Chapter 27
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Koa (Koa)
Ihate everything about the shit situation we're in.
So many years have been spent trying to send Victor and his fuckwhits to prison for good.
It hasn't only been about getting us out from beneath his thumb and keeping the peace for the safety of our club.
I'm getting really tired of it, even if we're doing good work.
Maybe it's my old age. Though it's most likely Cassie who's giving me a change of heart. Being thirty-three doesn't make me automatically want to settle down and stop chasing the bad guys. It's her. Our woman who completes our family.
Cassie calms us and gives us something tangibly good to orbit around. Without her, we're angry, fucked up, vengeful men whose only purpose is to defend the defenseless and our family.
Too many innocent people have been affected by whatever drug Victor is pumping out onto the streets. My job is to intercept it as much as possible before it reaches the general population.
Having an FBI agent as my contact is incredibly helpful. I don't want those drugs in my pocket, and he's always willing to take it all.
"I gave seven fucking zip bags to Connor this afternoon and twelve last week. I doubt what Victor gave us was only cocaine but Connor knows what to do."
We need all the evidence we can get to take Victor down once and for all. Now that the dumbass has moved into drugs and trafficking, well, it shouldn't be long until he's out of our lives for good.
The conversation moves as it always does when the four of us discuss how to pin Victor—frustratingly nowhere.
Honestly, I have no idea why the feds haven't figured it out yet.
Every time a raid goes down, the warehouses are squeaky clean.
The cops definitely have a rat, but there's nothing our club or I can do about that.
There are too many variables that don't concern us yet keep us in danger for longer.
Now Cassie's here and the stakes are higher. I'm starting to understand Maddox's motivations for keeping her away from us for so long. Doesn't mean I like it.
One thing is for certain: we won't allow Cassie to so much as hear the word drugs. I've never agreed more with the guys when we decide she stays out of this.
"What's our plan with our Pet?" Ripley wonders aloud.
Yeah, when can we seal the deal and make her ours for good? I know Rip and I are on the same page, but Mads and Parker are hard to read.
Maddox growls and stands to pace, needing an outlet for his pent up feelings for the beautiful redhead we're all head over heels for. "I, for one, want to lock her in a fucking room and tie her up. Maybe gag her so she can't—"
Thud. "No," a whimpered cry stops Maddox from finishing his statement. "No, no, no."
Horror slams into me, driving me away from the desk so fucking fast I almost fall to the ground right beside my crying girl in the hallway.
The other three barrel out of the office behind me. When they catch sight of Cassie scrambling away from us, everyone starts swearing and talking over each other.
What did she hear? Why is she so fucking scared of us?
"Baby, take a deep breath," I coo, needing her to be okay before anything else. If she hyperventilates herself into unconsciousness, I'll lose my shit, and it's clear she needs me to be calm.
It isn't until the breath whooshes out of her that I realize we've backed her into a corner. Tears stream down her cheeks, ripping my heart to shreds with every track across her freckles.
I have no clue what she's scared of, but she needs us. Kneeling beside her, I recognize that she's too far gone in her panic to see me, so I do the next best thing and hold her knee.
Every atom in my body rebels and turns on me when she screams. Hell, I even appreciate the kick to my thigh because if she's this fucking scared of me, I deserve so much worse.
"Okay. Okay, Cassie, I hear you," I murmur, standing with my hands up to show her I won't touch her again.
Without glancing at Maddox, Ripley, or Parker, I know what they're feeling. Absolute heartbreak. It feels like we're losing her one whimper at a time.
With my partners at my side as we stare down at the woman we love cowering away from us, I figure out what it means when people say their heart lives outside of their body. Mine is irrevocably wrapped around the woman who suddenly fears me.
I don't know what to do or what I must fix.
How did we get here?
Cassie forces our hand in the next moment by diving between Maddox and Parker's legs with a strangled cry. I'm sure she knew logically that neither of them would have let her escape, but damn does she put on a fight when Mads plucks her from the ground with a rumbly growl.
"NO! DON'T TOUCH ME!" she screams, flailing as she's hoisted over his shoulder. With as much force as she can muster, her little fists bang against his lower back and spine.
Ripley makes a pained sound in his throat as we rush after Maddox. "Kitty, stop hitting him," he begs.
"You'll hurt yourself, Cassidy. Stop and let us explain," Parker chimes in, climbing the steps behind me.
"FUCK YOU!" she cries and tries to grab hold of the doorframe to our bedroom. "No. No, please, stop."
"Cassie! What the hell do you think we're going to do to you?" Maddox sounds completely gutted. I'm surprised that he releases her, allowing her to flop onto our bed.
Scrambling back to the headboard, her chest rises and falls with far too much stress than should be allowed now that she has us. When we figure this out, I vow she'll never feel this way again.
Parker, Ripley, Maddox and I surrounded the bed, staring on with equal amounts of fear and concern. I refuse to take my eyes off her for fear that if I do, she'll disappear.
Cassie gulps, rising to her knees as if she will flee at the first opportunity.
"Please don't hurt me." Then, to my horror, she looks at me and her goddamn bottom lip wobbles.
"If you care about me at all, you’ll let me go before Victor gets here.
Seriously. Just let me go, and we can forget me being here ever happened. "
"I'm sorry," Parker grits out through clenched teeth and turns to look at us men. "What the fuck is she talking about?"
Ripley steps toward the bed, eyes red as if he's straining to hold his emotions in. His worst fear has come true. "You're afraid of us. How could you think we would hurt you?"
Glancing at him for a moment, I see her soften just a smidgen, but when her eyes come back to me, the walls come back up. What the fuck did she say before? That I was a drug dealer?
"You were eavesdropping again, weren't you?" Maddox says, voice devoid of the gruffness I feel in my throat. How is he so calm? "Answer me, sweet girl. You were eavesdropping and heard some scary shit."
"Y-yes," Cassie stutters, cheeks turning pink. Why the fuck does she keep looking at me like I killed her family dog?
Maddox nods and sits at the edge of the bed. "You see, Cassie, eavesdropping is never a good idea because every time you'll miss some really important pieces of information."
To my surprise, she lifts her chin and glares at our fearless leader. "I heard everything I needed to. Koa sells drugs for Victor. The man you said would kill me! You want to lock me in a room and gag me so nobody knows I'm being held against my will."
"So you're not mad at me then, right?" Parker asks, sounding like a hopeful kid who got in trouble through association.
Unfortunately, his thought process gives Ripley false hope. Poor fucker lights up and smiles at Cassie. Of course she doesn't return the gesture.
Nudging Parker, I shake my head at him. "She's mad at you too," I whisper.
"Mad?" Cassie scoffs. "You think I'm just mad?! I thought you were good men! I thought you lov—cared about me."
Maddox dips his head in defeat, worrying me for half a moment. There's a fierce determination in his eyes when he looks up. "I fucked up again. Keeping you in the dark about what's going on with the club was a bad call. For that, I'm sorry."
"What are you talking about?" With narrowed eyes and clenched fists, she looks like a feral kitty ready to rip his eyes out. I just can't get over how she keeps glancing at me like I'm the worst person in the world.
Mads looks at me for a moment, then focuses back on Cassie. "I'll tell you a few things off the bat. After that, we're not holding back anymore. You will know everything by the time we leave this room, including the fact that you are ours."
"Not happening," she snaps.
Maddox smiles and tucks a red lock of hair behind her ear. She doesn't flinch, but another tear slips free as if triggered by the gentle care.
"Connor, the man Koa gave the drugs to, is an FBI agent who's working with us to take down Victor and his fucked up club.
Here," Maddox mutters and reaches into his back pocket to pull out his wallet.
I about collapse in relief when he procures Connor's business card we were given a few years ago the first time we crossed paths.
"Call him. Text him. Do whatever you need to do if you don't believe me, but what I'm telling you is the truth, sweet girl. We're not the bad guys."
Eyelashes fluttering, Cassie blinks at the card. Then she blinks again. I feel like I'm watching her reboot her brain. Or her heart.
"Koa, come here," Mads murmurs, reaching for me. Remembering how she screamed at my touch a few minutes ago gives me pause, but Maddox grabs my hand and pulls me onto the bed.
Cassie doesn't look at me, just continues to cry while staring at the fucking card. What's going on in her mind right now?
"Koa intercepted those drugs from Victor's men with the promise he knew people who would pay more for it.
Then handed it over to Connor to keep it off the streets and away from our club.
We give Victor enough money to think we're selling his shit, but we're not.
It's evidence against him. We just need to play the part long enough to get him locked away for good.
It's the only way to keep our club safe.
A war means casualties, and when we became presidents, we vowed never to lose another man or woman to club feuds. "
Her sniffle breaks my goddamn soul. Practically hunched in on herself now, Cassie hides. I don't know what's worse: her trying to run or my woman hiding from me.
When Maddox says nothing else, I catch his eye. My brows furrow and he lifts his chin at her. Rolling his eyes at my confusion, he speaks to Cassie. "Cassie, Koa's going to love you now while we keep talking. What's your color?"
Fuck me. I don't know what makes my heart start pounding out of my chest: Maddox saying the L-word or Cassie whispering, "Green."