Page 15

15

MERCY

S tanding there, I eye the woman on her knees. Her body shakes due to the force of her sobs. The grip on my pistol tightens, and the need to just put her out of her misery rocks through me. I shuffle my way over to her as if she was a scared animal. I try to think through what I would’ve done with Jenny if she was doing this. Losing my grip on my pistol, I shove it back into the holster at my back as I squat down behind her. When she feels my thighs bracketing her, she goes so stiff I swear she might actually shatter.

Reaching around, I use my fingers to lift her chin so her head lays back on my shoulder. “This would be so much simpler if you were a man.”

“I don’t even know what that means,” she speaks around her sobs.

I lay a kiss on the side of her head just above her stitches. “That means if you were a man, I would have already fucking beaten and bled you until I knew your deepest, darkest secrets and you were begging for me to end you. As it fucking stands, I cannot bring myself to truly harm you physically in a way that wouldn’t bring you pleasure in the end.”

She trembles in my hold. “That doesn’t make sense to me. Do you want to fuck me or kill me?”

Using my hold on her chin, I turn her face to look at me, and I smirk. “Is that a question or challenge, Little Lamb?”

Her words and the fire I see reigniting in her do something that I can’t explain. For the first time in nearly five years, I feel like I can breathe and my world isn’t so dark. I want to push her to answer my questions using any means necessary, but right now, all I want to do is stoke the fire and burn in its light. Her eyes go wide as she lifts a hand, tracing my lips.

I give her a moment to learn and then decide maybe Pope is right. If I allow her to get comfortable, we’ll get what we need.

“I have some shit to do this afternoon. One of the girls that works at the bar is going to bring you lunch and clothes. When I get back this evening, we’re going to get you out of this room to hangout and meet everyone,” I tell her, not giving her the option to tell me no.

“Does that mean I don’t get a choice in the matter?” She raises a questioning brow.

I grip her chin hard, dropping the smirk at being questioned. “Don’t take this moment of weakness as anything but that— a moment . Be ready when I get back. Do you understand?” My tone is firm.

“As you say, it’ll be done,” she snaps, and the fire in her eyes is bright enough to burn.

“That’s a good girl.” I lay a kiss on her forehead and smirk at the shock on her face.

Standing, I make my way to the door, closing it softly behind me.

As I get to the mouth of the hallway, I hear a dramatic gasp. Shifting my gaze, I find Remedy standing at a pool table with a hand on his chest and a look of shock on his face.

“What the fuck is your problem?” I growl, already over his shit.

“I … I … I didn’t know your face could do that,” he looks around wildly until his eyes fall on Terro. “Did you know his face could do that?”

Terro looks up at Remedy before looking at me. “He looks just as pissed off and close to the edge as always.”

Remedy glares, pointing the pool stick at me. “No, he was fucking smirking. The Monster was fucking smirking. I fucking saw it.”

Flipping him the bird, I make my way to Terro. I sit at the table and wait for him to get done doing whatever he’s doing on his phone. As Terro sets his phone down, mine vibrates. I pull it out of my pocket and find a text with my assignment listed.

“You solid?” Terro asks, eyeing me.

I think for a moment before answering his question. “I haven’t ever been solid. So why the fuck would I be now?”

A haunted look falls over Terro’s eyes. “Can I be upfront with you?”

Nodding, I lean back in my chair and wait. Like Raider, Terro is a man I respect. Not only because he is my Sergeant-at-Arms but also because he has had my back in places most would not.

“When you find something in this fucked up world that brings just a little light and warmth. Be the better man and don’t snuff it out. Fight the monster deep in your soul that wants to stomp the light out, because when it’s gone, you’ll never find it again.” Terro’s words hit me square in the chest, squeezing hard.

“The day they pulled Jenny’s body out of the marsh is the day I lost that light,” I state flatly.

“The light I’m talking about isn’t the same type as what your sister gave.” Terro stands, placing a hand on my shoulder as he walks by. “Just be cautious with your little lamb.”

Standing abruptly, done with all this shit, I make my way out of the clubhouse to my motorcycle. As I sit, I place my phone in its holder, then slide the key in the ignition and start my baby. I settle into my seat, allowing the bike to warm up as I put in the first address on my list. Excitement courses through me because this dumbass requires some extra encouragement to pay up.

Exactly what I need to get my head on straight and back to the job at hand.

It takes me the rest of the afternoon to get through my list of people that don’t want to pay their month dues to the club. Pulling up to the gate, it opens automatically and I give a head nod to the brother working the gate. The music is pumping, and it looks as if all the brothers are here. Parking my bike, I kill the engine and step off, seeming to drag my feet on what I’m about to have to do. A part of me is reluctant to share my little lamb, preferring to keep her confined to my room for my sole enjoyment.

As I make it to the front door, Blender steps out of the shadows, nearly getting himself killed.

“Begging to die tonight, I see,” I toss at him with a glare.

He lifts a massive shoulder. “I could’ve killed you several times over before you even realized I was here.”

I glare at him as I lean back against the wall of the clubhouse. “Say what you have to say. I’ve got shit to do.”

“It doesn’t make sense,” he states matter-of-factly.

Quirking a brow, I wait him out, knowing he will continue speaking when he has it all worked out in his head.

“A sex ring in our territory. Another club literally spitting in our faces. The number of fuckers not wanting to pay up. The little lamb dropped in our lap to do with as you please.” He paces back-and-forth as he speaks. “Now we have a rat. It’s all just a little too neat, a little too coincidental.”

I roll what he’s saying around in my head and go over everything that’s happened over the last five years since Jenny’s death. The way her murder was handled when she was supposed to be family. He’s right, things do not fucking add up.

“Fuck,” I groan, pinching my nose. “Do you trust Raider is on the right side of this?”

Blender stops pacing abruptly and looks at me. “How the fuck would I know? We both know I’m the last person to pick up on that shit. I’m just telling you what I’m seeing, and it’s that this shit does not add up.”

“Alright then. We do our jobs, keep our heads down, and when it all fucking blows up—because we both know it will—we decide what side is right then.”

Blender says nothing as he processes my words, then nods. “I’ll follow you, always.”

I slap him on the back and turn to make my way into the clubhouse to fetch my little lamb. I give curt nods to my brothers as I march past them directly to my room. As I reach my door, the sound of a male voice and giggling on the other side brings a haze of red over my vision like I’ve never delt with before. The monster erupts so hard and fast that before I even register what I’m doing, I’ve taken a booted foot and slam it into the door, causing it to bang against the wall.

Paisley and Charlie both jump and scream while simultaneously Remedy explodes onto his feet with his gun raised. I storm across the room, ignoring everyone but my little lamb. I take in her startled face. When I’m standing directly in front of her, I hold my hand out, not saying a word.

She eyes me, then looks me up and down before slowly putting her hand in mine. I pull her to her feet and into my side before the red finally recedes and I’m able to look at Remedy. He smirks at me before pulling Charlie to her feet and guides her out of my busted door. Not wanting anyone to eavesdrop on us, I pull Paisley into the bathroom.

I lift and sit her on the counter, forcing myself between her legs so she can’t hide from me. “Want to tell me what that was all about?”

The fight I’m coming to enjoy flares to life in her eyes. “What exactly are you referring to?”

“Do not fucking play games with me right now. I told you to be ready when I got back to go out and socialize, not to be in here getting giggly with one of my brothers.” I snap, placing my hands on either side of her on the counter to keep from strangling her.

“Well, when someone shows me some kindness in a place that seems to be full of asshats, I decide to take it,” she snaps. She crosses her arms over her chest and leans closer to my chest. “If you had taken a millisecond to pay attention, you would’ve seen that I am indeed ready to go out and socialize. So, the question now is, are we going out to socialize or are you going to continue to act like the previously mentioned asshat?”

Leaning so our lips are nearly touching, I say, “Like I’ve said before, one day that mouth is going to get your ticket punched.”

She shrugs at my words, not caring in the slightest, even though I can see her fear dimming the fire in her eyes. “Not the first time I’ve heard that and, as long as I’m here, it most likely will not be the last. So once again are staying or going?”

“We’re going.” I step back and pull her off the counter, then turn her toward the door. When she goes to step away, I wrap her long hair around my hand, halting her. “Try to remember, Little Lamb, that when I say it—it’s a promise for the future—not a threat.”

A shiver racks her body and for the first time I take in what she is wearing. Her jeans are so dark they are nearly black and look painted on, cupping her luscious ass. The tank top is cut to show the slightest amount of skin across her back. The bruising from her ordeal is still very present, but it doesn’t distract from the fact that this woman is truly beautiful. When she glances over her shoulder giving a small smile, I am slammed with a sense of déjà vu.

I’m looking over the pictures my contact at the college has sent of Jenny and her roommate Ainsley hanging out in the courtyard. Jenny has her head thrown back, laughing at something some dickhead beside her has said, and her roommate is looking over at her with a smile. In the next one, the roommate is looking across the courtyard with a faraway look and a small smile on her face.

I wait for the anger that always comes with memories of my sister. Only this time, the anger is there, but there is also a pain in the center of my chest with a feeling I don’t quite understand. Reaching up, I rub at the spot above my heart, trying to ease both the physical and mental pain away. Little Lamb's face scrunches in concern as she takes in my behavior.

Shaking off the odd feeling, I slap her on the ass. “Let’s go. I need a fucking drink.”

She swats at my hands as she makes her way out of the bathroom with me hot on her heels.