by G N Wright
Every other person that night looked at me with pity in their eyes, but not him, the only thing lighting up his eyes was glee. I was too fucking out of it with grief to collect my thoughts, but I will never forget what he said to me.
“You can thank Elle King for the death of your father. She’s the reason I put a bullet in his skull.”
I was too stunned to even respond. Everyone I had ever loved, gone and everything I had ever known, shattered. My hatred for Elle had already begun to burn at that point. A small flame flickering inside of me, but with Donovan's words it turned into an uncontrollable inferno that didn’t burn out until I realized the truth. Now all of that hatred exists for Elliot and his fucking vermin son. Ironically, not the Donovan son I hated as a kid. Now Asher is my biggest ally. I know my brothers would do anything I asked of them, same as my crew, but I know Asher won’t let anything stop him from saving them both.
Thinking about them causes a tightness in my chest. I miss my dad every day. Thought I knew what living without someone was like. But every day without Elle by my side and Cassie in the hands of the Devil, is another day where I realize I won’t survive if we don’t get them back. Whenever you go to the doctors in pain, they ask you to rate your pain out of ten. I always thought seeing my dad's body was a ten, but it wasn’t. My ten would be seeing Elle’s and I can’t let that happen. No one will make it out of that wreckage.
I am still lost in my thoughts when Asher finds me. He looks rugged and run down, far from the Asher I knew and hated. I wouldn’t say we have magically become friends, but we have reached some sort of alliance in working together to get our girls back. I think of all the times I was ever jealous of him, even as kids. Every time he had Elle’s attention, I would be sick with envy, thinking he wanted her the same way I do. Now I know him, know the true face of his family, I understand their relationship much more. Even before that night, he just wanted some light in his life, and that light was Elle. I am glad he is still there for her and Cassie. We are all just one big fucked up, barely functioning family, but that's what makes us work well together.
“Hey man,” I tip my head at him in greeting.
“Hey.” He pats my shoulder as he sits down next to me with a sigh.
I’m sitting on the back porch staring at the tree Elle and I had sex under a couple of weeks ago. The night she told me she was scared; it turns out she had every right to be. I imagined multiple ways the party could go wrong, but Cassie being taken wasn’t one of them. Or at least wasn’t one I was willing to admit.
“I miss Cassie,” I admit freely. Missing Elle is obvious. She was a constant part of my life for so long, even when she was gone. But Cass was something unexpected and she’s easily slipped into my heart.
Asher’s hands grip his knees tightly. “I miss her so much it physically hurts,” he confesses. His honesty is brutal.
“Do you think she’s okay?” It’s a question I have been scared to ask for so many reasons. The answer might just kill what bit of hope I have left.
He doesn’t answer for a while and I almost think he isn’t going to. “My father has a sickness that turns my stomach,” he starts slowly. “But he has always cared about Greg. Loved him.” I’m not really sure where he is going with this, but I remain quiet. “Elle is different for them, for him.” He doesn’t have to say which him; he means. “I saw his eyes that night, the obsession in them, he wanted her, but it was more than that. Possession, ownership, craving.” He huffs a long breath before adding, “Cassie will be an extension of that for him. They won’t risk hurting her.”
I’m not sure if his answer relieves me or makes things worse. I just reach out and grip his shoulder, giving it a light squeeze. Letting him know I am here for him, whether he needs me to be or not. I think about how many times I worried about Asher being in my way when it came to Elle. Not once did I ever think I was looking at the wrong Donovan. Now he is going to be the one to help save them with me.
“What are you doing out here anyway?” He changes the subject.
“I was just thinking about how much I hated you when we were kids.” I don’t know why I tell him that, but it’s that or we sit in the deathly silence of our failures.
He huffs a laugh slightly. “Just as kids?” he asks with a small smirk.
“Yeah, now I know that you don’t want my girl, you’re slightly more likable.” I grin as I shove his shoulder with mine.
He rolls his eyes as he leans back against the sofa, we’re on. “I never wanted her, at least not the way you always did.”
“Yeah, yeah. I know that now, you prick,” I lean back next to him, “but what was I supposed to think about another teenage boy hanging around her.”
“I wasn’t just hanging around her, you were there too.” His words give me slight pause, I never thought about him trying to be my friend too.
“Oh, come on, you were barely my friend,” I scoff.
“Yeah, that’s because of your dumb ass, not mine. Me and Elle always made the effort to include you.” He rolls his eyes again and I kind of want to punch him a little for being insufferable.
I sit up to take a sip of my drink. “Yeah, until you both used to hide from me, and I’d spend half the day looking for you both before giving up and going home.” I smile a little at the memory, “Where the fuck did you always go anyway?” I ask, turning to look at him. He’s sitting up straight with a stern look on his face.
“The tunnels,” he whispers, “the fucking tunnels. I can’t believe I forgot.” He stands abruptly and starts to walk inside before turning to look at me, “Come on we need to find Max, now!”
What the fuck are the tunnels?
Chapter 14
ELLE
Rigging the last wire makes me miss Jace, his pyromaniac ways made for the perfect accomplice on things like this. But I can't make myself wish he were here. This is one of my riskier plans and I don’t want to put him in danger. Whatever it takes, really means whatever it takes. Once I attach the last wire, hoping it looks good enough, I cover it with a bit of tarp and then sit and wait.
The clubhouse is quiet, not what I expected when I decided to come here, but a pleasant surprise. It isn’t long before I hear the familiar rumble of motorbikes and immediately think of Marcus. He hasn’t been on a bike since he lost his when Elliot burned the loft down, I make a mental note to get him another one when I get back to him. If I get back to him.
I hear the click of the lock before the door bangs open and the sound of shuffling feet and cocky voices fills the air. I take a deep breath and pray I haven’t just walked into a fucking den of lions, and when I look up, I meet the surprised eyes of the President of the Hallowed Crows MC and three of his men.
The one to his left, who I notice is wearing the VP patch, immediately draws his gun when his dark eyes meet mine. “Who the fuck are you?”
I hear the click of the safety get flicked off, and I smile chaotically as I pull the tarp off the small bomb I rigged up before they got here. “I’d put that safety back on if I were you.”
All of their eye’s flick to the device at my feet and the receiver in my hand. Crazy idea? Definitely. Necessary? Absolutely. We aren’t playing the small game anymore, it’s all or fucking nothing.
Another one of them huffs a smile, “You set that thing off and you die too.”
I flick my eyes to his, returning his smile, “I’m not afraid to die, Ezra.” The use of his name startles him, but he barely lets it show. I know all of their names and I’m sure they know mine. You can’t go to war without knowing everything about your opponents’ armies.
President Connor O’Sullivan finally speaks, his Irish accent curling around his words. “What are you afraid of Miss King?”
I smile big, but roll my eyes at the same time, “Ah, my reputation precedes me.” I can only imagine the bullshit that gets spread around about me.
His face sets into a firm grimace, like he is trying to act unaffected, “I take note of all the girls
Elliot Donovan has his eye on.
“Yeah, I’ll bet. Just not enough to protect them though, huh?” I shake my head in disgust. How can this many men be this fucking corrupt
“Don’t presume to know anything about me.” He snaps his words at me, losing that cool edge he was going for, and I see the anger lining his features.
“No? Connor O’Sullivan, born in Belfast in October of 1973. Moved to the States as a teen after a stint in juvie. Your parents wanted a better life for you, so they sent you to live with a family friend. Except he was President of the Hallowed Crows to which you became a prospect for, almost immediately. You worked your way up until the day he was shot and killed by an enemy club and it was at that time you were voted in as Prez yourself. Now you’ve got Aiden here,” I nod to his VP, “and then my man Ezra, and let’s not forget about the infamous Killian,” I add gesturing to the final man of the group. “Wanna talk about reputations? Because damn, his is impressive.
All of them look furious and unimpressed with the information I have on them, and I can feel the tension rolling off all of them. “Very skillful I see,” O’Sullivan replies dryly.
I sit forward until my elbows lean against my knees and spin the knife I had hidden, round the tip of my finger. “No, skillful is how I could take out all four of you without breaking a sweat. It’s high past payment for your sins, don’t you agree?”
“And what sins would we be paying for exactly?” Killian asks in a deadly tone that makes me want to shudder. He is the kind of guy only spoken about in dark alleys with no one around. The stuff he’s said to have done is enough to fill anyone’s nightmares.
I push my fear aside and remember why I’m here, “Every single one you have committed while being in bed with the Donovan’s.
Aiden snaps first, “We are not in bed with that piece of shit!
“No?” I fake disbelief and intrigue, “Then why are you still running his guns and drugs every month?
“Those shipments are ours; he just takes them for himself,” Ezra barks in disgust, and I can tell I have hit a nerve with him.
“What, and the big bad Crows can’t stop him?” I’m being sarcastic as fuck, but I’m beyond caring. Their alliance with the Donovan’s is one of the only things I have never been able to work out. Why do they yield to him constantly and do all his dirty dealings, allowing him to keep his hands squeaky clean
They all remain silent until Connor blows out a deep breath, “We have no choice.
That pisses me off. “There's always a choice,” I spit back. “You're just making the wrong one. Just like him. And like him, you will pay.”
I stand up and flick open the device in a last attempt to get some truth. Aiden, Killian, and Ezra all raise their guns at me as I go to press the button.
Connor shouts, “He has my daughter.”
I immediately pause, “What do you mean, he has her?
He looks at me with a grimace as he responds, “You know better than anyone, exactly what I mean.
Fuck.
I drop my arm and they all visibly relax. How did I miss this? I dug up every part of his life and nowhere did I come across him having a daughter. He must see the thoughts on my face because he answers them without me voicing them.
“I kept her well-hidden, her Ma was some club whore I had a one-night stand with many moons ago. She turned up here when Bex was still a toddler. Had a meth problem and wanted money in exchange for my daughter. I paid what she wanted and then some, ensuring she would fuck off for good. Then I moved her to the other side of town with a trusted friend, where she grew up untainted and safe. But it seems you can’t control teenagers as well as kids, when she got older, she came sniffing around here.” He glances to the guys next to him, but none of them so much as flinch as they take in his words. Interesting.
“It wasn’t long before she was seen here, and someone started asking questions, and as they say, loose lips sink ships.” He looks in physical pain as he speaks about her and I can only imagine what he is going through. My daughter has only been gone a week and I’m losing my mind.
“How long?” My voice is struggling to remain unaffected.
“I haven’t seen her in two years.” His words are barely loud enough to penetrate the empty room the five of us stand in, yet somehow they pierce the air with their impact.
Fuck. Two years. Two fucking years. I can only imagine what she has endured during that time.
“Do you know where Elliot is keeping her?” I don’t know why I ask, I shouldn’t, I definitely don’t have time for anything other than getting my own daughter back. But two years is a long fucking time.
He snorts in disgust, “Oh yeah, I know exactly where she is, she’s the guest at the residence of Carter Fitzgerald, more security than the fucking Pope.”
Fuck. His daughter is with the Mayor of fucking Black Hallows. The most powerful name on my list and in the eyes of the law. He just became a bigger fucking priority.
“What if I get your daughter back for you?” I ask boldly, even though I haven’t got a fucking clue how I am going to get to Fitzgerald yet.
Killian scoffs at the very idea, “Yeah you and whose army, princess?”
I smile at the underestimation of my skills. “I don’t know. I didn’t have an army when I took down Captain Baizen and Joseph Kavanagh, maybe I’ll just improvise.” I shrug my shoulders casually and see all of their surprised faces at my admission.
Connor is the first one to step closer to me, “You bring home my Rebecca and you will have the full charter of Crows behind you. No questions asked.” Every word is delivered with force and determination, like he is really ready to join the war against Donovan, it makes me giddy.
Standing, I pick up the bomb, smiling as I see each one of them tense up, “Chill out, it’s fake,” I say like it’s no big deal, when really it was the craziest idea I’ve probably ever had.
“You just walked in here with a fake bomb and nothing else?” Aiden asks, looking slightly impressed, even though I know he would never admit it, and I shrug again.
“I didn’t need anything else.” I move to walk past them but pause as I stand in front of O'Sullivan. I offer him my sweetest smile and then launch the knife in my hand across the room to the dartboard hanging there. I don’t have to look to know it hit the center. “Bullseye.” I smirk. “I’ll see you soon Mr. President.” I toss him a wink, and then walk out leaving their shocked faces behind.
Chapter 15
JACE
The pain is paralyzing. I’m not bleeding, at least not on the outside. No, my affliction is purely psychological. Grief, it’s a fickle fucking emotion, can creep up on you at any time and take over your fucking life. I was getting better, or better at handling it, hiding it. Yet now, I am drowning again with no air in sight.
The day I met Marcus everything changed for me. I had forgotten the feeling of friendship, trust, family. Rachel left a hole in my heart so fucking deep that I thought nothing would ever matter again. I tried to fill it will alcohol, weed, fucking coke, but all that did was numb it for a while. Until numb was all I was. Marcus rescued me from a deathly fate that we don’t admit to. Not out loud anyway.
Now, that feeling of pure helplessness is back. I feel lost, weak, completely fucking useless. The fact that I can still feel anything at all is the worst bit. I don’t want to, would give anything not to. I just want to turn off every fucking emotion in my body and exist as nothing.
I think about the weeks running up to Rachel's death. She was different, running with an older crowd of girls, out of the trailer a lot, acting strange. Nothing like the big sister I had grown up with. I remember one night in particular, a couple of days before her body was found. She came back to the trailer crying, mascara running down her cheeks and her hair and clothes disheveled. Our asshole parents weren’t home, they never fucking were, so the only person to comfort her was me. She hugged me so tight that night, told me that Black Hallows was an extremely dangerous place and
that one day she would get us out of here. Three days later, she was dead.
The day I was pulled out of school by the principal and told there had been an accident, was the worst day of my life. An accident, a fucking accident. That was a funny way to describe a murder. Rachel's body was found out in the woods by a pair of hikers. She was naked, beaten, and bloodied. I barely had time to register what happened to her before I was being hauled off into the foster system.
My parents didn’t even give a fuck about Rachel’s death, so they didn’t care about me leaving. One day, I was barely surviving them with Rachel by my side, and the next, I was in a home full of strangers with a box of stuff. Some of it Rachel’s. I only had a notebook, a blanket she stole for us and a strip of pictures from a photobooth. Inside the notebook were words I will never forget.
Jace,
If you are reading this then I’m sorry I didn’t protect us better. I tried. I really did but I didn't stand a chance against them. This town is a dark place and I hope you escape it. Go live your dreams somewhere else.
I love you always bud,
Rachel xoxo
PS. Don’t trust the Donovan’s.
I didn’t know much about the Donovan’s, at that point. I was just a poor kid from a trailer park. I didn’t think anything of them until Marcus moved into the home, I was in. He was very vocal about his vendetta against them and hearing their name brought back the memories of the note. I listened to what he had to say, learnt what I could, and then we started making money together. A couple of well-timed stake outs and a few bribes allowed me to piece together what happened to my sister. The day I met Elle; I saw the same look in her eyes that I had seen in Rachel’s. Cold, distant, determined. It was like I was drawn to her, like I knew her from another life. We bonded immediately and that only grew the more I learned about her.
It’s how I know she won’t come back to us, not without her daughter. Maybe not at all. Maybe I will lose them both like I lost Rachel, and that pain will be unbearable.