Ruckus (Dirty Soul MC: Long Beach #3)

Chapter 7

A s I expected, the whole club goes silent when me and Freya step through the door. Wrath’s chair scrapes against the wooden floor as he stands up and rushes toward his sister, and I see how sad she is when his smile drops as he looks at her in horror.

“What the fuck happened to your face?” He grips the top of her arms and looks ready to kill.

“Would you believe me if I said I walked into a door?” Freya smiles nervously and, after she sees the look I’m giving her, decides to take my advice. “It was Drew,” she admits, looking embarrassed and ashamed. Wrath is already on his way to the door before I grab his bicep and haul him back.

“Relax, I dealt with it,” I tell him under my breath. “She needs you.”

“Is the fucker dead?” he asks me.

“No, but he’s?—”

“Then you didn’t fuckin’ deal with it.” He shoves me off him and goes for the door again.

“Aaron, please,” Freya calls after him. He pauses and when he slowly turns around, it ain’t anger I see, it’s hurt. “Ruckus almost killed him, it was me who made him stop,” she admits.

“When did this happen? Why didn’t you call me?” My best friend looks to me for an explanation.

“Ruckus showed up at my trailer this morning, he came to convince me to come and speak to you,” she lies, and more scary than anything, she does it well. “He saw the state of my face and dragged Drew out the door. I agreed to come here with him if he didn’t kill him.” She looks down at the floor when she realizes how many people are surrounding us.

“That fucker needs to be dead.” Wrath seems to have no issue buying our story, but, why would he? I’m his best friend, he trusts me.

I’m an asshole.

“I’m still gonna find that bastard an?—”

“Aaron, please don’t. I’ve left the show. I wanna put all that behind me,” she admits, bursting into tears. He rushes back toward her, wrapping her up in his arms, and I can’t help wish it was me who was comforting her.

“I gotcha, you’re home now.” He looks at me and mouths a ‘thank you’ over her shoulder.

“Freya.” Polly comes from behind her and carefully takes over from Aaron, pulling her in for a hug. “It’s so good to see you.” She looks as if she’s about to cry.

“It’s good to see you too.” Freya laughs and cries all at the same time when she figures I was right about her being welcomed, but when Raze stands up from his seat she suddenly looks nervous.

“Welcome home, Freya.” His stern lips raise into a smile and I see the relief sag in her chest. One by one, people step up to say hi or introduce themselves, and I fade myself into the background.

My job here is done. I made her safe, I brought her home, now what I gotta do, is stay the fuck away from her.

“I owe you.” Wrath eventually comes to find me at the bar. Polly is busy fussing over our new guest with her new partner in crime, Anita. So I make my own coffee, and although I can’t remember the last time I ate… I don’t think I could eat right now.

“You don’t owe me shit,” I tell him, lighting myself a smoke and resisting the urge to turn my head around and check she’s okay, again .

“Ruck, you brought my sister home. I lost one, and I ain’t losing another. I’m gonna convince her to stay.” He looks over to the crowd that has gathered around her with a huge toothy grin on his face.

“You think that's a good idea, given the circumstances?” I remind him of the fact there’s a serial killer on the fucking lose and a war about to break.

“We can protect her,” he assures me.

“ We .” I laugh back at him the way you’d expect a best friend to.

“Yeah, the club. She’s where she belongs now, Ruckus. Way she’s talking, she's looking to move on, we just have to find a way to keep her here.” He taps me on the shoulder before heading back over to her, and when she takes a second to break away from the conversation she’s having with Peyton, I swear it’s me she’s looking for as she searches the room with her eyes. I know it’s me when she finds me and smiles.

“Breaks ya heart, don’t it?” I glance over my shoulder and see Sinner looking at the same scene that I am. “Another untouchable. I always think it makes them all the more appealing.” He sniggers as he knocks back the vodka he’s got poured.

“You stay the fuck away from her,” I warn, pointing my finger in his face, and he looks down his nose at it and laughs. The guy’s a headcase, he has no fear and, in my opinion, he’s dangerous. But he and Saint are a package deal. Their disorder means we don’t get one without the other.

“I mean it, Sin, she’s off fuckin’ limits, even to you.”

“Don’t get teasy, Ruck. It don’t suit you.” He picks up his bottle of Vodka and laughs as he sways off in her direction. I notice that her eyes are still on me and something about the way they look at me tells me that she needs me. I decide the best thing I can do is get out of here, she has her brother to take care of her now. She can depend on him. I can’t be that guy for her, and that’s something we both have to learn to deal with.