by Amy Davies
“I lost the baby at thirteen weeks. After that, Gary became abusive, both mentally and physically. Twice he put me in the hospital. He’s high up in the crime world, so I didn't see the point is pressing charges. He gets away with everything. Zarah helped me leave and file for divorce. It was a friend’s address we used, so he couldn’t contact me. It got messy for a while, but we got there, and I was granted a divorce.”
I wipe the tears away and sit up, so I can face Ace. “I wish I was stronger then, but I wasn’t. Zarah helped me out the last time he hurt me bad. She dropped everything, and we moved around until we landed here.”
“And I’m so fucking happy that you did, baby, because I’ve got you now, and no fucker will hurt you.”
I nod, feeling my chest starting to relax. “He’s the one who attacked the girls, isn’t he?” I look between the three men, each of them nodding. “That bastard.” My head snaps to Ace. “He shot you?”
“Yeah, baby. We were rescuing some girls he was holding. He told me about you, and then he took a shot while I was processing.” I gasp and jump from the bed again.
“You got shot because of me,” I state, my hands shaking. Oh God, no.
“Yeah, babe. You brought a shit load of trouble into the club that we didn’t fucking need. You should have kept your legs closed and away from the fucking club.” I spin around at the sound of the voice.
I see Court scowling at me, like he wants to string me up. I didn’t notice some of the boys had come into the room.
Dyson turns around in a flash and punches Court in the stomach, and then they start to fight against the wall.
“Stop,” I scream. I sob into my hands because what he said is right. I brought trouble into the club and didn’t tell them, and now Ace is recovering from a gunshot wound.
“Prez, I swear to fucking Christ you had better get that fucker out of here before I slit his fucking throat for speaking to my girl like that,” Ace growls. A nurse comes running into the room and stops in her tracks when she sees the boys in leather.
“Everyone out, now. Visiting hours are over and he needs his rest.” She stands with her hands on her hips, showing no fear. I look at Ace and then the door. I take a step forward, but before I can take another, his voice stops me.
“Take one more step and I will put you over my knee, babe. Get your sexy arse over here. My woman is staying,” he adds to the nurse. I’m frozen in place again, my eyes bouncing between him and the boys in the room. They’re smirking at me. Suede winks and leaves the room after saying he’ll be back in the morning.
“You alright, brother?” Dyson asks Ace. He nods, never taking his eyes off me. I sigh and walk over to the chair in the corner. The brothers file out, leaving us alone in the now quiet hospital room.
“Come here,” he demands. I shake my head, trying to clear the thoughts that are racing around the track in my head. Ace sighs and lays his head back against the pillow.
“I’m sorry. I did this,” I mutter, sitting in the chair. He doesn’t look at me, just keeps his head back and his eyes closed. He’s never going to forgive me for causing so much trouble for the club. The weight of what I’ve done is crushing. I try to pull air into my lungs but it’s getting harder and harder. A black cloud starts blurring my vision, and I struggle to breathe.
I feel soft hands on my wrists, making me lift my head. I see the nurse from earlier, smiling at me.
“Slow breaths in and slow breaths out. In and out. Good girl.” Her smile is reassuring, and I begin to breathe normally. “There you go. A few more, that’s it.” I listen to her voice, it’s a calming and soothing tone. It must be a nurse tone.
“Is she okay?” comes a gruff voice from the bed.
“I think she’ll be fine, looks like a panic attack,” the nurse explains. “Does this happen a lot?” I shake my head.
“Not anymore,” I whisper. She smiles at me and leaves the room after checking on Ace’s machines.
The silence is deafening. I play with the hem of my camisole, waiting for him to say something. I can’t find the words to speak. I feel like I’ll say the wrong thing at any moment.
“Ana, I—”
“It’s okay. I’ll go. I understand.” I thought the pain I felt was bad when I saw him with Clover, but this… this pain is damned near killing me. I know I won’t ever survive without him. I slowly walk towards the door, dragging my heavy body away from the man I love.
“Ana, just stop.” I stop and brace my hand on the wall, before turning my head to look at him. He has tears in his eyes, and it causes my heart to crack that little bit more. I hate seeing men cry.
“Come here, please.” I shake my head. I know me touching him will turn me to putty in his hands. “Please, babe.”
I squeeze my eyes shut tight, so tight I see white flashes behind my eyelids. I slowly turn to face him but keep my head down. I take one step, then two, towards the bed.
He speaks first. “Baby, you are not to blame for any of the shit that’s happened. He is.” He growls the last two words. “We’re going to be fine. I’m going to be fine. We start new, from now, do you hear me?” I shake my head. “Yes. Ace and Ana from the start. Nothing and no one will stop us from being together, including us.”
“Too much has been said and done, Ace.”
“But we’re strong enough to push it all away. Always.”
He reaches for my hand and winces from the pain. No doubt pulling the stitches he has in his stomach.
“Careful, honey.” I step right up to the bed, so he doesn’t have to stretch.
A smile crosses his face, and he lifts my hand to kiss my knuckles.
“I’ve missed you calling me that.” He kisses my hand again, and I smile at him.
“Can we truly get past this?”
“Hell yeah, we can, babe. Come and lay with me.”
“No, Ace, I’ll hurt you.”
“You could never hurt me, baby. Come here.” I gently climb onto the bed, careful of the wires and his wound. He wraps an arm around my shoulders, holding me to him. Then he pulls one of my legs over his thighs, holding me trapped there. I rest one of my hands on his chest.
My heart starts to beat to the same rhythm as Ace’s, and it’s then I believe that we will be okay. We will get past this.
“Is she really gone?” I don’t need to say her name; he knows who I’m talking about.
“Yeah, baby. She is gone for good. The rest of the club girls have been warned.” I nod.
“And Gary?”
“He got away. When he shot me, he threw the girl and legged it. We’ll find him, babe.”
“Are the girls okay?”
“Typical Ana, always looking out for others. Yeah, sweetheart, they’re all okay, and are home.” I sigh and snuggle into him more, loving the feel of his warm skin against mine.
We sleep together—well, the best we can in between the nurses coming to check on my man.
My man. Ace McGowan is my man again. I smile and fall asleep again. Hoping tomorrow brings a better day.
Ana
Thank the Lord for Click, aka Mae, but also curse her for her beauty. She has been a Godsend, coming here to help in the café, but because of her, our customers have almost tripled in numbers.
It’s been three weeks since Ace got shot. The club and Click are still trying to track down Gary, but they aren’t getting anywhere.
I hear giggling from the front table and look up to see Mae standing there talking to a table full of boys, all around her age. I smile at the young ones enjoying life. I’m loving life right now; everyone seems happy and living for the day.
My phone dings in my dress pocket. I pull it out and smile when I see Ace’s name. I slide the bar across the screen and read what he sent me.
Ace: I can’t stop thinking about you.
Me: Ditto, honey.
Ace: I can still smell you on me.
Oh God. I can feel my blush creeping up my neck. He woke me up this morning with his hea
d between my legs. He made me come twice before he slid inside of me. That man has such a talented tongue. Ace likes to make sure I come before him. Even when I decide to give him a blowjob, he always turns me around so we’re doing a sixty-nine position. He loves my mouth on him, but he loves to make me come more. Strange man, but hey, who am I to complain.
Me: You are making me blush, Mr. McGowan.
Ace: I love seeing you blush, babe.
Me: Are you coming by the cafe to see me today?
Ace: Yeah, baby, will be there soon.
I turn to go back to the kitchen. I need to sort out the sandwiches for the lovely older couple who are in town visiting their son and his baby. The back screen door is open, and I know I didn’t open it because of flies and other bugs getting in. We open the main door but leave the screen door shut in the hot weather.
I’m moving over to close it when a large hand tugs hard on my wrist, yanking me out through the door. I go to scream, but I’m hit over the head and everything goes black.
When I come to, the first thing I notice is the pain. I cry out. I hurt all over my body. I try to open my eyes but my left one seems swollen shut. Who hit me? Then his voice startles me and brings the old fear to the forefront of my mind and body.
“Oh look, the cunt is awake.” I try to coil back from his voice above me, but I’m tied to the bed. My arms and ankles are stretched and tied to the four posts of the bed. A slap crosses my face when I don’t look at him. It was one of the things Gary hated; he always like to look me in the eyes when he beat me.
“Why?” I whisper.
“Why? Why, you ask? Well, let me tell you, you little bitch. You left me after I gave you fucking everything. And you couldn't even carry a fucking baby. Something millions of women have been doing for thousands of years, and you couldn’t do the simple job of carrying my child. Fucking useless bitch.” His fist connects with my ribs, and I scream out in pain, making him and other people in the room laugh.
Ace’s face flashes in my head, his words of strength floating around my head.
You are stronger than you look, baby. Women were put on this planet to help it grow and flourish. So fucking grow, get strong, and flourish the fuck out of life.
I can’t stop the smile from creeping across my face, nor the laugh that bubbles up. The pain subsides as I think of the man that holds my heart.
“What the fuck are you smiling and laughing about?” He slaps me again, making me laugh even louder. I can’t stop. I sound like a fucking maniac.
“You say that I’m weak for not carrying your baby, but you are the weak man for hitting a woman who could never defend herself against you. I would love to see you and Ace—or any of the brothers of the Unforgiven Riders—get into a boxing ring together. Then we’d see who the real man is. And, my darling Gary, it will never be you.”
I feel the first punch, and the second, but after that I go numb, my brain shutting down and blocking out the pain.
The hits finally stop, and I’m left alone. Thank God for small mercies. I have no clue how long I’ve been here.
I think of how the boys are. I bet Ace and Zarah are going frantic trying to find me, because I know they will find me. I have complete faith in the club; in Click. I fall asleep, but no clue for how long.
The door opens with a bang, startling me awake.
“Oh, my dear Ana, how shitty you are looking.”
“Thanks,” I mutter through my swollen lips. The taste of blood lingers on my tongue.
“When did you become such a smart mouth, sweetie? You were never this mouthy with me. I take it your new man can’t control you, huh?”
I think of a smart comeback, but I know it will end in more hits. I hear hurried footsteps, and then his hand is gripping my jaw, squeezing it tightly, to the point of pain, and making my sore slips push together.
“Fucking answer me,” he bellows in my face. I try to turn my head, but he slaps me again. He slams my head down against the mattress and covers my mouth and nose with his hand, cutting off my air. I struggle, thrashing my head back and forth, but he isn't letting me go. Black dots appear in the vision of my right eye, before everything turns black.
When I wake up next, I’m hanging from the beams by metal chains, my toes scraping the ground. My shoulders ache—I’m pretty sure my right shoulder is dislocated.
I’m naked, except for my underwear. I mentally check that he’s only hit me and not raped me, but I feel nothing bad down there. I sigh and pray it stays that way. He raped me twice when we were together, and that last time was the final straw for me.
I try to calculate my injures, but I hurt everywhere. There’s no telling how much damage he’s caused me. My hope of the club finding me is fading. I don’t know how long I’ve been here; the room has no windows and he keeps knocking me out. All I can do is hope and pray they come for me. I dread to think how Ace will cope with losing me. It’s probably the same way I would feel if I ever lost him.
The door opens again, and my body jerks out of fear, making Gary and his two henchmen laugh. They look smug, and all I can think of is how I would love to see one of the brothers wipe it off their faces.
“Oh look, she’s awake again. You do sleep a lot these days, Ana Banana.” He chuckles. Now you see why I loathe that nickname.
“You are going to die soon, Gary. I can promise you that.”
“If you say so, sweetie. But have that grubby little club come for you yet? Huh? Sorry I can’t hear you… No.” I close my eyes and will the tears to stay back, but I fail. I cry… I cry for Ace and me. For Zarah.
“Oh, she’s crying, boss. Maybe I could give her something to cry about,” one of the men says. My fear spikes because I don’t know how these different men act. I watch out of my eyes as he walks towards me. He removes his suit jacket and starts to roll the sleeves up.
I whimper, and he smiles a sadistic smile at me, before the first punch catches my bottom ribs. The pain tears through me as the bone cracks. I scream and scream as he uses me like a human punching bag.
“STOP!” I scream, sobbing through the pain. I wish for numbness or death at this moment.
“Please, stop.” I’m panting, trying to control my breathing so I don’t pass out.
“But we’re just getting started, Ana. My boys need to have their fun too. This is what you get for running from me and sleeping with that disgusting criminal. Opening your legs for him, giving him something that belongs to me. Which is why I took something of his.” He smirks at me. At one point in my life, I loved that smirk. Now, it turns my stomach.
I cough and vomit. Lucky for me, it catches the second man as he steps up to me.
I get a slap and my hair pulled for that. He rips my head back by my hair, making me cry out again.
“You think you’re funny, cunt? I’ll show you funny.” He steps from me and yanks on the chains, causing the metal around my wrist to jerk. I scream as the pain sears through my shoulders. He hauls me up so I’m high off the ground, and I hang there, with my life in his hands as he holds the chain.
I hear the first gunshot, and my heart jumps in my chest. Please let that be Ace and the brothers, I pray over and over again in my head.
The metal door springs open, and the brothers flood into the room, guns drawn. Ace runs in my direction, but as he gets closer, the man holding the chains lets go. I fall to the floor, seeing the horror on Ace’s face as I hit the concrete. My head bounces off the surface, and everything goes from blurry to black. The last thing I hear is Ace, calling my name.
Ace
You remember when I said my fight with Ana at the clubhouse was the worst day of my life? Yeah, I fucking lied. This is. This one fucking day. I got the phone call as I was turning onto the street of the cafe. It was Ditch telling me Ana was gone.
Taken.
Taken from me.
We searched for hours for them. We had every man on the job looking, but we were all coming up empty. Then Click came running into the clubhouse
with a friend of hers from college, and together they were able to track down Gary and his men, and where they took Ana. EC wasn’t overly happy to see Click there with another bloke, but it wasn’t the time to deal with that shit.
We drove to the location Click found, and true to her search, they were there. The two big BMW SUV’s a sure sign. We parked away from the building, making sure they didn't hear us coming. Again, using Suede’s favourite strategy, we storm the place, guns blazing. Thank fuck Click’s friend was able to check how many men were in there by checking surrounding cameras.
We took out each man, and then we heard the scream.
Now, I’m running like my life depends on it—fuck, it does depend on it. Court kicks the door in and shots get fired. I don't take notice of my brothers; my focus is on Ana, who is suspended by chains from the high beams. The fucker holding the end of the chain laughs a manic laugh before letting the chain go, and I watch is absolute horror as Ana drops to the floor. Her near naked body is like a ragdoll as it hits solid ground. Her head bounces off the concrete, and I scream her name.
“ANA!”
I aim my gun at the dick who dropped her, and my bullet hits him square in the chest. He stumbles back, but I don’t see him hit the ground as I’m sliding to floor next to Ana.
“Ana, baby, talk to me. Wake up.”
“Clear.” I hear from around me. I brush her hair off her face, blood matted in the strands. Her face is swollen to the point where she’s almost unrecognisable. My poor baby. My always.
I growl as I pull her body to me. I bury my face in her neck, not bothered about her blood seeping into my clothes.
I’ve lost her.
My girl is gone.
“Ace, move,” Bull growls from my side. But I shake my head and hold my baby tighter to me. I feel arms slide under mine and pull me away as Bull eases Ana’s body to the floor. I bellow and kick at everyone around me.
“Let me get to her. She needs me.” Dyson’s face appears in front of me. He holds my head so that we’re eye to eye.