by London Casey
“Go,” Miller said.
Gaige hit the throttle and he and Emily were set off on the open road again. Gaige knew better than to let his guard down. Enemies rarely slept and the smart ones already had their next move in mind. However, Gaige knew that Back Down Devil could maintain and protect the town.
Once they pulled into the clubhouse parking lot, Gaige smiled. He parked the motorcycle and looked back at the ramp to the underground garage. That’s where the last line of business waited.
Gaige helped Emily off the motorcycle, took her helmet, and then walked her to the clubhouse. Upstairs, Gaige stopped at the bar and got a shot. It burned, but it tasted great. He then got two beers and led the way to his room. Once he opened the door, he stopped.
“I have something to do,” he said.
“What?” Emily asked.
“I made a promise to someone else. I have business to finish.”
“Are you… are you going to kill someone?”
Gaige stood tall and let out a breath. “Do you want me to answer that?”
“I don’t know,” Emily said.
“Then don’t ask it. I’ll be back. Okay?”
Emily nodded. She blinked fast.
“Don’t,” Gaige said. “You’re fucking safe here.”
Gaige left the clubhouse and went back outside. He saw the gate opening and a few of the guys were coming back. Miller must have decided that there wasn’t a need for the chief to meet with the entire crew out there. Miller, Blaine, Nate, and Griffin were just fine.
Gaige rushed down the ramp and went into the underground garage. He unlocked the door and found Vinny near the door. Bloody from the motorcycle accident. Scratched and clawed from Emily’s attack.
“Hey asshole,” Gaige said.
Vinny looked up at Gaige. “Just fucking do it, okay? I’m not telling you anything. I’m not sorry for anything. I don’t give a fuck what you do.”
Gaige smiled. He slid his knife out and looked at the blade. “You’re going to really regret saying that…”
Gaige knelt down and slammed Vinny’s head to the ground. Vinny cried out and looked at Gaige.
Slowly, Gaige brought the knife down to Vinny’s left eye…
One more promise to keep.
Chapter Twenty-Six
Emily couldn’t sit. She paced the room, her body shaking, heart racing. When she looked around the room all she could think about was Gaige. The smell of the room. The bed where they fucked each other. The way he touched her, held her, loved her. But when she closed her eyes, she saw Max’s face and then heard the sound of the gun and spray of blood and brain out of the back of Max’s head.
Gaige had done it. He had kept his promise to kill Max.
Emily opened her eyes and rushed to the bathroom. She fell to her knees in front of the toilet and tried to vomit. She screamed and coughed, but nothing happened. Her hair covered her face as tears dripped from her eyes to the toilet.
That was it.
There was no getting sick. The feeling inside Emily was unfiltered anger. Anger because revenge had been sought yet it fixed nothing. Rachel was still dead. Max had still beaten the hell out of her years ago. Nothing changed the past and nothing changed the present. It was only the future that had a brighter outlook, if Emily could shed it all from her mind.
Emily stood and went to the sink. She turned on the water and washed her face. She looked at herself in the mirror as she came to terms with it all.
Max was dead.
Vinny would be dead soon.
Mr. Strokner would have no choice but to mourn the loss of Rachel and move on.
Just like Emily would.
Reaching into her pocket, Emily pulled out the necklace that had been around Rachel’s neck. She put it on the bathroom sink.
“I’ll never forget you,” she whispered. “But I have to let go.”
Emily closed her eyes again and took deep breaths. Her life was changed now forever. She belonged to Gaige which meant she belonged to Back Down Devil MC.
The door to the room opened and Emily spun around.
Gaige’s shirt and hands were covered in blood. She reached for a towel and put it under the running water. She walked the towel to Gaige and handed it to him. He stared at her as he wiped his hands free of blood. When he moved his hand to throw the towel, Emily took it from him. She took it to a trashcan and dropped it in.
She walked back to Gaige and slowly stripped Gaige off his leather. She could smell the blood, a smell she would never forget.
Emily then put her fingers to his shirt, touching the blood.
“Emily…”
“It’s okay,” she whispered. “It’s okay…”
Emily ran her hands down to the bottom of Gaige’s shirt. She rolled it up and helped him take it off. Again, she took the shirt to the trashcan and dropped it in. She went back to Gaige and put her hands to his beautiful, chiseled body. She smeared the blood from her hands down his body and stared into his eyes.
“It’s done?” she whispered.
“It’s done. I took care of everything.”
“Now what?” Emily asked.
Gaige smiled and put a hand behind her neck. He pulled her in for a kiss and then licked his lips. “I’m covered in blood, beautiful. I need to shower and clean up… but I’m not fucking doing it alone.”
Emily smiled back. She liked the idea of falling in love with a biker and never doing anything alone again.
Gaige stepped by Emily and dropped his pants.
What a perfect ass…
Emily bit her lip and hurried to strip herself.
All Emily could count on right now was the moment in front her… and that moment she would savor for as long as she was alive.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Bob Strokner rolled the fat cigar between his lips. He sat with his chair turned, able to look at the door to his office were looking out the window across the city. He hadn’t lit a cigar since before Rachel was killed. It wasn’t the same without his daughter bitching at him about the look and smell of the cigars. The businessman refused to walk down a path that involved wondering if he could have done anything different. It had been hard enough when Rachel’s mother was killed. Being a single father with a conglomerate business to run didn’t make for the easiest life for Rachel, but Bob always thought she would do just fine. She was pretty. She had money. But to face the fate of bullets from piece of shit bikers wasn’t fair.
On Bob’s desk sat the proposal to overtake the acres of land from Back Down Devil MC. It would cost a shit ton of money, and it would require a lot of backdoor payouts to basically steal the land from the MC, but once they found the bones and bodies in the ground, it wouldn’t fucking matter one bit.
The clock was ticking and Bob’s patience was wearing out. He had made his demands clear with Gaige. If you the young biker wanted to show off his big cock and prove to the MC he could wheel and deal, this was his chance. If not, then Bob would simply crush the MC. They’d end up a prison and more than likely they’d be greeted by plenty of enemies to take care of them.
A knock came at the door.
“Open it,” Bob called out.
His assistant, Trevor, a young kid fresh out of college with peach fuzz on his chin and innocence in his eyes walked into the office.
“Sorry to bother you, sir,” Trevor said. “But something has arrived for you. It’s urgent.”
“Of course,” Bob said. “Bring it here.”
“Oh, and Mr. Riley called. He wants to know if you’ve made your decision on the land deal yet.”
“I’m thinking,” Bob said. “Understand?”
“Yes, sir.”
Trevor put a box on the desk. Bob looked at it. It was unmarked except for Bob’s name on the box and the word URGENT written in big letters and underlined three times.
“This could be a bomb,” Bob said. “And you brought it to me?”
Trevor’s face turned white. “Sir, I’m so sorry. I’
ll call the police.”
“Don’t bother now,” Bob said. “I’ll have to face this… turn around.”
Trevor turned. Bob stood and peeled the tape off the box. When he opened the cardboard flaps and saw what was inside, he closed the box again.
“Trevor.”
Trevor turned. “Sir.”
“You can leave now,” Bob said. “Oh, and make the call to Mr. Riley on my behalf. We’re going to put that land deal on hold for a little while longer.”
“Yes, sir,” Trevor said.
The young man rushed from the office. When the door shut, Bob opened the flaps of the box and looked inside. He smirked. Staring back at him was a set of bloody eyeballs.
Along with a note.
Stare into the eyes of the man who killed your daughter. As promised.
-G
Bob crumpled up the note and threw it out.
The MC had come through.
Bob crashed back to his chair and reached for his cigar. He opened the top drawer of his desk and pulled out a lighter. He lit the cigar and took a few big puffs, enjoying its luxurious taste. He put his head back and blew rings of smoke.
Gaige had come through, yes.
But was this done? No.
Bob smiled and wondered what else he could utilize Back Down Devil MC for.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Blaine stood as he smoked, enjoying the warm sunshine on his face. They had the gate open, waiting for Shay to return with his new car. Erik and Landon stood at a motorcycle, a new one that Erik picked up on a debt that was owed to him. Gaige and Miller were across the parking lot, each sitting on their motorcycles, talking business.
Griffin sat at a table with Emily, reviewing paperwork.
Jace and Nate sipped beers, gazing upon the ground as though it contained to answers to all the questions they each wore on their souls.
The MC was a large family. Everyone had their own problems to face. However, they all had each others backs and nothing else mattered but that.
“Man, I need to fucking get laid,” Blaine said as he tossed his smoke to the ground and stepped on it.
“How long has it been?” Landon asked. “Twelve hours?”
“I had some wild ass last night,” Blaine said. “But all she wanted to do was suck my dick.”
“Tough life,” Erik said.
“Yeah, but her fingers wouldn’t stop… uh… touching me.”
“Touching you?” Landon asked.
“She wanted to play somewhere I’m not so sure about,” Blaine said. He put up two fingers. “She tried two fingers up there.”
“What the fuck…,” Erik said.
“His ass,” Landon said and laughed.
“You let her?” Erik asked.
“Had to do what I had to do, bro,” Blaine said. “She was a freak though. When she took her fingers out, she started to…”
“No!” Erik yelled. “I don’t want to fucking hear it.”
Blaine had his tongue out and then smiled. “Can’t handle it?”
“Christ,” Erik said as he stepped away from the motorcycle.
“What’s up with you, brother? Your cock getting care?” Blaine asked Landon.
“Why are you so worried about our cocks? What’s with your fucking mind, bro?”
“Hey, a happy cock makes a happy man,” Blaine said.
“Sick,” Landon said.
“But I’m right.”
A black car turned and Blaine started to clap. “Look at this fucking ride coming.”
The sleek black car with tinted windows looked beautiful.
Blaine whistled as Shay turned into the lot. The driver’s window came down and Shay smiled.
“Brothers,” he called out. “The new wheels.”
“I prefer two over four,” Landon said.
Shay threw the middle finger. “Fuck you then.”
“Look at this thing,” Blaine said. He pressed himself against the front quarter panel and groaned. “Makes me want to fuck it.”
“Get the fuck out of here,” Shay yelled. He hit the gas and shot forward.
Blaine laughed as Landon shook his head.
“What?” Blaine asked.
“I can’t never tell if you’re joking or not,” Landon said.
“You think I’d have sex with a car?”
“Probably.”
A motorcycle echoed and Landon looked down the road. He pointed and couldn’t believe his eyes. It was a woman on a motorcycle. With no helmet, her hair was flying out behind her.
“Now there’s a fucking dream,” Blaine said. “A chick who rides more than just my cock.”
“Look at her,” Landon said. “She doesn’t know what she’s doing…”
The motorcycle cut left to right, over and over. The woman looked behind her and the front wheel wobbled.
“She’s going to fucking drop it,” Blaine said.
Shay hopped out of his new car and shut his door. Erik opened the back door and leaned in to check it out.
“Fuck, bro,” Blaine said. “She’s…”
Landon looked just in time to see the woman drop the motorcycle. It cut to the right and she flew from the motorcycle.
The woman hit the ground and rolled.
“We need help!” Landon yelled.
He looked back and saw Erik running from the car. He started to wave his hands and screamed.
“BOMB!”
Before Landon could process the word, an explosion went off.
The back window of Shay’s new car exploded. Blaine grabbed Landon and threw him to the ground. Landon watched the explosion engulf Erik’s body, sending him into the air before he crashed to the ground.
“Holy fuck!” Blaine screamed.
Landon looked to the road and saw the woman on the ground. He turned his head and saw Shay’s car on fire and one of his brothers on the ground, bloody and lifeless.
Gaige, Blaine, Miller, Nate, Jace, Shay, and Griffin all ran, calling Erik’s name.
Landon felt like the wind had been knocked out of him.
He took a deep breath and moved to his knees.
There was a woman hurt just feet away from the parking lot, and the inside of the parking lot looked like a war zone.
Landon got to his feet and looked at his leather cut.
This was his life… the life of Back Down Devil MC.
Thanks for reading!
READ THE REST OF THE SERIES!
Outlaw Revenge
Crash & Burn
Dark Fall
(MORE TO COME!)
About the Author
London Casey is the pen name for bestselling romance author Karolyn James.
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This Fire
Emily Ryan-Davis & Elise Logan
Copyright Elise Logan and Emily Ryan-Davis
All rights reserved.
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Chapter One
Eden checked the clock on her dresser again, sliding the dress over her head and smoothing it into place. She attacked her hair with a dryer and a round brush until the blonde length shone around her face.
A noise from the first floor registered over the roar of the blow dryer. She clicked it off. “Ry? Is that you?”
A deep, masculine chuckle reached her from the stairs. “Expecting someone else?”
“Of course not. I was just checking.” She eyed herself critically in the mirror as he walked in, stunning in his classic tuxedo. While he was practically the poster boy for his profession, Eden felt a bit like a diplomatic hostess in her navy floor-length gown. The gown was a fluid, shimmering material that skimmed her figure closely without clinging. The neckline w
as a draped sweetheart shape with tiny, wide-set spaghetti straps, and the back was no more than a drape of fabric that left her bare to the base of her spine. The entire effect was enticing, hinting at what lay beneath without revealing too much.
Lipstick. She snagged a little-used tube of crimson and glossed it over her lips. She bared her teeth to check for smudges as her best friend Ryan Edwards, tall, blond and gorgeous, sat on the edge of the mission-style bed.
“Michael is getting pressure to run for District Attorney,” he said.
Eden slowly re-capped her lipstick and made a sympathetic noise. “What does Michael want?”
In the mirror, Ryan rubbed the bridge of his nose. “He isn’t sure. He hasn’t really thought about running for office before. It really puts him at risk.”
“It puts you both at risk,” she said, frowning. The complications of relationships made her shoulders bunch. Her career had never depended upon anybody else’s choices or alliances, but Ryan and Michael both danced constantly around peer politics. She doubted a gay district attorney was quite what Michael’s colleagues envisioned, but if Michael did decide to go for it, his entire life would be open to scrutiny, including his sexual orientation. And his partner’s identity.
Ry’s mouth twisted anxiously. “I told him I would stand behind him no matter what his decision, but if he goes public, my career may go down the toilet.”
“I actually don’t think they would fire you,” Eden offered. “Maybe make you uncomfortable.”
“I know I’m supposed to stand up and fight discrimination and all, but I like my life the way it is. I don’t want to have it upset. At the same time, though, I can’t live with myself if Michael denies himself this opportunity because of me.”
Despite her own lack of familiarity with long-term relationships, Eden hurt for her friends. Michael and Ryan had filled her life while she plowed through med school. She’d never had to cope with a lover’s problems but she had watched the pair of them and she wasn’t sure she was strong enough to climb the same mountains.