Chapter Five #3
Then I see her. Lena. Her lifeless body curled on the ground, covered in bruises and cuts, her jeans missing, blood covering her bruised thighs.
I know she’s gone without needing to check.
They took them from us. Our only fucking siblings.
They took them and tortured them. Based on everything in front of me, I know they raped Lena in front of Lucas.
Over and over again, while he was forced to watch her torment.
Bile rises up, but I push it back down. Rage consumes me like an inferno.
I’m going to kill them all.
Rolo wipes tears from his eyes, coughing into his elbow as I move toward Lena, scooping her up into my arms as respectfully as I can, knowing we need to get out of here before the entire house burns down on top of us. My men exit first, and then I’m walking away from my brother, my best friend.
Lena’s body hangs lifeless in my arms, and the last part of my beating heart freezes over as Rogue collapses to his knees, an animalistic cry echoing through the night around us, which causes everyone to stop in their tracks.
Every step I take toward him, my resolve deepens, my plan for vengeance getting stronger. My plan for complete destruction.
Chaos takes over. Burying what’s left of Camden Young in his wake.
I stop in front of my patch brother, dropping down to one knee and carefully placing Rogue’s sister in his waiting arms. I let myself feel every ounce of his pain, let it seep through my pores and fill my bloodstream.
It blends with my own rage, bubbling to the surface above all else.
He screams and cries, rocking his sweet sister in his arms while he pleads to the false gods of this world, begging for an exchange, begging for help.
Help that won’t come. Not from any of them.
My men drop to their knees in respect, and I stand tall, unwavering.
My breathing comes in steady pants, my bloodstream a violent, electric thrum.
My molars grind together as I watch my family crumble, the house behind us finally collapsing, the roar of the foundation giving and the materials crashing to the solid ground, dust and ash consuming the air around us.
“Wh-where’s Lucas?” Rogue asks, his voice hoarse as he heaves air into his lungs.
I straighten my shoulders. “He can’t be recovered. They burned him alive.” The words taste like ash on my tongue, foreign and unwanted. I swallow roughly, the heat of the flames licking at my back.
“Fuck!” he screams, the pained sound piercing my ears like broken glass.
My brothers stay crouched around us, quiet as the night, ready and waiting for orders.
I never imagined I would be here. Worked my entire life to protect Lucas from harm, only to fail him when it mattered the most. Failed Lucas. Failed Rogue. Failed my Heathens.
It won’t happen again.
A strong kick to my thigh wakes me up from my night terror, the last images I have of Lucas permanently etched into the back of my eyes.
I sit up quickly, heaving in a deep breath of air as if I was holding it in my sleep.
I take stock of my surroundings, finding myself in my bed, in my room at the clubhouse.
“An old friend of yours?” A feminine, sultry voice breaks through the surface of my haze as my head snaps in the direction it came from. Saige. My heart rate picks up, as if it weren’t already beating out of my chest.
“Something like that.”
“Pinch the skin between your thumb and your forefinger. It helps.”
I look at her, taking in the soft features of her face that are so at odds with her fiery personality. She’s such an enigma.
“And how would you know?”
“You aren’t the only one whose past haunts them.
” Her eyes are solemn, fluttering closed like she’s imagining something, a different life, maybe.
My heart sinks in my chest. I should have recognized her strength for what it was.
It’s a strength that derives from pain, a deep, soul-aching pain that is buried in its wake.
I’m moving before I realize it, throwing my leg over her body and straddling her.
Saige’s eyes pop open, wide and searching my face for answers.
Instead of saying anything, I lean forward over her, lifting the key hanging around my neck into the first cuff around her wrist. I don’t miss the sharp inhale she takes as I free her, taking my time to rub the redness around her skin with my thumb, being careful around the cuts from the previous cuffs, before freeing her other hand.
Saige gently lets her arms fall between us, her chest rising and falling at a steady rhythm. She’s so fucking pretty it hurts. But aren’t all snakes?
“You can use the bathroom; there’s a toothbrush under the sink.
” Her head bops back slightly, as if I surprised her.
With one last, longing look, I climb off her, standing on her side of the bed and offering my hand.
She looks at it like it will strike her, her body rigid and protective.
“I meant what I said, Saige. I’d never take a woman against her will, I’d never hurt you.
Even if you hurt me first.” My voice is low and calm, hoping that she can hear the truth reflected in my words.
She looks at me for a moment before standing on her own, refusing my hand and walking to the bathroom in silence, her head held high. Just as she tries to shut the door, I’m there, grabbing the edge with my hand, preventing it from closing all the way.
“I said I’d never hurt you, didn’t say anything about trusting you.”
“So, you’re just going to stand there and watch me pee?”
“I’ve got no interest in watching you, but I’m gonna stand right here with the door open.
There’s plenty of things in here you could find useful to stab me in the eye with or hide in your clothes for later.
Unless you want to strip down naked and stay that way so I know you’re free of weapons, why don’t you sit your pretty little ass down, relieve yourself, brush your teeth, wash your face, do whatever you need to do, so we can go back to sleep. ”
“Fuck you, Camden.”
“Yeah, baby, you’ve said that already.”
I stand outside the door, trying to give her as much privacy as I can while also not putting my walls down. She’s dangerous, and as much as I’m attracted to everything about this woman, I don’t trust her, and until I can, she’s my prisoner.
When Saige is done, she marches up to me, looking a bit more human, and I’m sure feeling a helluva lot better.
She’s removed her jacket, leaving her in nothing but a tank top, sans bra.
The outline of her breasts is visible, and I trace over every inch of them.
Her nipples are pierced, metal barbells pressing against the thin fabric of her shirt.
My mouth waters to taste them, wanting to find out just how sensitive they are.
“Can I go now?”
“Not until you tell me why you tried to cuff me, and where the hell you were gonna take me.”
“Not gonna happen, so I guess we’re both gonna die in here.”
“No one’s dying,” I grind out. “Now get your ass back in bed.” Her arm moves quickly, pressing against my neck as she shoves me against the wall, her other hand grabbing a handful of my junk and squeezing just enough to get my attention.
My hands move to her waist, my fingertips digging slightly into the bit of flesh there.
My thumbs meet bare skin, and I swipe back and forth against her gently, just a firm pressure, enough to let her feel that I’m there.
“Let me go, or I’ll kill you.”
An amused smile curves at my lips. “Is that what your plan was all along, baby? To kill me?”
“Eventually. First, I was going to torture you slowly until I pushed you to the point you were begging to meet your maker.” I stare into the endless depths of her irises, searching for the lie and coming up short. She’s serious.
“Ahh. Sorry to have thwarted your plans, sweetheart. I take it you’re not in the mood to tell me why.”
“I hate you. That enough of a reason for you?”
“Not even slightly.” With one last squeeze of her hips, I move fast, wrenching her arms behind her back and pushing her against the wall, her back to my front. “You’re good, baby, but I’m better. I’m happy to practice with you if you want.”
“Fuck you, Camden!”
“I believe the word you’re looking for is ‘me.’ Fuck me, Camden.”
“In your fucking dreams, you evil, sick prick!”
“Oh, baby, trust me, I’ll be dreaming about it until the day I die. And the next time you want to touch my cock, all you have to do is ask.”
Saige puts up a fight, screaming so loud it could wake the dead, but I eventually get her back in the bed and cuffed when there’s a knock on my door.
“You gonna be stupid and tell me not to move again?” she quips.
I give her a lethal stare that she returns just as good.
Fuck, this woman is gonna be the death of me.
I move toward the door, opening it slightly and coming face-to-face with Sin, his arms crossed at his chest, giving me a look of concern.
“Just checkin’ on you.”
“We’re good.”
“You sure about that? ’Cause the screams and banging around are kinda making it seem like maybe you aren’t.”
I look back at the demon sitting in my bed, jerking on the cuffs, causing herself more harm, and pissing me off further in the process. When I look back at Sin, he’s leaning forward, his eyes wide as he gets his first glimpse of her in my bed.
“Do we need a priest?”
“A what?”
“A priest. For an exorcism.”
“I don’t need a fucking exorcism, you asshole! I need to be freed!” she screams like a banshee, pulling at the cuffs and shaking her head violently from side to side.
“Jesus, you got your hands full with that one. What the fuck did you do to her?”
“Nothing, she’s been feral since I met her. Got any tips for getting her to talk?”
“Nope. Just wanted to make sure you two were good. Sounded like someone was dying.”
“I’ve got it under control. We’ll meet tomorrow and get a plan together for how to move forward.”
“Sounds good, Prez. Don’t let her kill you in your sleep.”
I close the door on Sin and flick the lock, turning to face Saige as she’s blowing her bangs out of her face.
“Is all this really necessary?” I ask, annoyed and equally proud of her fight.
“Camden, you literally have me handcuffed to your fucking bed, you tell me.”
“Saige, every time you have use of your hands, you attack me. I’m a reasonable man, talk to me.”
“Talk to you? What the hell do you want to discuss?”
“I don’t know, maybe why you followed me? How you know me? What you want with me?”
“Fu—”
“If you tell me to fuck off one more time, I swear to God,” I interrupt as I take a deep, steadying breath. “I promise, no matter your reasoning, you won’t be harmed here. You’re safe, Saige.”
“I’m safe?” she questions. “I am so far from safe here at your hell house of horrors. You and your band of hellions are killers. You harm, you take, you destroy, you kill. You’re all the same!” Her anger is palpable, and my heart races in my chest.
“Damn, baby, who hurt you? Tell me their names and I’ll lay them at your feet.” A deep, maniacal laugh bursts from her, her eyes wild and blown. I stand at the foot of my bed in my underwear, confused and concerned as fuck.
“If you only fucking knew, you idiot.”
“There’s only one way to fix that, sweetheart, and it sure as shit isn’t by keeping it to yourself.”
“Let’s just go to bed.”
“Not a chance in hell. Talk.”
“Oh, you can fuck off with that manly, I’m in charge, I’m going to order you around bullshit because it isn’t going to work on me. Either let me go, or go to bed.”
“I’m not letting you go, Saige. Not until you tell me who hurt you.
” Instead of getting angry with her refusal, I move toward her side of the bed, squatting down to be at her level.
She’s lying on her side in the fetal position, looking right through me, her brown eyes glassy and strained, and I don’t know her well enough—or at all, really—to know if it’s from emotion or something else entirely.
My fingertips itch to touch her, and I don’t bother denying myself the pleasure of giving her comfort. It’s foreign, and I can’t explain why I feel this deep, aching desire to erase all her pain. I’ve known her for mere hours. But every fiber of my being is telling me Saige is mine.
I reach out tentatively, gently swiping her hair from her face and tucking it behind her ear. She blinks slowly, finally meeting my eyes, and my heart nearly beats out of my chest. Hell, she takes my breath away.
“You may not know a damn thing about me yet, but I don’t say things just to hear myself talk. Whatever you’ve been through, whatever has happened, you are safe here, safe with me.”
“How can you say that when you know nothing about me? When just a few hours ago, I was trying to cuff you? I just admitted I was going to kill you.”
“I may not know all the little details about you yet, like how you take your coffee, whether you’re a morning person or a night owl, or your favorite color, but I do know how I felt the moment I saw you climb off that bike.”
“And how was that, Camden?”
“Like everything in my life led me to that moment and then shifted under my feet. I’ve never felt the way I do when I look at you.”
“Then why am I cuffed to the bed?”
“Because I’m the president of this club, and I don’t trust you yet.
You’ve given me nothing but reasons not to trust you, and as much as I would like to free you, to give you an opportunity to talk like an adult and figure this shit out, I won’t jeopardize the lives of the men and women who live here. The men and women I’m responsible for.”
Saige blinks at me, but I can see her brain working, digesting my words and thinking them over.
I don’t know how, but I’m going to get through to her.
Her hate of clubs goes deep, and something must have happened to taint her opinion of them.
But we aren’t like everyone else, and I want to prove that to her.
I won’t let her go until I know the truth, what she’s hiding, and what she wants with me.