Biker Brigade

by Pierce, Nicolette

  Two million dollars.

  And now it’d be used for the same purpose.

  Clicking back to the menu, I found the calculator app that Aaron had told me about. I briefly pondered what the password could be. But Brett’s codes were starting to become obvious. He created the account to find Eve’s killer. I typed in Eve’s name and was granted access. I read the two options. Accept assignment or Create assignment.

  Create.

  I filled in the information as I knew it. The hit would be for Carver aka Mr. Wispy aka Gatekeeper. The price on his head was two million. Proof of death required.

  My finger hovered above the post button. Could I do this? Could I take another life so easily? And pay two million dollars! I knew if I did this, the price had to be high. I wanted the job done quickly, before Carver found out and retaliated. His retaliation would be brutal.

  So, why did I hover?

  He nearly killed Brett and me. I had to do this. There were no other options.

  Rand brushed my hand aside and pressed “post.” The assignment was sent.

  I looked up at him, questioningly.

  “You don’t need a life of regrets,” he said. “The gatekeeper doesn’t deserve them.”

  I’m not sure if I would’ve regretted it. I wanted him dead.

  He sat on the edge of the bed. “Sometimes it’s better not to know how dark we are inside.”

  I hugged him, silently thanking him for taking the choice out of my hands.

  Within minutes of the post, there were more than ten acceptances.

  I looked at Rand. May the best man win?

  He nodded.

  I sent each one the agreement with the knowledge that there were more hitmen in the running and only one would receive the payout.

  “With any luck, they might wipe each other out,” Rand said.

  How long do you think it’ll take before Carver finds out?

  “He probably already knows but it’s too late for him to stop it.”

  I better let T know. Just in case Carver tries to call in all of his markers.

  T had no idea Brett was in the hospital. If I texted from Brett’s phone, he’d think it was Brett and I’d escape the one hundred questions I was sure to receive, plus whatever scolding was waiting for me.

  Marked gatekeeper for hit. Get Kym and family to safety.

  T responded with an affirmative, and I nearly laughed. It was so much easier talking to T while under guise of Brett. No questions. No arguments. Just an okay.

  Now all I had to do was wait for Brett to wake up and get him out of here.

  “Hey, sugar,” Evan said, walking into the room. “How are you feeling?”

  I tapped my throat with a frown.

  Rand stood from the bed and moved out of Evan’s way.

  “Open,” Evan said, checking my mouth. “Looks red, but I don’t see any inflammation. Just give it a rest and eat lots of ice cream.”

  I smiled.

  “I miss you.” He took my hand, his thumb drifting over my fingers. “It’d be nice if you visited without landing in the hospital.”

  I scowled at him, which only made him chuckle. Nodding over to Brett, I rose my brow in question.

  “He was hit in the back of the head. Knocked him out. Thankfully he didn’t inhale any of the dirt like you did, so he’ll be up and about in no time. It might take a lot of sleep before he wakes up. His brain has to unscramble.”

  “Doctor lingo?” I rasped.

  “Getting my money’s worth out of Harvard.” He stared hard at me for a moment before he leaned over and kissed my forehead. “I do miss you, sugar. If you have time before you go, I’ll take you out to dinner.” He glanced over at Brett. “Him too, if you want.”

  I hugged him. “Thank you,” I rasped. “For coming—”

  He stopped me. “Save your voice. You know I’d do anything for you.” He straightened and walked to the door. “I have rounds. Don’t leave without saying good-bye.”

  I nodded.

  Rand looked between us curiously but didn’t comment, even after Evan had left.

  I took up the notebook to write another note.

  Tell my dad and the girls to go. They don’t have to wait for me.

  “They want to wait.”

  I shook my head.

  It will be safer if they’re on the road.

  “I’ll tell them, but they won’t agree.”

  Make them agree.

  “You’re becoming demanding,” he said, walking out the door.

  I leaned back, letting my head fall to the pillow. Did I do everything I was supposed to? Were there any loose ends?

  The Thompsons would be heading to the airport soon. T would look after Kym’s family. Dad and the girls would get on the road, distancing themselves from Carver’s reach, if only temporarily. Rand would be on the first flight tomorrow.

  Only Brett and I remained. And until he woke up, we weren’t going anywhere.

  For now, everything was taken care of.

  Dad and ladies bustled in.

  “What’s this about hitting the road?” Mrs. Janowski demanded.

  There’s no reason to stay, I scribbled on the paper. I’ll wait here until Brett is released.

  “Nonsense,” Ida said. “We’ll all wait here and then drive home together.”

  I shook my head, looking to Rand for help.

  Rand sighed. “I think what she’s trying to tell you is that she wants to be left alone with Brett.”

  I nodded vigorously.

  Mrs. Janowski frowned. “I don’t like leaving you here with the gatekeeper still on the loose.”

  “I’ll be here,” Rand said. “Apparently, I’m waiting for my passport.”

  Mrs. Janowski studied him for a moment. “Well, as long as one of you checks in daily.”

  I nodded.

  “I don’t like this, but I guess there’s no harm in leaving you in a hospital,” she said, then she looked at the ladies. “Might as well head home so we can roll out our next project.”

  “Project?” I squeaked.

  “The biker brigade did its job, but it also left its mark,” she said, rubbing her behind. “We’ve been thinking about something we could do from home.”

  “You’ve been thinking,” Sylvia corrected.

  Mrs. Janowski ignored her. “I’ve come up with the perfect name.”

  My brows rose. If she already had a name, then her plan was as good as cemented.

  “The Fearsome Foursome,” she announced.

  I wanted to cry but then realized she said “foursome.” Not foursome and Mars. I was in the clear. Well, until her plan spiraled out of control and I was wrangled in. But for now, the foursome could go home.

  They each gave me a peck on the cheek before taking their leave.

  “Do you want me to go too?” Rand asked.

  I shook my head. “Stay,” I whispered.

  He sat down in the chair next to me. “Go to sleep. You look like shit.”

  I was tired. I hadn’t realized how much until everyone had gone and there wasn’t anything to do but wait. I stared at Brett and wished he would move or blink. Do something to let me know he was okay. But there was nothing to reassure me except the rhythmic beeping of the heart monitor.

  Rand took my hand and gently squeezed it. “He’ll be fine. I knocked him around much worse than this when we were kids.”

  I looked at Rand as if he was absurd. Even though Rand was the biggest of the pair, I doubted Brett ever landed in the hospital after a round. Maybe to the doctor for a cut or sprain.

  “Go to sleep,” he ordered.

  I closed my eyes but couldn’t sleep. I shook my head. “Too much dirt.”

  Rand nodded in understanding. “Wait here. I’ll be right back.”

  Wait here? Where did he think I’d go?

  Since I wasn’t going to close my eyes in the near future for fear of the earth swallowing me whole, I watched the rise and fall of Brett’s chest. It’d be so
much nicer to be snuggled up in his bed than to watch him from a mile away. Had it not been for all the contraptions he was hooked up to, I might have attempted it.

  I heard the door open but didn’t bother looking. It was probably just Rand or a nurse.

  “Did you really think you could use my own hitmen against me?” The whispered question drenched me in frigged fear.

  The gatekeeper was here.

  Chapter 21

  Jerking my head toward the door, I saw Carver clearly for the first time. At one point in

  his life, he had gone through terrible trauma. Perhaps a fire. His skin blotchy red in one part and paper white in another, all with bumps and welts.

  Had he been a good person, I would’ve felt bad for him. The carving knife he wielded in his hands demolished that pity.

  I scanned the room for something to defend myself with, but there was nothing, and I was still hooked up to an IV. Breaking the IV stand over his head came to mind. I’d just have to take the needle out of my arm. Extreme dizziness followed that thought.

  “Don’t bother,” he said, seemingly reading my mind. “I don’t plan on staying long.”

  He brought back his arm, aiming his knife at me. Behind him, the door cracked open and a man I’d never seen before slid in. It only took one second for the assassin to do his job. Carver plummeted to the floor, his neck broken.

  The assassin took a picture of Carver with his phone and then looked up at me. I knew instantly that I’d be his next victim. No witnesses.

  “If you want your two million you’ll leave me alone,” I rasped.

  “Viper?” he questioned.

  I nodded.

  “Payment due,” he said and was gone as quickly and as quietly as he’d come.

  I closed my eyes and let out a shuddered breath.

  Rand came in next and nearly tripped over Carver. “What the fuck happened? I left you alone for one minute!”

  “Carver,” I whispered, pointing to the crumbled body. “Then hitman.”

  “Where is he now?”

  I shrugged. “Gone. Payment due.”

  Rand rubbed his face. “I’m starting to understand Brett more and more,” he muttered. He cracked open the door and called for help.

  Within a matter of minutes, Carver was removed and two officers were at my bedside to question me.

  Rand answered most of them while I nodded along, adding to the story when necessary. It was mostly true, but Brett’s involvement became that of worried boyfriend and nothing more. The rest, beginning with Annie and ending with Carver was the truth. The police were too surprised by the cemetery revelation and the possible number of victims buried there to drill us further.

  “I’m just an anxious boyfriend?” Brett questioned when the police had left.

  Rand and I looked over at him, wondering when he had regained consciousness. We found out right away that it was a drifting state. He promptly fell back asleep.

  I smiled and texted Brandy to overnight my passport. We’d be out of here by tomorrow.

  * * *

  “Where am I?”

  I turned from the window to the bed where Brett had been sleeping. “Venice.”

  “Florida?” He propped up on his elbows to look around, squinting at the midday sun.

  “Italy.”

  He blinked. “How did I get here?”

  “Rand and I dragged you here.” Almost quite literally a couple of times.

  “Rand?” Brett scanned the room.

  “He’s probably over at your parents’ suite right now.”

  Brett groaned and fell back to the bed, his arm slung over his face. “Sweet thing, you’re making my head hurt.”

  “Would you like me to start from the beginning?”

  “Yes.”

  “Carver knocked you senseless at the cemetery and dumped you into an open grave.”

  He peeked out from under his arm. “I remember coming at him from behind but then he somehow shifted and that was the last I remember.”

  “No thanks to you, the bikers were freed shortly after you had them arrested. They came and rescued you. You were in the hospital for a day. Evan was able to shove papers through for your release with my promise that I’d keep you drugged for another day.”

  “Which is why my head feels like a dump truck ran over it.”

  “Probably. That, and the wallop to your head.”

  “Come here,” he said, stretching his arm toward me.

  I crawled up on the bed.

  “Are we good?” he asked. “I can’t remember if you’re mad at me or if I was mad at you.”

  “We’re good. But you might be upset with me later.”

  “Why?”

  “I maxed out one of your credit cards getting everyone here. Carver was still alive, and I was afraid he’d go after your family.”

  “Was still alive? Did that change?”

  “That’s the other part you might be mad about.”

  He eyed me as if afraid to ask.

  “He’s no longer alive,” I said. “Annie is dead too. Carver killed her.”

  Relief washed over Brett, but then he froze. “You said I’d be mad. Why should I be mad about that?”

  I twisted my lips.

  “Mars, tell me.”

  “Carver was killed by a hitman for two million dollars. Paid in full.”

  Brett’s eyes widened.

  “Sorry,” I said.

  After the initial shock, he laughed.

  “You’re okay? You’re as broke as I am now.”

  He nodded. “I’d trade that money for your safety any day. It was a fitting end. I’m just sorry you had to be the one to do it.”

  “It was a team effort,” I said. “Rand posted the hit. You paid it.”

  Brett studied me for a moment. “You like him.”

  “Rand?”

  Brett nodded.

  “Yeah,” I admitted. “He’s a screwed-up man. But I like him.”

  Brett frowned. “I don’t like him around you.”

  “Too bad. He’s family.”

  “He’s family?” Brett repeated, suddenly looking at me differently. “And when did he become family?”

  I floundered. When Brett repeated my words, it sounded as if I’d inserted myself into the family. And, in a way, I had. But I didn’t want him to think I was fishing for a proposal. Not now. Not with him groggy.

  Brett wrapped his arm around me, tugging me closer. “Well?” he asked.

  “I just meant that he’s your family, and I like your family. All of them.”

  “You didn’t mean anything else by it?”

  “No.”

  He kissed the corner of my neck and whisked all my breath away. “Are you sure?”

  “Positive,” I said weakly.

  “We could change that.”

  Stunned, I scurried out of his arms and off the bed. “No.”

  “No?” he asked, sounding hurt.

  “You’re still dazed by the drugs and the injury. Just . . . just don’t.”

  “Mars, I love you,” he started.

  “And I love you,” I said. “And right now we’re in Italy with your family. Let’s just have a good time. We don’t have to rush anything.”

  “How can it be rushing when you’re all I think about?”

  I smiled, but then said, “It’s rushing because there are things I need to say.”

  “Then say them.”

  I let out an exasperated breath. “I don’t want to do this here.”

  “Then where?”

  “Home.”

  “Your home or mine?” he asked tersely.

  With that simple question, I was back to square one of not knowing how this relationship would work.

  “Either.”

  The muscle in his jaw twitched.

  This was not going according to plan. But, really, I had no plan. My hope had been to have a wonderful time in Italy and then sort things out later.

  “You really want to
do this now?” I asked.

  “Yes.”

  “Fine. If we’re going to have any kind of life together, you have to stop defaulting into cop mode every time there’s a whiff of danger. You keep too many secrets, and I’m obviously too bullheaded to let them stay a secret for long.”

  “Cop mode?”

  “You clam up and evade questions. You focus solely on fixing whatever problem is at hand. I feel like a porcelain doll stuck on a shelf that no one remembers to dust. I get one-word answers from you, and I don’t like it.”

  “I do it to protect you.”

  “We almost died.”

  He stopped. “We?”

  “We were buried alive in the grave. The bikers that you had arrested came and saved us. You can’t always protect everyone. Sometimes you need help.”

  He pinched the bridge of his nose and took a deep breath.

  “I’m sorry,” I said. “It’s the way it has to be. No more secrets. No more cop mode. You don’t like it when I’m in danger. It’s the same for me. I don’t like it when you are either, and I hate even more when I’m in the dark.”

  He looked over at me. “No, I’m sorry,” he said, stretching out his arm again. “Come here. Please.”

  I sat at the edge of the bed. His arm curled around my waist, holding me near. He closed his eyes.

  “You’re right,” he finally said. “This is not the time or place to have this discussion. But since we are, I think you should kiss me.”

  “What?” I asked, wondering if I’d heard him right. But, then again, it was Brett, and he was looking playfully at me. My Brett was returning.

  “You heard me.”

  “I know, but we were being serious.”

  “And you said you wanted to have fun in Italy. What could be more fun?”

  “You’re listening to me now?” I asked incredulously.

  “You’ve laid serious charges at my feet,” he said. “You’re right. I’m half drugged and shouldn’t always leap over mountains when there’s beauty right in front of me.”

  The heat of a blush started spreading over my cheeks. “So we can enjoy Italy?”

  “Starting now,” he said, tugging me down. I squealed when his lips touched a ticklish spot.

  A loud rap on the door broke his kiss.