by Voss, Deja
“Can I borrow this?” I ask. I want to blow it up and have it framed. Hang it right behind the bar so that everyone who walks in the door knows who we are. What we mean. Where we come from. The Mountain Misfits MC is about to reclaim their glory days.
Chapter 20
Sloan:
I bolt upright in my bed. I heard him come in the front door, but I was hoping he’d leave me alone. I don’t know what kind of drugs he’d been getting into lately, but it seems like he is becoming more and more violent as each day passes. Normally, I could just avoid him. It wasn’t too difficult to outsmart a junkie, or at the very least, distract him long enough that he passed out and lost interest.
Something didn’t feel right about tonight, though.
He’s wandering around the kitchen, clanking through the cabinets.
Maybe I can make it to the bedroom door in time to lock him out if I just creep carefully enough.
I hear the pilot light on the stove, and as I tiptoe across the room, I can see out of the corner of my eye that he has the teakettle going.
“There’s my girl,” I hear his voice call out, and I instantly feel like I’m going to puke.
“Hey,” I say. “I have to be at the hospital early in the morning. I’m just gonna close the door so I don’t bother you.”
“You know how I feel about that, Sloan.” He’s pacing back and forth, and I know he has something on his mind. Better to just cooperate and get it over with.
I join him in the kitchen.
“You want tea?” I ask. He’d never drank tea in the ten years I was with him. “I have some chamomile. It makes you nice and sleepy.”
He just continues to pace, every footstep on the hardwood making my heart skip a beat.
I reach into the overhead cabinet above the stove and pull out some teabags. I go to the rack near the sink and grab two mugs. Suddenly, a searing pain rips through my arm.
He’s dumping boiling water over my bicep, smiling from ear to ear. It hurts so bad, I can’t even scream, can’t even run away. I just stare in horror as I smell my skin sizzle. I am in shock.
“I never liked that fucking thing,” he says, as he sears away the little flower tattoo. “You don’t need other men’s names on your body.”
“Arthur,” I barely bleat out, as I slide down the cabinets, falling to the floor. “It’s my fucking grandfather’s name.” I baby my arm as I crawl across the floor. I need to get to the bathroom. As a doctor, I know I need to start first aid immediately, before muscle damage starts setting in.
He laughs at my pathetic attempt, stands over me, and presses the bottom of the kettle to my arm, branding it with the red-hot rings that had just come off the flaming stove. This time, I scream. It doesn’t matter.
Nobody can hear me.
“Arthur,” I plead, tears running down my face. “You need to take me to the hospital. If you want me to be able to perform surgery ever again, I need your help.”
He hovers over me, the look of glee on his face turning to panic. I don’t last long. My body has had enough; my brain shuts down.
When I come to, I’m in the hospital.
He’s by my side, a big bouquet of flowers in his lap.
I eye the bandage on my arm, the white gauze dressing. As I wiggle my fingers, the pain instantly makes me cry.
“Oh, baby,” he says, stroking my hair out of my face, “It’s going to be ok.”
He hits the red button attached to the morphine drip running from my adjacent arm.
“I’m not going anywhere, I promise.”
I know he means it.
And that completely terrifies me.
Out of the corner of my eye, I keep seeing Officer Brighton pacing the halls, dressed in plain clothes. Maybe I was just hallucinating. I don’t have the energy in me to try and distract Arthur, to try and get him to leave the room. Hopefully, he’ll need a fix before too long.
I hear his phone ring and I try to fight back a smile.
“I gotta take this, I’m sorry,” he says, standing up and stepping out of the room.
As Scott sneaks in, I feel a mixture of relief and anxiety.
“How’d you know I was here?” I ask.
“Sloan, we are watching you guys like a hawk. I want you to know that.”
“Is it almost time?” I plead.
“You got everything ready to go?”
I have my letter written to the board of directors at the hospital and the dean of the college. I vaguely told Olive about what’s going on, gave her just enough information to scare the shit out of her, but not so much to blow what was about to go down.
In the past few weeks, I have met with the local police, the DEA, and the FBI. I have learned all about the scope of Arthur’s drug trafficking ring, everything I’ve willingly turned a blind eye to for our whole relationship. I automatically assume anyone I see anywhere near my apartment is an undercover cop. Maybe it’s because I’m on the inside of all this, but for a man as powerful as Arthur, you’d think he would notice too. Once again, I’m thankful he’s taken a proclivity to using.
“Are you gonna take Bender?” I ask. My one concern. My fucking dog.
“He’s at my house right now. I’m sure my kids are going to have a field day with him.”
“That makes me so happy, Scott.” I reach over to pat his shoulder, but I’m quickly reminded of the searing pain that my arm is not going to cooperate with me for a while.
“Why so soon? I thought you were still building a case.”
“It was supposed to happen within the month, but I can’t in good faith wait around and see what this sick fuck plans on doing to you next, so we decided to move. I know you’re in really rough shape right now. Do you think you’re going to be able to stick to the plan? You ready to get arrested?”
“Here?” I ask. I knew I was going to have to do a lot of explaining to the staff when all of this was said and done, but I really don’t want the attention of the people here actually seeing me get cuffed. Even if I’m not getting in any trouble, it will live on in everyone’s memory for the rest of my career.
“No, no. I wouldn’t do that to you. You’re getting discharged sometime tomorrow. We’ll pull you over on the ride home. You’ll be safe here tonight, and if he goes anywhere, there are eyes all over.”
“Can’t you just take him now?” I beg. I just want this to be over. I just want to blink and wake up from this nightmare, erase the past eight years like they never happened.
“I would, but that will only undo all your hard work, and you’ll probably end up serving some time as a result, too. I can only get him for assault. We need to get him for everything to get you your immunity. Your cooperation is what’s going to hold this thing together.”
I have heard it over and over again, and I trust it and believe it. It still scares the shit out of me. Even all doped up on whatever is coming out of that line, I know tomorrow isn’t going to be a pleasant day.
“Tomorrow, you probably won’t get much past holding. You’re still gonna get mugshots and everything like a typical arrest. We’ll come in and snatch you up. One meeting, recorded testimony, everything’s set up and you should be free to go. Obviously, we’ll need you for the trial, but we’ll talk about that tomorrow.”
Freedom. I hadn’t thought about it that way. I can’t even remember what that feels like, but if I have to go to jail to find it, by all means, cuff me and stuff me.
“Thank you, Scott. I mean it.”
“Are you sure you absolutely won’t consider witness protection? Arthur is going away for a very long time, but I’m sure he has some people on the outside who aren’t going to be too thrilled.”
“Like my father?” I laugh. “I’m not even worried about it. Let’s just do this thing.”
“All right, I’m gonna sneak out. Be brave. See ya tomorrow.”
He slips out the door and down the hall. I don’t know if it’s the drugs or the fact that I feel safe for the first time in eight
years, but I drift into the deepest sleep, not a care in the world.
Chapter 21
Present day
Gavin:
I walk into the packed barroom with a box of mountain moonshine in my arms and set it on the bar. Since Olive has taken over as manager in the last month, it’s been flying off the shelves. Hiring her was one of the best business choices I could’ve made, but I was hoping that having her around would mean I’d at least get to finish what I started with Sloan.
Instead, I have spent the last thirty days keeping it in my pants and wondering when I was finally going to get a chance to see her beautiful face again. Olive was more of a constant nagging reminder than the bridge between us that I hoped she would be.
“Have you heard from her?” I ask as she pours me a glass of whiskey.
“Whoever do you mean?” she says dramatically, batting her eyes.
“Don’t mess with me, woman.”
She just laughs and rolls her eyes.
“Of course I have; she’s my best friend, you know.”
“Well, has she asked about me?” I can’t believe I’m acting so ridiculous. It’s not in my nature to let a girl get under my skin, but this one is driving me absolutely up the wall.
“Gavin, you are giving me second-hand embarrassment with this nonsense. Don’t you have a dirty bird to pluck? Why are you so obsessed with Sloan?”
Sure, my reputation precedes me. I could throw a stone and hit at least three women I’ve nailed, but not since that night. Since that night, I’ve basically taken a vow of celibacy, but I’m beginning to wonder why.
“She has been asking about you, by the way. Nonstop. It’s getting fucking old. I tried to tell her your dick fell off in some sort of syphilis incident and she told me she’s a surgeon and she could sew it back on.”
“Why don’t you just give me her number?”
“No way, boss.”
“Then just tell her to call me.”
“I’m not playing middleman in this shit. She needs to stay out of trouble and focus on finishing up school. After that, you are more than welcome to throw her over your shoulder and drag her up that mountain of yours to do whatever it is you think you’re going to do.”
“She’s a grown woman, Olive. I think she can be responsible for herself. What are you, like her mother or something?”
“No, her mother died a long time ago. Listen, I’ve known Sloan my whole life. I’ve watched her damn near throw her entire life away before because I was too busy being Miss Nice Best Friend. I’m not doing that again. If you want her bad enough, I’m sure you’ll find a way, but if you’re doing all this for a one-night stand, you’re off your rocker. Now, I have customers to wait on and money to make for you.”
“Stop.” I grab her by the arm and she stares me down defiantly. She’s a real ballbuster. “If you think this is just some random hump and dump thing, you’re mistaken. I’m gonna make her my old lady and I don’t care what you say about it. You might think you’re being cute running interference here, but this has nothing to do with you.”
“Well, obviously it has something to do with me. I just called you a syphilitic man-whore and instead of firing me, you just gave me a five dollar an hour raise for telling you where Sloan’s apartment is.”
“I did no such thing.” She slips out of my grip and shoots me a wink. “Wait a minute…”
“Sorry, I can’t hear you,” she yells from across the bar. “Super busy!”
All I can do is shake my head and laugh. She got me again. I take a long swig from my glass and look around the bar with great pride. This was my grandfather’s dream, and seeing it come to life feels nothing short of amazing. Maybe my life hasn’t exactly turned out as planned, or maybe I was just too young and stubborn to understand what the plan really was up until now.
The notorious Morgan, queen of the birdies, bellies up to the bar next to me. She’s looking particularly sluttastic tonight in her sequined black dress that just barely contains her overflowing cleavage. I look her body up and down, but it does absolutely nothing for me.
“This seat taken?” she asks, motioning to the stool next to me.
“It’s all yours, sweetie.”
She sits down. I get up.
If I have to spend the next year of my life with my dick taped to my leg, so be it.
“What the fuck?” she whines.
I just smile and make my way over to the pool table where my brothers are hanging out. I might not have my woman, yet, but I have my family, my club, my misfits by side.
Never Coming Down
Mountain Misfits MC Book 1
Prologue
Sloan
Everything around me seems to be going on in such slow motion that I can’t even process the words coming out of the judge’s mouth. All I can feel is Olive’s hand digging into my knee, her shrill screech in my ear as the sentence is given.
I can see why I was attracted to him. Even in his prison jumpsuit, he looks so confident, handsome, and charming. Through the entire course of the trial he was nothing but polite to me, even apologizing profusely for all the pain and suffering he’s caused me.
Maybe he is sorry. Maybe he’s just sorry he got caught.
But now he’s serving a hefty sentence in federal prison for drug trafficking, murder, tax evasion, and assault and battery, amongst other things; and I’m serving a life sentence of judgement, self-loathing, and regret for all the time I spent under his spell.
“Sloan!” Olive screams, jumping up and down. “It’s over! You did it!”
I sure did.
With my testimony, I helped put away a serious player in the drug trafficking industry. I also managed to piss off my entire family in the process.
My stepmother is bawling in my ear behind me, crying so hard she’s dry heaving. Even though my father has since passed, I can still feel his breath on my neck, his voice in my ear when he put the pieces together and figured out what was going on.
“You’re a fucking nark, Sloan. You’ll get yours.”
I’m a terrible, selfish, stupid woman and I have the scars to prove it.
The only comfort I have is that I kept him from doing this to someone else. Someone more fragile than me. Someone less likely to roll over for self-preservation.
“Let’s get out of here,” Olive urges as my stepsister is beelining her way directly at me. Her minidress barely covers the tops of her thighs and her high heels clack on the marble floor. Her painted-on face is crunched into an intense scowl.
“I hope you’re happy, Sloan,” she shouts. I can smell the gin on her breath from ten feet away. “Arthur is a good man.”
I shake my head and squeeze Olive’s hand.
“Well he’s all yours,” I hiss at her. “I’m sure you can write him letters in prison.”
“You’re a bitch,” she taunts.
“That all you got?” Olive gets right in her face.
“Come on, girls,” Officer Brighton says as he approaches this scuffle about to happen. “Let’s get out of here.”
He grabs Olive and I by the shoulder and escorts us from the courtroom and into the lobby.
“Thanks,” I say.
“No problem. Your family sure knows how to make a scene.”
“No, Scott, I mean thank you for everything.”
Maybe it was a self-interested move, maybe he was looking for a promotion or something, but this man saved me from Arthur, and honestly, saved me from myself. From the day he first pulled me over and warned me, to the way he was by my side in the hospital, helping to set up my arrest so it would leave as little impact as possible on my life ahead, he was truly the catalyst for getting me out of such a bad situation.
“You did so good, Sloan. You were really brave. I should be thanking you. I know you saw some of Arthur’s evil up close and personal.”
“I had no idea how bad it really was until this trial, Scott. How many people he hurt. It was a real eye-opener. I’m glad he won’
t be hurting anyone else.”
“Are you a hundred percent sure you don’t want to look into some sort of protection program? You barely made it out of the courtroom without getting mauled by a pack of crazies.”
“And that’s just my family,” I laugh. “I swear, it’s going to be alright. I’m not afraid.”
“Yeah, and I’m never letting her out of my sight again,” Olive says. I roll my eyes at her. I think her guilt about this whole situation is worse than the physical pain I went through. She’s my only true friend in the world and I’m causing her hurt just by existing.
“You ready to come get Bender?” he asks me, staring at the marble floor nervously.
Over the last few months, he’s taken care of my dog for me. Every day, his wife has been texting me pictures of their kids playing with him, dressing him up in tutus and snuggling with him on the couch.
“I can,” I say, but I know what the right thing is to do at this point, “but I don’t want to do that to your kids. They have a lot more love to give him than I do right now. If he’s a problem, I will happily take him back.”
He lets out a sigh of relief.
“Thank you. They’re so attached to that crazy mutt it’s unreal.”
“You have to let me come visit him sometime, though.”
“Absolutely.”
We stand there in silence for a moment, staring at our feet.
“So what now, Sloan?” he asks.
“I don’t know. I guess business as usual. I have a couple years left in my fellowship at the hospital, barring any sort of incident like the one we just went through, and that’s that.”
“Well, good luck to you. If you ever need anything, you have my card. Bye, Olive. You make sure you look after her.” He shakes our hands and walks away and she frowns.