Chapter 8 Nylah
Isank back against the pillows, feeling fatigued, but happy. My hands lowered to my stomach, and I couldn’t resist smiling. Another little boy or girl to love. I was so lucky.
The feeling was short-lived as a nurse entered my patient room and set a vase of red roses beside me. She handed me the white card with a message as she left, declaring how pretty and full the roses looked. How fresh and fragrant they smelled, brightening the whole room.
But my heart began to pound because only one person would have sent them to me, and it wasn’t the man I was about to marry.
I saw Rael’s thunderous expression as his lips pulled back over his teeth, almost snarling his response. “Who sent them?”
“Let me look.” I opened the little envelope and slid out the card. My fingers shook, but not from fear. I wasn’t anxious either. I was just so confused by his sudden and intense obsession with me. I read the card.
With love from Tony
I dropped it fast, shocked that he was bold enough to do something so dangerous. Did he have a death wish? And then I got angry. Furious, to be exact. I lifted my gaze to Rael’s. “He needs to meet the Reaper.”
I wasn’t sure what he thought I would say, but my biker blinked a few times, processed my words, and then grinned. I’d only seen him look like that a handful of times, and I knew it was the Berserker who took control.
“Yes, my lifeblood, but we’ll play with him a little first.”
“Oh, shit,” Chrome whispered. “Fuck yeah.”
Mimi turned to Rael. “No mercy. You deal with him because no one fucks with our family.”
“Damn straight,” Cam added.
“Be careful, please.” I couldn’t stand the thought of something happening to Rael because he underestimated Tony. Something wasn’t right. How would he have learned the truth about the Tonopah GBMC?
Rael frowned. “Beloved,” he began.
“Wait. I’m not saying you’re incapable, my love. But I want you to remember Tony is unpredictable. He’s got to have psychiatric issues. I don’t like labeling people, but his behavior isn’t normal. He’s dangerous.”
Rale quirked a brow. “Too dangerous for a Reaper or Berserker?”
He had me there.
“Well, no, but I still want you to use caution. Tony might try to stab or shoot you.” Wait. I suddenly remembered the conversation inside the boutique. “Rael. He knows who you are.” I lifted my hand to my mouth, worried about what this meant. “He knows what you are. He tried to warn me.”
Chrome’s Reaper growled.
“What did he say exactly?” Rael asked, his tone a mix of grit and growl.
“That I couldn’t marry you. That I needed to take my babies and run, and he’d help me. Oh, God. He said he knew what you were, and he smiled. He meant the Reapers. How could he know that, Rael?”
“I don’t know,” Rael admitted. “But he’ll tell me everything as soon as I get him in the basement of The Crossroads.”
Chrome kissed Cameron. “Stay with Nylah and Mimi. Zane is outside. I’m texting Patriot.” He typed in a message and hit send. “He’s already on his way. Exorcist is with him.”
“Good. Plenty of protection.” Rael lowered his head and captured my lips, giving me a sensual kiss that nearly curled my toes. His hand rested against my lower belly. “You’ll be safe again soon. Trust me.”
“I do.” No hesitation.
“I love you, Nylah.”
He straightened, picked up the card and flowers, and marched to the trash can. The roses launched into it along with the vase, water, and the card. And that was where they belonged.
Patriot entered the room, rushing to my sister. They shared a kiss, and then he kept her tucked against his side, offering quiet strength. Mimi was tired too.
It had been a long day.
Cameron sat beside me as Exorcist ticked his chin in greeting.
I watched the big biker prowl around the room, noting the restless way his hands seemed to clench and relax, followed by the way he cracked his neck more than once.
He wanted to be out there, dealing with Tony and the threat against the club.
In truth, against all of us because every ol’ lady and family member were also in danger.
My eyes closed. I was so fucking exhausted. Working. Breastfeeding. Now pregnant. When I was home, I was always cooking, cleaning, caring for the kids, or doing laundry. Rael helped every single day, but with children as young as ours, it was endless.
Not that I would trade this life for any other.
I had just fallen asleep when a nurse walked in, holding the discharge papers. My eyes snapped open when she said my name. Since I didn’t want to be here any longer than I needed, I wasn’t annoyed. She went over the instructions with me and the appointment they made with my OBGYN.
The room cleared as everyone gave me privacy to remove the hospital gown and put on my own clothes.
I tugged on my shoes and stood, feeling a little wobbly.
My stomach growled, reminding me I needed to eat.
I had a little one growing inside me while also breastfeeding.
It was already becoming dark outside. I could see the sky darkening through the blinds on my window.
Time to get the hell out of here. The boys would be anxious.
My phone began ringing, and I noticed the number of the catering company I’d booked for the wedding reception. Please don’t let them cancel, I thought as I sent the call to voicemail. I wasn’t in the mood for bad news.
All I needed was to get home, snuggle my babies, and wait for Rael.
“HOW THE FUCK ARE WE finding this motherfucker?” Chrome asked as we left the front entrance of the hospital, heading straight for our bikes parked nearby.
“His fucking stench of cheap cologne,” I replied with a snarl. “I can still smell it.”
Chrome whistled. “Okay. Why am I not smelling anything?” He appeared annoyed.
“Don’t know. Maybe it’s my Berserker.”
He rubbed the back of his neck. “Yeah. I think you’re right.”
“It’s not far. He’s in Vegas.” We already knew that since he’d followed Nylah, Cam, and Mimi to the boutique. “A casino, maybe.”
“Then lead the way. I’ll follow you.”
We spent the next half hour riding through Vegas, following Tony’s scent as I tried to focus on the exact location. We passed by multiple casinos, and none of them was the right building. I was already pissed, and that just made it worse.
“Wait. Stop.” Chrome eased his bike off the road, and I joined him, idling as I wondered if he sensed something I hadn’t. “There’s a vibration.”
Yeah. Our motorcycles.
“I see that look. Fuck off. It’s not the bikes.” Chrome shut off the engine and rose from his seat. “It’s in the dirt and sand.” He crouched down, placing a palm on the earth. “I can feel it.”
I shut down my bike too, listening as if it would matter. “No shit? Because now that we’re not riding, I can sense it growing stronger.”
“Yeah.” He stayed still, closing his eyes as his Reaper took over. Even with them shut, his lids didn’t completely close. I saw a silvery hue that belonged to his Reaper. “Turn left.”
I slid off the seat of my Harley and turned to the left. “Fuck yeah!” The smell intensified.
Up ahead, maybe a hundred yards from our position, a strip club flashed neon lights. I would bet my left nut that Tony Brock was inside.
“He’s in there, Rael. I know it.”
I had texted Xenon and asked him to find a photo before we left the hospital, so I knew who the fuck I was looking for.
If this guy was getting drunk, he didn’t pause to consider the consequences of his actions when he sent those fucking roses.
Hell, he was a dead man as soon as he touched my ol’ lady without permission.
Spooking my Nylah? A death wish.
“Let’s go,” I ordered my brother, running to the front entrance and pushing through the double doors. I’d been in enough joints like this where tits and ass were on display, and men salivated over pussy they couldn’t touch or fuck. It didn’t appeal to me.
The only exception to that was when I took Nylah to Linked, our BDSM club. Now that was fucking fun, but only because I got to sink my dick inside her and watch her become aroused by the sensual play all around us. Nothing wrong with a little visual to stimulate the senses.
But this shit? Nah. Didn’t do it for me.
Same for Chrome. He loved the sex club atmosphere, but not a dirty strip club where women took your money and pretended to like you. I’d much rather fuck my woman and know that when I made her come, she was loving every moment.
“I see him,” Chrome announced, lowering his voice so it barely registered above the thumping music playing far too loudly through the speakers. “At the pole on the far end of the room.”
“Yeah.”
We moved almost as if we were one mind, letting the Reapers push toward the surface enough that no one would try to stop us. They projected an aura that intimidated most men. But with my skull-themed face paint, few tried to fuck with me.
Tonight was no exception.
I approached Tony Brock, grabbed his shoulder, and hauled him to his feet. “Move.”
He stared at me, wide-eyed, before he blinked. “Oh, shit! It’s you.” A laugh tumbled from his lips.
I could smell the alcohol on his fucking breath.
“Walk to the door. Now,” my Berserker ordered, taking over as he seethed with renewed ire.
Tony flashed a grin. “Sure!”
This guy was a fucking joke.
I held onto his shirt and nearly dragged him to the exit. Once we left the strip club, he shrugged off my hand, but only because I let him.
“I know what you are, what you can turn into,” he bragged. “I saw it.”
How? We scrubbed video feeds all over Tonopah, Vegas, and anywhere else a Reaper rode. No one saw shit we didn’t want them to see. We could hide ourselves from anyone we wanted.
Did someone expose a Reaper without us finding out?
“You don’t remember.” He shook his head. “I’m not surprised. It happened so fast.”
“Remember what, you little shit?” Chrome asked, clearly agitated by what this asshole said.
“The warehouse where you killed Gorbachev. Didn’t realize you missed one, huh?”
What the fuck was he talking about?
“But I saw Nylah. How she’s a prisoner to your Reaper.” He spat at me. “I can free her and make her mine.”
I couldn’t hold back my Reaper. He took hold of Tony by the neck and lifted him off the ground, slamming his back into a nearby wall. I already knew Xenon was watching, so he’d find the video and scrub it like he did with all the others he uncovered. No one ever had video proof of a Reaper.
Chrome shook his head. “You’re one dumb sonofabitch.” He slapped my back. “I guess we’re not making it back to The Crossroads, huh?”
“Nope.”
We were reaping this fucking soul right here, right now. Fuck him. He wasn’t worth another wasted second.
My brother picked up a rock and threw it at a camera above our heads. It shattered on impact, dropping to the ground in a dozen pieces. “Xenon will find the rest.”
I already knew that.
“Hold on. I got something that might help.” Chrome placed his palm on the brick facade as it began to tremble.
The lights around us exploded, sending shards of sharp glass raining down onto the dirt and shrubs.
The bricks began to transform, splitting apart at a molecular level as they reformed around Tony’s body.
He began to scream, but no one would hear him. The music was too loud. Outdoor speakers boosted the volume of the tunes played inside the strip club.
Blood bubbled from his lips as his eyes widened to the point I thought they might actually pop. My Reaper snickered at the idea. The Berserker? He wanted more suffering. More pain.
“He doesn’t have long.” Chrome looked at our prey. “You’re going to die soon. The bricks are slowly crushing every cell in your body inside the wall. In another few seconds, you won’t be able to breathe.”
A panicked look stretched across Tony’s face.
“Let this be a lesson. Nobody touches my ol’ lady and lives.”
Since Lucifer had been kind enough to give me the ability to send souls to hell without opening up a fissure in the ground and using my scythe, I decided to use it.
Hellfire flew from my mouth as I opened wide, letting it rush out and surround Tony’s body.
He writhed and tried to break free, but there was no escape.
I watched him take his final breath, only finding vindication once I knew the hellfire had consumed him and sent him to Lucifer. When I heard that bastard’s laugh, I knew he received his gift.
“Well, that was anticlimactic.”
I shot my brother a look. “He fucked with Nylah.”
“Hey, I’m not saying I wouldn’t have done the same. I just feel cheated. I wanted torture and mayhem. More screams. More blood.”
Yeah, he was my blood brother. We shared DNA. This was another instance that proved it.
“C’mere.” I hugged him to me, smacking a kiss on his cheek. “Love you, Chrome.”
“More than reaping souls?” he joked.
“You better fucking believe it.”