Wild: Tiger's Blood MC (22 page)

Elliot

Tony, Nero, and I barely got away from the desert clearing before the cops showed up. Fortunately, I navigated the way through brush and rocks, steering the van expertly around a giant hole in the ground and a hill that would have really held us back.

Tony and Nero were high-fiving in the backseat, whooping and hollering about how we’d escaped. I didn’t feel so fucking great, myself; even though we’d gotten away with both Calvin and the guns, it wasn’t really what I could call a success. After all, Persephone had betrayed me. Or she hadn’t been able to convince that bitch in her club that my guys hadn’t been involved with the rape.

Tony had cut the ropes around Calvin’s wrists and ankles. Now he was sitting in the passenger seat of the van, rubbing his wrists and trying to get the blood flowing in his hands again. While he looked a little weak and hungry, I knew that he’d be just fine as soon as we got a beer and a cheeseburger down his throat. He was also being much nicer than he had before, as though the assault had taught him some manners.

“Thanks,” Calvin muttered when I passed him a big thermos of water. “Did you guys think they were gonna do anything to me?” He swallowed hard, making his Adam’s apple bob. “I mean, I wasn’t scared,” he added quickly in a casual voice. “I wasn’t really worried about what they’d do.”

I rolled my eyes. “You’re fine, Calvin, and that’s what matters,” I said as I reached over and cuffed him on the shoulder. “You made it through, man, that’s what counts.”

Calvin grinned at me. “You still mad, boss?”

I stared at him for a second, then shook my head. Clouds of dust were billowing around the van and making it hard for me to see out the windshield. I was glad for the distraction; I didn’t want to keep staring at Calvin. I wasn’t mad at him anymore, but I couldn’t stop thinking about the Amazons and what they’d done to get us in this mess in the first place. After all, it had been Persephone’s fault.

Or had it?

“Calvin,” I said sharply. “When was the last time you heard from Anya?”

Calvin swallowed hard. He took another long drink from the thermos and wiped droplets of water away from his chin. “It’s been a while,” he admitted slowly. “Maybe, like, two days before Dima and his guys took me?”

I nodded. “We need to get to the Amazons,” I said sharply, grabbing the wheel and turning it sharply. I was maybe an hour’s drive away from their clubhouse, but I had the worst feeling that something had gone wrong. After all, I hadn’t heard from Persephone since the previous day. If Vero was really and truly up to something…

“Boss,” Tony said sharply as the van bounced over the roads. “What the fuck are we doing? Where are we going?”

“We gotta get to the Amazons,” Calvin said. He turned around in the seat and stared at Nero and Tony. “Boss thinks they know something about them cops who showed up.”

I shook my head, feeling sick. “Something’s going on with them,” I told the guys in a warning tone. “That Persephone, she doesn’t trust about half of her girls. You’d better listen to her and everything she says, got it?” I glared at the side of Calvin’s head. “You’re not allowed to run off and fuck Anya. I know you just got out, but you’ll have time to catch up with her later.”

The van sped through a sleepy desert town. My eyes ached from all of the warm, brown scenery around me.  Suddenly, I wished that we were heading out of town. I wished that we were going towards a mission in the hills, or anything that would mean stepping away from the Amazons for a goddamned minute. I was still so angry with Persephone, but I was starting to understand that in order to really fix everything that was going on, we’d have to put aside all of our personal problems.

“Calvin,” I said sharply. “Can you call Anya? See what’s happening at the clubhouse.” I grimaced as I tightened my grip on the steering wheel. Considering what Vero and some of the other women thought, I knew that we’d probably be in for a fight when we rolled up to face the Amazons.

“She didn’t answer,” Calvin said. He dropped his phone into his lap and gave me a look of disgust. “You don’t think she found another boyfriend, do you?”

I laughed. “Fuck that, Calvin,” I said sharply. “Right now, we have to let them know we’re coming. Nero! Tony! Look at those guns we got—do we have any ammo?”

“Yeah,” Tony barked from the back seat. “We’ve got tons.”

“Good,” I said as I pushed my foot harder on the gas pedal. “We’re gonna need them.”

When we pulled into the Amazons’ clubhouse parking lot, I noticed a couple of things. For one, I didn’t see very many bikes. There were only two or three, but the parking lot was full of skid marks. I frowned as I got out of the car. Dima had supplied us well—we had enough stuff to stay in business for maybe six months, maybe even a year if we did
really
well. Tony and Nero and I had armed ourselves to the teeth. Even Calvin had a gun stuck in the back of his waistband and a pistol in his hand.

“Come on,” I said as I directed the guys closer to the building. “Come on, come on, we gotta get closer to the inside.”

Tony and Nero glanced at each other. “Boss, isn’t this dangerous?” Nero asked. “Didn’t they just call the cops on us? What the fuck are we doin’ hangin’ around here?”

I shook my head impatiently. “They didn’t,” I said. “They had a member who did, and she’s fucking crooked. I have to tell Persephone what happened, I have to get to her as soon as possible.”

Nero and Tony stared blankly at me. “Man, I don’t know if this makes sense,” Tony complained. He kicked at the ground with the toe of his boot. “I mean, man, I wanna help and all. But what if they just get angry, like they did when we showed up for that party?”

“Yeah,” Calvin said. He rubbed his arms with his hands and looked dour. “I mean, I wanna see Anya. But I don’t know what her deal is, and I don’t wanna go barging in.”

I sighed. “Come on,” I said, gesturing for Calvin to follow me. After a few seconds he walked closer and knocked on the door.

There was a lapse of about ten seconds until it was opened by a brunette girl. She was glaring at me. “What the fuck are you doing here?” She narrowed her eyes. “I don’t wanna see you around.”

“Anya!” Calvin exclaimed. He pushed past me and wrapped the surly-looking girl in his arms, pressing his mouth against hers and shoving his tongue inside. She squealed and wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him close and pressing her tight body against his. “I’m so fucking glad to see you,” Calvin murmured into Anya’s neck. She pushed away from him and then looked at me.

“I’m Elliot,” I explained. “I lead the Tiger’s Blood. I need to speak with Persephone. There’s been…well, there’s been some kind of accident.”

Anya frowned. “Persephone’s not here,” she said softly. “She just left.”

My phone vibrated in my pocket and I reached down to pull it up. “Hello?”

It was Persephone. But when I answered the phone, I didn’t hear her voice. There was an odd ringing sound, like someone had picked up her phone from the ground and called my number. I got a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach. Before I could even hang up, Anya and Calvin pounced on me.

“What happened?” Anya was looking at me with big, scared eyes. “That’s what I was trying to tell you,” she said, swallowing hard. “Persephone came and we talked and, um, we cleared some stuff up. Then when Vero showed up, Persephone made her promise that she wouldn’t call the cops. They fought about it but Vero lost, and she and Lydia left.”

I frowned. “Who the fuck is Lydia?”

Anya blushed and glanced away. She got up on the tips of her toes and leaned towards Calvin, whispering in his ear. After a few seconds, his expression turned stony.

“She’s the girl who was attacked,” Calvin said blankly. “She was the one who was raped.”

A sick feeling settled over my stomach and I clenched my teeth. “And she left with Vero?”

Anya nodded. “Yeah,” she said. “And now you’re getting creepy calls from Persephone’s phone? Did something happen?”

I nodded. “Something must have fucking happened,” I growled. “I don’t understand what, though.”

“Vero’s trying to ruin the club,” she said. “Oh god,” she added, her cheeks turning white and bloodless. “Do you think she tried to hurt Sephy?”

My hands made fists at my sides. “Probably,” I muttered. “Hold on.” I pulled my phone out, examining the call. It had only lasted for thirty seconds. I wondered if Persephone was in danger, if somehow she’d gotten stuck in the desert. I wondered if she was alone, or if that snake Vero had found her. Most of all, I hoped that she would be okay. But I had no way of knowing.

“Man, look,” Calvin said. He pointed down at my hand. My phone was vibrating with a call coming in from an unknown number. “You should answer it.”

I glared at him before swiping my phone open and holding it up to my ear. “Hello?”

There was a dark female laugh that made me shiver. “Hello, Elliot,” the voice said. “I bet you know who this is.”

I closed my eyes and tilted my head back. “Vero?”

There was another laugh. “You got it, baby,” she growled in a low tone. “And I bet you can guess why I’m calling?”

“Because you want my MC fucking ruined?” I snapped into the phone. Anger coursed through my veins and I found myself feeling more vulnerable than I had in a long time. “What the fuck do you want?”

“I have Persephone,” Vero said. “And unless you give up all of the weapons you just bought—
every single one
—I’m not telling you where she is.”

“Fine,” I snapped. And that was it; in a moment, in an
instant
, everything that I’d worked to build for years was gone. The profits that Tiger’s Blood would have made over the next year, gone. Money and repairs for our clubhouse, gone.

Everything was gone.

Persephone

For a time, I was asleep. I was dreaming that I was with Elliot again, and it was all those years ago. Instead of thinking about how fucked up everything was, I could only focus on all the beauty all around me. We were riding together, on the same bike, and my face was pressed into the back of his neck. I could smell his sweat and his cologne and the faint odor of smoke, and more than anything in the world all I wanted was for Elliot to stop the bike, turn around, and kiss me deeply.

But instead, Elliot drove faster and faster. I could feel the bike speeding up and changing gears under my legs, and I clung to his back as tightly as I could. We whipped through the trees and the forest like it was nothing, like we were gliding on air.

“Grace,” a voice whispered in my ear. It sounded like Elliot, but that was impossible because he was sitting in front of me. “Grace, I love you.” Now I knew that it was Elliot, and it made sense. “This is a dream,” Elliot’s voice whispered in my ear, the dark tones caressing my skin. “This is a dream, Grace, and you need to wake up.”

“No,” I said, shaking my head from one side to the other. My head felt strangely heavy and I realized that my helmet extended from my neck all the way down my sides. Instead of thinking this was strange, it actually seemed kind of nice. “This is weird,” I said back to Elliot. “Why does my helmet fit like this?”

“It’s supposed to fit that way,” Elliot said. I felt his hand stroking the back of my neck and suddenly, I was no longer afraid. “It’ll protect you in case we get in a crash. I wouldn’t want you to ever be hurt, Grace. That would absolutely destroy me.”

And Elliot knew best. I closed my eyes and rested my face against the back of his jacket as we sped through the forest roads. Soon, we were deep in the forest and I could no longer see the sky. Sunlight dappled the road, the rocks, and the trees around us. I breathed in and felt content—the smell of trees, mixed with Elliot, had always made me feel calm. It reminded me of one of the first times we’d ever snuck out together and gone to the woods.

As we drove further and further into the forest, I felt a chill come over my skin. Rubbing my hands on my arms, I realized that it was getting late. And dark. A bat flew across our path and the sunlight had suddenly changed to moonlight. Even though I was with Elliot and completely safe, I began to feel afraid and scared.

“Don’t be frightened, Grace,” Elliot said, as if reading my mind. “I promise, everything’s going to be just fine.” He stopped the motorcycle  and pulled me into his arms. Elliot felt even stronger and more protective than usual, and I nestled happily into his chest. Before I knew it, his fingers were dipping under my chin and nudging my head up for a kiss.

“I love you,” I whispered to Elliot. “I’m so sorry about everything.” I pulled away and gestured towards the empty air. “I never wanted to hurt you, I never wanted to do that thing.”

“What thing?” Elliot stepped closer. He held out his arms again and I dove into them, rubbing my face against his neck. “What are you talking about?”

I wanted to confess. I knew that Elliot needed to know or else he’d be really angry, but I couldn’t make myself tell him. Snuggling in his arms felt too safe, too good to even begin talking about something dangerous.

“Nothing,” I murmured as I wrapped my arms around his strong torso and squeezed hard. “You’re my favorite person. I love you so much, Elliot.”

“I love you, too,” Elliot whispered. He kissed the top of my head, my temples, my hair, until I was tingling with love and pleasure. Arousal flowed through my body like oil as I turned my head up to meet his face. Elliot’s lips were soft and full and I moaned softly as they pressed against mine. When I felt his tongue slip between my lips, I knew I was in heaven.

“Oh, Grace,” Elliot moaned. He slid his hands down my back and firmly squeezed my ass. It sent shockwaves of pleasure through my body and I shuddered happily at his touch. Elliot knew how to touch me like no one else ever had—or could. I was convinced he was truly the only man who could make me happy.

“Elliot,” I moaned softly, tangling my hands in his blond hair and pulling his head down towards me. “Oh, let’s run away. Let’s never come back to LA, let’s forget about everything and have it be just the two of us.”

Elliot grinned at me. “Baby, that’s all I’ve ever wanted,” he said in a husky voice. He stared at me in a way that made me feel he was looking at me naked. “That’s what we’re doing, isn’t it? We’re running away.”

I nodded. I hadn’t thought of it before, but now it made sense. We were running away. Because we loved each other, and that was the only way we were going to be together.

“But there’s one thing you have to do first,” Elliot said. He smirked at me and I blushed hotly, thinking he was going to ask me to suck his cock or let him fuck me. I shivered deliciously. Elliot never had to ask—he knew that I’d always do exactly what he asked of me.

“Of course,” I said as sweetly as I could, stepping forward and lowering my eyes. “What is it?”

“Tell me why you ruined this club!” Elliot roared.

I gasped, stumbling back and falling on my butt. Sharp stones pierced my jeans and scratched at my skin until I could feel myself beginning to bleed. I tried to scramble away on my hands and feet, like a crab, but the ground was too rocky and I yelped as a stone cut into my thumb.

“Elliot,” I whimpered. “You hurt me, why did you do that?”

But when I looked into Elliot’s face, it was no longer Elliot. The person standing in front of me was none other than Vero, my arch nemesis. She was just as tall and muscular as Elliot, and maybe even stronger from the look of hatred in her black eyes. As Vero stepped forward towards me, I scuttled back, crying out in pain as the sharp rocks continued to abuse my body. All of the arousal and safe, calm feelings in my body had completely disappeared and I felt more terrified and afraid than I’d ever felt in my life. All I wanted to do was get away from this monster, this creature, and find Elliot. If I lived, I’d find Elliot. I vowed right then and there to never leave his side ever again.

“Persephone,” Vero said with a nasty grin on her face. She stepped closer and kicked me hard in the gut. I cried out and clutched my stomach, rolling over onto my belly. “Persephone, you bitch,” Vero said calmly. “And what the fuck kind of name is Persephone, anyway? You read some Greek mythology in high school, and now you think you can fucking rule a motorcycle club?” She threw her head back and laughed viciously. “Persephone got kidnapped by Hades, and then she had to spend six months out of every year in the underworld,” Vero said. The grin on her face spread wide, almost supernaturally. “She was a fucking dope who ate the pomegranate,” Vero added. “You wanna be dumb like her?”

“Vero, I’m sure we can work this out,” I begged, getting to my knees and staring up at her. For some reason, I could get to my feet. Then, I realized that I was frozen to the ground—Vero was somehow keeping me captive, walled in ice. Shivers crawled up my spine and I began to taste metallic fear in my mouth. I yelled loudly, but my scream only echoed in the trees. “Vero, please!”

Vero grinned and walked around me in a slow, deliberate circle. “Persephone, you have to realize that you’re my prisoner now,” she said in a low, deep voice. “You’re mine, and you never get to escape.” She winked at me and sucked her teeth. “You have to do whatever I want, you realize that?”

“No,” I said defiantly, shaking my head and staring down at the ground. Maybe if I prayed, maybe if I thought hard enough, Elliot would be able to come and rescue me. “No, Vero,” I added. “I’m not doing that. I’m not living as your slave. I refuse!”

Vero laughed again before coming so close that I could smell her—a rank, sweaty scent, amplified by smoke and engine grease. “You told me once that I’d lead the Amazons,” she said casually, and my heart sank. “You told me that I’d be the leader, that everything would be worth it as long as I followed you.” Vero paused and the sick feeling in my stomach grew more intense. “You swore that everything would be okay. You swore it, you bitch. And now I’m here, having to do everything on my own because I can’t count on you as a friend anymore!”

“Vero, it’s not like that,” I insisted weakly. “You know I’d never do anything to hurt you! You know how much I used to care for you!”

“It was never enough,” Vero sneered. “But don’t worry, Persephone. I’ve figured out the way I wanna get my revenge on you.” She smiled at me and I felt a chill of fear spike in my heart. “I figured out exactly what I’m gonna do. I’m gonna hunt down your precious Elliot like a dog.”

In the distance, there came the howling of wolves. My skin prickled with fear and I glanced at Vero’s face in absolute horror. Surely she didn’t mean to chase Elliot down with a pack of wolves! Surely she wouldn’t ever do something so awful, something so hateful!

“Vero!” I cried loudly. “Don’t do this! Don’t hurt Elliot! I’ll do anything you want! I’ll give you anything! All of the money, the whole club, everything’s yours!”

Vero threw her head back and cackled loudly. “Oh, I’m gonna do it,” she said, winking at me again. Despair overwhelmed my body and I began to sob loudly. “I’m gonna do it,” Vero repeated, louder than before. “He’s out there, running like a wild dog, and these wolves are gonna tear him apart.” Vero reached down until her sweaty forehead was pressed against mine and I could smell the rotten stink of her breath. “And then I’m gonna use his cock as a hood ornament,” Vero said. “I’ve always wanted to do that. No one ever took me seriously, but after I ruin the Tiger’s Blood, Vero will be the name on everyone’s lips.”

“No,” I begged. Tears clouded my vision and my nose filled with hot, wet snot. “No, please don’t hurt him! Please don’t hurt Elliot! Hurt me! Kill me instead! I don’t care!”

“Oh, I will,” Vero said. She kept her voice low and soft. “I’m gonna hurt you more than you ever realized I could, Persephone. It’s not going to be slow, and it’s going to be the worst pain you’ve ever felt. Are you ready to beg for it? Are you ready to beg for your own death?”

A sharp kick to the gut made me open my eyes. The air around me was hot and still and try as I might, I still couldn’t move either of my arms or my legs. It took me a moment to realize that my arms were still bound behind my back, and that the more I tussled and fought, the tighter the bonds became.

There was a strip of black cloth tied tightly over my eyes so tightly that it was giving me a headache. Every time I tried to open my eyes under the blindfold, hot, salty tears squeezed through my lids and dripped down my cheeks.

There was a huge lump in my throat. Whenever I swallowed, I could feel it bobbing up and down, threatening me to cry.

“You look like a pathetic little girl when you’re trussed up like that.” Vero’s voice was low and amused and I shuddered, remembering the vivid dream I’d just had. “Say, you don’t look like the leader of the Amazons at all. You look almost like a captive.”

“Because that’s what I am,” I said bitterly. My mouth was dry and it felt like the soft tissue inside would split apart just from the sheer effort of talking to Vero. “You know you did this to me, Vero. You know this all your fault.”

Vero laughed savagely. She threw her head back in the air and cackled. “You’re right, I did, honey,” she said. “And I have a little story to tell you.”

My stomach, anxious as it was, did a flip-flop at the sound of Vero’s statement. I couldn’t help but shudder as I felt her footsteps circling around me on the ground, like she was a vulture and I was already dead.

“Vero, cut the shit,” I said softly. “This isn’t worth fighting about. You can have everything you want. You can have the club, no problem. Take whatever money we have. Just let me go, and don’t hurt Elliot.”

“Elliot?” I heard the disdain in Vero’s voice. “Elliot, really? You wanna save your precious fucking little boyfriend?”

“He’s not my boyfriend,” I said sharply. My voice quavered with fear, hunger, and exhaustion. “He’s just a friend, but I know he’s a good man. He didn’t do this, Vero. He doesn’t deserve to go to prison for a crime he didn’t even commit.”

Vero laughed. I felt her hands twisting into my hair and ripping the blindfold away. I cried out—the fabric had been tied to my hair and Vero was now standing with a big chunk of it in her hand. I could feel where my scalp had ripped and now was bleeding. I glared at Vero, feeling hatred course through my veins. Never had I felt like this before, never had someone I’d loved so dearly managed to upset me so fucking much.