Chapter Eight #2
“I would like to say the same, but at this hour I’m not sure what I can do for you,” I tell him honestly, not in any mood for whatever bullshit he’s about to go on about.
Jose gives a very insincere laugh. “It seems we may have an issue on our hands.”
“The only issue I’ve run into this evening is that a close friend of the club’s house burned down and she perished in the fire.
As well as a brother injuring a prospect for speaking out of line.
” I watch his face as I say the things and, like the man has been trained, he gives nothing away.
“What issue did you say the Cartel has this fine evening? Maybe we can help in some way.”
“I am so glad to hear you say that as you’ve all been quiet since the change of power,” Jose comments, looking around. “Where might that brother of yours be?”
“As you can see, he is no longer in power and will be unavailable for the foreseeable future. Again, I ask, what can we do for you, Jose?” My patience is wearing thin.
“I want my son! I know he is here with that bitch. Return him to me now,” Shea bursts out, pushing past Jose and his men to get in my face.
Everyone moves at once. Guns drawn and pointed at each other, just waiting for the other to move. Jose rushes forward, pulling Shea back into the protection of his men, talking quietly to her. I wave my hands, motioning for my men to put their guns away in good faith.
“I don’t know what you mean by a son, Shea.” I tilt my head, eyeing her. “How old would you say this child is? Maybe we can help you search for him.”
Her eyes go wide, realizing she has said too much. “None of that is important. What I know is that my sister and son are here. Let them come with us. We can provide them with a new home and everything they need after the fire.”
“What I can offer to you right now is this,” I level my hard gaze on the snake in front of me. “I will speak to your sister and find out if she would like to go with you. As for this stuff about your son, I can only offer to help you look for him.”
She glares at me before smirking. “You will either return them both to me now or it’ll be war between us and the Kings.”
“Is that a threat, Shea? I want to make sure I understand. Jose, you are allowing Shea to declare war between the Alfaro Cartel and the Kings of Anarchy?”
Jose looks between the two of us. “Now, Raider, I would not say that. Why don’t you bring out the sister so Shea can at least make sure she’s okay. If she wants to come with us, she can. If not, then we will go. No war to be had tonight.”
“I will go see if she would like to speak to you,” I tell them before turning to go into the clubhouse. I march through the building, noting how quiet everything is.
To my surprise, I find Pecker Head sitting at the bar nursing a beer.
Something about this man has always rubbed me the wrong way, and it doesn’t look very good for you to be sitting here drinking a beer when we’ve got unannounced visitors.
To add insult to injury, I gave him directions to get Tasia inside, and he failed to do that.
It seems he needs a reminder of his place in the club currently, and babysitting duty might just do the trick.
I also know that if the boy in the room is my family and was raised by his mother, staying put is not something he is going to do well.
“Pecker Head,” I call across the room. “Follow me. I have a job I don’t think you’re going to fuck up this time.”
He looks over his shoulder at me, and the look in his eyes tells me his time with us is ending soon.
I do not wait for him to decide what his next decision is because if this man wants to stay a part of this club, he will follow me.
If not, well, I might need to have some very painful words with him.
I know in my gut we still have at least one more traitor in the club.
I haven’t mentioned it to anyone as I didn’t want to sound paranoid like my brother, but I’ve always listened to my gut and right now it’s screaming that we still have a traitor among us.
I make it to the door where I left her and the boy, knocking hard on the door.
The kid pulls it open, watching me with wide eyes for only seconds before he starts talking.
“I know my Ma can be a lot. She’s just upset and scared.
There has been so much going on. I don’t know it all, but I know she’s been stressed and worried, and now with Auntie Lynn gone she doesn’t know what we’re going to do.
Please just let us stay. I feel safe here. ”
I find that statement odd. Why wouldn’t he feel safe before? What has happened to them that he hasn’t always felt safe? I must have stood there unmoving too long because he starts talking again.
“I know you don’t know me and don’t owe us anything. Just let us stay tonight,” he starts rambling again.
I hold up a hand. “Rusher, you're not going anywhere. I need to speak with your mom.”
He scrutinizes me closely, then, right in front of me, the scared kid stands to his full height and squares his shoulders. “Why do you want my mom? She hasn’t done anything.”
Smirking, I take a small step back, holding my hands up. “I just want to talk to her.”
“Yeah? Well, every time you talk to her, she seems to be upset, so I don’t know that it’s a good idea,” Rusher crosses his arms over his chest.
It's scary how much of myself I see in this kid. The math just doesn’t fucking add up. I would remember if Anastasia and I had fucked.
“Well, lucky for me, my options and wants are all that matter right now.” Done with this conversation and ready for my fucking bed, I yell out her name.
The bathroom door across the room flies open, and standing there is my sweetest dream and worst nightmare with my club's logo on her chest.
“Why are you standing outside screaming the walls down?” She snaps with her hands on her hips, pulling the shirt tight across her perfect tits.
“I need you outside to reassure your sister that you’re okay and happy to be here,” is the only answer I have to give her.
“Shea is here? How the fuck did she know we were here?”
I watch as she frantically looks around the room, gathering up the few items they have with them.
“We can’t stay here. I shouldn’t have listened to Auntie Lynn. We should’ve just run like every other time.”
I push past Rusher into the room, stepping into Anastasia’s path.
She spins around, running into my chest. Placing a hand on her hip, I steady her.
She refuses to look up at me and just continues mumbling about who knows what.
I use the knuckle of my index finger to tip her chin back to look up at me.
I grin because I saw this look on her face so many times when we were younger that I know the only way to stop her downward spiral is to shock her.
Slamming my mouth down on hers, I kiss her hard.
Her shocked gasp opens her mouth for me to swipe my tongue into her mouth, exploring.
I relax into the kiss when she fists my cut, pulling me tighter to her at the same time.
She tentatively meets my tongue with hers.
That’s all it takes for me to lose any control I would ever have pretended to have.
I let go of her chin, grabbing her thighs, letting her wrap those gorgeous legs around my waist as I move to pin her to the wall.
Our kiss grows intense; my cock is rock hard, and I can feel the heat of her pussy through my jeans.
My hands run to cup her ass, searching to find out just how wet she is when …
“Do I need to leave the room?” Rusher says from somewhere behind us.
“Fuck, kid, shut up. It was starting to get good,” Pecker Head hisses.
Anastasia pulls back so fast that she slams her head against the wall. Eyes filled with so much pain and heartbreak shine bright before she shuts them down.
“Raider, put me down now,” she hisses through clenched teeth.
“Not yet. We have a few things to discuss, and this seems to be the only way I can get you to shut your mouth and fucking listen to me,” I state.
The woman in front of me is an enigma. One moment she’s soft, open, allowing me to read her like a book. Then I blink, and she’s cold as stone, closed off, unreadable.
Blink: she’s strong, a fighter.
Blink: she’s a scared little girl, ready to run and hide.
None of this is adding up. Like the fucking sex ring, I’ve got all the pieces, but somehow, I’m still missing the big picture.
“Yes, your sister is here. I need to make sure she doesn’t call the police to do a wellness check on you.
” I place my finger over her mouth when she starts to speak.
“So you’re going to walk out there and tell her you’re safe, here willingly, and that you are not looking to leave.
Can you do that, Anastasia? Can you be a good girl and follow directions?
” I play dirty, dropping my tone low, leaning forward and skimming her neck with my lips.
She instantly shifts, giving me better access. I continue longer than I’d fucking intended as I get lost in the taste of her.
“I’ll do what you ask.” The broken words followed by a sob stop everything. “Just please stop and let me go.”
Immediately I step back, setting her on her feet, searching her face. Again, watching as she pulls herself back together. The cold, hard stare leveled at me is the reminder that I needed. Fine, you want to play this game of me being the enemy, then I’ll play the part.
“Alright, let’s get this shit done. I need a drink, a good fuck, and my bed,” I hiss, turning to leave the room.
“Raider.” The way her voice breaks over my name pulls at the attraction I’m trying with everything I have to beat back into the shadows. “I need one thing from you.”
“You and your son staying in my clubhouse isn’t enough for you?” I question, refusing to turn to look at her.
“At the end of all this, when everything comes to light, you can hate me. Just promise that from today forward you will do whatever it takes to make sure Rusher is safe.” Her voice gets stronger with every word.
“And why should I do that?” I look at the boy as I say this, already knowing I will in fact do whatever it takes to make sure he is safe.
“Because at the end of the day, he is the only innocent party in this entire fucking shitshow,” she whispers so he can’t hear her as she walks past me.
Anastasia stops at the door, pulling him into a hug. She whispers to him so quietly I can’t hear what she says. My gut clenches at whatever it is because his eyes go wide, and he shakes his head frantically.
“No, Ma, please.” His eyes have tears in them.
“I love you more than you’ll ever know, my Rushy.
Do whatever the men here tell you. They will be good to you,” she says, then looks over at me, her glare sharp enough to cut glass.
“They will protect, provide, and make sure you have everything you could ever want or need. If for no other reason than it’s what Auntie Lynn would’ve wanted. ”
I walk over to her, grabbing her by the arm and spinning her to look at me. She lays a hand on my cheek, the tears that never seem to leave her running freely.
“It was so good to see you again.” Her words slice me open. “Keeping him safe makes it all worth it.”
I want to demand an answer from her. Goddamn it, it’s my club, my world. People do what I tell them, not the other way around. Anastasia goes up on her toes, kisses me softly on the cheek once more before turning and doing the same to Rusher, then walks out the door.
“Prez, they're getting antsy. You get the girl?” Anvil calls from the doorway.
My words are tight as I watch Rusher watch her walk away with a knowing look on his face that makes little sense.
I follow her as she makes it across the great room at the same time Pope comes through the kitchen door throwing a towel over his shoulder.
He catches sight of Anastasia, his expression flashing through all the emotions.
“Anastasia, is that you?” he whispers, as if he speaks too loudly, she’ll disappear.
She stops and shakes her head slightly. “I should have known you’d follow those two into the fire.”
“Holy hell, it really is you,” Pope rushes around the bar, pulling her into a tight hug, spinning her around. “Who else would keep them on the slightly straight and slightly narrow path?”
“I see what you did there.” She laughs quietly, poking a hole in the shield I’ve surrounded myself with and letting some light touch my soul.