by Crimson Syn
“When La Cruz finds out about this, he’s going to hunt you and fucking kill you. But first, he’s gonna rape that pretty slut of a wife you have, and make sure you watch. Then he may or may not kill her. He hasn’t decided yet. He might just keep her as a fucktoy and let her watch as he blows your fucking head off. I can’t wait to see what he does to her.”
Cain smashed the guys face in with the base of his gun. Blood splattered out of his lip and Cain yanked his head back. “You won’t live long enough to see it, motherfucker.”
Wolf handed the driver over to me and walked up to the guy lying at Cain’s feet. “You think I’m scared of your piece of shit boss? I used to torture people worse than you for a living.” He pressed the barrel of his gun against the guy’s open wound and he howled in pain. Wolf simply smirked, but his body was filled with tension. Grayson stilled by my side, but his eyes never left Wolf.
Wolf’s eyes nearly went black. He grabbed the back of his head and slammed him against the cement floor. “You think you can come here, to my home, threaten my family and I’m going to sit back and watch.”
He stood up and pressed a boot to his face. The guy started to whimper and moan on the floor. “I thought you were a tough guy. I thought you said you couldn’t wait to see what happens to my wife.” He pressed his foot down harder and I thought he might splatter his head into the ground. The guy struggled on the floor and Wolf reared back and kicked him on the side where his wound was.
The guys kneeling before us made a move, but we held them back. Wolf turned back to them and smirked. “He seems to be someone important, brothers. What do you think? La Cruz’s right hand man? Maybe a family member? Fuckers like him always have family working for him.”
Wolf crouched down beside the guy and tilted his head. It was a rare occasion that we got to see him in action, and he was one scary motherfucker.
“So who are you, his baby brother, a cousin, or his most trusted hound?” The guy just glared at Wolf and Cain propped him up.
“Answer him?” Cain shoved him back so he was looking at Wolf.
The guy just kept antagonizing Wolf as he spit at his face. Wolf closed his eyes and the whole brotherhood stilled. Slowly, Wolf wiped the spit off his forehead and he scrunched his faced in fury. He reached back and hit the guy hard, making him crumble to the ground. The sounds of bones cracking echoed off the nearly empty buildings.
Satisfied for the moment, Wolf came back over to the driver. “Unless you want his same fate, you better fucking tell me who he is.”
“H...he’s Ju...Juan de la Cruz’s son.”
Wolf looked at me and at Grayson and grinned. “Really. This worthless piece of shit is the son of La Cruz.” Wolf started to laugh and as he did, Grayson got closer.
“Don’t do it, Wolf.”
Wolf glared at him, but Grayson simply shook his head. And as they stared at each other Wolf lifted his gun and Grayson closed his eyes. A shot rang out and La Cruz’s son fell to the ground, whimpering. I stared in shock at what had just happened. He’d shot him in his thigh and the fucker was squirming on the floor, crying.
Wolf turned to the guy by Grayson. “That car looks mad familiar, doesn’t it D?”
“Damn straight.”
“I wonder if this was the fucker taking joy rides the other night. The one who decided it was a good idea to run over my brother.”
The guy shook his head in fear. “I...it was an or...order.”
“Who made the order?”
“La Cruz! La Cruz ordered us to...to follow you, and take you down if we had the ch...chance.”
Wolf looked up at me and when I didn’t say anything he looked back at Cain. My brother simply nodded and the next thing I know the guy’s hands are up and he’s yelling please. Wolf focuses his gun on him, the guy grimaces and in a matter of seconds the guy is reaching for something in his pocket.
“Don’t do it,” Wolf warns, cocking his gun, his hand steady on the trigger, but the guy made the move anyway. A stupid move on his part, because Wolf wasn’t the type to kill, he wouldn’t have reacted if the guy would have just stay put.
Before the guy could pull the weapon out, a shot rang out and the guy slumped forward, sputtering at Grayson’s feet while blood poured out of his chest. Grayson stilled by my side, tension running out of him in waves. I watched in shock as the guy on the floor squirmed and choked on his last breath.
Wolf looked down at the guy and shook his head. “Motherfucker. I warned you.”
I stared at my President, a man who was always so calm, so tactical. We knew about his past, about what he had done during the war, but seeing it in person was a whole other shit show. His calm brought with it a ruthlessness that he kept well hidden, and I was glad to be on his good side.
We watched silently as Wolf turned to the driver. He crouched down in front of him and traced his gun along his forehead. The guy was visibly shaking and I couldn’t blame him, two of his partners were dead and he could be the third. The guy sobbed in fear and slumped back, spit dribbled down his chin as he cowardly begged for his life.
“Go to La Cruz and let him know exactly what happens when he fucks with my family. Take that piece of shit with you.” He points the gun at La Cruz’s son who’s lying in a dark pool of his own blood. “Hopefully he won’t bleed out before you get him to daddy.” He stared down at the guy he’d just shot dead, a far off look in his eye. “Let him know we’re ready for him. And let him know I’ll kill anyone who threatens what’s mine.”
We all stood very still, afraid to stir the Wolf before us. The tension in the air held heavy as the driver scurried up and ran to La Cruz’s son, picking up the dying man and dragging him back into his van. He left a trail of blood on the cement floor and we all knew he only had minutes to live. The tires squealed as he jetted out of there, leaving us alone to deal with the aftermath.
We stared at the two men on the ground, casualties of their own violence. “Get this shit cleaned up!” Grayson yelled at us. He walked up to Wolf who had his back to us and was staring out into the vast space of darkness beyond the bay. I was close enough to hear their conversation.
“You shouldn’t have done that, Wolf.”
“I wish I could kill hem all,” he seethed.
“I know, but...”
“He threatened my wife. He ordered for them to kill our brothers. They left Seth for dead!”
“Killing his men and shooting his son is not the wa...”
“Did you prefer for me to let him pull out his weapon?” He answered angrily. “I did what I had to do to protect my family. It sent a message, didn’t it?”
A moment passed and Wolf sighed, dragging his hand down his tired face. Grayson placed a hand on Wolf’s shoulder. “He’d be a fool if he didn’t get the message.”
As I watched them, I realized how worn out they looked. They both had heavy shoulders and the burden of the club and its members weighing them down. I wished I could do more for them.
Cain came up to me, shaking his head in worry. “Get back up to Ravenous and call a lock down. If they don’t want to stay there, they can go to Grayson’s. This shit's about to go down. We’re so fucked.”
Chapter Nine
SETH
The lockdown was quickly put in place and I was looking over the cameras, checking that everything was quiet. I took a gulp of my whiskey when I was interrupted by the sound of someone banging at the front door. I looked up, but there was no one around this early in the morning. Wolf had opened up the back rooms so the brothers could get some rest, and the girls had all gone home for the time being. I heard Grayson’s apartment had become a fortress with men crawling all over it. Ryan Simon and his men were now stationed there and both Ravenous and Simon’s club, the Vault, had been shut down for the time being.
No one really knew about Grayson’s place, which meant it was a good safe house to have. Cain had actually taken Sophia to the boathouse. He was rallying men up there to be ready for when La Cruz sho
wed up, and cameras were going up everywhere. Every time I checked the feed, I had a new street angle on the screen. I was supposed to stay up at Wolf’s, but Ciara had been put up at Grayson’s and I wasn’t going to leave her alone for a second.
Again, the pounding resounded throughout the empty space and I checked the cameras up front. A familiar face looked up at me and I wondered what the hell he was doing here.
I went and opened the door, finding Joe Morton’s sullen expression looking back at me.
“May I come in.”
I raised my arm, signaling for him to come in. “What can I do for you?”
“I need a word.”
“I figured. Would you like a drink?”
He shook his head and narrowed his eyes on me. “I don’t drink so early in the morning.”
I shrugged, not really caring what he thought of me, and led him to the back lounge. I had my laptop opened on the table and blueprints of the docks were scattered everywhere. I quickly shut the screen and pointed at an empty seat. The bulky man slowly sat down, taking a good look around.
“Looks different during the day.”
I smirked and cut to the chase. I wasn’t one for small talk. “What can I do for you, fly boy.”
He smirked. “Touché’.”
I shrugged. Payback for being called a grunt.
“So where’s your bike?”
I raised my eyebrows, surprised Ciara had told him. “We keep them out back, away from the others. Mine’s in the shop.”
He nodded and remained silent as he assessed his surroundings.
“Just ask me what you want to ask me, man.”
He fixed his glare on me and if I were a lesser man, I would’ve squirmed. “Stay away from Ciara.”
I smirked and looked down at my hands for a moment. My voice was low as I raised my eyes to his. “There’s absolutely no way that’s happening.”
He fixed me with his stare, but I didn’t budge. “She’s young and she doesn’t know what she wants. She needs time to figure it out and I don’t want her getting sidetracked.”
“Ciara is the smartest woman I know. I doubt someone like me could ever sidetrack her.”
“You’re just as stubborn as she is, aren’t you?”
I smiled. “Why? What did she say?”
Joe waved him off. “Nevermind. What will it take for you to stay away?”
“I told you, man. I have everything I need. Nothing’s gonna’ stop me.”
“How much?”
I chuckled and leaned in towards him. “I have more money than you’ll ever see in your lifetime, Morton.”
Joe ran his hands along his head and hung it low. “Shit.”
“Look, man. I’m not gonna’ hurt her. She’s too precious to me. The most I can guarantee is her safety. I’m sure that means more to you than anything else.”
Joe looked at me, a look of despair in his eyes. “I’m going to ask one thing of you. I’ll leave you be, if you can do this one thing.”
I shrugged. “Anything, man.”
“Keep her far away from this life. You can have my sister as long as you swear to me, that she’ll have nothing to do with this place.”
My eyes darkened and I felt my jaw clench. It was probably the hardest thing anyone had ever asked of me. It wasn’t Ravenous I couldn’t do without, it was my family. My brother Cain, Wolf, Grayson, Riggs, the brotherhood. I was sworn in and I didn’t want to give it up.
I slowly shook my head. “Anything but that, that’s impossible.”
He nodded. “I wish you had given me a better answer, Scardino. I thought my sister would mean more to you than a stupid club.”
“You’re asking me to give up my family, Morton. I doubt you’d ever agree to that.”
“Ciara would be your family.”
“And I’d love every inch of that woman until the day I die, but I won’t give up on the Hell’s Lovers.” I looked down at my hands, somewhat shocked at what I had just admitted. Loving her. Cain was right. I was in love with Ciara. I was so fucking in love with her that I yearned to run to her and show her how much she belonged to me.
He stood up and looked down at me. “I guess I was wrong about you. I suggest you stay away from my sister, Scardino. Because if I see you near her again, I’ll ruin you and everyone around you. You understand?”
“Look, Morton, I…”
“Stay away from her! I have a lot more connections than you could ever fathom. Stay away Scardino, I warn you.”
I sat there as Joe Morton walked out. My head was spinning and the sudden pull at my heart was surprising. I grabbed my chest and tried to control my shallow breathing. I couldn’t give up on Hell’s Lovers, and I definitely wasn’t going to give up on Ciara. The fuck if I couldn’t have my cake and eat it too. I didn’t care who Joe Morton thought he was.
An idea started to form in my mind and it was vile and perverted, but it was the only way to tie her to me without her family hurting her. If I could really, truly claim her as mine then her family would have to accept. Especially, if there was a child caught in the middle. Seeing her family, they were close, and I’m sure they wouldn’t want to see another child being brought into this world without both parents.
I stood up and donned on my jacket, stepping out into the sunlight I knew what I was going to do was the right thing, even though it was a bit selfish on my part. But who ever said I was a good guy.
Chapter Ten
CIARA
I waved at Sam as he went through security. I was going to miss his bright smile and sarcastic wiles.
“Take care of yourself!” I yelled, and he gave me a thumbs up.
“You too!” he replied, getting lost in the sea of people.
Joe had left an hour before, after giving me a long lecture of how I needed to behave and that he would trust that I knew what I was getting myself into. I was happy that for now, my brothers had decided to leave me be. I breathed in a sigh of sorrow, mixed with a sigh of relief. At least they weren’t forcing me to leave. I knew they could if they wanted to, especially Joe. He loved to play the Father role. But now I had to face something even worst.
I had gotten notice of the lockdown, but I didn’t want my brothers to know what was going on. I had left with them early this morning and as we did, I noticed men crawling all over the lobby. They were even standing in the elevators. Extra security was up front and Joe had started to ask about what was going on when I hurried them out, telling him he was going to miss his flight.
I knew I had a few of the Death Row Shooters trailing me, even as I left the airport they were there. It was inevitable, so I just played it off as if nothing was wrong. I drove through the streets of the city in silence. Golden rays hit my windshield as the sun went down in the California skies. As I pulled in to the front of the apartment complex a solid figure emerged and my mouth went dry when I realized who was waiting for me.
He looked all rugged and delicious dressed in tight jeans, wearing a white t-shirt and leather jacket. The Hell’s Lovers logo stitched onto the back of it. He swept a hand through his blond mess of hair and his dark eyes followed me as I approached him. He was taking me in slowly, his gaze lingering on my legs and my chest, heating me up in all the right places. As I came up beside him, he dragged his eyes away from my breasts and met my gaze.
What the hell did he want now? Fuck, he looks good enough to eat.
“Did you come to reprimand me, Seth? Or did you come to tell me how I put everyone in danger?”
“You’re brother came to see me.” He spoke quietly.
“What?!”
He nodded. “We need to talk. Let’s go inside?”
I nodded and led the way inside. He punched the number to my floor and as the doors closed, he turned to me. “The next time I tell you there’s a lockdown, I expect you to do what is told of you.”
“I had to take my brothers to the airport.”
“You could have used one of the prospects to take them.”
/>
“So what, you’re going to spank me for disobeying your orders?”
He growled and my pussy automatically throbbed.
“Don’t fucking tempt me, Ciara.”
“I told you, I don’t follow ord...”
My words were cut off as he pushed me against the wall and he slammed his fist near my head. “Just do what I tell you!” I flinched and he immediately lowered his voice. “Fuck, Ciara. Just listen to me. You have no idea what happened last night. For once, just fucking listen to me. I don’t want anything happening to you.”
Anguish shown through his features and I realized that whatever was happening was serious. I watched him face the elevator doors once again and stayed quiet for the rest of the ride up to my apartment. The tension between us was so thick it could be cut with a knife. My keys jiggled nervously in the lock as I opened the door. Before I could even close it, he had me propped up onto the small table I had in the entrance. His mouth was devouring mine and his hands roamed along my back pulling me towards him.
I broke the kiss. “I thought you wanted to talk.”
He nodded and ripped my shirt in two. “This is me, talking.”
He growled as he pulled down my bra, letting my breasts pop out. He pinched down on the tips of my nipples and goosebumps lit up my skin. The feeling of pleasure and pain made me yell out and I grabbed his hair, pulling him back to look at me.
“Seth!”
He kneaded my breasts and squeezed my nipples again. I bit my lip and held back a groan. I should have never let him in. He was uncontrollable in his passion, and I knew there was no way of stopping him now. It was either fight him, or give him what he wanted. I, of course, was going to fight.
I pushed him back with all the force I had, and quickly jumped off the table. I edged my way down the hall towards the kitchen, raising my hand at him, as if that would hold him off. He followed me, looking like a predator who just came across his prey. As I watched him warily, he started to undress. My feet faltered as he dropped his jacket in the hallway floor and then swept his shirt off. I stood near the kitchen counter gawking at him in stunned silence, my pussy dripping from the erotic sight before me.