Tyrant Chapter 4
I lectured myself as I rode through the night with the van following me.
What the hell is wrong with you? You’ve lost your mind.
There’s no reason to bring those two to the compound.
It’ll only raise questions you don’t want to answer and probably cause problems. The woman, for sure, will do the latter, just by seeing how Satyr acted.
Brutus wasn’t much better. She’s the kind to attract male attention no matter what.
Being scruffy and underweight doesn’t detract from her features.
Lakelyn had struck something in me, and I wanted it to be as simple as the fact that she was homeless.
However, as much as I tried to fool myself, I knew it wasn’t that—or not only that.
I had an involuntary response to her. Yes, part of it was the situation, but a larger part was my physical reaction to her. Satyr was right. Lakelyn was gorgeous.
Her skin was what I’d heard someone call peaches and cream when I was a kid.
It had been a friend of my mom’s. Along with her fantastic skin was a pouty mouth, a slender nose, and cheekbones that drew you to look closer.
Her wide grayish-green eyes were topped by slightly arched brows the same color as her hair.
Lakelyn’s hair was straight and hung to the middle of her back, to the bottom of her shoulder blades.
It wasn’t thin or thick but somewhere in the middle.
I doubted it would hold a curl. It was a medium brown but was saved from being plain by the golden highlights throughout.
That hair made me want to run my fingers through it to see if it was as soft as it appeared.
Her clothes, like her brother’s, were worn and made it clear she’d lost weight, though it could be they’d gotten them somewhere and couldn’t find their sizes.
However, when I held her against me when she tried to run, I felt the curves she had.
They weren’t overly pronounced, but I’d bet money her body was still sexy.
Her tits had felt especially lovely and firm.
Her fear and those whimpers she let out unwillingly made me want to shelter her. That was why I brought her closer to me. When she almost collapsed, I didn’t even have to think before picking her up in my arms. Carrying her to the van made me feel more protective.
I wasn’t a man who felt gentle emotions for others.
Sure, I could say I cared for Elliot. They’d been there for me when I needed them the most. I’d go as far as to claim them as friends.
And I cared for my club brothers enough to protect them, even die for them if I had to.
I thought of that as more loyalty than friendship.
Neither of those was the case with Lakelyn and River.
I didn’t know them, but I reacted as if I did, and they were people I wanted to protect.
I didn’t need this on top of the whole Jacquot situation, my decrease in sexual desire, and the loneliness I’d been having. I should pull over and tell my guys to take them to another part of Turmoil and drop them off. If I wanted to help, I could give them a few bucks to get something to eat.
Immediately, my mind and stomach rebelled at the thought of doing that.
One meal wasn’t enough. What if someone decided to beat them and take it from them?
Or worse, assault one or both of them, the way Lakelyn had thought we were about to do.
I couldn’t allow it. Thinking of her fear of us raping her left a foul taste in my mouth.
I was a first-rate bastard, but I hadn’t and wouldn’t rape someone.
The thought was abhorrent to my club and me.
Before I knew it, we were at the gate to the compound.
I entered the code to open it. Knife wouldn’t be manning the gate at this time of night, and it was doubtful anyone would be in the clubhouse either.
For tonight, I’d give Lakelyn and River a place to sleep and food.
In the morning, I’d figure out what to do with them.
It opened, and I rode inside with the van right behind me. The gate closed behind us.
I parked outside the clubhouse in my designated spot.
Since it wasn’t winter, we kept our bikes there or outside the townhomes.
I did both, depending on my mood. I parked and took off my safety glasses.
Thank God, Nebraska didn’t require a helmet.
I chose to wear clear safety glasses at night and dark ones during the day.
I swung my leg over the seat. The van was parked down from me.
By the time I made it there, Brutus was hustling them out.
Both were scared to death. It was written on their faces, even though I saw that Lakelyn was trying to hide it the most. Lakelyn stumbled.
I wasn’t sure whether it was due to her being on something or to her unsteadiness.
As she did, Satyr latched onto her arm. She flinched.
“Hey, there’s no need to do that,” he told her.
I sped up and came up to them. “I’ve got her,” I told him.
He let go and stepped back. I turned her around and walked toward the clubhouse’s front door. She was scanning the area and the building. It was dark, so there wasn’t much she could see. Undoubtedly, she was trying to see if there was a way to escape. I didn’t blame her. I would be in her place.
“What is this place? Why are we here?” A slight quiver in her voice made me sigh.
“This is our clubhouse and compound. We’re here to get some rest. Just do what we ask, and you’ll be fine, Lakelyn.”
“I don’t believe you. You have no reason to bring us here other than some sick game. Why don’t you let River go? Torturing us won’t get you anything. We don’t have anything to give.”
Brutus and Satyr snorted. I gave them a stern look.
They stopped. We were now inside the clubhouse's common area, where we gathered to socialize, relax, and party. It had plenty of seating, a large bar, and, for those who wanted to play, pool tables, an arcade game, dartboards, and a Ping-Pong table. Like outside, they were checking out their surroundings. As they did, I addressed Lakelyn’s last remarks.
“Until I’m satisfied with all the facts, I’m not ready to let you go. However, since you were looking for a meal and undoubtedly had nowhere to sleep, you can get both here tonight. No one is playing a sick game unless you’re our enemies.”
“We’re not your enemies! We don’t know you, mister. I said I was sorry for going through your trash. I didn’t think taking cans thrown away was stealing. Now that I do, we won’t do it again,” River replied.
“You were guilty of trespassing. Some may not care, but I do. You were on Kings of Anarchy’s property without permission,” I reminded him. He didn’t say anything back. He knew I was right.
“They’re staying the night?” Brutus asked. He was puzzled.
“That’s what I said.”
“Okay, well, we can find them a crash pad and have one of the prospects stand guard, or they could go to the dungeon,” he suggested.
Both trespassers went stark white at the mention of the dungeon.
I had the urge to punch Brutus in the face for saying it.
Yes, we had an area for those we wanted to interrogate, or more, which we called the dungeon.
It was in one of the other buildings. It had cells and more.
However, that wasn’t what they needed. And the idea of them, her, in a crash pad repulsed me.
Those were for sleeping off drunkenness or fucking.
There was no way I was allowing Lakelyn in one of those. Why I cared, I shied away from.
“They’re not staying in the goddamn dungeon. And a crash pad is out. They can have a guest room. One should suffice,” I growled. I knew they would be even more terrified if separated. Maybe this would calm them down.
Brutus and Satyr gave me a disbelieving look. I knew why. I wasn’t acting like my usual self. The real me wouldn’t care if they were in the dungeon or a crash room. Hell, the real me wouldn’t have brought them here. What was wrong with me?
“Uh, okay, Pres. I can do that. I think one is clean. Is there anything else we need? A prospect should watch over them, right?” Satyr asked. He exchanged a look with Brutus.
“One better be clean, or those sluts will hear about it. And yes, have a prospect ensure they don’t leave or go wandering. As for anything else, let’s see what we have in the kitchen to eat.” I walked off toward it.
There was silence, and then Brutus said softly, “Go.”
I didn’t look to see if they were following. I turned around when I got to the large kitchen off the common area. They were there along with my two club brothers. I knew they wouldn’t walk off. Their curiosity was in full gear.
The kitchen was large. It was big enough to cook for a small army and was designed to be an industrial kitchen. Seeing they were with me, I walked over to the fridge and opened the door. There were leftovers from an earlier dinner. Someone must’ve cooked.
In addition, there was stuff to make sandwiches, fruit, and someone even put small cups of yogurt in there. Not sure who thought we’d eat that shit, but it might suit them. I began taking things out and piling them on the island. When I had a large selection, I stopped.
“Grab some plates and stuff. Do you expect them to eat off the table?” I asked my guys. Both scrambled to do it. I’d set out water bottles, a carton of milk, and a jug of juice. I got out a couple of glasses for them.
Lakelyn and her brother watched us suspiciously, yet I saw the hunger on their faces when they looked at the food.
They had to be starving. An unwelcome memory flashed through my mind.
I knew what it felt like to be so hungry that your stomach felt like it was eating itself.
No one should ever experience that. I slid the glasses to them.
“Get yourself something to drink, and then pick out whatever you want. If there’s nothing here you like, there’s more food in the pantry,” I invited.