by Lane Hart
After saying goodbye to Kelsey, I pull Sasha toward my bike.
“He’s gonna be expecting retaliation,” she whispers, low enough that only I will hear her. “Hector’s not stupid. He’ll assume that you all are coming for him.”
“I know,” I agree, having thought about that myself.
“You should wait until he thinks he’s safe and catch him off guard.”
“You know we can’t do that,” I tell her. “Torin wants to go right this second. How am I supposed to convince him to wait while the man who killed his wife and kid is still wandering the streets?”
“I don’t know,” Sasha says. “Killing him won’t bring her back or erase the pain. Torin must know that.”
“He does,” I agree. “And you’re right, ending Hector won’t bring Kennedy back or make him forget how much he misses her. But it’ll make him think he feels like he did something for her when there’s nothing else to be done.”
When we reach my bike, I quickly secure Sasha’s helmet on her because I know Torin’s about to head back.
“We survived the ride here. Think we can try our luck and make it back?” I say, only half joking.
“I told you, baby, our suffering is over. We’re gonna be fine,” Sasha says.
Since we don’t have time to debate that now, I get on my bike and pull away behind Torin as soon as Sasha’s arms go around my waist.
While it’s terrifying, it also feels pretty damn good having her ride with me again.
Chapter Thirty
Chase
“It’s good to see so many of you here and ready to do whatever it takes to seek vengeance for Kennedy,” I say to the group around the table and the dozens of men packed in standing. Torin is one of them, refusing to sit in his seat at the table. Several members have noticed, casting curious glances at him and me when neither of us takes the seat at the head of the table.
“While the prudent thing to do may be to sit back and wait for Hector to relax before we hit him, that’s not our way. We’re gonna go at him savagely tonight, knowing the risks while, at the same time, having the certainty that he won’t stand a chance against our show of force.”
The guys grunt and cheer their agreement.
“Now, here’s our plan,” I start. “We’ll need our brothers from Virginia to set up a roadblock to the north of Hector’s headquarters, Tennessee to the left, and South Carolina to our south, just like the map. Our Emerald Isle charter will come in first from the east, followed by the rest of our forty or so brothers from around our home state who will block up that part of town for us once we’re inside. We’re gonna hit Hector and his men hard and fast while trying to keep any unarmed women out of the line of fire. Anyone who shoots at you is a target. Roy and Ben from our Charlotte charter will stay here at the clubhouse with Reece who is gonna take out any cameras or recordings in Hector’s establishment remotely. For once, we ask that you leave your cuts here in case other cameras see us. Keep your masks on or bandanas around your face at all times, so we can keep track of who the good guys are. Any questions?” I ask.
When there are none, I continue. “Some of us may not come home, some of us may find ourselves wearing orange jumpsuits in new homes. We’ve got an attorney on speed dial to handle the latter; may your soul rest in peace on the former. You can be assured that the MC will provide for the families of anyone we lose.”
“Who’s ready to ride?” I ask, and the shouts and yells of so many men is nearly deafening. “We leave in two hours, gentlemen. Until then, gas up, eat your fill, load your guns and fuck your women like it’s your last night, because it damn well may be.”
With a slam of the gavel, everyone starts filing out of the room as fast as possible. Myself included.
…
Sasha
One second I’m standing in the empty kitchen, and the next, men are pouring in like starving beasts, grabbing anything and everything they can.
“What in the world…” I start. When I step out into the bar, it’s like a freaking orgy. I’ve never seen so many white asses in my life. “What’s going on?” I ask Maddox, one of the prospects, who is standing in the front of the room, mouth gaping, eyes bulging.
“Beats the fuck out of me, but I can’t wait to be a part of it,” he replies.
I don’t get a chance to respond before my feet leave the floor and then I’m being hauled out the front door.
“Chase?” I yell, to make sure it’s his ass I’m looking at.
“Yeah, sweetheart?” the voice I recognize as his, thankfully, asks.
“Where are we going?”
“To my bike.”
“Are we going somewhere?” I ask.
“Yeah,” he replies. Slapping my ass, he says, “You’re going for a ride on my cock.”
That sounds good to me. It’s pretty dark out already, but there are enough streetlights and members around that it’s highly likely someone will see us. At least we won’t have to worry about drive-bys. All those bikes from the funeral are parked up and down the street, only leaving enough room for other bikes to get through.
Finally, the world returns to the upright position as Chase sets me down on the back of his bike. He follows, facing me instead of the handlebars.
Throwing my legs over the top of his, I hop up onto his lap and moan when I feel his thick bulge between my legs.
“Is that all for me?” I ask as I wind my arms around his neck.
“Hell yes,” he agrees, capturing my lips with his while his hands jerk my shorts down my hips. “Now, pull my cock out so I can give it to you.”
Needing him so much I can’t wait any longer, I unzip his pants and pull his shaft out while stroking his hot flesh so that I can feel him get even harder in my grip.
Chase pulls at my shorts and panties until he’s able to get them off one of my legs; then he grabs my ass cheeks to lift me up in the air. I line up his cock and lower myself down on it, stretching to take every inch until I can’t take any more.
“God, you feel amazing,” I tell him as I bury my face in his neck.
“Give me your mouth, sweetheart,” he says, so I lean back and let him kiss me, slow and deep, plunging his tongue in and out of my mouth in the same rhythm as he rocks me on his lower body. It’s not rough or fast like yesterday. Tonight, Chase is taking his time, savoring every second.
“Someone could see us. It makes this even hotter,” I tell him, making him freeze. “What?” I ask.
“You said that the night of the wreck,” he points out.
“Well, it's just as true now as it was then. There are a lot of people around,” I reply. “But that’s okay, baby.”
“No, no,” he says as she shakes his head. “This is all like déjà vu.”
“You brought me out to your bike, remember?” I ask.
“We need to go inside,” Chase says.
“What? No. Let’s finish what we’ve already started,” I tell him as I run my hands down the sides of his face and buck my hips to remind him he’s still inside of me.
“We’re leaving in a few hours to go after Hector,” he tells me, making my chest burn.
“You are?” I ask.
“This is the only way for you to be safe,” Chase says.
“And after he’s gone, then you’ll find someone else to worry about as a threat. This whole issue is never going to end.”
“Yes, it will,” he argues. “We’ll take out Hector, and everything will go back to the way it was around here.”
“Or you could end up in prison or worse…”
“That won’t happen,” he assures me. “I’ll come back to you. Before you wake up in the morning, I’ll have my arms around you in bed.”
“Everyone is going?” I ask.
“Yes, except for the prospects and Reece. They’ll stay here along with two out of towners.”
“I’ve got a bad feeling–” I start to say, but Chase puts his finger to my lips.
“Don’t fucking say that,�
� he warns. “This will be easy. There are so many of us that Hector could have an army and we would still take his ass out in a matter of minutes.”
Looking at his face, I see how worried he is and know that I don’t need to make it worse. He needs me to be supportive. So, I tell him, “Yeah. You’re right. Good always wins out over evil, doesn’t it?”
“This may be the only situation where we’re the good guys,” he says. “But yes, we’re gonna fucking win.”
“Then, if everything is all figured out, why did you stop fucking me?” I ask.
Chase grabs my hips and lifts them high enough to slam me back down on his cock so hard my eyes roll back in my head.
“Keep going,” I tell him as I tighten my arms around his neck, holding him as close as possible in case he’s wrong.
Actually, I’m almost certain he’s wrong and that tonight is gonna be a catastrophe.
But I won’t tell Chase that.
Instead, I’ll enjoy every second I have with him in case I don’t get any more.
Chapter Thirty-One
Chase
The highway doesn’t feel nearly as peaceful tonight as it usually does. It’s a short ride; and with every mile, I second-guess our decision to do this tonight.
I know something’s not right when we pull up to Hector’s pool hall and it’s pitch black, not a single light on. At this time of night, it should be full, like our bar, with people gambling, drinking and getting fucked up on his drugs.
Torin, me and the rest of our crew back our bikes into spots right in front of the building and kill our engines.
“What the fuck do you think he’s up to?” I ask Torin.
“No clue,” he replies as he looks around with a soldier’s eyes searching for the ambush or whatever else Hector has set up for us.
“Maybe the pussy got scared, tucked tail and ran,” Abe suggests from his bike that’s parked on the other side of mine.
“That doesn’t seem like Hector,” I reply. “He’s after blood. My blood. He wouldn’t leave until he hurt me. Reece is supposed to have killed the cameras. Let me call him and see if he spotted anything. Hell, maybe he killed the power to the joint.”
The words have barely left my mouth when my phone buzzes in my pocket. As soon as I pull it up and see Maddox’s name on the screen, panic grabs me by the throat.
“What’s wrong?” I ask.
“The bar’s under attack –” he says, and that’s all I need to hear before I hang up.
“Back to the bar, now!” I tell the guys before I crank my bike and speed off down the road. And even going as fast as the throttle will let me, it’s not fast enough.
When I pull up to the street, I see Ben and Roy, the guys from the Charlotte charter who stayed behind to protect the bar, laid out on the ground next to their bikes. Seeing them, I fucking know that they’re dead and that there’s not going to be any survivors in the building.
Still, I have to see for myself. With my heart trying to pound its way through my chest, I lay my bike down and race toward the front door with my gun out and raised.
“Chase, wait!” I vaguely hear Torin yell over the roar of engines filling up the parking lot. But I don’t stop. I can’t even if it’s an ambush inside just waiting to blow my head off.
“Sasha!” I yell when I step inside and find the bar destroyed, tables turned over, the jukebox on its side, broken bottles of booze everywhere.
Thank fuck there are no more bodies.
Where is everyone? Did they run downstairs for cover when they heard gunfire?
The basement door has dozens of bullet holes in it along with the keypad meant to keep people out, so all I have to do is push it open to go through it. “Sasha!” I yell as I jog down the stairs.
Every apartment door has been busted open and sprayed with bullets, but I don’t look inside any of them. Casings cover the floor, along with smears of blood like someone was dragged away. My boots stop just out front of my room, and I have to fight with myself to make me look inside.
With shaking hands, I burst through it…and find it empty.
Where the hell is she?
Fuck! Did they take her and the other girls?
Pulling out my phone, I call her number. The line clicks over, but I don’t hear anything.
“Sasha?” I shout.
“Ch- ” it sounds like she starts to say my name but her words cut out.
“Sasha, where are you?” I yell as the other guys catch up to me and start looking through all the rooms.
“The whole place is empty,” Abe remarks when he appears at my side.
“Where the fuck is everyone?” Torin asks. “War’s checking on Roy and Ben, but it doesn’t look good. Abe, get on the phone and try to call Maddox again.”
“Chase? Chase, I’m here. I’m at the farmhouse,” Sasha finally says clearly through the phone line.
“Oh, thank fuck,” I reply with a heavy exhale of relief. “Are you okay? Are the girls with you?”
“Yes,” she says.
“Good, sweetheart. I’m so fucking glad to hear your voice,” I tell her.
“What happened? Are you okay?” she asks frantically.
“No one was at the fucking pool hall!” I explain to her.
“Oh crap! That must be why Reece had Turtle load us all up and bring us here,” Sasha tells me.
“Yeah, well it’s a damned good thing,” I say. “Is he there with you?”
“No,” she answers.
“Fuck! What about Maddox and Holden?” I ask.
“No, it’s just the girls, me and Turtle. Why?”
“Hector attacked the bar after we left. Ben and Roy, two of our brothers from Charlotte, are most likely dead. I got a call from Maddox and came back, but now we don’t know where the hell those three are.”
“God, Chase, I’m so sorry,” she says. “Do you want us to come back?”
“No, this place is a goddamn mess,” I tell her as I look around at the destruction. “Stay there. I’m on my way.”
“Okay. I love you,” Sasha responds with a sigh.
“Love you too, sweetheart,” I say before ending the call.
“What the hell is going on?” Torin asks as he stabs his fingers through his hair. “Are they okay?”
“Yeah, the women are. They’re with Sasha at the farmhouse.”
All the guys curse in relief, until Abe holds up a hand for silence. “Maddox?” he barks into the phone. “Slow down, kid, I’m gonna put you on the speaker. Chase and Torin are right here too.”
Holding the phone out, there’s a beep as the speaker clicks on. The sound of ragged breathing echoes from the phone. “You still there?” Maddox asks.
“Yeah, Mad-man, we’re here,” I yell. “Where the fuck are you?”
“Reece sent the girls off to the farmhouse when Hector’s went dark. So then Holden and I were just sitting around the bar when all of a sudden the bastards started shooting up the place. I called you while I was running downstairs to get Reece.”
“Are you guys okay?” I bark at the phone, trying to get Maddox to focus. “There’s a helluva lot of blood down here.”
“It’s not ours,” Reece’s calm, clipped voice says. “Those sons of bitches came out of nowhere.”
“Who and how many?” I ask.
“They were definitely Hector’s men,” Reece mutters. “I’ve seen them on the video feeds. It was at least half a dozen who rushed inside, maybe more outside. They all made it out, but two of them had to be carried.”
“You should have seen him,” Maddox yells. “He ran out of his room looking like Rambo or something. This motherfucker had a M60 in his hands!”
“It’s a M240,” Reece grumbles in irritation.
“Anyway, he lit the place up like Christmas,” Maddox cackles. “I followed him up the stairs when they retreated, and we got out. Holden wasn’t hurt, he took off out the backdoor. We found him out at the edge of the woods and we’re still hunkered down here in the
swamp.”
“Find your way back to the clubhouse,” Torin says at the same time sirens can be heard from upstairs. “Our men from Charlotte are either dead or headed that fucking way.”
“Damn,” Reece mutters. “I’m sorry. I should’ve seen them coming…”
“It’s not your fault,” I tell him. “You’re not fucking psychic. There was no way for any of us to know this would happen.”
“I had a feeling that motherfucker was up to something when the pool hall emptied out,” Reece says. “That’s why I sent the girls away. I was hoping the jackass was just running. I hate it when I’m fucking right.”
“You did good saving the girls and the prospects,” I say. “Now get back here so we can find that bastard and make him pay.”
After I end the call, Torin turns to Sax and tells our communications man, “Keep the Carolina charters here and divide up the rest to ride in every possible fucking direction. I want them to look under every single crack whore and drug dealer until we find Hector.”
“Yes, sir,” Sax says before he runs up the stairs to start making assignments.
“Goddamn him!” Torin roars before he rams his fist into the wall, making plaster dust rain down on all of us.
“We’re gonna get him,” I promise my brother when I grip his shoulder, pulling him away from the wall before he breaks his hand and can’t ride. “The fucker may have got away tonight, but he can’t hide forever. We’ll find him, no matter how long it takes. And then we’ll make him pay. You hear me?” I ask him.
“Yeah,” he grumbles as his shoulders slump and his head hangs in defeat.
No, this isn’t a defeat, I tell myself. It’s just a temporary setback. We may have lost two good men, but Hector’s day of reckoning will come.
“You gonna be okay here? I need to take some of the boys to pick the girls up from the farmhouse.”
“Yeah, this is all going to have to be cleaned up,” Torin responds in a flat tone that I don’t like. “Hector’s destroyed my entire life, and I swear to fucking Christ, I’m going to clean it up,” he hisses.