Dominic: Cerberus MC Book 4

by Marie James

  The flash of color from the left catches my eye. Looking over, her bright pink pajama top is in stark contrast to the dark and neutral tones of my living room. I shove it under the couch cushion and pull my t-shirt over my head. The echo of pounding fists rings throughout the house again. I grab my keys from a table near the door and pull it open.

  I channel the calm patience my mother had always told us boys to showcase rather than the angry side from my father. Even though I’m fighting against every instinct in my body, I know killing Grinder and the two ‘daddies’ that are standing behind him on my porch will bring too much heat, and I really like this neighborhood.

  “Grinder,” I bite out in my typical asshole fashion.

  I may have enjoyed a couple of his club whores at parties, but there’s no love lost between myself and the Renegade crew. I know now why the older guys, who are usually the most laid back in most clubs, were the ones I always got that sick vibe from. Luckily these three fuckheads didn’t come to many of the private get-togethers, and have all but stayed clear of anything in the community.

  “You find out anything?” he asks following me down the front steps to my bike.

  I make a showing of setting the house alarm from my phone. I don’t worry that they will be able to get to her if she stays put, but I sure as fuck don’t want to come home to a busted front door or shattered window.

  “About what?” I say playing the idiot.

  “Makayla.” He narrows his eyes. “You were there when I was talking to your damn brother.”

  I shrug. “I don’t really get involved in club business. Kincaid is probably looking into it.”

  “How would you feel about the indifference you’re showing if one of Cerberus club girls went missing?” He sneers but takes it too far when he continues. “What about if something happened to Emmalyn or Misty? Hell, even that pretty little Khloe, Kid seems to be so enamored with.”

  I turn on him, shoving my phone deep in my pocket so both hands are free for the ass whipping he just earned.

  “Are you threatening my family?”

  He has the common sense to take a step back and hold his hands up to ward me off.

  “I said I don’t know shit about that girl you’re looking for. You spoke with Kincaid about her, so explain to me why the fuck you’re at my house?”

  I watch his Adam’s apple bob under a rough swallow. “It’s on the way into town from Durango. Just thought we’d check. Scorpion is going out of his mind.”

  “Really?” I huff incredulously. “If he were so concerned why isn’t he down here asking for help? Hell, he hasn’t even called Kincaid to find his sister.”

  The last part is a gamble, but one I feel confident in taking after the things Mak has told me about her relationship with her brother.

  “He’s upset. Like I said. He asked me to reach out while he explores other avenues closer to home.”

  Lying piece of shit. If anything I bet he’s made up some plausible story about her taking a trip and Scorpion has no clue his sister is on the run.

  “I’m heading to the clubhouse now. Feel free to follow.” I look at him and the other two pieces of shit. “Better drop the accusation and disrespect before you make it over. This isn’t fucking Durango.”

  I jump on my bike and rev it up, pulling away only keeping my eyes on them in my small rear view mirror. Thankfully they mount up and follow.

  My lip twitches as we ride across town, me in the lead and them following behind me. Not officially a Cerberus MC member, I’m not even wearing a cut. It’s a clear sign of power and control on my part.

  Strangely, when we get to the four way stop halfway through town, Grinder and the others turn right rather than following me. I make it to the clubhouse in record time, ignoring the few guys out front while I pull out my cell phone and check on things in the house, which requires a confidential call to Blade across the country for a one-time passcode.

  “The fuck do you need that for. The panic room is the only place you can’t access without it?” This asshole is way too damn analytical for my taste. I ignore him, freezing him out and hoping that silence will work. It doesn’t. “Fuck, man. Goddamn it, Dom. Please explain to me why a half-naked girl is hunkered down and crying in your fucking panic room?”

  I remain silent.

  “Tell me, brother. Have you seen the therapist since you’ve been home?” I snarl at him. “I’ll take that as a no. Explain, man or I’m calling Kincaid on the other line.”

  Now is not the time to have my brother trying to talk reason to me. “Kincaid call you about the Renegades.”

  “He did.” I hate the sound of his groan when he puts two and two together. “Fuck my life, Dom. Please tell me you didn’t abduct the Renegade Princess and you’re holding her hostage in your panic room.”

  “If you even have to ask, you sure as fuck don’t know me,” I growl into the phone, but have enough piece of mind to turn my back to the guys in the yard and walk up the long driveway. “I’ll tell him soon. But know this fucker, she came to me looking for help. Now give me the Goddamn passcode.”

  He sighs but rattles off a handful of numbers that I commit to memory long enough to hang up on him and type them into my app.

  I do look like a psycho when I see her curled up on the small cot in the room. Her head is down, but her shoulders shake with her sobs.

  “Twice in one week,” my brother’s voice says behind me. I close out the app and pocket my phone. “What do we owe the pleasure?”

  I needed to draw three psychopaths away from the woman I’m harboring at my house.

  “Bored,” I mutter as we walk back to the front of the clubhouse.

  “Well, I’m glad you’re here. I have a favor to ask.”

  I groan. “The last time you asked for a favor I ended up naked in a hotel in Tijuana with my head shaved,” I deadpan. His boisterous laugh carries us through the front door of the clubhouse and all the way to the couches off to the left.

  “You chose that woman, not me,” he reminds me. I shudder at the memory. “I need you to go to Tennessee with Bri.”

  “Fuck no.” I don’t refuse my brother many things; call it the guilt from leaving to go into the Corps which resulted in my mother’s death. Accompanying Brighton Griggs anywhere is just asking for trouble.

  “Shadow would do it, but Griffin has the flu,” he says.

  “I was just over here the other night, that little boy is fine.”

  “Kids get sick really fast. Her asshole of a boyfriend refuses to move out of her condo. He needs a little persuasion to kick bricks. She’s been bad mouthing the fucker for months, and I don’t trust any of the other guys to stop at just scaring him and convincing him to leave.”

  I shake my head, still denying him. “What makes you think I won’t tear him to shreds?”

  He looks at me, eyebrow raised, bored with my question.

  “You’re the most level headed man I know. It’s just one day, two max.”

  If he had any idea I nearly killed three Renegades on my porch in broad daylight he would reconsider his statement.

  “Why the urgency?” I ask. “This situation has been going on for well over a year. Can’t it hold for a couple more weeks?”

  Kincaid narrows his eyes at me, trying to figure out why I’m so anxious to stay when I’ve never had a problem dropping everything to take care of something like this.

  “Bri is all over my jock, Diego. I can’t take all the fucking aggressive flirting,” I explain and hope its excuse enough to keep him from wondering what is really going on.

  He laughs again. “Don’t fuck her if you don’t want to. Simple as that. You never do anything you truly don’t want to do.”

  Tell that to my lips that still feel the warm heat of Makayla fucking Evans’.

  “Goddamn it,” I grumble. He smiles, knowing I’m heading to Tennessee. “When do I leave?”

  “Tomorrow.”

  Chapter 15

  Makayla />
  My eyes stay focused on the door as I try to fold myself in the smallest, inconspicuous ball at the top corner of the small cot. The room is as small as jail cells I’ve seen on TV shows, and I’m grateful that I’m not claustrophobic, but the longer I sit here, the tighter the walls seem to close in.

  I’ll be right back.

  His words have echoed in my head for the last hour, the same amount of time the tears have been falling down my face.

  The small room is air tight. I don’t hear any activity outside of the room, and rather than providing safety it freaks me out even more. The small camera screen only shows a couple of feet outside the door, so anything going on beyond that is a mystery. I wouldn’t know if someone is right outside of the closet seconds away from hurting me until they come right up to the door. Even the promise that no one can get in unless I allow it doesn’t provide much comfort. The stress is making every muscle in my body ache, tension thick from my neck all the way down to my calves. The room is stocked with blankets, bottled water, and vacuum sealed food, but the only thing I concern myself with is a blanket to cover my naked top half. I was only supposed to be in here for a few minutes, the amount of time it took Dominic to get the Renegade bikers to leave.

  I saw three, Grinder and the two guys who're always connected at his hip. My mind flashes to Grinder torturing Dom the same way I’ve seen him hurt countless people and the shakes and tears start again. I don’t think I could live with myself if being here is the cause that Dominic was hurt or killed. As strong and able as Dominic is, I know what Grinder is capable of.

  I focus my attention on the fading bruises on my wrists, tracing them with a finger as I try to calm my thoughts enough to formulate a plan to get out of here, get Jasmine, and kill the evil man that has ruined my life. My brain, however, won’t get with the program because I’ve had to remind myself more than once to actually breathe, so conscious planning is impossible.

  The innocent blue eyes of my little sister spring to life in my head, filled with a pleading so familiar from my past. I feel defeated, as if I failed her before I even had a chance to save her. I squandered the opportunity several months ago. Jasmine’s mom was too high to pick her up from school. I sat at the crossroad with her in the backseat, left back to the clubhouse with the guarantee of pure hell or right leading out of town. I sat only a moment from turning and leaving town, deep down knowing that even with no money or plans we’d be better off out of Durango. The blare of a horn behind me and instinct kicked in. I turned left and headed right back to the clubhouse.

  It’s not the fear of the unknown that’s kept me at the clubhouse. It’s the vivid memories of what Grinder is capable of that keeps me terrified of acting on my own.

  I twist my hands in my lap to the point of pain as I rock back and forth. Deep breaths in through my nose, slow, measured breaths out of my mouth. It doesn’t help, so I close my eyes. The trembling increases as my view of the door disappears behind my closed eyelids.

  I push out thoughts of Grinder, Renegades, and for the moment, Jasmine, because the hopelessness I feel isn’t helping anyone right now. The last thing I need is to hyperventilate and pass out. I’ll lose every defense then.

  Instinctively my fingertips go to my lips, my mind back to the brief kiss Dom used to manipulate me into this room. I knew when it was happening what his intentions were, but for the briefest of seconds, I let myself imagine that he wanted me. Not my body, not to use me for sex.

  I used him too. I wanted to sleep with him just as much as he wanted me, but I can’t deny that deep down I want more from him. I’m not talking marriage and children. It’s more of a thirst for that connection I’ve never felt with a man, to feel valued and necessary. To feel wanted and desired emotionally, not just the abuse someone uses to get off on.

  My dad didn’t want me. He reminded me often in everyday conversation, not words he’d regret later for speaking out of turn when he was mad. At least I knew where he stood. Scorpion blames me for his mother’s suicide, feels that if my whore mother stayed away from his dad, his mother wouldn’t have done what she did.

  Calypso never treated me like the bastard child of her cheating husband, even though that is exactly what I was. Too bad her son took so much after his dad and didn’t end up with any of the compassion his mother had. The disdain he has for me keeps me away from him. Never one for masochism, knowing how he feels about me keeps me in my room most days, away from a brother I can’t help but love and the man who hurts me every chance he gets.

  I shake my hands out, a futile attempt to stop the shaking. I hate my cowardice right now, but I know it’s the unknown and lack of control of my current situation that has me out of sorts. I’m normally brave, my smart mouth getting me into trouble most days.

  For the first time in my life, I wish I had a line of coke. The girls at the club rave about the powdered substance. I know they use it to better deal with the horrible situation they’ve got themselves in, and the escape would be blissful right now.

  My eyes dart open when a hushed rustling sound comes through the microphone from outside of the room. The motion activated lights that had darkened the room while I sat idle flash on when I jolt. I’ve stayed as still as possible since the darkness is more comforting. It allows me to imagine no one can see me, so most of my time has been spent staring at the small screen on the wall, the image the only light in the room.

  I clamp a hand over my mouth, eyes glued to the screen. My heart races, praying I’ll see Dom outside of the door, but he doesn’t come into view. I imagine Grinder outside with his men, rummaging through Dom’s things, looking for clues. He won’t have to go far. The guest bedroom doesn’t automatically lock when closed, and one look inside, and he’ll be well aware I’ve been staying here.

  With marked, shallow breathing I sit until the lights flicker off again. Darkness cocoons me, and my heart rate calms just a fraction. I know I can open the door from the inside, but I won’t chance it. As much as I hate it in the tiny room, I know I’m safer in here than anywhere out there. So I sit in silence and wait.

  Chapter 16

  Dominic

  “Fuck,” I grumble dropping the kickstand on my bike. Acting like a child has never really been my thing, but the thought of leaving Makayla combined with the fact that I have to spend time with Bri, makes me want to pout and throw my damn toys.

  I walk the perimeter of the house even though I know the Renegades never came back here. I would’ve gotten notifications from my security app, and not one has come through since I left. I also know that Mak is still holed up in the panic room because it hasn’t pinged that she’s opened the door.

  I take my time, cataloging the flower beds, checking the windows, and even walking to the end of the dock for anything out of place or suspicious. I find nothing.

  Shoving my phone in my pocket, I enter the house from the backside, contemplating whether or not to leave Mak in the panic room while I toss back a few fingers of whiskey. My body began to hum the second I stepped inside, as if knowing she’s nearby. I hate myself for how much I want her. I fucked her the first time because I just couldn’t resist, the second time because that first taste would’ve never been enough, but wanting her again does something to my psyche that has me questioning my entire life.

  Once was too many considering I haven’t had anything but quick fucks and one night stands since leaving my wife. Imagining Mak as a quick fuck makes me want to punch shit, but on the other hand, I can’t picture her as anything else because it goes against the way of life I’ve had for the last twenty years.

  Knowing she’s been in that tiny fucking room long enough, I head in her direction instead of toward the bar in the den. I grab her pajama shirt from behind the pillow on the couch even though the last thing I want is for her to cover her tits up. My bedroom door is closed, and the bed covers are crumpled just as they were when I walked out of here this morning.

  A few short strides later, I’m standing at the
closed door.

  “Mak.” I don’t bother knocking because the door is so thick, she’d just hear the noise through the intercom. “Open up, baby.”

  I have no clue when I started calling her baby, but I have no desire to stop.

  I wait, giving her time to get to the door, but it never clicks open.

  “Just press the red button beside the screen. It opens the door.”

  Nothing.

  My heart starts hammering in my chest. I know she’s in there. The app on my phone is military grade. It doesn’t just randomly fuck up like some bullshit app you buy on your phone. Even knowing this I check the fucker again. No notifications.

  I pound on the door, anxiety thick in my veins. “Open the fucking door, Mak.”

  An endless thirty seconds go by before I hear the mechanical click of the lock withdrawing. I tug it open a second before it’s fully disengaged and have to pull a second time.

  She’s standing with her face in her hands in the middle of the room.

  “Fuck’s sake, Mak. Why did you take so long?” Instinctively, I wrap her in a hug as her shoulders shake with her sobs. “You’re safe. Don’t cry.”

  My words make no difference as she continues to cry for long minutes.

  “I-I was so happy to see you on the screen that I started crying again. I didn’t want you to see me acting like a baby.”

  I chuckle but otherwise remain silent, refusing to bring up the tantrum I wanted to throw after talking with Kincaid.

  The expectant look in Bri’s eyes as we discussed the flight schedule and what I needed to do to get her bum-ass boyfriend out of her house the quickest pissed me off even more.

  “You were gone so long. You told me minutes,” she pauses to sniffle. “I thought he killed you. I was waiting for him to come in and hurt me too.”

  I frown down at her. Even with red-rimmed eyes, unable to hold the tears back, she’s gorgeous. I bite my tongue until the acrid taste of blood fills my mouth. With what she’s gone through, I’d never be able to tell her that her tears, while she's tied to my bed and gagging around my cock, would be the most amazing sight.