by Amo Jones
“I’m twenty-one, Raze. I’m still in the adult transition. Which reminds me,” I say as he steps forward effortlessly, like he wasn’t carrying one hundred and thirty-two pounds on his back. “How old are you?”
“Really, pet? You gonna ask me now after we’ve spent how many nights together?” He hikes me up and my crotch grazes against his muscled back.
Biting my bottom lip, I nod. “Yes, because every time we’re together, I forget to ask you.”
“I’m twenty-eight.”
He continues to walk and I drop my face down to the back of his ear. Pressing my lips onto it, I smile. “Seven-year difference, huh? That’s a little pervy?”
“Oh, you have no idea.” He pauses and I laugh, raising my head to watch the front of us, my cold heart twitching in my chest.
“The clubhouse?” I whisper, watching the hot embers of the bonfire in the back travel up into the dark night with the music blaring in the distance. Metallica probably, or 50 Cent, if Melissa and Hella have control over the sound system. “Why?”
He searches my eyes. “I want to remind you that there are people who care about you, pet.”
“Oh, no,” I shake my head. “Not this ‘save Millie’ bullshit again. Raze, no offense, but you and Miles are both the most inhumane people I’ve ever meet!” I point down to the clubhouse. “And that’s including them, so that’s a massive statement!”
“Maybe, but we weren’t what you were before, pet. You had it all. I know I fucked up letting shit get out of hand in the dungeon, but I didn’t give a fuck at the time. Right then, you were a means toward a plan so I didn’t care. I sure as fuck didn’t expect you to have an impact on me either.”
He sets me down and I step towards him, my hand brushing over his chest. “Raze? I don’t want it back. You need to stop this shit. When you release me, I won’t be coming back here.”
He cocks his eyebrow, running his index finger over his upper lip. “And just where are you going?”
I smile. “To Cancun with one hundred nuggets and to sip margaritas on the beach.”
He laughs, his head tilting back and his straight white teeth on display. “Okay, baby, let’s go.”
He called me baby. Not Millie, not pet, but baby. My happiness is short-lived because a gun cocks and we both freeze. “Well, well, well, if it isn’t my favorite nun.”
Oh crap. A smile spreads across my face.
MILLIE
I pull my eyes away from Raze and turn them towards who I know owns that voice.
“Frost.” I grin and lock my eyes onto his.
“Jesus, fucking look at you! What the fuck!” He gasps, dropping his gun and walking towards me. “Jesus, Millie! We all thought you were dead! Melissa—?”
“I don’t want to talk about Melissa, Frost.”
Raze steps up in front of me and the air shifts. Frost’s eyes find his instantly.
My hand flies up to Raze. “Don’t, he’s fine.”
“What’re you doing here?” Frost asks, pulling a cigarette out of a carton and placing it in his mouth. His dirty blond hair contrasts against his tan skin and dark green eyes. He has a couple tattoos on his face, one being an upside-down cross that sits under his eye. It used to bother me, but not so much anymore. Under all the tattoos and with eyes that could probably melt the panties off most girls, he’s hot, but he’s Frost and he’s one hundred shades of psycho. Which seems to be my type as of late.
“Just came to see if everything was fine. This is Raze…”
Frost’s eyes come up to Raze’s and for a few seconds there is complete silence. “You look familiar.”
Raze laughs. “I doubt it, son.”
Frost laughs. “Son? We look the same age.” He shoves a hand in his pocket.
“Maybe in age, but that’s not what I was talking about.”
“Okay!” I butt into the pissing contest. “We’re going to go. Please don’t tell anyone I was here, Frost.”
A shuffling noise is heard in the bush behind Frost and Raze pulls me behind his massive wall of muscle.
“Jesus, what the fuck?” Hannibal steps out and I cuss under my breath. “Holy shit, Millie?”
I step around Raze and smile. “Hey!”
Hannibal looks to Raze before stepping toward me and wrapping his huge arms around my waist, pulling me in for a hug. “Whoa, put me down.” Hannibal steps back, his hands gripping around my arms as his eyes scan up and down my body.
“Damn, if you were sexy before, you’re fucking lethal now.”
I laugh. In the corner of my eye I see Raze step towards us. Being in Hannibal’s hands suddenly felt… wrong. “Thanks, I think. Please don’t tell anyone you saw me. I’d rather Melissa, you know, just moved on.”
Hannibal narrows his eyes and Frost blows out a thick cloud of smoke, both of them wearing their Devil’s Own cuts. “Yeah, alright, but where are you?”
“She’s with me,” Raze all but growls from behind me.
Hannibal’s eyes drift over my shoulder and the moment they settle on Raze, his head slowly tilts back. “Shit. I know you.”
“No, you don’t.” Raze’s hand finds mine, and he pulls me back against him.
“I’m sure I know you.”
“You’re mistaken.” He looks down at me. “Ready to go?”
I nod my head. “Yup.” I glance back at Hannibal and Frost. “Please don’t say anything.”
“We won’t,” Frost assures me.
I give them one last smile before I let Raze walk me back towards the car, this time scooping me up into his arms.
“I really hope they won’t say anything.”
“They will,” Raze confirms. “They run in a pack. They both have loyalty to Beast, to tell him that they saw you tonight.”
This is true.
Once we get back to the car, he pulls open the passenger door and places me into my seat before going to his side and getting in. We pull out of the gravel road and back onto the highway when I turn to face him. “So does Beast know that he has a brother?” I’m trying to clarify, ease into my questions slowly.
He shifts gears. “No, he doesn’t.”
“Well, are you going to tell him?” I ask, watching him closely.
He stretches his neck. “When the time is right.” He continues to move us through the traffic.
“Why do you need me, Raze?” It was a hoarse whisper.
“It’s not that I need you for a particular reason. I mean, I do, but there are other people that are involved in this, Millie. Have you forgotten about the priest?” He looks at me, the passing lights casting shadows over his face. I haven’t forgotten; it’s still in my mind. “He wants you. He wants you bad. He’s been back at the base a few times since ‘Hachiro’ purchased you.”
“Wait,” I say, rubbing my hand up my arm. “They actually think Hachiro bought me?”
Raze’s jaw clenches. “Yes, Millie. That’s why you have to just sit fucking still. Your very breathing could blow up years’ worth of planning.”
Okay, the seriousness of this whole situation is beginning to resonate with me.
“But you just took me to an event?”
Raze nods his head. “Yes, an event where Hachiro was present.”
I tilt my head, my eyes glazing over. So that’s why he kept me at a distance for most of the night. It makes sense now.
“Wow.” I breathe out. “I’m just a puppet in your show.”
He smirks, pulling into McDonald’s. “You have no idea how accurate that is.”
After getting the value pack of nuggets, we make our way back home. “Cassia,” I say, biting into the deep fried happiness.
“Millie…” he warns.
“No, I’m talking. Why? Why is she still here?”
He exhales. “It’s a little more complex than that. Do you know who Cassia’s father is?” he asks me.
I mull over it. “Well, no. What can I say? I’ve been locked in a castle with an angry dragon guarding it with his stee
d.” Rolling my eyes, I dip into the sweet and sour sauce. I’m still wondering why he lets me eat in his car.
“Cassia’s last name is Jacobs on paper, but her actual last name, by blood, is La’ Mont.”
I pause, chicken nugget stuck in midair. “La’ Mont… as in Peter La’ Mont… as in fucking President La’ Mont of the United States of America…?”
“Yes…” Raze hisses.
“I didn’t know they had a daughter! I thought they only had a son, that hot playboy who’s always in the media.”
His grip tightens around the wheel. “Cassia was a love child. Her father, Peter, only just found out about her a couple years ago.”
I clear my throat. “Um, how long has she been with you?”
“She’s not with me, Millie. No chick is ever with me. She’s a mere dot on a very messy business deal.” Business deal? “But it’s been almost three years.” He cracks his neck and my eyes dance over how the veins on his neck contract with the movement.
“Okay, three years. I fail to see your reason for keeping her, though.”
He scoffs, pulling into his long private road. “Consider yourself lucky for not knowing.”
We both get out of the car and start walking towards the house.
“Raze, wait.” My hand reaches out to his. He stops, his head turning over his shoulder. I’ve tried really hard to ignore the question that’s constantly swimming in my head, but this dead heart still sits in a woman. “Us,” I say, and he turns to face me, shoving his hands into his pockets.
“What about us?” He cocks his head, his tongue running over his bottom lip.
“What are we? What is this? Am I just a plaything until I leave, or… something else?”
He steps forward and takes my hand in his.
“You’re mine.”
“For…?”
“That’s the best I can give you until this shit blows over. I don’t make promises, pet, and I take my word seriously. So when I say it’s on, it’s on forever. For now, I have too much hanging around to give you anything.”
I smile. “Thanks for being honest.” Then I follow him up the stone steps and through the massive heavy double wooden doors.
I still want to know what else is going on, and my patience is running thin.
RAZE
The piano plays through the speakers and I shuffle in my seat, adjusting my jeans. I’m waiting inside the room at the base where Millie was after she was sold. Last night was a bust. I thought that if Millie saw the clubhouse again that it would line her thoughts back together. No such luck. I’m beginning to think that this is just her now, which works fucking perfect for me.
“Yo, apparently she’s the daughter of who didn’t pay his debt.”
“What? Who?” I answer, looking to Joker.
“Yup. Daddy didn’t pay his debt to Kurr so off goes daddy’s little princess.” Joker laughs and picks up his glass of whiskey, swirling it around a few times until the ice clinks in his cup, and then shoots it back. Even though he ignored my question, I take it he’s talking about the latest lost cause that’s shackled up in the dungeon.
“What kind of debt? And how old is she?” I take a cigar out of the humidor sitting in the middle of the table and place it into my mouth.
“Drugs. And she’s barely legal. Eighteen, I think.”
“When the fuck did Kurr start fucking with drugs?” I answer, sparking the zippo and rolling the cigar around in my mouth.
“Ahhh, he’s been doing it for a while now.”
Jesus fuck. Kurr dealing in drugs comes as a shock because he’s never mentioned wanting to get his hands dirty with something so mundane like drugs. It runs too much risk and not that much power because you have to spend years upon years building up your respect and street cred. Cred I have, but I’d never taint my image by selling drugs. That’s giving cops something to pin on you. What I do keeps me safe, there’s no law on being a kingpin.
The countless murders, however….
The door swings open and Kurr walks through. “You’re needed.”
Puffing on my cigar, I raise my eyebrows. “Doing?”
“Doing what you were born to do. Now.”
I drop the cigar and follow him, walking back down the dim hallway. The backrooms that display the podium are in a circle, each room features a full glass window which gives bidders a direct view of their purchases. Pushing open the door which leads to the exit, the bright sun hits my eyes as I attempt to readjust them from the dark depths I came from. Slipping the cold mask back over my face, we carry on towards the main house.
“Heard you made an appearance at Archer’s last night,” Kurr says from beside me. Archer is the name of the charity we attended.
“Yeah,” I answer, keeping my head straight. “Hachiro was there with his new toy.”
“Mmm,” Kurr grunts. “I did hear that.” He opens up the main house door and I follow in behind him. “We have an issue that needs resolving, but it’s to happen very delicately and with severe intellect.”
“Alright,” I nod. “What is it?” he walks into the armory and I lean against the door frame, folding my arms in front of myself.
“Your brother and his pack.” He raises his eyes to me and I look at him, waiting for him to continue. “I want to deal with them once and for all.”
“Yeah, somehow, I think there’s a lot more that goes into taking out an entire MC. It’s not as simple as sending me in there in full shred mode.”
“Why not?” he asks with a sadistic smile, what’s left of his burnt skin crinkling under his expression. “I’ve seen you take out an army of men, son. You can handle a pack of bikers.”
Though he has a point, I wasn’t planning on him bringing up Beast. I knew he wanted revenge, and I knew he wanted it bad, but I didn’t think he was in a hurry.
“So what are you thinking, then?” I step forward and take a seat on the chair beside the table.
“I’m thinking of just going in there guns blazing. Unexpectedly. They won’t know what hit them.”
“And if they do know? If they’re waiting on the other side?” I ask, cocking my head and leaning my elbows on my knees. “They’re smarter than you think, Kurr. There’s a reason Beast and Hella were your leading men for so long.”
“True.” He raises his finger. “But that’s also how I know that Beast will be assuming I won’t go against my word and just kill them all.”
“Then what?” I answer. “You don’t even hold that sort of authority to take out a dozen men and leave behind a blood bath. You’ll have to answer to a lot of people, and that’s not how The Army does things. It’s messy.” I throw my ankle over my knee.
“No, but you do. And why are you trying to avoid this?” he asks suspiciously.
I laugh, shaking my head. “I’m not, and the answer is no. There’s a lot at stake here. This is where you have to be diligent.” I stand up. “I’ve got one more thing to do before I head home.”
“You’ve been spending a lot of time outside these gates lately, son.”
“Have you forgotten I have an entire world that I run outside these gates?” I arch my eyebrow before turning on my heel and walking out. I need to find Viking.
“Okay, what’re you doing, man?” Viking asks, pulling on his boots when I walk into his cabin.
“I don’t trust this man.”
“Who? And why would you care enough to not trust him?”
“Because if I don’t trust him, there’s something wrong.”
“Not necessarily,” Viking begins. “You don’t trust anyone.”
“I trust you. I trust Miles. I trust—” I pause, thinking over my next words. “I don’t need you. I’m only asking because I’m thinking it’s been a little dry around here lately, you might need some blood on your hands.”
He nods, pulling on his blue mask. “Yeah, I’ll come.”
“Come where?” Joker steps inside Viking’s cabin.
“Shut the door.” I point to it
and he kicks the door closed with his foot.
MILLIE
I’m pulling out deli meat from the fridge when Cassia walks in, her head held high and her face blank. She walks past me, her shoulder knocking into mine.
“What’s your problem?” I ask, closing the fridge and laying everything out on the counter.
“Me?” she bursts. I could tell right away that she was just waiting for me to say something. All the built-up tension and hate that was brewing towards me, from her end, was evident. Anyone could see it.
“Yeah,” I state, placing a piece of meat on my bread. “You.”
She steps forward just as I’m spreading the mayonnaise on. Her hand slams down on the pieces of bread, the mustard and mayo splattering everywhere. “You, bitch. You’re my problem. This? What me and Raze have? This is real.”
I raise my finger to my mouth, my eyes coming up to meet hers as I suck the mayonnaise off with a popping sound. I raise my eyebrows. “And?”
“And?” she bursts. “And he’s fucking mine, so from now on, stay away from him.”
“Mmmm,” I raise my finger just as she’s walking away. “There’s one problem.” I take a massive bite of my sandwich and walk towards her. “He just can’t seem to stay away from me,” I say smugly, muffled by my mouthful.
“Are—?”
“Cassia!” Miles snaps, walking into the kitchen.
I smirk around my next bite. She snarls at me, walking back towards the stairs. I knew this wasn’t over. In fact, I’ve probably opened up a whole new can of crazy when it comes to her.
I turn towards Miles. “You going somewhere?”
He looks at me over his shoulder, straightening his tie. “Yeah, but can I trust that you won’t get into a fight with Mrs. Claws up there?” He nudges his head towards stairs.
“Probably not. Me breathing is a problem for her. Where are you going anyway?”
“I’m meeting Raze.” I pause my chewing briefly. “Oh, where is he?”
Miles smiles, pulling his hair into a man bun at the back of his head. It’s not that long, hanging around his collar, but it looks perfect in a man-bun. “I can’t tell you that, puddin’.”