Chapter 26
Sloane
Everything was a bit of a blur. Derek’s brothers had brought out large cars and were shuttling everyone out of the desert.
My girls had already made it back to the area where the vehicles were parked and Static and Smokehouse had them wait until I got back before sending them into the city.
Running forward, I fell to my knees hugging each of them close in turn.
They were crying and babbling. We were a pile of tears and limbs.
Before long, Rip helped us up and sent the girls on ahead.
“Go,” I told them with a tearful smile. “I’ll be right behind you.” Embracing them each one last time, I watched as the car bounced over the dirt road until it was out of sight.
I insisted on staying until the last of the women and children were taken from here. It ended up being me, Ben, Daniel, and Nate—the only three men who were salvageable from that place—and Rip’s crew.
We quietly climbed into the different vehicles.
Rip was sitting next to me, but he hadn’t spoken to me much.
It could be that he’d just been busy and he was preoccupied, but I was feeling incredibly insecure.
He found out my last secret in a way I hadn’t ever planned for.
I’d tried to tell him before all of this kicked off.
He’d interrupted me with a kiss and it had been easier to let it go than to insist that I tell him.
I was regretting that decision now. I should have had more courage because Rip finding out this way was my fault.
It didn’t need to be such a shock for him if I’d done things right.
I wished I could go back and tell him when I had the chance.
It was me and three of his brothers in the SUV. It wasn’t necessarily the best place for the conversation, but I didn’t want the uncomfortable tension to keep escalating.
“I’m so sorry I didn’t tell you I was Ethan’s daughter before,” I said in a low voice.
His eyes flashed over to me and he gave me an abrupt nod. “We’ll talk about it later, Sloane.”
I slumped down in the seat, staring at my hands that were folded in my lap.
We were free. I should be riding that high, but the shock and disappointment I’d seen on Rip’s face when he’d found out the truth prevented it.
I was already so unsure of where we stood.
We’d told each other that we loved one another and that we wanted to continue what we had outside of the compound.
Would he still want that now that he knew I was related to a madman?
The drive took longer than I expected, and by the time the SUV stopped, I was ready to get out and stretch. I frowned as I looked around. “Where is everyone?”
“Static has a place where we were able to take everyone for the night. We don’t have enough space for them all here,” Rip told me.
“Okay. Thank you so much for helping us.” I reached out and squeezed his arm. Before he could say anything else, I turned and walked toward where one of his brothers was loading Daniel, Nate, Ben, and the last of the women into the van.
A firm hand gripped my upper arm and pulled me to a stop. “Where are you going, Sloane?”
I faced him and gave him a smile. His eyes were narrowed on my face, but he didn’t look angry. “I’m going to where my people are.”
He shook his head. “You’re my wife. You’re staying here with me.”
I watched in shock as he dipped before me and then gasped as my world was turned upside down.
Literally. “Rip!” I was hanging over his shoulder as he stalked toward the building he’d called the clubhouse.
Others chuckled and called out as we passed and all I could do was hang there and glare at his back.
The world righted itself as soon as we stepped into the clubhouse. There were five women standing there with wide eyes and their mouths hanging open.
“Ladies,” Rip said by way of greeting. “This is my wife, Sloane. Could you keep her company and explain a few things about the club while I go help the others settle everyone in?”
I didn’t think it was possible but their eyes got wider as they nodded mutely. Then it was like a crack formed in the dam and they rushed forward, all speaking at once. Suddenly both Rip and I were being hugged.
“We’re so glad you’re okay,” a tall, dark-haired woman told him as she hugged him. She turned to me and gave me a beautiful smile. “Hi, I’m Seek.”
She wrapped me up in a tight embrace and my eyes closed as I sank against her. It wasn’t typical for me to take comfort in a stranger but something told me these were good women and I was so emotionally and physically exhausted, I didn’t have the energy to deny myself.
They swept me upstairs faster than I could react. They were so full of energy that I wasn’t sure if I was walking or being carried along. I went with them, shooting a look over my shoulder at Rip. My anxiety increased at the thought of leaving his side.
“I’ll be back, Angel,” Rip called out. He gave me a reassuring smile, waited until I nodded, then he turned and walked out.
We ended up settling inside an apartment upstairs and I perched on the edge of a recliner as all the women stared at me. I gave them a wan smile.
“Sorry,” a woman with brown curly hair said. “We don’t mean to stare. It’s just we weren’t expecting Riptide to come back with a wife!”
Laughing, I relaxed a little. “I don’t think it was what he expected either,” I admitted. “Could you tell me your names again, please?” They’d been a storm of voices and movement downstairs and I wasn’t sure I had things correct.
“I’m Jenny,” the lady with curls told me. “Priest is my old man.”
Blinking, I opened my mouth to ask what that meant exactly. Another lady beat me to it.
“An old man is like a boyfriend or a husband in the club,” she told me. “I’m Kit.”
“Who’s your old man?” I asked.
She laughed, tossing her mane of dark hair. “No one. My brother is in the club and we basically grew up here when our dad was a member so Lockout—the president—allows me to stick around.”
“She’s not a sweet butt, though,” one of the two blonde women said. “Oh, I’m Tory.”
My jaw worked as I repeated the words she’d said. This was an entirely different world than the one I was used to.
“There’s a lot to learn,” the second blonde said, “but you’ll get the hang of it soon enough. I’m Daisha.”
“And I’m Suzie,” the last woman, a red-head, said, introducing herself.
“Sloane,” I told them with a smile. My head was spinning, but their welcoming smiles had set me at ease.
“You lived at the compound?” Seek asked, curiosity in her eyes.
“I did.” Something brushed against my arm and I started so hard, I jumped in my chair.
“Sorry! Auron, Jecht, come.”
I looked over at Seek as she called her two dogs over.
One went directly to her while the other brushed himself against my legs.
Ethan hadn’t allowed us to keep animals.
He said they were dirty and immoral. One of the kids had found a stray that’d had puppies and snuck one home.
Ethan had ordered the animal be killed. He’d been furious when he couldn’t find it to kill it.
He’d suspected me all along, but hadn’t been able to prove it. That didn’t mean that he hadn’t whipped me for the offense anyway. But the dog had lived. I’d snuck into a nearby town and found a mother with her young boys at a grocery store. They’d happily taken the pup.
I rubbed the back of my neck where the tail of the whip had left a deep scar.
The marks along my body were memories of growing up within The Order.
They ensured I’d never forget the lessons Ethan taught me.
Maybe one day I could put them behind me.
“May I?” I gestured to the dog at my feet.
He was staring up at me with a lolling tongue and kind, intelligent eyes.
“Of course. Jecht is still pretty young and he doesn’t know his manners as well, but he is sweet as pie,” Seek told me with a smile.
My hands sank into his soft fur and I scratched behind his ears.
Everyone watched me quietly as I leaned forward and buried my face in his scruff.
He whined and pressed closer to me. Somehow this animal knew to give me comfort.
Maybe I’d get a dog now that I had a new life.
A being that would love me unconditionally and wouldn’t care where I came from.
Overwhelmed, I breathed in deep, trying to push back the fear and worry. Everything was different and I was going to have to learn to live a completely new way. Later, I’d be excited about that, but for now it was frightening.
Arms went around me and I looked up and was startled to realize all the women were squatting down, circled around me and Jecht. Their arms were on each other’s shoulders as they huddled around me.
“I know you don’t know us yet,” Kit told me, a soft look in her eyes, “but we’re family.”
“That’s the whole point of the motorcycle club,” Suzie said.
“Anytime you need anything, we’ll all be here for you,” Daisha continued.
“Everyone. Even the men. But us women stick together,” Jenny said, wrapping an arm around my waist. “We’ll help you adjust and learn how to live in this new lifestyle.”
“I would love that,” I told them with tears in my eyes.
If only I was sure that Rip wanted to keep me.
We still hadn’t gotten to speak since he found out who I was.
What if he decided to cast me aside? It would be easy for him to do.
They already had the rest of my people somewhere here in the city.
“Would you like something to eat? Or drink?” Seek asked.
I shook my head, then paused. “It’s a weird request, but…”
“Anything,” Seek insisted. “What is it?”
“Could I take a shower?” Dirt was caked to my skin, sand inside my clothes, and I felt bedraggled compared to these gorgeous women.
“Of course!”
“It’s just…I don’t have my bag. It has my clothes and things in it. It’s still in the SUV. Rip didn’t let me grab it before…”
“Don’t worry,” she told me, patting my knee as I trailed off. “You’ll get used to the guys.”
“Are they all like that?” I asked. It was so different from the Rip I knew from The Order. “I never would have guessed he’d just toss me over a shoulder like that.”
“Oh yeah,” they all said in unison, then laughed.
“They all have a little barbarian in them,” Jenny said with a snort of amusement. “But they’d never hurt their old ladies. In fact, they’d kill for us.”
“And our kids,” Suzie said with a small smile.
“Do you all have kids?”
“I don’t,” Kit piped up.
Everyone else just nodded, except for Seek. She smiled and placed a hand on her belly. My eyes widened as I realized she must have recently found out she was pregnant.
“Come on,” she said, before I could say anything to her. “You can borrow some of my clothes.”
They dragged me into her bedroom and to her closet. They began pulling out clothing at a rate that made me dizzy. Back home I’d had four skirts and five blouses. The amount of clothing this woman had was making my head spin.
“Don’t you have anything girlier?” Kit asked, flicking through the clothes hanging there. They all looked back at my skirt and blouse.
“We didn’t have a lot of options for clothes,” I told them, tugging self-consciously at my skirt. Ethan had been very strict on what could be worn. Just another form of control he’d exerted over all of us.
“Sorry,” Seek said with an apologetic laugh. “I don’t really wear dresses.”
“Try these on,” Jenny suggested, handing me a pair of jeans while Kit handed me a shirt.
I shook my head, fear crawling through my chest. Pants weren’t allowed. They were a sure fire way to get yourself a beating. “I couldn’t.”
The women glanced between each other, understanding and something close to pity there. It shook me out of my fear. I wasn’t under Ethan’s thumb anymore and I didn’t want anyone to pity me.
Taking the clothes, I disappeared into her bathroom.
I wasn’t ready for anyone to see my scars.
Looking in the mirror, I stared at the woman there.
My hair was dirty and limp and I had dirt smeared across my face, but the long sleeve shirt clung to my curves and the jeans accentuated my small hips, though I had to roll up the bottoms of the pants.
Seek was quite a bit taller than me. I’d seen clothes like this when passing through new towns, but never on myself.
“Do they fit?” someone called through the door.
I opened it and they all smiled and gave me compliments. Seek set me up with a towel and everything I’d need for the shower I wanted. They left me alone to bathe.
The warm water was revitalizing. The exhaustion, the fear, the shame, swirled down the drain along with the dirt on my skin. A sense of hope and wonderment was beginning to rise inside of me. The Order was done. I was a free woman.
By the time I joined them in the living room again, I felt like a new woman.
I hadn’t bothered to put on my panties or bra.
They were dirty, so I’d just rolled them up in my skirt and set them aside.
It felt weird to have nothing on under my borrowed clothes, but I’d make sure to launder them before returning them to Seek.
Someone shoved a glass of wine in my hand and we all sat around talking and laughing. I knew without a doubt that I was going to end up being good friends with these women.
“Where are your children?” I asked.
“Over in Jenny’s apartment,” Suzie said. “Sylvia is watching over them. She’s a friend of ours.”
I was glad to have some time with the women.
They began teaching me about this lifestyle they lived.
It sounded like it was centered around family.
Could I dare to hope that I’d ended up with the one man who could give me everything I’d ever longed for?
A family of my own—children—but also a group of people like this who loved and cared for me?
It was everything I’d ever dreamed of. Suddenly the thought of not only losing Rip, but all this as well, was a heavy weight in my chest.
The wine relaxed the rest of me as we spoke and soon I’d fallen asleep in my chair. Warm arms lifted me and I knew by the fresh scent that it was Rip. I cuddled into his chest without bothering to open my eyes.
“I said help her settle in, not get her drunk.” Rip’s tone was filled with amusement.
“It was their fault,” Seek said, and I knew without looking she was passing blame to the other women. When no one spoke up I had a feeling they were all passed out as well.
“Sure it was. Thanks for tonight,” he told her.
“Anytime, Rip. It’s so good to have you home.”
“Good to be home. Lock said we’ll have church tomorrow, around eleven, to go over everything.”
“Goodnight. Take care of her.”
“You know I will,” he said and I felt his lips brush the top of my head. I let sleep pull me back under, safe and protected in his arms.