Page 20

“ M aples Whorehouse, this is Vixen speaking.” Domino’s voice sounds bored, but it pulls a chuckle from me.

“Nice. What type of clientele is the club hoping to pick up with you answering the phone?”

“Oh, the usual kind—assholes and jerkoffs. How goes it, Prez? You find the girl yet?”

Checking in with the club daily was the deal they made before we took this mission. The boys need to know I’m safe, and I need to know the club is too. If I go five minutes over our set time, they have free rein to come storm the building. They have several sister chapters close enough to be here in less than an hour. And I wouldn’t put it past my brothers to have some of those from our chapter holed up in a hotel room somewhere. It’s what I would have done for Law if things were reversed. Not that the club doesn’t trust me—it ain’t about that but safety. Even if I don’t know the inner workings of how they’re doing it. Bulldog is taking lead on shit for now, with a few other officers stepping up too. The entire club is helping with the debt. I wouldn’t be here if they weren’t.

“Yeah, but as we expected, it won’t be an easy job.” I keep walking around the grounds, never staying in one place too long. I know Domino secured the line on his end once I spoke first and said nothing that might have alerted him that something was up. My phone is secure, and even if it’s not, I plan to destroy it once I get back to the room. I brought plenty of burners, and Bane has a backup stashed if shit goes south. We might not have the entire cavalry here, but we brought enough stuff and are making do to not need them.

“Let C8 know we have eyes on the prize and expect to get the package tomorrow afternoon.”

“Roger that, boss man.”

“Got anything back on this chapter? Anything new?”

“Not since last you asked. Like you know, Bane took over a few years back, did his full presidency training in-house, and Law blessed it. He has some turnover, and a few new prospects moved up in ranks to include the VP, Cast Off. Apparently got the name because of how many vamps he hits and dumps. Guy’s a regular Romeo, it seems.” The annoyance is clear in his voice. To each his own and all that. But most of my guys have a little class about hooking up with the vamps as much as the position warrants. Sure, they’re there for a reason, to fuck and clean if they want a room and board, but we don’t usually throw it in their faces like this guy does. Seems he wears it like a fucking badge of honor or some shit.

“Classy.”

He snorts. “Yeah. Nothing really to tell on the guy from the surface. Bulldog already has Mickey and a few of his crew headed that way. They should get to the closest hotel to your place by tonight. They’ll post up there and be on standby till you call. In the meantime, want Flint to dive deeper?”

“Yeah, something feels off. They treat it like he’s running shit when Bane is out. If that’s the case, the guy needs to go through the ringer at the mother chapter. Might even think about having him take the position full time if Bane is too busy for the duties of the job.”

“That bad?”

I cringe. I haven’t seen much, but I’ve also been busy. How fair is it to bring down an investigation after one bad meeting and a few word choices that made me question things? I don’t want the first big thing I do as president to show I distrust those who’ve been in the position longer than me.

“Just lazy and unorganized from what I can tell. I think when I get back, I want to look at all the sister chapters and see how they operate. Might find things working for others that I never considered before.”

Domino grunts, but I’m not sure if he agrees with me or not. He might think I’m taking the easy way out. I’m not afraid to get my hands dirty, even inside my own club, but I want to do it the right way. The club has already had so much turnover and loss of life; I don’t want to add to the chaos that’s just settling out.

I hesitate to hang up. I usually keep these short, but I don’t want to go back inside this place. My control is slipping. I’m being tempted too much. Not by many, just one.

“How’s the club?”

Now it’s Domino’s turn to pause. He might not always be the one who picks up when I call, as it’s a rotating duty since we have so much going on, but he knows the drill: talk quick, get the details out fast, then hang up and blend back in. We don’t do chitchat.

“The usual. Books are smooth. Prospects are on bitch duty. And the old ladies are keeping their men in line. Same shit as always.”

I hear a door shutting on his end before he lowers his voice to a serious tone. That’s not something Domino is known for. He isn’t a jokester like Bass, but he tends to have things sent his way that just make you laugh. Odd shit always happens to him, so it just makes sense to think it’s a Domino thing and not a random occurrence. He only gets serious when he’s making a bomb. Everything else, even the blowing of it, is easy street. The laid-back, “no worries, just here to smile and have a good time” type. He even does it when he’s running the numbers. Nothing gets him down. He ain’t sunshine and rainbows, just happy.

“What’s really going on, Casper? Everything okay?”

“Yeah.” It comes out far heavier than I expected as I slump onto one of the many stone benches around the gardens of the estate.

“And with Billy?”

Am I that obvious? “Complicated.”

His hum has me nodding. “Women usually are. Especially the good ones.”

“She had a kid. She’s been through shit. Done things.”

“Lied to you.”

Domino gets it. He says it with more understanding than I think I would have gotten from someone outside the club. A person might be loyal and appreciate loyalty, but club life takes it to the next level. Once a person lies to us, we’re quick to cut them down at the knees and leave them to die from blood loss. Both metaphorically and literally, depending on the person.

“The question you have to ask yourself is if you can look past that. Are the other parts about her, the parts that shine through, brighter than the one that tarnished her image in the first place? I might have missed most of that night you first met her after getting with that horse tranquilizer, but I was lucid enough at the beginning to see the connection. Sure, it was fake, the name part and all that, but you can’t hide attraction. And you’ve both been playing googly-eyed high schoolers for a while now.”

“It’s not about looks.”

“Sure it ain’t, but it helps. Okay, let me put it another way. Would you even be looking for a brother’s approval if you weren’t already thinking about looking past her incidentals?”

He’s right. Not that I’m going to tell him. Like most bikers, his ego is big enough as it is. If I wasn’t wanting more with Billy, I wouldn’t be struggling with this so much. A brother can get over another brother losing their mind over sexy-as-fuck pussy. But if it goes beyond that and he develops feelings? That shit’s real—and not done with the enemy.

I like her. Of course I want to fuck her. I want to dominate her. See my mark on her. Then I want to hold her and soothe away the monsters in her nightmares.

No clue how this will work. Even if I can get past things—which I think I am, though I just keep bringing it up to fight a bit more against what’s happening between us—how would it work? She’s with the Crazy Eights. I’m the president of the Hounds of the Reaper. I’m not willing to step away from that. And I’m not sure if she would be comfortable leaving her job either. But what does that say about everything, then?

“I’m not stepping down,” I growl at no one in particular, just upset that there isn’t a clear path.

“No one is telling you to. And before you think that you have to make some big show of caring by walking away from something you love, think about what you would tell a brother in your shoes. You can have both. The girl and the friends. The dream job and a love life. People have it both ways all the time. Might not be easy to have it all, but it’s possible. It just takes time and a bit of hard work. Hell, you might even figure out how to do both before you calculate our payroll correctly.”

“Ha. Funny.” But he’s right—again. The payroll is tricky as fuck, but so is a relationship. A true one and not an easy lay. I’ve had that. I can still have that. Vamps are probably already lining up for my return home as it is. But it’s not what I want. They aren’t who I want.

“Thanks, man. Appreciate it.”

“Anytime. I’ll even remind you when we talk Christmas bonuses in a few weeks.”

I shake my head as I hang up and start walking back to the house. I left Billy sitting in some “submissive only” classes to see if it’ll get her some insight into where Candy is being held. After they had them parade out, the announcer made a big show of them all being well trained. Not sure how many others noticed that the “escorts” were more to help keep a few from face-planting and not because the ground was unstable.

I catch Billy’s eyes as she steps out of the room, and we walk together to the ballroom that’s been converted back to couches like it was the first time we got here. It’s become the unofficial in-between spot for everyone to go to once they’re done with a session and aren’t ready to retire to their rooms yet. We haven’t ventured to the second floor yet other than to note what was there—or not there. So far, we haven’t found where they’re keeping Candy. Bane thinks she’s in one of the storage areas under the house, but he hasn’t been able to go down and check without someone asking him to do something. We’re trying not to burn his job or his trustworthiness around here. If we can take out the big bad, then Bane gets his safe space back.

The guy was always two halves of a coin: the biker side and the Dom side. He was never able to have one without the other, unlike how I can make my Dom side go dormant at times. It doesn’t define me as much as him. But then again, if I used it weekly as he does, I might feel more connected to it. Being here only a day has me aching to stretch my control more and more. The leash I have on myself is loosening with each crack of a whip I hear, followed by a whimper of pleasure.

“Anything?” I uncap a water bottle and press it to her lips to drink. She takes a healthy gulp before shaking her head.

“Nothing. A few asked about the training they did for those getting auctioned off, but they just gave the normal talk about why it’s important to trust your partner and listen. That their joy can increase yours. Same old bullshit.”

Tilting my head, I lean in close. “Is it now?” I run my fingers along her hips till I get to her stomach and pull her back into me quickly. Biting at her ear, I force a gasp from her lips. I’m instantly hard again and push my dick against her ass a bit more. “Maybe I should give you a lesson on how it can be very beneficial to do what you’re told.”

I hadn’t expected this swift shift in direction. It’s just this place—and her—that brings it out in me. It’s not like I’ve forgotten why we’re here or what we need to do. I just can’t seem to pass up on opportunities when they present themselves.

“Follow me,” I command, but still lace my fingers with hers as I lead her to the door reserved for workers. Palming the access card before we get there, I swipe it quickly and walk through. We never broke stride enough to gain notice. I also planned it for when another large group entered the ballroom, intending to block our view from most of the room as they walked by the door we entered.

I stop the second we’re through and make sure the door closes firmly before looking around. The lighting is different in here, darker. There’re no windows and only a few lights down the hallways.

“Warn a girl next time, will you?”

I smirk before concealing my amusement as I look back at her. “About the stopping,” I ask, since she stumbled into me, “or the location?”

“Location. Or both. Anything.” She lets go of my hand and flares her hands wildly, even though her voice is barely above a whisper.

Turning to her, I lord over her enough that she has to look up at me since we’re so close already. “But the command was to follow me. A warning defeats the purpose. If you know where we’re going, or what we’re doing, it changes the game.”

“We aren’t playing a game.” She crosses her arms, and now I smile wide.

“Of course we are. And if anyone gets close—” I grab her chin and lean in. “—we show them the reward you get for being a good pet and following instructions. Like your class taught you, your pleasure is increased by mine. And it would greatly please me to have you follow me.”

I give her a second to think this over. I’m not sure of the devices they have here, if cameras picked us up or audio did. If it was my club, I would have both. Might seem like overkill, but watching employees is just as important as watching the guests. If anyone is listening, or even watching, I want them to think this is just some game a Dom and sub are playing. Not me trying to find out where Candy is being held to get a better assessment of those guarding her.

I see it the moment she gets what I’m trying to do. “Good girl.” I push my luck and kiss those lips I’ve dreamed about for days, but only a peck. We don’t have time for full exploration. No doubt someone knows we’re here already. Our time is limited. But I still wanted to thank her for trusting me enough so far to let me lead. We didn’t talk about this upstairs, not in this depth. Though we agreed that if an opportunity presented itself, we shouldn’t pass it up.

Grabbing her hand once more, I guide her behind me. I keep a fast pace, remembering the path the plans showed to get to the small staircase at the back. This area is just a bunch of hallways that venture off to other rooms. Something a former house owner put in to allow for servants to come and go into a room without notice to keep the appearance that everything is always perfect.

We make it to the stairs and descend. Once we get to the bottom, we hear voices and are quick to find a tucked-away alcove under the stairs that Bane mentioned to us. The lighting is worse down here than upstairs, but it helps keep us from being seen. I cover Billy entirely, pushing her against the wall and using my black suit to hide our coloring in the dark as we listen.

“How much longer till lunch? I’m starving.”

“Told you for days, man. Coffee isn’t fuel. You need nourishment.”

“Oh, I got nourishment this morning. In the form of a sweet little ass just begging for it.”

“You sure she wasn’t begging you to stop?”

“Come on, man, you know how this place is. ‘No’ means ‘yes’ and ‘yes’ means ‘harder.’ Love clubs like this. Girl wanted some extra ‘training,’ so I showed her how to train with my dick down her throat.”

The other guy grunts. “Just make sure the boss doesn’t catch you sampling the product. There’s a reason there was a job opening.”

“Nah, ain’t as stupid as the last one. Why mess up a job when I can just play during the games these assholes have?”

I clench my hands into fists to keep the growl in. These are the types of assholes who think they can do whatever they want to a submissive and call it consensual and not what it is: rape. I keep my head down, unable to see them, but I commit their voices to memory. When my job was to look through a scope, I saw things, memorized them. Figured out everything I could while I watched. But since getting out, I’ve learned to rely on other things. One thing Law preached was to not ignore the skills you didn’t have but rather improve upon them. Something I intend to continue to do now that I’m in charge.

I learned that a voice can be broken into factors when at first it sounds like everyone else’s. Small things that I might have usually overlooked are what I’m focusing on. The first guy has a lisp, but only slightly, while the second rolls his Rs more than someone raised in this area.

“Damn, man, was that your stomach?” Rolling R asks with annoyance.

“I told you I was hungry,” Lisp says with just as much annoyance, if not with a little more grumble.

“Come on, you can have one of my protein bars. I left it back in my room.”

“Thanks, man.”

“Don’t thank me. Let’s just get it done quick. They might be asleep, but I don’t want to catch any shit if one starts sleepwalking their way out of there.”

Their voices die out as their footsteps do, and I chance a glance to see the area is vacant.

“Clear,” I say before stepping out, Billy in line with me. We’re quick to approach the single door, and I try the handle. “Locked.”

“Give me a sec.” Lowering to her knees, she pulls a hairpin out and jimmies the lock.

“Thought that shit was only in the movies,” I whisper, leaning against the wall with a grin.

“So did Jack. Had to prove her wrong.” She smiles back as the door clicks open.

We both pull our guns before opening the door and then just stare.

“Shit.”

I agree with her. Understatement of the fucking year.