Chapter 29 RINGO #2
“You know why I have to do this,” I murmur, grazing my thumb over the apple of her cheek. “But I’m also doing this for you and Bobbi. And my club brothers. It’s the right thing to do.”
Even though she hesitates, her nod in understanding is a fucking relief. She’s been around long enough now to know how things work in my world. It’s far from the world she should be living in, but she’s here for now, and soon, she’ll get her happily ever after with her daughter.
“I need you to win,” she breathes, taking a moment to clear her throat. “Because after you win, you and I are in a fight. I have things I want to say.”
My lips spread wide at her words and the way her dark eyes flare in anger. “Okay then, Angel. You and I are in a fight. I’ll make sure to win so I don’t miss the grilling you’re going to give me.”
She grins, but it’s slight. “There will be boxing gloves involved. I definitely need to smack you around.”
Throwing my head back, I laugh, and JD and Jols, who are standing on either side of my wife, join in.
“Okay. You have a deal.” I chuckle through my words, and her smile falls a second before she reaches out, gripping the end of my beard, and tugging me down to her height.
“I’m gonna make you my bitch,” she snaps. “And then…”
She trails off, and I raise a brow, trying not to cringe at the burn of my facial hair getting assaulted.
“And then?” I ask, and she shrugs.
“And then.” She leaves it at that, smashing her lips to mine.
I ignore the hoots and wolf whistles around us, wanting everyone to just fucking disappear and leave me alone with my Angel. My fucking heart.
“Come on, you fucking pussy. Stop stalling because you know you’re going to lose.”
I pull back from my wife at Nate’s cutting words, my jaw ticking as I let my anger free to course through my veins.
“Be right back, Angel,” I snap, stepping away from her as she releases my beard, and flick my gaze to JD. “The moment this starts to go south, you get her the fuck outta here and go to Devon. Do not fucking deviate from the plan. Knock her the fuck out if she tries to fight you.”
“Hey!” Abbey snaps, and I shoot her a wink, ignoring her fucking death glare.
“You got it, but do me a favour and don’t let it go south.” JD claps me on the shoulder. “You have more support in this room than you think. We don’t just need you alive. This club needs you to lead it.”
Fuck. I never wanted this. I’ve never even spoken of such fucking things to him before, so I know my challenge is a shock to my best mate, yet he’s here supporting me, wanting this for our club.
With a nod and one last long stare at my wife, I turn and face Nate Smith.
He saved me once. Gave me an outlet to unleash my rage, but now, things have changed.
He’s changed.
I’ve changed.
So now, the club must change too.
Rolling my head, I stretch it from side to side, holding out my arms as Tups searches me for any hidden weapons, and JD does the same to Nate.
Once that’s done, Celina approaches with an old wooden box that she must have fetched, which holds identical blades in it. The challenge knives.
The last time they were used was probably fifteen years ago. That time, the President won, holding his role in the club.
I can’t let that happen tonight. Even if I have to die too, Nate Smith is going down with me.
Being the President, Nate gets to choose his knife first, spending way too fucking long deciding which one he wants to use and not even noticing when Celina doesn’t meet his eyes.
They’ve been on the outs since she found out what he did to Daniel, yet he still gives her arse a slap when she turns and steps over to me, like he still fucking owns her.
Moving to me, she holds the open box that now only holds one knife, her eyes flicking up to mine.
“Kill him, Ringo,” she whispers. “He’s toxic.”
My brows hitch at her bold words. I know they aren’t an attempt to get on my good side. I can already see how much she despises him, but it’s risky for a Doxy to wish death on a club brother without risking punishment.
She’s been his old lady for God knows how fucking long. Longer than I’ve been around. I don’t know the story of how they came together, but I always assumed she fucking worshipped him.
Maybe I was wrong.
“I’m intending on it,” I rasp, reaching into the box and taking the other knife. “But if it goes bad, take the girls to the Red Room in Redfield. Griffin Marx will protect you.”
She gives me a slight nod before stepping away, clearing the space between me and Smitty.
“Let’s get this over with. I’ve got some money to spend,” the cocky fucker hisses, and his words flip my switch, rage soaring to the surface, and without a second fucking thought, I lunge for him.
My blade slashes across his bare chest, leaving a bright red line that starts seeping blood, and he fucking gasps like a chick, like he can’t believe I actually did that.
And then… it’s fucking on.
He lunges and I dodge, slashing his arm as I spin away, but the fucker nicks my hip on the way through.
We fucking dance around each other for a bit as the room erupts in support for each of us, getting a slash in here and there, my focus on his wild crazy eyes, and how fucking excited he looks to kill me.
Slashes of blood bloom on both of our torsos as we fight, and when Smitty slices through a few of the names on my inked death list over my ribs, he throws his hands up in the air, cheering like he’s fucking won.
Taking the opening, I lunge at him, not slashing this time, but stabbing his fighting arm.
He roars in agony as I plunge the blade in through skin and muscle before hitting bone, and he pants as spittle flies from his lips the moment I reef the fucking thing out.
“You fucking idiot!” he snarls. “You don’t know what you’re doing to this club. There’s more going on than you know!”
“Oh, yeah?” I snap as we dance around each other again. “Enlighten me.”
“You think I just randomly picked this land to buy?” He laughs like a fucking hyena again. “This land was owned by Terence and Viktoria Hill. They ran a fucking sex club out of this place.”
I dodge his now left-handed swing, which doesn’t even come close.
“I know all about the Vixen’s Lodge scandal, Nate. Tell me something I don’t fucking know.”
His eyes darken as a sinister glint flickers in his glare. “Banes isn’t just paying for your wife and her bastard kid.” He swipes awkwardly at me again, and again I dodge it. “He’s paying for the one last hard drive the cops couldn’t find hidden on the property.”
My dancing feet fucking still, and Nate’s smile widens.
“See, you don’t fucking know everything.”
“What fucking hard drive?” I snap, and the cunt waggles his brows.
“There was one hard drive the cops never found. One that holds probably the most incriminating evidence on it, linked to the dark web and the site, Carnal Unicorn.”
Gasps float through the air at his words, and the mention of the online trafficking site that was shut down just after this place burnt to the ground rings a bell.
“Banes is the founder.” Smitty points his bloody knife towards Banes and Abbey’s mum and sister, and the old fucker doesn’t even look bothered.
“Some of my best work,” he mutters, and roars of anger erupt across the room, some of the loudest coming from my wife.
I sneak a glance at her to see her fury locked on him, Jols and JD holding her back just like they did before.
Fuck. I knew Carnal Unicorn had been linked to the cult churches, but I didn’t consider that Banes was the brains behind it all.
“When I realised the connection between Abbey and Banes, it was too easy.” Smitty verbally vomits all his secrets, fuelling the fire in the pit of my gut even more. “It all fell into my lap. I tried to get rid of Charity politely, but someone had a hard-on for her straight away.”
“It’s Abbey! Not Charity!” she screeches from behind me, and Nate rolls his eyes.
“Whatever. You’ll always be a charity case to me!”
“Hey!” I lunge for him again, and the fucker dodges my attempt to stab his guts. “Show some fucking respect to my wife!”
Nate scoffs. “Pfft! She’s only your wife because of me.
I ordered you to marry her thinking you wouldn’t, since you were still a broken fucking man over Kylie and your own kid.
But you fucking did it. And it was never because you were forced.
” He fakes a gag. “You wanted that shit. Sweet, innocent, barely legal pussy.”
I fucking lunge at him, a roar flying from my lips, and he dodges it at the last second, getting in a stab to my fucking hip.
I stagger, feeling the burn of it radiate up my torso and down my leg as blood rushes from the fresh wound.
“So when that backfired…” He continues to spill his secrets, and I let him.
Even if he wins, he’s digging his own fucking grave right now.
“I went to the Rebels, or at least, I sent Moore to them.” All eyes shift to Moore, and the fucker shrinks back, stepping into Big Joey’s chest, one of our loyal members who fucking holds him in place.
“Our rivals were the perfect fucking plan, but noooo, you fuckers kept fighting them off.”
We continue to dance around each other as Smitty spews the information like it’s somehow going to save him, so I take it all in, trying not to let it get to me. I can’t let my emotions rule me in a fight for my life. I need to stay focused and strategic.
“What about Allen?” I snap. “Was he part of your fucking plan too?”
“Allen was a different story,” Smitty scoffs, swiping his knife awkwardly with his left hand and missing me. “He had his own agenda, which was fucking up my plans, but finding out Bobbi was alive is what put a spanner in the works.” He cackles. “In a good fucking way.”
When his eyes flick to the bag of cash by Tups’ feet, I understand what he means.
“Money?” I ask, and he nods proudly.
“The reward to hand your wife and the kid over to Banes went up. But you fucking kicked us off your land, remaining tight-fucking-lipped about what was happening. Even Lewy wouldn’t spill.” He shrugs, baring his teeth a little as he spits, “So I took matters into my own hands.”
He’s had it out for my wife for longer than I thought, and fuck if he hasn’t hidden it well.
His deceit just adds to the list of reasons why this has to happen.
This has to end now. I might die at the same time, but at least he will be gone too, and I know JD will make sure Banes gets what’s coming to him.
Smitty and I stare at each other, waiting for someone to make the next move, and he’s the one who finally gives in, swiping at me again. I lunge forward, my only focus to take him the fuck down, and the moment my knife pierces his skin, his knife plunges into me.
Pain bursts in my gut, but I focus my attack on his neck, driving the blade in over and over, slicing though the veins that course up the column, his blood painting us both as I plunge that fucking knife in so many times that I lose count.
I feel us falling. I hear the yelling and screaming, but all I see is Nate’s surprised expression as blood coughs past his lips, and the moment we hit the floor, my head bounces off the fucking concrete, sending me into a pitch-black vortex of nothingness.