Twisted Asphalt (Asphalt Outlaw Series Book 1)

by Blue Remy

  Coming to a screeching halt at the emergency entrance to the hospital, she parked half-hazard near the bikes. The girls jumped out and ran for the entrance, immediately looking for Stone as the doors swished open.

  Spotting the whole club in the waiting room, Amy made a beeline for them. “Dad?” Her voice shook with worry as Stone turned to face her. Romeo was quick to move to Maggie’s side, pulling her to him. Stone nodded to Amy, but turned to Maggie, who looked up at Romeo in confusion. “Maggie, sweetie.” Stone took ahold of her hand in both of his. Looking down, sorrow clouded his features. He drew in a breath and looked back up to Maggie. “Thorne was in an accident—“

  Maggie sagged in Romeo’s arms as tears filled her eyes. “What? Oh my God! Is she all right? What happened?”

  Amy’s heart nearly stopped when those words came out of her father’s mouth, barely feeling a hand take ahold of her own. Looking at the hand that held hers, she saw Mace, but couldn’t focus when her dad’s words caught her attention once more.

  “She’s in surgery now, we won’t know how she is until they’re done. Saber is getting stitches, he’s pretty badly banged up, but we’ll know more once we can get in to see him. All we know is that the ambulance flipped and Thorne was driving.”

  Romeo physically held Maggie up as the tears streamed down her face, her head shaking. “She’s got to be okay. She can’t die. She’s got to be okay.”

  Amy couldn’t hold her tears at seeing her friend torn apart. Breaking hold of Mace’s hand, she darted over to Maggie, taking her friend from her brother. “Shh, I’ve got you, Mags. Thorne will be okay. I promise. She’s tough, like you.” Amy maneuvered Maggie over to the seats, lowering them onto a sofa. She gently rocked her while they waited for Saber to come out.

  They all waited in silence, except for Maggie’s and Amy’s sniffles, several members switching with Amy and holding Maggie as they waited. Finally, Saber made his way out of the back area to the waiting room. Bandaged up on his forearm, his other arm hung in a sling with a brace. Blood covered his blue uniform and was matted in his hair, though he didn’t seem to notice.

  Everyone spoke at once, though Stone lifted his hand to get everyone quiet so Saber could speak.

  “What happened?” Stone voiced what everyone wanted to know.

  Saber glanced to Maggie then back to Stone. “Not in here.” He shook his head.

  Stone sighed, motioning for Dalton to take his turn with Maggie. Romeo, Mace, Axe, Talon, Stone and Amy followed Saber to the hallway, away from the distraught Maggie.

  “We were running to a call on the 101, must have been doing seventy, code three, when we were surrounded by bikes.” Saber licked his lips, shifting his weight almost like he wasn’t comfortable with what he had to say. “I don’t know how the fucker knew it was us, but Demon was riding with the TGMC and he made sure I saw it. Thorne tried to avoid hitting them, but they put us into a tight curve and she lost control when Demon pulled out a gun and shot out the tire.”

  “Holy shit, are you serious?” Amy breathed, half sagging against Mace, hearing what that son of a bitch did to them. It was no wonder he didn’t want Maggie to hear about what happened. Not only was her sister barely hanging on, but it was her Ol’Man that did it. She felt Mace’s arm wrap around her, a shiver of fear raced down her spine. If he was capable of hurting someone innocent, what the hell would he do to someone that wasn’t?

  “Thorne tried not to wreck, but it was unavoidable. We flipped and hit a tree. Her seatbelt broke and she slammed against the windshield and sliced her face open, along with her jugular. She died on me twice. We had to air lift her here.”

  Stone whistled low, shifting his weight; his hands held a white knuckle grip on his hips as he looked around to the brothers, then back to Saber. “This…” he cleared his throat and looked at the ceiling, tongue running over his lips. Swallowing, he finally looked back to Saber. “This doesn’t go unpunished. That little girl in there was in my home just as much as Maggie was. She is just as much our family as any of you. We take care of our own.

  “I want Dalton on her room when she comes out of surgery, if he has to take a piss, he better call someone to relieve him before he leaves that door. We don’t know who Demon was after. If it was you, Saber, or if it was Thorne, since she’s Maggie’s sister.”

  Amy looked over to the doctor, leaving a sobbing Maggie behind. “Dad! The doctor!” She prayed with everything she had that Thorne survived the operation and that wasn’t bad news Maggie just received.

  Stone stopped the doctor, who turned, looking a bit frightened at the seven people surrounding him. Saber placed his hand on Stone’s arm and shook his head at him.

  “Doc, I’m Thorne’s partner, well, Espina. Johnny Kilpatrick. How is she?” Saber held his hand toward the doctor.

  “I’ve seen you in here with her before, Johnny. It’s nice to meet you formally, even under the circumstances. She’s stable for now. She’s got a battle ahead of her with fighting infections from the cuts and the psychological trauma she’ll be facing if she gets through that.” The doctor shook his hand and looked to each person, then back to Saber. “She’ll be scarred. Over three hundred exterior stitches and over a hundred interior stitches to her face. The repair to her jugular might affect her voice as well. She’s going to need her family now more than ever. Miss Lopez was very lucky to have you there, Johnny. You kept her alive long enough to get her here.”

  Amy’s mind reeled. How could this happen to someone so sweet? To someone who, in all purposes, was family? How was Demon so vicious? What had made him this way? “Maggie. I’ve got to go to Maggie.” She let go of Mace and ventured back, in a daze, to her friend. “Go to the guys, Dalton. I’ve got her.”

  Sitting down next to Maggie, she brushed her friend’s hair out of her face. “Maggie? Are you going to be okay?” She knew it was a dumb question, but Thorne was all Maggie had left. Their parents were dead; they only had each other and the club.

  “I don’t know. The doctor said she’s pretty cut up and they have her face and neck completely bandaged. Saber saved her life.”

  Amy nodded, lifting both hands to wipe her friend’s tears away. “He did the best he could, Maggie. She’s going to be fine. I’m sure it’s not anything plastic surgery can’t fix, if she wants to.”

  “She’s unconscious, but they said I can stay in her room with her, so I’m going to stay until she wakes up.”

  Amy nodded and drew in a deep breath, followed by a long exhale. “I’ll go grab you a change of clothes and bring them to you. Dalton will be staying here, in case you need anything, okay? I’ll only be about an hour tops.” She kissed the top of Maggie’s head, then rose to find Dalton. Seeing him with the guys, she walked over to them.

  The group grew quiet when she neared, stopping in front of the prospect. “Under no circumstances are you to tell Maggie that Demon was involved in this. Understood?” When the prospect nodded, she gave him a thin lipped smile. “If I find out you have, you better turn your cut in and disappear, because my wrath is worse than anything any of these men could dream of doing to you.”

  CHAPTER 22

  Too. Damn. Loud.

  Mace couldn’t quiet the voices in his head.

  They were so damn loud, he barely heard the rumble of the engine or the whistle of the wind. Rolling into the throttle, he urged the Harley faster, praying the speed would drown out the murmuring of his conscience trying to tell him he was fucked, and not in a good way. He hadn’t wanted to break out his dad’s old Sportster, but it was worth it in the end. Romeo worked on his bike while Mace ran errands getting parts.

  He got them, but had another errand to run. In four days, his world was going to be destroyed. Well, Mace’s, and part of Sam’s too. They had the same heart after all, and it would be shattered when he closed the door to this life. The run to Lompoc loomed over him like a black cloud. Pulling into the warehouse, Jones rolled the door closed behind him. Turning off the engine, Mace wre
nched his helmet off, setting it on the throttle handle before he climbed off. He nodded to Jones. “Sir.”

  “I’ve heard major shit has been going down with the club. What’s going on?” Jones crossed his arms over his chest, brows rising in expectancy.

  “Got anything to drink in this shithole?” Mace growled, both hands dragging through his hair as he began to pace.

  “Do we need to pull you out now?” Jones asked, concern filtering through his tone.

  “Fuck no,” Mace spun around to face Jones. “You pull me now, and you’ve wasted nearly three years of investigation and fucking blood. Are you smoking crack?”

  Jones blanched at the verbal attack, straightening his shoulders as he stepped toward Mace. “Do we have a problem, Agent Dean?”

  Mace expelled a rather large breath. He had to get his shit together. Yelling at his superior was not the smartest move he’d ever made. He had never been this conflicted before. It was slowly driving him insane. It’s no wonder very few people could handle being this deep undercover. He had lost the end goal. It was as if the road forked and he said fuck it, and plowed right down the middle.

  “I’m just really stressed.” He wandered over to the makeshift kitchenette the agents had set up, grabbed a cup and poured himself a helping of the liquid elixir. Taking a drink of the stout mud, he shuddered at the strength of the coffee. “A ton of shit has happened in the last week. I believe Angel Hernandez is the traitor in the club. After we fought, he trashed my bike and defected to the TGMC, then he attacked Saber and his partner, who now fights for her life. He wants Stone dead.”

  “Do you have any idea who runs the Temer Gallo now?” Jones moved over to the card table in the corner of the small kitchen area. “Miguel Velasquez.”

  Mace winced at the name. Miguel was also known as Muerte, or Death. The man was a living beast and made no qualms about it. In and out of prison his whole life, the six foot, one-hundred-ninety pound male was a force to be reckoned with. A walking illustrated man, the only things not tattooed, were his face and bald head. Most people who were lucky enough to live after meeting him, always said he could see all the way through your being with his soulless, black eyes. One was always guilty until proven innocent with him, Muerte was a shoot first, ask questions later, sort of man.

  “Holy shit. No wonder Demon went to him. He won’t take prisoners, he’ll kill them.” Mace shook his head, eyes dropping to the cup in his hands. “The run is in four days. There’s a meeting tomorrow with the club, we’re going over specifics for the run. Times, locations, the whole deal. I can let you know more then.”

  “You need to watch your back with Hernandez. Does he know where the run is?” Jones extended his legs out from the chair, then looked up at Mace.

  “He might. Stone might change it up. You never know with him. If he knows, we’re going to be fucked. Without lube or the courtesy of a reach around.”

  “Stay on top of it all, Sam. Let me know if you need anything and stay in touch. I don’t feel like losing one of my best agents.”

  Mace could only offer a strained smile. “I appreciate that, Shane.” He only used Jones’ first name in private, always respecting him otherwise. “I will. I’ll call tomorrow after the meeting and let you know what the hell is going on. Shit might have changed since Saber was hurt, but I doubt it.”

  Pushing off the counter, he dumped his coffee out and rinsed the cup, dried his hands and turned to face Jones. Mace reached out and shook his hand. “Thanks for everything, Shane.” Letting go, he walked over to his bike, climbed on and scooped up his helmet.

  “Watch your back, Sam. I don’t like this whole thing. Something doesn’t smell right.” Jones rose up, shoving his hands in his pockets.

  Mace nodded as he strapped on the helmet. “I always do.”

  * * * *

  It took iron cowboy meditation to clear his mind. Mace drove out Highway 166 to Nipomo, looped around and rode back, allowing the sound of the motor and blacktop to sooth his troubled mind. The swish…swish…swish of the white lines on asphalt was like a metronome, mesmerizing and calming. It allowed him to sort out the mish-mash thoughts that refused to come together and be coherent. He hadn’t lost himself. Sam was there, right beside Mace. The fact they shared the same heart didn’t mean they cohabited the same thoughts. Mace was cold and calculating, always thinking before he leapt. Sam tended to jump in with both feet before he thought about what he did. Sam was in love with Amethyst James. Heart, body and soul. Mace was just the name disguising Sam from her. Sam was still going to have to do his job, but his job was to take down the threat of the Six-Gun Outlaw MC.

  That threat was Demon.

  Yes, Stone and Romeo and whoever else was involved, were going to spend time in jail. Amy was going to hate him for doing it, but in the end, he was saving her life. Whether she liked it or not, he had a job to do, and upholding what he was sworn to protect came first. Pulling up to the shop, he parked and climbed off the bike, and made his way to the garage with the bag of parts. Seeing Romeo sitting on a rolling mechanics seat in front of his bike, he veered toward him. “Sorry it took so long. I had to get my head straight.”

  Romeo looked up, grease on his face and on his bald head. Grabbing a red rag, he wiped his hands and took the bag. “No problem, man. Shit happens. Sometimes it takes a long ride to clear it.”

  “Well, with the shit going on these past couple of days…” Mace let his sentence hang.

  “I don’t blame you. I’d bone out if I could. But this bike ain’t gonna get done by itself.” Romeo grinned, turning to wander over to the beer fridge. Pulling it open, he grabbed two beers, tossed one to Mace.

  Mace caught it, cracking it open, and tossed the cap into the trash. “How’s Thorne?”

  “Saber called earlier and said she woke up and is in a lot of pain. She can’t remember much though.” Romeo sighed and shook his head. “We got told there is an APB out on Demon. Arrest warrant for attempted murder. He’s hit the mattresses though.”

  “You know he has. He’d be dumb not to.” Mace grabbed another rolling seat and lowered himself onto it. “I got some intel myself. Guess who took over the Temer Gallo.”

  Romeo quirked his left brow, a quizzical look given. “Last I heard Lobo was running it.”

  Mace took a swig off the bottle. “Nope. Muerte.”

  Romeo froze, then slowly turned to look at Mace. “You’re shitting me.”

  “No, he’s what’s fueling Demon. Filling his head full of shit. More than likely, he killed Lobo and took over.”

  “Stone know yet?”

  “Nah, you’re the first I’ve told. I figured we could tell him at the meeting.”

  Romeo chugged down half of the bottle, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. “Good idea. By the way,” Romeo set his bottle to the bench and leaned back against it. “Your story checked out. Sorry I doubted your explanation, but it just seemed fishy. I’m sorry about what happened to your brother.”

  “I appreciate that, man. I’m not worried about it, I’m sure your balls have forgiven me by now.” Mace chuckled, finished off his beer and threw the bottle into the can. “I would have done the same thing.”

  “I know.”

  Mace tilted his head, eyes narrowed as he looked at Romeo. “How is Amy taking all of this? I haven’t seen her since the accident and she was avoiding me because of the fight.”

  “She’s sulking. Amy doesn’t like to admit it, but she’s got just as much club in her blood as me and Dad. We were raised in the business, and she was scared for you. She’ll deny it and act all pissed, but Demon scares the shit out of her.”

  “He should, especially after what he did.”

  Mace hadn’t meant to let it slip, but it came out anyway.

  “Pardon? What’s that supposed to mean?”

  Mace winced and sucked on his teeth for a moment. “Look, if Amy found out that I said anything, it’ll be my ass.”

  “You have my word.”
r />   Mace highly doubted that. “I’m not sure exactly what happened, so don’t quote me on it.”

  “Just spit it out already.”

  “I think Demon tried to rape her.”

  Before Mace could get out another word, Romeo roared to life. “That fucker’s dead.”

  “Calm the fuck down, brother. Now.” Mace hated to order Romeo like that, but it was needed in this situation, especially when the prospect stuck his head out of the office. “I’m not sure what happened. Amy won’t talk about it. I walked in on the aftermath. Demon was sliced open and the kitchen looked like World War III. She was locked in her room and wouldn’t come out. I got Demon out of there, threatened his life and cleaned up the mess. I slept in front of her door, on the floor.”

  “Why didn’t you tell anyone? We would have kicked his ass out, probably beat the shit out of him.”

  Mace half scoffed, half laughed. “I was a prospect, Romeo. Would anyone have believed me? Demon hated my ass and still does. He would have tried to turn it around.”

  “Amy would have never let it happen.”

  “She swept it under the carpet like any rape victim would.” Mace looked directly at Romeo. “She still can’t confront him or be around him without shaking.”

  “I wish we had known. That doesn’t change the fact. But, I understand why you didn’t tell—wait a minute. Was that when Little Joe hit her face?”

  “Yeah, it was then.”

  Romeo scratched the back of his barren head with a small chuckle. “Damn good cover story there, Mace. She was jumpy after that, too. All the signs were there, and we were too damn busy to notice.”

  “Don’t blame yourself, Romeo. I respected her wishes, and kept a promise not to tell anyone. If it got out of control, I would have come to you and Stone.”