Chapter 28
Sloane
Rip’s hand tightened on mine as people shuffled in and took their seats. My stomach twisted as I thought of Rip telling them about what’d happened while he was with The Order. I wasn’t sure how they’d take what he had to say.
He’d warned me that he’d let them know everything that’d happened. They’d earned the right to know by getting me and the others out of there. I’d be forever grateful to them, but that didn’t mean I wasn’t anxious about their reactions.
Everyone looked over at Lockout as he began to speak.
This man was a natural born leader. The easiest way to tell was that he led other leaders.
Rip and every one of his brothers that I’d met so far were powerful men in their own right.
They weren’t the weak-willed men who Ethan had surrounded himself with.
They were confident and exuded strength, yet they followed a chain of command. One that put Lockout at the top.
After seeing Static lead us out, and Smokehouse defend us while escaping, I knew that any of these men could step up and lead as necessary.
The men in The Order were just sheep and bullies.
They did as they were told. They could never have done what these men did.
They wouldn’t have wanted to, either. They’d enjoyed keeping their women and children under their thumbs.
I’d found out last night, from the other women, that Rip was second in command.
It didn’t surprise me. I wasn’t sure how he’d managed to fool Ethan and the others for as long as he had, but I’d begun figuring out right away that he wasn’t the usual kind of man Ethan allowed into The Order.
That’s why finding out that he was also in charge of all these men didn’t come as a shock.
He’d shown me what a good person he was and how he took care of what was his.
“Welcome home Rip, and welcome to the family, Sloane.”
I smiled at Lockout and dipped my head. Back in what had been my home the only time everyone’s eyes were on me was when I was doing something they’d considered wrong, or in front of my students.
I wasn’t sure how to deal with the friendly looks instead of scrutiny.
There was hope that feeling that way would fade, but for now I would do my best not to offend anyone or embarrass my husband in his home.
Lockout had continued to talk, but I was only half paying attention. My nerves were dancing around like errant children past their bedtime. It made it hard to listen. At least until Rip started to speak.
His deep voice caught my attention and I watched him as he recounted his time with The Order. Every once in a while I would glance around, then immediately wished I wouldn’t have. The men all wore grim expressions and both Seek and Jenny looked horrified.
Would they consider me too damaged from my time living with lunatics to be worth saving?
I swallowed hard and pulled my hand from Rip’s.
I folded them in my lap, staring down at them as I tried to ease the worry and shame.
From the corner of my eye I saw him look my way and frown, but he didn’t stop.
“They actually whipped you?” Seek asked, anger sparking in her tone.
When Rip didn’t answer her, I looked up. She was staring directly at me, her expression dark. I swallowed, eyes darting around. Everyone was staring at me. Gathering my courage, I nodded. “Yes.”
“Just for the initiation, or…” Jenny let her question trail off.
“Anytime Ethan decided I had sinned,” I told her, straightening my shoulders and holding my chin high.
The thought of these people pitying or thinking badly of me hurt my heart.
I wanted their respect. But I wasn’t the kind of woman to cower.
I hadn’t for Ethan or his people and I wouldn’t here either.
Rip’s arm dropped over my shoulders and he gave me an understanding smile that looked like it was laced with pride.
It didn’t matter how scary this was, I would face it head on and do so with pride and courage.
“I want to kill them. With my bare hands,” Seek announced. She was seething mad, but it broke the tension in the room.
The men all laughed and even I chuckled a little. Hush pulled her closer so she was leaning on him. “Sorry, Babe. We already killed ‘em as dead as they could be.”
Seek grumbled. “Should have ripped their balls off first, then killed them.”
A couple of guys shifted in discomfort at the mental imagery as she began detailing how she’d have done it.
“You’re savage,” Hush said with a laugh. “Knew there was a reason I loved you.”
Every fiber of my being sighed, awww, at his declaration. “You’re so cute.”
When they all looked at me, my eyes widened. I hadn’t meant to say the last thought aloud. Clearing my throat delicately, I gave them an apologetic smile. “Sorry.”
“Don’t be,” Seek said with a laugh. “And thank you.”
“You’re cute, too, Angel,” Rip said into my ear as he tucked my hair behind it.
My cheeks heated, but pleasure at his compliment built inside me. The man had a way of making me feel special. I hadn’t ever seen him do the same with any other woman—though I’d really only seen him around married women—but I liked to think it was because he wanted to see me smile.
The meeting continued on and I listened quietly as the rest of the men told the women how the assault on the compound went.
I used the time to watch each person around the table.
The women had explained that these men were officers or enforcers and that meant they held higher standing within the club.
They’d also explained that as old ladies they didn’t deal with club business.
That was fine by me. I didn’t want to be involved in another organization, no matter how innocent.
I just wanted to be left to live my life on my terms and no one else’s.
There were going to be rules here, if Rip decided to keep me.
I could live by rules as long as they weren’t oppressive and didn’t come with punishments that’d be permanently scarred onto my body.
Compared to that, everything else was easy.
A quick glance over at Rip’s face showed that he was listening intently to another man who I was sure was named Butcher.
I wasn’t always great with remembering names, but was excellent at faces and body language. Another man spoke up, explaining his part in the attack from last night.
Butcher’s hazel eyes met mine and I quickly looked down.
I hadn’t realized I’d been staring for too long.
Everyone around the table was relaxed, except for him.
I’d been trying to puzzle out why he was so tense.
The feel of eyes on me had me glancing up again only to find him still watching me with calculating eyes.
He gave me a respectful nod and focused on Lockout.
We’d come to some kind of silent agreement.
One that acknowledged that both of us had skeletons in our closets that made us unable to fully relax in a room full of people.
Even people that were considered family.
It made me feel an instant connection to him and I wondered if there was a chance that we could be friends.
Would Rip allow me to have a man as a friend?
I frowned at the thought. Freedom was still so new, but I wondered if I’d ever be able to live without seeking permission for ordinary, everyday decisions most people made without even thinking? I sure hoped so.
Chairs scraping startled me, and I jumped as everyone stood up and began to leave.
“Hey. You okay?”
I looked over into Rip’s worried blue eyes. Nodding, I gave him a small smile. “My mind wandered and the sound startled me. I’m fine.”
He nodded slowly. “I know it couldn’t have been easy to have to go through all that.”
“It’s okay. It was my life.”
“Was, Angel. Now you get to make something completely different going forward.”
We stood and began heading out toward the main area of the club. I froze in the hallway as I saw a little girl dart through the bikers, making her way toward the man called Priest. She and three other little girls wrapped themselves around his legs.
“What’s going on?” Rip’s hand smoothed over my head, a soothing gesture, but I often wondered if he even realized how much he touched me.
I’d never ask because I wouldn’t want him to stop.
His touch gave me more comfort than he’d ever know.
I hadn’t spoken much during that meeting and they hadn’t asked me to, but Rip had made the last couple months of life with The Order almost bearable.
At one point, I’d thought to myself that as long as I had him by my side that I could possibly even live out the remainder of my life in that messed up place.
I was glad we didn’t have to, but that’s how much he’d changed everything by showing up.
One day, I’d tell him how grateful I was to him.
I didn’t even realize I was moving until Rip called out my name. As soon as she heard it, Caitlyn whirled around. Her eyes widened and she raced toward me.
Dropping down to my knees, I caught her in my arms. We wrapped around each other in a deep hug. We hadn’t known each other very long, but from the moment she and her mother had gotten to the compound I’d taken them under my wing.
Both Rip and Priest squatted down near us, giving each other pointed looks as Caitlyn sobbed in my arms.
“She’s okay,” I told them. “Hi, Squirrel.” I smiled down at her and she returned it with tear stained cheeks.
“I didn’t know if I’d see you again,” she told me.
“Here I am. And I’m so happy to see that you’re okay.”
“You know each other from the compound?” Priest asked, even though he knew the answer. He was giving Caitlyn a chance to tell him herself.
A quick look showed that everyone was listening, but they weren’t crowding closer. I appreciated that. It was going to be hard for me to be in some of these situations for a while yet.
Caitlyn nodded and took the hand he held out, though she stayed comfortably wrapped in my arms. “Sloane helped me.”
“Caitlyn-”