Rock Hard: A Stepbrother Romance (Extreme Sports Alphas)

by B. B. Hamel

  He studied me for a moment. “It is true that there are certain disagreements between us and the people in your country.”

  “I heard it called a war.”

  “My patience is not unlimited, Mister Smuggler.”

  I nodded, getting to the point. “I learned some things about your people in my country. I learned where they’ve been hiding and laundering all of the money they’ve been making off your drugs.”

  “That’s a very dangerous thing to say to me.”

  “But it’s true. And I learned exactly how to get ahold of that money. Do you know a diner called the Blue?”

  “I have not heard of this diner.”

  “It’s the business they run. It’s the place they use to filter their money.”

  “Where did you get the money in that bag?”

  He looked agitated, annoyed. He was glancing around him like there was something about to happen. I realized I was making him much more paranoid than I needed to by beating around the bush and coming at it slowly.

  “I stole this money from the Blue.”

  His eyes widened. “You must be stupid.”

  “I stole it from them to give to you.”

  “You stole from me.”

  I shook my head. “No. I’m giving it back to you. So that you can win your war.”

  He suddenly pulled the gun out from his waistband and held it out at me. My heart skipped a beat and I took a step back. In all my time running drugs, I had never had a gun pointed at me, and it was terrifying.

  “I think you’re mistaken. That money is our money.”

  “You’re telling me that you wanted them to have this much cash on hand? Even in the middle of a war?”

  He stepped closer, his eyes narrowed. “Even in the middle of a fucking war. That money was meant to stay where they had it.”

  “But you didn’t even know about the diner.”

  “Because I didn’t need to know. But once laundered, the money would have come back to us through other legitimate ways.”

  Fear jolted through me, fear I never imagined. “I want to help you pay for your war.”

  “You stupid boy. You robbed us.”

  “I’m giving it back.”

  “I do not want it back. The American dollar is stronger than the Canadian dollar. We make more money in your country.”

  “This is only half,” I blurted out.

  He stopped in his tracks. “There’s more?”

  “Yes. This is only half.”

  “Thirty thousand dollars?”

  After we took our cut, I thought.

  “Yes, thirty thousand.”

  “Interesting.” He seemed to relax. He lowered the gun slightly. “And it was all in cash, in that diner?”

  “They had it in a safe in the back room.”

  He didn’t respond and began to stroke his chin thoughtfully. I stood completely still, like a deer in headlights, terrified that I would spook him if I moved.

  I had completely miscalculated. The Canadians had wanted the American group to launder the money in America. Of course they did. The money was better served in America where they could expand and invest.

  They didn’t want it back. In his eyes, I had robbed him as much as I had robbed the southerners.

  “You are a very, very lucky boy,” he said finally, putting the gun away.

  I let out a breath. “Why?”

  “Because there was only supposed to be ten thousand in that diner.”

  I blinked. There had been a lot more than ten. “What did you think this extra five was?”

  He shrugged. “If they had a little extra cash, who’s to complain? But an extra twenty thousand, well, that’s a lot of money.”

  I nodded. “It’s yours. All of it.”

  “And what do you want in return for this money?”

  “Two things.”

  He laughed. “You’ll be lucky if I don’t murder you here and take this money.”

  “You’ll never get the rest.”

  “Which is why you aren’t dead yet. Go ahead, tell me your two things.”

  “First, I want my debt erased.”

  “Okay. And?”

  “I want you to completely destroy Jacques and his men.”

  Rigley stood silent for a moment, staring at me with his insane and intense gaze before breaking out into laughter. He threw his head back and roared, practically shaking with it. Finally, he calmed down after what felt like an incredibly unnerving minute.

  “You have balls, Mister Smuggler.”

  “I’m only trying to do what’s best.”

  “What’s best. Yes, that’s a good way of putting it.”

  He walked over to me and threw an arm around my shoulders. “I will think about this. If it is as you say it is, then your debt will be erased and the fucking cockroaches down south will die.”

  I almost laughed out loud. I almost broke down in excitement.

  “Does that mean we have a deal?”

  His arm tightened around my shoulders. “Not yet. I am going to look into this story of yours first.”

  “It’s true. They had that much money in their safe.”

  “Yes, so you say. If they did, they’ve been stealing from us. Or, worse, they’ve been hiding extra profits. Maybe to fund this war you speak of.”

  “That’s what I would do if I were them.”

  He released me and then bent over and picked up the duffle. “Pray that is the case.”

  “How will I know? If we have a deal, I mean.”

  “You have a contact down south?”

  “Thom.”

  “Yes, Thom. I know the name. I will leave him a message if we have a deal.”

  “The rest of the money will be yours.”

  “The rest of that money already is mine. The only difference is, if we have a deal, then you will survive all of this.”

  I nodded. “Fair enough.”

  He unzipped the duffle and dropped it onto the hood of his car. He looked through it, briefly counting a stack. Once he was done, he looked up. “If we don’t have a deal, then you are dead and the money is still mine.”

  I nodded. “I understand.”

  “Good. We will talk soon, Mister Smuggler.” He paused then grinned. “Or should I say, Mister Thief?”

  I didn’t respond as he turned away, laughing to himself again. He climbed into his car and pulled away from the campsite, driving faster than usual.

  I watched him go. Once he was out of sight, I released a breath and collapsed back onto the picnic table, steadying myself.

  That was close. It was way closer than I thought it would be. But everything I told him was the truth. I was confident Jay and his people were stealing, preparing for a war, and that Rigley would figure it out.

  It had to happen. Otherwise, like he had said, I was a dead man.

  But I had a reason to live. I had a person I wanted desperately to see again.

  I quickly put my shoes and socks on, only marginally dry, and slung my pack over my shoulders. It felt light since I wasn’t smuggling any drugs back over the border.

  For the first time in a long time, I crossed back into America without a pack full of illegal substances.

  I hiked double-time, trying to get back home as soon as possible. I had someone I needed to see.

  Chapter Twenty-Five: Rebecca

  I was exhausted by the time I got back to the house.

  Reid was gone, up to Canada, and I had no way of knowing how things were going. I was stuck in limbo wondering if the gangsters he had robbed were going to forgive his transgression or if they were going to murder him in cold blood.

  I sat on the back porch. Don’t let yourself think that way, I admonished myself.

  I had to keep it together, at least for his sake. Even if inside I was a mess of conflicting emotions, torn apart in a hundred directions, filled to the brim with fear and confusion.

  Even if it felt like my world was teetering on the edge of a knife.
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  As I bent over to untie my boots, my phone vibrated. My heart almost skipped a beat, but that wouldn’t be Reid. Not yet at least. He hadn’t even made it to the border.

  I pulled it out of my pocket and checked the message. It was from Lindsey.

  Hey can you come meet me at Clark Park in a half hour? I got something important to talk to you about.

  I narrowed my eyes. Why did she need me to meet her at a park to talk? She could always just call me.

  Can you just come over here or something? I sent back.

  She responded immediately. Gotta be at the park. It’s rly important I promise.

  I sighed. Okay. See you in a half hour.

  I didn’t know what she was up to. She probably wanted dating advice or something like that. Or maybe Jay had gotten violent with her and she needed my help. Whatever it was, I was her friend and would do what I could for her.

  I retied my boots and leaned back in my chair. It wasn’t worth changing since the park was going to take twenty minutes to get to anyway.

  With a grudging sigh, I got up and walked into the house. I grabbed my car keys and went out front, slightly annoyed that I had to go all the way out to Clark Park.

  Then again, maybe it would be a good distraction. I needed something to keep my mind off Reid.

  I pulled into the parking lot and cut the engine. It was mostly empty except for a few other cars, though the people were nowhere in sight. I climbed out of my car and leaned against the trunk, texting Lindsey.

  I’m here, where are you?

  She responded right away. Over at the old pavilion, remember the one we used to hang out at?

  I smiled slightly to myself and set off. Sometimes, back in high school, when things were bad and we needed to talk, we went to this old pavilion that was hidden away from most of the rest of the park. I remembered all the times we sat around and chatted about boys and homework and other typical teenage angst.

  It was a funny memory, and it felt strange to be going back there again. I guessed it must be pretty serious if she was pulling me out to the pavilion again after all these years.

  I crossed down the paved pathway and turned off at a little dirt track. I followed that up through some trees and spotted it up ahead, looking exactly the same as when I last saw it.

  Lindsey was sitting on a picnic table, her feet on the bench, when I approached. She looked haggard, like she hadn’t slept the night before, and her hair was a mess.

  “Hey, Linds,” I said.

  “Becca. Thank god you’re here.”

  She looked seriously relieved but didn’t move to come toward me. I stopped in front of her, leaning up against a support pole for the pavilion.

  “What’s going on?”

  “I’m really sorry.”

  I laughed. “Sorry about what?”

  “There wasn’t any other way. I’m so sorry.”

  My skin prickled and I got goose bumps all down my spine. Her face was deadly serious, almost pleading, and there was something in her look that said I should run.

  “What’s going on?” I asked instead.

  “It had to be you,” she said, putting her head in her hands. “They won’t hurt you if you tell them the truth.”

  I took a step back, my mouth hanging open, and turned half away from her.

  Terror filled my stomach. Two men in suits, men I recognized from the party the other night, were walking up the path toward me. I turned back toward Lindsey.

  “What did you do?” I asked.

  “I’m so sorry.” She didn’t look at me. “I didn’t have any other choice.”

  “What did you fucking do?” I asked again, frantic, but it didn’t matter. The two men stopped a few feet from me, and then I saw him. He stepped out from behind a large tree a few feet away and grinned at me.

  “Hello, Rebecca,” Jay said.

  He sauntered over, still smiling, and stopped next to Lindsey.

  “What’s going on?” I asked him, trying to play dumb.

  I had to make them believe I had nothing to do with what happened. They obviously suspected me, which was stupid. Lindsey saw me going into that office and knew my connection to Reid. They must have put two and two together.

  “Lindsey here tells me you’ve been a bad girl.”

  I looked at her, but she avoided my eyes.

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  “My office was robbed. But you knew that already.”

  He took a step closer.

  “Get away or I’ll scream.”

  He laughed. “Go ahead, scream. I don’t mind one bit.”

  I opened my mouth but someone grabbed me from behind, his arms wrapped around my body and his one hand over my mouth.

  Something took over inside me. I bit his finger and stomped on his foot as hard as I could. He said something in French and let me go, and I began to run.

  I didn’t look back. I ran as fast as I could, heading for the trees, and began to scream my head off.

  Three seconds of glorious freedom. Part of me thought I might get away, until Jay grabbed me by the arm, yanking me back and down, throwing me to the ground.

  I hit the dirt and rolled. He was on me in a second, dragging me back up by my hair.

  “Run again and things get worse,” he said angrily into my ear.

  “Let me go, you psycho,” I screamed.

  He nodded at the other goon, who came over with a bandana. Jay yanked my hair back and pinned my arms as the men shoved the bandana into my mouth and tied it, forming a gag. The other man, the one I had bit, wrapped my hands in duct tape behind my back.

  My heart filled my skull with its thick pounding. I tried to scream and struggle, but they had me. I watched as Lindsey threw herself at Jay, burying her face in his massive chest. He stroked her hair, all the while grinning at me.

  They led me through the trees, across a stream, and into a clearing. Two black SUVs were parked there. I was put into the backseat of one, along with Jay and the goon I bit. The other took Lindsey in the other car.

  Jay sat close to me as we began to drive away from the park.

  “Your friend told us she caught you sneaking into the office.” He smiled and put a hand on my leg. “But I know you’re not a bad girl. I know you wouldn’t do something so stupid, like steal from me.”

  I wanted to retch and gag and throw his hand away, but I couldn’t. My mind kept running over the course of events, shocked that Lindsey would betray me, but even more shocked that I hadn’t really seen it coming. I knew it was a possibility, but I never considered she would throw me under the bus without even talking to me first.

  And Reid was so far away, trying to sell them out. I was in danger, kidnapped by the men he was trying to destroy, and he had no clue.

  Reid, I screamed mentally, please come help me.

  “I know you are close with our smuggler,” Jay continued. “You two are family, yes? Well, I know how it is with family. Maybe you did something for him, something very stupid. You tell me the truth and I’ll let you go, no harm done.”

  I looked him in the eyes, his disgusting piggish eyes. He reached forward and pulled down my gag.

  I spit right in his face. “Fuck y—” I managed before he shoved the gag back into my mouth. He reached forward and tore a piece of my shirt off, using it as a rag to wipe his face.

  “That was very, very stupid,” he said calmly.

  He turned away and didn’t say another word.

  My shirt hung in tatters on my frame, barely concealing my breasts. I felt exposed and destroyed, but I wasn’t going to cry. I wasn’t going to give the sick fuck the satisfaction.

  We drove for an hour and eventually pulled off onto an uneven and bumpy dirt road. We drove back, well away from any other living person, deeper into the woods. We came up to a gate, which slowly opened. Large fences ran all around the building and thick trees blocked the view of anyone who happened to wander by. The house itself was almost plain and bori
ng, completely nondescript. They piled out of the car and pulled me out with them, pushing me up the walkway and through the front door.

  I looked around, totally unsure about where I was. Jay silently pushed me forward, herding me through a door and down some steps. We entered a dank, dirty-looking basement. Old exercise equipment was scattered all over the place, gathering dust.

  He shoved me forward. In one corner there was a metal ring in the wall with chains hanging down from it. Directly below the ring was a drain in the ground.

  I was positioned with my back to the wall directly below the ring. Jay took the chains and wrapped them around my neck, fastening them with a padlock. He stepped back and smiled at me.

  “You will stay here until you choose to cooperate.” He nodded at the drain. “Do your business there. We won’t bother you.”

  He was about to turn and leave but then thought better of it. He moved up close to me, his breath hot on my face. I tried to scream through the gag but nothing came out, only a muffled choke.

  “This is for spitting on me,” he said.

  He grabbed the rest of my shirt and tore it from my body.

  I struggled, trying to shield myself, but the chains choked if I moved the wrong way. He stepped back, laughing.

  “Beautiful girl. Will be a shame if we have to hurt you.” His eyes bore holes through my chest. “Tell us what we want to know and all will be forgiven.”

  I tried to tell him to fuck himself. I tried to scream all the horrible things I wanted to do to him, but nothing came. There was nothing else inside me as I stood bound, gagged, and chained, in only jeans and a bra to cover me.

  “See you later,” he said, and walked away.

  He disappeared up the steps. I heard the door shut, the lock turn, and I was bathed in near darkness. The only light came from a window that was covered by a thin sheet.

  I sagged up against the wall, falling to the ground. I had just enough slack to sit up, though the chains were tight.

  In that moment, chained in a gangster’s basement, half naked and cold, all I could think about was Reid. He had done so much for his family, so much for me, and I hadn’t even known about it.

  I had to be strong. He was going to come for me. I knew he would come for me. I just had to last until he did. He never let me down.