Chapter 13
KADENCE
The house was eerily quiet.
“Hello!” I screamed through the silence. The floorboards creaked with each step, sending a chill up my spine. As I ventured deeper into the dark house, my throat tightened, and I struggled to breathe. I clawed at my throat, gasping for air.
My body was thrown to the ground, and a crushing weight took what little breath I had left.
Radiating pain rippled through my body as I was thrown onto a rough cushion.
Course laughter bounced off the walls, taunting me as hands grabbed my clothes, ripping the fabric from me.
Rough hands assaulted my soft flesh, paralyzing me.
I was back in this room. I was trapped with both of them again.
My body was frozen in the past, defenseless against the assault as I opened my mouth to scream, to beg for help. His voice taunted me as his thick fingers curled around my neck, his dominating force covering my body.
He was going to hurt me again.
His grip on my throat was more powerful, angrier. He was rougher this time, and everything was amplified by ten with each painful thrust and bite.
“Such a pretty fucking whore.”
His voice echoed through my ears, each word ricocheting off my brain. My lungs burned, begging for air as the world became fuzzy. Even in the pitch-black darkness, his voice still lingered.
I gasped, the breath getting stuck in my lungs as I screamed. Pain radiated in my side, shooting up my spine as I tried to catch my breath. Tears flowed from my eyes as I took in deep lungfuls of air, but I still couldn’t breathe.
You’re safe, Kadence.
He’s dead. He can’t get to you.
You’re safe now.
Throbbing pain radiated through my skull like a jackhammer on a New York sidewalk.
My eyes snapped open, and I instantly regretted it when the bright light burned my retinas.
The pain radiating in my body forced me back down as I tried to move my arm to cover my face, only to hear the rattling of metal.
No.
My dad found me.
I pulled against the handcuffs, knowing it was useless to try and get out of them. I’d spent plenty of time in the back of police cars with metal bracelets. No matter the position, I wasn’t getting out of them.
“Mornin’, suga’.” I jumped at the thick, throaty voice and looked at the door to see a tall, husky man with his arms folded and a cigar in his mouth.
His blond hair was pulled into a man bun, and his facial scruff was groomed perfectly.
His muscles constricted against his tight gray tee as he smirked at me. “You’re safe, darlin’.”
I looked at him, confused. “Where am I?”
“Reapers Clubhouse,” he said. “Do you remember anything?”
I closed my eyes, trying to remember what happened. I remembered getting off at Roadhouse and walking home, and then it became hazy. “I…” I paused. Slowly, everything became clear. “Did they…?”
“No. We heard you scream. They can’t hurtcha anymore.”
My eyes filled with tears of relief, and those tears slowly became sobs, which didn’t help the pain in my body.
Everything that happened to me in the last few weeks finally hit me like a ton of bricks, dragging me down the deepest part of the ocean.
I wanted to move my arm, but the cuff prevented it from happening.
Out of frustration, I shook my arm aggressively and let out an annoyed groan.
“Calm down, darlin’. We don’t need ya hurtin’ yourself.”
“Please,” I snapped. “If you actually cared, I wouldn’t be handcuffed. You’d let me leave.”
He pulled up a chair and sat down next to my bed as he put out his cigar with spit and his fingers. “If we didn’t care, you’d be bleeding out or dead on the sidewalk. Instead, our doc stitched ya up and ensured you didn’t die from that infection. Try again, darlin’.”
I winced, moving my free hand slightly to touch my belly. “I’m sorry,” I admitted. “I…my life took a complete detour, and I’m not used to it yet.”
“What brought ya to Westhaven?”
I shrugged. “It was the furthest place away from New York.”
“Traded that big city life for a gloomy existence?”
I smiled. “It matched my mood.”
“So tell me, kid, why were you walkin’ around with busted stitches and an infection for so long?”
I sighed, shrugging my shoulders and looking away from the man. “I thought I could handle it. I kept it clean and bandaged. The pain was unbearable, but I needed to work. I felt pretty bad the last few days, but I thought it was from the stress.”
“Well, ya failed, kid. Doc had to fix ya up. Said he didn’t know how ya were able to move or walk. You’ve been asleep for four days while ya body fought off infection. Stress didn’t help, but working while recovering wasn’t the best idea.”
I grumbled and let out a long sigh. “Guess Dad was right. I really am a fuck up.”
“Aye now, don’t talk like that, kid.”
“It’s true. I’m in this situation because I’m fucking stupid.”
“Things happen. Were ya shot or stabbed?”
“What are we gonna do, compare war stories and measure scars?”
He chortled, leaning back into the chair. “I like you, kid, but no. We ain’t seen you ‘round here before and your wound is questionable. We don’t need trouble in this town.”
I sighed. There was something about him that felt safe. Or maybe I was just fucking crazy. “I got stabbed.”
“Hurts like a bitch; being shot hurts worse.”
“Imagine getting raped beforehand.” My entire body froze, and I wanted to sink further into the bed. “Ignore me. I don’t know why I’m even talking to you about this.”
Something changed in his eyes, and he looked at me with a hint of concern and darkness swimming in his blue gaze. “That fucker dead?”
Was it because this man saved my life or was it the paternal aura he gave off that made him feel safe?
Was I that desperate for a father’s love I’d confess my trauma to a stranger?
I sighed, nodding as I looked at him. “The man who raped me died after he stabbed me. My dad killed him, but—” I stopped.
“No one gonna hurt you, darlin’. If you wanna talk, go ahead and get it off your chest. I won’t judge.” I pulled myself up painfully into a sitting position and looked at my handcuffed wrist before looking back at him. “Precautions,” he explained.
“Be lucky I was drugged instead of tied up, or I’d be panicking,” I joked, realizing it didn’t land based off of the look on his face. “It’s fine. I was sold to a gang leader and he raped me.”
“I’m sorry, darlin’. No one deserves that. Is he dead, too?”
I shook my head. “Dom ran like a pussy when my dad showed up, and when he found me, Liam was still, ya know. He stabbed me when my dad busted in. I almost died from blood loss, but I survived. Can you not tell anyone that, please? I don’t even know why I told you.
I’m not trying to cause trouble. I just needed a fresh start. ”
He nodded. “It won’t leave this room.”
I gave him a small smile. “Thank you.”
“You’re staying here till you heal.” He didn’t bother giving me a choice.
“I have to work!”
“You’ll no longer be working for Ricky.”
I grumbled, sinking further into the pillow. “I just wanted to have something to prove that I can take care of myself without needing anyone else.”
“It’s for your own good, kid,” he said. “You don’t know Ricky.”
“He helped me when I had nothing.”
“He would have wanted to fuck you as repayment.” I jumped at the new feminine voice coming from the doorway.
Her white button-up was unbuttoned until her red and black lace bra could be seen, showing the curve of her breasts.
She had a tattoo of a dagger with a snake wrapped around it on her sternum.
I didn’t want to gape at her tits too much because I didn’t want to feel her wrath.
Her black slacks hugged her hips, accentuating her figure, but the look on her face didn’t look very pleased as she glared daggers into me.
And then it dawned on me.
She was the woman that showed up at the diner and terrified Ricky. I mean, I understood why he would shrivel in fear.
“Wondered when you would join us.”
“Why are you here?” she demanded. I tried to think of an answer, but she didn’t like having to wait. “Why the fuck are you in my town?”
I was taken aback by her outbursts, but matched her. “I just wanted a new life, goddammit!” I yelled, but it caused my side to scream in protest. “Fuck.”
“Easy there, kid.”
“I'm nobody. I’m not going to do anything, but I have nowhere else to go!” I heard her growl in protest, but she could honestly go fuck herself. “You don’t have to be a fucking cunt. I’m just trying to survive.”
“Find somewhere else.” With that, she turned on her heel, and the man followed quickly behind her.
That woman was hot, but she screamed raging cunt.
The look in her eyes as she stared at me like I was nothing but trash, made me sink further into the pillow.
I felt like I was trying to escape through some kind of hidden portal to a different life.
This town was my only option.
I could have gone anywhere, but I didn’t think my father would investigate a town close to the sea when he knew I was still terrified of the ocean.
He’d probably look at Nevada or Arizona, or somewhere else that wasn’t the coast, if he was even looking for me.
He probably found something better to solve instead of looking for his daughter.
I was the fuck up.
My brother should still be alive instead of me, but no. I survived that day instead of Nathan. He wanted a son to be proud of, and instead, he got a fuck up for a daughter who caused her mother to leave. At this point, my father may get his wish.
“Well, look at you.” A preppy voice echoed into the room, and I saw a beautiful woman with dark brown hair that went to her hips, kind dark eyes, and a curvy body that made my heart skip.
Her smile was bright and loud with a warm, inviting spirit as she walked closer to the bed I was cuffed to.
She was in tight jeans and a leather jacket that fit her like a glove, but her hair was a knotted mess.
She walked up closer to me, and I could see bruises and hickeys on her tanned skin shining like a beacon, telling the story of her messy hair. “Who are you?”
“I’m Fallon, sweets. My old man found you and brought you here to rest up. You’re a pretty little thing, I see why he did.”
My mouth dropped, and I gape at her. “I…It’s not li—”
She laughed while coming to sit by me. “I know, sweets. Hawke is a dashing gentleman. A knight in shining leather, if you will. He also has a special talent for finding broken girls and giving them a new life.”
“His name is Hawke?” I asked with bewilderment. It was the only thing I really processed.
Like his name was a signal, he walked back into the room with a smug grin, looking at his wife. “Hawke is my name, darlin’.”
“No, it’s not. What kind of a name is that?”
He smirked as Fallon went to him, wrapping her arms around his neck.
“It is the only name I’ve had since I was thirteen.
It’s Hawke. I chose it because it meant change and protection.
Growin’ up in a bad place like I did, I needed a guidin’ light.
There was a hawk outside my ma’s house, so when I finally left, I chose that name. ”
“Sexy name for my sexy man,” Fallon added as she kissed his cheek.
He grabbed her, pulling her closer to him before turning his attention back to me. “Sorry ‘bout the boss. She can be a lot,” he said. Fallon giggled against his throat at the statement.
“That’s an understatement. Is she the fucking mayor?”
He laughed. “No. That woman is nowhere near political.”
“Yeah? Well, she’s a fucking cunt.”
He ran his hand behind his neck. “She is…she has her moments. But I gotcha a job if you want it. You won’t be workin’ for Ricky,” he proclaimed.
I cringed. “Where?”
“A local club. Hades. Best in town. It’s a strip club, but if you don’t wanna strip on stage, you can be a waitress and do private dances, only if you want to.”
Fallon looked taken back, like she was shocked it was offered.
I opened my mouth to say something, but nothing spilled free.
In my sophomore year of nursing school, I joked and said I was going to drop out and become a stripper, but my so-called friends and Dominic all said I didn’t have the body to be a stripper.
Strippers were supposed to be size zeros with perky tits.
My size sixteen hips and double D breasts did not meet the criteria.
Dominic always made me insecure about my curves and my belly, but he praised my big boobs and fat ass.
He also made fun of my scars on my thighs and wrists.
I accepted his mean words, trapped by his conflicting pretty words as they fell from his traitorous lips, when I should’ve kicked him in the balls and ran for the fucking hills.
I really let a man ruin my self-esteem and destroy my life.
I was silent for a while. I knew Hawke was waiting for an answer, but I kept looking between him and the expression on Fallon’s face.
My trauma was fresh; I was still licking my wounds clean.
I didn’t know how I was going to react to dancing for men to give me cash.
Besides, I didn’t plan on telling the entire town what happened to me.
Hell, I didn’t know why I bothered telling Hawke.
The words just flew from my mouth like vomit.
“I need an answer, darlin’,” Hawke said.
“I…” I paused. “I can’t be a stripper.”
“Why not?” he questioned.
I looked down at my body. “I don’t have the body to be one. I’m not the prettiest, either. It’ll be a waste of everyone’s time.”
“Please,” Fallon said with a smile. “No one here is in the mindset of strippers needing to be ten pounds with triple H tits. You are gorgeous, and that body of yours? Sinful.”
Hawke squeezed her ass, and she giggled. “I don’t know what that boy did to you before, but he ruined that pretty little head of yours, kid. You’ll do a damn good job at Hades.”
I felt my cheeks burn and gave them both a soft, genuine smile. “Thank you. I’ll take the job. What do I need to do?”
“When the time comes, the boss will have to interview you. Just wear lingerie and a smile. If you’re comfortable, you can dance, but you won’t be forced to do anything. We all love sex and seeing naked women, but only if they enjoy it, too.”
“And babe,” Fallon laughed, “we all enjoy it. Have you seen the men here? Fuckable and marriage type. The best of both worlds.”
“The only man fucking you is me,” Hawke growled at her before looking at me again. “You’re safe here. We make sure our people are safe.”
I arched my brow, giving him a soft smile. “Ya know, for a big, scary tattooed biker, you really are a teddy bear.”
“A sexy teddy bear until he has to maul someone for hurting his family,” Fallon cooed.