Ty (Hell's Handlers MC Florida Chapter Book 6)

Prologue

EVERY NOISE MADE her jump like she’d been zapped with a cattle prod—footsteps, muffled voices, the distant ringing of cell phones, even the frequent chirp of her monitors. Each sound grated on her, scraping exposed nerves with sandpaper and bringing her one inch closer to her ultimate limit.

The pain medicine she’d received flowed through her veins, giving her a floaty, out-of-body sensation, but it wasn’t enough to combat the edgy anxiety keeping her on high alert. Fear lingered like an uninvited houseguest who refused to leave. The kind that drove a person crazy and demanded attention twenty-four hours a day.

If she’d had her way, the doctors would have doubled the dose of whatever narcotic they’d given her. She wanted more than the recommended amount for pain control—enough to knock her out so she could exist in oblivion until the trauma faded.

If it faded.

Lying there in the uncomfortable hospital bed, Kelsie couldn’t fathom a future where she made peace with what she’d suffered. In the few hours since she’d been rescued from the depths of hell and whisked to a hospital, she’d been told by no less than fifteen people to “give it time.”

As though time would erase the traumatic memories.

As though it would remove the pain, humiliation, and fear.

As though time could change anything.

Nothing would dim the horror of what they’d done to her. Not time, not the damn pain meds, not the heroic people who’d rescued and delivered her to the hospital, promising to stay by her side as long as she needed them. Everyone wanted to help, but no one could turn back the clock to the day before she accepted her first date in years.

The door creaked as it swung ajar, making her jolt. One of the women who’d accompanied her to the hospital poked her head in. Her boyfriend or husband belonged to the motorcycle club that had discovered her when they’d come for their friend, who’d also been kidnapped. Fortunately, the bikers knew she’d gone missing and found her before things passed the point of no return. Kelsie hadn’t been so lucky. No big family of bikers waited in the wings, worrying when she vanished.

“Hey, sweetie, I got some ice water for you.”

She’d requested water from the endlessly kind and patient Harper to get rid of her for a few moments. Not that Kelsie wasn’t grateful for the support, but she hadn’t had a moment alone since the rescue. They’d probably done that on purpose, afraid for her fragile mental state since she’d nearly stabbed one of the men who’d come to save her. But she was accustomed to being alone and craved a few moments of solitude. A few seconds to stop pretending she was okay.

She wasn’t okay and wouldn’t ever be again.

Those were just the facts.

“Thank you,” she said to Harper as the other woman set the plastic pitcher on the room”s rolling table.

“Let me pour you some.” Harper filled a Styrofoam cup with icy water and then dropped in a bendable straw. “Here you go.” She reached across the narrow table to hand the water over.

“Thank you.” Kelsie accepted the cup. The frigid liquid felt sublime as it slipped down her scratchy throat. When was the last time she’d had a drink? Sometime yesterday, maybe. She’d shared a child-sized paper cup of warm water with Brenna, the woman who’d been held in captivity with her. They had an IV pumping her full of the good stuff, but the taste of water satisfied in a way that couldn’t.

“Of course,” Harper said with an easy smile. “Anything you need.”

Anything she needed. If only that were possible. Right now, she only needed one thing—to turn back time to the moment one week ago when she’d ignored her instincts and accepted a date with a man named Oliver. A man who’d drugged her wine while she’d used the restroom during dinner, allowing her to be easily abducted.

“Kelsie?”

She jumped and then blinked. “Sorry. Did you say something?”

At some point, while Kelsie zoned out, Harper sat in the rock-hard chair next to the bed.

The smile Harper wore held patience and empathy, two things she seemed to have in spades. Kelsie almost felt guilty for wishing the woman would leave. Harper didn’t deserve Kelsie trying to get rid of her, but right then, she didn’t have the capacity to care fully.

“I just wanted to let you know that your entire care team knows you are only comfortable with female providers. They will make sure all staff who interact with you, from nurses to housekeeping and everyone in between, are women.”

“Oh.” Kelsie’s eyes flooded as shame set in. There she’d been wishing this kind and generous woman would go the hell home, and Harper had been out making sure Kelsie was taken care of. “Thank you,” she croaked.

“You’re very welcome.” Again, with the empathetic smile, it was as though Harper could crawl inside Kelsie’s head and take a good look around at the horror show.

But no one knew the nightmare reel playing on repeat, not even Brenna, who’d been locked in an underground room with Kelsie for days. Kelsie would live with her demons alone.

“I wouldn’t have stabbed him,” she blurted, even though she didn’t fully believe her own words. When the cavalry came, and the fierce biker burst into her cell, her first instinct had been to protect herself.

To fight.

Funny, considering she’d thought that instinct had been beaten out of her at the hands of depraved men. But being imprisoned with Brenna had given her newfound strength. So, when the man they called Spec burst into her cell, she’d attacked and managed to catch him off guard long enough to steal the knife off his belt.

She’d reached a breaking point where the thought of more pain and more torment was unfathomable. Spec had entered her space, and he was a man. Men had been hurting her in horrendous ways for days. She’d reacted like a trapped animal, and it had taken more than a little pleading from Brenna for her to drop the knife and trust her rescuers.

“I know,” Harper said as she rested her elbows on the edge of the bed. “Trust me when I tell you Spec could have disarmed you at any time. That man is a machine.”

Frowning, Kelsie picked at a loose thread on the thin hospital-provided blanket. “Why didn’t he?” Spec had stood in front of her calmly, hands in the air, trying to talk her down until Brenna arrived. If he could have disarmed her, why the hell hadn’t he?

“Because as lethal as his capabilities are, Spec is a good man. He’d have let you stab him before doing something that could have hurt you or traumatized you further.”

“Oh.” She’d have to take Harper’s word for it. Since she’d been rescued, being anywhere near a man triggered some kind of trauma response or panic attack. She’d not only threatened a biker with his own knife, but she had a meltdown when a male doctor tried to examine her in the Emergency Room.

Humiliating.

But it seemed to be her new reality. The rest of her life would be difficult if she couldn’t be in the presence of men.

Well, all but one man.

Ty, they’d called him. An imposing man with a fierce scowl, deep tan, and dark, shaggy hair with a few silver strands peeking through the deep brown locks. He hadn’t spoken much and had to be close to twenty years older than she was, but she’d felt safe around him for some reason. So safe, she’d allowed him to carry her out of the hellhole of captivity and cradle her on his lap in the getaway car.

She hadn’t seen him since arriving at the hospital but couldn’t shake him from her mind. As much as she wanted to ask Harper about him or request his presence in her room, she resisted. It made no sense that every other man who came near caused a massive freakout, and she didn’t have the energy to endure the questioning stares or confused comments his comfort would bring.

Still, she couldn’t help but wonder where he was and if he’d visit her sometime.

“Kelsie?”

She blinked, bringing Harper’s concerned face back into focus. “Sorry. My mind keeps wandering.”

“It’s all right.” The kind woman squeezed Kelsie’s hand. “Is there anyone we can call for you? Family? Parents? A… boyfriend?”

Keslie’s blood turned to ice at the thought of anyone calling her family. And boyfriend? Ha, if she’d had one of those, she’d never have ended up in this bed. “No, no boyfriend. I was, uh, I was on a first date when...”

Nodding, Harper rubbed her thumb across Kelsie’s knuckles in a soothing motion. “Family?”

“And no family. I mean, I have family, but… no. I don’t want them notified.”

A V formed between Harper’s eyebrows. “Okay,” she said with a nod. “No one will call them.” The unspoken disagreement with the choice hung heavy in the air, but thankfully, Harper didn’t push the issue or ask any more questions.

Exhaustion like she’d never known weighed down Kelsie’s limbs and heavied her eyelids. She hadn’t slept for more than a few fitful hours at a time in about a week. Her body demanded sleep but didn’t want to fall asleep in front of Harper. The woman might have been beyond kind in helping a stranger, but she was just that, a stranger. And she’d yet to earn Kelsie’s full trust.

After a few moments of charged silence, Harper gave her a weak smile. “You look absolutely wrecked. Would it be easier to sleep if I stepped out for a while?”

Yes. A million times, yes.

“Oh, no, that’s okay. I mean, if you need or want to go, then, of course, do your thing. But please don’t feel like I’m kicking you out.”

Leave. Leave. Leave.

“I don’t. Have any plans, that is. But I can appreciate how sleeping without someone you barely know staring at you would be more comfortable. Before I go, though, I want to give you something to think about. I know nothing about your life, but you don’t seem eager to contact anyone. The other women associated with the motorcycle club and I are in the process of developing a shelter for women in your very position. We are nearly finished with construction but won’t be fully operational for a few more months. That being said, we’d like to offer you a room, a place to stay for as long as you need it once you’re discharged. It’ll be a fantastic place to heal. You’ll also be able to see Brenna whenever you want. The building is on the club’s property. It’s very secure and extremely safe. You’ll have nothing to fear while you”re there.”

Nothing but a legion of giant bikers.

Men.

Large, rough men with a capability for violence.

The thought of being anywhere near that kind of population drove a bolt of fear into her heart. There was no way in hell she’d survive a place like that, even if Harper hit the nail on the head.

She’d be better off returning to her studio apartment. It’d be lonely, but being alone meant no one could hurt her.

“Thank you, Harper,” she said with a smile that felt as phony as it was. “I will really think about it. It could be perfect for me.”

Liar.

“Great.” Harper beamed as she stood. After one final squeeze of Kelsie’s hand, she gathered her purse. “We’ll give you a few hours to rest. Either Brooke or I will be back this afternoon… maybe even Brenna. I have a feeling we won’t be able to keep her away. She’s extremely worried about you.”

“Okay. Thank you.”

She wanted to say it wasn’t necessary. To beg Harper to leave her alone, but she couldn’t be that rude to such a sweet woman.

“I left you a prepaid phone with my number in it. Call if you need anything. I think Brooke’s is in there as well, and Tyler”s, too, since you seemed okay around him.”

Her cheeks heated. “Thank you,” she whispered.

Harper nodded. “Try to get some rest.”

“I will.”

The people who rescued her hefted so much kindness and compassion her way over the past few hours that she had no idea how to deal with it. Kelsie was used to being on her own—working alone, living alone, just being alone. Life was easier that way.

But it was so damn lonely, which was why she’d caved and gone on that date with Oliver.

The man who’d drugged her and destroyed what little life she had.

She closed her eyes and willed herself to sleep. Eons seemed to pass where she hovered in a half-awake, half-asleep, minimally restful state. But maybe that was a trick of the mind. Maybe she’d fallen into a deep dream-filled slumber because, at one point, she could have sworn she opened her eyes to find a stunning man with tattoos, muscles, and a deep scowl seated next to her bed.

Dream Tyler never spoke to her, but his presence warmed and calmed her. She felt safe and protected for the first time in a week, hell, in months. His imaginary presence allowed her to slip into the deep, restorative sleep her body needed.

When she awoke, the vision vanished, and he wasn’t there, of course, but her head felt clearer than it had in ages.

Thank you, dream Tyler.

With a newfound clarity, one thing was certain—Kelsie couldn’t stay at the shelter Harper mentioned. She couldn’t even stay in the hospital.

It was time to move on before her secrets were exposed and her life imploded yet again.