Page 29

Brittany

L ast night, I barely slept, my mind would not be quiet, no matter what I did. I kept having nightmares of Harper controlling me, making me do things I didn’t want to do if I wanted my baby fed and clothed. I even had dreams of him filling her head with the religious dogma of his skewed beliefs. The idea of Harper getting his hands on Victoria, of him playing daddy with my daughter, made my blood boil. If he so much as laid a finger on her, I’d end him. No hesitation, no regrets.

Now, dressed head to toe in dark clothes, I pace the already worn-out carpet of my room. I have a pounding headache and tons of restless energy. The clock ticks down the minutes until we leave for Las Salinas. I feel a dark foreboding, a bad gut feeling that I just can’t shake.

A sudden noise makes me freeze mid-step. My door cracks open, and Jasper’s bulky form slips through. He moves quickly, peering outside before closing the door behind him with a soft click.

“I don’t know why you’re here, but I’m not interested in you,” I snap, crossing my arms over my chest.

He grins, cocky and sure of himself. “Give me a minute to talk, and you will be.”

“Don’t make me start throwing things and causing a ruckus.”

Before he can answer, we hear a muffled sound from outside the door. He steps closer, lowering his voice to a whisper. “You need to hear me out if you wanna make it through the night.”

I sigh, already exhausted by whatever this is. “Fine. Say your piece and get out.”

Jasper’s grin disappears, and his expression turns serious. “Tonight, you need to stay close to me and my brothers. And stay the hell away from Harper.”

Something in his tone sends a prickle of unease down my spine. My eyes narrow on him. “And why’s that? Give me the short version.”

He studies me for a moment before sighing. “Are you sure you wanna know? I only ask because this is about as messed up as it gets.”

“Just spit it out, Jasper. I’ve been out in the world and can handle anything you can throw at me.”

He takes a deep breath, then drops a bombshell. “For starters, I’m your uncle.”

I stand there, stunned beyond belief. “Excuse me?”

“My mom’s name is Victoria Jenkins,” he continues. “She married my dad, Rock. That makes her your grandmother.”

I shake my head, trying to process everything. “Okay, just… keep going. Tell me what you want me to know.”

“My mom—your grandmother—is dead set on getting you out without hurting Harper, your mom, or the church.”

Uncrossing my arms and putting them on my hips, I tell him skeptically. “If what you’re saying is true, and I’m not saying it is, I understand not hurting my mom, but explain why we can’t kick Harper’s ass into the next century.”

“We just can’t. It’s a long story. Our club is working with the Savage Legion to get you out of here without anyone else getting hurt in the process.”

“You really expect me to believe that? The Sons of Rage and the Legion working together?”

“You probably won’t believe it until you see it for yourself.” He glances at his wristwatch, then back at me. “Here’s the deal—we’re getting you out at the meet-up tonight. The Legion’s got this whole complicated plan that don’t make much sense to me, but our job is to make sure you get out safe.”

“Will Tusk be there?”

“You bet your sweet ass he will. Your old man has been pacing the clubhouse like a caged lion, driving everyone crazy for the past two days. He’s obsessed with getting you back.”

That tugs at my heartstrings. I blink back tears because my emotions are so near the surface right now. “So let me get this straight. The Legion shows up, you guys hand me over, and I’m just supposed to play along?”

“We don’t just hand you over. There’s gonna be a scuffle—maybe a gunshot or two—just enough to sell the whole thing.”

I stare at this man, trying to decide if I can trust him. “You sound pretty damn confident.”

“We’ve got numbers. The only wild card is Harper’s nutjob followers. They’re unpredictable.”

He checks his watch again. “I’ve gotta go. Just wanted you to know what’s coming. My mom would lose her mind if something happened to you before she got to meet you.”

I reach out and grab his arm. “I have a friend here. Her name is Cassandra Kincade. She’s married and has children. Can your guys rescue her and her family when you pull out of this building?”

“That’s the woman who spends time with you, your helper, right?”

“Yes,” I say enthusiastically. “Cassandra is a good person. So is her husband. They’re both looking for a way out. Your club might be their only chance to make a clean getaway.”

“I’ve seen her and her family around. I’ll do everything I can to get her out. But for now, I need to go.”

He turns and stealthily slips out the door before I can respond. The door shuts silently behind him.

I sit on the edge of the bed, my mind racing. Being caught in the middle of a standoff between two biker clubs and Harper’s followers is no place I want to be. I’ve spent years running, and somehow, I’ve ended up right back where I started. I’m so nervous that I feel like I’m coming out of my skin. Taking some deep breaths, I roll everything around in my mind as I wait for them to come get me.

***

When the time comes to leave, we move quickly, slipping into waiting vehicles. The SUV is dark, with tinted windows and the air is stale. I stare quietly out the window as we make our way back to Las Salinas. Silas Harper tries to talk about how grateful I should be that he’s reuniting me with my daughter. I just nod and go along with what he’s saying because even I can recognize this is no time to become belligerent.

By the time we pull up to the mall, the parking lot is empty. Something about the quiet is unnerving, making the hairs on my neck stand up. Jasper opens my door, and I stay close because his earlier words are still circling around in my head.

Then I see her—Gina, Tusk’s ex-wife—standing alone. She has a baby carrier in her hands. If I’m being honest, I’d say she looks terrified. I glance at Jasper, but his flat expression gives nothing away.

I want to run to the carrier, to check if Victoria is inside, but I force myself to stay put. If I mess up their plan, I’ll lose my only chance to escape and nobody wants that.

One minute everything is quiet and then next, all hell breaks loose.

Bikers swarm the lot, a whirlwind of leather and roaring motors. It’s the Savage Legion, out in full force to rescue me. Tusk’s ex tosses the baby carrier aside and makes a run for it. It bounces on the parking lot and turns on its side. I scream, but then I see the carrier is empty. Even though I’m terrified, my anxiety clicks down a notch and I can breathe again. Just knowing my baby is somewhere safe is everything in this moment.

Harper must have realized something’s wrong, because he yells after Gina, “You better run, whore.”

Staying character as Harper’s hired guns, the Sons of Rage shift into defensive positions, forming a barrier around Harper. In the chaos, I see my chance to run.

I make it to the far side of the lot before I see Tusk. I feel goosebumps rising on my skin. He’s here, he came for me. I mean, I knew he would but deep down inside there were some doubts.

I take a step towards him—then Harper’s men grab me. I should have been paying attention to what was going on around me rather than looking at Tusk.

“Where do you think you’re going, Eve?” Harper asks in a stone-cold voice.

“I’m not your Eve!” I shout at him. “Let me go!” I pull against their grip, but they’re stronger. I decide the thing to do in this situation is to stop thrashing about and wait for my opportunity to get free. I’ll pounce when they least expect it.

Across the lot, Jasper breaks away from the fight and runs full speed straight for us. I’m guessing that when Harper ran after me, they got separated.

Tusk sees that I am in danger and roars like a beast, charging straight for Harper. His big body slams into Harper, sending the smaller man sprawling onto the pavement. Tusk pulls me behind him. Having his big body shielding me makes me feel safe. He’s a giant, solid, immovable wall of muscle.

I glance down to see that he has a gun in his hand. That sends shivers down my spine. I remember what Jasper said about there being a gunshot or two, so it seems like there was a real fight. However, seeing the tension coiled tight in Tusk’s body makes me think he’s not on the same page.

Harper staggers to his feet, his expression pissed. He pulls a weapon of his own.

A loud shot rings out. We all look in the direction it came from to see Tex striding into view, a shotgun in hand, his expression is angry and he’s staring straight at Harper.

Harper’s men scatter, forming a tighter ring around him. He yells, “Stay back. You have no right to be here!”

Then, before anyone can react, someone grabs me from behind, yanking me away. A few of Harper’s followers somehow worked themselves around behind and caught us by surprise.

I try to jerk away but when he twists my arm behind my back pain vibrates up my arm.

My scream rings out, shrill and terrified. Then I feel the nuzzle of a gun digging into the side of my throat. “Time to shut that mouth, ma’am,” an ugly voice whispers in my ear.

Tusk’s voice speaks, clear and crisp. “Let my old lady go. You’re not fuckin’ leaving here with her.”

Harper moves closer to the man holding me hostage. I’m too afraid of him pulling the trigger to say or do anything. I’m vaguely aware that all his followers are crowding around us, putting men between Tusk and myself.

That’s when all the Sons of Rage turn on Harper. Standing shoulder to shoulder, Jasper is the one who speaks.

“Take your fucking hands off my niece, right now.”

There’s a moment of confusion and then understanding flashes across Harper’s face when he glances in my direction.

“No. She’s better off with a God-fearing husband than outlaw bikers.”

Tusk flat-out threatens my least favorite holy roller. “Look, you are not leaving here with my old lady. If you even try it, my first bullet has your name on it.”

Jasper tells him, “The powers that be asked me to spare your life if it was at all possible. My vote was to drop you where you stand with all your dumbass followers right behind you.”

Tex leans his shotgun on one shoulder. “Give her up, asshole. I don’t wanna spend the whole damn night digging a mass grave for y’all. I got better things to do with my time.”

Tusk takes a step forward. “You’ve got eyes,” he says, gesturing around at the fifty or so bikers circling him and his men. “We’ve got you outgunned and outmanned. You’ve already taken losses. And you gotta know that we’ve got no problem dropping every single one of you. Shit, I’d do it anyway if Jasper wasn’t so set on sending the lot of you home with your tails tucked between your fucking legs.”

The man holding me whispers, “Give her up. We can always grab her later. We’ve got time.”

I don’t know what he means by ‘time.’ It makes me feel like they see me as a woman with an expiration date. And it pisses me off.

Silas Harper stands there. He’s clearly running through all his options. He apparently can’t come up with any scenario where he leaves with me in tow. “Fine. We walk to our vehicles with her. You can have her once we’re all safely inside.”

Tusk points his gun at Harper’s head. “Get moving. If you try to double-cross me, I’ll put a bullet in your head.”

The man holding me jerks me to the side and follows Harper as he walks towards the vehicles. He’s holding both hands up, including the one with the gun. I’m worried that Harper isn’t giving up that gun, but at least he’s pointing it straight up in the air rather than at Tusk or one of the others.

The walk across the parking lot seems to take forever. Of course, Harper gets in first. Then the rest of his followers clamor into their vehicles. The man holding me at gunpoint backs up to the front passenger door and literally shoves me forward before stepping back and sliding into the vehicle.

Tusk steps forward to catch me with one hand and squeezes off a shot with the other. I glance back just in time to see the man who held me hostage groping for his door handle while bringing up his other hand to press against a gunshot wound on his shoulder. He quickly slams the door shut.

I’m surprised when none of the SUVs move. Suddenly, Siege and Rigs are on either side of us. Siege points out, “Their vehicles are armored. They want us to leave so they can clear up their dead and wounded.”

Jasper grumbles halfheartedly, “There wasn’t supposed to be any dead.”

Tex shrugs. “Shit happens.”

“Well, you’re explaining that shit to Queenie.”

Siege’s voice cuts through their argument. “Enough fucking arguing. Let’s get the fuck outta here. We got what we came for.” His eyes never leave the vehicle Harper got into, even for a second.

I don’t understand most of what they’re talking about. All I know is that Tusk is clutching me protectively to his side.

“Where’s Victoria?” I ask.

“Don’t worry, darlin’, she’s safe,” Tusk replies as he kisses my cheek gently.

I feel like all my energy has been sucked out. “I want to go home,” I tell him in a shaky voice.

Siege shouts out, “Load up.”

Tusk fast-walks me over to his bike, and I climb onto the bike behind him, understanding for the first time that this is where I belong—riding with the Savage Legion on the back of my man’s bike.