Chapter 61
Rachel
My head was still fucking killing. And the hangover on top of it hadn’t fucking helped.
I had been out early morning, taking Axel to one of those stay and play sessions, even though it was the last fucking thing on my mind. But it meant there was no chance I would run into Vienna. And that made it worth it.
I still couldn’t believe how fucking stupid we had been.
The man was hot. Insanely hot. There was no way a woman with eyes could deny that.
I had once joked that it was a good job he was so fucking stupid, because it just wasn’t fair for a man to look like that and contain all the brains as well.
His response had been to spit in my cereal and then dunk my face in it.
But even knowing he was hot… I had never felt an attraction to him.
He was like my annoying big brother. The type of big brother that was responsible for looking after you when your parents were at work, so he’d turn up to your school blasting “A2M—I Got Bitches” out of the car speakers as loudly as possible.
That unique type of annoying that crept under your skin until you couldn’t help but love them.
In a very platonic fucking way.
So what the hell had I been thinking?
I didn’t want to be one of those women that blamed alcohol. That wasn’t fair. And Lord knew Dante drank way more than I did, and he would never have done this to me.
You also didn’t do half the shit to Dante that he’s done to you.
Which was a very good point. Was I subconsciously trying to hurt him?
Or maybe I was subconsciously looking for a way out.
At this point, who knew? None of my actions made sense. And I knew exactly why.
It was because of this weird, uneasy truce I was in with Dante. This wasn’t us. We were the violence and the chaos. We were the fire and the storm. This placid, kind, almost nurturing team wasn’t us. We didn’t respond to it.
We had fucked up. We had made a shit situation somehow worse. Because we always worked best when we were borderline hating each other. Even if that sounds like the most bizarre thing, it was the truth.
It was us .
I shook my head and watched Axel as he drove cars along the wall, completely oblivious to the other children. So long as he had his cars, he was happy as a pig in shit.
“Rachel!” came a voice from behind me, almost making me jump a foot in the air.
“Jesus tap dancing Christ, Heather! I’ve just nearly pissed myself!”
“Do you not check your voicemail?” She hissed at me, her face red and sweaty.
“We’re not supposed to have our phones in here for safeguarding reasons. What’s wrong? What’s happened? Is it Bee?” I asked, getting to my feet and pushing her down into the space I had just vacated before she passed out.
“It’s not Bee, but we need to leave.”
“What’s happened?”
“It’s Vienna,” she breathed, and every last bit of air left my lungs. I instantly froze, growing lightheaded.
A million scenarios went through my head.
Had he told Dante? Had someone seen us? Was he hurt? Had he left out of guilt?
“What’s happened to Vienna?” I asked quietly, so quietly I could barely hear the words I was speaking.
“He was shot.”
There was no way. There was no fucking way Dante would have shot him. Not over this. Not over me.
“Shot?! Heather, I’m going to need more. A whole lot fucking more.”
“Get Axel and I’ll tell you everything on the way to the hospital. I promise. Dante is going to meet us there.”
Heather was true to her word and told me what had happened only once I had Axel safely strapped into his car seat and we were on the road to the hospital.
It seemed Tyler, one of the prospects, had been blackmailed by some low-ranking members of the Riders into allowing them to hide in the clubhouse whilst Church was taking place.
Whilst the men were relatively unarmed and occupied with their meeting, Tyler sent the text and allowed them access into Church, shooting Vienna in the process.
Dante had instantly killed Tyler, and the Riders had been defeated.
They were clearly low ranking members, because nobody high up would have been stupid enough to attack the Devil's Disciples with just two people.
And that was all she knew. Pivot had taken Vienna to hospital, and Dante hadn’t been seen since. It had been hours since this had happened—it was early morning, just before I had snuck out, that Church had taken place, so I must have just missed the Riders as I jumped in the car with Axel.
I shivered at that piece of information and made a mental note to be much more aware of my surroundings.
And even though my heart was hurting at the thought of Vienna being in hospital, there was a flicker of relief that was growing stronger and stronger every second.
Because Dante wouldn’t have shot and wounded.
Dante would have shot and killed. Wounded by the Riders meant he had a chance.
Shot by a Devil meant he was long gone. Even in the remote chance Vienna survived, If Dante had known about us, he would never be welcome in the club again.
And that would be a fate worse than death, as far as Vienna was concerned.
Jesus Christ, we really, really fucked up this time!
As we pulled up to the hospital, I saw Dante’s bike parked outside, meaning he must have returned from whatever hole he was hiding in. And even though he didn’t know about me and Vienna, it still sent a shiver down my spine as I thought about the repercussions of my actions.
“Go,” Heather said, misinterpreting my reason for hesitating. “I’ll take Axel home. We’ll do some finger painting and make cakes. Go,” she repeated, reaching over me to open the door and practically pushing me out of the car.
“You’re a godsend, Heather,” I said, leaning over to give her a quick hug and then leant over the back of the seat to give Axel a kiss. I rushed out of the car, waving them away before I turned around and ran over to Dante.
He nodded at me as I approached, and the first thing I noticed was the overwhelming smell of copper.
I looked him up and down, but he was clean. There wasn’t a speck of blood on him. But that smell didn’t appear out of nowhere.
“What did you do?” I breathed, taking a step back and covering my nose with the back of my hand.
“I dealt with it,” he said shortly and grabbed my elbow, yanking me through the hospital doors.
“Is Vienna okay?” I asked, almost having to run to keep up with his long strides.
“He’s in the fucking hospital, Rachel. That’s where all the fit and healthy people hang out.”
“I’m pretty fit and healthy,” I said, although it wasn’t very believable when my words were currently coming out in a wheeze, and I could feel my face growing hot and sweaty with the marathon Dante was forcing me to run.
“Shut up,” he barked. My breath hitched in my throat, and I yanked my elbow out of his grip and stood dead still.
Dante twisted just in time to see me pulling off my boots and then ducked just in time as I launched it at his head, heel first.
“I’ve done nothing fucking wrong, Dante! So instead of snapping at me, how about treating me with a bit of fucking consideration instead of taking your mood out on me? How does that sound?”
I didn’t bother waiting for his response. I stormed past him, my movements unsteady as I hobbled with one shoe on and one shoe off. However, I threw my head back and straightened my spine out of sheer stubbornness and spite.
Dante rushed forward, scooping me up into his arms bridal style, and carried me through the hospital without missing a beat in his steps.
I refused to cling to him, so I let my arms drop to my side. Dante walked closer to the door frame and my elbow smacked off it. After a quick yelp of pain and a jab to his neck (which did nothing other than make him laugh) I wrapped my arms around him. Just to keep them safe.
Sure, keep telling yourself that.
“You left my shoe behind,” I muttered as we entered the ward Vienna and Shark were on.
“That’s your lesson for throwing it at me.”
He let go of my body, and if it wasn’t for my arms being around his neck, I would have crumpled to the floor. Instead, I was left dangling from him, my body pressed against his.
“You’re such a fucking dick!” I hissed, my feet dangling off the floor.
“Feel free to let go anytime,” he smirked. I took a quick glance down, hating that I was more than a foot off the ground.
Stupid fucking behemoth.
“Hey, brother,” Hacksaw said from behind me. Dante held me by my waist and lowered me to the floor, keeping me against his side as I turned around to look at Hacksaw.
Was it me or was he… colder than usual? Hacksaw and I butted heads more than probably anyone else.
When Dante was kidnapped, I had punched Hacksaw in the face after an argument, and we’d never really recovered from that or got any closer.
But the way he was looking at me right now was downright hateful.
“How’s he doing?” Dante asked.
Well, he’s in hospital, Dante. Isn’t this where all the fit and healthy people hang out?
Common sense prevented me from saying that out loud.
“They said the bullet missed all his vital organs, but it’s caused a sucking chest wound or something.
His right lung has collapsed. They’ve removed some of the air, and he still has the needle in his chest to help re-inflate it.
We’re trying to get hold of his mother, but her number has been disconnected. ”
“For fuck's sake,” Dante hissed. “There’s no point trying, so I’d give up. The woman abandoned Vienna years ago. Especially after his dad died. Just… Can we see him?”
“Immediate family only. But I believe you’re on the list,” Hacksaw said. “I’m sure he has you down as his emergency contact. Why don’t you go work your magic on the nurse, and I’ll stay here with Rachel?” He said, narrowing that cold gaze on me again.
Do not fucking leave me alone with him. I don’t like where this is going.
“Right. Okay. Shit. Which room?”
Hacksaw pointed the way, and then stepped to the side to allow Dante to pass and then scowled at me.
“You alright there, big guy?” I asked. He didn’t answer until he was sure that Dante was well out of earshot, and then he grabbed my arm and pulled me up against him.
“I saw everything, Rachel,” he hissed at me, his spit hitting my face.
“What the fuck are you—”
“I am warning you in the nicest fucking way possible. Do not play dumb with me. I saw you and Vienna last night.”
“Nothing happened with me and Vienna last night,” I snapped, ripping my arm away from him. “And if—”
“Here,” he said, shoving his phone at me. I looked down and immediately closed my eyes as dread filled my veins. He had the video. He was in charge of the fucking cameras.
How had we been so bloody stupid?
“Now I need to know what to do about this. Because, as far as I’m aware, this negates your little contract, doesn’t it?” He gave me an evil smile that chilled me all the way to my fucking bones. “Bye-bye Dante, bye-bye club, bye-bye babies.”
“Show him,” I shrugged, refusing to let this cunt intimidate me.
“Go ahead and show him. And then you can explain why you kept it a secret the entire fucking day. You can explain why you took matters into your own hands and tried to intimate me, rather than let him deal with it. We all know Dante doesn’t think rationally when it comes to me.
Look what he did to Greg when I first arrived and he thought I’d kissed him.
So, go ahead. Show him. I dare you. Because I guarantee you, I might be going down, but you sure as hell will be coming down with me. ”
“You think you’re so fucking smart, don’t you?” He snarled.
No. I think I was a fucking moron, but I wasn’t going to tell him that. My heart was pounding out of my chest, I was sweating in places I didn’t even realise a person could sweat from, and my breathing was reaching that rapid, fucked up state that veered towards a panic attack.
But I’d be damned if I let Hacksaw see any of that. All I had was my mouth, and it had been my strongest weapon so far.
“I think I was stupid. And I know I’ve fucked up.
But I also think you’re fucking deluded and deranged if you think I’m going to stand here and have you threaten me.
Tell him,” I said, rising to my tiptoes and pressing my nose against his.
“Tell him. Because when he beats me to a pulp, that only works in my favour for getting the kids miles away from the fucking lot of you. Especially as Bambi has already taken the blame for Hayley’s death.
Your little dossier of information is fast losing the advantage,” I grinned at him and placed a kiss to his cheek before I walked away.
I rounded the corner without looking back and then leant against the wall, expelling a deep puff of air. My entire body was sweating, my heart was hammering at dangerous levels, and if I lived a million lives, I’d never understand how I managed to muster up enough bravado to face him down.
“Rachel?” Dante said from a doorway, looking at me with concern.
“Coming,” I called, plastering a fake smile on my face.
Hacksaw wasn’t going to say anything. Not today. I knew that as surely as I knew the sky was blue.
Unfortunately, I also knew this was a ticking time bomb waiting to go off, and I don’t think any of us would be able to survive the wreckage.