Chapter Six
Remi
I jump at the sound of banging and clutch the blanket to my chest. I push to sit slowly, glancing around even though the room is pitch black and I can’t see a thing. Then, it comes again.
Bang. Bang. Bang.
I plant my feet on the ground and push the blanket from me. Reaching for my bag, I slide my hand inside the front pocket until I feel the cold bone of the old knife.
Bang. Bang. Bang.
I stand, carefully moving to the window, pulling back the curtain just enough for me to peek out. “Remi, where the fuck are you?” cries Roxy. I exhale the panic and rush to the door to unlock it.
She practically falls through with some guy grabbing at her waist and laughing hard.
“What time is it?” I ask, closing the door behind them.
Roxy heads upstairs with the guy hot on her heels. “Go back to sleep,” she throws over her shoulder. “Goodnight.”
I return to the couch and put the knife back into the pocket. My fingers brush the twenty Shadow gave me when he dropped me home tonight. Even though I tried to hand it back, he insisted. Something about the guy is growing on me, and I smile as I snuggle back under the blanket.
I’m woken again, but this time, it isn’t banging. It’s hands. Hands on me. I frown, shifting, only to realise a weight pins me down. A hand clamps over my mouth, and I twist, trying to shake it off.
“Relax,” a deep, threatening voice whispers in my ear. “It’ll be easier if you just let me.”
Panic floods me. I jerk my left hand free, fumbling for my bag, but it’s gone. My stomach drops as the sheet is ripped away.
“That’s it, baby,” he hisses. “Make some noise.”
Wet lips trail down my neck. I recoil, squeezing my eyes shut, praying the shadows will swallow me whole.
Then . . . light. Blinding, harsh light floods the room. A high-pitched shriek splits the air. “What the fuck?” Roxy screams.
The weight shifts, and I gasp, eyes snapping open to see her standing there, fire in her gaze. I scramble upright, chest heaving.
“You better start talking,” she demands, her eyes boring into me. Me? Wait . . .
The guy she brought home grins, pulling his jeans back into place. “Babe, we were having fun. No harm.”
“No harm?” she screams, shoving him hard in the chest.
“Wait,” I mutter, frowning. “I didn’t . . . I wasn’t—”
“Save it,” she snaps, grabbing my arm and yanking me to my feet. “Get the fuck out.” She shoves me towards the door, snatching my bag as she moves. “You think you can stay in my house for free and fuck my man? You’re a slag.”
She flings open the front door and pushes me out into the night. I land in a heap, my bag smacking me hard in the head.
I look up to see him pressed against her neck, a faint smirk on his face, eyes burning into mine as Roxy slams the door shut.
I stay frozen for a second, my body stiff with shock. What the fuck just happened?
I sigh, heavy and hollow, and force myself to stand, dragging my bag along. My bare feet slap against the cold pavement. Great.
I head towards town. It’s only a ten-minute walk, but the streets are quiet now that most of the nightlife has faded, so it must be at least four in the morning.
I find a relatively clean doorway and drop my bag. The evening air is sharp against my skin, and without shoes, a chill creeps up my legs. Sitting on my bag, I curl into myself, pressing my hands over my bare feet and resting my head on my knees.
The silence around me hums, broken only by distant traffic and the occasional shout. My chest aches as my hands tremble slightly. I’m exhausted, but I can’t sleep, not after that.
Instead, my mind goes back to a time when wandering hands were an every-night occurrence. I shudder, squeezing my eyes closed again. Sometimes, there’s no way of stopping the images, and so I let them flow, drowning me like murky water.
I was a teenager when Mum died. Sixteen.
Not young enough for anyone to care and not old enough to start a life of my own.
That suited Colin just fine. I think he preyed on my mum because he sensed she was weak.
Weak for men. Weak for wankers with heavy fists and fiery tempers.
She was like a magnet for them, and they could sniff her out within a ten-mile radius.
It was proven by the fact her bed never got cold.
One would replace another within a matter of days, sometimes hours, and she never wanted them to leave.
They could beat her, treat her like shit, and she’d still do anything for them.
Pay their debts, sell her body, and maybe even her soul. And sometimes . . . her daughter.
So, when Colin came along, around the time I turned nine, I assumed he’d be another one to get sick of her after a few months. But months turned to years.
I think deep down, I always knew he’d be the one to kill her.
“Hey, what the fuck you doing in my spot?” I glance up as a woman in rags, stinking of last year’s rubbish, sways in front of me.
I push to my feet. “Sorry,” I mutter, grabbing my bag.
“What’s in there?” she slurs, pointing to my bag.
“Nothing,” I say, trying to get around her to make my escape.
“Prove it.”
I sigh, unzipping the small pocket and reaching inside. I pull out the twenty from Shadow. “Here, take it,” I snap, shoving it in her hand. “You need it more than me.” And I push past her and head off to find another doorway.
I opt for the church. Usually, these places creep me the fuck out, but right now, I’m shattered and out of options.
So, I take a seat just behind the high wall and rest my head back.
If I can just get an hour before sunrise, I can at least look a little fresher when I go to see Amy about a cleaning job.
I wake with a start. Looking around frantically, I realise it was a voice that woke me . . . a man’s voice.
“Relax,” he says calmly when he sees my alarm. I take a breath. “I’m Kade,” he adds. “The chaplain.” When I don’t respond, he continues. “I haven’t seen you around before. I do a lot of work with the homeless.”
“I’m not homeless,” I mutter, gathering my things.
“Right,” he says, eyeing me as I push to stand. He takes a step back. “Would you like a hot drink?”
I shake my head. “No, but I could use a bathroom,” I say, looking past him to the old church.
“Of course.”
Kade leads the way up the path, and I follow him into the church. He points to a door on the left for the ladies’ bathroom, and I head inside.
I lay my bag on the sink unit and rummage inside until I retrieve my toothbrush and toothpaste. I take in my washed-out appearance and groan. The lack of food is starting to show in my drawn features, and the dark circles under my eyes are giving ‘mess’.
I brush my teeth and splash my face with cold water, using tissue to pat it dry. I have no makeup to even try to improve my face, so I stick to putting on deodorant and heading back out.
Kade is waiting outside, his hands stuffed in his pockets. “All done?”
“Thanks,” I say, passing him and heading out.
He lingers in the doorway. “Look, there are shelters,” he calls after me. “If you need a place, come and find me this evening before six to get a space. I’ll be over at the community hub, helping out at the soup kitchen.”
Shadow
I roll to a stop and pull off my helmet. Pres stops beside me and does the same. “I like what they’ve done with the place,” he comments as his eyes rake over the building not too dissimilar to our own clubhouse.
“How close are you to this Ragnor guy?” I ask casually, and he eyes me with a smirk.
“You don’t like him?”
“I don’t know him.”
“Cos he’s got his eyes on the thief?”
I sigh. “I explained that, Pres. She ain’t bad, just desperate.”
“She must be to steal from me.”
“She put it back.”
“And she’s gonna work an entire shift for free, right?”
I groan. “Pres, she’s already on the bones of her arse. You gonna seriously make it worse for her?”
“I can have her hand chopped off. Your call,” he says, heading towards the clubhouse.
Ragnor swings the door open with a grin on his face.
He claps hands with us both, and I force a smile.
He catches the falseness, pulling me closer and slapping me on the shoulder.
“Come now, brother, let’s not hold grudges.
The girl is free and single, no? You know we have rules in this life about that shit. ”
“Ignore him. He’s moody cos I want to chop her hand off,” Axel cuts in with a snigger.
Ragnor laughs. “Oh yeah, what for?”
“He misses the drama since the club’s gone quiet,” I tease, following them farther inside. “Now, he’s got to make shit up to entertain himself.”
Axel laughs too, shaking his head. “An enforcer who doesn’t want to remove body parts,” he says, glancing my way with an arched brow. “What use are you to me if you’re soft?”
“Now, now, kids,” says Ragnor, leading us into his office. “I’ve got some serious shit to discuss.” We take a seat. “Word is the Steels aren’t happy.”
“What’s new?” asks Axel, shrugging. “We took that strip joint fair and square.”
“I hear yah,” Ragnor replies, “but apparently, this is to do with us, The Hell’s Avengers.”
“What did you do?” I ask.
“They don’t like the new club in town,” he replies. “Should’ve expected it really.”
“They’re pissed cos they’re being pushed out,” says Axel. “Ain’t no fucker gonna waste time consoling them. I had one rule—they pitch up here but pay us our rent. They didn’t pay, I took compensation.”
“I’m just telling you what I heard,” says Ragnor, “in case they start making noise.”
“Let them,” I say with a grin. “We’ll be ready.”
Sasha bounds over like an excited puppy, her top low enough to showcase what she’s offering. “You look stressed,” she comments, hooking her arm through mine. “Need a relief?”
I unhook her from me. “Nah, I’m good.”
She pouts. “At this rate, I’ll have to start offering myself to the other guys,” she hisses.
I shrug, and she narrows her eyes. “You do what you gotta do,” I tell her, joining Kade at the bar. “Water,” I tell the prospect, who grabs me a bottle and passes it over.
“You upsetting Sasha?” asks Kade with a grin.
“Don’t s’pose you have that issue,” I say.
He laughs. “Nah, and that’s a good thing.” He waits a beat before adding, “I saw the new girl this morning.”
I take a sip of water. “Oh yeah, which one?”
“We both know which one,” he replies, smirking. “The same one you’ve been watching every time she’s been behind this bar.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I say with a grin.
“She was sleeping rough.”
I pause, the bottle midway to my lips. “What?”
“Yeah, she was skittish too, like she was shaken. I’ve offered her shelter in case her situation is more permanent. Didn’t mention I was from the club, and she didn’t recognise me.”
“You must have it wrong, Kade. Remi was sleeping on a dancer’s couch. She’s all good.” But even as I say the words, I don’t believe them. It wasn’t like her and Roxy were firm friends. They’d only met recently. “She say anything else?” I ask.
“No. She couldn’t wait to get away.”
“If she shows up later, call me.”
He gives a nod, and I take my water and head out to my bike. If he’s wrong, she’ll likely be at the strip club hanging around the dancers again.
I spot Roxy the second I step inside. She’s on the phone, whispering like she’s got some top secrets spilling from her lips. I slam my hand above her head, landing on the wall like a sledgehammer, and she flinches, immediately turning to face me. “I’ll call you back,” she says and disconnects.
“Things good with you and Remi?” I ask.
She rolls her eyes, and my heart stutters, already knowing she’s about to confirm what Kade said. “You mean that lying, cheating slag?” She dips under my arm and heads for the bar.
I follow. “What?”
“I caught her about to fuck my man.”
My frown deepens, because even though I can’t claim to know Remi any better than Roxy does, it doesn’t sound like something she would do. “What happened?”
“I threw her dirty arse back out where it belongs, on the streets.”
“When?”
She shrugs. “The early hours of this morning. She’s got a fucking cheek. I offered her a roof, and that’s how she repaid me.”
“What did your guy have to say about it?”
Her angry expression softens, and she presses her lips together in a fine line that forms into a smile. “He agreed, she’s scum.”
“So, he actively told Remi no, right?”
She shrugs. “He’s a man, easily tempted. But he explained, and I forgave him.”
I scoff, shaking my head as I turn for the exit. “‘Course you did.”