Chapter 3 Monster #2
Fuck. That meant Monster would have to cut his time with the pretty Carys short. Maybe they could rush through dinner and get back to his place. He’d fuck her thoroughly and then tie her to the bed, so she’d be there naked and ready when business was concluded.
A smile spread across his face at the thought. It had its appeal. The thought of her naked and secured to his bed had him shifting on the bar stool.
Ghoul slammed his empty mug on the surface. “Well, I’m going to spend some time with Diamond before we’re off to kick some ass. I’ll meet you fuckers later.”
Monster watched Ghoul go. He shook his head at how giddy Ghoul acted at the thought of doing the dirty work, but his brothers knew looks can be deceiving. After the rest of his club dispersed around the clubhouse, he decided to head out.
However, before he could beat a hasty retreat, Taylor flounced in and made a beeline for him. Ever since she found out he’d ridden hell-bent for leather to save her last year, their routine was the same.
“My hero,” she proclaimed, and wrapped her arms around him. He hugged her back. At first it was awkward, not just for him, but Prowler hated it too. However, it had become less so over the months. Now, Monster looked forward to it. He’d always secretly wanted a sister, and now he had one.
“What’s new, doofus?”
“Not a lot, buttlicker.”
Despite himself, he laughed at her affectionate insult. Taylor was still wrapped around him when she looked up into his face.
“You met someone. Was it the other night? The blond with the obnoxious boob job? Wait, or her and her friend? May—”
“Stop. You’re going to short-circuit that brain of yours trying to think of every chick in the bar you saw before you were seeing double. None of the above.”
Taylor pulled away and screwed up her face. “So, you didn’t deny it, just not the bimbos who were salivating over you. Oh my God, are you growing as a human?” she teased.
“Bite your tongue.”
“So, spill.” She slapped him on the chest.
“Nothing to spill.”
“Bullshit. You’ve got the look.”
“What look?”
“You know the look. Like a wolfy whose caught a scent, the scent of a sexy rabbit.”
“First of all, gross. Second, what do you know about it? You’ve only ever been the rabbit.” He tapped her nose with a finger, hoping to deter her line of thinking, but no such luck.
“Rabbit I may be, but mark my words, you’re a cooked wolf, even if you can’t see it. It’s there.” She squinted and pointed toward his eyes.
A new denial was perched on his lips, but instead, he looked around to make sure his brothers weren’t within earshot before he blurted at her. “What am I thinking? I don’t date, I fuck.”
“You mean, you don’t date … until you do.”
“Why did I expect you to be helpful, PITA?” He turned to walk away, but she grabbed his arm.
“Sorry, sorry. I’ll be helpful. What do you need? Condoms? Breath mints? The talk?”
Monster didn’t turn back to her. She was having way too much fun teasing him when it was the one time he needed her to be serious.
“Don’t go. I couldn’t help myself, but please. Ask. I can’t wait to have another woman around who isn’t here for a patch or money.” Monster relented and turned, crossing his arms over his chest.
“Where are you taking her?”
“She’s meeting me at that new vegetarian place on Cheyanne.”
Taylor’s jaw dropped. “I like her already. Smart, independent, and …” She trailed off before grabbing her stomach and laughing. “Oh, the irony. Another wolf brought to his knees by a plant eater.”
Monster almost pointed out that Taylor wasn’t exclusively a plant eater when he realized she wasn’t referencing herself but Prowler’s daughter, Cass.
Ever since she’d started living with her father full-time, Cass kept them up to their ears with her never-ending vegan recipes. Being the Prez’s daughter, all the members ate it up and thanked her for the effort.
Of course, Monster thought she was doing it more so to see Alexander. Lucky for him, he kept his hands and eyes to himself.
Taylor finally got her laughter under control. “What do you want to know?”
“Everything.” Sure, he knew how to seduce a woman. Hell, half the time he didn’t even have to do that. He just had to wink and grab protection. He knew absolutely zip about dating.
“Okay.” Taylor took a deep breath. “Hold the door open. Do not under any circumstances try to order for her. If she asked about her hair or outfit, don’t just say it looks nice, be specific.
When responding to her questions, don’t just give her one-word answers.
Ask her questions about herself, but not so many questions that she thinks you’re compiling a profile.
” She raised an eyebrow at him. “Are you wearing underwear is not a valid question, FYI. Do not respond with but bacon to anything. Oh, and as always, use protection.” The last was added with a smirk.
The whole exchange was becoming uncomfortable for him. Monster didn’t do the mushy stuff.
“Awwww,” Taylor said before wrapping her arms around him again. “Our baby boy’s growing up.”
A throat cleared behind them.
“Why is it every time I turn around you have your hands all over my ol’ lady? I begrudgingly accepted her attachment to you, but I have limits, Road Captain.”
Using his office position, he reminded him of his place.
Raising his arms in compliance, Monster replied, “If you’ll take note, President, it’s her who has her hands on me.”
“Taylor,” Prowler growled.
“Down boy. You know you’re the only one for me.” But even as she spoke the words, she untangled herself from Monster and wrapped her arms around her man.
After kissing his cheek, Taylor said in a singsong voice. “Monster has a crush.”
Both men rolled their eyes.
“Ask him. I want all the deets.”
When Prowler raised an eyebrow, Monster protested. “Prez?”
Prowler shrugged his shoulders. “You know she won’t let it go, so you might as well just tell her.”
“What the hell? Is this an MC or a fucking high school?”
“I remember asking something similar when you lot were oh so concerned with how well I knew my neighbor.” He seemed to squeeze Taylor tighter. “So turnabout, motherfucker.”
Boogeyman plopped down on the stool next to Monster. Propping his chin on his hand and swinging his feet in an exaggerated motion. “Ooooo, gossip.”
“What the fuck?”
“Just rip it off like a band aid brother.” Bulldog slapped him on the shoulder. “Then we can get back to being fucking men.”
Monster threw up his hands before motioning for a shot.
“Fine. I met a hot number the other night. She gave me a hummer in the parking lot of King’s Ransom, and we have a date tonight.
The end.” He threw back his shot, then slammed the glass back down.
Before he could make for the door, Kansas piped up.
“Hot number is an understatement. She’s fucking gorgeous.”
Monster growled at Kansas. It was hard enough for his wolf to accept that he’d kissed her, but he’d be damned if he let him remark on how hot she was.
Why is that? He asked Ulf.
Don’t know. Just is.
Well, that was helpful. He was drawn to her, that was clear, but he didn’t experience the signs of her being his mate. Maybe it was just the male part of him and not the beast.
“I’m out.”
With that, he left. He had some time before he’d meet Carys at the restaurant. She’d insisted on driving herself, which irritated Monster a little. However, he wasn’t ready to toss her on the back of his bike for all the world to see either.
Once he hit the road, he found himself riding for the sake of riding.
The open road always helped him think. The other thing he needed was to run. Ulf was restless.
Soon, Ulf. Soon.
He promised the beast he’d let him out as soon as it was possible.
More of Ulf’s emotions and disjointed thoughts were bleeding through, as he was agitated.
Maybe it was time to look into stronger ways to keep him calm.
Monster didn’t want to suppress him the way they had to with his incarcerated brother.
That path led to madness, but it hurt him that Ulf was unsettled twenty-four seven. He was feral, and that wasn’t good.
Especially when they only had moments to communicate without the distortion of the silver, when he let the fur free. He dreamed of a day when the wild beast would be lucid enough to understand his emergence, but he doubted that day would ever come.
His dad told him, when he’d suppressed his confused beast, that when Arden was mature, he would let the beast free, and his dad’s wolf would communicate it all to him.
When Ulf understood what had happened and the two merged, it would heal the damaged beast. But his dad died long before that day came.
When Arden lost his mother at seventeen, he drove way out into the wilderness and released Ulf.
Hoping he could explain it all the way his dad would have.
Instead, Ulf was so confused that he suppressed Arden and stayed in fur for three days.
It wasn’t until Ulf was too tired to keep Arden from waking up that he was able to take over.
He was miles away from his truck and naked.
During the shift back, Ulf used the time to tell him to put the cuff on and never take it off in skin.
It had taken a lot of quick thinking and lies to cover what happened and get back home.
That day, he locked Ulf down tighter. Still, since Ulf never learned how to properly shift, he still suppressed Monster when he took over their body.
With time, Monster had managed to teach himself to hold on to consciousness for longer at the beginning of a shift.
He was up to a solid two minutes. They could talk less disjointedly during that time.
The wolf didn’t know another way to take over.
Monster vowed to himself to find a way for Ulf to be as he was meant to be, or he would take more permanent measures, no matter the cost.
On his way back into town, he noticed a box van behind him. It raised his suspicions. When he sped up, they sped up, and when he slowed down, so did they. Hitting his Bluetooth on the side of his helmet, he made a series of turns, waiting for an answer.
“This better be good.” Prowler answered breathlessly. He could hear Taylor scolding him in the background.
“Sorry to interrupt your, um, evening, but I got a tail.”
He could hear Prowler snapping his fingers. “Clubhouse.”
A few seconds later, Taylor said, “Here.”
Monster could hear he was on speaker and he assumed the clubhouse was on speaker on another phone.
“Give us the details.”
“White box van, no windows. No front plate, but a beat-up front left quarter panel and a crooked bumper. I’m out on Lake Mead by the trailhead, making my way into town.
I’m going to hit surface streets and lead him your way.
Do you think you can scramble the brothers to meet up with me on Warm Springs? ”
“We can do that.” It sounded like Bulldog talking into a wrapping paper tube. He heard him shout some names before Prowler spoke again.
“Got three brothers heading your way—”
“Fuck.” Monster cursed as the van got so close he thought they were going to hit him. Instead, they pulled up alongside him on the left. When the window lowered, he locked up his brakes, sure he was about to be shot. Instead, they tossed something out the window.
He barely controlled the skid but managed to hold it upright. When he got stopped, Ulf howled in his head.
“Monster? MONSTER,” Prowler yelled in his ear.
“I’m here, Prez. Fuck.”
“What happened?”
“Fuckers pulled up on me. I was sure I was about to catch a bullet, but they tossed something at me.”
“What?”
“Don’t know yet, Prez. Give me a sec.” Monster doffed his helmet and ended the Bluetooth communication. Bending low, he rested his hands on his knees and inhaled deeply in an attempt to calm down.
With a last deep breath, he stood and searched the area.
Finally, his gaze landed on a small, dark gray, rectangular object.
When he picked it up, he was shocked at how heavy it was.
Lead, he thought. Rubbing his thumb over the smooth back, he turned it over in his hand.
There was a deep furrow carved across right in the middle.
With dots dug out above and below. Three on each side.
Pulling the phone from his pocket, he called his Prez back.
“Yeah?”
“It’s a message, but I don’t think it’s for me.”
“Why?” Prowler interrupted before he could explain.
“It appears to be a domino.”
There was silence on the other end of the phone that stretched out for what felt like minutes.
It was Kansas’s voice in the distant tone that said he was still on speaker in the room with Prowler’s phone, that broke the silence.
“Double three?”
“Yeah. Is that significant?”
“Yeah. If you pulled the double three, you were volunteered for the next round of experiments.”
Kansas had told the stories of how the pack used to operate. While he explained the drawing of the domino ceremony, he’d never said the number. That pack was fucked up, none of them shed any tears when they were wiped out.
“But I thought the entire pack other than Ben was eliminated,” Monster mused out loud.
“They were. Since there’s a detailed accounting of members that the vamps gave up, the only person unaccounted for is—”
Prez interrupted Kansas. “The person who wrote the damn file.”
“Samual.”
“I’m on my way,” Monster announced. Already regretting not being able to meet Carys. Prowler’s words changed that.
“I think they delivered the message they wanted to send, so I don’t think we’ll be hearing anything else tonight. Go on to dinner, but make your way back here instead of to your place. We’ll stick close until we know what the message meant and we can form a plan.”
“Will do, Prez.” He ended the call, got back on his bike, and headed toward the restaurant to meet the sexy pixie.