Dark As Coal

Chapter 11

Adeline

Sitting at my desk, I logged into my computer to check my emails.

And one email… umm… had I read that correctly?

“Dear Ms. Hartman,” yeah, that’s me and I couldn’t wait for the day to change my last name to Adams, “Last night our son swallowed a ring. We rushed him to the emergency room. The doctor said it was too low already to retrieve. Since we are going for perfect attendance with him, we want to get him into Yale, he will be at school today. But if you don’t mind, can you please go with him when he needs to use the bathroom and check to see if the ring is in there? Awe, you will, thank you so much. Have a good day. Sincerely, Mrs. Edinson the IV.”

It took me a moment to really take in exactly what the email said, and when it did, I tagged my phone and called Coal.

He answered on the third ring, and that told me that he was in his shed, but I would get to that here in a moment, “Yeah, Soulshine?”

“You will never believe the email I just got…” and then I read the email to him word for word.

Someone’s mumbling in the background could clearly be heard, but I paid it no mind.

“You’re shitting me,” even he sounded exasperated which took a hell of a lot to do.

I shook my head, “Nope. Definitely not. Make me a promise?”

Immediately, he said, “Name it, Soulshine.”

“If I ever turn into a mother that would make someone else take care of my child, shoot me.”

“Soulshine, I won’t shoot you; I’ll just shoot myself, that way you will have a visual reminder.”

And that ladies and gents, was how my panties got wet, and all I had to say was, “I love you, Coal Baby.”

That dark rasp from his voice, “Love you too, Soulshine.”

Those words from him caused my heart to skip a beat.

Just like it did every time he answered the call on the first ring, that meant he wasn’t busy.

If he answered it on the second ring, it meant he was in church.

And of course, the third ring meant he was in the shed.

The fourth ring meant he was riding his bike.

And I never got to the fifth ring. Ever.

The day had been wonderful and since it was Friday, and on a certain day, I had plans.

Plans that would ensue Coal giving me that rare smile of his I adored.

And that was because I still held a secret.

A secret that no one knew but me.

Just as I was putting my bag in my car, I heard my name being called and turned around and frowned.

What was Angelyn doing here?

Come to think of it, I haven’t seen her at the clubhouse as often. Granted, we had been staying at our place more, but still.

I offered her a kind smile, even though I wish I was one of those people who could pretend they didn’t hear their name being called, “Hey, what’s going on?”

She looked frantic when she rushed out, “I need your help. Look, my sister called me and said her boyfriend was getting violent with her. I was on my way to her, and remembered you got off around this time, and knew that it would be better to have help.”

I felt for her, but I had one question, “Why didn’t you tell the brothers?”

Something about this whole thing was screaming at me, but Sutton’s words the other day had me rethinking. ‘Sometimes the best way to get through to someone is to show them all the kindness you can muster… until you can’t.’

“Okay, I’ll help you. But Angelyn, the moment we get your sister, I’m calling Coal. Okay?”

And that wasn’t my only mistake of the day.

***

The moment we pulled up outside of a house, I turned to ask Angelyn if she was going to call her sister, but she was already out of her car shutting her door.

I’d learned to always trust my gut, trust it deeply, therefore, I typed out a quick text to Coal.

Me – Track my location. I love you.

Putting my phone in my back pocket, I got out of the car and followed Angelyn up the rickety porch stairs to a house that appeared to be in horrible shape.

Why would anyone be okay living in something that looked as though a good storm was going to knock the whole thing down?

But every thought was taken away when the door opened and before I could react, someone came up behind me and hit me upside my head with something.

The last conscious thought I had was that Coal better hurry his ass up.

And why the hell did I not stop to put my property kutte on?

***

“I helped bring her here. Now, where’s my money?” That voice.

I knew that voice.

Carefully, to avoid as much pain as possible, I lifted my head.

And when my eyes locked on the woman standing there with straight long brown hair and that beauty mark on her right cheek, it took everything I had inside of me to not speak.

To not speak and tell her exactly what I thought about her.

To not speak and spew venom from my mouth.

And then as I watched the man with a weird ass blonde haircut that appeared his hair didn’t know if it wanted to be a mullet or a shullet, hand her a thick wad of cash, she looked over at me and freaking smirked.

She freaking smirked.

What Cuntasourus.

Then she proved to be exactly the name I called her when she said, “It’s nothing personal, you see.”

Right.

I didn’t say anything.

No, I let my eyes do the talking for me. Telling her exactly what I thought of her.

She was nothing but a two-faced, cum dumpster, America’s Next Twat Model, bitch.

“Now, with you gone, I’ll be able to make him fall for me.” She was officially delusional. Straight-up delusional.

But that was when some man stepped from the hallway, pulled a cigarette pack from his leather jacket, tapped it on his palm, pulled out a cigarette, lit it, and then took a drag, and asked, “You know, no one has told me exactly who this woman is.”

That was when Angelyn simply smiled, “It doesn’t matter. Because she doesn’t matter.”

And I swear to god, I couldn’t keep the words in, “Right. But I matter to him. You better take that money and run. Run as fast as those short-ass legs of yours can run. And hide. You better hide, you fucking cunt. Because once my ol’ man learns it was you that handed me over to these men…” I stopped.

Let the silence wrap around me and then finish with, “You”re going to get real acquainted with his shed. Believe me, I’ve seen the inside of it. I was able to walk out of there after he fucked me against the wall. But you… well… you won’t be getting out of there. At least not with breath still in your lungs and blood in your veins. But hey, to each their own and all that.”

No one said a word. No one.

Not when Angelyn simply huffed, flipped her hair over her shoulder, and walked out.

The same man that was smoking his cigarette stepped closer to me and asked, “So, just who do you belong to?”

I didn’t say a word to him.

I just stared at him.

And then, apparently, he didn’t like being ignored. And I knew that when his hand came up and then down and struck the right side of my face.

I moved my head to the side, bit my bottom lip, and then snarked, “He’s going to eat you.”

And when the man snarled and moved to strike me again, I still didn’t say a word.

Both sides of my face were burning, but I still didn’t utter a word.

Not until he did the one thing that would guarantee I would talk.

He pulled out his gun and pointed it at my stomach.

No one hurt my baby. No one.

Therefore, I then took great pride in telling him just who I belonged to, “I belong to Coal.”

The man lost the anger on his face, his gun lowered slightly, and then I watched as that anger was replaced by… fear.

Chomp.

Then the man stuttered, “Your… you”re telling me…. You belong to Coal?”

I nodded.

“Coal?” Was the man deaf? I said Coal.

Therefore, I bugged my eyes out at him asking me that again and nodded.

Yeah, the man knew who I belonged to, and I knew this when his voice got shaky, “Coal? The Icer for Zagan MC?”

I nodded, “Yes. I have his mark on the back of my shoulder. I was grabbed before I could put my property kutte on after I got off work.”

He didn’t say a word, he simply moved around me with a rush in his steps, pulled out a knife and suddenly, my hands were free.

Tiny pinpricks of pain raced up my arms and into my shoulders.

“Go. Run. Now.”

The moment I stood, the door to the cabin was pushed open as five men walked into the room.

“What the fuck do you think you’re doing?”

The man moved in front of me, blocking me. Protecting me?

This was a current of events I hadn’t foreseen.

“Do you know who this woman is?” The man asked the five of them.

And I recognized one of them… but from where?

“She’s a whore that turned my brother down. And nobody turns my brother down.” And then, that was when I got it. That motherfucking frat boy wannabe.

He was a weasel.

“I get it. Okay. I do. Our brother hates being told no, and no one does it. But I want to know something first. Is there a member of Zagan MC that you”re scared of? Because I can name one.”

The man with black hair styled into a mohawk, crossed his beefy arms over his chest and asked, “Why are you asking me that?”

That was when Snaggletooth, stepped to the side and swept his hand up and down my body, “Because the woman y’all kidnapped? The woman behind me isn’t a whore. She’s an ol’ lady now. And she belongs to the one man on this planet that I’m terrified of.”

The man rubbed at his chin. And then he looked at me, “There’s only one man’s name that will have that girl getting free.”

That was when I whispered, “Coal.”

Immediately, the man with the black hair styled into a mohawk snapped, “Prove it. Where’s her property kutte?

“She didn’t have time to put it on after she got off work,” Snaggletooth told them.

“Then how the fuck else is she going to prove it?” Another man asked.

That was when I groaned, I didn’t have a way to prove but all I said was, “My property kutte was in my car.”

“Where’s your car?” One of them asked.

“That won’t be fucking necessary,” My head whipped around the four men that were standing there.

And I smiled. Asher.

But he wasn’t the person that had my smile widening, and then even wider the moment his words sounded out in the rickety cabin, “Cause my woman doesn’t have to prove jack shit to any motherfucker, but me.”

But I saw it, out of the corner of my eye, someone had returned, someone that needed to no longer be breathing, and that someone was holding something black and shiny, and I felt my entire body go rock solid, but only for a moment.

When I told Coal I loved him, I promised I would always protect him.

And when I found out I was pregnant, I made a promise to our baby that I would always protect him or her.

But protecting Coal was more important to me because I knew that he would protect our baby, and me.

Therefore, I did the only thing that felt right.

I dove in front of Coal… just… in… time.