“Call your dog off, Dr. Stewart. If I don’t have a problem shooting you, I can assure you putting a bullet in that beast will be no problem at all.”
“Sadie, achtug bleib.” Kayla was telling Sadie to stay alert, but she knew by using that phrase, Sadie would stay back enough to make Mr. Haslet think she was staying put. Kayla also knew Sadie would creep closer to them and wait for the next command. When they got to the office, Kayla was surprised he didn’t let her go. She tried to indicate the filing cabinet behind the desk, but the man wasn’t paying attention.
“Mr. Haslet, please, I need to go to the filing cabinet if you want to read Cathy’s file. It's over there.” He led her to the filing cabinet, pushing her head down instead of letting her bend over herself to reach the lower cabinet. When she got the file, she threw it on the desk, but he still didn’t let her go until he started rifling through the papers, mumbling to himself.
“Where is it? Where’s the little prick’s description?” He was getting more and more agitated, holding her arm tighter. His mumbling turned in to screams. “I know that bitch told you about Worthington and me. I want to know what she told you about Bryant.” He pushed her away, making Kayla stumble raising the gun in his hand, pointing it at her. “Tell me where the right file is, Dr. Stewart, last chance.”
“That’s the only file,” Kayla pleaded, “I don’t have anything else.”
“Bullshit, where’s the file that has Bryant Jeffers’ information, the first man who raped her, where the fuck is it?”
Kayla knew it was now or never. She yelled, “Fass,” lunged for her keys, turned, and ran for the door, not looking back. She barely made it to the door before James grabbed her sweater. In her peripheral vision, she saw Sadie’s big body in midair over the desk. Kayla braced herself, leaning back, knowing James would lose his grip on her sweater once Sadie’s body hit his. She heard James’ screams as she ran, then she heard the retort of the gun going off. She stopped, freezing in her tracks. Sadie? Oh, fuck, Sadie! That was all that kept running through her head, but she needed to get out of there, she needed to get help. That thought alone got her running again.
Getting into her car, she was thankful the Honda had a push button start; no way would her trembling hands allow her to put the key in the ignition. Not bothering to back up, she made a wide loop through the yard before hitting the road. She had to think. It was at least thirty minutes to town, but there was one place closer. One place she knew she could get help and get a warning to Cathy.
Gunning her car, she drove as fast as she could. When she saw the gate at the end of the drive, she started blaring her horn to alert whoever was standing guard she was coming in, whether they liked it or not. Thankfully, they got the clue. The gate was opening a little too slowly for the movement of her speeding car, but it was going to have to do. She cringed at the sound of metal scraping against metal. Her foot, however, remained planted on the floor. Once she got to the doors of the clubhouse, she slammed on the brakes, jammed the car into park, opening her door. She didn’t know what she was going to do next, but running in, yelling bloody murder sounded like a good plan. Fortunately, or unfortunately, she didn’t have to do that, the biggest scariest biker was right at her door.
“What the fuck do you think you’re doing?”
Kayla started to hyperventilate. He was wearing all leather—pants, vest, everything. The patches on his cut were taunting her, making her vision blur. Trying to divert her attention, she noticed his arms, spiking her fear further. This man was covered in tattoos, and he was tall, broad, and fuck. Kayla squatted down on the ground. She knew these were the good guys, they had saved her, but there was still a question in her mind. She was going in and out. When a paper bag was thrust into her hands and pushed up to her face, she was surprised to hear how gently the man was speaking to her.
“Okay, honey, one breath in, one out, come on you can do it. Listen to me. One in, that’s it, one out.” It took a couple of minutes, but Kayla was finally getting a grip. When she went to move the bag from her face, the man stopped her. “Not yet, honey, keep breathing. I want to make sure you’re okay before you stand up.”
But Kayla couldn’t have that, she knew how her spells usually went. This one was almost over, and she needed to tell them what was going on. Eyes going wide, she noticed several more men had formed a circle around them, and her anxiety started to build again. The big guy in front of her grabbed her chin. “Eyes on me, sweetness. That’s right, breathe. Whatever is going on, you have time to tell me. Just breathe.”
Kayla took a couple more breaths, but then took the bag away, and said choppily through panted breaths.
“My house, Cathy’s in danger, James Haslet wants information, broke in,” she sobbed, “shot my dog, needed help, didn’t know where else to go.” The big man surprised her again by moving her body onto his lap.
She saw Whiskey, she knew him from talking to Addison, his wife. When he came closer, he looked at her and asked “Kayla?” Kayla just nodded.
“Is Cathy at the house?” She shook her head, “She left with Crank a couple of hours ago, maybe, I don’t know for sure.”
“It’s okay, Kayla. She’s staying at your guest house, right? Where is it on the property?”
Kayla struggled to get up, but the big guy who was holding her in his lap said, “Nah, baby, you’re not steady, yet. Just tell Whisk what he needs to know, they’ll take care of it.”
“The entrance to the guest house is off County Road Six, you can’t see it from the main house,” Kayla blurted out. “There’s a trail behind the garage.”
Whiskey barked directions to her place, and the other bikers moved away, going to their bikes, several with phones in their hands. The big guy continued to hold her, rubbing her arms.
“It’s going to be okay. They’re leaving to check it out. Just breathe, I have you now.”
Kayla started to struggle again, she needed to do something. She never once thought about going to the guest house. What if Cathy was there?
“Calm down, babe, they got this, they’re already leaving. Just sit for a minute, and we’ll go inside and get you something to drink. Call down to the Sheriff. Okay?”
“I can’t go in there,” Kayla said, pointing at the Clubhouse.
The giant behind her said, “I don’t see why not, babe.”
“No, you don’t understand, I can’t go in there,” Kayla said more sternly. It was one thing to come to their clubhouse and sit outside, another thing to actually go inside; that wasn’t going to happen. Kayla stood up and, for once, the man didn’t stop her. She looked at him and realized that even though he was still a little scary, he wasn’t sending her over the edge now. The leather and tats didn’t bother her because she wasn’t looking at them. Instead, she was looking at the clearest blue eyes she’d ever seen and one hell of a nasty scar which blemished his otherwise perfect face.
“Names Crash,” he said, holding out his hand, and another first happened for Kayla. She didn’t even hesitate, she took his hand. “Kayla.”
Chapter 22
Cathy watched as Crank pulled away. Just thinking about that the statement she’d given, the descriptions of the men, had been removed from the case file made her blood boil. What the fuck was that about? She’d described each and everyone one of the five men. Even the two who were standing off to the side when the first guy came in. She was surprised her rape kit had made it to the lab.
Not needing to go into the house for anything, she started for the trail which led to Kayla’s house. Even as mad as she was, Cathy was dreading bringing up those memories and describing her attackers again. Crank had said four of them had already been taken care of, and she knew what he meant. He didn’t need to go into any detail. She’d been an Old Lady long enough to realize the Brothers in the RBMC might be great guys, but they weren’t afraid to take matters into their own hands.
One part of her was grateful and even felt some relief, and a tiny, much smaller p
art was afraid it could come back on Crank or the Club. The one thing she didn’t feel was any remorse for those men, they got what they deserved. She had only wished she could have been there to delivery some justice of her own.
The trail wasn’t that long, and Cathy wasn’t going slow or stopping like she usually did, so she had made good time getting to Kayla’s. Seeing the door to her office open, was odd, but she didn’t really know all of Kayla’s habits. She knew if the door was open, Sadie would be around; maybe that’s why Kayla had done it. A one-hundred-and-eighty-pound mastiff who wanted to go to the bathroom could be pretty demanding, even as sweet as Sadie usually was.
Cathy walked up to the open office door, intending to knock on the surrounding trim, but Kayla wasn’t the person she found standing in her office. One of the men who watched her get raped was. He was on the thin side, but tall. Seeing him going through papers on Kayla’s desk didn’t sit right, but Cathy wasn’t a stupid woman, he hadn’t noticed her yet. Backing up, she carefully stepped down the porch steps.
Kayla’s home was old and on her very first step, a board creaked. Cathy watched in horror as the man turned, spotted her, and recognition hit his face. She didn’t stop, she kept going down the stairs. If she could outrun him, she would. If she couldn’t, she would fight. She wasn’t half drugged and caught off guard this time, and as far as she knew, there was only one of him. The fucker had the nerve to smile at her.
“Ah, Ms. Torrent, how nice of you, showing up to save me the trouble of having to hunt you down.”
Cathy got a good look at the man this time; his left arm was hanging limply at his side, covered in blood. There were also several claw marks or bite marks covering that side as well. Cathy stepped slightly to the side, moving away from the porch which gave her a clear view inside Kayla’s office. She knew immediately where the man had sustained his injuries. She didn’t dare move much more because the man was holding a gun in his right hand and it was pointed right at her. Cathy would question it later because she had no idea where she got the bravado to do it, but she planted her feet shoulder width apart, centering herself.
“Where’s Kayla, and what did you do to Sadie?” The maniac in front of her waved the gun around.
“I don’t know who Sadie is, but Dr. Stewart is indisposed at the moment. I think it’s a good thing you won’t need the good doctor’s help anymore.”
Cathy stepped back a little, losing her focus.
“Ah, now, Ms. Torrent, I wouldn’t be taking another step if I were you. You just got here. Maybe I’ll reward you for saving me the trouble of having to track you down.”
“Oh,” Cathy said, “and what kind of reward are you offering me?” Cathy wasn’t going to tell him she recognized him from that night. That she knew, without a doubt, he was one of the suits who had stood there and watched her get raped, not lifting one finger to stop it.
“Ah, well, I was thinking since the RBMC took my shrew of a wife away, you could fill her duties for a while. I remember your screams all too well, have thought about them often, and I stroked myself to completion at night.”
“You’re sick.” The man started laughing at her statement further proving it.
“You may be right, Ms. Torrent, but then again, does it really matter, you aren’t getting out of here. I told those bikers to make sure you were taken care of, but they fucked up. Now, I’m going to have to correct their mistake, but I think we should talk first.”
“So, let me get this straight. You just told me you were going to kill me, but you want to talk to me. Okay, I’ll bite. How about we start with your name first?”
“Ah, Ms. Torrent you’re a delight. I was told you were rather smart, but I’m finding you to be quite lacking in that department. But then again, you do surround yourself with biker scum, I don’t see why it would surprise me that you are a bit dimwitted. How long have you lived in Defiance? Never watched the news or even picked up a newspaper? No? Well, allow me to introduce myself, James Haslet at your service, former District Attorney for Defiance.”
Cathy had recognized him, but she was trying to buy herself some time to figure out what to do next. The man seemed to like to talk, so she wasn’t going to stop him as long as he was staying on his side of the proverbial line she had drawn on the ground. If he went one step beyond that line, she would attack, fight for everything she was worth. Once she figured out how to get the damn gun out of his hand. She noticed he seemed to be rather limp-wristed in his hold and figured he wasn’t accustomed to holding a hand gun. That could work in her favor. She also noticed that even with his left side mangled as it was, he was rather calm; that could be a problem. It could mean anything from adrenaline to drugs, neither of which she wanted to deal with in a hand-to-hand battle.
Movement caught the corner of her eye, but she didn’t dare look. Either the cavalry was there, or she was about to meet another one of Mr. Haslet’s cronies, something she definitely didn’t want to do. Coming up with a plan quickly, she responded to him.
“Yes, I believe that name rings a bell now, but your face is what’s really doing it for me. You said newspapers and television. I seem to remember your face staring down at me while four men held me down as another forced himself into my body. I’m thinking you like to watch; your wife sure liked being watched, was that a thing for the two of you? She fucked whoever she wanted and you watched?”
“Ah, Ms. Torrent, how very droll of you. Did you really think speaking of my bitch of a wife’s extracurricular activities was going to get a rise out of me? Maybe that’s why you prefer to train animals because you have no clue about the human psyche.”
“I’m not so sure about that, but I’ll agree with you, Mr. Haslet, animals are so much easier to deal with. But speaking of getting a rise out of you, I remember one other thing. Your wife, the bitch as you have so affectionately called her, she liked something else besides being watched. Do you know what that was?”
“Please share your wisdom with me, it should be enlightening.”
“I’m not sure about that. I wasn’t all that impressed, I actually felt a little sorry for her. You see, Val loved to talk to anyone who would listen. She would go on and on for hours about how her husband was impotent. How you couldn’t even get a little rise out of your microscopic penis.”
Cathy watched as James Haslet’s face turned red. She knew she was egging him on, goading him into action. No man liked hearing how ineffective they were in the bedroom or how inadequately they were endowed, and Cathy was laying it on rather thick. It did the trick, he started moving down the stairs, coming closer to her. She just hoped like hell he didn’t decide to just shoot her instead of countering her accusation.
“I think I’ve earned a little treat for all my efforts, Ms. Torrent, and showing you exactly how effectively I can fuck and how adequately I’m endowed as I shove my cock in every orifice you have until you bleed should just about do the trick. What do you think?”
Cathy was watching him closely, waiting. She needed him to take another step. If she miscalculated her movements even by a centimeter, her plan would fall apart quickly, but she had to at least try.
“I say only a tiny man needs to bring a gun along to have a little fun.”
“Nice try, but for what I have planned, I don’t think you’ll need the use of your legs.”
Realizing his intention, a second before he pulled the trigger, she was already in motion and the shot went wide. Spinning around, she lifted her body and leg in the air, hitting the hand holding the gun, knocking it from his hand. Completing the turn, she landed low, but close enough to land a quick hard jab to his stomach. Once he bent over, Cathy grabbed the back of his head driving her knee into his face, over and over again.
She would have kept going if it wasn’t for the strong hand that grabbed her waist and pulled her back. Raising her fist, she went to turn to gift the newest person to this fucked up party with pain, but Crank stopped her, encompassing her fist in his larger, stronger hand
. She threw herself into his arms, she had never been so happy to see someone in her entire life, When it started to rain, she didn’t even care. Crank pushed her back, looking over her body. She didn’t have a scrape on her.
“I told them you were a bad ass,” Crank grinned, “now all the Brothers are going to be asking you for lessons.” Cathy looked around, noticing Tuck and Whiskey leading James Haslet to a patrol car; she had no idea when it had gotten there. Brass and Link were standing off to the side, arms crossed with big ole smiles on their faces, looking at her and Crank. Link nodded his respect and walked off, Brass following him.
Cathy shook her head, then screamed in horror, “Oh my God, Kayla, he hurt Kayla.” Crank gripped her arms turning her toward the house just in time to see Kayla running into the house, Talon and Crash not too far behind. Minutes later, Cathy watched the trio leave, the two men carrying Sadie to Kayla’s car, getting in, and speeding away. She had wanted to talk to Kayla, but Shade, or Officer Warren as he was known outside of MC circles, started asking her questions. After about fifteen minutes, Crank pulled her away saying, “Later.” Shade didn’t stop them.
Crank led her to his bike, got on, and she jumped on behind him. Cathy didn’t care where they were going as long as it was away from there. When she saw the RBMC Clubhouse, she almost stopped him, but decided to hell with it. This was just another thing she had to deal with. She got off and waited for Crank. It was still raining, and they were both drenched.
“Babe, look at me. Cathy, you scared me, but I’ve never in my life been so proud of you. You kicked that fucker’s ass. You didn’t panic, and you prevailed.” Picking her up, Crank twirled her around, letting out a few yells. The excitement was catching, and Cathy yelled and laughed along with him, enjoying the moment.
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