationship to develop.

  8) Wolves don’t behave in the way you have described. What gives?

  I love wolves. They are one of my favorite animals, and the complex pack relationships they share with one another are truly beautiful. Fernando’s wolves are not wild, natural animals, however. He trained them to be vicious, cruel and unforgiving beasts with voracious appetites, and that’s exactly how they remain in the novel. Thankfully, in real life, wolves are much more placid, inquisitive, calm creatures that only kill for sustenance and never really for sport.

  CALLIE’S NEWSLETTER

  As a token of her appreciation for reading and supporting her work, at the end of every month, Callie and her team will be hosting a HUGE giveaway with a mass of goodies up for grabs, including vouchers, e-readers, signed books, signed swag, author event tickets and exclusive paperback copies of stories no one else in the world will have access to!

  All you need to do to automatically enter each month is be signed up to her newsletter, which you can do right here: http://eepurl.com/IzhzL

  *The monthly giveaway is international. Prizes will be subject to change each month. First draw will be taking place on Nov 30 2015, and continue at the end of each month thereafter!!!

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Callie Hart is the international bestselling author of the Blood & Roses and Dead Man’s Ink series.

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