by Voss, Deja
“We have to go next door and meet the neighbors, Sabine. We’ll leave in about an hour? Is that enough time for you to get ready?”
I let out a groan. I didn’t feel like meeting anyone tonight. I was drained. I had work to do. Investigating to take care of. A big comfy bed I wanted to roll around in. “Sure,” I muttered.
“What do you want for dinner? I’ll put a note in for the chef. Anything you want.”
That put a smile on my face. Having a chef was about the only perk of this job. “Chicken marsala?” I asked. My favorite. “With pasta. Not potatoes.”
“You know those outfits only go up to a size medium,” he said, raising his eyebrows.
Please Lord give me the patience to not staple his dick to the ceiling.
“You just don’t worry about my metabolism, Kevin. I’m sure you’ve got much better things to do.”
“Chicken marsala it is, I guess.”
“Thank you,” I said coldly, grabbing the doorknob in my hand, ready to slam the door in his face and lock it behind him. An hour of peace. An hour of prep. And hour of getting to the bottom of things so I didn’t have to spend more time than necessary with this pig.
“One more thing, just so you know, this attitude around the house, I’ll tolerate it. I get it. You’re a feminist. You’re a star. You don’t think you’re just some fuck toy men jerk off to. You’ve got a big fucking head, Sabine, but just know, when we go out and make appearances, I own you. You will wear what I say, and you will do what I say. And that is also in the contract.”
“Sabine only makes one appearance a month,” I muttered under my breath. “So you better choose wisely. Would you like me to wear the cutout nipple dress to meet the neighbors, or would you prefer the crotchless pleather catsuit?”
“I’d prefer you save those for a more important meeting. Whatever that is will suffice,” he said, motioning to the sundress I was wearing. “We won’t mention Sabine until we need to.”
“Atta boy,” I said, slamming the door in his face, letting out a sigh of relief. This double undercover nonsense was just that. Nonsense. Trying to remember when I was Sabine, when I was Karen, who used what accent, who wore what, it was going to be a fucking nightmare.
I pulled out my phone and shot a text to Omar with the mapping I’d tracked so far of the house. I used the device on my phone to test every square inch of the room for bugs, wires, and any sort of recording devices. With the touch of a button I could short out any electronics I so desired, but was pleasantly surprised when I didn’t end up needing to.
I picked up all the skimpy outfits I tossed on the floor and folded them up neatly. There was a sheer black nightie with a matching thong that had bows on the hips and I made a mental reminder that I wanted to order myself one of those when this whole ordeal was over. I stood in front of the mirror and admired it. Maybe I’d start a lingerie collection. Not that Landon would probably even notice. He wasn’t the kind of guy who needed bells and whistles.
Not that Landon was even going to be around when this whole ordeal was over. The only thing I heard from him recently was that he was all the way out. Knowing him, he was probably married by now. His new wife was probably knocked up. They were probably living on a farm somewhere growing organic tomatoes and selling them on the side of the road. Riding his motorcycle around with his buddies. Living the dream that I turned down over and over again.
I sighed wistfully, pulling back the covers and slipping into the cool fresh sheets, trying not to think about the man I left behind in favor of this life. This life of lies. Delusions. Danger. This life of associating with some of the biggest scumbags on the planet. Having the potential to lose my life at any time. This life of inconsistency. Following orders. Not having a home. Not having friends. Not seeing my family for twenty years.
The only life I knew.
At least I had the softest sheets I ever felt and chicken marsala. At least I knew I was doing exactly what I was put on this earth to do. I couldn’t save myself, but maybe I could save everybody else.
Chapter Nine
Law:
“Isn’t she beautiful?” Dana cooed, scooping up the baby in her arms. “She’s got her daddy’s eyes.”
“She’s got her mommy’s nose, too. Well, pre-nosejob mommy’s nose,” Athena said with a wink. The baby giggled as Athena softly poked her in the nose, and both of the girls acted like it was the cutest thing they’d ever seen.
Okay, it was cute. But seeing Dana holding that baby made me uneasy. I always wanted kids of my own, but it was becoming glaringly obvious by the minute it wasn’t with her. I hoped she wasn’t getting any ideas.
“You like Auntie Dana, don’t you, Harley,” Dana said, bouncing her up and down in her arms.
“Do you like kids?” Athena asked. I swear she was sneering at me. As much as I loved the girl, she had a way of making everyone in a room increasingly uncomfortable. She thrived on it. She was twisted.
“I like kids I can hand back when they start to cry,” Dana said. I cleared my throat. It was the only way to stifle my sigh of relief. “No offense. She’s precious though. I’m sure I’ll change my mind someday.” She bit her lip and smiled at me.
I couldn’t be mad. I was the one who beat her door down last night, told her how things were going to be. Told her I didn’t play games, I didn’t share, and I was getting too old to be running around with a bitch that just wanted to have fun. Surprisingly, it didn’t take much convincing. I knew by the time I left that morning it was what she had in mind the entire time. I wondered if she even was involved with that thug or if that was just part of her master plan. I admired it, even though I felt like an idiot for falling into her trap.
Yet here we were now. A couple. Hanging out at the clubhouse like we were a thing. Waiting for Hannah to get back from her exam so Breaker could propose to her. Everyone was quieter than usual. For whatever reason this was one of those instances where we felt the need to class it up. Hannah was going to know the second she walked in the door that something was going on simply because we were all wearing our good jeans and the club sluts were moping in the corner quietly, probably musing over when their turn was going to come.
Reena and the house mouses were setting out a huge spread of barbecue and Breaker was milling around anxiously, talking to himself as he nursed a beer. Dana looked like something out of a Good Housekeeping magazine in her floor length floral dress that flared at the bottom. She stood out like a sore thumb, but she didn’t let it stop her from worming her way right in, making small talk with everyone, winning them over with her warm smile. Infiltrating my family.
I was supposed to love her. Her getting along with the MC was supposed to be a good thing.
I wanted them to hate her so I didn’t have to. So I’d have an excuse to run far away from her.
“They’re here!” Athena shouted, peeking through the window blinds. “Everybody act natural?”
“Oh doll, you don’t want to see that,” Rosey quipped. “We got ladies here today.”
Delaney grabbed his junk and Athena flicked him off.
Dana gripped my hand as Tressica and Hannah walked through the door.
I wasn’t even paying attention to what was going on around me. I zoned out, watching the clock ticking on the wall above the bar. I didn’t want to see Dana’s reaction to their big moment. Didn’t want her to think that was something that was going to happen in the near future. To my relief, he didn’t propose to her right then and there. They fixed some plates of food and went out on the front porch while we all stood around speechless, trying not to blow his cover.
“You think he made a speech?” Dana asked as we peeked through the window blinds. It was obvious she said yes by the way they were kissing on each other. Everyone was cheering softly, but my stomach was lurching.
“Hey boss,” Sharky, our prospect said. “Sorry to interrupt. There’s somebody at the front gate.” He held up his cellphone which acted like a surveillance camer
a for the property. Kid was a tech whiz. Whoever was out there was mashing on the buttons of the keypad like he thought he was magically going to get in. He was driving a white BMW convertible that probably costed more than half our bikes put together, and he had a woman in the passenger seat.
We stepped out on the porch and Colt and I walked to the gate to assess the damage. I was happy to volunteer. Happy to leave Dana there to ogle over the new rock on Hannah’s finger without having to awkwardly stand there with my hands in my pockets.
“Maybe it’s the new neighbors,” he suggested as we paced through the parking lot. “Only some dumbass with cash to burn would be dumb enough to want that property.”
We didn’t even make it to the gate before my blood turned cold. I don’t know if she saw me first, but her jaw tightened and she started blinking wildly.
“Can we help you?” Colt asked the guy. “You really think you wanna be doing that?”
He gave him a shit eating smirk. This kid couldn’t have been more than twenty years old. He looked like a cocky fucker even though his face was still covered in acne scars. Where the fuck did the agency dig him up?
“Get the fuck out of here,” I said, my words aimed directly at Sage. What was she trying to pull here? Was this some sort of test? I wanted to hate her right now, but I also wanted to jump through that gate and grab her in my arms. She looked healthy. She looked good. She pursed her lips and reached for the kids hand.
Destroy him, the voice in the back of my mind began to buzz. That same voice that almost blew our cover the last time we worked together. I didn’t know what that voice would tell me to do if he laid a finger on her.
“We probably should go, Kevin. We don’t have any business here,” she said it right to me, as if she was reassuring me, giving me a sign.
“Oh, come on guys,” the man I now knew as Kevin said. “I was just bringing my girlfriend over to meet the neighbors. I bought the property next door. My little bachelor pad if you will. I like it out here. Nice and quiet.”
“Hope you plan on keeping it that way,” Colt said. He was eyeing the car suspiciously. I was trying to keep my gaze off of Sage.
“Well, that’s what I wanted to talk to you about,” he said, still grinning like a goofball. I was surprised Colt hadn’t smacked the smirk off his face yet. I’d do it myself, but I was scared of what else I would do if I went on the other side of that gate. “I think you and your men might be real interested in what’s going on over there. I’d like to set up a meeting if you have the time.”
While I wanted to know every gory detail, every in and out of what this slime ball was doing with Sage, I knew better. Better for the club we don’t get entangled. Better for my mental health I don’t have a clue. Better for the sake of this dipshit’s life he doesn’t say another word.
“We’re not interested,” I said.
“I’m kind of interested,” Colt replied, stroking his beard. “What do you think you know about me and my men, son?”
“Colt, come on. Not worth your time,” I said. The smell of Sage’s perfume was burning through my nostrils. Why the fuck did she have to wear that if not to try and rattle me. She was totally trying to rattle me. Trying to break me. Trying to get me back into her web so she could keep on destroying me.
“I think you and your men probably enjoy gorgeous women such as this,” he motioned to Sage’s tits and it took everything in me not to reach for my pistol. “There’s a lot more where she comes from. Young ones, too.” He took a step closer to Colt.
“We don’t deal with skins,” Colt said. “Whatever sick shit you got going on, don’t even think you’re gonna drag our club into it.”
“Hold on just a minute. Are you trying to imply I… we? We don’t sell women. We’re completely legit. Adult movies.” He pulled a business card out of his pocket and handed it to Colt.
“You even old enough to know what porn is?” Colt asked, crumpling up the business card.
“I’m fucking legit. Ask Athena,” he said, as if by dropping the name of Colt’s sister who spent most of her adult life in the industry was going to win him any brownie points with the ever skeptical Colt.
I personally didn’t hear anything after adult movies. I was too busy wondering what the fuck Sage was doing running around with this guy. What the fuck did she sign up for this time? Last I checked porn wasn’t a matter of national security. The thought of her fucking on film was too much for me to handle.
“I got an offer for you gentlemen that I’m sure you can’t refuse. Maybe want to sit down and talk about it soon? I’ll bring some of the girls over.”
“My time is valuable,” Colt said. “Got a business to run. What the fuck do you want from us?”
“Honestly,” the guy said, pulling his hands out of his pockets and shrugging. “Protection. I mean, look at me. I’m a tech geek with a house full of hot chicks and a pile of money. I don’t have the muscle you guys have. I think we could probably make something work that would be pretty lucrative for the both of us.”
“Don’t let this fuck stick stroke your ego,” I growled. Sage just sat there, eyes trained on Kevin. I wondered if she was losing her shit as badly as I was. Probably not. She was probably in that place where she just died inside. It was something I loved and hated simultaneously about her. She could change personalities at the drop of a dime. She could bottle everything inside and never crack.
She thought I was the same.
“I think we should hear him out,” Colt said. “What can it hurt?”
Everything.
Everything about this situation was fucked. The club, the business, what was left of my sanity… if we got wrapped up with this guy we could lose it all. We could feel a hurt that could leave us in complete ruin. I didn’t have my connections anymore. Whatever this guy was into was some bad shit.
And yet if I said one damn word, I could blow Sage’s cover in a second. One damn word, and she could lose her life. I couldn’t protect her with my muscle anymore. The only way I could protect her was by staying as far away from her as possible.
I stormed off across the parking lot, not even giving her one last look. My heart was being ripped in a thousand pieces. My mind was being pulled a thousand ways. All I could hear was gunshots. All I could see was red. Blood. I wanted everything covered in blood. I wanted to destroy everyone and everything in the entire world. It was the only way I’d ever have her the way I wanted.
There was no freedom in my rage. There was no freedom in this life. As long as she existed I was going to be trapped in that hell I signed up for all those years ago. When I sold my soul for a pile of cash.
“You alright?” Dana called after me as I stormed onto the front porch. I slammed the door in her face. I couldn’t hear the music on the jukebox. Couldn’t make out the familiar faces around me. Couldn’t breathe. My fist hit the bar, and when it didn’t break through the wood, I was pissed. My fist hit the wall, and when it didn’t hurt, I was pissed. I ran down the hallway, and behind every door all I could see was her, him, limbs wrapped up, her naked body, her emotionless face. She wasn’t sad like I was. She wasn’t mad like I was. She just was.
And it made me pissed.
I collapsed on the floor of the bathroom, and promptly lost my lunch.
Chapter Ten
Law:
Undisclosed Location
fifteen years ago
Even worse than knowing exactly what you’re signing for is letting somebody else decide your fate.
I knew exactly what was coming at me when I was serving on the front line. I wasn’t a tech guy. I wasn’t a doctor. I wasn’t an engineer, but I was tough. Had to be tough. I was tough and I was likable and I was stupid enough to know any day could be my last. I didn’t want to go to college. I wanted to fight. I wanted to be in on the action. I wanted to be a part of something greater. I wanted to serve my country.
I wanted to go to Ranger School so I could do more of that. I was cocky as fuck but I felt
entitled to that. Living in shit conditions and seeing all that blood for the last nine months, I’d do it all over again in a heartbeat for that rush. I wanted more. Craved more.
This was a different story. Sage sipped her iced coffee gobbed with whipped cream and sprinkles, her leg now all stitched up, propped up on the velvet ottoman. She was draped in a big fluffy robe, and even without make-up, she was absolutely stunning. I was freshly showered, but I couldn’t relax like she was. I paced around the hotel room,
“Why are you so riled up?” she asked, holding an ice pack to her head. “Take a load off, Landon. You earned it.” She motioned to the room service cart which was covered in a full spread of doughnuts, fruit, bagels, all my favorites, but my stomach wasn’t going to let me eat any of that. Not under these conditions.
“Why am I so riled up?” How was she so fucking collected? Twenty four hours ago we were locked in a dark room bleeding out. Not knowing if it was the last day of our lives. I was still fucking shell shocked. I screamed until my voice was raw when I found out it had been a drill.
I languished over the NDA as General O’Bryan sternly stood at attention. I read every word a hundred times over, trying to make sense of the document. The only thing I gathered was they wanted me for homeland security. Undercover stuff. Massive raise. My head was still throbbing from whatever cocktail they’d injected into my arm, even though they hooked me up to a bag of fluids and pumped me with caffeine. I needed a day or two to come down from this. I wasn’t about to make any rash decisions until I was clear and sober.
Sage, she didn’t even read it, just slid it across the table like she didn’t even care if she was selling her soul to something she had no idea about. They kidnapped her. They hurt her. They tortured her. She wanted more.