Chapter 10
Vee
Luca’s clubhouse comes into view, and I lift my hand to wipe the stray tears from my face. As much as I tried, I couldn’t stop the tears from falling, and I know once my brother sees my face he’ll be ready to start a war.
I move my foot off the gas pedal, letting the car slow before I turn onto the road to the clubhouse. My hands tighten on the steering wheel as I come to a stop at the gate. Picking up my phone, I call Luca. It rings and rings, then goes to voicemail. Fuck me. I hang up and send him a message.
Me: Pulling up to the gate.
Hopefully, he’s there waiting for me and hasn’t answered me yet because he forgot his phone in his room or office or some shit like that. Not that he’s ignoring me.
I’ve only been here once before—and even then, Luca didn’t allow me past the gate.
He didn't want me inside the gates, vulnerable to what takes place inside. I tried to argue with him that I’m no stranger to club life.
Hell, I’ve been around the Hellions and at their parties more times than I can count on one hand.
Luca wouldn’t accept my words. The Rejects were far worse than the Hellions in his mind.
Honestly, if the rumors are true, then I can’t argue with him.
Which is why hiding out here is the best place for me.
Two men step out from the shadows of the guard shack as my headlights shine through the iron gate onto the gravel lot ahead of me.
They’re young. Late teens, early twenties, maybe.
Both wearing cuts that still look stiff and new, prospect patches stitched onto them, a promise of something just out of reach but not yet earned.
Grunt work. It’s what prospects are good for. I’ve learned that much since being around the Hellions. They’re there to do the dirty work until they’ve earned their member patch, or they fuck up so bad no one hears from them again.
I lower my window halfway as they approach my car. Something about them has the hairs on my arms standing at attention, and I don’t want them to have any more access to me than they need to.
“Evenin’,” one of them says as he leans into my door, placing his hands on the roof.
Too close for comfort for me. The small barrier that the door provides isn’t near enough.
His eyes sweep over me and then the inside of my car.
“You lost, sweetheart?” His good looks are quickly overshadowed by the evil glint in his eyes.
It’s then I catch sight of the scar that runs horizontally under his right eye from nose to hairline.
Where the hell is Luca? He should’ve been here waiting for me so I didn’t have to deal with this.
My jaw tightens as the man clears his throat, waiting for my answer, no doubt.
“I,” slips from my lips as I quickly regain control of my emotions. “I’m here to see my brother.”
That gets their attention—but not the way I expected it would. Maybe it was the ambiguous use of the word brother. Surely, with his absence, he at least let them know I was coming.
The other prospect standing just left of the one who has pushed his face as far into the opening of my window as he can, grins at me, slow and lazy. “Yeah? And who’s your brother?”
“Luca,” I rush out, my hands gripping the wheel tighter, a shiver of fear dancing along my spine.
They shift their heads toward each other at the mention of his name, exchanging some telepathic message between themselves, before turning back to me with smiles that do not give me any warmth. More like dread and a sudden urge to shift the car into reverse and drive the hell away from here.
A hotel sounds so much better at the moment. It will be a hit to my pocket, but at least I don’t have to deal with these two assholes. Then, once I’m safe behind the walls, I’m going to give Luca a piece of my mind for putting me through this.
“Well,” the man with the scar says as he moves his hand toward his side. "Here's the thing. Prez ain’t never mentioned no sister. You must be one of his whores. He usually keeps them—”
“Don’t,” I snap, squinting my eyes as I glare at him.
The grin widens. “Relax. We’re just sayin’ hi. And to let you know there ain’t nothin’ that the Prez can do for you that we can’t.” The fucker brings his fingers to his mouth, making a V in front of it and waggles his tongue through them.
I want to throw up. I have to fight down the bile rising in my throat.
His gaze dips. Lingering on me, as he continues with his vulgar display while the man beside him cups his cock and thrusts his hips at me.
Before I can even react, demand for him to get my brother or just back the fuck up and leave, a voice cuts through the air like a blade.
It’s not Luca. But familiar.
“What the fuck do you two think you’re doing?” he shouts, causing the two fuckwads to step back from my car, giving me a sense of relief.
Nic. Not my brother, but he’ll do. At least he knows who the fuck I am.
He’s moving across the parking lot fast. When he moves into the beam of my headlights, I can see the anger rolling off him in waves. His cut hangs open, no shirt; his expression already set to lethal.
I can see the change in the way the prospects are standing. Gone is the laid-back stature they had, replaced by stiff bodies that are trying to hide their fear.
“Nic—we didn’t—”
“Back. Away. From the car.” Nic’s voice is cold, controlled as he says each word slowly.
They take a step back.
“Come on, man,” the guy with the scar speaks up. “We were just trying to tell the girl that she can’t lie to get on the property by saying she’s the Prez’s sister.”
The fucker still thinks that I’m lying.
Nic moves to the driver’s side of my car, planting himself between me and them. He glances down at me, his eyes taking me in, making sure they didn’t touch me.
“You okay? Did they hurt you? Touch you?”
I shake my head at the same time whispering, “No.”
Nic looks back at the prospects, eyes hard.
“You know who this is?”
The color drains from their faces.
One of them swallows. “Just some girl.”
Silence.
I can see Nic’s fists clenching at his sides.
“Who did she say she was?”
“The Prez’s sister,” they mumble in unison.
“And you thought she was lying?” he growls. “Did either of you bother to contact Luca, or me for that matter, to confirm who she was?”
“No,” one of them says, but Nic cuts them off.
“If either of you approaches her again like that, you won’t be wearing a prospect patch long enough for it to matter. Clear?”
They both nod. But Nic isn’t done.
“Hell, you may not be wearing them long, once I let the Prez know how his sister was treated.”
They don’t look at me again. Just scurry inside the building with their tails tucked between their legs. Fucking pussies.
Nic taps the roof of my car gently. “You’re good. Come on in, and park by the door. Don’t get out of the car until I get there.”
I smile at him, rolling my window back up, and shift the car into gear, heading straight to the spot he told me to park in.
My knee bounces as I turn the car off and wait for Nic. He told me not to get out, and after the greeting those two assholes gave me, there’s no way in hell I’m disobeying him.
A tap on my window causes me to jump, and my hand goes to my heart as I let out a yelp. I have to take a few deep breaths when I finally realize it’s Nic and not a threat.
“Come on, girlie. Let’s get you inside. Luca said you were going to be spendin’ some time here. He was gonna meet you at the gate, but he had to handle an issue inside.” He doesn’t say anymore than that, and I know better than to ask. He wouldn’t tell me, anyway. Club business.
I open the door and get out.
“Just let me get my bags,” I tell him, but he takes hold of my arm, stopping me.
“Nope, give me a hug first, girlie.” I’m wrapped up in his arms before I have a chance to blink. “I’ll kill the fuckers if you want me to,” he whispers.
“No killing needed,” comes out with a laugh.
“I could just make you my ol’ lady. I don’t mind sharing.” He gives me a toothy grin, and I shake my head at him. “Okay. I’ll let ya think about it. Let me get your bag.” I open the back driver-side door, and he picks the bags up from the seat, gripping them tightly in his hands.
“Thank you.”
“Stay close by me, and I’m going to take you to Luca’s office.” He places his hand at the small of my back and continues to ramble on about how he’d make the perfect ol’ man for me, as he leads me inside the building.
The air inside hits me first. It reeks of smoke. Beer. Sweat. Sex.
Then the noise hits me. Loud voices, some angry. Laughter. And the sound of skin on skin.
The room is massive. Open space with long tables that I bet are riddled with knife marks and old burns.
A bar runs along one wall, crowded with men shoulder to shoulder.
Women are everywhere too—some perched on laps, some standing behind chairs with hands resting possessively on shoulders, some moving freely through the space like they belong there.
The majority of them are naked or very close to it.
Off to the side are couches making an almost U-shape around a television. Women are on the floor in front of the men, giving them blowjobs. The place is alive in a way that feels almost feral.
“Yeah, it gets pretty wild around here.” Nic must see the horror on my face at what’s taking place around us.
“You don’t say,” I mumble.
I’ve seen shit like this at the Hellions clubhouse, but this seems worse.
Nic steers me down a side hallway, away from the main room. Fuck, am I thankful for that. The noise lessens the further we get from the main room.
“How’s your dancing friend? She ready to add me to her group yet?” He’s trying to hide the laugh, but it slips through.
“Sorry, bud. I don’t see that happening. Nor do I see her men opening their arms to you.”
“It was worth a try.” He bumps his shoulder into me, and I have to step to the right to keep my balance.
The further down the hallway we get, I start to hear Luca’s raised voice.
“Someone isn’t happy,” I say softly.
“Nope, and once he finds out what happened at the gate, he’s going to want to go on a murder spree.” We stop outside a door, and Nic gives a hard knock. “Vee’s here!” he shouts.
“Come in.” Luca’s loud voice drifts through the door.
“Let’s go, girlie.” Nic takes hold of the handle and goes to open the door at the same time it flies open. An older man, probably late forties, steps out, a scowl on his face.
I step back, not wanting to garner any of this man’s wrath. It’s clear he’s pissed, and whatever Luca said to him has him in a foul mood.
“Hey sis,” Luca says with a smile as he stands from his desk and makes his way to me. “I’m sorry I wasn’t there to meet you,” he whispers in my ear as he wraps his arms around me, hugging me tightly.
“It’s okay. Nic was.” I pull out of his arms and wink at Nic.
“He’s a sad replacement. Let me show you to your room so you can get settled. I placed you in the one closest to me and Nic. Just make sure to keep your door locked.”
I nod my head, swallowing hard as I take in what he said. It’s not like I wouldn’t lock it anyway, but now I’ll be double-checking that I do.
“If you want to hang out later, just call me, girlie. I don’t want you out there alone. We got too many members that still need some adjusting to the new chain of command around here.” Nic gives me my bags before leaving, but the look the two of them give each other doesn’t escape my notice.
“Let’s go before I ask why your eyes are so red.” Luca takes my bag from me as he leads me out of the office and down the hallway. “This one is mine, and Nic is across from me,” he tells me as we pass some doors.
We pass another one before he comes to a stop.
“This must be me,” I say with a forced smile.
“It is. You have your own bathroom. I’m going to let you get settled while I go get us some food.” He takes hold of the handle and opens the door so I can step inside before handing me my bag. “I’ll be back in a little bit. Lock the door,” he warns me.
Looking around the room, it’s practically bare.
I can tell he’s tried to spruce it up a little for me.
There's a full-size bed with a comforter and pillows. Guess I didn’t need to bring my own.
Beside it is a nightstand with a lamp. On the dresser is a small television, and in the corner is a mini fridge.
There’s two other doors. One must be a closet and the other the bathroom he mentioned.
I shut the door, making sure to lock it before walking over to the bed and sitting down on the edge.
The silence in the room is crushing, allowing time for my mind to ramble over the events of the last few days. I fall back on the bed, rolling onto my side and curling my body into a fetal position.
Inside these walls, no one can touch me, reach me without my consent. I have space to breathe even though all I want is them. Josh, Hank, and Luke. They consume my every thought.
Outside the walls of this room, the clubhouse roars on. Life continues. Laughter rises and falls. And the men I thought were mine continue their lives without me. And it’s crushing me to bits.