Chapter 10 #2
As I sat there staring at the images, the door to the apartment opened.
Dom stepped inside carrying a brown bag and a couple drinks in a cup holder.
He kicked the door closed with the back of his boot as he came toward me.
Setting the bag and drinks down on the coffee table before me, we locked eyes and the little smirk he had for me in greeting dropped, his expression now full of concern.
He sat down next to me and signed, “What’s wrong? ”
I shook my head, swallowing hard. His dark eyes skimmed my face. His hand rose, fingers brushing against my cheek. “Is it the pain?” he signed with his other hand.
I pursed my lips, my body growing hot. I turned the screen of my phone toward him so he could see. His eyes drifted over the images and I saw his expression change.
“He really did this?” I asked, my hand shaking. “Your brother really went out last night and did this?”
Dom’s gaze flicked up to mine and he nodded. The reality of my situation was starting to hit me. I felt sweat run down the back of my neck.
Last night, while Dom had been finger fucking me in the bath, his brother had gone out on a killing spree, burning down buildings with people in them, all for me.
I wasn’t sure if it was a sob or laugh that got caught in my throat. My body shook either way. I felt Dom move closer, his heavy arm wrapping around me. He tried to gently pry my hands from my face but I pulled away in response.
“Where is he?” I asked.
Dom put up his hand. He started to sign but I stopped him.
“Take me to him. Now.”
Dom studied me for a moment, then sighed.
As he rose, he helped me up. He wanted to carry me but I felt too embarrassed for that, not wanting to look so vulnerable.
He gathered the crutches so I could place them under each arm, then he guided me to the door.
Since I was no stranger to crutches, I was able to keep up with his long strides even as he kept a leisurely pace.
As he took me over to an elevator, I peered around the mostly empty hallway.
Parts of it were clearly being worked on as I could see up into the ceiling, with wires dangling down.
Parts of the walls had openings into more electrical wiring.
The building was old but someone was trying to fix it up.
Dom pulled the gate to the elevator away and stepped inside.
As I followed in, he pulled it back then pushed his fist on the down button.
He kept a hold on my elbow as the elevator brought us down.
As it sank to the ground level with a thud, he opened the gate and I followed him down another hallway.
He turned into a set of double doors to the right, and I followed him.
I froze just past the entrance, finding myself in what was almost a large ballroom, only it was turned into a club, with a bar on one side and DJ stand on a small stage.
There were neon lights around the top and grungy art on the walls.
Dull light streamed down from windows up high.
The place was empty with only the soft hum of music nearby.
Dom crossed the dance floor, making for another set of doors on the other end.
The next room was smaller, more like a lounge, with another bar, several seats and a pool table.
One of the walls had a tall slide-in door that was opened to the outside, bringing in a soft warm breeze.
Dom took me out to a courtyard, making sure I didn’t stumble on the uneven gravel.
There were a few bikes parked in a row along with Dom’s Mustang, Lez’s Hellcat, and my Jeep.
I could hear music and people talking nearby along with a shrill drilling noise.
On the other side of the courtyard, where the building wrapped around, were two large garage doors standing open.
Inside I could see people mingling around a couple cars that looked fit for racing.
Dom took me over to them and I followed, wishing I didn’t suddenly feel so self-conscious.
There were eight people altogether and I recognized several of them.
A few had been with Leslie that first night I met Dom at the diner.
One of them was the bigger guy that had walked in on me and Dom in the bathroom.
There was a girl there too with short red hair and a butch build wearing mechanics overalls.
The rest were men in dark tank tops and workmen pants all covered in tattoos.
They were laughing at some unheard joke as we got closer. One of them noticed Dom and waved.
“Yo, Dom! Didn’t think you’d be up this early,” he called. He was a tall, leaner-built guy that looked like a viking with long blond hair tied back and the sides of his head shaved. He also sported an impressive beard. He started toward Dom then halted when he saw me. “Oh, shit.”
The others went quiet, their eyes turning to me as I stood in front of the entrance of the garage. Dom signed something at them and the viking nodded. “Yeah, sure thing. Hey, Lez! Your bro is here!” he called deeper into the garage.
I heard something clatter to the floor from within.
A moment later, Leslie rolled out from underneath one of the cars.
He got up and walked over to us, taking off a pair of gloves.
He glanced at his brother then saw me and slowed.
He gestured for one of the guys to turn down the music from the speaker as he approached, his eyes never leaving me.
His expression darkened as his gaze raked over my face.
“What the fuck is she doing out here, she should be in bed,” he said in a grated voice. “Damnit, Dom, look at her, she’s not fit to—”
“I wanted to,” I interrupted.
Lez halted, his eyes narrowing. “Is this a joke? You can barely walk—”
“We need to talk.”
His gaze shifted to the others as he leaned back on the hood of the car just behind him. “What about?”
I clenched my jaw. “You know what about. And before you go glancing at your brother, it’s about last night. I know what you did.”
He smirked and it was then I noticed the beginnings of a bruise on his jaw. “No need to come all the way down and thank me. A call or text would have sufficed.”
“I’m not here to thank you.”
He nodded, his smile growing. “I guess I should have expected that.”
“Why the fuck would I be happy that you murdered people.”
The silence among the group was deafening. Dom signed at them and they started to disperse.
“Damn, Lez, you’re in the dog house now.” The viking chuckled as we walked away.
“Fuck off, Leo,” the bigger guy said. He shook his head at Dom as he turned to leave.
The woman set down a towel, shaking her head. “Those sick fucks,” I heard her say. I understood she was talking about the Serpents since she was staring at my face. I could only imagine how bad I must look to even have a group as intimidating as this gaping at me.
As the rest disappeared, it was just me, Lez, and Dom. A crow cawed nearby as Lez glared at me.
“You’re upset. I get it,” he said.
“Upset?” I shook my head. “I’m appalled.
” There was a look in his eyes that was there one moment then gone in an instant, too fast for me to decipher.
I moved a little closer. “Did you once even think of my sister? How you put her at risk? What if she was at that bar, hidden somewhere? In the basement or somewhere else? Did you even think to look—”
“I looked,” he answered. “She wasn’t there.”
“You’re sure?”
“I am.”
I stood rigid, forcing my gaze to meet his. “They might really kill her now because of what you did. If she isn’t already dead.”
“She’s not.”
I was taken aback. His eyes drifted to Dom before returning to me. “I didn’t get much out of one of them before he went unconscious. But he swore she was alive.”
I went quiet for a moment. “And a location?”
He shrugged. “Not the bar. He didn’t know where, said he was too low ranked to get that information. He said he only knew she was alive and they weren’t looking to kill her. He said something along the lines of ‘Sicaro wanted her too much to kill her’.”
“Who’s Sicaro?”
“Guy passed out…or passed away before I could get it out of him. But my guess it’s a code name.”
I bit my lip. Just when I might feel relief knowing she was alive and would remain that way, now I had to worry about the man who was keeping her.
I shifted on my feet, putting my weight on my left even if it hurt.
“You still went too far,” I replied softly.
“I didn’t need you to…to hurt people like that for me. ”
“You asked for our help,” Lez said coldly.
“Don’t get mad if you don’t like the way we work.
You knew this was how we played. We don’t play nice.
Especially after a rival gang does what they did.
” He closed the distance between us. “Did you honestly think I would just sit around and let them get away with that? They needed to know they fucked with the wrong people.”
I kept my ground even if he was starting to scare me. “I didn’t ask you to do that.”
He tilted his head. “But you didn’t stop me either, did you, sweetheart?”
My mouth twisted. “Don’t call me that.”
“It’s true. You knew I was going to do something awful. You fucking knew, don’t deny it. And deep down…” He leaned in, his face close to mine. “You wanted it.”
I wanted to smack him. Instead, I said, “Not like that.”
“Oh, yeah? How then.”
I felt vulnerable under his gaze. I looked at Dom but he only waited for me to answer. “I want…I want them to pay. I want them to get caught and go to jail.”