Chapter 36 Ophelia
Ophelia
We walk through the woods, as if we’re going toward the water tower, but then turn north and head in the direction of the large house Vani shares with her Vipers.
It looks like something out of a horror novel to me.
There’s a rundown, almost shabby air to the outside, but when we step inside, I gasp.
It’s decorated like a movie, one set in a saloon bar or something from the past.
“Wow, this place is … um … cool.”
She laughs. “It’s so over the top. It’s got a Moulin Rouge vibe.
I love that film. Don’t ask me why. It’s not my sort of thing, usually, but it’s just so gorgeous.
I want to go to Paris, and I’d love to visit the Moulin Rouge.
I was telling the guys how amazing I find that style of décor, and Saint said it’s something called Belle Epoque style, so I asked if we could do the main room here that way. And he said yes.”
Her eyes are shining as she waves her arms around, showing me the space.
“Saint knows so much about fashion, and he also knows about interior design, so he helped me.” She wrinkles her nose.
“I think Lex and Zane hate it, and we won’t keep it this way for a long time.
It’s mostly draped fabrics and stuff. We haven’t painted the walls, but I like it, so for now, it’s staying. ”
It really is like stepping back in time, and I wander around the large living space, taking it all in. A painting to the far end of the room catches my attention, and my eyes widen as I walk toward it.
“Is that Cain?”
It most definitely is Cain, but dressed like a Swiss goat herder, standing against a tree, an apple on his head, and an arrow right between his eyes. What the fuck?
Vani laughs softly. “Saint painted it. He says he’s going to give it to Cain as a gift. We’ve so far persuaded him not to.”
“Yeah, good call.” I shake my head.
My men might be unorthodox, but honestly, the Vipers, and especially Saint, strike me as completely unhinged.
“So, when does your dad arrive?” I ask.
“Tomorrow. He’s heading here with some men from his club, and they’ll be staying in a rental near town, but he’s going to come and visit. He’s going to be a bit freaked out by this place, I imagine.” Then she adds, “Not the college—he’s been here before when he dropped me off.”
I look around me again, and I can’t say I’m surprised. My dad would lose his shit if I turned my home into something that looks like a saloon crossed with a bedroom from a Doris Day movie. Still, it’s Vani and the guys’ place, so they can do what they want.
Then I remember how the water tower used to look, before the guys dressed it up for me, and hold back a smile.
“How is your dad with your relationship?” I ask.
She shrugs. “It’s a bit of a gray area. I don’t really talk about it. The Vipers aren’t overly affectionate with me while we’re around him, and we just try to keep it quiet, but it is a bit like the elephant in the room. You know?”
I do know.
There’s a buzzing from Vani’s pocket, and she pulls her phone out and answers. “Hey, Camile. I’m just at the house with Ophelia.”
She looks at me as if asking permission for Camile to come over, and I nod. Having two heads to give me advice before I face the men is better than one. Plus, it’s been a while since I’ve chatted with Camile.
“Come on over,” Vani tells her.
Five minutes later, Camile arrives, and all three of us sit in the kitchen, drinking wine.
I must admit, as the alcohol goes to my head, and the soothing voices of the two women chatting washes over me, I’m beginning to feel calmer.
I glance at my phone. I won’t stay long.
I need to talk with Roman and the other two men, but just having a few minutes for a time out has been so helpful.
“So, tell us,” Vani says to me after Camile has finished explaining how her day went to crap the minute she got out of bed, which sounds like my day, too. “What’s going on?”
“Is something wrong?” Camile asks.
I remember how kind she was to me when I first got to Verona Falls, so I don’t mind her knowing, too.
I tell them both about the fact that there is someone after Roman. I don’t go into details, obviously, but I do say that they are from an institute that my parents sent me to, and that it should be burned to the ground.
My voice is quiet and strained as I say, “They rape patients there. One of the guards almost raped me.”
“Oh, my God, I’m so sorry.” Camile slams her hand over her mouth. “That’s horrific.”
“It was so awful. I was lucky, the Preachers saved me, but many are still stuck there at the mercy of corrupt guards and management. Now, they’re after Roman, and there’s a threat against him.
Probably against all of us, and I’m just—j-j-just so tired.
” I bite my lip to stop the sobs that want to escape and blink back the tears.
I won’t cry here. I won’t, damn it.
“What can we do to help?” Camile asks.
“I can get the Vipers to go and see the Preachers and offer whatever support they can.” Vani takes my hand and squeezes it. “I bet the Devils will help, too. There might have been differences between them in the past, but they seem to have mostly put them to one side.”
“And it’s like how people say it is with family,” Camile observes. “That you can say whatever you want against your own family, but woe betide anyone else who tries to.”
I laugh and nod, feeling some relief at the sense of camaraderie from the other two women.
Bang. Bang. Bang.
The door sounds like it’s going to come off its hinges, and I jump, almost toppling off the stool I’m sitting on. Jesus.
“Is that Zane?” Camile frowns. “Did he forget his key or something?”
“No, the door is not even locked,” Vani mutters. “One second.”
She goes to a drawer in the far corner of the kitchen and takes out a gun, placing it in the waistband at the back of her jeans. She pulls her top over to cover it and walks to the door.
She peeks through the small gap she’s opened, and squeals, pulling the door wide.
“Dad!” she exclaims. “I thought you weren’t coming until tomorrow.”
She throws her arms around a tall man, who I can’t see clearly because he’s shadowed in the doorway, and then she steps back, so he can enter the room.
I take in the imposing figure of her father. He’s massive. Like truly huge, just broad and muscular, with ink, and dark hair, and a dark beard threaded with silver. His skin is tan, and when he walks into the room and looks around, his eyes crinkle when he starts to laugh.
The sound is deep and kind of sexy, even if I am obsessed with my men.
Still grinning, but shaking his head in disbelief, too, he points to the draped gauze hanging from the walls. “Vani, what the hell is this place? It’s like you’re living in a whore’s boudoir!”
“Dad!” She slaps his arm. “Stop it.”
Camile exhales a long, breathy sigh next to me. She leans in and speaks out of the corner of her mouth so our friend doesn’t hear. “That’s Vani’s dad? Good God above. He’s so much more in the flesh.”
I frown for a moment, but then I recall that she saw a photograph of him on Vani’s phone when he called.
Four more men enter the room behind him, and they fill the space with their masculine energy. They’re all wearing jeans and leather cuts, and they look as threatening as hell.
“He’s old enough to be your father,” I point out, quietly, to Camile as the men stare around in what looks like shock.
“So?” Camile smiles and winks at me. “Anyway, I’ve always had daddy issues.”
She has? Camile struck me as pretty much a good girl, compared to lots of the people here at the college, at least.
“Dad, come meet my friends.” Vani tugs him toward us. “Everyone, this is my dad.”
He clears his throat. “I have a name, though. I’m Jack-the-blood, officially, but feel free to just call me Jack.” He winks.
Vani giggles and introduces us. “This is Ophelia.”
He glances at me and smiles. “Good to meet you, Ophelia.”
“And this is Camile.”
Vani points at her friend, then is distracted by the second man who entered as he’s lighting a cigarette.
“No, not in here, Saul,” she exclaims.
He scowls, takes one deep drag, then stubs the cigarette out in his palm. I’m still trying to compute that when I look up and stop thinking about anything else.
I just stop because Jack is staring at Camile, the way a man who hasn’t eaten in a week stares at a rare steak. And Camile is staring at Jack the way a woman who hasn’t had a drink in days stares at a tall glass of water.
They look as if they want to devour one another.
Holy crap, I don’t think I’ve ever seen a mutual spark of attraction that strong. It’s like love-at-first-sight got all rizzed up and became obsessive lust-at-first-sight.
“Dad?” Vani sounds unsure as she glances from her father to Camile.
Jack shakes himself but doesn’t take his eyes off Camile. “Sorry. I was staring, and that’s rude. You just… err… look so much like someone I used to know.”
He is addressing Camile, but it’s Vani who speaks next.
“Who does she look like?”
He simply shrugs. “No one important.”
It’s like everyone knows that was a complete lie and he was making excuses for gawping over a girl more than twenty years his junior, and his daughter’s friend, but no one is brave enough to call him out on it.
Vani frowns, and her mouth opens as if she’s going to speak again, but Camile blurts out, “Ophelia is having some issues, and we’re just helping her out with them.”
Camile’s cheeks are pink, and I know what she’s doing. She’s throwing me under the bus as a distraction technique. Anything to take the focus away from the fact that she and Jack were fantasy-fucking each other right here in Vani’s kitchen.
Gee, thanks a lot, Camile.
One of the other bikers joins in. “Oh? What sort of trouble? We like solving trouble, don’t we, Saul? If it involves cracking a few skulls, we like it even more.”
The man addressing cigarette guy, who I now know is called Saul, sports a wispy beard, and when he grins at me, it’s to show off a set of crooked teeth.
The last two men to enter are standing back a little, and I realize why when Vani changes the subject by asking her father. “New recruits?”
“Nah.” He shakes his head. “That’s why I wanted to see you. I’m moving this way for a while, to help another club with some issues they’re having. We might look at creating a new chapter up here at Verona Falls, or at least blend the existing club with a new one.”
“For real?” Her eyes brighten and she claps in delight.
Wow, I wish I had that kind of relationship with my dad. It seems like Vani has the only paternal relationship that hasn’t turned toxic.
“Yes, for a while, at least. This is Ace, and this is Ghost.” He points to each man in turn.
The one he referred to as Ace tips an imaginary hat at Vani, and she smiles in return. He drops a devastating grin and nods to me, and Camile, too.
The other, Ghost, merely nods once to the room in general. He’s super tall and unusual looking, with his dark hair and pale skin. His eyes are light hazel, too, which only adds to the uniqueness of his looks. He’s not classically handsome, but he’s a striking man.
“I guess I ought to be going.” I stand and walk over to Vani, giving her a big hug. “Thanks so much for your help.”
“I didn’t do anything,” she points out.
“You listened, and that’s more than enough.”
She walks me to the door. “Do you mind if I talk to my dad and give him the rough breakdown of what’s happened? He might be able to help. They do this kind of thing sometimes, like Saul says.”
“What kind of thing?” I ask. “Exactly?”
“Deal with very bad people in their own way.” She frowns a little. “You have money, right? Or at least your men do?”
“Yes, I think so.” I imagine Cain will inherit, but I’m not sure how long that will take. “Why?”
“Well, the club, they do charge a fee, but damn, they do a good job. It would mean you guys wouldn’t have to be involved this time.” Her eyes soften. “You’ve been through so much, Vani. All of you.”
I nod and swallow. “I guess I could talk to the guys.”
“Yeah, and I’ll talk to my dad. I mean, it’s not guaranteed or anything, but they might help.”
I give her a quick hug. “Okay, thanks.”
As I leave, I glance back to wave at Camile, but she’s lost deep in thought, staring at Vani’s dad.