Chapter Four
Eros
As soon as I arrived at the clubhouse, I released a long breath.
I was caught up in a fucking mess and didn’t know how to get out of it.
Killing her was the very last resort, but first I needed to find out who the hell she was before making that decision.
Her death could cause more problems than I needed.
Made of rough, red brick and poured concrete, the clubhouse was built in the seventies and showed signs of age. But the plan had been to renovate and expand it once we got revenue streaming in from our legitimate businesses.
Crash had grandiose plans for the place, but something simple would be better than something that drew too much attention to the club.
I had argued with him about it over and over again.
It was one of the reasons I knew he didn’t need to be prez anymore.
Everything became a show and not improving the club or the brothers.
A massive garage-style door dominated the front of the building.
It stayed open most of the time, revealing glimpses of motorcycles parked inside to anyone who walked or passed by.
Painted on the outside of the building in large black, bold letters was the club’s logo but not for long.
Once again, it was something that brought unnecessary attention to the club that I planned to change.
Outside, the sidewalk was always lined with bikes, their chrome catching the sun’s light as members came and went.
The scent of motor oil and leather, mingled with the city’s ever-present breeze always saturated the air.
And on nights we had parties, or just hung out, the outside buzzed with music and laughter.
Riders just shooting the shit, motorcycle engines revving, and everyone enjoying each other’s company.
That was brotherhood.
The main gathering space of the clubhouse was filled with wooden tables and chairs arranged for the guys to hang out with the club women and each other.
In the bar area, members swapped stories over drinks or just talked shit.
A stripper pole wasn’t too far away from the bar where some of the girls danced.
There were also a couple of pool tables, and a ninety-inch smart TV so we could watch the games.
There was something for everybody, and it was home for most of us.
I’d been here for about thirty minutes and eager to get back to the warehouse.
I trusted the prospect to keep an eye on her, but not for too long.
I wasn’t under any illusions. She would try to escape.
Even if she got away, I’d find her. But it was very important that I found out who she was before I decided on what to do with her.
It was also a way to see if this prospect was up to being a part of the Order.
How he responded to this test would decide if he became a member.
“Got her!”
I leaned over Knox’s shoulder. He was the IT expert of the club.
His background was military intelligence, so I knew if anyone could find out anything about her, Knox could.
He ran the plates on her car, and they came back to some security company, so that had been a dead end.
Just that little bit of information raised both our hackles.
Who would have a car that was registered under a security company?
She could be a celebrity. There were quite a few who lived in the area, but most had bodyguards, and she didn’t so if she wasn’t a celebrity who was she?
Knox had been working to identify her from the picture I took of her at the warehouse since she wouldn’t give me her name.
We were in his bedroom slash office. The dimly lit room was bathed in the soft glow of multiple computer screens. The hum of the computers’ fans echoed throughout the room along with Knox’s fingers clicking across the keyboard.
A sprawling desk took up one wall along with computer monitors and keyboards.
Tangled cables lay everywhere across the hardwood floor.
Knox sat in front of the desk, in a leather chair worn from the long hours he spent in front of the computer monitors.
Bright colored Post-it notes with shit scribbled on them were stuck everywhere from the computer desk to the edges of the computer screens.
“Fuck, yes,” I said, blowing out a breath of relief. “Who is she?”
“Oh fuck,” Knox mumbled as he continued to scroll through photos on the screen.
On his computer screen, the picture I’d sent him sat beside a headshot of the woman. She was absolutely stunning. Wild, large curly hair surrounded her angelic face like a halo. Her smooth dark skin was blemish free. And her bright gray eyes that twinkled when she smiled were mesmerizing.
While I already noticed how beautiful she was, seeing her smiling and full of life transformed her entire face. As Knox scrolled, more pictures flashed on the screen. Many of them, with a couple who looked very familiar, but I couldn’t place them.
“What is it?”
“She’s the daughter of the Lt. Governor, Roger Thorne. He and his late wife adopted her at two years old.”
Her words that her mother was dead replayed back in my mind.
“Goddamn it. That was why they looked so fucking familiar.”
Fuck, this isn’t good.
He whistled. “It gets worse.”
“How the hell can it get any worse, Knox?”
“There’s a hit out on her.” He pointed at the computer screen. “Right here.”
“For fucking what?”
“I have no clue, Prez. That’s between the person who put out the contract and the one who accepts it. But it’s a two-hundred and fifty thousand bounty. Kill on site and proof of death. And it’s already been accepted.”
“Holy fucking hell.” I tugged on my beard. “And there’s no way to find out who accepted the contract or who took it out on her?”
He shook his head. “Nah. I can do some digging, but I don’t think I’ll find anything. It’s only been up for a few hours, and the dark web is closed lipped about these types of transactions. But I’ll put out some feelers and see if anyone bites.”
“I can’t believe this.”
“It’s wild how quickly someone took the contract, but it’s two-hundred and fifty thousand dollars too. Anyway, whoever wants her dead, has money and power. Two-hundred and fifty grand is a lot of money to get rid of the daughter of a politician.”
“Fuck.” I swiped my hand down my face. “More fucking problems. Do you have any information on her father?”
“No, and that’s an issue,” Knox said.
“What do you mean?”
“No fucking politician is that damn clean, Prez. Whatever he’s into is hidden very well. He has to be the reason she’s got a hit out on her.”
“But why not kill him if he’s the issue?”
Knox shrugged. “No idea. Maybe they want him to suffer by killing the most precious thing to him. His daughter.”
That was possible, but to me something seemed off. Even if you wanted him to suffer, most people would keep family members out of it.
“I think you should just let her go and let them take her out,” Knox said, breaking into my thoughts. “She’s telling the truth. She didn’t take any pictures of you. I hacked her cloud account, too. You’re in none of them.”
“But she can lead them to Crash’s body, right?”
“Not from the pictures she has,” he said. “There are no identifying natural features from what I see. The only way she can do that is if she knows the area. All this can be fixed if someone else gets to her.”
With my hands on my hips, I blew out a long breath. He was right. I should just let her go, but I also didn’t like the idea of a hit being put on an innocent woman because of something her father did. This situation went from bad to fucking worse.
“What are you going to do?”
“I have no fucking clue. I don’t like killing women.”
“Nobody does, but if you don’t let someone else handle it, what’s the alternative?”
He made a good point. What was the alternative? She was connected to the second most powerful politician in the state. That in itself was a fucking issue because there would be no fucking way he wouldn’t be looking for his daughter once he realized he can’t get in touch with her.
“Send me what you got. I need to head back to the warehouse.”
“Sure thing, Prez.”
“Thanks, Knox.”
I walked out of his room and then headed toward the front door.
The party was in full swing, and even though I’d love nothing more than to have a beer and a good fuck, now wasn’t the time.
I needed to decide and make it fast. The warehouse wasn’t too far from the clubhouse, but I was sure by now, she was probably giving the prospect hell if she hadn’t escaped.
***
The second my feet crossed the threshold of the run-down warehouse, her bloodcurdling scream pierced the silence.
“I told that motherfucker not to touch her.”
My casual walk turned into a full run at the frantic sound. I raced up the rusted metal stairs, the old steel groaning under my weight. As soon as I reached the room, I pulled my gun and pointed it at him.
“What the fuck is going on!”
The prospect’s grip on her arms was so tight, his knuckles were white, and his fingers pale from the pressure. I almost lost my shit. When she saw me, fear clouded her eyes, and it pissed me the fuck off.
“This bitch busted my nose, Prez,” the prospect said, glaring at her. “She tried to run.”
Whatever she did, she got him good. Blood gushed from his nose, and her shirt was covered in it as well as his.
“Let her go,” I said as calmly as I could.
Even with my gun aimed at him, he didn’t even notice it because he was so angry with her. “I’m going to fucking kill you,” he said, backhanding her.
All I saw was red, and without hesitation I squeezed the trigger. He screamed when the bullet grazed his leg, causing him to crumple to the floor.
He was lucky I didn’t kill him.
“Don’t fucking touch her!” I shouted, and his eyes widened as he grabbed his leg where the bullet sliced through his jeans, leaving a graze wound on his thigh. “What the fuck did I say, Prospect?”
He looked at me like I was fucking crazy. But he hadn’t seen fucking crazy yet.
“That’s a fucking question!”
“Don’t…don’t touch her.”
“Right. So, you did what the fuck I told you not to do.”
“But Prez…she…”
“Fuck what she did or said, Prospect. What did I say! Get the fuck out here. Have Doc patch you up. We’ll discuss this later.”
“Fuck,” he mumbled as he slowly got off the floor. He glared at her before he passed me, then hobbled out of the door.
When he was gone, my attention slid back to her, and she released a breath when she sat back down. “I told you not to move.” She glared at me. I liked that more than the look of fear in her eyes. “Are you hurt?”
“Why do you even care?” she snapped. “You kidnapped me! You left me with that asshole!”
I let out a breath as I walked closer to her. I expected her to shrink away from me especially since I still had the gun in my hand, but she didn’t. I grasped her chin, then turned her face to the left to see if he’d left a mark. My nostrils flared when I saw the bruise blooming on her skin.
I’m going to fucking kill him.
I let go of her chin, letting my hand drop to the side. “I did, but apparently you have bigger problems than me Janea Thorne.”
Her eyes widened. “How do you know who I am?”
“That’s not important right now. What is important is why there’s a two-hundred and fifty thousand bounty on your head?”
“A…a what?”
“A bounty. A kill order with a proof a death once it’s done.”
“He wouldn’t,” she whispered.
Curiosity filled me. So much pain blanketed her face it was gut wrenching, and I had no clue who in the hell she was talking about. But whoever it was, it hurt her. They were responsible for this.
“You know who wants you dead?”
After a brief moment, she nodded. “My father.”