As she kissed down my neck, raking her teeth against my skin.
“Fuck,” I growled.
She giggled. “I like your sounds.”
I sank to my knees, unable to hold her up a second longer. I rolled her onto her back, rocking into her. Her warmth penetrated her long skirt as it slowly crept up her legs for me. My hand slid against her bare skin as she brought my lips closer. She kissed me ravenously, her tongue filling my mouth as I shook against her. Goosebumps poured over my back. It tickled my arms and my legs. I had no clue what the fuck I expected sex to feel like, but it wasn’t anything like this.
And I knew this encounter with her wasn’t going to be my first.
“Saint!” Bear exclaimed.
His voice pulled me from my memories, causing me to shake my head as I focused back on the road.
“What?” I grumbled.
“Have you heard a damn word I’ve been saying this whole time?”
“Try shutting up for once, and maybe it’ll go in your favor.”
I revved my engine and sped off, eager to get back to the clubhouse. Mostly because I didn’t want Bear catching me in any more vulnerable moments like that one. The last thing I needed was him poking around and asking questions he didn’t need to be asking. I throttled it the last few miles, practically skidding into a parking space close to the clubhouse. I ripped my helmet off and put my kickstand down, then turned off the engine so I could stow my helmet away.
“Hey, hey, hey. Slow down. Saint, you good?” Bear asked.
But I shoved my helmet into its carrying compartment, slid my keys into my pocket, and started for the front door.
I slammed through the door louder than I should have, and it caused everyone to turn and look at me. Diesel quirked an eyebrow as Bear leapt up the porch, skipping every single step to stand behind me. I locked my eyes with our president, ready to get this shit over with so I could get back to my whittling.
And after staring at me for a while, Diesel got up.
“You guys find anything good?” he asked.
I nodded. “Rock was right about those construction sites. Apparently, they’re attached to rundown motels on the outskirts of town. There are rumors of this new company buying them up. And Rodney thinks if we look into the company enough—”
“Already done. It’s a shell corp,” Rock said.
Bear pointed beyond my shoulder. “Yep. That’s what he said we’d find.”
“I’ll start digging to find the newest purchase,” Rock said.
“Because that’ll probably tell us where they are currently,” I said.
“Anything else?” Diesel asked.
I paused before shaking my head.
“Nope. That was the gist of everything. You know how Rodney is. Introductions, drinks, shooting the shit, then we had to feed him the story before he fed us his,” I said.
“How much did you have to tell him?” Diesel asked.
I shrugged. “I had to give him a quick rundown from front to back. I left out what I could, but it’s Rodney.”
“Yeah, yeah. But he was our only shot. Thanks for making that run, you two,” Diesel said.
“Anytime,” Bear said.
Anytime, but alone next time.
“I’ve got it!” Rock exclaimed.
We all rushed to his side as he continued typing away at his keyboard.
“All right. This shell corporation is a big dead end. And it looks like a rushed job, too. It only took me ten minutes of running programs to figure out the damn thing was fake. And if they’re rushing jobs like this, they’ll be caught sooner or later by someone that’s not us,” Rock said.
“So, we have to move quickly. Got it,” Diesel said.
“Fucking finally!” Cage exclaimed.
I snickered at his comment as I stared at the screen.
“All right. The latest purchase was processed yesterday at two in the afternoon, ironically enough. It’s a motel called ‘Deluxe Inn,’ and it’s just outside of Redding’s southern borders. I’ve even got an address,” Rock said.
“So, we’re going, right? We’re heading there now?” Cage asked.
Diesel shook his head. “We’re coming up with a plan on how to execute this with the least bloodshed. We are always going to be outnumbered with this guy. The least we can do is plan our steps accordingly so we don’t all die in the process.”
“Can’t get Sutton if we’re all dead,” Toxin said.
“Do you ever say anything productive?” Cage asked.
“Actually, I’m with him on this one,” Bear said.
“Me, too. Can’t do shit if we’re bleeding out,” I said.
Cage scoffed and shook his head. And the only thing I wanted to do was drag him outside and tell him how close he was to losing everything with this crew. I saw Diesel staring at him for a long time, and I silently prayed he didn’t do it now. The last thing we needed was Cage unhinged and not tied down enough to not galavant off with his guns, shooting up the whole of Redding to find Sutton.
Especially now that he knew where to look.
Read my mind, Diesel. He’ll blow our fucking cover if you let him go.
“Can we all agree this is probably where he’s keeping Sutton right now?” Diesel asked.
We all nodded our heads in agreement.
“Can we also all agree he’s probably got this place fortified with guys with guns?” he asked.
And again, we all nodded in agreement.
“Great. Okay. Can we also all agree that these motels need to be shut down. All the ones he’s purchased,” Diesel said.
All of us looked around at one another before Grave spoke.
“Why?” he asked.
“My thinking is that the less places he has to hide around here, the less he’ll move around on us,” Diesel said.
“But if we go around destroying the motels or whatever, that might force them out of town. And then, we’re really screwed,” Knox said.
“He could also kill Sutton in the process before coming after us in absolute anger,” Brewer said.
“Every man has a breaking point,” Rock said.
“Okay, so the consensus is we don’t destroy the hotels before we do the raid,” Diesel said.
“But eventually, we should take them down. Yes,” Ryker said.
“I’m with that plan,” I said.
“Me, too,” Toxin said.
“All right. So, we raid, then take down,” Diesel said.
Then, together, we all nodded our heads.
“Are there any other purchases in the works right now, Rock?” Diesel asked.
“I’m trying to figure that out,” he murmured.
We all stood around, watching his fingers fly a thousand miles a second. For the brute Rock was, it still made me grin that he was the tech guru. That he was the technology guy. The one we went to if we had phone issues, Bluetooth helmet issues, or needed information only he could hack.
It was comical, to say the least.
“As of now, there are no other deals the company’s attempting to process. And we know all of the motels they’ve bought up until this point, so that gives us an advantage,” Rock said.
“All right. You guys ready to come up with a plan?” Diesel asked.
Then, as we all nodded our heads vehemently in unison, I could have sworn I saw tears in Cage’s eyes. The damn man had been through enough.
And I was ready to wrap this up for him.
8
Amberly
“Come. On!” Sutton exclaimed.
I heard her fists come down against the outer bathroom wall and I sighed.
“It isn’t going to be any use,” I said.
“There has to be a way out of here,” she murmured.
I watched her go over to the boarded-up window and attempt to smash the glass open. She picked up a rickety chair in the corner, then tossed it against the glass. And not only did it not break, but the board behind it didn't budge. However, the chair
fell apart. Practically crumbled in Sutton’s hands as she stumbled back.
“The locks are on the outside of the door, right?” she asked.
I nodded. “Mhm.”
“You think anyone’s standing out there right now?”
“I think there’s a man standing out there, grinning at your attempt to get out. Yes.”
“Well, I’m about to barrel him the fuck over,” she murmured.
“Wait. What? Sutt—No! Stop!”
I watched her charge the fucking door, completely throwing herself against it. And no sooner had she hit the floor, crying out in pain, the door rip open. I rushed to get Sutton off the floor. We barely dodged the man’s swinging foot as he attempted to kick Sutton in her ribs. I dragged her over to her bed, listening to her whimper as I brushed her hair away from her face.
“We’re fine. It’s fine. I’ll talk to her, okay?” I asked breathlessly.
But as my eyes made their way toward the man in the doorway, he snarled at me. I watched him shove his hand into his pocket before he took a phone call. As Sutton cried softly in my lap, my blood ran cold. I knew what was happening. I knew that look all too well after all these years.
And the second he hung up the call, he came for me.
“Come on. You’re on the clock,” the man said.
“What?” Sutton asked breathlessly.
“You’re coming with me. We have a private room established,” the man said.
“I thought I had the week off. Wait—wait a sec—hold on!” I exclaimed.
“No!” Sutton shrieked.
The man grabbed me by my arm and ripped me off the bed. I stumbled on my feet, unable to see straight since I hadn’t eaten in six or seven hours. My world crashed down around me. I was supposed to have the week off. I was told I’d been a good girl, and that I deserved the time off.
“Please. Please, I should have three more days. Just call your boss. Please,” I said as tears streamed down my face.
“We’re short a girl. Time for you to woman up,” the man said gruffly.
“No,” I said as hiccupping sobs fell from my throat.
“Let. Her. Go!” Sutton exclaimed.
Being short a girl meant one of the customers had killed someone. Again. Whether he choked her too hard, beat her too much, or whether she’d been much too starved for her heart to handle the orgasms forced over us. Whatever had happened, I was meant to take her place. Which meant the possibility of being in a room by myself again. I didn’t want that to happen. I wanted to stay with Sutton. She was the only company that wasn’t paid company I’d had in over three years. And I didn’t want to leave.
“Please, I’ll do anything. Just don’t—”
Sutton cried out in the room before a crashing sound caused the man to groan out. Through my tears, I watched his hand fall away from me before he hit the floor. I felt Sutton’s warm, strong grip around my other arm as she pulled me away from him, tossing me back onto the bed. And as she stood there, with the frame of the rickety chair above her head, I saw the man who usually guarded our door quickly leap off the ground.
“You’re gonna pay for that, you little bitch,” the man snarled.
“Back. The fuck. Off. She’s got more vacation time to cash in with you assholes. Or does my father really not run a smooth operation around here?” she asked.
“I don’t give a shit about her vacation. Only about what my boss has said.”
“You mean, what Vlad’s told you?” I asked softly.
I watched the man shove Sutton out of the way, and I scrambled across the bed. But I wasn’t as limber or as quickly as I used to be. My feet didn’t even hit the floor before his hands were on me again. He gripped my arm with one hand and wrapped his hand in my hair with another, tugging on me. I flew through the air, Sutton screaming out before the man grunted again, but his hands didn’t fall away from me. He cursed. Furniture continued to break around the room.
It wasn’t until Sutton squealed out in pain, however, that his hands fell away from me.
“Stupid little bitch!” the man roared.
I turned around, lifting my head long enough to see the man backhand Sutton across her face. She whimpered of pain. I already saw the blood on her lip. And as the man turned back to me, I drew in a deep breath.
“You just backhanded Lars’ daughter!” I shrieked.
The man paused, looking at me with a quizzical look as Sutton picked herself up off the floor.
“Yep. I’m bleeding,” she said flatly.
“Say what now?” the man asked.
“That’s Sutton Norden. And you just busted her lip,” I said, my voice trembling.
I shook against the mattress of the bed, trying to garner the energy to be strong. But I couldn’t. I simply couldn’t. We hadn’t eaten since breakfast, which was easily six hours ago. My brain was mush. My stomach, practically distended. Tendrils of my hair slowly slid down my back. Falling out the way it always did because of malnutrition and men pulling at my locks much too hard.
Saint had never pulled that hard.
I shook the thought away from my mind as the man slowly looked over at Sutton.
“It’s true. I’m Lars’ daughter. And when he finds out you busted my lip wide open without permission from him? You’re gonna be the next dead girl they find,” she said.
I swallowed my giggle as I sat on my knees on the mattress. Like I’d been trained all these years to do. The motion was second nature, whether I meant what the position stood for or not.
It had become almost comfortable, in a sickening way.
“I bet if he finds out you’re starving her, too, he won’t like it,” I said.
“Yeah, definitely not,” Sutton said.
“I need to figure this shit out,” the man murmured.
Then, much to my relief, he stormed out the door and closed it behind him. Locking the locks before I heard him yelling into his phone down the damn sidewalk.
“Thank you so much,” I said breathlessly.
Sutton rushed over to me, wrapping me in her arms as she pulled me against her. For the first time in years, I was being comforted by someone. And the tears flowed effortlessly. I cried against her, smelling the blood and spit on her lip as she stroked my hair. She gasped as a few more tendrils came out with ease. She brought a blanket over our bodies as my tears quickly ran dry from dehydration.
We sank underneath the covers, shrouding ourselves from the world as she wiped at my face.
“You know, people will be coming for me. An entire crew named the Dead Souls. I bet they’ll take you with us. If you want,” Sutton said softly.
I sniffled, reaching over to wipe the blood off her lip. We cleaned one another up as our sniffles and cries turned to giggles and sighs. My sobbing dried up. Her lip stopped bleeding. And for once, I felt a pang of hope. One that might lead to my freedom. One that might lead to my safety.
One that might lead to me finding Mason.
“You think they would?” I asked.
She nodded. “They do some sketchy things sometimes, but when a woman’s in trouble? They never hesitate to save her. Stick with me, and I’ll make sure you get out of here.”
“And if you stick with me, I’ll make sure those men never drag you off to do what I’ve had to do for years.”
Sutton held out her pinky and I wrapped mine around hers. She kissed her hand on the opposite side, and I mocked her movements. Then, she smiled. Which caused me to smile. I mean a genuine smile, too. One that hurt my cheeks the more it grew. We giggled as we snuggled deeper under the covers, and I pretended I was crawling into the earth. Into a hole I’d dug for myself that would dump out at an all-you-can-eat buffet.
“I promise, I’ll always take care of you while we’re in this mess,” I said.
“I promise the same thing. And in return for your protection, I’m getting you out of here,” Sutton said.
“And in return for yours, I’ll—”
I paused before a sn
icker left my lips.
“Well, I’ll figure out something.”
The two of us giggled again. Something I didn’t think was possible in a scenario like this. We heard the man coming back to our doorway and the two of us froze. Sutton threw the covers off our heads. The two of us watched the door like hawks, ready to scatter at a moment’s notice.
But, instead of throwing the door open, the man took up his station. Silent as a jaybird, and not an ounce to say to either of us.
“You think he’ll bring us food?” I asked softly.
“I don’t know. But we gave it our best shot. Right?” Sutton asked.
And, like clockwork, both of our stomachs growled out.
“I think we should start splitting our meals in half. Just in case this happens again,” I said.
“Does this happen often?” she asked.
I shrugged. “Every once in a while. I used to be in the habit of doing that with my meals. But I stopped a few months ago because they became pretty regular. A small breakfast, a massive lunch, and a small dinner. You know, so I wouldn't look bloated for my customers.”
She snickered as she shook her head, then pulled me close against her again.
“I can’t imagine what you’ve gone through these past few years,” she said softly.
And as I wrapped my arms around her, cradling her the way she cradled me, I sighed.
“It helps to compartmentalize as much as you can,” I said.
But, really, the only thing that kept pushing me along was the promise of seeing my son one day.
Mason. My boy.
My sweet boy I hadn’t seen in almost three fucking years.
9
Saint
“All right. Run down your parts of the plan for me one more time,” Diesel said from the driver’s seat.
“We’ve already got this,” Brewer said.
Saint: Dead Souls MC: Prospects #3 Page 5
