by Harley Wylde
“Get some rest, Little Bit.”
I sighed and closed my eyes, snuggling against him. When I heard his phone chime, and then go off again, I reluctantly let him go. Patriot rolled out of bed and went to retrieve his phone. His brow furrowed as he scrolled through the messages.
“Everything okay?” I asked.
“Yes and no. The man who attacked me doesn’t have anything to do with your past. That’s a blessing. Means no one is out for revenge because of the men I’ve killed. But he does pose a problem. If he gets out of jail, he’ll come for me again.”
“Why? Or is it club business?” I asked.
“It is, but you’re a small part of it. Remember the club whore I told to leave? The one who insulted you?”
I nodded.
“She’s apparently married. To the man who attacked me. All we can figure is he saw my cut and decided to get even. No way of knowing if he wanted me specifically, or any member of the club. Although, I don’t know why Blaire would say anything to him about me knocking her on her ass.”
My jaw dropped and I didn’t know what to say. Why would a married woman come here to be a club whore? Had she been sent to spy? Or was it something else?
“What happens now?” I asked.
“If he’s released, I’ll handle it. Either way, that bitch has a lot to answer for. I’ll be back in a minute, Little Bit. Need to call Kraken and let him know what’s up. I’ll be to bed as soon as I’ve handled this. Can’t have the club blindsided, and if the bitch is still hanging around, she needs to go. Immediately.”
I couldn’t have agreed more. I rolled to my side and snuggled into the pillow. Yawning so wide, I felt my jaw pop, I closed my eyes. I felt sleep tugging at me when the bed dipped, and Patriot pulled me into his arms.
“Kraken said he’d handle it.” He kissed my neck, then my shoulder. “Let’s get some rest so I can wear you out some more.”
I couldn’t help but smile. After I’d first been brought here, if anyone had told me I’d be lying in bed with a man, willingly, and looking forward to sex, I’d have told them they were fucking crazy. But Patriot wasn’t just any man. He’d saved me, not only physically, but emotionally and mentally as well.
He may not have given me my life back, but he’d helped me create a new one. Given me a home. More than that, he’d given me his love, and had an infinite supply of patience. He’d never once pushed me to do more than I felt comfortable doing, whether it was leaving the compound or visiting with people. He understood me better than anyone.
The heat of his body curled around me made me feel safe. I didn’t just want to be with him because of that, though. It was so much more. When I thought about the future, it was Patriot I saw by my side. Even before he’d claimed me, I’d always seen him as being part of my life. I’d just thought I didn’t stand a chance of him seeing me as more than a kid. I was glad I’d been wrong.
It didn’t matter how many presents were under the tree because the most important gift had been his love. This wasn’t going to be just a good Christmas, but it was going to be an amazing one. All because of Patriot.
I only hoped one day he’d understand when I said I loved him, it was more than three little words. It meant everything.
Chapter Ten
Patriot
The club whore who’d thrown her drink at MaryAnne had been tossed from the club, but she hadn’t gone quietly. Blaire Wilcox was more trouble than she was worth. She’d thrown a beer bottle at Kraken, kicked Brick in the nuts, and raked her nails across Gravel’s face before we’d managed to toss her out the gates, right on her ass. She’d shrieked and cussed, promised she’d get even. Wasn’t anything we hadn’t heard before.
We just hadn’t expected her to follow through. And that’s where we fucked up.
We’d had two days of quiet before all hell broke loose. Not an avalanche exactly, more like a slow trickle of bad luck. A few bikes had flat tires when my brothers came out of the clubhouse after partying. We’d thought it was a coincidence until other things started to happen. We still hadn’t figured out who had let the air out of the tires. It had to be someone who still had access to the Hades Abyss compound. Wizard had been going through video footage trying to get a look at the culprit.
Phoebe’s car had had whore spray painted on the driver-side door when she’d gone to the store the next day, which had sent Kraken and Titan both on a rampage. Two nights after that, someone poured a gallon of bright pink paint across the driveway outside the gate and wrote pussies in it before it had dried. They’d been far enough from the gate, we not only hadn’t seen or heard them, but they weren’t caught on camera either. But I’d known it was Blaire who cut the fence line and destroyed my yard and outside Christmas lights when I found three slushie cups tossed into the grass nearby. Bitch hadn’t been as smart as she’d thought. Her DNA was all over the straws, and her fingerprints had been on the outside of each cup.
It wasn’t until Wizard ran her prints I realized we needed to start vetting the women we let into the compound. The webcam girls were one thing, but it wasn’t enough. We needed to vet the club whores too. Blaire was wanted in three states for prostitution, robbery, and had spent a year locked up for possession with intent to distribute. And her husband wasn’t much better.
MaryAnne sat at the table with a cup of hot cocoa, Christmas songs playing softly from the radio on the counter, as she stared into space. Hatter whistled along with White Christmas, while Archimedes lay out beside MaryAnne with his head on her foot. Even the kitten seemed subdued.
“You all right, Little Bit?” I asked.
“I’m fine. Just wish this mess with Blaire and her husband was over with. They haven’t caught him yet?”
I shook my head. The day he’d been headed to court for his hearing, somehow Walter Wilcox had managed to escape custody. He was still at large, and most likely off somewhere with Blaire, plotting their next move. She wanted revenge because I’d chosen MaryAnne and then humiliated her, and her husband hadn’t liked the idea of his wife spreading her legs for a bunch of bikers. Free of charge, of course. Had we been paying her, he likely wouldn’t have minded, since he appeared to be her pimp.
“Come on, Little Bit. Let’s go watch some movies and have some quality time together. Seems like with everything going on, we haven’t had a lot of time to just relax and enjoy each other’s company.”
She stood and gave me a wan smile. “All right, but I’m not sure how Christmas-y I feel right now.”
I took her hand and led her into the living room. I left the radio playing for Hatter, but Archimedes and the kitten followed us. The kitten climbed the couch and curled up in MaryAnne’s lap. I watched her stroke the little ball of fur while I selected a movie.
“I think you should name him,” I said. “He seems to like you best.”
She toyed with his little ears. “He’s always getting into trouble. What about Rascal?”
I nodded. “Sounds like a good name. How about it, kitty? You like the name Rascal?”
The kitten purred and rubbed his face against MaryAnne. I laughed and reached over to pet him.
“I think he likes it,” she said.
“Seems that way. I had a feeling he wasn’t leaving here. I know you try not to bond to the animals I bring home, but I saw the way you looked at him that first night. All wet from the rain and covered in fleas and blood. Little thing was half-starved and dying. You didn’t see all that, though, did you?”
“No. He might have looked mostly dead, but I could tell he wasn’t ready to give up.”
“Like you,” I said, taking her hand.
“You have a tendency to bring home wounded things. All your animals. Me. What’s next?”
I rubbed the back of my neck. Since she’d brought it up, it was the perfect time to talk to her about something. I wasn’t sure how the conversation would go. Either she’d be thrilled, scared, or just outright refuse. Only one way to know for certain, and I was about out of time
.
“Since you brought it up… there is one other thing I’d like to bring home.”
She turned a little to face me. “What?”
“Remember those families we helped? The ones from the church.”
“What about them?” she asked.
“One of those families has a fifteen-year-old daughter. She wasn’t raped, like you were, but she did fool around with a boy who was old enough to know better and she ended up pregnant.”
MaryAnne’s brow furrowed. “I don’t understand where this is going.”
I tightened my hold on her hand, hoping she’d hear me out. I loved her, and I’d be happy with just the two of us and the animals, but I knew she wanted more. She wanted a family, and honestly, I did too. I wanted it all, as long as MaryAnne was the one by my side.
“The girl can’t keep the baby. The family can barely feed everyone as it is, and at fifteen, she’s just not ready to be a mother. The boy who got her pregnant signed away his rights. They were going to put the baby up for adoption when it’s born.” I stroked her hand with my thumb. “It’s a girl.”
I saw the pulse in her throat pounding. “A baby girl? And they don’t want her?”
“Not so much that they don’t want her, but they want her to have a good life. One where she won’t struggle and will have more opportunities.” I cleared my throat. “Told them we might be interested in adopting her, but I’d have to talk to you first. Then all this other shit started happening and there hasn’t been a good time to bring it up.”
“A baby,” she said softly. “And she’d be ours? They wouldn’t try to take her back later?”
“No, Little Bit. They won’t take her away from us. We’ll sign papers, do everything legally. Or mostly. I did tell them Wizard could help move things along faster and they seemed okay with that.”
“Can we really adopt her?”
“If that’s what you want. I know you wanted kids and since I know for sure I can’t have any, and you were worried you can’t, it seemed like a good opportunity. Not just for us, but it will give that baby a chance at a good life, and the girl can finish school without worrying about raising a kid.”
Tears misted her eyes, and she flung her arms around my neck, dislodging Rascal from her lap. “Oh, Ronan! I can’t think of anything I want more.”
I hugged her tight. “Then I’ll make some calls and let them know we’ll take her. I’ll have to get a room ready. Think the girl is due before Christmas.”
“This is going to be the best Christmas ever.”
“Not sure I can ever top this one. I get the woman I love and a daughter.”
“That can’t be all you want in life,” she said.
Was it? I had brothers I knew would have my back no matter what. A woman I loved who wanted me as much as I wanted her. And we were going to adopt a baby girl. Toss in my rescues and life was close to perfect. Almost.
“I want the last two fuckers who hurt you to pay the price, and I’d like Walter and Blaire Wilcox out of our lives forever. Other than that, I can’t say there’s really anything else I want. I have everything I need already.”
She pressed against me and I held her close. Yeah, I definitely had everything I needed already. Even if the adoption fell through, it wouldn’t matter to me. I’d love the little girl like she was my own flesh and blood, and I knew MaryAnne wanted a baby, but as long as I had her I didn’t need anything else.
“We should bring Hatter in here. Everyone else in the family is ready for a movie night,” she said. “Don’t you think he feels left out in the kitchen by himself?”
I smiled and kissed the top of her head. “Making sure my bird doesn’t get depressed?”
“Just doesn’t seem fair is all.”
“I’ll get Hatter. We’ll see how well Rascal does with him. I haven’t trimmed Hatter’s flight feathers lately, so if the kitten goes for him, he can fly away.”
“I’ll get a movie going. Any requests?”
“Whatever you want, Little Bit.”
I went to get Hatter from his cage. He ran up my arm and settled on my shoulder with a rustle of his feathers. When he started grooming my hair, I reached up and rubbed the top of his head. I carried him to the living room and sat on the couch next to MaryAnne. She immediately leaned into my side and clicked PLAY on the movie. The Year Without a Santa Claus started up. My girl was nothing if not predictable. She loved her animated holiday movies. Didn’t matter if it was Christmas or Halloween.
Hatter moved from my shoulder to the back of the couch. So far, Rascal hadn’t noticed him. Or just didn’t care the bird was roaming free. Archimedes groaned and rolled to his side, stretching out more on the floor. Rascal batted the dog’s ear before curling up next to him. The two had become fast friends.
I heard a scraping sound outside and my gaze strayed to the window. I didn’t see any movement through the blinds, nor did I hear anything else. It was possible one of my brothers was out there, probably taking a smoke break. Philly lived on one side of me and Poison was on the other. When we’d been assigned our houses, I’d joked with Titan and asked if he was trying to keep all the P names together.
Honestly, I didn’t mind having Philly and Poison as neighbors. Neither was overly loud, and I got along with them. Hell, I got along with everyone in the club, even if Smoke had overstepped with MaryAnne recently. And Galahad tended to get on my last nerve with the way he treated her. Or more accurately, the way he seemed to not give a rat’s ass. I knew that wasn’t the case. He’d about fallen apart when he’d found out she’d been taken, and he’d done some shit he shouldn’t have.
Another scrape from a different area caught my attention again. What the fuck was going on out there?
“Little Bit, I need to step outside for a second. Stay inside, okay?”
She tipped her head. “Are you going out to smoke?”
“Need to check on something. It’s warm in here and you aren’t wearing shoes.” I kissed her temple. “I’ll be back in a minute.”
I went to the door and slowly pulled it open. I didn’t want to worry MaryAnne, so I didn’t pull the gun I kept on me. Not until I’d gone outside. I stepped off the porch and made my way around the side of the house facing Philly’s home. His lights were off, which didn’t mean much. This time of night, he was most likely at the clubhouse.
I’d almost missed it, but there was a small footprint outside the house below the guest room window. Could have been MaryAnne’s, except she didn’t make a habit of hanging out on the side of the house. There was another outside the living room. This time, I knew for sure it wasn’t MaryAnne’s. The footprint faced the window, like someone had been trying to look through the blinds, or perhaps anticipated scaling up to the second floor.
“What the fuck?” I muttered. I looked around and didn’t see anyone. No more scraping sounds.
I walked the perimeter and didn’t see anything else out of the ordinary. I couldn’t shake the feeling something was wrong, but fuck if I could figure out what it was. I glanced at Philly’s house again. I squinted a little and studied his home, noticing the front door seemed to be partially open. It could have been a shadow, but I needed to make sure.
I approached his house, gun still gripped and ready. A quick glance at my place, showed the door was still shut. I didn’t hear Archimedes barking, or any screams. I hoped that meant MaryAnne was still watching her movie. Using the toe of my boot, I nudged the door open. Even through the darkness, I could see the shadow of a body on the floor. The leather cut had me moving closer. Shit! I knelt next to the body, feeling for a pulse. It was there, and strong.
“Philly.” I gave him a nudge. Something shiny caught my attention and I realized he was bleeding. It looked like someone had bashed the side of his head. I pulled my phone out and sent a text to Titan.
Someone knocked out Philly.
There wasn’t a lot I could do for him at the moment. I checked his house, making sure no one else was there, then went
outside to scan the area. Had the footprints outside my place happened before or after Philly had been attacked? On the other side of Philly was Brick’s home. On the off chance he wasn’t out partying, I checked his home. He was out cold too, but he hadn’t even made it into his house. Whoever had taken him out had caught him getting off his bike, or getting on it. Either way, he was knocked out in the carport. Had they started here, then moved to Philly’s place, then mine?
MaryAnne! I took off for my house, not bothering to stay quiet. I rushed through the door and froze when I saw Blaire pointing a knife at MaryAnne. Her eyes were wild and bloodshot, and it looked like she hadn’t combed her hair in a few days.
“What the fuck are you doing?” I asked.
“It was supposed to be me!” Blaire yelled.
“What was?”
“Why couldn’t one of you have picked me? I needed you! Do you know what it’s like being married to Walter? He doesn’t love me. The only thing he loves is money and power. He uses me.” She sniffled, but I wasn’t sure if she was about to cry or if she’d been doing coke. “He made me a whore.”
I saw the pity and understanding that crossed MaryAnne’s face. Yeah, my girl knew something about that. If Blaire had come to one of us, been honest, we might have been able to help her. She’d gone about everything the wrong way, and now she’d taken out two of my brothers and held a knife on my woman? Bitch was going down.
“So you thought breaking into my house, threatening my wife, and knocking out my brothers was going to help your cause?” I asked.
“Wife!” She shrieked and jabbed the knife at MaryAnne. “You bitch!”
MaryAnne tried to scramble away, but she wasn’t fast enough. The knife sank into her thigh. I saw her face pale as she bit her lips. My beautiful, strong girl refused to cry or scream.
Before I could make my move, Archimedes growled from the corner of the room. He slunk along the wall, then darted toward Blaire. He bit down on her ankle, making her squeal like a fucking pig. Rascal decided to protect his family too and puffed up, hissing and spitting at Blaire before he sank his claws into her other leg. She flailed, screamed, and cussed as she toppled to the floor.