Page 111 of Heartless Heathens

“I understand, I’m yours,” she repeated back but then looked around the room, “So, you will also not look at other women?” she asked the question not to one of us specifically but all of us.

Felix grinned like a fox before sauntering over to her.

“Mina, You’re the only girl I see,” he murmured into her ear but it was loud enough for us to hear.

Her eyes met Corvin’s.

“Don’t look at me, I’m not the one who went there.” He lifted his chin up like he’d already declared his feelings without so much as saying the exact words.

Her eyes moved over to me like she was waiting for me to assure her.

“Don’t be jealous, Pet.” I closed in on her, finally gracing her with the nickname for the first time in a long while and seeing the physical reaction it gave her.

I smoothed my hand over her soft hair. “It was just business.” She looked confused. “Arlan sent me there to pick up something for him. The place belongs to him, he’s got unfinished business.”

“He’ll be gone soon.” Felix exhaled, pulling Romina away from me and sitting her on his lap.

“Even Arlan Black knows he has to die someday. He’s reaching the end.” I looked over to her. “Get your shoes on. We’re going somewhere.”

She didn’t bother to hesitate or ask questions, she just hopped away to oblige.

“We’re running out of time,” I told them both and they answered me with a nod. I had Felix fill Corvin in on who Romina truly was, he was pissed but promised to let me tell her on my own terms.

She came back out of the room wearing high-waisted black shorts, two sets of buttons going down the middle. She wore fishnet stockings underneath and platform boots with buckles going up the sides. She was wearing a baggy black sweater on top and some jewelry decorated her fingers and her neck. That damn holster. I couldn’t even look at that knife without thinking about the last time I’d used it on her.

I opened my fist, the wound on the palm of my hand not yet healed.

She might not have known what she was doing when she put these little outfits together, but whatever it was, she was she’s fucking doing it to me. I held back a throaty sound before I gestured my head towards the door to compel her out.

“Where are we going?”

“To make sure this doesn’t happen again. Grab a drink, it’s a long drive,” I told her and she frowned.

She grabbed a water bottle from the table but pranced over to Felix who draped his arms over her in an embrace.

“Hurry back,” he said in a hushed tone, but loud enough that I could hear.

He rubbed his nose against her and she kept the smile from forming on her face before waving to Corvin and following me out.

The drive to what was left of Grimm’s Reach was intolerable but it was the only city in the area with a doctor who still had access to birth control. Most medical professionals fought against all the changes to women’s rights when it came to bodily autonomy, but once the church took control they were faced with losing their license, or complying with the changes.

Lolita Escura had been the example though, and nobody wanted to end up like her. The few who wanted to do better, took the risks.

In secret.

I’d spent the ride explaining what we were doing to her so that there would be no surprises as far as I could predict. Aside from answering her questions about why the church cared whether or not women did or didn’t want to have babies, we rode mostly in silence. The overwhelming pressure of the things unspoken between us just created more and more tension as the drive grew longer.

The GPS had no problem finding the middle of nowhere road Dera had written down. I just had to hope the rest of the written directions were right otherwise I’d be fucked up a creek if we got lost all the way out here.

Just when I started wondering if I was going to have to call her, a slew of barbed wire fencing appeared in the distance. The gravel road turned to a dirt path and multiple houses, contained within what looked like prison grounds, began to appear. I pulled into the entrance and the first gate rolled up automatically. Motorcycle club compounds made me itch.

It slammed down heavily behind the car, keeping us trapped from going further and unable to leave. The speaker box buzzed outside of my window and a voice blew out.

“State your business,” they said.

“We’re here to see Dr. Emory O’Connor,” I answered into the box.

“There’s no one here by that name, turn back.” The box cut out and the back gate began to roll up once again.