Page 10 of Pain (Kiss of Death MC #6)

Pain’s gaze lingered on mine for a moment longer.

I thought he was going to reach for me. He raised his hand but stopped short of touching me.

The moment was broken by the sound of Grayson’s pained groan from the floor.

Pain’s eyes hardened as he glanced down at the guard, his jaw clenching with barely suppressed anger.

Shaking his head slightly, Pain put his mask of anger firmly in place before turning back to Grayson.

“Who else is in your little rape gang, you motherfucker?” Pain snarled the words, getting down in Grayson’s face. “Who else am I killin’ tonight?”

“You ain’t killin’ nobody, you fuckin’ cunt.” Grayson chuckled, like he thought he was going to come out on the right end of this. “You just got out of prison. You kill me, you’ll go right back in.”

The slow smile Pain pulled was nothing short of evil. “Might. Might not. You’re still gonna die. How hard depends on how much you tell me.”

Finally, Grayson’s ballsiness faltered. Then he… glanced over at me?

“The fuck, Grayson? Don’t you fucking look at me!

You tried to fucking kill me, you son of a bitch!

If Pain kills you, I’ll swear he was across town with me in a bar.

I’ll even find witnesses who’ll swear they spoke with both of us, and we all spent the whole fucking night together barhopping.

” I stopped to catch my breath. “You’re a fucking maniac! ”

“And you’re a fuckin’ bitch, lady! Mind your business and bad shit won’t happen to you.”

Pain grabbed Grayson’s arm and wrenched it upward at an angle. Grayson’s scream was shrill and long. And oddly satisfying.

“You’re about to find out why they call me Pain, Grayson.”

The crunch of bone echoed through my living room as Grayson screamed again, his face contorting in agony. Pain had dislocated his shoulder with terrifying efficiency, like he’d done it a hundred times before.

“That’s just the beginning,” Pain whispered, his voice eerily calm. “Names. Now.”

“Fuck you,” Grayson spat through gritted teeth, though his nerve was crumbling fast.

Pain’s hand moved to Grayson’s fingers, bending one backward until another sickening crack filled the room. I winced despite myself, bile rising in my throat. The sound was like nails on a chalkboard, sending unpleasant shivers over my skin and down my spine.

“Roberts and Johnson know about most of your crew,” Pain said conversationally, as if discussing the weather while he systematically broke one finger and then another.

Each snapping of bone was accompanied by screams that became more and more shrill each time Pain broke something.

“But I want to make sure we get everyone. There are two hundred and six bones in the adult human body. So, this can go on for a long time. Or…” Pain grinned as he let the pause linger. “You can start talking.”

Grayson’s resolve finally shattered. “Meyers, Donovan, Wilcox,” he gasped out between pained breaths. “They’re the main ones.”

“Didn’t ask for the main ones, Grayson.” I jumped when another Pain snapped another bone in Grayson’s hand. “I want them all.”

Three bones and his other shoulder later, Grayson lay slumped on the ground at the corner of my house.

Thank God the place I rented was in the middle of nowhere.

Otherwise, I was certain the neighbors would have called the cops.

It wouldn’t surprise me to hear an approaching siren.

I’d had to swallow back bile more than once.

Each time a bone snapped it set me on edge until Pain dislocated his other shoulder.

Then I’d had to stumble around the corner and vomit.

“Is he… dead?” I wasn’t sure how I managed to get the question out, but I knew I did because Pain answered.

“No, honey. Not yet, anyway.”

“What do we do?” Now that the shock was starting to wear off from one trauma, the adrenaline in preparation for the coming battle was threatening to make me sick again.

“We need to get out of here,” he said, his voice low and urgent. “Knuckles has some of the guys from Iron Tzars comin’ to help us out. They’ll take care of the body and clean out your presence.”

I nodded, my mind racing as I tried to process everything. “Where will we go?” I ask, hating the tremor in my voice.

“The Iron Tzars are gonna escort us safely to meet Kiss of Death.”

“Motorcycle clubs?”

“You remembered.” He looked pleased I’d recalled that. It was nauseating how much I soaked up the implied praise. “Yes. The Tzars are going to bring us into Evansville where we can eat and shower. Knuckles has a crew coming to Evansville to bring us to Nashville.”

I took a deep breath. “This is moving so fast. I don’t know what to do.” I was trembling now, my voice wobbling with every word. I didn’t like this feeling at all. I wasn’t an indecisive person. In this case, my head was telling me one thing, but my gut another.

“I know, honey. But do you honestly think you’re safer staying here?” His voice was kind, gentle even, but I knew he had to be aggravated. I was hesitating when he’d just rescued me.

“Right,” I muttered. “Good point. How about we reevaluate when we get to Evansville?”

To my surprise, instead of being irritated or impatient, Pain gave me a lopsided grin any rogue would be proud of and nodded his approval. “I can work with that.”

It wasn’t long after that when the distant rumble of approaching motorcycles filled the air. Three bikes and one black Ford truck pulled down my driveway.

The night was still hot and muggy, the summer not showing any sign of relief. A really tall, heavily muscled, bearded man climbed out of the truck, his movements fluid despite his size. He nodded at Pain before his gaze shifted to me, assessing but not threatening.

“Nadine, this is Brick. He’s the vice president of the Iron Tzars in Evansville,” Pain said, his hand coming to rest lightly on my lower back. That simple touch sent a current of electricity through me that had no business existing in this moment of crisis.

“Ma’am,” Brick said with a respectful nod before shifting his gaze to Pain.

“We need to move quickly. The boys will clean up the trash and make sure there’s nothing left.

” I had the feeling he actually meant something other than the obvious, but I wasn’t about to say anything.

Two other men were already heading toward the house, carrying large duffel bags that I desperately did not want to know the contents of.

“You ready? Got everything you need?” Pain asked, his voice a steady anchor in the chaos swirling around me.

I nodded, gesturing weakly toward my suitcase and backpack near the door. “That’s all I have.”

“Good. Less to worry about.” He grabbed my suitcase with one hand, his other hand still at my back, guiding me toward the truck.

“What about my car?” I asked, suddenly remembering the beat-up Fiesta. “It’s not much, but it’s all I’ve got.”

“We’ll take care of it,” Brick said softly. The big-man energy around Brick was surprisingly low for someone so large. No doubt it was a skill he’d perfected so people underestimated him.

“You ready?” Pain gave me a steady look, like he knew I was freaking out but was holding myself together by a thread. Pain was my thread.

“No,” I said honestly. “Not even close.” I shook my head.

I clung to my backpack like my lifeline.

Before I realized what I was doing, I’d backed away a step, looking from Brick to Pain and back again.

All of a sudden, the realization crashed over me that I was in an extremely remote location with men who were big and strong enough to break me in half.

I was powerless to stop them if they attacked.

“Nadine. Honey.” Pain set the suitcase down.

One of the other men I hadn’t been introduced to picked it up and took it to the truck without a word.

Everyone else seemed to have gone into the house.

“Hey.” He snapped his fingers to get my attention.

When I looked back at him, there was a worried expression on his face. “It’s all right. Do you trust me?”

“I don’t know.” My voice was barely above a whisper and even though we were outside in the open, everything seemed to be closing in around me.

“Of course, you don’t,” Pain said, his voice gentle but firm. “You shouldn’t. Not after what you’ve been through. But right now, staying here isn’t an option.”

I glanced back at my little rental house. The place I’d called home since I’d started working at the prison was about to become a crime scene. Or worse, it would be wiped clean as if nothing had happened. As if no one had ever existed here at all.

“They’re going to kill him, aren’t they?” I whispered, not looking at Pain directly.

Pain didn’t flinch or look away. “Yes.”

The single word hung in the humid night air between us. No excuses, no justification. Just the truth.

“I’m a nurse,” I said, my voice cracking. “I help save lives. I don’t take them.”

Moving closer but still keeping enough distance that I didn’t feel cornered, Pain reached in slow, deliberate movements and took my hand in his, caressing it gently. “Sometimes the world isn’t black-and-white, Nadine. You know some of what Grayson and his crew have done. Roberts told me.”

“Yes. And I’m not sure I even scratched the surface.”

“You didn’t, honey. And I don’t want you to. Some things I never want you to know about.” He gave my hand a gentle squeeze. “Look, I realize you don’t know me. Not really. Even if we’d been friends elsewhere, I’ve been through so much since I went to prison you wouldn’t recognize me.”

“I don’t… I don’t know what to do.” The words were pulled free against my will in a strangled sob. Showing weakness was the worst option imaginable, but Pain only stepped closer, pulling me to him with a growl and holding me tightly against him.

“It’s all right.” He whispered the words next to my ear. “I swear I’ll protect you, Nadine. On my life.”

For some stupid reason, my fists seemed to clutch his shirt and my fingers simply to God would not loosen so I could let go. My breath hitched and I held to him even harder.

“You guys need to get going.” I wasn’t sure who was speaking but I knew he was talking to Pain.

“Give her a minute, Roman. She’s not comfortable going yet, and I’m not forcing her.”

“Not suggesting you do. It’s just better for you to put as much distance between you and Terre Haute as possible.

Venus and Piston will lead you to the compound in Evansville, then take you on to Nashville tomorrow.

Me and Clutch will get you through until Kiss of Death meets you.

Venus and Piston are going all the way.”

“Good. Venus will help put Nadine at ease.”

“If you want to ride with her in the truck, I can make sure your bike gets back to our compound. Otherwise, Clutch will take good care of her.”

“I know. But I want her with me.” As he spoke, Pain held me tighter, like he was as reluctant to let me go as I was him. That’s when I knew I should trust my gut. Pain wasn’t going to let anything happen to me.

“I’m sorry,” I whispered. “I’m sorry I doubted you’d keep me safe.”

“Honey, you have nothing to be sorry for.”

“I can go with Clutch if that’s what you want me to do.” It was hard to put myself in someone else’s hands, but Pain had saved me. If he said I should go with Clutch, then that’s what I’d do.

Pain stared at me for a long moment, searching for something in my gaze that gave him whatever answer he was looking for. Finally, he turned away and walked toward the truck. He opened the back door and pulled out a black helmet before stalking back toward me.

He held out the helmet to me. “You ever ride a bike?”

“I’m assuming you don’t mean a bicycle.” I took the helmet. Pain snagged my hand again, giving it a squeeze.

“You’d assume right.” He jerked his head toward one of the bikes and tugged at my hand. I followed without protest. “Get your helmet on. I’ll show you where to put your feet.”

He mounted the bike, then I climbed on behind him.

He reached back and grabbed my ass, pulling me closer to him.

“Sorry,” he muttered. “I shouldn’t have…

” He cleared his throat. “Just get as close to me as you can.” I did, keeping my hands on his shoulders.

“Wrap your arms around me. I don’t want you falling off the back. ”

“It’s OK.” I said, swallowing nerves. Because, oh my God, I was sitting behind Dr. Ford Raven on a freaking motorcycle!

“What’s OK?” He looked at me over his shoulder.

“That you grabbed my ass.” I have no idea why I said that, but out it came.

“I see.” His lips twitched before puckering slightly.

Then he gave up entirely and chuckled. It was the first time I’d ever heard him laugh.

At the hospital he was always professional.

He might smile, but as a rule when he was in public he showed little emotion other than kind compassion when it was called for.

“That came out wrong,” was my lame reply.

“No, it didn’t. You were right to call me out. I only meant to pull you closer. It’s intimate, but necessary.” He still looked amused.

“Just don’t tell anyone I said that.”

“Wouldn’t think of it, sweetheart. Wouldn’t think of it.”