The dark haired one, Torch, looked over at the red-headed woman and swore under his breath. He started for her, pulling his knife out of his pocket as he did so. She jerked away from him, her eyes wide with fear, her red hair sticking to her dirty skin.
“I ain’t gonna hurt ya, I’m gonna untie you.”
Slayer got to work untying Billie, swearing when he got a good look at her. She wasn’t exactly proud of what they’d done to her, but it was obvious the other woman had suffered worse.
“I’m okay, really. A few stitches here and there, and I’ll be golden,” She whispered.
“You’re basically naked, did they…touch ya?,” He asked her as he tipped her head back. “No, they didn’t get the chance. I’m okay, really, but I wanna get the hell out of here,” She said with a small smile. Slayer didn’t look like he believed her one hundred percent, but she didn’t need him to, she just needed him to give her something to wear so they could get the hell out of there.
“What’s your name?,” Billie heard Torch ask from behind her, but she knew that the lady wouldn’t answer him. When she glanced back to make sure that Torch was handling her with care, she saw that he was holding out this hand to her, and that the woman was reaching for it.
Hmm…
Billie startled when Rebel came towards her, a t-shirt in his hand.
“I usually keep an extra one in my saddlebags. You can have it,” He said kindly.
She thanked him and then looked back at Torch. He’d already removed his own shirt and was helping the red-head pull it over her head. Good, she was going to offer her shirt to her, but now she could ride home comfortably.
Once everyone was outside, Billie pointed to the right. It was dark out, the stars were bright overhead, so she had a good view of where they’d taken her. The land was wide-open, untouched apart from the cabin, and she had to wonder how they found her.
“They went south, but how did you guys find us?”
“Ty, a buddy from another crew pulled a few strings. He’d heard about the crew making their way up here and he used his connections to find out where they were holed up. They haven’t been around long, and they won’t be around anymore for much longer. We’ll make sure of that,” Axel said as he placed a gentle hand on her shoulder.
“I told them to run. I’m sorry if that fucked up your plans, but I didn’t know what else to do-,” Ox stopped her by wrapping his arms around her.
“Shh, don’t worry about it, Billie. I can tell you didn’t spill a word about me or my crew, you have our loyalty forever. You did the right thing.”
“How can you tell?”
“Those wounds on ya speak for themselves, darlin’. You’d still be whole if you opened your mouth,” Prettyboy said.
Billie reached up and felt the flayed skin on her face, ashamed of how she looked.
“I’m never gonna be pretty again,” She whimpered when Slayer looked at it, too. He frowned, his eyebrows drawing together as he shook his head.
“No, don’t say that. You’re the most beautiful woman in the world, and this? This won’t change that. We’re gonna get you home, we’re gonna fix you up, and then you’re gonna take my brand and officially become my old lady. We’ve wasted enough time, don’t ya think?”
Billie’s teary eyes filled with joy as she wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him hard, taking in his scent and the warmth of his skin. She squeezed tight, “ I didn’t think I would ever see you again,” She admitted.
“I’d never leave you here, baby. I won’t let anything happen to you ever again,” He whispered into her hair.
There was so much that both of them needed to sort out, that was for sure, but amongst the chorus of bikes and in the safety of his arms, Billie found her home. It wasn’t perfect and it wasn’t conventional, but neither were they. Six years was worth the wait.
Slayer was worth the wait.
Epilogue
Two Months Later
Billie was brushing Isabelle’s hair, the sunlight warm on their skin. Isabelle, the woman from the shack, was watching the birds off in the distance. Billie still couldn’t get anything out of her, because she refused to speak. The only people she let near her were Billie and Torch, and Billie was still trying to figure that one out.
After the Madmen went on the lamb, Ox put all of their extra efforts into tracking them down. It seemed like they all split up after they left Bryson City, but that didn’t make the Seven Deadlies’s mission impossible. They’d find them all and take care of business one by one if need be.
Billie had more than enough time to adjust, especially after getting to experience the downside to being an MC queen first hand. It wasn’t the life she would have pictured for herself, but it worked for her and for Slayer.
“Are you warm enough, Izzy?”
Billie had taken to calling Isabelle ‘Izzy,’ and it seemed to make her happy. She would give Billie a half-smile, much like was now, and nod. Billie wondered if she would ever talk again, but she supposed when she was ready, she would. They had Laura check her out after she was done fixing up Billie, and she said she definitely still had her tongue.
“Billie, you out there?,” Slayer called from the garage.
“Yes!”
“I got word from the realtor. They said that cabin is ours if we want it. We can use some money to fix it up real nice, too,” He said as he flipped his phone closed. Billie smiled from ear to ear.
It sounded crazy as hell, but she wanted to buy that shack she’d been captive in, and gut it. Re-do it, and make it theirs. It wasn’t the shack she wanted, it was the land, and the shack just so happened to reside on that land. They’d discussed bulldozing it, but after they’d cleared the land a little, it was obvious that the ‘shack,’ used to be a beautiful little ranch house. The view was killer, too, which was another reason she didn’t want to get rid of it.
“You guys are really gonna buy that shit hole?,” Tango asked.
“We’re gonna renovate the entire damn thing, but it’s what she wants,” Slayer said with a shrug.
“Why would you wanna live in the house you got tortured in?,” Limit asked.
Billie set her brush down and began to braid Izzy’s hair.
“Because, what better way to face that awful situation than to get something positive out of it?” Limit rolled his eyes and Billie chuckled under her breath as she tied off Izzy’s hair.
“Makes sense, I guess,” Green tossed in.
“Men. They do tend to ask questions they won’t understand the answer for, don’t they?,” She joked as she stood from the picnic table. Izzy didn’t reply, but she was watching Billie with those dark eyes of hers.
She looked much different now that she was clean and healing. She was pretty, Billie thought so anyways, and so did Torch if her observational skills were worth a damn. Torch just so happened to step out of the clubhouse at that moment, and like magnets, Izzy and him were drawn together. She turned on the bench to face him, and he stalked towards her, his long legs eating up the pavement.
“She doin’ okay?,” He asked Billie.
Billie smiled at her.
“She sure is. Can’t get her to talk, but that’s okay. She will one day.”
“Good, good. I’ll be back to check on her later, okay?”
Billie could tell that something was up, so she studied him a little more closely.
“Torch? What’s up?”
He smiled wide, and that confused her even more as she waited for his response.
“We found Blade.”
The End
Authors Note:
Thank you so much for purchasing my novel and supporting me. I hope you enjoyed the ride, and that you’ll be back to enjoy more of my beloved Seven Deadlies men!
Thank you, K. Ewald
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Lust (Seven Deadlies MC Book 5) Page 13