Waving at Viking Dan and Ryder to mount up, he crossed the picnic area and spotted something shiny in the grass. He picked it up and sighed. Tin foil. The remnants of someone’s lunch. He tossed it in the garbage can and another glint caught his eye.
Probably more garbage.
Ryder revved his engine and Viking Dan helped Jackie onto his bike. James took two steps toward them and stopped. He had always instructed his homicide team to leave no stone unturned. Even though he was giving up that life, he couldn’t turn his back on years of training. Taking a deep breath, he headed over to the shiny object just barely visible in the grass.
It was probably nothing.
“Back on the bed, bitch.”
Levi grabbed Lana as she reached for the door and threw her across the bed. Her head hit the headboard with a loud crack and for a moment she couldn’t move.
By the time her head cleared and sensation returned to her limbs, Levi was on top of her, his knife pressed against her throat. Blood dripped from his torn lip and splashed on her cheek, like a tear.
“I knew I shouldn’t fucking trust you,” he growled. “Someone betrays you once, they’ll betray you again. Once you lose trust, you can’t get it back.”
Not true.
The tip of Levi’s knife sliced across Lana’s neck. Her breath caught in her throat at the sharp pain, choking off her scream. Her body shook violently with the need to writhe and twist and push him away, but with the knife on her skin, she was afraid to move. Not that she could move. Levi held her hands tight over her head, one knee pressed against her chest, his other leg pinning her to the bed.
“Now for the cheeks.”
She barely heard the thud on the door for the pounding of blood in her ears.
“I fucking warned you,” Hang Nail shouted. “No noise.”
“Back off, Hang Nail. I’ve got her under control. When I’m done with her she won’t be giving us any more trouble. Ever.”
Levi’s gaze rested on Lana, focused, intent. She looked into eyes dark as night and empty as his soul, and knew in her heart she was about to die. She opened her mouth to scream, but her throat tightened and no sound came out.
Levi slid the blade to Lana’s cheek, brushing the cool steel over her heated skin. The tip of the blade cut deep and he dragged it along her cheekbone, parting her flesh with careful precision. The stinging pain brought tears to her eyes and blood trickled softly down the side of her face.
“Change of plans,” he murmured. “Mark you, fuck you and then kill you. No more problems. No more humiliation.” He drew the knife down the other side of her cheek, breaking the skin with a slow, careful stroke, drawing a strangled cry from her lips.
Her neck, her cheeks, her body—everything throbbed and burned and ached. Pain was everywhere, endless, blinding in its intensity. Hatred flared fierce inside her. And anger. Anger at what he’d taken from her as a romantic young teenager, and what he was going to take from her now—love and life and a chance at happiness.
Don’t give up hope.
She clung to James’s words as she clung to her life. Run. Her brain willed her body to move, but something else held her to the bed. Her limbs were heavy and unresponsive. Her breaths slow. And she was tired.
So tired.
No. She wouldn’t die like this. Not as a victim. Not without hope. She pulled in the last of her energy, drew in a breath and spat in Levi’s face.
“Do you never fucking give up?” he growled.
A thud on the door rattled the windows. Outside, a groan. A sob. Hushed words.
Levi’s eyes glazed over and he pressed the knife tight against her throat. “That’s the last time you ever humiliate me, Roxie. The. Very. Last. Time.”
A shudder ran through her. She squeezed her eyes shut and wished she could have seen James one last time.
The door exploded inward and her eyes flew open.
James. And Ryder. Kickstand behind them. Wishes did come true.
Levi leaped off the bed, knife flashing in the air. James flew across the room and knocked him to the floor. A frenzy of punches, thuds, kicks, flying lamps, breaking glass, splintered wood, breaking bones.
Groans and whimpers.
Ryder and Kickstand pulling an enraged James away.
She watched it all through a soft haze, as if in a dream. Although she tried to move, her mind and body hit a disconnect. Dazed, confused, she tried to focus, but the world swam in front of her.
And then James was beside her. But he didn’t smile.
“Jesus Christ. Look at her neck. Kickstand, get a towel. Ryder, call an ambulance.”
James pulled her into his arms, his face a mask of rage and pain and…fear? “It’s okay, Lana. You’ll be okay. Ambulance is coming…” He choked on his words and his arms tightened around her. “I’m sorry I took so long. I should never have let you go.”
“Trusted you,” she whispered. “Didn’t give up hope.”
“You did good, babe.” He pressed a kiss to her forehead.
She closed her eyes as sleep beckoned. But there was something she wanted to tell him. The words flitted through her brain, slipping and sliding as she tried to catch them.
“James?”
“I’m here.” His voice was distant, soft. She forced her eyes open and gazed into a stormy sea.
“Forgot…to tell you something.”
Sirens. Banging. Gunshots. Crashing. Wheels squeaking. Shouting. Gasps.
“Tell me later.” His voice caught and Lana frowned.
“No. Now. I might not… Please, James. Just in case.”
“There is no ‘might not’,” he growled. “There is no ‘just in case’. There is only later.”
Her eyelids dropped and no force of will could hold them open. “I loved you from the day we met,” she whispered. “I always knew you were the one.”
Chapter Twenty-Four
James paced up and down the hallway outside the waiting area of the Vancouver General Hospital Emergency room. Jackie, Viking Dan and a bandaged Kickstand watched him from their seats in the corner. Ryder leaned against the wall nearby. Outside, a few members of the Rogue Riders patrolled the area, looking for escaped Wolverines.
Although Levi hadn’t severed any of Lana’s major arteries, he had come close. She had lost a lot of blood and needed stitches. Of more concern to the doctors were the injuries she had suffered from Levi’s beatings: broken ribs, severe bruising and possible internal injuries.
If Levi hadn’t been shot by the police as he tried to escape from the motel with two automatic weapons and a bag of cocaine, James would have gladly done the job.
“I can’t sit here anymore,” Jackie wailed. “I have a nurse’s disguise in my bag. I’m going to put it on and sneak in.”
Viking Dan put his arm around her shoulder and gave her a squeeze. “Calm,” he said quietly. “The doctor said she’s going to be all right.”
Jackie raised an eyebrow. “I don’t do calm.”
He pulled her into his chest and locked her in place with a powerful arm. “You do now.”
Jackie looked up at him and then rested her head against his shoulder, muttering softly under her breath.
“He soothed the savage beast,” Ryder murmured to James. “Something even I couldn’t manage to do. Maybe because I’m not a fucking six-foot-five, blond Viking with fucking ice for eyes.”
A smile ghosted James’s lips for the first time that night. “Didn’t take you for the jealous type.”
Ryder rolled his eyes. “I’m not jealous. I’m happy she’s found someone who can manage her wild side. I’m just wondering…where’s mine?”
“Mr. Hunter?” A young, harried-looking doctor joined them in the hallway. “Your girlfriend is stable and has asked—actually demanded—that you see her now. The nurse just needs five minutes with her and then you’re free to go in. We’ll keep her a few days just to be safe and if everything looks good, we’ll discharge her.”
James looked over
his shoulder at Jackie. “You coming?”
She made a move to get up and then froze. “Nah. You go first. Right now I’m so mad at her for putting her life on the line I might not be able to control my mouth.”
Ryder snorted. “So it can be done?”
“You keep that up,” Jackie snapped, “and I won’t join your biker gang, no matter how much you beg and plead. I’m already on the fence about the whole thing, seeing as you don’t even have a patch.”
“Design one. That can be your first job.”
Jackie stared at him. “I’m a PI, not a patch designer. Do I look like I can draw? Do I strike you as the artistic type?”
“I’ll help you.” Viking Dan chuckled and patted her hand.
“Don’t tell me that in addition to smashing Wolverine heads together, those gigantic paws of yours can wield a pen.” A smile curled Jackie’s lips.
“You would be surprised what these hands can do.” He traced a finger along her jawbone and Jackie sucked in a sharp breath.
“Okay. Me and VD are gonna design a patch. It might take some time. Lots of time. I’m thinking something with a skull so people know we mean business, maybe some flames, knives or a sword. Something to make Hades run scared.”
“Hades is gone,” James said as he checked his watch. “Someone reported to the Coast Guard that Hades was involved in the illegal trade of Canadian waterfowl. Nothing riles the Coast Guard up more than someone messing with their ducks. They raided the clubhouse earlier this evening. They didn’t find any ducks, but they did find five million dollars worth of coke stuffed into backpacks and a pile of illegal weapons.”
After giving James the news, Tony had as good as admitted on the phone he had been the one to tip off the Coast Guard, raising yet another host of questions in James’s mind about Tony’s puzzling law enforcement connections. But Tony’s past was a mystery for another day. Right now he couldn’t think beyond getting in to see Lana.
Five long minutes finally passed. James stalked down the hallway and pushed open the door to Lana’s room. Although he tried to keep his face impassive, he couldn’t help his sharp intake of breath when he saw Lana lying still and quiet on the bed. Pale, drawn and covered in tubes and wires, she was almost a ghost of herself. A thick white bandage covered her neck and smaller bandages followed the lines of her cheekbones. An IV bag dripped fluids into her arm. Monitors beeped quietly in the background. Even her hair was subdued, wrestled into an elastic behind her head.
Damned ponytail. For some reason the ponytail bothered him more than anything else.
James closed the distance between them, gently pulled out the elastic and fluffed her hair over the pillow.
“I liked it tied up.” Lana’s soft, raspy whisper brought a smile to his lips.
“I like you tied up, but not your hair. Some things aren’t meant to be tamed.”
“Still all about sex.” She gave him a half smile.
“No, babe.” He pressed his lips to her palm. “Still all about you.”
Now that got him a grin.
He settled himself on the chair beside her bed and filled her in on the events after she’d been taken to the hospital. Most of the Wolverines arrested. Hades raided. Rex in jail. Kickstand safe. Angel happy.
Levi dead.
A shudder chased up her spine and tears glistened in her eyes. “He didn’t start off bad. He changed.”
“We’ve all changed.” James brought her hand to his lips and kissed her knuckles. “Some of us, hopefully, for the better.”
She smiled when he told her about Ryder’s new club. “So what are they? Vigilantes? Mercenaries? Superheroes?”
“They’re going to walk the gray area of the law. Robin Hood, if you’re a romantic. Security consultancy, to be more accurate.” He paused and took a deep breath. “I’m handing in my notice. As soon as I’m free, I’m going to join them.”
Lana’s eyes widened. “You? Mr. Career Cop. You’re going to turn to the dark side?”
James cupped her cheek with his hand. “It’s still about justice. Just going about it a different way. And it’s time I left. I’ve done everything I set out to do. Beat cop, homicide, drug squad and undercover work. I have no aspirations to an administrative position and this last assignment took a hell of a lot out of me. And, to be honest, the biker life has a lot of appeal. Low stress. More time. And I’m keeping the Rocker.”
Lana’s cheeks flushed and the hint of color warmed his heart.
“Well, if things don’t work out,” she said, “I can always give you a job. You didn’t do too badly on surveillance. A tad distracting and a bit quick to pull out the weapon, but I think we can work on it. Your car-sex techniques were beyond reproach.”
“Still all about sex?”
Pressing her lips against his palm, Lana whispered, “Still all about you.”
Chapter Twenty-Five
“Where are you taking me?” Jackie whined. “I thought we were going to a new club.”
Lana pressed her finger to her lips as she led Jackie down the dimly lit back alley. Ahead of them, a tall, lean man stalked through the shadows. His leather boots thudded on the cobblestones. The two glowing eyes of a skull surrounded by flaming scales of justice glared into the darkness from the center of the patch on his shiny, new leather jacket.
“Hey, it’s Ice,” Jackie whispered. “Lookit that patch. Ryder wanted something understated but I said, ‘No way. We’re bikers. We have to look the part. And nothing says biker like skulls and flames.’”
Lana snorted a laugh. “James hates it. He wanted something with a more positive vibe.”
“Viking Dan backed me up,” Jackie said with a grin. “When he talks, everyone listens. What I wouldn’t give to get that man into my bed.”
“You haven’t slept with him yet?” Lana widened her eyes. “I was wondering why you didn’t talk much about him, but I was trying to respect your privacy by not asking what was going on.”
Jackie blushed. “It’s different. He’s different. The minute I saw him…wowza. It was like I was hit by lightning. I’m not sure what that means, so I’m taking it slow. He doesn’t seem to be in a hurry. All I’ve got so far are a few pats on the head and the occasional hand squeeze. I have to try and get off when I’m riding pillion on his motorcycle.”
Laughter welled up in Lana’s chest, and she tried to stifle the sound behind her hand. “Definitely not a problem I’m having. This is the first evening we’ve been apart in the last few weeks. James has been on a date kick. Every night, something new. And he’s already got plans for when I’m fully recovered: white-water rafting, rollerblading, kayaking, skydiving, rock-climbing, extreme mountain-biking. It’s like he’s trying to make up for lost time.”
Jackie snorted a laugh. “You’re not apart. He’s fifty feet in front of us. And I’m guessing you’re going to be spending the evening together since you’re both heading in the same direction.”
A shiver ran down Lana’s spine. She still wasn’t sure if she was ready for Carpe Noctem. Although she hadn’t told Jackie, her nightmares were one of the reasons James stayed with her every night. Nightmares of being bound and unable to move, hands in the dark, Wolverine rings and knives. Always knives.
Well…nightmares and the fact he wanted her tucked up against him every night, ostensibly so he could assure himself she was safe.
And yet, every time she thought about the club, a thrill of excitement shot through her veins. The visit tonight was her idea. Face her fears. Banish the nightmares and replace them with something else…something that made her mouth dry and her panties wet.
“Maybe we should tell him you want to spend the night with your best friend, watching TV. I can call Viking Dan and tell him not to come to the club.”
“No.” Lana clamped a hand over Jackie’s mouth. “I’m supposed to be at the club already—awaiting his pleasure in the back room. But that last tattoo removal session took longer than I thought.”
“So you
’re finally free?”
Lana smiled. “Thanks to Angel. She wasn’t back together with Rex after all. She came to the club that night because she thought Rex was bringing someone with him. But now Rex is in jail, Angel got sole custody and I got a bonus that paid for the best tattoo removal money can buy.”
They picked up the pace, trying to match James’s long strides. The familiar scents of diesel, ocean mist and stale beer triggered a memory. The night James had saved her from Rex. The night she had fallen in love all over again.
“I have another surprise for him,” Lana whispered as they fell into a light jog. “When I went to the commendation ceremony where he was awarded a medal for taking down Hades, I saw someone who looked familiar. It’s been bothering me for days. Today, I went through my surveillance photos and I realized the assistant police chief who gave James the medal is the same man I photographed meeting Rex at Oktoberfest. He’s the mole.”
Jackie slowed to a walk. “Maybe you shouldn’t tell James. He might decide to go back. It wasn’t the organization that betrayed him. Just one man.”
“He loves his new work,” Lana said. “He sets his own hours, chooses his own cases and spends all day riding around on his Rocker, dispensing justice biker-style and then meeting up with Ryder for beer and barbeques.”
Her foot slid on the cobblestones and loose gravel bounced off a nearby dumpster and clattered across the alley, the sound ringing in the quiet space. James stopped midstep. Lana and Jackie froze.
For a long moment, he didn’t move. Then his head jerked to the side, his dark hair just brushing over his shoulders. Even in profile his rugged good looks took her breath away.
Lana pulled Jackie into a doorway and held her breath. Her new thigh-high, PVC, stiletto mock police boots were useless for surveillance, but good for getting James off. Nothing turned him on like her dirty-cop outfits and she aimed to please.
She plastered her body against the rough brick wall and breathed in soft, shallow pants. Kind of like sex. She seemed to do a lot of panting around James. But even more talking. His questions never seemed to end. He wanted to know every detail of her life, right down to her favorite color of nail polish and the grades she got in high school.
Barely Undercover: Legal Heat, Book 2 Page 26