Talon

by Savannah Rylan

  “You need to get that looked at. It could get infected. You could lose too much blood!” I was gushing, trying to persuade him to come away with me and Glock pressed a forefinger to my lips and I clamped my mouth shut.

  “I’ll be fine, Sage,” he said, and he tipped his face close to mine. I opened my mouth, which still had some dried blood caked around it but Glock didn’t care.

  He pressed his lips to mine and I sunk into him. He had wrapped his arms around me and our hips fused as we kissed. It was a slow passionate kiss, a lot like the kisses we used to experience when we were teenagers before I’d left for San Francisco.

  Glock’s hands bunched up the fabric of my t-shirt before his hands traveled down to my ass. He held me tightly, while I remained pressed to his chest, sinking further and further into that kiss. My heart was thudding against my ribcage, my body was warming. I felt safe in his arms, even though we were only a few feet away from the house, inside which there was still a war raging.

  Just as abruptly as he had started kissing me, Glock pulled his lips away from mine. Our lips smacked, and I stared at him from under my heavy lids, breathing hard. I hadn’t wanted that kiss to end, I wished we could have kept kissing forever.

  Glock lifted a hand and tenderly tucked a bunch of my stray hair behind my ears. His eyes shifted, and he looked at my pickup, inside which, Casey had already safely deposited herself.

  “I have to go back in there, Sage, I’m sorry, I want to drive you back to safety, but my brothers need my help,” he said, and I had no other choice but to nod my head.

  We were looking into each other’s eyes. I knew what this meant. This was a sort of goodbye. There was no guarantee that Glock was going to get out of there alive. The Bad Disciples were already outnumbered, and I knew that once they found out that Glock had killed their leader, all Hell was going to break loose.

  “Glock, I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have done this, it was very stupid of me,” I said to him, still holding onto his hand because I was too afraid to let go of him. He clutched the side of my face and squeezed it firmly, before he ran a finger over my lip.

  “Just go back to the warehouse, and stay there. Get Kylie or Noelle to have a look at your bruises, and Casey’s,” he said, and I nodded my head. I could feel tears rolling down my cheeks. It was now or never. It was time for me to admit the truth to him, that I had always been in love with him. That I couldn’t leave Long Beach now because I knew that I would never be able to find a man like him anywhere else.

  “Get in the truck and drive, Sage, go!” he commanded me, and Glock stepped away. His voice was firm and harsh. The spell was broken. He was itching to go back into the house and fight alongside his brothers, and he wanted me to get out of there.

  I held back my tears and rubbing my cheeks with the back of my hands, I opened the truck door and got in. It was like Glock was forever pushing me away, punishing me for that time ten years ago, when I had disappeared from his life without a word.

  He had rescued me now, saved my life; and now he was about to walk back into the line of fire and fight. This could be the last time that I ever saw him.

  A cry rose up in my throat as I pushed the key into the ignition and started the truck. Casey was sitting beside me, still shaking and whimpering from the shock of everything that had happened.

  “Thank you, Sage, thank you for everything that you and the Bad Disciples have done for me…” she whimpered through her tears. I didn’t even have the words to respond to that, all I could do was watch the diminishing figure of Glock as I backed out down the dusty driveway.

  Glock waited until the truck was back on the main road, and then I saw him turn and run towards the house, up the steps, and the sound of gunfire filled the air.

  I was driving, and I was crying at the same time.

  “Is he going to be okay?” I heard Casey ask, and I lost my patience with her for a moment.

  “I don’t know,” I said honestly as tears streamed down my face.

  ***

  Casey and I were both banging on the secure door of the warehouse. She was still crying, and I was looking over my shoulders in panic, still afraid that we had been followed somehow.

  A small hatch opened at the side of the door, and I recognized Brooklyn’s eyes peeping through it.

  “Oh, my God! They’re here!” she screamed, and then I heard hands pulling up the door collectively until it gave way and we were facing a group of women who were pulling us in.

  Casey fell into their arms, quickly whisked away by some of the other girls so that her bruises could be looked at. I knew that it would be a long time before she could properly recover from the attacks and the torture, both physical and mental; which she had faced at the hands of the Dragon Knights.

  Brooklyn had her arms around me, and she along with Kylie and Noelle were leading me into their office space, which was just another section of the warehouse.

  “Sit down, here, Sage, sit here,” Kylie was moving pillows and cushions around on the single bed in the room, making space for me to sit.

  “Hun, would you like something to drink? A coffee maybe?” one of the other girls had poked her head around the door of the office to ask.

  “No, thanks,” I replied, in a soft muttering voice. Noelle was already crouched on the ground, in front of one of the cupboards, extracting bandages and creams to apply on the wounds on my face and arms.

  “Get her a shot of whiskey, Sandy, thanks,” Brooklyn told the girl, who immediately went away.

  “Is Casey going to be all right?” I asked them, as Noelle hovered over me now, busying herself with the first aid.

  “She’ll take some time to recuperate, I’m sure. We haven’t had a chance to speak with her yet, the girls will help her settle in and get a good night’s sleep first,” Kylie explained, and I nodded my head.

  “Now, hold still, Sage. This might sting, but I need to disinfect the gash,” Noelle said, as she dabbed a cue tip in the cream. I held still and did as I was told. I had a feeling that these women had already seen a number of these cases and knew exactly what to do.

  Nobody talked, while Noelle worked away. She had bandaged the open wounds on my face and applied a soothing cream to the spots on my arms and neck where Brick and the other men had pinched my skin by holding me too tightly.

  “Glock is hurt, and he’s still out there,” I murmured when Noelle finally stepped away. The three of them were staring at me with horror on their faces.

  “What’s going on out there?” Kylie asked, and I gulped before I spoke.

  “There was a shootout, with them and some members of the Dragon Knights. Glock had to kill the president to rescue Casey and me,” I blurted out, and I saw the shocked expressions on their faces. The women were exchanging horrified looks.

  “He killed Brick? Are you sure?” Brooklyn asked, placing an affectionate hand on my shoulder.

  “Yes, he did,” I replied and the women stared at each other again. I could sense that this was a very big deal.

  “What do you think is going to happen?” I asked I could hear my voice cracking. I knew I was about to break into another burst of tears again. I couldn’t remember the last time I had cried this much. I didn’t think I had ever cried this much.

  Kylie crouched down in front of me and placed her hands on my knees and squeezed.

  “They’re going to make it out of there, that’s what’s going to happen,” she said, holding my gaze firmly. It was like she was telling herself the same thing, she had convinced herself of it because it was the only way for these women to keep living their days. I realized that they faced this every other day, knowing that their men were out there, fighting wars and walking into lines of fire. How did they live their lives like that?

  “We trust them, Sage, that they will never get themselves killed without saying their goodbyes to their families and their women first,” Brooklyn said, and I could feel my throat going dry.

  “But Glock said his goodbyes t
o me, he said that he had to go back in there and fight with his brothers,” the tears had welled up in my eyes, and the women tried to console me as I cried.

  “No, he hasn’t, the others haven’t. They’re going to make it out of there, don’t worry, Sage,” Noelle said.

  “Besides, Axel’s reinforcements would have reached them by now. There is strength in numbers,” Brooklyn added, and I tried to nod my head.

  Sandy was back, she was carrying a tray with four shot glasses filled to the brim with whiskeys. She handed the glasses around, and we each took one.

  “How is Casey doing?” I asked her, and she smiled encouragingly at me.

  “She ate a sandwich, and now she’s trying to get some sleep. We’ll talk to her tomorrow, hun,” Sandy said and then she left.

  The other women and I were sitting together, huddled on the bed now, with the shot glasses in our hands. Our men were out there, and we were waiting for any news. Glock wasn’t even my man, he was my friend! Wasn’t he? Friends who kissed and fucked, a friend who I was desperately in love with. Did I even belong to this group? Wasn’t I the one responsible for getting all these Bad Disciples men into the situation they were in right now?

  “Drink up Sage, and then I’ll drive you back to your house okay? You need to spend the night in the comforts of your own home,” Brooklyn said. I lifted the shot glass to my lips, but I shook my head.

  “No, I’m not going anywhere. I’m staying right here with you guys,” I replied.

  Chapter 21

  Glock

  We came out bloodied from the house, and we knew that we wouldn’t have been able to make it out of there alive if our other brothers from the club hadn’t come to our rescue.

  After some guys from the Dragon Knights found Brick lying dead in the basement, all Hell broke loose like I had predicted. They came hard for us, and we fought back equally hard.

  By the time it was over, the Dragon Knights had gone scampering away, but none of my brothers were fatally injured; even though we were all carrying bruises and wounds.

  The Rusty Pelican was charged up now. The drinks were pouring freely while we all celebrated. Chances were, that with Brick dead it would take the Dragon Knights even longer this time to rise up from the ashes.

  Noelle was working on the wound on my shoulder, while I sat on a bar stool now, downing can after can of beer. She was stitching me up, and I was clenching my jaws through the pain.

  “Sage refused to go back home,” she whispered to me, while my brothers celebrated loudly around us. The music was loud too, but I’d heard what Noelle had said.

  “Is she still at the warehouse?” I asked her, glad for the distraction from the stitches she was giving me without anesthesia.

  “She was until we heard that you guys were back here. Brooklyn dropped her over to her mom’s house before we came here. We invited her to come with us, so she could join us in our celebrations, but she refused,” Noelle replied. I didn’t have to ask her to know why Sage had refused to come here.

  It was partly because she wouldn’t have believed that she belonged here among us, and partly, she probably blamed herself for what had happened tonight. It wasn’t her fault. It wasn’t Noelle’s or any of the other women’s either. They had made a decision based on the fact that we weren’t answering our phones. We should have kept an eye on our phones, so technically it was our fault.

  “She’s a good woman,” Noelle continued, and I drew my shoulder away from her. She was done with the stitches now. I knew where Noelle was trying to go with this, and I didn’t care for her opinion, or anyone else’s on my relationship with Sage. They had no idea how I felt for her. They didn’t know how desperately I wanted to keep her safe.

  “She was very worried about you,” she added, just as Axel joined us. He’d already congratulated us when we came in, and now he was drunk and in an even better mood.

  “Glock!” he hollered and thumped my back in congratulations. I smiled as we knocked our cans of beer together and took large gulps of the drink. Noelle walked over to Tank and melted into his arms.

  “You got the fucker!” Axel added and sat down on a stool beside me. When I had first walked into the Rusty Pelican, I was worried if Axel might take the news badly. He hadn’t given us the orders specifically to kill Brick yet. We were just supposed to keep him under observation till the final decision was made. But Axel had rejoiced when he heard about how I killed him.

  “It’s not over though, Axel,” I said, and he nodded his head knowingly.

  “I know there will be retaliation. But those headless chickens can’t function without Brick, I know that too. They’re going to run around like crazy motherfucking idiots,” he said with a laugh and drank some more of the beer.

  “That’s all we can hope for,” I replied, and we smiled at each other.

  “That was a job well done, Glock,” he said and thumped my back again. Axel had too much to drink tonight, and he was full of praises.

  “And that little redhead of yours…she got us into a bit of trouble tonight, didn’t she?” he continued, and my muscles stiffened. There was no way that I was going to allow anybody to blame Sage for this.

  “She was trying to rescue a girl who needed her help. That’s what any one of us would have tried to do if we were in her position,” I was quick to jump to her defense and Axel thumped my back again.

  “Don’t worry, Glock, I’m not pointing fingers, in fact, I would like to speak to her, the first chance that I can get,” he said, and I stared at him with my brows crossed.

  “About what?” I asked, a little rudely.

  “Well, the other women have been speaking to me. They told me how helpful she has been, how genuinely she wants to work with them and I think Sage could be an asset to us,” Axel replied, and I stood up from my stool with a jerk.

  “I don’t think it would be a good idea, Axel, she has a job waiting for her in San Francisco. She has to go back there soon, there’s no use getting her involved in all this,” I said and crushed the beer can in my hand.

  “Don’t you think it should be her decision, Glock?” Axel asked me with a smile. I got the feeling that he had a pretty good idea of what was going on. He knew I was trying to be protective of her, but it wasn’t working.

  I said nothing to him, and Axel stood up from his stool too.

  “Get her to come and see me tomorrow. We can hash the details out together. Don’t you think we need help in whatever way we can get? These are tough times, son,” Axel said, and with that, he had turned from me and walked to the group standing beside me.

  While a celebratory cheer rang out as they all lifted their cans in the air, I couldn’t stop thinking about Sage and how she should have never come back to Long Beach.

  ***

  It was three in the morning by the time I got to the front of Sage’s house. The lights were all out, but I knew which window was hers. I had spent countless nights gazing up at the window after Sage had left.

  Now that I sat on my bike, looking up at the dark window of her room, I felt like I was seventeen years old again. I could feel the same anxieties creeping up on me; wishing and hoping that Sage was okay, that she could be happy, and the realization that I missed her. Although now, there was another added emotion that I was feeling; that despite how much I was still in love with her, I wanted her to leave. Just for my own peace of mind.

  I got off my bike and picked up a few pebbles and threw them at her window. They rattled against the glass. I was a twenty-seven-year-old man throwing pebbles at the window of a twenty-seven-year-old woman. I nearly smiled at the thought of what my brothers would say if they caught me doing this.

  In a few moments, I saw Sage at the window, she was looking out at me. I spread my arms out and shrugged my shoulders, and then she had disappeared from the window again.

  I waited for a few minutes, leaning back against my bike until I saw the front door of the house opening. Sage was stepping out in her nightclothes. She
was in a red silk slip, that was short beyond words, reaching way up over her thighs. She had slipped on a silvery silk robe over herself, that barely covered her body. Her red hair was a flaming curtain behind her. Noelle had done a good job of cleaning away the wound on her mouth, and though I could still see the signs of it there.

  She took the steps one at a time from her porch, before finally, she was standing in front of me. Her eyes were large and green in the moonlight as she stared back at me, and suddenly, I felt tongue-tied.

  “How are you doing?” I managed to ask her, and I stuffed my hands into the pockets of my pants. She shrugged her shoulders and wrapped her arms around herself like she was cold.

  “I was feeling better once I found out that you were still alive. How are you doing?” she said and looked at the gunshot wound on my shoulder. Noelle had wrapped the wound in gauze and told me that it would take a few weeks for it to heal, and the bullet had only grazed my flesh and hadn’t done any permanent damage.

  “As good as new,” I said, and Sage smiled weakly.

  “Noelle is a magician,” she said, and I nodded my head.

  “More like a witch with secret dark powers,” I added and we smiled at each other.

  I watched as Sage breathed in deeply, her eyes grew small, and I knew that she was about to say something that I didn’t want to hear.

  “Glock, I really thought that you were going to die tonight in there,” she said, and I clenched my jaw. I had spent the last few years, since I joined the MC, without being answerable to anyone or being responsible for anybody. With Sage here now, the fact that she had been worried for me, made me feel strange.

  “I was fine. It’s all a part of my job,” I replied and she shook her head.

  “I can’t wrap my head around how you go out there every day and take part in something like that. I don’t understand how the other women deal with their men living lives like that,” she said, and she had her brows crossed.