BLEED FOR HER

by Hilliard, RB

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  BUCK HATED DEALING with clients. The dickhead wanted to meet him at noon and then was over thirty minutes late. After bitching about a ding on his fucking tailpipe—which was there when he dropped off the bike—he expected Buck to help him load it onto his trailer.

  Buck was walking back to his bike when Grover called. Lifting the phone to his ear, he clipped, “Tell me you’ve got something.”

  “Maybe. Does the name Ryan Shane ring a bell?” This certainly got Buck’s attention. Ryan Shane was Dooley Shane’s son. Buck hadn’t thought about him in years.

  “Yeah, I know Ryan. Why?”

  “I hit a dead end and decided to go ahead and search Eddie’s bank account. It turns out that he was getting a regular paycheck from a D.S. Corporation. D.S. Corporation is owned by—”

  “It used to be Dooley Shane. I assume now belongs to his son, Ryan,” Buck finished for him. He felt like he’d been sucker punched. Back when he’d worked for Dooley, all of his paychecks had come from D.S. Corporation. Ryan was what? Maybe eighteen, possibly nineteen, when Dooley was killed. That would put him at twenty-two or twenty-three, now.

  “You still there?” Grover asked.

  “Yeah, I’m still here. I think I figured it out. I’m on my way back, now. I’ll explain when I get there.” Buck disconnected the call. His head spun as he considered Ryan Shane may be behind it all. Sliding his phone into his front pocket, he threw his leg over his bike and started it up.

  On the ride back to The Cave, he thought back to what he could remember about Ryan. Ryan was fourteen or fifteen when he and the guys started working for Dooley. He used to hang out at the garage after school. Rider called him their shadow, and they all teased him about girls and getting his cherry popped and shit. From what Buck could remember, the kid was kind of awkward and seemed to be just a little off, but he always thought of him as harmless. Buck hadn’t thought about him once since Dooley, Zeke, Lester and Selina were killed. Was this some kind of payback? Why go after the club? Better yet, why go after Reyn? None of them had anything to do with Dooley’s death.

  Buck rounded a bend and immediately spotted a car on the road up ahead. He slowed his speed to a crawl. As he got closer, he saw the police emblem on the side of the car and one of the back doors open. What do we have here? he wondered, as his phone started buzzing in his pocket. In order to answer it, he pulled off to the side of the road and parked his bike. Keeping his eyes trained on the police car, he dug out his phone. Ax’s name scrolled across the screen.

  “What’s up?” he answered.

  “Where are you?” Ax replied.

  “On my way home. Why?”

  “Carver was just here. The fucker arrested Reyn.” Tension whipped through Buck as his eyes shot to the police car.

  “Fuck!” he shouted. “I’m about a half mile from The Cave, on the main road. Get here now and bring back up!” He didn’t bother to hang up, he just dropped the phone and took off running for the car. About halfway there, his common sense kicked in. What if this was a trap? Slowing to a walk, he studied the situation and moved to the side of the road, so not to draw attention to his approach. Finally, Buck heard the welcome sound of Harley pipes. The cavalry had arrived. Ax was in the lead. Behind him was Steele, Ink, Sledge, Loco, and Taz. They slowed as he motioned for them to surround the car. Moving carefully, he stepped up to the driver side door and peered inside. Carver and another officer were slumped over in the front seat. The back seat was empty, all but for a clump of blonde hair.

  Buck dropped to his knees and screamed.

  _______________

  Reyn woke to total darkness. It took her a moment to realize that something was covering her head. She could breathe but not easily. Panic started to set in when she realized her hands were behind her back and now tightly bound. And she thought the cuffs were tight. Her fingers were going numb from lack of circulation.

  “Hello?” she called out. “Is anyone there?” Hearing no answer and being unable to see or freely move, her panic increased and her ears began to buzz. She could tell she was on the verge of a panic attack. You’re okay. You’re alive. Breathe, she told herself. When that didn’t work, she began to count each breath. In for a three count. Out for a three count. She did this until she felt her heart rate begin to slow. Once she could think clearly again, she realized that they’d failed to bind her feet. How stupid of them. They obviously underestimated her. While trying to wiggle some feeling back into her fingers, she contemplated what to do. A scratching noise caught her attention, and she turned her head in that direction. As she started to call out again, the hood was suddenly lifted from her head. It took her a minute to regain her focus.

  “Hello, Reyn. Do you remember me?” Her pulse spiked as she zeroed in on the man sitting in front of her. Short blond hair, pointed nose, broad shoulders, nondescript. Nothing about him stood out, yet he seemed familiar. He apparently knew her. Reyn tried to place him. He appeared to be in his early to mid-twenties. “Answer the question,” he barked.

  “S-should I remember you?” she stammered.

  His eyes narrowed. “How about I give you a little refresher. After your boyfriend nearly killed you, you spent a week in my house. I used to sneak into your room and watch you sleep at night. You woke one night while I was watching and screamed the house down.” In a voice dripping with malice, he asked, “Do you remember me now?” Apprehension trickled down her spine as she realized who he was. Ryan Shane was Dooley’s one and only son. The little pervert used to lurk in the shadows and stare at all of the women. The night he was referring to, Reyn woke to find him standing over her while jacking his dick. Of course, she screamed the house down!

  “Ryan?” she whispered.

  “The one and only. I got whipped that night; thirty lashes to be exact. I couldn’t lie on my back for an entire week. It hurt to sit down. It hurt to move.” Leaning forward, he finished in a low, threatening tone, “It hurt to exist.” Reyn’s entire body tensed as Ponytail stepped from the shadows. As he neared she could see that he had something in his hand. A whip. Fear ripped through her. Smiling, Ryan said, “Paybacks are a bitch.”

  “I’m sorry. I didn’t know.” Reyn barely got the words out before Ponytail was on her. Her scream was cut short by a powerful slap across the face. The next thing she knew, her hands were free. She bit down on her lip as the feeling began to circulate back into her fingers. Before she could claw Ponytail’s eyes out, he jerked her hands to her front and re-secured them, thankfully, less tight this time. It wasn’t until a second man stepped from the shadows that she really started to panic. Her eyes flew to Ryan. “You don’t have to do this.”

  Ponytail held her wrists while the second guy reached above her head. Reyn’s breath caught in her throat when she saw the large hook dangling from the ceiling. No way in hell was she going on that hook. Ponytail was too close for a kick, so she settled for a knee strike. It hit him square in the groin, and he crumpled to the floor. Reyn took off running. It took four guys to corral her back to a steaming-mad Ponytail and that damn hook. The realization that they weren’t going to hang her from the damn thing but were using it merely as a means to secure her hands above her head made her feel marginally better. That, and she still had use of her legs.

  “That was entertaining,” Ryan drawled.

  Even though she was completely out of breath, she still managed to get in a good, “Fuck you.”

  “Oh, don’t you worry. That’ll come in due time.”

  “Why are you doing this?” she hissed. “Buck didn’t kill Dooley. He wasn’t even there.”

  “This isn’t about my father,” Ryan clipped, then less forcefully added, “at least not entirely.”

  Confused, she asked, “Then what is it about?”

  Pounding his chest, he shouted, “This is about me! They were my friends, my brothers, and what did they do? They left me!” He pointed at something across the room. “Your precious Buck was chained like a
n animal right over there.” Reyn’s throat constricted. This was the same place they held Buck all those years ago. “You wanna know who let him go? I did! He would have died if not for me! And how did he repay me? He fucking abandoned me!”

  Reyn shook her head. “He didn’t know.”

  Ignoring her, he kept at it. “I had no one. No mother, no father, no fucking one!” He closed his eyes and sucked in a deep breath, as if the emotions were too much. When he opened them back up, his face was a blank mask. A chill skittered through her. The guy was weird back then, but now, he was just plain nuts. In a flat, lifeless tone, he said, “I had no money because dear old dad decided not to give me my inheritance until I turned twenty-three. I had to take odd jobs, to beg and scrape. I was forced to debase myself. I lived like a goddamned dog for five, fucking years.”

  His eyes connected with hers. “This ends tonight. Gag her,” he ordered. Ponytail, who was looking all kinds of rough, stepped forward. Grinning wickedly, he grabbed her face, and with a painful squeeze, he shoved a nasty smelling cloth into her mouth.

  “Good. Now step back so I can have a look,” Ryan said. Ponytail’s eyes moved over her face and she braced for whatever was coming. “Step back!” he shrieked. With one last look, Ponytail did as he asked.

  Reyn was wondering what the psycho was going to do next, when he yanked his phone from his shirt pocket and started to dial. Before connecting the call, he paused to study her. “No, that won’t do. We need fresh skin.” He made a get-on-with-it motion, and said, “Rip the back of her shirt.”

  Reyn’s heart hammered inside her chest. If he would get close enough, she could take out Ponytail once and for all. He moved forward and she tried to land another kick but it only glanced off his side. Ponytail jerked her to his front while the second guy came in from behind. Reyn heard the back of her shirt rip and felt the cool air whisper across her skin.

  “Step Back!” Ryan screamed.

  Ponytail lowered his head and whispered, “I was going to go easy. Kick me again, and I won’t.” He stepped back, and she saw the whip in his hand.

  Ryan stood from his sadistic throne and clapped his hands together. “How about a practice run?” he suggested.

  Reyn’s gut twisted into knots. Ponytail’s warning now made sense. They were going to whip her. Her jaws clamped down on the gag. Fuck him. He may have the upper hand now, but the first chance she got, she was taking him down.

  The whip struck. She didn’t see it coming, but she sure as hell felt it. A scream shot up her throat as flaming-hot pain seared through her. She had to chomp down on the gag to keep it from pouring from her mouth. He wanted her to scream. She refused to give the asshole the satisfaction.

  “No, no, no!” he shouted. I need her to scream! The whole thing is pointless if he can’t hear her scream! Lose the gag, and let’s go again.” Ponytail did his bidding and the gag was removed.

  This time, she heard the light whistle before the whip struck. Her back arched as pain ripped through her. A groan shot from her lips, but at least it wasn’t a scream.

  “No!” Ryan shouted. His face red with fury, he stormed in her direction. Right as he reached her, her foot snapped out and she nailed him right on the chin. His head jerked back as he shot through the air and landed on his ass with a loud grunt. Suddenly, Ponytail was in front of her. His fist felt like a ton of bricks as it connected with her face. It hurt like hell, but she still managed to smile through the pain.

  It took a good five minutes before Ryan was back on his throne. “If she kicks anyone again, shoot her,” he told Ponytail. Turning his hate-filled glare on Reyn, he said, “I’m going to make a phone call. At my command, Lars will strike and you will scream. If you don’t, Lars will be forced to shoot you.” Ponytail looked like a Lars.

  His phone came back out and she watched him dial the number. She knew who he was calling. As much as she didn’t want to get shot, Reyn knew what she had to do.

  “Hello, brother. It’s been a long time. Too long, if you ask me. Guess who came to visit me?” The conversation paused and Reyn could tell that Buck was chewing him a new asshole. “Yes, well, I’ve been having a nice visit with Reyn. I think she likes me better than you. In fact, she’s a little strung up over me right now.” He broke into laughter. God, he was creepy. The laughter suddenly died, and his face blanked. “Is that a threat? I don’t think you’re in a place to threaten me, Buck.” He paused again. “No, I won’t let you talk to her, but I’ll be happy to let you hear her.” Ryan gave Ponytail a nod and the whip struck.

  Pain lanced through her back, and she screamed, “I’m in the same warehouse!” The whip struck again. Ponytail had been taking it easy on her because this one drew blood. She could feel it trickling down her back. Pandemonium struck. Ryan started yelling for someone to gag her. Reyn heard a scuffling sound behind her and shouted again at the top of her lungs, “The same warehouse they had you!” Something heavy struck the back of her head, and the world faded to black.

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  REYN’S SCREAM WAS suddenly cut short, and Buck went ballistic. “What did you do to her? What the fuck did you do?” he shouted at the phone. Steele’s hand on his shoulder was the only thing keeping him from picking it up and hurling it across the room.

  “Relax, brother, she’s just taking a little nap,” Ryan drawled.

  Buck hovered over the table, his hands curled into fists, as waves of helpless fury rolled through him. She’d been with that motherfucker for over six hours. Who knows what he’d done to her. Breathing deeply, Buck managed to push back the fear and dig into his rage. “I know where you are, brother, and I’m fucking coming for you,” he warned.

  “I’m counting on it. Make sure to bring Ax, Sledge, and Rider with you. Oh, I forgot, Rider’s dead. Too bad, I was so looking forward to our reunion. You’ve got an hour to get here. If you’re one minute late, she dies. Bring anyone else, and she dies. I’ve been waiting a long time for this. One hour,” he repeated, and the line went dead.

  “Fuck!” Ax shouted.

  The anger that Buck had been trying so damn hard to keep a handle on began to erupt. Pushing back from the table, he stormed from the security room. He made it to the end of the hallway before taking it out on the wall. “Fuck!” punch “Fuck!” punch “Fuuuuck!” he shouted with one last punch.

  “Feel better?” Steele asked from behind him.

  Buck’s forehead hit the wall with a thud. “No. Would you?”

  “Fuck no, but we don’t have time for this right now. We have fifty-six minutes to get to your woman.”

  “I shouldn’t have gone in blind. If I’d used my head, both Rider and Goose would still be alive. Now, the fucker has Reyn. She can’t die.”

  Buck felt Steele step up beside him. “There was no way of knowing. I would have done the same thing. Any one of your brothers would have done the same thing. You need to focus on getting your girl back. There will be time for grieving later.”

  How had it come to this? They’d spent over six hours looking for her. Six, gruelingly long hours of searching. Steele had called in favors. Buck had called in favors. At first it seemed as if Ryan Shane had vanished into thin air, but then Grover hacked into the computers of D.S. Corporation through a glitch on their website and was able to help them put the pieces together through a series of email exchanges that had been deleted but were still on the server. Ryan—or Rye as he now called himself—had been emailing regularly with Vicky, whom he had been paying to get information on the club. Vicky had befriended Tara, who cleaned their rooms on a regular basis and apparently liked to snoop around. Through Tara, Vicky was able to learn where to look for Ax’s gun and about Buck’s hidden photo of Reyn. Ryan paid Vicky to steal them for him. The best Buck could figure was that Ryan was on a mission to avenge his father’s death. But then Ryan failed. He failed to get Aimee. His guys screwed up and took out Tom, who was an innocent citizen. And then he failed to frame Ax for Vicky’s murder. Instead of giving
up, the fucker upped the stakes. Rider’s death was intentional, and Goose was collateral damage. As if that wasn’t bad enough, he then killed a cop and put another in the hospital. Buck got the why of it, he just didn’t get the why now. The guy had five years to exact his revenge, so why now? Ryan Shane had not crossed Buck’s mind once in all this time.

  “You good now?” Steele asked.

  Buck inhaled deeply and slowly let it out. He was back in control. “I’m good,” he said.

  Steele clapped him on the back. “Let’s go get your girl.”

  “I gave Grover the warehouse location. He’s got some old blueprints pulled up,” Ax said, as they stepped back into the room. Steele was right, they didn’t have time. They would have to work this thing remotely.

  Buck stepped up to the computer screen. After giving the blueprints a quick once over, he explained to Grover what he needed. “I need you to highlight all entrances and exits and assess where you think he would most likely place cameras. Ax, Sledge, and I will go in through the front. See if you can find a back way in for everyone else. Once you get it, mark it in blue and email it to Steele. Text if you have any questions.”

  “Ink, Loco, Chopper, and Taz will be with me,” Steele said. “They’ll likely take your weapons, so we’ll carry extras. We’ll be right behind you.” He pulled Buck in for a quick hug and told him to stay safe.

  The three of them piled into Ax’s truck. Buck rode shotgun, and Sledge hopped in the back. Chopper waved them through the gate and moments later they were on the main road.

  Buck had always been good at compartmentalizing his emotions, but not today. The thought that he could lose Reyn now, after she was finally his, was seriously screwing with his head. He’d meant every word he’d said to her. He wanted her on the back of his bike and in his bed. He wanted her in his life for as long as she would have him. He thought of Grizz and remembered something he’d said a long time ago, back when Buck was a sophomore in high school and had just been dumped by his first real girlfriend. Buck was moping on the front steps of The Cave when Grizz came out and sat down beside him.