Tease: A Kings of Korruption MC Novel

by Geri Glenn

  Charlotte had just gotten to us when the shit hit the fan. Every single member of the Devil’s Rejects descends on us before we even have a chance to fucking react. There have to be at least thirty of the fuckers. They unleash a hail of gunfire on us as we scramble to take cover. Gunner, Ryker, Charlotte, and I duck behind the only cover available – our motorcycles. Pulling out my gun, I return fire. I hear shots coming from Ryker and Gunner and pray that the rest of our brothers have brought their guns as well.

  Peering over the top of my ride, I scan the picnic area for Laynie. My heart races to the point of exploding when I don’t see her. People are scattered throughout the grounds, hiding behind trees and overturned picnic tables, but I don’t see Laynie.

  That’s when I see Dexter. He’s crawling along the ground on his belly. I follow the course he’s heading down with my eyes and my gut drops right out from under me. Seeing the prone form of Mouse lying on top of Laynie takes my breath away. Are they OK?

  “Nooo! Somebody help us! Please!”

  Hearing her panicked pleas for help, I jump up from my crouch and start to move in her direction. As I pass Ryker, he grabs my hand and yanks me down beside him and Charlotte. “You fuckin’ crazy?”

  “Laynie’s out there!” I growl and move to stand.

  “A lot of people are out there, man! Don’t be a fuckin’ idiot! Stay put. Mouse has her.”

  I know he’s right, but I don’t fucking like it. I reload my gun and fire off more shots, hitting a couple of the Devils and knocking them back. I watch as Dexter makes it to Laynie and stretches out beside her. I see her arm shoot out, wrapping around him and holding him tight to her body. Thankful that he made it to her, and can at least comfort her when I can’t, I fire off more shots.

  I’m down to my last bullet when the Rejects start jumping on their bikes, and in a deafening roar, make their getaway. Even through all of the shots fired, there are only two of them left on the ground.

  Focusing my attention back on Laynie, I run to where she still lies on the ground under Mouse. My heart rattles in my chest as I get closer and see the blood pooled on the ground all around them. Neither of them are moving. The sight of that black pool of blood causes despair to crush the breath from my lungs. I can’t breathe.

  “Laynie!” I gasp.

  Her broken sobs break through my panic. “Travis? Oh God. Help him!”

  Kneeling beside them, I freeze when I see Mouse, and it feels like the whole world stops fucking spinning. His skin is grey and there is nothing but gore and blood where the top of his head should be. His eyes are open, but empty of the usual glint he always seems to have. He’s gone.

  Reaper appears at my side. “Fuck!” he roars.

  Laynie’s already tear-streaked face crumples, and she starts sobbing uncontrollably. “Help me! Get him off me. Please! I need to get him off me!”

  Shaking off the wave of sadness and shock, I grab onto his shoulder, and with Reaper’s help, we gently roll him off of Laynie and settle him on the ground beside her. Laynie’s shaky hands come up and cover her blood-spattered face as an ear-piercing wail of despair rips from her throat.

  Reaching forward, I gather her into my arms, rocking her gently and stroking her hair. Her sobs rack her whole body, ripping my heart to shreds. Sitting on the ground we sway gently while the rest of the group gathers around Mouse. Dex comes over and lies beside us, laying his head on my lap where Laynie is able to pet him while she cries.

  I don’t know what to do, or what to say. Mouse was a pain in my ass, but fuck me, he was one of the most genuine people I know. He was like a little brother to me, but I never fucking told him that, and that makes me so angry at myself. I was such a dick to him – all the fucking time — but he was always so fucking loyal. Fuck!

  Just then, Charlotte approaches and kneels beside us, placing a hand on Laynie’s shoulder. She flinches and presses herself closer to me. “Laynie?” Her voice shakes, and her chin trembles slightly, but she holds it together. “Honey, it’s me, Charlie. Let’s go down to the lake and get you cleaned up, sweetheart.” She tugs gently on Laynie, indicating that she wants her to come with her.

  “Nooo,” she wails, wrapping herself even tighter around me and hanging on for dear life.

  I look at Charlotte and shake my head. She nods, her face filled with sadness, then stands and walks into Ryker’s waiting arms, where she too bursts into tears.

  Looking around at the silent group of people that I consider family, I rock Laynie from side to side and watch as they all stand in shock and silence. The tightness in my chest is almost unbearable. Jase comes forward and lays a red and white checkered picnic blanket over Mouse’s face and then turns, storming away off to his bike.

  “Jase!” Ryker calls. “Where are you goin’?”

  “I’m goin’ to find those sons-of-bitches, and I’m goin’ to kill every last fuckin’ one of ‘em.” I’ve never heard Jase sound so angry, but I agree with him. They are going to pay for this – with their lives. But not yet. First we have to tell Sarah.

  I DON’T REMEMBER LEAVING the lake, or the ride home. I don’t remember anything but the weight of Mouse’s body as his life poured out of him. My thoughts are clouded, and my stomach is heavy with dread. I can’t stop thinking about that thump I’d heard as Mouse was warning me. He’d taken that bullet trying to save my life. I keep thinking about Mouse, and how excited he was to tell me he was having a baby girl. I think about the sincere way he was with everyone, willing to give you the shirt of his back. Mouse was a rare kind of human being, and the loss of him has knocked the wind right out me.

  “Come on, babe. Lift your arms.” Slowly coming back to the present, I hear the running water of the shower and feel hands at my waist, pulling my blood-soaked t-shirt up and over my head. I raise my arms and fight back the tears as Travis helps me take off the rest of my clothes.

  I hear the whisper of fabric as he takes off his own, and then he lifts me into his strong arms, carrying me into the shower and sets me down under the spray of hot water. Blinking, I raise a fist to my chest and press it deep, trying to ease the intense ache I feel.

  “Tip your head back, Laynie.” Moving on auto-pilot, I do as I’m told and tip my head back under the rushing water. Travis’s fingers are gentle but firm as he shampoos my hair, massaging my scalp with strong fingers, washing away the blood and dirt that had caked into it while I was lying on the ground with Mouse.

  Wordlessly, he soaps up a loofah and runs it over my body, scrubbing the blood of the sweetest man I know from my skin. My throat stings as a deep, anguished sob bursts from deep inside me, my shoulders shaking with my sorrow.

  Travis grabs my shoulders and pulls me close to his body, wrapping me up in his arms. “Fuck, Laynie. I don’t even know what the fuck to say to you right now.”

  I continue to cry, tears coursing down my cheeks, mixing with the stream from the shower. I clutch his shoulders and just let it all out – I need to. I have to get this pain out before it eats me alive. Travis says no more, just holds me tighter, pressing his lips to the top of my head.

  Gradually, my tears slow and my breathing evens out. My broken heart remains shattered, but my body is exhausted. Pushing my face against his chest, I press a kiss to his pec. “I’m OK now.”

  Travis places his hands on each side of my face, lifting it to his and presses his own lips to mine. “You’re not, but you’re better. Let’s get you into bed.”

  He leans forward to turn off the water and helps me from the shower. I stand still, arms hanging at my side, my body drained of all energy while he carefully dries me off, and after wrapping a large towel around me, he leads me to the bedroom. I stand in the center of the room and wait as I hear him searching for something.

  “Here. Put this on.”

  Raising my arms, I push them through the shirt he’s placed over my head. I don’t recognize it as one of my own. “What is this?”

  “My tee,” he answers, pulling me toward the
bed. “Love your silky pajamas, babe, but tonight, I need you to wear something of mine.”

  My chin trembles as I give him a quivery smile. “I love you.”

  He settles on the bed, pulling me close and hugs me to him tightly. Taking a deep breath through his nose, he breathes out, “Fuck, babe. I love you too.”

  Wrapping my arm around his waist, I press myself to him as tight as I can get. If I could crawl up inside him, I think I would. Somewhere along the way, Travis has become my safe place, and being wrapped up in a t-shirt that smells like him may just keep the nightmares at bay.

  We lie in silence, my chest aching with sadness as I trail my fingertips up and down his arm. “Travis?”

  “Yeah.” His voice his hoarse.

  “Are you OK?”

  “Fuck no.” His answer surprises me. Not because he feels it, but because he admits to it. “Do you have any idea how fucking terrified I was when I got close to you and saw all that fucking blood?” He lets out a shaky breath. “I thought it was you.”

  I give him a squeeze but stay silent, waiting for him to continue.

  “I think the worst part is, I’m a fucking dick for feeling relief when I found out it wasn’t. I was so fucking scared I’d lost you that I felt relief that it was my fucking friend. My best fucking friend.” His voice rises as he talks, filling with anger. “His fucking head gets blown off saving my woman, and I feel relief? What kind of sick fuck am I?”

  I prop myself up on my elbow. “Hey. Don’t talk about the man I love that way. What you felt was normal, Travis. Completely normal. You felt relief that it wasn’t me, not that he died.” Reaching out, I search for his face and press my hand against his scarred cheek. “That doesn’t mean you grieve him any less.”

  He takes a deep breath. “I’m pissed. I’m pissed that those crazy fucks ambushed us and nearly killed us all. I’m pissed that I only got to kill a couple of them. I’m pissed that you had to go through that shit this afternoon. But most of all, I’m pissed at myself. I’m pissed that I never fuckin’ told that needy son-of-a-bitch that he was the best fuckin’ friend I ever had.”

  Tears fill my already puffy eyes as I lean forward, pressing my forehead to his. “He knew, honey. He told me once that you were his buddy, even if you hated to admit it.” I chuckle softly. “He loved you too, ya know.”

  Groaning, he pulls me closer and squeezes me tight, whispering, “Yeah. I know.”

  It’s hard to breathe as I drive in the line-up of motorcycles following the hearse to the cemetery. My throat burns and my heart feels like it weighs a hundred fucking pounds after watching Gunner place Mouse’s fully-patched cut into his casket before they closed it, sealing him inside forever. After all his loyalty and hard work, Mouse is finally a patched member of the Kings of Korruption, and he’s not even alive to enjoy it.

  Laynie and Charlotte are riding with Bosco in the club van, making up the back of the line. I just want to get there and get my girl. Being separated from her, even if it is just riding in separate vehicles, has me fighting to stay calm. Until those fuckers are dead, I don’t want to be apart from her.

  As we pull up the cemetery road, our motorcycles drowning the silence, I notice a lone unmarked police car parked off to the side of the road. Laynie’s brother Daniel stands, in uniform, against the side of the car, eyes pinned on me. Fuck.

  After the shooting at the lake, the cops had been quick to swoop in. Someone had called them, though we had yet to figure out who that someone was. They’d detained a few of us, including Laynie, and questioned us all. We told them the bare minimum – unknown people had swooped in, shot at us all and then drove away. The cops had found bullet casings that Bosco had missed during his clean up sweep but have yet to connect us to any shooting. We all told them that we didn’t know who had shot the two dead Devils that were lying up by the road. They don’t believe us, but for the moment, their hands are tied.

  Glaring at Daniel as I pass, I walk to the van and reach in to grab Laynie’s hand. I help her down and hand Dexter’s harness to her, then lead her down to the cemetery plot where Mouse is about to be laid to rest. I don’t bother telling her that he’s there. She’s been a wreck since Mouse died, barely getting any sleep and crying often throughout the day. If she knew that her brother had it out for me, it would break her already fragile heart.

  We had decided to have a more casual burial for Mouse, with Gunner officiating. Mouse wasn’t religious and aside from Sarah, we were the only family he had. He would have liked this. Sarah sits beside Tess, Gunner’s old lady, eyes covered in dark sun glasses, dabbing a tissue underneath them to wipe away the tears from her eyes. She clings to Tess’s hand like a lifeline.

  Gunner stands in front of the casket waiting for us all to get settled. I look around. The whole club is here, along with old ladies, whores, and friends of the club. Mouse would be proud to know that this many people cared about him. I just wish he’d known that before he died.

  “Mouse came to me over a year ago wanting a chance to join the Kings. The first time he came, I’d laughed in his face. You could see the kid had a heart the size of Canada beating in his chest, and he wore that heart on his sleeve. These aren’t good traits for a King.”

  He shakes his head, a small smile forming on his face. “We get kids like Mouse coming into the clubhouse all the time, wanting to be one of us. Wanting to be a tough guy. But they can’t hack it. Mouse didn’t look like he could hack it, either. Kid had a goofy fuckin’ grin on his face every time I laid eyes on him. But he proved me wrong.”

  Looking around at the rest of us, Gunner clears his throat. “Every night he showed up at the clubhouse, and every time he had a new reason of why he would make a good biker. That fuckin’ kid gave me every reason from being able to grow a beard since he was five to the last reason he ever gave me. That reason was why I took him. He was alone. That was it. He didn’t tell me out of pity. He told me that so I would know that he was just like all of us. Before we found each other, every one of us was alone in one way or another. Mouse didn’t want to be a tough guy. Mouse took one look at our family, and he wanted to be a part of it.”

  I bite my lip, fighting back the fresh wave of sadness that washes over me and watch as Gunner places his hand on Mouse’s casket. “The day I told that kid he was our newest prospect, the crazy bastard hooted and hollered like a fuckin’ lunatic. Almost broke my goddamned ribs when he hugged me. I thought for sure this kid would fail. There’s no way a kid like him would make it in a world like ours. But I was wrong — Mouse was the most faithful, lovin’ kid I ever met. No matter what task I gave him, or how much I rode his ass, he did his job, and at the end of the day showed back up at the clubhouse with a smile on his fuckin’ face. There was no breakin’ Mouse.”

  “Like Mouse, there is no breakin’ the Kings of Korruption either. His death is gonna be hard on all of us, but it won’t go unpunished. Mouse will be avenged, if it’s the last fuckin’ thing I do.” He looks to Sarah and places his hand over his chest. “Sarah, know that Mouse loved you and the very idea of that baby you’re carrying made him the happiest man in the world. Know that Mouse was family to us, and that makes you and your little girl family too. We will always be here for both of you. Mouse wouldn’t have it any other way.”

  Sarah sobs and clutches Tess tighter as she nods at Gunner, clearly thankful for his words. I look down at Laynie, finding her clutching onto Charlie with one arm as she holds tightly to my side. Sniffing, she wipes at her tear streaked face with a soggy tissue and smiles in my direction.

  “You OK?”

  “I’m OK, babe,” I whisper.

  She rests her head on my shoulder and sighs. “Good. Now lead me to the whiskey.”

  Shaking my head, I chuckle. Nut.

  GUNNER HAD LAID OUT the plan for us before we’d hit the road for the five-hour trek to Toronto. We will go to the Devil’s Rejects clubhouse, take out whatever sorry excuse for a prospect they got standing sentry at the gate and
walk right in, shooting every fucker we see along the way. Our main target is the President of the Devils himself, Deed Landry. When all that’s done, we torch the fucking place.

  After a long history with Deed and his Devils, we had finally been starting to develop a friendship between the two clubs. Running Laynie and me off the road had severed that friendship, and killing Mouse had been the final nail in that motherfucker’s coffin. He doesn’t stand a chance.

  This whole plan is crazy – straight out of a fucking gangster movie – but it’s crazy enough that it just might work. The Devils aren’t going to be expecting us to walk in, bullets flying. They won’t be ready, and that gives us the element of surprise. The Devil’s clubhouse is an old warehouse on the outskirts of Toronto, far from the busy residential and high traffic streets. They’re going to hear us coming, so we have to move fast.

  Pulling to a stop several blocks from our target, Gunner turns to address us all. A fluttery feeling takes over my chest, and every muscle in my body tightens as he nails each of us to the spot with his eyes. “I hate this shit as much as you do. The truth is, I don’t take killin’ people lightly. But these fuckers killed Mouse. The next time, it could be any one of you.”

  His eyes dart to Ryker. “Or Charlie.” He looks to me. “Or Laynie.” My jaw clenches. It almost fucking was.

  “Wait!” As one, we all turn to Ryker in surprise. “Are we really just gonna go in there, like a bunch of cold-blooded killers and kill these stupid fucks?”

  Gunner steps forward and glares at Ryker. “The plan is set.”

  Ryker nods. “I know, but hear me out. If we follow through with this plan, we’re no fuckin’ better than they are.” He flings his arms out and looks around. “Can all of you really live, knowing we just walked in and killed a bunch of men? Do you really think the fuckin’ cops aren’t goin’ to track this back to us? That we aren’t going to get caught?” He spears his hand through his hair. “One man ordered that drive-by. One man is behind those bastards comin’ in and killin’ Mouse. Let’s play this shit smart and get rid of that one man.”