The Good, The Dead & The Lawless (Book 2): The Hell That Follows

by Archer, Angelique

  Seeing Haven always made his heart skip a few beats. She was the first woman he’d ever really felt a connection to, one that was more than purely sexual anyways.

  Since her arrival on the train, he’d been grappling with a lot of different emotions, and he struggled with what he wanted to do versus what he should do. What he wanted to do would only complicate everything, for himself and for Haven.

  He sighed, remembering Kennedy wanted to meet with Team Alpha in her office to discuss their next supply run. Casting one more glance in Haven’s direction, he shook his head and walked away.

  Kennedy, Johnny B., Grady, Jackson, Tucker, and Houston were surrounding a giant wrinkled map on Kennedy’s desk when Colin walked into her office. He was surprised to see his roommate, Jeremy, with them.

  “Sorry I’m late. Hope I didn’t miss anything,” Colin told them. “What are you doing here?” he asked Jeremy.

  Kennedy waved off his apology. “Jeremy used to live in D.C. He’s familiar with the surrounding area.” She ran her finger along the map and pointed. “What about here?” She squinted at the tiny writing on the colorful paper. “Fredericksburg?”

  Johnny B. grunted skeptically. “That’s too close to D.C.”

  “We don’t really have a choice.” Her expression saddened. “We needed Mitch’s supplies before we even got to him, and now, we’re in worse shape. We’re almost out of food. Based on our inventory, we only have a couple days’ worth left.”

  “Fredericksburg is about fifty miles outside of D.C., give or take,” Jeremy explained. “The problem is it’s right off ninety-five so it gets a lot of traffic coming in.”

  “Fifty miles,” she repeated. “It’s certainly not ideal, but… it’s going to have a lot more of what we need.”

  Colin examined the map, all of the cities surrounding the D.C. area unfamiliar to him. He noticed Houston silently staring at the map, but not at the area the rest of them were studying.

  Kennedy stepped back and started packing her gear into a backpack. “We’ll split into two teams to cover as much ground as possible. Grady, Jackson, and Houston—you’ll be team one, and Colin, J.B., and I will be team two.”

  “It’s too dangerous,” Johnny B. piped up.

  “It is, but again, we don’t have a choice,” she repeated. “We need to get in and out as fast as we can.”

  “We haven’t scouted it out. Who knows what could be waiting for us that close to the city. We can’t do it.”

  “We have Jeremy, and he’s familiar with the terrain. He’ll mark on the map the best places to go. Besides, we’ve gone into places we haven’t scouted before,” she reminded him. “If we wouldn’t have, we never would have found Mitch.”

  “Not this close to D.C. we haven’t,” he said, firmly holding his ground. “I don’t feel good about this one. It’s a bad idea.”

  Kennedy stopped packing and looked at Johnny B. in surprise. He’d never questioned her before, especially in public.

  The others had been talking quietly amongst themselves, but immediately paused, sensing the tension.

  Houston cleared his throat. “Kennedy, I won’t be making that supply run with you.”

  Colin glanced up at the ceiling knowingly. “Shit.”

  Kennedy closed her eyes and shook her head, placing her hands on her hips as if she didn’t hear him correctly. “What?”

  Houston straightened and faced her directly. “We’re getting off at the next stop and are going to West Virginia. Please don’t take it personally. We appreciate what you’ve done for us, but it’s time for us to be on our way.”

  Scoffing at him, Colin crossed his arms. “Mate, I hate to break it to you, but your family doesn’t want to go.”

  Houston glared at him. “And how would you know that?”

  Kennedy stepped between them. “Before we go any further, I want to make sure I heard you correctly. You said you’re getting off the train… for good?”

  He nodded. “My parents have a place in the mountains. I don’t know if they made it, but I want to find out. And it’s as safe a place as any.”

  “Your family doesn’t want to go,” Colin reiterated again.

  His face reddening with anger, Houston took several steps toward Colin. “What the hell do you know about my family?”

  “They’re happy here. The train is safe. Why would you force them to leave?”

  Houston almost lunged at him before Johnny B. caught him and put a hand on his chest.

  “You need to stay out of this,” Houston warned Colin.

  “You need to think about what’s best for your family, not just you,” the Scotsman retorted.

  “You just don’t want Haven to leave,” Houston blurted out. “I’ve known all along you’re in love with her.”

  Colin reddened.

  Kennedy noticed and felt her heart sink just a little. Seeing Colin’s face when Houston accused him of still being in love with Haven only confirmed the truth she’d been denying for a while.

  She pushed her feelings aside, not wanting Colin to be embarrassed further, and held up her hands to stop their back and forth. “Alright, folks, that’s enough. Houston, I’ll come talk to you later. This isn’t the place or time.”

  Houston scowled at Colin, jabbed his finger at him one more time, wanting to say more, but instead stormed out of Kennedy’s office.

  “You told him,” Houston stated accusatorily, slamming the door to their cabin shut.

  Haven looked up from where she stood at the window. She seemed dejected. “I talked to him today, yes. He’s not happy about it.”

  “Why the hell would you confide in him like that?” he fumed.

  “Because he’s my brother, that’s why,” she said, confused.

  Houston shook his head. “No, not Brett. I’m talking about Colin. He announced in front of everyone that I was forcing my family to do something they didn’t want to do. He made me look like a complete asshole!”

  “What are you talking about?” Haven asked.

  “Did you or didn’t you talk to Colin about us leaving? Don’t lie to me, Haven.”

  She stared at him disbelievingly. “Are you kidding me? No, I didn’t talk to him about it. I wanted to, but I didn’t. Out of consideration for you.”

  He paced the room. “Oh, great. You wanted to talk to him. Look, it’s no secret that he’s in love with you.”

  “Really? Are we really going to do this right now? Don’t we have bigger things to worry about, Houston?” Haven felt her blood begin to boil. Her thoughts flashed back to what her brother said to her.

  “Are you in love with him? I need to know.”

  “No!” she shouted. “I’m not in love with him. He’s a friend, a really good one, and I care about him.”

  “Then how did he know, Haven? How?”

  “I have no idea. Maybe he overheard me talking to Brett and Mark.” She took a couple of steps toward him. “And while we’re on the topic, they’re not on board with this.”

  Houston rubbed his temples. “Well, you know what? It isn’t up to them. We’re the adults making the decision here.”

  “Brett said if we go, he’s not coming!”

  “So what are you saying? Have you changed your mind now?”

  Haven turned away. “I don’t know,” she murmured softly.

  “Are you fucking kidding me, Haven?” he exclaimed. “I gave up everything to come find you.”

  Her eyes widened. “I never asked for you to come rescue me! You chose that.” She regretted saying it the second the words came out, and she hadn’t meant them, but she was angry and frustrated.

  Recoiling as though she’d burned him, he stepped back and nodded. After a few moments of silence, he sighed. “I turned my back on my family because you’ve always been the most important thing to me. After Faith disappeared, I waited. I wanted to find my family, but I knew you couldn’t leave without finding her first. You found her,” he said, his tone softening. “Then Cade attacked you, and yo
u were beaten up bad. We couldn’t have left if we wanted to. So I waited again. I waited for you to heal, both mentally and physically. I have put everything on hold for you, Haven. And now I’m hearing this, and I can’t help but think that maybe you don’t want to be with me, that you have feelings for someone else.”

  “That isn’t true, and you know it!” She paused, and her lower lip began to tremble. “I love you.”

  Something about the way her hair was tousled around her face, the way her cheeks were flushed, made him go to her and clasp her face in his hands.

  “Say it,” he whispered against her lips. “Tell me you want me.”

  “I want you,” she murmured, every emotion and sensation within her suddenly heightened.

  He placed his hands on her hips and pressed her back against the door, then kissed her, his tongue slipping past her lips, passionate and desperate, crushing her breasts against his chest as he moved against her.

  It had been so long since he’d been inside of her. He couldn’t even remember the last time, but it hadn’t happened since Faith disappeared.

  Now, he couldn’t think of anything else besides burying himself deep within her.

  Haven held his bottom lip between her teeth and suggestively stroked it with the tip of her tongue. Her hands pulled at his shirt, tugging at the buttons in frustration until she gave up and ripped the shirt apart.

  Groaning with anticipation, he nudged her to the desk and reached forward and unbuttoned her jeans, stripping her down until she was only in her bra and underwear. He gazed at her appreciatively for a moment, taking in every detail of her curves, the gentle slope from her waist to her hips to her thighs. He caressed the tops of her breasts with his fingertips, the fullness of them straining against her bra, then reached behind her and unfastened the clips. Her breasts burst free, and when his eyes met hers, they were dark pools of pent-up desire.

  Her chest rose and fell in arousal, her cheeks reddening under his gaze, as warmth spread through her belly. She was certain he could feel the heat emanating from between her legs.

  Houston let his fingers slip down, leaving little goosebumps in their wake as he trailed them around her pert pink nipples, along the smoothness of her waist, pausing only when he reached the black lace band of her thong. Looping his fingers along the sides of her panties, he rolled them down her thighs, until he was on his knees in front of her.

  Gently forcing her to lean against the desk, he ran his hands along the backs of her thighs, his tongue tracing across her intimately, languorously, leaving her tingling. She raked her fingers through his hair and gasped in pleasure.

  While his mouth expertly worked below her waist, his fingers began to wander up over her hips to the soft skin of her breasts, stroking her until her breathing quickened, her hand grasping his hair by the fistful. She gripped the edge of the desk, her knuckles white as she clenched it and moved back and forth against his lips.

  A wave of warmth crested from between her legs, up her belly and breasts, overwhelming every muscle in her body.

  “Houston,” she panted. “I’m close. Please…”

  She didn’t want him to stop, but her body was aching for him to fill her, the need becoming almost unbearable and animalistic. He smiled knowingly, standing to unzip his jeans.

  “Open up for me,” he breathed.

  She spread her legs invitingly and then impatiently positioned him against her. Without needing any prodding, he grabbed her hips and thrust up inside of her.

  Houston gritted his teeth and shut his eyes, her body enveloping him. He felt her insides stretch to accommodate him, her sweet wetness perfect, exquisite torture. When he buried himself to the hilt, she cried out, wrapping her legs tightly around his waist. He drew close to her, his forehead pressed to hers, so he could savor her every reaction while he alternated between shallow and deep thrusts.

  Watching her only turned him on more, and he had to close his eyes again to focus on something else so he wouldn’t come.

  But he was already too close, swollen. Haven felt it and tilted her head back, digging her nails into his back, losing control and letting her body do what it needed to do, unable to hold back the cry of pleasure that had been threatening to erupt from her lips.

  Hearing her orgasm and feeling her contract around his hardness sent Houston over the edge. When he couldn’t hold back any longer, he wrapped her in his arms, wanting every inch of her touching him, and buried his face in her neck, urgently thrusting into her until his body went rigid, then shuddered and relaxed at the surrender of release.

  Colin had just drifted off to sleep when he heard the train begin to slow down and jostle to a stop. Leaning over the edge of his bunk until he could see Jeremy’s alarm clock, he groaned.

  The red fluorescent lights reminded him it was six in the morning and time to wake up.

  As he’d expected, it had been another sleepless night. Colin had likely driven Jeremy mad tossing and turning above him, thrashing his sheets around in frustration as he tried to get comfortable and quiet his mind. He knew it was a bad idea to go on a supply run with less than a handful of hours of sleep total for the last couple of nights, but he was a prisoner of his thoughts, tormented and restless.

  With a begrudging sigh, he threw his legs over the side of the bed and hovered there for a moment, trying to wake up. They said coffee worked miracles. He wasn’t much of a coffee drinker before, unless the coffee was mixed with whiskey. And damn… what he wouldn’t give for a good drink.

  He looked to one of the nightstands where he kept his scant belongings. In the second drawer was the bottle of Scotch Haven had given him.

  Jeremy had already left, so he went to the nightstand and pulled out the bottle. He’d already downed half of it the day Houston proposed to Haven.

  It had been a depressing Christmas because of that.

  Not that he’d really ever had a happy Christmas since his parents split.

  He’d spent most of them at a pub, drinking and carousing until the place shut down, then waking up with someone he didn’t know the next morning while nursing a hangover that would easily incapacitate five grown men.

  As he spent more time with Haven and her family, he imagined a different kind of Christmas. But that dream was over.

  So he opted to drink half of the Scotch she’d given him, and instead of passing out as he had hoped, he was wide awake all night having to take a piss.

  Swirling the liquid in the bottle, he considered downing the second half, but he caught sight of his father’s sword leaning against his bunk, and he eventually placed the Scotch back into the drawer.

  Besides, if Kennedy saw him intoxicated, she would force him to stay on the train and sober up. And his absence would mean they’d be a man short, and consequently, that he would be letting the team down.

  Colin pulled on a long-sleeve Henley shirt and cinched his kilt over his boxers. Kennedy had already told him it would be too distracting for the women on the train, and Johnny B. promised to give him hell if he showed up in it, but the kilt was a part of him, where he was from.

  He might never again wander through the quiet beauty of the Scottish Highlands, take a swim in the deep blue lochs, or visit the ancient medieval castles of his forefathers. He was trapped in a foreign land, and in it, he would likely die. His father’s sword and his kilt were the last remembrances he had of his origins, and if today was the day he took his final breath, he wanted to die a true Scotsman, with his sword in his hands and the fire of his ancestors burning in his veins.

  He left his cabin and made his way to the dining car. The train was silent, passengers still sleeping soundly. He passed by Haven’s door and stopped. Taking a few steps back, he raised his hand, curling his fingers into a fist to knock on the door.

  Colin wanted to say goodbye. He wanted to do it in case he didn’t come back.

  But his hand hovered over the door, centimeters from it.

  What was he going to tell her? What did it matte
r anyways? She would be gone before he got back, and maybe he would see her again; maybe he wouldn’t.

  With a sigh, his hand dropped back to his side. He cast one last look at the door then disappeared into the next car.

  Kennedy, always the early bird, was already packed up and ready to go. She was going over the map with Jeremy, circling areas on it with a blue marker as he explained the layout of the city closest to the station. Johnny B. was beside them, but he didn’t crack a joke when Colin walked in, even though he was wearing his kilt.

  Much to Colin’s surprise, Brett was sitting at a table behind them, staring out the window absentmindedly.

  “You’re up early,” he called out to him.

  Brett nodded in greeting as Colin sat down across from him.

  Immediately, he noticed Brett had been crying. His eyes were red and puffy, and he avoided meeting Colin’s stare.

  “You okay, brother?” Colin asked.

  He shrugged. “I will be.”

  Colin reached over and grabbed a pot of coffee. He poured some into a Styrofoam cup and handed it to Brett, then filled another for himself. “What are you doing out here?”

  Brett cleared his throat, focused on peeling away the rim of the cup. “I’m going with you guys.”

  Colin made a face. “When?”

  “Now.”

  The Scotsman calmly set his cup down and thrummed his fingers along the tablecloth. “Are ya now?”

  Brett nodded quickly, then took a sip of coffee from the tattered cup. Swallowing it with difficulty, he continued, “Yes. You’re a man short with Houston leaving. I’m going to take his place.”

  Leaning forward a little, Colin folded his hands together. “Mate, you’re nineteen. You haven’t been on one of these runs before.”