Page 57

57

Phoenix

A warm pressure at my side and feeling someone's hand clasped over mine comforts me. Lace hasn't left my side since the others went off to end this war with the Bastards. She's still here now, comforting me even as she sleeps. She knows how hard it was for me to watch Mason go off with the others, not knowing if and when he'd return.

I was afraid that in my dreams, I'd see my worst nightmares come to life. Raven beaten and bloody, Mason slain by Scar's men, Dad and the others cut down much the same. I fought off my exhaustion as long as I could, but when I did finally succumb, it wasn't my nightmares that prevailed.

Instead, I saw hope. I saw Mason and the others bringing Raven back safe and sound. She was irritated but unharmed, and the guys were all no worse for wear. No one hurt, no one injured, from our side anyway, and my sister and Kat had been saved. It was a good dream. A wishful one.

I think that's why I slept so soundly. Until I heard gravel crunch beneath multiple sets of tires and the sound of hurried footsteps rushing toward one of the rooms.

Slamming doors jolt me awake. They're back.

I bolt upright as Stitch looks through the window. I watch as a sigh of relief leaves his chest. "Is it them?" I ask, already knowing the answer.

He nods and before he can stop me, I run to the door, throwing it open as my adrenaline carries me to the room Mason just entered. Stitch chases after me, calling my name, but I don't look back. I have to get to Raven and Kat.

Mason must have heard the commotion because his head pops out of the room two seconds later. When he sees me, he comes outside, shutting the door behind him. His face gives nothing away, but there’s blood spattered on his clothes and a faint odor of gasoline surrounding him.

When I get close enough, he pulls me into his arms. I cling to his shirt, desperate to know what happened. "Did you get them? Are they safe?" I breathe, anxious to hear the answer.

He nods. "They're here; they're safe, now."

Something inside my chest cracks, and my knees start to buckle. They're okay. They're here. They're safe. I repeat the words until I believe them as Mason holds me upright. They're okay. They're here. They're safe.

With a wobbly voice, I ask, "Can I see them?"

Mason's eyes look sad as he replies, "Doc still needs to look Raven over. She's in and out of it right now."

I shake my head. "It's okay. I just want to see her. I won't get in the way.”

I start to peel away from him, moving closer to the door that separates me from Raven and my friend, but Mason's grip grows tighter. "Nix." Something in his voice makes me pause.

When I look at him, something heavy sinks in my stomach. He looks devastated. His eyes can barely hold mine. I watch as his jaw clenches, and he takes a deep breath. Whatever he’s about to say is bad. My heart stutters in my chest.

"Kat was pretty traumatized when we found her. We put her in a different room so she didn't freak out when she saw Raven. Thought that would only make things worse." He takes a deep breath before telling me, "She could probably use a friendly face right now."

My heart breaks. Kat was innocent all along. Martin lied to turn me against her, to make me believe him when she went missing. I believed him, trusted him, and this whole time, Kat had been—

Bile rises in my throat. What have I done?

Strong arms wrap around me, holding me steady as Mason pulls me in for a hug. "She's pretty banged up, but she's alive. She was petrified when we rescued her, Nix. I think she thought we were with the Bastards."

I let his words sink in. Kat needs me right now. And as much as I want to see Raven, I know she'll be better off waking up in a room full of bikers than Kat would. She knows these men, Kat doesn't. And after what she's been through, I owe her.

I let Mason lead me to where they’re keeping Kat. With a small amount of hesitation, I look back at Rae's door. "You're sure she's okay?"

He squeezes my hand. "I promise. No one will get close to her without us knowing, and Reaper will skin anyone alive who looks at her sideways."

I'm not sure why, but that comforts me. With one last look, I let Mason take me to Kat. Doc is with her, checking her wounds as a few of our guys stand watch. When Mason and I enter the room, he jerks his head, signaling the others to wait outside. They obey, leaving us with Kat and Doc.

She looks awful. Bruises cover every inch of her body, healing wounds spatter her exposed skin, and open cuts from where she was recently beaten mar her face. Tears start to fall as I look at my friend. This is all my fault. I move closer, feeling my heart break for the friend I turned my back on.

Her long blonde hair is matted with blood. Her clothes are torn and filthy. I try to remember how long it's been since I last saw her. How long have they had her in their clutches? How long has she been tortured because I chose to believe the words of a stranger—an enemy—dressed in friendly clothing?

I choke back a sob as I clasp her hand. "I'm so sorry. I'm so, so sorry, Kat. This is all my fault."

My tears fall as Mason rubs my shoulders, trying to comfort me, but there is no comfort for me here, not after what I've done.

Doc continues to work, assessing Kat and mending her wounds. He carefully checks her leg, cutting away her shredded jeans as he takes in the damage. I can see from where I’m sitting that it’s broken—bent unnaturally and twisted. He'll have to set it for it to heal properly, if it isn't already too late.

With a sigh, he addresses Mason. "Raptor, I need you to help brace her. This won't be pleasant for any of us."

Mason positions himself as I brace myself, squeezing Kat's hand harder as I press my other into her shoulder. When Doc starts setting her leg, she jolts awake with a scream. Mason and I hold her as still as we can while Doc works quickly. I try calming her down, but it’s no use. She’s in too much pain. Tears streak her face as she tries to break free. It feels like hours pass before Doc tells us he’s finished.

Kat goes limp as she cries into her pillow, all her fight gone. I push away the thoughts that keep invading my mind—what she endured, what they must have done to her . . . I push it all away and try to comfort her.

She’s been still for so long, but she’s no longer crying. Her body finally seems relaxed. "Kat," I say tentatively.

Her eyes snap open and meet mine. Shock, recognition, and disbelief flood her features. "Phoenix?" her voice cracks as she says my name.

I give her a watery smile. "I'm here, Kat. You're safe now."

Kat's face crumples as she pulls me toward her, clinging to me like she thinks I might disappear at any second. "I'm so sorry, Kat," I tell her, hugging her to me.

She wraps her arms around me tightly, shaking her head. "Tell me this is real," she whispers.

"It's real, Kat. Those men won't hurt you ever again."

I feel her body start to shake, and she cries into my shoulder. Her pain and agony wreck me as we hold each other, crying until we have no more tears left to spill.

When Kat is able, she tells me what happened. Martin picked her up for a date and asked her to put on a blindfold under the guise of surprising her. When he stopped the car, three men pulled her out and bound and gagged her.

She was taken to a room, tied to the bed, beaten, and raped over several days by multiple men, including Martin. When she asked him why he was doing that to her, he smiled at her and said it was because he couldn't have me. I wanted to puke again when I heard that, and Mason looked livid.

I knew from Stitch that Martin was already dead and rotting in an unmarked grave somewhere deep in the desert. He suffered, I knew that, but if he were alive now, I knew Mason would make his suffering worse, and he'd deserve it. I knew that now.

Kat started losing track of time, and at some point, the Bastards moved her to the warehouse. Her torment continued there until tonight. She thought they'd kill her, especially when she heard the gunfire. She welcomed it.

Martin was the last to torment Kat when the guys found her. She thought they'd come to torture her next. She freaked out on them until stress and exhaustion overwhelmed her. She let it consume her, passing out until she woke up in the motel when Doc was fixing her leg.

I lose track of how many times I apologize to her, but she isn't having it. Every time I try to say I’m sorry, she cuts me off, telling me she doesn't blame me for anything, saying that it’s Martin's fault. He’s the one who abducted her, tortured her, beat her, and raped her. He’s the one she blames, not me.

It doesn't curb my guilt, though. She’s my friend, and I let her down, introduced her to a monster, and got her kidnapped and brutalized.

"Stop," she says. "I don't blame you for any of it, Nix. You can't hold onto guilt for someone else's actions. He made those choices, not you. You can't blame yourself for what happened; I won't let you. Martin is the monster here, not you."

I let those words simmer as I stay by her side while she sleeps. I played a part in this, but I wasn't the only one at fault. Martin was the villain here. He used me, used my naivety to get close to the Sons and the people I love. What he did to Kat, he wanted to do to me. He would have if he had the chance. It made me sick and angry.

Never again.

Never again will I be so foolish. I'll trust my intuition and make sure no one hurts my friends or family again. New Phoenix will be better. She'll be stronger for them. Wiser. Braver.

"We should get her to a hospital," Doc is telling Mason. "I'm concerned about infection."

He left a while ago to check on Raven, and I didn’t hear him return. "We can send some guys with you in the van," Mason replies.

I start to ask if they’re talking about Raven or Kat when Kat asks, "What's going on?"

Doc slowly walks over to her. "Kat, I'd like to take you to a hospital so we can get your wounds properly assessed. I can only see so much with my bare eyes."

Kat swallows audibly, and I see the fear in her eyes. The last time she put her trust in a man she barely knew, he tortured her. Part of me—the part that’s still feeling guilty that Kat was involved in this at all—wants to tell her I'll go with her, that I'll leave right now and stay with her through her hospital stay. But I still haven't seen Raven. I need to check on her too. I’m so torn.

I gnaw on my bottom lip as I battle with myself. Either choice means I'll be abandoning someone, and I don't know what to do.

A knock at the door startles me, and I look up to see Lace peeking through the opening as Mason answers. "Hey, I heard about Kat. I wanted to check and see if she’s doing okay."

I introduced them when the semester started, and they hit it off right away. The three of us hung out several times and the two of them became fast friends.

"Lace?" Kat says, leaning over to see the new arrival.

The two talk quietly after a tearful reunion, and Kat fills Lace in on what happened. She tells her what Doc said about moving her somewhere to get checked out, and Lace doesn’t miss a beat.

"Do you want some company at the hospital? I could come with you." Lace’s offer washes away some of the fear on Kat’s face.

I could kiss her.

Kat's eyes light up. "I'd really like that, Lace. Do you mind?"

Lace shakes her head. "I don't mind at all. I'm going kind of stir-crazy here. A change of scenery would be nice." She takes Kat's hand, and I watch as my friend relaxes. I shoot Lace a grateful look, relieved at what she's done for Kat.

Twenty minutes later, Kat is taken to the hospital by Doc, Lace, Stitch, and Tweak. Bear follows behind on his bike, unwilling to let his niece too far out of his sight. Once the van disappears over the horizon, I tell Mason it’s time for me to see Raven.