Chapter 6
Reaper
“We found him.”
The three words I had been waiting to hear for days. Trojan pulled the screen up in the chapel with photos of my son.
“He’s definitely in Perth, under an assumed name, and ID. He doesn’t appear to be harmed in any way, but the usual looking over his shoulder, so someone is definitely on his tail.”
“Did Rowan tell you anything?” Chaos, my Sergeant at Arms, asked. “Surely, she would know, right?”
“He seems to have left her in the lurch,” I offered. “She’s going to try and get him to contact her again.”
“He the reason she ended up here with bruises?” Maverick asked.
“She says no,” I offer, but I’m not entirely convinced. He may not have done the damage himself, but he’s the reason she ended up black and blue, and that really didn’t sit right with me.
“There’s more,” Trojan offered, flicking to a set of photos on the screen. My heart stopped for a moment when I realised what I was looking at.
“Take it down.”
“Prez?”
“Take. it. Down.”
Trojan did just that, leaving the screen blank, while my heart started to work again.
“Explain.”
“Rowan turned up in emergency after calling an ambulance for herself. These were the photos taken. Didn’t press charges. But I do have her emergency call ready if you want to hear it.”
I nodded my head, because I knew words would fail me. The image of her beaten face was seared into my retinas. I knew she’d been hurt bad, but not…that.
“Fire, Police or Ambulance?” the operator asked. The breathy groans of pain had my chest tight.
“Ambulance. Hurry.”
“Okay, ma’am, please tell me your address.”
Rowan recited it through groans that didn’t sound good.
“Okay, ma’am, what is the problem so we can assess while on the way to you?” the operator asked in a cool monotone.
“I need help. Fast. I’ve been attacked by the Ironborne. They left me for dead. Please.”
The line went dead moments later, probably from her passing out or not wanting to answer anymore questions. My fingers dug into the wood of my chair.
Ironborne.
“Why’s she messed up with them?” Chaos asked once Trojan turned off the call.
“She’s not,” Maverick offered. “Obviously Trey is, and they came for her instead.”
No one spoke.
Out of respect for me and my son, but I was furious. How could he fucking leave her to take his beating?
“Shadow.” He looked up at me, his dark eyes never giving much away, but I could tell he was pissed. We all were. “Go to Perth, bring him home.”
He nodded once before he stood up, and left the room.
“We give him a chance to explain himself,” I said. “As we would with anyone else, but if he left her to take that beating…he’s no son of mine.”
I dismissed them and left the chapel, bypassing the bar, noticing she wasn’t behind it and moved outside. The clear air did nothing to quell the anger building inside of me. There had to be a reason. He wouldn’t do this…would he? Had I failed that much as a parent that he could let this happen?
Moving down to my bike, I jumped on and took off.
The only thing that could quell my aching chest was a ride into the mountains, away from everyone.
They’d pay for this. Whether she was my son’s girl, or not, she would be avenged.
The image of her mangled face, one eye almost shut, pained me even now.
I would kill the man who thought they could squash her like a bug. I would do more to the Ironborne for it. I’d wage a war for a woman I couldn’t have, and I knew it.
Rowan was dangerous, and yet, I wanted every bit of debris that came with her.
Rowan
The roar of a motorcycle pulled me from my daze. The call with Trey hadn’t gone how I thought it would. He was remorseful, sure, but he didn’t give me the answers I wanted. He wanted to assure me that he would explain when he got back, and he was already on his way.
I didn’t know how to feel about it.
I loved Trey, he was my friend, he’d always been my friend, but I felt so betrayed by him that I felt like I couldn’t breathe. If it came down to him or me, the club would choose him. Of course they would, he was Wyatt’s son, and I was a nobody.
Pulling myself up, I washed my face and went downstairs to go back to work. Cherry was smiling sweetly at me when I got there, and one of the girls from before sat at the bar.
The one that had laughed and obviously earned her a scornful look from Tee.
“Ro, this is Cammie,” Cherry announced. “Don’t worry, she’s not like the other two.”
Cammie rolled her eyes. “They’re assholes, but I have to put up with them since you know…they're always around.”
“Unfortunately,” I grumbled, to which both Cherry and Cammie laughed.
“How do you know them?” Cammie asked me, taking a sip of her drink.
“I went to school with them,” I offered, pouring myself a coke. “Bullies.”
“Clearly, they still are,” Cherry said. “The way she called you that disgusting name…ugh.”
I shrugged. “It was one of many. It stuck because I go by Ro, and not Rowan.”
“But like you don’t have rolls,” Cammie said, looking me up and down. “You’re fucking hot as fuck.”
The compliment washed over me, and made me feel a little better, but not in the way it should. “Thanks.”
“Just tell them where to go next time, babe,” Cherry said. “No one cares what they think.”
I looked over at Cammie, who just shrugged.
“It’s true. We’re here for a purpose. I happen to like the way I get treated.
When I’m with one of them, I’m a princess.
Then I have a home, free food, and I get to meet new people all the time.
I can dress how I want, and there’s no judgment. I got it made.”
“I like that,” I admitted. “How long have they been here? Last time I came, they weren’t here.”
“Probably about eighteen months ago or so. I know Tee has filtered in and out, depending on which biker wants her at the time. She spent some time in Melbourne, but came back a few months ago.”
“I guess she hit the motherload with Reaper.”
“Reaper?” Cherry asked, smirking. “Doubtful. He may indulge from time to time, but never with her. Doesn’t stop her trying though.”
“She left his room last night,” I told them, trying to make it sound non-chalant but it had left me with acid in my mouth.
Cherry’s eyebrows raised, but she shrugged. “I suppose hell was bound to freeze over sometime.”
As if he were summoned, Wyatt walked into the clubhouse, looking every inch the powerful president he was. I tried to keep busy, so I didn’t stare after him like a lovestruck puppy.
“Rowan,” his deep growl had my pussy throbbing. I turned to look over at him. Cammie was watching us like we were at a tennis match, and Cherry had her eyes on the interaction as well. “Have you heard from Trey?”
“Yeah, he finally answered. I was going to tell you but you were gone.”
He nodded. “What did he say?”
“He’s on his way back, he wants to talk to me in person. He said something went wrong, and he didn’t know what would eventually happen to me, but he wanted to prove it to me first.”
He nodded again. “Shadow called me to say he was already on his way. He’ll bring him in. Do you want someone with you when he gets here?”
Confused, I shook my head. “No…why?”
He didn’t need to reply. My brain finally caught up. “He’s not going to hurt me. He would never.”
Reaper nodded. “Okay. But I want it to happen here, yeah?”
“Sure. I don’t really have anywhere else to go.”
He grunted, which I assumed was his acknowledgement. His eyes were probing mine, as if he were trying to figure out if I were lying, before he gave a grunt, and pushed off the bar and headed to chapel.
“Wow,” Cammie sighed dreamily. “The sexual tension coming off you two was intense. I almost came when he grunted.”
“What?”
“You’re not the only one,” Cherry said, giggling. “It’s been a while since I’ve seen him so tied up in knots.”
“What are you two talking about?” I all but gasped. “He’s just asking about Trey.”
“Girl, you can deny all you like…but that tension was coming from both sides. You’d have to be deaf, blind and unable to feel to not sense that.”
Fuck.