by Kasey Krane
When he walked around the desk and moved toward me, I flinched and took a step back.
“What did he tell you? Drax?” My brother’s voice was low and guttural.
I glanced at Eagle. He seemed to have a massive grin on his face.
“Nothing specific. But it is clear to me now that you are as responsible for this as he is. Maybe more.”
“Responsible for what?”
“The violence. The tensions. The shootouts. Do you realize people in or neighborhoods are afraid? They know what’s going on between the two MCs and they’re scared, Danny.”
He came toward me again but this time I managed to stop in my tracks and face him.
“You’ve gotta stop acting like a fool. I want you to make peace with Drax and the Iron Thunders. I’m sure you guys can work something out.”
“You gonna let her talk to you like this?” Eagle spoke up again. I glared at him, surprised that he would say something like that. Crash didn’t look at him. He was focused on me.
“Are you telling me what to do?” he snarled.
“I’m telling you what the rest of us are thinking—that a war between your MCs is going to cost our communities. I want you to see that. Please, Danny.”
My brother grabbed me by my arms and shook me violently.
“What the fuck did he tell you?”
“It doesn’t matter what Drax said!” I screamed while he continued to shake me.
“Are you two banging again? Were you in his bed?”
“Danny! Please! Do you not remember who I am to you?” My voice cracked as I pleaded with him again. What was happening to him? My brother, the guy I had grown up with—the guy I thought I knew. Why was he acting this way?
I looked over his shoulder at Eagle who was standing up staring at us. That grin was still on his face. It looked like he was enjoying this.
I turned to Crash again. I could see the pure hatred in his eyes. I knew I had to give him something.
“Drax and I are not back together. We are over. You know that,” I said in a low voice. I wanted to connect with him somehow. But Crash’s strong gaze was unwavering.
“So then why did you go see him?”
“Because I thought he would give me the answers I was looking for, since you refuse to give me any straight ones. Besides, I figured if he does have some vendetta against me, then I can help sort that out too.”
“You need to mind your fuckin’ business, Mary-Beth!” he growled.
“Are you going to tell me why you’re doing this?”
“Because there is only room for one of us in this town.”
He was breathing heavily, directly on my face as he snarled. I was cowering from him, but now he’d admitted it. There was no taking it back.
Crash pulled away from me and breathed out a deep sigh, like he was relieved the truth was out there now. He didn’t have to pretend with me anymore.
“Danny, you’re being ridiculous…” I tried to say but he interrupted me.
“I want the business. The contacts. The store. The Clubhouse. I’m going to take everything away from that motherfucker. I’m going to make sure it’s just us running this town.”
This wasn’t a joke. Crash meant business. I could see the determination in his eyes.
“Why do you hate him? What has he done to you?” I dared to ask. A part of me thought this was all because he had something deep-seated against Drax. But what? When we were together, Drax never spoke about Crash. We always avoided that topic, acted like he didn’t exist. Neither did my brother speak about Drax.
But now it seemed evident that they were brutal enemies.
“So you’ve been lying to me all along. Yes? You’ve been making up all these stories about Drax and putting the blame on him, when it’s been you all along. You’re the one who started it.”
Crash turned his eyes to me again. Heavy hooded and dark. This was not the man I knew. This was not my brother. He was supposed to look after me. Look after his sister and his family and his community. What happened?
“And you think that boyfriend of yours is innocent in all this? You think none of my men have been harmed?” he growled.
“You attacked first. You stole from him. You hurt his people,” I spat at him.
Crash came at me and grabbed me by the back of my neck. I gasped with fright and tried to pull away from him. My brother had never laid his hands on me before but now I was sure he was willing to take it to the next step if he had to.
“And I will do it all over again if I have to. Anything to annihilate all of them,” he hissed.
I managed to get away from him and run to the door. I pulled it open, feeling the tears run down my cheeks. I needed to leave. I needed to think. This was too much for me to handle.
“Where do you think you’re going, Mary-Beth?” Crash growled behind me. As I heard my brother’s voice, I also felt hands on my body. It was Eagle; he was pulling me back.
I hadn’t even managed to step out of the room before I was pulled back in.
“Let me go! Danny! What the hell!” I screamed while I struggled in Eagle’s grip.
“If you try and run, Mary-Beth, Eagle will have to restrain you again,” Crash said.
I felt Eagle release his grip on me and my body jerked forwards toward my brother.
“What are you doing? What is this? I want to go home. It’s late. I need to rest. I have a job to go to in the morning.” I could feel myself beginning to panic as I spoke to my brother. Crash was staring at me calmly now. It was like he knew something I didn’t.
I definitely didn’t know what he was thinking.
“You can go home but you’re not going anywhere else,” he said in a low voice and tipped his head at Eagle.
“Excuse me, what?”
“You’re not going to be let out of your apartment till I give the order.”
“You’re putting me on house arrest? You can’t do that!”
“I can do whatever the fuck I want.”
“Danny!” I screamed. I could feel the tears still streaming down my cheeks. I couldn’t believe this was actually happening.
“You shouldn’t have done it, sis. You shouldn’t have gone to see Drax.”
“It’s over between us. I will never see him again. You can’t take my freedom away from me!”
Crash came up to me, real close. His face was just inches from mine.
“What makes you think I will ever be able to trust you again?” he hissed. I felt his spittle fly to my face. I was disgusted. Angry. Exhausted.
“I am your sister, Danny. I am family. You can’t do this to me.”
He held my gaze for a second and then he gave a quick nod to Eagle.
I felt his hands clasp my shoulders again. His grip was like steel.
“Come on, Mary-Beth, let’s get you home and all snuggled up for the night.” That stupid grin on Eagle’s face made me want to throw up.
I gave Crash one last look. I knew nothing was going to work. He had made up his mind already. This was his decision. He was going to punish me for speaking to Drax. For questioning his behavior. For speaking up for the community.
There was no point struggling against Eagle. He had the power of his President’s support now, to treat me however he wanted.
7
Drax
Amara and Sylvia were out of my room. I finally had some space to myself. And now, I had no idea what to do.
All I could really do was pace around the room, thinking about Mary-Beth and replaying every little thing we had said to each other tonight.
Why did I always do this? Why did I always let her get under my skin? Whenever she was around me, it was like I wasn’t even myself anymore. I was a whole new person who had no control over his own emotions or actions.
I knew I had tried to give her the whole picture. I tried to tell her the truth and make her see her brother in an honest light—but I couldn’t stop thinking I could have done it in a better way.
Maybe I could have been kinder.
Did I scare her?
Did she hate me even more now?
Did she even believe me?
Was she in love with some other guy?
Had she really moved on?
These were the questions swirling around in my head. I couldn’t kick them out.
It was late and I should have gone to sleep, but I couldn’t even lie down. I couldn’t get a hold of myself.
The only solution I had to my anxiety was to go for a ride.
So, I left the Clubhouse. Nobody else was around. Most of the guys had gone home or were in their rooms on the premises. Even Sophie who liked to hang around the bar till late, was gone.
I got on my bike and rode out, in no direction in particular.
I just wanted to feel the rhythm of the wheels underneath me. Feel the wind lash against my face. Feel like I finally had control over something.
But instead, I ended up remembering the way it felt to have Mary-Beth clinging to me on this bike. The way her body felt pressed up against mine. I’d never felt this way about another woman, no matter how many chicks rode on this bike with me, or how many Amaras and Sylvias lay naked in my bed waiting for me. I would always want Mary-Beth in the morning. She was the one I wanted to fall asleep with.
Didn’t she know that?
Going on this ride was the worst idea.
Now, I was inadvertently riding in the direction of the Silver Knights territory, where she lived. If she even lived in the same apartment still.
It was just hitting me right now that I actually didn’t know anything about her new life. What if I landed up there and she was up in her apartment with her latest fling? What would I do then? Beat the living shit out of the guy who dared to touch her?
Why was I doing this? It would only end in disaster, and yet, I couldn’t stop myself from going to her.
The moment I rode up to the front of Mary-Beth’s apartment building, I saw the car parked up front. Someone was getting out and dragging another person with them.
I killed my engine on the other side of the road, to stop and watch what was going on. It was dark. There were no streetlights and it was too late for windows in the building to be lit up.
Then I heard her screech.
It was clear as day.
The person being dragged into the building was Mary-Beth. I was triggered the moment I heard her voice and knew she was being forced to do something she didn’t want to.
“Let me go! You can’t do this to me!” she was shrieking.
Not a single curtain twitched in the windows above her. In this neighborhood, nobody poked their noses in the Silver Knights’ business. They had established an environment here where they could get away with whatever the fuck they wanted.
But I wasn’t going to stand there and watch her being manhandled.
“I’m just following your brother’s orders, sweetheart. Come on!” A man was grunting as he tried to drag her along into the building.
“Don’t call me sweetheart!” she screamed.
I came up to them from behind. Neither of them had heard me.
“Take your filthy fuckin’ hands off her.” My words were matched with a punch. My fist rammed straight into the jaws of the guy who lost his balance and toppled backwards.
I knew he was from the Silver Knights, the guy who always hung around Crash. His VP.
“What the fuck!” he growled, and I grabbed Mary-Beth’s arm and pulled her away.
“Drax…” she breathed my name. But I wasn’t sure if she was relieved or happy to see me.
“This is Silver Knights business. You need to stay the fuck out of this if you know what’s good for you.” The man was growling like a wild animal as he staggered up straight again. He had a nosebleed.
I pushed Mary-Beth behind me and stood between them. My fists were raised; I was prepared to punch him again.
“Yeah, I never quite knew what was good for me. I think I’ll take my chances,” I hissed.
“Drax, you should go,” I heard her say behind me. But I wasn’t going to listen to her. She had no idea what needed to be done.
The man glared at me with his eyes narrowed, assessing the situation, trying to figure out how much he could push me. I was prepared to fight him to the last bone and maybe he knew it. Maybe he could see it in my eyes.
He glanced at Mary-Beth over my shoulder and shook his head like he was disappointed.
“Your brother will not be happy about this,” he snarled.
“Oh fuck off, Eagle,” she hissed back.
And then he was gone. He got back in his car and screeched off. Mary-Beth and I were now left staring at each other in silence.
“Drax, what are you doing here?” she asked. Her shoulders were heaving, like she hadn’t had a chance to catch her breath yet. Her nostrils flared with emotion; her big eyes even bigger now. She was looking curiously at me.
“I came to check up on you,” I replied. I wasn’t going to lie and making up some shit about how I just happened to be passing by wasn’t going to work on her. She visibly relaxed when she heard that.
“You know I don’t need checking up on,” she said and then the tops of her cheeks flushed. “Contrary to how it may look right now.”
“Are you okay? Did he hurt you?”
She shook her head. “No. I’m fine. Just a little shaken up, I guess. I wasn’t expecting my night to end like this.”
I wanted to pull her into my arms and kiss her. I wanted to tell her I would take care of her. I didn’t want to see her hurt. A part of me was also relieved that I hadn’t caught her in bed with someone else.
She looked up at me with those big round eyes.
“I went to see my brother. Crash called me earlier when I was with you. I couldn’t wait to confront him and maybe that was a mistake.”
Of course, it was a mistake. Crash wasn’t the type of guy who would just admit his faults and actions and beg for forgiveness. But maybe Mary-Beth hadn’t viewed him in that light before.
“Well, I guess I’m sorry you had to find out the truth about your brother the hard way,” I said.
She was blushing again and then shook her head.
“I’m sorry I doubted you and tried to blame you.”
“You had no reason to trust me. You owed me none of your loyalty.”
We were staring at each other now, and then she gulped.
“I’ve been so wrong about Danny that I can’t help but wonder what else I’ve been wrong about.”
I was silent, didn’t know where she was going with this. But then she shook her head and looked up at her bedroom window.
“Anyway, thank you for showing up and sending Eagle packing. I should probably go in. I’ll lock the door behind me.” She added a small weak smile to that.
Lock the door? Did she honestly think that would keep the Silver Knights out if they really wanted to get in?
“I’m not letting you spend the night alone,” I said.
She licked her lips and stared at me eagerly. She was waiting to hear the words…just as much as I wanted to say them.
“You’re coming with me,” I added.
I was surprised to find that she didn’t protest. She didn’t pick a fight over it. For once, she was prepared to admit that I had the best idea.
8
Mary-Beth
I couldn’t believe it. Drax had come to my rescue.
Just when I thought I had hit a whole new kind of rock-bottom and I would never get over how confused and betrayed I felt by my brother, Drax was here to save the day. Like my knight in shining armor. My hero.
I stared at him in absolute awe and admiration as he told me he wasn’t going to let me spend the night by myself. What did that mean? What else was I supposed to do?
“Where do you want to go?” I asked. I was clutching my hands together, twisting my fingers together in nervousness. Drax brushed his hair with his hand.
“I don’t know…the Clubho
use maybe. I don’t give a shit. All I care about is making sure they don’t come after you.”
They…the Silver Knights…my brother.
I felt like someone had just shoved a knife in my heart and was twisting it around. It hurt bad. Right in the middle of my chest. I hugged my stomach tightly and Drax saw the way I was doubling over.
“What’s wrong?” He lunged at me, grabbing me, wrapping me in his arms. I collapsed into him. My head rested on his chest and we were hugging. Holding each other close. I didn’t want to cry…not again…I’d been crying too much tonight. But the tears were there. I could feel them stinging my eyelids. Threatening to seep out.
It felt good being held by him like this. It had been over a year since he’d embraced me this way. Since anyone had embraced me this way…
No other man had even come close to making me feel how Drax did. Now, he hooked a finger under my chin and raised my face up to look at him.
“Are you okay?” he asked in a low strong voice. I nodded but was that really the truth? Was I okay? Was I really okay? It felt like I’d lost my brother. Like I’d actually lost him.
“I don’t think I can go to your Clubhouse. Eagle will go directly to Crash. They’ll be keeping an eye on that place all night long. Looking out for me to land up there.”
He nodded. He knew I was right. Crash wouldn’t be happy once he found out what Drax had done to Eagle. He was going to want revenge.
“We can go back to my place,” he suggested.
“I’m sure they’ll be keeping an eye on your place too. I’m sure Crash and his gang know exactly where you live.”
“Not my place…not my apartment. But the hideout.”
I looked up at him with my face glowing. I knew what he was talking about. The small studio apartment at the other end of town. The place we used to disappear to when we wanted to hide away from everyone else for a long weekend. It was our secret love nest.
What was surprising was that he still had it.
“Okay. Let’s go,” I said.
I was dying to see it again.