Grunting, I narrow my gaze on him. “Yeah,” I force out. “Don’t have my bike here. Let’s take my truck.”
Together we leave the bonfire and party behind us. Climbing into my truck, I start the engine and look over at Wolfe. He seems about as worried as I feel and I wonder if this is bigger than I thought. Is this the Skulls play for retaliation. Is this how they’re going to start a war? Using my woman. My unmarked, technically unclaimed woman?
Fuck.
Pulling up to the entrance gate, I slam on my breaks. The gate is wide fucking open. “What in the…” Wolfe says, trailing off to look in the operator’s shack. He pulls out his phone as he jumps from the passenger seat to check out the shack.
“We got a problem, Drag,” he announces as he walks toward the room. I know he’s talking to Dragon, so I let him deal with the president as I take in the area.
Nothing looks out of place, or order, just the fact that there’s no guard in the guard shack. The gate is open, and I glance down seeing Presley’s shoe prints in the sand. Thankful it’s not too windy of a night, at least I can see where she’s been.
“Yo,” I call out to Wolfe. He sticks his head out of the shack, his eyes on me. “I got footprints. I’m going to follow them,” I announce.
He lifts his chin. “Catch up with you in a minute,” he calls.
Bringing up two fingers, I flick them in his direction and head alongside Presley’s platformed shoe prints. I’m going to spank her fuckin’ ass when I find her. I’m going to fuck her ass, and spank it, and tie her to the goddamn bed.
The little bitch is going to finally learn what it means to be mine, and she’ll think twice before ever attempting to pull a stunt like this one again.
Fucking shit.
“Dragon’s on the way. Prospect is moving your truck, we can’t find the fuck who was at the shack. He sent out two men to hunt him down. This stinks, brother. It smells fucking bad,” Wolfe announces as he jogs up to me.
My eyes are downcast, keeping my gaze on the little footprints that head toward town. Anger boiling in my blood with each step I take. She put herself in this position. She put herself in danger and that fucking pisses me off. She made herself vulnerable to be taken from me. After what happened in New Mexico, the shit we talked about, I thought she at least understood this part of the life, the part where she has to be smart so that I can keep her safe.
“Don’t be too pissed at her, brother. She’s new,” Wolfe mutters.
“Oh like you and Esther when you met? How long have you been apart?”
He grunts. “That ain’t fair. There’s more than just the life that kept us apart.”
“Like the fact you wanted to share her?”
Wolfe stops behind me, his arms crossing his chest. “Too far. What I do with my woman. That has nothing to do with you,” he growls.
“It does when this whole thing is her fucking fault,” I point out.
“Low blow, brother. You know it ain’t her fault as much as it ain’t Presley’s fault. This is on the Skulls, and partly on us, for going into their territory to begin with.”
I grunt. He’s right. Tearing down my own brothers isn’t going to change anything. I let it go, let it roll off my back and I focus on my woman, on getting her back in one piece. Then I’ll focus on her punishment.
PRESLEY
I’m not surprised as we cross over the New Mexico border. What I am surprised at is that he doesn’t ride toward a clubhouse. I expected to see a building surrounded by gates, much like Joel’s club. Instead, we pull up to a house. A one-story adobe style home, in a regular type of neighborhood. He pulls up into the carport to the side, the other man riding up next to us.
I scramble off of the bike, attempting to keep myself decent as I do. I know I’ve failed because his eyes are pointed at my crotch before they lift to my face in a smirk.
“Welcome home,” he grins.
Shaking my head, I take a step back, only to have my ankle twist slightly on a rock. I hiss, the slight pain rising up my legs. The man reaches out, wrapping his hand around my waist to steady me. His cool blue eyes meet mine and he smirks.
Both men swing their legs off of their bikes. The president keeps his hand around my waist and guides me toward the front door. I try to drag my feet, but he doesn’t allow it. His grip is firm, but he doesn’t hurt me. I don’t know his endgame, but I know once I’m in that house the chances of me leaving are slim to none. I’m not an idiot. I watched Joel kill one of his group members, I know what’s happening here.
I know I’m a pawn, but I also know that I’m dispensable.
I’m a lesson to be taught.
Once I’m inside I take a look at my surroundings. There’s a nice black leather sectional sofa and a big-screen television hanging on the wall. I’m surprised to see a large rug and even a coffee table set up. The walls are a persimmon color, and there is Native American artwork that adorns the walls. The entire space is a contradiction to the man at my side.
“Ex-Old Lady liked this shit. I never changed it,” he mutters. I look back over to him, surprised that he’s saying anything at all to me. “Go sit, we got some shit to put in motion,” he grunts, lifting his chin to the sofa.
I look between him and his partner. The partner licks his lips at me, and I try to hold back my shiver of disgust as I rush over to the sofa and quickly sit down. I fold my hands in my lap and stare at the pattern in the rug. I start to shake, not because I’m cold, but because I’m downright fucking terrified.
The men walk away from me, leaving me alone in the living room but I can hear their voices just a few feet away in the kitchen. Lifting my head, I glance over at the front door, then back to the kitchen, wondering how far I could get before they would catch me. Then, I look down at my feet and cringe. Stupid shoes. I wouldn’t get far at all.
Sighing, I let my head fall back as my eyes close shut. I am so screwed. “Go to bed, girl. First door on the left.” My eyes pop open at the words. I hadn’t even heard him walk into the room.
“Bed?” I whisper.
He grins, tipping his head to the side. “Tonight you’re safe from being touched. Tomorrow I make no promises,” he announces.
I gulp, looking behind him toward the hall, and then I shift my gaze back to meet his. “No chance you’ll tell me what is going to happen to me, is there?”
His grin turns into a full-fledged smile, his eyes scanning my body before they come back to my eyes. “Depends darlin’.”
Biting the corner of my lip, I take his bait. “On what?” I chance asking.
He takes a step closer to me, his head dipping down, his blue eyes searching mine. “Depends on how bad your man wants you back, how fucking motivated he is. How important you are to him,” he pauses for a moment, his eyes continuing to search my own. “Even if he’s highly motivated, I might just keep you for myself,” he grins.
I suck in a deep breath, which only makes him chuckle. “Tonight you’re safe, get your ass to bed before I change my fucking mind,” he grunts.
Without a word, I turn and run toward the first bedroom on the left. I can hear him laughing the entire time. I don’t care, he can laugh all he wants. Me? All I want to do is cry. Closing the bedroom door, I lock it behind me before I flip the light on and take in the space.
I press my lips together, rolling them when I look around. It’s obvious I’m in the master bedroom. I check the lock again, making sure that I’m locked inside, though I have no doubt this man could find his way in if he wanted to. Then I realize, I don’t even know his name.
The bed is massive, the comforter a little worn but it is shockingly an off-white color with turquoise pillows. Whoever his woman was, he cared for her, or still does. He hasn’t removed her from his home. Granted I don’t think she’s been here in a while, but she definitely meant something to him. If these men are as bad as Joel claimed them to be, then he wouldn’t have given a fuck. He would have probably burned her shit the second she was gone.
Frowning, I slowly walk into the bathroom. It is the same as the rest of the house. Obviously has had a woman’s touch, but she’s been long gone for several years. I lock the door behind me, lifting my gaze to the mirror and take a look at myself.
Before I left my house tonight, that girl looked happy, content, and excited for the future. This girl in front of me, she looks like death. She’s frightened, terrified, and she looks defeated. I glance at the shower behind me, then back at myself in the mirror. I’m dirty. Head to toe. I need to wash, but getting naked in here, it doesn’t make me feel at ease. However, if that man wanted to hurt me, he could and he would.
“Well, you wanted an adventure,” I tell my reflection.
Walking over to the shower, I turn my nose up at the mold, the space obviously having been ignored by any type of cleaner. Taking a threadbare towel out of the cabinet above the toilet, I throw it over the shower door and start the water.
Closing my eyes, I inhale deeply, trying to keep from completely breaking down. Joel might find me, then again, he may be too wrapped up in Savanna to even know I’m gone. Tears spring to my eyes, and fall without me being about to stop them.
Dammit.
Chapter Nineteen
SILVER
It’s the Skulls. I look down at where the bike tracks are, and Presley’s footprints end. There a few larger boot prints littering the area as well. Wolfe growls next to me, and planting my hands on my hips, I spit on one of the boot prints. Lifting my gaze up to him, I lift my chin as Dragon stalks toward us.
“Skulls took her. Bike tracks, boot prints, and this is where her shoe prints end,” I announce.
I clench my jaw together, grinding it so hard that I know I’m wearing my fucking teeth down. I don’t care. She’s gone, they took her. It’s her fucking fault for putting herself in danger too. She’ll never put herself in danger again, not by the time I’m through with her.
Picking up my phone, I find Trista’s name and touch the call icon. “Silver?” she asks answering on the first ring.
“You and Buster okay?” I ask.
“What happened?” she demands.
I snort, at the fact that she thinks I’ll actually tell her. “I’m sending a man over to you, probably Taz or Jag. I don’t want a prospect on my kid,” I state.
“Tell me, please, is everything okay?” she pleads.
Clearing my throat, I lift my hand and run my fingers through my hair, before I drag them down my beard and tug on the hair there. “It’s Presley,” I admit. “I just need to deal with her.”
Trista hums. “I like her. She keeps you on your toes,” she chuckles. Her worry obviously fading. It shouldn’t. If they are so bold as to take Presley, that means every other fucking woman of the club is in danger.
“Taz or Jag will be by, let them in if they need in, but nobody else,” I grunt before ending the call.
Dragon is at my side by the time I end the call, his eyes pointed at the tracks in front of us. “Should we pack up and make a road trip?” he asks.
Turning to him, I lift my chin. “Fuck yeah.”
“Before we go. I gotta know just what this girl is to you, and means to you,” he mutters.
Wolfe snorts. I flip him off and lift my gaze to my president. “She’s in my bed, that’s all that needs to be said.”
Dragon shakes his head, his eyes focusing on my own. “We already started shit with the Skulls because of her. If we’re going to go back there, guns blazing, I have to know what she is to you.”
I nod, lifting my eyes to the starry black night. Then I look back over to my president, my friend. “She’s it, brother,” I state.
He nods. “Then let’s get this shit handled. You need to reel her fucking ass in after this shit, though. No more stunts like this again. We won’t always go after her, not if she does this shit to herself,” he warns.
He’s a fucking liar. He would go after her, time and time again, because he would want me to go after his woman if the situation were reversed. At least if he had a woman worth going after. I don’t call him on his lie. What I do is try not to get any angrier that Presley put herself in danger. I need to get her back, make sure she’s breathing, then deal.
I need to stay calm. Because I didn’t lie to Dragon. This bitch is it. She’s everything. That doesn’t mean that I’ll become some fucking pussy that will lay down and just take whatever she dishes. She’ll be coming to heel, whether she likes that shit or not.
Dragon lifts his hand and flicks two fingers toward the clubhouse. The three of us make our way back. My truck is still parked in the same place it was at the entrance gates. There are a few guys standing around and none look too fucking thrilled. I don’t blame them. I’m not either.
“Prospect that was supposed to be at the gate is bleedin’ from the head and drug off to the side of the property behind the outer fencing,” Jaguar announces.
“Fuck,” I hiss.
Dragon grunts. “If this was full on retaliation, they’d have killed him, come in guns blazing and taken the rest of us down too. We were all partying, it was the perfect opportunity.”
I nod in agreement. He’s right. It would have been perfect, but that isn’t what they did. Hell, it’s what I would have done if it were me.
“They want to barter. They want something,” Wolfe announces.
Mountain clucks his tongue and tilts his head to the side. “They’ve been wanting a piece of our business for a while. Karma took over for his old man five years ago, and he’s been looking for a way in. He tried to do his own deal like ours, but it never took off. He didn’t have the supplier or the buyers. We do, and they’re all established. This could have been their opportunity to take, to force our hand,” he suggests.
“Fuck,” I groan. “You’re right.”
“Karma won’t take her to the clubhouse, that’s not his style,” Dragon announces. “He’s a little smoother than that,” he chuckles.
I frown, looking over to my president. “Smoother?” I growl.
“We don’t get to New Mexico soon, she may not leave his bed,” he states.
I feel the rage begin to boil my blood. “Let’s get the fuck out of here. He touches her, and I’ll kill him just like I killed his men.”
Dragon whistles. My head snaps over to him and he shakes his head once. “We’ll bring out the firepower only if it’s needed. We don’t need more bloodshed, at least not immediately,” he mutters.
I don’t respond. Instead, I walk over to my truck and climb inside, slamming the door behind me. Sticking my head out of the window I look over to Taz. “Go keep an eye on Trista and my boy, yeah?” I call out.
Taz smirks and lifts his chin. “Be fuckin’ glad to.”
I don’t even think about how he’s obviously a little too excited for his assignment. I wave him off and turn my head in a scowl when my passenger door slams. It’s Wolfe sitting next to me, a fucking smile on his face.
“The fuck?” I bark.
He shrugs. “Not letting you drive like a bat outta hell, brother. The guys will follow on their bikes, but you in this truck,” he shakes his head. “You gotta keep a lock on your anger. Lock it the fuck down. You already went half-cocked on these fucks. We don’t need a full on war. If they want to negotiate, Dragon may take them up on that. But if you drive there, and go in guns blazing, they won’t be too keen to negotiate shit.”
He’s right. I know that he is. Part of me doesn’t give a fuck, though. The other part of me, the rational part of me, takes a deep breath, letting it out along with all of my tension. “I’m cool,” I semi-lie.
Wolfe chuckles. “You aren’t, but you will be. We got your back brother. We’ll get your girl back. We all like her a fuck’ve a lot. We got this,” he promises.
I inhale again, letting it out, then shift the truck into drive when I see Dragon and the rest of my brothers ride up behind me. Taz turns left, to head toward my place, while the rest of us turn right to head to New Mexico.
PRESLEY
I didn’t think my shower through. Standing in the middle of the bedroom, with only a towel wrapped around my naked body, I’m not sure what to do. I look at my clothes which are now folded neatly, and I’ve placed them on the top of the dresser, but I know that I can’t wear them.
Not only are they dirty, my panties are covered in the remnants of Joel’s release. Just the sight of them makes me a little sad. It shouldn’t, but it does. He is this unfulfilled fantasy. I only had him for such a short time, and it wasn’t enough. I want more. I want it all.
Shaking my head, I try to erase him from my thoughts, but I fail. I think that he will always be back there, no matter how hard I try to forget him. Reaching for the dresser drawers, I go in search for something to cover myself with.
I feel as though I’ve hit the jackpot when I find a pair of old, faded black sweats. Pulling them up my legs, I laugh at how huge they are on me. I roll the waist half a dozen times, then grab a plain white undershirt tank next to it.
Once I’m at least somewhat covered, I try not to think about how see-through the shirt is I’m wearing. I run my fingers through my wet hair to try and take the snarled tangles out. Then, I climb between the sheets of the bed.
Lying my head against the pillow, I expect the bedding to smell, be scratchy and gross like Joel’s at his clubhouse. It isn’t. This stranger’s pillow smells like a combination of him and laundry detergent. His smell will probably forever be ingrained inside of my nose from our ride here. It’s a spicy scent and much like Joel’s, it’s also mixed with motor oil and leather.
Closing my eyes, I attempt to fall asleep. When I hear the door squeak what feels like only a second later, I sit up with a squeak.
“Wanted to let you sleep. However, it seems like your man and the Savage Beast’s are a bit smarter than I anticipated,” he chuckles softly. “Faster too,” he winks. “Hop up,” he mutters.
Standing, I look at his outstretched hand, shaking my head. No way am I willingly holding this man’s hand. I don’t care if he’s been decently nice to me, I’m not under any false illusion that he is a good man. Just like I know that Joel isn’t either.
UnScrew Me (Savage Beast MC Book 1) Page 16