Too late for what? What was Gunther going to do? Rape me? Hurt me? Kill me?
I could feel the tears flooding down my cheeks. I had no control over my body any longer. Gunther had me pinned down to the floor. His hands were all over me. I could feel the cold sticky drip-drip of blood from the wound on his shoulder. He was straddling me now, his hand was on my butt, squeezing, tugging at my skirt. Between my thighs. My skin was burning up under his fingers.
And I was crying out for help. I was crying.
Then there was another shot. How was that even possible? The gun wasn’t even in my hand anymore. Gunther had kicked it far away from me. I hadn’t shot him. Had he shot me? I cried out again, but Gunther was the one going weak. He was the one falling off my back, his body was about to hit the rug.
I managed to lift my head just high enough so I could look ahead. Gunther was off me now; he was groaning in pain. My eyes went straight ahead in the direction of the door. It was wide open.
There were people there. I focused my eyes on the figures on the door. I could barely make sense of what was happening. Was that Bones? Patch? Cash? Was that Rogue?
Gunther’s groans broke through the air and I realized he was lying next to me on the rug. Bones came rushing in my direction.
“Thea, are you okay? Are you hurt?” he asked and before I knew it, he was wrapping his arms around me and pulling me up. I clung to him for dear life and finally I was up in the air, in his arms. I could smell him, feel him, feel his warmth.
I buried my face in his shoulders, waiting for him to carry me out of this place. I didn’t want to be here. I didn’t care how weak I looked. I didn’t want to pretend like I could do it all by myself anymore.
Bones held me close to himself, his arms tightly wound around my body. My feet didn’t touch the ground.
“Do you want to see? This is the end for him,” Bones whispered in my ear. Behind me, I could hear his groans and his screaming. The others were holding him back. He’d been shot, but he was still trying to claw his way back to me.
“You bitch!” I heard him yell. I moved in Bones’ arms and turned to him. My back pressed into Bones’ front, I was still stuck close to him.
Gunther was on his knees, bleeding from the wound on the side of his torso. Rogue and Patch were holding him back, holding him half-up. There were pools of blood pouring down the sides of his face too. He was glaring at me. No doubt he could see what had happened here. He could put two and two together. He knew what I had done.
“You fuckin’ bitch!” he growled, but this time his voice was less deep, less strong. He was losing his ability to speak. Gunther was dying.
“You killed my brother! Drake Keel, that was his name by the way. You killed him with a knife! He was just a kid!” I screamed the words at him, hoping they would hit home before the life was sucked out of him. Gunther could barely even keep his eyes focused on me anymore. His eyelids were drooping. He’d lost too much blood…just like Drake had.
I yanked my arm away from Bones and strode up to him, bringing my face up close to his.
“Open your eyes. Look at me! I want my face to be the last thing you fucking see!” My voice was a shriek and Gunther had no choice but to stare back at me now. Some spittle flew from my mouth and landed on his eyelid and it didn’t matter. In these last moments of his life, I wanted him to be humiliated. I wanted him to know what he had done. Why he was dying. I wanted him to know that nothing was as it seemed.
25
Bones
I knew I needed to get Thea out of there, but she was standing in front of Gunther now and I could see she was having her moment. She was living out the scene she had always played in her head to avenge the death of her brother. Who was I to stand in her way now?
The two thugs who had been standing guard at Gunther’s door were lying slumped on the floor outside the apartment. I wasn’t sure if we’d be able to take them down. I wasn’t even sure if there were others who might appear from somewhere, who might have been watching the apartment in secret.
But once I saw the scene unfolding from the roof of the other building—of Gunther starting to attack Thea—I knew I had to do something. I couldn’t just watch from afar and hope for the best. She was struggling against him. She was pulling a gun out of her purse. A gun none of us knew she was even carrying. We had to get in there and rescue her. Kill Gunther. No matter what stood in the way.
We ran to the building, taking two steps at a time up the staircase. The bodyguards had heard us coming but we approached them with our guns blazing. It was the four of us against the two of them and nobody else from the Smoking Beard made an appearance, so handling them was a piece of cake.
I’d kicked in the door to Gunther’s apartment and saw him straddling Thea. He was about to strip off her clothes. His shoulder had a gash from the bullet that had struck him, but he was still in the mood to rape her. He wasn’t about to let her go.
As per plan, I took a shot at him. I got him in the gut, and he fell to the side, bleeding on the rug and crying out in surprise and pain now. I ran to Thea then and pulled her into my arms. It was obvious that she was in shock. She had no idea what was going on. She was lost and, in a daze, and when she was in my arms, she stayed snuggled up there for a while till she realized Gunther was dying and this was going to be her last opportunity to say something to him. To fulfill her last wishes for him.
Now it was over, Gunther was as good as dead. She’d gotten what she wanted.
“Thea, we have to get out of here before the rest of his club show up,” I said to her and she looked up at me like she was hearing my voice for the first time. “C’mon, let’s go,” I urged her on and held a hand out towards her.
She was reluctant to join me, but I quickly grabbed her hand and I hurried down the stairs. Thea trailed behind me. It was like she was still in shock, uncertain of what she was expected to do now. I knew the guys were waiting for her to leave the building, so she wouldn’t have to watch them dispose of Gunther’s body appropriately.
At one point, she just stood there; on one step, staring wildly ahead of her. So, I walked up, grabbed her by her calves and threw her over my shoulder and carried her down the rest of the way outside the apartment building. She just needed some help along the way. She was still in shock.
Outside, thankfully, darkness surrounded us and there was a chill in the air that cooled our burning skin. She had lain herself limp over my shoulder the whole way down, barely moving. Now she staggered on her feet when I put her down. Thea still wasn’t saying anything, so I weaved my fingers with hers and then guided her further away from the buildings, closer to the car we had parked away from view.
I led her, slowly, neither of us were speaking. I knew it was an important moment in her life. Something significant had happened to her and she needed time before she could fully comprehend it. I wasn’t going to rush her.
Her hand remained in mine; she was clutching it like she had no intention of ever letting go. I was just glad she was safe, that she was doing okay. We came to a stop by a thick tree trunk on the side of the road. The spot was relatively covered by shadows, nobody was watching us.
We stood facing each other now and I could see her blinking maniacally. Like she was suddenly coming alive, trying to comprehend what was going on around her.
“Where…what…”
I stepped up to her, placing one hand on her shoulder and stroking her arm.
“It’s all being taken care of. The guys are going to make sure his body is disposed of before the rest of the Smoking Beard arrives,” I told her. She shook her head like she didn’t care about that.
“Is he really dead? Is he really gone?” she asked, and I nodded.
“Yeah, he’s gone. It’s over. Gunther is never going to remind you of Drake’s death again. He got what was coming for him,” I told her. Thea gulped, then licked her lips like they were dry and bothering her. Then she nodded her head. That blank expression was still in her e
yes.
“I just want to say…I want to say thank you, Bones. I couldn’t have done any of this without you. Without your help and support. And you kept me safe from it all,” she said in a meek voice.
I pulled her into my arms again, and this time, we were kissing.
Our tongues glided together, our mouths were fused, Thea was melting in my arms and I held her tightly to myself, holding her close to my chest where I knew she could feel my heart pounding.
When we parted, she looked up at me, placing her small hands on my biceps now.
“I…I don’t know what to do anymore. I don’t know what to do tomorrow, Bones.”
I stroked her short hair, then pinched her chin, making sure her face was tilted up to face mine. She looked just as beautiful as always, even in the dim dark light of our surroundings. I kissed her lips softly again.
“You don’t have to think about tomorrow right now, Thea. You’re here with me. You come back with me, to my place and we’ll take it from there.”
She reached for my hand, putting a little bit of pressure on it.
“What does that mean, Bones? What does any of this mean?” she asked that with a gulp. It seemed like it was taking her a lot of effort to say those words to me.
It was time I took the leap. What was I going to lose? I reached for her, placing my hands on her waist to keep her in place.
“It means that I want to be with you, and I hope you want to be with me too. That you want to be my woman.”
She stared at me blankly for a few moments before finally, her face started to break out in a smile.
“Are you saying you have feelings for me, Bones?” she asked. It was awkward. I had to admit that. I’d never indulged in using words like that before. I wasn’t even completely sure of how to use them. Was I using them correctly now? This was all new to me.
“Yes, I have feelings for you.”
She was grinning, leaning towards me now and I could sense the warmth of her body. I just needed her to say something, anything to make me feel less awkward about this whole thing, but I could see she was enjoying torturing me!
“I’m in love with you, Bones…I think,” she said finally.
Her voice was gentle. I didn’t expect her to be this gentle. Thea was strong and spunky, but tonight she was full of surprises.
“I think I love you too,” I admitted. Once again, those words sounded awkward in my mouth, but I said them. I meant them. It was the truth. There was no other way to describe what I was feeling right now. I was in love with her.
We were holding hands again and she snuggled up to my chest. I held her close, wrapping my arms around her. She felt so delicate and small there. I would do anything to protect this woman, to keep her safe from everything. Thea looked up at me and I saw that she was smiling again.
“This is probably the happiest day of my life,” she said.
* * *
Our battle with the Smoking Beards, the Sons of Satan, Gunther and Lynch and all the rest—was finally over. I couldn’t believe it, just like I couldn’t believe that this woman had the same feelings for me that I did for her. Thea remained in my arms all the way back to the clubhouse, and we kissed each other from time to time like neither of us could believe this had all really happened. Not only was Gunther really dead, but we’d just confessed our feelings to each other. I had a woman in my life. Something I hadn’t even accounted for in my life plans before.
Now as we entered the clubhouse, loud cheers of celebration rang out. The last of the loose strings were tied and now we could celebrate openly. I didn’t need to be worried about what was going to come knocking on our doors tomorrow. Gunther was not a problem anymore and neither were the Smoking Beard going to be. He had been the mastermind behind that club and with him gone, nobody else was going to be willing to take on the responsibility for a new and weak club like that one.
“Where did you put him?” I asked Patch, who was all smiles when he found me. I was getting drinks for Thea and myself. Our party was in full swing.
“We made sure he’s never going to be found. But we left his two guys out there by the door so that his men find them and put two and two together,” he replied.
“If they have enough brain cells for that,” I countered, and we were both grinning at each other. He tipped his chin up in the direction of Thea.
She was standing with Samantha, who had just been examining the wound on the back of Thea’s head. The gash wasn’t serious, just a bit of ointment would do the trick, Samantha had declared. Now the two women were getting to know each other and it pleased Patch and me. We were close friends, our women getting along would be a good thing!
“Look at them,” Patch said, and I knew the same thoughts had been on his mind too.
“Yeah, it’s insane. I didn’t think I would have a woman to introduce to the club for protection.”
“Your own old lady!”
I couldn’t help but laugh at that. How fuckin’ ridiculous was that? But it was true. Thea was standing right there. Someone had handed her a bottle of beer which she was sipping from now and smiling as she made conversation with Samantha.
“Yeah, I can vouch for how crazy that is. I wasn’t expecting it either but it’s where life took me and my only advice to you brother, is,” Patch was lecturing, and I turned to him with a smile. Maybe this one time it would be worth listening to Patch’s lectures! “Consider yourself lucky that a good woman like her even happened to cross your path.”
I was right. Patch did actually make sense.
I thumped his shoulder and just as I was thinking of walking away from him, Cash intercepted me. He had more drinks in his hands than he could carry. A glass fell out of his hand and crashed to the ground and a loud cheer rang out in the bar as a response to that.
“It’s done. It’s fuckin’ over! We can all sleep at night!” he yelled at me over the music. I was sure he was just as relieved as the rest of us. Our club was now out of danger, our women and children were safe. Gunther wasn’t going to be a nuisance to us any longer.
We shook hands at that, and we were both beaming. It was a relief and a joy. This shit had been going on long enough and now it was finally over. Grimm was watching us from behind Cash too and he nodded his head at me, and I nodded back. I knew he approved. This war with the Sons of Satan had started with him and Lynch, and now it ended with Gunther and me. As long as it was over, nothing else mattered.
That and the fact that I now had a good woman by my side, just like Patch had pointed it out to me.
I watched Thea from a distance now while she drank her beer and talked to the guys. I wouldn’t have to work at all to integrate my woman into the club. She’d managed to achieve that all by herself already. She was already a part of the team, they all got along. She understood and appreciated my lifestyle. She was going to make a perfect partner. With just a little bit of training and watching how we functioned, maybe along with culinary school, Grimm would agree to make her a prospect of our club. I knew she would appreciate that.
Thea caught my eye at one point, and she held up her bottle of beer to me. We were smiling at each other and now it felt like we were the only two people in the room because she was all that really mattered to me in this moment and forever. That was how I saw my future unfolding. It was unexpected but it was true.
I waited a few more minutes before I walked over to her side and threw my arm around her shoulder. I realized I was going to spend the rest of my life admiring her, wondering how on Earth I got this lucky. A guy like me did not deserve a woman like her. Guys like me didn’t get women like her.
But Thea was leaning her head on my shoulder now, she kissed my cheek fleetingly and looked into my eyes.
“It’s over. We can start our lives now,” she said, and I nodded. She was right. And there was nothing I wanted more than to start a life with her.
26
Thea
Bones couldn’t take his eyes off me. It was exactly the fe
eling I’d been waiting for all my life to feel. To feel this loved and wanted by someone, by a man whom I trusted and respected. I just still couldn’t believe I actually had that with him.
He kept an eye on me the whole time that I roamed around the bar, making conversation with his friends and their women and everybody else from the club who had joined in to celebrate Gunther’s defeat.
Gunther’s defeat. Something else I couldn’t quite wrap my head around. It was really over. After ten years of hoping and wishing, of planning and fantasizing; Gunther was gone. He had paid his debt to me, and I got to watch him lose his life right in front of my eyes. I was responsible. Drake’s death hadn’t ended in vain.
It left me feeling cold.
The one thing I knew now was that I would never be able to do it again. I would never be able to witness someone’s death like that. The only reason I survived it was because it was Gunther. Because I’d spent my life hating him, and because minutes before that, he had tried to rape me and worse. He deserved that ending.
And now he was gone. Just when I thought he was going to get me. When I didn’t think I had a chance of getting out of there alive. That the Black Cobras would not be able to get me out of that place in time.
Bones had come to my rescue. Despite fighting me on my plan all these days, he had made sure that I got exactly what I asked for. I didn’t know what else I could do to thank him for the kindness he had shown me, and the way he had kept me safe.
I smiled at him from across the room while he played pool with his friends. I couldn’t take my eyes off him either. It was like Bones had stepped out of my dreams directly. It was more than about just keeping me safe from harm and giving me what I wanted from Gunther. It was also about the fact that I couldn’t keep away from him.
What we felt for each other was a strong physical connection, something I had never felt for anyone before. It was like I had been created for Bones and he’d been created for me. Like we fit into each other like two pieces of a puzzle.
Bones: The Black Cobra MC #4 Page 17