He’s not totally convinced, but he lifts his chin and walks out the door. I close it behind him and go rush into the kitchen. I grab Ivy’s keys off the counter. We picked up her car on the way here. I wasn’t kidding when I told Zane I thought it all through. She can’t drive my Harley, so having her car is essential. I peek over to make sure Alex is still passed out. When I see that he is I take a minute to look around the house. Memories of my life flash through my mind like a flip book. Being young surrounded by love and laughter. Being a teenager coming home drunk and rushing to my room before my parents would notice. My parents dancing in the living room. Family dinners at the table. Christmas morning, Thanksgiving dinners, Easter egg hunts. It makes me smile, until the images of my dead parents flash through. The fighting, the tears, the gun fire, the blood.
I shake my head and open the door. I race to Ivy’s car and get it. I peel out of there and head toward the abandoned houses just outside of town. The entire drive my mind is focused on Ivy. I don’t give a shit about anything else. The club made a bad call not going immediately. The shit that Damon could be doing to her makes me shake with rage. I press harder on the gas pedal, trying to get there faster. It feels like the roads are endless and the darkness is sucking me in. I take the joint out of my cigarette pack and light it. I need something to relax me because I’m climbing out of my damn skin.
I think back to what Gillian said about Rachel being with Damon. If she’s really pissed like Gillian said, the worry about what they could both be doing to Ivy doubles. Rachel was always one who wanted the adrenaline rush. She craved the action and fear that went along with it. It makes sense she’d be with Damon. Crazy is always attracted to crazy.
I cut the headlights when I get onto the street Gillian was talking about. I slowly drive looking at each house to see which one has some kind of light. This street used to be full of families, but one by one they started leaving. The drugs in the area drove them all out. The houses became the perfect place for drug deals, squatters, and apparently the Raging Kings.
I slam on the brakes when I notice a few lights flickers in the house in front of me. I slowly pull the car in front of the house and kill the engine. I take in my surroundings and feel confident there is no one outside. I leave the keys in the ignition and grab my Glock as I open the door. I don’t close the door completely; I want Ivy to just be able to rush out and get in.
Slowly, as I continue to check all around me, I make my way to the door. When I reach it I take a deep breath and reach back to feel the ultrasound picture in my back pocket. Your mom will tell you one day that I was man enough to give up my life for yours.
I touch the doorknob, but it’s locked. “Fuck looks like I’m gonna need to make my presence known sooner than I wanted,” I whisper to myself.
I use my shoulder and slam into the door over and over. When it starts to move, I use my foot and kick it wide open. I have my gun drawn as I step in. I’m not surprised when I see Casper rushing down the stairs in front of me. I catch him completely off guard, pulling the trigger I shot two rounds into his heart.
“Fuck,” he yells, falling forward and down the stairs.
“What the fuck!” Damon yells from upstairs.
I take a few more steps and I feel someone come up behind me. “Hey lover,” Rachel whispers, pushing the tip of a knife into my back.
“Fuck you, Rachel. Where’s Ivy?” I growl.
“You’re fucking dead,” Damon hisses as he begins to descend the stairs with his gun pointed right at me.
I have my Glock following his every move as he comes closer. “Yeah I probably am, but not until you let Ivy go.”
He gives me a manic laugh as he steps over Casper’s dead body. “Fuck no.”
“It’s me you want. Let her go and take me instead. She has nothing to do with this,” I shout.
Rachel laughs as she moves to stand in front of me. “You’re willing to die for a fucking chick? What the fuck happened to you?” she asks with a look of disgust on her face.
I ignore her and keep my focus on Damon. “Be a fucking man for the first time in your life. Kill me, get your revenge, but only if Ivy goes. If not, I will kill you and Rachel right now.”
He laughs as he cocks his gun back. “That’s not how this works. I’ll let your cunt go, but not until you hand Rachel your gun.”
Fuck. I shake my head as I grin. “Ivy walks out the door and I’ll hand my gun to Rachel.” They look at each other and I want to fucking kill them both. My anger is ripping through me as I keep my gun pointed at Damon. “Ivy!” I scream. They both look at me and I lose my shit. I grab Rachel, causing her to drop the knife. I wrap my arm around her neck, keeping her in front of me. She’s screaming and clawing at my arm, but I just tighten my hold. “Get Ivy now!”
“Damon, please baby, I don’t wanna die,” Rachel pleads.
“Shut the fuck up,” I growl, pushing the gun harder to her temple. She’s crying and pleading with Damon. I’m shaking with rage as I look at Damon. He doesn’t say a word as he turns and runs up the stairs.
“I’m sorry Kace. Please don’t kill me,” Rachel pleads.
“You better hope nothing bad happened to Ivy because I have no fucking problem putting a bullet in your head if she’s hurt,” I whisper angrily.
She cries harder and it makes my heart pound with fear. “She’s still alive.”
“Kace!” Ivy cries, running down the stairs.
My heart crumbles in my chest as I see how she looks. The side of her head has blood all over it and in her hair. Her wrists and ankles are bleeding, probably from being restrained. Her shirt is torn open and it makes my blood boil. He better not have touched her.
She reaches me and I instinctively let Rachel go so I can wrap my arm around her, making sure to keep the gun pointed to Damon with the other.
“Kace,” she whispers, crying on my chest.
I kiss her head and breath her in. I don’t want to let her go but I have no choice. “Go Ivy. Get the fuck out of here. Your car is out front. Drive away and don’t fucking look back. Go to Souls and then the hospital.”
“What?” she asks, her teary eyes searching mine.
“Fuck, go. Now!” I yell.
She understands what’s happening and covers her mouth as she moves away from me. “Kace, no.”
“Get the fuck out of here,” I whisper. Her eyes roam over me and my eyes fill with tears. Even beaten and bloody she’s gorgeous. Her warm eyes land on mine and she bites her lip. “Now!”
She closes her eyes for a second and runs out the front door. Relief floods me because she’s now safe.
“I’m going to enjoy slowly torturing you. Making your last hours painful. You’ll be screaming for mercy as I melt your flesh with a blow torch. Just like I did to that cunt of yours. She passed out from the pain, so it wasn’t as fun as I expected,” he says, laughing.
“Fuck you,” I shout.
“Get upstairs,” Rachel says, holding her hand out.
I look at both of them and nod. I hand my gun to Rachel and take a step forward. The pain and torture I’m about to endure will be worth it because I know Ivy is safe.
“Don’t make me fucking say it again. Get upstairs,” Rachel says, pushing the gun against my head.
I’d rather she shoot me dead right now, so I turn toward her. “You wanna kill me, do it,” I say, holding my arms open.
“Rachel, don’t. He’s mine,” Damon says.
A gunshot rings out and as I go to duck, Rachel falls against me. Blood is pouring out of her head and I look around.
“What the fuck! Rachel, baby, no,” Damon yells, running down the stairs.
I push her to fall to the floor as Damon reaches us. As I try to figure out what the fuck just happened, I hear footsteps behind me.
“Fuck,” Damon yells, holding onto Rachel. He looks up at me and jumps to his feet. He lets out an animalistic sound as he charges me. He slams me against the wall, holding his forearm against my th
roat. I don’t even try to fight him. His size and the pain of his girl dying makes it impossible to fight him off. He pistol whips me and the pain is intense. I can feel the blood dripping down my face. He does it again and I grunt against the pain.
“Let him go,” Alex shouts.
Damon lets go and I slide down to the floor. My head is spinning from the pain, but I manage to get myself back to my feet.
“You good, brother?” Alex asks, never taking his eyes off Damon.
“Alex, get the fuck out of here. I got this,” I say.
“I can’t let you die. Ivy needs you. Your kid is gonna need you. You deserve that happiness, Kace,” Alex says.
Before I can say a word, more gun shots ring out and Damon turns toward the door. A shot is fired and Damon screams, holding his shoulder. He turns and fires three shots at Alex and he drops to the ground.
“No! Fuck,” I cry out.
As Damon turns to me, his evil dark eyes lock onto mine. “A man for a man. You killed Casper and I killed Alex,” he growls.
“Fuck you,” I roar.
He lifts his gun and as a shot rings out I close my eyes. The pain I’m expecting doesn’t come as I hear a body drop to the floor. I snap my eyes open and see Damon dead in front of me. I look around as I push off the wall.
“You’re welcome,” Zane says, appearing in front of me.
“Fuck, Z,” I say, grabbing him and wrapping my arm around him.
I have no words as I try to fucking wrap my pounding head around what the hell just happened. As I do I push off Zane. “Fuck, Alex,” I cry out.
I stumble toward his body and fall to my knees, pulling him onto my chest. I let out the same sound Damon did when Rachel was shot. My brother, my family. He died so Ivy and I could be together. I roughly wipe the tears that are forcing their way out.
“Come on,” Zane says, grabbing my arm. “Finn’s on the way with the van, we’ll get Alex out of here.”
I look up at him as I hold onto Alex. “He’s dead.”
He clears his throat and presses the heels of his hands against his eyes. He clears his throat again and I realize he’s trying to hold back his tears too. “I know, brother. That son of a bitch told me he was coming to make sure you got out alive. I told him to wait, but he beat me by a few minutes. We’re gonna send him off right. Shattered Souls style.”
I look around at all the death around me and I close my eyes. The war is over, but the wounds run deep.
Chapter 15
Ivy
Harper is holding my hand as we wait for the doctor to bring in an ultrasound machine. I can’t stop crying knowing Kace is being tortured.
“Sweetie, Zane isn’t going to let anything happen to Kace. I’m sure they are burying bodies as we speak,” Harper says.
I choke back a sob as I look up at her. “That doesn’t make me feel better.”
She sighs as she sits on my bed. “Let’s focus on the baby.”
They’ve cleaned my head where I was hit with Damon’s gun. I got a ct scan and there is nothing broken and no internal bleeding. My wrists and ankles were cleaned and bandaged. Thankfully they are only flesh wounds and should heal quickly. Damon pulled out a blowtorch and when he came at me with it I again threw up and he laughed as he touched the flame to my arm. The pain was unbearable, and I passed out. The doctor said it is a third degree burn. They cleaned and debrided the area. The doctor said I was lucky it was such a small area. I will be able to just clean it and apply the cream they are prescribing. I think passing out saved me because he wanted me awake to feel the pain.
“Hey, stop going there. You’re safe now and your injuries will heal,” Harper says.
I wipe my tears and close my eyes. “I was never so scared in my entire life. The three of them stayed in the room talking, smoking, and drinking. They were talking about how they were going to kill me slowly and painfully.”
“Fuck, Ivy,” Harper says, interrupting me. The doctor walks in and Harper’s sad eyes drift to him. “Finally, Christ. How long do you make a pregnant woman wait with all this worry?”
The doctor ignores her and smiles at me. “Let’s check and see how this baby is doing.”
I lift my hospital gown and the cold gel he squirts on my stomach makes me jump. Harper grabs my hand as he puts the wand on me. I watch the screen and I believe my heart stops beating as I wait for the picture to appear. The second I hear the heartbeat I feel my entire body relax.
“There’s the little one,” the doctor says.
“Holy shit,” Harper whispers.
I smile as I look at the image of my baby up on the screen. It’s amazing how you can love someone so much that you haven’t even met yet. I would do anything for this little one. I would die for him.
“Everything looks great,” the doctor reassures me.
“Can you print out a picture for me?” The one I got from my doctor appointment is gone now. I thought about it while I watched Rachel dry humping Damon.
The doctor prints me out a picture and hands it to me. Harper leans over and we both stare at it for a few minutes.
“I’m going to get your prescription and discharge papers. I want you to rest until your injuries are healed. No driving, no drinking, no drugs.”
“I’m pregnant, I don’t think it’s necessary to say no drinking or drugs,” I say.
He shakes his head as he grabs the ultrasound machine. “You’d be surprised.”
As he walks out of the room, Harper kisses my cheek. “That’s one perfect kid there.”
I smile as I look at the little outline of the face. “Yeah it really is.”
Harper brought me back to Souls. She helped me shower, get in my sleep shirt and shorts, and helped me to bed. She told me to try to get some sleep while she gets us something to eat. It’s impossible to sleep though. My mind is spinning with everything that happened.
I truly believed I was going to die. I cursed Kace and this club for putting me and the baby in that situation. The fear I felt was unlike anything I’ve ever encountered before. They liked seeing how scared I was, and I tried to cover it up, but there was no way. The pain I endured is something that will haunt my dreams forever.
When night fell it was even worse. I didn’t have the small strip of light shining through the covered window. It was just a lantern. I couldn’t see where they were or what they were doing. I was in a lot of pain and when Casper ran out of the room because he heard something it intensified. Especially when I heard gunshots. Damon about lost his damn mind as he ran out, leaving me alone.
I tried loosening the zip ties, but it was no use. I tried listening to what was happening, but I couldn’t hear anything, until Kace screamed my name. My heart stopped and the tears started again. He came for me.
When Damon came back in the room, I was certain Kace was dead. I begged him to leave me alone, but he didn’t say a word. He cut open my shirt which caused me to scream because I thought he was going to rape me, but he didn’t. He cut the zip ties and stood back. “Get the fuck out of here.” His deep voice saying those words is etched in my memory.
I ran and when I saw Kace was alive I almost lost the use of my legs. Having his arm around me, being surrounded by his scent made me finally feel safe.
That is until he told me to leave. I wanted to run but I wanted to run with him. That wasn’t the plan though. He gave himself up for me. I look up at the ceiling as a tear runs down my cheek.
I quickly wipe it as the door opens and Harper walks in. She’s carrying two plates with pizza and a few bottles of water.
“I knew you wouldn’t get any sleep,” she says, handing me my plate.
“Have you heard from Zane?” I ask, my sad eyes searching hers.
She takes a bite of her pizza and shakes her head. “Not yet. The entire club is with them, so try not to worry. They’ll come back whole.”
“Kace won’t,” I say, looking down at my pizza. “Rachel and Damon looked all too happy when I ran out the door.”
“You don’t give Kace or the club enough credit. There’s always a plan.” She lifts her eyebrow looking at my slice of pizza, silently telling me to eat.
“Kace was alone when I left. There was no sign of anyone else. They could’ve killed him long before Zane got there. It’s too fucking much to think about,” I say, trying to eat around the lump in my throat.
“He loves you, Ivy. He did what was necessary to keep you safe. That’s what this club is about. That’s what I’ve been trying to tell you. They fight hard but love harder.”
I nod as I take in her words. I do understand now, I honestly do. The shit I went through was horrific and vile. Something that I will live with for the rest of my life. But Kace running in like a damn knight and saving the princess made me see it all so clearly. He told me he’d protect me, and the baby and he did. The look of relief on his face told me all I needed to know. He loves me enough to give up his life. It makes my heart hurt.
“I’m scared,” I whisper, picking at my pizza.
“I know, believe me. I’ve been in your position.” She pulls out her phone and presses it to her ear. When there’s no answer she gives me a sad smile. “Don’t give up on Kace.”
“What the fuck is that supposed to mean?”
“I know you weren’t crazy about the club and all the shit they get mixed up in. I’m saying give him a chance before you decide you’re gonna walk away,” she says, finishing off her pizza.
I push the blanket off of me and stand up. I know she means well, but it pisses me off that she would say that to me. I go into the bathroom and close the door.
“Ivy, you alright?” Harper asks on the other side of the door.
“Yeah,” I say, sitting on the closed toilet.
As much as I don’t want to be alone with my thoughts, right now I’d rather that. I’ve never interfered with her relationship and I’d appreciate the same respect. I know what I’m feeling. I don’t owe those thoughts to anyone else right now.
Kace (Shattered Souls MC Book 3) Page 16