by J. L. Drake
Finally, I spotted an open area right before I hit the mountain. I hurried up the hill and collapsed in a little dug-out spot next to a ledge.
I pushed my hands to my head to relieve the pressure growing behind my eyes. Or maybe to stop the tears. I wasn’t sure. Either way, I hurt.
My phone vibrated, and I saw Brick’s name come up. I felt like crying more; I felt betrayed. I wasn’t ready to go down the “I fell hard, and you were right” road yet. I also knew I couldn’t let it go to voicemail without some kind of explanation.
Tess: Need a moment, be back in a few.
Brick: What happened?
“You know,” a voice came from somewhere, “it took me a while to figure out how I would get you back, my skinny white girl.” He lit a joint, and I nearly died on the spot.
Tiago.
I started to get up, but he held up a hand and blocked my path. My phone slipped from my nervous grip and fell a few feet away.
Breathe, Tess.
“Not so brave without your pres to protect you, hey?”
“I never meant to start anything with your club,” I huffed and wondered where the hell that came from. “It was all a misunderstanding.”
He ignored my comment.
“I’m surprised he let you out of his sight.” He moved closer, and I stepped back. “You are like all the rest of his women, you know. Disposable. But right now, he wants you, and that makes you an asset.”
I flinched at that. His comment tore through me. His sweaty forehead leaned to the side as if he could read my thoughts. A delighted smirk raced across his lips, and I saw he knew. He saw the truth.
“Oh, so you are back on the market. That’s why you are up here all by yourself.”
He scratched his cheek and moved another step closer. So close, in fact, I could smell the booze pouring off him.
He clapped his hands in excitement. “Well, well, tonight is shapin’ up to be all right.”
***
Trigger
I wiped my dirty hands on my jeans and fastened my helmet. I started the bike and eased along the bumpy path. We were six miles from camp and had just buried Ty deep in the ground. It took us four hours to get down the six feet. The damn hard desert made you work to return a body to the ground. At least this would keep the Reaper satisfied for a while.
Once we hit the main road, I started to feel better. My phone found a signal and blew up with text messages and missed calls.
10:58 p.m.
Brick: You with Tess?
11:34 p.m.
Brick: What happened to Tess? Pissed!
11:45 p.m.
Gus: May have a problem here, son. Tammy just played Tess. You will need to fix this shit.
11:56 p.m.
Brick: I am going to kill Tammy!
12:57 p.m.
Brick: I can’t find Tess.
2:00 a.m.
Brick: Call me.
I hit the button on my helmet and tapped Brick’s name on my phone. Three rings in, and he finally answered.
“I still can’t find her, man.”
My fingers flexed over the handlebars. “What happened?”
“Minnie told me they got split up—”
“Put Minnie on,” I interrupted. I hated a middle man.
“Here she is.” I heard him whisper to her who it was before she took it.
“Trigger?” Her voice sounded just as worried.
“What happened?”
“We were up on a mountain for a while, then we came down to pee, and that’s when we got separated. I went back to the camp to see if she passed me, when I got a text she needed help. I walked back the route we came, and suddenly she popped out of nowhere and screamed at me to run. I tried to ask what happened, but she kept saying she needed to talk to you. One moment she raced inside your trailer, and then next she took off. That was the last I’ve seen or heard from her. Brick told me—”
“Put him on.”
“The last time I heard from her,” he started right where Minnie left off, “was when I texted to see if she was all right. She said she needed a moment. That was two hours ago, and I can’t find her anywhere.”
What the hell was going on?
A darkness tightened my chest as I waved to the guys something was up.
“Where are the Serpents?”
“Ahh…” There was a pause. “I see Mateo and Tiago.”
“Have they been there the whole night?”
“No idea. I tried to avoid them as much as a possible.”
I hit my blinker and changed gears to pick up speed. “Meet me at my trailer.”
I hung up and concentrated on the road.
Should’ve killed him when I had the chance.
Once I arrived, Gus was there to greet me.
“She seemed upset when she left. She told me she was just going to walk the perimeter. She promised to keep her phone on her. My guess, she got a visitor.” He nodded at the Serpents. “Though they claim they haven’t seen her.”
My phone buzzed, and I saw it was Rail.
“Yeah?”
“I got her. I’m coming up behind your trailer.”
“Gus,” I pointed at the snakes, “watch them.”
I rounded the trailer and saw Rail with Tess in his arms.
Everything around me went quiet.
Everything went still.
I scooped her up and hurried through the back door. I didn’t need an audience right now. Brick followed, and Rail closed the door behind us.
“Where was she?” I asked as I laid her on the bed and covered her with a blanket. I checked her breathing and pulse.
“North ridge. I heard something and found her whimpering. When I saw it was Tess, I tried to get her to focus and speak, but once she saw me, she passed out.”
“Is she okay?” Brick hovered over my shoulder just as Gus and Cooper came in. Loose followed but stayed on the other side of the trailer when Gus waved him off.
“Some cuts and bruises on her legs and stomach, but the rest I don’t know.” I inspected her hands and saw she must have fought something or someone. I stepped back to show the guys.
Rail looked just as pissed off as Brick. “I didn’t see anyone. Too dark to see footprints, and at this point, mine are in there too.” He ran a hand through his hair before he let out a long breath. “Tell us what to do, just give the order.”
“We’ve never had this before.” Brick added. “Not until now.”
“We do nothing but watch.” I felt the mood change, but I held a hand up. “I would bet my club it was Tiago, but if it wasn’t, we can’t risk the contract.” I leaned against the counter and rubbed my head, taking a moment to think. “Get our crew and Cray’s to watch them tonight. As soon as she wakes, we find out what she knows.”
“Shit.” Morgan nearly fell over the chair as he hurried inside. “Where is she?”
“Okay, but out of it,” Rail answered as I looked back at her small body under the blanket.
“This is Tammy’s fault, Trigger,” Minnie whispered from behind Brick. I didn’t even know she was here. “She set Tess up.”
“How?” My rage started to kick in again. It was a horrible mix of pain and anger, something else I hadn’t felt before.
“She was giving Tristen a blow job on your bed, and she kept the lights off so it looked like you. She and Peggy have been trying to get rid of Tess since she got here.”
I glanced at Gus. “Tammy’s done.”
“Yeah.”
We all stood in silence.
“All right, let’s all get the hell out,” Morgan said. “Trigger, we’ll keep watch, make sure our girl is okay. I’ll get Sphinx over here in the morning to check her out.”
I nodded at Brick’s white, angry face.
“You want to stay?”
He shook his head. “No, I need to walk or something.”
“Yeah, I get that. We’ll set this straight, Brick. I just need to think.”
Minnie put her
arm around Brick as they left.
Gus rose and leaned against the table across from me. He shifted awkwardly until he found a good spot.
“Never seen your face like that before.” He huffed, and I glanced up at him, feeling a massive weight on my shoulders. “You okay?”
“Yeah.”
“I’m not asking Trigger, I’m asking Nolan.”
I shut my eyes. It had been about thirty-somethin’ years since my real name was used.
“I…” My voice was raw with fury. The demons sat off in the distance, curious what their next move was. “I don’t just want to kill…I want someone chained-up-in-the slaughterhouse, just-us-alone. I want the Reaper to sell his soul to me.”
“We’ll make that happen.” He sighed and looked at Tess. “Until then, get some sleep. We’ll handle out there.”
“I need to be there—”
Gus turned to me and stuck a finger in my face. “Don’t let her wake to Jace or Big Joe. She needs you, and you need to make sure she knows what the hell really happened.”
He left and locked the door behind him.
He was right; it wasn’t about me anymore. It was about her too.
Fuck, the use of my name started to play on me.
“What’s your name?”
I looked over at my father, who had the same expression he used whenever he was trying to win over a woman. “Nolan. He’s a good kid. Just wants to be loved.”
A woman reached down and cupped my cheek. She smelled good, like, clean. “I’m Misty, a friend of your daddy’s.”
She had a nice smile and didn’t yell at me like my father, so I liked her.
“Who couldn’t love a boy with such green eyes?”
Misty was around for a year, and she was the nicest woman I knew. She made me cookies and cleaned my clothes from time to time. Then, one day, she was gone…just like my mom. Just like any other woman my father brought around. He always said I was the reason they left.
What did I do wrong?
What could I do to make them stay?
Why was I so unlovable?
I sagged into the counter and spotted a bottle of whiskey on the table. Normally, I’d mask the pain with booze, but…
Her cry ripped through me as I crawled onto the bed, helpless as to what to do.
“Hey.” I brushed her hair off her face. “Look at me, Tess.”
Her eyes fluttered open and focused on me. Tears filled her gorgeous green eyes, and I felt my body crumble.
“Hi.” I ran my shaky fingers down her face. “You scared the shit out of me.”
Her chin quivered as her eyes squeezed closed. She started to shut down.
“No, Tiger.” I moved closer, feeling Nolan on the outskirts of my brain. He was five, and watching. I felt his hurt and the oh-too-familiar pain of that situation. “That wasn’t me you saw with Tammy on my bed, it was Tristen. They set you up. I was off burying Ty. I wouldn’t do that to you.”
She moved to study my face. I tried to show the truth. I had no idea how, but I tried.
“I would never hurt you like that, Tess.”
She covered her face and rolled into my chest with a sob. I wrapped my arms around her and pulled her in close.
“I got you.” I kissed her head softly. “I’m so sorry, Tess. I’m sorry I promised to protect you. Just tell me, was it one of the Serpents who did this to you?”
Her terrified stare held mine, confirming one had something to do with it.
It was the first time in my life I fought to hold my switch down. She needed me more.
She wouldn’t answer any questions after that, she just shook and cried. She just needed to get it out and feel safe. So, that was what I was for her. Safety. However, the storm inside my head was something completely different. The Reaper would be impressed by my desire to hunt and murder Tiago bit by bit.
By 3:00 a.m., she had finally fallen asleep. I reached down and unzipped her boots and slipped them off so she’d be more comfortable.
She reached out and grabbed my t-shirt then fisted it as if I were her anchor.
“Don’t leave me,” she whispered.
“Not even if you wanted me to.”
We fell asleep tangled around one another. Surprisingly, I slept hard, no dreams or voices, just peaceful darkness. I didn’t even know there was such a place.
Sadly, once I came to, my reality came crashing down. The demons inside my head were there, gnawing at the corners of the doors and begging to be let out. The sound was haunting and irritating.
Unfolding her fingers from my shirt, I swung my feet out of bed and got dressed.
Gus handed me a cup of coffee and took a seat across the table from me. I kept what Tess confirmed quiet until I knew more. I was nervous that the guys’ reactions would tip me over the edge. I glanced at the clock for the five-hundredth time that evening. Tess had been asleep all day, and I was getting anxious. Sphinx was outside, ready to look at her when she woke. He reassured me she’d be fine, and I knew he wouldn’t leave camp. The fact that there wasn’t a visible head injury was a good sign.
That wasn’t my major concern.
“Um, Trig?” Rail was in the door, and he looked like hell. “You might wanna come here.”
Gus held up a hand to tell me that he would stay with her.
Stepping outside, I saw Mateo and Tiago next to my entire crew.
Their weapons weren’t drawn, so I was guessing this was the first time we heard this.
“We heard your girl got hurt last night.” Mateo’s thick accent was harsh, not like his normal purr. “Tiago knows something about it.” He shoved Tiago’s shoulder, and he shrugged forward.
I cracked my knuckles and felt my blood pump to my muscles as my body prepared to fight.
Tiago snarled. I could tell he wasn’t happy about the situation, but he was here, and so was I.
“I saw your girl up on the ledge, and I followed her up there.” He watched for any reaction from me, which I kept at bay. All the demons were screaming at me to kill him, a quick rip to the chest to stop the heart. My fingers flexed at the thought.
“She was upset, said you guys broke up. Said she was lonely.”
I lunged and swung at his skull, and he slammed backward and crashed into the picnic table. Mateo raised a hand, and my men lifted their weapons.
“Hear him out.”
Tiago stumbled to his feet and spat blood on the ground as he chuckled at me. Mateo yelled at him in Spanish, and his smiled faded.
“You can’t deny she’s hot. I just wanted a little taste.” He winked, and I raised my arm but held it back. “When I went to kiss her, the bitch kicked me in the balls. She tried to run down the hill, but I grabbed her hair, and she slammed into the ground. She twisted and fought when I was just trying free myself from her.” He held out his hands, palms up. “She owed me a blow job, after all, and besides, I can’t help it if her screams turned me on…” He smiled, enjoying this.
He had a death wish.
“But in the next moment I am hit over the head.” He shrugged. “I woke there by my trailer with a big headache. I had a cold beer and didn’t think much more of it.”
I nodded as I turned to look at Brick, who had once again turned white.
“I didn’t hurt your old lady, Trigger, not that much. I don’t know who else was there, but I wasn’t alone.” He made a show of rubbing the back of his head.
“But you did beat her up at your club a while back.” Morgan chimed in just as angry as the rest of us. She was family, and you didn’t fuck with family.
Tiago’s throat contracted and his fingers twitched at his side.
I laughed as I pulled my gun free and pointed it at his dick. I pulled the trigger and slammed a bullet into what he would never have use for again.
Tiago’s eyes bulged as he grabbed what was left of his mangled dick. Blood soaked through his jeans in seconds and pooled at his feet. Still stunned, he fell to the ground with a thud and screamed in pa
in. His neck contracted and his head whipped around as he tried to grasp the reality of what just happened.
“Holy shit!” Mateo cursed with his hands in the air. “He didn’t have to tell you the truth!”
“No, he didn’t.” I pointed the gun at Mateo’s head. “I brought you out here to extend our friendship, and this is how you repay me? Trying to take what is mine!” I was vibrating with the need to jam a bullet into his skull. This would be settled. Now. “We are done with the cocaine, we are done with the forty percent, and we own Santa Monica. Do you hear me?”
He nodded, but I stepped forward, pressing the hot tip of the gun to his head. I snapped my finger and Jace was next to me with a phone, recording us. “Say it.”
“Sí, done with the cocaine, done with the contract, the Devil’s Reach owns Santa Monica.”
“You have two weeks to find a new city or I will burn you—all of you—till there’s nothing left.”
I stepped back as two of their crew helped Tiago to his feet and into their van. Mateo was on his bike, gunning it hard toward the road and leaving the rest of his snakes to gather their shit.
Panting with the need to finish them off, I turned as Tess appeared in the doorway in nothing but my hoodie. Her teeth bit at her bottom lip, her face chalk-white.
I walked over and stopped at the bottom of the step. Her eyes brimmed with tears, but she managed to keep them under control.
“You didn’t kill him?” she whispered.
“Not yet.”
She nodded several times, and I could tell she was trying to process it all. Her chin quivered.
“I think we all need to talk.” She turned and went inside. I motioned for the guys to join me.
She paced back and forth as she filled us in on the conversation she had overheard on her walk. The entire time, Brick kept eyeing me. I knew how he felt as we both listened to her words. It was a hard hit directly to the gut to think she could have been killed twice last night.
“Do you have any idea who it could have been?” Gus asked as he rubbed his chin.
“I know that I know that voice. I have heard it before, but I just can’t place it. It was as if someone I knew was suddenly talking differently.” She grew frustrated for a moment. “Like if Brick was talking with a deep southern accent. You know it’s his voice, but it’s altered in some way. I think it will come to me, but it’s not quite there.”