by Ker Dukey
“No.” My soul aches. How will I survive this life without Alec? Visions of his cut, the club colors, and the absence of the prospect patch overcome me. It takes proving your loyalty to the club to earn your patch. More tears burn my eyes.
“I think it’s best you’re leaving. They’ll come here looking for you if you don’t, and I’ve suffered enough.”
Snatching up my bag, I hook it over my shoulder. “Good riddance to them and you.”
“That’s not fair.” She gasps in horror. Forever the drama queen.
“What’s not fair is both my mother and father being murdered and all my aunt gives a shit about is her fucking lawn. Now, give me the key to his safe deposit box.” Her eyes expand. She didn’t think I’d know he kept one for this very scenario.
“I don’t have it on me. He makes me keep it in its own deposit box. He planned to have it all changed into your name once you turned eighteen, but it was all too late by then.” She jerks her head, placing her hands on her hips.
“Ma’am?” a police officer calls out.
“Meet me in town tomorrow at noon to get the key,” I tell her.
“Fine,” she scoffs.
As I move through the house, I see Heidi outside talking to one of the police officers. “Oh, there!” She begins bouncing on her toes, pointing to me. I gesture to the side of the house away from the mayhem, and he waves for her to come to me.
“Oh God, Drew, they wouldn’t let me through.”
“It’s a crime scene,” I deadpan.
“What happened?” She feigns concern.
“What the fuck are you doing here?” I grind out. She’s never once just swung by here, so her showing up is suspicious.
“Alec is up the street. He asked me to come here.”
My heart drops, and my breathing accelerates. “Please don’t tell him you saw me,” I plead.
“What, why? What’s going on?” She keeps picking her feet up, her stupid heels sinking into the mud.
“Heidi, please just tell him I left and I’m not coming back.”
She stares at me, a crease in her perfectly plucked brow. “Okay. Whatever gets me out of this freak show.” She turns to leave, but I reach out for her arm.
“I could use a place to crash tonight.” I shrug.
“My condo?” She looks like her head is about to combust. When I don’t say anything, she huffs. “Fine. Wait here. When Alec leaves, I’ll meet you a couple houses down.”
Heidi’s place is like a Barbie dream house: fluffy pillows, rugs everywhere, glitter, sparkle. “I can sense the judgment.” She narrows her pretty eyes on me. Holding up my hands, I slip off my backpack and dust my fingers over the stationary littering her table.
“Can I use some of this?”
“You going to write a suicide note?”
What the fuck? “No. What the hell?”
She smirks, kicking off her heels. “Just checking. I don’t want to find you in my bathtub later.”
What an insensitive bitch. “Suicide’s not a fucking joke, Heidi.”
Rolling her eyes, she slings her purse down and pulls out her cellphone as it pings, making her smile. “Looks like Alec is already getting lonely.” She smirks, sauntering off to her room, and I have to fight the urge to grab a kitchen knife and follow her. Instead, I sit and write.
“So, you’re really leaving?” Heidi asks, tapping her nails on the steering wheel of her car. Her eyes shift to the note I asked her to pass on to Alec. It was risky asking her, and may never get in his hands, but that’s out of my control now.
“Yep. Thanks for the ride.”
“So I can hit on Alec?” she calls after me.
Lowering myself to look through the window at her, I snort. “Like it mattered whether I was here or not. You’ve been throwing yourself at him since puberty like a desperate slut.” I smile, give her a one-finger salute, and scamper off in the direction of the bank.
“Who’s that?” my aunt asks as I approach.
“Doesn’t matter.” I hold my hand out, and she squints her beady eyes at me.
“I went ahead and got the box. It was under my name anyway.”
“You mean you wanted to see what was in it.” I laugh without humor.
“I only took half the cash—nothing else. I didn’t even open the envelope.”
Unbelievable.
She rummages through her purse, handing me a large envelope, then leans in to whisper, “I moved half the money into your account. It should set you up for some time.”
I shove the envelope in my backpack, tracking our surroundings just in case.
“Where will you go that he won’t find you?”
“He?”
“Yeah, the guy on the bike who was parked outside my house all night. He knocked on the door this morning asking if you came home yet.”
That place was never my home…he was my home.
“He won’t find me.” I swallow past the stone caught in my throat.
“He had bloody knuckles and bruises on his face,” she rushes out.
“I don’t care,” I lie. Why the hell do I care? How do I turn this shit off?
“Drew, I’m sorry about Mitch,” my aunt finally says, looking at her feet.
I turn, heading for the bus station, whispering under my breath, “Yeah, me too.”
Thirteen
Alec “The ANIMAL” Walker
Twenty-six years old
Six years later…
“Damn, looking good.” Hog whistles as three bitches walk into the bar wiggling their asses like overexcited dogs.
“Dude, she’s your sister. This isn’t Alabama motherfucker.” Glen grimaces, swiping up his beer and taking a gulp.
Stealer jabs Glen in the arm, spilling the beer he’s holding all down his face, and growls, “I’m from Alabama, asshole.”
“Yeah, don’t we know it, you ugly imbred fuck. Look what you did. You don’t waste good beer, that’s some imbred shit for ya.”
“It’s inbred, you dumb fucks. Shut the hell up and go get another round in,” I snap, kicking his chair leg, sending Glen skidding backward.
“What’s eating you?”
“Your bitch if you don’t shut the fuck up,” I snap, sick of these motherfuckers. Why did I get lumbered with the new prospects? I earned my patch, and it cost me everything. Six years it’s been without Drew. She just poofed out of fucking existence, searched everywhere for that bitch. Nothing. Time hasn’t erased the ache from missing her.
My old man swears on his patch he didn’t do anything to her, and I think I’d know if he was lying. I’d feel it if she wasn’t living, breathing. I’d know.
“That bitch behind the bar has a juicy fucking ass so I told her to bring the drinks over.” Glen grins and then leans over to me. “You nervous about this or something?”
I’ve known Glen for four years, took him under my wing when he referred to the club as a gang and got the ever-loving hell kicked out of him by my old man. He spent eight weeks in a coma, and when he was released, he came straight back to the club. I respected him for having the balls to do that. He’s been a prospect longer than anyone else, but refuses to give up on becoming a brother. If your bike breaks down at four a.m., Glen’s the first one out the door coming to pick your ass up. First one in the club door in the morning, last to leave at night. This fucker would lick your boots clean if he thought it would help the club. I’m going to be putting in my nomination for him at the next club meeting.
I don’t answer him, because he shouldn’t be asking stupid fucking questions.
Jimmy finally comes out of the back room he disappeared into an hour ago with some suited motherfucker. This place is on the outskirts of town, used for meetings when high profile members of society need something from us but don’t want the world seeing them with outlaws. There’s a back entrance and room designed to camouflage what really goes on here. By the looks of the women conjugating, word had gotten out that we’ve been spending time here.
I look over to Hog, then to his sister batting her eyelashes over at us from the bar.
If he’s the big mouth who ratted out that we were here, I’m going to break his jaw. I store this away for later as Jimmy approaches.
“You ready?” he asks me, pulling me away from the others. “This is an easy job that’s going lead to a hefty fucking paycheck for us all. I want everyone on their game.” He pats my shoulder.
“A-fucking-men to that.”
When we get outside, Kai and Halo are waiting. Halo is a newly patched in brother. Got the name because he was almost killed by a rival gang. While torturing him, they tried to scalp him, leaving him with a white, circular scar through his black skin, stretching the full width around his forehead. Poor bastard. He’s tough as all hell and loyal. I like knowing he has my back.
“We’re not leaving these idiots?” I ask when the three prospects follow us out.
“Stealer, you ride with us.” Jimmy nods. “You two, go clean something,” he adds, looking at Hog and Glen.
“What does he want us to clean?” Hog grumbles.
“I’m going to clean out my pipes inside your sister,” Glen retorts.
I chuckle as I mount my bike. Glen is an ugly bastard. No one’s sister will fuck him.
We ride out, Jimmy taking lead, followed by me, Kai, Halo, and the prospect taking up the back.
A lot has changed in six years. I spent six months in a state of disbelief and agony, going between the two like a fucking ping-pong ball, until I reached acceptance and put everything into my duty as a brother of the Royal Bastards MC.
I always knew this was my path. I was born for this, and I liked it. My heart hardened, making it easier to become a ruthless motherfucker. My road name, Animal, was earned through blood in the ring and brutality wherever the fuck it was needed. The Alec Drew knew was snuffed out the moment she left me. Six years, and I’m still fucking bitter. Bitch is inside me, under the skin and she ain’t ever leaving.
We pull into a parking lot near the house we’ll be ‘visiting’.
“Intel says he lives alone and will be home tonight. Probably rubbing one out to kiddie porn. What kind of freak lives alone at his age?” Jimmy scoffs.
“You live alone?” Stealer pipes up.
Grabbing him by the jaw Jimmy drags his face toward him. “I live at the club asshole, balls deep in every slut there.”
“My bad,” Stealer mumbles, holding his hands up in surrender. This motherfucker has a death wish.
Pushing him away Jimmy continues. “He’s a corrupt piece of shit, club owner who likes to get his customers on camera to blackmail high profile clients.”
“He on our books?” I ask. We own all the club owners in our town. It’s easier to keep other suppliers out and trouble contained when everyone pays a tax for the privilege of our supply and protection.
“No. His club is in Demon territory outta town. We all know those fuckers don’t know how to run shit or keep people in line, so it falls to us.”
“Who’d he get?” I ask, slipping off my helmet.
“The mayor. Hence the hefty pay. He would rather pay us to clean up the mess than have this cunt alive.”
“Plan?” Kai asks, checking his weapons strapped all over him. He looks like a fucking GI Joe.
“Go in and get him to open the safe before we kill him.” Jimmy points at Kai as he emphasizes the word, making the rest of us chuckle.
“What?” Kai asks defensively.
“Halo, cut the security camera and do your thing, then wait outside. Keep your eyes open. The four of us will go in from the back entrance. This job should be a piece of fucking cake, so don’t fuck it up and end up on my badside.”
“He’s talking to you, Kai,” I tease, a grin hooking my lips when he pulls a couple knives from his jacket, storing them back in his saddlebag.
“Everyone good?”
A chorus of, “Good,” rings out before we move through the brush.
Halo’s a mastermind when it comes to security—or disabling it, in this case. He disengages the lock within thirty seconds of us approaching the rear door of the detached house. As we creep through the house, a shadow of movement catches my eye. The guy who lives here is halfway down the stairs, almost tripping and falling down the rest of them when he sees us. Kai is on him a heartbeat.
“You brought this on yourself. You fucked with the wrong person this time, asshole,” Kai sneers, pulling him the rest of the way down the stairs.
“Please don’t hurt me. You can have everything in the safe,” he pleads, his voice high pitched like a bitch, giving it all up without a fight.
“Keep squealing like a piggy and I’ll stuff you like one,” Kai sneers.
“Bring him in here,” Jimmy instructs.
Kai drags him into a living space and pushes him toward the couch. The man tumbles over, landing wedged between the couch and a table.
“Seriously?” I grind out.
“He’s breathing.” Kai shrugs.
“You two, check for weapons. Stealer, check the house. Make sure he’s alone,” I tell them.
“Shouldn’t I stay with you guys?” He looks nervous. Why the hell did Jimmy have to bring this pussy ass prick? We should have brought Glen. It’s not my place to correct the VP, though, so here we fucking are.
“No, dipshit, do as you’re fucking told.” Kai slaps him around the head.
“We’ll be taking what’s in the safe—the pictures you’re using to blackmail the mayor, and anything else we like the look of,” Jimmy informs the now panting piece of shit.
“No one should be kink shamed.” Kai tsks, licking his lips. Tugging the guy to his feet, he pats down his body.
“Where the fuck do you think he’s keeping a weapon, in his man panties?” Jimmy scoffs, looking at the sweaty fuck in a t-shirt, briefs, and a pair of socks.
“Animal said to check for weapons.”
“He meant the house, idiot.”
It’s painful working with these fuckers sometimes. We’re going to kill this asshole with his own gun to make it look like suicide, but in order to do that, we need a weapon.
“Safe code?” I growl, unsheathing my knife and taking a couple menacing steps toward the man. “Easy way, or the bloody way,” I offer.
“It’s on the fridge,” he rushes out.
“What?” we all say in unison.
“The code, I keep it on a card on the fridge.”
We look between ourselves, not sure we heard him correctly.
“Is this motherfucker for real?” Kai asks, shaking his head.
“I have cameras all over my house. As soon as you entered, it triggered my alarm system. The police are on their way. I don’t need to hide it because this would never happen.”
But this is happening.
“You arrogant prick,” Jimmy bellows, slapping his thigh with mirth. “You think cameras equals safe? We disabled them and your alarm system. When you try to blackmail powerful, wealthy, ball gag wearing fetish freaks, you leave yourself very fucking vulnerable. Five grand was all it took for the guard on shift to turn the other way, could have easily been settled with a bullet in his skull but we’re not savages.”
The color drains from his face. He could build a fortress wired up to the hilt and it still wouldn’t save his ass if we wanted in. Our club is brimming with talented motherfuckers, and our pockets are so deep, our reach is endless, our influence far and wide. We like our shit to stay under the radar to keep relationships clean, and fewer payouts means our own pockets are stacked.
“Keep both eyes on him and tie his fucking hands,” I warn Kai before going through to the kitchen. Low and behold, he really is a dumb fuck. I tug the card from a magnet rubbing the back of my head, being around these idiots is giving me brain ache. “Got it,” I say, entering the living space.
“Safe is there. Grab what you need and get out,” the pussy begs, his eyes darting to the hall Stealer vanished down.
“Why you acting
shifty?” I growl.
“I’m not.”
A sound echoes from the back of the house. “What the fuck was that? What’s taking Stealer so long? Is someone else here?”
“No,” the guy in the chair says urgently.
“You’re supposed to be here alone,” Jimmy growls, jerking his head for Kai to go check it out.
“I am! I am!” He moves to stand, and I pull out my gun, pointing it at his head.
“Who told you you could move?” I fume. “I told Kai to tie this fucker down.”
“He’s a pussy ass bitch. He doesn’t need to be restrained. He doesn’t want to eat lead, right?” Jimmy asks, smacking him across the face.
A commotion suddenly sounds out in the hallway. A woman screams as the front door crashes open, bouncing off the wall. “Go,” Jimmy yells at me.
I get three steps before Kai comes through, dragging a woman profusely bleeding from a slit throat. Stealer lags behind them, holding a hand to his bleeding head. “Bitch came out of nowhere and hit me with a plant pot,” he groans.
“No!” the guy supposed to be in the chair calls out, seeing the dead woman being dragged in by Kai. Knocking Jimmy into the wall, he runs toward us. Lifting my gun, I shoot off twice. The bullets burrow into his skull, finding their target, but my gun wasn’t the only one to fire. Four shots rang out.
“Fuck!” I roar as Jimmy groans, sliding down the wall, a crimson spot expanding over his tee.
His hands drop beside him. “You shot me, dumbass,” he croaks out, eyes unfocused on Stealer standing just behind me.
Stealer is still holding his weapon up, his hand shaking like a drying out alcoholic. “You fucking idiot.” Taking his gun, I slip it into the back of my jeans before holstering my own, and rush over to Jimmy. Kai drops the woman and is at my side.
