by Sam Crescent
“Then I’ll teach you, baby. I will teach you everything you need to know.”
He kissed her head once again, and she stared out at the bikers that surrounded them. They were all deadly in their own way, and she knew some of them didn’t trust her relationship with Vengeance. She got it. To them she was an outsider, someone who lived by society’s rules.
She would show them not to presume. She was loyal, and she loved Vengeance more than anyone else in her life. She would stick by him through everything.
19
“You really did it,” Weasel said. “Your woman is now part of the Soldiers of Wrath. Congratulations.” Weasel held up his beer and took a long sip.
“Are you going to give me shit about this?” Vengeance asked. They had gotten all of Constance’s things into his room, and whatever didn’t fit went into storage. Next week he intended to take her to go and look for a house.
He was serious about making a life with her. He wanted kids like some of the guys had, and he looked out toward the play area where Demon’s kid was. He was a cute little guy, and even though he was still so young, he was a little spitfire, and was growing up to be tough like his dad.
“I’m not going to give you shit about anything. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said anything.” Weasel sighed. “Your girl does fit in well.”
“I don’t know what it was but that life was squashing her, really fucking with her head, and I’m glad I’ve been able to get her out of it.” Just thinking of the woman he had first seen sitting on the ground right before her parents’ and dead fiancé’s graves was enough to give him the chills. She’d been dead inside, only he’d seen a little fire still there, smoldering beneath the surface. She was a rollercoaster, and he loved riding her in more ways than one. “I don’t know if you’ll ever understand what I’m feeling but I love her, Weasel. She’s my heart.”
“You haven’t known her all that long.”
“I know in my heart, and that’s all that matters to me. She means just as much to me as the club does, and I would die for her. I’m not going to let that feeling go, not now, not ever.” He looked toward his woman, who was laughing with Deanna and Demon. She looked so at ease that he just knew he’d made the right decision. Joker and Amy came up behind her, and it wasn’t long before they were all laughing at something Joker said.
He would feel jealous if it wasn’t for the leather cut that claimed her as his own that she was wearing.
“Have you told her about Renee?” Weasel asked.
Just like that, his smile left. He’d not spoken to Renee in a very long time, and in fact he’d not seen her in a lot longer. Looking toward Weasel, he stared at his brother, who held his hands up. “You don’t talk about Renee,” he said.
“She’s your sister, Vengeance.”
“I don’t give a fuck if she was my fucking mother. The shit she said about the club for that little prick.” He shook his head.
Even now, thinking about that conversation, how she had said some hurtful shit about his club, how it was where scum was, where the lowlifes found their way, pissed him off. That had been months ago, and even if he was pissed, he did miss her.
He had always been close to Renee. For so long they only had each other to care for. All they’d ever asked for was his loyalty. He’d gladly given it. The life he could have lived would have killed him years ago. Drugs, sex, alcohol, those were the choices he made, and yes, they could be easily available at the club, only he’d not wanted any part of it and kept his nose and veins clean.
Some of the brothers snorted or shot up, but he didn’t agree with it. Demon kept a handle on the club brothers, and providing they were there when needed, he didn’t give a shit. He liked to stay clean and clear.
“She’s still your sister and the thing about family, you forgive.”
“I don’t feel in a very forgiving mood right now.” With that, he stormed away and made his way toward the back of the clubhouse, needing space.
He had lost count of the number of times he’d been about to phone her. Of course he never had.
“Vengeance? That’s your new name, right? When are you going to see that you can be so much more?”
“You mean like your fucking boyfriend.”
“At least he knows how to make an honest living instead of fucking everything that he sees, or killing people. You’re the worst of the worst, and you hang out with a bunch of scum—”
It had been so fucking hard to keep quiet and let her shit on him.
After that their relationship had changed. Just the thought of her had him sick to his stomach. It was his responsibility to take care of her, and yet he’d not done that. He’d turned his back on his own sister and allowed her to leave the country with that asshole.
“You okay, babe?” Constance said, moving into his arms and wrapping hers around his waist.
“Just dealing with some past shit.”
“I saw you storm away from Weasel. He really doesn’t like me.”
“That’s not about you.” He kissed her head. “This is different drama, and you don’t have to worry about it.”
She smiled and looked up at him. “Have I told you that I love you today?”
“Not today, princess.”
“Then I love you.”
He held her tightly. It was hard not to think of Renee. The moment that Weasel said her name it was like floodgates had been opened, and now there was no getting away from it. Renee was his baby sister, and he couldn’t help but wonder if she had made a go of it with that asshole. Her boyfriend didn’t strike him as the kind of person that was hard-working. He looked like a bum and had found a meal ticket with his sister.
“I haven’t been entirely honest with you,” Vengeance said.
“About what?”
“Family. I can’t remember if I told you if I had any or not. I didn’t mean to lie. I have a sister. A baby sister, and she’s been gone a couple of years now. We parted on bad terms, and I didn’t mention her because I haven’t seen her in such a long time.”
“Do you miss her?”
“I miss the girl she was before her boyfriend poisoned her mind. She said stuff. I said stuff, and it ended.”
“You worry about her?”
“Yeah, I do. I … for the most part I don’t think about it and then Weasel brought her up, and I can’t help but wonder if she’s okay.”
Constance rubbed his abs. “Then you know what you’ve got to do.”
“What?”
“Call her.”
20
He stared at the phone for long seconds, knowing he should call Renee, but all he could do was sit there. Hell, Vengeance didn’t even know if she used the same phone number, and sure as fuck didn’t think she’d welcome a call from him.
Fuck it.
No matter what anyone said, Vengeance didn’t want to go down the road with Renee right now. He was happy, and having Constance in his life made him want to bask in that and not worry about what might or might not happen.
No, opening that can of worms was not going to happen. Even if he planned on reconnecting with Renee at some point because she was family, always, right now he needed to think about himself and Constance.
Constance stared off into space as she thought about how much her life had changed. She stared at the wall, at the damask wallpaper that spiraled with design.
Although she’d quit her job, she was still obligated to fulfill a few more days. But she was happy with that, and a part of her was sad to go.
“You sure you’re okay to close up?”
Constance snapped out of it and smiled at Dianna, the part-time worker they’d hired not that long ago. “Of course. I got this.” She smiled and lifted her hand to wave goodbye.
For the next hour she finished cleaning up, trying to keep her mind focused on other things aside from how giddy she was with happiness.
Vengeance had opened her eyes, made her feel alive. He made her feel like there was hope to be happ
y. She loved him, like she really loved that hardened biker.
She grabbed the bag of trash that needed to be taken out at the end of the night, turned off the lights, and grabbed her purse. Going home to Vengeance tonight would be an incredible experience. She’d only gone to the cemetery once in the last month, and although she paid her respects, and told her parents how she’d fallen in love with Vengeance, she felt no sadness.
She was at the cusp of her life, just starting out, and she couldn’t be happier.
For a moment, she stared up at the sky, feeling like her life had finally come around full circle, like she didn’t have to worry about the past anymore. Of course she wouldn’t forget about it, but she wouldn’t dwell on it either.
Constance was about to turn around and head to her car, to go home to her man, which had her giddy and excited, when the sound of shoes on the pavement had her stopping.
“Dianna?” she said but got no response. Her heart started thundering and her palms started to sweat.
She dug in her purse for her keys and her cell, dialed in Vengeance’s number just to have him there, to ease her fear, when the sound of footsteps right behind her had her spinning around. She heard the line connect, heard Vengeance’s voice on the other end, but she was frozen in place.
Before she could make out who was behind her because of the shadows, or call out and hope Vengeance could hear her on the phone, which was now on the ground, a hand was placed over her mouth and she was hauled backward.
The stench of garbage seemed overly intense, but her senses felt overpowered right now. Then she scented alcohol.
It took a moment for her eyes to adjust to the dim streetlight slashing across her attacker’s form, but when she realized who it was she struggled tenfold.
Craig.
“I didn’t know how to get your attention, how to tell you that I wanted you.” His breath smelled heavily of liquor. “But then you’re deep with that fucking biker. Don’t you know he’s not good for you?”
Bile rose in her throat.
“I just wanted to see you, to show you how good we are together, how much I want you,” he ground out. He cupped the side of her face in a painful hold.
With all her strength she shifted and tried to kick him between the legs, but he moved before she made contact.
“Why’d you have to go and do that?” he said in this low, frighteningly calm voice.
“Craig, please,” she said softly, her voice barely a whisper. “Craig, you don’t have to do this.”
But despite knowing she could have said those words all day long, she also knew they fell on deaf ears.
“I do have to do this, because if you don’t want this, if I can’t have you, no one will either.”
The fear coursing through her was like nothing she’d ever felt before. She glanced down at where her cell was, still lit up, still connected to Vengeance. Could he hear her, did he know what was going on?
She had one chance to try and make it known before Craig went even more off the deep end.
“Vengeance, Craig has me. I’m at the flower shop right now.” She screamed the words, hoping they were loud enough he could hear her on the phone.
Craig cursed and turned to see the phone on the ground. He brought his foot down, smashing the cell, and turned back around to face her. His expression was dangerous.
“You shouldn’t have done that.” And then he brought his fist to her face, and the darkness was the last thing she remembered.
21
“Did you call your sister?” Weasel asked.
Vengeance stared at his friend. “Why do you want me to call her so much?”
“I figured you should. She’s your family, after all.”
“You’re serious? After everything she said, and the shit she was talking about. You’re fucking crazy.” Vengeance shook his head even as he felt a spark of guilt. Renee had said some shit and so had he. There had been some regrets along the way, which he’d expected. Releasing a breath, he glanced around the clubhouse.
The only guys around were the ones that didn’t have wives. He was waiting for his own woman to arrive. They had found a small place a couple of days ago and were waiting for the go ahead to move in. He’d been saving up enough money to move out of the clubhouse for a long time now.
Constance had kept her job at the florist shop as Julie hadn’t wanted to let her go. The call had come as a surprise to her, and they had been enjoying a picnic when the conversation had happened. Afterward she’d been so happy. “I like working at the florist shop because I love the people that come and go, the customers who need me for something. It’s not something I want to spend the rest of my life doing, but I really do enjoy it.”
So she’d been able to do what she wanted to do he’d paid for her to have a brand new car that he didn’t have to worry about breaking down.
Thinking about their place and the plans he had filled him with excitement. Even though he was a fully grown man, he felt like he imagined a kid at Christmas did. Only his wishes were going to come true, and be a whole lot dirtier.
He had known deep down that there would come a point when he wanted his own space, and that time was now. The moment they got their place, and moved in, he intended to fuck her in every single one of the rooms, on the work surfaces, to have the entire place covered with memories of them. When they did eventually have kids, and he felt they were in his future sometime soon, he didn’t want Constance to forget how much he loved her. Just the thought of a future with Constance was enough to make him smile. Never had he felt this kind of love for another person. It was consuming.
“Don’t you want Constance to get to know your sister?”
“I don’t know. Constance doesn’t need that shit.”
“Call your sister, Vengeance. You know you want to and you know you need to.”
Vengeance sighed. There had been many times over the past couple of years when he had wanted to call her, to find out if she was okay, and of course that had never happened. There was always some reason not to, some excuse to keep him from doing it. “I’ll call her when I’m ready, and not until then.”
Shaking his head, he was just getting up about to head out to surprise his woman when his cell phone rang.
Hearing her screams scared the shit out of him. “Vengeance, Craig has me. I’m at the flower shop right now.”
Looking at Weasel, he saw the brother had heard. “I knew there was something fucking shady about that bastard.”
He didn’t wait around for Weasel. Craig was about to know exactly who he was fucking dealing with.
Pain exploded inside Constance’s head as she tried to open her eyes. The feeling made her moan even as she knew she had to be quiet.
What the hell happened?
In the distance she heard the sound of humming, and like a wave it all came rushing back.
Craig following her, the words that spewed from his mouth.
She was in a home, apartment of some kind. His residence, she gathered.
He’d hit her, knocked her out, and now she was somewhere she didn’t recognize. As she tried to move her hands she couldn’t. Glancing down, taking care not to make any sudden movements, she saw that her feet were bound together, as were her hands. They were also connected in a loop so there was no way for her to move.
Gritting her teeth, she tried not to make a noise, and when the sound of Craig grew closer, she looked across the room and saw him humming to himself in the kitchen. They had to have been in his apartment or something. She was laid on the sofa with a cushion underneath her head. Her heart began to pound.
I’ve got to get out.
Had Vengeance heard her? She’d tried to let him know that Craig was there. She knew something was off about that guy.
“Ah, I see you’re awake,” Craig said, alarming her as he watched her from the kitchen.
She didn’t say anything, and then she saw that his entire apartment was covered in pictures of her. Not just pictures
. There were clothes, and other trinkets that she just now realized were missing.
Biting her lip, she returned her attention to Craig, who smiled at her.
“It’s so good that you’re awake. I was worried you wouldn’t wake up for a second there. I worried I hit you too hard.”
What the fuck?
“My head hurts.” She croaked the words out. Her throat felt like it was being rubbed raw by sandpaper.
“Oh, you were being difficult, but I get it. You’re not used to having a gentleman taking care of you, but I’m going to help you with that. You see, Constance, my sweet, you were always supposed to be with me, and well, I can’t have that stupid fucking biker hurting you anymore. I mean, his grubby disgusting hands touched you. I already had to deal with that fiancé of yours, and we both know he had no right to be near you, let alone marry you.”
She frowned. “Brando?”
“Yes. You don’t have to worry about a thing now. I’m going to take care of you, just like I always should have. It’s fine now. You don’t have to be afraid at all.” He stroked her cheek, and it took every ounce of strength not to pull away from him. The guy was delusional.
Oh my God. He’s been obsessed with me since I was with Brando.
He’d created some kind of fantasy, a life where they were together. This was … scary. There was nothing right about this, and it made her sick to her stomach.
“What did you do to Brando?” she asked.
Craig tutted, and she froze as he soaked a rag in a basin. He wrung it out and moved toward her. She flinched, but he pressed it against her temple. “You don’t have to worry, darling. I’m taking care of you, and you’ve got a few cuts here. I may have hit you a little too hard. You’ve got a lot of blood but you don’t have to worry. I think you look beautiful no matter what.”
Okay, she was starting to fucking panic. Had Vengeance heard her? God, there was no way she could be with this man.
“Brando?” she asked.
“Your meddling parents and Brando had to go. I had someone run them off the road.”