Honey Whiskey (A Bastards MC Novel) (41 page)

“
So, now we wait.” He narrowed his
eyes. “Get her a drink and take care of her.” Then he turned his
attention to one of the other men.

Thing one brought me a glass of
lukewarm water, but I didn’t care. I gulped, hoping my stomach
wouldn’t revolt. As soon as it was gone, Thing two grabbed my arm
again and pulled me to the smaller of the downstairs bedrooms.
Closing and locking the door behind him, he gave me a sinister
smile.

I shook my head at him as I backed away from
the door. “No. I brought you here. My daughter will be here soon!”
I cried, grasping at anything I could to sway his mind from what he
was so blatantly thinking.

He only laughed as he pulled out a cigarette
and lit it. “Oh, don’t you worry. Boss man’ll take care of your
daughter.”

His implication made my stomach
heave, and I knew the water was coming back up. He closed the
distance between us, and I pressed up against the wall. “I’ll
scream,” I whispered, unable to talk any louder.

Maniacal laughter filled the room.
“God, I fucking hope so. I like it better when they
scream.”

*****

There was something going on. I
listened for a few minutes, trying to hear bits of the excited
conversation over the hurried movements of the men in the other
room. A car? I pushed myself off the floor with a painful groan,
positive one of them had said a car was coming. A car that could
hold anyone from Matty to the Police.

I limped my way to the dresser,
praying that someone had left clothes in one of the drawers. I
didn’t care what it was, but I needed to cover myself to hide the
marks from the last few encounters with Thing two. My jeans and
shirt had been destroyed during the session with both Thing one and
Thing two. It wasn’t just that I didn’t want other people to see
what had happened to me, but it was harder to ignore it and act
like it hadn’t happened if I could see them.

I almost cried with joy when I
found a men’s tee shirt and flannel pajama pants. They were too big
for me, but if I pulled the drawstring tight, they’d stay up. The
pain from the fabric rubbing over the wounds on my body made me
grab onto the bureau for support. I closed my eyes and focused on
my breathing. I would be ok.

Then the door barged open. “Look
who’s awake!” Thing one snarled. I was surprised he’d come to get
me. Thing two had barely left the room since we’d gotten here. I
apparently was his personal plaything. I swallowed and tried to
back away from him. “Oh, no you don’t. Boss wants you out
here!”

He pulled me into the open room
just as headlights turned the corner and headed up the hill that
led to the camp. I couldn’t see any of the other men. They must
have been outside or hiding inside, waiting to attack whomever was
in the single car. Thing one pushed me toward the
window.

“Let them see
you,” he demanded, releasing my arm but aiming a gun at me.

I did as commanded, not
recognizing the large SUV that had pulled in. The door opened, but
no dome light came on, so I still wasn’t sure who it was. I wanted
to beat on the window and scream a warning, telling the driver to
get back in and drive fast in the other direction.

Then, Will stepped into the
outside light and I cried out. No! He was not supposed to be here!
He needed to be somewhere far away because if I was going to die,
my kids needed at least one parent. He smiled up at me and gave me
a half-wave.

“Who is that?” A voice
hissed.

“My ex-husband,”
I breathed.

Will walked up the path and opened
the door, stepping inside. “Jo?” he called as if he hadn’t seen me
through the window.

I turned, not sure if I should
call to him, but before I could respond, Thing two and one of the
goons were invading the room, guns drawn, screaming at him to get
on the ground. He shook his head, not understanding what was going
on, before one of them struck him and forced him to kneel. Had
Matty sent him up to check on me? He probably didn’t even know he
was walking into a trap.

Where were the others, though?
Glancing out the window, I had my answer as I realized the other
three goons swarmed the car, guns drawn. Then Will was yelling at
me, telling me to get away from the window, before he was silenced
with another blow. I did as he said, moving so quickly Thing one
couldn’t grab me. The sound of glass shattering made me shriek, but
it was the thump as Thing one fell to the floor, and the expanding
puddle of blood underneath him, that had me sprinting across the
room, the long pajamas tripping me.

Moments turned into seconds, and
seconds stretched into minutes as pure pandemonium broke loose. My
ears rang as guns were fired too close to me, and there seemed to
be men running everywhere. An arm wrapped around my waist, lifting
my feet off the ground, and I shoved at it, digging my fingernails
into the uncovered skin, kicking whoever had me. I needed to get
outside and make a break for it. The pants I had on slipped down,
tangling my legs and making it harder to struggle. Another shot
went off, making me grab my ears in pain as the man holding me went
lax. I glanced behind me, positive it was going to be Thing
two.

Will’s form, slumped on the floor
at my feet, was my breaking point. I sunk down next to him, lost in
the chaos that surrounded me. Tears burned down my cheeks as I
shook him, screaming at him to open his eyes until my voice was
gone. I couldn’t even fight when Scott grabbed my hair, and I stood
simply to ease the pain he was causing, my bottoms falling
completely off. We were alone in the room, but I could hear the
guns and shouts from outside and knew there were others
around.

“You lying
bitch!” he growled. “You’ll pay for this.” The look in his eyes
told me that I was as good as dead unless I fought back. Without
his goons, he was just one man. One man currently without a
gun.

“
Did you think I’d actually lead
you to Matty?” I scoffed. His hand moved fast, as if to backhand
me, but I ducked and brought the heel of my palm up under his
nose.

Scott cackled as he wiped the
gushing blood away. “Never thought you’d be one to fight back.” He
charged again.

Nick’s words came
back.
Keep moving. Use what you
can
. I kicked at Scott’s knee the same
time I aimed a fist for his throat. I just needed to get him down
long enough to get out the door. He yelled in pain or surprise, I
wasn’t sure, but he managed to get a good punch in, and I flew
backwards. He was over me in a second, kicking my already bruised
side. I rolled onto my stomach, scrambling to my knees, and sent an
elbow into his groin. He fell back, but not before kicking me in
the back, making me fall forward onto the flagstone of the
fireplace.

The rock sliced my cheek, but I
was beyond feeling any pain. Turning over, I lifted my legs and
kicked his knees again. He fell forward onto me, not backward like
I had planned. His hands closed around my throat, but I wasn’t
giving up and grabbed his head, shoving thumbs into his eyes. He
let go of my throat to knock my hands away, and I took the chance
to slam my head into his nose. His hands were back around my neck
instantly, and he smashed my head down onto the
fireplace.

Nausea hit. For a second I
couldn’t see straight and there were three of him instead of one. I
wasn’t about to give up, but I was so woozy that it took me a
second to remember what was going on. Using my fingernails as
claws, I dragged them down his cheeks hard enough to bring blood.
He refused to ease up, and I realized too late that he was
winning—I couldn’t breathe.

Then, he was being lifted off me
and thrown across the room as if he didn’t weigh more than a sack
of potatoes. Tank loomed before me, saying words I couldn’t make
out. I struggled to sit up, pulling my shirt down to cover me. He
kneeled down, running hands over my bare legs, avoiding the recent
gashes. Then he was gently pulling my arms away from my sides,
seeing the cigarette burns and more lacerations. Finally, he moved
his fingers over my scalp, and I was surprised when one came back
bloody. I didn’t understand, but my lips refused to form the words
I struggled to say. He spoke again, but I could only stare because
I couldn’t hear a thing he said. Slowly, as if not to spook me, he
leaned closer and slipped a hand under my knees. Then I was in the
air, supported by a giant teddy bear who kept dropping quick little
kisses on my temple.

I leaned into him, feeling the
beat of his heart against his chest. I was safe. He would die
before he let Scott get to me again. I lifted my head, suddenly
terrified, wondering where the evil creep had gone. Rob and Matty
were on the other side of the room, Scott kneeling on the floor
before them. There were Bastards everywhere, and I honestly didn’t
know how or when they’d gotten there.

Matty turned towards us, speaking
inaudibly, but he didn’t come to me. His eyes traveled over me, but
never connected with mine. He nodded to us then turned back to the
man in front of him. Tank kept moving, and I closed my eyes, not
wanting to see Will’s body. I felt like I was floating through the
air, suspended on a cloud. Suddenly we stopped and I was lowered a
little, but Tank’s arms never left me. A door slammed, making me
jump, and I opened my eyes in panic. We were in the safety of the
car, where it was blissfully quiet and dark, with only the dim glow
from the outside light. Tank smiled down at me.

“
I got you, L.K. You’re safe. I’m
gonna get you help.”

The sobs that wracked my body
hurt, but I couldn’t keep them in. I cried for Taylor and Jessie,
and the pain they’d endured. I cried for the woman I’d seen
murdered. I cried for Will. I had loved him for almost twenty
years, and even though we’d had our problems, he was a part of me.
I cried for my kids, because I didn’t know how to make everything
ok ever again. And, I cried for me because Matty hadn’t come to me.
I didn’t know what I looked like right now, but I’d seen the horror
on his face. He would love me forever, but, after this, how could
he ever want me again? I grabbed Tank’s shirt, fisting it, and let
it all go.

Chapter 37

Jo

I stood pressed against the cold
glass of the window as I slid the ring back and forth over my
necklace. Hawk had found the ancient Claddagh somewhere in the camp
and had bought me a new chain so I could have it with me. Playing
with it had become my new quirk, my nervous tick as my mom called
it, to help pass the time.

I loved this view, especially at
night. The Portland skyline was gorgeous all the time, but after
dark, the lights came on and gave it a whole new look. There was a
game at Hadlock Field tonight, and I squinted to see if I could
make out any of the players. Hey, there had to be some perks to
spending a week in the hospital, right?

I was being released tomorrow, and
I couldn’t wait. Not that it was awful here. I was able to wear my
own clothes instead of a hospital gown and the food was more like
catered room service than anything. But, I was ready to go home and
see my kids.

I’d been allowed to have visitors;
hell, I’d had a steady stream of them over the past seven days. My
parents had been here when I woke up, my dad crying with relief.
Teagan had come and read to me from her gossip magazines every day.
At least two Bastards had been here around the clock, barely giving
me five minutes to myself, and barged in even when it was just a
nightmare making me cry out. Cris, her arm in a sling, had made the
trip up twice. Even Will had been wheeled in by a nurse, making me
break down when I saw him for the first time and realizing he
wasn’t dead. But, the four people I wanted to see most in the world
hadn’t come.

Becky, much to my mother’s
displeasure, had the kids. Dean was with her. They told me he
hadn’t left my kids’ sides through this entire ordeal. He had taken
a break once they were back in school and brought me down the get
well cards they’d made. He and Bex told them that Will and I had
been in a bad car accident and while we were going to be ok, we
needed time to heal. I had gotten to talk to them on the phone a
few times, but I didn’t want to scare them with my ability to just
start crying for no reason.

Even the police had visited me.
I’d told them what I could remember. My memory got a little sketchy
around the time the Bastards showed up, but I didn’t feel the need
to tell them that. I simply explained I couldn’t remember anymore
and they didn’t push. I’m sure the fact that Jon Greenwood and Hawk
were in my room at the time encouraged the detectives to be gentler
than they would normally be.

I didn’t want to discuss what
happened, not even with the hospital psychologist. The problem with
her was that she was trying to social work the social worker.
There’s a reason shrinks don’t go to other shrinks, and it’s not
because they don’t need help. It’s because hearing the words you
say to clients repeated back to you doesn’t help. I knew what I had
to do to heal and that wasn’t going to change because someone else
told me to do it.

I moved slightly, sliding my body
sideways, and caught the reflection of a man leaning in my doorway
behind me. I whirled, seeing the face I’d missed dreadfully.
“Matty.” He didn’t move, just raked his eyes over me. “How long
have you been there?”