He hung up, looking at me with frustration on his face.
“They’re attacking,” he said.
“You mean … the enemy, right?”
“Yeah, it seems that one of the shops almost got defaced last night. Elliot stopped them, but it seems this is only the beginning.”
I nodded, listening to him.
“I’m sorry, Stephan. If there’s anything I can do, I’ll try to help.”
“The best thing to do is to protect yourself, Laney. I don’t want you to get hurt.”
I could tell he was torn by this.
“I’ll be careful. I swear.”
We got ready, and then we headed out to the shooting range, which was a series of tunnels all the way out to the edge of town. When we got out there, I noticed a series of targets, and a couple of guns, goggles, and headphones on the wall.
“Put those on, and we’ll use the gun that I gave you to practice,” he said.
I did as he told me, putting everything on, but that didn’t ease the worry I felt. I was a little bit scared of what this might mean for me, and if things would be different from here on out. As we got to the edge of the range, he grasped my hands, putting them up, and then putting the gun there.
“For starters, you should always remember to have your finger off the trigger until you’re sure you’ll shoot,” he said.
I followed his instructions, feeling happy with the closeness of our bodies. Stephan was a good teacher, and I felt confident when he showed me a few things. The first thing he did, was teach me the stances. I did as I was told, putting my feet in the correct place. I then learned how to hold the gun, and how to shoot.
The first time I shot the weapon, my arm recoiled, almost hitting Stephan. I flushed, apologizing for my ineptitude. He didn’t care though. He merely showed me how to do it right.
“Yeah, I forgot to warn you that these guns do have recoil, but, once you’re used to it, you should be able to hold it pretty decently,” he explained to me.
After a while, it started to feel normal. It was strange, but it felt right to know how to do this. At the end of the day, we left the range, but I noticed that he was quiet.
“Something the matter?” I asked as I went to the entrance of the tunnel.
“No, it’s just … I hope you don’t have to ever use it.”
I looked at him, and I quickly nodded.
“I’m a bit worried though, with all of the activity that’s been happening, and all of the attacks. It’s a lot, but I’m glad knowing how to use a gun will give you some protection in case you get into trouble.”
I looked at him, noticing that there was something off about his words.
“You think something is going on?”
He nodded.
“Yeah, I’ve got a bad feeling about things. I feel like ... I’m giving you a lifeline when I do this, Laney. I have a strangely bad feeling about everything, and I don’t really know why, but I almost wish it would go away.”
I nodded, agreeing with that.
“Well, I say don’t worry about it. I’ll be fine, no matter what,” I insisted.
He nodded, and then gave me a kiss.
“You’re so great. You’re really good at shooting too,” he said, complimenting me on everything.
The way he talked about me in an animated sense is quite nice, and I felt really happy about this. I started to ignore the feeling in my body, and the worry that was overcoming me.
After about a week, nothing had changed. I realized that there was something in the works, something that made me feel uneasy, but surprisingly, everything was fine. I talked with Stephan, and he agreed I should go back to work, at least part of the day.
He told me that he would come pick me up each day, so I didn’t have to walk alone. But he insisted I also carry the gun in case things got bad. He showed me how to pull it out quickly and fire it. I was lucky to have skirts which were bulky enough to hide it, but I also had a belt holster too which I discretely hid.
One day, after I finished up at the office, I walked out and I noticed that he wasn’t there. I suddenly felt on edge. Where was Stephan? I tried to call him, but no dice. He didn’t pick up his phone or anything.
For some reason, it made me feel even more worried about what would happen next. I decided to check the apartment, but then, as I was about to leave, I saw someone at the gate.
It was Alex.
My whole body was on edge. What was my ex doing here? Why was he at my workplace. He looked at me smiling, a grin that made me feel suddenly scared. Fuck, where was Stephan.
I walked over to him, and he then started to approach me. I tried to keep a calm face, but inside, I felt like running away.
“Hey, Laney! Good to see you,” he said.
I looked at him, and then, I sized him up. It was very obvious he was waiting for me, but I didn’t want to run away. I tried to act all confident even though that was a total lie on my part.
“Alex, what are you going here?”
“Relax, I’m not here to hurt you. By the way, I noticed you were alone. Don’t you usually have someone come and pick you up?” he asked, his voice seemingly fake, but the truth was, I felt like he was trying to bait me into talking.
“Why … why do you ask?” I said, my hand against the gun on my side.
“Oh, no reason. I wanted to see if you wanted to maybe … go out. I miss you, Laney, and I wouldn’t mind giving us another shot.”
This all felt so fake. The smile, the way he looked at me, it all felt so, so wrong! I had to get the hell out of here, no matter what I did.
“Why though? I thought we were over. Why would you even think I would want to get back together with a guy like you?” I snapped.
“Relax. You don’t have to be so rude, Laney. Trust me, you don’t want to make this weird for us. I miss you. Come on.”
I felt fear when I heard those words. For some reason, I realized that there was something off about the way he spoke to me. It was definitely not just my imagination either.
“I … I think I’ll be going now.”
He looked at me with a feral expression on his face.
“Come on, I broke up with Audrey. I thought we could … be something else,” he said.
I looked at him, my filthy ex. He was really coming over here trying to try again. This all felt so wrong.
“You should’ve thought of that before you cheated on me with my best friend,” I snapped at him.
“Oh Laney? Please, she’s nothing. You’re so much better than her. Plus, you’re looking great.”
I could tell he was trying to butter me up. But why? What was his end game? We were done. Over. Nothing would bring us back together again.
Unless….
My eyes widened in realization. No fucking way. I turned to him, shaking my head.
“I’m sorry but … I’ve got to go,” I said.
“But Laney—”
I ignored him. I started to run. I knew that I wasn’t quick or anything, but my whole body was moving like it was on fire. I had to get back.
He was in danger.
I feared for Stephan’s life. Was what he said the other day a warning? That something bad might happen to him? My brain struggled to process all this as I raced down the street. I noticed that Alex was following me. He seemed to figure out that I knew what he was doing. I had to get to Stephan’s place.
His place was a couple of miles away, but I knew a shot cut that would get me there faster. I didn’t know where the tunnels in the city were in this area. I never thought about it. At about halfway, I ran into one of the cafes, hiding in there and waiting. I saw Alex come towards the café, look inside, and then run away.
Phew.
I ran straight to the house after getting a glass of water. But, to my horror, I saw it.
The place had been ransacked. The door was left open, and when I walked inside, I noticed something even more strange about this place. It looked like someone went throug
h here and tried to find something.
Then, I looked in the corner.
Someone was struggling there. It was obvious there was a fight. I went over there, seeing the blood. I then noticed a piece of paper, a note of sorts.
Come out and play. You know where we are. We’re waiting.
I tensed. I realized that they had taken him. I would have to save Stephan. The realization of this suddenly made me shiver, the insecurity of the moment rising through my body.
Suddenly, someone came at me, charging at me. I moved out of the way, and they hit the wall. But then, they lunged at me, pushing me down to the ground. The person tried to punch me, but I moved out of the way, and they punched the carpet. I moved back, fiddling for the gun against my body.
Suddenly, a hand was at my throat. I was pushed against the wall, gasping for air. I looked down, and that’s when I realized it.
It was Alex.
He was trying to kill me. He had Stephan, and he was trying to take out both of us.
“No nothing will stand in Daniel’s way,” he snarled.
I could feel my strength depleting faster than I expected. I had to do something. I then grabbed the gun, mustering all my strength. Right before I felt my vision go blank, I turned to Alex, smiling.
“Payback is a bitch motherfucker,” I said.
He looked at me confused, but that momentary distraction was to my advantage.
I kicked him in the balls, causing him to let go of me. I wanted to cough, to catch my breath, but I knew there would be time for that later. Right now, there was something else I needed to do, something of utter importance.
Without a single thought, I raised my gun, and the rest was history.
Book 5 : Test of Love
Introduction
Tensions are only growing between Stephan and the Tigers. With the bitter rivalry growing and the exes revealing their true intent, it’s no wonder that the war between both gangs is in full swing.
However, even shadier things are happening and a dastardly plan is on the horizon. Laney and Stephan know that they need to act, and they must do so fast. But Laney and Stephan must first confront their past. Laney realizes that Audra, whom she thought was a friend, has other intentions. She knows deep down that she must confront her. But when she does, trouble hits.
Will they learn how to overcome the predicaments of the past and stop the madness before it’s too late. Or will this mark the end of the Ravens for good?
Find out in the fifth book of this exciting series!
Chapter1: Stephan
Chapter 1—Stephan
When I saw the puddle of blood on the ground, the realization of what happened hit me.
Laney had shot Alex. She had just killed one of Daniel’s lackeys, one of the key players in all of this and she didn’t seem fazed in the least.
I didn’t have any words to describe what had just happened either. All words and logic were gone, replaced by a feeling of fear, a feeling of worry and shock. I had no idea what would happen next.
Then I noticed Laney fall down to her knees, her eyes wide with shock, surprise, and worry. Her hands shook as she gazed at her handy work.
I grasped the knife that was in my pocket, holding it up. I slowly started to saw the rope, freeing myself. I then raced over to Laney.
She didn’t say a goddamn word. She looked too shocked for words, and I can’t say that I blamed her. After all, if you shot someone in cold blood, you would be in shock too. But I understood why she did it. She did it to save me.
However, I could see in her eyes that she somehow doubted her decision to kill the man.
“No … no way,” she mumbled.
“Are you okay, Laney?”
“Do I look okay? I can’t … I can’t believe I did that. I’ve never done anything like this before. But I wanted to protect you.”
I felt for her. I knew what it was like to kill somebody. You first feel a rush and then the void, the emptiness of what you just did descends upon you until all you can see, and feel is the death you caused. I knew that I had to say something, anything to get through to Laney. If I didn’t she would question her actions for the rest of her life.
“I know that it’s scary, but you had to do it. I for one am grateful that you cared enough for me to do what you did. You saved my goddamn life, Laney.”
She nodded meekly. Then her lips began to tremble. She cleared her thought as if mustering the courage to speak.
“I knew he was stalking me; I just didn’t expect well …. that to happen.”
“You never expect stuff like this to happen, but sometimes it just does. Honestly, you did what you had to do. And I’m eternally grateful to you for saving my life.”
Laney simply nodded.
It’s weird, but for the first time I really knew that I could trust Laney. She had stood by me when I needed her most. When things got bad. I knew that I could rely on her. It felt reassuring that I had her by my side. Somehow it was a weird feeling for a lone wolf like me.
“But … I killed him. I’m scared. I don’t know if that just put a target on my back or not,” she croaked.
I didn’t know the answer either. But I somehow felt that we were already the targets for our enemies and what just happened changed nothing.
“The answer to that will come in due time, Laney. For now, we should look around and figure out what to do next. I don’t know why the Tigers are so hell-bent on starting this shit now. They asked for this when they started killing our men. Unfortunately, this is a war that was bound to happen, and something that we have to face,” I explained.
I was a bit worried about this. I mean, it wasn’t like I could just ignore the pain that I felt in my gut or the worry. Laney looked at me with widened eyes. She looked scared, but I reached out, touching her hand squeezing it.
“I’m not going to hurt you, Laney. I swear.”
Maybe it was just my own mantra I used to help keep me grounded, but I felt that telling her the truth would help. Maybe she’d believe me.
“I know. I’m sorry for being so scared. I just never thought I’d do something like this.”
“Sometimes we do things that we wish we could forget.”
She nodded. I felt for her. I mean, Laney was new to this world and I regretted introducing her to it. However, despite her fear she seemed to be handling the situation well. In a way, it seemed almost as if this life was normal for her.
Maybe this was her definition of normal.
Laney then reached forward, touching my face and looking me dead in the eyes. She pointed at the corpse.
“Did this put us both in greater danger than before? Because I didn’t want that.”
I wasn’t sure. I mean, the danger that we both faced at this point was very real. But I also didn’t want to scare her.
“I don’t know. I hope that this was just something that occurred, but I do think it’s best to be on our guard, to figure out what to do in a logical and sensible manner. We need to stay nice and grounded.”
I mean, I did want to protect her. That wasn’t going to change. But I could sense the fear for the future, which was very real and not just for her, but for me also.
Would I die? I didn’t want that. I was the leader of the gang, and I didn’t want to leave Laney alone like that. I did wonder if there was a chance that I could end up losing her. She was involved now and that was that.
“Thank you for being honest with me. I was a bit scared, Stephan. I still am. I don’t know what the future may hold for me, but as long as I have you … I feel like it’ll be fine.”
I touched her face, bringing her in and giving her a long, passionate kiss. We stayed like that for a long time until I pulled away, looking around.
“We should look around to see if there is anything here. We need to understand what just happened. I suggest we stick close to each other. You never know who else might be hiding nearby,” I said.
She nodded.
“I will, S
tephan. Thanks.”
I reached out and gave her one last kiss. We then came back to reality and started looking into what exactly happened here. I was surprised that she had found me so fast, but at the same time, this was Laney, so I knew she would come through whenever I needed her.
I just hoped that I could do the same for her.
Chapter2: Laney
Chapter 2—Laney
Needless to say, I was scared of what this meant for me, for us. After all, I had no idea what was out there. But I did the right thing saving Stephan back then. For now, I would just take that as a win.
Now that I wasn’t worrying about Alex stalking me, I had a chance to look around the place. It was dark, dreary and it felt unsettling. I quickly noticed a small bookshelf that was situated randomly in the center of the room. I walked over to it and touched the books. There was nothing suspicious. It was a collection of boring and bland history books. That is until I started to open them up.
I heard a rumble. I whipped my head around and immediately noticed that a door behind me had opened.
“Oh!”
“Yeah, I guess this place is riddled with secret passageways or something,” Stephan said, striding up to the doorway.
I nodded, looking at the books again. I put the book that I took back into the shelf, noticing that it seemed to automatically fall back into place.
“Why did they make this place like this?”
“To hide something. We should do some more snooping around,” Stephan insisted with a wry grin on his face.
I nodded, agreeing. Then I noticed that there was one book that looked different from the rest. While most of them had a staid black or grey spine, this one had a bright silver one. I reached over, grabbing the book, and suddenly, there was a rumble in front of me.
“Ahh!” I cried out.
I fell back, watching as the door fully opened up, revealing a long, winding hallway.
“Huh, another door. This place is full of little surprises.”
“Yeah.”
Inked MC Boxset: Books 1-6 Page 13