Chapter 18
CHAPTER 18
[WiseWave620: You asshole!]
* * *
F or the second time in as many months, Scar woke up back in Primis Headquarters. This time, though, they did not take any chances of him escaping. He did not wake in the medical wing but strapped to a stainless steel table. Bolted down by thick metal shackles, Scar learned quickly that even something as minute as a finger twitch sent a powerful electrical shock through his entire system.
Worry over Tally and what had happened to her was at the forefront of his mind. Even when her father came in to taunt and rage at Scar for humiliating him during Scar’s last visit.
When Alpha’s interrogators came in, Scar closed his eyes and bore it mutely. In his head, he wasn’t held captive in a white, stale room filled with sadistic men who took pleasure in inflicting pain on others. No, he was on Tally’s couch, listening to her talk about anything and everything. Letting her voice fill his head and soothe his aches.
Scar didn’t know how or when Alpha had gotten recordings of Scar’s old team. Them training, hanging out at base, even what appeared to be a birthday party in a backyard… Somehow Alpha had edited images of Little Tyke into the videos, because Scar knew he hadn’t been present during any of them.
Hearing his brothers’ voices again was more painful than anything the interrogators physically did to him. Did Alpha truly believe starving him was the way to win back Scar’s loyalty? Did he even comprehend that he’d never had Scar’s loyalty? That Scar had been so numb to the world that he’d have accepted any chance at revenge, regardless of the cost?
When the interrogators left him, the videos turned on. He was surrounded and drowned out by the voices of his ghosts.
The dream changed as time went on. He was still sitting on Tally’s couch, listening to the calming cadence of her voice, but they were no longer at opposite ends. Slowly, they moved together. Because in his head, she could touch him.
In his head, he could touch her.
It started off with them sitting side by side as she talked. Eventually, they moved closer, leaning into each other. The warmth of her milk chocolate skin, even imaginary, was like a blanket of protection around his mind. The interrogators could not harm him so long as Tally was touching him.
If the clock in the room was accurate—and there was a chance it wasn’t to keep him discombobulated—by the fifth day of his captivity, Tally was laying down on the couch with her head on Scar’s thigh as he ran his fingers through her thick locks. She normally wore her hair in a braid to keep it out of the way while she worked, but now it was down. Loose. Flowing over his legs and onto the couch beside him like a shimmering black river. So soft, it coated his fingers.
Scar didn’t know what Alpha’s end game was. Each day he came in, threatening Scar’s family in Pennsylvania, even his sister in Texas.
Yet the man continuously left off one person on his list of people.
Alpha never mentioned Tally to Scar. Never spoke of her or seethed about Scar’s presence in her life. Scar did not know how Alpha had learned he was in Atlanta, but it never crossed his mind that Tally had been the one to tell him.
What did Tally think had happened to him? What had Alpha told her?
The fantasies in his head took a dark turn when he tried to picture himself explaining his presence in her life, stumbling over his words as he fought to voice his thoughts for the first time in nearly a decade.
As crystal clear as Scar could hear Tally’s voice, as if she was standing right next to him, Scar couldn’t even remember what his own sounded like. He had to stop considering the possibility, knowing rejection would follow. It was safer to remain on the couch, letting her talk to him.
Throughout it all, the torture, the videos, the fantasies, Scar would not let himself think beyond the couch and running his fingers through her hair. If he thought of anything… more , anything remotely intimate, it would mean too much.
She deserved more than him. Better. She deserved a man who was whole .
Pieces of Scar would remain forever lost. He could not offer himself to her because he wasn’t broken. He was ruined.
Perhaps it was better this way. To vanish from her life as he had. His family already thought him dead and Tally would eventually forget the silent man who once plagued her life for weeks on end.
She would forget, but he never would.
* * *
Tally did not know the specifics of what the club was planning. It didn’t even sound like they were entirely comfortable talking about it in front of their women, let alone a stranger. Tally had her part to play, though. She and Simone would head back to Atlanta to distract her father. Somehow, Tally had to get him back down to Atlanta and away from Washington, D.C..
Before they left, Simone headed for one last bathroom visit while Tally headed out to the car.
Sissy found her there, standing by the passenger side. “I wanted to introduce myself properly. I’m Charlotte, but everyone calls me ‘Sissy’.”
Tally held out her hand to her. “Tally Meacham.”
But Sissy didn’t take her hand. “I’m going to hug you, okay?” Before Tally could reply, Sissy batted Tally’s offered hand away and threw her arms around Tally’s neck. The hug was tight, like between long lost sisters. It took Tally a second to move past her shock before she returned the embrace. “Thank you,” Sissy whispered. “I am so glad he found you.”
The jealousy Tally had felt earlier at Sissy’s proclamation that Scar was her best friend evaporated. Instead, awkwardness took its place. After Bulldog had returned Scar’s cut to her, Tally had put it back on, needing to feel the worn leather against her. “I’m not even sure what he is to me, what I am to him,” Tally said just as softly. “It was a weird month and I’ve learned more about him today from the rest of you than I ever did from him. I just…”
Sissy stepped back. She had a sweetness to her that reminded Tally of berry fields and sunlight. She took Tally’s hands. “I’ve known Scar a long time, Tally. He might not speak, but he’s very expressive. I used to tease him that his eyebrows could hold their own in a conversation. But when it came down to it, Scar has a focus that borders on single-mindedness. He does anything and everything to protect those he loves, and nothing stops him.”
Sissy squeezed Tally’s hands gently. “Except you. If he went down to Atlanta to take pictures of you as Keys suspects, then he would have done it to protect us. Alpha, I mean your father, he doesn’t sound like a good man.”
Tally flinched. “It’s like the guys were describing Mr. Hyde to my Dr. Jekyll. I know it was my father in my apartment who took Scar away, but he was nothing like my father . I can’t wrap my head around it and it hurts too much when I try.”
“I’m sorry. I have the best dad in the world, but I had a pretty shitty mom. I know it’s not a real comparison, but I’m here if you want to talk. I’m also here if you don’t.”
“Thank you,” Tally said sincerely. She wasn’t sure, but she guessed Sissy’s age to be early to mid-twenties.
“You know that Scar would have never hurt you, though, right? Even to get to your father? He doesn’t hurt those who don’t deserve it and you’re innocent of your father’s crimes.”
Tally’s lips twitched. “I knew that almost immediately upon sensing him. His presence scared me, not knowing his motives, and I definitely got the feeling that he could hurt me, but I never believed he would .”
“I’m glad. We’ll get him back for you, I promise. Here, give me your phone. I’ll add my number in it so we can chat. I’ll keep you up to date as much as I can.”
Tally pulled her phone out of her pocket, unlocking it before handing it over to Sissy. “Can I ask you something?”
“Of course.”
“Why does everyone speak about Scar like he’s one of you, and yet not?”
“Because he’s a dumbass who thinks he has to keep his distance from us to protect us,” Sissy answered without hesitation. “Here’s your phone back. I texted myself so I have your number too.”
Tally took back the device, pocketing it. She wasn’t sure how to take Sissy’s answer regarding her question about Scar. “But you all care for him?”
“We love him,” Sissy said with honesty. “He doesn’t believe he deserves that love. You’ll have a struggle on your hands getting him to accept yours too.”
Tally bit the inside of her lip. She wasn’t sure what she felt for Scar. Calling it love seemed too premature. She heard Simone approach the car and knew her conversation with Sissy was about to end. “Real quick, what’s Scar’s name and why didn’t you guys know it?”
“Well, if you hadn’t realized, he’s not exactly big on introductions,” Sissy laughed. Tally felt her cheeks heat. “Uncle Bulldog served with Scar. That’s all I knew for a lot of years. It wasn’t until April, though, that a lot of us learned more personal details about him.” In almost a hinting voice, Sissy added, “Life has a way of adding in too much detail. Take away all the bullshit and you can truly learn about a person. I think that’s why it’s so easy to love Scar. There’s no ‘extra’, no layers to tear away. What you see is literally what you get. Or in your case, what you sense.”
Perhaps that was why she felt like this. Like Scar was hers but not understanding how or in what capacity.
“Scar loves just as deeply, you know. Maybe even more. And to answer your question, his name is Julian Ragna.”
* * *
Alpha hadn’t been back in a few days. Maybe two. Scar was almost certain that the clock in the room was inaccurate. Some minutes went by far too quickly while others dragged on. The interrogators continued to come and go. One was trying to convince his fellows that if Scar didn’t speak, he didn’t need his tongue, but the others were still inclined to continue their exploration to make Scar scream.
By their logic, if he could scream, then he could talk.
He was not as weak as they had hoped, indicating that he’d been held prisoner a week or more. They didn’t realize that he was used to fasting, so their version of starving him was his normal food routine. Or it had been before he’d started eating Tally’s cooking. When he refused their food, though, they had to resort to feeding him intravenously. After all, they wanted him starved and desperate, not starved and dead.
Their efforts towards causing sleep deprivation were also failing. One of the interrogators had even questioned out loud if Scar was human, but he found no offense in the inquiry. In fact, it made him think of Tally and the evening they’d spent in her storage unit.
The feel of her hand on his throat…
He tried to remember the burn of her touch but could only recall the sensation that it was Tally who was touching him. What he wouldn’t give to be standing before her again. To see that little smile he adored so much when she felt his presence, even at a distance, in the same room with her.
The door opened. Scar wouldn’t have even looked over at them, lost in his head as he was, except the two doctors were in more of a hurry entering than normal. His eyes widened, and for a moment he wondered what hallucinogens the doctors had put into his IV, because there was no fucking way Tessa and Sissy just walked into his prison cell!
“Before you ask, Tally sent us,” Sissy snapped, rushing towards him.
Tally! What the fuck? How did Tally even know about the Via Daemonia ? And even if she did, why the fuck would she send Sissy and Tessa ? They weren’t soldiers. How the fuck had they even gotten into Primis? How did they know anything about Primis?
“Be mad at us later,” Sissy said in a hurried voice. Her cheeks were red from exertion but her eyes, so like her father’s, were clouded with worry. “We don’t have much time.”
As Sissy started looking for how to undo the manacles on his wrists and ankles, Tessa went to work in disconnecting the catheter in his arm. The petite blonde leaned over him, her blue eyes filled with concern behind her glasses. “You look like shit,” she told him. Happiness and concern warred on her features. There was a tear in her eye as she looked down at him, like she couldn’t believe her eyes that she was really seeing him. “Do you know what they gave you?”
Scar tried to shake his head, but the electric jolt froze him in place. What the fuck were they doing here? They needed to leave!
The door came crashing open, making Tessa and Sissy jump. Fear gripped Scar, knowing he was useless to protect them still bolted down as he was, but the intruder wasn’t a Primis mercenary. It was Angel!
The five-foot-eight former Army sniper wasn’t dressed like a doctor as Tessa and Sissy were. She was in black fatigues with the Primis logo on the sleeve below her left shoulder. The holster at her side was empty, her gun pointed outside the door into the hallway. “We got company! Let’s move!”
Echoes of a fight rang out in the hall. Who the hell else was here? Why had they come for him?
“I can’t get these manacles off of him!” Sissy exclaimed in a panic. “And if he moves, they electrocute him!”
“There must be a switch.” Tessa was slightly calmer than Sissy, but not by much. The rush of the ER likely prepared her for keeping her fears under control, but the madness of an ER was far different than storming enemy headquarters. “Maybe a way to short them out, but I don’t even see any wires!”
Silence fell in the hallway. Angel lowered her gun, but didn’t holster it. A moment later, Scissors walked in, dragging an unconscious guard’s body behind her. “There’s two more in the hall,” she told Angel. Her Afro was tied down into a low bun and she was wearing the same black outfit as Angel.
“Got it,” Angel said before heading out.
Scissors dropped the guard, none too gently. “What’s going on, babe?” she asked Sissy as she approached her fiancée. Despite their location and dire situation, Scissors draped an arm around Sissy’s waist under the white lab coat she was wearing and kissed Sissy on her cheek.
Scar glared at the woman. Why the fuck would she allow Sissy to come here? What the fuck had she been thinking?
Scissors noticed Scar’s glare and rolled her eyes. Then informed him as if he was supposed to understand how it even remotely related to their current situation, “I happen to like orgasms.”
Sissy’s cheeks heated as she explained the issue to Scissors. Everything in Scar silently ordered Scissors to take Tessa and Sissy out of there, but the woman blatantly ignored him. She ducked under the table that bound him.
“Still got that taser I gave you?”
Sissy reached inside her lab coat pocket and pulled out a small black taser. It could have been mistaken for a flashlight. She handed it down to Scissors, who was still under the table.
Scar could not believe his eyes. Sissy had come into a highly armed building with a fucking taser as protection?
Something clanged under the table. A moment later, Scar’s body lurched as another bolt of electricity ran through him. It lasted only a few seconds. As Angel walked back in, dragging another guard, the table under Scar shook and then the metal manacles strapped to his wrists, ankles, and forehead snapped open.
Scissors popped back up, a cocky smile on her ebony face. She slipped the taser back inside Sissy’s coat pocket, obviously copping a feel as she did.
Scar fought to sit up. He’d been forced to lay flat on his back for so long that his muscles rebelled against the notion of moving. Tessa reached for him, but he recoiled away from her touch.
Her blue eyes narrowed. “With or without my assistance, you are walking out of here, Scar. Choose.”
When Scar did not move, Tessa took a step back. He worked himself off of the table, his legs screaming as they accepted his weight for the first time. He had to catch himself on the edge of the table to keep from toppling over.
Tessa watched him closely but did not move to touch him again. “Based on a visual examination, you’re malnourished. Multiple contusions and lacerations that could indicate internal bleeding. You’re missing multiple finger- and toenails. Your nose is broken. Fuck, Scar, you’re a mess. How are you even standing right now?”
He’d had worse. Stepping forward, he had to grit his teeth against the sudden nausea that rose up. His eyes landed on a stainless steel table directly in front of him against the white wall. He’d never noticed it before because he hadn’t been able to move more than his eyeballs.
On top were ten scalpels, a pair of pliers, and a bone saw. The fact that there was blood on multiple of the scalpels and the tips of the pliers did not stop him from picking them up. They were not walking out of here with only a taser for protection.
Turning to face the women, Scar saw a shadow fall over the doorway. Quick as lightning, he flung a scalpel across the room. But his aim was off. Silver glinted as it made contact with the white frame, missing the person standing in the doorway.
Good thing too.
Possibly.
Ivy Benson, former SWAT officer and royal pain in Scar’s ass, turned to face the weapon embedded in the wood directly to her left. “You’re aim’s off, Scarface.” She flung a duffel bag into the room. “Not that I mind the sight of your nakedness, because wow , but there are ladies present.”
Scar glanced down at himself and noticed for the first time that he was naked. Not down to his skivvies naked, but birthday suit naked.
Her cheeks blazing red, Tessa rushed forward to grab the duffel. “There’s no time to argue, Scar. Let me help get you dressed.” To the other women, Tessa snapped, “And not a word of this to Bear. Do you hear me? We just got him back alive. I do not need my husband killing him again!”
Scissors actually chuckled.
Angel didn’t look away. She nodded appraisingly and even winked at Scar. “Never claimed to be a lady.”
Scar sent Angel a reproachful look, not embarrassed by his nudity. He was more concerned with keeping his shit together while Tessa helped him dress. To her credit, she worked to keep from touching him unnecessarily while hurrying.
Ivy and Angel stood guard at the door. Sissy gave Scar her back, leaning into Scissors. “Let’s just get out of here and then you can tell us how you’re still alive, asshole! I cried at your fucking funeral, Scar!”
Guilt seized him at her words, but he couldn’t let it slow him down. Scar’s mind worked frantically to try to figure out how they were here and what it meant. Where was everyone? Primis employed some twenty-five thousand men. Not all were stationed in Washington, D.C.. They had multiple locations throughout the world, but even their headquarters had several hundred guards.
Where was everyone?
As Tessa bent to tie his boots, grumbling about not being able to treat his wounds, he noticed she had a wireless earwig in her right ear. Looking over at the others, he saw earwigs in Scissors’ and Sissy’s ears too. Likely Angel and Ivy had the same.
Grabbing the scalpels and pliers up again, Scar stumbled towards the door. Everything ached, but he needed to get the women out of here. What the fuck was Steel thinking sending the women in? That wasn’t misogyny, either. It was a fucking need to see they got out of this building they should have never been inside of in the first place.
As he approached the door, his left leg dragging more than he cared to admit, Ivy pulled the scalpel he’d thrown at her from the doorframe. She held it out to him, handle-first. He accepted it, noting that her hair really was dyed red as Keys’ chat message had informed him over a month ago.
“Glad you’re not dead,” she told him shortly. “Now, can we get the fuck out of here?”
It went against the grain, letting Angel and Ivy take the lead. The two women worked well together, leading them through the halls and taking out any guards who approached them from the front. Scissors took up the rear, watching their six. Tessa and Sissy walked hurriedly beside Scar, and he couldn’t help but feel like they were guarding him too.
Even with the encounters they had, it was nowhere near the amount of guards Scar knew Primis kept on hand in Washington, D.C.. The building was practically a maze, but it looked like there were certain doors closed that wouldn’t normally be. Either Primis had changed procedures since Scar had been employed here, or something else was going on.
He noted the security camera in the corner of the hall. The women weren’t even trying to hide their faces.
Keys must be on property. It was the only explanation. But Scar also knew that Primis wouldn’t be so lazy as to allow any ole hacker into their system. They hired a lot of tech guys to keep their files secure. None were Keys, but that didn’t mean they were slackers either.
There was a reason Navy Intelligence had recruited him when he was only a teenager. It was too bad for them that he had a straighter moral compass than they did or he might still be working for them. Who knew what the kid would be capable of then? The same could also be said if Ghost hadn’t tracked Keys down, knowing of the Other Than Honorable discharge he’d received after refusing an order that would have ended a number of civilian lives. Where would the kid be now? Some underground hacker organization?
No doubt Keys was leading them through the maze of hallways and stairwells to get them down to the ground floor. Scar was in no condition to be jumping from any windows during this escape.
Twice Tessa made their group halt so that she could bind one wound or another when she noticed Scar was leaving a blood trail behind them. He knew it wasn’t so that their path couldn’t be tracked. They were leaving a trail of bodies behind them like goddamn breadcrumbs. From her murmurings, she was only concerned about his wellbeing.
How the fuck did she think he felt about hers ?
The further down they made it, the more guards they encountered. Multiple times Angel and Ivy engaged in hand-to-hand combat when their opponents were too many or too close. Scar’s aim improved with each throw, but unfortunately, he was down to his last scalpel. The pliers were now in the eyeball and brain of a guard who had tried to grab for Sissy.
The close quarters of the halls made the fighting quick but loud. On several occasions, Scar heard the sounds of mechanical doors slamming closed in the distance. Certain doors banged with men trying to break them down from the other side. But Primis did not skimp on building materials. The fire suppression and armored doors that had been put in place to protect Primis employees now trapped them like mice in a maze.
Scar was very grateful that Keys silenced any alarms that might have gone off otherwise. The further they went, the weaker Scar felt. His head was pounding something fierce, but he pushed beyond it. He would not fall and endanger the women further when they tried to forcibly drag his ass out of here.
Because they would. Born to stubbornness, the lot of them.
When they were five floors up, Keys was able to call an elevator for them. Scar owed the kid, because he was more likely to roll down the stairs than walk down at this point. Something clattered to the elevator floor as he stumbled inside, reaching for the rail to steady himself.
“How’s he doing?” Angel asked as they all crowded into the small mechanical box.
“Not good.” Scar stiffened when he felt Tessa’s hand on his back through his shirt. She immediately removed it. “I’m not sure he’s going to make it out of here on his own two feet.”
Scar forced himself to breathe out of his nose as he turned so his back was to the wall. His eyes landed on the scalpel on the elevator floor at the women’s feet. Fuck. He’d dropped his weapon.
Gritting his teeth, his vision swimming in and out of focus, he staggered up off of the wall so he could retrieve it.
Sissy stepped in front of him. Scar halted, nearly falling over, but was able to grab hold of the metal rail outlining the interior of the elevator. His right side pinched with every breath.
“Think about Tally.” Sissy’s face was full of worry, but she didn’t reach for him. He still couldn’t believe she was inside fucking Primis Headquarters. What happened to the sweet sixteen-year-old girl who’d sat down with him at that picnic table outside the clubhouse and told him he looked lonely?
Her words, though, were calm and encouraging. “She came to find us after her father took you. She was even wearing your cut.” Though his vision was blurry, he caught the hint of a smile on her lips. The implication of Tally wearing his cut was clear. No one was allowed to wear a member’s cut except a member—and his ol’ lady.
Scar’s heart started thundering in his chest for an entirely different reason.
“I like her, Scar. Really and truly. She’s strong and fierce. She called you hers . Declared it before everyone present too. You should have seen the looks on their faces when they learned the Mighty Scar had a woman.”
A woman. Fuck. Scar tried to breathe, to focus. Tally had gone to the Via Daemonia . Tally had sent them to rescue him. Tally had gone against her father for him . He didn’t know the specifics and he didn’t need to. What she’d done was momentous and shook him on a fundamental level.
He was not worthy of such a sacrifice—but he’d strive every day to be if she’d let him.
The elevator doors let out a sharp ding as they opened. Angel, Ivy, and Scissors went out first. They’d taken the opportunity in the elevator to reload and check each other over for injuries. Scissors had a gash on her upper arm. Ivy had a split lip and the makings of a bruise on her chin. Angel’s shirt had been pulled from her belted pants and was crinkled from an obvious scuffle. She had a slight limp, but nothing that slowed her down.
A vision of Tally stood before him. She was in her chef’s shirt, smiling that secret smile that told him she knew he was there. His smile.
Scar dug deep into his reserves for the strength to make it out of this fucking building. Back to her. Wherever that was—Mount Grove, Atlanta, fucking Mars—he was making it back to her .
Tally was his. More importantly, he was hers. In whatever capacity she would have him, he was hers. He’d move mountains for her. Conquer countries, lasso the moon, whatever she wanted and desired, it was all hers.
They made it through the atrium to a sight that Scar never thought he’d see again: his brothers were waiting for him. Bodies lined the large entrance, dozens of them, either dead or unconscious. Standing throughout, dressed in combat gear, was his club.
Steel, Lucky, Bear, Demo, Jumper, Cage, Grumpy, Ranger, Bones, Pirate, Starbucks, Jigsaw, Papaw. Hell, even Aerial was there in a K9 tactical vest. The only ones missing were the prospects, Darrin and Viktor, Ghost, Keys, and Pumpkin.
Right up front, charging for him as soon as Scar stumbled into view, was José.
Scar’s brother nearly barreled through the women to get to him. Scar stiffened as José threw his arms around Scar, pulling him against his chest. José was a few inches taller than Scar and had a lot more bulk to him.
After a few heartbeats where Scar simply leaned into his brother, he lifted his shaky arms to return the embrace. What was a little more pain?
“Fucking hell, Julian,” José whispered, his voice cracking. Scar felt wetness touch the side of his face and he squeezed his eyes closed against his own tears. “Don’t you fucking do that to me again.”
Scar shook his head, not knowing if José was referring to him falling off the bridge, not informing José he was still alive, having José learn Scar was still alive from a stranger, or being captured and tortured by Primis. Again.
It really could have been any one of them or all of them.
A sudden shout from behind them followed by pounding footsteps had José and Scar breaking apart to see Keys and Ghost running towards them. Ghost had a thick gash over his left eye.
“What the fuck are you guys still doing here?!” Keys shouted. He had a brown leather satchel over his shoulder but was clutching whatever was in the bag close to his chest. “I told you guys ‘ten minutes’ five minutes ago! Every security system in this place is about to go off and we do not want to be here when it does! Go, go, go!”