American Street Kings: The Complete Series

by Bella J

Sweat dripped down the side of my face, and I wiped it away with my arm. That was when my eye caught the door right at the end. “Let’s try that one.”

  Ink and I both hurried down the corridor, adrenaline burning through my blood.

  We started kicking at the door the second we reached it, desperate to get to whoever was on the other side.

  The wood cracked beneath our assault, the lock breaking from the frame. The first thing I saw was her face. Cold, lifeless, completely void. And then I saw him, the monster with his inked scales, on top of her, pinning her to the bed. That was the moment everything disappeared, when I lost myself to blinding rage. There were no thoughts running through my head, no noise, no life. Just a frenzy of fury that blazed from the pit of my stomach, all the way up my chest and out my mouth, the devil’s roar ripping from my throat.

  Tunnel vision of crimson had me seeing nothing but blood. I didn’t even fucking blink, my feet rushing forward while I only had one goal. To slaughter.

  I cursed as I grabbed him, tearing him off her, clawing my fingers into his motherfucking filthy flesh.

  “Get the fuck off her!” Pulling him away and slamming my fist in his face happened at the same time, without even taking a breath.

  He stumbled back, and that was when I saw it—his dick hanging out of his pants. My mind split into pieces, my heart no longer beating. I glanced from him to Wraith, lying lifeless on the bed, dress torn, arms bound…legs spread open.

  Jesus fucking Christ. This wasn’t happening.

  This wasn’t fucking happening.

  Everything froze. Him. Her. Ink. Me. That exact moment came to a crashing halt, everything except my thoughts.

  The horror, it was too much—and I couldn’t think straight, not while I was struggling to breathe.

  Torn within the moment, not knowing what to do next, I stood there unable to move.

  Was she alive? Was she breathing?

  Did I give in to the rage and kill this motherfucker first, or did I listen to the voice echoing from deep in my soul screaming at me to go to her. To make sure she was okay.

  God, she needed me. Wraith needed me.

  Right then, nothing else mattered. The lies, the bloodlust, the war, the past—nothing fucking mattered. Nothing but her.

  I rushed to her side. “Wraith?” With panicked breaths, I hovered over her, brushing her tangled hair from her face, revealing a busted lip and blood smears on her cheeks, a cut just above her eye. “Jesus, what did he do to you?” I untied her hands, her skin torn and raw from the bindings. “Jesus. Wraith.”

  I crouched, palming her cheek, willing her to wake up, desperate for her to open her eyes and let me see the color in her irises again.

  “Wraith?” She didn’t respond, and fear slammed against my chest, threatening to take me to the ground. “Wraith, please talk to me.” Her body was cold, her face pale. I just…I couldn’t think…I didn’t know what the fuck to do.

  “You sick motherfucker! What did you do to her?” I screamed at the top of my voice, panic and rage resonating in every word, dripping like toxins from my body. When I glanced over my shoulder, he was gone. There was no trace of him or Ink. It was like they both simply vanished, but I couldn’t give a shit. I didn’t care that he was gone. All I cared about was her.

  Sweeping her up in my arms, I rushed out of the room and down the hall. “Stay with me, beautiful. Stay with me.” My feet couldn’t carry me fast enough. It felt like I wasn’t moving at all, the race against time keeping me frozen in that one moment. Faster, I needed to go faster. I needed to make sure she was okay.

  The second I reached the top of the stairs, I met Granite’s eyes, and he immediately knew something was wrong, wasting no time to meet me halfway.

  “What happened?”

  “I don’t know. I don’t know what the fuck…Jesus,” I couldn’t talk. I couldn’t think.

  “Manic,” Granite called, “get the van, and call Doc. Tell him you’re on your way.”

  “Jesus, what…oh, God.” Tears stung my eyes, panic running rampant through my body. “Wraith, wake up. Dear God. Granite, he hurt her.” I fell to my knees, clutching her against my chest. “The fucker hurt her.”

  “Who? Who hurt her?” Granite crouched and took her wrist, feeling her pulse. “She’s still alive, Onyx. Who hurt her?”

  “Slither. Ink and I…we…fuck!”

  “What happened? Talk, Onyx.”

  My hands shook as I brushed the hair from her face, wanting nothing more than for her to open her eyes. “Slither…he hurt her. Ink and I stormed into the room…and…and,” I looked up, Granite staring at me with worry, “I think he raped her.”

  “Jesus.” Granite paled. “Where is he? Where’s Ink?”

  I shook my head almost manically. “I don’t know. I don’t know where they are.”

  “We’ll search the building.” I heard Crow’s voice. “We’ll find them.”

  “Okay, come on.” Granite helped me up, and I only clutched Wraith tighter against me, my entire body shaking. “Get her to Doc now. We’ll finish this.”

  “Granite—”

  “I know, brother. We’ll find him. But you need to take care of her first. Make sure she’s okay. Remember,” he pinned his stare on mine, “she comes first. Fuck everything else.”

  I nodded and carried her out of there, leaving the war behind, not caring who died or who lived. Just as long as she did. Just as long as she was okay. Nothing else mattered but her.

  Just her…

  Just. Her.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Onyx

  “She’s going to be okay.” Granite pulled up a chair and sat down beside me. “Doc says it’s just trauma.”

  “She needs to wake up.” I refused to take my eyes off her, leaning as close to her as possible.

  “She will. Doc gave her something so she can sleep, to allow her body to shake most of the shock. We don’t know what happened between her and Slither—”

  I snapped my glare to him. “Are you kidding? Do you not see the bruises on her face? Did you not see what she looked like when I carried her out of the hellhole?”

  “Relax, man,” he held up his hand, “chill. At least we know he didn’t rape her.”

  I took a breath, my head hanging down. It was just too disgusting and vile to even try to comprehend that her own brother would want to rape her. “What kind of sick fuck would want to rape his own sister?”

  Granite shook his head. “I dunno, man. Just when I think Slither reached an all-time low.”

  I closed my eyes, trying to find a motherfucking silver lining before I lost my mind. At least we got there in time, and Slither was unable to desecrate her in the most horrific ways possible. God, I couldn’t even think about it.

  Rubbing my palms across my beard, I glanced at him. “Ink back yet?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Did they find him?”

  Granite shook his head, his expression grim and despondent.

  “Fuck,” I cursed. “Where the fuck did he disappear to?”

  “I have no idea.”

  “Every time we think we have him, fucker manages to get away.”

  Granite rubbed the back of his neck. “I was sure tonight would be it, that we’d finally have him. And judging by the way Ink stormed in here, my guess is he thought the same.”

  “I would have killed him.” I looked at Granite. “I would have killed the motherfucker tonight.”

  “I know.” Granite let out a heavy breath. “Everyone wants a piece of this fucker now. Even Crow is out there searching for him, and if he gets his hands on Slither before we do, Ink will lose his shit. He’s so hellbent on being the one who drives a knife through that fucker’s heart.”

  I rubbed my palms together. “After the rage I felt tonight, I can’t even imagine what Ink’s feeling.”

  Wraith stirred and let out a subtle moan. I jumped up, standing by her side within the blink of an eye. “Wraith.”

  “Wh
ere,” her eyes fluttered, “where am I?”

  I reached out for her hand but thought better of it. After what she went through, the last thing she probably needed was another man’s touch. “It’s okay. You’re safe.”

  Abruptly, she sat up in the bed. “Glenn.” Her face was pale as a ghost, and I could see the vein in her neck going completely apeshit.

  Granite and I looked at each other, confused.

  “I mean,” she shook her head lightly, “my brother. Slither.” Her panicked gaze swept around the room, her chest rising and falling rapidly.

  “Wraith, listen to me.” This time I ignored my head and followed my heart, taking her hand in mine. “You’re safe. He can’t hurt you here.”

  Wild eyes glimmering with tears found mine. “The last thing I remember…” She choked back on her words. “Did he…did my brother—”

  “No.” I shook my head. “No, he didn’t. We got there before he could…before he could hurt you further.”

  The relief that visibly flooded over her was heartbreaking to witness. The thought of her thinking her own brother had hurt her in such a way was too twisted to even comprehend.

  “Where is he?” Her voice was nothing but a whisper.

  “We don’t know. He got away. Wraith, listen,” I crouched by the side of her bed, looking up at her, clutching her hand between my palms, “I’m sorry. I’m sorry for the things I said to you, that I didn’t give you a chance to explain.”

  There was a weary look in her eyes screaming uncertainty as she studied me. “Onyx, I’m sorry.”

  “What happened, Wraith? Did he blackmail you, force you to do all these things?”

  I saw her hesitate before shaking her head. “He didn’t blackmail me, Onyx. He didn’t force me to do anything.”

  “Then why? I can’t believe you’d do those things simply because you wanted to.”

  She grabbed the sheet and tried to get off the bed. “I have to go.”

  “He manipulated you.”

  Both Wraith and I turned toward the door, Granite standing to the side as Neon stepped in with her crutch. “Slither manipulated you into doing these things for him, didn’t he?”

  Glancing from Neon to Wraith, I got the sense that Neon saw something in Wraith, something she recognized. So, I stepped back, trying to remove myself from the picture in the hopes Neon might be able to crack through the hard surface of Wraith’s secrets.

  Neon didn’t take her eyes off Wraith, and I could see her compassion shining through. I felt it all across the room. It was like that night in the bar, when they met for the first time. There was this weird connection between them—and now, something told me that connection was Slither.

  Neon took a few more steps inside the room, her lips pulled in a straight line. Her hair, which had always been some color or other of the rainbow, was now merely a faded light brown, and where she always wore heavy make-up, there was no trace of it on her face now, only the marks the cigarette burns left behind. It had been months, and even though she was recovering physically, she still wasn’t the Neon they took from us that day.

  Wraith’s eyes were burdened with heavy tears. “I’m so sorry for what my brother did to you.”

  “He almost did the same to you.”

  I cringed at Neon’s words, grinding my teeth just thinking about what that sick bastard wanted to do to his own goddamn sister.

  Wraith looked down, nervously picking at her fingernails. “I knew he was cruel, heartless.” She glanced at Neon. “But he’s my brother, and the only family I have left. I guess I didn’t want to see the monster he has become.” She inclined her head. “But now I know.”

  Wraith chewed on her lip as her gaze drifted from Neon, to Granite, to me. She was weary, I could see it. Like prey trapped by a pack of hunters, unsure whether she would be spared or slaughtered.

  Neon placed her crutches against the wall, hopping on one leg toward the chair. I knew better than to offer my help. She’d rather chew on wood than accept it.

  “No one blames you for trusting your brother, Wraith. Everyone here knows how important family is.”

  Wraith simply nodded, folding her hands in her lap.

  “I can see you’re uncertain. You don’t know who to trust anymore, which is why you want to rush out of here.” Neon took a seat. “But let me tell you this. These men might look like mean motherfuckers, but behind those stone-cold expressions, filthy mouths, and muscle bags are teeny-tiny little unicorn hearts.”

  Granite snorted, and even among all the drama and hurt, I had to crack a smile.

  Wraith snickered, and I loved the sound. It was fucking beautiful, and it woke this urge inside me to go to her and wrap my arms around her tiny frame. To just hold her, and tell her everything was fucking fine, even if I didn’t know the whole truth yet.

  Neon righted herself in the chair, grimacing a little. “Listen, pretty, Slither is one fucked up individual. I know he’s your brother and all, but that man,” Neon’s expression turned to pure hatred, “that man isn’t human. To say he’s a monster would be a fucking compliment to whatever the fuck he really is. But here’s the thing.” She leaned forward, and everyone could see how fucking serious she was. “When I look at you, I don’t see him. I don’t see the same evil in your eyes. He’s disgusting, vile, and absolutely revolting—an immoral fucker who probably won’t burn in hell one day, but rather rule alongside the fucking devil. But you,” she shook her head, “you ain’t the same. You ain’t him. And even though he’s your brother, something tells me there’s more to it.”

  Heavy silence draped over all of us, the atmosphere in the room palpable as we all waited in anticipation for Wraith to tell the truth, to tell us why she did Slither’s bidding. I prayed to God it wasn’t merely simple sibling loyalty. To think she was his rat only because she wanted to be was insane. It was something I couldn’t comprehend since I couldn’t wrap my head around it, and there was nothing more disgraceful than a motherfucking rat.

  Wraith cleared her throat, the bruise on her jaw growing more prominent by the minute, the blue and black colors a stark contrast against her pale white skin.

  “Our mom, she was hooked on heroin.” Her throat bobbed as she swallowed. “The only way she could afford her dirty habit was to…” she closed her eyes, her expression pained, and my chest ached for her, “…the only way they could get the money was to have some of our dad’s friends use us—” She choked on her tears.

  “Jesus,” I cursed.

  “How old were you?” Neon urged her to continue.

  “Ten.”

  “Jesus fucking Christ!” I wanted to slam my fist into the wall, break fucking skin. It was too much. Ten years old? What the fuck?

  Rage erupted, searing the inside of my veins. With my fists balled and my blood smothered with anger, I was on the verge of starting fucking Armageddon in this goddamn city.

  Granite shot me a knowing look, a subtle way of telling me to keep my shit together—for Wraith’s sake. So, I bit my tongue and clenched my jaw. The last thing Wraith needed was to see me lose control.

  “Did they rape him too? Slither?” Neon kept pushing for more, like she wanted Wraith to let it all out. Meanwhile, I was standing there feeling sick to my motherfucking stomach.

  “Yes,” Wraith mumbled softly. “They hurt both of us.”

  I scoffed. Somehow, the idea of Slither being hurt as well settled my rage a little. I knew he was young and innocent back then, but not even that reality was able to make me hate him less.

  “For how long?” Neon asked.

  Wraith pressed her lips together before answering, “Five years. It continued for five years.” Wraith blinked, her eyes red and moist as she looked in my direction. “Until he killed them.”

  I straightened. “Who?”

  “Slither…he killed our parents.”

  That was when a puzzle piece slid into place. “At the beach, you said your brother took care of whoever it was that hurt you. You were talk
ing about Slither killing your parents.”

  She simply nodded, her shoulders slumped forward, tears falling from her cheeks and onto her lap. With the back of her hand, she wiped at her face. “Slither joined a biker crew, made some friends in pretty dark places. On the night of my fifteenth birthday, he brought some friends home, and it all ended.”

  “He killed them?”

  Wraith nodded. “He killed them and burned their bodies along with the house.”

  “And that’s why you were loyal to him,” Neon stated. “You felt like you owed him because he made the abuse stop. The rape. The torture.”

  This time, sobs wracked through her body, her shoulders shuddering as sorrow tore her apart. Her cries were gut-wrenching, and it grated against my spine causing me physical fucking pain. I couldn’t take it anymore, seeing her like this. Witnessing her agony. It was just too fucking much.

  I rushed over to her, taking her face in my hands and forcing her to look at me. “I’m sorry.”

  “No, you don’t have to—”

  “I’m sorry, Wraith. I’m sorry for what your parents did to you. I’m sorry for what your brother did to you. And by God,” I inhaled sharply, “I’m sorry for what I said to you.”

  She placed her hands over mine, her tears telling tales of too many sorrows for one person to carry. “I’m sorry I hurt you.”

  “No.” I shook my head almost violently, biting my bottom lip. “Don’t you dare say you’re sorry. Don’t you ever fucking apologize, you hear me? Ever.”

  I kissed her. I took her mouth with mine, and I tried my damnedest to kiss away every ounce of pain this woman carried around inside her. She was no fucking void. She wasn’t a wraith. Her life would have been so much better had she been empty like her name implied. Her soul was filled to the brim with so much hurt, as everyone who was supposed to protect her didn’t. Those who were supposed to keep her safe were the ones who put her in harm’s way. Well, not anymore.

  My lips remained on hers for a while longer, and I could taste her sorrow as her tears penetrated our kiss. Placing my head against hers, I weaved my hand in her hair. “I swear to fucking God, no one will ever hurt you again.”