Forty-Eight
I was cold when I woke up next. I think I kept dozing off because of the head injury the bastard had given me, because why else would I even be able to sleep when I was in so much danger?
I was still in that same room, but I suddenly realised why I was so cold. I was only in my underwear now, and my hands and ankles weren’t tied anymore. How did he undress me without waking me? It was then that I realised the uncomfortable thing wedged against my hip was the remains of my jeans. He’d cut them off. He’d cut my clothes off and left me in my underwear. I scrambled into the corner and hugged my legs against my chest, trying to cover myself up with all I had left.
I started shivering then, but it wasn’t because of the cold, it was because of the fact that I was in the worst kind of danger a woman could be in. I was half naked and trapped with a man who’d already made it clear that he planned to force himself on me. A man we already knew had raped and killed other women.
I wanted Has and Seth to turn up and save me, before he could do anything more to me, but I didn’t even know if they were safe or alive. He’d led me to believe he’d mortally wounded Has. Was he lying? Was Has out there looking for me? Or was he cold and lying on a slab somewhere?
I think a piece of me died inside, just at the thought of that. We’d barely had a chance together. He’d been so sweet and considerate and patient with me, and he’d asked me to be his old lady. Why weren’t we going to get that chance? Why did this have to happen?
“You look so pretty curled up in the corner like a terrified little mouse.” I flinched at his voice and cast my eyes around the dimly lit room. I couldn’t see anyone in here with me. How could he be in here and not be, all at the same time?
“Yeah, I can’t be there with you right now, baby girl. Gotta be seen at the clubhouse as much as possible, so they don’t know I’m their nemesis and all that jazz. Don’t worry though… I’m spending this idle time planning all the things I’m gonna do to you. Just means we both get to enjoy the uh… unplanned edging. I, for one, will be jerking off while I watch you cowering in the corner like that. Remember that, Elise… I can see you any time I want, so even though I’m not there, I’ll know if you try to escape. Remember this too… right now, I can get at any number of people you care about. You piss me off, and they’ll pay.”
My mind was racing after his last statement, and even though he didn’t speak again, all I could do was curl up in the corner, knowing he could see me, while I worried about everyone I cared about. That, and what the hell he’d do to me, when he got away from there and returned to me.
Has-Been
W hen Rocket returned to the clubhouse, he was dragged straight into Reacher’s office, along with Stitch and me. There was no fucking way they were keeping me out of things, and no amount of telling me to wait had made even a tiny difference.
“Sit.”
Rocket sat down, frowning in confusion, looking from Reacher to Stitch and then at me, although there was no sign of recognition when he saw me. That was how different I looked with my new shaved head, and of course no cut, because that fucker had destroyed it.
“Has, you sit down too, dammit.”
Rocket’s head swivelled again and then his jaw dropped.
“Fuck me. I didn’t even recognise you, man. What the fuck happened?”
I opened my mouth to yell at him, and Reacher silenced me with a fist slamming against his desk.
“Rocket, explain your fucking absence all night. Right the hell now.”
Rocket grimaced, scratching at his short hair.
“Ah. Yeah, look, Pres… I’m sorry about that. I know I was supposed to clear it with you guys…”
Stitch lunged at him, grabbing his cut as he leaned close and shook him.
“Where the fuck is she?!”
It took Reacher’s help for me to drag Stitch away from Rocket, because he was like a fucking rottweiler once he got started, and he was losing his shit, just like I was.
Rocket was smoothing his cut, and everything about him was so familiar, because I knew him so fucking well, or at least I thought I did. We did the spray jobs together. We did the signage on Lissa’s place, and various other jobs around town. Hell, we did the old lady tattoos together too. The thought that he could have done all of this, well… I was struggling with it more than I realised.
“Please tell me you didn’t do this, man. I trusted you.”
Rocket threw his hands up, letting out a huff of frustration.
“Does someone want to tell me what the fuck I’m supposed to have done? I know I left the grounds when I shouldn’t have, but someone needed me, and I couldn’t let her down.”
Reacher held up a hand as Stitch started cursing again.
“Shut it. Rocket, the shit hit the fan here last night, so we need to know exactly where you were, and who you were with.”
Rocket looked at me again, taking in the lack of a club cut, and looking more confused than I’d ever seen him.
“Something happened to you, man? You know me. I’m not that kinda guy. Look, I’m not proud of this, but uh… my uh… she’s not really my girl, exactly, but we’ve been seeing each other. You know… fucking around and stuff. She called me last night, freaking out because she’d done one of those home tests, and you know… pregnant. I dunno. Obviously it’s not what we planned, but I went to be with her. She was… she does not want a fucking kid. Neither of us do. Jesus.” He ran a hand through his hair, and I caught what the other two probably didn’t. His hand shook. This was hitting him hard.
“Who, Rocket? We need to verify this with her.”
He lurched out of his chair then, nearly knocking the damn thing over with his abrupt movement.
“What the fuck for? This isn’t club business, okay? That’s the reason why I can’t fucking be with her, by the way. She doesn’t want to be an old lady. She wants a normal life. A non MC fucking life. Jesus. I think I could fucking love her, but it’s not gonna work out, because I can’t not be who I am, right?”
I felt for him, I really fucking did, but this wasn’t helping us find Elise. He’d dropped heavily into his seat as he finished talking, seemingly exhausted by the truth of his situation.
“It’s not him, guys. We need to keep looking.”
Rocket watched me stand up, reaching out to catch my arm.
“Brother, talk to me, someone hurt you?”
I shrugged him off. “The main thing is that someone took Elise, and they almost killed Torch. That’s what I care about right now.”
He was up again, his fists clenched at his sides. Thank fuck it wasn’t him, thank fuck I could still trust this one fucking brother right now. He looked as furious about this as we were, and that was how every damn brother should feel right now.
“They did what? What the fuck! Is Torch gonna make it? What can I do to help?”
Reacher dialled a number on speaker and I heard Ice pick up.
“Yeah, Pres. I was just about to ring you. It’s not Dodger.”
Fuck!
“How do we know that?”
He cursed quietly. “He was here the whole time. Tommy went into the basement because he’s been keeping beers cold down there. We clearly didn’t check the place well enough. He was down there, out cold. Kinda hidden behind the beer crates.”
“Is he gonna make it?”
Ice muttered something, and I heard someone reply under their breath.
“Doc’s with him. So that just leaves Rocket, and fuck, I didn’t want it to be him. I kinda like that asshole.”
“Charming. Back at you, fuckhead.”
“Is that… he’s with you?”
“Yeah, it’s not him either.”
So we were back to square one, aka fucked .