Sinful

by Scarlett Sanderson

  “You have my number.” Elena inclined her head. “Zeke. Boys.” And with those few words she strode out of the house, closing the door behind her.

  Grace looked at Rafe. His eyes were glued to the closed door.

  Zeke rasped in her ear, “Don’t ask. It’s a tetchy subject.”

  She propped herself up and gazed into his eyes. “What did she mean about the FBI?”

  The wall slammed back into place. “Don’t ask about that either. Not yet. Less you know, the better.”

  She closed her mouth and reluctantly snuggled back into Zeke’s chest. What kind of business were they doing with the Chinese to get the FBI and ATF involved? Definitely some heavy shit. If they were going to work on their relationship, Zeke had to open up. If she wanted to be with him, she needed to put aside her moral compass at times, but that didn’t mean she had to blindly agree with everything without questioning him.

  Now was not the time to confront the president about his business decisions though.

  As the movie dragged on, she became antsy. Something didn’t feel right. Something felt...off. She couldn’t settle. Gabe hadn’t come back and she really wanted to know how her sister was doing. Maybe Kadence had picked up a bout of food poisoning. If that was the case, she had something in her med kit that might help. One thing she couldn’t do was continue lying here, ruminating.

  In the most unladylike fashion, she rolled off Zeke and got to her feet.

  He quirked a brow.

  “I need to check on Kadence.”

  Zeke nodded. “Come back to me.” Those four words made her heart thump. They really were doing it—working out their shit.

  Tiny bellowed, “Careful you don’t catch her and Gabe doing the nasty.”

  “If I do, I’ll have to go find my scalpel.” She made a slicing motion and Tiny blanched.

  She left to the sound of laughter roaring through the house. As she walked across the street, she huddled into her sweater, trying to defend herself against the autumn chill.

  If felt good being part of something. Part of them. The Knights of Hell. No more backing away from Zeke. He’d insisted, she’d comply.

  Maybe they could work things out. Find a path together despite their vastly different worlds. They needed ground rules though. She wouldn’t take any shit. Especially no cheating. She wouldn’t stand for him sticking his dick in other women.

  He had to talk to her about the business. Not details, but at least let her know the basics.

  Tomorrow she’d talk to him about it all. Tomorrow they’d sit down and have a grown up conversation like two adults.

  She unlocked her door, stepped inside and froze. Gabe lay at the bottom of the stairs, eyes closed, blood running down his forehead.

  Fear slammed into her like a freight train. She dropped to her knees, quickly assessing his status. She checked his pulse and breathing. Although a little rapid, his vitals seemed okay. She brushed back his hair and checked his head wound. Looked superficial but head wounds were tricky.

  “Gabe,” she hissed, trying to rouse him. “Gabe, can you open your eyes?”

  His eyelids fluttered. He groaned and murmured, swimming back to consciousness.

  “Hey. Hey, Gabe. It’s Grace. What happened?”

  Gabe’s eyelids flew open. He gripped her wrist so hard it hurt. Sheer terror flashed in his blue orbs. “He’s here, Grace. He was upstairs. Kadence...”

  She was up and running before he could say anything else. She saw the bathroom door was slightly ajar as she reached the top step

  Please let her be okay. Please let her be okay.

  If anything happened to her sister, she’d never forgive herself.

  She pushed open the door. Lachlan pinned Kadence to the wall, a hand around her throat. A red haze descended as anger and fear spurred Grace on.

  She ran towards him, grabbing Lachlan’s wrist, trying to remove it from her sister’s windpipe. "You get the fuck off her!"

  He pushed her away easily as though swatting a fly. “This is all your fault, Grace. Kadence wouldn't be a slut today if it wasn't for you bringing her here. Flaunting her in front of those scum.” He spat out the words, his eyes wide and cheeks mottled with the force of his rage. “She belongs to me and needs to be taught a lesson about loyalty!" Lachlan turned his attention back to Kadence, applying more pressure to her throat.

  Grace watched as tears ran in rivulets down Kadence's cheeks. She clawed at his hand, gurgling and whimpering.

  It was all happening so quickly. Her mind raced in a thousand different directions. He was hurting her sister. She could see the red welts forming on Kadence's neck. The petechial hemorrhaging in her eyes. How had he gotten in? How long did Kadence have before he cut off her air supply? How the fuck did she stop a man high on rage and anger?

  "Please...please Lachlan. Don’t,” Kadence managed to splutter.

  Grace snapped, adrenaline pumping through her veins. She wasn’t going to let her sister die. No fucking way.

  She launched herself at him. Kicking, clawing, tearing her nails down his arm. "You get the fuck off her now!"

  Lachlan backhanded her.

  Pain lanced through her cheekbone and she felt something wet on her lip. Licking it, she tasted the metallic tang of blood. With no thought for her injury, Grace continued screaming at Lachlan. "Get the fuck away from her!”

  He whirled his head in her direction. The look of pure hatred in his eyes made her gasp. "Why? What you gonna do, bitch?"

  He was right what was she going to do? She’d only been in the room for a few seconds, but that hadn’t helped. She was no match for Lachlan. He was stronger and more agile than Grace.

  She was well and truly fucked.

  The air stirred behind her. Someone entered the bathroom.

  “It's not her you need to worry about, asshole.” Zeke’s voice was calm, completely devoid of emotion, but Grace knew menace lurked behind the deadpan tone.

  He rested a gentle hand on her shoulder and it immediately stilled some of the mind-numbing fear.

  Lachlan snorted, nodding at Grace. "Is her pussy that good you'd risk getting your ass kicked?"

  Zeke stepped from behind Grace and grabbed Lachlan by the shoulder, yanked him forcefully away from Kadence, landing a left hook on Lachlan's chiseled jaw.

  Some detached part of her watched at the graceful way Zeke fought, appreciating the self-assured energy flowing though him.

  Kadence sank to the floor and Grace barreled back to the present. She dropped to her knees and crawled towards her sister.

  Words tumbled out of Kadence, her voice croaky and raw. “I’m so sorry, I brought this here. I caused this. And Gabe...Oh god, Gabe!”

  “Sshh, sssh, Gabe is fine,” she stroked her hair, whispering words of comfort in her ear. “It's okay, it's all going to be okay now.”

  Zeke threw Lachlan against the wall. Pinning his forearm against the man's neck, he looked over at Grace. “Take Kadence to my house."

  Grace gave Zeke a blank look. She couldn't process the command. Her mind wouldn’t work. It was all too much. She was going into shock. The adrenaline drained away leaving her a wreck.

  “Grace!” His bellow snapped her to attention. She focused on Zeke, at the powerful way he continued to pin a fighting Lachlan like it was nothing. “Get the fuck out of here and let me take care of this.”

  She opened her mouth to protest. She should help him. It was their mess, they needed to take care of it. Or at least help Zeke in some way.

  He grit his teeth, clenching his jaw. “Don’t fight me on this. Fucking LEAVE.”

  The dangerous glint in his eye spurred her into action. She wrapped an arm around Kadence’s waist, dragging her to her feet and stumbled out of the bathroom. They made it to the hallway just as Tiny and Jay came running up the stairs, guns drawn.

  She moved aside to let them pass and jerked her head towards the bathroom. “They’re in there.”

  In another time and place, men runn
ing around her house with guns would have pissed her off, but she was on emotional shut down. Running on empty. Nothing penetrated the numb sensation creeping into her body.

  The last buzz of adrenaline kept her moving as she rushed down the stairs, sobbing and dragging Kadence along with her. She wouldn’t think about the deadly look in Zeke’s eyes or the pure hatred pouring from Lachlan. She had to focus on the now. On putting one foot in front of the other.

  Kadence whimpered. “Gabe...oh god, Gabe!”

  Sammy helped Gabe to his feet and Grace’s instincts kicked in. “You shouldn’t be doing that. He could have bleeding on the brain. You need to call an ambulance.”

  “I’m fine. No ambulance.” Gabe grit his teeth and hissed as Sammy loaded him into Rafe’s empty wheelchair. “We know someone.”

  Kadence’s knees buckled, but she held her up. She had to get her away from here, away from the violence and terror.

  Kadence wept openly. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. All my fault. It’s all my fault.”

  Hauling her sister closer, Grace nodded at the two men and led Kadence out of the house.

  By sheer force of will, they made it to Zeke’s.

  Rafe sat on the couch, an air of thunder rolled off him in waves. “What the fuck is happening over there?”

  Grace settled Kadence into a chair. She took a breath and answered, “Lachlan.”

  “Shit,” he spat. He made a move to get up, wincing as he held his injured side.

  “Sit the fuck down, Rafe. The last thing we need is you popping those stitches and bleeding out.”

  Grace ran her hands through Kadence’s hair, her heart breaking at the ugly bruises forming on her sister’s neck. Her sister looked broken, like a bird whose wings no longer worked.

  Anger, fierce and white hot, lanced through her, making her blood boil. She couldn’t let that bastard get away with it. There had been times she berated Zeke for perpetuating the violence, but right now, in this moment, she welcomed it. Lachlan deserved every ounce of pain inflicted on him. There was no doubt in her mind he would have killed Kadence. Maybe even her. She’d felt it when she entered the bathroom—the hatred, the need to inflict pain.

  “Grace!”

  She snapped her attention to Rafe and barked, “What?”

  “Is Gabe okay?” His eyes burned into hers. He blanched as Kadence sobbed louder.

  “Sammy took him to a doctor. He fell down the stairs and hit his head, but it looked like Lachlan might have hit him first. He’s conscious and lucid. Those are good signs.”

  He huffed out a steady stream of air.

  It was all such a fucking mess. If only they’d left. Ran when they had the chance. Gabe wouldn’t be hurt. Her sister wouldn’t be a complete shell.

  Her mind raced. What was happening at her house? She needed to know but she also needed to tend Kadence. Pondering “what ifs” wouldn’t help. She had to take a minute at a time.

  The roar of engines cut through the pounding in her head.

  She rushed to the window, pulled back the blinds in time to see Zeke and Jay ride off, a large black van following.

  Her stomach clenched and she put a hand against the glass to steady herself as nausea rose. She couldn’t contemplate what was happening, where they’d taken Lachlan and for what purpose. As a medical professional she’d sworn to do no harm. Regardless of who came into hospital, she treated them—gangbangers, murderers. The worst of the worst. But Lachlan tested her moral compass. He deserved everything he got.

  Her vision swam. She had difficulty reconciling the code of ethics she followed with stark reality. Some people were pure evil and needed to be punished. Maybe the Knights were right. Being outside the normal confines of society allowed them to dole out punishment based on their code, not societal norms.

  “Grace, what’s going on out there?” Kadence’s words silenced the internal philosophical debate.

  She scrubbed a hand over her face and turned to see Rafe hobbling round. He handed Kadence a glass of alcohol. She watched her sister’s hands tremble and her hatred for Lachlan erupted.

  That fucker deserved any punishment Zeke saw fit.

  Grace walked over to Kadence, sat on the arm of her chair and looked at Rafe. “Do you have any sedatives?”

  Nothing on earth could make her go back into her house. Not with the vivid images of Lachlan’s hand around Kadence’s windpipe still fresh.

  “There is some pheno upstairs. Main bathroom. Somewhere in the vanity.”

  Grace raised a brow, wondered why they had a strong sedative and what else she’d find in the vanity.

  As though reading her mind, Rafe answered, “Chill, Doc. Nothing illegal up there. Just a shit load of prescription meds for a variety of scenarios.”

  She didn’t question him further. Instead she mounted the stairs, before switching on Zeke’s bathroom light. She rummaged through benzapines and found the phenobarbital, shaking out two pills before looking at her reflection in the mirror.

  She looked like shit. Dark circles under her eyes. Pale skin. Her cheek red and her split lip. Flecks of blood on her torn shirt.

  She turned away, flipping off the light as a weariness settle into her bones.

  Right now she felt about a hundred years old.

  Stress could do that. Her body was crashing, demanding rest, but she couldn’t stop. She had to get the pills to Kadence. At least one of them should sleep.

  Back in the den, she handed over the meds. “Take these.”

  “Grace...” Kadence pleaded.

  Grace shook her head. “You need to rest. I’ll be right here. When you wake up, we’ll talk. Sort this mess out.”

  Kadence stared at her for a few seconds before swallowing the pills. She settled back, drawing her knees up and curling into herself.

  “Good girl,” Grace murmured as she covered her with a blanket Zeke kept on the back of the couch.

  Within minutes Kadence was asleep.

  “It’s gonna be alright, Grace. Zeke will make sure of it,” Rafe reassured her.

  She nodded in agreement before taking vigil at the window, waiting for the man she loved to come back from killing the man she hated.

  To be continued in book 2

  A Note from the Author

  Thank you, dear reader, for taking the time to read Sinful (book 1 in the Knights of Hell MC trilogy). I know it ended on a cliffhanger and you probably all hate me about now! But don’t worry, the other books in the series will be coming up very soon, so you won’t have to wait too long for the continuation of Grace and Zeke’s story. These two really are my favorite couple. They are EVERYTHING, and they just slay my god damn heart. I hope you enjoy reading their journey and relationship as much as I enjoyed writing it. I had a total blast!

  If you did enjoy the book, I would be super grateful if you could please leave a review. Reviews help spread the word to other readers and lets us authors know you would love to read more of what we write. If you want to be part of my review ARC team to read my books before they get released, take a look at my ARC sign up page.

  I love hearing from readers (after all, I’m a reader myself and love interacting with my favorite authors!). If you want to keep up to date with news and new releases, you can visit my website https://scarlettsanderson.com/. I mainly hang around instagram and twitter, so come join me!

  As a thank you for everyone who enjoys my books, make sure you sign up for my mailing list here: https://scarlettsanderson.com/newsletter. Anyone who signs up will get a free copy of Beg Me. All because you guys rock!

  Take care,

  Scarlett

  About the Author

  Multi-published author Scarlett Sanderson is a librarian by day and a romance novelist by night. She lives in suburban England with her husband and dreams of having Lara Croft-type adventures. As a reader, she loves to immerse herself in sweeping tales of romance, fantasy and, most of all, tantalizing erotica. Those are the elements she tries to weave into the stories she cre
ates.

  When not writing, Scarlett has a burning passion for history, find chocolate, good coffee and anything supernatural (especially if it includes the hunters Dean and Sam Winchester from the TV show Supernatural!).

  Scarlett loves to hear from her readers, you can visit her at

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  https://www.amazon.com/Scarlett-Sanderson/e/B007YHMPFK

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  Available now

  At Their Command (prequel to Wicked Game)

  Wicked Game

  Beg Me

  Captivated by the Dark

  Fourth Time’s a Charm

  Master of Seduction

  Mission Pleasure trilogy (each book is a standalone)

  Claiming Ruby (Mission Pleasure Book 1)

  Taming Nora (Mission Pleasure Book 2)

  Enslaving Dana (Mission Pleasure Book 3)

  Complete Mission Pleasure series (e-book and paperback available)

  Owned by the Night (published with Totally Bound)

  Coming Soon

  Taken (Knights of Hell MC Book 2)

  Possession (Knight of Hell MC book 3)

  Wicked Business (contemporary romance)