“Be careful sweetheart,” I whisper and his face changes. I couldn’t really describe how, but it was good.
“I like that.”
“What?”
“You soft and sweet and calling me sweetheart. I want more of that.”
“I’ll see what I can do.” I smile. Dragon holds my eyes for a minute, and then kisses the freaking hell out of me. I’m still trying to recover when he gives Crusher a nod and they’re gone. My stomach is still doing somersaults when the door closes behind them.
Dani is standing over in the corner. I had forgotten all about her. My knees are so weak from the kiss that I had to lean on the furniture to catch my breath.
“Damn Nic girl. You might have a problem.”
I let out a breath I didn’t know I was holding. I had to agree with her.
Chapter 12
Dragon
The last fucking thing I wanted to do was leave Nicole. She had become a drug that I was fast becoming addicted to. I had to have more of it, more of her. I had never been in this head space before, especially about a fucking woman and I wasn’t sure what to do about it. I just know I wanted more. I guess comparing a woman to a fucking needle in a fucking vein wasn’t what they wanted to hear, but that’s what she was. I just left and already wanted another hit.
I have never in my life put a woman before my club or my brothers, but in that moment, I was tempted to tell Crusher to handle shit and leave me with Nicole. I couldn’t leave without kissing her. I had too.
When we got to the Pussy Club, all thoughts of Nicole left my mind. Jess, was in bad shape. Some fucker had worked her over bad. She had been beaten so bad, she was unrecognizable. Her face was swollen and mangled. Her nose was broken and the blood from it ran down her face and intermingled with that from all the cuts on her face. It fucking turned your stomach. I had seen some fucked up shit in my time, but to know a man had done this damage to a woman? My stomach churned.
Poncho, the club doctor who came when we called had just finished looking her over.
“Fuck Dragon, someone almost killed this poor slip of a girl.” Poncho said closing the door and leaving the girl resting on the sofa in the office.
Poncho was a little guy really, standing about 5’8. He was skinny and worn. I wasn’t exactly sure how old he was, I figured in his sixties but shit from the looks of him, it could easily be more. He had been on the Savage payroll since the beginning and even though most of our members had medic training, a doctor was a must at times.
“What damage we talking Doc?” Crusher asked. Shit I was having trouble forming words.
“Her nose is broke, her arm and I can’t tell for sure without ex-rays but I’d say at least three ribs are broke, with more bruised. I’ve reset the nose, taped up the arm tight which will do for tonight. Bring her to the house tomorrow and I’ll put her in a cast. I taped her ribs too, but she needs to be watched closely for awhile. It’s a bad concussion; I just want to make sure she’s okay. Ideally she should be in the hospital, but I know your thoughts on that. I’ve got Vera staying the night with her and keeping an eye on her vitals.”
I nod, wanting to break something but keeping my calm. When I find this motherfucker heads will roll.
“Anything on the cameras?” I asked Bull, Irish, Crush, and Gunner who had gathered around.
“Fucker took ‘em out.” Irish spoke up.
That wasn’t unexpected. Still Bull and I knew something that the others didn’t.
Bull had come to me a couple months back, after one of the girls had been having trouble with an ex-boyfriend. The alley had been a weak spot in our defenses. As Enforcer of the club, security was Bull’s responsibility. Sometimes we ran stuff through the club, sometimes we didn’t. I never thought of it before, but this time I was glad. We had decided to install small cameras in areas that were completely unexpected and thus hidden much better. It was fucked up shit I had to be glad my brothers didn’t know about these cameras. Yet, I was, especially since I was pretty fucking sure what they would reveal.
We had put a series of three cameras along the base of the alley on all sides. They were low to the ground, so they might not show as much as the cameras that had been taken out, but they sure as fuck would show us enough.
Someone was going to a fuck of a lot of trouble to make it look like Skull was trying to start a turf war. So much in fact, they were being obvious, too fucking obvious. I might not like Skull a lot, but he was a smart man and there was no way he’d just paint a neon sign above his head.
“Bull? Have Freak check it.”
Irish and the other men look at me, but I shook my head. I’d talk with my brothers soon.
“Church tonight! Two hours at the shed and every fucking member better be there.”
“Prospects too?” Crush asked.
“I got Frog and Nailer watching my woman and her girl. Call Beats and the other newbie out to watch over the rest of the girls here tonight. Close the doors to all the clubs. We’re going to go on lock down boys until this shit is settled.”
“Ok Prez,” Irish said.
“Your woman?” Crush asks.
Motherfucker.
“Did I stutter?”
“No, was just thinking that sounded pretty permanent Prez.”
“My fucking business, you just make sure you respect it.” The warning in my order couldn’t be misunderstood.
I trusted my brothers. The original core anyways. But, Crush had been foaming over my girl too damned much. He frowned but nodded once. Message fucking received.
Two hours later, I find myself once again staring at my brothers gathered around this big ass table, and wishing I was anywhere else. We had been through a lot of shit through the years. Things others would never experience or know about. When I say they knew where the fucking bodies were hid…they knew where the fucking bodies were hid. I’d trust every damn one of them with my life. Hell I had and the fact that I had not one but two fucking traitors in my club? That was bitter shit to swallow.
“Where’s Striker?” I ask Crush, but knowing now that there were people I couldn’t trust, I feel my gut clench at Striker not showing.
“Twins said he left the club this morning and hasn’t been back. Not answering his cell, Prez. The boys checked and he’s not at home either.”
I nod, but don’t say anything. If it was him and the fucker thinks he can run, he’s dreaming. He might run, but he wouldn’t get away. There wasn’t a rock big enough for him to hide under.
I nod to Bull, he gets up and locks the door. He stands in front of it with his arms crossed and waits. Freak gets up next. He is a scary bastard. He’s tall and skinny, but between the tats all over his body and the many piercings, he intimidates anyone. That doesn’t even take into consideration the bullet holes tattooed all over his chest and stomach. Screwed up shit. Stuff looked so real I had seen them for years and still wanted to call 911 when I looked at them.
Freak goes to the TV unit on the wall. He puts a disk into the DVD slot on the side. Guess its show time.
Fuck.
I hold the remote in my hand looking down at it and try not to snap it in two.
“Bull came to me a few months back when one of the girls at Pussy’s was having trouble with an ex.”
“We handled that shit for you Prez.” Gunner spoke up.
I nod because they had. Fucker had moved out of state after his beat down. I didn’t have a lot of codes I lived by, but a man didn’t take his hand to a woman.
This rule was just one reason I’m going to enjoy fucking up the traitors in my club.
“Yeah but Bull and I decided to take other steps.” I answer, letting my eyes land briefly on each of my brothers. All of them were pretty cool and calm. One had no reason to be, but I gave him points for having balls. He wouldn’t have them long.
Did he have a goddamned clue? Or was he really such a stupid fuck?
I motion to Crusher and Irish and hit play. The screwed up scene unravels
as my brothers watch Twist approaching Jess in the alley. Twist jumps up and that’s when Irish and Crusher grab him and slam him against the wall. Crusher holds him in place while Irish disposes of his weapons. I walk over to the piece of shit with the sounds of Jess’s cries in the background.
“Did you really think you could betray me and my men and survive asshole?”
“Boss you got this all wrong.”
I pull out my gun and stick it his mouth.
“Stop your excuses motherfucker.” I demand, pushing my 45 into his mouth to shut him the fuck up.
“What you should be doing is begging me to end you now. It’s not going to be that fucking easy for you, though. By the time I’m done with you? You’ll beg me to end you. Too bad I won’t hear that shit, because after I break your goddamned ass and you sing like a canary? Your tongue will be one of the things I cut off, just for a fucking party.”
I hold my hand at Twist’s throat and it’d be so easy to snap it and end this pile of dog shit. It’s not going to happen though.
“Do you see your mistake yet motherfucker?” I ask pushing the pistol in his mouth farther and to the right so his head snaps to that direction. On the TV now is a video of Twist just finishing his raping of an unconscious Jess.
“After you finished getting your rocks off on the innocent woman you beat into unconsciousness? You called your fucking partner.” I bring my free hand back and punch him in the gut as hard as I can. His groan is muffled by my gun. I pull it out of his mouth and motion to the boys to let go. He sinks down to the floor.
I slam my foot down on his balls and ground my size twelve steel toes even harder just to make sure I’ve done permanent damage. It doesn’t matter, he’ll never get a chance to use that shit again. I reach down to grab him by the hair of his head and pull so his face is half way up to mine.
“Enjoy the pain motherfucker, because believe me, it’s just fucking beginning.”
Then I take the butt of my 45 and knock the fucker out. Hopefully just enough to make him sleep until we get him moved. I don’t want him dead, not yet anyways.
“Get him to the old meat packing plant on the edge of Skull’s territory. Time we meet up and discuss what the fuck is going on.” I order Bull.
“Yeah Boss man, about that…” Irish interjected, and I look up waiting.
“Frog called. Your woman and that Dani chick are at the movies in Bridgetown. Skull and his crew are there.” Irish finished and I can feel my blood literally boil.
“It appears he didn’t take your last warning seriously.” Crush says and he had brains enough not to wise crack. He probably knew what a short leash I was on.
“Son of a bitch!” I growl. “Load up!”
Chapter 13
Nicole
It had been hours since Dragon had left. Dani and I had gone out and done some shopping in the next town over, just to get out of the house. We ended up at a theater. I made the mistake of letting Dani pick the movie and of course we were watching the most horribly overdone freaky ass movie ever. It was about a possessed doll, ‘Annabelle’.
“Seriously Dani, what kind of twisted freak could come up with this in their head?”
“Quit your bitching girl. Your ass made me watch four fucking hours of Julia Freaking Roberts. Thought I was going to go into barf mode on that last one. I’m just a girl standing in front of a boy, blah, blah, blah.”
I snort. Dani has never and will never be a rom-com kind of girl. Shit her philosophy is love ‘em and leave ‘em before they can screw you over. She has reasons for that though and I understand her. Hell, I’m wondering just how bad the damage with Dragon is going to get. I know it’s coming, but I can’t keep from wishing he was with me, even now.
“Shhh…” the lady behind us said. Seriously, she had been talking on the phone for twenty minutes and she had the nerve to shush me?
“Amante’ Nicole, is that you?” A voice asks from my left, and I know that voice. Oh shit, I just did not have good luck.
The next thing I know the man Dragon called Skull, five other men each with a different woman a couple of them with more than one, come over to where Dani and I are sitting.
“Well fuck me Nic did you start a freaking harem when we moved?”
I sighed. “No just finding I’m in the wrong place at the wrong time way too much since we moved,” I said honestly.
“Do you people mind? We’re trying to watch a movie here.” Ms. Huffy-phone-woman demands.
“Then watch it bitch.” Some skank (and honestly, that’s what she looked like with her teased out over-dyed blonde hair and fake ass boobs) that was saddled up beside Skull growled.
I push myself down in the seat a little further. “Mamacita does Dragon know you are in my town?”
Dani tilted her head to the side to watch Skull for a minute.
“Your town? Odd, you don’t look like a mayor.” Dani chimes in.
Skull looks over at Dani and in the darkness of the theater I could see the white of his teeth show as he smiles at her. I could admit he had a nice smile, if Dragon hadn’t been in the picture, that smile could have melted me. I look over my shoulder to see what it did to Dani. Oh yeah she was melting.
“Yes well, appearances can be deceiving can they not querida?” Skull asked.
“That’s it, I’m reporting you. I didn’t pay my money to miss the movie!” The woman behind us complains and while she’s most undoubtedly a bitch, she was also right in complaining. I start to apologize but everyone seems to be ignoring her, so I do too. I have enough pots on the fire, as it is.
“To answer your question, Dragon doesn’t really tell me where I can go and where I can’t. No man can or ever will,” I answer easily. I look over at Dani, “I’m going to go get a fresh coke and use the restroom. You want to go?”
“Yeah, sure.” Dani knows what I’m doing; we’re good at non-verbal communication. I don’t know Skull’s damage, but I wasn’t about to get in the middle of it either.
I start to get up when Skull sits down in the seat beside me, lays his legs out across the top of the seat in front of him and effectively blocks me in.
“Excuse me I was going to the restroom.”
“No you weren’t querida. You were ditching me, but I am not ready to let you escape.”
“Dear Lord Nic, can’t you find any normal men?” Dani snorts, turning back to the movie.
“Apparently not,” I say with a defeated sigh.
“Skull baby I thought you and I had plans? Whiny skank pipes up.
The rest of the people with Skull all fell into the row of seats in front of us; it was annoying to watch, but entertaining. They were loud and boisterous, ribbing each other and laughing while annoying every person there. Had I not been desperately trying to think of a way to get away from Skull, I might have enjoyed the show.
Some giant of a man went so far as to pick a woman up and lift her over the top seat into the next isle and place her there. He then did the same to her friend. Skull’s crew now had the whole row to themselves. I almost snort out in laughter at the look the women gave back to the big man. I barely contain myself, when the women go running out of the theater.
Dani has no problem letting it hang out though. She cackles out loudly and throws popcorn at the man in question. He either ignored it or didn’t realize what she did. Dani being Dani of course does it again—this time with a handful and most of it meets its mark. He turns around scowling at her and really he was scarier than anything on the screen. I would have backed down and followed those other women out of the theater. That would be the sane thing to do; not Dani however.
“What’s your name big boy?” She asks as the popcorn bounces on his hair and then falls in front of him.
“Why you askin’,” he grumbles and really it was a grumble. His voice was dark, husky and hoarse. It reminded me of a ten pack a day smoker, or a person who has been sick and doesn’t use their voice because it hurts to talk.
“I wan
t to know whose name I’m calling out tonight,” Dani says with a grin. I hold my head down. I’m used to it of course. My actions in the bar with Dragon were an everyday occurrence to Dani. She made no apologies for it and I admire that. I wish I could be a little more like her at times, of course even thinking that has heat rising in my face.
“That’s Beast,” Skull said helpfully. The big man, Beast apparently, turns back around and ignores Dani.
“You’re shitting me? Well fuck my ass and pull my hair, I think I’m going to be his Beauty at least for a night or two. Yo! Beast! Turn back around here and let me see those baby blues.”
“They’re brown.” Some man beside Beast joins in.
“Well hell I don’t care, can’t see them anyway, I just want to look at him some more.”
“Is your friend always like this querida?”
I look over at Skull, who has a smile on his face. It’s dark but I can make out his features, barely. I can’t deny he’s a good looking man. Still, he didn’t make my heart rate ramp up like Dragon.
“Pretty much what you see is what you get with Dani.”
“I can appreciate that in people. Can the same be said for you querida?”
“Why are you calling me that, Skull was it?” I ask. He continues to ignore the woman beside him. She huffs her annoyance.
“It is a term of endearment.” He responds, reaching over to get some of my popcorn. Skank woman shoots daggers at me and pounces over into the seats with the rest of Skull’s people. Really? Like this was my fault? Ugh.
“Help your-self,” I grumble as he put his hands in my food. I hate that. I don’t know this guy and I wanted my popcorn dang it.
“I plan on it Mamacita.”
I roll my eyes.
“Give it up Skull you haven’t got any interest here. You’re just trying to one up Dragon.”
“And could I? One up Dragon I mean?”
“Afraid not, I can only handle one man on the crazy train at a time.”
“A pity, but yet you have not seen what I have to offer, perhaps I may yet entice you.”
Breaking Dragon: Savage Brothers MC Page 10