Page 71 of Darling Psycho

* * *

Angela wouldn’t know her whimper would have woke him up if he’d been asleep.

But he’d already been sitting by her bed. Watching her like the creep he’d turned into.

It wouldn’t be a surprise she had terrible dreams after what she’d read tonight. He should have kept her out of it. But like the monster he was, he’d brought her into the dark with him.

Now it was up to Lawless to chase away whatever was causing her to frown in her sleep. His hand went to her cheek, and he stroked her with the back of his fingers.

His killing hands that had done countless destruction soothed a girl into sighing as her body settled into a deeper, calmer sleep.

He stayed there until the sun was cresting.

Watching over her.

A psycho and his plaything languishing in the shadows together.

By the time Angela woke up, Lawless was already on his bike, riding with his brothers to do a little more destruction.

EIGHTEEN

“Tears, collars and claiming.” - Lawless

Most of any MC enterprises were grunt work.

Rider, being the frontman, had the pleasant job of schmoozing folk.

Grinder liked to work alone when he tracked someone.

And Lawless was the one who got his hands dirty when people needed to be hurt. Or to chase invisible money through illegal, underground means.

Lawless enjoyed both aspects of his work, but he’d be a wicked motherfucker if he said he took pride in what he did.

He climbed onto the seat of his enormous beast of a Harley, cracked his neck from side to side, easing some of the stiffness, and pulled out a phone. He’d tried to call Angela earlier and last night, and it bounced him to voicemail. Tracking her phone gave him nothing, either. It hadn’t moved an inch from the mountainside.

Instead, he put a call through to Judge.

“Where’s Angela at?”

“Am I meant to still be on her, boss? I thought since you’re home now...”

A growl of irritation gurgled up Lawless’ throat. “Did I dismiss you? Did I tell you to drop your duties?”

“No, but...”

“You’re already on death row, Son. You just expedited your execution.”

He heard the other man groan. “I’ll find her.”

“Make it quick.” He hung up.

The message came forty minutes later when he was already on the road home, and he checked it at a red light.

Judge: She was having dinner with prez and Zara after class. Now she’s headed up the mountain. Want me to stick on her?

Lawless: No.

For two hours, he rode alongside Grinder. Finally, they’d got some decent recon work accomplished, and now he was ready for the peace his mountainside cabin afforded his forever busy brain.