by Nina Levine
“I’m so happy for you and Nash. You both deserve happiness,” Madison said.
“Thanks, babe.” I sighed, and added, “God knows, Nash really does after everything he’s been through.”
She nodded. “Yeah, my heart breaks for what he’s gone through. I can’t even begin to imagine losing a child.”
My pain surfaced. I could imagine, but not fully. It had been devastating enough to lose babies before they were born; the thought of losing a child that had lived and breathed, caused actual physical pain.
I didn’t want to have this conversation so I sat in silence. Madison must have felt it too because she didn’t say anything further. When Harlow stepped through the door of the salon, I was happy for the distraction.
Standing to greet her, I said, “Thank God, you brought cake with you.”
She put the cake down on the counter, and gave us both a hug. “I brought you half and half, Velvet. We’ve got celebrating to do.”
I frowned. “What are we celebrating?”
“You passing your exams,” she said as if I’d asked the dumbest question on the planet.
I grinned at her. “I love you. Yes, let’s celebrate that because I’m pretty sure I did. And when I find out for certain next week, we can celebrate again.”
“Yes!” Harlow exclaimed. “I like the way you think, honey.”
“What kind of cake did you bring?”
“Hummingbird and caramel mud.”
“Oh my God, woman, you’re gonna kill me. I love those.”
She smiled, and said, simply, “I know.”
Roxie came out with the hair dye ready to go. She greeted Harlow, “I just heard the words caramel mud. Your hair cut is on me today because I fucking love caramel mud.”
Madison laughed. “I think you should be thanking me, Roxie. I mean, if it wasn’t for me, you wouldn’t know these two. Which means you wouldn’t be getting cake and you wouldn’t have a beautician starting here soon.”
Roxie’s trademark sarcasm was in full force today. “You want a medal, babe? I’m sure I could round one up for you.”
Madison poked her tongue at Roxie and we all burst out laughing.
These women made my life so much better just by being in it. I’d never been big on friends; I’d resisted opening myself up to women as much as I had to men. But sometimes in life, people managed to work their way into your heart. It happened slowly, until one day you realised how big a part they played in your happiness, and just how lost you’d be if they weren’t there.
Nash
Church.
I had a sense of foreboding about today, and it unsettled me.
Taking my seat at the table, I looked around to gauge the mood of the room. Marcus was emanating control. Fuck, he looked like he was ready to take on the world. And like he knew he would fucking win if he did.
Smug bastard.
This wasn’t going to be good.
Scott sat next to Marcus, a fierce look on his face, his body tense.
And, Griff, our Sergeant-at-Arms, was on Marcus’s other side. He too, looked ready to go to battle.
The room filled quickly, and Marcus called the meeting to order. He ran through the usual business, fairly routine stuff. I sat back and watched it unfold, wondering when his agenda for today would be realised, because he sure as fuck had one. There was a nervous energy in the room; watchful eyes everywhere were taking it all in.
Everyone knew that something was going down today.
Fuck.
When it finally happened, I sat in stunned silence, not believing my eyes or my ears.
Marcus asked if anyone had business to bring to the table. I looked around to see who it would be; I figured Marcus had someone primed for this.
I wasn’t the only one looking around the table. Anticipation pervaded the room. The tension our club had been under the past couple of months had stretched us and placed us in a precarious position. Like a house of cards, all it would take would be one knock, and everything we’d worked hard to achieve would be threatened.
Griff stood.
I watched him, waiting to see what he had to say. I had no idea what he was doing; this hadn’t been discussed at any of our meetings. He pushed his shoulders back and adopted an aggressive stance. His jaw was set and there was a determined look on his face. When he spoke, his voice was hard and cold. “I call an officer challenge for the Vice Presidency. Scott has lost confidence in the President, and I don’t believe he can or will do his job properly.”
What the fuck?
I sat up straight in my chair, my shoulders tensing. What the hell was Griff doing?
I flicked my gaze to Scott. His face registered shock, but he said nothing. Anger and disbelief seeped out of him.
I sucked in a breath at the magnitude of this challenge.
Griff.
I’d never seen it coming. And Scott obviously hadn’t either. I looked at J; he was as stunned and angry as I was.
Griff had fucking played us for fools.
He’d double crossed all of us.
And, Marcus sat there with a satisfied smile on his face that made me want to hurt every last motherfucker who was with him on this. I wanted blood. I fucking wanted Marcus to bleed for everything he’d ever done to his family, and to his club.
And, I knew that one day we would have his blood for this. Scott, J, and I would fucking make sure of it.
What happened next was a blur to me. One of the other members seconded the motion, and Marcus called a vote for next week’s Church.
Scott pushed his chair back and stood. Fury rolled off him. His eyes bore into Griff, and he spat out, “I want a vote on this today; I don’t want to wait another fucking week for it.”
“Griff?” Marcus asked.
Griff nodded his approval, and the vote began. It was happening so fast; it felt like we were on a freight train hurtling towards destruction.
Marcus voted yay, and got the voting started. I watched in horror as nearly every member voted with Marcus.
Scott was out.
Griff was in.
The gavel came down, and the decision was reached.
Loyalties had been discarded.
Trust had been broken.
Family had been screwed over.
And I knew Storm would never be the same.
Epilogue
My Sacrifice ~ Creed
Nash ~ 3 months later
I took the three steps up to the door with hesitation. And, I hesitated again before knocking. Coming here today was essential, but I still felt trepidation.
Gabriella opened the door. She didn’t smile, but her face revealed her relief at seeing me. “Nash.” She didn’t say anything else, and I knew it was up to me to find the closure I was searching for.
“I’ve come to tell you I’m moving on. The shit that happened will always stay with me, but I can’t hold on to my anger about it any longer.” The words wrestled their way out of me. They had to be said, and I had to follow through, but I still struggled to even look at her. I wondered how the hell I would ever manage to let my anger go. And then, I remembered Velvet, and my anxiety settled to a manageable level.
“Thank you for coming,” she said.
“I didn’t come for you; I came for me, Gabriella. I’ve finally realised I had no control over what you did that day. All these years, I’ve held onto you, and let you project your feelings onto me. I’m done. And I’m finally letting you go. I’ll deal with my shit, and you deal with yours. Don’t text me or ring me anymore.”
Surprise, and then anger crossed her face. “You came here to say that to me? We need to talk about Aaron; about what happened.”
I shook my head. “There’s nothing more for us to say to each other. And what I actually came to say to you was goodbye.”
“No! You don’t get to decide that,” she ranted, her anger taking over.
“I do get to decide that. And I have decided that.” I paused, before saying, “Goodby
e, Gabriella.”
Without giving her a chance to say anything else, I turned and made the short walk back to Velvet’s car. She was watching me through the window, a concerned look on her face. “You okay?” she asked as soon as I was back in the car.
I gave her a tight smile. “Let’s just say, I’m getting there. This shit is never gonna be easy though.” I blew out a long breath. “You need to drive before she comes down here,” I said. I knew Gabriella, and I knew her temper. It was as quick to flare up as mine, and she would come down to give me a piece of her mind; I was sure of it.
Velvet nodded, and did as I’d said. We drove in silence for awhile. I stared out the window, my mind drifting. The last couple of months had been fucking hard. Between dealing with my shit, and then club shit, I was exhausted. Mentally at least. And yet, there was light in amongst all that.
I turned to Velvet. “Thanks for coming today.”
She glanced at me quickly before looking back to the road. “I wouldn’t be anywhere else, baby.”
She was my light; the sweet in my life.
I reached out to brush my hand over her cheek. “I love you, sweet thing.”
It was the first time I’d told her, and I didn’t know how she would handle it. I shouldn’t have been concerned.
Turning again, she smiled at me.
And then she gave me everything when she said, “I love you too, Nash.”
Thank you so much for reading Nash & Velvet’s story.
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Sneak Peek at Slay (Storm MC #5)
Prologue
Blade - 12 years old
My father was the meanest person I knew. No one even came close. I’d always thought he hated my mother and me, but the things he was saying and doing today just proved it. As I huddled in the corner of the kitchen, I chanted a prayer over and over in my mind, madly hoping God would listen.
There was a God, right?
My mother had always told me there was, but I’d never seen any proof. The only things I’d ever seen were a bare pantry, clothes that either didn’t fit me anymore or had holes in them, a mother who was hardly home because she was working two jobs to keep a roof over our heads, and a mostly absent father. Further proof God probably didn’t exist was when my father did visit, he often left us with bruises to remember him by. I wasn’t sure, but I figured if there was a God, he wouldn’t have let all that happen.
I didn’t often call him Dad. He was Marcus to me. I knew he wasn’t like a real father; he never did anything for us I saw other fathers do. And while he always had a temper, today he was really angry. Fear painted my mother’s face, and dread filled my gut.
“Why the fuck is that asshole from the grocery store asking you out on a date?” he roared at my mother.
She cowered under his harsh words and furious glare. “I don’t know, Marcus. I never encouraged him.” Her eyes were pleading with him to believe her. I knew from experience he wouldn’t.
He lashed out and slapped her face. “Don’t fucking lie to me, Stella.”
Her hand flew to her face. “I’m not.” She tried to defend herself but he wasn’t buying any of it.
The crack of his fist landing on her cheek almost made me vomit. He’d never been this violent towards her before. When he arrived at the house half an hour ago, I knew straight away he wasn’t right. He was angrier than usual. And when he started going on about something he’d heard about the man at the grocery store, I knew nothing good would come of today.
He continued to rant at her and hit her. I covered my ears and started chanting prayers in my head again.
Please, God . . . if you’re there, please make him leave us alone. I’ll do anything, just make him stop.
I wanted to help my mother; I wanted to step up and rescue her from his violent fists. But I wasn’t stupid. I was too young, too little to take my father on. Watching him now, though, watching him do the things he did to my mother, I decided there would come a day when I would challenge him. Until that day, I would be patient. I would make my plan, and I would make sure there was no way I wouldn’t win when I finally gave him what he deserved for everything he’d ever done to us.
Slay Chapter One
Blade
Eight Years Ago
Aged Twenty-Five
The steady drip of a leaking tap somewhere in the warehouse was the only sound I heard as I watched the scene unfold in front of me. That and the roar of blood rushing to my head as anger took hold.
“You really wanna go there, Blade?” Leroy snarled, his lethal gaze focused solely on me.
I thought about what he’d asked even though I’d done nothing but think about that very question for the past few weeks. This was the man who’d taken me under his wing when I was a naive fifteen-year-old out dealing drugs for little more than pocket change; the man who’d taught me everything I knew today about how to survive in the dangerous underbelly we existed in. I’d lied, stolen and killed for this man. Fuck, the first time I’d taken my blade to someone had been to save Leroy’s life. Ten years in his gang and I’d risen to the top, but I’d lost my humanity along the way. I didn’t even question the shit I did for Leroy anymore. The darkness within had totally consumed me.
Until I met Ashley.
I took a step closer to Leroy, the adrenaline pumping through me. With a nod of my head, he’d easily be taken care of by my boys, but I wanted to be the one to do it. I needed that vengeance for what he’d tried to force upon Ashley, and for what he’d already forced upon countless other women. “Yeah, motherfucker, it seems I do.”
Leroy had his loyal gang members backing him up, but I had far more of our members behind me. Once we’d discovered how Leroy was filling his brothels, we’d decided we could no longer support a filthy pig like him; a pig that refused to treat women with the respect they deserved.
His eyes were wild, his body taut; he was just as ready for this showdown as I was. “You do remember who took your sorry ass off the street and showed you what you were capable of, don’t you?” He pushed his face towards mine. We were so close now that when he spat his next words out, I could smell his foul breath. “I fucking own you, Blade. You don’t get to fucking challenge what I do.”
The calmness that always took over whenever I was about to kill descended upon me. My breathing remained steady, sure. “That’s where you’re wrong, Leroy. You don’t own me, and I sure as hell don’t owe you a damn thing. Not anymore. That debt has been paid. But you and I have a huge fucking problem if you think it’s okay to force women into selling their bodies so you can make money off them”
“They fucking owed me for the drugs they’d been buying off me!” he thundered, as if that made it all right. His thinking was so fucking screwed up he didn’t know right from wrong anymore. Hell, in his world, there was no wrong. Only what he wanted, and that was always right.
“There’s going to be some changes around here,” I stated with the calmness I felt in my bones. This was the right thing to do.
“You’re fucking dreaming if you think you can take me out and keep this organisation running, at the level of profit I’ve achieved, without the women.”
“And you’re fucking deluded if you think I’m going to let you live, so I guess I really only have one option here: kill you and find a way to make it all work, because I sure as fuck have no intention of running drugs or women anymore.”
In the blink of an eye, Leroy gave his men the nod, and a second later I had five guns trained on me. In return, Leroy had twelve on him. I waited for his next play. After all, patience was my strong suit.
“If you think you can kill me with no repercussions, my boy, you might want to think again,” he threatened with the confidence of
a man who never made promises he couldn’t keep. Leroy most certainly had shit planned for this exact outcome, but he underestimated me.
I pulled my blade out and took another step closer to him. In a low voice, I said, “It’s a good thing you taught me to always keep one eye behind me, then, isn’t it?”
His eyes widened slightly, and I took in the sheen of sweat on his forehead. He knew his breaths were limited. My pulse quickened as I savoured his fear and anticipated sinking my knife in his gut.
Merrick, my right-hand man, moved to speak into my ear. “Let’s get this shit over with, Blade. I don’t want to risk anything fucking this up, not when you've got him right where you need him.”
Merrick was right, as usual, and without giving Leroy any warning, I sunk my knife into his stomach. He roared with pain and staggered back. I pulled the knife back, yanking it from his body, only to plunge it back into his stomach. My blade connected with his flesh over and over as I sought retribution for the crimes he’d committed against the women in his organisation. I heard gunshots as our boys fought it out, but all I was concentrating on was Leroy’s blood. I needed more of it on my hands.
On my knees, surrounded by blood, my breathing ragged, Leroy lay in front of me, his body a carved canvas of death. And I was the proud and satisfied artist. No longer would he cause terror and suffering to so many.
I left him on the ground and stood. Merrick’s gaze met mine, and he nodded. We were half-way to where we needed to be today.
I surveyed the casualties. There were too many; this had to be stopped before we had more. “Enough!” I bellowed. Everyone was smart enough to know that with Leroy gone, I was taking over, and they followed my command. “You all know where I stand. If that’s not something you want to support, now’s the time to leave.”