Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Jailbait
This is a work of fiction. Similarities to real people, places, or events are entirely coincidental.
JAILBAIT: A SOUTHERN REBELS MC NOVEL
First edition: January 31st, 2019
Copyright © 2019 Kristin Coley
Written by Kristin Coley
Chapter One
Creed
I swerved my bike as a car passed too close on my left, my usual instinct to curse the driver dying as I saw the face of a terrified girl through the window.
“You alright?” Hank yelled, holding his bike steady as I corrected.
“Yeah,” I shouted over the wind, my gaze still on the old car that had almost sideswiped me. They were going too fast and I was afraid someone was going to get hurt. If they already hadn’t been, I thought grimly. It had only been a quick glimpse but I thought I’d seen the shadow of a bruise on the girl’s face when our eyes had locked for the briefest second.
“Crazy ass drivers. I’m ready to be home,” Hank commented and I nodded, knowing he couldn’t see me but it wouldn’t really matter. We’d been riding together since I was big enough to sit a bike. Words were rarely necessary when we made a run for the club.
The loud roar of an oncoming car had me glancing over my shoulder and this time I did curse as I brought my bike as close to the shoulder as I could without going off the road. The sedan barely missed us as it sped toward the older model car that had almost hit me moments earlier.
“What the hell?”
We watched in shock as the black sedan intentionally rammed the other car, sending it spinning off the road, and it only came to a stop when it hit a tree.
“Jesus Christ,” Hank whispered right before we gunned our engines and raced to the scene of the accident. The black sedan had stopped when the car spun out of control, but at the sight of our oncoming bikes, it peeled away, tires smoking.
“Fucking bastard,” I growled, yanking my helmet off as I stopped my bike as close as I could to the accident. “Hank,” I shouted, pointing to the body lying on the ground a hundred yards from the car. We’d seen the body fly out as the car lost control and I couldn’t help but hope it wasn’t the terrified face in the window. He nodded and scrambled over to her, or who I assumed was a female based on the hair.
I edged around the car, praying the girl had been wearing a seatbelt, unlike her companion. The sight of a head full of tangled dirty blonde hair propped against the window sent a spurt of relief though me. I tapped on the glass and when she didn’t respond, I tried the door. It opened easily enough and she slumped forward, the seatbelt going taut against her weight.
I reached for her, brushing the hair from her face as her eyes blinked open. Pure fear radiated from the lightest green eyes I’d ever seen and she instinctively knocked my hand away from her.
“Hey, hey, it’s okay. I just want to help,” I crooned, using the same tone I did with the dogs I helped rehabilitate. “I saw the accident and stopped to see if you needed help.” She nodded, her huge eyes taking in my appearance and I realized the leather club jacket I wore probably wasn’t helping my case. “I’m not going to hurt you, okay?” I tried to make myself as nonthreatening as I could but as she turned her head, I couldn’t help but growl. She jerked back toward me, tensing, and I raised my hands.
“I’m sorry,” I apologized quickly, seeing the frantic thrumming of her heartbeat through the translucent skin at her neck. She was pale, her skin so clear I swore I could see the blood pumping though her veins. “You have a,” I made a motion around my eye, indicating the bruising I’d just seen and she nodded mutely. “I don’t like that someone did that to you,” I explained and she nodded again. Her gaze shifted to the left, letting her guard down enough to check for the person who’d been driving.
“Mom?” She whispered, her hand reaching out to the empty space of the driver’s seat. “Mom?” She said a little louder, frantically trying to undo the seatbelt that had saved her life. “MOM.”
“Hey, hey, its okay. My friend is checking on her,” I soothed, already suspecting her mom was dead, but unable to say anything as I took in her frightened expression. “Can you get out?” I asked instead and she nodded, trying to step out of the car, but the seatbelt caught her once again. “Here, let me get it, okay?” I kept my movements slow, reaching around her, my thumb brushing the delicate bone of her hip as I released the seatbelt. She practically fell out and only my arm kept her from hitting the ground. I lifted her gently on her feet, her weight nothing, her body feeling like skin and bones instead of woman.
When I went to release her, she clutched my arm, her eyes desperate as she looked at the road. “The car…” she stuttered, pointing to the road where it had ran them off.
“Gone,” I dismissed, my mouth drawn tight at the memory of the cowards who’d driven off after causing the accident. “They drove off when they saw us stopping.” She collapsed against me, shaking, when I said they’d driven off. “What’s wrong?”
“He’ll come back,” she whispered, her voice so low I had to lean down to catch the words. “He’ll come back for me.” Her hand went to her bruised cheek involuntarily and I felt my gut clench.
“The person who ran you off the road did this?” I muttered, barely keeping the anger out of my voice as she leaned against me. She nodded and I saw her wince as she tried to straighten. “What’s wrong?” She shook her head, but her hand went tellingly to her ribs. I reached for the edge of her shirt, yanking it up as she cried out and found more bruises spanning her ribcage. “Son of a bitch,” I ground out, tugging her shirt back down gently. She stared at me with petrified eyes and I sighed, realizing I’d probably just scared the shit out of her even more. “I’m sorry. I just wanted to know what he’d done so when I kill him, I can justify it.”
“Creed,” Hank called and I glanced over the top of the car as he stood up from a crouch by the girl’s mom. He shook his head, his hand making the sign of the cross automatically, and I locked my jaw. Those wide green eyes stared at me unblinking and I knew when she realized. Pain pooled in her eyes as she crumpled against me, the only solid thing in a world that had just flipped upside down.
“It’ll be okay, little one,” I attempted to reassure her, hating myself for the lie because we both knew her world was never going to be okay again.
“What you want to do?” Hank called, his steady gaze telling me he’d go along with whatever I decided.
Normally, I’d call the local cops and make sure she was taken care of, but this wasn’t our town and we had no standing agreements with the local law enforcement here. The bruises on her coupled with the fact someone had run them off the road left me reluctant to leave her there.
“Shit,” I muttered, knowing the decision I was about to make was going to get me in hot water with the club. “You have anything in the car?” I asked, and when she didn’t respond, I gave her a little shake. “Hey, I need you to listen to me right now. I know you’re upset but those guys are going to come back and we don’t need to be here when they do.”
Tears streaked down her cheeks, the green standing out against her red-rimmed eyes. “Don’t let them hurt me,” she begged and my decision to take her with us solidified. If there was one thing I cou
ldn’t tolerate it was some asshole abusing a woman or a child, and the girl in my arms fit both categories.
“I won’t, but we need to move. Is there anything in the car you want to take?” I asked patiently and she nodded.
“My backpack,” she whispered, the only volume she seemed to have. I scanned the backseat and saw a black backpack.
“Okay, go over there to Hank and I’ll grab it,” I said, nudging her to the side so I could get to the car. She didn’t budge from my side though, her body remaining close as I leaned in.
I made a quick grab for the bag, grateful it would be easy to ride with and made sure there was nothing else in the car before I turned back to her. “Come on.” I tugged her forward, catching her as she stumbled. She resisted as I pulled her closer to the body on the ground and I stopped. “Look, I know this seems cruel, but you need to see her. To say goodbye. You’ll regret it if you don’t.”
She stared at me distrustfully, those damn eyes saying too much for my comfort.
“We need to get on the road. You need to say goodbye.” I dragged her the rest of the way, her fragile bones no match for my strength. Hank watched us, pity in his eyes as she collapsed on the ground next to her mom. She touched her Mom’s cheek, tears spilling over as she whispered, “I’m sorry. So sorry.”
Hank eyed the backpack looped over my arm. “You sure?”
“You got a better idea?” I held out my arm and he shook his head.
“They’re going to eat her alive,” he predicted over the sound of her choking sobs. I glanced down at her, not entirely sure he wasn’t right.
“Better a fighting chance than no chance at all,” I replied, my eyes straying back to the road. “Let’s go,” I prodded her folded body with the toe of my boot and she tensed. She forced herself up, ignoring my hand, and reached for her backpack.
“I can make it on my own,” she said, her voice louder but still so damn soft. “You can go.”
“No,” I replied and turned to go back to the bikes.
“No,” she echoed.
“No,” I repeated. “I suggest you start moving before I have Hank carry you,” I added, striding forward. Hank made a move toward her and she scurried ahead, his large size intimidating even to grown men.
“I can take care of myself,” she called after me, her voice cracking slightly. I glanced back, my eyebrow lifted and her chin went up mutinously. “I can.”
“Good, cause where we’re going you’re going to need to,” I warned her, straddling my bike before grabbing the extra helmet. I handed it to her, those bright eyes wide as she studied me and shrugged the backpack onto her narrow shoulders. I turned away from her penetrating stare, my hand rubbing my neck self-consciously.
“How do I know you’re any better than him?” She asked and the sneer in her voice when she said him had Hank hesitating to get on his bike.
“I won’t hurt you,” I stated again but one glance at those bright green eyes and I knew my words weren’t enough. “I don’t use woman and children as punching bags and I don’t force women.” I promised, smacking my hand against the handlebars when I finished speaking. “Good enough?”
“So, if I don’t get on your bike, you won’t force me too?” She asked, neatly catching me in my own trap.
I closed my eyes, praying for patience, and when I opened them, I watched Hank struggle to hide a grin. “No, I won’t force you on the bike.” Relief crossed her face and she started to hand the helmet back. “However, I also won’t be leaving.” I moved to get off the bike and Hank couldn’t hold back his wide grin, shaking his head. “I’ll stay here until those douche bags come back and I’ll protect you from them. You start walking and I’ll follow you until I know you’re safe.” I crossed my arms, not missing how her eyes followed the movement, my kutte drawing tight over my chest. “Those are my terms, sweetheart.”
“They’ll kill you,” she murmured, the words barely audible and my eyes narrowed.
“I’m hard to kill,” I promised, wondering if my ploy was going to work. I didn’t mind staying and getting a pound of flesh for what they’d done to her, but I also knew stirring up trouble in another town wasn’t going to go over well with Johnny.
“If you have somewhere to go, we’ll take you there,” Hank rumbled and she flinched involuntarily.
“I’ll take that as a no,” I commented and she sent me a wounded look. I lowered my eyes, not liking the effect she seemed to have on me. “It’s up to you, sweetheart. Stay or go.”
She jammed the helmet on her head and stomped toward me, and I settled back on the bike with a sigh of relief. The engine roared to life and I called over my shoulder, “Hold on tight, sweetheart.”
“It’s Sloan,” she retorted, the sound almost lost to the engine roar as she curved her arms around me. Her weight was barely discernable, her body almost completely hidden behind mine, but I swore I could feel every inch of her that pressed against me. I shifted, uncomfortable with the knowledge since I had a feeling she was underage.
We eased back on the highway, her fingers tightening against my stomach as we roared away from her Mom and everything she knew.
A few miles down the road, Hank pulled into a gas station, parking around the back. I gave him a puzzled look and he gestured to the girl clinging to me. Sloan, I reminded myself.
“Long time before we’ll have a chance to stop again. Figured the girl might want to make a pit stop.” He eyed her. “Eat something too, maybe.”
“We’re taking a piss, you should too. We have a long ride ahead of us.” She nodded uncertainly, wobbling as she got off the bike. I reached out reflexively to steady her and she jerked back at my unexpected movement. “You want something to eat?” I asked, choosing to ignore her skittishness. Her stomach gurgled and she curled her arms around it. “I’ll take that as a yes.” I nodded to the backpack on her shoulders. “Hand it over.”
Her eyes widened, impossibly large as she stared at me and I suppressed a sigh. “Look, I don’t trust you not to run off at the first chance. The bag is collateral. I don’t want to go chasing all over the countryside for you.”
“Why do you care so much?” She asked, shrugging off the pack and handing it over.
“Hell, if I know,” I muttered, taking it. “Bathroom and bike,” I said shortly, waiting for her nod. She shuffled back a few steps, eyeing me hard enough to make me think she thought I might actually take off with her worldly possessions. “Any preference on food?” I asked grudgingly.
“Candy,” she whispered before hightailing it to the bathroom marked Women.
“Jesus Christ, what have I got myself into,” I grumbled under my breath as I headed for the store.
“You mean us.”
I grunted, knowing Hank was right. Johnny would hold us equally responsible for the fiasco, and Hank was good enough to go along. “Thanks,” I muttered, bumping shoulders with him as we went inside.
“No need. I got two daughters if you’ll recall. I’d want someone to do the same for them,” he rumbled, heading for the beef jerky. “And get her something besides candy.”
I snorted and started scanning the racks. A protein bar and a pack of peanut butter crackers caught my eye before I grabbed a couple of candy bars to go with them. Two bottles of water and a pack of cigarettes and I was done. We piled everything on the counter, ignoring the way the cashier eyed us as I peeled a hundred off the roll in my pocket.
“Not from around here,” the cashier said in an attempt to make small talk and I shook my head. Hank crossed his arms over his massive belly, the kuttes we both wore marking us as outlaws.
“Passing though,” Hank grunted, his dark brown eyes gleaming like marbles. The clerk nodded jerkily, his hands unsteady as he bagged our stuff. I nudged Hank when I saw a black sedan pull into the parking lot.
“Look familiar?”
“I’ll be damned. Think they’ll recognize us?” I shot him a glance and he chuckled. “Let’s try to get out of here without causing t
rouble.”
I snorted and glanced back at the clerk. “You got a back door?” When he didn’t reply, I added, “I’m not asking you twice. Point us to the back door or I use you to make one.” He paled and pointed to a door that said, “Employees only.”
“Now that wasn’t so hard,” I told him, teeth flashing. “And you didn’t see us. Comprehend?” His head bobbed and I led the way out the back, glad Hank had the forethought to park the bikes out of sight. I scanned the parking lot, my fist clenching when I didn’t see her by the bike. “Son of a bitch,” I growled, thumping my fist on my leg.
“Steady now.” Hank pushed us toward the bikes. “Maybe she saw something she didn’t like.” He lifted his bushy eyebrows knowingly and I bit back the comment I was about to make. My forehead creased when I saw a flash of white on my bike. I snatched the folded paper towel, reading the note she’d scrawled on it, the words barely legible.
“She spotted them too,” I relayed to Hank and he nodded. “She’s going to meet us up the road.” I smirked, glancing at him, as I said, “She wants her bag back.” He made a loud choking sound, what passed for laughter from him, as we straddled the bikes. I stuffed her bag and the snacks in my saddlebag, not wanting them spotted as we left the parking lot. She’d given us an opportunity and I wasn’t going to hesitate to take it. “Let’s give them a show,” I told Hank, sliding on my helmet as he nodded.
We roared around the parking lot, making sure we had their attention before I used the curb to send my bike bumping over their car. I heard shouts and a couple of pings as bullets ricocheted off my bike. The gunshots weren’t what caught my attention though, it was the guy in the suit and tie. Something told me he was the one who had ordered her car off the road and I had the feeling he wouldn’t rest until he’d found her.
We peeled out of the parking lot, knowing they wouldn’t be following us since two of the gunshots had been Hank blowing out their tires. We turned at the next corner, slowing as we came to a cross street and turning again so we came out behind the gas station. A dirty blonde head peeked out the door of a laundromat at the loud rumble of our bikes, and she darted out as soon as I came to stop.
Jailbait (Southern Rebels MC Book 1) Page 1