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Chapter Sixteen

Henley

ONE WEEK LATER

“ Y ou sure you’re ready?” Hael asks as we walk the steps of the large estate. My boots crunch on the gravel under us, the sound almost ominous. Before we can even reach the top, a young male opens the door with his head bowed. Hael and I turn toward one another, an awkward glance exchanged between the two of us. Walking in, the home is more like a fucking mansion. “Shit, maybe I’m not ready,” he mumbles under his breath. The butler asks for our cuts, but we immediately decline. A level of respect is necessary in this environment, especially since he invited us here, in his territory.

When he realizes we aren’t budging, he excuses himself for another male to come to us. This butler has a metal detector in his hand. Rolling my eyes, I do a twirl while he moves it around my body. It clocks the gun on my hip, but he doesn’t seem to care before moving on to Hael. Fucking weird, but I’m not going to say anything. Once Hael is done, he guides us toward an office space. Waving his hand, he allows us into the room, though it’s empty. Immediately, my hackles are raised.

Everything about me has been off for the past two weeks. When Bunny left, there was nothing I could do to stop it. Finding her wasn’t any better, but I knew this meeting is much needed.

“Gentleman, thank you for coming,” Scotty DuClaire booms as he walks into the room. Hael and I side-glance one another, obviously unsure of how to feel at the moment. “We usually don’t meet at the compound, but there have been other…circumstances that have taken my full attention.”

“We understand, Mr. DuClaire,” Hael starts, but Scotty waves his hand in the air.

“Please, call me Scotty. We are going to be well acquainted, I’m sure.” If my hackles weren’t raised already, they sure as fuck are now.

“How can we help?” Hael asks, directing everyone to the point.

“Actually, there are a few things that need to be taken care of on tonight’s agenda.” He gathers a few papers, pushing a stack each in front of us. Scheduled runs are printed out, at different locations around the area that have been ported in. “We need someone to discreetly move these items. Our previous runner had a bit of a mishap with the local pigs, so they have to keep a low profile. A booming business is suddenly declining, so it’s safe to say I need a new runner.”

“What’s the cut in?” I ask, cutting Hael off. If this is my bunny’s father, I want to know what he thinks. The number he throws is what he sees himself as.

“Depends on the size of the run. Usually, we cut around 30%, shaved off the top before it’s distributed, never less than 30, never more than 50.”

“That’s a good deal,” Hael adds skeptically. “Why us?”

“Someone from the southern parts recommended you for your…confidentiality, we’ll call it.” He grabs a silver tumbler and fills it with an amber liquid from the decanter until it’s empty. “You gentlemen fancy a drink?”

“We rode here, don’t want to be stopped by a cop and blow positive,” I reason. Hael doesn’t argue or ask for one, simply agreeing with my statement. Bikers tend to be targeted by law enforcement, usually because we’re easy to ticket. It’s fucked up and stupid, but it’s the reality of owning a noise maker.

Scotty tips the glass back, slamming the drink as if it's just water before walking over to a pulley on the wall and giving it a few solid tugs.

“What do you think?” He takes a seat behind the desk again, his crisp suit slightly crinkled with the liquor belly he is sporting. “Immediate service is being requested and money is guaranteed with each successful job.”

“You got a contract we can read over?” Hael questions, leaning his elbows on the desktop. “Deal sounds good, too good. Don’t want to start trouble if it ain’t worth it.”

Scotty’s grin is almost feral, one that doesn’t belong on his face as he fishes around a drawer in his desk. The other stack of papers in front of us yanks away as he replaces it with a larger stack. Details are drafted elegantly on the paper, far too impressive for a simple transaction.

“I do have one condition,” he drawls as the door to the office opens. Hael and I spin around, ready to go to war when a tiny, frail female walks into the room. Her strawberry hair covers her face, and a deep pit in my stomach expands.

“Bunny,” I whisper though I don’t think anyone hears me. She doesn’t react as he takes the silver tray to her father and eases it onto the desk. Her arms shake so hard that the liquid sloshes around as she pours the drinks.

“This is my daughter, Elodie,” he points to her, grabbing a fist full of her hair and jerking her head back. Hael and I both go to take a step forward, which is apparently what he wants. “She recently decided to go out and spread her legs, isn’t that right?” He doesn’t give her a second to answer before kicking the backs of her knees and letting her drop.

“Yes, Father,” she whimpers, his fingers barely letting her hair loose. At this angle, her face is one giant bruise. Shades of yellows, purples, blues, and greens swell across her beautiful features. A few swollen cuts on her face are an angry red color, one that almost looks infected. Her body is covered in long sleeves and a long skirt, so I can’t see anything else. I have no doubt she is colored the same way throughout.

“We have been struggling to find a buyer for my sweet Elodie,” he coos at her, using his other hand to brush the stray hairs from her face. “She is no longer pure, no longer able to be bred into a good family.”

His hand releases her strawberry hair as she lands on her hands, her breath coming out in pants. Running to her isn’t an option, so I clench my fists and stay rooted in my spot.

“What does she have to do with us?” Hael asks. He knows exactly how this has to do with us, but we want to know if he knows. From the look on Scotty’s face, he doesn’t.

“My dearest daughter has been violated by a bastard, she no longer has use to me,” he spits, his saliva landing on her cheek as she wobbles.

My heart stops, my face pales, but I hold myself together.

“Again, what does that have to do with us?”

“We need a buyer for her. You run weapons, I wasn’t sure if you also did skins,” he starts, but Hael cuts him off.

“No, we don’t play in the skin wars. What are you looking for?”

“Fifty thousand, no interest. I want her gone, and that’s the amount of debt owed for her adult years-”

“We’ll take her,” Hael demands but acts as if he can’t be bothered. Everything in me wants to scream and fight, argue that she is more than a blind buy. Yet, I know better. This is our way in. Our chance. Fuck all if I didn’t want to grab her right now and get her behind me.

Something about the smile on Scotty’s face makes my skin crawl, but I don’t have a moment to consider it before he and Hael are shaking hands. When they let go, Scotty grabs her hair and shoves her forward. Her cheek slams onto the ground roughly but no sounds leave the poor female. That stupid pit in my stomach grows bigger and deeper as she doesn’t move.

“Look over my offer. I will send your lawyer the information.” With that, he plops himself back onto his desk chair and waves us away with a hand. Opening my mouth to call him out, Hael grabs my bicep and shakes his head, glancing back and forth between me and Elodie. I can take a fucking hint. If I treated her with remorse and respect, her father would call us out on our bluff.

I’m sorry, bunny.