“I gave you both better than you ever deserved, you cock-sucking pussy,” he says, advancing on me.
“My mom gave me better than I deserved,” I say, readying myself. “All you ever gave me was a push out the door.”
Buzz charges, the groupies roar in approval, and I throw a punch to receive him… just before his fist connects with my jaw.
Kate
Everything is simultaneously blurred and crystal clear. I feel as though I could be standing in the background of a famous impressionist painting, the colors all stretched and watery from the pouring rain. All around me, there was a dense wall of loud noise and frantic activity as the dozen or so members of the motorcycle club rushed to close me off from the one man I could count on to keep me safe from them. Tears sting in my eyes and burn hot tracks down my cheeks, mingling with the pelting shoots of rain. A thick fog is settling in around us, like being sucked into a massive cloud, obscuring and disfiguring the world, only adding to the sense of panic and doom hovering over the crowd.
I don’t know what to do. I don’t know where to go. On all sides, the big, burly MC members are closing in on me. I can see their rough faces scowling and glaring at me with combined hatred and interest. It’s the latter that makes me more nervous, to be honest. There’s a large part of my psyche that has never fully moved on from the trauma of being locked up in that room six years ago, at the mercy of scary strange men who could easily bend and break me to their satisfaction. Over the years, I’ve had countless nightmares in which I find myself back in that godforsaken stale-smelling bedroom, my fists bruising and collecting tiny, painful splinters as I frantically and helplessly bang them on the locked door. I have woken up in the middle of the night, shrieking and paralyzed with terror, thinking that I am still stuck in that room waiting for my inevitable dark fate to come along and destroy me once and for all. I’ve played through those foggy, fearful memories a thousand times, asking myself to figure out another way out that didn’t rely on Breaker having to commit murder to save me. But I always come back to the same conclusion: that there was no other way, that Breaker did what he had to do to save me and if he hadn’t, I would still be there today. Or, God forbid, somewhere worse.
And now, standing trapped in this crowd of angry, strong man, I feel just as helpless and lost and small as I did that night six years ago. I feel someone grab my arm, thick sausage fingers wrapping around my wrist and pulling me tight. I let out a bloodcurdling scream of horror and try my hardest to wrench away from the man gripping me, but he is just too strong and I am too small to fight back. I have always thought of myself as a fairly self-possessed young woman in control of my fate, at least to some degree. But there’s nothing like being reminded of how weak and fragile you are physically to make you feel weak and fragile mentally.
The man who grabbed me leans in close to my face. I can feel the roughness of his stubble scratching against my own softer skin. His breath is hot and sour as he hisses a threat against the shell of my ear. I shudder and try to pull away but he is too powerful for me to fight back, no matter how hard I try.
“You slippery, conniving little bitch,” he snarls in my ear. “I bet you thought you were going to actually escape our grasp, huh? Sorry, little girl: you can run but you can’t hide from Buzz’s gang.”
“I don’t understand,” I whimper helplessly. “What do you want from me? I’m just a regular girl! I don’t have money, I don’t have anything!”
The man sneers at me, the flames of red-hot rage and lust crackling in his sharp gaze. “You have no idea how much you’ve cost us, Katie. But nobody gets out of paying what’s due. Nobody. And we’re here now to make you pay. If you can’t pay with coin then it’ll have to be flesh and blood,” he hisses cruelly.
I stick my chin out defiantly and retort, “It’s not Katie. It’s Kate, you moron!”
The color drains from his face as it dawns on him that I just insulted him outright. He tightens his grip around my wrist and wrenches my arm behind my back, yanking me against his chest. A flash of sharp pain shoots through my arm and I feel dizzy, almost going limp.
“You’ll learn your place soon enough,” he snaps. “Especially once Buzz snuffs out your Prince Charming over there!”
“Don’t hurt him!” I scream as tears and rainwater pelt into my open mouth.
I swallow hard and try to jump up to see what’s happening beyond the crowd of big, sweaty, disgusting men around me. I know Breaker is surrounded by enemies—and the worst kind of enemy at that: former friends. Hell hath no fury like a friend turned against you.
“The both of you are going to finally get what you deserve,” the man holding me snarls.
“Leave him alone!” I screech.
I try my hardest to twist around and kick my assailant in the shins, but he’s got too firm a grasp on me. “Nice try, kiddo, but you can’t take Diesel down that easy,” he guffaws.
I manage to crane my neck to one side to stare around the thick body of another club member in front of me to see the man called Buzz grappling with an enraged Breaker. My heart drops into my stomach as I watch with horror. Breaker is impossibly quick and strong. I know that without any hesitation. But Buzz seems to be a decent match for him, maybe even just because of his decades of experience. Both men have their sleeves rolled up to their elbows, their massive hands curled into tight, angry fists. Buzz wears an unsettling sneer on his heavy, intimidating features, but when Breaker’s eyes flit over to the crowd for a moment, his gaze automatically locks with mine. I see the realization dawning on his handsome, rugged face that I’m being held against my will by the man called Diesel, presumably yet another former friend-turned-enemy of Breaker’s. His face drains of color at the sight of Diesel’s meaty hands controlling me, and then he lets out a terrifying battle cry and lunges at Buzz.
“Breaker!” I wail, tears and rain slicking my hair down to the sides of my face as I watch the man I adore trade crushing blows with his opponent.
Both of them are so fueled by rage and hatred and betrayal, and anyone can plainly see that this is a battle forged long ago, six years in the making. They have both itched for this moment for a long time, the opportunity to finally set the record straight. The two of them can’t share the same planet anymore. There’s not enough space in the universe for these men to coexist. It’s a battle to the death, and they’re so fairly matched who can tell which one will win?
My money is on Breaker, but my heart pangs with fear for him just the same.
Diesel’s hands rove down my squirming body, violating me in a way I have not experienced since that fateful event six years ago. At first, I just freeze up with shock, but then my fighting instinct kicks in. Self-righteous anger mingles with the adrenaline pumping through my veins and I manage to swivel around and spit directly in Diesel’s sneering face. He’s so stunned and disgusted by my little attack that he lets go of me for half a second. I don’t hesitate to break away from him and start bolting away, hoping to get closer to Breaker. I doubt there’s much I can offer to help him now that he’s up against his former boss and father figure in a battle of strength, but I’ll be damned if I let my mysterious prince face this all alone. He’s surrounded by enemies who all want him dead, and I need him to know I’m here, adoring and supporting him through the horrorshow unfolding. But before I can make it out of the crowd and into the relatively clear little arena between Breaker and Buzz, another set of powerful, thickly-muscled arms grab hold of me and yank me back.
“Oh no, you don’t,” quips my assailant.
“Get your filthy hands off of me!” I screech.
My arms flail out as I dig in my heels, screaming incoherently, my own anger propelling me forward. Still, the man is stronger. He pulls me back and grasps my wrists pinned behind my back. At least now I have a better vantage point of the battle, though I start to regret getting a front row seat when Buzz’s fist connects sharply with Breaker’s jaw and I hear a dizzying crunch. The men all hiss and moan, ex
citedly watching their leader punish Breaker.
I cry out with fear for my handsome savior, but to my relief he manages to recover from the blow fairly quickly. He swipes a hand over his painful jaw, wincing a little before he bolts back toward Buzz. He rears his arm back and then pummels it forward, landing a sick blow to the Prez’s gut. Buzz chokes out a gasp and doubles over, his arms wrapped around his midsection. Breaker seizes this opportunity to jump the Prez, knocking him flat on his back and straddling the older man’s body before he even has a chance to react. Breaker throws punch after punch to Buzz’s face, pinning the man down so that he can’t fight back. I feel a powerful surge of hope light up within my chest and I watch with wide eyes as sprays of scarlet blood shoot through the air. I can only assume Breaker has shattered the older man’s nose by the looks of it.
Then a body comes shooting past me through the crowd, stumbling out into the arena to grab a fistful of fabric at the back of Breaker’s shirt. He yanks him back off of Buzz and to his feet, and I realize a moment later it was Diesel who cut in. Before Breaker can fully round on Diesel, Buzz wobbles to his own feet, one hand clapped over his bloody nose.
“Get back, Diesel! This doesn’t involve you!” Buzz shouts hoarsely.
“But Buzz—” he tries to protest.
Buzz holds up his free hand to silence him, glaring at the younger recruit with warning.
“Get out of the way. This is between Breaker and me. Only one of us can finish this,” he hisses, then turns to Breaker with a devilish glare. “I dare you, Breaker. End this. Do your worst. I can take it, you traitorous bastard!”
I look over fearfully at Breaker, but to my surprise, he shakes his head. Dragging an arm across his bloody face, he shouts back, “Don’t make me go there, Buzz. I’ve already taken everything from you I could possibly want. I’m done with you, okay? It’s over.”
“Like hell it’s over! What are you, a pussy?” Buzz sneers back, even as blood dribbles down from his nose and mouth, as well as from a gash along his left temple. He looks terrible, but the man is dead-set on taking this battle to the end.
Breaker angrily spits at Buzz, his saliva tainted pink with blood that makes my heart skip a beat with worry. “Call off the goon squad, Buzz. I’m done fighting with you!” he snaps.
“No! It’s not over until one of us is dead,” Buzz insists, getting back into a fighting stance with both fists up. “Come on, kid. Show me what you’ve got. Show me the version of Breaker who slaughtered my son.”
“That was an accident. A necessary evil,” Breaker growls, narrowing his eyes.
“And I was never prouder of you, boy,” Buzz cackles evilly. “Proudest moment of my life—you finally manning up and killing Roadster in cold blood.”
“You’re sick!” I wail at him, but Buzz doesn’t even flinch or look my way.
He’s laser-focused on Breaker, waiting for his next move. And he gets that move mere milliseconds later, when Breaker comes flailing at him, swinging punches left and right. With every crushing blow, another spray of sickly blood reddens the air and mingles with the slick rainwater gathering on the ground. In fact, the ground is so wet with water and blood that the two men are sliding around a little, struggling to find a solid foothold. Breaker jumps back a step and I can tell he’s doing everything in his power to restrain his anger, but Buzz is more than willing to poke the bear.
“Come on, you cowardly bastard! Fight me like a man! Stand up to me!” he eggs Breaker on. Breaker snarls and lunges for the Prez once more. He grabs hold of his shirt collar and shakes him violently, then slams his forehead into Buzz’s head with a solid crunch, and lets the Prez wobble and collapse to the ground in a dizzy, painful heap.
Breaker delivers one more violent kick to Buzz’s ribs, causing the Prez to groan with agony, and then Breaker comes rushing over to me. The crowd, horrified and cowed by what they just watched, move out of his way. The man holding my arms releases me and steps back so that Breaker can pull me to him. He kisses the top of my head and I melt into his arms, reaching up to delicately touch my fingertips to his cuts and bruises.
“You’re hurt,” I murmur sorrowfully. “Breaker, we need to get out of here.”
“I know. We will. I’ll get you to safety now, I promise,” he says emphatically.
Then I do a double take, my eyes locking onto something that is so horrific, so terrifying, that it takes a moment for it to click in my head that what I’m seeing is real. Buzz has gotten up from the ground and grabbed a nearby tire iron. He heaves it up in the air and starts silently rushing over to Breaker from behind, a devilish, desperate gleam in his eyes.
“Breaker!” I gasp, pointing over his shoulder at Buzz. “Watch out!”
Breaker’s lightning-quick reflexes kick in and he swivels around just in time to catch the tire iron with both strong hands. By now, Buzz is visibly weakened, and it doesn’t take much for Breaker to turn the iron back on the Prez and thrust it toward the older man. Hard. I shut my eyes just in time to hear a nauseating smash, then a heavy thump as Buzz’s heavy body hits the ground. A roar of anger and sadness explodes from the collected crowd of bikers, telling me without a doubt that Buzz is dead. I open my eyes to see Breaker drop the tire iron and lift both arms over his head, glaring around at the horrified crowd. I can tell that none of these guys expected this outcome. They all came here under the strict impression that Buzz would win the battle, and now they’re all disorganized and confused without their leader to focus on.
I rush over to Breaker’s side and he puts an arm around me. Then he addresses the crowd, clearing his throat. “Listen up!” he begins in a loud, authoritative tone. “This cannot be the way things go. We cannot continue to pit brother against brother, brother against father, friend against ally. It’s barbaric. It’s pointless. And it does nothing to move any of us forward, you got it? Think of this as your official wake-up call. You have to change your ways. This life will always end in blood if you keep it up. If you want a way out, if you are dedicated to changing your life, you are more than welcome to join my own motorcycle club. We are a family and we take care of one another. Anyone who disobeys, anyone who dares lay a finger on any woman, child, or innocent will be swiftly dealt with. If you think you’re up to the challenge of what I’m offering you right now, you will know where and how to find me. Learn from this, men. Learn and adapt.”
And with that, he leads me back to the car with his arm around me, the early morning sun just beginning to cast its hopeful light over the world.
Kate
A month later, and it’s as though every little piece of my shattered life has come apart. But it’s not a bad thing. In fact, I’d say it’s exactly the opposite. As it turned out, the half-life of fear and paranoia I was living for six years, always looking over my shoulder and waiting for the other shoe to drop, was not really a life worth continuing. Luckily, I don’t have to make all these new changes by myself. I have Breaker right beside me, keeping me sane and reassuring me that all will be well. The two of us are so perfectly in sync these days, like we were never separated in the first place. Nowadays, I tend to think of those six horrible, long years as sort of the dead period, the void section of my life. I was so alone, so empty inside, and I never admitted to myself why that was. I assumed it was just the run-of-the-mill twenty-something ennui, but I know the truth now: I needed Breaker then just as desperately as I do now. He is my shining light, my rugged Prince Charming who I can always rely on to scoop me up and rescue me, regardless of the danger. After the shootout with Buzz and the rest of the former motorcycle gang, I ran away from my old life. I realize now that the only ally I ever had during that time, the one friend I thought I could trust, turned out to be the one woman I should have been most wary of. But now I’ll never have to see Caitlyn again. I’ll never have to face Diesel or Buzz or Roadster or any of those filthy slimebags Breaker used to run with. He’s everything I need and everything I want, and every day spent together brings me new joy and excit
ement.
After what went down with Buzz and the gang, I was unsurprisingly brought in to be questioned by the local police. That makes perfect sense, considering that a death was involved. But luckily, I was interviewed by one of Breaker’s friends on the take, a cop who was entirely sympathetic and patient with me as I explained to him in minute, bloody detail what happened that dark day. At first, he was a little wary, since he’s still a cop at the end of the day. He has protocol to stick to, superior officers to report to. I could sense that he kept wondering how the hell he was going to explain all of this mess to his superiors in a way that would make coherent sense and also allow for Breaker and me to go free. But once I launched into a detailed explanation of how the gang seized and kidnapped me as a naive eighteen-year old years ago, how they held me captive and planned to sell me into a horrible life, he began to really get on-board with how things shook out. I convinced the cop to understand how truly heroic and good-hearted Breaker is, about how he came and rescued me when nobody else would or could. I revealed to the police officer that the gang were back for revenge on the fact that Breaker freed me and killed one of their own in the process, and that was pretty much all it took to convince him as to why Buzz’s death was unavoidable. One of them was always going to die that day; I’m just beyond grateful and ecstatic that it wasn’t Breaker. I can’t imagine how gray and empty my life would be without him. The thought of it sends a shudder down my spine.
I never want to spend another day apart from him. Six years is long enough. Now, Breaker is mine forever. And I am his.
So, after the interview with the police was over, Breaker took me back to my torn-up shell of an apartment so I could hastily pack a bag. The two of us hightailed it out of town at top speed, anxious to leave Casper far behind us. After all, I have no real attachments to the place other than my boring job that barely paid my bills. What’s there to lose? We decided to lie low for our own safety and sanity, and so we headed to Crook County to hide out for a while until the dust settled and cleared. Truth be told, I was already aching to get out of that town, and I wasn’t too concerned about where we would end up, as long as Breaker stays by my side. Now that Buzz is dead and the gang have abandoned their years-long quest for revenge against me for escaping and defying them, there’s no practical reason keeping me tethered to Breaker. I could cut out on my own and start over somewhere by myself, but I don’t want to. I already lost him once. I sure as hell don’t plan on letting him slip away again. Not if I have anything to do with it.
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