Wrench: A Motorcycle Club Romance (Inked Hunters MC) (Unbreakable Bad Boys Book 1)

by Sophia Gray

  “The missing girls…” Chuck trailed off for a minute, rolling his eyes up to the ceiling and sighing deeply. “This is about everything that happened to you as a kid, isn’t it?” His voice sounded almost a little sarcastic, a little too close to mocking for Arsen’s taste.

  “I…I guess so,” Maya said, rubbing her elbows with her hands like she was trying to warm herself up. But then she straightened her shoulders and lifted her face to look Chuck directly in the eyes. “Yeah. It’s about that. So what?”

  “So it’s not good for you, Maya,” Chuck said, stepping forward to close the space between them but not touching her. “You shouldn’t be doing this. I don’t know what the fuck you were thinking. It’s so fucking stupid to be getting involved in something like this after everything you’ve been through.”

  “Hey,” Arsen said, stepping closer to Chuck to get his attention. “Hey, knock it off. Maya’s been indispensable. We need her on the case.”

  “We?” Chuck rebutted, putting excess emphasis on the word. “We? Who the fuck is we? Who are you?”

  “I’m Arsen. Arsen Sterling. Maybe you’ve heard of me,” Arsen said, fighting to keep a scowl off his face.

  But a slow, sadistic smile spread across Chuck’s face, his eyes narrowing to slits as he stared at Arsen. “Oh. You’re Arsen, huh?”

  “I told you about him,” Maya said softly. “Arsen, Chuck. Chuck, Arsen.”

  “Pleased to meet you,” Arsen lied. He figured he should have offered his hand forward for an introductory shake, but he couldn’t force himself to do it. He felt the sick, heavy feeling of hatred settle in his stomach, freezing his insides into ice.

  “This is the guy, huh? The guy who fucked you up?” Chuck asked, his eyes flicking between Arsen and Maya and then back to Arsen.

  Arsen didn’t say anything, even though his hands once again curled into fists. He held them behind his back so the other two people in the room couldn’t see how angry he was. He didn’t want to lose his composure. He didn’t want to give this guy the satisfaction of pissing him off.

  “He didn’t do anything,” Maya argued, her voice coming out soft and low, like she was afraid to speak too loudly. “He’s…he’s just been helping me out, helping me work through my shit. He’s a good guy, Chuck.”

  Arsen’s chest ached a little at that. It hurt, hearing her defend him against this asshole yet sounding so hesitant at the same time. He didn’t know what to think, whether he should feel relieved or offended or angry or grateful. He guessed he felt all of those things in combination.

  Chuck scoffed loudly, turning to stare at Arsen. “I know about you, you know, your obsession with killers, with kidnappers. It’s not good for her. You kept her from moving on, you know.”

  That did it. He couldn’t hold himself back, not after that. “What the fuck would you know about it?” Arsen challenged, stepping forward until he was standing less than a foot away from Chuck. He saw the other man shrink back a little, clearly a little intimidated by Arsen despite his anger. Arsen couldn’t help but feel pleased by that, knowing that he scared the little man. “Have you ever had a little sister raped and killed? Have you ever lost someone like that? What the fuck do you know?”

  Chuck’s jaw visibly clenched, his throat working as he swallowed, preparing a retort to Arsen’s indignation. “You’re unhealthy. For whatever reason, whatever excuse you have, it’s the truth. You’re obsessed with this shit, and it’s infecting Maya. Back home, with me, she’s fine. She’s normal. She’s not broken. She’s fine.”

  “And why do you think that?” Arsen asked. “Because back home she does whatever you say? Because she doesn’t cause you any problems? You only accept her when she’s not causing you any trouble, when she’s being ‘good?’ You know who that reminds me of?” The killer, Arsen thought. Lizzie’s killer. Maya’s torturer. Telling them what to do, controlling them.

  “Stop!” Maya yelled, stepping in between them and putting a hand on Arsen’s chest, gently pushing him away. “Stop it. Don’t say that. That’s not right, and you know it.”

  Arsen knew she was right. It wasn’t fair to compare a vaguely controlling boyfriend to her abuser and kidnapper, but he was just so mad at the idea of anyone bossing Maya around. She, more than anyone, deserved to be free. He melted beneath Maya’s touch, though, nodding at her. “I’m sorry,” he said, ignoring the twinge of pain that bloomed up in his chest as a result of his words.

  Maya shook her head at him and turned to Chuck. “Come on. Come on, let’s go. You shouldn’t be here.”

  “Like fuck I shouldn’t,” Chuck said, but he began walking backwards when Maya pressed her hand against his chest, disappearing from the kitchen and out into the main barroom at the front of the compound.

  Maya turned and nodded at Arsen for a second before following her fiancé out into the other room. Once she was out of visible range, Arsen heard her yell, “What the fuck? What the fuck were you thinking coming here?” He could tell from her voice that she was absolutely infuriated, but somehow, that didn’t make him feel any better. He didn’t want her upset, even if the target in question was that fuck-wad she called a potential spouse.

  Several moments later, after Maya moved out of hearing distance, Arsen finally noticed that Zane was still standing in a corner of the kitchen, his mouth twisted up in a grimace. Arsen hadn’t noticed his presence before, but he must have been standing there in the room the whole time, watching the bitter scene unfold.

  “Shit, man. That fucking sucks,” Zane said, bending over to get a bottle of whiskey out of one of the lower cabinets before walking over to pour Arsen a drink.

  “Yeah, I guess that’s fair to say,” Arsen said, not looking the other man in the eye as he brought the shot glass up to his lips, downing it in one toss to feel the deep burn of the alcohol rest at the bottom of his stomach. He hadn’t eaten all day, so he knew he was going to feel the effects of the booze sooner rather than later. Good, he thought. I need to be fucked-up. He offered his glass forward so Zane could pour him another round.

  “Women, huh?” Zane remarked, filling up another glass with the whiskey so he could perform a toast of commiseration with Arsen.

  Arsen nodded, even though he wasn’t really listening or comprehending Zane’s words. He downed his next shot, suppressing a gag at the thick taste that filled his mouth. “I just can’t fucking win,” he said, talking more to himself than to his friend.

  “I know that feeling, buddy,” Zane said. “Here, why don’t you let me fix you up some of my choice meat? I got some recent cuts in, just for the two of us. It’ll take your mind off this shit, I promise you.”

  “Sure, whatever,” Arsen mumbled, reaching forward to pour himself another shot, trying to get inebriated as quickly as possible.

  Zane opened up the refrigerator, pulling out huge chunks of thick red meat and slapping them down into a skillet, frying up the meat on such a high heat setting that smoke wafted up into the air, irritating Arsen’s sensitive nose. “Jesus, what kind of meat is that?” he asked, causing Zane to smile and shake his head.

  “Secret ingredient,” Zane said. “It’s just steak, but I season it with a special kind of blood. Makes it taste better.”

  “Don’t tell me it’s like dog blood or something like that,” Arsen said. “Don’t ruin your cooking for me, man.”

  “Don’t worry, I won’t,” Zane said with a laugh as he flipped the meat around in the skillet, making sure all sides of it were properly browned.

  “I just don’t understand,” Arsen said softly, picturing the way Maya’s face fell, practically falling to pieces under Chuck’s criticism. “I mean….that’s not right, actually. I think I do understand. That might be the worst part.”

  “What do you mean?” Zane asked over his shoulder, focusing on flipping the meat over and tossing seasoning into the mix for flavor.

  “It just makes too much sense,” Arsen said, reaching forward to pour himself another shot, even though he was prett
y sure he was starting to get a little buzzed off the alcohol already in his system.

  “It does?” Zane prompted him after another full minute of silence.

  “Yeah,” Arsen said, feeling his head grow fuzzy and warm as the booze took greater effect within his body. “She doesn’t want to be who she is. I should have known better. I always thought, well, one day, she’ll be able to accept herself, you know? Really accept herself with everything that happened and know that it’s okay to be her. Because I loved her, just the way she was. I didn’t want to her change. I didn’t want her to deny her past. But this guy…he hates her past as much as she does. He doesn’t want her to be a survivor. He doesn’t want her to continue to be affected by all that shit. He just wants her to move on and leave it all behind, as if that’s fucking possible.” Arsen paused to scoff at himself, feeling about as low as he had in over fifteen years, since Lizzie left him. “No, I guess I wouldn’t know, right? Just because I haven’t been able to fucking heal and get over shit like a man, it doesn’t mean that she can’t. Maybe he’s right. Maybe I’m just…selfish. Maybe that’s it. I’m just selfish. I’m just fucked-up, and I want her to stay fucked-up so she can be with me, so I don’t have to be alone. How shitty is that?”

  Zane switched off the stove and flipped the steak slices onto a plate, spraying them with salt and pepper before getting salad ingredients out of the refrigerator to make as a side item for their meal. “I don’t know, man. It sounds like she’s just stupid. Not seeing what’s in front of her. Most women are like that.”

  Arsen didn’t know about that, but he didn’t have enough energy to argue about it at the moment. “I love her, you know,” Arsen murmured, getting himself yet another shot, even though he was feeling a bit unsteady, his otherwise empty stomach roiling around its new liquid contents.

  “Mmm,” Zane mumbled, putting two plates down on the countertop and pulling up another chair to sit down next to Arsen. “Dig in. You need to eat. Get your strength, at least, if you’re going to fight for her.”

  Arsen laughed humorlessly, leaning his head in his hands while he dug his fork into the meat on his plate, stabbing into it as if it were responsible for his pain. “I can’t fight for her,” he murmured, sipping at his drink. “It’s got to be her decision. That’s the whole point. She’s got to choose her own life. If she can’t have that…” If she couldn’t have that, she wouldn’t be free from the worst thing that ever happened to her, not really. And no matter what, Arsen would fight for that, for Maya’s ability to feel like she was in control of her own life. He couldn’t take that from her, even if it killed him not to.

  “She sounds like a fucking bitch, if I’m being honest with you,” Zane said between swallows of steak. “I mean, I don’t know her. I wouldn’t really know. But I think I’ve known quite a few women like her.”

  “You haven’t,” Arsen said sharply, feeling anger surge up inside of him. “You’ve never known anyone like her.”

  “Fair enough,” Zane said, putting his hands up in the air as if he was declaring defeat. “I don’t know her. You’re right. But I just don’t like seeing you upset, man. I haven’t seen you like this the whole time I’ve known you.”

  Arsen shifted uncomfortably in his seat. The implication behind Zane’s words was clear—this was Maya’s fault, yet Arsen was paying the price. “Whatever,” he muttered, finally bringing a piece of the steak to his mouth, practically moaning out loud at the sweet yet salty taste of the meat. “Jesus, what’s in this shit? Crack?”

  “Something like that,” Zane said with a laugh, shaking his head. “No, just my secret stuff. I’ve been out of work for a while, you know. Got to get back into making food for real people.”

  “Real people? As opposed to what? MC people?” Arsen said with a knowing smile. He knew what Zane meant, though. It was weird sometimes, the way the MC lived apart from the rest of the world.

  Zane just shrugged. “Tell me more about your relationship drama. I need something to entertain me.”

  “Not sure there’s much else to say,” Arsen said as he began to eat more quickly, shoving meat in his mouth to fill his unsteady stomach. “She left me. She picked somebody else. She’s moved on. That’s good for her, right? I should just be happy, instead of whining about it like a little bitch.”

  “Nah, come on. You love her, right? You should fight for her, man! Don’t give up that easily. She’s got to know what a catch you are.”

  Arsen shook his head. “It’s not about that. I got to respect her. That’s the thing that I think was holding us back all these years. She didn’t feel like I listened to her when she used to talk about how she wanted to leave all this investigation shit behind. He lets her be someone she can stand to live with. That’s got to be worth more than love,” Arsen said sadly, finishing his last drink before hurriedly shoving the rest of his food into his mouth.

  Zane was silent for a minute, just staring at him. “I know what you mean, but still, Arsen. You got to at least try, otherwise, you might regret it forever.”

  Arsen shook his head. “I can’t, man. I can’t risk overwhelming her. She might never talk to me again.”

  “Would she really act that way?” Zane asked. “If so, she’s a bigger bitch than I even thought.”

  “Alright, stop it. Stop that shit. I can’t have you talking about her that way, Zane,” Arsen said as he cleaned off his plate, taking it over to the sink to dump it in with the rest of the MC’s dirty dishes.

  Zane put his hands up in the air, again in surrender. “Alright, alright, I get it. Just…give it a shot, okay? You can’t ruin something if there’s already no chance, and if there is a shot, you’re not going to fuck it up by just trying. That’s all I’m saying. And anyway, most women are…well, you know my opinion on them. When you find a good one, you’ve got to treasure her. You’ve got to fight for her. Don’t just let her out of your grasp.” Zane got up and walked over to Arsen. “Or, hell, if you’re really that hung up over her and feeling that hopeless, let’s take your mind off it, huh? Let’s go out! Get some drinks, maybe meet some women and see what happens?”

  Arsen forced a smile but shook his head. “I can’t. I’m still on the case. The missing girls, remember? I got to keep working on it as long as there’s a girl missing. She’s still in danger.”

  “Ah, come on, man, you can take one night off,” Zane argued.

  “No, I really can’t,” Arsen said, even though he already felt so woozy from the booze that he knew it was likely he was just going to go home and crash. “I got to go. See you later, bud.”

  He staggered to his feet and walked out into the main room, ignoring the several people who called out to him, trying to get him to join their various celebrations, as he headed out back into the cold night. As Arsen walked back to the subway stop, he couldn’t help but feel a weird paranoid sensation climbing up his back, his hairs standing on edge like someone was watching him or following him. Every time he turned around, he couldn’t spot anything, but he still couldn’t shake the anxious feeling that something wasn’t right.

  When he collapsed into bed a half hour later, he could still smell the distinct scent of Maya’s body. It smelled like home. It smelled like loss. It smelled like love. It smelled like everything he’d never get to touch ever again.

  Chapter Twenty

  By the time Maya and Chuck made it back to his hotel room, she was pretty fucking furious, to put it lightly. She’d stayed silent on the car ride over, letting the emotions simmer inside her, trying to keep them locked inside, as deep as possible. But as soon as they stepped into a private place, she could feel them rise to the surface like a soufflé, spilling over until she just clenched her fists, standing across the room from Chuck and staring at him with fire burning in her eyes.

  “What?” he barked at her, obviously aware that she wasn’t happy with him, to say the least.

  “You know what,” Maya said, hardening her tone as much as she could, even if some small part
of her still trembled in fear at the idea of confronting this man. She’d worked so hard to hide all the bad sides of herself from him. She’d tried so hard to keep him from knowing all the dirty parts of her. But for now, she couldn’t hold it back. Maybe it was working on the case, maybe it was being back in the city. Or maybe it was being around Arsen again, letting his own fire influence her to wake up inside, to fight back. She’d have to analyze herself more later on, but for now, she crossed her arms across her chest, gritting her teeth and hardening her jaw as she stared across the room at Chuck.

  “No, let’s talk about it. Let’s be healthy about this,” Chuck said. Maya barely kept herself from flinching as a result of the “h-word,” as she referred to it inside her head. It was like a bomb waiting to go off at any moment, an accusation wrapped up in pretty paper. The implication was clear to her. She wasn’t healthy. She wasn’t normal. She wasn’t right. She knew all this about herself, and she really didn’t need Chuck telling her what she already hated about the way she functioned. “What’d I do wrong, exactly?” Chuck asked.