“Enough, Kendall. I empathize with everything you’ve endured.” A fucking refrain he was getting sick to fucking death of. He understood, but, Jesus…“Baby, you’ve got to stop counting. All it does is pull you back. Look to the future. Once Spoon is dealt with and you feel safe enough, go back to work. If you have to count, go forward. Count the days until you return to work. Give birth to Baby Biker.”
“You don’t understand—“
He approached her and gathered her in his arms. “I do and you’re brave and smart and strong. My dream come true. You lost something with what Spoon put you through.”
She pushed against him. “My sister and my mother,” she yelled, tears rushing to her eyes.
No one better not ever accuse him of being an impatient, heartless motherfucker. Her tears tore him the fuck up. He didn’t give in to his frustration at her quagmire and fuck something up, though.
“Shhh,” he comforted, tightening his hold on her, even though she stood in his arms ramrod straight and angry. “Besides them. You lost you, sweetheart. I don’t expect you to just act as if nothing’s happened. But, damn it, Kendall.” He pulled away from her and paced. “Everything’s a competition or grounds for an argument with you.”
“I didn’t want to come out here with you. If I’m making you so miserable, remember you forced me to come with you.”
Johnnie nodded. “I stand by that decision, too. You’re rotting away in that goddamn room. Hiding from life. I refuse to allow that to happen.”
“It isn’t your choice,” she spat, her brown eyes darkening.
Johnnie squeezed the bridge of his nose. “You’re right, gorgeous.” So much for basking in his new ride.
As fucking if.
By the time they completed the transaction for Johnnie’s new Navigator, dusk bruised the sky in purplish blue. His stomach growled and he realized he hadn’t seen Kendall eat anything today. He must be mistaken. She had to eat being pregnant. After urging her to start off in her car while he waited for his second set of keys, she left. He’d brought her car with him with the intentions of trading it in since Kendall would be getting her own new car soon, but the asshole hadn’t wanted to offer what Johnnie wanted for it, so back with them it went.
Headlights bounced against his Navigator, reflecting in the paint like shimmering liquid. Fuck, his heart skipped a beat and he fell in love all over again. While he mourned his old ride, the new one…
The salesman handing him the keys and shaking his hand interrupted Johnnie’s thoughts. He didn’t waste time in getting on the road. Although she only had about a five minute head start, he wanted to catch up to her as soon as possible.
She needed to get a grip.
As she sped away from the dealership in her Mazda, Kendall knew how she handled situations spiraled more out of control with each passing day, but her stress level had gone through the roof. Spoon circled, while Johnnie walked out in the open. It seemed so unfair that he had her on lockdown but he jeopardized his own life, coming and going as he pleased.
Kendall shouldn’t have made such a big deal over his purchase. It was his money. Or…whoever’s.
She shoved the unpleasant thought away, pressed her foot on the accelerator. She needed to focus on an apology to Johnnie, so she pulled into the parking lot of a McDonald’s and rubbed her temple.
She’d been a first class bitch to him, when Johnnie deserved to have the joy she’d seen in his eyes when he’d been showing her his new Navigator.
Over the past few weeks, Johnnie had lost a lot, too. The man he’d believed his grandfather to be. The man himself. K-P. His house. Meanwhile, he’d had to accept the fact that he would be a father and deal with Kendall.
He deserved a new Navigator. Kendall knew how he’d loved his old one. He’d told her as she’d redressed his bandages a day after his release from the hospital.
The small blood droplets had concerned her and she’d told him.
“I’m fine,” he’d insisted gruffly.
His sadness touched something deep in Kendall, this new, exposed side of him opening her heart to him a little more. He’d gazed off into space and Kendall had ruffled her hands through his hair, loving the texture. Loving him.
“Talk to me,” she’d whispered. “You’ve been here for me. Let me do the same for you.”
He’d stared at her, his gaze shuttered, and she would’ve given anything to know his real feelings for her.
“You’re grieving for your grandfather?”
She’d taken a wild guess based on the knowledge that even when you hated someone, you could love them, too.
A huff of laughter. “The man he was.”
A muscle had jumped in his jaw and Kendall caressed the spot with her fingertips, wanting to soothe him.
“The man I thought he was,” he amended and cursed. “Not that either, Kendall,” he said quietly. “That day I found out that Christopher was my brother, my trust died. I fucking hated him and I pushed it all aside. Now, I remember the man from my childhood. The one thing I always held against him was his treatment of Christopher.”
He pulled her into his arms and stroked her back absently.
“If I would’ve found out about his death while he was still in exile, I would’ve mourned him. I would’ve had that right.”
“You still have that right.”
He shook his head. “I killed him. He was unarmed, but I had no choice. He’d stepped out of hell to spend time on earth. Yes, I grieve for him, but I’m so fucking angry. He fucking needed to die years ago. I’d love to know what the fuck Big Joe had been thinking. Why he allowed him to live. I didn’t do it soon enough, though. K-P’s gone. My house. My Navigator.”
Sure she’d misheard, Kendall raised her head from the crook of his arm to stare at him. “Your Navigator?”
A smile broke through the other emotions. “Sexy Sally. I loved her. She was the only one I’d park my Harley for.”
“Sexy Sally?” She giggled. “Navigator Sally doesn’t have the same ring as Mustang Sally.”
Johnnie chuckled and pulled her back into his arms. “That song was the last thing on my mind when I named her.”
“You’re a biker,” she teased. “What makes you choose an SUV over a hog?”
“In Sally I saw the fruit of my accomplishments if I chose…” His voice had trailed off. “I bought her with the salary I earned as the CEO of the club’s medical lab. It’s a legitimate business, Kendall. Yes, it’s to launder money through, but the money earned there is legal.”
“How was that important?”
“It showed me I had options. I could succeed on either side of the law. I realized I chose to be John Boy. I hadn’t become him to defy Logan or to please Christopher. I live this fuckin’ lifestyle because I love the fuck out of it.”
A horn honked and Kendall jumped and remembered her location, giving the two cars on each side of her a cursory glance. Any minute Johnnie should be driving by. He’d only needed to wait for keys.
What—
A knock on her window. Kendall turned her head and a scream caught in her throat. Goon. One of her wardens from her captivity. Grabbing her purse, she lunged for the passenger door, rearing back when Guard appeared on that side.
Goon banged on the window. “Open the fucking door.”
Glancing over her shoulder, she saw a truck blocking her exit. A car on each side of her Mazda squeezed her in.
The barrel of a gun tapped against the passenger side. Guard had it aimed right at her. She didn’t need to look to know Goon had his gun trained on her, too.
“Open the fucking door.”
She shook her head and whimpered, crying out at the vibration against her side. When it buzzed again, it got through to her a call came through. Shoving her hand into her purse, she pulled her phone out and saw that Johnnie was calling.
“Kendall, where the fuck are you?” Johnnie growled into her ear.
She wanted to live to hear that sound again. “I
’m at Mickey D’s,” she answered, hoping he detected the fear in her voice. Because she was so very afraid.
“What—“
“I’m counting to three, then I’m blowing your fucking head off.”
She’d never escape if she was missing her head. “I needed to use the little girl’s room. I-I’ll see you at the compound. Bye.”
Her fingers trembling, she dropped the phone away from her ear, but didn’t disconnect the call. Unlocking the door and gripping the phone, Goon yanked her out.
“Get in the back. Not a fucking word, hear me, slut?”
The muffler on the truck roared and Kendall realized someone moved it away from her bumper.
Guard shoved her into the back seat, then scooted in behind her. Goon slid into the passenger seat and, a moment later, sped away. The two men started arguing over who’d fuck her first, before Spoon arrived, and Kendall bit back a sob.
All Johnnie’s precautions didn’t matter. Spoon still found her.
Or, maybe, she’d found him when she’d gone to her condo.
Hopefully, hearing her, Johnnie would realize she was in trouble.
Because, maybe, just maybe, if she would’ve opened her mouth about Spoon’s earlier call, she wouldn’t be in her current predicament.
By the time Johnnie reached the first stoplight, he saw no sign of Kendall. The speed he’d seen her driving compared to his speed shouldn’t have allowed her to completely disappear. Not liking his gut feeling, he picked up his cellphone and dialed her number.
After five rings, she answered.
“Kendall, where the fuck are you?”
A pause then a response. “I’m at Mickey D’s.”
McDonalds? He’d just passed the fast food place.
“What—”
“I needed to use the little girl’s room. I-I’ll see you at the compound. Bye.”
“Ken—”
The call dropped. Or, more to the point, she’d hung up. Muffled words came through the earpiece and alarm bells resounded in his head. Speeding to the U-turn he needed, he redirected his route as his cellphone began ringing.
“I’m on my way—”
“Wh-what do you want from me?”
Her voice seemed fucking far away from the phone.
“Where are you br-bringing me?”
Her panic hit home. The alarm surging into him shocked him, but didn’t mitigate his fury. The two combined reached into his soul, a combustible mixture that pulled the worst of him up.
Johnnie and fear didn’t associate on a regular basis, but Kendall lived with it every day. Now, she’d gotten into trouble again, but still found a way to call him back. Good girl.
Just as the thought crossed his mind, another one popped up. She’d pay dearly if the almost-obituary subject discovered her subterfuge.
While he didn’t appreciate his distress, knowing some motherfucker terrorized his Kendall…Fuck. All Johnnie needed was a clue. One clue and he’d have Kendall in his arms again.
“Wh-where’s Spoon? Where are you bringing me?”
Mumbling, but the the clear fucking response he needed. Johnnie gripped his steering wheel tighter, sick to his stomach and blind with rage.
He slammed on the brakes and drew in deep breaths, refocusing on his surroundings, growling at the horn honking behind him.
If the motherfucker tailing him had slammed into the back of his new Navigator…
Didn’t fuckhead know Johnnie’s woman was in trouble?
No, of course not.
The honking worked on his ass and he slammed his palm down on his own horn. Diddly Doefuck swerved around him and accelerated past.
“Who lives on Fortification Avenue?”
Buzzard fucking meat, that’s who. He had what he needed. A location.
“Shut up, bitch,” a gruff male voice ordered. “We’re bringing you there and waiting for Spoon. To pass the time, we’ll take turns getting to know what your pussy feels like.”
A small blessing he was so well acquainted with the city, Johnnie knew Fortification was an avenue had been cut in two, one side having upscale apartments and the other houses dotted here and there. His guess? They headed to a house.
“No!” she yelled.
Flesh met flesh and Johnnie winced, anxious to reach her, wishing he’d spot her in her vehicle or whoever’s.
Another hit and his rage burned, threatening to erupt inside of him. Those motherfuckers had touched her and he’d show them no mercy.
He’d go in, kill Spoon and his minions, and get Kendall to safety. Ice picks and pipes would become quite fucking intimate with dicks and asses.
He laughed at the idea, hearing that Johnnie’s maniacal sound. The Johnnie who was the killer…
Turning onto Senate Road, he drew in a deep breath, remaining within the speed limits. The tree-lined street had wide open spaces and not many houses. A vehicle could be seen a mile away. Like the one just ahead, reaching Fortification and disappearing onto the avenue.
He slowed to ten miles an hour, counted, then followed the route of the other car. Not wanting to give himself away, Johnnie stopped far enough away to not draw attention. Cursing, he parked behind a compact sized car. It would’ve been fucking a-okay if there’d been a van or another SUV. Not a car comfortable enough just to hold a fucking gnome.
Removing his knife from his boot and his .38 from his cut, he got out and ran down the street, stopping when he reached the house he believed Kendall in. A moment later, Kendall’s scream settled his uncertainty about her location. The sound spurred him to the front door, where he knocked. Such a nice little house, the kind that Zoann or one of her sisters might like.
No answer and another scream made him pound on the door. He could’ve kicked the door down, but he wanted the motherfuckers to look death in the eye.
“Get the fuck away from that fucking door,” a voice yelled.
Not giving a verbal response, Johnnie slammed his fist against the door again, his dagger blade tapping against the wood and cutting into his palm.
“You’re going to get your turn, Farmer! Now stop that fucking knocking.”
Farmer?
Losing patience, Johnnie kicked the door.
“I’m gonna crush your fucking balls,” the Torpedo brother growled as he swung the door open. “What the fuck—“
Johnnie’s dagger to his throat stopped his words and the man fell to the floor, gurgling blood and writhing.
He hadn’t had his new ride for two fucking hours yet and already he’d get blood in it. Johnnie kicked the dying man and grimaced at the blood he’d sprayed on him—and thus would dirty his new Navigator.
“Yo—“ Worm Snack number two started.
Raising his gun, Johnnie fired his gun twice, obliterating Worm Snack’s face and deciding to let asshole number one suffer and bleed out. Pity he didn’t have time to enjoy the show. Bending, he yanked his knife out of the man’s neck, another warm gush of blood spraying his hand. Wiping the blood from his dagger on the asshole’s cut, Johnnie got to his feet and went to Kendall, easily discoverable by her sobs.
Naked and tied to a day bed, she shook, tears falling onto her bruised cheeks. Her breasts were reddened and the terror in her eyes told Johnnie he needed to get her away.
“Kendall,” he murmured, hurrying to her and cutting the ropes from her wrists and ankles.
She blinked once, twice. Again.
He pulled her into a sitting position and drew her into his arms. “It’s me, baby. Johnnie.”
It took her a moment, but then she sagged against him and threw her arms around his neck. “Y-you c-came f-for m-me,” she sobbed.
“Shhh,” he soothed, gliding his fingers through her hair. “Of course I came for you, sweetheart.”
“I-I tried to b-be brave. I didn’t t-tell you a-about Spoon’s c-call, but—“
“Explain later. I have three bullets left and my knife. I know at least two more assholes are on the way.” Including Spoon. He fuc
king wished Mort or Val was with him, then the fucking problem would be solved. “We need to leave.”
He refused to risk her safety, so he’d get to Spoon another day.
“Th-they blocked m-my car to keep me fr-from going f-forward. Then th-they g-got into my car and—“
Without a word, Johnnie snatched the comforter from the small bed and wrapped her in it, drowning her babbling out before scooping her into his arms and hurrying forward. “Close your eyes, sweetheart,” he ordered as they came to the gore he’d created. “Fucking asshole,” he snarled at the sight of the huge pool of blood standing between him and the doorway.
Slushing through it, he made it outside and went to Kendall’s car. After opening the door, he placed her in the passenger seat, then went to the driver’s side. Keys were still in the ignition. “Thanks, fuckers.”
Kendall drew in a sobbing breath. Johnnie clenched his jaw to keep from lying in wait anyway, started the car and circled the moon-shaped driveway. He pulled in front of the compact car. He turned it off and halted, the headlights of another car momentarily blinding him.
“Who…who’s th-that?”
The car slowed down and pulled alongside Kendall’s car, blocking him.
He debated reversing the car. No. He couldn’t. They’d be fired upon before he moved an inch.
“Get down!”
When she didn’t respond or move, Johnnie shoved her down. “Stay there,” he hissed. Opening the driver’s side at the same time, two fucking Torpedoes exited the car. A shot exploded through the night, glass flying everywhere. If Johnnie hadn’t ducked, he’d be missing his brain.
Yanking his gun and his knife out just as another shot sounded, Johnnie lifted up quickly, using just enough time to locate one assfuck and aim. The report of the other gun drowned out his.
“Farmer,” someone screamed.
Not Spoon, though.
“Farmer,” the voice sobbed.
He didn’t have time to wait for the man’s next move. He’d worked with these motherfuckers before and knew they packed fucking assault weapons. He had one chance and it would be him or assfuck. If he won, then it would be a fucking awesome night in the neighborhood. If he lost, then Kendall and Baby Biker were doomed, too.
Death Dwellers Motorcycle Club:: Fifteen Bad Boy Biker Books Page 100