“You wouldn’t even make it across the kitchen.” Viper pried her fingers off the knife she hadn’t even realized she was holding. “I know what you want. And you know what I want. I’m sure we can come to some arrangement that satisfies us both.” He laced his fingers through hers, and brought her hand to his lips, seemingly oblivious to Mario standing in the doorway. “And if not, I’ll just take you, although I would much prefer things to be the way they were when you wanted to be with me.”
“You severed that connection when you murdered Bill, and everything you have done since then has ensured it will never come back.” Her voice rose in pitch, and she wrenched her hand away.
“You don’t fucking get it.” Viper pounded his fist on the table, upsetting the plate of antipasto, and rattling the glasses. “The things you hold in such contempt I do for my club. I have to keep order. I have to keep control. Bill stole from us. If I didn’t send out a message, then every gang, every criminal, every MC would start circling. This is a world where only the strongest survive. And if you think the Sinners are not exactly the same, then you are totally and utterly naive.” He barked the last words and Evie stood so quickly, her chair crashed to the floor.
“They aren’t the same as the Jacks,” she countered. “They have honor and integrity. They have a creed and a code, and despite what they do, they have a sense of moral decency. Everyone in the club volunteered to help rescue T-Rex, despite the risks. Nothing was more important to them. They refused to leave a man behind. And yet, when your old lady was in the Sinner dungeon, you didn’t give a damn.”
“She knew better than to let herself get caught,” he spat out.
“And that’s where you’re different. No one said that about T-Rex. They honored him for his sacrifice. They admired him. And they mourn him.”
“Jagger killed my son.” Viper’s voice rose to a shout. “He turned my daughter against me. The Sinners kidnapped Doreen, burnt down Mario’s restaurant, and blew up my clubhouse without even considering that someone might be inside.” He stood and rounded the table, coming at her so fast she was forced to back away. “Where is the honor in that?”
“You killed your son.” She hit the wall and put out a hand to stop him. “Arianne told me what happened. You kidnapped her. You were trying to kill her and Jeff intervened. And you alienated her. You beat her and gave her to your VP when she was sixteen.”
“I would never have killed her,” he growled. “She was bait for Jagger. And when he showed up, I tried to kill him, but she was in the way.” He grabbed Evie’s wrists and pinned them to the wall on either side of her shoulders. “Don’t tell me there is any difference between the Jacks and the Sinners. And don’t use that as a justification for your decision to fuck a Sinner when you belong to me. What I do as president of the club has nothing to do with who I am as a man, and that’s who you wanted. Marcus. Not Viper. And that’s who wants you.” He bent down to kiss her and Evie turned her head so his lips landed on her cheek.
“You can’t have me. Not the way you want. Even when you want to be Marcus, Viper comes through. You want to kiss me and yet you’re hurting me. You want me to come to you willingly, and yet you kidnap my son to bring me here. Violence is in your nature. Violence is who you are. Violence for the sake of violence. Violence is your choice for achieving your ends. That’s the difference between you and Zane. He can be violent, but at heart he is not a violent man.”
Despite his outlaw life, the Zane she’d fallen in love with as a child was still there. Always trying to protect her, save her, keep her from getting hurt. She had no doubt, if he had known about Ty, he would never have left Stanton. Just as she had no doubt that he was on his way now.
“Jesus Christ.” Viper tightened his grip on her wrists. “Don’t you understand? I gave you Marcus. I have never asked a woman out. I have never gone on a date, nor have I ever walked away when I could have had a woman in my bed. I could have taken you the first time we met. I could have stripped off your clothes and fucked you over a table in your shop and no one—not Bill, or the mechanics, or any of my men—would have stopped me. I pretended to be a goddamn civilian for you, and I got nothing for it except to find out you’re fucking the enemy. I even spared T-Rex for you because despite his Sinner cut, he was trying to save your life.”
Her brain fuzzed with pain. Was T-Rex still alive? What about the body they’d found in the Black Jacks’ dungeon? “You’re hurting me.”
“And you hurt me. But no more. I will have you, Evangeline. Whether you are willing or not.” He thrust his knee between her thighs and kicked her legs apart.
“Don’t do this.” She struggled in his ironclad grasp. “Marcus … you’re just showing me I was right about you. Show me I’m wrong. Show me the humanity that I know you have inside you. Show me man who mourns his son and misses his daughter.”
“Viper to you,” he growled. “You had your chance with the man. Now you get the beast.” He fisted her hair, yanked her head to the side, and bit her neck, not a gentle love bite, but a skin-piercing dig into her flesh.
Evie screamed. Out of the corner of her eye, she caught a blur of motion, the faintest disturbance in the air, and then Viper stiffened and arched back, losing his grip. He spun around and her eyes widened at the sight of the knife in his back, and Mario, his hand still in the air.
The back door exploded open and Viper’s bodyguards raced into the kitchen, heading straight for Viper. “Fucking Mario did this,” he roared. “He’s gotta be a Sinner rat. Get him and get the fucking knife out of my back.”
Seizing her chance, Evie ran through the house and up the stairs, opening doors in the immaculate hallway until she found one locked.
“Ty!” She thumped on the door. “Are you in there?”
“Mom. Mom. Get me out of here.”
She found the key on the cabinet down the hall and unlocked the door. Ty flew out and into her arms.
“I’m sorry, Mom. I’m sorry I ran away. I don’t hate Zane. Really. I don’t.” He hugged her so tight she could barely breathe, his body shaking with sobs. She wanted to hold him and never let go, but they didn’t have time to linger.
“Shhh, baby. It’s not your fault. But we have to get out of here quickly.”
“There’s a bat inside. I’ll get it. Just in case.” He grabbed a baseball bat and they ran down the stairs only to find Viper and one of his bodyguards blocking their way. Evie stopped short and pushed Ty behind her.
“You had a knife in your back. How can you be walking around?”
“I always wear a vest, kitten. Even to dinner. Never know who’s going to stab you in the back.”
Her phone buzzed in her pocket, and she pulled it out and saw the picture of Arianne with a little boy who looked to be just over a year old.
Finally.
“I’m leaving with Ty.” She held up the phone so Viper could see the picture of his son with Arianne. “Once we’re safe I’ll let Arianne know she can end her visit with her stepbrother … your son.”
“I don’t have a son.”
“You do. Doreen’s boy. He’s your son; not Axel’s. And now he doesn’t have a mother.”
A multitude of emotions crossed his face, from disbelief to anger, but not fear. Evie’s heart sank. If he didn’t fear for his son, then he had no reason to let her or Ty go.
“Arianne won’t hurt him.” Viper snorted a laugh. “She suffers from compassion, which is why she didn’t kill me when she had the chance.”
Evie pushed Ty backward, step by step. There was a door leading out from the living room. If they ran fast enough, they could get outside. “You’re right,” she said. “Arianne won’t hurt him. But the Sinners can arrange for him to disappear. You lost one son. Do you want to lose another?”
“I could say the same to you. One of my brothers is behind the door, waiting for me to tell him what to do. Stalemate, kitten.”
“I think the word is checkmate.” Zane stepped into the room, a semiautomatic w
eapon in each hand, and wearing more guns than the soldiers from Ty’s video games.
Evie heard shouts outside. Gunfire.
“You both okay?” Zane’s gaze slid from her to Ty and back to her.
“I knew you’d come.”
“Sorry about the delay,” Jagger said, walking into the room behind Zane. “We were up on the mountain when you drove in. Took us longer than we thought to get down. Then we had to clean up the yard.” He looked over at Ty. “You can put down the bat, Ty. Looks like your dad has got things in hand.”
“I’m his backup,” Ty said. “Just in case.”
Zane’s jaw tightened and pride shone in his eyes. “Good man. You get your mom out of here. There are Sinners outside waiting with a cage. Jagger and I got this one.”
Evie clasped Ty’s hand and tugged him toward the door. “Don’t kill him.”
“Evie…” The square set of Zane’s shoulders told her that was exactly what he planned to do.
“He would have let us go.” She met Viper’s implacable gaze, trying to read his face. “He has a son, too. One he hasn’t met. Arianne is with him. She’s waiting for me to call to tell her what to do. What if Ty never got to meet you?”
“This isn’t the time for compassion,” Zane snapped. “This is our chance to win the war. If our roles were reversed, I’d already be dead. People don’t change, Evie. He is who he is, and if we don’t deal with him now, he’ll come after you.”
“I changed. So did you.” She crossed the room toward Jagger and the exit, leading Ty by the hand. As they passed Viper she looked back over her shoulder mentally urging him to say something to save himself. But he remained silent. No assurance that he would leave Evie alone. No begging for his life. No refuting the fact he would have killed Zane if he had him under his gun. And yet she saw pain flicker across his face, so fleeting she wondered if she’d missed it.
“Jesus Christ,” Jagger spluttered. “I knew Arianne was up to something. Damn old ladies sticking their noses into club business. But this is my call, Evie. I heard what you had to say. You take Ty out and Zane and I will—”
Viper moved in a blur, darting around the counter as he pulled a gun from the holster beneath his vest and aimed it at Jagger. But Ty was in the way.
“No!” Zane dove in front of Ty as the shot echoed in the room. He hit the floor hard as momentum carried him down. Viper barreled through the back door and Jagger took off in pursuit.
“Dad!” Ty raced to Zane’s side. “Mom! Call 911.”
“I’m okay.” Zane wrapped his arms around his son. “The bullet went over my head, and Viper won’t get far. We’ve got men all over the yard.”
“Lean on me, Dad. I’ll help you up.”
Zane put a hand on Ty’s shoulder, although he didn’t need the help. He looked over at Evie and smiled.
“He called me Dad.”
TWENTY-SEVEN
Once you figure it out, try to return the favor. Spread your repair knowledge around.
—SINNER’S TRIBE MOTORCYCLE REPAIR MANUAL
While waiting for the preliminary hearing, Zane rented the house across the street from Evie and Ty. Although Evie said she understood why he handcuffed her to the radiator, she wasn’t quick to forgive. The stunt cost him, but as long as he could be near her and Ty, he was willing to pay the price. And it was just a matter of time. He knew this because she let him sleep at her place at least five times a week. Not that he was counting, but he’d managed to push it up from one night, undoubtedly because of his skill in bed. Yes, he could make his Evie scream.
Of course he’d had a bit of a setback when he erected a giant fence around her property. He’d also installed a security system in her house and changed the locks, all with the landlord’s consent, of course. Evie hadn’t been pleased he’d gone over her head, yet again, and his weekly nocturnal visits were reduced to two. But now he was back up to five, so that was an improvement.
The car had been another setback. Evie wanted her own transportation so she went out and bought an old junker from a used-car dealer without consulting Zane. He checked out her purchase while she slept and decided it was a piece of crap. The next day, while she was at work, he and Gunner hot-wired her car and drove it back to the dealer. After a brief discussion, and only two broken fingers, the dealer switched it out for a brand-new, safe, red Volvo. Evie liked the Volvo, but not the subterfuge. She also didn’t like it when he said vehicle selection was a man’s job because women didn’t know shit about vehicles.
Arianne showed up at his house the next day with her new SIG Sauer P226.
Zane spent the night at the clubhouse with his door locked.
He hadn’t been invited to spend the night at Evie’s place for an entire week after that, so he’d spent his evenings sitting on his porch watching her house, wondering if she was wearing that silky nightgown she’d bought to celebrate the one-month anniversary of the opening of her new shop. Damn, he loved the feel of that silk, the way it covered her, hinting at what was underneath—which was nothing, just the way he liked it.
Today was going to be another one of the days where his sex quota would likely be reduced, but he was ready to do what had to be done, and if he was cut back to two nightly visits, he’d just have to work his way back up.
His closest brothers and their old ladies had arrived at his place earlier in the afternoon to get ready for the party. Tank had the barbecue going in the backyard, and Connie was helping him marinate the meat. Zane had asked Tank to bring her along, just in case things didn’t go as expected, but Connie hadn’t shared his sense of doom.
“It’s not gonna be as bad as you think,” she said to Zane, as she brushed Tank’s secret sauce over the tray of steak. “I mean, the Ty part will be bad. But the Evie part … I don’t think you’ve got to worry. Of course you will have to worry ’cause she’ll be pissed about Ty, but I think you’ll get her to come round. I hear you can be very persuasive once you get her out of her clothes.”
Zane didn’t want to think about what she and Connie discussed regarding his intimate time with Evie, so he stared at his watch. “Did she say what time she’s leaving the shop today?”
“She was just waiting for a shipment of new bikes and then she was gonna pick Ty up from his friend’s house. She should be here soon. You want me to text her?”
“Jagger’s not here yet, so no rush.”
Where the fuck was Jagger? He was supposed to be at the party an hour ago and he didn’t have the Jacks as an excuse to keep him busy. Viper had managed to slither away yet again, disappearing down some kind of rabbit hole that none of the Sinners could find. They’d heard from National that Viper’s decision to kidnap Ty had earned him a stern rebuke from the Black Jack national president, and a forced cessation of hostilities between the two clubs for six months. Arianne had also come under fire for her trip up to Ennis. Jagger had managed to get her off with just a warning, and the only real rebuke she’d received had been from him. In private. Zane would have loved to have been there that night.
He joined Arianne on the back steps, and she broke off her conversation with Dawn to greet him. “You’re looking for Jagger; I can tell from your scowl.”
He made the mistake of sending Shooter down to the shop to pick up the order and Shooter got a little riled when it wasn’t ready. Jagger had to go make good with the owner and pay to have the bullet holes removed from the walls.”
Dawn ruffled the hair of one of her twin girls. Zane couldn’t tell them apart, but they were around the same age as Ty and they all enjoyed playing together. Although when one of them chased Ty and tried to kiss him, Zane had to put his foot down. He knew better than anyone the dangers of eight-year-old girls and how easily they could capture a boy’s heart. “You think he’s gonna change his mind about Shooter?”
Shooter was due to receive his cut tonight. The board had decided that despite being trigger-happy, Shooter was more an asset than a liability and, except for the occasional mess Ja
gger had to clean up, he had made a significant contribution to the club.
Arianne laughed. “You know Jagger. He’ll rant, shout, and scowl, but in the end, Shooter is good for the club and he’ll get his cut. Plus, the club now has Benson as a prospect and that’s just going to be all kinds of fun. A cop as a prospect. Jagger’s got all sorts of humiliation planned for him.”
“You hear what he’s planned for Shooter’s patch-in?” Zane gestured to a big painted target near his back fence. “He had Evie paint the Sinner’s Tribe logo on that target. I folded up an old cut to fit in the middle and pinned it there. He’s gonna tell Shooter that’s his real cut and he only gets it if he can shoot through each one of the skull’s eyes without hitting it.”
“Bastard.” Dawn pressed her lips together. “Sometimes his sense of humor borders on cruel.”
“He has gone a bit overboard since he tricked T-Rex with that package to get his cut.” Arianne’s smile faded. “I miss T-Rex. The party won’t be the same without him.”
“The MC isn’t the same without him,” Zane said. Once the truce was over, Viper would face Sinner justice. Despite Evie’s plea for mercy, Zane and Jagger would have finished him off if he hadn’t escaped. Viper had been responsible for too many Sinner deaths, and kidnapping Ty wasn’t something he could ever forgive.
Evie joined them, dressed in her favorite skintight jeans, leather boots, and a black leather jacket. She gave him a hug, and Ty ran off to play with Dax’s and Cade’s kids on the play structure Zane had built after he rented the house.
“You look too damn sexy.” He wrapped his arms around her and leaned down to nuzzle her neck. “Might be I’ll have to drag you away from the party for a bit.”
“Beast. This is Shooter’s patch-in party. You’re not supposed to be thinking about sex.”
“I wouldn’t have to think about it if I had you in my bed every night.” He nipped her ear. “Man sees his woman looking so hot, he has needs.”
“And women don’t?”
He cupped her face between his hands. “You asking me for something, sweetheart? Because I am more than happy to blow off the party after Shooter’s got his cut.”
The Sinner’s Tribe Motorcycle Club, Books 1-3 Page 97