When she looked up and locked eyes with Tiny, she immediately knew someone was in trouble. All she cared about was the fact that it wasn’t her in his line of fire. She, of all people, knew Tiny was a ruthless motherfucker when crossed and she had no intentions of getting on his bad side—ever.
Clive made his way out of his apartment and into the darkened hallway of the cheap tenement he inhabited. Maybe he could get a nicer apartment after he finished this job. Visions of working as a high dollar hit man filled his head as he made his way out to his car that was nothing more than a broken down piece of crap.
He had tossed around the idea of blackmailing that highfalutin lawyer who had hired him. He knew the guy had plenty of money and if Clive was ever going to get the attention of that prostitute he had been spending time with lately, then he needed to have some money to flash. Yes, it was true. People paid a lot more attention to you when you had money.
Finally, on the third turn of his key in the ignition, the small car that continually burned oil and left the scent of poverty in its wake, started. Yes, Clive needed to find something he could make money doing. Being that he had no education or talents, he would have to make his imagined fortune in illegal activities, but that was okay with him.
He punched the button on his phone and answered Luke’s call. “I’m headed over there now. I’ll be there. I’m on the road now. Well, I don’t think it’s necessary to threaten me. Yes, I have her address. I’ll see you in fifteen minutes.”
Tiny clicked the phone off he had been holding up to Luke’s ear as he talked to Clive. They wanted to get these two together and get this shit straight tonight so Tiny had made him call Clive to catch him before he tampered with Talon’s bike. Dauntless MC didn’t take it lightly when a hit was put out on a brother even if it was a joke of a wannabe hit man doing the supposed job. He eyed the man they had bound and seated against the wall as he talked.
“For a man who is as educated as you are, you’re a stupid motherfucker. What in the world would lead you to believe we would let you get away with killing one of our brothers?”
“Please, I love her. I just wanted her to stay away from him.” He nodded his head towards Talon. He never saw Talon’s fist headed in his direction, not until it crashed down into his nose. Blood flew through the air as his head swung in the opposite direction of the blow.
By now, Talon had lifted him up by a handful of hair and was growling. The expression on his face looked like that of a rabid dog. “You love her? You love her?” he repeated, unable to believe this man had the audacity, or the nerve, to say something like that in front of him. Talon turned in Grace’s direction as she started to speak but the look of death on his face scared her back into silence. “Do you have feelings for him? Is there something the two of you need to tell me?”
“Talon, I had no idea he felt like this. Please, please, I’m begging you. Don’t kill him.”
“Are you worried about me messing up your house, babe? I’ll admit that’s a definite possibility right now. There’s nothing I’d love more than to paint the walls with his blood by giving him a good old fashioned beat down.” He talked to her but never took his eyes from his victim.
“Baby, please, I’m begging you. He’s harmless.” A knock at the door brought them all out of the moment. Tiny made his way over to let Derrick and Justine in.
“Damn, you guys are pushing it. You almost didn’t beat the big bad hit man who’s coming to kill Talon.” The room erupted in laughter but Talon still had his eyes glued to the man who had been stupid enough to tell him he was in love with his woman. Not smart—not smart at all.
Derrick made his way over to Luke, who was still two inches off the ground from Talon holding him up by his hair. “You are a dumbass, dude.”
“Oh, you have no idea. He just had the nerve to tell me he’s in love with my old lady.” Talon said.
Derrick shook his head, “Dumber than I thought.”
“Please don’t kill me. Please, I’ll do anything.”
Derrick spoke again but this time he directed it towards Tiny. “Tiny, we could use this guy in the future. You’re talking about having two lawyers and two ICE agents working for the club.”
Tiny said nothing and just stood there, scratching his full beard and thinking. Even Talon was waiting for the club president’s verdict.
“Hey boys, we got company,” Scooter revealed, peering through the blinds. Talon dropped the bloodied lawyer on the floor at the news of company. “This is going to be fun,” Scooter said, rubbing his hands together in anticipation.
“I’ve never known you to be so sadistic,” Derrick chided.
“You’re rubbing off on me.”
Derrick blew on the fingertips of one of his hands and then rubbed them on his shirt as if he was shining them. “Yes, I’m very good at what I do. Aren’t I, honey?” he asked Justine.
“Yes, my love, you are. You managed to convert me from my vanilla ways.”
“Let’s get this party started,” Scooter smiled, opening the door and jerking Clive in.
Grace just kept looking around, hoping there wouldn’t be any charges or bloodstains and glad the room was big enough to hold the motley crew.
“He did it,” Clive screamed out, pointing at the lawyer who was now slumped down on the floor and wondering if his nose was broken.
“I thought you were supposed to be some badass hit man, you pussy motherfucker!” Talon’s fist crashed down on Clive’s nose as Tiny yelled in the background, “Ah fuck, now that is going to hurt. Unlike the pussy over here who hired you,” he pointed at Luke, “I heard your nose break, Mr. Supposed Hit Man.” The men erupted in laughter.
Clive crumbled down onto the floor, crying and holding his nose, “Yep, Tiny, you nailed it. He’s a pussy with a broken nose.” Scooter confirmed.
“Damn it, Talon, you got blood on my carpet.” Grace muttered as she made way to the kitchen to get something to clean it up before it set in.
“Seriously, babe?” Talon yelled after her.
She made her way back in with one hand on her hip and spray carpet cleaner in her other. “The carpet is white, the furniture is white leather, and, yes, I’m dead serious.”
Tiny and Scooter burst out laughing at which point she rolled her eyes at them and got down on the floor, attempting to clean up the blood before it set in.
Talon eyed Tiny with a serious look on his face. “Derrick’s right. Two lawyers and two ICE agents would give us a lot more power against rival clubs. This worthless motherfucker though,” he pointed towards Clive, “we don’t need him.”
“Please don’t kill me. I swear, I won’t say anything,” Clive sobbed.
Tiny made his way over, grabbed Clive by the throat, and picked him up. “If you ever utter a word about this, or come anywhere near this house, my club, or any of its members, I’ll cram your head in the fucking gas tank on that piece of junk car of yours and light a match.”
Clive looked puzzled, like he was trying to figure out if Tiny could really achieve that impossibility.
“You really are a dumbass,” Scooter stated, shaking his head as he eyed Clive.
Tiny made his way over to the door, still carrying Clive by the throat, and threw him out the door. “Get the fuck out of here!”
He didn’t have to tell Clive twice. He was in his jalopy of a car and trying to get it started by the time Tiny turned around and shut the door.
“Now, back to you,” Tiny addressed Luke. He never took his eyes off of Luke but he addressed his next question to Talon. “Are you okay with keeping this pussy alive, Talon?”
Talon glared at Luke, “That depends. Are you willing to get over this torch you’re carrying for my woman?”
“I swear. I’ll stay away from her unless it’s work related.”
“You better, and you better not breathe a word about any of this to anybody.”
“I swear. My lips are sealed.”
“They better be or you’ll be eati
ng through a straw after you have to have your jaw wired shut,” Talon threatened.
Grace breathed a sigh of relief. She wasn’t ready to witness the death of her partner at the law firm but, even more than that, she didn’t want to lose the man she loved to a prison term.
Chapter Thirty One
“Red? Red? Girl, you are forever late. It’s time to go to work.”
“I know,” Red whined. “I just wanted to say goodbye to Scooter.”
“Ah, love… a many splendid thing.”
“Hey, I do love Scooter. I’ve been waiting a long time to belong to somebody, or something—you know, family.”
Raven reached over and kissed her on the cheek as she spoke, “You are definitely part of the family now. Things worked out great.”
“Yeah, and to think that all that time the love of my life was standing right in front of me and I never even knew it.”
Raven reached down to grab the large duffle bag that held her dance costumes. “Well, thank goodness he finally jumped on the chance to man up and claim you as his property, even if it did take you getting abducted for it to happen.”
“Now, that was a trip.” Red’s face fell and Raven knew something was wrong.
“Come on and we’ll talk about it on the way to work.”
“Yeah, I think I do need to talk to someone. I’ve even thought about getting some professional help.”
The girls made their way out to the Cadillac SUV that Tiny had bought for Raven. He insisted that she have a dependable car. The girls falling prey to one of their rival clubs was always in the back of his head and he also didn’t want his woman stranded on the side of River Road in a broken down car.
Raven mostly worked at the tattoo parlor she and Tiny owned but she still liked to make an appearance at the club when she wanted to make extra money or just pop in and manage office issues. She had a few regulars she danced for but she never did it nude. They would beg her to sit with them just to talk and, even without undressing, she made more money than two or three girls put together the nights she chose to work. She had been known to take home as much as five thousand dollars in one night. Raven had a way of making a man feel like he was the only man on earth when she sat with him. It was one of the things that had drawn Tiny to her. Her beauty had helped with that too; the girl oozed sex appeal. He had been the one to hire Raven years ago and he swore it was love at first sight. The guys teased him and said he spent more time at the club when he first hired Raven than he ever had in all the time they’d known him. He would sit in a darkened corner and just stare at her for hours.
The girls sat in the cage, as they referred to it, and let it warm up a little before taking off.
“Talk to me, sweetie,” Raven asked, watching for traffic as she turned out onto River Road.
“I’m having dreams, Raven… night terrors. I see that guy’s face and all that blood. There was so much blood. It was spraying out all over the place. I guess I must have hit an arterial vein because it just kept spraying everywhere.”
“It was self-defense. He would have killed Justine. You saved her life. Shit, he probably would have killed you too. I’m sure he wouldn’t have wanted to leave any witnesses. You’ve got to stop beating yourself up.”
“I tell myself that. I really do, but how do I make his face go away when I close my eyes?”
Raven pulled into her designated spot in the parking lot of the Dauntless motorcycle club’s downtown strip club. They had kept the same name as the club by calling it Dauntless Divas. It was a way to let everyone know it was theirs and that the women who worked there were under their protection. It was one of the more upscale joints in the area and women always wanted to be hired there, but Tiny was really picky about who he employed. He always said he didn’t want anyone involved in club business that he couldn’t trust and that included the dancers.
Of course, Raven kept a close eye on the women and she was very quick to let everybody know she would kick anybody’s ass if they were stupid enough to hit on her old man. Raven didn’t play and she had been known to whip a grown man’s ass for pissing her off. She had gained quite a reputation when she beat up a customer after he tried to feel her up. He never saw the Magnum wine bottle coming until she crashed it upside his head and then beat his ass, kicking the shit out of him when he hit the carpet face first. Needless to say, the guy never came back to mess with her again.
“Red, it’s going to take time to get past this. I hate to be so blunt, but you killed a man. The thing you need to remember is that you saved lives—your life and the life of an ICE agent. Fuck girl, you’re a hero. As bad as I hate to focus on it, you also gained street cred by doing that. I’m just trying to focus on the positive. Let’s give it a little while and see how you do. If you feel like you need to talk to a professional, I’m sure the club has references of someone cool you can chat with.” She reached over to rub the tear streaming down Red’s face and hugged her. Red soaked up the feeling of belonging. Finally, after so many years, she had a family.
Chapter Thirty Two
Daisy sat at the bar and waited for the woman the bartender said did the hiring. She had taken her colors off because she knew she would never get a job at this club if she wore them and she really needed this job. She needed to do something before her old man from the Hell’s Demons motorcycle club killed her. She had the scar on her neck to prove it. Though her hair did a good job of hiding it, it was an ever-present reminder and one she would never forget.
“Raven, you’ve got a girl here who needs to talk to you,” the bartender yelled out as she made her way into the dressing room.
“I’ll be out in a minute,” she said, rushing back to the dressing room and not looking at either girl. The first thing she noticed when she entered was a vase of black roses—her favorite flower.
“Cool, Tiny bought you flowers,” Red said. “That’s so romantic.”
“Yeah, it’s nice to know my man stills loves me after all these years.”
“Why wouldn’t he, as hot as you are?” another dancer chimed in.
Raven made her way over and grabbed the card to read it. I’m watching you Raven, always watching you…
The girls watched as Raven gasped and dropped the card causing it to float to the ground as if it were falling in slow motion. “Those aren’t from Tiny.”
Red ran over and grabbed her arm. “Hey, you’ve got a lot of admirers. They’re probably just from some customer who thinks he’s in love with you,” she stated after bending down and grabbing the card. She was going to make sure none of these bitches got a hold of it. If Raven wanted Tiny knowing about the flowers, it was her place to tell him, not some bitch trying to gain favor with the President of the club. She was well aware how these girls operated and she had Raven’s back.
“Don’t tell Tiny. He’ll freak and I don’t want him overreacting. You know how he is, Red. He’ll have me on house arrest.”
“Or compound arrest,” Red giggled.
“Same thing.”
“Yeah, do you want me to go with you to interview this chick?”
“Yeah, I do. I sure do, Red. Thanks.”
“Sure… I’d do anything for you. You’re the sister I never had.” Red looked over to see the girl at the dressing room table roll her eyes.
“Have you got a fucking problem, Candy?”
“No, you do. You’re so far up Raven’s ass you can’t see straight. What are you, her fucking assistant now?”
“Maybe I am. It’s none of your fucking business.”
“Oh, I forgot, you’re a killer. I guess I should be scared.”
“Enough!” Raven growled, pointing her finger at Candy. “I’ll fire your fucking ass.”
“I’m sorry, Raven. I put in for the job of being your assistant here.”
“I haven’t hired anybody because I’m a big girl and I don’t need an assistant.”
“Tiny’s the one who brought it up.”
“Tiny is overprotecti
ve. Just let it go, guys. I’ve got a lot on my mind and a dancer to interview.”
“I’m sorry,” Candy murmured, going back to putting on her make-up.
Red knew good and well Candy was jealous. She wasn’t sorry at all. This issue of her trying to get on Raven’s good side for all the wrong reasons wasn’t over yet. Red let it go for now because she wasn’t going to stress Raven out. She knew that bouquet of flowers had shaken her up.
“Come on. Let’s go, Raven.”
The girls made their way out of the dressing room and headed to the bar.
“Give me a shot of Jack. No, make it a double,” Raven told the bartender.
Red knew when she saw her order a double shot of Jack that her friend was more upset than she had originally thought. She hoped they would find out that whoever sent the bouquet of roses was just a harmless customer showing his adoration. Supporting Raven was the reason she didn’t go back and kick Candy’s ass for calling her a murderer. She’d hit a nerve when she said that and Red knew that had been Candy’s intent all along.
Raven made her way down to the end of the bar, with Red in tow, to interview the girl who had been waiting.
“I’m so sorry to keep you waiting,” Raven spoke to the girl with long, dishwater blonde hair. She noticed the girl pulled it around so it covered her neck—odd.
“Oh, it’s no problem. I would have waited all night if it meant getting hired on here. I’m a real good worker and I need this job in the worst sort of way. I got nowhere to stay and no family.”
Red and Raven watched as the poor girl began sobbing.
“Hey, it’s okay. We could use another dancer,” Red answered as she felt her heartstrings pull.
Hunted (Dauntless MC Book 1) Page 11