Saving Claire: A Chaos MC Novel

by Cameron Hart

  Chapter 1

  Claire

  It had to be tonight. I’m dressed in a pair of black jeans, a black t shirt, and a black hoodie. Taking one last look around my bedroom, if you can even call it that, I lower myself down the window in out into the night.

  I’ve been perfecting my escape plan for the last two years, picturing it in my head as I go to sleep at night. I’ve planned for everything, I have all the details in place.

  I’ve already wasted too much of my life here and I can’t wait to leave, even if the prospect of life on my own is terrifying. I’ll figure it out. My only regret is leaving my parents. Ok, well, leaving my mom. But I can’t stay here anymore. I won’t.

  My feet hit the ground and I take a deep breath, determined to make it the fuck out of here.

  I turn on my heel and sneak away from my house. And run right into a giant wall of a man.

  Not just any man.

  Davis.

  What the fuck is he doing here?

  He grabs my shoulders and shoves me against the tree I just climbed down.

  “I was just coming to see you, my little doll.”

  He grins at me, baring his yellow teeth. It looks more like a snarl, like he’s a wolf and I’m his prey. Davis leans down and gets right in my face as he spits out his next words.

  “You wouldn’t be trying to leave, now would you? That wouldn’t be very wise of you. You remember what happened last time.”

  His threat is meant to scare me, but instead it hardens my resolve to escape.

  I’m so close. So fucking close.

  “I was so excited to make you my wife, I was heading to your room to sample the goods.” His eyes travel down my body and I taste bile in the back of my throat. There’s no way in hell I’d ever let him touch me like that.

  My body moves on instinct as I tilt my head back and then ram it down on his huge nose.

  “FUCK! You stupid fucking cunt!”

  He releases his grip and I push him away from me while he’s still reeling from my attack. Davis falters for a second, teetering on unsteady feet. He falls to the ground, but not before reaching out and grabbing the fabric of my large sweatshirt, taking me down with him.

  Desperation, determination, and adrenaline mix in my veins, igniting years of pent-up aggression. I kick and punch and dig my fingernails to any bare flesh I see, finding purchase a few times.

  It takes Davis a few seconds to wrap his mind around a woman with a backbone. He lies on the ground taking the beating I’m giving him.

  My fight doesn’t last long. He’s so huge, once he gains control and leans over my body there’s no escape. He grabs me up by my throat and slams me against the tree again and again. Between the lack of oxygen and my head banging against the wall, I passed out.

  Chapter 2

  Jax

  Nothing clears my head like a solitary ride on my motorcycle. The hum of the engine, the wind in my face, the dual sense of being in complete control of the machine beneath me while at the same time both of us at the complete mercy of the road and whatever it may bring. It feels a little bit like gearing up for war and my weapon is my bike. I’ll take those odds.

  I was never one to back down from a fight. I suppose that’s why I fit in so well at Chaos MC. We may be many things, but we stick together and never back down from a fight. What’s that saying – in for a penny, in for a pound? That was us.

  I joined the military as soon as I graduated high school and served two tours overseas. When I got out four years ago, I had nothing to come home to. I was in and out of foster care most of my teen years. It was always just my dad and me, and he’d get busted for petty crimes and go to jail for a few months, leaving me at the whim of the foster care system. I had mostly good families, nice enough.

  My best friend from high school, Dominic, was the only one who kept in touch with me over the years. He was the only one I visited when on leave. While home in the small town of Sausalito, California, I hung around Chaos and got to know some of the guys. They had the same kind of comradery I found in the military – the kind of ride or die family I never had growing up.

  When I came home for good, I spent a year as an EMT, but it didn’t really fit my lifestyle, whatever that was. Dominic convinced me to become a prospect, and I patched in a few months after that. It was the best decision I’ve ever made. I never regretted it, even when things got hard.

  Which brings us back to today. We were doing a run and things went to shit. We’re still not sure how. The plan was to pick up the shipment of guns at the abandoned warehouse by the tracks like we always did. We got them loaded and headed to the drop off when there was an explosion.

  It was complete pandemonium. I was pretty far away from the blast, but my ears were ringing and the smoke in my eyes made me lose focus for a few minutes. By the time any of us recovered, bullets were raining down from God knows where.

  Basically, we were fucked. With the gunfire and the explosion, the cops were going to be all over us. Thankfully, none of us were killed, and aside from Bear sustaining a bullet to the shoulder, and minor cuts and bruises, we came out unscathed. We were able to ride away, which is exactly what we did.

  ***

  Back at the clubhouse, River, the prez, was pissed. And rightfully so.

  “What the fuck happened out there? An explosion? Gunfire?”

  “We were ambushed,” Bear grunted while I was patching up his shoulder. The bullet went through his shoulder, so all in all he was pretty lucky.

  “No shit,” River said. “Maybe don’t talk while you’re experiencing so much blood loss, Bear. It’s making you even more stupid than normal.”

  Bear looked like he wanted to fire something back, but I shot him a look and he knew better than to rile up River more than he already was. River would come apologize to Bear later, but in the moment, he was lashing out. It’s understandable, we were all on edge.

  “I’ve been tracking Devil’s Knights and the Scorpions, but nothing is coming up on my radar,” Slash said. “We’ve been at peace, all of us. I can’t imagine why they’d stir shit up again for no reason.”

  “Maybe someone does want to start a war. A fourth party that knows about the uneasy peace we have, looking for a way to distract us,” I said.

  River ran a hand over his face, tugging at his long beard before checking the new text message that came in on his phone. “The Scorpions and Devil’s Knights want to meet. I don’t think we have another choice if we want to get to the bottom of this.”

  “What? What if it’s a set up?” Slash asked. We all wondered the same thing but only Slash has the balls to speak out against the prez. Perks of being his brother in law, I suppose.

  River glared at him. “You don’t think I realize the danger? Fuck. I know it’s bad, but what’s worse is doing jack shit and getting hit again. All three of the clubs here have an understanding. We run guns, The Scorpions run drugs, and as much as I fucking loathe it, the Devil’s Knights have strip clubs and prostitution.” He shook his head and said under his breath, “Though I don’t know how much longer I can let that shit happen in my town.”

  We all sat in silence, a few of us nodding.

  “What do you need from us, prez?” Bear finally asked.

  “I need you do stay here, big guy. You’re no use to me with a fresh bullet wound. Jax, Dom, Wren, ride with me to the meeting. Stay outside. I said I’d go in alone. We leave in an hour.”

  The three of us nodded and then went back to the ammo room to stock up. We all have our own guns, of course, but we also have some heavy-hitters locked up for times like these. Like I said, in for a penny, in for a pound.

  “Good. Church tomorrow afternoon. Ever
y has to be there, no excuses.” River cuts a hard stare over at Slash, who throws his hands up.

  “It was one time! And to be fair, it was about budgets and numbers and shit.”

  “Yeah, you’re our numbers guy, wiseass.”

  “Exactly. So I already had all the information I needed! Plus, the pussy was worth it.”

  “Yeah, yeah, we get it, you’re incredible in bed.”

  And just like that, the tension broke.

  Not that we weren’t all keyed up still, or forgot what happened, but we couldn’t do anything about it tonight. Tomorrow we’d fuck some shit up and get some answers, but tonight we needed to drink. And I needed to ride.

  Chapter 3

  Jax

  The meeting with the other clubs was tense, but ultimately fruitful. The long and short of it is that each club is going to comb through their recruits at the lowest level and see if there’s a rat or someone who’s loyalty lies elsewhere.

  Stacy, River’s old lady, is behind the bar. She works a couple evenings a week on the legit side of our business. Usually it was just our MC and the club girls that hung around the bar, but it was open to the public, which is how we could claim the profits and keep the other, slightly less than legal revenues under the radar.

  “What’ll it be, Jax? Whisky or beer?”

  “Am I that predictable? What if I want a long island iced tea?”

  “Then you can go into town and find another place to drink yourself stupid,” she says with a grin.

  “You wound me,” I reply, feigning hurt and putting my hand over my heart.

  “Yeah, yeah, get in line, buddy,” she says with a smirk.

  Stacy was great, and she was good for River. He was all rough around the edges and grumpy, but she made him melt. He was totally pussy whipped, but no one would dare tell him that. Except for Stacy. Her sass kept him in line and she wasn’t afraid to stand up to him or tell him he was being a jackass.

  I envied them. I was never much for relationships, even back in high school. I had flings, for sure, but nothing significant. Then I went off to the military. Each time I came home, I found as much a woman or two to fuck, but it was ultimately unsatisfying. I mean, don’t get me wrong, it was satisfying in the moment. But when I went back overseas I couldn’t help but feel like no one would miss me if I were gone. All the sex was meaningless.

  But that was depressing as shit to think about. When I joined Chaos, I enjoyed all of the benefits, and that meant club girls. We weren’t like some other clubs, these women wanted to be here. They hung around and were pretty much up for whatever. Most of them thought they’d snag one of us and become an old lady.

  We treated them well – aside from being available for us, they cleaned up and took turns cooking meals. We paid them when they were on the clock cooking and cleaning. One of them was even going back to school for her nursing degree and we helped her pay for classes.

  The club girls were all nice enough, and most of them gave a great blow job, but most nights it just reminded me of how lonely I really was. After fucking their brains out, I let them stay in bed and we’d cuddle or whatever. They really liked that, not a lot of the other guys seemed to offer that part. But in the morning I’d look over at whoever fell into my bed and feel… nothing. That’s why I pretty much stopped fucking around a few months ago. Ok, more than a few. It’s definitely been more than a year since I got laid.

  “Earth to Jax… Jax, man, you look miserable. What are you thinking about?”

  Dominic pulled me out of my stupid, depressing thoughts. I looked up from my whiskey and put on my charming grin like armor.

  “Just thinking about the club, Dom. Trying to figure out a different way to approach things.”

  Dominic gives me a look that says he doesn’t buy my bullshit, but he lets it slide this time. He knows I’d come to him if and when I wanted to talk.

  “Well, you know will take your mind off of all that, right?”

  He nods towards Britany, one of the club girls. She is looking right at me and smiling.

  “Nah, you go ahead. I don’t think I’m up for it tonight.”

  “What’s going on? I haven’t seen you with anyone in months. Did you get an STI or something? Waiting for the sores to heal down there?”

  I glare at him and he busts out laughing.

  “I’m just messing with you, Jax. Do whatever the fuck you want. I’m gonna go do Britany.”

  I grunt at him as he walks away, a huge smug ass grin on his face. Good thing he’s my best friend.

  Chapter 4

  Claire

  I wake up, knowing I need to move. It all comes flooding back in, the escape, the fight, the last few hours of torture. I’m hanging by my arms on an old hook dangling from the ceiling of this broken-down barn. I seem to be alone now and I have to take advantage of it. He may have thought he broke my spirit, but he has no idea how strong I am. I will keep fighting until my dying breath. Which, admittedly, might be soon.

  I need to move.

  The thought hammers in my brain again.

  I need to move.

  I breathe in the thought and let it course through my lungs, giving life to my swollen limbs and achy bones.

  I stand on my toes, which are barely grazing the dirt floor, and lift my wrists to the sharp end of the hook. I try to place the point of the hook in between my wrists so I can pry the rope off. I miss my target a few times before finally catching the hook where I want it. I pull side to side, ignoring the burning pain sizzling on my skin as the rope scratches against me. I lift up again and impale the rope over and over, sliding side to side each time. Eventually, one thread snaps. And then another. I pull down as hard as I can and the rope snaps completely and loosens around my wrists.

  I crumple to the ground.

  What’s my plan?

  I will myself to a sitting position. I can’t look at my wrists, I know they have to be bloody and disgusting. I can assess damage later. Right now I need to bust open that window and run.

  In theory, it’s not too difficult to figure out how to get out of the window. There is a shovel and a stack of boxes. I just have to move the boxes under the window and smash it open with the shovel. However, every breath hurts and I’m struggling to stand.

  Get your shit together. This is it. There’s just one window between you and freedom. Get up. GET UP! You need to move.

  I crawl over to the shovel and use it to push myself up to standing. I walk with it like a cane over the boxes. Lining the shovel up with the bottom box, I shove. The stack moves a few inches.

  I shove again. Again. Again.

  I can’t think about anything else. Shove the boxes over. I have to shove the boxes over.

  Finally, they are lined up against the window. Raising the shovel, I smash it through the window, covering my eyes with my hood to shield myself from the glass shards. I somehow climb up the boxes and crawl out of the broken window.

  My feet hit the ground and I run. I didn’t think I’d be able to move but the promise of freedom is too good, too close. One foot in front of the other. I need to move.

  Chapter 5

  Jax

  Dominic left with Britany a few hours ago and I’ve just been sitting here, nursing a beer and warding off the other club girls who try to cheer me up. I look at my phone. It’s almost 2 am.

  The door to the clubhouse swings open with a loud bang and a woman comes stumbling in. At first all I see is a pair of tight jeans ripped to shit and huge black zip up hooded sweatshirt covered in dirt and dried blood. Her chocolate hair is knotted on top of her head, complete with leaves and twigs sticking out. She has a wild, desperate look to her.

  I jump out of my seat and make my way over to her. As I get closer, more of her features come into focus. Even with her disheveled appearance it’s easy to see that she’s gorgeous. With tight jeans clinging to her toned legs and hugging her gorgeous, round ass, she’s every wet dream I’ve ever had. An image flashes in my head with those l
egs wrapped around my hips, taking every inch of me as I slam into her and make her scream my name out in pleasure.

  Shit. Get it together. Not the time for these thoughts, you asshole.

  Then She looks right at me. Goddamn. Her eyes. They are grey with an impossible purple ring on the outside. But she’s afraid. No. She’s fucking terrified. She’s dragging in ragged breaths and shaking as the adrenaline from whatever she was running from wears off. I can tell she’s about to pass out and I get to her just as she’s collapsing. Her legs give out and she falls into my chest. I wrap an arm around her waist to hold her up. She looks up at me and says the words that send fire in my veins and make me cling to her even tighter.

  “Please don’t let them get me.” Those fucking eyes. They look right down into my soul and rearrange something deep inside. My protective instincts all kick into high gear.

  “You’re safe, angel. I’ve got you.”

  “Safe…” she says it in a whisper, almost like she doesn’t really understand what it means. Her head falls into my chest. “I don’t think I’ll ever be safe.” Her words gut me, and in that moment, I know I’ll do anything to make her feel safe.

  And then she passes out.

  I swing my free arm under her legs and hold her close. The few people left in the bar are looking at me, no doubt wondering what the hell I’m doing. I don’t give a fuck.

  I carry her to one of the spare rooms we keep in the back of the clubhouse. I gently lay her down on the bed like she’s the most precious thing in the world. Looking at her again, I think she just might be.

  I’m momentarily frozen as I get a closer look. She’s so delicate. With high cheek bones and a small nose turned up just a little on the end and those huge, piercing grey eyes that I know are under her closed eyelids, she’s just so perfect. Her skin is soft and creamy, despite the scrapes and bruises.

  Speaking of, who the hell gave her a black eye and split her perfectly pouty lip? A wave of anger passes through me and I clench my fists and jaw to keep it under control. I’ll kill the bastard who hurt her.