Property of Heat (Kings of Anarchy MC: Virginia #3)

Chapter 1

ONE

HEAT

Nothing is happening to find Kinley, which only spurs to piss me off more than it already has. When the time comes, and we finally get our hands on the bastards who stole from us, I intend to tear them limb from limb and play with their intestines.

You don’t fuck with me or mine. You surely don’t cross my club without repercussions.

I intend to make those dirty vampires who stole my sister’s best friend pay for what they’ve done. I’ve said it repeatedly that I won’t rest until she’s home, and I won’t.

I have a message to deliver, and I will be making sure they receive it. This club is not weak. We’re not playing games.

A month ago, we nearly had her. We’d been close.

If not for Pyro’s mom being a complete and total bitch for hating her son, we would have her back.

Now, we’re back home and have eyes and ears everywhere after reading that woman’s journals and learning they’d planned to come back in an attempt to get my sister.

No way will that asshole vampire, Holstein, get my sister. It’s bad enough he’d been able to get Kinley. How Kinley allowed herself to be vulnerable to them is something I’ll never understand. She had always been too trusting of people, and we all told her so.

The moment they step foot back into our town, we’ll know, and we’ll kill them all for taking her and doing god fuckin’ knows what to her.

“Heat, baby, wanna play?” Chellie, one of the horas, purrs in my ear while running her hands along my shoulders from behind.

“Not right now,” I grunt, shrugging her off me. They all know better than to touch me without my permission, but don’t seem to listen when told.

If not for the fact the horas were good to have around when it comes to getting pussy when we all wanted to get laid, I’d say fuck them all and kick them out. However, they’re useful around here and do their part, no matter how half-assed my sister, Evelin, says they do.

The horas are meant to help with the cooking and cleaning up the clubhouse.

We don’t let them work at any of the businesses we own, so they don’t get to know that part of what we do.

Some, over the years, have gotten jobs and work outside the club.

The ones around here lately, they don’t seem to want to do shit but lie on their backs and take dick all day.

Not my type of woman, that’s for sure.

Not that I’m even looking for one.

Three of my brothers have lately found women for themselves.

Fire, who happens to be one of my best friends, ended up with my sister.

It pissed me off at first, but I should’ve known it’d happen.

My sister has been in love with Fire for years.

Inferno ended up finding out his mate was Francie, the assistant manager at our bar, which was some shit none of us knew until they were ready to tell us.

Then Pyro ended up finding his mate, Carina, who was also Inferno’s little sister.

I’m happy for them all, but that shit isn’t for me. I’m good on my own. I have my club and family. They’re all I need. A woman would complicate my life way too damn much and be no more than a headache.

“But I wanna have some fun with you.” Chellie pouts, coming around me to plant her ass in my lap.

“Told you not now, Chellie. I’m not gonna change my mind. Get the fuck off my lap.” If she doesn’t listen, I’ll end up losing my shit and tossing her off me. What the hell is it with women not listening when you tell them to back the fuck off?

Every last one of these bitches around here has been getting on my everlasting nerve lately.

“My son told you to move along. I suggest you do that.”

I want to groan at the sound of my mother’s voice.

I love the woman to death. She’s the best woman I know, but damn, what is up with her being around all the time recently?

Oh, right, Evelin is pregnant, and no way was my mom missing it.

Hell, even Freyja, Fire’s mother, has been around more.

Though she was trying to spend time getting to know her son.

I don’t know if she’s doing that with her other son, Fire’s brother none of us knew about, but I think with Fire, it’s got him freaked the fuck out.

Plus, there’s this whole thing with us needing to find his other two siblings. We figured we’d give his brother, Dexter, the task of finding one while we find the other.

First, though, our priority has been finding Kinley, and we will. Hopefully sooner rather than later.

Thankfully, Chellie listens and scatters away quickly as my mother takes a seat at the table.

“What’s up?” I ask, watching her closely.

“I have to go away to handle some things,” she announces.

“Okay.” I get my mother not telling me more. I don’t tell her much about what we do here, though I’m sure she’s more than aware.

“Freya asked me to deliver a message too. One that might not make you happy.” The way she smirks tells me I’m not going to like it one bit.

“What message?”

“That you need to come to terms with the past and what’s eating you if you want to find anything true.”

“I don’t know what the fuck that means,” I grunt with a laugh.

Gods love speaking in riddles. No matter what type they are. Norse. Greek. Summarian. Celtic. They’re all alike.

“You’ll know soon enough.” My mom shrugs. “If Evelin needs me for anything, you know how to reach me.”

I did indeed know how to reach my mother.

It’s a secret that we’ve kept from Evelin.

We didn’t want her to feel like she wasn’t special to us, my mother, being my biological mom, and I have a connection that allows us to communicate with each other.

Not that we use it. Unless it’s an absolute emergency.

“Evelin will be okay while you’re gone, Mom.”

Fire wasn’t gonna let anything happen to my sister.

I’ll be right there alongside him in making sure she stays safe.

Evelin might not share blood with me, but that’s never meant anything to me.

She’s my little sister. I remember the day our mom placed her in my arms as a kid.

I made the promise then that I’d keep her safe, and I’ll never go back on it.

Not even when she makes things difficult.

“Good. Until then, so you know, Freyja will be in and out,” Mom states as she gets to her feet. “And remember one thing over anything else, Rankin.”

I stiffen at my mother’s use of my real name rather than what I allow others to call me. It’s not that I mind her using it, but I get what she’s doing. She’s sending me a message to hear rather than just listen. There’s a difference between the two.

You can listen to just about anything, but you have to really hear it to understand. Right now, she’s telling me to expect something I’m not going to be happy about.

Nodding to her, I get up out of my own seat and watch her leave without another word.

Herja could easily vanish into thin air, but here at the clubhouse, she tries to do normal things and leave through the doors rather than freak everyone else out.

There are a lot of supernatural beings among my brothers, but none of us can simply disappear.

Being Herja’s son, I have gifts of my own, but nothing like the others. I’m mostly human, though I have a life span of an immortal, so long as I don’t get killed, though even that would take cutting my head off.

With what my mom has told me, I need to get my mind off everything else. I could get Chellie and take my frustrations out on her, but right now, I’m not feeling it.

“Brimstone,” I shout, spotting my VP over at the bar.

“Yeah, Prez?” He looks at me, beer lifting to his lips.

It’s barely noon, and he’s already started drinking.

Though Brimstone could damn well drink all damn day and not get buzzed.

That is, unless it was a special brew. Where I’m the son of a Valkyrie, Brimstone’s the grandson of Odin.

His father was his son, and his mother was a witch.

Not everyone within the Kings of Anarchy MC throughout the country is a supernatural being. Some chapters don’t even know we’re ‘gifted’.

“I’m heading out on my bike,” I tell him, and head for the doors. I need to clear my head and think. I want to feel free of all the damn thoughts filling my head. As much as I love fucking, the appeal of taking one of the horas does work on me. Not in the way my bike calls to me.

Nothing beats being on the back of my motorcycle, feeling the rumble between my legs, knowing I’m in control and can’t be contained. I’ll never be contained or controlled. Not by anything or anyone.

Feeling free is what matters to me. It’s one of the reasons I won’t ever be tied down by a woman.