33. Onyx
ONYX
Iwatch the camera from the bar as the rumble of the officer’s bike thunders away, and Hawg heads inside. His knowing blue eyes meet mine as the enters the door. “You okay?” I ask.
He nods, closes the distance between us, sits on one of the chairs close to the bar, and picks me up by the waist.
“What did the police want?” I ask, straddling his lap, cupping his face in my hands.
“You have to tell me if it’s something to do with my ex or Ness.
If they’re investigating, if they’re coming after you for anything, I’m going to tell them everything.
The truth. You are not going down for something I did. ”
His blue eyes flare, his hand sliding around my nape, bringing my face to meet his and kissing me with a passion that takes my breath away.
“They don’t fucking want the person who did it, this prick, he’s looking for vengeance of his own.
There’s nothing for you to worry about here, you understand? ”
“You said you wouldn’t lie to me.”
Hawg rests his forehead against mine. “And I won’t. Not ever.”
“Then this person, he’s not a threat to us? To you, to the Royal Bastards, or to me and the Royal Harlots?”
“Only if I let him be baby, only if I let him be.”
“The truck for the ladies is coming in tomorrow night. So much quicker than we thought, but that’s Duchess’s MO.
She doesn’t let anyone know what’s going on until the last fucking minute, a total badass, protecting every lady she ships out or has shipped into her and her club up north.
If she’s in charge, you know she’s going to move every single one of those ladies across country in a way that keeps them safe. You can fucking count on that.”
That means we only need to go get them tonight and give them safe haven for a day until her truck gets here. A day shouldn’t be too bad. Definitely not as disruptive as having a group of women hidden out in the club for a week or two as has happened in the past.
His assurance makes me feel better but there’s still something about his voice that makes me feel like there’s more to the story. But trust. It’s a two-way street and I need to get better at this and I’m trying. I kiss his lips. “We need to get on the road if we’re going to get the ladies on time.”
Hawg kisses me on the lips and lifts me up.
“Then let’s get ready, baby. I know Duchess thinks that you’ll get the girls, bring them here, and that her truck is coming in with no issues tomorrow, but we’ve got a new problem, a police officer with something he wants to know and if he doesn’t find out he’s going to make trouble.
I want me and my guys to ride with you to the meetup destination. ”
My heart clamors with fear, but something else too.
I asked Hawg to be honest with me, to let the Harlots do what we do best without interference, and he’s doing exactly what anyone would want.
Not only is he trying to deal with the problem, protect me, but he’s keeping me informed every step of the way and the sudden revelation that maybe I don’t have to spend my life doing things without help, not trusting people, maybe it does really exist with this man.
I don’t need to ride alone. I’m fucking riding with my man.
Now, all we need to do is get ready to ride.
Every single one of the Harlots is ready for this night. We were born ready for rides like this. Saving and protecting ladies from the scum of the underbelly in our cities, we’re all over that shit.
Some of the ladies are going to hang out here with the Royal Bastards that Hawg assigned to our protection, while some are going to ride with me, Pearl, Hawg and Carver all the way to Vegas before turning around and driving back.
Leaving Phoenix and the sunbaked sprawl behind puts miles and miles of open desert stretch in front of us. What would be daunting for some is nothing for us.
We’ve made this trip a thousand times if not more, but no matter, this one, it feels different, ominous in some fashion as the evening sun begins to set, and we push through the cooling heat
of the desert over the blacktop roads.
The closer we get to Vegas, heading in and out of the back roads that Carver knows like the back of his hand, and lights from the city in the distance become visible, we know the more danger there is that one of the motorcycle gangs trying to keep the trafficked girls from making it to safety is going to come out of the woodwork.
And no one knows how these fuckers work better than the four of us.
The bright glow of Vegas from the Mojave settles in like a mirage. The skyline as we approach the city and skyline grows sharper, until finally we’re into the city that never sleeps.
Sin City.
Las Vegas, a city that was born in part from the blood, sweat, and settling mafia families has transitioned from a neon oasis into an adult destination that is sought after across the globe.
People with money and power come here to spend money, make money, play and roll the dice with their fortune.
A dazzling oasis of casinos, entertainment, incredible nightlife, and lit-up energy in the heart of the desert.
The home of the Larussio crime family, who’ve taken over the entire city.
The city is rich in history, rising from the railroad development, tourism, and corporate investments, but at the end of the day, people near and far, they craved the fun of coming to the slots.
And the mafia families, they knew it, saw all the potential.
Slot machines, casinos, betting on whatever there was to bet on whether it be games, horses, or sports.
They saw it first and threw the dice, laid their money down and Vegas became a global destination for entertainment, night- life and an adult playground.
And the Larussios who moved in and now control most of Vegas, there’s no doubt in my mind that they’re going to be true to their word. The Larussios may not be angels but there are lines they don’t cross and everyone in our world knows it.
They don’t snatch girls, they don’t traffic them, and if they come across anyone who does there’s going to be a blood retribution to pay.
And that gives me hope, but all the enemies, they’re watching, probably from every niche and canyon in the desert. Who knows what orders they have from their presidents and it’s not like we haven’t gotten on the wrong side of both the Desert Riders and the Scorpions.
I just hope the Larussios are true to their word and have the Rivalry helping to clear the way for us and the ladies to make it in and out of the city and back to the safety of our home.
But if they don’t, we’ll still manage the ride, our mission, and we’ll do it together. I glance down at Pearl’s wheel, the thought of her missing gremlin giving me a moment of pause. I inhale a deep breath, leaning into the curve.
No, everyone riding with us tonight into the moonlit desert knows we’re on a mission to save women who without us don’t have a chance in hell. But we’re not na?ve, we also know that we have two of the most notorious crews after our ass, looking out and ready to take us on.
But we have allies, and the Rivals from the Larussios, and the Royal Bastards from Tucson, all have joined forces with us and are ready and waiting for any of those fuckers to come bursting out of the mountain ranges and head straight toward us, but we’ve been down this road before.
We know the back ways, running around the main passes, highways and canyons to stay away from the radars of the enemies and the cops.
Carver and Pearl are the absolute best at that and we follow them, speeding up when they do, slowing down when they do, and leaning in when we have to in order to make a steep turn.
And when we’re high above the terrain and able to look down over the red-rocked peaks and valleys, Carver, who is notorious on these roads, gives the signal to go.
Our crew, a mix of males and females of Royal Bastards and Royal Harlots, all loyal to Duchess and the Royal Bastards, accelerate moving closer and closer to Sin City where the trafficked women the Larussios have negotiated to buy and hired us to safeguard are waiting for us to transport them out of the city and back to Phoenix, keeping them safe until Duchess’s truck from the north picks them up and she can get them out of the city.