by J. L. Drake
First prize—a hundred grand
Second prize—fifty grand
First and second place winners will move on to the semifinals. Location revealed when winners are announced.
I was intrigued, but fucking irritated he would hand me the one thing I promised I’d never do again.
“What, you think we need the money?”
“Nah, boss, I think you need the outlet.”
Fuck!
I jammed the phone in his hand and went inside. Morgan had a full bar, and it was only eight p.m. Nice to see the business was picking up.
“Brick?” I shouted when I came behind the bar for a water.
“Out back in the gym.”
Minnie blocked my path.
“What?” She had fire, but not the kind I liked.
Her arms folded over her chest, and she cocked out her hip. “When are you going to fix whatever the shit is between you and B?”
“Not now, Minnie.”
“Yes, now. And go get Tess so you can get laid again, because honestly, you’re a huge asshole without her. And why the fuck is Tammy back? She could be the damn mole, for shit’s sake.”
Closing my eyes, I tried to calm my temper, which proved harder than I thought. When I opened them, I saw she had walked away.
Good.
The gym was stuffy and hot. We hated to use the AC when we worked out. Living in the desert, you needed to have stamina when it came to the heat. Couldn’t fight if you went lightheaded. Shit happened, and you died.
Brick was bouncing around in the ring with Rail, who looked to have gotten hit in the face a few times. It wasn’t a fair fight. Brick was stronger and leaner.
“Rail,” I called out. He dropped his arms and ducked under the ropes.
I hopped in and raised my fists to spar.
“No.” Brick sighed.
“Didn’t ask.” I smacked his shoulder and then his cheek.
“Why?” He flinched when I punched his arm.
“Fight back.”
He rolled his eyes and took a punch at my face, but I ducked and kicked his knee. He yelped, but it fed his fire.
About fucking time.
He swung again, and I let him smoke my face. He saw through me and cursed. Physical pain was my drug.
“I hate that you made her leave.”
“Wasn’t my intention,” I grunted. Dodging his hit, I sent a blow to his chest.
“You tossed me under the bus.” He kicked my ribs hard.
“I did, but it was either that or have my father sink his claws into her.” It was hard to hold back when I nailed him in the jaw with my foot.
He stepped back and spat blood from his split lip. He pointed his taped-up hand at me. “You know she loved you, and you fed her to the wolves like just another pussy that got too close.”
I lunged and grabbed him around the neck, slamming him into the corner of the ring. A few of the guys rose, but Rail raised his hand to tell them to back the fuck off.
My fingers curled into stone as I drew my hand back. My heart pumped at a dangerous rate, and my vison clouded. My switch begged to be flipped, but I held it down. What he said sank in, and he closed his eyes with a frustrated sigh. I waited a beat before I let go and dropped my arms heavily to my sides. The demons screamed at me to rip his head off. Fucking animals wouldn’t let up.
“She is at the house,” Brick muttered, which made me whip around. “I just got a call from a friend who still lives there. You were out, and I needed to process it.” He waved around the ring.
Jesus Christ.
“Tell Jace.”
“He knows. He was there when he called.”
I turned to leave when Brick stopped me.
“It’s not as easy as going in there and getting her back. If she went home, it means she went back to him.”
“You ready to tell me who him is now?”
***
Allen
My hands flexed over the sides of the pulpit as I felt the connection with those below me. Power traveled through the soles of my feet. I envisioned myself like a tree, absorbing it through my roots, and the heat of it flooded through my soul. I inhaled deeply with my eyes closed.
Slowly, my eyes opened, and I gazed down at the twenty pairs of ears waiting for me to speak.
“Today, we talk about sacrifice and how the Lord wants you to do him justice.”
Two hours later, I packed up my things and shook many hands before I loosened my collar and downed a bottle of Jack from under the dusty organ. This gig was pretty damn good. I could really get off on this whole preacher in the pulpit thing. It suited me.
“Alle—” Zay, one of the oldest members of my family, cleared his throat when I glared at him. “Father, we have a new development.”
“Which is?” I cleaned the dried blood off the ridges of my knife with my jacket. The edge of excitement I had experienced earlier after disposing of a local was only now beginning to dull.
“We found the girl.”
That piqued my interest. Trigger had never given a shit about anyone before, but for whatever reason, he cared enough to make that blonde woman leave. I couldn’t get my head around it. Far as I could see, broads like her were a dime a dozen, nothing more than a warm, wet hole. Love was a conspiracy that was beaten into our brains by society, like we needed an old lady to make us feel complete. I snorted out loud at the thought. All you would be left with was a bitch to nag you and suck away all your money. If the common man could step back and look at our history, they would see that feelings like love were nothing more than lust. A few hip thrusts and a spent dick, and that was it.
Like that old saying goes, fuck and chuck.
“Where is she?” He looked over his shoulder and handed me a folded piece of paper. That was why I kept Zay around. He was loyal, discreet, and could find anyone. He was, after all, the one who came up with the idea to win over the Stripe Backs.
I glanced at the address and smiled. “Put fifty on blackjack for me.”
He nodded. “I’ll report in tonight.” With that, he left.
The rest of the men started to bring in the shipment of guns that arrived last night. I moved to the table and relished the smell.
“What do we have here, Father?” My potential buyer was practically salivating.
I pointed to the far end of the table. “AK-47, ML 18 inch 5.56, and this.” I picked up the sexy, sleek weapon and looked through the scope. “This is the Black Mamba.”
“Which is what, exactly?” He eyed the rifle and ran his tongue over his lips. I slipped it back into the soft velvet case.
“Custom made. It’s a cross between both of those weapons. Sniper approved.”
His eyebrows rose and he shook his head, clearly not interested in my specialty. “I won’t lie. I was surprised to hear you were dealing weapons.”
I flipped a bullet between my fingers. “Actually, I’m not looking to sell. I’m looking to build an army.”
His face fell, and he flexed his jaw. “Army? Who exactly are you fighting?”
“Devil’s Reach,” I said bluntly as I eased into a chair.
He stepped back and held his hands in the air. “Fuck, man, I don’t know why you’d go up against someone as crazy as Trigger, but I want no part in it.”
“Scared?” I taunted.
His fingers ran along the Black Mamba before his gaze flickered over to mine. “I watched him screw up my nephew’s eyeballs with a fork because he caught him skimmin’. Then he tore out my uncle’s fuckin’ kidneys because he defended him. I lived, but those images are burned in my brain.” He rubbed his head. “I don’t know what was worse, watching that or living with it.” He closed the lid on the gun. “I was fine with buying guns from you, Father, but if you’re looking for an army, my men would rather off themselves than go up against Trigger.”
I hated that my son had such a reputation. If I hadn’t gone into hiding, I’d be more feared than he was by now.
“Su
it yourself.”
He looked away, his face growing paler by the moment. Fucking pussy. “When are you planning to move on him?”
I tilted my head as I studied his face. I wondered what his motive was. “Why?”
He shoved his hands into his pockets. “Because I want to be as far away from you as possible when it happens.”
I grinned, excited to know the war would be epic.
Chapter Three
Tess
For three days, Venna and I played every client. All it took was some acting, a blindfold, and some music to drown the voices. I hated every moment of it. I felt dirty and used, more by my mother than by the clients. I may not have been sleeping with the men, but more than half the time they would stick their tongues down my throat or slip their fingers into my panties every chance they got, but at least they weren’t hiding who they were.
The only time I felt all right was when I was dancing. They weren’t allowed to touch me then. Venna was making a fortune, and I wasn’t too far behind. Half my money was going somewhere else, so it would take me a little longer to get out of here. It was a hard pill to swallow, but I still needed to find out what Clark had on Trigger and the club.
I spun once more on the pole then started to feel ill. My ribs were on fire, and my stomach rolled. Feeling like the world was about to fly off its rocker, I danced around and waited until the lights flickered off.
I nearly fell down the stairs as I descended and crashed heavily into someone who broke my fall.
“What’s wrong, Tess?” Clark bent down to my eye level.
“Nothing.” I pushed him away, but he wouldn’t have it. He half carried me to the private dressing room and sat me on a chair before he handed me a bottle of water.
“You’re white as a ghost. Have you eaten today?” He felt my forehead, but I pushed his hand away.
“Yes, and stop touching me.” Even the water made me want to vomit.
“You’re not fucking pregnant, are you?”
My eyes stung as I glared at the asshole in front of me. “If I was?”
He rubbed his face, then his neck. His expression darkened, and I could see where his head went. He thought it was Trigger’s.
I slowly rose out of the chair and turned toward the door before he jammed himself between me and it.
“Are you?”
“Move.” I breathed through my nose to try to calm the storm inside.
He bit his lip but lost the asshole behavior. He brushed my hair away like he used to, and he carefully lifted my chin so I’d look at him. “Despite your anger toward me, sweetheart, I really care about you and your wellbeing.” His fingers dragged across my bottom lip, and for a moment, I gave in to it. It felt good, like I was home again. He leaned in and brushed his lips across mine, and I nearly broke. “I missed this.” When I started to speak, he sealed his mouth over mine and kissed me sweetly. His kisses had always seemed tender and caring, but really, they were a mind fuck. “Tess,” he whispered against my wet skin. “I just want to know if you’re okay.”
It was as if someone sucker punched my heart. I stepped back, wiping my lips dry.
“Don’t.” I wanted to cry with how much his words made me miss Trigger.
“Don’t what?” He moved closer. “Don’t do this?” He again pushed himself on me, but in a gentle manner. It felt wrong. I was so fucked up and twisted inside, any sweetness during intimacy made me feel gross.
He did that to me.
His arms wrapped around my back and pulled at the string holding my top on. “Remind me of how sweet your breasts are.”
Jesus.
Tears prickled my eyes, and that annoying lump returned to the center of my throat. I ripped the string out of his hold and wiggled away with my hand over my breasts.
“Clark, enough,” I bit out and tried to make sense of my million and one mixed emotions.
“Sorry.” He held up his hands. “Just hard when I haven’t seen you in a while. You know what you do to me.”
“I need to go.”
“Okay.” He got the hint but still waited a beat before he opened the door for me.
Once I was alone in the hallway in the back corridor of the house, I slid to the floor and held on to my knees for something to stabilize me. Clark stirred up so many dormant feelings that I’d finally managed to chase away. He wasn’t good for me, but shit, that kiss clouded my head.
Later that night, my ribs got worse. Or was it my stomach? I couldn’t really tell. Taking the pills Sean—or Shantee—had given me, I slipped off to a very uncomfortable sleep.
The next day I spent in my room trying to take it easy. My mother was pissed she had to reschedule my appointments, but Clark helped convince her. I stayed in bed, hoping time and rest would help. Sadly, by three p.m. the next day, that wasn’t the case.
***
The lady behind the desk kept her eye on me while I waited for the doctor, who was running behind. I could have seen the house doctor, but the last time I did, it had severely scarred me. Literally.
“Tessa Marin, come on back.” The doctor smiled at me from behind her red-framed glasses. Her office was just as funky as her outfit that peeked out from her white coat. She had taken a sponge to her walls and had made a neat mural of the park across the street.
“So, you’re new to me.” She grinned at me as she propped up her laptop. “Why are you here today? Tell me a little bit about yourself.”
Where to begin?
“To make a long story short, I was in the wrong place at the wrong time and got jumped. My ribs took the majority of the beating.”
“Okay.” Her tone immediately changed to a more serious one. “Did you see a doctor when it happened?”
“Kind of.” I made a face that told her my story had some holes. “He didn’t see any problems that would lead me to think I should go to the hospital.”
She squinted before she typed something in her laptop.
“I’m having some pain here.” I pointed to my lower abdomen, and her eyes followed my hands. “Not really sure if it’s connected to what happened, but it doesn’t seem to be getting any better.”
She placed her laptop on the desk and started to warm her hands by rubbing them together.
“Lean back and let me take a look.”
Easing back on the bed, I lifted my shirt and watched her facial expressions. Her cool hands felt around, and I nearly hit the roof when she applied pressure to my left side.
“Your bruises are yellow, so to be having that kind of pain, I would think there may be more going on. Maybe a cracked rib as well.” She glanced at my file before adjusting her glasses as she looked me over. “I would feel more comfortable if we did some x-rays.”
“Now?” I needed to get back.
“Yes.”
“I can’t. I have to get back to work.”
“I’ll squeeze you in.”
Fuck.
“Okay.”
She sank back in her seat and scrolled through her laptop. “Okay, let’s go.”
Twenty minutes later, I quickly dressed and promised the doctor I’d come back for the results.
I gathered my things and plastered a smile on face. “I’ll be waiting for your call.”
She stood as I handed her the very lengthy questionnaire she made me fill out. She immediately flipped to the third page and frowned. “Here.” She handed me a prescription. “I have a theory on what’s going on, but until I’m sure, please take these. If they don’t help, come back, and I’ll try something else. In the meantime, take it easy, okay?”
“I’ll try.”
“Tess?”
I opened the door and stood in the doorway as if to ask, what?
“Whoever did that to you, were they caught?”
Trigger’s face broke through my walls and made me smile. “One did, and the other will get his day.”
She nodded then reminded me once again to keep my word to return for the results.
I didn�
��t even get outside before my phone lit up. I tossed back two of the pills she gave me and opened my messages.
Ven: I’m stuck at the club and your mother is on a rampage. Call Rachel asap!
Tess: Not a good time.
Not even ten seconds later, I felt her reply.
Ven: Call her NOW!
Shit.
“Where the hell are you?” Rachel, the house admin, screamed at me.
“I had an appointment.”
“Not from what I see. You know the rules better than anyone here, Tessa. You always block out the times you’re not here.”
“Sorry. I wasn’t thinking.”
“Yeah, well, you better, because there’s a new client here insisting he has an appointment with you.”
Come on, not today!
“Can you rebook him?”
“Girl, he’s sitting in the waiting area saying he’ll wait until you arrive. When your mother stepped in to try to get him to take someone else, he said no, but that he’d triple the normal rate for you.”
Who the hell was this guy?
“I’m fifteen minutes away.”
“Make it five.” She hung up.
I quickly called Ven and told her what was going on. She told me she’d wait in the lobby, and we’d go from there.
I skipped on the Uber and nearly ran all the way back. I managed to get there in under ten. Thankfully, the sidewalk was clear, and the atmosphere was heavy with upcoming rain. Autumn in Vegas was the best.
“You look like shit,” Rachel muttered as she tried to smooth my wild hair. “Go over there and get changed.” She pointed me toward a small changing room we rarely used, but it was good for times like this. “I’ll get him to your room.”
“Wait.” I caught the door before she left. “Where’s Ven?”
“Felicia needed her for something. She just rushed her away about three minutes ago.”
What?
I pulled my phone free, and sure as shit, there was a text.