THE DEVIL’S BRIDE

by April Lust

  “Yeah, but, the whole point is to keep her here, right? Is she more likely to stay put if she has someone to talk to, or if she’s bored off her ass?” Lucky pointed out. “Besides,” she continued quietly, “she’s obviously hurting, Riley. She needs a friend.”

  Riley’s shoulders drooped as he gazed into his lover’s eyes. “You have a good heart,” he murmured, quickly glancing around before dipping his head to press his lips to hers.

  Lucky wrapped her arms tightly around him, her fingers digging into his back. Riley pulled away suddenly and she let out a small gasp of surprise. He smiled at her response, then nodded towards the door behind him, stepping to the side so she could knock.

  How dare he? Fiona fumed, throwing herself on the bed. He can open up to me about how he feels responsible for what happened, but apparently he needs to ‘move on.’

  Of course he wants to move on, the self-doubting side of her started in, He’s probably bored of you. He’s been with scores of women, had sex hundreds of times. Why would he ever want a repeat of what he’s already had?

  Fiona had called Ace weak for not admitting his feelings for her, but what if he wasn’t weak and she was just some crazy, ranting girl who couldn’t see that she’d been dumped? What if she was imagining what she had felt between them at the hotel?

  A soft knock interrupted Fiona’s self-deprecating tirade. “What do you want?” Fiona called irritably.

  “Fiona?” she heard Lucky’s muted voice on the other side of the door. “Can I come in?” the younger girl asked.

  Frankly, Fiona wasn’t sure. Part of her wanted someone to vent to, the other wanted to shut everyone out.

  “Fiona?” Lucky repeated. “We don’t have to talk. I just thought you might need a friend.” Not hearing a response, Lucky reluctantly stepped back. “Okay, I’ll just go, then…” She gave Riley a miserable look.

  “No. You can come in,” she said, opening the door a moment later.

  Fiona stepped back to let Lucky enter, and the two women sat on the bed together. No one said anything for a long time.

  “Do you want to talk about it?” Lucky finally asked. “I mean, you don’t have to, I’m just asking.” She didn’t know the right thing to say.

  Fiona didn’t reply.

  “We could talk about something else, then,” Lucky tried again, still getting nothing in return. “Oh!” she said suddenly, her eyes wide. “I got it. Wanna hear about the time Ace literally broke his ass in front of everyone outside of The Crabtree?” Lucky giggled, motioning for Fiona to lean in close. “He had to wear a cast that looked like a pair of shorts for two months.”

  The image came to Fiona’s mind vividly, and she snorted loudly despite herself. “That sounds exactly like something I would want to hear right now,” she said. “Go on, what happened?”

  “Well, we were all pretty drunk,” Lucky said with the tone that this should be considered the precursor to all of her stories. “This was back when there were a lot of gangs, and The Crabtree was sort of considered our Switzerland, or whatever.” Lucky waved a dismissive hand. “It was a place where the rivalry between us was friendly. So, we’re wasted, and someone suggests we do Biker Olympics. There were a bunch of categories: beer chug, best tits, you get the point. Well, we nominated Ace for the wheelie race, and—”

  Fiona’s phone, the burner cell she had picked up at Niko’s suggestion, began to ring, cutting Lucky off mid-sentence. She seized it and her heart froze—she and Niko had spoken almost every day to check in with each other, but each time that phone rang, Fiona was terrified it was going to be Alexei, or a police officer telling her they’d found Niko’s body washed up on a river bed somewhere.

  You’re being ridiculous, Fiona, she told herself. Niko is fine. Answer the phone and see for yourself.

  “Sorry,” she said, looking at Lucky. “It’s my brother, and if I don’t answer he’ll—”

  Lucky held up her hands. “Say no more.” She stood up from the bed. “I’ll give you guys some privacy.” Walking out of the room, the purple ends of Lucky’s platinum blonde hair bounced merrily from the bottoms of her pigtails, and Fiona smiled, wishing she felt as free.

  Shaking her head, Fiona pressed the answer button. “Hey, Niko,” she said warmly. “How’s it going?”

  “Fiona!” Niko cried in a strangled whisper. He was panting heavily. “Fiona, they found me!”

  Everything Fiona had feared, everything she had tried to push away, was now happening. “What do you mean?” she blurted out. “How are you calling me? Where are you? Can you get out?” She had a million questions.

  “I’m at Uncle Leon’s,” Niko hurriedly explained. “He wasn’t home, so I was checking out the house, when I saw Alexei and Vlad creeping up the stairs in the mirror behind me. They didn’t think I saw them, so I kept pretending I didn’t see them until I thought I could make a run for it, but they cut me off. I managed to make it to the garage and now I’m hiding in the trunk of Uncle Leon’s car. Fiona, they’re going to find me! I just know it! I know—”

  “Niko!” Fiona said firmly. “Stop! Take a deep breath before you pass out.” Niko had been ranting at top speed. “Now, I’m going to tell you what to do, okay? I’m going to get you out of this,” Fiona promised, deep down knowing how utterly powerless she truly was. “What I need you to do is—” she began.

  “Fiona!” Niko whispered. “They’re coming…”

  In the background, Fiona heard a large boom, like someone had just knocked in a door, or, perhaps, somehow dented an expensive car.

  “What do I do?” Niko breathed.

  Footsteps echoed, sounding closer and closer, but Fiona had no idea what to tell her brother. She was terrified it would be the wrong thing.

  “Just stay quiet, and maybe they’ll—” Fiona heard the loud pop of two gunshots and the screech of metal on metal, then clear, raucous laughter.

  “Fiona!” Niko screamed, his voice piercingly high. “Fiona! They got me! Fi! Fi!”

  Fiona nearly began screaming herself, but she didn’t want Niko to think anything had happened to her. “Niko, I’m coming, okay? Okay?” she cried into the phone.

  Her brother’s screams faded into the distance and she knew someone was dragging him away. There was a rustling sound from the phone. Someone had picked it up—she could hear them breathing.

  “I’m looking forward to seeing you, Fiona,” Vlad said.

  She shivered, the oil in his voice sliding down her skin. Fiona shut the phone. She wanted nothing more than to throw it across the room, but it was her only tie to Niko. Fiona fell to her knees. Laying her head on the bed, she began to sob.

  What am I going to do now? Even if Ace wasn’t the biggest asshole on the planet, he still wouldn’t be able to convince The Hell Brothers to abandon whatever plan they have just because Niko is in danger!

  Fiona raised her head, roughly wiping away her tears with the palm of her hand. Think, Fiona! Think! This is no time to get weepy and fall apart. She already knew and had accepted that she was going to have to save her brother herself; debating whether Ace wouldn’t or couldn’t help her was beyond the point. Her current problem was how to get away from Ace without him noticing.

  If he knows I’ve gone after Niko, he’ll just come get me and bring me back. He doesn’t understand. He as much told me that if Niko were his brother, he would have let him go a long time ago. My best option is to go before Ace gets back, while Riley is still the one on guard.

  Fiona got up and examined all of the windows. There were only two, one of which was painted shut. She stuck her head out of the other one. It was a twenty-foot drop straight to the ground—not a tree limb to climb out on or a gutter to drop from.

  She pulled her head back inside and sat on the bed with a sigh. There wasn’t a sheet so she couldn’t even try to make a rope. Ace’s negligent lifestyle had provided him with the perfect jail cell.

  But what about the jailer? Fiona thought, a smile spreading across her face.


  Fiona opened the door to see Lucky and Riley in the middle of what appeared to be an intense discussion.

  They immediately stopped talking and both turned to face her.

  “Did you need something?” Lucky asked.

  Fiona glanced at Riley, who calmly returned her look. “I finished talking to my brother, and I could use some company,” she said, looking back at Lucky.

  “Of course,” Lucky immediately replied. “I’ll talk to you later,” she said, turning so she could give Riley a discrete wink.

  Fiona closed the door once Lucky entered, making sure it was firmly closed.

  “Are you feeling better now that you talked to your brother?” Lucky asked, falling back onto the bed.

  Fiona grabbed Lucky’s wrist, pulling her up into a sitting position. “I need your help,” she demanded.

  “What do you mean?” Lucky said, confused. “Help with what? With Ace?”

  “No, not Ace,” Fiona said bitterly. Ace wasn’t any help at all right now. “I need help with my brother. He just called me to tell me that Alexei and Vlad found where he was hiding out.”

  “Oh my gosh!” Lucky exclaimed. “Is he okay?”

  Fiona bit her lip, trying to keep the tears from overflowing. “I don’t know. He was talking, then I heard screams, then…then…there was a gunshot. Maybe more than one, I can’t remember,” she said, now openly crying.

  “We’d better tell Ace!” Lucky said, getting up from the bed.

  “No!” Fiona cried, grabbing Lucky’s arm to stop her. “He can’t do anything about it. He won’t do anything about it,” she said, correcting herself. “I’m the only one who can help my brother right now, and if we tell Ace, he’s just going to keep me locked in here while my brother is out there, dying.”

  “Ace’s just trying to keep you safe,” Lucky said.

  “Why?” Fiona asked. “It’s obviously not because he cares about me. He made it very clear to me that he’s moved on. He even told me to do the same.”

  “Well, that’s just plain not true,” Lucky said, rolling her eyes and sitting back down on the bed. “Ace’s obviously crazy about you—that’s why the gang is so pissed off. He’s putting you over everyone else. Whatever he told you, it’s not true.”

  “I wish I could believe that,” Fiona muttered. “Either way, it doesn’t matter,” she added, louder. “I’m the only one who can help Niko. Will you help me?”

  Lucky looked around. “Who are you talking to? Because I know you don’t expect me to walk into the lion’s den next to your crazy ass.”

  “No, I don’t,” Fiona said. “I need your help busting out.” She nodded towards the door.

  “Well, that’s a different story, then. What’s the plan?” Lucky asked.

  “I feel skeezy asking, but do you think you could…y’know…distract Riley?” Fiona asked hesitantly. “I only ask because I thought I caught him looking at you that way when you came in earlier.”

  “Oh yeah?” Lucky said, a grin spreading across her face.

  She was absurdly pleased to find out that Riley was giving her looks behind her back. Fiona was giving her a look right now, but it was a very odd one. Lucky quickly stopped smiling.

  “Um, yeah, I could try to do that,” Lucky said in what she hoped was casual, but not too casual, manner. “He’s pretty quiet, though, so who knows if it’ll work.” Yeah, right, she thought to herself.

  “Right,” Fiona said slowly, still staring at Lucky. “Anyway, if Alexei is driving Niko back from Boston—”

  “They will be,” Lucky interrupted, reassuring her. “Crowds, security—it’s too hard to fly with a hostage.”

  “Okay, that gives me some time,” Fiona said. “So, if you could distract Riley early tomorrow morning, maybe say you came to check on me or something?” she suggested. “Then I can sneak out and go rescue my brother.”

  “What if Ace wants to check in on you after you’re gone? You’ll need someone to keep him busy,” Lucky pointed out.

  Fiona scoffed. “I don’t think that will be a problem. He’d have to care to want to check in on me.”

  Lucky rolled her eyes, ignoring Fiona’s comment. “You need a backup plan. Lianna could help.”

  “Are you sure? I don’t want to tell anyone that’s going to tell Ace.”

  “You can trust Lianna. I promise,” Lucky assured her.

  Fiona bit her bottom lip. “Okay, but no one else,” she warned. “It’ll get back to Ace and he’ll try to stop me. Alexei and Vlad grabbed Niko from my uncle’s place, so I need at least thirteen hours, ten if they’re really pushing it.”

  “Okay,” Lucky said. “When I leave, I’ll mention to Riley that you’re tired and don’t want to be bothered. Maybe that’ll keep anyone else out who thinks of visiting you.” She stood to leave, then stopped suddenly. “Wait! How are you going to get to…wherever you’re going? Where are you going? Maybe this isn’t such a good idea after all…” Lucky was beginning to have second thoughts. “How are you going to do anything if you’re all by yourself?”

  “If you’re worried about me being on my own, don’t be,” Fiona said. “I’ve been taking care of my brother by myself half my life; I’m used to it. As for a ride, you guys aren’t going to hold Bobby here the whole night, right?”

  “You’re going to ask that kid to come back here early tomorrow morning after the late night you just put him through?” Lucky said.

  “Don’t judge me,” Fiona said flatly, her temper rising. “I’m going to do whatever it takes to get my brother back home safe and sound, and don’t you dare tell me that if it were someone you cared about, you wouldn’t do the exact same thing.”

  Lucky thought about Riley, the man she loved, who stood only ten feet away on the other side of the door, and she knew Fiona was right.

  “All right,” Lucky sighed. “I’m going to get in so much trouble,” she muttered to herself.

  “Thank you, Lucky,” Fiona said, giving the younger woman a warm hug. “I’ll never forget this.”

  Something tells me neither will I, Lucky thought.

  The next morning, Fiona woke early in anticipation. For the next half hour, she had her ear pressed up against the door, listening for Lucky’s approach.

  “Hey, hot-stuff,” Lucky said, strolling up to Riley. “How’s the hostage?”

  Riley raised an eyebrow at her. “I haven’t heard anything. She must still be asleep.”

  “It’s been an emotional couple of weeks for her. God knows I’d be sleeping hard after the time she’s had.”

  Lucky was tensely aware that Fiona was listening in on her conversation with Riley. Therefore, she was tasked with the difficulty of getting Riley into bed without seeming like they had done it several dozen times before.

  “Standing here all night must have you feeling a bit stiff,” Lucky said, rubbing her fingers up and down Riley’s arm slowly.

  “No. I am fine,” Riley said, quickly catching Lucky’s meaning. He was resolutely determined not to fall victim to his desires. Ace had ordered him to stand guard, and Fiona had already given one of them the slip.

  Poor Andrew, Riley thought, remembering the ridicule the huge man had faced upon returning to the house. He’s never going to live that one down.

  Ace had called Andrew after discovering Fiona was at the house and reamed the man out. Andrew had burst into the room, startling Melanie from what had been a very satisfying nap, and had come back to headquarters to a ruined reputation.

  “Come on, Riley, everyone’s still asleep,” Lucky whispered, stretching up on her tiptoes to whisper in his ear. “We can make it a quickie. She’ll be passed out until noon; you’ll be back in a half hour, tops.”

  Lucky slid her hand down Riley’s broad chest to the front of his jeans. Slipping her hand into his pocket, her fingers found the outline of his long shaft. At her touch, it immediately began to harden and swell. Lucky smiled. She knew she was only a few deft movements away from convincing Riley to join her in
her room.

  Lucky reached up to press her lips to the hollow of Riley’s throat—a spot she knew he loved. His large hands came down to meet around her waist, drifting lower and lower until he could cup her ass.

  Lucky moaned into him, her hand gripping his cock through his pants. Riley tweaked her nipple in response, lightly flicking her nipple ring the way he knew she liked. Lucky moaned again, louder this time.

  Fiona, still listening in, blushed and stepped away from the door, embarrassed to be overhearing her friend in such an intimate setting.

  Lucky unbuckled Riley’s belt, tugging on one of the ends as she pulled him towards her room. “Let’s go,” she said, panting with desire, an eager grin on her face.