Serena
As the sun began its slow descent beyond the trees, the sky transformed into a canvas painted with hues of orange, pink, and gold. A gentle breeze caressed the surface of the lake, creating ripples that danced with the fading light. Sitting by the water's edge, I found a small semblance of solace in the embrace of nature that I haven’t been able to feel for what feels like weeks.
The world seemed to pause in this moment of serene perfection. A sense of calm was washing over me that had been lost in the turbulence that had become my life. I never could have imagined my life turning into what it has. The danger that seems to always be right around the corner, no matter what I do.
I breathe in the fresh air, holding it in my lungs, and close my eyes. I needed to escape the town that houses all my best dreams and my worst nightmares.
I dangle my feet off the dock, swaying them just above the cold lake water. My hands gripping the dock tightly, like it is the only thing holding me up in this moment. My thoughts are swirling from the last few days.
After the guys left my house on Sunday to go to another meeting at the clubhouse with their fathers, things have only seemed to get weirder. If that is even possible at this moment. Zane, Ryker, and Axel have disappeared. No one knows where they went or when they will be back. Not that it matters to me, the longer they are gone, the better. But unease has been constantly coursing through me at the unknown of where they have gone. It has been three days since they left, and every day, paranoia creeps in more and more.
The Kings haven’t left my side since their dad’s disappearing act, clearly worried about the same things I am, even though none of us have voiced our concerns. But I can see it in their eyes. They are constantly looking over their shoulders, wondering if/when an attack could happen.
I called Dante and told him. He begged me to come and stay with him, but I can’t just leave my life. I have school, friends, and my mom. I can’t just escape into the safety of his home and leave everything behind. It was tempting, but I refuse to give up and pieces of my life again. I did that for too long before, and I won’t this time.
Dante promised that Marco would investigate where they possibly could have gone, but so far there have been no traces of them anywhere. No bank transactions. No surveillance camera footage of them. Nothing. It’s like they just fell off the face of the earth.
As the colors in the sky deepened and the day gave way to twilight, I opened my eyes, taking in the last rays of sunlight. I smiled, grateful for this peaceful interlude, a moment of pure connection with the world around me instead of the fucked-up situation I am currently in.
As the stars start to shine brightly above me, I glance up. Admiring the beauty in this moment. Growing up in a big city, the stars were something I never got to look at. Always blocked out by the bright lights that never seemed to diminish. The hustle and bustle of city life is such a distant memory to the small town living I experience now.
I tuck my feet under me and rise, ready to drive back home. I wrap my leather jacket tighter around me now that the air has grown colder, thankful I was wearing it. When I left for school this morning, I almost didn’t grab it, not expecting to come out here. But after the day I had, I knew I needed the serenity of this place.
Nothing happened today, but it didn’t matter where I was or what I was doing, I had the feeling of being watched constantly. I couldn’t even count the number of times I looked over my shoulder or scanned the entire room I was in, just hoping to find the source of discomfort I felt, but nothing ever seemed out of place. No one was directly looking at me. Nothing out of place in any of my classes. The only time I caught someone blatantly staring at me was during lunch. Valerie gave me a death glare from across the room with her little cronies until Midas caught her, and that immediately made her stop.
The one time that feeling was the strongest was while in math class at the end of the day. I couldn’t explain it, but there was something about it that made my skin crawl and the hairs on the back of my neck stand up. Once again, though, nothing seemed out of place, but that unease never left.
The Kings wanted to follow me, saying that I shouldn’t be alone, but that is exactly what I needed. Some space. Not from them, but from everything else. Before they could protest more, I hopped in my car and left the parking lot. I know they followed me through town, I could see their bikes behind me the whole time. Everywhere I stopped, they did too.
They followed me until I hit Richmond, then they suddenly turned around and left. I don’t know why they didn’t follow or even why I went there. I originally thought about going to see Dante, but I didn’t know where he would be or what he was doing, and the feeling of intruding hit me hard.
Eventually, I turned around and drove. Not knowing where I was going until I parked my car next to the lake. It suddenly hit me then that this is what I needed.
The walk to my car wasn’t nearly long enough, and the thought of going home wasn’t something I wanted, but I knew soon enough, Mom would get anxious and want me home. She has become even worse than the Kings with worrying about me. I get it. I was shot and spent the night in the hospital. That would be worrisome to any parent, which is why I can’t tell her the rest. Knowing my mom, she would blame herself and then pack all our things and leave town.
I hit the unlock button on my keys, and all the lights suddenly brightened. Something doesn’t look right. I walk up next to my car and notice that one of my tires is slashed and on the rim. Not just one, but all of them. Fuck.
I pull my phone out and call the one person I know who would help no matter what and is good with cars.
The phone rings only once before his deep voice answers.
“Zeus, I need some help.”
“, what’s going on?”
“Someone slashed my tires.”
“I’m coming to get you. Where are you?”
“At the lake.”
“Ok. Stay on the line with me. We will be there as soon as we can. Get in your car and lock the doors. Don’t open them for anyone but us.”
Before I can respond, bright lights shine from a car I didn’t notice before. A man in all black and a ski mask jumps out of the car and starts running towards me. I let out a scream of fright before dropping my phone and running as fast as I could into the surrounding forest.
I can hear his footsteps getting closer to me. My breath is the only thing I can hear past the ring of fear in my ears. I take random turns, hoping to lose him in the density of this forest. But no matter where I turn, he seems to be right on my heels.
This is probably the only time in my life I wished I had a gun, or a knife, or literally anything else on me that could save me in this moment. I have never been one for violence like that, but I think this justifies it. Who knows what this guy is going to do to me once he gets his hands on me. He tried to kill me the last time, and who’s to say that he won’t succeed this time?
The roar of engines sounds off in the distance, and as soon as they stop, my name is called loudly and repeatedly. I know those voices, and I have never been happier that they are here. I open my mouth to yell out to them, wanting to let them know I am here, but a hand wraps around my mouth, silencing me.
I trash in his arms, the memories of Halloween haunting me. This can’t be happening again. I kick, claw, and scream behind his hand, praying that the guys can hear me and will find me.
I hear a thud to my right and Zeus cursing. Midas and Odin sound like they are fighting with others. Their curses and grunts flow on the wind towards me. Stalker starts to look around as he drags me further into the woods. My feet dragging through the mud, hoping it will slow him down enough that they can find me.
I bite his hand as hard as I can, and he yells out and releases my mouth. I scream out for help. I can hear them calling back out to me, telling me they are coming for me, but they are still busy fighting with whoever else is helping my stalker.
With a whoosh, someone tackles the two of us from the side, throwing us both to the ground. I manage to roll out of my stalker's arms and get to my feet, wanting to see who tackled him. I watch as Michael and the stalker start fighting. Punches are thrown between the two, both landing some solid hits.
Finally, Michael throws a punch into the stalker's gut that causes him to take a few steps back, but before Michael can move towards him again, the stalker pulls out a gun and points it at Michael.
The thoughts start swirling in my head again. That night, coming back in flashes that I try to push out of my head. He came here to kill me again. He came here with a gun, ready to kill me or hurt me.
The Kings come bursting through the trees, rushing towards me until the stalker turns the gun towards me. Everyone stops moving, and I practically stop breathing as I stare down the barrel of a gun. Again. I want to look back at the guys, to see their faces one last time before I am killed, but the bang of a shot being fired makes me close my eyes and wait for the inevitable pain that is to come.
Except it doesn’t this time. Instead, I hear a thud behind me. I don’t care if the gun is still pointed in my direction anymore. I turn and rush towards Midas as he lies on the ground, blood pooling from his arm. The same place that I was shot not that long ago.
I hear footsteps running through the woods, but I don’t bother to look. I already know he is getting away again. And as much as I should care that he is getting away, I don’t. I am too focused on the man in front of me, who already owns so much of my heart. Someone whom I love.
Michael calls out for the man to stop, but he is already too far to hear him. I look over my shoulder at Michael. A conflicted look on his face as he looks between Midas and me, and the direction the stalker went. He pulls out his phone, quickly types a message before shoving it back in his pocket and rushing over to the four of us.
“Here,” Micheal hands me a handkerchief. “Put that on the wound to stop the bleeding. I have a medic coming to look at that for you.”
“Thank you.” I breathe out, taking the handkerchief and placing it on the wound.
Midas hisses out as I make contact, but his eyes are focused on me. “Fuck, angel. I was so worried for you. We would have been here sooner if there hadn’t been other goons waiting in the woods and attacked us.”
“I never thought that guy would be organized enough to have helpers.” Odin remarks.
“He isn’t. Those are my men. They were supposed to follow me to help recover Ms. Gold, but I guess when they saw you three, they thought you might be a part of this too. Sorry for them attacking you.” Michael says, his eyes full of regret as he looks at Midas.
“Thank you, Michael. You saved me.”
“Anytime, Ms. Gold.”
Odin helps Midas stand, and Zeus does the same for me. He pulls me into his arms, encasing my entire body in his. I tuck my head into his neck, inhaling his strong masculine scent with a hint of motor oil. A scent that is purely him that soothes every part of my soul.
I feel a body press against my back and arms tightening around both Zeus and me, Odin’s smell of smoke and leather mixes perfectly with Zeus’s. Both hold on to me like their lives depend on it, and a part of mine does too. I glanced out to look for Midas, wondering why he wasn’t a part of this hug party we seemed to be having. But he is having a hushed conversation with Michael, both looking extremely engrossed in whatever is being discussed between the two.
Odin and Zeus don’t let go of me until Midas and Michael have finished their conversation. We all silently walked back out towards my car, but the closer we got, the more anxiety I felt. How did I not notice another car parked so close to mine? Sure, it is dark now and there are no streetlights out here, but I never even heard it pull up. Who knows how long he was there waiting for me. But if he was waiting, why didn’t he try to sneak up on me while I was sitting on the dock?
We make it back to the clearing, and my car isn’t the only one here anymore. Four massive SUVs are parked around my car, and the guy's three motorcycles are parked close by. I’m guessing Michael called someone to come change my tires, because all the slashed ones are gone and replaced with brand new tires.
A man I have never seen before approaches Michael, and the two soon start a conversation in Italian. I barely pay them any attention, my sight focused on where the stalker's car is still parked. I’m guessing he knew he wouldn’t be able to get to his car with all these people here, so he left it. Hopefully, there is something that can be found inside to give us a clue as to who this is.
“Are you alright?” Midas asks.
I turned to him and took in his appearance. He looks so scared, but also relieved that I am here. I wrap my arms around his waist, pulling him close to me. He holds me close to his chiseled chest and kisses the top of my head.
“I am now,” I whisper into him, and his arms tighten almost painfully against me, but it’s a pain I revel in.
The loud engine of another car pulls into the clearing, and Dante practically throws himself from it before it comes to a complete stop. He rushes over to Midas and me as Nico, Marco, and Bastian exit the vehicle.
“Darling, are you alright? What happened?” Dante’s voice is frantic as he tries to pull me out of Midas’s arms.
Midas growls like a rabid animal at Dante. They stand off against each other until Dante finally gives up trying to pry me from his arms. Nico, Marco, and Bastian are standing in the background, looking amused at the tension.
The next few minutes are spent relaying the details of the night to Dante and the others. Nico offers for them to go check out the woods to see if there are any signs of where he went. I want to tell them not to. It’s dark and the forest is vast. It would be like finding a needle in a haystack.
Nico grips my shoulder, giving me a sympathetic smile before he, Marco, and Bastian rush away. I watch until they disappear into the darkness before turning back around.
“Sir,” Michael starts. “We found nothing in the vehicle. The plates are fake, so we can’t even trace them to the owner. I’m sorry.”
My face drops at that information, really hoping there would have been something we could have used to track that asshole down. But I am also not surprised by that. The guy seems smart, so there is no way he would use his car for something like this.
Dante and Michael start speaking to each other in Italian. I can tell Dante is pissed but I have no clue what they are saying. At this moment, I don’t care. I just want to go home, crawl into bed, and sleep forever.
I turned to Midas. “Can you take me home? I don’t want to drive right now.”
“Of course, angel. You never need to ask me for anything. I would give you the world if I could.” Midas tips my chin up and plants a kiss on my lips. I melt into him more. Someone clears their throat. I turn and see Michael standing in front of me. My cheeks pinken with embarrassment. Somehow, I completely forget I am surrounded by a team of people.
To give Michael credit, he barely seems fazed by the display. His eyes are stony, focused on what he needs to do. “Do you mind if I take your car for the evening? I want to do a more thorough investigation to make sure he didn’t do anything else to it.”
I nod my head before saying goodnight to Dante. Midas wraps his arm around my shoulder, leading me away from the living nightmare that has become my life. I don’t even want to think of what he could have done to my car, but knowing what that man is capable of, I wouldn’t be surprised if he did something.
Midas helps me get on to the back of his bike, and I wrap my arms tightly around him and close my eyes. I can hear the Odin and Zeus getting on their motorcycles before the three of them start the engines, and we all take off back home.
It doesn’t take long for us to pull up to my home, but the last thing I want is to go inside. I should feel safe in my home, but I don’t. Not when I know he has been in my room before. The nightmares aren’t as bad as they were the first few nights after the attack, but sleep still eludes me most nights. I jump at every small noise, and the feeling of being watched is always there.
I get off the back of Midas’s bike and walk towards his house. I need to be close to him tonight. He took a bullet for me. He once again saved me when I needed him the most. The three of them walk with me to Midas’s front door, but only Midas comes in. Odin and Zeus each say goodnight and give a kiss before they go their separate ways to their homes.
Midas’s house is dark and quiet. His father is nowhere to be seen, which makes me think even more that he was the one who was there tonight. Midas puts his hand on my lower back and leads me towards his room.
He flicks the light on, and I take in his bedroom. Everything is dark here. Dark grey walls. Black furniture. A massive TV on one wall with a few bean bag chairs in front of it. I can see gaming controllers lying on the ground. Turning around, my mouth drops at the sight of Midas with his shirt off. I have always known how beautiful he is, but to see him like this is something completely different. His abs are toned to perfection. The muscles on his arms are bulging without having to flex.
He is examining the graze wound on his arm. Poking it and hissing from the pain. I walk over to get a better look at it, needing to see how bad the wound is.
“You should get that patched up,” I remark.
“I’ve had worse. This is nothing. Plus, there isn’t anywhere else I want to be tonight. I just need you in my arms to make everything better, angel.”
I stripped out of my dirty clothes, leaving myself only in a black bra and matching panties, before I climbed into his luscious bed. I watch as Midas strips down to his boxers. His cock is straining against the material, showing me a very clear outline of the monster he keeps in there. My mouth starts to water at the sight of it, and so many dirty thoughts float through my head.
“You’re drooling.” He laughs.
“I am not,” I say defensively, embarrassed that I was caught staring.
He shakes his head, a smile gracing his perfectly plump lips. He climbs into his bed with me and pulls me onto his chest. The steady beating of his heart and the rise and fall of his chest finally tame my erratic heart.
I’m okay, and so is he.