Page 8 of Calypso’s Shield (Royal Harlots MC, Los Angeles Chapter #1)

CALYPSO

“ H e’s one of the boys I’ve been looking for.” Farris’s words echo in my head, sending a chill down my spine. This is bad. Really bad.

“Get him into one of the empty rooms with medical equipment,” I order, already moving. “Hook him up to an IV and call the Doc. We need to keep him alive until Scarlett gets here.”

“You got it, Calypso.” Divine answers.

Divine, Iris, Farris, and I work together, carefully carrying the boy inside. He’s barely conscious, his body wrecked with bruises, broken bones, and deep cuts. Divine gets an IV started while Iris inserts a catheter. I do my best to clean him up, but there’s only so much I can do.

“What the hell happened?” I ask Divine, my stomach twisting as I take in the damage.

She exhales, glancing at Iris before answering.

“Iris and I were riding in the desert when we saw a car slow down about a mile ahead. The back door opened, and something was tossed out. The car took off, so we sped up to see what it was.” She swallows hard.

“That’s when we found him. We brought him back here as carefully as we could, then got you. ”

I nod, my jaw tight. “Were you in the same place as before?”

Divine hesitates, then sighs. “Yes.”

Shit.

“What’s going on?” Farris steps closer, his sharp eyes locked on me.

“Nothing.”

“Don’t bullshit me, Calypso,” he warns. “I’m a detective. I can help.”

Before I can snap back, Allura walks in, taking one look at the boy and muttering a curse. “Fuck, not another one.” Her gaze shifts between Farris and me. “Might as well fill him in. If he’s as great a dick as he claims, we could use his help.”

My nostrils flare, but I smooth out my expression. She’s right.

“Fine.” I reach into my cut and pull out the stack of photos I took back from Allura, handing them to Farris.

“We’ve been tracking the Bloody Femmes for months.

If you aren’t sure who they are, they’re like the nasty female version of The Bloody Scorpions, our brother chapter, The Royal Bastards, have been dealing with.

They’re like cockroaches. You splatter one under your foot, five more come out to play.

The warehouse where you found us? That was one of their locations.

Divine’s cousin was taken, and we think she was sold to the Russians or worse.

We’re trying to find her.” I gesture toward the photos.

“These women and children were pinned to a board in the office. We called in Scarlett to help. If she can figure out where they’re holding them, we can cut this chain off. ”

Farris flips through the pictures, pausing on one. His jaw clenches.

“This girl…” He holds up the photo of a young girl with long brown hair and beautiful sea green eyes. “Her parents hired me to find her. She’s the reason I started this whole investigation.”

My stomach drops. “How did you know about the boy?”

“They were together when she went missing.” He nods toward the unconscious kid. “If we find her, I need to get her back to her family.”

“Got it.” I look at Iris.

She nods, pulling out her phone. A second later, it vibrates. “He’ll be here in ten.”

“Good.”

“There’s nothing else we can do for now,” Allura says. “Iris, stay with him until Doc arrives. The rest of you? Do whatever until Scarlett gets here.”

We file out, leaving Iris to watch over the boy. As we reach the bar, Farris turns to me. “Who’s Scarlett?”

“She’s a Royal Harlot from our New York City Chapter, and one of my best friends.”

“And how exactly can she help?”

I smirk, popping the top off my beer. “Let’s just say she has a special ability none of us have.” I take a sip. “So? Are you staying to help us?”

Farris studies me, his gaze lingering a little too long, and my body tingles, remembering how he helped me earlier. “I think I will,” he finally says. “Not that you need help, you made that pretty damn clear earlier.” He winks, and heat crawls up my neck.

Before I can respond, Allura calls out from across the room. “Calypso. A word.”

I lean into Farris. “Don’t go anywhere. And if one of my sisters hits on you, tell them you’re my property.” Fire flashes in Farris’s eyes like he wants to argue, but I cut him off. “You know how men’s MCs work. A woman’s is just as bad. Give them a chance, and they’ll sink their claws into you.”

Before he can push back, I press a quick kiss to his lips and saunter away, swinging my hips just a little more than necessary. I can feel his eyes on me the entire way.

My Lupus is starting to flare, but I brush it off. My joints are starting to ache, but I can handle it.

Allura’s office is quiet when I step inside. She motions for me to sit, studying me closely.

“What’s up, Prez?”

“That’s what I’m asking you.” She leans back in her chair. “Today’s been stressful. I want to check in on your health.”

I resist the urge to roll my eyes. “I’m having a little flare-up, but nothing I can’t handle.” No point in lying.

“You should get some rest. I’ll have a prospect take Farris home.”

“He can stay with me.” The words come out fast. Too fast. “With all the trouble happening, I’d rather keep him close.”

Allura smirks. “Does a certain dick hold your attention?”

I shrug. “Yeah, he does.”

Her smirk widens. “Fine. But Divine is running a check on him. If anything shady pops up, he’s out.”

“Fair enough and thank you.”

She sobers. “Don’t thank me. Take care of yourself before you can’t.”

I stand, turning toward the door when she speaks again. This time using my real name. She’s worried about something serious.

“Amanda.” I pause, glancing back. “Watch your back,” she says. “Scarlett will be here tomorrow. Take it easy for the next twenty-four hours. Stay in bed.”

I snort. “I’ll be fine, but send an SOS if you need to once in a while to ease your mind. I promise I won’t overdo it, and I’ll be in top shape to get to the bottom of this Ring we found.”

“Dismissed.” Allura nods her head.

I leave, heading straight for Farris. We’re staying in my room for the next twenty-four hours, whether he likes it or not.

I hear a loud rumble pull up to the gates, and I know Scarlett is here before anyone else realizes it.

I’m on pins and needles waiting for the front door to open.

When it does, Scarlett comes in like a breath of fresh air.

I didn’t realize how much I missed her until I saw her again.

From her black riding boots to her tan skin, she has curves for miles.

Heads turn as she walks in, but she ignores them, locking eyes with me.

“Calypso,” Scarlett's voice is like a breath of fresh air. Relief washes over me..

“Shit, bitch. Stop doing that,” I joke, shaking off the haze.

She glances at Farris before smirking. “The atmosphere needed a little… relief.”

I snort. “Trust me, there’s plenty of that going on.”

Farris remains silent, either deaf or mute from whatever the hell Scarlett just did to him.

She frowns. “Then why all the tension?”

I down the rest of my drink and stand. “Come on. I’ll show you.”

Scarlett follows me to the back of the clubhouse, her nose wrinkling, probably smelling more than what we can. “What’s going on?” Her hand rests on the hilt of her dagger.

“In here.” I push open the door, revealing the battered boy inside.

“Divine and Iris were out riding and found him. Someone beat the absolute fuck out of him, and tossed him out of a vehicle in the desert. It was his lucky day that our ladies were going for a ride that way and saw him. They brought him back here where we’ve done what we can for him, but we don’t have your expertise. ”

Scarlett steps back, pain flashing in her eyes. “I might be too late.”

I nod. “I get it. But we need to try. We have to find the bastards doing this.”

She exhales sharply. “You say that like he’s not the first.”

“He’s not.” My voice is grim. “We’ve found others. All in the same condition. But we’ve been too late every time.”

“Why didn’t you get him to a hospital?” Scarlett asks.

“We had a doc come in and fix what he could. The hospital wouldn’t have been able to do much more, especially without any insurance.

And they would be required to file a report.

The last thing we need is cops sniffing around.

The doc wasn’t hopeful he’d wake up from his coma.

Your ability is the only thing that will possibly save him and be able to lead us to who fucking did this to him. ”

We cleaned him up the best we could without causing him any more pain.

He has a hospital gown on, but every exposed inch of his skin is covered in cuts, bruises, and scars.

We have enough connections to medical supplies that we can keep him alive for as long as his body allows it.

All we’re missing is a doctor we can call on anytime, anywhere.

Scarlett steps forward, eyes scanning the boy. After a beat, she drops her bag at the foot of the bed and rubs her palms together.

“Everyone out,” she orders. “And stay out for at least six hours.”

“You got it.” I squeeze her shoulder. “Thank you.”

She gives me a tight smile. “Don’t thank me yet. This won’t be easy.”

I nod once. “The fact you’re trying is enough.”

As I step out and close the door behind me, I pray like hell she can save him. Because if she can’t, we’re back at square one.

Two days have passed since Scarlett started healing that boy, and I hope she can do it.

If anyone can, she can. I could have her heal my Lupus, but I’ve always decided against it.

I feel better when she’s around, so I know her healing hands are managing it for me, but I’m afraid of Scarlett knowing what I have and how bad it gets.

She can sense there’s some serious medical issues with me, but she’s never pried and I’ve never told her.

I don’t want her to feel obligated to do something about it because we’re friends.