“I didn’t know you guys were coming today!”
Papa puts me down. “I had some business to take care of down south, but as soon as that was done, I drove up here to check on my baby. We got some carne asada for dinner. I’ll cook you some dinner, spend time with you tonight, si, mija?”
“Si, papa! Vegas is already here. You want me to call Blade, Jenn and James over too?”
“Si, mija, if that’s what you want, mi corazon.”
“Come inside,” I ask as I lead the way. Reaching the kitchen to put the meat away, we see that Tank is standing there, chugging milk straight out of the carton, only in his boxers, in all his man glory. If I didn’t know him already, it would be quite a sight.
Mom’s face spreads in a humorous expression while Papa’s not so much and grunts, “Why the hell is this pinche asshole in your kitchen in his chonies for, mija?” He booms. “Does he not have a job to go to?”
Tank chokes mid gulp and Vegas laugh-snorts from around the corner, flipping Tank off.
“Sorry, Ghost. Dana, or Vegas,” he turns and glares a promise of death and torture at Vegas, “didn’t tell me there were visitors coming by today, or I wouldn’t be standing around in my underwear.” He explains a half heartfelt excuse.
“Do I look like a fucking visitor, cabron? Do I need to call ahead of time to come to el casa de mi hija? Doesn’t answer either goddamn questions I asked.” Ghost pointedly stares at Tank, impatiently waiting. Try being a teen and living in his house. It sucked.
“I am protecting Dana since the cop incident until it’s resolved, so I’m staying here.”
“In your chones, sleeping in on duty? You’re doing a damn fine job, son, I can’t thank you enough,” Ghost deadpans. Huh, that’s where I get that sarcasm from. Oh, God, I am my father!
Vegas snickers at Tank as his face grows red. “If you would excuse me,” he grinds he words out while slamming the milk back into the fridge and taking off down to his room. Poor Tank, Ghost is no BS twenty-four-seven.
Vegas walks out from around the corner and Papa keeps a pointed look at her now. “Always stirring the shit when no one’s looking still?”
Vegas points to her chest, “Moi?” and leans in for a hug, “Love you too, Papa.”
“Love you too, Vegas, and your brass balls,” he chuckles at her. Vegas was always the tomboy and scheming with Papa for war tactics, would even go shooting with him. Which really helped him out as far as he was concerned, because that also got me to hang out with them too during a time when I was very pissed off at him. I also think she did it because she wanted me to give him a chance. I am happy she did, because I don’t know that I would have ever given one without her prodding.
“Hey, Katie! Man, woman, you are looking fly. I want to be you when I grow up. Keeping it tight for your man, girl. Respect.” Vegas moves over and hugs her too. She loves Katie just as much as me.
“Girl, your BS is on high alert tonight,” Katie mocks her.
“Moi!” Vegas laughs and touches her hand to her chest astonished. “Let’s get this BBQ going before my hungry man shows up.”
The four of us work together preparing the food and laughing for the rest of the afternoon. Slowly, people start trickling in. Since it is a Wednesday, everyone is off from the bar because it’s closed.
It’s getting closer to eight and I start worrying that Axl isn’t coming here tonight. My heart sinks at the thought.
I set down a fruit bowl and head back into the house when I hear a knock at the door. Excitement races through me as I run to see who it is. Blade is standing on the other side of the door with Snake, Spider and Cowboy.
“Hey, guys,” I push for a nice greeting, but the enthusiasm isn’t selling it. “Everyone is out back.” The guys head past me, and Snake winks at me as I shake my head. The asshole will never learn I think shaking my head at him as he laughs at himself. Blade stops in front of me and pauses before he suggests.
“Dana, have to have trust in Axl. He will come through. He had a few delays on his way up here. Flat tire and other club shit. Patience, you’ve made it this far,” Blade says before he catches sight of Vegas, and I become an afterthought. I’m surprised, even though brief, the man does show the ones he cares for small tokens of friendship.
Taking Blade’s advice, I head back to the BBQ turned party. I see James alone across the yard and head toward him. James holds a Corona up to his lips and takes a long pull from his beer, the sadness and loneliness radiating from him. I can’t help myself but wanting to hug him.
James sees me coming and opens his arms up to me reading my mind and wraps his non-beer holding arm around me. “What’s up, babe, you okay?”
I hug him a little closer. “Everything is getting better.”
“Oh, yeah?” A hopefull smile plays at his lips. “Why is that?”
“I just realized how much love I really do have all around me. You know that too, right?” James nods along with me. “I’m sorry I haven’t been a good friend. What’s going on with you?”
Waiting for James to answer, I see him watching Jenn mess with her phone as she plays songs for us. “I don’t know if holding on to someone is worth hurting me. Or if it’s time to let go, Dana.”
Holding him a tighter, I try prodding him further. “Are you planning on leaving us, James?”
“Not you and Vegas, I just don’t know if I should work at the bar anymore. It’s been a long road, I need to rest, a new start, but not leave you girls.” He finishes on a sigh.
“I see. Can I be gone the day you tell Vegas? She’s gonna flip her shit. I’d rather deal with her after, when she calms down I will totally support you. Jenn’s been quieter and more distant. The more we try to engage her, the more she pulls away.”
“I know, she’s been doing that to me too. It’s why I’m leaving.”
“We’ll get everything figured out, you’ll see.”
“You are feeling better, happiness looks beautiful on you, babe.”
The sliding door flies open, and Axl comes barging through, with a round of “hey’s” coming from the brothers who are trying to give him hugs.
He blasts straight past them all, heading straight for me. James gently pushes me forward. One step turns into another and then my feet are running toward Axl. The light is back in his face, and his eyes light up in the same excitement as mine.
In the middle of the yard, we collide. My legs wrap around his waist and my hands in his hair. Axl’s large hands grab a hold of my ass and he holds me tightly to his body.
We stare into each other’s eyes for a second. My fingers run under the bruises around his black eyes and my heart aches. What happened to him? Before I know what is happening, Axl’s lips claim mine in a long passionate kiss, our lips and teeth fighting for dominance.
Axl pulls back, his breathing labored, and pecks my lips softly. His forehead rests against mine.
“I’m sorry, I’m so damn sorry I left you alone, princess. It won’t happen again, believe in me, baby. I want to be the one to stick by you in this life.” He brushes his lips against mine.
“God Axl, I need you too and I will never let you leave me again either. You’re mine.”
His chest vibrates with a barely audible laugh. The feel of his strong body and heat envelopes hope and desire back to right where it was before.
“I got work tonight and shit to square away, but I couldn’t spend another night without touching you, feeling you. I’ll be back for you, and this time nothing will keep me away.”
He lets go of me and my feet touch the ground. Then, he bends over and whispers into my hair, “I love you, princess. This will last forever, my love for you will never end.” Grabbing my face with his warm hand, he pulls me back to his lips, sealing his words in a promise.
He then lets go of my face, kisses my hand and steps away, saying, “I’ll be back, Dana! It won’t be long, but I’ll be back for you tomorrow.” With those last words, he walks back through the sliding glass
door, Blade and the men following closely behind.
Chapter 17
Axl
My skin prickles alive with awareness, a renewed energy, as I sit among my brothers, next to my President, Blade. The brothers feel the promise of death in the air. Solo and Pawn are the last ones to walk in. Once the door is shut, the gavel is slammed down on the table.
Standing, I say, “I’ve let my brothers down, my club and oath I forgot. I’ll take my penance to show my dedication to the MC.”
I move to stand in the middle of the room. Man after man throws a punch at my face, stomach or back. The pain conjures the living beast within me to come to the surface. A few knees and kicks punish me for my disobedience to always remember that my MC brothers come first. I howl out in pain and sufferance as the last blow is delivered by Blade. His right fist comes down onto my temple.
On one knee before my brothers, I struggle to keep at bay the beast inside of me that begs to be freed and kill the others that stand before me. Taking in a fortifying breath, I raise to my feet. I feel the strength in my gaze as I stare each one in the eyes.
“I want to keep my place as VP.” I hold my fists at my sides and wait.
Blade asks the room, “Anyone contesting his spot?” The death of silence is a gift among my brothers. “All in favor to leave Axl as VP, say aye.” A resounding “Aye!” vibrates off the walls with their yells in agreement.
Blade’s lip curls up in satisfaction. Pulling out the knife from his shoulder holster, he twirls the blade around with ease as he’s looking around the room. “In the last year, we weeded out those who betrayed our club”
“Aye,” the men agree.
“We have our crew here now, brothers you would bleed for, yes?” The devil twinkles in his eyes.
“Aye,” we echo through the room.
“Then, we pledge ourselves in blood that we move forward as one and blood we will spill to protect what’s ours”
“Aye!”
The twirling of the blade stops, and he holds the blade over his right hand to cut a cross into his skin. Snarling as the blood dribs from his own cuts, he hands me the knife and I do the same, sealing an oath to these brothers and this clubhouse. We all take our turns, marking our flesh with a cross.
The last brother, Pawn, sets the knife back down in front of a now sitting at the table Blade, with me to his right and Tank, the Road Captain, to his left. Nodding toward Pawn, Blade continues the meeting.
Looking at me, he says, “The cop you ran off the road came looking for you, and pulled Dana over with some bullshit about a broken taillight. Since you’ve been gone, Tank has been staying with her. That cop has been driving by looking for you, the asshole still thinks you’re in Las Vegas. He tried to go into the bar and brewhouse, but we’ve had shit locked down tight.”
Shame washes over me again as I realize that Dana must’ve called me when that prick was looking for her and that I left her alone. A sigh escapes me and my head looks up at the ceiling, amazed at my own stupidity.
“We’ve been going to the fight tanks like normal. We haven’t caused any waves. Yet. Tony had that cop following you. Spider pulled up his cell records, and, before the fight, they had contact. A transaction’s been made in cash to the cop by Tony’s security. Solo and Pawn have been running detail on them. The cop is building a case against us. He wants to take us down to gain this territory. We haven’t been moving cash like the others before us did with the diamonds and the sex trafficking. That cop that followed you was going to arrest you. Looks like your crazy ass had some luck that night. Now we have two problems. To kill a pig and a man highly influencing in the sex trade.”
Anger rolls through my body to think that this entire time this asshole had his eyes on Dana and the club.
Tank interrupts my thoughts. “Shit is in the past, Axl, leave it there, brother.”
Blade continues, “I have the Black Widow with him now.” He raises his hands to answer the murmurings of who that is. “You don’t want to know the woman. Her job is highly skilled and paid to off serious players or law enforcement. A black-market secret, and none of you will ever meet her. She’s paid to keep her mouth shut and she likes it, so everyone’s happy. Right now, she has our cop strung out on drugs in a motel room downtown. Only Axl and I are going. The rest of you go back to business as normal.”
∞ ∞ ∞
Blade and I park our bikes outside of a bar downtown on Fourth Street. Walking through the bar, Blade hands a security guard a handful of cash on his way back out the back door. He lights a cigarette, and I’m following him until he stops in the alley way.
Taking one last long drag of his smoke, Blade stomps it out, then we continue walking. Whoever this bitch is has his nerves up, which means he doesn’t trust her. Grabbing a key card, he opens the door to room number sixty-nine. Classy bitch.
A woman covered in black and gray tattoos, long black hair and dressed like a hooker turns her gaze to me and I stop in my tracks. The Black Widow is Kat. Tank’s Kitty Kat. Kat that works at the bar with our women.
I feel the heat flushing my body as I’m overcome with anger when she pulls her silenced nine-millimeter on me. She sits in a chair by the window, cool as a cat playing with her mouse that’s tied up on the bed.
“What. The. Fuck.” I feel like I’m on autopilot. “How are you the Black Widow?”
“You’ll never know, Axl, so ask the questions that really matter right now. I have other shit to do, and the longer we drag this out, the more your Prez pays,” Kat says while holstering her gun inside her boot.
Blade, the sadistic fucker that he is, has a gleam in his eye as he says, “What did you come up with?”
“You mean what did I fix? I met him on the street, had pictures of him ‘picking me up’. We went on a few dates. Texted myself a few as “blackmailing” the hooker to suck my little dick threats. Pictures of him stalking me at the bar, of him beating up drug dealers on the street. He’s a real dirty pig.”
The cop starts twisting, trying to free himself from the bindings, yelling something under the ball gag that’s strapped around his mouth. “Point is,” Kat says, rolling her eyes in announce, “He is a really dirty dick. Between Spider and the pound puppies, you can kill him any way you want. Drug overdose would work because he had a habit to shoot up with hookers. Or shoot him in the head, he made enough enemies. When the cops start digging through his shit, thanks to Spider, they won’t know what the hell to think of this dirty fucker. I left you a bag of toys. Have fun, boys.” Kat throws on her jacket and heads for the door.
“Hey.” She grabs the door knob and looks at me with her cat shaped eyes over her shoulder. “Who’s the pound puppies?”
An amused grin covers on her face. “Solo and Pawn, little dogs that are learning to run with the big dogs,” Kat winks and opens the door then shuts it behind her.
Blade looks over at the man tied to the bed, his body laid out for us forming an X. He grabs his blade from his boot while I head over to the bag that was left for us. Taking out the needle and syringe filled with heroine, I ask the cop, “You know, they say this drug is like epinephrine, one shot can keep your adrenaline running for hours before you can pass out from the pain.”
His screams go on unheard as I plunge the needle into his arm. He squirms, trying to fight it, but it’s of no use. A few seconds later, his body is relaxing from the high.
I get ready for the show and step back a bit as Blade starts walking forward with his knife in his hand. I punch the asshole on the bed across the face and his eyes snap open so that he can see Blade coming at him. With hands of a surgeon, he places the knife to his victim’s skin and the sharp blade of the knife slices like through warm butter, rivers of crimson following. His arms and legs get covered in long cuts. The gagged cop screams and screams, shaking his head back and forth. Tears run out of his eyes as they shut.
I take the knife from Blade, then I smack the asshole one more time. Grabbing the handle of the knife
with both hands, I lift them above my head and plunge it through the side of his breast plate, aiming between his ribs. The force behind my weight and strength break his bones and crack underneath my hands. I raise my hands again to strike the other side. With both lungs collapsed, he gurgles under the gag and the blood is flowing out around it. His arms and legs twitch for about another thirty seconds while we watch. Grabbing the fucker by the hair, I rip the sharp blade across his throat.
The wolf pacing inside of us runs free and howls.
Chapter 18
Dana
My phone pings early in the morning with an incoming text. Only someone who’s in danger of bodily harm would dare to text or call me before ten a.m. Rolling over, I leave my face buried in my pillow while my arm flies out and my hand slaps around until I locate my phone, which, as it turns out, was on my pillow by my head. I figured that out when the phone slid down the pillow and hit me in the nose.
Growling to myself, I open one eye to peek at the message. I see Axl’s name and, as I perk up, the other eye opens to read his message.
Roger Rabbit: Morning, princess, sorry, I know it’s early for you. Last night I had to drop my mom off, then the rental truck. I wanted to come to you last night. It was really late to talk. Today I’m finding my mom a house to rent and have some club shit. Don’t know when I’ll be available to see you today. But be ready by 7 tonight for our date. I’ll meet you at the bar.
Jessica Rabbit: I’ll see you at 7, and your MOM moved here!
I’m uncertain at where this day will take me, but I’m ready to see where it ends up.
∞ ∞ ∞
A smile plays across my lips at the old crew of the Battle Born MC members that pack the bar here at The Black Rose. I miss Vegas coming in and bartending by my side like we used to in the past, but I also get that the woman is driven and her creative spark leads her to be a gypsy at heart. My poor Jenn is closed off and needs some help. Finally, feeling a little more at peace with life around me, I see that my pain has been blinding me with what is going on around me.
Nothing Lasts Forever (Battle Born MC Book 2) Page 12