Chapter 15
Chapter Fifteen
Hannibal
I knew there was more to the story.
As her walls start to crumble and fall, she blurts out a little more.
I knew Driller was a piece of shit.
I just didn’t realize she was getting it from everyone else too.
Don’t get me wrong, I figured she wasn’t everyone’s favorite person after she went from Havoc to Driller, but shit happens, and it’s nobody’s business but theirs.
I look over at her as she fiddles with the frayed hole in her knee.
She doesn’t know what set her off.
Though I told her it was me mentioning the club, it wasn’t.
It was my stupid comment about her getting with Driller, making things ten times worse.
I don’t know what that was about, but things went downhill fast after that.
I look back to the road just in time to catch the turn for the motel.
It’s set back from the road, so the sounds of traffic won’t be an issue.
I can sleep through most things, a side effect of being in the military.
When you’re in active combat, you take a nap where you can because going to bed for the night is never guaranteed.
“I hope they have space,” she yawns as I bring the truck to a stop.
“Let’s go find out.”
She flicks the light on before looking at me.
“Does it look like I’ve been crying?”
I know some women are pretty criers, but Lola'sn’t one of them. Her face and eyes are puffy and red.
“A little.”
She blows a hair from her face before looking for something around the cab.
“What are you looking for?”
“The cap I had on earlier.”
I unclip my belt, reach down into the footwell on her side, and grab it for her.
“Thank you.” She slips it on her head and flips the mirror down. She frowns at her reflection before closing it once more and looking at me. “Okay, this is as good as it’s going to get.”
“I have zero complaints.” I jump out and walk around, opening her door and lifting her out. I lock the truck up and take her hand.
The entrance is brightly lit, and through the glass doors I can see someone sitting at the reception desk. A bell jingles as we walk in. I want to yank it off the wall and stomp on it, but I refrain. Instead, I slip on what I hope is a charming smile and approach the older woman at the desk.
“Hi. I was wondering if you have a room we can book for the week?” Havoc said a few days, but I’d rather be safe than sorry.
“I have a few empty rooms but nothing available for the full week except for the honeymoon suite.”
“Well, as we just got married, that would be perfect.”
She eyes me before her gaze lands on Lola and then her hands. Her ringless hands.
Lola must have realized too because she holds up her hand to show her naked ring finger. “We’re getting it resized. This pregnancy has made my fingers and ankles swell like crazy.”
“Oh, I remember how that went. It might have been forty years ago, but you don’t forget things like that. Back then, when people talked about being pregnant, it was all made to sound like a Disney movie. Nobody ever told us about the other side of things, like peeing when we sneeze or leaky boobs, and flatulence. By the end of my pregnancy, my ankles looked like my thighs, and I had hemorrhoids coming out of my ass, literally.”
As a medic, I’ve heard it all before, but never when I’ve been booking into a motel.
“Here, let me get the paperwork for you and grab the keys.”
“Thanks. Is it possible to get something to eat around here too? We’ve been traveling for a while, and my wife needs food.”
“I can make up some sandwiches. It won’t be anything fancy, mind you.”
“Honestly, sandwiches sound perfect,” Lola chimes in as the woman grabs the paperwork and puts it in front of me. I take the pen from the counter and fill in the details, unsurprised to find that the place hadn’t gone digital yet.
“Perfect. Here you go.” She hands me the key once I’m done.
“Room thirteen. It’s on the top floor. I’ll call up when the food is ready and you can come down and collect the tray. My knees aren’t what you used to be.”
“Of course,” I agree before leading Lola to the elevator. “I’ll take you up and then come back down for our things.”
“Okay. You sure you don’t need a hand?”
“I’ll be fine.”
We get off when the elevator chimes, and the doors slide open. There appears to be only four rooms up here, and the one at the far end of the hallway is number thirteen. I use the old-fashioned key to open the door and wait for her to pass.
I quickly follow her in when she gasps and cracks up laughing. “I think the seventies called and want their furniture back.”
“Jesus, I don’t think I’ve seen a set-up like this outside of porn.”
I turn to look at her as she blushes. “And what kind of porn are you watching, wife?”
She rolls her eyes, moving farther into the room. “I’m not really your wife, remember.”
“Not yet, anyway,” I mutter. “I’m heading down for the rest of our stuff. I’ll leave you to explore.”
“Okay. See you in a minute.”
I pause in the doorway and watch her. She looks lost as she takes in the room. l have to keep my mouth closed to stop myself from growling.
I pull the door closed behind me and stomp out to the truck. It started raining while we were inside. Sheets or water pour from the sky, matching my mood. I lean against the side of the truck, feeling the rain quickly soak through my T-shirt to my skin, but it does nothing to douse the fire coursing through my blood.
The urge to hunt makes my fingers twitch. I picture Driller, laying out before me as I take him apart with a smile on my face. I’d start with his fingers and then his hands so he can never touch my woman again. Next, I’d take his cock and shove it down his throat and watch him choke on it. I’d take his eyes and ears next. Depriving someone of their senses is always fun. I like to leave them with their voices until the end, though. Hearing their screams start out strong and begin to falter before they pitifully drop off makes for the perfect soundtrack.
A boom of thunder snaps me out of my thoughts. I look around, unsure how long I got lost in my head. Not wanting Lola to worry needlessly, I grab my cut and slip it on before sliding my backpack over my shoulder. I grab the bags we picked up at the mall and slam the door shut before jogging inside.
As I reach for the door, it is pulled open by the woman manning the desk. “Oh my goodness, it’s really coming down out there.” She steps aside for me to enter before closing the door behind me. “I have those sandwiches ready. Why don’t you drop those bags off quickly, and I’ll grab them, along with some extra towels.”
“Appreciated, ma’am.”
“Oh, none of that now. It’s Sue.”
“Alright. Well, thank you, Sue.”
“It’s really no problem. Now hurry before you catch a cold. That’s the last thing you need right now when you have a pretty wife upstairs.”
I grin and take the bags upstairs in the elevator, leaving them outside the door before heading back down to grab the towels and food.
Sue is waiting for me as the elevators open. She takes in my cut and smiles sadly.
“Everything okay?” Most people look wary and not sad when they realize I’m part of an MC.
“Just remembering my youth. Once upon a time, I was in love with a boy who was part of a motorcycle club. It was two husbands and eight grandkids ago now. But I never forgot him. He was in a bike wreck. He hit the guardrail and wasn’t wearing a helmet.” She shakes her head.
“I’m sorry for your loss.” That’s what people say when people die, right? Fuck, I’m no good at this. I’m usually the reason someones dead.
“Anyway, ignore me. Take these up to your wife. And if you need anything else, just dial zero, and it will put you straight through to reception.”
She heads off before I can say anything else. I step back into the elevator and hit the button for our floor. Once I get there, I unlock the door and carry the food over to the small table against the wall.
I slip out of my cut and hang it on the back of the chair “Lola?” I call just as she walks out of the bathroom. “Food’s here. Start without me, okay?” I walk past her and grab the rest of the bags, placing them on the floor near the foot of the bed. I grab one of the towels and rub my hair with it as I take in the bed. I’m not sure I’ve ever seen a circle fucking bed before.
“It’s something, right?” I turn to find Lola behind me with a sandwich in her hand. “I don’t even want to know where she managed to get the purple satin sheets to fit it.” She offers me a bite of her sandwich, which I take.
“I feel like it would've been a whole vibe if you’d walked in here topless, boasting a mustache, asking me if I need my pipes cleaned.”
I choke on my mouthful before glaring at her, making her laugh.
“Honestly, it’s growing on me. You haven’t even seen the bathroom yet. It has a huge bathtub and a television in there.”
Grabbing another towel, I carry it to the bathroom and snort at the avocado-green suite. I kick off my boots and strip out of my wet clothes before wrapping one of the towels around my hips.
“I’m just glad it has a bed,” I tell her as I walk back into the bedroom. She gulps when she sees my bare chest and quickly turns away. Grinning, I reach around her for a sandwich and take a bite before moving over to the window. I peer down at the well-lit parking lot below. I don’t see anything unusual, but knowing Driller's out there will keep me on guard. If we’d had enough prospects, I’d have borrowed one for a little while. But with Dice down for now, that wasn’t an option. At least my bike’s not out there.
“Everything okay?”
I look over at Lola and see her frown.
“All good. Think the rain has slowed down now it’s soaked me.”
She walks up to me, looking out at the truck before looking back up at me. “You think Driller’s watching us?”
I shake my head. I’m never going to get away with anything with her. “Too many potential witnesses to try anything here. Eat some more.”
She sighs but grabs another sandwich and starts eating. “So, how long are we staying here for?”
“A few days, a week max. It’s Havoc’s call to make.”
She nods and takes one of the two seats at the table. “Do we just stay inside the whole time? What about your job? Hell, I don’t even know what you do.”
“I’m a jack of all trades. I help, or helped, where people needed me. It was easier that way, in case I needed to dip out at the last minute to patch someone up.” I wipe my hands on one of the napkins Sue added to the tray. “I don’t need to work. My grandparents were rich and left everything to me, their sole grandchild. Then, when my parents died, I inherited everything of theirs too, including an astronomical amount from their life insurance policies.”
“How come you ended up in the military?”
“I get bored easily. And when I get bored, people around me tend to die,” I admit.
She pauses as she’s about to take another bite of her sandwich. “I’m not really sure how to take that.”
“It’s not something to worry about. If anyone is safe from me, it’s you and our kids.”
She drops her sandwich to the table and stares at me for a moment. “What if Havoc ordered you to hurt me, or worse, kill me?”
“Havoc isn’t Khan, and he isn’t Driller either,” I remind her gently.
“No. He’s not. Funny though, because what he did hurt more than anything Khan and Driller did to me.”
I cock my head, trying to get a read on that. It’s like I have a thousand-piece puzzle in my hand, and all the pieces have been shaken up.
“Havoc would never ask that of me unless you became a traitor. MCs aren’t forgiving of traitors.”
“They aren’t forgiving of anything. I get the whole traitor thing. I think that’s the crazy part. I’d understand if, say, I told the police where the bodies were buried, so to speak. I’d know before I opened my mouth that I’d effectively signed my own death certificate. My issue comes from the other side. Like, what if someone told you I was a traitor and I wasn’t? What if it was a patched brother or two that swore on their cuts I was a traitor? Would you believe them over me because they’re your brothers, and I’m just a hole for your cock? A replaceable one at that?”
She stands, but I grab her wrist. That wall is crumbling again and we’re skirting close to dangerous territory. Anything I say and do now might set her off. Part of me knows purging it will be the best thing for her to do, but I’m not sure she’s emotionally equipped to deal with it right now while pregnant. If she lost her baby, she’d blame herself for getting so upset. I don’t see her coming back from that.
“I don’t go around believing shit without proof.”
She gently tugs her arm free from mine. “You only think that’s true, Hannibal.” She shakes her head. “I’m going to take a bath.” She walks away and I let her, knowing she needs a moment to herself.
I eat another couple of sandwiches and cover the rest over for Lola to eat later. Tugging the towel from my hips, I fold it and add it to the rest of the spare towels. Picking them up, I carry them into the bathroom and find her standing in front of the mirror with her head bowed. I step up behind her and place the towels on the counter next to her hand.
She looks up at me, her eyes damp, but she holds back her tears. “I’m such a mess. For years, I learned to keep my mouth closed, and now I can’t seem to shut up.”
“It’s because you feel safer with me. You want to let your guard down. You’re just scared, and I get it. I’m scared, too.”
She snorts, “Why would you be scared?”
“I’m scared I’ll break you in a way I can’t fix.”
“Then don’t. There are a million other things you could do instead. You could trust me, protect me, love me.” The last part rings with a desperation that I feel in my chest.
“I can’t love you if you don’t let me.” I slide my hands down to the hem of her top and ease it up over her bump. “Arms up.”
I wait as she slowly raises her hands before tugging off her sweatshirt and tossing it on the floor. Her eyes move from her reflection to mine in the mirror, widening when she realizes I’m naked. I turn and check the bath before reaching over and turning the water off. When I move back behind her, I release the clasp on her bra and pull it free, sliding it down her arms and tossing it away.
She looks away, but I’m not deterred. I move my hand to open her jeans and find the button already open. I lower the zipper and slide her jeans and panties down her legs until gravity takes over.
“Step out.”
I wait until she does as I ask before kicking them out of the way. I can see her breathing has picked up, whether from anticipation or nerves, I don’t know. When I press myself against her, and she can feel the heat of my hard cock pressed against her ass, I know the flush on her skin is arousal.
I reach around and use my fingers to turn her head so she can watch us in the mirror. “Why do you hide?”
“Because when I look at what I’ve become, I hate myself a little more.”
I slide my hands around to cup her stomach. She stiffens, her back going ramrod straight as her protective mama instincts kick in.
“Want to know what I see?”
She swallows but doesn’t answer. I can practically hear the no on the tip of her tongue.
“I see a woman who stood back up every time she got knocked down. I see a woman who put herself in danger to warn others so they didn’t get hurt. I see a woman who will do anything to keep her baby safe, even if that means making a deal with the devil himself.
“I see courage. I see strength. I see a warrior. The question is, why can’t you?”