“What are you doing? he sighs, closing his eyes again.
“I was gonna go home to shower and change,” I whisper.
He gives my butt a spank, before palming the entire cheek and squeezing.
“I’ll come with you.”
“Don’t you have that run with Joey and Drag soon?”
He sighs again and opens his eyes, blinking a few times to clear the sleep away. Lifting his hand to run it over his short hair, before leaning up to meet our lips in a soft series of kisses.
“Shower with me before you head home.”
I nod and sit up, my insides feel like they’re having a tug of war, and I feel on the verge of vomiting. My head knows what it needs to do, but my heart is fighting like a panther with that bitch. It wants to tell Dornan to fuck the run and go with me somewhere, anywhere, ride our bikes into the sunset and leave all this shit. But I know we’d be leaving the shit for the club to deal with, and who knows what could happen then.
“You okay?” he asks.
“Yeah, of course,” I smile.
But I know he senses that all this is weighing on my shoulders, there’s only so much fucking we can do before reality comes knocking. Before I start to cry, I get up and head to the bathroom, turning on the water and testing the temperature. I’m already in the shower when Dornan joins me, his front to my back, while his big rough hands run over my slick skin with soap.
“I told you I would never make you promises,” he says softly into my ear. “But you won’t go to prison, I will do everything in my power to make sure that doesn’t happen.”
He runs his hand down my wet hair and I close my eyes. God, I love him for thinking this can be any other way. But he can’t keep me safe from this, he can’t control the uncontrollable. Someone has to give the Feds something, and since they came to me, I’ll give them that. We finish showering, and other than Dornan’s proclamation, we remain quiet. I throw on my jeans from the day before and one of his t-shirts, which is long and smells of him. Taking a seat on the bed, I watch as he gets dressed for his trip, and drink in everything about this perfection before me.
“Call me when you get there.” I tell him as we kiss and he wraps me in his arms so tight I can barely breathe, as we stand outside in the middle of the lot.
“I’ll be back by morning, and we can talk about meeting with Justice, yeah?”
I nod, my eyes watching my fingers run over his necklace. Using a bent finger, he raises my chin to meet his eyes.
“Yeah?” he repeats, his brows raised.
“Yes,” I sigh, squinting up at him as the morning sun shines on us.
He kisses me once more before he heads over to Joey and Drag, who are already sitting on their bikes waiting for him. Joey gives me a nod while Dornan starts his bike, and they pull down the driveway and out to the street.
“Maven!” Skye shouts at me from the entrance to the shop and I turn. “Accident on I-9, five car pile-up, I need you.”
I’m about to ask what the E.T.A is, when the first of several tow trucks enters the lot. I guess heading home will be delayed a few hours. As I work on the accident claims and all the shit that goes with it, I show Skye step by step the process. I think she thinks I’m irritated that she needs me for this, or that she doesn’t know how. But really I’m showing her so when I’m not here and probably in prison, the shop won’t be affected. Even though there’s a lot to it and I’m on full work mode, I can’t help but think of Dornan’s run. I forgot to ask him how he and Joey planned on finding out if Drag’s the snitch. But knowing them like I do, I assume it will have to do with brut force.
Finally, things begin to slow. Skye and I are sitting in my office and I’m showing her how to fax an insurance company through the computer, when my cellphone rings, with a number I don’t recognize.
“Hello,” I answer putting the call on speaker.
“Ms. Maven Lofgren?” a woman asks.
“Yeah, this is she.”
“Hello Ms. Lofgren, this is Officer Daniels-”
My first instinct is that Dornan’s been in an accident, oh God, no. This thought overwhelms me so much, that I miss what the lady on the phone says.
“Ms. Lofgren?”
“Yes, I’m here.”
Skye’s looking at me with wide eyes, her mouth agape.
“Did you hear me?” Officer Daniels asks.
“No sorry.”
“Your father’s been killed.”
The blood leaves my head, and dread fills my belly.
“Wait, my dad- what happened?”
Skye gets up and hurries from the office.
“He was attacked in the dining hall yesterday, expired this morning-”
“Why wasn’t I called last night? He was alive and you didn’t call me?” I ask in disbelief.
“Ma’am...per the guidelines of your father’s incarceration, he does not have the same rights that patients would normally get.”
“What about my privilege of being with my dad before he died, you stupid bitch!”
“Ma’am...” she begins, but I’m out of my mind.
Skye returns with Sven who grabs the phone and takes it off speaker, before placing it to his ear. Skye kneels down next to me, talking but I can’t hear her. She’s wiping my face repeatedly, am I crying? I can’tfeel anything. She tries to get my hands around a water bottle but they won’t function, giving up, she grabs my jaw, spreading my lips while pouring the cold water into my mouth. My heart’s pounding and I can’t breathe; I can barely manage to swallow the water. I’m shaking and can hear myself trying to gasp for air, suddenly I’m pushed down from behind, my head goes between my legs and finally I can breathe.
“Fucking bitch,” I hear Sven curse as he tosses my phone back onto the desk.
His big warm hand’s on my back, he’s the one who forced me into this position.
“Call Missy,” he orders Skye.
Not like she can get here fast, because I know she’s already left for a weekend trip out of town with Gwen. Sven crouches down beside me, as Skye leaves to make the call.
“Maven, Maven, breathe,” he’s telling me. “Maven, it’ll be okay.”
And I know he’s talking about my dad, but I can’t help but think he’s comforting me for all the shit going on. I slump off the chair and into Sven’s lap, his arms cradling me, rocking slowly as he sits back onto his butt and just holds me. I know we sit awhile, and I know I’m in shock. I’m blank and empty, no tears or thoughts. When my body kicks back into reality, we’re still in my office but there are more people around. I hear Smokey and Chain, while Sven barks out orders.
“Maven, Spiney’s going to take you home, and Missy will come get you. She’s going to bring you to our house until Dornan can get back, we’re still trying to get ahold of him, or Joey and Drag.”
I don’t respond but feel him stand, holding me until my feet are planted on the floor. He firmly holds my arms, waiting for me to get my bearings and not need him any longer. My head’s foggy and I feel like I’ve been beaten up, or drugged, I can’t focus. There’s a vague sense of being guided to a car, and being buckled in. Then Spiney’s driving and looking nervous and worried, looking over at me and back to the road several times.
“We’re almost there,” he repeats.
By the time we pull into the driveway, I’m able to get myself out of the car, but need him to help me up my porch steps. My legs feel like jelly, that at any moment they’ll go out on me. Bagheera’s at the door and going crazy, barking and pacing. He knows something’s wrong, and also doesn’t like that Spiney’s here. Sure he recognizes him from the shop, but since I never have people here, he’s on high alert.
“Go lie down and I’ll take care of Bagheera,” he says.
On autopilot I make my way to my bedroom, and all I want is Dornan. I want him to tell me my dad didn’t suffer, that he loved me and forgave me for taking so long to mend our relationship. I need him to shoulder this pain, to hold me and kiss me, a
nd assure me life will go on.
“Get yourself together, get to Missy’s and Dornan will come,” I tell myself out loud as a mantra, along with several deep breaths.
I pull off my pants and the long sleeved shirt I’d put on over Dornan’s t-shirt, and I don’t know why. Once the smell of him on the shirt hits me, I understand my logic, as it gives me a small sense of comfort. A noise downstairs makes me pause, it’s Bagheera and he’s...whining?
“Spiney, what’s going on?” I shout.
No reply, yet Bagheera keeps whining and now it sounds further away.
“Spiney!” I say a little louder and move towards the top of the stair case.
I listen and it sounds like the whimpering’s coming from the basement. What the fuck? Still out of it, I hold onto the railing tightly as I go down the steps on wobbly legs. There’s no sign or sound of Spiney, what the fuck is happening? I pause right outside the basement door, and sure enough I hear Bagheera behind it. Reaching for the door handle, my arm’s suddenly yanked away and pulled behind my back, a hand and cloth placed over my face. I try to fight, to pull my body away. But the harder I struggle, the sooner I realize I’m losing consciousness with every inhale. Some chemical must be on the cloth covering my nose and mouth… and all goes black.
17
“Wake up honey.”
I moan. Honey? Oh God, please no.
“Honey...come on, you need to wake up.”
My eyes feel plastered shut, my head spinning. I’m moving but that can’t be, because I know I’m not upright. I’m lying on something hard and hot, and wherever I am smells of a combination of fuel and sweat.
“I said wake up!” an angry voice growls and then my cheek stings, realizing I’ve been slapped. I now recognize the voiceis Brayden’s. Slowly my eyes open to see a foggy version of him, right in front of my face. He slowly comes into focus, my eyes dry and burning, as he kneels down in front of me. I can make out Spiney standing beside him, and another guy I recognize as one of Brayden’s brothers, but don’t remember his name. We’re in some sort of trailer or back of a small cargo truck. The drugs I inhaled to knock me out have left me even more fucked up than before, and the urge to vomit is creeping up my throat.
“There she is,” Brayden smiles sinisterly, showing me an unearthly demon in his expression.
My head hurts from trauma, my wrists burning, and the zip ties holding them behind my back are digging into my skin. I’m only wearing Dornan’s t-shirt and a pair of panties, which I’ve sweat through and stick to my damp skin. The air inside the trailer is stifling, which adds to my nausea. I hear a whimper and look towards the front of the trailer, Bagheera’s lying on the floor, a rope tied to his neck that’s attached to a lever above him. If it wasn’t for him making noises I’d think he was dead, my heart aches seeing him lying there in obvious distress. I wonder if this is it for us, there’s no way I’m in any shape physically to get us out, and the sorrow that my dog will be hurt or killed, fills me with anguish.
“I guess I should tell you what this is all about,” Brayden says reaching behind me, grabbing the back of my hair and yanking my head towards him.
“Since your club decided that they’re pussies and have your back over club business, we decided our club needed to take out yours. In order to dismantle the Warrior of the Gods, we recruited your prospect here.”
He tips his head back towards Spiney. It’s then I realize how Spiney knew where I lived without asking me. Granted Sven could’ve told him, but now I think that’s not the case.
“Me and some brothers went to break into your place, we were gonna put this plan into motion then...but your fucking loser boyfriend was there and your neighbor was watching us. So we decided just to get a lay of your house… no security system,” he tsks. “Stupid for you of all people.”
Brayden smiles like the devil he is, I then feel something warm on my forehead and under my nose, and know it’s blood.
“Burning down the strip clubs, that was just the beginning of this. Your death and the death of your Pres and his only heir to the club is the end. Resulting in the club’s dismantle, and the beginning of The Children of the Reaper becoming the largest MC known to man.”
I’m not scared for some reason, I’ve never feared that my death would come from being a part of this club, due to the things I’ve done. I’ve killed people, hurt them, lied, stolen...I deserve whatever is about to happen to me. But knowing they plan to kill Sven and Dornan, the impact that will have on not only the club, but Missy, it will ruin her.
Brayden’s just looking at me, trying to see if his words have caused a reaction. Of course my outward appearance doesn’t allow one, but inside, I’m shattering. It’s then I notice, I hear no traffic, no other cars around us and I wonder if we’re out in the desert. There are stretches of road out here, that sometimes you don’t see another vehicle for miles. Brayden slaps me again with his free hand, while pulling my hair harder with the other.
“Do you understand?” he asks through clenched teeth. “We’re taking you to the desert, gonna call your man and get him and his old ass dad out here. By the time they get to you, you’ll be dead- not even in a grave, just right on the fucking ground. You won’t even get a shallow hole like your bitch mom.”
My eyes meet his and I can’t help but show him the spark of shock there.
“Oh yeah, didn’t know I knew that, huh?” His brows raise.
“Judas was there when she was killed, said she cried like a fucking baby when they had a knife to her throat. Pleading that she was a mom and you needed her, pissed herself too. You think you’ll do that?”
I let out a long shaky breath, clenching my jaw, and stare into the eyes of a man I once thought I loved.
“You think you’re so fucking hard, but I know you, better than you think I do.”
He doesn’t, he doesn’t fucking know me. He knew the me before I found the love of Dornan, the man who truly, with every cell of his being loves me. He knew me as the shell of a person I’d become because of him, with Brayden I was someone else. Weak inside, thinking I deserved the little slice of anything this married man had for me. I allowed him to treat me like I was nothing, like I didn’t matter, or even have feelings. But thanks to him I can appreciate the man I love now, the man who’s always loved me and never stopped, even when my time was wasted with this piece of shit before me.
When I don’t say a word, I can see the anger build in him, and the moment his patience and self-control snaps. His fist makes contact with my jaw, before slamming the back of my head into the steel trailer wall. He keeps hitting me until he’s knocked me onto my back, I can taste the metallic flavor of blood before he puts his hands around my throat, squeezing. My legs are kicking at nothing as I try to loosen his hold somehow, his hands only grow tighter as his eyes darken. He constricts harder and harder and I hear the bones in my neck cracking, my eyes flutter and fill with white light. It’s almost a sense of euphoria, that this is death. But that feeling of tranquility only lasts a moment before he’s smacking my face, bringing me back from the brink.
“I’m not done with you yet.”
My eyes open as I groggily try to focus once more, then his hands are there again, strangling me. His eyes are filled with hate and rage, sweat rolling down the tip of his nose as he shakes with the strength he’s exerting. Part of me hopes he will snap my neck, instead of slowly suffocating me. He does this several times, making me black out from lack of oxygen, before reviving me and repeating. I’m praying or at least pleading to some higher power to not let me wake up next time, for him to break my neck or just give up. I can’t even fight him, my body’s limp, but I feel tears and blood pouring down my face. I know Brayden’s enjoying this, seeing me like this. He even laughs when I wake up, happy he can continue his torture. There’s a part of me, the part that can still think, that pictures Dornan finding my body in the desert and I hope for his sanity he doesn’t. I hope they never find me, so he won’t have to live his l
ife with that memory. I want to scream for Brayden to just kill me, but I have no voice. Suddenly, I hear pops and the trailer begins to bounce on flat tires, the driver yelling back to us.
“Fuck! We’re hit!”
18
*Dornan*
Joey, Drag, and I were heading back to the club when I got the call from Chilly. I usually don’t answer my cellphone when I’m riding, but something caused me to pull over and answer it. I knew once we got started on the run, that Drag wasn’t the snitch. Something didn’t seem right to me about it being him to begin with, but it still didn’t stop me and Joey from taking him out to the desert and confronting him.
When Chilly told me that he was following a truck on the freeway, that Brayden, Spiney, and Max had taken Maven from her house and thrown her lifeless body into a trailer truck, my heart stopped. When he told me he didn’t think she was dead, it allowed some solace. I have something to hold onto, something to get me to her faster knowing she’s alive.
Chilly said he assumed they were using her to get to me, and my blood boiled. The thought that whatever they had done to render her unconscious, reaffirmed that by the end of the day, Brayden would be dead.
I asked Chilly how he even knew she was taken, to have witnessed what was going on. He said she’d called him a few weeks ago, telling him she thought The Children of the Reaper were trying to collect personal information of our members. He said it didn’t sit well with him since Maven rarely ever called him personally. That he heard in her voice that there was something she wasn’t saying, like they were trying to get information on her, and not the club. So he decided to keep an eye on her ever since, installing cameras on the light post outside her house and on the garage. Why she didn’t tell me she thought she was in danger, I don’t know, and I don’t have time to think about it.
Running with the Devil: Plantain Series Book One Page 20