Just a mile. One more mile. The engine was whining and the gears were grinding, but they would make it. The first houses were coming into view now, squatting on the horizon. Hope Springs was yet another sad, dying little desert town, and Eli knew that the PD here would be just a few guys, ill-equipped to deal with the entire sons of flame. During his hurried phone call that morning, he’d told them to call for backup. He could only hope that they had listened to him, because if it was just going to be the sheriff and a couple of his deputies, everything was going to be ruined. Tex had over a dozen men, all armed, and if they were cornered they wouldn’t hesitate to use their weapons. Eli prayed that it wouldn’t come to that. He didn’t want to see any more bloodshed. His own freedom was worth sacrificing if it meant an end to the Sons of Flame.
Tess was clinging onto him for dear life, her fingers clutching his jacket and her legs gripping his waist tight. Eli could only imagine how scared she was; hell, he was scared himself and he’d been in worse situations than this during his time in the Sons.
Less than a mile now. Those little buildings were growing larger and larger, approaching at breakneck speed. Eli shot a glance over his right shoulder and saw that their pursuers were shouting to each other, pointing at the approaching town. Eli knew that he would not be able to maintain his speed once they got into the town proper, and he also knew that the Sons would take this opportunity to make their move. He had to get to the place he had told the police to be waiting before the Sons could stop them.
There was a car on the road in front of them, moving slowly. Just a red sedan, and Eli was going to have to swerve around it. He made the manoeuver skillfully and swiftly, but someone behind him was not so lucky. Eli heard a crashing sound as one of the bikes went flying off the road in a terrible squeal of burning rubber and twisted metal. The biker’s compatriots made no move to stop or even turn to check on his condition, but Eli knew there was little chance that the man had survived, considering the speed at which they were going. He briefly felt a twinge of guilt that a man had probably lost his life, but cast it aside. The blood was on Tex’s hands - the Sons leader was the reason they were all out here anyway.
But the fact that not one of the Sons had stopped for their fallen brother demonstrated to Eli exactly how much Tex wanted him. Brotherhood was such an important tenet of the biker code that for the other guys to have abandoned him meant that Eli and the suitcase he was carrying was priority number one, above all else.
Tex wasn’t going to go down without a fight. Eli prayed that no more blood would need to be spilled before this day was done.
They were inside the town now, and it looked almost exactly like the one they had spent the previous night in. Just another dead or dying desert town; dry, dusty, hot. But today, Eli knew there was to be a reckoning here, in this otherwise meaningless place. He couldn’t help but laugh dryly to himself - this place, where nothing of any importance ever happened was to be the place that would define the rest of his life, and maybe Tess’ too.
They were racing down what passed for a main street here, at a lower speed than they had been on the open road, but still dangerously fast. There was more likely to be traffic here, other vehicles just going about their day, and all it would take was one wrong move and they were dead.
Eli had been here before, once. He had told the police to be waiting in a strip mall parking lot, and he was nearly there now. Eli turned the corner, expecting to see the blaring lights and wailing sirens of the police.
But there was nothing. The parking lot was empty. They hadn’t showed up, and Eli was now trapped. He pulled into the lot and drove to the far corner in a futile attempt to put as much distance between his bike and the Sons’. The parking lot was enclosed, which was precisely why Eli had chosen it. He had thought it would make it easier for the police to surround the Sons, but now it looked like it was also to be the reason for his downfall.
He stopped the bike, turned off the engine and stood to face the incoming bikers. There were four of them now, the arrogance of victory written clearly across their faces.
They stepped off their bikes and began to walk slowly towards him.
*****
Chapter Fifteen
Tess
When they pulled into the parking lot, Tess breathed a sigh of relief. This was where Eli’s plan, whatever it was, would be put into practice. But after a minute or so, when nobody showed up and the Sons had blocked them in, doubts began to creep into her mind.
“Eli,” she hissed. “What’s happening? Is somebody coming?”
He turned to her, and the expression on his face told her all that she needed to know.
“They were supposed to be,” he said. “But they’re not here. Fuckers lied to me. They told me they would be here, they told me they were ready to deal with this. But they’re not.”
He turned back around to face the incoming Sons, placing his body between them and Tess.
Tess shivered in fear, but tried not to show it. The suitcase full of drugs sat at her feet, and a vain flash of optimism passed through her; that they would take the drugs and leave them be. But she knew this would never happen. Tex was too cruel, too vindictive to let this pass without punishment.
Maybe it wasn’t too late. Maybe the police were on their way.
The sons were close now, calling out with threatening jeers to her and Eli.
“Thought you could run, huh? Thought you could get away with stealing Tex’s shit? Bobby died back on the road there, and it’s your fault Eli! You’re gonna get what you deserve just as soon as Tex arrives.”
Eli didn’t say anything in response, he just stood there stoically.
“You can do whatever you want to me,” he said softly, “but leave the woman alone. She’s got nothing to do with this whole thing. Let her go and I’ll come without a fight.”
The foremost biker, an ugly man with a squint and a scarred face just laughed in Eli’s face.
“You ain’t in any position to start making demands of us boy. She’s a witness and I don’t think Tex wants witnesses running around out there.”
The four of them were just a few feet away now. The one who had been speaking leered at Tess.
“Besides, she’s a cute one. Fresh and sweet. Me and the boys are gonna have some fun with this one once we’ve finished with business.”
Tess felt fear and revulsion well up inside her at his words and the expressions on the faces of those repulsive men. But there was nowhere to run, nowhere to hide. She saw Eli’s body tense up, bristling with barely contained anger.
“You lay a single finger on her and I’ll fucking kill you, you hear Shank? I’ll kill you.”
Eli’s voice was soft and low, but the threat and venom in his words was enough to stop the guy in his tracks. But only for a moment. Then he just laughed.
“What’re you gonna kill me with? In case you ain’t noticed, we got all the weapons here. You ain’t got shit. So shut your fucking mouth, boy, before I make you. You’re lucky Tex told us not to hurt you before he arrived or you’d be a fucking bloody puddle on the ground already.”
A dozen more bikes came roaring into the parking lot, engines rumbling and tires squealing. It was Tex and the rest of the Sons.
Tess felt strangely detached from her body. She didn’t know what was going to happen to her, but she very much doubted it would be anything good. Was this going to be where she died? Here, in this shabby parking lot, in this crumbling old town?
The new arrivals were cheering and hollering, waving their guns around. And there, face smug in triumph, was Tex. His thumbs were hooked through the belt loops of his jeans and a large handgun dangled from a holster at his side. He sauntered toward them, as if savoring the moment, prolonging it.
“Well, well, well, what do we have here? I was starting to think we weren’t gonna find you and your lovely lady friend, Eli.”
The Sons of Flame leader stepped closer to Eli, until he was right in his face.
&
nbsp; “It didn’t have to be like this, Eli. All you had to do was keep the product hidden. Was that so fucking difficult? And now you’ve forced my hand. I damn near raised you, Eli Flint. I took you in when nobody else would; I gave you a job, a life. And this is how you repay me?”
Eli didn’t back down, and it broke Tess’s heart to see how he blithely stared death in the face.
“Once upon a time, I believed that, Tex. I thought we were a brotherhood, true family. But you showed me what you think about your family. You showed me how little I meant to you.”
Eli spat on the floor at his feet.
Tex just sighed, and made like he was going to turn away. But then, out of nowhere his fist landed on Eli’s nose. Eli grunted in pain as blood splattered down his shirt and onto the ground. But he didn’t fall. He set his shoulders, and spat again.
Tex just shook his head.
“You always were a stubborn son of a bitch, Eli. Too stubborn for your own good.”
He beckoned to a few of his men, who stepped forward menacingly. Tess ran around in front of Eli and put herself between him and the Sons.
“Stop! Enough! We have the case. Take it, here.”
She lifted it and shoved it toward Tex, who eyed her up.
“I like this one, Eli. She’s got some spirit, some fight in her.”
He laughed but then his demeanour changed in an instant. A dark scowl crossed his face and he looked at Tess with lizard eyes.
"All I want from you," he said "is for you to stand there and look pretty. I don't want to hear another word out of your fucking mouth. Understood?"
Tess stared at him defiantly.
"You don't scare me," she said, hoping that nobody would notice her hands shaking. "You are nothing but a coward, an ugly fucking coward. Take your drugs and go, leave us here. No more blood needs to be spilled; nobody else needs to get hurt. End this now."
She didn't even see the blow coming, just found herself spitting blood and staring up into the endless blue sky. Above her, she saw Eli grappling with Tex, his arm wrapped around the Sons of Flame leader's neck. He was overpowering him, getting the better of the exchange until one of the other gang members hit him across the back of the head with the butt of his pistol. With a sickening crack Eli crumpled to the ground, blood trickling from an open wound on his scalp. He landed next to Tess, and she saw that while he was dazed, he was still conscious. His eyes met hers, and for the first time she saw fear in them.
"Don't," he whispered. "Just keep quiet, or you will only make it worse. Don't make him angry; he'll hurt you."
Eli grunted as a steel toe capped boot thudded into his side.
"It's almost admirable that you want to protect this mouthy bitch," Tex wheezed. "But stupid. We were already going to beat the shit out of you, Eli Flint, but you're making me even angrier than I already was."
Another sickening thump as the boot found its home in Eli's stomach again. Eli still didn’t cry out, but Tess knew he was in serious pain. A few more kicks like that, and he was at risk of serious internal injuries.
"Pick this piece of trash up off the floor," Tex said. "And bring his little whore too; we'll have some fun with her later."
Two men dragged Eli to his feet - blood trickled from his nose and mouth, and he looked dazed, but he wasn't broken. His eyes burned with intense hatred, so much so that Tess felt a shiver run through her.
"I will kill you, Tex, if you lay a single finger on her. I swear it. Let her go."
Tex shook his head.
"Did you hit your head on the ground, Eli? Look around you, you've lost. You're done. Now shut the fuck up before I just put a bullet in your head right here and now."
Eli was silent then, but his eyes never left Tex. Tess knew that if he was given the chance, he would make good on his promise, and that scared her.
Two more Sons lifted her to her feet and dragged her over to their waiting bikes.
She allowed herself to be taken, because she didn't know what else to do. She tried to remain positive, to stay strong, but she knew they were in trouble.
Real trouble.
*****
Chapter Sixteen
Tess
Tess sat in the damp darkness and hugged her knees, trying not to let herself give in to despair. After they had left the parking lot, the Sons had taken them to an old abandoned warehouse on the outskirts of town. It seemed as if they'd set up a temporary camp of sorts out here. She and Eli had been separated as soon as they'd arrived. Eli had been dragged away, struggling and cursing, as she watched in horror. He had managed to twist around and, briefly, their eyes met. Tess saw his strength, his tenacity, in those clear blue eyes of his, and she drew from it, steeling herself and not allowing panic to overtake her.
That had been eight hours previously, and since then the only human contact that Tess had had was when a younger member of the Sons had opened the door and given her some water. When she’d tried to get some answers out of him, some idea of what was going on, he’d just told her to shut up and closed the door behind him.
Tess had paced back and forth in the small room, over and over, looking for a way out or a weapon of some kind she could possibly use to escape. But there was nothing, just the dripping sound from a broken water pipe somewhere and the damp stink of decay.
They had taken her bag away before they had arrived at this place, so any hopes of her using her cell phone to call out for help were hopeless. Tess was beginning to despair that she would ever leave this horrible room, when the door was suddenly thrown open. Tess shaded her eyes from the bright light coming from outside, and withdrew to a corner as somebody was bodily thrown into the room, landing on the floor with a thump. The door was closed quickly once more, and Tess rushed over to her new companion.
It took a few moments for her eyes to adjust to the semidarkness, but when they did and she saw who it was she cried out in shock and fear.
Eli appeared to be unconscious, and he was barely recognisable as the same man that Tess had come to develop feelings for over the past couple of weeks. His face was swollen mass of bruising and contusions, with one eye sealed shut and the other not much better. His hair was tangled and matted with his own blood, which had also stained his shirt. He appeared to be unconscious, and Tess reached out to him, caressing his face and whispering gently to him.
“Oh my God, Eli, what have they done to you? Can you hear me? Are you awake?”
No response. His breathing was at least even and deep.
Tess tore a strip from her T-shirt, and soaked it in some of the water she had been given. She began to wipe away the blood on Eli’s face and head, crooning and whispering to him as she did so. It wasn’t going to be much help, and it wouldn’t cure his injuries, but it was all she could do. When she was done, he still looked awful, but better.
She took the bottle of water and put it to his lips. Eli groaned, and his one good eye fluttered open.
“Where am I?”
It took him only a moment or two to remember everything that had happened, and then his expression changed in an instant, going from one of confusion to one of anger.
“Did they touch you? Did they hurt you?”
Tess shushed him, putting her hand on his chest and laying him back down.
“No, Eli. Nobody has been in here. They’ve left me alone for now. Save your energy - I don’t know if you have any internal injuries, and if you do you don’t want to make them worse.”
He reluctantly lay back down, and winced in pain as he did so. For a while the two of them sat there in silence. Tess felt absurdly happy to have him back with her, even in this horrible situation they found themselves in; she just tried not to think about what the near future held for them. She didn’t know why Tex hadn’t just finished the job, but she didn’t want to ask Eli for fear of the answer.
She looked down at him - his face was etched with pain, and she didn’t know how much more this punishment he would be able to take before serious, permanent dam
age was done to his body.
“Eli,” she whispered, “I need to get out of here, go to try and find some help. If I don’t, I can’t see either of us getting out of this alive. Am I right?”
He nodded weakly, and when he spoke his voice was thin and quiet with none of the righteous anger that he had displayed just moments before.
“He’s only keeping me alive to torture me, and taunt me with this moment of victory before he gets rid of me once and for all.”
Tess waited for more, waited for him to outline the plan that she was certain he must have. Throughout this whole thing he had always been in control, always known where to go and what to do next. But she waited and waited, and he didn’t say anything else.
“What shall I do? We need to think of something before they come back again.”
Eli just shook his head, and even that small motion was almost beyond him in his current state.
“They have guns, they outnumber us fifteen to one, and I can barely stand by myself right now. How do you expect us to even get out of this room?”
He sagged down and sighed, a sound of complete despair and hopelessness. Tess looked down at him and she was silent for a few moments. But then, she frowned and her brow furrowed.
“No. No, I won’t accept that Eli. I don’t want to hear you speak like that, you hear me? Not now, not ever. Understand?”
His eyes fluttered open again. There was fear and hopelessness in them, but Tess refused to allow those emotions to take root in her.
“Now, listen to me because we don’t have much time. I need you to work with me to think of something to get us out of this mess. We may as well try because if we don’t we’re good as dead anyway, right?”
He groaned and turned away from her, curling up into the fetal position.
“Save your energy,” he whispered. “They might not kill you. It’s me they really want, and Tex will finish the job soon.”
Bad & Bold - A 7 Book Bad Boy Romance Collection! Page 9