by Sam Crescent
“No, I don’t want him dead. At least not yet.” She looked down at her lap before returning her gaze to his. “I think I’m in love with you as well.”
Reaper pulled her onto his lap, sinking his fingers into her hair and kissing her hard. “I know you’re not over Preacher and will probably never will be, but I love you and I’ll take whatever it is you can give me.” He kissed her again. “Come on, let’s go and dance.”
****
Present day
Telling Preacher the truth was one of the hardest things Robin had ever had to do. The look on his face, no matter how much he tried to mask it, she would never forget it. He’d been hurt by her revelation, and it killed her inside.
Knowing everything now, and especially with all of his honesty during her time of not knowing who she was, made it all even worse. Preacher loved her and she knew it, felt it right down to her core, only, she wasn’t the same person. Not even close, and he had believed she was hurt so badly.
Robin hadn’t wanted to escape Reaper. Even now, knowing he was close somewhere, she was desperate to see him, but first, she had to take care of another little problem. Preacher hadn’t known how to contact Bishop to bring him out of hiding, but she had. All it had taken was a single text. She stood alone in the park, waiting. Bishop had a problem when it came to his father and his own ego. He liked to believe he was this big, tough guy who could face anything, who could do whatever the hell he wanted because people feared him.
What Bishop refused to believe was he was no one without his father. He would always be Preacher’s son, and now that she’d seen what real men were like, she had come to realize Bishop was just a cowardly bastard.
She shouldn’t have given in to his needs and his belief he could have anything he wanted was her fault. Rather than beat the crap out of him, she’d pacified him. She could have started in the creation of a monster, but no more.
“One of our many old hangouts,” Bishop said, coming out from behind one of the trees.
“Hello, Bishop,” she said.
“You want to tell me what all of this is about? I already see my dad’s truck over there. I’m guessing he’s got a whole load of men waiting for him to take me in. Huh?”
“Why did you do it?” she asked.
Preacher hadn’t wanted her to stand alone, but she had to face Bishop, especially now. He’d tried to manipulate her without her memories. He’d wanted her to forget, but there were even factors that had happened during her time with Reaper that Preacher didn’t know.
“Do what?”
“Give him the divorce.”
Bishop froze. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
Each and every moment where Bishop was lying flashed across her mind’s eye. The women, the pain, the constant nagging to be her first. The way he treated her when she was pregnant, the final death of any love she might have for him by handing her over to Reaper. It all came to the forefront of her mind.
“You fucking piece of shit!” Robin slammed her fist against Bishop’s face. It was so unexpected that he didn’t do anything. She hit him again, wanting to break something. To hurt him. To do whatever it took for him to feel even a shred of the pain she’d felt. He grabbed her arms, throwing her away.
She reached into her jeans pocket, retrieving the pocketknife she’d been carrying since she had gotten her memories back. It had only been two days, but Reaper, during her pregnancy, had shown her how to take care of herself. Even after their baby was born, he’d continued to teach her every single technique to always be able to take care of herself.
“What the fuck was that for? You crazy bitch.”
“You’re a traitor. A dirty fucking rat. A piece of shit!” She spat the words out as she stared at the man who’d helped to ruin her life. Who had set out to try to ruin Preacher’s and Reaper’s lives, pitting one man against the other. “Do you know what you did? What your actions did?”
“If you’re going to use it, use it, but don’t keep on spitting all over me, cursing. It wears a little thin.”
“I want to do more than cut you. I want to kill you and believe me, Bishop, you will die.”
“I don’t see my dad killing me.” He looked over her shoulder and gave Preacher a wave. Bear held him back as she’d asked her father to. They were supposed to stay in the car, but she was guessing from her actions, they didn’t want her to be alone. “I’m guessing he knows the truth of what happened and if he knows, that means your memories have come back.”
“Bingo.”
****
What happened the night Robin was taken
“You can do this the easy way, kid, or the hard way. I really don’t care. That bitch is coming with us and you’re surrounded. There’s no way for you to stop what’s happening.”
“I’m not letting you get her.”
“Then it’s your funeral. I did warn you.” Reaper held his hands up and smiled. “Unless, you and I can come to some kind of arrangement.”
“I have no idea what the fuck you’re talking about. I will never help you.”
“Really? You see, you being Preacher’s boy, I imagine it’s not easy living in his shadow.”
Robin didn’t like this. “Don’t listen to him, Bishop. He’s trying to get into your head.”
“And it’s working, isn’t it, boy? You know what I’m talking about. No one takes you seriously because you’re Preacher’s son. You’re just the little pest that gets in the way. They don’t care ’bout you. They certainly don’t respect you. You’re nothing if not in the way. I mean look at Robin, beautiful, sweet, Robin.”
She shook her head. “Bishop, come on. You know he’s dangerous. He’s trying to use you. To get you to do what he wants.”
“I’m not using anyone. I’m merely stating some facts your boy here doesn’t know.”
Her heart pounded as Reaper kept on digging. Bishop was a strong guy, but when it came to his dad, he wasn’t mature enough, not to deal with whatever this asshole was throwing his way.
She looked at Bishop, trying to reach him, but he was drawn too much by the power of Reaper’s words.
“You’re going to have to watch your father be happy with the woman meant for you.”
“This is crazy, Bishop, don’t listen to him.”
“All you will ever be is Preacher’s son. No one will ever look at you with respect. They will always be wondering where your father is. What he’s doing. Where he’s going. You will constantly be in his shadow. Even if Robin were to fall in love with you, what do you think that’s going to achieve? Do you think she’ll come to you with open arms? Do you think she’ll fall in love with you? No, she will always be wondering what Preacher was doing. You’ll be compared to him all the fucking time and you will fall short.”
Bishop looked at Robin and she knew it was useless.
He was too weak.
He’d fallen into Reaper’s trap.
“Please, Bishop, you’re my best friend.”
“It didn’t stop you from falling in love with my father though, did it? No, it didn’t stop you from being with him. Looking at you, Robin, makes me sick to my stomach.” Bishop looked at her and she saw the disgust. “What do you need me to do?”
“I’m going to need you to stay here. To tell me when Preacher’s got a lead, let me know so I can get her out of the way.”
“I’ll do it. I don’t want him to have a single moment of happiness. I want him to keep on waiting. To know she’s being hurt because he was too damn obsessed with his revenge to even know what the fuck hit him.”
“You don’t think he’s going to know you let them take me? You’re a fucking coward, Bishop. A piece-of-shit coward.”
“The lady’s right. I’m going to have to hit you, make it real.”
Reaper passed her into the arms of another man, and she tried to get away, but she was caught up in their tangle of a web with no way to escape.
She gritted her teeth, wanting to be free. Wantin
g to be cut loose. When Reaper’s fist hit Bishop’s face, she smiled. She couldn’t help it. If she couldn’t hit him, then she was more than pleased someone else had gotten the pleasure she couldn’t have.
****
Present day
Bishop shook his head. “So all of your memories are back and you’re coming to me. Why?”
“I know you’re a cowardly bastard, but I need you to get a message to Reaper,” she said.
He burst out laughing. “You really think I’m going to help any of you?” He raised his voice so Preacher and Bear could hear.
She glanced behind her and nodded for them to join her.
“What the fuck are you doing?” Bishop asked.
“You know, you talk the good talk but we all know you’re a terrified little boy. I’m surprised you haven’t pissed yourself yet.”
“Robin, what are you going to do?”
“Oh, what I usually do. I take care of people, it’s what I do. I talked with Preacher and Bear. They’ve been looking for you and well, I knew how to bring you out. Now I’ve got an agreement in place. You help me locate Reaper, and you get to live. You don’t, then you die.”
“Seriously, what the fuck is this?” Bishop asked.
Preacher and Bear stopped by her side.
Bishop went to leave. Frost, Rider, and Cheeky were there, waiting. They had all the exits covered. She had to keep him distracted long enough for Preacher’s men to be in place. Robin was shocked at the lack of love and compassion Preacher had for his own child. She didn’t know what had happened in her absence, but she was guessing he was pissed at the betrayal and lies.
Child or not, Bishop would pay for what he did.
For now, she needed him to live.
“You ask what is this? This is the deal I got for you. Tell me where Reaper is. How to get to him, and they will let you live. Of course, it’s reliant on you only caring about yourself. I figured it’s the kind of man you are, so you wouldn’t disappoint me. I’m getting a sense here, that you’re going to do what we ask, especially if you want to live.”
“What happened to you?” Bishop asked.
Robin stepped forward.
Preacher and Bear were nervous for her, but she wasn’t. Bishop had been her best friend, and a part of her believed he was a soulmate. She knew him inside and out. Their time apart hadn’t changed that. Bishop hadn’t changed. He only ever cared about number one, himself. Everyone else was always in the way. When he’d allowed Reaper to take her, he’d destroyed her love and a part of herself because of it.
“What happened to me? You’re really going to stand there and ask me that question?” She looked around her. “I’m twenty-one years old. You were so angry that I loved your daddy more than you, you gave me to his enemy. Do you know what happened to me?”
“I saw the pictures,” Bishop said.
“There were so many times you could’ve helped, but I’m not talking about the beatings.” She laughed. “They actually stopped. No, I’m talking about the fact Reaper made me care about him, Bishop. I guess you were right. You’re not much of a monster for me, after all. I’m married, Bishop, to Reaper, and we have a kid together. I need to find him.”
“Then all you had to do was ask,” Reaper said.
She spun around and there was Reaper. His men were behind him but on his chest, in a baby carrier, was her little girl, Bethany.
“Hello, Robin, I was hoping I’d get the chance to see you again,” he said. “Bethany has missed you. Say hello to mommy.”
****
Her time with Reaper
“Well, what do you think?” Reaper asked.
“It’s quiet, quaint. We’re near a small town, but far enough away they have to get to us by car. Set back in a woodland, what’s not to like?” Robin asked.
“Okay, so why am I getting a sense here that you’re not happy?” Reaper asked, coming to stand behind her. He placed his hands on her very swollen stomach. “We’ve already found an abandoned warehouse. I’ve got a down payment put on the land, and I’ve got the boys working on everything else. Tell me what I’m missing,” he said. “You know me. I like to make sure you have everything.”
“I know. I … I’m worried.”
“Why? Because you’re nine months pregnant and about to drop?”
“Not just that. What if I go into labor and the power goes out? The car won’t start? I’m … scared.” It had been a long time since she’d been scared of anything. Reaper, he’d … helped.
It always seemed kind of ironic that the very man who had taken her and threatened her life would be the same man to make her feel secure. Thinking back to the time Reaper took her, it was like a whole different lifetime. A time she couldn’t even begin to grasp as the same. Reaper kissed her neck, sucking on her pulse. She loved it when he did that, especially when he had some facial hair, as the scratchiness tickled against her flesh. She enjoyed it when he made her squirm, begging for more.
“I can’t wait to have you riding on my cock.”
“Your mind is always in the gutter.”
“Only when it comes to you. It seems I can’t think straight when I’m imagining all the dirty things you want to do to me.”
She giggled. “You’re crazy. You want to do a hell of a lot more crazy things to me than I want to do to you.”
“Is that a promise?”
“I’m the size of a tank, Reaper. I can’t do anything.”
“I don’t know. I think I could get used to this big belly filled with my kid.”
She gasped as he bit down on her neck, and it was just the right spot to make her ache for more.
She heard the unmistakable sound of water, and when she looked down, she saw the puddle beneath her feet.
“My water just broke,” she said.
“I’m calm. Are you calm?” he asked.
“Reaper, my water broke. The baby is going to come and we’re here. I need to be in a hospital.”
“Then let’s go.” He led her out of the new house and toward the car. He helped her climb inside but just then a contraction rushed over her body, making her scream in agony as it tore through her. She remembered a similar pain.
“No, no, no, no, I can’t lose this baby.”
“No, you’re not going to be losing this baby. We’re going to deliver this baby together. I’m right here, and we’re going to make this work.”
Once the pain had passed, he helped her into his car, and she watched as he ran to the other side. She cried out as another contraction came.
“They’re too close together. This isn’t normal,” she said. “The baby is going to come.”
He’d pulled out of the long private driveway and was on the road. They were heading to the hospital.
“We’re not going to make it. The baby is coming, Reaper. I need you.”
“Shit, fuck, shit.”
She screamed. “I need to push.”
“No, you don’t need to push.”
“I’m fucking pushing.” She whimpered as she started to push.
Reaper jerked the car to the side of the road and then he was there, in front of her. “I’m here for you, baby.”
“The hospital?”
“We’re not going to make it. We’re going to deliver this baby together and then I’ll get you to the hospital. Got it?”
She nodded her head, willing to do anything so long as it would get her out of this pain.
Reaper held her hands, watching as their baby was born into their world. She stared into his eyes, and when she heard the first scream of their little girl, she couldn’t believe it. Collapsing in the car, Reaper lifted the baby into her arms. “I need to get you to the hospital now. They can take care of the rest.”
“I got blood all over your car.”
“And my hands, but we’re all good.” He was in the car and driving again.
She’d given birth. Her baby had survived.
Resting her head against Reaper’s shoulder, sh
e smiled, looking down into the face of her little girl.
“I love you, Reaper,” she said, and she meant every word.
To be continued …
Note from the Author:
I know, I know, another to be continued, but only one more book, I promise. I’m so excited about this story, and I’m totally in love with it. Not long to go.
Book One: To Awaken a Monster
Book Two: Taken by a Monster
Book Three: A Monster’s Beauty
www.samcrescent.com
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Other Books by Sam Crescent:
www.evernightpublishing.com/sam-crescent
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BONUS SAMPLE CHAPTER
BROKEN BASTARD
Killer of Kings, 2
Sam Crescent & Stacey Espino
Copyright © 2017
Sample Chapter
“Scarlett, are you being serious? No, I know you’re not being serious, because if you were, you’d be insane,” said Lisa.
“I have no choice. You heard Carter. He’s going to cut twenty freelancers this year alone.” Scarlett hooked her oversized purse over her shoulder, and then reached for the stack of colored file folders. “I can’t lose this job.”