Page 22

22

AINSLEY

I ’m sitting on the couch in the great room with Charlie by my side, completely engrossed in my book, when a roar comes from the direction the men went for church. Looking over at Charlie in question, we don’t say anything. Shit, I think we’re both too afraid to even breathe. The sound of something breaking comes through the door just before it bursts open. Coming through the door is Satan himself, with his avenging angel behind him.

Charlie and I both jump to our feet. I back away from the couches toward what I’m hoping is the door. Mercy's eyes scan the room before they lock on me, his pupils completely blown and for the first time ever, I’m seeing the monster that lives in his soul with one-hundred percent clarity. I tremble as pure terror takes a choke hold. He storms toward me, the men from church closing in around him, seeming to try to talk some sense into him. Mercy hears none of it, just makes a beeline for me.

I continue my slow steps back as he stalks toward me. When my back hits a wall, I know that I’m trapped. There is nothing I can do now to escape the monster baring down on me. As soon as he is within arm’s length of me his hand snaps out, wrapping around my throat. The reminder that just a few short hours ago this hold was for pleasure and ownership, and now it’s going to be what brings my death.

“Tell me it’s a fucking lie,” Mercy hisses low.

Not breaking eye contact, I ask, “What is a lie?”

His grip tightens in warning. “Ainsley Finch.”

At the sound of my name, I gasp in shock, “He said he wouldn’t tell you.”

A bone chilling growl reverberates in his chest. “It doesn’t matter who said fucking what. What matters now is you tell me everything you know about the men that took my sister and killed her.”

I try to shake my head in denial of his words. He grips my throat tighter, stopping my movements.

“Do not fucking continue lying to me. Because if you had nothing at all to do with what happened, then why run like the rat you fucking are?” he screams in my face.

Something about the way he says that causes me to fucking snap and practically beg for death.

“Fuck you, Mercy. I had fucking nothing to do with what happened to Jenny.” Swallowing the growing lump in my throat, I continue even as he flexes his hold. “She was the best person I ever fucking knew. She never met a fucking stranger and loved so big that you couldn’t help but want to protect her with everything you have. Make sure nothing bad or ugly touched her.”

Mercy shakes me as if I’m a rag doll. “Then why didn’t you. It’s the only fucking thing I asked of you.”

A sarcastic laugh breaks free from me. “Are you fucking serious right now? You didn’t ask me to do a motherfucking thing. You did what you and everyone in this motherfucking club does— demanded I watch out for her. That if I didn’t, I would pay with my own fucking life.”

Mercy’s eyes narrow, as if he is remembering the conversation I’ve played over and over in my mind for years . The entire reason that I ran. Because I didn’t want to face whatever wrath was going to rain down because I had once again a failed to protect someone I loved and adored.

“Looks like you got one thing right,” he whispers, applying more pressure as he pulls me up to where I’m standing on my toes. “Now that I know for sure you are the little bitch that got my sister killed—tell us who you work for and why her.”

“I wasn’t working for anyone. I don’t know anything about what happened to her. All I know is the one time I told her no, that I wouldn’t go with her because I needed to fucking study for a goddamn test that didn’t even fucking matter in the end— she was gone .” By the time I’m done, I’m screaming as tears streak down my face.

Mercy applies more pressure, cutting off blood flow to my brain. I feel him shift back slightly just before his fist zips past my face, connecting with the wall beside my head. I scream and bring my hands up trying to cover my face, trying to hide from the monster in front of me.

“Fucking tell me why Jenny ? She was everything fucking good. She deserved better than this life.” His broken voice shatters my soul all over again.

I bring my hands up and wrap them around the wrist holding onto me. “I truly don’t know. I just wanted to study and pass my test. She was only supposed to go get one drink and come back. It was hours later when I finally pulled my head out of my ass to realize she hadn’t come home.” I tell the story for the first time. “Then the cops showed up asking questions and looking around. I knew it was only a matter of time before the voice on the other end of the phone found me and made good on the promise to end me—so I ran and did everything in my power to make sure I could not be found.”

“What aren’t you telling us? There has to be more. It couldn’t be random. She didn’t deserve to die like that.” His hold tightens this time to the point I see black spots take over my vision.

“I don’t think it was random,” I rasp, knowing that when I say what I’m about to say—I will die here tonight. Even if they don’t believe me, he needs to know.

Mercy’s eyes narrow just as Relic steps up behind him, glowering at me. “She’s a liar and a whore. Don’t believe anything she says. She tried to sleep with me while you were gone.”

I feel Mercy release his grip and I draw in a deep breath. “You lying son of a bitch. You found out who I was and tried to blackmail me into keeping an eye on all the men. If I did as you said, you wouldn’t tell anyone who I was,” I yell out as best I can for being choked.

“You don’t speak to anyone but me, and to be honest, I’m fucking tired of talking.” Mercy’s hold gets tighter and tighter with every word. “Matter of fact, you’ve done nothing but lie since you arrived. If you have nothing to offer us about what happened to Jenny, then it’s past fucking time for you to pay for not keeping up your end of the deal in keeping her safe.”

As he finishes speaking, the black dots are nearly all morphed into one dot and I’m losing conscious. I release a single sigh and let my body go limp in his hold as he is finally going to do the one thing I was never brave enough to do myself. I let my hands fall away from his wrist. Just as my world goes completely black, Mercy suddenly lets go of my throat. I hit the ground with a thud as he paces back-and-forth in front of me. I lay my head on the nasty floor, trying to get my brain to come back online as blood starts to finally make its way back to my brain.

“I can’t,” Mercy mumbles before stopping in his tracks and glaring down at me. “I fucking can’t do it.”

“I fucking can,” Blender steps up beside his brother. “If you’re too weak to figure it out, I’ll take care of it.”

Mercy turns on his brother, standing toe-to-toe with him. “You will not touch her. If anyone is going to punch her ticket, then it will be me.”

“Then fucking do it! What are you waiting for?” Blender bellows back.

Raider steps up. “Because if you killed her now, we can’t learn what she knows. Now that we know she lied about her identity, we need to find out exactly what she actually knows.”

“This is fucking bullshit,” Blender glares, then in the next second, a throwing star lodges in the wall next to my head. “Next time it’ll be between your eyes.” Blender turns, storming down the hall to the outside.

Mercy turns back to me, glaring. The look in his eyes is so icy that I swear I can see my breath. He turns, storming out of the clubhouse, and not thirty seconds later the roar of his motorcycle rolls through the building. All the men look at each before Terro takes off after him. It doesn’t take long before everyone moves. Raider comes over to me, reaching down with a hand extended to help me up. Trembling, I reach up to grab it and allow him to pull me to my feet. Looking around I take in the men still hovering shocked not to see Blender.

He leans in close, talking in my ear. “We’ve got a lot to discuss. The first being what we’re going to do with you until we have clearer answers. Until then, we’re going to keep you tucked away where you can’t get yourself into trouble.”

I want to tell him about Relic and what he said to me while they were gone, but his words ring in my ears. “Who are they going to believe their Pres or some lying whore?” I bite my tongue and just nod weakly at his words, unable to find my words. He leads me down the hall to where the offices are and stops when we get to the last door on the right. He pushes it open, and at first glance, it looks like a small room, but when I look closer—I realize it’s a cell . Raider places a hand on my lower back, pushing me through the door. I walk into the room, taking it in then sit on the bed and look down at my hands.

“Ainsley,” Raider calls from the doorway. I look up at him. “I truly hope that there is nothing else you are hiding from us.”

I nod slowly. “You know everything there is at this point, and I know Hermes knows my name. There isn’t anything that you can’t find for yourself.”

“I fucking hope so,” he nods, closing the door with a resounding thud.

Sighing, I shiver as the pain in my soul pushes the tears out. After the first one falls, it breaks the dam and my tears fall as if competing with the rain forest.

“You’ve really fucking done it this time, haven’t you?” I ask myself, letting my head fall back against the wall.

On the bed, I lay back and let the tears fall until exhaustion claims me in a dreamless sleep.