Page 45 of Slayin Villain (Royal Bastards MC: Nashville, TN #11)
Ember
The slap of Cece’s screen door closing behind me sounded too final.
I stood there for a second on the edge of her living room, hugging my arms around my ribs like it might hold me together. Her place smelled like lavender and warm sugar cookies. A lie. A kindness. It had no right to be so safe when I felt like I’d been cracked open and dumped onto asphalt.
Cece was in the kitchen, humming some tune under her breath like she hadn’t just helped Mary patch up my busted lip and hand me an ice pack for my cheek.
She was blind, but she saw everything.
Irish appeared a second later, like a ghost in black leather and steel. He leaned against the doorway, arms crossed, eyes sharp.
“You want coffee, sugar?” Cece called.
“Sure,” I croaked, voice shredded.
Irish’s gaze didn’t move. “Kingpin’s on his way.”
I sank onto the floral couch, the ice pack balanced on my cheek now half-melted. “Of course he is.”
“You gonna tell him what happened?”
“I already did,” I said. “To Cece. To Eve. I’ll tell him, too.”
Cece brought me the mug like she could feel my hands trembling. I took it with a muttered thank you and tried not to spill anything.
The front door opened. Boots on hardwood.
Kingpin.
He filled a room without trying. Thick-shouldered, covered in black ink, and shiny jewelry, more dangerous in silence than most men were with fists. His lined eyes landed on me and narrowed.
“You look like hell.”
“Thanks,” I muttered.
“You should see the other guy,” Irish said dryly.
“Did,” Kingpin replied. “Rome’s hanging in the barn until we figure this shit out.”
He meant that literally. My stomach twisted.
Cece left the room like she could read his mind.
I stood. Didn’t trust myself to stay seated for this.
“I messaged Villain,” I said. “I was gonna leave. Just… say goodbye. Get it over with. But Rome saw the messages. Took my phone. Got me in the van before I could scream.”
A vein in Kingpin’s temple throbbed.
“He said if I left him, I didn’t deserve to be free. Said he’d make sure no club would ever protect me.”
Irish stepped closer. “He ever touch you before tonight? Beat you?”
Touching my bruised cheek, I hesitated. “Not like this. Just yelling. Possessive. But I thought…” I shook my head. “I was wrong.”
“Damn right, you were,” Kingpin growled.
He paced a tight circle, stroking his beard.
“Tell me something straight,” he said finally. “You think you’re carrying Villain’s baby?”
“I don’t know,” I whispered.
“Then why the hell message Villain?”
My throat closed up. “Because I wanted to know if he still cared. Even just a little.”
Irish made a noise low in his throat.
Kingpin stared at me like he could see through the bruises and straight into the guilt I was wearing like a jacket.
“I got a problem, Ember,” he said. “Two problems, actually. One, Rome broke club code. You don’t lay hands on a woman like that. Not even your own. Not unless she’s trying to kill you. Not to mention jumping an officer.”
My mouth went dry.
“Two,” he said, stepping closer. “You know shit. About us. About our business. About the blood behind the ink.”
“I would never…”
“I know,” he said, eyes hard. “But Rome did. And you loved him. And love makes people stupid.”
I winced.
He gestured toward me, voice cooling like thunder before a storm.
“We can protect you. For now. But it comes with terms.”
Irish folded his arms, the muscle under his cut twitching. “You go anywhere, we go with you. You don’t disappear, not even to piss in peace. No more contacting old friends, no more stage gigs, no more ‘just one ride out of town.’ Until we’re sure.”
Gasping a bit, I nodded.
“And no talking to Rome,” Kingpin added. “Ever again.”
“I don’t want to see him,” I said, shaking.
“You will,” Irish said. “Eventually. Court hearing. Hell, maybe just fate being a cruel bitch.”
Kingpin nodded. “Unless you drop the charges business. Let us handle him… And if that baby’s his…”
“I don’t know if I’m keeping it,” I whispered.
Irish looked like I’d slapped him.
Kingpin didn’t blink. “If you do, you’ll have full club protection. Cece and Eve’ll help raise it if you need. But if you don’t…”
“I don’t know!” I snapped, the coffee mug clattering against the table as I sat down in a huff. “You think I wanted any of this?” My voice cracked.
Kingpin didn’t flinch. “I ain’t blaming you. I’m just laying the cards on the table.”
I looked at him through watery eyes. “So, what’s the price?”
He stared at me.
“No cops. We’ll take care of Rome.”
I swallowed. Did I know what that meant? We’re they going to kill him? I was afraid to ask.
“And we need to know the truth, if we are going to protect you,” he said. “About everything. Right here. Right now. Were you involved in attacking Villain in any way? When you sent those texts…”
“God, no.” I told them everything.
Well, almost everything.
About Villain. About Rome. About how I never meant to fall into bed with one or get tangled up with the other. How I lost myself somewhere between a song and a lie and found out too late what it cost.
When I finished, Cece returned and held my hand in that way that said she didn’t care how messy I was, just that I was alive.
Kingpin nodded.
“You’ll stay here for now,” he said. “With Cece. Irish’ll check in daily. If that ain’t safe enough, we’ll lock you in the basement at Royal Road.”
I gave him a look.
He almost smiled. “Joking.”
“Barely,” Irish muttered.
I took a breath, deep and sharp, then nodded. “Okay.”
Kingpin looked me dead in the eye. “Ember. You’re not a prisoner. But if you leave again without saying something? We won’t be the ones chasing you. Our enemies will. And they’ll play a whole lot meaner than Rome.”
I nodded again.
He turned to leave but paused at the door. “Villain’s still in the hospital. Ask Cece if you want to visit. But wait until he’s cleared. You two got enough fire between you. We don’t need an explosion.”
I swallowed hard.
Because what I wanted, what I felt, was nothing compared to what I had to do now.
Survive.