Two Tricks (Hidden Empire Book 1)

by Elizabeth Knight

  “Hey pres,” Sprocket’s soft voice said, drawing me back to the present. Seeing he had my attention, he continued. “You were right—she did go through all of our rooms, but we didn’t have much to find. Cognac left his notebook, but the information in there, from what I saw, wasn’t anything she couldn’t have figured out easily with time.”

  “Do we know where Kimber ran off to?” I asked, not liking that she’d vanished after her meeting with Dax.

  “No, but I don’t think Two Tricks has her, if that’s what you’re worried about. Can’t believe that bitch had us thinking she and Dax were tight.”

  “Dax’s brother was a Blackjax, married to the president’s daughter, one of the only people to survive Two Tricks’ takeover. Guess we all assumed that Dax saved her because she was family,” I mused.

  Sprocket leaned against the counter, chewing his thumbnail. “What if it was her last act as her being family? Dax could have asked for her to be spared but then disowned her after the fact.”

  “Sounds reasonable to me. Guess we’ll have to wait and see who will tell us the story first,” I said with a grin, hoping it would be Kimber so I could show her how wrong it was to fuck with the Phantom Saints.

  Waking up with a hangover was never something I enjoyed. My head pounded, my tongue stuck to the roof of my mouth, and I felt like I had been run over by a Mack truck. That was the last time I was going to drink a bottle of brandy in the middle of the day. Glancing around, I saw that I was back in the room I first woke up in. Was it the same day? Or had I slept into the next?

  Carefully, I sat up, letting my feet dangle over the edge of the bed. Looking down, I was just in the t-shirt and my underwear. Someone had taken my shorts off.

  “They better not have copped a feel or I’m going to stab someone,” I muttered, getting to my feet. I paused, making sure I had my balance before continuing.

  The blinds on my window were closed, but I could see the glow of light through the plastic, letting me know it wasn’t night. I shuffled my way to the bathroom, forgetting to knock before shoving the door open.

  “Well, look who it is,” Sprocket said with a grin. He was standing at the sink completely naked, looking at me through the mirror.

  Not having the energy to deal with him, I started the shower and stripped out of the few clothes I had left. Checking the water was hot, I hopped in and let the spray rush over my skin, helping with the muscle ache.

  Seconds later, Sprocket was in the shower with me. I glared at him but knew it lacked any power behind it. My brain just hurt too much to give two shits. Squirting shampoo into my hand, I mushed it on my hair and carelessly scrubbed. Hands stilled mine and pulled them from my scalp. When they were at my sides, Sprocket started to massage my aching skull with his strong fingers.

  “Oh god,” I moaned and relaxed into his touch.

  He let his fingers drift down to my neck and worked on some of the tension there as well. I leaned my head forward, giving him better access, and let my body go slack against his. I could feel his dick wedged between my ass cheeks, but he didn’t make any move to draw attention to it. Grasping my shoulders, he turned me around and helped the water rinse out the soap. When he started the process all over again with the conditioner, I wanted to purr with how content I was.

  Never in my whole life had I let someone wash my hair unless they were cutting it. This felt so decadent that I didn’t know how I’d ever be able to do it myself again. When he washed out the conditioner, he moved to take the washcloth and soaped it up. Methodically, he scrubbed my skin with firm movements that were more purposeful than sexual. The feeling of being so cared for was new for me—other than Wes and Devin, no one had ever given two shits about me. My various foster parents saw me as a check in the mail, and the other kids just saw me as competition for attention.

  When Sprocket was done, I turned to repay the favor, but instead he picked me up, set me outside the tub, wrapped me in a towel, and stepped back to finish his own shower. I stood there, stunned, watching the shower curtain Sprocket had disappeared behind.

  Did he not want me? From the rock-hard dick, I knew he liked me enough to want to fuck me. Why would he do something like that without wanting something in return?

  Cocking my head to the side, I waited just in case he changed his mind and reached out to grab me, but he never did. Totally confused, I grabbed my clothes off the floor and headed back to my room. I took my time to towel off, still trying to process the fact that Sprocket, a stranger, had just taken the time to care for me.

  Whatever it was that Sprocket did made me feel human again. Pulling on the shorts from yesterday, I grabbed a tank top that was tie-dyed. It was long and baggy, so I had to knot one side of it so I didn’t look like I was wearing a ridiculously short dress. Giving my hair a good finger comb, I was as ready as I was going to be to face another day in captivity.

  “I should start a journal,” I mused to myself as I wandered down to the kitchen. “All the cool people in history kept a written log of their life in imprisonment.”

  I still had no idea what time it was, but seeing Void, Cognac, and Picasso all sitting at the counter eating gave me a clue that it was too early for me. They all looked up from their food as if shocked to see me standing there.

  Picasso twisted on the stool to look at me. “Um, Dax, do you know what time it is?”

  “Your question is making me scared to ask,” I said, refusing to glance at any surface that told time. “Is there any coffee made before I hear the bad news?”

  Void pushed himself up and headed into the kitchen. I watched as he pulled a mug down and left it by the half-full coffee pot. Guessing it was for me, I wandered over and filled the cup to the brim, then took a large gulp of the smooth, dark, nectar of the gods. As the coffee made its way into my system, I just stood, resting against the counter until it worked its magic. When I opened them again, I found all three guys watching me with varying expressions of lust.

  “What?” I snapped, not liking the how predatory they all looked.

  Cognac gave me a slow smile full of unfulfilled promises. “You really like coffee.”

  I frowned, not understanding why he would say it like that. “Everyone likes coffee—it makes the earth spin, the sun rise, and the general population function without killing too many people.”

  “All I know is I don’t moan like that when I drink my first cup of coffee. You, on the other hand, sounded like you might have just orgasmed,” Void said, resting his chin on his hand as he watched me.

  Eagle walked into the kitchen, taking in the whole scene, and smiled. “No, when she orgasms it sounds way better than that.”

  My mouth fell open at the casual way Eagle was talking about the spontaneous, angry sex we had. What the fuck was going on right now? Something had definitely changed from yesterday to today. I needed to know what it was, and fast.

  Thankfully, no one seemed to want to comment, so I let it drop, worried what other ridiculous shit would be said. Halfway done with my first cup, I turned and topped it off, then I caught the time on the coffeemaker.

  “What the bitch-tits am I doing up at seven a.m.?!” I yelled, whirling to turn on the guys as if they were to blame. “I already took a shower, so that means I was awake when I typically go to bed!”

  Eagle, unbothered by my outburst, grabbed his own coffee mug and walked over to fill it. When I didn’t move out of his way, he boxed me in, pressing up against me as he poured his brew. Leaning back, he kissed me on the forehead and backed up a step to lean against the island. Horny and handsy I could handle, but that—that whole sweet routine thing—was freaking me out.

  “Do you know what time you passed out and went to bed?” he asked with a smirk.

  Glaring at him, I scrunched up my face. “You drink that much brandy and tell me if you could remember that kind of shit.”

  “Some of us can handle our liquor better than others,” Cognac piped up, adding in his opinion.

  �
�Fuck you. I’m half your weight, you asshole. Of course you can drink more than I can,” I grumbled. “Normally I can outdrink most people, but I didn’t have anything to eat.”

  Cognac cupped a hand around his ear. “I’m sorry, all I hear are excuses. Let me know when the real talk is coming.”

  I lunged for him, but Eagle caught my arm and pulled me against him, wrapping his arms around me. Effectively trapped, I huffed and wriggled, trying to get him to let me go.

  “If you keep rubbing your ass on my dick, I’m going to take it as a sign that you want me to fuck you right here, right now,” Eagle whispered in my ear.

  I froze, my body and mind at war with each other. My body begged for him to do that very thing and let the others watch, while my brain screamed for me to run away. Going for middle ground, I stopped fighting him and just relaxed, letting him hold me.

  “I would guess since you slept close to thirteen hours, your body didn’t need to sleep anymore. If I went to bed at five o’clock, I would be up at six-thirty too,” Eagle said, shifting so he held me around my waist, freeing my arms.

  I looked up at him, surprised. “I passed out at five?!”

  He grinned down at me. “We got back from work, and there you were, laying upside-down, falling off the couch, drunk off your ass watching TV. Can’t say I’ve watched Catfish before, but you really seemed to be into it if the way you were screaming at the people was any clue.”

  Covering my face with my hands, I groaned. “God, did I do anything else embarrassing?”

  Please don’t tell me I was wasted enough for them to ask me questions about Two Tricks. I knew better than to get that drunk. I never remembered what I said.

  Looking up at the guys, I could tell there was something else I did that was noteworthy.

  “I think my favorite part was when you asked if you could give Eagle’s dick a mouth hug,” Void said, smiling at me.

  “Fucking Harper and her Urban Dictionary addiction. Why does she teach me all those stupid phrases?” I said, going limp against Eagle and looking back up at him. “My bad. Didn’t mean to get your hopes up that was ever gonna happen again.”

  Wait, why was I apologizing to him? What the fuck did I care? I should have welcomed the chance to puke all over him if he tried to shove his dick down my throat.

  “Oh, is that right? Never going to happen again? I highly doubt that, little hellcat. In the meantime, we’ll just have to make sure you’re not left to your own devices for that long. That was a two-hundred-dollar bottle of brandy. If you keep drinking like that, you’ll be a very expensive houseguest.” Eagle let me go and pushed me towards the other guys. “Sit down and I’ll make you my hangover special.”

  Snagging my coffee, I cautiously made my way over to the other three. When they didn’t scatter even though they were clearly finished with all their food, I took the seat they pulled out for me between Void and Picasso. I couldn’t place why I was so wary of them all this morning. They hadn’t done anything aggressive to me, but that was exactly what was wrong.

  They were no longer acting like I was a prisoner they didn’t trust or want in their house. Yesterday I’d been left with just one of them or on my own to keep myself entertained. Now they all seemed more intent on being around me.

  Did they find out information that I don’t know about? Did Wes make contact, trying to get me back by pretending to be Two Tricks? It wouldn’t be the first time he’d done that.

  I still couldn’t figure it out, and it was driving me crazy. I needed to scout out who would be the easiest to break and try and get them alone to pump them for information.

  “All of us have work we need to get done, but I’ll have one of the guys around all day,” Eagle said as he moved around the kitchen. “I also thought it might be good for you to meet some of the old ladies in the club. Figured it might be better for one of them to go shopping for the things you need.”

  “Any chance I can go with them?” I dared to ask. Eagle’s furrowed brow gave me my answer. “Was worth a shot,” I said, shrugging my shoulders.

  “Just in case you forgot, each of us have an app on our phones that lets us control the ankle monitor you have on. So if you get too far from one of us or try and take them out, the other four of us can zap your ass just as easily from wherever we are,” Eagle reminded me with a wink as he set a plate of food down in front of me. “Just making sure things are clear between us all.”

  Looking down at what he made me, my stomach growled, excited to taste this magical combination of food. Scrambled eggs, bacon, and cheese between two toasted waffles covered in syrup. Half of me wanted to grab it and shove it into my mouth, but I decided that would be an insult to this creation. Picking up the knife and fork, I dove into the meal, humming happily and bouncing in my seat. Each bite was bliss.

  “Picasso was right, food definitely puts you in a good mood.” Eagle chuckled as he started working on his own waffle sandwich without the syrup.

  Mouth full of the delightful meal, I ignored his comment. I paused my chewing when Sprocket joined us in the kitchen, making himself a cup of hot tea. For some reason, this piqued my interest. Not that there was anything wrong with not liking coffee, I just didn’t picture him as that guy.

  “You’ll spend the morning with Sprocket; the rest of us have things to do off the compound,” Eagle said, pulling my attention back to him. “One of us should be back later this afternoon to relieve him of your company.”

  Resting my chin on my hand, I batted my lashes. “Don’t hurry home on my account. I’m sure I can find some way to amuse myself.”

  “That’s what we’re worried about,” Picasso grumbled.

  Shoving the last part of his breakfast into his mouth, Eagle rinsed off his plate and loaded it into the dishwasher. I wonder how much it would bother him if I left my dishes in the sink? I chuckled, picturing his eye twitching and him trying to hold back from strangling me.

  Lost in my own imagination, I startled when hands grabbed my hips and spun me around on the stool. Eagle looked down at me, his eyes full of possessiveness. He grabbed my chin in one large hand, tilting my head back as he gave me a brutal kiss. Shocked, I didn’t respond right away, but as he nipped at my lips, I couldn’t help but rise to the challenge and open up to him.

  When he pulled back, there was a satisfied grin on his lips, which were red from our kiss. “See you soon, little hellcat.”

  He signaled to the rest of the guys, and all but Sprocket followed after him, totally unfazed by the makeout session we had right in front of them. It didn’t bother me—I wasn’t shy—but that kiss seemed to mean something to the others.

  I could see the wheels turning in Dax’s brain, taking in everything that had just happened.

  We all knew what Eagle had done. Now the gloves were off, and she was fair game. Knowing that I had the whole morning alone with her made me smile. I was going to take her apart piece by piece until I could figure her out, see what made her tick.

  Being the quiet guy allowed me to observe people, watch them when they didn’t notice I was in the room. It gave me an advantage as an adult, but it was born from years of abuse and self-preservation. From the little time I’d spent watching Dax, I could tell she had a kindred spirit. She’d been through her own version of hell and fought to land on top. My fingers itched to peel back the layers of sass and bravado to see what was really hidden at her core.

  “You can take a picture if you want, that way you can stare at it whenever you like,” Dax said, glancing at me from the corner of her eye.

  I shook my head slowly. “Pictures never do the real thing justice.”

  Dax snorted as she turned to give me her full attention. Her silver-blue eyes wandered over me, searching for anything she could use to figure me out. I knew what happened between us this morning had caught her off guard and she still couldn’t decide what to make of it. Grinning, I gulped down the last of my tea before grabbing her plate and putting it in the dishwasher.

/>   “Well, babysitter, what’s on the agenda?” Dax asked, trying to get a rise out of me.

  “I have work to do in the shop. Parts came in yesterday so I can finish up a few bikes,” I answered, walking to the pool table and grabbing the pair of black lace-up combat boots off them. “Here—you’re going to need these. Can’t let you hang around wearing flip-flops.”

  She took them from me and looked at the size, her eyes widening. “How did you know my size?”

  “It’s a talent, I guess you could say. I’ve always been good at matching up parts,” I said, giving her a wink. I liked seeing her off balance; she was far too used to being in control, and I wasn’t going to make it that easy. “Come on, we’re burning daylight.”

  “Fuck that. The daylight only showed up an hour ago, it can give me a minute,” Dax grumbled as she pulled out the pair of socks I had stuffed in one boot.

  Muttering to herself, she pulled on both boots but could only lace one up halfway because of the ankle tracker. Finished, she clomped her way over to me and stopped with her hands on her hips, eyes bright with irritation. “Well, let’s get on with it.”

  Today was going to be a fun day.

  “Hell no, I am not sitting on this stool and watching you work all morning,” I grumbled when Sprocket presented me with my perch. “I’ll have you know that I’m very mechanical.”

  Sprocket leaned against his workbench with his arms crossed, watching me with those intelligent green eyes. I’d met a lot of people in my line of work, and it was the ones with eyes like his that scared me the most. They seemed to be able to look into your soul and make you spill all your secrets.

  Not this girl—I had too much at stake to let a handsome face with hands that could do the Lord’s work get anything out of me.

  “I’ll be the judge of that. Why don’t we start you out with being my tool runner and go from there,” Sprocket said, pushing off from the bench and gesturing to the rows of tool drawers behind him. “Feel free to look through them and familiarize yourself with where things are.”