by S. Nelson
Unknown: Did you still want to get together today?
Poised to type a response and ask who it was, my phone pinged with another message.
Unknown: BTW, this is Adelaide.
Duh! It was then I remembered she’d invited me to go shopping. But was I up for traipsing around town with a woman I’d only just met? Besides, she didn’t know how to communicate with me like Sully did, so would our day be spent in silence, nodding and quick smiles filling up the uncomfortable pauses?
As if reading my mind, she’d sent another text.
Adelaide: I’ve sat in on the occasional lesson with Jagger, so I know a small amount of SL. Although I’m sure I’ll mess something up, so please be patient with me.
Some of my nerves melted away. The people Jagger surrounded himself with seemed wonderful. Their support of him shone through, and anyone could see they genuinely cared for him.
I seriously contemplated backing out of the day’s trip, but something inside nudged me to forge ahead. To get out of my comfortable little bubble and make new friends. I had a good feeling about Adelaide and knew she and I would get along well, despite the communication barrier.
Kena: I’d love to. Just tell me where to meet you.
Adelaide: Nonsense. Zip will be joining us. Only to keep an eye out, per Stone’s crazy request. I hope you don’t mind.
Assuming Zip was one of the members of Jagger’s club, I should have listened to my instincts when she’d said he’d be joining us, wondering why he’d been asked to tag along. But I didn’t.
Adelaide: I promise you won’t even know he’s there. Besides, if he becomes a pain, I’ll just threaten him with my uncle. Fill you in on that little trick of mine when I see you. :)
Adelaide’s ease for the situation soothed me, so I typed my response right away.
Kena: Looking forward to it.
I added her name and number to my contacts and texted her my address, informing her I’d be ready in an hour.
Slipping into the back of a red muscle car, Adelaide turned in her seat and smiled at me, the excitement on her face brightening my mood. Any hesitation I’d held slowly evaporated into thin air. The driver, however, stared at me through the rearview mirror, never cracking a grin or saying anything to either of us before pulling out onto the street.
“Don’t mind him, Kena. Zip’s just grumpy because he was tasked with escorting us.” The guy in the driver’s seat grumbled incoherently before tightening his grip on the wheel. “Besides, he knows if he doesn’t lighten up, I’ll tell my uncle he misbehaved.” She laughed, but Zip didn’t find what she’d said funny.
“You better not sic that ol’ man on me,” he warned, being sure to keep his tone toward her respectful.
“Ol’ man? Wait until I tell him that.”
“Shit!” he grunted. “Adelaide, have mercy on me. Please.” He looked unsure as to whether he should take her seriously or not.
Ten minutes later, Zip pulled the car into a parking lot, shutting off the engine before turning toward his passenger. “You know the drill. Please don’t get me in trouble by ditching me. You know damn well Stone will hand me my ass if you do. Never mind what Trigger will do to me.” His expression was serious.
“Fine. But don’t hover over us. Deal?” Adelaide reached for her door handle, staring back at Zip and waiting for him to tell her what she wanted to hear.
“Deal,” he conceded.
I watched him exit the car, my reaction kept in check when I noticed the gun tucked in the waistband of his pants. The dark black weapon screamed that maybe this wasn’t such a good idea. Adelaide caught me staring and assured me, “Don’t even give it a second thought, Kena. All the men carry.”
All the men? Did Jagger?
As if sensing my inner turmoil, she continued with, “It’s just a precaution. Nothing more.” Somehow I feared she wasn’t being completely honest, but not knowing much about the two of them or their club, I only had her word to go on.
I was still a nervous wreck, but I tried to overshadow my thoughts by listening to Adelaide talk about how excited she was that Jagger asked for her help in decorating his place.
“You should have seen his apartment before I got my hands on it,” she cringed. “There was a ratty couch and crappy TV in the living room. That’s it. Can you believe it? And his bedroom was even worse, just a mattress on the floor and a single, broken-down dresser. I think the door fronts were falling off too.”
I frowned thinking of Jagger living in such a place, but at least that was no longer the case. Thank God.
I’m sure he was stubborn at first, I signed.
“Did you say he was stubborn?”
I nodded, a little surprised she’d understood me.
“I know the sign for that word,” she laughed. “Sully used it a lot when she was teaching him.” Leading me toward a small, trendy-looking furniture store, Zip jumped ahead of us and held the door open. At least he was a gentleman, although I was sure most of the public didn’t view him as such.
When he relaxed, he looked to be a little younger than me. He wasn’t overly tall, probably just shy of six feet. His leather cut and baggy jeans did well to hide his thin build, but I was sure he was lethal with that gun of his. Otherwise, I doubted Stone would have asked him to watch over his woman.
Zip’s dark hair was slicked back, his green eyes watching every move Adelaide and I made, while remaining at a distance which allowed us to float around the store with ease.
“Don’t worry about him,” she said when I glanced back at him a few more times.
Are you scared?
I had no idea why I’d asked her such a question, but my hands were gesturing before I could stop them.
“I’m not sure what you just asked me.” She looked embarrassed, and I hated we couldn’t talk freely. But I was aware this would happen, so I spelled out the last word, hoping she knew the alphabet.
Thankfully, she did.
“Scared? Am I scared? Is that what you’re asking me?”
I nodded.
“No,” she answered without hesitation. “Zip’s temper is enough to scare off anyone if they rile him up. Besides, he’s a good shot.” She chuckled, but quickly stopped when she saw the uneasy look on my face.
Linking her arm through mine, she led me toward one of the sales associates. “You’re safe, Kena. And I know there’s something amiss with you and Jagger. No doubt his stubbornness,” she said, bumping my shoulder with hers, “is getting in the way. But he’ll come around. I’ve never seen him this over the moon about someone before. It’ll work out. Have faith.”
Have faith. Easy-enough concept. Or was it?
After Adelaide spoke with the associate, we headed back toward Zip, his nose buried in his phone as we approached.
“You almost done?” he asked.
“Yeah. They’ll bring out the lamp, and then we can go.” Turning her attention toward me, she asked, “Are you hungry?”
Yes.
My stomach rumbled from the mere mention of food. I hadn’t eaten anything before I’d left my house, too nervous.
“I can run through a drive-thru but that’s it.” Zip’s nose was still buried in his phone.
“No,” she countered. “I want to go to the diner next door and sit down.”
“Can’t do it,” he pushed back. “Prez wants me back as soon as possible.”
“Why?”
“You know I can’t tell you that.” Zip and Adelaide squared off, staring at each other while I stood off to the side, not knowing what to do with myself.
After a few more tense seconds, she huffed and gave in. “Fine.”
“Here you go, miss,” a man said, handing Adelaide the most beautiful lamp I’d ever seen. I knew it was only a lighting fixture, but it was gorgeous. The top part was a sphere, etched lines of colors swirling around its entirety. A curved spine connected with the base, dark, thick wood making up the rest of the piece. Jagger made the right move in asking his fri
end to help decorate his place. She certainly had an eye for design.
We decided to skip the drive-thru, Adelaide offering to whip us up something back at the clubhouse before taking me home. I wasn’t sure who would give me a ride, however, seeing as how Zip had been the one driving. But I knew they wouldn’t leave me stranded, so I didn’t give it another thought.
Adelaide had chosen to sit in the back with me, chatting away about various topics, her daughter most of all. I smiled, nodded and listened intently, thoroughly enjoying our day together.
“I’m going to have Sully teach me sign language just like she did Jagger. I have a feeling you’re going to be sticking around for quite a while.” Her enthusiasm for my place in Jagger’s life tugged at my heart. I had no clue if what she spoke was the truth or not, but I loved the idea.
I continued smiling at her when all of a sudden we were both thrust back into our seats, Zip having picked up considerable speed.
“What the hell?” Adelaide grumbled, clutching the door for support. “Slow the hell down!” she shouted.
“Fuck!” he yelled in response. He grabbed his phone before shouting, “Put your seat belts on. Now!”
Reaching for my restraint, I buckled it into place while having no idea what was going on. Adelaide had done the same, Zip speaking again right after the click of her belt sounded.
“Someone’s followin’ us. Hold on while I try to lose ’em.”
I never had time to look and see who was behind us.
To ask Adelaide a question.
To contemplate whether or not my life was in danger.
To wonder if I’d see Jagger again.
To think anything at all.
Another vehicle slammed into us from behind, sending us careening into the opposite lane. Closing my eyes and holding my breath, all I heard were screeching tires at first. Then it was as if we’d been thrown into the air, the car tumbling down the highway, rolling over and over until we’d finally halted, skidding to a stop with the roof of the car beneath us.
Everything had happened so fast, I barely had the opportunity to dissect our predicament when I heard heavy, booted footsteps running toward us. Mumbled voices shouted to each other.
Had someone come to help?
My head throbbed as soon as I pried my eyes open, my vision blurry when I looked around the inside of the car. Broken glass was everywhere, so I was careful where I placed my hands when trying to support my weight upside down. Turning my head to my left, I saw that Adelaide was awake, taking in the scene just as I was, but the look on her face was more alert than mine. I couldn’t see Zip, but I heard him groaning, no doubt hurt from the accident.
It was an accident, wasn’t it?
Or did someone purposely run us off the road?
Before I could allow my brain to contemplate whether or not that was true, I heard people just outside the car. Then I heard the driver’s side door open, the metal screaming with every pull. At first I thought the men who’d approached were there to help, but the thought was quickly doused when I heard someone say, “Kill him then grab those two.”
My heart skidded to a stop when I saw two arms reach inside the car and drag Zip from his seat, flinging him into the road with no regard as to whether or not he’d been hurt. Then I remembered what had just been said.
From my position in the back of the car, I saw Zip roll onto his side and reach behind him. He was going for his gun, but before he pulled it free, a deafening, soul-piercing shot rang out.
His arm fell awkwardly behind him, his lifeless body kicked onto its back, pinning his limb beneath him. A river of blood seeped from his head and coated the concrete. I would’ve screamed right then if I’d had a voice. Instead I started to cry, my fear of being shot like an animal in the street so overwhelming I could do nothing but release my terror in the form of tears.
“Oh my God! Oh my God!” was all I heard Adelaide cry. She was just as terrified, but neither of us had time to comfort the other with false promises before both of our doors were ripped open, the same ear-piercing sounds of metal being jarred away from the frame of the car.
Two men clad in leather and smelling like alcohol and smoke leaned inside and freed us from our seat belts. Grabbing us underneath our arms, they roughly yanked us from the car. With whatever strength I had, I started to flail about, figuring there had to be other people surrounding our accident.
Someone besides these cold-blooded killers.
But I never had the chance to see before I was struck on the head, darkness stealing my hazy sight.
Jagger
So much commotion stole my focus. Various screams and shouts blocked my chance to concentrate on any one man or the enraged words they spewed amongst each other.
Having no idea what had happened, I braced myself for the worst, but nothing could have prepared me for what happened next. I had no idea my world was about to be flipped on its goddamn ass. That my heart would be ripped from my chest and sliced into such tiny pieces there was no possible way it’d ever be whole again.
Gathered around the table in Chambers, every man stopped their rantings when a phone rang. I looked around the room, trying to decipher where the noise had originated from. When I glanced toward Marek, I saw the small device in his hand.
A look of rage mixed with fear shadowed his hardened features.
After pressing the Answer button, silence ensued.
Until a harsh voice destroyed the quiet, tearing our world apart.
Our leader had put the cell on speaker, allowing all of us to hear the caller. Which should have been the first thing to alarm me, but I was too focused on trying to figure out why every brother beside me looked like they wanted to kill.
“After all this time, did you really think I’d just let it go? Let you take my daughter without retribution?”
Oh shit! Psych!
I leaned as close as I could, making sure I didn’t miss a single word. At least now I had one piece to the puzzle, but I was still confused as to what was going on.
“What do you want?” Marek asked in a slow and dangerous voice. The muscles in his neck strained, and I knew as soon as this call ended he’d let loose and explode for all of us to see. Focusing on Stone next, I saw that he’d mirrored his friend’s body language. He was also enraged, but there was something about his expression that unnerved me to my very core. The fear that bound him frightened me, a shiver racing through me at what was going to be revealed in the next few seconds.
“I want Sully. You give her to me and I’ll give you back the two bitches we rescued on the highway.” He said the word “rescued’” slowly, telling us with the inflection of his tone that he’d done the opposite. Whoever he’d “rescued,” he’d kidnapped. No doubt about that.
“And what about Zip?” Marek growled.
What the fuck happened to Zip, and who are the two “bitches” he’s referring to? With everything going on, I hadn’t even noticed Zip was missing from the room.
“He’s dead. My men left him in the middle of the road.” Psych spoke so matter-of-fact it was as if he’d been talking about a car that’d broken down on the side of the highway.
Marek slammed his hand down on the table, the thunderous sound vibrating throughout the room. Dread pulsed through my veins, and it was all I could do not to rush from the room to retrieve our fallen brother.
“Mark my words, you soulless fuck. My face will be the last you’ll see before I rip your fucking heart from your chest,” our leader threatened, pounding the table a few more times for emphasis. Stone leaned back in his chair and ran his hands over his face, terror seizing his expression while waiting for Psych to speak again.
“Mark my words, Marek,” Psych taunted, “I’ll fuck your VP’s woman until she bleeds. Until she begs for death. Then I’ll move on to her little friend. Although I don’t think that one can speak, so that’ll be a whole lotta fun.”
Stone kicked his seat behind him when he suddenly jumped to his feet.
“Don’t you fucking touch her!” he yelled, whirling around and punching his fist through the wall. The sound jerked me out of my daze. It’d taken my brain a few seconds to catch up to what was going on, my denial surely trying to protect me.
But when Stone’s eyes latched onto mine, when he watched as Psych’s words slowly registered, I knew this shit was for real. I froze in place, unable to move. The breath in my lungs stilled as I fought back the vomit creeping up my throat.
“GIMME BACK MY DAUGHTER!” Psych roared through the phone, gutting everyone in the room. The hair on the back of my neck stood up, and I knew right then there was a very real possibility I’d never see Kena alive again.
Would Marek give up his wife in exchange for Adelaide and Kena?
Did he even have a choice?
If he didn’t comply, he’d ensure their deaths for sure. And while he might not lose too much sleep over Kena’s, I was sure he would torture himself over Adelaide’s demise.
His best friend’s woman.
Trigger’s niece.
Before Marek could deny the demand, Stone stole the phone from the table and answered. “When and where?” Three simple words, but when put together, they meant a shift in everything we’d ever known.
Marek jumped from his chair the same time I had. In fact, all of the men were on their feet, realizing something was about to go down right here inside Chambers. Volatile looks and controlled fury threatened to annihilate anyone daring to move the wrong way, or say the wrong thing. And it wasn’t just from Marek or Stone. It was from Tripp. And Ryder. And Hawke. And Trigger. And Cutter. And Breck.
And me.
Before one of us went nuclear, a noise erupted from the other end of the line, silencing the rage we’d all felt by replacing the emotion with stifling dread.
Screams.
Haunted screams.
A woman’s screams.
Adelaide’s screams.
“Don’t you fuckin’ touch her!” Stone thundered again, punching the wall behind him once more in his haste to expel some of his fury.
“She sure is a looker, Crosswell. I bet her pussy’s real nice.” Psych’s eerie laughter made us all cringe, the idea that he’d violate his captives a very real possibility. If he hadn’t done so already.