“Where’s your car?” he asked.

  “Two blocks on the other side of that asshole out there.”

  Brainiac killed the lights. Rip looked our way, and he and the two men with him started in our direction. “Stay inside. I will go out back, start my bike, and take off. They’ll follow me. When it’s clear, take the back streets to your car and get your asses back to the clubhouse.”

  Brainiac did as he said he would. We watched him speed away, as did Rip and his men. They looked back toward the whore house.

  “They aren’t leaving,” Gigi said.

  “Oh, shit, not again.” I moved everyone away from the lobby and down the hall from the back entrance. “He’s carrying a gas can. They’re going to torch the place.”

  We heard someone pounding on the back entrance. Someone else beat on the front door.

  “Now, what?” Gigi asked. “They’re going to turn us into chicken nuggets.”

  At the hall’s end, I opened the window that led to a side street that would take us into darkness. “Follow me and keep quiet.”

  The five of us crawled through the window. The roar of bikes told us that Rip had called backup. Gunfire then told me I was wrong.

  I led my little group to the building’s corner and peeked around. Marcus, Diesel, Big Kentucky, Brainiac, Watcher, and Cinder stood face to face with Rip and six of his men. If one shot were fired, they would all die on both sides. And then Rip did something unexpected. He lowered his gun. He stepped to the side and looked at something in the distance.

  Marcus kept his gun trained on Rip and said something. Rip didn’t like what was said.

  Sirens blared in the distance, and I knew what had happened.

  15

  Beast

  “For now, Rip, you’re free to go. Not because I’m being kind, but because I enjoy the hunt, motherfucker. Anytime now, that fire will hit your fuel depot, and your entire club will go up in flames.” I lowered my gun but was prepared to raise it and kill the rest of his club.

  “There were women and children in the club, Beast.” Rip’s face was priceless. “You killed innocent people.”

  “Tell your club to lower their weapons, and you can ride outta here and save what you can.” I waited for them to comply, and once they did, I grabbed Rip by the neck. He grabbed my wrist with his hands, and I lifted the son of a bitch off the ground. When the adrenaline is flowing, a man’s strength turns superhuman. As I squeezed tighter, he began flailing. When he started flailing, his club members, primarily officers, went for their guns.

  Using two hands around Rip’s neck, I held him in the air while the Brothers put his men down. When I was sure they were all dead, I dropped Rip to the ground in the blood of men he failed to lead.

  “Why?” Rip asked.

  “You started this war, Rip. I’m finishing it before I lose any more good people. And fuck you for thinking for one minute that I would kill women and children.” I stood over the piece of shit. “That’s the difference between you and me, Rip. I care. Yeah, we’re both assholes, but I care. Now, get the fuck outta my sight before I put you down like the rabid dog you are.”

  Rip struggled to his feet, eyed the dead men around him, and climbed on his bike. “This shit isn’t over, Beast. I’ve got a bullet, especially for you.”

  We watched Rip speed away and pass the van with two Brothers’ Prospects inside. We helped the Prospects load the bodies, and they drove away.

  “You can come out now,” I yelled. I waited for Skittles and the others to join us. “Can you please tell me what the fuck you were doing out here?”

  Skittles knew she was in deep shit. She’d risked lives to find Wendy, who risked lives by leaving the clubhouse. No insubordination was acceptable, especially when we had a war going on with a rival club.

  “I didn’t wanna take you away from what you were doing to help find Wendy,” Skittles said. She gave me her favorite puppy dog face. “I thought we were safe.”

  “You weren’t safe, and you fucked up.” I pointed at the others. “All of you go back to the fucking clubhouse and wait for me to return. Don’t leave the club. Don’t even go outside. Get in the fucking basement with the others. Am I clear?”

  Gigi raised her hand. “Charles is expecting me back in the morning.”

  I shared a what the fuck look with Skittles. “Take your ass back to the clubhouse like I said. If you’d like, I can have Diesel call Charles.” Diesel smiled. “Stop smiling, asshole,” I said to Diesel. I held up my hands. “Why’re you all still standing here? Get the fuck back to the clubhouse!”

  They started down the street, and I followed for a moment. “Skittles,” I said, “get over here.”

  “I’m sorry, Beast.” She only called me Beast when she was in trouble.

  I leaned forward and kissed her ear. “I’m going to bust that ass when I get it home.” I smacked her ass and sent her on her way.

  “You were going to let me call her boyfriend?” Diesel asked.

  “Fuck no,” I said. “But I want all of you to head back and ensure everything is secure.”

  “You going to find Rip?” Cinder asked. “We should go with you.”

  I shook my head. Confronting Rip again was something I needed to do on my own. “Most of his men are dead, and we put the fear of death into Prospects, members, and families. I think that’s enough to slow the club for now.”

  “Another chapter will come in and replace them,” Big Kentucky said. “this will never be over.”

  “We’ll try to make peace with whoever comes in. If they aren’t interested, we’ll also put them down.” I climbed on my bike. “There won’t be anything left of Rip when I finish with him. Not something my Brothers should see me do.” I climbed on my bike. “Make sure the clubhouse is good to go.” I pulled away and headed toward the Hell’s Messengers’ club, intent on ripping Rip apart.

  I stopped down the street from Hell’s Messengers and watched flames lick the evening sky. The fuel depot had caught fire and blown up, setting the entire place on fire. The fire department stood at the entrance, dumbfounded. They had to let it burn.

  Rip sat on his bike at the entrance, watching as well. He’d not played his cards properly. I wasn’t sure why he waited for me to leave Varner, but that was his biggest mistake. Maybe he wanted to impress his club. Maybe he was stupid. He turned and saw me watching. He started his bike and headed off in the opposite direction, understanding, no doubt, I would follow. I caught up on the edge of town. He pulled over, and so did I. We both climbed off our bikes, leaving the lights on.

  “Should have kept riding, Rip.”

  “This would happen eventually. Might as well get it over with.”

  “I’ll make sure your death is slow and painful, motherfucker.” I tightened my gloves and hit Rip when he came at me. I didn’t give it all I had because I wanted to toy with him for a bit. He went to the ground and then struggled to his feet. Blood ran from the cut over his right eye.

  “You hit like a pussy,” Rip said. He swung wildly, and for a moment, I felt bad. I didn’t usually fight people who were this weak. But it was well-known that Rip and his club preyed on the weak and innocent. “Stand still, motherfucker.”

  “I need to know something, Rip, before I end your life. Are you the one who killed the men in Sturgis? The ones I supposedly killed. I know you assholes were up there.” I hit him in the left eye, and another cut opened. Blood oozed from both sides of his face.

  Rip laughed. “Those three men were paid to kill you, Beast. They didn’t do a very good job, did they?”

  “Who the fuck would pay to have me killed beside you?” I started to throw a punch that would end our little conversation, but Rip had me intrigued. “Who?”

  “Who’s the one person that has been on the fringes of your life and then came back around when you left Varner?” He coughed up blood. “That old skank of an ex-old lady, dumbass.”

  I let the dumbass comment go and tried to process what Rip was saying. “Why would she do that?” He’d been talking to the old leg spreader, so maybe he had an answer.

  “She fucked you over real good, Beast. Real good.” Rip got up and brushed off his kutte, leaving behind blood streaks. “You go ahead and kill me because I know that bitch will get you in the end. She knows shit, Beast. She’ll rat you out again.”

  I grabbed Rip by the kutte collar and drew back my right hand. “Donna was the rat? She’s the one who gave the feds the information.”

  I dropped Rip to the ground, and he yelped like a dog. Why the fuck would she turn me over to the feds? Why not the whole club?

  “How’s it feel, asshole?” Rip said. “Fucker’s going back to Varner. When the guys on the inside find out what you did to Hell’s Messengers, they’ll split your asshole wide open, bitch.”

  “Time to die, Rip.” I reared back and hit the man square on the nose, feeling bones crush beneath my knuckles.

  Rip dropped to his knees, turning his head upward. “She ain’t the only rat, Beast.” He smiled a blood-filled smile. “Who do you trust, asshole?” He dropped to all fours. “You wanna know why she did it? Ask the son of a bitch who was nailing her before y’all got divorced.” He laughed and then dropped to the ground. For good measure, I brought down my size thirteen boot on his head, sending blood and brain across the ground.

  I walked away from Rip but not away from the information he’d provided. But who was Donna screwing that was so important? Why turn me over to the feds?

  Before climbing on my bike, I called Cinder and had him call an emergency church meeting. I wanted to find Donna and figure out why she’d turned rat. The divorce had been rough but straightforward. She turned me in for another reason. I needed that answer.

  On the way to the club, I finally understood why she’d brought Mark into my life. She was using him to get close to me so she could finish whatever the hell she had started. Leaving for Cali was a ploy to throw me off her tracks and keep me from figuring her out. What kind of mother treated her child the way she treated Mark?

  When I arrived, the Prospects opened the gate, and I pulled to the main building. Everyone was inside waiting. Although I’d not punished Rip the way I wanted, I’m glad I was alone. I need to keep the information I had close to the vest.

  “Families in the bunker?”

  “Safe and secure,” Cinder said. “Rip finished?”

  “Yeah.”

  “What’s wrong, Beast?” Big Kentucky asked. “Look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

  Kickstand appeared at the end of the table, smiling, sitting in his chair. He watched the officers around the table. That’s when it hit me. Donna would not have had the money to pay three men to kill me. She also wouldn’t have been able to go back and kill two of the men. It wasn’t in her. At least not back then. The man she had been screwing sat around the table before me. We weren’t a solid, cohesive group. The rat was in the room with me.

  “Beast,” Slash said. “You good, man?”

  “Let’s get to business,” I said. “Hell’s Messengers are essentially wiped out.” I stood and walked around the room. Kickstand never took his eyes off me. “We have one remaining problem that needs the attention of every man in this room. Donna. I want that skank found. She’s not left the fucking city.”

  “Why her?” TexMex asked.

  “Trust me on this one.” I sat down. “I want every Prospect out tonight looking for her. Tell those fuckers not to return to the club until she’s found. Tomorrow, all the families can go home. Then I want all of you out looking for her. Nobody kills her. Understood?”

  “Damn, Beast, what the fuck did she do?” Cinder asked.

  “She’s the fucking rat that sent me to Varner.” I hit the table with the gavel, and everyone left except Big Kentucky.

  “You didn’t tell your VP what the fuck was going on, so I don’t suspect you’ll be telling me.” Big Kentucky sat in the seat beside me. “Don’t let this eat you up and do something you’ll regret later. That kind of shit can kill a man.”

  I pointed at the empty chairs around the table. “Someone at this table had been banging Donna while we were still married. Whoever the son of a bitch is, helped her pay those three men to attack me in Sturgis. When those assholes couldn’t get the job done, Donna, or whoever the guy is sitting at this table, murdered two of the guys. They then turned over some evidence to the feds.”

  Big Kentucky remained silent for a long time. He didn’t want to think someone at the table would fuck me over like that, but they had. “I don’t know what to say, Beast.”

  “You do, so say what’s on your mind.”

  “Okay, Beast. That motherfucker isn’t me, so you just narrowed the possibilities.” He got up and walked around the table, rubbing his beard. He was conflicted. “Do you think Kickstand found out, and that’s why he was murdered?”

  I’d not considered that in the puzzle as I’d tried to piece together what the fuck was going on. Somehow, it was all connected, and Donna was the central piece. “Find Donna, and we find the truth.”

  “And when you find the rat sitting at the table?” Big Kentucky asked.

  “I’ll take care of him,” I said.

  “You know you need to bring that to the table and get a vote.” Big Kentucky stopped at the door. He shook his head. “Do what you want, but I wouldn’t bring it to the table if I were you.”

  “What I just told you stays in this room, BK.” I got up and joined him at the door. “When it’s time, I’ll let you know.”

  Skittles sat at the bar alone. I took her by the hand and led her down the hallway. We entered my room, and she went straight to the bed. I pulled off my kutte, and she began undressing. By the time I had everything removed, so had she.

  Before I got to the bed, Skittles got on all fours, moved to her elbows, face against the bed, her ass in the air. Nothing we ever did in bed got boring. There was always something new that kept us both interested. We rarely crawled into bed without ever saying a word to each other. Tonight was one of the nights we said nothing.

  I placed my hands on her ass cheeks and squeezed. As all men should do, I took a moment to admire my old lady. We were the perfect couple, the give-and-take equal despite the life we led. I moved my hands around her hips, and she reached back for my cock, squeezing and stroking. She enjoyed pleasing me as much as I enjoyed pleasing her. That’s all most of us really want out of life—that partner who would go the extra mile because their love really was that strong. That was us. We went the extra mile to please each other.

  Skittles pushed back, and I slipped inside her, stopping with my full length touching her soul. She pulled forward slowly, her pussy squeezing around my cock, and then slammed back against me, repeating the movement beneath a chorus of moans.

  She raised and leaned back, my dick still deep inside. I moved her head back, placing my face against her, my hand slipping to her wet pussy, bringing it up her smooth stomach, my arm across her breasts, hand squeezing a nipple.

  I rammed upwards, raising her off the bed. She moved her feet back and locked them around my calves, our hard movements in a seductive rhythm that made the room spin. I squeezed her nipples harder, and she cried out again.

  When I shoved her to the bed, her body shook, and a warm wash coated my cock. I grabbed her hips again and slammed her back against me, her ragdoll-like body surrendering.

  I throttled her repeatedly, enjoying the sounds of moans and whimpers. She’d been bad by going to the whore house and endangering others. I understood why. I accepted it the best I could, and I fucked her for the next thirty minutes until I came, and she was too spent to leave the bed.

  Yeah, we were perfect for each other.

  16

  Skittles

  I thought Marcus was gone when I finally found the strength to roll over. It was still dark outside, and I guessed I’d slept for a few hours. He had club business to attend to and would return when he could. No, he was still here, sitting in the chair across the room in the darkness, watching me.

  “Marcus,” I said. He didn’t answer. “Marcus. What’s wrong?”

  The light came on. I wish I could say I was surprised. She knew the clubhouse as well as anyone. Her sitting in the chair proved that.

  “I had to wait until the fucking was over and Marcus was gone,” Donna said. A Glock lay in her lap. “Good to know he can still give it like he used to.”

  “Why not kill me and get it over with,” I said.

  “Oh, I will. But we need to talk first.” She put her finger around the trigger but kept the gun on her lap. “Did he tell you?”

  “What? That you’re a skank?”

  “Enough of the name-calling, Melissa. Let's get down to brass tacks. Marcus is out looking for me now. When he finds me, he’s going to kill me.”

  “Why?”

  “So he didn’t tell you.”

  “Quit fucking playing games with me.” I got up and pulled clothes on. Donna raised the gun in case I had other things in mind. She explained Sturgis and having the two men killed. She refused to tell me who was helping her. “I could kill you right now, Melissa.”

  “Why don’t you?”

  “Because you’ll promise me you will take care of Mark. There’s no way out of this for me.” She turned her head as if listening for something.

  “He’s sleeping in the bunker in building two,” I said. Then I offered something I shouldn’t have. “How’d you get in here?”

  Donna shrugged. “Years ago, when the bunker was built, the club also had a series of tunnels built beneath the clubhouse grounds. They’ve never been used. There’s one beneath your bed, so I had to wait for you two to stop fucking.”

  “Leave, Donna. Go to Cali like you said you were and never come back.”

  “That’s not the way this works, Melissa. Marcus knowing I fucked around on him with one of his officers . . . he’ll never stop searching.”